Exploring the limits of good taste with Xbox Design Lab
A gamepad is the part of a game console people have the most intimate relationship with. You’re holding it in your hands for hours on end, and you know it so well you can control its every function without even looking at it. When the action gets intense, your hands start to sweat from twiddling the thumbsticks. For plenty of people, it’s the first thing that comes to mind when they want to throw something out of rage over a cheap death. Microsoft wants to make that connection even deeper by handing you the keys to the factory with its aptly named Xbox Design Lab.
The folks in Redmond are following the well-worn path forged by Moto Maker, Nike’s iD shoe-customization web app and countless sites that let you make one-off game controllers. The value proposition is straightforward: For $80 — a $20 premium over the stock gamepad — you can create a personalized controller for your Xbox One. Back during E3, Microsoft said 8 million color combinations would be possible. In practice, though, I found that keeping my choices simple was the best way to design a gamepad that won’t embarrass me when company comes over.
The design process breaks down into seven steps: picking colors for the controller body, bumpers and triggers, D-pad, thumbsticks, face and menu buttons, and the back panel. The same rainbow of 15 colors is available for the body, back and D-pad. The thumbsticks have eight options, the face buttons have five, while the ancillary view and menu buttons have four.
On paper, that sounds like a lot of room for creativity, but once I got down and dirty designing my joypad, it was anything but. My coffee table is littered with black remotes and gamepads, and I was feeling nostalgic for the controller that shipped with the Xbox 360 at launch, so I opted for a “robot white” body.
From here, the choices become much more difficult because there isn’t enough granularity. Both thumbsticks have to be the same color. The view and menu buttons, too, and the face buttons all have to be the same style. The latter bit crushed my dreams of having X, Y and B in black with the A button a contrasting lime green.
In fact, the backside’s battery cover isn’t customizable on its own either, which is a shame considering how much space whatever color you choose takes up. What’s more, the installation at Microsoft’s E3 booth had custom Guide buttons on display. Unfortunately, those different-colored, illuminated jewels that take you to the main menu didn’t make their way to the final product.
After a few hours of fiddling around, making garish looking mock-ups and trading screenshots back and forth with my coworkers, I wound up with the understated beauty above. The key to making a good-looking controller is restraint. Sure, I could’ve made something with more colors, but I didn’t want my creation to look like someone vomited confetti on a gamepad. Hence, I opted for “photon blue” thumbsticks instead of “regal purple,” “oxide red” or “deep pink” and matched them to my back panel.
Next, I paired an “electric green” D-pad with matching shoulder buttons and triggers. That’s because, quite frankly, throwing a fourth color into the mix would’ve been a bad idea if I wanted to follow the rules of design. The shoulder buttons and triggers butt up against the back panel, so I had to pick something complementary there as well. Sorry, “lightning yellow,” maybe next time. To keep with my theme of restraint, I went with a white face, menu and view buttons.
For an extra $10, you can have a few words laser-etched into the spot between the D-pad and right thumbstick. Before you get your hopes up, though, be warned that expletives aren’t allowed. Basically, anything that would get your Gamertag flagged for vulgarity won’t work here. Had I realized that sooner, I could’ve saved myself 10 minutes.
While I wish there were more options and granularity in the design process, I have to commend Microsoft for the 360-degree 3-D rendering of the gamepad. Every time you choose a different color, it appears instantly on the mockup, replete with realistic lighting, shadows and reflections. It’s really cool and helps ease any anxiety one might have over how their choices will look in real life.
Sure, $80 to $90 for a gamepad is steep, but compared with other online custom shops it’s actually cheap. Building a one-off pad from Evil Controllers offers greater customization, but there’s an upcharge for most colors and finishes every step of the way. A black matte grip for the sides of the controller is $15, while nondefault choices for the face range from $20 to $25. What starts as a $70 gamepad can cost more than $250 by the time you’re finished. On top of that, the static 2D design interface for Evil Controllers or The Controller Shop are no match for Microsoft’s interactive mockups.
And now, I wait. The order confirmation email says I should have my white, green and blue gamepad by September. Until then, I just need to be patient and use my Elite controller for Inside and repeat runs through Quantum Break. Hopefully I don’t throw it.
Source: Xbox Design Lab
‘Star Wars: Battlefront’ add-on will tie into ‘Rogue One’
EA and DICE are determined to wrap up Star Wars: Battlefront’s year of add-ons with a bang. The developers have used Star Wars Celebration to reveal that the fourth DLC pack will revolve around the Rogue One storyline. Rogue One: Scarif will let you play as rebel Jyn Erso or her Imperial nemesis, Director Krennic, as you fight for the original Death Star’s plans on the planet Scarif. While you’re not getting a look at actual gameplay just yet, EA vows that the add-on will be available in time for the movie’s mid-December debut. Season Pass holders will get to play two weeks early.
But what about the previously announced Death Star pack? You’re finally getting a good look at that, too. The new content will see you fighting both inside and outside of the giant space station (flight combat plays a much stronger role, clearly). And you can play as either the bounty hunter Bossk or Chewbacca — Han finally has his best friend at his side. The Death Star extras arrive in September, so you’ll definitely have something to play while you’re waiting for Jyn and company.
Via: GamesRadar
Source: EA
‘Star Wars’ VR experiment comes to HTC Vive on July 18th
You don’t have to wait much longer to live out you dreams of wielding a lightsaber in virtual reality. HTC and Lucasfilm have revealed that Star Wars: Trials on Tatooine, their VR gaming experiment, will be available on July 18th through Steam. And it’s free as long as you have an HTC Vive, so it won’t cost more to role-play a Padawan. The no-cost move isn’t surprising (this isn’t an in-depth game), but it’s welcome if you’ve been hoping to find a new showcase for your headset.
Twitch makes it easy to find streams in your language
It’s simple enough to search for streams on Twitch, but if you want to explore all the broadcasts available in a particular language, you’ll find the website’s new feature quite useful. The company has just launched Multi-Language Filters, which you can access on the Live Channels list of every game directory page. Now, when you visit, say, the Hearthstone or League of Legends portal, you’ll find a pull-down menu on the right-hand side. It lists various languages broadcasters use, including American Sign Language (ASL) — choosing Español, for instance, will show only Spanish streams without having to change the whole website’s settings. Polyglots can also pick more than one option.
Twitch’s Noreen McInnis says you’ll notice personal design changes different from your friends’ as you start using the filter. She didn’t elaborate on what those changes will be, but they will apparently be based on how you use the feature. We’re guessing you might find your frequent language of choice at the top of the menu (or maybe even pre-selected) the more you use it. You can see a short demo of the the filter below, though you can try it out for yourself on Twitch right now.
Source: Twitch
Watch out for fraudulent ‘Pokémon Go’ apps
It’s official: Pokémon Go has become a major phenomenon: It’s getting people interested in augmented reality, inspiring filmmakers and even helping players cope with anxiety. Unfortunately, it’s also creating targets for malware developers. According to the antivirus folks at ESET, at least three fake Pokémon Go apps have been spotted on the Google Play store since the game launched. One of them has the unsettling distinction of being the first malicious, fraudulent screen-locking app to surface on Google Play.
At a glance, “Pokémon Go Ultimate” looks a lot like the official app — but after installation the app renames itself “PI Network.” Launching it immediately causes a user’s device to lock up, rending the phone unusable until the battery is removed or the device is rebooted via the Android Device Manager. Once the phone reboots, the app hides itself and generates ad-revenue by silently clicking ads in the background. It could be worse, too: ESET’s blog says that the app is only one step away from being ransomware.
Two other fraudulent Pokémon apps briefly surfaced that produced fake security messages, attempting to trick users into paying for a virus removal service that doesn’t exist. At present, all three apps seem to be removed from Google Play, but be on guard: more are likely to show up in the coming days. By all means, join the Pokémon revolution — just make sure you’re downloading the real app before you head out to catch ’em all. Check out the source links below for ESET’s full advisory and security recommendations.
Via: Ars Technica
Source: WeLiveSecurity, ESET
Watch the Evo 2016 fighting game championships right here!
Need a place to watch this weekend’s Evo fighting game championships? Look no further. The event runs through Sunday, with finals for Street Fighter V starting that night at 10 p.m. Eastern live from the Mandalay Bay Events Center. Other games this year include Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, the GameCube’s fan-favorite Super Smash Bros. Melee, Killer Instinct, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Mortal Kombat XL and Persona 4 Arena.
If you’re not in Sin City but still want to catch the action, we’ve embedded a Twitch player below. At any given moment there are a number of events happening at once though, so you’ll have to choose between a few different streams. For a full schedule of what’s going down and when, head over to Shoryuken. Happy watching!
Watch live video from srkevo1 on http://www.twitch.tv
Source: Shoryuken (1), (2) (Twitch)
Don’t believe the ‘Pokémon Go’ privacy hype
When the Pokémon Go obsession reached full saturation this week, privacy concern whispers became full-blown hysterical shrieks when a researcher’s blog post accused the game’s maker of taking over its users’ Google accounts. As it turned out, the app’s iPhone permissions were just poorly implemented, and fixed immediately.
Unfortunately that didn’t stop the privacy and security hysteria machine. All week long, headlines made a mountain out of the molehill, scaring some people into uninstalling the app altogether.
Pokémon Go, a phone game released by Niantic Labs and Nintendo, has been an astonishing success. The game is basically a GPS-guided treasure hunt using a smartphone camera. It sends people out into the world around them, gets them interacting with others, and has brought the US some much-needed distraction and smiles.
The stories emerging through social media might be more entertaining than playing the game itself. Pokémon have been “caught” at gay bars and churches, people have been shooed out of police stations and courthouses trying to catch the little beasts. Someone found a dead body, people have been robbed, and some police departments have even been forced to issue safety guidelines. On the plus side, there are some mental health benefits. Meanwhile, Pokémon Go has added nearly $11 billion to the value of Nintendo since its release.
Naturally, a few hackers became interested in what was going on under the app’s hood. But before anyone had a chance to publish detailed findings, researcher Adam Reeve rushed to make a post that set off the chain reaction of hysteria.
Reeve wrote that if you signed into Pokémon Go with Google, the app was given full permission to access your Google accounts. He claimed that the company could read your Gmail, see your Google search and Maps history, access your private photos, delete things in Google Drive, and more.
He also indicated that it wasn’t possible to sign in alternately, by creating a Pokémon account, and sort of made it sound like something suspicious was going on. News outlets rushed to write hyperbolic headlines without bothering to note that this was only happening on iPhones.
That’s how we ended up with hysterical, misleading headlines like, “Pokémon Go is a major security risk for your entire Google account.” And it’s why we had people screaming white frothy rage on social media that Niantic was backdooring user accounts. It’s also how we ended up with Senator Al Franken sending a letter to Niantic demanding answers about Pokémon Go’s privacy practices.
To their credit, Gizmodo contacted Adam Reeve, who then backtracked on his claims, saying he wasn’t “100 percent sure” his blog post was actually true. He also admitted that he didn’t test any of the claims in his post.
In fact, it turned out that Pokémon Go was never able to read people’s Gmail, or any of the really scary things that Reeve and some trigger-happy media outlets claimed. Dan Guido, CEO of security company Trail of Bits did the deep-dive analysis that was needed before any digital ink was spilled in histrionic headlines.
Guido and his team not only cast serious doubt on Reeve’s claims, he talked to Google tech support. Imagine that! They told him the “full account access” everyone was freaking out about doesn’t mean a third party (in this case, Niantic, Nintendo, or Pokémon) can read or send or send email, access your files or anything else being claimed.
It did mean that Niantic could read so-called biographical information, like an email address and phone number. What Trail of Bits also discovered was that Pokémon Go’s Google authorization process was using the wrong permission “token.” Their post linked to another researcher who said, “I believe this is a mistake on Google and Niantic’s part, and isn’t being used maliciously in the way that was originally suggested.”
Before the Trail of Bits post was even published, Niantic had reacted. The company put out a press release explaining that there had been a permissions snafu with the social login process, and they fixed the internal mistake in record time. Their statement said:
“We recently discovered that the Pokémon GO account creation process on iOS erroneously requests full access permission for the user’s Google account. … Google has verified that no other information has been received or accessed by Pokémon GO or Niantic. Google will soon reduce Pokémon GO’s permission to only the basic profile data that Pokémon GO needs, and users do not need to take any actions themselves.”
Further, it turned out the mystery about Pokémon’s account signup process being suspiciously unavailable at the time of Reeve’s post wasn’t a conspiracy after all. To the surprise of no one, Pokémon’s servers were getting hammered by all the new traffic.
It’s quite interesting to see so many people wig out about an app’s over-reach of permissions. Which is, incidentally, a big deal. And it’s about time.
But it’s really frustrating to watch the outrage flames get fanned and Senators spring into action over something that feels more like crying wolf — when there are flashlight apps that dubiously “need” to know where you are, or must have access to write arbitrary code to your phone. Or, how about a little outrage and action over our recent discovery that popular running app Runkeeper records your location after you’ve turned the app off? (Runkeeper is in trouble for this in Europe, but not here.) Better yet, how about a senator demand answers from Facebook over tracking user locations without consent and matching it with strangers locations? Because we sure as hell don’t know when Facebook did that, or to whom, (or for how long) the company did that. Nor can we can trust that they’ve actually stopped doing this, or won’t do it again in the future.
So this week, everyone we know basically joined a geocaching cult. We already knew that no one reads or understands the terms they agree to for apps and websites, even if they demand giving up your first-born child as payment. We learned that setting up social login permissions is actually really fussy, and difficult to do right. And everyone learned that signing in with your Google or Facebook account means putting some kind of access to your personal stuff in someone else’s hands. Which, by the way, is why I recommend never, ever in a million years signing in to any app or website in this manner. Seriously, if you do that, just stop locking your front door and get it over with.
If only the entire internet, security’s brighter minds, and our elected representatives would level this amount of scrutiny at all apps.
But as one forum commenter wisely explained, “iOS users using Google Account sign-up affected by Pokémon Go permissions bug, Android unaffected” just doesn’t make a sexy headline.
Rare US N64 disk-drive retail prototype found in Seattle
If you subscribed to Nintendo Power in the 90’s, you probably remember reading about the Nintendo 64DD, a console disk-drive add-on design to bring higher storage capacity, a real-time clock and internet connectivity to the Nintendo 64. You may also remember that it flopped in Japan, badly. The N64DD never made it to the US market — but it may have come closer to hitting store shelves than we previously thought. A collector in Seattle has stumbled upon a working US Nintendo 64DD prototype.
At glance, the unit looks almost identical to the Nintendo 64DD that hit Japan in 1999 — so much so that when Jason “MetalJesusRocks” Lindsey found it, he assumed it was merely a US developer kit. Turns out, it’s even more rare: the unit boots up without the aid of the “partner cartridge,” developers needed to get devkits running. It also features an english-language menu screen, something not present in official development units or the original Japanese retail model. The unit is even region-locked to the US, and won’t play japanese N64DD games. Lindsey (and Ars Technica) reached out to Mark DeLoura, a former Lead Engineer at Nintendo that worked on the n64DD, to figure out what was going on. The answer? This is most likely an unreleased retail unit, or at least a retail prototype.
That alone makes it a rare collectors item, but there’s one more mystery surrounding this retail prototype: it came with a unreadable, blue game disk. The development cartridge is unlabeled, and Lindsey has been unable to get it to boot so far — but DeLoura says the disk could contain a US retail-ready N64DD game or some of the demos he used to show the device to developers when he still worked for Nintendo. Lindsey says he’s working with the gaming community to find a way to read the disk. With any luck, we’ll have one more piece of Nintendo history to admire sometime in the near future. Until then? Check out Lindsey’s YouTube channel for a full rundown of the rare, retail hardware.
Source: NintendoLife, YouTube
The best gaming mouse
By David Murphy
This post was done in partnership with The Wirecutter, a buyer’s guide to the best technology. Read the full article here.
After spending eight hours researching 24 top gaming mice, putting in 11 hours testing seven semifinalists and having five people use three finalists to play games for hours apiece, we’ve concluded that the Razer DeathAdder Chroma is the gaming mouse most people should get. It’s a slightly upgraded version of our previous favorite, the Razer DeathAdder Classic, and our panel testers (and other reviewers) preferred this mouse over the competition for its comfort, simplicity and highly customizable software.
Who should get this
Gaming mice give you more buttons to play with, more ways to customize what they do, better comfort, and flashier looks than a simple two-button mouse. They can also be more accurate than normal mice due to higher-quality optical sensors and settings that are optimized for gaming. If you already have a mouse you like, you don’t need to get a new one unless it offers a hardware feature you really want, such as more buttons, a new button layout, or special lighting.
How we picked and tested
Most of the models in our test group are wired mice. If you need a wireless gaming mouse, avoid those that can’t recharge while connected to your computer via USB. Photo: David Murphy
For this review, we surveyed 147 Wirecutter readers to get a sense of their gaming habits and mouse preferences. Everyone who responded used either a right-handed mouse or an ambidextrous mouse, and even the lefties moused with their right hand for gaming. Only 8 percent said they used a gaming mouse with more than 10 buttons, and only 3 percent told us they wanted that many buttons on their next gaming mouse. We focused on right-handed mice with fewer than 10 buttons and set a price limit of $100, because over half of our survey respondents said they’d pay between $51 and $75.
To come up with our list of seven semifinalists, we scoured reviews from trusted publications like PC Advisor and PC Gamer, and read gaming mice advice from Red Bull and the Overclock forums. We used and evaluated each semifinalist for a few hours before settling on our final three contenders.
We sent our finalists to four Wirecutter staffers and friends to evaluate. Our testers’ hand sizes varied from small to gigantic and they covered all three grip styles. We asked each person to use each mouse for up to four hours and to fill out a questionnaire about their experiences. We also used MouseTester to evaluate the three mice across a number of key characteristics, from tracking speed to sensitivity.
Our pick
The DeathAdder Chroma’s simple, comfortable design feels great to use during extended gaming sessions. Photo: David Murphy
The Razer DeathAdder Chroma is the best gaming mouse for most people. It’s comfortable for a wide range of hand sizes and grips, and it has a simple, effective design. Razer’s Synapse software gives you lots of customization options, and it’s easier to use than other companies’ mouse software. The Chroma’s subtle lighting adds a playful touch that doesn’t overwhelm your eyes (or desk) with color. And it passed all of our MouseTester tests.
The Chroma is around 5.13 inches long, 1.5 inches high and 2.75 inches at its widest. At 3.2 ounces, it’s among the lightest mice we tested and it doesn’t allow you to increase its heft by adding weights. Razer places two supplemental buttons above the curve your thumb sits in and they’re well-sized and easy to tap. That isn’t a huge number of extra buttons for a gaming mouse, but as one of our panel testers described, “Me and the side buttons got along well. And two more side buttons are all I really need for most games.”
Almost all gaming mice come with customization software and Razer’s Synapse is the best of the suites we tested. It balances lots of customization with easy setup, even for newbies. It’s a lot simpler and more straightforward than the competition’s.
A runner-up with more buttons and adjustable weights
Logitech’s G502 Proteus Spectrum wasn’t as universally comfortable for our panel testers as our primary pick, Razer’s DeathAdder Chroma. Photo: David Murphy
The Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum is a great alternative if you need a mouse with a lot of buttons. It has twice as many as the DeathAdder Chroma and you can customize their actions using Logitech’s Gaming Software, which is a little more confusing than Razer’s Synapse software.
Among our panel testers, this mouse’s design was more polarizing than that of Razer’s DeathAdder Chroma: Some found it very comfortable to use and praised the features that it offers and our primary pick lacks, such as its built-in thumb rest and adjustable weights, and others thought this mouse looked strange (like “a Christopher Nolan–era Bat Tank”) and felt “odder” than our primary pick.
Care and maintenance
If your mouse gets dirty — which can affect its responsiveness and movement accuracy (and make you think your mouse is broken when it isn’t) — blast any dust or hair out of the sensor with some compressed air. (Do it from a distance so you don’t harm the sensor.) You could also clean the sensor, as well as your mouse’s dirty, rubber feet, with some rubbing alcohol and a Q-tip. Use a little water or rubbing alcohol to clean the top of the mouse, but let it dry fully before you plug it in and start using it again. If you’re having issues with your mouse’s buttons, contact the manufacturer for warranty service.
This guide may have been updated by The Wirecutter. To see the current recommendation, please go here.
Fight offline with friends in new ‘Star Wars Battlefront’ mode
With the Battlefield 1 closed alpha raging on and the full game launching in October you might think that developer DICE is forgetting about its other shooter, Star Wars Battlefront. That’s not the case. Come July 20th, the game will have a new offline gametype dubbed “Skirmish.” A post on the EA Star Wars site says that Skirmish is playable against bots, either solo or with a co-op partner in Walker Assault and Fighter Squadron modes. The free update is welcome, of course, but I’m not sure how many people still playing this are jonesing for a new AI-based bot mode. Or if they’ve abandoned the game, if this could win them back. This is a problem of publisher Electronic Arts’ own making, though.
The last time EA mentioned the Death Star expansion pack we had a vague “fall 2016” launch date, but that was it. Now the fog has cleared a bit and we know that it’s coming out in September. Next month, EA will probably give us an exact date. It’s frustrating, but that’s unfortunately how this stuff tends to go.
The post goes on to say that the pack will feature ground-and-space based maps (fingers crossed for a trench run gametype a la Walker Assault’s Battle of Hoth reenactment), new weapons and a pair of shiny heroes. Specifically, “one larger-than-life character we know you’ve been patiently waiting for.” Who could that be, hmm?
Source: EA Star Wars
AIVAnet 