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"How much better would games such as Mortal Kombat or Streetfighter [sic] be if you were ELECTROCUTED each time you were hit!" No, that's not a rhetorical question (though our answer would be "not at all better") ... it's the web site introduction to the Mindwire V5, a new British product that replaces those annoyingly rough rumbling controller sensation with a series of gentle, soothing electric shocks. Ahhh, bliss.

Using a special controller converter (pictured) and a series of five adhesive pads, the V5 sends force-feedback activated shocks that the web site compares to those of a muscle toning machine. While the device will work with practically any game, the site recommends using it to enhance fighters and first-person shooters (just be sure to stay away from Rez)

Though the site advertises plenty of safety features, the litany of warnings makes us worry about how safe this device actually is. It's probably moot for us, though --- at £99 (about $196), this one is only for well-off masochists.

Also see: Military sim "shoots" back

[Via Pocket Lint, Thanks Foolio]

If gold is your thing -- your luster of choice, you might say -- then NDS Central's latest addition to its SHOCK! series of replacement DS Lite cases is just what you need. Unlike the Phantom Hourglass edition DSes, these Magnum Gold shells reportedly contain real gold, having actually gone through the gold-plating process. The online shop plans to release its Magnum Golds early next year and is already accepting preorders for the cases for $59.90.

If you're going to spend that much cash modifying your DS to show off your rapper status, why not go all out and glue on some gaudy rhinestones? While you're at it, you should have the system engraved with big script letters: "Doing It Big." When people ask what exactly it is that you're "doing big," you can tell them that it's your bad taste.

Of course we recommend buying DS games and accessories for everyone on your shopping list -- whether they want them or not. But, ironically, the hardest people to give the gift of DS are the people who love the DS the most -- people who live the DS. In a word, us. Game bloggers. Well, not us specifically, but people like us who are far too enthusiastic about the Nintendo DS.

We're so nuts about the DS that we devote most of our lives to talking about it. We know pretty much everything out there, and we spend entirely too much time building our collections. We're emblematic of exactly the kind of brutally insane people for whom it's nearly impossible to shop. That's why we've put together this handy guide to the kind of stuff we would love, but wouldn't necessarily think to buy ourselves. Not because we want you to buy gifts for us, although we certainly won't stop you if you think we deserve a little token of appreciation.

See what we did there? We've given you the gift of an obvious opening through which to insult us! 'Tis the season!

The notion of paying overtime is absurd for many employees and observers in the gaming industry, but Free Radical (Haze) tells Develop magazine that they're looking to change perceptions of working in the industry by offering overtime pay to employees. Steve Ellis of Free Radical says the days of "bonuses that pay off your mortgage are long gone" and that they've "decided to start paying people for the work that they do -- even when that work is outside their normal hours."

Ellis says that the industry as a whole will eventually go this way, but they prefer to do it sooner rather than later. Although there are so many companies who are guilty of not paying their employees for working extra hours, EA gets picked on more often than not because of the infamous EA Spouse saga. Of course EA's image has changed recently to become a great place to work according to Fortune Magazine. Now please pardon us while we check with our local priest to make sure there wasn't an update on Hell freezing over we missed.

Portable game systems are completely self-contained. Unlike home systems, which require a TV, multiple outlets, and a separate controller unit, handhelds contain everything you need to play games, built right in to the unit. They are self-reliant. They are also-- and this goes without saying-- portable. They're designed to be small so you can carry them around.

Why, then, do jackasses feel the need to make accessories for handhelds? Accessories needlessly add bulk to Game Boys, effectively exiling them from casual pocket-drops. Here are five of the most pointless things you could ever graft onto a handheld system. We're giving a lot of attention to the Game Boy Color, as it turned out to be a focal point for idiotic doodads. Hopefully, these companies are still tired from their furious crap-assembling, and will largely pass over the DS.

The past few DS Lite mods we've featured didn't venture far beyond lodging LEDs into the handheld's face, so we're glad to have a twist to that formula for today. AcidMods forum administrator F00 f00 installed light-emitting diodes into the back of his portable. To emphasize its glow, he used what looks like Onyx Black casing and a clear replacement shell for the DS's frame.

How long will it be before we see a DS Lite kitted with ambient lighting? Staring into those bright screens while you're in the dark puts a lot of strain on your eyes, and there are times when turning on a light just isn't an option (e.g. like when you're hiding in a blanket because there are ghosts floating around your bed). Put on some sunglasses and check past the post break for more photos of F00 f00's mod.

It's the stuff great urban legends are made of: A drunk University of Wyoming student supposedly knocked himself out and earned a trip to the hospital after urinating on a still-plugged-in PS2 at an off-campus party. The story got pushed by Fark on Monday and is slowly making its way into the mainstream media, getting a mention yesterday on Fox News Live.

We're a bit incredulous. First of all, it's arguable whether or not the physics of the story would even work. The popular Discovery TV show Mythbusters determined that it's nearly impossible to get shocked by peeing on the supercharged third rail of a train track because the urine stream isn't consistent enough to carry a charge. Even if the drunken party-goer somehow did get close enough for a solid stream, we find it hard to believe that the measly power output of a PS2 would knock someone out for a full ten seconds.

The original report itself doesn't exactly inspire confidence, either -- Fun Tech Talk is not exactly a well-known and respected source for news. While the post reads like an AP brief, there's no link to any outside sources or mention of who originally reported the story. There are some journalistic inconsistencies too -- the party supposedly happened late Saturday night, but the dateline says it was written that same Saturday.

The final nail in the coffin? None of the three students mentioned in the piece turn up on the University of Wyoming's online student directory.

While we'd like to believe in the poetic justice for anyone stupid enough to pee on a game system, we've got to nip this one in the bud. As the Mythbusters themselves might say, this one is busted.

When we last previewed Xtreme Enterprise's replacement shells for the Nintendo Wii, we only caught a glimpse of the prototype faceplate and side panels, leaving us to wonder how the completed product would turn out. The Singapore-based company finally released photos of the assembled casing earlier today, daring us to find a flaw with the SHOCKii's design. We think you'll agree after seeing them that there isn't one to be found.

The shells are constructed with composite polycarbonate and ABS plastic, fitting together exactly like the Wii's original frame. Xtreme Enterprise has had a lot of time to perfect its process, using the same material for its Nintendo DS and nunchuck replacement casing. You can pre-order the full replacement shells in five different colors: Cool Black, Dreamy Blue, Strat Clear (semi-transparent), Dynamic Red, and Astro Yellow. All of the cases are priced at $69.90.

Head past the post break for photos of the SHOCKii's Cool Black shell.

While most are satisfied with the sterile white casing of their Wii, many still pine for the variety of color options Nintendo originally promised. Gamers looking to add a bit of spice to their vanilla systems will welcome SHOCKii, a collection of replacement Wii cases from the same people behind the CHUCKii nunchuck shells and SHOCK DS Lite cases.

Singapore-based XTreme Enterprise has put up the first photos of their prototype "cool black" casing. The ABS plastic faceplate, buttons and controller panels manage to not look cheap at all, despite the planned pricing being equivalent to "a Wii/DS game." The final SHOCKii cases will be available in Astro Yellow, Dreamy Blue, Dynamic Red, Cool Black and Strat Clear.

Remember when we told you about the guy who sanded down his DS with an emery board? You know, he didn't like how it shined. Yeah, that one! Well that poor sucker should have waited because SHOCK! has a replacement shell that is black without the shine.

According to the page, having this shell will help you attract the beautiful and tasteful, just like yourself. Yeah.

[Thanks JC!]

We've posted case-mods for the DS and DS Lite before, but most of said mods usually involve a skin or cover of some sort, leaving the original color (probably a bland white, right?) still seething underneath, like an angry hornet. If you've got the guts to mess around with some hardware, however, then listen up. Project SHOCK! is a full hard-case mod of the DS Lite, soon to be available in several different colors. The material is made of composite polycarbonate and plastic, so the standard "cheap feel" you get with standard mods won't apply here.

They're offering several colors for preorder, including yellow, white, black, red, blue, and our favorite, clear. They check in at a pricey $35.00 each, and require some additional tools as well. They've posted a tutorial for those interested in how to perform the mod, so check it out to see if you think you can handle the job.

[Thanks, Creamsugar!]