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The Bad Decision Blocker prevents dialing mistakes
Enough of the fart apps -- here's an iPhone function we really need. The Bad Decision Blocker (BDB for short) is an iPhone app that will let you block any of your phone's contacts for a predetermined set of time. We've all been there -- you go out Friday night, get a few drinks in you, and suddenly calling up your former friend, or a girl you're trying to ask out, or a girl you used to go out with (who decided not to hang out with you any more thanks to all the drinking) becomes something you're suprisingly willing to do. BDB, however, will say no, and keep that contact out of the contact list, until whatever time you'd said it was OK to let it back in. And, presumably, by that time you can be in a more sober state of mind, and realize that you don't need any girl whose idea of a good time is keeping you from having fun. Take that, Susan!It's helpful for sure. All the program seems to do is erase (and rewrite) whatever contacts you choose in your address book, so you've got to re-open the program after the set time if you want your contacts back. Also, the app doesn't actually block the phone, just the contacts you choose, so if you have their phone number memorized, you might still end up doing a little drunk dialing. But you never know -- BDB might be just the thing to help you leave that old relationship right where it is, or at least come to your senses long enough to not sabotage that new one. It's in the App Store right now for 99 cents.
Atlus lovers, head to Amazon
We've already established that having the Atlus name on the front of a box is usually A Very Good Thing, and look! Somebody at Amazon must clearly have been listening to us, as the uber-retailer has the following Atlus-published titles up for sale: Rondo of Swords -- $19.99 Draglade -- $13.39 Ontamarama -- $10.04 Contact -- $23.44 Touch Detective 2 1/2 -- $9.99 That's not all -- while we were scrounging though Amazon's bargain basement section, we found a couple of other potentially worthy additions to your DS library: Children of Mana -- $20.09 Viewtiful Joe: Double Trouble -- $10.04 You can also get Ping Pals for $4.29. But like that deserves a functioning link. %Gallery-14108%
Researchers boast of progress with printed electronics
There's certainly no shortage of researchers working on printable electronics these days, but a group from the EU-funded CONTACT project is now boasting of a "major step" towards being able to print electronics on everyday materials. At the moment, they seem to be focused primarily on printing organic TFT displays directly onto glass plates, which apparently required the use of some aggressive solvents that "attack" the organic materials between the TFT and liquid crystal layers. Their current Labratester 1 printer (pictured above) apparently still has some problems precisely lining up each layer, however, but they say that'll be fixed with the addition of some optical cameras in the Labratester 2 machine they're now working on. Eventually, they say the system could be used to easily and cheaply print displays directly on watch faces or glasses, or even print other electronics onto paper or other fabrics.[Via Protein Feed, image courtesy of NSMZ]
Contact search in iPhone firmware 2.0?
It doesn't matter what Apple says, a touchable strip of letters isn't the civilized way to navigate through a few hundred (maybe even a few thousand, if you're a salesman or a renowned socialite) contacts on your phone. Seems they've realized the error of their ways, too, with a number of eagle-eyed folks noticing that the firmware 2.0-equipped model in Apple's SDK presentation sported a Spotlight-esque magnifying glass icon above the strip in the contact list. So go ahead and enjoy just a few more short months of finding your peeps the hard way, knowing that by mid-year, you can look forward to name searchin' nirvana. Score.[Thanks, Mark]
DS Fanboy Favorites: Eric's top five
All this week, the DS Fanboy staff is letting you in on a few of their favorite titles. Each day, a different member of the staff will present their personal top five DS games along with a snapshot of their gaming paraphernalia and habits, in an effort to provide our readers with a little more information on the tastes and personalities of our writers. When my afternoons aren't busied by hours of photoshopping cat heads onto pictures of my friends, I pass the time with puzzlers and plumbers on my DS Lite. But those kitten-free days are few and far between, so I end up being able to only fit either the most polished or the most eccentric games into my packed schedule. Wario: Master of Disguise? Sorry, I've got things to do and feline faces to retouch. Lost in Blue 2? I'll have to pass -- I'm already lost in trying to get these whiskers to look perfect. My collection is a mishmash of AAA titles and niche releases, their cases piled atop one another like a Jenga stack of mismatched blocks, threatening to topple over at any moment. Just pulling a game from the middle of the shaky structure is an act preceded by hours of anxiety and self-doubt. Having my wife provide commentary during the ordeal, remarking "Oh god, it's going to crash this time for sure, I just know it. Why'd you even try, Eric?! Game over, man! Game over!" as I tug out my copy of Advance Wars DS doesn't make the challenge any easier. So when I do manage to put aside the pussycat photos and secure a game to play, it better damn well be worth it. Journey forth and read which of those titles have captured a place not only on my top five list, but in my heart.
How to contact WoW Insider
There are many ways to contact us here at WoW Insider -- whether you want to send us a news tip or submit to one of our regular features, here's a breakdown of how to get in touch with us for your reference. Tips Got news? Send us a tip -- if it's newsworthy and we haven't already published it, we'll cover it. Contact us Need to contact one of our writers? Something to say that's not a news tip? Contact us. Notice a bug or problem with the website? Send us a problem ticket. Guild Join us on the Zangarmarsh server for fun, casual play in It Came from the Blog! We usually have one or more guild events scheduled per week. Here's how to join the guild, and how to join the guild forums. Galleries Have a screenshot of one of the many funny NPC names (or guild, or player) from around Azeroth and Outland? Send it to funnynames AT wowinsider DOT com and we'll add it to our funny names gallery. %Gallery-1669%
T-Mobile launches T-Mobile Address Book
One of the many, many perils of cellphone ownership lies locked in the handset's memory: data loss. Nothing ruins an otherwise pleasant day worse than sending that Samsung t629 for a dunk in the pool (at least, that's your story on the insurance report, though we all really know you dropped it in the loo) -- or, even more catastrophically, running it over with a 5,000-pound SUV. Of course, the loss of the phone itself sucks enough, but the real challenge is resurrecting those contacts. T-Mobile's bringing a solid solution to the table with wireless synchronization of contact lists to its server, a la Sidekick. The service is initially launching with the aforementioned t629, along with Nokia's 6600 (how's that for an S60 throwback?) and 3220. Finally we're able to flush our phones down the toilet with wild abandon. [Thanks, The Fish]
DS releases for the week of January 22nd
Can you guess what title we're excited about this week? It shouldn't be too hard, since we have made it more than a little obvious that we're gung ho for Hotel Dusk, which is also making its Japanese debut this week.DS releases: Hotel Dusk: Room 215 Inuyasha: Secret of the Divine Jewel For releases in other major markets, check after the jump.
Apple updates Apple ID site, finally allows editing
Apple has updated their My Info site to allow more Apple ID editing goodness. It's been a while since I've taken a crack at changing any of this information, but last I remember, it wasn't possible to change the actual email correspondence address of one's Apple ID. The My Info site offers a slim, effective UI for adjusting your contact and shipping info, as well as setting your Apple communication preferences (do you want email/mail/phone calls, etc.). Too bad there isn't a new option called "alert me the next time you're about to rev one of your products 15 days after I buy the old 'n busted model."Thanks Brandon M
A trio of Contact gameplay videos
When you woke up the morning, your first thought was, "Man, I wish I had a whole bunch of Contact videos to watch." Right? That was you? Well, play along anyway. These videos, originally from GameSpot, offer a long and languorous look at gameplay and graphics, and we've embedded them after the jump for your viewing pleasure.
Verizon Wireless customers to get automatic contact list updates
There's nothing like keying 300+ contacts to your cellphone, only to have something catastrophic happen and lose them all. Sure, providers offer certain forms of backup, but a new service from Plaxo will make all your worries over losing that oh-so-precious contact list disappear. The firm is hooking up with Verizon Wireless (with Alltel and US Cellular to follow suit) to offer automatic list updates from "commonly used e-mail systems" (such as Outlook, Yahoo Mail, OS X Mail, Mozilla Thunderbird, etc.) wirelessly via its Plaxo Mobile Plus system. Customers will still have to choose which names receive the honor of being placed in their always-available contact roster, but the service "eliminates the need for manual reentry or copying directly from a computer." While specifics weren't given, this convenience is slated to work with "30 Verizon Wireless handsets" initially, and run customers $4.49 per month, which seems like a lot to ask unless you're notorious for destroying phones.[Via DigitalTrends]
Europe gets a little Contact
Better late than never, right? Rising Star Games has announced that they will release Grasshopper's RPG Contact in February of 2007 for Europe -- for those of you who haven't ordered it elsewhere by then. Despite lukewarm reviews, the game is getting its fair share of attention, so such a long delay before European release would be surprising ... if the DS hadn't lately been plagued by delays for the region. Sorry, guys. Just know that we love you equally!
Metareview: Contact
Grasshopper Manufacture is certainly developing a reputation for unpredictability. Opinions on their last Nintendo foray, Killer 7, were all over the place -- some loved the twisted rail-shooter, others hated it, and many just scratched their heads and offered up a simple "wtf, mate?" Their new Atlus-published RPG Contact, while a little more straightforward, seems to be getting the same wide range of responses. As this is a metareview, Contact seems like a metagame; it's the little things that are praised, the inclusion of other games, references to games, influences from games, the touches from old school games. Unfortunately, the actual game seems to have suffered a bit -- even the most praise-worthy reviews indicate some gameplay issues. 1UP - 80%: "Savvy players will almost certainly enjoy all these little references and arty concepts, so it's a shame the entire package won't hold up to their scrutiny. In crafting their gaming curiosity, Grasshopper has made some design choices that are simply curious. The autobattle system is far from engaging ... fighting enemies in Contact is a woefully straightforward process. It's impossible to dodge or block attacks. In fact, the player can only watch as Terry trades hits with his target."Games Radar - 60%: "Contact is a mixed bag and will delight some while disappointing others. It feels "classic," but the flipside of that is "outdated." Even though it's chock-full of personality and pomp, Contact falls short on fun, with some disappointing shortcomings. Casual RPG fans will have no problem finishing this game in less than 14 hours and a lot of that time will be spent backtracking through previous areas and grinding to boost your stats before boss fights. Also, weapons and special attacks unlocked near the end are just as unimpressive as the ones you begin with. Contact does sport an incredible surprise ending that adds depth and changes your perspective on all the main characters in the game. However, its impact is greatly diminished by the extremely short play time."Yahoo Games - 70%: "The linearity is one area where Contact is particularly disappointing. You'll end up stuck because you can't figure out how to trigger a certain bit of scripting (pay attention to the dialogue!), or maybe you can't figure out the trick to defeating some inscrutable boss battle. Or perhaps you haven't quite leveled up enough to easily dispatch the latest round of monsters in a new area. At times like these, all of Contact's charm can't save it from the tedium that bogs down a lot of RPGs. But it's still as solid as they come, not terribly spectacular, but the perfect fare for devotees of the genre."So it seems Contact definitely reaches out with its intriguing concept, and Grasshopper knows how much we like references and in-jokes, but RPGs have evolved over time for a reason. Some of that evolution should have perhaps been maintained for this title.
DS releases for the week of October 16th [update 1]
Big week, Nintendo fans! Looks like the winter glut of games has begun ... and so many of us already blew our gaming wads for the month on Wii preorders! Guess it's time to start making some sacrifices, since this week brings us a new Nintendogs as well as the latest published by Atlus, Contact. Grasshopper Manufacture's new offbeat RPG is our pick for the game of the week, though there's a good possibility that anything with the Nintendogs logo might just outsell the Bible, much less any games that dare to compete.DS: Contact Disney's American Dragon: Jake Long, Attack of the Dark Dragon Disney's Chicken Little: Ace in Action Justice League Heroes Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning, The Lionel Trains: On Track Nintendogs: Dalmatian & Friends SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab GBA: Justice League Heroes: The Flash SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab Summon Night: Swordcraft Story 2 And for our counterparts in the UK, the exciting release this week is Winning Eleven: Pro Evolution Soccer 2007, which hits shelves on the 20th. As always, availability is subject to manufacturer delivery.[Update 1: Changed category from Interviews, which this ain't, to news, which it is.][Via Joystiq]4 leaves take 5 4 good, 6 feet under. A shame, really.
Contact: hands-on
Contact is one of those games that after reading tons of stuff about it, reviewing message boards and reading previews, you are still somewhat lost to what it is. IGN understands. In their preview of Contact, they immediately tell you that Contact is something you have to play to ever fully understand what it is about. This leaves us very confused, but intrigued. Apparently you, the player, are nothing more that the player of the game and you are looking in on two worlds that you somehow link together just by existing. You aren't the hero of the story, just the link. Wow. A lot to take in and understand, we know. You do control the movements of the character Terry while simultaneously watching what a professor is doing on the top screen. Terry doesn't know you are moving him around and in a way you are God of this game, but not, because you are still only yourself. Still confused? Welcome to the club. Contact definitely sounds different in a good, non-Jodi Foster kind of way and we are interested to see what comes of it. An action RPG at its core with a splash of deus ex machina, some rather interesting promises have been made. Contact seems like the type of game that could either succeed, or nose dive to the ground.
New Contact screens
We have heard this and that about Atlus's newest action RPG, Contact, and the mechanics of it are definitely interesting. Story wise -- it sounds a little like Pikmin. A professor who crashes his ship and needs your help to find the pieces? Maybe the whole secret society and constant Wi-Fi connectivity will woo us. Until then, there are some new screenshots for the game. It looks cute. No surprise, the art is done by Atsuko Fukushima. You may remember him from games like PoPoLoCrois. Atlus is known for finding new and innovative ideas and this could be the next best thing for the DS since Trauma Center.
Pile on: Contact takes a jab at Sony meme
1UP's Jeremy Parish was kind enough to post the above picture on his blog, reminding us all that the lifetime of a particularly stinging internet meme is likely to extend beyond that of a mere mortal. The depicted DS game is Contact, an Earthbound-ish RPG from Atlus, one of the few developers that can don the "quirky" tag with pride even as they bounce around a drunken cosplay party. Our first instinct was to question Tomm Hulett, the man in charge of the game's localization, regarding the whereabouts of his elbow in relation to Sony's battered ribs."I'll be honest, I can't really speak for the Professor. He has a mind of his own, and he's sure to say all manner of crazy things as you play through Contact. It certainly seems like he's up on his gaming news, though, doesn't it? I have heard that battles in Contact ARE based on actual battles which took place in space, though, so who knows."Tomm confirmed the presence of crabs in the game, though didn't specify if they were of the "giant enemy" variety as commonly found in feudal Japan.
Interview: Contact developers
A developer interview conducted by CVG reveals some interesting bits and pieces regarding the philosophy and design of Contact, soon to be published in the US by Atlus. It reveals that the game initially started out as a GBA adventure and that the Wi-Fi gameplay is a bit more unusual than you might have initially thought. Takeshi Ogura, one of Contact's producers, explains that when "you are connected to the wi-fi there are new characters that might appear and new events that will happen. The more that you connect to the internet the more characters and events you will have to play with." Check out the interview for more insights, as well as our positive impressions of the game itself.
PSA: read your MacBook user manual
Given all the recent MacBook Pro drama of late, what with overheating issues and all, it might be a good idea to peruse your MacBook/MacBookPro owner's manual one of these days to make sure you've covered the basics, even if most of Apple's care recommendations are obvious these days. Gearlog found a couple of interesting snippets in a MacBook Pro owner's manual that, again, might be obvious to some, but are still good for a refresher. The first is a warning about the use of magnets in the MagSafe power adapter. Apple warns that the end of the MagSafe power adapter and the port on the MacBook could be powerful enough to erase information from magnetic media such as credit cards and iPods, so it would be a good idea to keep these things away from each other.The second blurb from the owner's manual warns against using a MacBook Pro directly on any part of your uncovered body; these things can get pretty hot (obviously), but this is the first time I've heard of a laptop owner's manual directly warning: "Prolonged contact with your body could cause discomfort and potentially a burn". I wonder if there are any other obvious or possibly interesting snippets in these manuals that most of us have been passing over.This concludes the end of this public service announcement, thank you for your time.
DS impressions: Contact
The game that has been jokingly called "Almost Earthbound" is quite possibly one of the most unique RPGs to hit Nintendo's touchy-feely handheld. The impetus of Contact is that you're not in direct control of the main character. Instead, you act as a mysterious external force that helps out a young boy as he searches for the parts of a weird professor's downed spaceship. The bottom screen of the DS allows you to guide your character through some wonderful looking environments, while the top screen always shows the professor scurrying about and doing work in his lab. He constantly communicates with you, making odd remarks, providing useful information and generally hurling a wrecking ball through that pesky fourth wall.Getting back to your character in the bottom screen, it's possible to engage enemies by tapping on them with the stylus and selecting the attack icon. Now, the battles are competely automatic with the exception of using the d-pad to dodge some attacks. Some will definitely be turned off by ths approach, but it fits in well with the game's exploration and its acknowledgement of the player as an entity in the story. The game makes pretty good use of the touch screen, with the special attacks particularly standing out. Essentially, you peel off the attack command as if it were a sticker on your screen and then stick in back into an appropriate slot. Much like the rest of the game, it's a pretty fun and quirky experience.
