DungeonDefendersFirstWave
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Acer Iconia Tab A500 first hands-on! (update: video)
Acer's ten-inch Tegra 2 tablet with Verizon LTE? You're looking at it right now, courtesy of the NVIDIA booth at CES 2011's Digital Experience show. It's just the same engineering prototype with an early build of Android 2.2 we've seen before -- it'll run Honeycomb at launch -- but this time, we got to touch. The hardware seriously feels final, with a solid metal case and a supremely responsive touchscreen that tracks a full ten points of contact. There's an interesting array of ports, too, with a full-sized USB port (as well as micro-USB) on one side and a dedicated charging socket too, as well as a dock connector on the bottom. What's missing are the standard Android Home, Menu and Back buttons, as instead of those, you simply swipe the lower right corner of the screen to bring up a tiny pane of virtual alternatives. No LTE connectivity to be found at Digital Experience, we're afraid, so we'll have to bring you speed tests another day -- but we'll have video up soon. For now, peep the gallery below. Update: Video after the break! %Gallery-112872%
Unreal-powered Dungeon Defenders: First Wave now available for Android
In case you had any preconceptions that you were going to be able to put down your phone long enough to greet friends and family members this holiday weekend... well, think again, because Dungeon Defenders: First Wave -- built atop Unreal Engine 3 -- is now available on Android. Tegra 2 devices like the Optimus 2X are billed as the "best" choices for playing the game, but seeing how those aren't really available, your next best options are Samsung's Hummingbird-based phones including the Galaxy Tab, Galaxy S series, and the Nexus S. A patch to be released next month will allow players to interact with their iOS-sporting counterparts online, while those on Tegra-based devices will get the opportunity to play with folks on PCs sometime later in the first quarter. Grab it now for $2.99; follow the break for the full press release.
Dungeon Defenders: First Wave brings Unreal Engine to Android this month
Along with Rage HD, Infinity Blade has been one of the titles to really solidify iOS' position as the leader in mobile gaming right now, but that's not to say Android isn't in hot pursuit: besides this Zeus we have on the horizon, Gingerbread improves gaming support on the API level -- and now we're seeing our first Unreal Engine 3-based title make the leap. Dungeon Defenders: First Wave, which just launched on iOS, is coming to Android 2.1 and above on December 23rd bringing with it an online, multiplayer tower defense gaming experience. Of course, one problem these guys have now is that Android hardware is all over the map, so they actually need to publish a long list of minimum requirements -- just like PC titles -- and in this case you need 512MB of RAM, an 800MHz or better SOC with support for OpenGL ES 2.0, and at least 400MB of free storage. Apart from the myTouch 4G (which has some occasional "stability issues"), most recent mid- to high-end handsets seem to be ready to roll, including "all Tegra 2 based devices" like the Optimus 2X that was just announced. Follow the break for some video action and the full press release.
TUAW's Daily App: Dungeon Defenders: First Wave
Dungeon Defenders: First Wave is a tough title to recommend. Don't get me wrong -- it's a great game, and for the right player, it might be one of the best games on iOS of the year. But it's quite complicated, and it mixes up lots of different genres, from action RPG to real-time strategy to tower defense. I first got to see the game running on the PlayStation 3 a few months ago, so you can head over to Joystiq to read my impressions if that sounds like an interesting concoction. The basic idea is that you play a hero from one of four classes (warrior, ranger, mage or monk), and then you fight a series of enemy creatures in waves on various floors of a dungeon. In between waves, you can set up defenses that vary per class, so the game switches off between tower defense strategy, with various resources to protect and collect as you play, and a hack-and-slash sequence, complete with each hero's own XP, loot and talent trees. It sounds complicated, and it is. If you're not already familiar with the tower defense genre, and the idea of XP and loot is still foreign to you, this one might not be for you. But it's quite impressive once you figure it out, and if nothing else, the fact that Trendy has pretty much ported their Unreal Engine 3 game straight over to iOS without any compromises (the screen is a little cluttered with controls, but still) is really incredible. This is basically the same game I played on the PSN, running at full graphics and full speed on my iPhone 4. There are a few different modes to play through (including a story mode with cinematics and bosses, and a survival mode with endless waves to defeat). Drop-in and drop-out multiplayer is included, though I didn't get a chance to try it myself, and I've heard it can sometimes be testy unless you're local. The game offers Game Center integration for achievements and leaderboards as well. At just US$2.99 for the universal app, it's a really excellent title. For the right gamer who's ready to conquer the heady mix of various game genres, Dungeon Defenders: First Wave could be extremely rewarding. You'll see a video of the game in action after the break.
