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Boston Dynamics' Atlas robot shows upgraded agility in 'Parkour' video
Just two years ago Boston Dynamics proudly showed off a new generation of its Atlas robot that could take an untethered stroll through the woods, before advancing to balancing on one leg and even landing a backflip.
To gauge your fellow gamers' ages, watch for jumping
When trying to figure out just who we're playing with in virtual spaces like World of Warcraft, we often watch how they talk for clues. Common knowledge suggests that gamers who are more mature -- and therefore older -- will be more grammatically correct, typing in complete sentences with proper punctuation rather than leaning on acronyms and slang. However, a recent study on gaming chat by a Colorado State University researcher suggests our common knowledge might just be wrong -- because while phrasing can certainly give us hints at a typist's age, Millennials are better at grammar than we think. In a study of players in Second Life and World of Warcraft, research concludes that the more definite indicator of age is how players move. Younger players jump about twice as often as older players, as well as moving more in general (15% more) and moving backwards more often (30% more). So before calling out your fellow players for immature kids, you might keep an eye on how often they jump -- if they don't, they may just be straight-up immature.
Daily iPhone App: Leaping Legends is a snarky endless runner from Everplay
You may remember (or, like me, still be playing) Ninjump, the vertical endless runner from Backflip Studios. Kris Jones of Everplay Interactive (who we've covered here before) is also a big fan and has borrowed the idea for Everplay's latest title, Leaping Legend. In fact, Everplay has borrowed a lot for this one -- not only does the gameplay innovate on Ninjump's core idea, but there are all kinds of wacky in-jokes and references hidden in Leaping Legend and its various mechanics. You play a knight who constantly runs up two walls by jumping back and forth. There are various powerups to grab along the way (like a shield or sword to defend or attack as you go), and you can move up or down the screen to dodge obstacles. I found this game tough, but then again, I didn't use any of the plentiful boosts that you need to buy with collected coins. There are also skins to buy, and items to help your progress as you conquer various goals and achievements. One minor issue I have is with restarting the game. There's a button clearly labeled "replay" which actually sends you back to the main menu, and its placement is awkward. My finger often opened up Game Center or turned the sound off instead of restarting the game as I wanted. A minor tweak would take care of it, but in a game like this where you're meant to go back to the beginning over and over, it was more of a frustration than it needed to be. Other than that, Leaping Legend is a fun title, with some solid core gameplay and references to everything from Zelda to Skyrim. I'm still looking forward to Everplay's Ace of Blades, but until then, this will do just fine.
The Daily Grind: Which game has the best character animations?
Character animations seem to be only noticed when they don't come off right. It's often a matter of subjective opinion whether or not these animations are pleasing or jarring, of course, but the fact remains that animations that don't meet players' standards are the target of long, long-winded rants. I try to give credit where credit is due. MMOs that show off fluid, good-looking animations are deserving of praise. For me, the litmus test is whether or not a game can portray jumping in a natural way. That's harder than you'd think; I've seen so many titles that have characters jumping with stiff spines, awkward arm angles, or the grace of a boiled squash. So instead of lambasting games for bad animations, let's focus on those that pull off natural- and good-looking animations today. Seriously, it's going to be tough for some of you to put a lid on the negativity, but I believe in you. Which game has the best character animations? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Massively Exclusive: How WildStar has the power to move you
Movement does not normally seem like a complicated topic in MMOs. You press forward; your character goes forward. Backward? Same deal. You can turn, and you can strafe, and you can turn and strafe and run forward if you're some kind of rebel or you want to give yourself motion sickness. But WildStar makes movement a bigger deal than normal because with a greater emphasis on action comes a greater emphasis on moving out of the path of danger. The latest official video covers all the basics of movement, from dashing to sprinting to pining for the presumably nonexistent quadruple jump. But we had a chance to sit down with lead combat systems designer Chris Lynch and lead class designer Hugh Shelton to talk about more of the specifics, starting with the obvious question: What beast must we slay to unlock the all-powerful quadruple jump? Wait, that wasn't it. It was about chaining movement tricks together in an endless cycle of airborne dashes.
X-RHex Lite robot leaps across gaps in a single bound (video)
Move aside, Sand Flea, you're not the only jumping robot in town. The researchers over at the University of Pennsylvania have taught their little six-legged X-RHex Light to make leaps and bounds as well, making it one of a few bots to both run and jump effectively. While it can't spring as high as the Boston Dynamics critter, the X-RHex can cross gaps with not just a bound but a running gait, given enough room. It can also flip itself over, climb onto a ledge with a double hop and perform a leaping grab to something as high as 73 centimeters (28.74 inches). The X-RHex itself isn't new; the curved-legged contraption has been around for at least a couple years, and even sported a cat-like tail for balance at one point. Still, the fact that the hefty 6.7 kilogram (14.8 pound) machine can now somersault through the air is a quite a victory, and one that reminds us of the impending robocalypse. Check the video below to see the bouncy guy in action.
Zynga releases Running With Friends, developed with Eat Sleep Play
Zynga has released a new game in the 'With Friends' series (which started back when the company acquired Words with Friends, a very popular Scrabble-like iOS game). Running With Friends is, as you can see above, not a fitness app, though that does sound fun. Instead, it's an endless running game, based on the Running of the Bulls, where you compete with friends to earn points and distance. The game has you running, jumping and dodging obstacles, all while trying to earn as many points as possible. As you might expect, the title is freemium, so it's free to download, and there are in-app purchases available if you'd like extra currency. Most of the games in the "With Friends" series have been super casual so far (mostly word games and simple social titles), so it's interesting to see that Zynga is upping the ante on the gameplay just a bit. Plus, this title is developed by was developed in collaboration with (see update) Eat Sleep Play, a company founded by David Jaffe that previously worked on the Twisted Metal games. "With Friends" hasn't seen a lot of action lately (though it's still a fairly big brand for Zynga), so this may be an attempt to revitalize the offerings. Update: Zynga got in touch to point out that the game wasn't developed by Eat Sleep Play directly, but that company did collaborate on some of the gameplay elements. So there's that.
EVE Fanfest 2013 day two: World of Darkness, Odyssey, and EVE Virtual Reality with the Oculus Rift
EVE Online's tenth anniversary Fanfest promised to be its biggest yet, with over 1,400 players packed into Iceland's Harpa convention centre to find out the latest on EVE Online, DUST 514, and World of Darkness. The first day focused mainly on DUST and its link with the EVE universe, but today the focus largely switched back to internet spaceships. There were plenty of roundtable discussions, and the CSM and Alliance panels were as awesome as ever, but it was the EVE Keynote that really blew the crowd away. The day got off to a good start with the highly anticipated World of Darkness talk. Most fans were probably expecting to see more airy game design ideas and another shiny trailer, but this year CCP just came out and put all its cards on the table. We saw that the game is still firmly in pre-production, with much of the previous work going into developing the engine and cool content creation tools and shaders. While I was initially disappointed at the lack of gameplay progress or shiny cinematics, I found this approach of being open and direct with fans very refreshing. As I told WoD art director Thomas Holt, honest beats shiny every time. Read on for a full run-down of the EVE reveals from the second day of EVE's tenth anniversary Fanfest, including in-depth details of the Odyssey expansion's features.
The Daily Grind: Has an MMO ever implemented your idea?
Earlier this month, Massively's MJ sat down with the City of Steam devs and discovered that you, the Massively readers, had actually influenced one of the game mechanics. Wrote MJ, There is one new feature that was put into game specifically because of Massively fans: jumping! That's right. You made it clear you wanted jumping in game, and the devs listened. Who says you don't have the power to change things? Leaving aside the implication that we spent one of our precious wishes on jumping, I thought this was really cool, and I tried to think of other examples of players coming up with amazing (or not) design ideas that were subsequently implemented in a game. I can think of certain demands that were met in classic MMOs. World of Warcraft is infamous for implementing the most popular player mods as official features, and in more recent news, there are Guild Wars 2's efforts to split reset times for different continents after much player protest. How about you? Has an MMO ever implemented your idea or the ideas of a fellow player? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Openly mock gravity with Age of Wushu's flying skills
The wuxia films that inspire many of Age of Wushu's mechanics have a fairly uniform attitude toward vertical mobility: screw gravity. Needless to say, the game takes that lesson to heart. A new article and video detailing the game's Flying skills makes it clear that players will not simply be encouraged to defy gravity but to go all-out and actively mock the idea that anything more than boredom keeps both feet planted on the ground. Flying skills are treated like normal skills in the sense that players must locate skill tomes to unlock new abilities, but once unlocked these skills are only limited by the character's Stamina. As long as your character has Stamina you can feel free to run straight up walls, jump off with a series of spinning backflips, and then land from a great height without so much as a bruise. If you do run out, though... well, gravity responds poorly to mockery. Check out the video just past the cut to see what it looks like to spit in the face of downward velocity.
Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars features I wish had made it to Guild Wars 2
You may have noticed, but Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2 are different games. I thought we'd clear that up to begin with. In fact, they're such different games that there are oodles of people who are fans of one but not the other (typically, most of these folks seem to be in favor of Guild Wars 2, but I know a fair few staunch supporters of the original). I happen to be a fan of both games, although I definitely find it a little disconcerting to switch between the two games. Most of that is because of things that the sequel does better, like casting on the move, a player auction house, and (in my opinion) the downed state. Some of it's because of things that aren't so much about quality as style, like the existence (or lack thereof) of Monks and heavy instancing. And then there are things that I really loved in the original that aren't around anymore.
The Daily Grind: Do jumping puzzles belong in MMOs?
Among the many map locations Guild Wars 2 entices its players to explore are vistas, and let's not kid ourselves: Vistas are jumping puzzles. Some are easier than others, of course, and some don't require much jumping at all (like those that ask you to take a leap of faith into an Asura gate or dive deep into a lagoon). But most of the time, your spacebar skills will be tested. Though I am no platforming champion, Guild Wars 2's jumping puzzles have seemed very doable for me. A few have been frustrating enough to annoy me, especially those that require a few minutes of set-up so easily spoiled by a single overshot. But I like that MMO developers are bringing in new gameplay elements that both challenge and reward us and aren't just another round of "click here to make the foozle go." What do you think -- do jumping puzzles belong in MMOs? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Hyperspace Beacon: Six things SWTOR and GW2 can learn from each other
As I'm sure most of you can guess by the title of this piece, I spent a little time in another MMO this weekend. That doesn't mean that I will be trading in my Jawas and Wookiees for Asura and Charr. However, I will admit that Star Wars: The Old Republic does not contain everything I want from an MMO. That's also not say that Guild Wars 2 has all those missing elements. But I believe there are quite a few things that both of these great MMOs can learn from each other to make the overall MMO experience better for everyone. Before I begin this breakdown, I should state that this is not a comprehensive list of everything that I liked and disliked from either game. At the same time, I want to also state that, besides the 20 or so minutes at trade shows I had with the game, this weekend marked the first time I've spent any serious time in Guild Wars 2. My opinion here is far from complete, and my experience is really based on the first 10 levels of GW2. Lastly, I'd like to say that Wookiees will always be cooler than Charr!
Boston Dynamics lies down with BigDog, gets giant fleas (video)
Remember what it was like when you first fell in love with Boston Dynamics' rocky terrain traversing BigDog robot? Get ready to fall in love all over again. Meet the Sand Flea, a plucky little 11-pound robot that can jump a mind-boggling 30 feet in a single bound, while an on-board stabilization system helps make landings a bit smoother. The RC four-wheeler's development is being funded by the Army's Rapid Equipping Force. Your move, iRobot. Check out some rad video of the big-wheeled 'bot after the break.
Making the 'jump' from Guild Wars to Guild Wars 2
The second Guild Wars 2 press beta weekend has come and gone, and Massively was there every step of the way. Stay tuned throughout the day today for even more guides, impressions, videos, and Q&As to get you ready for the highly anticipated sequel to Guild Wars. Guild Wars 2 is on the way (when it's ready), and classic Guild Wars players probably understand that soon they'll be competing with a younger sibling -- a smarter, more attractive one who's sure to get more of mom's attention. And while we're sure that some of the more stalwart Guild Wars 2 fans are also Guild Wars players, not all veterans of the first edition are dedicated to licking up every drop of sequel info squeezed out of blogs, conventions, and betas. Those veterans might just be wondering, what exactly can Guild Wars 2 offer them, other than Hall of Monuments tie-ins? What's changed? What's the same? What will they love, what will they hate, and what could possibly make them jump ship to the new hotness? The first and most important thing you must know is that yes, you can jump in Guild Wars 2! Seriously, though, jumping is more than just a thing you do with your spacebar when you're bored; it's a symbol of boundlessness. Guild Wars 2 itself is trying to jump a lot higher than its elder brother, and probably the essential difference between the games is that feeling that the walls have come down and gravity is letting loose. That alone should urge classic players to take a peek, but if that's not enough for you, fire up your Jeremy Soule soundtracks (yes, he's onboard for an encore!) and read on...
Daily iPad App: Paper Monsters
I've found that iOS isn't the best platform (so to speak) for platformers. I love games like Mario and Sonic, where you drive a little character around, jumping between platforms and collecting goodies. The lack of physical buttons on Apple's touch screens (and let's face it: cheaper production values) make it hard to pull off a great platformer. Often times developers are forced to cut corners or really stretch to generate new ideas. Not so with Paper Monsters (US$.0.99, universal). Crescent Moon's latest is a traditional platform game (complete with double jumps and warp pipes), and it plays that role perfectly. The little box-headed character can navigate the colorful and nicely-designed environments with skill thanks to some well-turned controls. The whole experience shines through the iOS platform right back to the classic days of 2D platforming. There are some new tricks, too. At times, the action feels more like Little Big Planet than Mario's old adventures, with solid 3D graphics and some interesting twists, like playing in the background scenery. Paper Monsters is a lot of fun, and there's plenty to keep you engaged through all 16 levels. It's available as a universal version right now for just 99 cents.
Daily iPad App: Run Roo Run HD
5th Cell is the developer behind the very popular Scribblenauts (which was released on iOS to great acclaim last year, and just had a new level pack update), and it recently brought a new title to the App Store called Run Roo Run. 2D platforming is a genre that's almost as old as videogames themselves (Mario, who you may know, is the grandfather of jumping around on 2D platforms), and as far as I'm concerned, Run Roo Run is a master class in 2D platforming design. It also has the added benefit of being a running title of sorts, and a puzzle game as well. The idea is that you, as Roo, a very cute Australian kangaroo, have lost a little blue buddy, and it's your job to jump across the Aussie landscape, over and around various obstacles, to save your friend. But your run is broken up into a series of stages that consist of one screen each, and so the goal is to keep the constantly running Roo jumping at just the right times to make it to the end of the screen and onto the next one. The action starts simple, but soon double jumps are added, and then the ability to slow Roo down or speed him up, and then you can swing on things, and just like Cut the Rope, a series of relatively simple elements can be combined into some very ingenious puzzles. Also like Cut the Rope, all of the action is crystal clear to see and understand, and the colorful graphics (especially on the iPad's HD version) and very chill Aussie soundtrack make this one a pleasure to play through. It's well polished, excellently designed, and for a 2D platforming fan like myself, every new stage is like another dish at an all-you-can-eat jumping buffet. And every level is timed and rewarded with gold, silver, or bronze medals, so there's lots of drive, even once you've conquered a simple one, to go back and do it perfectly the first time around. Run Roo Run is a great title, and shows that 5th Cell has really fallen in love with Apple's platform (of course, the big sales from Scribblenauts probably didn't hurt that emotion, either). It's available for 99 cents on iPhone, or for $1.99 on the iPad, with over 420 levels included, more showing up every week, and the option to buy some extra power-ups or convenience items via in-app purchase. Don't pass this one up, whatever you do.
The Daily Grind: Are you obsessed with jumping?
I suspect that if you polled players about their biggest Guild Wars pet peeves, the lack of a jump ability would be toward the top. The game world just isn't built with a Z-axis. Even if you could jump, there'd be nowhere to go. ArenaNet has been quick to assure fans that the sequel will in fact have jumping. Jumping! You'd think there were no other important mechanics, like crafting or travel or guilds! Besides, if you build your world for jumping, you also build your world for falling... like off of City of Heroes' tall buildings or those obnoxious Kelethin tree platforms in EverQuest (seriously, learn2railings, Wood Elves!). Still we crave our spacebar jumping, so much that we demand it even in 2-D sidescrolling crafting sandboxes like Glitch (where jumping neither decreases aggro nor makes you harder to target in PvP, sadly). Are you one of those obsessed with jumping in MMOs, and if so, why? Is it a nervous twitch? A way to immerse yourself in the gameworld? Do you jump for attention? Or is jumping merely shorthand for an interactive three-axis world? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Tiny 'jumping robots' have more in common with firecrackers than Johnny 5
Perhaps calling an immobile plastic bug with explosives strapped to its underside a "jumping robot" is a bit of a stretch, but who are we to argue with the Army Research Laboratory and the University of Maryland. The two groups have collaborated to create a pair of "robots" that measure just a few millimeters in size but can jump several centimeters in the air. One uses a spring like mechanism (which an operator must press down with a pair of tweezers) to propel it, while the other uses a small rocket, which can be triggered either by current applied over wires or a phototransistor (for untethered flight). It all makes for a pretty neat video, which you can find after the break - even if your sister's Furby was more robot than these tiny things.
Daily iPhone App: GoatUp
GoatUp is a surreal game made by Jeff Minter, the game developer behind Xbox Live's Space Giraffe and a number of other colorful (and often abstract) retro games over the years. GoatUp has you, as a goat, jumping up a series of platforms while eating grass and collecting various items. The gameplay is often wild, as the series of worlds you go through features homages to the various ages of platforming games. It's always crisp and interesting, with excellent retro graphics, finely tuned controls, and a fun set of mechanics. Everything is backed up by a plethora of gaming references, from the silly to the extremely subtle. GoatUp is a simple title, but it's a lot of fun, and it shows just how much joy the iOS platform seems to inspire in a very experienced developer like Minter. The game features both OpenFeint and Game Center integration, and it's available from the App Store as a universal app right now for US$1.99.
