PSP homebrew developer Vulpix dropped by the QJ.Net Forums earlier to announce the release of WaveX BootSkin. This application is actually a new version of the BootWave app from months back, with the biggest major update here being its compatibility with firmware 3.51.

For the guys who weren't around when Bootwave was initially released: It's a PSP application that allows you to edit the look and style of your PSP's opening wave animation. It does so by tweaking the opening_plugin.rco.

As requested by Vulpix over at the QJ.Net Forums, we won't host the file here - guys can reach the download link and readme via the author's thread at our forums. Just click on the "Visit" link below, and you're there!

Visit: QJ's PSP Development Forum

  

Seeing those screenshots and reading the title may already give you an idea what we're going to talk about in this article. A lot were enamored with the Gears of War XMB theme we featured a few days back and, with the other XMB themes we dished out, now it's homebrew developer VibeStar's turn to hog the XMB themes limelight.

Through our forums, VibeStar released Blocki Full XMB Theme. He mentions that he made the whole theme, but the bootwave and wave are made by someone else.  He mentions that Blocki is a spin-off of the iPhone skin he has created and is tested on a FW 3.03 OE handheld. The package you could get includes:

• 32 bits high-res XMB icons (all icons)
• 32 bits high-res Battery Icon
• 32 bits High-res Volume bar
• 32 Bits high-res background
• 32 bits high-res Load Circle
• 32 bits high-res Custom USB loadingbar
• 32 Bits high-res bootlogo and gamebootlogo
• My own made font
• Bootwave and XMB wave
• Clear white gameboot
• Full audio effect change

Of course, all sorts of how-tos and tidbits could be found in the readme file that comes with the download. Please be sure to read them so as to be able to maximize the capabilities of this theme.

Download: Blocki Full XMB theme
View: PSP Development Forum

 

Xploren's back with another reminder for us and the QJ-reading public. He said that there's a new version of their Black32 XMB Theme for people to try out, and it's added some more content that'll match up with their existing theme creations.

According to Xploren, there's more than just a background and battery bar in this iteration. He mentions that there are matching bootwave, font, and XMB sounds to use for this new version, so it'll perfectly mesh with your icons and whatnot.

They do note two things in their readme, however, which we will list verbatim. Remember these when you're installing these apps, alright?

• This will work on all OE firmwares, EXCEPT 3.10 OE.
• This XMB mod collection, along with all other collections and mods, can render your PSP useless by bricking it. INSTALL THIS THEME AT YOUR OWN RISK.

Download: Black32 XMB Theme - encore 3
Visit PSP Development Forum

 

Pharonyk just released an additional modification for everyone's PSPs. This time though, it modifies the Bootwave rather than the XMB waves from his earlier release, the LollerWAVES Pack.

LollerBOOTWAVES Pack - Plasma v2, created with the help of Vulpix's tgaWave Creative Studio, adds bootwaves you can use in conjunction with Pharonyk's earlier wave pack. For those that haven't seen it, it basically makes your wave look way flashier than ought to be allowed on the PSP.

Pharonyk does note a potential problem with playing PSX games as a result of using this, though he hasn't specified this in his readme or in the forum post, so we're a bit at a loss to explain what he meant by it. In any case, you can always give it a try, and then remove it as needed for game playing. Enjoy the download!

Oh, and Pharonyk, we read your comment. You should have a tag now, you lucky dog you.

Download: LollerBOOTWAVES Pack - Plasma v2
Visit: PSP Development Forum

  

If you don't fancy some of the current wave backgrounds you can get for your PSP and you fancy making your own, then you'll be happy to hear that Vulpix is back again with another release of his tgaWave Creative Studio, bringing it up to v0.9. You may have noticed that the name has changed from tgaWave Custom Wave Texture injector to Creative Studio, and that's because it now includes three applications: Custom tgaWave Packager, Custom tgaWave Extractor, and bootWave for tga.

With these respective applications, you can do just about anything when it comes to wave injection and customization. All you need is a bit of graphical skill and an advanced image editing program such as Photoshop or the GIMP and you're well one your way to custom backgrounds.

All three applications have their respective readmes which include step-by-step instructions on how to use the applications and how to inject your custom waves from TGA files. You can see a video of this application in action in the tutorial video which can be found here. Just as a little side note, Vulpix has stated that he has not yet implemented file size indexing, but it may be present in the upcoming v1.0 release so stay tuned!

After a short amount of time away from the PSP scene which resulted in a petition to get him back, the QJ staff would like to welcome Vulpix back to the homebrew community and congratulate him on this excellent release!

Download: [tgaWave Creative Studio v0.9]
Discuss: [Forum Release Thread]

 

Right after the release of Vulpix's xmbWave comes a new wave editor that edits your coldboot waves. Ladies and gents, DarkStone, vb_master, and Team LANSH are proud to present bootWAVE.

Much like xmbWave, what this does is edit the opening_plugin.rco so you can change the look and style of your opening waves. Its uses are purely aesthetic, but combined with the aforementioned wave editor, you can really change the look of your PSP to suit your tastes.

Just remember to read the readme. The instructions there will keep you from killing the wave itself (we hope), so have fun, but don't go overboard on the edits, ok?

By the way folks, the image above is from Superskull85. Thanks for putting it up, or we wouldn't know what to use as a pretty picture.

Download: [bootWAVE]
Discuss: [Forum Release Thread]