Crafty gamers look no further! Community do-it-yourself site Instructables has something for any challenge-seeking, achievement-whoring gamer who needs to kill some time before Valkyria Chronicles or Mirror’s Edge comes out.

While the site has been up since 2005, a book – The Best of Instructables Volume 1 – was recently released, which compiles projects selected by the editors of MAKE magazine and Instructables. The site itself allows users to submit step-by-step projects for…just about anything, really, including projects that appeal to the tech-savvy gamer.

Some of the featured game-related projects in the book include an NES computer (pictured), fixing the infamous “Red Ring of Death” on Microsoft’s Xbox 360, and key molding on a Guitar Hero controller. Other interesting projects can be found on the site, such as a rapid fire mod for the Xbox 360 and an awesome looking Portal gun.

Instructables founder Eric Wilhelm points to the communal aspect of the site as the biggest draw, though. “The site’s interactive, so comments fill up with people who have tried out the project and have tips or advice to make it better,” he says.

The Internet, it seems, will always be populated by someone who is incredibly nerdy, very knowledgeable in the most obscure things, and has a ton of free time on their hands. Not that that’s a bad thing – both posts and comments add quite a bit of insight to the weird and often useful things you can do and make with ordinary objects. 

With the recent release of the highly praised LittleBigPlanet (which features an extensive level creator/editor) and the fact that Instructables has grown enough to be able to release a book, community- and user-generated content will likely be propelled into greater popularity as more people clamor for ways to inject a little more personality into their lives.

Sites like Instructables and games like LittleBigPlanet are providing that outlet, and the positive reception surrounding both will only lead to more user participation, until anyone can find something that will interest them.

Mr. Wilhelm, for one, cites the Daschund wheelchair as his personal favorite because of its practicality. Personally, I find something oddly fascinating about this.