Video game downloads now help the UK measure inflation

Helped by the rise of console and PC marketplaces, game downloads are now popular enough that the UK is using them to help calculate inflation rates. Office of National Statistics (ONS) announced today that it’s added digital game sales and computer software, like Microsoft Office, to its “basket of goods” — a list of products and services that helps it measure what consumers are spending their money on.

The UK’s basket of goods is now pretty well stocked with online services. Video and music streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Video and Spotify have been added over the past couple of years, as have computer game subscription services like PlayStation Plus and Xbox Live.

But as the list evolves, things also have to go. This time around, CD-ROMs and rewriteable DVDs have been removed, which the ONS says “reflects the change in the computer market away from physical media and towards downloadable files.” In 2014, the UK body dropped DVD recorders and replaced them with digital TV recorders (DVRs), purging satellite navigation (Sat Nav) devices a year later.

So when you decide to spend big during the next big Steam sale, just think: you’ll be helping the government understand how the economy is performing, which can affect UK interest rates, pensions and even the cost of a train ticket.

Source: ONS Basket of Goods

Researchers create a system to predict ‘Dota’ match winners

Right now, the professional eSports scene is spearheaded by MOBAs like Dota 2 and League of Legends. Each match is a complex affair pitting two teams in a combat-fuelled land grab, punctuated by crucial paths and defensive towers. Even for the most experienced players and commentators, known as casters, it can be difficult to keep up and dissect what’s happening. To help, three researchers from Denmark, Germany and Sweden have developed a new way of breaking down and analysing Dota games, leading to accurate predictions about how a match will unfold.

The approach revolves around a new way of defining “encounters,” or moments that are likely to affect the momentum of the game. When a hero moves within range to deal some damage to an opponent, a “combat link” is generated. A similar “support link” is created when a hero specialising in status effects or healing comes into contact with their team mates. Finally, a more intricate “encounter component” is produced when multiple heroes are chained to one another through a perceived “path” of combat and support links. When a mixture of component conditions are met, the system flags that an encounter has occurred during the match.

For each encounter, the team defined a custom set of ingoing and outgoing metrics. At the start, these include the number of heroes involved in the conflict, their roles within the team and the number of experience points and gold they have in their possession. During the skirmish, each hero’s contribution is then analysed based on the number of “outlinks” and “inlinks” they produce — or the number or times they are in a position to deliver damage or support-style buffs to a team mate. The final outcome is then judged based on the kills, XP and gold that each player accrued.

The three researchers applied their encounter system to 412 Dota matches and, after some analysis, were able to pull out some patterns. These were based on the incoming and outgoing situation of each battle, as well as what happened within them. Using these, the team was then able to make predictions about who would win the overall match. During one type of analysis, a team’s experience gain was found to be the least effective indicator, followed by gold gain and kill difference. Combining all of these together, unsurprisingly, provided more accurate results, and the team’s predictions would improve as more encounters were observed.

It’s early days, but the hope is that such a model could be used by casters to better understand each match and explain what’s happening to the millions of fans watching at home. If the system could be used in real-time, for instance, it might be able to flag situations that are known to produce game-altering moments. These could be based on the types of heroes involved and their position on the map, but also where they are in regards to the overall flow of the match. Furthermore, the team hopes it’ll be useful for professional Dota 2 players who want to analyse their performances, as well as the game’s creators for future rebalancing.

“The opportunity to be able to analyse games in depth and evaluate tactics is interesting to analysts and game developers, but also to the players themselves”, said Tobias Mahlmann, one of the three lead researchers.

Via: TechRadar

Source: Lund University

‘Star Wars: Trials on Tatooine’ VR experiment revealed

Last week we got an inadvertent early peek at a new Star Wars VR experience from Industrial Light & Magic, and now the full trailer has been revealed. RoadtoVR has the Trials on Tatooine trailer in its full glory, and it’s even better in motion than the stills could reveal. You no longer have to take our word for it, this HTC Vive-linked “experiment” is way better than the Jakku Spy app that came out for Google Cardboard last year.

Unfortunately there’s still not much available in the way of details, but it’s possible ILMxLab will have more to say this week during the Game Developer’s Conference in San Francisco. What is new however, is a nearly three minute video encouraging prospective employees to “join the force,” showing off even more of the VR projects ILM has in the works. Check out both videos embedded below, and if we spend some time in virtual reality with R2-D2 and company we’ll let you know how it turns out.

Source: RoadtoVR, ILMVisualFX (YouTube)

Razer reveals its latest 14-inch Blade gaming laptop at GDC

At GDC on Tuesday, Razer announced that it is releasing the fifth generation of its popular Blade gaming laptop. The new edition will reportedly offer significant performance improvements over its predecessor from 2014 including an Intel Core i7 running 16GB of DDR4, a GeForce™ GTX 970M GPU powered by 6GB of VRAM, 802.11 AC wireless connectivity and a PCIe SSD. Razer managed to cram all that hardware — not to mention a 3200×1800 QHD+ display and Chroma backlit keyboard — into a CNC-milled aluminum case that’s less than 3/4 of an inch thick and weighs just 4.25 pounds.

And with the release of the its marquee Blade Stealth, Razer is dropping the price on the Blade from $2400 to an even $2000 for the 256GB capacity (it’ll be $2200 if you want the 512GB drive upgrade). What’s more, the Blade will be compatible with the new Razer Core as well, though you won’t get the $100 discount offered with the Stealth. You can pre-order the Blade from Razer’s website starting today. They’ll begin shipping in April.

Twitch launches food channel with ‘The French Chef’ marathon

Twitch is known as the place to watch and broadcast live video games, be it competitive eSports like Dota, a humorous “Let’s Play” or a bizarre Pokemon experiment. But to grow, the company is now looking beyond the interactive button-mashing medium. Today it’s launching a full-time food channel, which will broadcast a variety of cooking shows 24 hours a day, seven days per week. To mark the occasion it’s launching with an all-episode marathon of The French Chef, a cooking show that was created and hosted by Julia Child. It was one of the first culinary programmes in America, running between 1963 and 1973 on NET and PBS.

The move builds on the success of Bob Ross and The Joy of Painting, a classic TV show that was first shown on Twitch last October. It was hugely popular and sparked a weekly slot on the site, which has now morphed into two showings each Monday. The company will be hoping for a similar reaction to The French Chef, in order to launch its new cooking channel and the other shows that will inevitably follow. Twitch is staying tight-lipped about these, but has pointed to streamers such as DomesticDan and Lulaboo that already use the platform for food-related broadcasts.

The new channel will change Twitch’s image and also serve as a warning shot to other video sites, particularly YouTube. It also shows an awareness of how people, especially youngsters, are slowly changing their TV viewing habits. Instead of spending hours with cable, they’re choosing smaller channels and producers based on sites like YouTube. If Twitch can become the go-to platform for these personalities, only in a live setting, it’ll act as another broadside for traditional TV channels and providers.

Sony’s h.ear wireless headphones ship April 12th for $350

Back at CES, Sony unveiled a full portable audio line under the “h.ear” brand. Despite a range of headphones, a speaker and even a new Walkman, the over-ear wireless headphones were the highlight of the bunch. Officially labeled the “h.ear on wireless” (MDR-100ABN), the headphones pack in Bluetooth with LDAC for higher quality audio, quick NFC pairing, DSEE tech for a fuller sound and Beat Response Control for better bass reproduction. I tried them myself in Vegas and they sound quite good and are plenty comfy, making Sony’s latest wireless headphones worth a look. The noise-cancelling cans are going on sale March 27th for $350 and they’ll ship April 12th.

The so-called h.ear line also features wireless in-ear that offer some of the same audio tech as the over-ear model. The “h.ear in wireless” (MDR-EX750BT) also go on sale on the 27th at a price of $200 and are set to ship March 29th. If a wireless speaker is what you’re after, the h.ear line has one of those, too. The “h.ear go wireless” (SRS-HG1) supports high-res playback in a compact package and can connect to your devices via Google Cast and Spotify Connect. With a pending software update that’s due this summer, you can use Sony’s SongPal app build a multi-room audio setup — if you’re willing to splurge for more than one of the $200 speakers or some other Sony audio gear. The h.ear go wireless is on sale now, and it’s set to ship April 13th.

Lastly, there are two Walkmans to round out the bunch. First, the NW-A26HN sports the same eye-popping colors as the rest of the h.ear line with support for high-res audio. You can pre-order one now for $320 ahead of the April 4th ship date. If you’re serious about that audiophile habit, you may want to consider the NW-ZX100HN Walkman. At $700, Sony touts it as “he world’s first high-res noise cancelling digital music player,” complete with lossless playback support. The company is offering something for everyone with the h.ear line, it’s just a matter of deciding ahead of the devices’ arrival in a few weeks.

Razer’s new Hacker Development Kit natively supports CryEngine

Razer unveiled its latest revision to its Open Source Virtual Reality (OSVR) developer’s bundle, aka Hacker Development Kit v1.4, during GDC on Tuesday. The latest HDK offers a number of improvements over its previous iteration.

First, now that Razer and Crytek are collaborating on the OSVR project, the CryENGINE — Crytek’s proprietary game engine (think FarCry) — natively supports the HDK. That essentially means that developers will be now able to build games for OSVR within the CryENGINE that they’re already used to working in.

“The open standard encouraged by OSVR corresponds with our own desire to give CryENGINE users total freedom of choice in VR development.” CryENGINE creative director, Frank Vitz, said in a statement. “We’re excited to be supporting a platform that is designed to accelerate progress and expand the audience for VR, and we look forward to seeing how OSVR developers harness CryENGINE to create innovative experiences.”

Additionally, the new HDK will incorporate a diffusion film designed to overlay the existing optics and reduce the “screen door” effect, which accentuates the pixelization of viewed images. HDK 1.4 is currently available from the Razer website for $349 if you include a Leap Motion Orion or $300 if you don’t. You can also pick up a new Leap Motion-enabled faceplate separately for $75. For HDK 1.3 users that don’t want to shell out for an entirely new unit just to minimize pixelation, the diffusion film will be available separately starting in April.

Beats 1 Announces New deadmau5 Show ‘mau5trap presents’

Popular music producer and performer Joel Thomas Zimmerman, most popularly known as deadmau5, is set to join Apple Music’s Beats 1 radio station this Friday. The 35-year-old artist will have his own show, called “mau5trap presents,” debuting at 3PM PST on Friday, March 18.

Besides the announcement tweet via the Beats 1 account, no other specifics regarding the content of mau5trap presents were given. Still, considering the genre and work Zimmerman is known for, there will probably be a heavy focus on electronic dance music in the show. It’s also unclear whether or not Zimmerman will be given a recurring presence on Beats 1 or if mau5trap presents is a one-off performance.

HERE WE GO.@deadmau5 is coming to #Beats1.
Catch mau5trap presents…
Friday at 3PM PT/6PM ET. pic.twitter.com/lE1WAoKyDn

— Beats 1 (@Beats1) March 14, 2016

Although Zimmerman has supported Apple at iTunes Music Festivals in the past, last year the Canadian artist was mostly seen in public support of Jay-Z’s streaming service TIDAL, joining the ranks of artists like Rihanna and Kanye West who also support the platform. The specifics of his deal with Apple remain unclear, but due to a recent public feud with West over the latter’s alleged piracy of various music creation software and albums, it seems that Zimmerman’s original backing of TIDAL is slowly being rescinded.

Deadmau5 will join artists like Dr. Dre, Pharrell, Major Lazer, and Haim, who’ve all had shows on the Beats 1 station on Apple Music. In an interview recently, Beats 1 radio host Zane Lowe spoke on the artistic freedom that Apple allows of its Beats 1 creators, claiming that Apple Music doesn’t place any restrictions or rules on them or their specific shows, letting the hosts play whatever they want in their designated slot.

Tags: Apple Music, Beats 1
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TomTom Golfer 2 Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET

TomTom

TomTom announced on Tuesday at the Wearable Technology Show in London a new sportwatch designed for golfers. The TomTom Golfer 2 is a GPS-equipped watch that can calculate distances and view hazards (things like sand bunkers and ponds) on over 40,000 golf courses worldwide.

The watch features two improvements over the original model: automatic shot detection and an automatic digital scoreboard. Other features include distance measurements to the front, center and back of the green, distances to individual hazards along the fairway, and a complete view of the green with hazard warnings that can be viewed before you shoot.

Information from the watch is synced over Bluetooth 4.0 (also know as Bluetooth Smart) to your smartphone. You can then view what TomTom describes as a “detailed post-round analysis” in the TomTom MySports app on Android and iOS. The app will be able to show you what areas of your game you need to improve, along with providing insights into shot patterns and hole-by-hole breakdowns.

The watch resembles TomTom’s multisport Spark watch. It features an easy-to-read monochrome display and a large four-way navigational button. Much like the Spark, the Golfer 2 is also water-resistant up to 40 meters (about 131 feet). The original model lasted 10 hours with an active GPS signal. We haven’t hard anything on battery life for the Golfer 2, but we imagine it to be equal to, if not slightly better than the original.

The TomTom Golfer 2 will be available in May for £200 in the UK. Pricing is not yet announced for other countries, but that price converts to about $285 in the US and AU$385 in Australia.

British Gas will make your boiler self-diagnose faults with Boiler IQ

British Gas has announced its latest product looking to make your home smarter. Boiler IQ is a monitoring system that will allow compatible boilers to self-diagnose problems long before you know something is wrong.

Available as an upgrade to existing Worcester Bosch boilers, Boiler IQ is a monitoring system that will detect problems as they happen, meaning you can be alerted to boiler faults sooner, rather than discovering you have a problem when the shower is cold.

The data is sent to British Gas, as part of the company’s HomeCare package, meaning that the engineer sent out to fix the problem will already know what’s going wrong. British Gas claims that in trials, Boiler IQ detected the problem 19-24 hours before the customer knew there was anything amiss. 

Boiler IQ has been developed by the Connected Home team at British Gas, and is based on the sort of technology that’s used to diagnose aircraft faults.

There is a cost, however. The component will cost £49 for installation (and you need to have a compatible boiler) and then there’s a £3 monthly fee added to existing HomeCare contracts.

Home Care is maintenance and repair service that British Gas offers, covering a wide range of domestic systems for a monthly fee. 

British Gas says that in the future, Boiler IQ will hopefully identify potential faults before they happen.