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DeNA bringing Infinity Blade X to Japan's Mobage platform
DeNA's been on the iOS hunt for about a year now -- I saw them at GDC Online last fall asking developers to create games for their Mobage mobile platform in Japan, and then they outright purchased popular iOS developer ngmoco not long after that. Now they've put together plans to bring another big iOS game to the Mobage platform -- along with Epic Games and developers Chair Entertainment, DeNA will be bringing a version of the popular iOS game, called Infinity Blade X to Japan. The game will be very much like the Infinity Blade we know, using swipe controls to fight RPG-style through an old castle, of course. But it will also be free-to-play, and instead be monetized with virtual goods, as well as offer social connections through the Mobage network. The game will run in Unreal Engine 3 as well, and will be available across the Mobage-town platform, which runs on a number of different cell phones and services in Japan. DeNA has a huge network and lots of resources in Japan, and as I said, they've been looking for Western games to bring over and adapt for their huge audience. This won't be the last big title we see translated for the Mobage platform, I'm sure. Show full PR text DeNa to Bring Infinity Blade X to Mobage in Japan Epic Games' Popular Sword-fighting Adventure Game to Go Social DeNA Continues to Enrich the Mobage Catalog with a Diverse Range of Games TOKYO, JAPAN – June 22, 2011 – DeNA Co., Ltd. has announced today that the company is expanding the Mobage social gaming platform's catalog of hit titles, with the social game version of Infinity Blade, offered in collaboration with Epic Games, Inc. and its award-winning studio, ChAIR Entertainment. The adaptation of the popular sword-fighting adventure RPG will launch exclusively on Mobage for iOS in Japan as a social game in the fall of 2011. This Infinity Blade title is the newest in DeNA's diverse lineup of apps for Mobage, spanning from casual to core games. Provisionally entitled Infinity Blade X for Mobage, the social title is the first Mobage game developed with Epic's Unreal Engine 3, allowing high-end sophisticated graphics. The gameplay maintains the design and control features of the original version, while adding the ability for players to fight or collaborate with each other via the Mobage network. Infinity Blade X for Mobage will be free-to-play, with virtual goods on offer as well. The original Infinity Blade is an international hit as an iOS mobile game, with revenue earned by its developers exceeding 10 million US dollars in just six months after launch. In the original game, players take on the role of a heroic knight, with the mission of defeating the God-King and freeing the kingdom's citizens from a reign of darkness. Fans of the RPG battle, loot, and upgrade their skills in a fantasy world with unprecedented graphic quality and a touchscreen-optimized user interface. # # # About DeNA DeNA Co., Ltd. is a world-leading Web service company that operates the Mobage social gaming platform, social networking services and e-commerce websites. Drawing on its extensive community base and rapidly expanding developer line-up, Mobage currently serves over 28 million users in Japan with more than 1,000 game titles for smartphones, feature phones and PCs. The company generated annual sales of more than 1.3 billion U.S. dollars in fiscal year ended March 2011. To expand the Mobage platform globally, DeNA is building a presence in the US, Europe and in China. DeNA is listed on the Tokyo stock exchange (2432).
Emoti-bots turn household objects into mopey machines (video)
Some emotional robots dip deep into the dark recesses of the uncanny valley, where our threshold for human mimicry resides. Emoti-bots on the other hand, manage to skip the creepy human-like pitfalls of other emo-machines, instead employing household objects to ape the most pathetic of human emotions -- specifically dejection and insecurity. Sure it sounds sad, but the mechanized furniture designed by a pair of MFA students is actually quite clever. Using a hacked Roomba and an Arduino, the duo created a chair that reacts to your touch, and wanders aimlessly once your rump has disembarked. They've also employed Nitinol wires, a DC motor, and a proximity sensor to make a lamp that seems to tire with use. We prefer our lamps to look on the sunny side of life, but for those of you who like your fixtures forlorn, the Emoti-bots are now on display at Parsons in New York and can be found moping about in the video after the break.
Infinity Blade 'Arena' update adds multiplayer, survivor modes this Thursday
The next big content update for Chair Entertainment's epic iOS sword battler, Infinity Blade, comes out swinging this Thursday, May 19. By far the most notable addition, the new Arena Mode introduces 1v1 multiplayer combat via Game Center. Also making the cut is Survivor Mode, which challenges players to last as long as possible in an endless gauntlet of Titan battles. A variety of new weapons and items are also being introduced, including special holiday-themed helms. Finally, Infinity Blade will gain Facebook integration with the update, enabling players to take and share screenshots of their characters through a streamlined process. The "Arena" update will be free of charge and, if past Thursday releases on the App Store are any indication, will actually roll out in North America this Wednesday night around 11:30PM ET.
Infinity Blade: Arena coming out May 19
The long-awaited multiplayer update to Epic Games' iOS hit Infinity Blade has finally been revealed, and it will be landing on the App Store later on this week. The update is called Infinity Blade: Arena, and it allows players to play as a Titan or a Knight, battling against their friends. The mechanics aren't completely clear yet, but as you can see above, the battles will have players hacking and slashing against each other, which is close enough to the game's standard format. The update also includes an Arena mode, where players can take on a continuous stream of enemies to see how long they can last. It also includes a ton of new items, including Holiday helmets, as well as lots of other rings, swords, shields and armor to pick up and master with the game's XP system. Facebook integration is also new and will let players show off characters right on their Facebook pages. Sounds great. The update is free to owners of Infinity Blade (which we should all be at this point), but if you don't have the game yet, you can grab it for US$5.99 on the App Store. If that's too much, just stay tuned -- odds are we'll see a sale to celebrate this update sooner or later.
Robotic wheelchair uses 3D imaging to 'see' for visually impaired drivers
You may not be able to control it with your mind, but this robotic wheelchair from Sweden's Luleå University of Technology can still offer something that only a few others can -- "sight." The chair uses a laser sensor to generate a 3D map of its surroundings, which is then transferred to an on-board haptic robot, allowing the bot to pick up on and navigate its way around any obstacles. A visually impaired student already took the contraption out for a spin and said he felt "safe" while traveling through crowded corridors, comparing the experience to "using a white cane." Luleå's engineers, however, still have some fine tuning to do. The laser, for instance, can only recognize objects at a specific height, while ignoring everything above or below its field of vision. Researchers are also busy developing a new 3D camera for the chair and are hoping to have it ready for commercial use within the next five years. There's a full PR waiting for you after the break.
Inhabitat's Week in Green: Cities of the future, the Aqua Star, and 0-60 in 3.4 seconds... with a go-kart
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. What will the high-tech city of the future look like? This week Inhabitat brought you a sneak peek as we took an exclusive look inside Abu Dhabi's carbon-neutral Masdar City, which just opened for business. We also brought you brand new photos of the world's largest wooden structure, and we spotted several innovative solar-powered buildings - Sweden's rotating photovoltaic cog building and a self-sustaining pod home that can be perched on any roof. Green transportation also took off with a blast this week as the Linde E1 Electric Go-Kart set a Guinness World Record by traveling from 0-60 in 3.4 seconds and Synergy's folded-wing glider plane announced plans to compete in the CAFE Green Flight Challenge. We also saw greener vehicles gear up around the world as France announced plans to deploy a fleet of all-electric garbage trucks next week and Nissan unveiled the NV200 -- New York City's taxi of tomorrow. And for those looking for an underwater escape this summer, don't miss out on the Aqua Star - a submersible electric scooter capable of charting the ocean depths. In other news, this week we showcased several high-tech concept gadgets made from paper - an origami cell phone that folds into a flat piece of cardboard and the world's first interactive paper computer. We also brought you a sensor glove that could help stroke patients recover through gaming, and we covered a clutch of wired home furnishings that bring new meaning to the term geek chic -- from an interweb chaise made from 1,100 feet of coaxial cable to an analog cassette tape chair, to a modern computer mouse made from fine wool felt.
SOFT Rockers combine solar panels and moving furniture to charge your gadgets
Wander through MIT's Killian Court and you'll spot something distinctly modern nestled amongst its classical buildings -- a set of solar-powered lounge chairs called SOFT Rockers. These curved, solar-panel-covered seats rotate on an axis to keep them facing the sun, generating additional energy from the rocking motion created when people climb inside. All that harvested electricity can be used to recharge gadgets plugged into the three USB ports and to illuminate a light strip on the inside of the loop. The teardrop-shaped charging stations were created by professor Sheila Kennedy and a team of students for the Festival of Art+Science+Technology (FAST) as an antidote to "conventional 'hard' urban infrastructure." Plus, they seem like a great place to charge your phone while evading Dean Wormer and riding out double secret probation. Check out the gallery below for more images. %Gallery-122873%
Kinect-driven 'Jellybean' armchair hands-on (video)
Yes, this is what happens when you combine Kinect with a recliner on a motorized platform -- perfectly normal people doing awesome zombie impersonations! This week at Microsoft's MIX 11 web developer conference, the enterprising Clint Rutkas of Coding4Fun / Channel 9 fame showed off his Kinect-driven "Jellybean" armchair on stage during the keynote, and later let our very own Sean Hollister take it for a spin. Sadly, we missed our chance to capture this special occasion on video for posterity when the laptop used to control this armchair overlord ran out of juice in the final stages of our practice run. The motorized platform uses eight batteries, four omnidirectional wheels each with its own motor, and a pair of motor controllers connected to a laptop which interprets the input from Kinect (using the new SDK for Windows) and provides visual feedback to the driver. A gesture interface brings the entire contraption to life and even includes a hand signal to recline the armchair. Take a look at some closeup shots in our gallery below and watch our video of the recliner in action after the break. %Gallery-121299%
Infinity Blade more successful than Shadow Complex, Rein says
Though Epic Games doesn't divulge direct sales figures, vice president Mark Rein did give me something to work with: Infinity Blade has been more successful than Shadow Complex. "Hugely successful," in fact. Right now, if you check the leaderboard data (best overall score) for Shadow Complex, you will see the names of 545,023 players. While Rein's comment doesn't necessarily confirm that Infinity Blade has been downloaded more times than Shadow Complex, the former game's lower asking price – $5.99 versus Shadow Complex's $15 – would make it "more successful" either in terms of downloads or revenue. If it's revenue, our napkin math indicates the iOS-exclusive title being downloaded by at least 1,362,557.5 people, two-and-a-half times the total number of entries on Shadow Complex's leaderboard. If we're talking number of downloads, Infinity Blade should have at least bested Shadow Complex's 545K units.
TUAW's Daily App: Infinity Blade
Odds are that you already know what Infinity Blade is, and you might already have it on your iOS devices, too. But just in case you don't, we're spotlighting one of the best iOS games of last year, which happens to be available on the App Store right now for the sale price of US$2.99 -- for this game, that's a steal. If you haven't picked up this big-budget example of how experienced developers can do iOS games right, today's your chance. The game's already received one content update, and another big update is coming soon. Even if you already have Infinity Blade, you can check out Joystiq's fine writeup of how the game was made, straight from the floor of GDC 2011. Chair Entertainment talks about how they had tons of game ideas (from a physics puzzler to a card game -- I'd like to play either of those), but eventually boiled down what worked on a platform like the iPhone to what they came up with in Infinity Blade. It's a great game at a great price, so definitely grab it as quickly as you can.
Infinity Blade in finite time: How ChAIR made its iOS hit in five months
Released late last year, Infinity Blade ushered in a new era of graphical fidelity in mobile phone games and delivered on Epic's promise to turn its "Epic Citadel" tech demo into an actual game. The Salt Lake City-based team at Chair Entertainment – led by brothers Donald and Geremy Mustard – delivered another hit for Epic on another digitally distributed platform, opening doors for more Unreal Engine licensees all the way. At last year's GDC the brothers Mustard delivered a panel on their XBLA hit Shadow Complex and this year it's Infinity Blade, titled "Infinity Blade: How We Made a Hit, What We Learned, and Why You Can Do it Too!" "We got a call from Epic saying there's this opportunity," Donald Mustard told a packed GDC auditorium. Epic told him, "Mobile games are really taking off and we've secretly had part of the engine team getting the Unreal Engine to work on mobile devices over the past year and it's ready to go [...] and we really want to get a game out this year that really shows it off. Do you guys want to participate in that?" Mustard replied, "Absolutely." But there was a catch.%Gallery-118057%
Infinity Blade update coming tomorrow, detailed today
Chair and Epic Games announced this morning that the first free content update for iOS game Infinity Blade will arrive tomorrow. Alongside the previously revealed Marrow Fiend -- "rumored to devour its victims, taking their bones for its blade and shield" -- comes a smattering of swords and shields (five each), a shiny new set of armor, and five new helms (the Xmas-themed Holiday Helm, among others). The level cap will also be adjusted to 45 from 40, and players will be able to purchase gold from within the game. And if you're anything like us, you'll want to be rocking to the Trans-Siberian Orchestra while fighting the Marrow Fiend with the Holiday Helm equipped -- the ability to pump your own music into the game comes as part of the update. Chair further promises "New areas to conquer! New enemies to fight! Multiplayer! New swords, shields, helmets, and magic rings! And more!" for some point next year, so don't go forgetting about Infinity Blade just yet.%Gallery-110570%
Infinity Blade conceived as a Kinect game
If you've played iOS slasher Infinity Blade as much as us, you've probably spent some of your finger-callous massaging sessions thinking, "Why couldn't I be hacking up the God King in the completely callous-free world of Kinect?" Believe it or not, developer Chair Entertainment is way ahead of you ... and even ahead of itself, in a sense, according to co-founder Donald Mustard. "We always have some cool ideas on deck, and kind of the inception of Infinity Blade began as a discussion around: 'If we were going to make a Kinect title, what would we make? What would a Chair Kinect game look like?'," Mustard revealed. "That discussion happened, you know, a year and a half ago. We had this really cool design, and it's not that dissimilar from the game you're playing today; it's just been refined and adapted to the iOS screen, which honestly I think is where the design works the best." Mustard made clear that Infinity Blade isn't a Kinect game rejiggered for iOS so much as an idea sparked by Microsoft's device that found its home on iOS platforms. That said, Chair isn't closing any doors to Infinity Blade on Xbox 360. "Yeah," co-founder Geremy Mustard added, "if the Kinect really takes off over the holiday season, who knows?"
Ender's Game tabled by Chair
Chair Entertainment co-founder Donald Mustard has confirmed to Joystiq that the studio's Ender's Game project has been put on indefinite hold. Announced in early 2008, the downloadable game was to take place in the story's "Battle Room," a place where the protagonist partakes in simulation combat. "We have and had an amazing design for the Ender's Game game," Mustard assured, but "one of [parent company] Epic's primary objectives is to create original and unique franchises. I don't know that Ender's Game fits into that strategic objective anymore." "So, probably not," Mustard said of the project's completion. "Not from us." Still, Chair maintains a good relationship with Ender's Game author Orson Scott Card, who wrote a novel set in the developer's Shadow Complex universe. "If anyone decides they want to make it," Mustard added, "I have some ideas I'd love to talk to them about."
App review: Infinity Blade (iPhone)
Aww, would you look at that, the iPhone's trying to play big boy games! Following in the well received footsteps of Rage HD, today marks the debut of Infinity Blade, the second in what's hopefully a wave of gorgeous-looking iOS games boasting advanced 3D graphics, if not 3D gameplay. Epic Games has put aside the chainsaw-equipped projectile weaponry of its wildly successful Gears of War console series to deliver the first mobile game built around its Unreal Engine 3. You won't be surprised to hear that it's utterly delicious to look at, and the visuals certainly helped transport us to this alien realm of swords, axes, shields, and magical rings -- where body armor is optional, but helmets apparently are not. Jump past the break to see this visual feast in motion and to soak up some more of our impressions. %Gallery-110231%
Visualized: Tron Armchair redefines furniture art
If you haven't noticed already, Disney (and the rest of the world, seemingly) is going all-out for this year's rendition of Tron. What's potentially better than a cinematical remake? You're looking at it. The Tron Armchair was dreamed up and designed by New York's own Dror Benshetrit, with the seating apparatus officially debuting this week at Design Miami / Art Basel. There's a whole slew of motifs to peek down there in the source link, all of which make "impregnated fiberglass and polyester resin" look about as good as they can. It's a crying shame that no price tag accompanies them, but hopefully that'll change soon. Really soon.
Designer sofa encourages you to lose the remote control
If you've ever lost an important gadget to that black hole colloquially referred to as a "couch," you know what this is for -- it's a seat designed to hold your possessions without swallowing them whole. Designed by Daisuke Motogi Architecture of Tokyo, Japan, "Lost in Sofa" is made of upholstered cubes that naturally form slots. Sadly, the armchair's not for sale as far as we can tell, but rather one of a kind, and resided at DesignTide Tokyo 2010 until a few days ago. Ah well. Perhaps if we can find a vendor of plushy cubes, we'll just build one ourselves.
Infinity Blade trailer takes Epic stab at knight fights
Out of the 43 bajillion or so games on the App Store, we can't say we've ever come across one that features as startlingly rendered an environment as the Unreal Engine 3-powered castle in Infinity Blade. Of course, sight seeing is not the reason to load up this Retina Display showcase on your iOS device of the moment -- stabbing the crap out of giant monster bosses is! How predictably Epic is that? GameTrailers has posted the debut trailer for Infinity Blade -- "coming soon" to iPhone 4, iPad and iPod Touch. Check it out after the break.
Project Sword becomes Infinity Blade, coming to iThings this holiday
Project Sword, the technologically impressive game you've been using to show off your new iPhone 4 to friends, family and Charlie Chaplin, is set to become a full game this holiday. Dubbed "Infinity Blade," the Chair-developed "action-RPG sword fighting adventure" will be available for iPhone 4, iPad and iPod Touch. Infinity Blade will feature single-player battles within ye olde castle environments and will gradually grant you experience, improved stats and more powerful items. It will be expanded to support a multiplayer mode (and Game Center) via free updates after launch. According to Epic Games, the Unreal Engine 3-powered demo landed in the hands of over one million people, lured in by the promise of what the company calls "triple-A mobile gaming." How much are people willing to pay for triple-A mobile gaming? Epic has yet to announce a price, but it'll have to be careful not to build a costly moat around its spot on the App Store. %Gallery-106517%
Chill out with the iPhone-powered massage chair
We've seen an iPhone-controlled R2-D2, a quadricopter, a dog treat dispenser, a tank, and even an iPhone-controlled soda machine. But c'mon people, let's get a little more practical here -- let's hook it up to a massage chair. That's exactly what Human Touch did with the HT-9500. For just US$4,999, you can sit back, relax, and let your iPhone do the massaging. The free HT-Connect app designed to work with the chair allows you to control posture and massage frequency, and you can even set schedules and create programs designed to work your back in just the right way. Sure, sure, playing Angry Birds or texting friends on your iPhone might be cheaper, but this chair lets you -- oh wait. Yeah, that's the... oh yeah, right there. Oooohhhh yyeeahhhhh. [via Engadget]
