Impulse
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Google Assistant users can preview YouTube’s 'Impulse' for free
With its paid Premium streaming service, YouTube has a steep climb to even compete against entrenched services like Netflix. First it has to get our attention, so for one of its most-anticipated series, Impulse, it came up with an interesting promotion. Google Assistant owners can access the first episode by saying "talk to Impulse." The AI device will give a brief sum-up of the show and ask for a password (it's "Henry" and a few variants). Once you do that, you'll get a link to the first unlisted episode on YouTube.
YouTube's future pay-only shows include one from 'The Rock'
YouTube is more determined than ever to line up major original shows for its Red subscription service. The video giant has scored deals for three new exclusives from names you will definitely recognize. The highlight might just be Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's Lifeline. Apart from its celebrity producer, the sci-fi series revolves around the intriguing (if Minority Report-like) concept of insurers who travel 33 days ahead in time to prevent the deaths of their customers.
Impulse Technology drops patent infringement suit against Nintendo
Impulse Technology Ltd. voluntarily dropped a lawsuit against Nintendo alleging the Wii, Wiimote, Balance Board and Wii Fit Plus infringed on Impulse's patent for the Trazer Interactive Fitness machine. An "unfavorable decision from Judge James Gwin of the U.S. District Court in Cleveland" undermined Impulse's legal arguments.Richard Medway, Nintendo of America's deputy general counsel, was "very pleased with the court's ruling, which forced Impulse to walk away from this lawsuit," he said. "Nintendo vigorously defends patent lawsuits when we firmly believe that we have not infringed another party's patent. We will continue our tradition of developing unique and innovative products while respecting the intellectual property rights of others."Impulse similarly sued Microsoft under the same allegations, but relating to its Kinect technology.
The Engadget Interview: GameStop CEO Paul Raines talks tablets, OUYA and the MVNO that never was
Looking to unload your unwanted gaming gear? You're probably on your way to GameStop. As the largest dedicated video game retailer in the world, it's hard to imagine a games enthusiast who hasn't browsed its wares a time or two. Over the last few years, however, the firm has been expanding outside of retail sales -- dipping its fingers into digital distribution, streaming and even phones and tablets. The brick-and-mortar store even seemed to be flirting with building a mobile network. With all these changes underfoot and a new console cycle just around the corner, it seemed like a good time to catch up with GameStop CEO Paul Raines to get some perspective.
Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion sells 100K, breaks Stardock records
Stardock has announced that Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion, the latest stand-alone expansion of the acclaimed RTS hit, has broken company records and become its fastest-selling release to date. The game has sold over 100,000 units since its launch last month, which is not only a solid number for any indie game but also beats the first 30 days of the original Sins of a Solar Empire.Though the original Sins was also released at retail, Rebellion was not, and the digital plan ended up working better than any of the company's PC retail releases. Stardock's CEO, Brad Wardell, said he believed that selling the game on Steam would take sales away from other channels, but Steam sales of the expansion "didn't cannibalize its GameStop or direct sales."Releasing digitally had other benefits as well, like letting Stardock announce the release at the last minute. Wardell says both of Stardock's other games this year, Elemental: Fallen Enchantress and Political Machine 2012, will follow the same launch plan.
GameStop touts large selection of in-store downloadable PC games
GameStop announced today that its stores have "one of the largest PC game selections at retail," with – wait for it – over 1,500 downloadable titles available to purchase in its 4,400 stores. Oh yeah, you can also purchase this digitally distributed product on GameStop.com ... like a moon man living in some mad future.The announcement today isn't so much "news," as it is a reinforcement of the digital world to come and how GameStop fits into it. As the company explained in February, it sees significant revenue from customers purchasing digitally distributed content by cash or store credit. Not everyone has credit cards or uses PayPal."This tremendous PC game collection ensures gamers will always find what they want, and they can use cash, gift cards and trade credit as currency," said Steve Nix, GameStop's GM of Digital Distribution, who also notes customers can use their PowerUp Rewards for added value. GameStop is also offering up to 75 percent off PC games like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Civilization 5, Age of Empires 3, Deus Ex Human Revolution and Magicka Collection starting today.
Find out if your PC meets Max Payne 3's minimum requirements
We hope you just bought your computer today. Even better, we hope you were just about to go buy your computer, because otherwise you may have to have to turn some settings down in the PC version of Max Payne 3. Rockstar posted the system specs, including both recommended and required processors (it'll run on an Intel Dual Core 2.4 GHZ or an AMD Dual Core 2.6 GHZ, but Rockstar recommends an i7 3930K 6 Core x 3.06 GHZ or FX8150 8 Core x 3.6 GHZ). Find the full specs after the break.Rockstar also announced pre-order incentives for the digital version at several shops, including Steam (Max Payne 1 and 2, multiplayer DLC for MP3) and Impulse (the two classic games, some multiplayer DLC, and an exclusive map). Find the full list of retailers with pre-order offers on Rockstar's site, and decide if any of them are worth the 35GB download.
Valve games come to Impulse
Valve, proprietor of Steam -- which is basically the Walmart of PC digital distribution -- now has its games available on Impulse. Your confusion is as great as ours, but here we are.The Impulse store, owned by GameStop, announced last week that Valve titles would become available on the service. Apparently, the shock of this caused almost everyone in the media not to report this fact for an awkward length of time.The Valve games available through Impulse right now are Portal 2, Left 4 Dead, Left 4 Dead 2, The Orange Box, and Half-Life Complete. Best part: the games still require Steam to play.
GameStop's Android gaming tablets get official at 200 stores in soft launch
Android slates gussied up with pre-installed video games? We must be talking Sony here, right? Wrong. Turns out, this is what GameStop's prexy had in mind when he spilled the beans about the company's plans for a certified gaming tab. Making good on that word, but falling short of actually producing a new device, 200 of the retailer's brick-and-mortar shops are now home to an array of tablets from the likes of Acer, ASUS, Samsung and Motorola -- all members of Google's tablet OS brigade. These familiar Honeycomb faces carry their same retail prices, but come customized with seven free games and, in the case of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Iconia Tab A100, the company's proprietary Bluetooth controller. You can always snag that last bit separately, although if you're already committed to shelling out this much cash, what's another $39? While the verdict's still out on whether this move is a hit or miss, it sure is no wonder why PlayStation Suite's eyeing greener hardware pastures.
GameStop to bring Android-based gaming tablet to market
No surprises here. GameStop, which announced its intentions to become a technology company earlier this spring, has officially selected Google's Android OS for its upcoming tablet-based "certified gaming platform." The video game retailer's prexy Tony Bartel relayed the news to GamesIndustry.biz, and plans to sell the slate alongside offerings from industry heavyweights. The news comes on the heels of the company's spring acquisition of developer Spawn Labs and Impulse, with a pre-production model design already selected for the tab. Expect the hardware to come pre-loaded with a handful of games, and to have a focus on an OnLive-like, cloud-based gaming platform. Consumers in Dallas were the first to get a hands-on with the beta device that should sport a custom designed controller at launch. According to Bartel, "It's hard to imagine how to stream a game - let's say Modern Warfare 3 - onto a tablet and then play it with your finger." The GameStop-made tab could also see third-party exclusives head to the platform, crafted with its controller interface in mind. Bartel made no mention of a release window, but it's clear the company's adapting to the industry's digital download future. Hit up the source below for the full interview.
GameStop completes Impulse integration, ex-Microsoft exec Shane Kim joins board
GameStop recently announced it has completed the integration of digital sales platform GameStop Impulse and has added former Microsoft Games Studios VP and strategy honcho Shane Kim to its board of directors. Both are major moves that continue the company's methodical positioning of pieces in preparation to accommodate digitally distributed product alongside boxed retail offerings. Kim, who spent nearly two decades at Microsoft, had been quite direct about the complications involved in a future where publishers, retail and platform holders had to compromise on games being sold through online portals. With his knowledge of Microsoft's efforts with Xbox Live, he should be a valuable asset advising on GameStop Impulse. Purchased from Stardock in March, Impulse -- now GameStop Impulse -- is now completely integrated into the company, claiming to offer over 1,200 games at GameStop.com. The company isn't looking to get Steam-rolled when it comes to eye-catching sales, so it plans to hold daily deals on PC titles, with discounts reaching up to 75 percent.
SSFIV Arcade Edition PC to discourage piracy (and frustrate buyers) with 'limited' offline mode
Okay, so there is a catch. We figured Capcom had a "solution" in place when it confirmed that Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition was coming to PC. The problem? Piracy -- the threat of which kept Capcom from releasing vanilla SSFIV on PC just a year ago. In a blog post on Capcom-Unity, company VP Christian Svensson has addressed some "Stuff You Want to Know About SSFIV:AE for PC." Scroll down and you'll get to the catch. "SFIV unfortunately was plagued by pirates and hackers that messed up leaderboards," Svensson writes of the original iteration on PC (which still sold well by Capcom's earlier account). "To hopefully remedy that, SSFIV:AE will be making use of what is called SSA technology." While not as random as certain TSA measures -- SSFIV:AE players can still wear shoes and needn't limit their beverages to 3.4-ounce bottles -- the game's Software Security Assurance protocol is no less strict. Players are required to be signed into Games for Windows Live in order to access most of the game's features and content. In offline mode, SSFIV:AE is reduced to a sort of demo, with players limited to local play only (obviously), but also restricted to 15 of the 39 fighters and unable to save settings or challenges progress. DLC is inaccessible when playing offline, as well. Should the GWFL connection be lost mid-game, the player is given a chance to sign back in at a "logical break point" -- but should that fail ... you're in demo mode. And if you don't live in a GFWL-supported region? Svensson calls that a "buyer-beware situation." Prospective purchasers should also be aware that Steam and Impulse will implement their respective "security solutions" (in addition to SSA), and that Steam users won't use GFWL Marketplace to purchase DLC. "We'll provide more details on that wrinkle at a later date," Svensson notes.
Inhabitat's Week in Green: floating trains, dead bees, dirt-powered phones and Cornish pasties
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. Did you know that the cell phone in your pocket could be causing the collapse of bee colonies? This week Inhabitat reported the alarming news as Swiss researchers confirmed that cell signals confuse bees and are leading to their deaths. We also looked at a Bill Gates-funded plan to power cell phones using dirt, and we spotted a new phone battery that can be charged by yelling at it -- much to the chagrin of everyone else on the bus. Alternative transportation got a boost this week as Japanese engineers unveiled a levitating high-speed electric train that flies over the earth, and we shined a light on Berkeley's new solar-powered Impulse racer, which is gearing up to blaze a trail in the 1,800-mile World Solar Challenge. It was a big week for biofuels as well as Ford and Georgia Tech unveiled plans to create the first hydraulic hybrid U.S. school bus and UK scientists cooked up a plan to power cars with Cornish pasties. In other news, this week a New Jersey Toys "R" Us unveiled plans to build the largest solar roof in the United States, and HyperSolar rolled out a magnifying film that can increase the efficiency of photovoltaic panels by 300%. In green lighting news, we watched Google flip the switch on its brilliant Android-controlled LED bulb, and we announced the Philips and Inhabitat Bright Ideas Lighting Design Competition, which is awarding $1,000 to the designer of the most stunning eco-friendly lamp. Finally, we got excited for the start of summer with a look at the Lapin Kulta Solar Kitchen, which will be serving up sun-cooked meals all across Europe!
Star Ruler to be taken off Impulse in protest against GameStop takeover
Not everyone is happy about GameStop's acquisition of Impulse. In a post on the official site for the space RTS Star Ruler, developer Blind Mind Studios announced that it would remove Star Ruler from the service when the takeover is enacted -- "likely some time in May," Blind Mind says. "We are ending sales through Impulse due to GameStop's long, negative behavior toward the PC platform and independent games," the developer's statement reads. "We would never have signed onto distribution through GameStop, and being forced into this situation has only made it worse for us." Blind Mind notes that its history with Impulse has been positive to date, and, "We supported Brad Wardell's direction of Impulse." Wardell's absence "ruins our faith in the service's future." The developer is working to ensure that updates and patches will continue to be delivered through Impulse to anyone who bought Star Ruler from the service. Barring that, it will release an automatic updater of its own.
GameStop details plans for Impulse and Spawn Labs, says it's 'becoming a technology company'
Well, it looks like GameStop's plans following its acquisition of Impulse and Spawn Labs may be even grander than we had suspected. At an investor conference today, GameStop said flat out that it is "becoming a technology company," and that it does indeed plan to introduce a cloud-based gaming service similar to OnLive as a result of the Spawn Labs acquisition, while Impulse will be used to "compete fiercely" with Steam. But that's just the start of things. According to the Dallas Morning News, GameStop also plans to expand the gaming service to a variety of mobile devices, and it's apparently even entertaining the idea of a GameStop-branded tablet, saying that "if we feel like we could do a better job of making a tablet, we'll do that." Of course, some of that is still quite a ways off, but GameStop will be taking its first steps fairly soon -- it's already showed off a demo of how the service will be integrated into its website (see above, complete with a "try it now" option), and it plans to begin a public beta sometime this year before rolling out the full service early next year.
GameStop snaps up Spawn Labs, Impulse game distribution platform
We wouldn't count on its retail business going away anytime soon, but it looks like GameStop is now also betting heavily on a digitally-distributed future. To that end, the company has just announced that it's acquiring both Spawn Labs and Steam-competitor Impulse, the latter of which it's buying out from parent company Stardock Systems. While Spawn Labs may not be the most familiar name, you might remember its HD-720 set-top box -- essentially a Slingbox for your game consoles -- which we first checked out way back in 2009 and finally started shipping in early 2010. It sounds like GameStop may have some even grander ambitions for the technology than that, however, as the company's press release says that it's now testing a "new consumer interface" that will give users "immediate access to a wide selection of high-definition video games on demand on any Internet-enabled device." As our pals at Joystiq note, that sounds an awful lot like OnLive-esque cloud-based gaming service, but GameStop unfortunately isn't offering many other hints at the moment.
Stardock's Brad Wardell talks about selling Impulse to GameStop
"Not everyone's goal in life is to run a thousand person company," said Stardock founder Brad Wardell, who just today announced that he's sold the growing digital distribution arm of his company, Impulse, to GameStop for an undisclosed sum. "Certainly the path of least resistance would have been to just grow with Impulse and become a digital retailer, but that's not what I signed up for." Impulse was originally started as a way for Stardock to distribute its own games and software digitally, and was opened up three years ago to other developers. Since then, it's grown to compete with the big player in digital distribution, Steam. Wardell, speaking with Joystiq in an interview today, said that the growth in revenue actually became a cause for concern. "When Impulse became our number one source of revenue," said Wardell, "I realized it was time for us to look at our options there."
GameStop indulges in some Impulse buying ... no seriously, it bought Impulse (and Spawn Labs)
Love 'em or hate 'em, you can't say the people of GameStop are taking the challenge of "digital" lying down. The massive Texas-based retailer (everything's bigger in Texas) just announced the acquisition of streaming tech outfit Spawn Labs – you'll recall the HD-720 box we brought on the Engadget Show – and digital distribution portal, Impulse. Whoa, whoa, whoa ... so GameStop purchased Stardock, Impulse's owner? Nope! "GameStop has acquired Impulse, Inc.," the official Stardock FAQ on the deal reads. "Impulse is a separate business unit from Stardock Entertainment." No layoffs are anticipated, staff stays with Impulse, customer service is still handled by Impulse (for now!), and the group is actually hiring. The press release says that Impulse will offer "three specific components." First is the client, dubbed "Impulse::Client" here, which users can use to download games. Duh. Next is Impulse::Reactor, which "provides content publishers customer friendly DRM and copy protection tools. It also allows developers to enable achievements, account management, friend lists, chat, multiplayer lobbies, and cloud storage within their games." Last is Impulse::Publisher which gives pubs "real-time reporting and management tools." GameStop's interest in Impulse – one of the industry's biggest competitors to market leader Steam – is obvious. What's not so obvious is its interest in Spawn Labs. "Once the Spawn Labs integration and testing on a new consumer interface is complete, users will have immediate access to a wide selection of high-definition video games on demand on any Internet-enabled device," the press release reads. That sounds to us like GameStop is getting into the cloud-based gaming arena (ie: OnLive). We're following up with GameStop, Stardock, and all the other concerned parties and we'll let you know what we uncover.
Impulse takes dragon-sized bite from Dragon Age: Origins Ultimate Edition price
From a value perspective, it's pretty hard to deny the cost to amount of game ratio of Impulse's half-price deal on Dragon Age: Origins. It includes both Origins and the Awakening expansion for 25 bucks. Throw in the fact that it's actually a good game and, well, you've got yourself a heckuva deal.
Steam has Ubisoft hits on sale this weekend; Impulse has Medal of Honor
Whether you're in the mood for shooting or shooting, Steam and Impulse have your back this weekend. Active now, Steam's offering Assassin's Creed, Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood, Far Cry 2 and Rainbow Six Vegas 2 in a bargain $3 bundle; while Impulse has Medal of Honor for $15.
