Nokia N900 plays Quake 3, uses a wireless PS3 controller, though not at the same time yet

Nokia N900 is slowly progressing from a portable gaming device to a portable console. The recipe is simple – a Nokia N900, a SIXAXIS controller from a PlayStation 3, a TV, TV-out cable and a bit of software magic.

The current demo that works involves a Nintendo SNES emulator that is controlled by a SIXAXIS controller and instead of using the 3.5” screen on the Nokia N900, the phone is connected to a TV set using a cable. Here are the instructions on how to get it working. Be warned though, it requires you to install a new kernel, as the default one doesn’t have support for a joystick or a mouse.

If you think about it, the Nintendo Wii uses a composite cable too and it’s not a pinnacle of processing power either – it’s the games (and the Wii Remote of course) that make the game. The SIXAXIS controller has accelerometer sensors too.

Now, if playing Mario is not your game (sorry for the pun), the Nokia N900 plays Duke Nukem 3D too. Not to mention the video demos of the N900 playing Quake 3, in fact two N900 can play in multiplayer.

I haven’t found a demo that combines the controller and Quake 3 yet, but I’m sure it won’t be long before that hits YouTube. Here’s the Quake 3 on Nokia N900 video I mentioned:

The PlayStation 3 SIXAXIS controller connects to the Nokia N900 via Bluetooth and features two sticks, a D-pad and four action keys. The left stick controls the “mouse”, the right stick controls horizontal and vertical scroll wheels, and the D-pad and other keys map to several keys of the QWERTY keyboard.

This is how the SIXAXIS keys map on the Nokia N900′s keyboard

Yes, the Nokia N900 doesn’t have a mouse or scroll wheels, but think of those things in terms of desktop gaming. It’s another matter how each of these controls maps to controls in each specific game.

I’m not suggesting that the Nokia N900 will eat into the Nintendo Wii sales, but when they get Quake 3 working with the wireless controller and someone releases (or ports) one or two games that utilize the accelerometers, it will become a true game console in its own right.

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