Prototype bleem!Pod for sale

Sweater Fish · Post by **Sweater Fish** » Sun Jan 04, 2004 7:31 pm

Hey, so I've finally decided to sell the prototype bleem!Pod that I bought about year ago. It's a nice little item to have, but it's really doing me no good, so I thought I'd give someone else a chance to have it.

In case you don't know, a bleem!Pod is a Playstation controller converter for the Dreamcast that was made by bleem! in preparation for the unrolling of bleem!cast. But due to the troubles that we all know about, bleem! had to scrap their plans to put the bleem!Pods into production, so there's only the original two prototype units, of which this is one. I purchased it from David Herpolshiemer (he even signed it on the bottom) who did all the design work for bleem! and received these protoypes and some other items in lieu of a salary after bleem! was forced into bankruptcy.

Unlike other Playstation controller converters for the Dreamcast, the bleem!Pod actually fully supports the Playstation dual analog controller including the right analog stick, L2 and R2, L3 and R3, the select button and vibration. It's also compatible with just about ever other Playstation controller from steering wheels to the NeGcon to the flight sticks, etc. It was a VMU slot as well. It even identifies itself to the Dreamcast as a "Bleem controller" instead of just a generic Dreamcast controller like other converters. So, in addition to being a rare Dreamcast and bleem! collectable, it's actually a really nice little piece of kit (all the released bleem!packs support the bleem!Pod even though the bleem!Pods had already been scrapped by the time of their release). It's probably not worth getting just for its nice functionality, though, so the real reason is because it's such a nice collectable.

Anyway, I think that's all the info. If you're interested, e-mail me your offers (opaopa@rattlebrain.com), I'm running this sort of like an auction, I guess, so the best offer gets it. If you have any questions post them here. Thanks.

...word is bondage...

Post by **melancholy** » Sun Jan 04, 2004 7:51 pm

OMG, I would kill to have that. Too bad killing won't get me the money I'd need to buy it...well, at least not legally.

Skynet · Post by **Skynet** » Sun Jan 04, 2004 9:51 pm

out of interest, what games actually use L3 and R3?

Warmachine · Post by **Warmachine** » Sun Jan 04, 2004 10:17 pm

Skynet wrote:out of interest, what games actually use L3 and R3?

Vice City

Post by **melancholy** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 12:02 am

Warmachine wrote:
Skynet wrote:out of interest, what games actually use L3 and R3?
Vice City

Ape Escape used them too. They really didn't serve much of a purpose until the PS2. Most FPS use them, as well as Ape Escape 2 (obviously), Metal Gear Solid 2, the Grand Theft Auto previously mentioned, and Robot Alchemic Drive. I'm sure there's other's too, but none I can think of off the top of my head.

*EDIT* They are mighty useful in Kingdom Hearts as well.

ShadowofBob · Post by **ShadowofBob** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 12:34 am

I'll start with $30!

Skynet · Post by **Skynet** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 2:44 am

Warmachine wrote: Vice City

melancholy wrote: Ape Escape used them too. They really didn't serve much of a purpose until the PS2. Most FPS use them, as well as Ape Escape 2 (obviously), Metal Gear Solid 2, the Grand Theft Auto previously mentioned, and Robot Alchemic Drive. I'm sure there's other's too, but none I can think of off the top of my head.

*EDIT* They are mighty useful in Kingdom Hearts as well.

ah, that explains it. I never had a PS2

doragasu · Post by **doragasu** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 4:39 am

You can use it also with Onimusha & Tekken Tag Tournament

Prophet][ · Post by **Prophet][** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 5:13 am

how bout, before you sell it, you open it up and take photos, or even better you (or someone you know) draw up a circuit diagram. You will be famous if you do this.

DeGamer · Post by **DeGamer** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 1:36 pm

I'm interested. How much do you want? Or better yet, what do you want for it?

Captain Skyhawk · Post by **Captain Skyhawk** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 2:24 pm

I hoped to see this happening, after I couldn't bid on the eBay sale for a Bleem!pod some time ago because it was only for US residents. What's I found more important is that the person who gets it, makes the information on it public.

I have bought a PSX to DC converter and founded out that it's looks exact the same as prototype bleem!pod. I also found out how to use second analog stick with it. You can read more of this on this page. If I have a Bleem!pod I can compare the internals I maybe founding out how to modify a standard PSX to DC converter to a bleem!pod. Or at least putting pictures of the internals online.

I going to do an offer to you Sweater Fish, but I hope you take in account what the person is going to do with it.

DeGamer · Post by **DeGamer** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 2:54 pm

I would gladly make all info public. And yeah I also missed that ebay auction ( I wasn't home when it ended). I also hate how the psx to DC converter looks like a bleem!pod cuz I almost bought one.

Sweater Fish · Post by **Sweater Fish** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 5:30 pm

Well, I don't know how much luck people are gonna have recreating their own versions of the bleemPod. The main features of the PCB are two FlashROM chips (EM78-P44-BWM and CY37064-P44-125JC). These are the components doing all the work. I guess what you'd want to do is dump their contents and re-write more of them with the image you obtain and if you did that, I suppose re-creating the bleemPod would be easy. But personally I wouldn't even know where to start on such a project.

If you want some other details, though, here's the button mapping. the dpad, action button, left analog stick and L1 and R1 are just what you would expect. L2 and R2 are mapped to Z and C from the DC Aracde Stick (a couple other commericially available Playstation converters actually have that L2 and R2 mapping, too). The right analog stick is mapped to "Analog 2," this is also used for the motion sensor in the DC Fishing Rod and the movement of the right maraca on the Samba Maracas. L3 and R3 are mapped as Left2 and Right2 from the DC Twinstick controller. And Select is mapped as "D" which is used for one of the buttons on the Maracas and the Special button on the Twinstick.

That's about all I can help with because it's all I know.

Anyway, the current highest offer for the converter is $75 (which is less than I paid, but I guess I expected that). I'm definitely willing to make someone a deal if they have altruistic ends or if they offer something I want in trade, but unfortunately I'm not in any financial position to give someone a really really great deal.

...word is bondage...

impetus · Post by **impetus** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 6:53 pm

sweater fish I'm just curious, were you on the bleem team? I didn't know you were a developer.

Mastaboog749 · Post by **Mastaboog749** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 7:27 pm

A guy down the street claimed to be on the bleem team a while ago, his name was john something. Really smart guy did some crazy stuff with his electronics. He moved to ohio and Ive only talked to him a couple times and he working for a company working on the xbox.

Sweater Fish · Post by **Sweater Fish** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 8:29 pm

impetus wrote:sweater fish I'm just curious, were you on the bleem team? I didn't know you were a developer.

No, I just bought the unit from David, I didn't have anything else to do with bleem! (aside from buying the discs). I have done a tiny bit of developing on the Neo Geo Pocket, but nothing on the Dreamcast, I'd like to start, but I don't even know if I could properly set up the environment (especially on my old ass computer with its tiny 2.5GB hard drive).

...word is bondage...

Lartrak · Post by **Lartrak** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 10:15 pm

The reason so few games use L3 and R3 (I think Ape Escape is the only US release that requires them) is because MANY owners PSX's have the old style controller that doesn't even have analog sticks.

Sweater Fish · Post by **Sweater Fish** » Tue Jan 06, 2004 5:36 pm

I don't know about that, Lartrak. If that was true then there wouldn't be very many games that required the analog sticks, either, but there certainly are. I think most Playstation owners had Dual Shock controllers pretty shortly after they appeared. Hell, I don't even have a Playstation and I've got *THREE* Dual Shocks.

Anywho, this post is really just an update to say that the current highest offer I've received is $100.

Going once...going twice....anyone else?

...word is bondage...

Zealous zerotype · Post by **Zealous zerotype** » Tue Jan 06, 2004 9:30 pm

Hey I will gladly pay $110 for it.Also I wont mind making it public

.Anyways I'm suprised you actuacly used it as it is a very rare orginal.(sorry I put 50 at first).

Lartrak · Post by **Lartrak** » Tue Jan 06, 2004 10:06 pm

If that was true then there wouldn't be very many games that required the analog sticks, either, but there certainly are

What games can't be played without the analog sticks? There are a few games that are hamstrung/harder without them, but the only one I know of that doesn't work without them is Monkey whatever-the-heck-ya-call-it.