Wiimote Hacking Scene is Pretty Frikken Schweet…

The Wii controller is an interesting combination of technologies and as with any interesting piece of tech, it only took a short while for the programmers, hackers, and tinkerers to dig into it.

The basis for all Wiimote tinkering lies in a program called GlovePIE which allows your computer to recognize the Wii controller through its Bluetooth connection. With this connection, you can use any aspect of the Wii controller to control your PC. Gestures, the “nunchuck,” motion sensing, and even the “pointer” function. Armed with this technology, many people have been building custom control schemes for many PC games. Mac users can get in on the “fun” too with a couple different programs… but the PC is generally where its at.

Stemming from GlovePIE (and programs like it) an amazing amount of diverse projects have come up using the Wiimote. Someone has used the controller to measure g-forces, acceleration, and 0-60 times in their VW. Schools have been using the Wiimote and its accelerometers in physics experiments for secondary classrooms. Hell, people are even becoming WiiJs and using the Wiimote for a variety of music-based projects. (I get all excited just THINKING what Electroplankton would look like for the Wii…)

It seems like the Wiimote hacking scene has only just begun, and it’ll be interesting to see what implications, if any this has on the Wii and its titles.

WiiFanboy’s Overview of GlovePIE
Wired’s Overview of the Wiimote Hacking Scene
Chris Kohler’s Interviews on Wiimote Hacking