The ‘Burnout’ successor from Criterion Games is no more
Electronic Arts’ E3 keynote last week featured an awful lot of soccer (football to the rest of the world), Battlefield and Titanfall, but no word on how developer Criterion’s post-Burnout racing game was coming. That’s because the team is occupying different pastures, according to GameSpot. An EA spokesperson tells the publication that the studio has “moved on from the previous project they’ve spoken about and aren’t pursuing it.” It was teased at E3 2014 during the company’s media briefing and never heard about since.
The “biggest game that Criterion’s ever made” was supposed to combine action racing with helicopters, wing-suits, jet skis and ATVs has been abandoned in favor of Criterion working in that galaxy far, far away. Specifically, co-developing the Battlefront VR game that EA teased back in March, which we now know as Star Wars: Battlefront X-Wing VR Mission. Rolls right off the tongue, doesn’t it? Regardless of how cumbersome the name is, you’ll be able to play it this October — for free assuming you haven’t traded Battlefront off just yet.
Maybe after that ships we could see the team make a long-awaited follow-up to Star Wars: Episode One Racer. If anyone could pull that off, it’d be Criterion.
Via: Polygon
Source: GameSpot
Tinder: one in five Brits swiped right to learn more about Brexit
Despite its reputation as a dating app for millenials, Tinder often uses its powers for good. In the US, it’s already helped Americans find their presidential match and learn more about the dangers of STDs. But in the UK, over the past three weeks, Tinder has been educating users about tomorrow’s EU referendum — commonly known as the Brexit vote — and it’s had quite the effect.
In a statement today, Tinder confirmed that more than 20 percent of UK users swiped right to take a true-or-false quiz that covered the major topics surrounding the referendum. Developed with help from non-profit Bite the Ballot, the quiz loaded between potential matches in an attempt to engage with younger users — aged between 18 and 34 — and help them register ahead of the June 23rd vote. Participants were split almost down the middle, with women accounting for 51 percent of swipes and 49 percent for men.
It’s not the first time an app or web service has played its part in a major political event — Facebook urged Britons to record their vote in last year’s General Election — but it’s interesting to see how Tinder is attempting to shake its image as a hook-up app by getting stuck into key issues that could affect its users’ futures.
WiFi-connected hard drive fits a Plex server in your pocket
Over the years we’ve seen Plex’s media software run across a number of different devices, from PCs to game consoles to NAS and cellphones. Now, it’s teamed up with Western Digital for what it says is the first portable Plex Media Server. The hardware is handled by the My Passport Wireless Pro, a battery-powered portable hard drive that can run standalone for 10 hours, charge mobile devices, and back up data via SD or USB 3.0. The all-in-one box can even create a WiFi network to sync with mobile devices or stream media to any device running Plex. The 2TB version is ready to take your stuff on the go for $230, and upgrading to 3TB only costs an extra $20.
Of course, if you prefer to leave your network-attached storage at home, Western Digital also rolled out some My Cloud Pro devices that trade portability for capacity and power. They can handle up to 32TB of storage, and back up connected devices with the press of a button. An integrated video processor lets it push 4K video, transcode up to four 1080p streams at once for viewing on other devices and run apps for Plex or Adobe Creative Cloud, all from your own home with prices starting at $400.
Source: Plex Blog, WD Passport – Plex, WD Cloud – Plex
NASA Launches Official Apple TV App Featuring Real-Time View of Earth
NASA has launched its official app for the fourth-generation Apple TV, joining the app’s popular iOS versions on iPhone and iPad, which have been downloaded over 17 million times.
The Apple TV app lets users watch high-definition live streams from NASA TV, and allows them to enjoy a real-time view of the Earth from the International Space Station.
The app also informs users of their next opportunity to view the ISS and other NASA satellites as they pass overhead, based on user location.
The app has several other features, including a slideshow viewer with more than 15,000 images, on-demand NASA videos, 2D and 3D satellite tracking maps, NASA mission news, and the ability to listen to Third Rock internet streaming radio.
“The NASA app has been a fantastic way for the public to experience the excitement of space exploration from their mobile devices,” said David Weaver, NASA associate administrator for Communications in a press release.
“Now, users with the latest Apple TV can explore and enjoy our remarkable images, videos, mission information, NASA Television and more on the big screen with the whole family.”
The NASA app is available in the App Store on the fourth-gen Apple TV.
Tag: NASA
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IdeaUSA W205: The Gateway to a starter wireless multi-speaker system (review)
At $69.99, the IdeaUSA W205 is a versatile smart speaker that connects and streams music in a variety of ways, from Bluetooth to wi-fi. It’s portable, lightweight, with good sound quality. And it’s a nice starter piece for building a home wireless speaker system at an affordable price.
Many Options for Streaming Music
Like most wireless speakers in the under $100 price range, the W205 streams music using Bluetooth, micro SD card (TF), Airplay, or connects physically with an audio cable. It also connects to wi-fi with the help of the free IdeaHome app. The app has the ability to connect and control other IdeaUSA speakers, creating a multi-room audio system. The speakers can play independent of one another, playing different music in separate rooms, or in tandem. (Sometimes IdeaUSA offers a discount when two or more speakers are purchased at the same time.)
I had no problems connecting the speaker using all of the previously mentioned methods with the exception of wi-fi. Even though my router meets the minimum required 2.4 GHz 802.11 b/g/n, I was not able to connect after several attempts. I was too lazy to contact customer support, which seems responsive based on a few customer reviews that cited similar issues. Most people didn’t seem to have a problem connecting to wi-fi, though.
Solid Performance
I performed the usual music tests, listening to classical, country, rock, pop, R&B, jazz, and podcasts, playing the speaker for about eight hours without needing to recharge. I even blasted “Game of Thrones” when I was testing out the ability to connect to my tablet.
The W205 performed solidly considering its size; the two subwoofers do a good job helping to project the sound. No surprise that it doesn’t handle deep bass very well, either sounding muddled or non-existent. As noted in many of my reviews, speakers in this price range usually perform well in the mid-range.
Unobtrusive Design
Simply designed with a wraparound grill, the W205 is unobtrusive with a 5-inch squareish sized ovoid, dent resistant, hard plastic/metal body. Available in either red or dark silver, its rounded edges make it easy to hold and carry from room-to-room or to the outdoors.
Controls are located on top: power, wi-fi/Bluetooth, six programmable playlist buttons, volume, play, back/forward. There’s no mic, which is not a surprise since IdeaUSA markets this as a home speaker. There are indicator lights for wi-fi, Bluetooth, TF card (micro SD), aux, charging mode, and battery level.
I’m not sure why IdeaUSA chose to use a combination of synthesized chimes and an affected British-Asian (?) accent male voice to alert users when a function has been turned on. I am not a fan of the booming voice announcing “Bluetooth mode has been on” (sic) every time I touch the button. It actually startled my dog a few times when I booted up the Bluetooth.
Summary
The W205 is a good affordable wireless speaker and especially worthy of consideration if you’re in the market for a reasonably priced multi-room system.
Check out the IdeaUSA W205 Wireless speaker at Amazon for $69.99.
Key Specs & Other Information
Dimensions: 5” x 5.3” x 2”
Weight: 1.1 lbs
Speaker output: 2 x 3W
Bluetooth: v. 2.1
Wi-fi: 2.4G, 802.11 b/g/n
Lithium ion battery, lasts 8-10 hours on one charge
Speaker comes with USB cable and 2.5 mm aux-in cable
Warranty: 1 year + 30 day money back guarantee
Japan is deploying pirated anime-hunting human personnel
Japan’s automated bootleg-hunting software isn’t quite as effective as its government would like. So, it’s boosting its anti-piracy campaign by hiring human employees to manually scour forums, torrents and video-streaming websites for illegally distributed anime and live video content. See, it’s pretty easy to slip through the clutches of an automated system — all people have to do is change the video a bit to make sure it’s not an exact match to what Japan’s computers are looking for. That tactic obviously won’t work on human personnel.
As Motherboard noted, Japan is betting on anime and manga to boost its economy. Animation studios have recently made their creations more available to audiences outside the country, but they’re still not as easy to access as Western media. Hulu, for instance, dropped a ton of titles from its anime catalogue in May. As such, illegal distribution of anime is still so widespread that its estimated cost of damage is a whopping $20 billion.
According to RocketNews24, the government will start this new project next week with one hire, perhaps to test things out. The employee will have to determine whether the pirated video he finds affects the copyright holder financially. If it does, the government will assess the legal actions it can take.
Via: Motherboard
Source: Yahoo Japan
‘Mighty No. 9’ suffers Xbox 360 delays and a deluge of issues
Gamers eager to jump into the long-awaited 2D action platformer Mighty No. 9 were in for a rude awakening today after some concerning issues plagued the Kickstarter-funded title that looked to some to be a spiritual successor to Mega Man in many ways. Not only has the Xbox 360 suffered a delay on the game’s very release day, but there are scads of other problems plaguing those who just wanted to jump in and shoot some bad guys.
Mighty No. 9 was planned for release today on various platforms, and it did make its way to players on other consoles including Wii U, but the Xbox 360 delay came as something of a shock as developer Comcept came forward to announce that it wouldn’t, in fact, be out for a few more days still.
Publisher Deep Silver took to official game blog to explain the delay, noting “issues regarding the publishing process” for the Xbox 360 version as well as a “certification bug” that was found during final rounds of testing.
“Our team has already re-submitted the build to Deep Silver (and to Microsoft), and we expect it to go gold within a few days if all goes according to plan. For the backers who chose that platform we are supplying Steam keys so that those users are not left behind on release day. Once the Xbox 360 version is ready for release we will send out those codes to the relevant backers ASAP,” the blog noted. Additionally, players who chose Mac or Linux versions of Mighty No. 9 will be waiting a few more days as well as those aren’t officially ready to roll out just yet, either.
Unfortunately, it looks like those lucky enough to both receive a copy of the game on a console of their choosing and get started on release day are having to deal with another set of problems entirely. Users with Wii U consoles have reported that their consoles seem to have been bricked, or rendered totally useless, after entering the special Mighty No. 9 backer codes sent out to Kickstarter supporters.
So my Mighty No 9 PSN backer code doesn’t work, it supposedly bricks the WiiU, DLC apparently breaks the game, and pic.twitter.com/3ECDWLBqDd
— #BeeLDeaL | B:L (@blbeel) June 21, 2016
Other players report their codes simply won’t work, or they only received one of the special vouchers for DLC character Ray and not the “Retro” downloadable content pack. According to VentureBeat, Deep Silver has claimed there was a patch deployed to alleviate these issues, but that likely won’t help a console that’s already been bricked to begin with.
Mighty No. 9 hasn’t enjoyed a very successful launch day despite its promising Kickstarter campaign and preliminary artwork, game design briefs and especially the involvement of the legendary Keiji Inafune. Perhaps these issues will be resolved in the next few days or so and players rewarded with the game they’ve been waiting for, even if it doesn’t appear to be delivering exactly what was promised according to initial reviews.
Via: VentureBeat
Source: Mighty No. 9
NASA’s app turns your Apple TV into an ISS observation deck
According to NASA, the space agency’s official app has been downloaded more than 17 million times on iOS, Android and Fire OS. Today, that same window into space exploration got even bigger with the addition of a new version for Apple TV. That means: high-definition versions of NASA TV, on-demand NASA videos, 3D satellite tracking maps, realtime views of the Earth from the International Space Station and a stellar new backdrop for your next cocktail party.
In addition to all the livestreams and launch videos, the NASA app also allows you to queue up a slideshow of more than 15,000 images, stream Third Rock internet radio, or view NASA’s Earth as Art galleries. When you finally feel the need to actually get outside and look up at the sky yourself, the app will also help you find the next opportunity to view the ISS as it passes over your location.
The NASA app is currently available in the App Store on Apple TV, as well as iOS, Android and Fire OS.
Jump into the ‘Overwatch’ Competitive Play beta now
Overwatch, the massively popular online multiplayer shooter from Blizzard, is now bringing its Public Test Region live in North America, allowing PC players the chance to square off in the upcoming Competitive Play update. That means any current PC player can pick up the official client to test out the Competitive Play mode right now. As in, right now? You’re still reading this?
The patch, which originally launched in South Korea, is available to players all over the world now, serving up the Competitive Play mode. You can jump in and try out the tweaked gameplay, which comes packing a new point system, sudden deaths in the event of a tie, and other various additions.
If you make progress in the beta test, you won’t be able to carry it into your official Overwatch game, but you won’t have to wait much longer for the full patch as it comes out later this month. Unfortunately, this test won’t be out for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One users just yet, but Blizzard is planning on announcing the Competitive Play update for both platforms in the coming week.
Source: Overwatch Blog
Stave off creepy texting partners with Burner’s Ghostbot
If you’ve ever unwittingly received harassing texts or annoying messages from someone who got hold of your number somehow, you’ve probably made friends with your phone’s block feature. If not, because you don’t want to be rude, you’ve put together a series of noncommittal replies to stop those conversations dead in their tracks. Thanks to Burner, the app that lets you create and destroy phone numbers at your leisure, you won’t have to pay them any mind ever again. Meet Ghostbot, the bot that’ll blow those pesky texters off for you.
Ghostbot is a special bot that you can assign to any active Burner. It’s as simple as creating a number using the app, then activating Ghostbot to interact with that skeevy match from Tinder or that coworker who just can’t take a hint. For instance, a message asking if you want to “hang out” might receive a response like “I’m pretty busy but I’ll get back to you.” Nothing rude, but direct enough to communicate the fact that you just aren’t interested. These canned responses are sent after Ghostbot analyzes the texts sent to you via your Burner number, with appropriate ones sent as replies.
Burner is serving up Ghostbot as proof of what developers can accomplish with its Developer Connection platform, which allows anyone to create their own extensions on top of the Burner service. Ghostbot is an interesting creation as-is, however, and surely a useful tool for anyone who’s ever had trouble figuring out how to exit gracefully from a conversation they just weren’t digging.
AIVAnet 