MGS: Portable Ops reminds me of wardriving

I've been playing Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops for the PSP and there's a new recruitment feature that I find interesting. In most stealth action games like Metal Gear Solid or Splinter Cell, I usually go on a killing rampage each level. Shoot some bad guys, maybe blow em up, then drag the remains to a dimly lit area and continue on to finish the mission. There's usually little or no incentive to go through the level stealthily. Portable Ops changes this. Any bad guy you knock out or shoot in the head with a stun dart you can drag back to your van and take as a hostage. After a couple days pass in the game, he gets converted (brainwashed) to join your side. Each team member has certain stats and you assign him to a specific group, which gives you more intel or makes you recover health quicker, etc. Its to your benefit to grow your team, so you are always looking for ways to knock a guy out instead of killing him.

Another way to recruit new guys is through a menu option called Access Point Scan. This searches for wireless networks nearby and generates a new team member randomly if the signal is strong enough. The interface is minimal, only showing a real time graph of signal strength. However, its very stylized with pulsating colors, making you feel like you're hacking into some secret network. If the signal is around medium strength you can tap the circle button like mad to boost the meter. We all have our favorite button mashing memories. For me, its the in-between stage sequence from the Simpsons arcade game, where you need to blow up you balloon the fastest. Note, the Access Point Scan does not actually connect to the wireless network. It just sees what's out there, regardless of encryption.

I'm not sure about the technical details of the scan. You can only generate one new soldier per wireless network per game. So if you play through the game a second time you can use the same network again. I don't know if this filter is based on SSID (network name) or BSSID (mac address of access point). I would assume they check by BSSID so you can't keep changing your network name. However, if you have a linux based router/access point combo, like the WRT54GL, you could possibly change the MAC address to trick the game into thinking you're on a different network. [ifconfig eth0 hw ether 01:23:45:67:89:AB] But that would be cheating!

The access point method of recruitment really encourages you to bring the PSP with you to snag networks at a friend's house or in public. This aspect of hunting down wifi networks really reminds me of wardriving. Going out and seeing how many networks you can find in a given trip. It might sound kind of dull in text, but its kinda exciting when you end up some place new or some place you shouldn't be. I've become border line obsessive, holding my PSP while driving down the road, endangering the lives of children. At the end of the day though I know it was worth it, because I have a new imaginary friend.