Since the dawning of man there where computers, and people who modded those ugly grey boxes. Since then was the birth of the Xbox 360, but you where delivered in the hands of the heathen gods that brought premade faceplates with lame designs. Now is the time to rise up and fight back with those boring faceplates.
Let your own imagination run free as we review the Nyko GameFace 360 customizable faceplate.
In Short the Nyko Gameface 360 is a “make your own faceplate” kit.
For a long time your customization options were limited to the original Xbox or third-party faceplaces, but none of them really set you apart from the crowd. Well here is the solution, and now you’re free to make your own design in which you are only limited to your own imagination… or are we?
The box itself doesn’t really represent the kit’s full potential and is a bit dull. As this isn’t a Microsoft-endorsed product they could have spiced it up a bit, otherwise you might have the impression of “another 3rd party faceplate”; though it most certainly isn’t just that.
Let’s open the package. Inside we have the clear Gameface itself, some instructions, 15 blank templates and 7 premade templates (including the pre-installed template visible from the front). But we all know you didn’t buy the pack for the premades…
The faceplates consist of three parts to make up the total faceplate: the base (which is a slightly dark grey silver metallic), a clear plastic cover (that will hold the printed paper template in place), and the paper insert. You can see on the closeup it’s snapped in place in the slots of the base plate making it a complete faceplate.
The paper itself is heavy stock, one I estimate it at around 180 to 200 grams and any of today’s printers should have no problem with that thickness. This will allow for an average quality print, which looks rather dull, but the shiny plastic gives the template that extra shine and depth. Optionally you could use your own paper to give it an extra sheen, but you would have to fold and cutout the parts that are pre-stenciled on the original paper. Then again Nyko doesn’t have a Photoshop template so you’re on your own there, but perhaps if you Google hard enough you might find one from a fellow user.
Right so let’s pimp that faceplate. You have a few great ideas and you want to print them but whoaaa… no software included! That’s right they didn’t include a small cd with the needed software. Instead there is an internet address you can surf to to download the program.
For the majority of people this shouldn’t be a problem at all, but if you don’t have access to an internet connection then you’re stuck with a great idea and a blank piece of paper… Personally to me that’s a little slipup since even the cheapest USB stick comes with one, things put aside the web truly is the place to be tough and especially for the Nyko Gameface 360, not only for the program but also for the entire community surrounding it. Yes, it’s possible to upload your own design or download and rate those of others. The website is available here.
This is exactly what I did. I wasn’t feeling so creative at that time so I browsed around and found one that I really like.
So we downloaded and isntalled the program, ready to go (the software is available for PC and Mac) and if you have a picture ready (or downloaded one of the other designs of different users from the community website) then you’re ready to go and import and print.
If you do have anything else in mind you are very limited. Using Nyko`s software you can add a picture into another one as layers but as soon as you do the others lock. The software’s functionality is very simple, moving from picture to picture. Since Nyko doesn’t provide a Photoshop template of some kind it’s a basic trial and error game. You’re also able to adjust brightness and contrast of your image, only other thing that strikes me is the fact that exports and downloads on the community websites are in a low-res BMP format, but you can always convert them to JPEG later on.
If you have leet Photoshopping skills and a few hours then you can create a much more robust design.
When you’re satisfied (and you spend some neckbreaking hours editing and so forth), then it’s time to print your design. Luckily the software reminds you when you click the print button to set your paper feed to 8.5″ x 14″. If you don’t, then the holes and cutouts don’t line up and you’ve wasted a tree and made baby Jesus cry. After a successful print, another little flaw comes up: the software doesn’t remove the images in the cutout sections thus printing those as well, and since you have to remove them it’s a waste of ink not a lot but still for the money conservatives its another few cents.
So after you let the ink dry punch out the pre-stenciled holes, fit the paper in the transparent cover and snap the 3 together to create a plastic-paper-plastic sandwich. Now behold your new fully-customized faceplate! Slap that biotch onto your Xbox and get your Gameface on!
After installation you may notice a few other minor inconveniences. You now have a three-layer system on the front, so the disk drive and IR reciver of the xbox360 are slightly backwards. I have big hands and I had to use my nails to press the eject button through the faceplate, and I noticed on a few occasions the drive tray would block because of the strain of 2 plates on each other. My Media Center remote also didn’t work as well as before, and I actually had to point the remote directly towards the sensor to align it :/
Now don’t get me wrong: overall the Nyko Gameface 360 is a great piece of kit. It’s just the low functionality of the added software and the fact that I had to wave my remote around pointing at my xbox that puts me off. In the end, the Nyko Gameface 360 is the best idea of personalizing your Xbox.
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