‘Alto’s Adventure’ is coming to Android next week, and it’s free
Alto’s Adventure was one of the best games to launch on the iPhone last year — the beautiful visuals, addictive gameplay, and chill soundtrack made for a uniquely laid-back and satisfying experience. Developer Ryan Cash from Snowman announced this would happen way back in September, but the launch date is finally here. The game will arrive on February 11th and will offer an identical experience to the iOS version, with one key exception. Alto’s Adventure will be free for Android players.
Cash posted a blog post today to explain why he’s going free on Android, and the reasons are about what you’d expect. We thought long and hard with [publisher] Noodlecake about how we could best monetize the game — to launch as a premium title (like on iOS), or to explore other alternatives that stayed true to our core values and vision for the game,” Cash writes. Ultimately his team decided that going free-to-play was the way to go.
That’s because of the rampant Android piracy that still makes it hard to launch premium games on the platform. Cash cited an “incredibly insightful” infographic from Monument Valley developer Ustwo that showed only 5 percent of Android players actually paid for the game.
However, it wasn’t just piracy that caused Cash to go for a free-to-play system. He cited titles like Crossy Road and Threes as games that offered free versions that respected players and didn’t overwhelm them with opportunities to plunk down cash.
In the end, Alto’s Adventure will offer some paid opt-in bonuses for players who “might need a little extra help, or otherwise want to show their support.” But, Cash stresses that the core experience is identical between iOS and Android — the whole game “can be enjoyed start to finish, exactly as it can be on iOS.” Given the quality of the title, we’re willing to trust Cash here and believe that Alto’s Adventure won’t nickel and dim Android players. Indeed, that’ll be better for the entire gaming ecosystem. The more free-to-play games that treat players as human beings instead of bank accounts, the better we’ll all be.
Source: Built By Snowman
Justin.tv is set to return as a Snapchat channel
The man who played a key role in pioneering livestreaming as we know it is offering viewers a window into his life once more. Justin Kan announced that his Justin.tv “lifecasting” exploits will make a comeback as a Snapchat channel. Kan says he likes posting his “adventures” as Snapchat Stories already, so expect lots of travel and startup content. “Restarting Justin.tv might be a terrible idea. I’m actually undecided,” Kan admitted. “But, it worked out well the first time.”
That “first time” he’s referencing is the company Twitch. While it traces roots back to Justin.tv, it primarily focuses on game streaming and other live event broadcasts. Back in 2014, Amazon bought Twitch for $970 million and Kan’s personal livestreaming effort shut down shortly after. Now he’s looking for someone to help him tell stories on Snapchat, as today’s announcement coincided with a job post looking for help documenting adventures for the channel. Of course, Snapchat offers a much easier way to capture video than Kan’s old setup of a head-mounted webcam connected to a laptop in his backpack.
“After learning about Snapchat Stories, I’ve become obsessed with Snapchat,” Kan explained. “As a social tool, it fulfills a need outside of messaging and Facebook/Twitter/Instagram. As a platform, I think Snapchat is on the tipping point of going mainstream.”
Source: Justin Kan
Here’s the ‘Simpsons’ search engine you’ve been waiting for
You don’t win friends with salad, but you can probably make plenty of new ones by becoming a Simpsons meme machine with Frinkiac, a new search engine dedicated to the show. Just type in a few lines and Frinkiac will match it up with screenshots from the first 15 Simpsons seasons. It currently has over 3 million screenshots indexed, and it’s pretty easy to browse nearby images from the same episode, so you can be sure to get the exact right moment you’re looking for. Hitting the “Make Meme” button overlays the text of the scene (which you can also edit with your own text) to create an even more shareable image.
As someone who references The Simpsons dozens of times a day, Frinkiac (named after the wacky Professor Frink) is practically a godsend. Its search function is far faster than sifting through Google images, and the ability to find specific moments during scenes is particularly helpful. Still, in many cases I’d probably try to use an animated GIF instead of a plain screenshot. If Frinkiac adds that functionality (and manages not to get taken down by Fox), I’ll easily convert from Giphy.
“The Simpsons is one of greatest television comedies of all time and we hope that having ready access to the perfect screenshot will make people laugh and remind them to rewatch their favorite episodes,” wrote Paul Kehrer, one of Frinkiac’s developers.
As he describes it, Frinkiac works by chopping every scene into 100 sections, figuring out the average color of each section, and then comparing them to the sections of previous images. If there are enough differences, Frinkiac saves a screenshot. So you won’t be able to move through Simpsons episodes frame-by-frame, but it’s pretty close.
Via: Tech Times
Source: Frinkiac
Apple Adds 20 New Flyover Locations Around the World, New Maps Info in Taiwan and Finland
Apple today added 20 new Flyover locations to Apple Maps on Mac and iOS, highlighting landmarks and features across several countries including France, Italy, Japan, Australia, Switzerland, Austria, Germany, the UK, South Africa, and the United States.
For those unfamiliar with the Flyover feature in Apple Maps, it lets users see photo-realistic 3D videos of select locations, with tools for zooming, panning, and rotating to get a closer look at notable landmarks and points of interest. Some of the locations listed may have previously been available as Flyover destinations, but were just added to Apple’s list of Flyover locations.
The full list of new Flyover locations is available below:
- Adelaide, Australia
- Amiens, France
- La Rochelle, France
- Nantes, France
- Toulouse, France
- Berne, Switzerland
- Bremen, Germany
- Columbus, Ohio
- Louisville, Kentucky
- South Bend, Indiana
- Springfield, Missouri
- Tucson, Arizona
- Dresden, Germany
- Eindhoven, Netherlands
- Johannesburg, South Africa
- Middlesbrough, UK
- Salzburg, Austria
- Taormina, Italy
- Toyoma, Japan
- Virgin Islands
Flyover was first introduced in 2012, but over the last four years, Apple has steadily added new Flyover locations to the Maps app. In 2015, Apple updated some major Flyover locations with real-time animated landmarks, making the Flyover experience even more immersive. Many Flyover locations have an additional City Tour feature that walks users through different landmarks in each city.
Along with new Flyover locations, the Maps app has been updated in Taiwan and Finland. In Taiwan, iOS users now have access to traffic information, and in Finland, the Nearby feature introduced in iOS 9 is now active, allowing users to get information on local businesses located near them.
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Alto’s Adventure will be free on Android, coming February 11
Back in September we first heard that the hit iOS game Alto’s Adventure would soon make its way to Android, courtesy of Noodlecake Studios. As it turns out we’re only a little more than a week away, as the game is scheduled to launch in the Google Play Store on Thursday, February 11th. That’s great news for Android users who have been chomping at the bit to play this award winning game.
All in all, the content of the game will be the same on Android as it is on iOS, but with one big change. While Alto’s Adventure currently costs $2.99 on iOS, it will be free on Android. The game’s developers said a free-to-play model better suits the Android platform. “We think we’ve been able to find a balance that lets us treat players in a fair way,” says Snowman developer Ryan Cash, “where they can still get the same premium experience you get on iOS, but without needing to pay upfront.”
Android and iOS are two very different ecosystems
According to The Verge, Alto’s Adventure on Android will include both opt-in video advertisements and a single in-app purchase that doubles the number of coins you can collect, similar to how the iOS version functions.
So why are Android users getting treated differently? Piracy.
“Piracy on Android is a much bigger issue on the platform,” says Noodlecake’s Ryan Holowaty, “especially in the case of premium iOS titles that charge more than $0.99.” To give you a brief example, Noodlecake ported the popular iOS title Wayward Souls to Android, and apparently only 11 percent of installed copies were paid for. Later, Noodlecake published a copy of their popular Shooting Stars title to Android that wouldn’t work if you pirated it. “The game only costs a few bucks on iOS, so it’s really not a huge deal,” Cash says. “iOS and Android are two very different ecosystems, so it’d be almost foolish to approach them the same way.”
We’ll be sure to update you when the game goes live in the Play Store.
See also: Why doesn’t anyone seem to take mobile gaming seriously?
Google to give away Fiber to public housing
The internet has become such an essential part of our lives that trying to get by without it is practically impossible. This can be a serious problem for people trying to re-enter the workforce or scrape their lives back together after a serious financial blow. That’s why Google has decided to team up with the Obama Housing Department to bring Google Fiber to public housing residents.
In fairness, this project also seems to be a pretty savvy move on the part of Google to help establish infrastructure for Fiber. The problem is that setting up the famous lightning internet initiative is very expensive. In fact, in their financial announcements Monday, Google revealed that Fiber would be one of their largest expenses in 2016. Working with a government program aiming to bring internet to those who might not have access to it seems like a smart way to offset the costs of laying the groundwork for infrastructure.
See also: Google Fiber sets its sights on Los Angeles and Chicago
The plan seeks to bring gigabit connections to public housing residents free of charge. Included with the package will be pre-wired jacks and free network boxes that will allow smartphones and tablets to connect to the internet even if there are no computers in the home. This project will arrive first in the nine cities where Fiber already exists, starting in Kansas City. There, Fiber has already been installed in nine government housing properties, bringing very high speed internet to 1,300 families. After the program is established in the places where the service already exists, Google wants to expand outward to the 11 other prospective cities it has been eyeing lately.
If you hear a strange knocking sound, that’s just the major internet service providers’ shivering knees knocking together.
Apple Ordered to Pay $625 Million in VirnetX Patent Dispute
Apple was today found guilty of willfully infringing on four patents in an ongoing dispute with VirnetX and has been ordered to pay $625 million in damages, reports CNBC.
The patents in question relate to virtual private networking (VPN) protocols and in today’s ruling, the jury decided that Apple’s FaceTime and iMessages service, along with the iOS devices that support those services, infringe on VirnetX’s intellectual property.
The patent dispute between Apple and VirnetX dates back to 2010, with a jury intially awarding VirnetX $368 million in 2012 after Apple was found guilty of infringing on VirnetX patents. That decision was thrown out in September of 2014 after the damages were found to have been incorrectly calculated, but a damages retrial that started last week led to the decision handed down this afternoon.
VirnetX originally requested $532 million in damages, an amount that was inflated to $625 million taking into account the willful infringement ruling and royalties.
Ahead of the jury’s decision, Apple filed a request asking U.S District Judge Robert Schroeder to declare a mistrial, accusing VirnetX of misleading and confusing the jury during its closing arguments. Schroeder has not yet made a ruling on the request.
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LG confirms the G5 for MWC 2016
We now officially know that the LG G5 will debut at MWC 2016. On Twitter and Facebook today, LG posted teasers that explicitly state the G5 is coming on February 21 in Barcelona.
Hit the break for the teasers.
What’s behind door number 5? #ShotOnLG pic.twitter.com/64kZ0cMK08
— LG USA Mobile (@LGUSAMobile) February 3, 2016
http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
#LGG5, February 21st. #MWC16 pic.twitter.com/yvQU3FZ2kq — LG USA Mobile (@LGUSAMobile) February 3, 2016
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Time for some play! With new friend comes new fun.Excitement begins at Barcelona on February 21st.#LG #LGG5 #G5
Posted by LG Mobile on Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Much of what is expected from the G5 has been disputed, so I’ll just direct you to our LG G5 hub to pick and choose items to explore. Select sources says a 5.3-inch display is coming and others stand by 5.6 inches, but we’re pretty much guaranteed to get Quad HD (2560×1440) resolution and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 processor. It’s also a tossup whether or not the secondary display found on the LG V10 makes its way over to the upcoming flagship.
What’s known for certain, however, is that Samsung will also be hosting a big launch event on February 21. This puts two of the biggest Android OEMs in the world in the same city to show their new flagships within hours of each other. While Samsung’s event is scheduled for 1:00PM ET, LG will be introducing the G5 (and perhaps other new products and services) at 8:00AM ET.
Come comment on this article: LG confirms the G5 for MWC 2016
[Deal] Google to give out $10 Play Store credit to Chromecast and Chromecast Audio buyers
Google announced yet another Valentine’s Day promotion today, revealing that consumers will get a $10 Play Store credit with the purchase of either a Chromecast or Chromecast Audio.
The search giant began offering a handful of special Valentine’s Day deals on the Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X, and Huawei Watch just last week.
According to Google, the deal starts day and will last through February 24. Unfortunately, this specific promotion only applies to buyers in the US and Canada.
Both the Chromecast and Chromecast Audio are neat gadgets. The updated Chromecast model saw some major improvements from when Google originally introduced the device, The Chromecast Audio, on the other hand, is a fairly new gadget from Google that’s actually really neat and is starting to show its place.
Do you plan on picking up a Chromecast or Chromecast Audio for a loved on this Valentine’s Day? Sound off in the comments!
source: Google (Twitter)
Come comment on this article: [Deal] Google to give out $10 Play Store credit to Chromecast and Chromecast Audio buyers
Samsung’s ad blocking app partner already removed by Google
Samsung had just told everyone that it would be using ad blocking in its mobile browser, and what felt like minutes later, Google had already pulled it from the Play Store.
However, what did they really expect was going to happen? Google is the world’s largest advertising company who just happen to do other things too. Of course they were going to stop at nothing to stop this from happening.
Adblock Fast was the app that was going to partner with Samsung to bring ad blocking to their mobile browsers, but was pulled soon after. It had already skyrocketed to the top of the charts with over 50,000 downloads.
Google sent this letter to Brian Kennish, developer at Rocketship Apps, who make Adblock Fast:
Hi Developers at Rocketship Apps,
I reviewed Adblock Fast, com.rocketshipapps.adblockfast, and found that it violates section 4.4 of the Developer Distribution Agreement. This particular app has been disabled as a policy strike.
Just as a reminder, you’ve agreed to follow the Google Play Developer Program Policies and additional enforcement could occur if there are further policy issues with your apps.
If you’ve reviewed the policies and feel this rejection may have been in error, please reach out to our policy support team. One of my colleagues will get back to you within 2 business days.
I appreciate your support of Google Play!
Best,
[Redacted]
Google Play Review Team
Google says it violates section 4.4, which doesn’t allow apps to interfere with other installed apps. However, it didn’t technically violate it because Samsung was agreeing to let it “interfere” and it was using an official Samsung API. Whatever the reason, we all know the real truth behind the removal.
Source: Thenextweb
Come comment on this article: Samsung’s ad blocking app partner already removed by Google
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