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GlassBattle puts Battleship on your face with Google Glass
While there have been Google Glass apps for lock screens, the Tesla Model S and even The New York Times, we've been wondering when we'd see a traditional game. Today, the wondering stops. GlassBattle is a Battleship-style, voice controlled, turn-based affair using the wearable's Mirror API. Sadly it won't be available to the public until developer Brick Simple's API quota limitations are lifted, but that doesn't stop us from fantasizing about gaming while we do other stuff. Like, you know, playing video games. Yes, we hear you loud and clear Xzibit. To see people game while grocery shopping and walking around a pond, hit the video after the break.
Play a Battleship-style game on Google Glass while shopping, strolling
Walking around a pond on a beautiful summer day is just as boring as grocery shopping – but never fear, Google Glass is here. Mobile app developer Brick Simple used the Mirror API to create GlassBattle, a two-player, turn-based, synchronous Battleship-style game on Google Glass. GlassBattle isn't available to the Google Glass public yet, but once the Mirror API quota limitations are lifted, Brick Simple will launch the game for everyone to enjoy. So buy some extra glasses cleaner and man the torpedoes.
EVE Evolved: Fitting battleships for PvP in Odyssey, part 2
Battleships used to be the backbone of every major PvP fleet in EVE Online, but recent years have seen them increasingly overtaken by more mobile Battlecruisers, Heavy Assault Cruisers, and tech 3 Strategic Cruisers. Armour buffered battleships are still used in carrier-supported fleets and for a while nullsec played host to huge missile-spamming Maelstrom blobs of unholy death, but many of the battleships just haven't been worth using. Developers saught to rectify that in the recent Odyssey expansion with a complete balance overhaul of the standard tech 1 battleships, and it's starting to pay off. In last week's EVE Evolved, I looked at how Odyssey buffed the tier one Dominix, Scorpion, Typhoon, and Armageddon beyond all recognition and experimented with new PvP setups for each of them. This week I've turned my attention toward the tier 2 battleships, which turned out to be equally versatile and deadly. Now officially falling under the umbrella of "Combat Battleships," the Megathron, Raven, Apocalypse, and Tempest have become powerful damage-dealing platforms for fleet warfare. Each of them can now fulfill sniper or close-range damage roles and carry a spare flight of Warrior II drones to bat off tacklers, but what's impressed me the most is the sheer level of damage and tank they can achieve. In this week's EVE Evolved, I experiment with setups for the recently revamped Megathron, Raven, Apocalypse, and Tempest tier 2 battleships. These setups may require Advanced Weapon Upgrades 4 and a cheap 1-3% powergrid or CPU implant.
EVE Evolved: Fitting battleships for PvP in Odyssey
Tech 1 ships in EVE Online used to be arranged in tiers that determined the cost and power of the ship and what level of the appropriate skill was required to fly it. This gave a sense of progression back in 2004 when all we had was frigates, cruisers, and battleships, but developers have since filled in the gaps between ship classes with destroyers, battlecruisers, strategic cruisers, and tech 2 ships of all shapes and sizes. In a recent game design initiative, CCP has been removing the tiers from within each tech 1 ship class by buffing the lower-tier ships up to the same rough power level as the largest ship in its class. The recent Odyssey expansion saw the humble battleship buffed beyond all recognition. The Megathron, Raven, Tempest, and Apocalypse all became extreme damage-dealing powerhouses, but the Dominix, Scorpion, Typhoon, and Armageddon were buffed the most. Each of them can now fit several monster setups, dealing upward of 1,000 damage per second or completely disabling enemy ships with energy neutralisers and electronic warfare. The build costs of these tier one battleships were more than doubled in the expansion, but prices are only slowly rising due to the existing stock on the market. That makes the tier one battleships incredibly cost-effective PvP powerhouses at the moment, and players are beginning to take advantage of it. In this week's EVE Evolved, I experiment with PvP setups for the newly revamped Typhoon, Armageddon, Scorpion, and Dominix battleships.
EVE Evolved: First impressions of Odyssey
The Odyssey expansion has been live for a couple of days now, but it's already starting to have a massive impact on EVE Online. Traffic through low-security space has increased significantly for the first time in years thanks to explorers hunting data and relic sites, and some players are even hunting asteroid belt NPCs in lowsec for the new security tags. New wars have erupted in nullsec following the redistribution of moon wealth, mining has become a more valuable profession, and the rebalanced battleships feel powerful again. Unfortunately, Odyssey has seen its fair share of problems too. The new jump effect looks spectacular the first few times you see it, but long-term play is reportedly causing motion sickness in some players. Some players have also been objecting to the ice mining changes, and the revamped radial UI menu hasn't done much to fix the game's usability problems. Explorers in low-security space and nullsec are reporting incomes in the billions of ISK per day range thanks to the scan probe changes and new hacking minigame, but not everyone is happy with the new loot-scattering mechanic. In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at the early impact of Odyssey on the EVE Online universe and discover the secrets behind collecting all the valuable loot when hacking.
EVE Evolved: Get ready for Odyssey
With just two days to go until EVE Online's exploration-focused Odyssey expansion goes live, players have been scouring the test server for information that can give them an edge. Some have been practicing moon surveying techniques for the upcoming redistribution of tech 2 minerals, and others are hoping to get rich quick by speculating on battleship price changes. Explorers are kitting out new exploration ships, theorycrafters are working on new setups for rebalanced ships, and pirates are setting up base in lowsec areas that are about to become fertile hunting grounds. Odyssey isn't quite the Apocrypha-level expansion I've been hoping for, but it certainly seems set to shake things up. Changes to moon minerals will throw nullsec into chaos and hopefully ignite some big territorial wars, and battleship buffs may change EVE's popular fleet compositions. The Discovery Scanner Overlay will make exploration much easier for new players to get into, but will also give pirates another tool with which to hunt down explorers. A new co-operative hacking minigame will also make exploration more of a team sport. But how can you make the most of the expansion from day one, and what can you do today to prepare for it? In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at the new exploration system and other changes you can expect when you log in on Tuesday, and what you can do now to make the most of them.
EVE Evolved: Fanfest 2013 video roundup
Last month saw the huge tenth anniversary EVE Online Fanfest, a three-day convention packed full of exclusive reveals, behind-the-scenes talks, and community events. This year's Fanfest was the biggest one yet, celebrating EVE's tenth anniversary with special guest speakers from the scientific community, the reveal of a new virtual reality dogfighter, DUST 514's launch, and details of the upcoming Odyssey expansion. Massively was there to bring you coverage of the big news as it happened, and CCP streamed some of the key talks and events live to viewers at home. This year's Fanfest sold out so quickly that many people who wanted to go didn't get a chance to, and only a select few talks were shown on the public livestream. With such a packed event schedule, even players in attendance couldn't be there for every interesting talk. Thankfully, CCP recorded over 30 of the most anticipated events and has now uploaded the videos to YouTube. Highlights include the Make EVE Real videos, the EVE keynote, the CCP Presents Keynote, and the talks on how DUST 514 integrates with the EVE economy. In this week's EVE Evolved, I round up all of the EVE Fanfest videos in a handy list.
Wargaming.net video summarizes 2012
2012 is almost be over, and it has been a good year according to Wargaming.net, the studio behind the WWII-inspired MMO World of Tanks. WoT has grown to over 45 million players worldwide and garnered several awards, including best MMO of the year from Golden Joystick. But that isn't all; development continues to roll forward on the two company's two upcoming titles, World of Warplanes and World of Warships. Wishing everyone a happy holidays, the studio released a video montage highlighting the year's accomplishments as well as the developers behind the games. Interspersed throughout are clips of in-game footage from all three titles. Want to see just what kind of shenanigans go on at the Wargaming offices? Check out the video after the break.
World of Warships debut screens aim for photorealism
Fans of naval combat who have been following Wargaming.net's development of World of Warships are in for a treat: The studio has just released the first in-game screenshots of the free-to-play action MMO. And those screenshots depict impressive detail and a level of photo-realism rarely seen in games, from the landscapes to the water to the ships themselves. Rechristened last August from World of Battleships, World of Warships puts players on the bridge of massive 20th century ships to battle one another on the high seas. Check out the breathtaking scenery and a variety of vessels available in the gallery below. [Source: Wargaming press release]%Gallery-172269%
World of Battleships rechristened World of Warships
In a move to make the title more congruent with the entire Wargaming universe, the game formerly known as World of Battleships has been redubbed World of Warships. The studio, however, emphasizes that the change is in moniker only; nothing has changed gameplay-wise for the upcoming free-to-play naval game in which players get to participate in sea-faring combat using historically accurate vessels. Additionally, World of Warships will be included in the Wargaming.net common economic system, which will allow players to distribute resources between all three titles. The game is scheduled to launch next year. [Source: Wargaming press release]
Wargaming.net installing gaming center on USS Iowa
Wargaming.net's public relations machine is larger than life. Whether we're talking about the ginormous booth on display at this month's E3 or the full-size tank the company brought with it last year, the maker of World of Tanks, World of Warplanes, and World of Battleships is fond of both spectacle and military hardware. The firm's latest endeavor ties in with World of Battleships by taking gamers and history buffs on board the USS Iowa, a battleship commissioned in 1943 that took part in almost every major Pacific theater naval engagement during World War II. Wargaming.net is installing a gaming center below deck on the Iowa, as well as a "bridge experience" that will simulate an attack by Japanese forces and allow partcipants to defend the ship and fly Grumman F6F Hellcat fighter planes. "Not only is sponsoring a museum and a vet-run organization a good thing, it also naturally clicks and fits within our business mission," explains Wargaming.net CEO Victor Kislyi. "That brings us fantastic brand awareness and spreads the word about our company and our products, so it's a very perfect fit. It is business and it is passion for history and historical accuracy. It's a mutually beneficial thing." Head past the cut for a video interview with Kislyi on the deck of the Iowa.
E3 2012: Hands-on with World of Warplanes
It was difficult to miss one of the most impressive booths on the show floor at E3. Wargaming.net established its dominance on the floor by setting up computers and allowing all E3-goers to play its latest games against the Wargaming development team. Its flagship title at E3 was World of Tanks, but I sneaked away to the team's press room to watch a demo of something similar. World of Warplanes is one title out of three that Wargaming.net is proud to show. For the unfamiliar readers, Wargaming.net launched World of Tanks last year, and its booth at E3 2011 wasn't quite as large as this year's.
E3 2012: World of Battleships unmoors its trailer
World of Battleships may be the newest title in Wargaming.net's arsenal, but that doesn't mean it's about to be overshadowed by its older siblings. The World War II-era battleship combat simulator arrived at E3 this week to show off a rather clever trailer illustrating how ships can be just as exciting as tanks and planes. The trailer is interestingly framed, flashing between shipwrecks on the bottom of the ocean floor and shots of the ships in combat and taking damage. Presumably the message is, "We're going to litter the heck out of the ocean with the steel corpses of your failures -- unless you're good enough, that is." World of Battleships will be joining World of Warplanes and World of Tanks under a unified battle realm. You can watch the smoky trailer action after the jump.
Wargaming.net to unify all its titles in a 'single MMO battle realm'
Wargaming.net has not one, not two, but three action MMOs in its portfolio. You've probably played World of Tanks, and World of Warplanes just recently transitioned from alpha to closed beta. The company is also working on World of Battleships as well as a portal to connect all three World War II titles and allow gamers to access them instantly. The service is called, er, Wargaming.net Service. Once it is deployed, players will receive unified Wargaming.net IDs "that will provide instant access to all games and services, as well as any partner or fan websites." The company's latest press release also mentions something called a "single MMO battle realm," where tank, warplane, and battleship clans will assist one another in their quest for world domination. [Source: Wargaming.net press release]
Nielsen: Assassin's Creed 3, Halo 4 most anticipated console titles this year
You guys are so predictable, except when you're being unpredictable. This year gamers are most excited to play Halo 4 (which still doesn't have a release date) on Xbox 360, Assassin's Creed 3 on PS3 and Madden NFL 13 on Wii, Nielsen reports from a recent study.What baffles us is how low BioShock: Infinite rates (9th on 360 and 8th on PS3) and how eager PS3 owners are to play Prototype 2 -- it ranks 7th for PS3 gamers and doesn't even hit the top 10 on Xbox 360. We won't even discuss what business Battleship thinks it has being in 3rd place for Wii gamers.Nielsen aggregated the scores based on eight "key customer metrics," such as "awareness" and "purchase interest." We are now certainly "aware" that we can't guess the general consumer's mindset, when all we hear about is how they have no "interest" to "purchase" another game ever again, but mainstream, full-price titles crowd the most-anticipated list. Check out the complete list here.
zAPPed board games hands-on
Alright, zAPPed is no GameChanger but, where Hasbro's line of iOS-integrated board games falls short in the pun department, it shines in cleverness. The Game of Life launched just a couple of days ago with a special edition designed to be used with an iPad app, while other classics Battleship and Monopoly are scheduled to follow later in the year. All make your iDevice an integral part of the gaming experience and leverage an ingeniously simple solution to boosting the interactivity. Underneath the game pieces are uniquely arranged capacitive plastic pads that allow the apps to identify what you're holding. Different boats in Battleship have slightly different arrangements of pads underneath that allow the app to tell whether your carrier or destroyer has been sunk.Monopoly uses the same trick to differentiate player debit cards. When it comes time to make a transaction, you swipe the card across the screen of your iPhone and funds are automatically added or subtracted from your account. Monopoly also adds a few more play options, including a mini game for escaping jail. The Game of Life, of course, lets you spin a virtual wheel, but also customize virtual pegs -- adding hair and accessories where once you were stuck with plain pink or blue ones. Game of Life zAPPed Edition is out now for $25, while Monopoly will land in June, followed by Battleship in September. Check out the gallery below and the PR after the break. %Gallery-147154%Edgar Alvarez contributed to this report.
Battleship movie adapted into FPS by Double Helix
Activision and Double Helix have announced a video game adaptation of Battleship, the Hasbro Studios/Universal Films adaptation of Milton Bradley's Battleship. Set for an April European release and a May North American release, Battleship will combine aspects of the classic board game with FPS gameplay. It will be available on PS3 and 360, with "uniquely designed versions" released for the Wii, DS and 3DS.The player takes on the role of demolitions expert Cole Mathis, who somehow finds himself in charge of an entire naval fleet and must use said fleet to defend the Hawaiian archipelago from underwater space aliens. This is a separate storyline from the film -- however, given the abundance of extraterrestrials and a severe lack of white and red pegs, we figure it's still set in the movie's universe. Gameplay is split between FPS sections and a "Battle Command" map, which is somewhat akin to the classic Battleship grid we're all familiar with. Here's hoping for Electronic Talking DLC on day one.%Gallery-146798%
EVE Evolved: Fitting the Gallente Talos
Among the hundreds of changes brought by EVE Online's recent Crucible expansion, the new tier 3 battlecruisers certainly rank as player favourites. Rather than giving each race a bigger, tougher battlecruiser, CCP gave the new ships the ability to fit battleship-class weapons but heavily limited their defensive capabilities. All four tier 3 battlecruisers are turret-based, letting them output massive damage with close-range guns or hit for solid damage at battleship sniping distances. As with all new ships, it can be difficult to figure out how to fit the new tier 3 battlecruisers to make full use of their unique combination of high damage output and high mobility. Last week I looked at three viable setups for the Caldari Naga, which proved to be an absolute monster with 1,000-1500 DPS when using close-range blaster setups and a terrifying 650 DPS when sniping at 100km-130km. This week I take a similar look at the Gallente Talos, a ship designed specifically for close-range combat. I explore a traditional armour-tanked blaster fitting with dual webs, a shield-based variant that packs a huge 1,500 DPS punch, and two long-range blaster fits that give the Naga a run for its money. In this week's EVE Evolved, I explore four solid PvP fittings for the Talos, with both shield and armour setups.
EVE Evolved: Everything there is to know about Crucible
This summer's lackluster Incarna expansion and the ensuing microtransaction drama took a massive toll on EVE Online's player community and development staff. Players were quitting in droves, and CCP eventually had to lay off 20% of its staff worldwide. Two years of half-implemented expansions, broken features, and "first steps" that were never iterated on left players begging for a content-heavy expansion like Apocrypha or those released in EVE's early years. EVE is known for being practically a new game every six months, but since the blockbuster Apocrypha expansion, daily life in New Eden hasn't changed much at all. To pull things back from the brink, CCP refocused development on EVE Online and gave developers a free pass to work on hundreds of small features and improvements. The company began flooding us with details on new ships, graphical updates, new gameplay mechanics, and desperately needed balance tweaks, and we loved every bit of it. Although it's mostly small features and gameplay tweaks, the Crucible expansion feels like a genuine rebirth for EVE Online. The types of changes made show that CCP knows exactly what players want from EVE and that the company is now willing to deliver it. With CCP's renewed focus on internet spaceships, the Crucible expansion feels like the start of a new era in the sandbox. In this week's EVE Evolved, I pull together everything there is to know about the Crucible expansion that went live this week, from its turbulent origins to the awesome features and PvP updates it contains.
EVE dev blog talks new Minmatar battlecruiser
More good news for EVE Online fans just showed up on the sci-fi sandbox game's official website. It turns out that CCP wasn't kidding when it said it has shifted its focus back to internet spaceships. The latest EVE dev blog features a couple of images of the new Minmatar Tornado battlecruiser as well as a bit of verbiage confirming that CCP will be announcing the ship's factional counterparts in the coming weeks. And yes, we did say battlecruiser, since CCP has thought better of its original plan to release the Tornado as a battleship. "When reviewing the armadas of existing ships we came to the conclusion that it would make much more sense to add another tier of battlecruisers instead of a fourth battleship tier, and that the accessibility of BC skills would mean more of these ships might be in the hands of younger, brasher pilots. That means more pew pew pew overall," CCP Guard writes.
