These are tips and tricks that aren't necessarily hacks per se but are designed to make your gaming life a little bit easier.
10. This is more of a standard feature but it's still a trick that not a lot of people know about using the vita as a PS4 dual shock controller. If you're in a bind and you want to play with a friend and you don't feel like dropping 50-60 bucks on a new controller, you can use the Vita in remote play as a second controller.
This works for pretty much al games on the PS4 console and all you have to do is enable remote play and sign in as a guest. And honestly once you get used to it, the Vita is not bad a controller. Sure you have to deal with the implementation of L2 and R2 on the back touchscreen, once you do that you've got a second controller for free… well, not for free. You get what we mean.
9. This one's a bit more weird and outside the box but it's more of a physical hack. Opening an old controller and storing a flash drive in it to store games. This is a pretty sweet way to have a controller that you can bring around and plug into a friend's computer or your laptop on the go and be able to play all your games because they're stored conveniently on your controller.
And if you're a true computer hacking genius and a master solderer you can use this for your PlayStation and your Xbox, too. There's a bunch of instructions plastered on reddit. Do it at your own risk, though.
8. Thsi might seem like a no brainer but for a lot of console noobs, maybe it's not. Wired internet connection is key. Get an ethernet wire and plug in your console, dummy. It's the only way to improve your ping and reduce lag. You can put tinfoil on your wireless router but you don't want to look like a goof.
If you're serious about your games, you should have wired everything. We're surprised at how many people do not know this.
7. Embrace the game mode feature on your TV. Game mode is a screen setting feature on most modern TVs that allow you to remove input lag and in turn minimize the visual lag between the game and the screen. So if you're a hardcore pixel perfect person about getting headshots in a game like Call of Duty, game mode might be the way to go, although on some TVs it doesn't make a big difference–on some it does. It's definitely worth checking out and tweaking your settings to get the absolute visual best from your TV for your game.
The easiest way to get the absolute best settings for your game is to get the serial number from your TV and google it. Honestly, there's a ton of people on forums who've tried to do the same. You can figure it out from there. You might have spent a thousand dollars from there, you might as well get it looking the best for your game console.
6. Be an absolute baller and buy your games on the go. If you're busy person on the go with a job, a spouse, two jobs, a divorce, maybe some stupid kids, you want your games ready to go. Downloaded and ready to play. Thankfully with the new console generation you can spend money with your eyes closed. Both the PSN App and the Xbox Smartglass allow you to purchase games, and if you link the account on the actual app with the hardware that you have you will be able to wake up your system and download your games while you're out and about dealing with your divorced spouse, and your two kids, and your job.
It's easily the best way to maximize your playtime instead of coming home, purchasing a game, and watching it download forever.
5. If you own any range of PC, Mac or maybe even a decent Android phone, emulators are a way you can play some older games. Just note that downloading emulators and ROM are technically kind of illegal so we're not condoning or endorsing any of this but we are just talking about it because it's out there and people use them.
For playing classic NES games, JNES is the most popular emulator, and for N64, Project 64. For PlayStation, may people use EPSXE, and for PS2, many people use PCSX2. There you go, emulators allow you to play Pokemon on your phone, Super Mario Bros. on your computer.
Use them if you will, it's a good way to get easy access to classic games, but just know that people made this game. Even if they made them in 1987 they still need to feed their families, I guess. Unless their families are dead. It's been a long time.
4. For optimal playing power and maximum energy, use Mountain Dew and Doritos!
3. This is more of a practical life hack of thing, but if you're a baller on a budget, and you need a cool headset stand, use a banana holder. It looks really cool next to your desk. It's simple, it's stylistic.
If you need to attract the opposite or same sex, there you go: banana holder.
2. Your eyes are your most important tool in gaming. You should do everything you can to protect them. Because at the end of the day and you don't have eyes, you won't be able to play games as well.
Some people swear by Gunnar Optiks to protect their eyes for gaming. some people don't. Other people use Flux to save their eyes. This is a free PC/Mac program that adjusts your computer screen's brightness and color settings to the time of day to maximize protection of your eyes.
If you're sitting in front of a computer or a TV screen all day, playing games and doing computer stuff like us, then you should definitely maximize your eye protection.
1. This one's a big deal for us. Xbox Live Gold members with Xbox One get 100 free minutes of phone and voice calls on Skype. Now with Xbox Kinect voice controls, make a contact on Skype called Pizza, insert your favorite pizza place's phone number, and while you're sitting there on your Xbox doing your thing, say "Xbox, call Pizza." Boom. There, you can order pizza from your Xbox. You're welcome.
