Hacking the Xbox

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Hacking the Xbox: An Introduction to Reverse Engineering
Finally, it is interesting to note that the Gamecube uses proprietary I/O
interfaces everywhere. The game disk format is a mini-DVD format, and
the DVD reader connects to the motherboard through a proprietary
connector. Using a smaller DVD media allows Nintendo to reduce the
latency of data seeks, which means shorter game loading times. The game
controllers and memory cards also use a proprietary signaling format.
Everything in the Gamecube is somewhat similar to our familiar PC, but
nothing was directly incorporated into the design unchanged.
In addition to optimizing the manufacturability and cost of the Gamecube,
the use of mostly proprietary chips and standards makes the console much
more difficult to reverse engineer than the Xbox. For example, note that in
Figure 2-8, there is no obvious ROM chip in the Gamecube. Thus, in order
to even start looking at Gamecube code, one has to hunt down and extract a
ROM hidden somewhere in one of the chips on the motherboard! This is
one of the rare times where security through obscurity works. Even if there
were no security at all on the Gamecube, the cost and effort of trying to
burn your own code onto Nintendo’s custom DVD format is just not
worth it for the individual enthusiast.