Wikipad Announces Price Cuts for the 7-inch Gaming Tablet
Wikipad has announced a slight price drop on their 7-inch Android based gaming tablet today. Formerly launched at an attractive $249, the Wikipad 7-inch is dropping to $199.
Wikipad features:
- 16GB on board storage and micro SD slot for another 32GB
- 1GB DDR3 RAM
- 1.3GHz NVIDIA Tegra 3
- 2MP front facing camera
- Preloaded with Dead Trigger, Shadowgun: Dead Zone and Hockey Nation
- Removable, Ultra responsive Controller
- Weighs 1.2 lbs
- 2.6-inches thick
In the press release they also announced that touch games can now be mapped out to use the controller. The companion app is called Wikipad Controller Assistant. It certainly doesn’t hurt that you have access to Tegra zone, the Play Store and Playstation Mobile games too.
You can find the Wikipad 7 at its new price point at various retailers. Best Buy and Amazon already have them adjusted. For the price it is pretty attractive.
Xbox One’s Skype app gets first refresh: contact filtering, longer chat logs and more
Skype for Xbox One — or as we like to call it, SuperSkype Extreme — is getting its first update today. Tired of looking through offline contacts to find out if Larry’s online? This update allows for filtration by availability! Tired of Larry lying about things he said last week? This update adds longer chat logs (“up to 1,000 messages, rather than just the past seven days”)! Tired of Larry’s constant use of smiley face emoticons? This update has “hidden” (totally not hidden) Captain America: The Winter Soldier emoticons! Tired of Larry’s Skype always crashing? This update squashes a variety of launch bugs.
Really though, it sounds like you’re just tired of Larry. Maybe it’s time to finally move on.
Filed under: Gaming, Software, HD, Microsoft
Source: Skype
Reported Amazon game controller appears in pictures
Amazon is probably making a game console, and today we’ve got a better idea of what that console’s controller looks like thanks to Dave Zatz and the Brazilian FCC. The standards are all there: two offset, concave analog sticks, four buttons (A/B/X/Y) on the right front, a d-pad in the lower left, and triggers/shoulder buttons around back/up top. What’s weird about this particular controller, however, are the other buttons. A slew of media controls sit at the bottom (play, fast-forward, rewind), and in the middle there are four buttons: Home, Back, Menu … wait a minute! These are Android buttons! Either Amazon’s building a controller for Android or the console it’s making is Android-based (we’re guessing the latter). Head below for more!
So, what’s the mysterious fourth button? Your guess is as good as ours, but it sure is shiny (the white spots in the images appear to be the reflection of the lights overhead). It could be a tiny trackball, but that’s a tremendously bad idea and we think Amazon’s smarter than that. Perhaps a power button for the console? Or maybe a share button, a la Sony’s DualShock 4? Again, we can’t be sure just yet. Feel free to venture your best guesses in the comments below (like we have to ask).
(Update: As several folks pointed out, the button looks an awful lot like the Amazon Game Circle logo, the digital service Amazon already has for games that add leaderboards and achievements, among other things.)
Further, there are six LED lights on the controller’s front. While we expect the set of four on the right to be used for indicating which player is holding that particular unit, it’s unclear what the other two (on the left) are being used for. Also, it takes two AA batteries.
It also looks like Amazon is employing Apple product assembly partner Foxconn to put the controller together, as Foxconn has factories in Brazil where this controller was put through government regulation. In case you have any doubt this is tied to Amazon (beyond the … Amazon logo on the controller itself), the regulatory filing was tied to “Amazon Fulfillment Services Inc.”
Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds, Peripherals, HD, Amazon
Via: Dave Zatz
Source: Anatel (PDF)
PlayStation 4 tops US console sales in February, but Xbox One narrows the gap
It looks like Sony’s commanding lead in next-gen console sales didn’t last long in the US. The NPD Group reports that the PlayStation 4 was the top-selling game console in the country this February, but only just — the Xbox One managed to get over 90 percent of the PS4′s sales volume. Microsoft says that it sold 258,000 units of its flagship, which suggests that Sony moved roughly 287,000 PS4s. Neither of these figures compare to what we saw during the systems’ launch windows, but they’re very healthy. Total hardware sales were up 42 percent year-over-year, and 44 percent over January. While Nintendo isn’t divulging its numbers, it may have performed relatively well when analysts saw “double-to-triple digit increases” in month-to-month sales for most consoles.
Software was another story. Overall game revenue was down 11 percent in February, and the aging Xbox 360 was the platform of choice for six out of the top 10 releases; the PS4 and Xbox One rarely fared better than second place. The decline isn’t surprising, the NPD Group says, since game sales are “expected” to taper off as the old generation makes way for the new. That transition should happen relatively quickly. Titanfall is considered an early system seller for the Xbox One, and high-profile releases like Watch Dogs may help Microsoft and Sony alike.
NPD Group: PS4 is #1 again for the month, and cumulative sales, in the United States. Thanks for your support!
– PlayStation (@PlayStation) March 13, 2014
Oh, and NPD says the PS4 led hardware sales, but only by a narrow margin. Xbox One unit sals were 90% of PS4.
– Ian Sherr (@iansherr) March 13, 2014
Filed under: Gaming, Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo
Source: PlayStation (Twitter), Xbox Wire, Ian Sherr (Twitter)
Oculus VR, EA, Avegant and others join to form ‘Immersive Technology Alliance’
Well, this is certainly a motley crew: a variety of companies in the virtual reality space are teaming up to create the “Immersive Technology Alliance.” The group is an evolution of an earlier consortium, The Stereoscopic 3D Gaming Alliance — apparently the world of 3D gaming no longer needs their support? Anyway, the renamed group includes major game players like EA as well as little teams like Technical Illusions (of CastAR fame), as well as the company most responsible for re-introducing VR, Oculus VR. The ITA list includes all the players you’d expect, but also has a few outliers in Epson and Panasonic; Sony isn’t part of the ITA just yet, but that may change sooner than later. The group’s first public appearance takes place next week at San Francisco’s annual Game Developers Conference and we’ll be on-hand to document the shindig. Also, to ask Panasonic what it’s doing there. Head below for an example of immersive technology (an Engadget editor punching virtual sharks, obviously) and the full list of members (thus far).
- Epson
- Avegant
- Oculus VR
- GameFace Labs
- Big Blue Bubble
- I’m in VR
- YEI Technology
- EA
- Jon Peddie Research
- MTBS3DS
- Crew Communicatons
- TGC
- HDMI
- University of Ontario Institute of Technology
- Next3D
- DDD
- Digital Extremes
- Survios
- Vrelia
- Virtuix Omni
- Nanoveu
Digital Storm’s Vanquish II makes the ‘Ultimate’ gaming PC affordable
Digital Storm took the wraps off of its new Vanquish II PC today, a desktop gaming rig with a hurricane of features designed to give you a custom-built feel without actually having to assemble your own computer. Prices start at $699 for the”Good” version, which comes with a Core i3 4330 processor, 8GB of RAM and GTX 750 graphics card with 1GB of memory. The $1,189 “Ultimate” build keeps the same RAM, and comes packing a Core i5 4570 processor and GTX 770 graphics card with 2GB of memory. All rigs are completely upgradable as well, so you’ll be able to game on the cutting edge for years to come. Unlike many other systems out there, Digital Storm says the Vanquish II ships within 72 hours of you placing the order. During those precious hours you’re away from your new PC the company says it’s going through rigorous stress testing and benchmarking — so when it gets to you it’s ready to ‘vanquish’ your enemies no matter what game you’re playing.
Source: Digital Storm
Hasbro wants you to add a word to Scrabble’s dictionary
At one point or another, all of us have probably argued about a questionable word or three during our Scrabble careers. Hasbro wants to make that easier (or harder, depending on your view) with a contest to add a word to the game’s official dictionary. Simply head over to the contest’s Facebook page to make a suggestion. Early submissions include “photobomb” and “amazeballs” — surely you can come up with better by the March 28th deadline. From there, contest officials will put the 16 best words into an elimination bracket, and they’ll tally your votes and announce a winner come April 10th. Remember: vote often. After all, you don’t want something silly like “dingledorf” to go down as the first player submission, do you?
[Image credit: Logan Sakai/Flickr]
Filed under: Gaming
Via: New York Times
Source: Hasbro (Facebook)
Check out this Nintendo Entertainment System machined from a solid block of aluminum
If you’re any kind of self-respecting gamer, you hold a special place in your heart for the true king of consoles, the original Nintendo Entertainment System and its Japanese counterpart, the Famicom. That’s why Analogue Interactive, an outfit known for building bespoke Neo Geo consoles out of the finest hardwoods, is crafting a custom NES out of aluminum. Called the Analogue Nt, it’s machined from a single block of metal, has cartridge slots to accommodate both Nintendo and Famicom titles and is “designed around the heart and brain of the original NES” — which means there’s no emulation going on like with Hyperkin’s Retron 5. Analogue’s not letting on any other details, but knowing how much its Neo Geo replicas can cost, we’re betting that grabbing this bit of NES nostalgia will set you back a pretty penny when Analogue starts taking orders at the end of March.
Filed under: Gaming, HD, Nintendo
Source: Analogue Interactive
[Op-Ed] Android’s Next Update Should Focus On Gaming
Google’s next Android update should focus more on gaming. Android is an open source operating system (OS) that is based on Linux. The great thing about open source is that it is free and any one can enhance the OS. Android is an OS meant for mobile devices but lately it has been used to create consoles.
One of the most famous of these consoles is the Ouya. It was funded by the public through kickstarter and is android based. It is not 100% Android and for good reason. The people behind Ouya knew this and enhanced Android so that it can be souly focused on gaming. One of the short comings of this is that there is no Play Store. That means the games you already own might have to be bought again for the Ouya. Madcatz M.O.J.O is another Android based console that runs 100% Android. However this brings short comings because Android is meant for a touch screen interface.
Netflix once said that they want to become HBO before HBO becomes them. Netflix has been #1 at what they do but they know full well to stay on top you have to keep moving forward. That is how they beat Blockbuster and that is how they are beating television and cable networks. So who has the ability to beat Android? Definitely not Apple. Yes I had to say that. The OS they have to look out for is Steam OS (Steambox). Even though it is still in beta the Steam OS is on its way to change the gaming industry. Steam OS is a Linux based OS that is made with its sights solely on gaming. Steam OS was made to take out the middle man so that games can run in theory smoother. The only reason I bring up the Steam OS is because the mobile hardware is slowly evolving to becoming like PC. For example Nvidia’s next generation chip is based off their PC chip system. So much so that they ran a full PC game on one of their demo tablets. So even if the Steam OS is not ready now it will only be a matter of time.
Even though Android has made small improvements in the development toward gaming, none have been a big leap. Sure we can play games with a USB controller attached to any Android device running 4.0 and above. However that is a small step toward the right direction. Android has a chance to be a lot more than just for the mobile market, but Google has to make that choice before someone else makes it for them. With Google picking up Green Throttle, it is looking like they are already moving in that direction. I certainly hope something happens soon.
Forging weapons upstages fowl flinging in the new Angry Birds Epic RPG
If you’re a fan of flinging Angry Birds across the screen or racing them in go-carts on your favorite mobile device, Rovio’s next installment looks to offer a new challenge. Angry Birds Epic is said to be a turn-based RPG with all the battle and armor building players can handle. Kotaku reports that making weapons, potions and other provisions with funds acquired during conquests or via in-app purchases will be a key part in the storyline. Details are scarce for now, but an in-progress version is said to hit iTunes in Australia and Canada this week with a global launch across iOS, Android and Windows Phone sometime in 2014.
Filed under: Gaming
Via: 9to5Mac
Source: Kotaku
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