We all knew it was coming, but that doesn't make StarLite's cancellation hurt any less. The developers behind the unofficial DS port of StarCraft have taken down all traces of the homebrew game, apologizing with a short note: "For legal reasons, we must abandon this project."

It's no mystery what transpired -- Blizzard's lawyers zerg rushed sent a Cease and Desist letter to the aspiring programmers, just after they released an update to the RTS with multiplayer support. It was fun while it lasted, wasn't it?

"Didn't we almost have it all?
When love was all we had worth giving?
The ride with you was worth the fall, my friend.
Loving you makes life worth living.
Didn't we almost have it all?"


[Thanks, Dana!]

Despite the legal quandaries that often follow these unsanctioned projects, progress continues on StarLite. This update (version 0.03) to the homebrew StarCraft game for the DS introduces two important features to the RTS port: 3D sprites and a local multiplayer mode.

This limited build seems more buggy than usual -- we couldn't even get it running on an emulator -- but if you have two sets of DSes and flashcarts handy, you should be able to test out StarLite's two-player setup by following this series of steps:

1. Download Starlite.nds and equipe.txt
2. Copy StarLite.nds onto both of your flashcarts
3. Copy equipe.txt onto the root of one cart, making sure the only text in the file is the number "1"
4. Copy equipe.txt onto the root of another cart, making sure the only text in the file is the number "2"
5. Boot up the DSes and load the game on both systems
   
6. Mutter with satisfaction, "Excellent," while tenting your fingers
   

We're just as surprised as you are that Blizzard hasn't sent these guys a cease-and-desist letter yet, but the developers of StarLite, the unofficial StarCraft port for the DS, have put out an update (version 0.02) for the homebrew project.

While the demo's changes are few -- a new tileset (Jungle), improved collision management, and a bug fix for overlapping buildings -- and it still has its share of early-alpha glitches, it's great to see that the RTS port wasn't immediately abandoned after the first release appeared and showed so much promise. You can download and try out the ROM yourself to see how the port is coming along, or you can check the revised gallery we've embedded below!

Yes, dreams can come true. With no official plans announced for a DS port of StarCraft or any of Blizzard's other PC games, two French homebrew developers have begun working on bringing the popular RTS to the handheld themselves, titling the game StarLite.

A limited demo (version 0.1) is available for you to test out in an emulator or flashcart of your choice, and, while it's clear there's still a lot of work ahead for the project, it's impressive how much the two-man crew has already accomplished in just three weeks of development. So far, players can select and direct units via touchscreen, build simple structures, and produce additional units. There are even a few enemy troops to attack.

The team plans to continue their work, eventually implementing the rest of the units/structures and a WiFi ad-hoc multiplayer mode for two players. To do all that, however, they'll need some help from several more programmers, so don't be afraid to volunteer your skills to the effort! Hit the gallery below for more early screenshots from StarLite.

You might think if a level designer at Blizzard opts for a gamer wedding, the main decorative theme might be something like Night Elves and Gnomes, but that's not how Cory Stockton rolls. No, he and his new wife Christi went for something a little more classic: Nintendo.

Clearly, we approve of this decision. Also, of the completely outrageous and awesome ice sculpture, which looks just about perfect for Zelda week. Maybe we could get one of those for the DS Fanboy offices ....

The cake, of course, featured Nintendo themes, with Mario and Peach perched on the top tier, and all of the tables were named after consoles. But the best part? Even the wedding's music was lifted from classic Nintendo games. Now we're officially jealous.

Check out the full gallery at Joystiq to see what a real gamer wedding looks like. We must say: it's epic.

That's one of the many tough questions Robert Falcon asks over at modojo.com. He decided to analyze the DS and PSP's ability to survive various natural disasters, including floods, earthquakes, and blizzards. Keep in mind that if your DS Lite somehow manages to find its way into a pit of boiling lava, you need to take pictures so we can post them. Seriously, that stuff is blogging gold.

On a slightly more serious tack, has anyone had a DS or DS Lite miraculously survive when it had no right doing so? Let us know!

[Thanks, Justin!]