Aug 08

Jailbroken Apple TV plays HTML5 Blackjack, iOS gambling rings can’t be far behind

Posted in: Apple, apple tv, game, gaming, jailbreak, Today's Chili
AppleTV HTML5 Blackjack

It was all the way back in October of 2010 that a few ingenious devs jailbroke the second gen Apple TV. Since then, we’ve seen a weather app, web browser, and finally a port of XBMC, but there hasn’t been much progress getting apps up and running. Well, today’s news doesn’t bring us any closer to playing Cut the Rope on Apple’s “hobby” but it does show that HTML5 is a viable option for getting games on the tiny media streamer. The fairly bare-bones Blackjack game isn’t going to wow anyone with its graphical prowess or stun with a deep level of interactivity, but it’s certainly a worthwhile proof of concept. While you wait for internet poker and online gambling to come to the little black box, check out the video after the break.

Continue reading Jailbroken Apple TV plays HTML5 Blackjack, iOS gambling rings can’t be far behind

Jailbroken Apple TV plays HTML5 Blackjack, iOS gambling rings can’t be far behind originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Aug 2011 15:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 04

Nintendo 3DS Panda dev model hits Canadian eBay, reminds US how little the dollar is worth

Posted in: 3ds, canada, console, developer, game, handheld, nintendo, nintendo 3ds, Nintendo3ds, Today's Chili

Have $1,929 Canadian dollars to spare? You can swap those loonies for 2,000 all-American greenbacks, or the current bid on a Nintendo 3DS Panda development model, rounding out its final 24 hours on eBay’s Canadian auction site. This “like new” device won’t be playing retail 3DS or DS cartridges, but it will grant you access to a variety of development functions. The $2,000 current bid is more than a hair higher than the dev hardware’s unconfirmed original price of $324, but if you’re desperate to rank among the few gamers that rock 3DS dev hardware, logic probably won’t reign supreme when it comes time to hit that bid now button.

[Thanks, Julien]

Nintendo 3DS Panda dev model hits Canadian eBay, reminds US how little the dollar is worth originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Aug 2011 16:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 03

OutRun AR project lets you game and drive at the same time, makes us drool

Posted in: augmented reality, AugmentedReality, camera, concept, console, electric vehicle, ElectricVehicle, ev, game, research, Software, Today's Chili, video
Cool game, or coolest game ever? That’s the question we were asking ourselves when we first came across Garnet Hertz’s augmented reality-based OutRun project — a concept car that weds Sega’s classic driving game with an electric golf cart, allowing players to navigate their way around real-life courses using only arcade consoles. Hertz, an informatics researcher at the University of California Irvine, has since brought his idea to fruition, after outfitting the system with cameras and customized software that can “look” in front of the car to automatically reproduce the route on the game cabin’s screen. The map is displayed in the same 8-bit rendering you’d see on the original OutRun, with perspectives changing proportionally to shifts in steering. The cart maxes out at only 13 mph, though speed isn’t really the idea; Hertz and his colleagues hope their technology can be used to develop game-based therapies for disabled users, or to create similarly AR-based wheelchairs. Scoot past the break to see a video of the car in action, and let your dreams converge.

[Thanks, Stagueve]

Continue reading OutRun AR project lets you game and drive at the same time, makes us drool

OutRun AR project lets you game and drive at the same time, makes us drool originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 03 Aug 2011 09:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 23

Guitar Hero to be resurrected, retooled, and launch reunion tour

Posted in: game, Games, gaming, Today's Chili

Guitar Hero ResurrectionStop mourning wannabe rock stars — Guitar Hero is coming back. We heard the rumors of its demise were greatly exaggerated, but now word has come straight from Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick that the game is currently being reinvented for a modern, more demanding audience. As he told Forbes, “we’re going to take the products out of the market, and we’re not going to tell anybody what we’re doing for awhile… we’re going to use new studios and reinvent Guitar Hero. And so that’s what we’re doing with it now.” So there you go — Guitar Hero’s retirement was only temporary. Like any good performer it’ll be back before you’ve even had a chance to miss it. Looks like the franchise will keep rocking out well past its prime. What’s the console equivalent of playing a state fair?

Guitar Hero to be resurrected, retooled, and launch reunion tour originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 23 Jul 2011 03:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 19

Turtle Beach unveils limited edition Modern Warfare 3 headsets, Simon Riley would’ve approved

Posted in: bluetooth, earphones, game, headset, Today's Chili, Wireless, xbox live, XboxLive
Listen up, soldier. Engadget HQ was dismayed when lieutenant Simon “Ghost” Riley — along with his skull balaclava and mondo communications headset — saw an arguably unjust demise in Modern Warfare 2. That being said, if he could play the upcoming installment we’d bet it’d be with one of the four limited edition offerings from Turtle Beach and Activision. The headsets all sport the same night vision-esque design, but offer varying specialties. On the front line is the $300 Ear Force Delta; based on the XP500 programmable virtual 7.1 headset, it adds a custom travel-case and MW3 specific sound presets. Next up is the $150 Ear Force Bravo, a variant of the PX3, which offers the same presets as the former in wireless stereo. Following close in formation is the $130 Ear Force Charlie, a take on the PC oriented Z6A; it delivers discrete 5.1 with a grand total of eight drivers. Rounding out the reserves is the $100 Ear Force Foxtrot; a PX21 universal stereo headset that’s also just received a fresh coat of battle paint.

All of the gear will be available in October along with “bonus content,” which gives you time to set aside extra funds for the game’s November 8th release. You’ll find photo-based intel below and more details in the PR past the break. At ease, soldier.

Gallery: Turtle Beach Modern Warfare 3 gaming headsets

Continue reading Turtle Beach unveils limited edition Modern Warfare 3 headsets, Simon Riley would’ve approved

Turtle Beach unveils limited edition Modern Warfare 3 headsets, Simon Riley would’ve approved originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Jul 2011 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 14

Sony exec says PSN hack was ‘a great experience,’ apparently means it

Posted in: business, game, hack, network, security, sony, Today's Chili
The following are what most humans would call “great experiences”: eating gelato on a hot summer’s day, riding a tandem bike with Anthony Hopkins, or, in the case of Sony executive Tim Schaaff, having your life’s work nearly destroyed by a band of hackers. Because for Schaaff, president of Sony Network Entertainment, this spring’s persistent PSN outage wasn’t so much devastating as it was… enlightening. Here’s how he described the hack (and ensuing epiphany) to VentureBeat‘s Dylan Tweney:

“I think for people running network businesses, it’s not just about improving your security, because I’ve never talked to a security expert who said, ‘As long you do the following three things you’ll be fine, because hackers won’t get you… the question is how do you build your life so you’re able to cope with those things. It’s been a great experience.”

Phenomenal as it must’ve felt to get in touch with his inner defeatist, Schaaff admitted that he “would not like to do it again” — probably because his mouth can only house one foot at a time.

Sony exec says PSN hack was ‘a great experience,’ apparently means it originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Jul 2011 09:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 12

ViviTouch haptic tech offers range of feedback, aims to reinvent the mobile gaming wheel

Posted in: game, Today's Chili

When a company touts a product as being as revolutionary as the leap from black & white TV to color, it’s either incredibly delusional or it has a damn good product on its hands. And judging by the buzz surrounding Artificial Muscle’s ViviTouch tactile feedback technology and our own hands-on at CES, we’re inclined to believe its braggart rights. Taking the “one-buzz-fits-all” approach and chucking it in the bin of ‘ye olde tech of yesteryear,’ the electroactive polymer tech creates a “spectrum of feeling” in the 50 – 300Hz range that registers with a user’s hand in five milliseconds. We know what you’re thinking — haptic minutiae is fine and all, but what about my battery life? Well, if the company’s CEO is to be believed, the vibrating touch interface drains 70 percent less juice than rival implementations — so it’s still hoggy, but not quite as hungry. If you’re looking to get a feel of your own for these sensational claims, you’ll have to wait for the Mophie Pulse to make its way to fourth generation iPod touch’s later this year. Buzzwordy presser after the break.

Continue reading ViviTouch haptic tech offers range of feedback, aims to reinvent the mobile gaming wheel

ViviTouch haptic tech offers range of feedback, aims to reinvent the mobile gaming wheel originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Jul 2011 17:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 05

Wii U landing after April 1st 2012, may stream video to controllers

Posted in: console, game, gaming, nintendo, release, Today's Chili, wii
Wii U

Try as you might to maintain your nonchalant demeanor, we know you’re fired up about the potential of the Wii U. Well, we won’t spill your secrets, but we thought you might like to know that Reggie Fils-Aime, the president of Nintendo of America, recently sat down with David M. Ewalt at Forbes to talk about the company’s upcoming console. You’ll find the full interview at the source but here are a few of the more interesting tidbits. As you may have guessed, the original Wii won’t be disappearing immediately. The two will be sold side by side in stores for at least a little while. Interestingly, while we already knew that games will be playable entirely on the controller, turns out there is nothing technically stopping the console from streaming other media to the portable screen — including content from your Netflix account. Sadly, you’ll be waiting till at least Q2 of 2012 to pick one up — as Fils-Aime revealed, the next-gen gaming device won’t launch until “after April 1st.”

Wii U landing after April 1st 2012, may stream video to controllers originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 05 Jul 2011 21:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 05

Google slides Prizes into beta, helps you get real paid

Posted in: game, Google, Today's Chili

Come on down! You can be the next contestant on the Prizes site. That was overkill, we know, but it’s a necessary introduction into a new world of online solution-based social gaming pioneered by the Slide team. Acquired by the Goog back in 2010, the low profile entertainment-driven app developer has been hard at work making the web ‘more social’ and filling its Big Daddy’s pockets. Debuting in classic Google beta form, Prizes takes your Twitter or Facebook accounts and signs you up for cash prize-winning, user-created contest shenanigans. In case you missed that fine point, we’ll reiterate — users design the challenges, you post a solution (or vice versa). Like the $40 “Give my Dad a makeover!” competition we’re completely unqualified to enter, or the $30 “Comprehensive ‘get healthy’ plan for living in a large, polluted city” game we’re sure Al Gore could win in his sleep. It’s a kooky idea, but we can definitely see the service having widespread appeal. Let’s be frank here: Google + social gaming + prize money = solid user gold.

Google slides Prizes into beta, helps you get real paid originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 05 Jul 2011 03:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 01

Scientists develop algorithm to solve Rubik’s cubes of any size

Posted in: game, Games, mit, research, Today's Chili
A computer solving a Rubik’s cube? P’shaw. Doing it in 10.69 seconds? Been there, record set. But to crack one of any size? Color us impressed. Erik Demaine of MIT claims to have done just that — he and his team developed an algorithm that applies to cubes no matter how ambitious their dimensions. Pretty early on, he realized he needed to take a different angle than he would with a standard 3 x 3 x 3 puzzle, which other scientists have tackled by borrowing computers from Google to consider all 43 quintillion possible moves — a strategy known simply as “brute force.” As you can imagine, that’s not exactly a viable solution when you’re wrestling with an 11 x 11 x 11 cube. So Demaine and his fellow researchers settled on an approach that’s actually a riff on one commonly used by Rubik’s enthusiasts, who might attempt to move a square into its desired position while leaving the rest of the cube as unchanged as possible. That’s a tedious way to go, of course, so instead the team grouped several cubies that all needed to go in the same direction, a tactic that reduced the number of moves by a factor of log n, with n representing the length of any of the cube’s sides. Since moving individual cubies into an ideal spot requires a number of moves equal to n², the final algorithm is n²/log n. If we just lost you non-math majors with that formula, rest assured that the scientists expect folks won’t be able to apply it directly, per se, though they do say it could help cube-solvers sharpen their strategy. Other that, all you overachievers out there, you’re still on your own with that 20 x 20 x 20.

Scientists develop algorithm to solve Rubik’s cubes of any size originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 Jul 2011 12:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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