Now you can play XCOM: Enemy Unknown on Android, too
Android gamers who’ve been yearning for XCOM‘s deep, turn-based tactics just got their wish: 2K has released a version of XCOM: Enemy Unknown for Google’s mobile platform. Much like last year’s iOS edition, you’ll get to fight off invading aliens and build your bases in an interface optimized for touch. This is one of the pricier Android games on the market at $10, but our pals at Joystiq are already fans of the mobile version. It’s likely worth the cash if you’re looking for something engrossing to play on your spring vacation — especially if you can’t get enough of it on your PC or console.
Filed under: Gaming, Software, HD, Mobile, Google
Via: XCOM (Twitter), Joystiq
Source: Google Play
Xbox One and PlayStation 4 support added to Unreal Engine 4 in latest update
Moving a game from one platform to another — from iOS to PC, from Xbox One to PlayStation 4 — isn’t as easy as it seems. Just change a few button prompts and you’re all set, right? Not so much. There’s a lot to consider: how do you control the game (mouse/keyboard/gamepad/touch/etc.)? does it sync up with online leaderboards? does it have the proper logos/attribution? Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 4 aims to circumvent as much of that as possible, and today it’s enabling two more platforms: Xbox One and PlayStation 4. In terms of Xbox One peripheral support, that includes Kinect, and in terms of PlayStation 4 peripheral support, that includes the Project Morpheus virtual reality headset.
The update brings UE4 to version 4.1, and is part of the same $19/mo. monthly subscription fee that customers are already paying. The engine itself is actually being certified directly by both Sony and Microsoft right now, which should help with game certification down the line; Sony’s PS4 is already ready-to-go and Microsoft’s Xbox One is in the works (though game makers can submit UE4-made games for publishing on either console before the process is complete for the engine itself).
With today’s update, the folks at Epic are actually running out of platforms to support: it already supports PC, last-gen consoles, current-gen consoles, SteamOS, Linux, and the Oculus Rift. They’re still working on Windows Phone 8 and, though there’s no “concrete roadmap,” a full version of the UE4 editor is in the works for Linux. The game industry’s most prolific engine is quickly becoming the game industry’s most widely available as well.
One of Activision’s top moneymakers gets a new entry in Skylanders: Trap Team
Like taxes, iPhones and, well, Madden, you can count on a new Skylanders game every year. If you’re unfamiliar with the franchise, that may just be a symptom of not being around kids — the toy / video game series is a dominant force in the kids gaming market, sharing responsibility with biggies like Call of Duty and World of Warcraft for bringing in 80 percent of Activision’s earnings in 2013. Each new entry in the game series comes with a new physical device for reading toy figurines; when said figurines are placed on the device (called a “portal”), they’re transported into the game world and playable in-game.
Between the figures ($5 – $7 apiece, on average) and the games (anywhere from $7 to $60), it’s easy to understand why the franchise is so profitable. Thankfully, the franchise is also lauded by most critics as a pretty decent game, too. The next entry, Skylanders: Trap Team, arrives this October — the first time the series is on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One — and it’s the largest game in the franchise to date.
When Skylanders: Trap Team launches on October 5th in North America (the 10th in Europe), it arrives with a new portal, and also even larger Skylanders figures than before. The hook this time around (beyond the whole “putting a toy from the real world into a game” thing) is the ability to “trap” in-game enemies. Using one of eight “Traptanium Traps” — that’s eight colored real-world toys that must be purchased — you can “trap” enemies (store the character data from the game). That enemy can then be used in-game, just like a Skylander. This enables players to quickly switch between two characters, one Skylander and one boss character, on-the-fly. There’s also a neat interactivity aspect wherein the portal now has a speaker and the boss character, once captured, will comment on the game in real-time.
We spoke with Toys for Bob’s Paul Reiche, head of the studio that both created the Skylanders franchise and headed up development of Skylanders: Team Trap. Before you ask: yes, all previous Skylanders toys work with this new one. All the parents in the crowd say “Yay-a!” Reiche (pronounced “Richy”) walked us through the new game, the scope of the series, and spoke to the design of the new characters. What’s with the new traps? Why are the characters larger? And what the heck is “traptanium”? Allow him to explain in the video above, and get a much closer look at all the new hardware while you’re at it.
Video produced by Edgar Alvarez and Daniel Orren.
Filed under: Gaming, Software, HD, Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo
Twitch streams more live video than the WWE, MLB and ESPN combined
Video games now have more online spectators than traditional sports. Crazy, right? It’s crazy. According to Qwilt, a company that provides video caching services to content creators, Twitch is now the most popular live streaming site in the US. The outfit’s analytics group says the streaming site is more popular than UStream, the WWE, ESPN and MLB.com combined, owning a massive 43-percent share of all live streaming traffic. It’s slightly shocking from a cultural standpoint, but we can’t say we’re entirely surprised: with the Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and even mobile platforms offering average gamers the chance to put on a show, Twitch is hosting more than a million streams per month. There’s simply more content: Twitch streams gameplay 24 hours a day. ESPN has to wait for a sporting even to actually happen.
Twitch’s standing in Qwilt’s general video entertainment poll is a little less impressive, taking only 1.5% of the video streaming market when pitted against Netflix and Google’s on-demand services. Even that has a silver lining, however, as Twitch still ranks in the top 5 video entertainment services for six countries: Brazil, Peru, Taiwan, Thailand, the United Kingdom and the US. Turns out gamers like to watch other gamers game. Who would’ve thought? Hit up the source link below to see Qwilt’s live video streaming infographic, accompanied by a thinly veiled pitch for its video caching service.
US government approves Facebook’s purchase of Oculus
We’re not sure there was ever much doubt, but the US government has given the thumbs up to Facebook’s $2 billion purchase of Oculus VR. The Federal Trade Commission examined the deal and found that it would not violate American antitrust laws. Now with most of the regulatory hurdles cleared, the focus can shift to the practical implications of the deal. Joining the Facebook family clearly puts a vast amount of resources at the disposal of Oculus founders like Palmer Luckey. But many in the development community are worried that the move represents something of a loss of innocence. Notch, the man behind Minecraft, in particular is apparently creeped out by Facebook and what it’s business model and culture could mean for the future of the Rift. We can’t pretend to know what’s coming — we’re not even sure that Mark Zuckerberg or Oculus are sure what the future holds yet. All we can say is that we really hope a VR version of Facebook isn’t in the cards.
2k Games tries to save Civilization, Borderlands from GameSpy server shutdown
Gamespy’s impending server shut-down might be cutting off Wii and DS multiplayer at the head, but not all games have to suffer this fate: PC publishers are starting to migrate their multiplayer servers to new platforms. Three of EA’s Battlefield games are already slated for transition, and now, so are two of 2K Games’ biggest franchises: Civilization and Borderlands. On May 31st, Civilization III, IV (and their expansions) and the PC version of Borderlands will all begin transitioning to Steamworks, temporarily disrupting online services for a few days.
2K says it’s looking into moving the PS3 version of Borderlands and Civilization Revolution to new servers too, but it isn’t sure if it’s technically feasible. That said, a number of 2K games are still getting the online axe, including Rune, Stronghold 2 and a handful of sports titles. Care to see the full list? Check out the source link below.
Filed under: Gaming
Source: 2K Games
Japan’s not getting the Xbox One until this September
If we’re being civil, Japan’s relationship with the Xbox could be described as “tenuous” at best, and the release date for Microsoft’s latest game console probably won’t do much to change that. Come this September 4th, gamers in the country will finally be able to claim an Xbox One for themselves. Yes, that’s around 10 months after it launched in the US and other “first tier” countries, and seven months after the PlayStation 4′s Japanese debut. Redmond’s Eastern wing hasn’t mentioned pricing just yet (what, one announcement isn’t enough?), but with E3 on the horizon it likely won’t remain unknown for too much longer.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD, Microsoft
Source: Microsoft (Japanese)
Download: Show your friends you’re smarter than them with QuizUP
Sometimes you don’t need an original idea to make a killer app, as long as you get the presentation right. Take Tinder, for example, which managed to put a whole new spin on internet dating thanks to its slick, simple mobile interface. Now, there are innumerable quiz apps out there for mobile devices, but none quite like QuizUp. Released last month on Android after launching last year on iOS, QuizUp is spreading through this editor’s friendship group like wildfire, because what are friends for if not to beat at question-and-answer games and wind them up about it later? It’s not just the online multiplayer that makes QuizUp a gem, though — it’s also super easy to use and looks great, too.
QuizUp kind of does for quizzing what Words With Friends did for Scrabble. Pitting your LOST knowledge against a confident chum while riding the bus is what makes the app so fun, and signing in with Facebook, Twitter and G+ will auto-populate the in-app buddy list with any connections that have QuizUp installed. You can battle each other in real-time, or answer your seven multiple choice questions whenever you want, letting your opponent catch up later. You score points for correct answers, obviously, but quick fingers are also key, as you get penalised the longer you take to choose. If you want to brush up on a topic, of which there are over 400 from architecture to Star Trek, chemistry to brand logos, you can challenge a random online, but the higher you level up on any given subject, the harder the questions get.
If you needed any more reasons to spend time within the app, then there’s messaging, rankings, a history of what your friends’ are up to, achievements and even forum-like discussion boards for each topic. On top of all the little extras, QuizUp also looks and behaves impressively. It’s colourful, everything works as you expect it to, and the simple UI makes for easy navigation. For a free app it’s nicely polished, although you can buy XP boosters with real money if you’re absolutely intent on levelling up quickly. We imagine, like Words With Friends, you just won’t load it up one day, and forget about it. Until then, though, it’s the type of casual but crazy addictive game that’ll have you sitting in the pub in silence, with a grunt here and a snort there revealing which of your mates knows way too much about One Direction.
Filed under: Cellphones, Gaming, Tablets, Internet, Software
Source: QuizUp, App store, Play store
Watch as an Oculus Rift takes itself apart
If you’ve been following the virtual reality scene in the past year, you probably already know that the Oculus Rift raised almost $2.5 million on Kickstarter. You probably also know that its 100-degree field of view is three times that of a traditional desktop monitor. However, you likely haven’t seen one of the headsets taken apart screw by screw in stop-motion. YouTuber Vsauce3 has meticulously chronicled the VR unit’s piece-by-piece disassembly, using the technique made famous by the likes of Ray Harryhausen and, more recently, the team behind ParaNorman. The teardown video has the above factoids (and a few more) literally folded and layered into the gizmo’s circuit board and casing, too. Trust us, even if you know everything about the Rift, the clip is still pretty neat to watch.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD
Via: TechCrunch
Source: Vsauce3 (YouTube)
Flippypad, a Project Ara concept gamers could get behind
By now, everyone has probably heard about Google’s Project Ara modular smartphone that should arrive in January 2015.
While there are plenty of people talking about the potential to swap out components such as the display, camera, processor, battery, etc., one concept is making its way around the web that could bring an almost Nintendo DS/3DS gaming experience to the smartphone.
Designer Samuel Herb is sharing a concept he created called Flippypad for Project Ara, a hinged controller that turns the smartphone into “a neat little clamshell gaming device.”
The concept has L and R buttons, a D-Pad, two flat joysticks “and the familiar ABXY diamond.” The hinged component concept also connects into the back of Project Ara to power and integrate it.
This could be the perfect accessory for gamers who want to carry as little with them as possible and allow them to get great gaming experience out of their mobile device as well.
Herb said that if anyone wants to see something like this made, they should try and get the word out, then maybe it will find its way to the right people and he can start developing it for real.
Would you be interested in such an component/accessory? Are you excited for Project Ara?
The post Flippypad, a Project Ara concept gamers could get behind appeared first on AndroidGuys.
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