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Chinese regulators reportedly axed 8,000 malicious apps
China's cyber regulators are keeping a closer eye on games and apps. According to Reuters, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) has deleted 7,873 mobile apps it deems malicious. Some of those applications reportedly overcharged users, while others stole their information.
YouTube creates four original shows just for its Kids app
Now that YouTube has dipped its toes into the wild world of original programming, the company has plans to launch four new shows this spring aimed at children and pre-teens. The YouTube Kids app will get two live-action and two animated series starring some popular YouTube creators including DanTDM and the hosts of TheAtlanticCraft, with more series scheduled to debut throughout the year.
A 'Fruit Ninja' movie might really happen
Now that the Angry Birds movie has proven to be a financial success, other studios want in on the mobile-games-as-movies trend. New Line Cinema has secured the rights to a Fruit Ninja movie already in development by game creator Halfbrick Studios and producer Tripp Vinson (of San Andreas and Journey to the Center of the Earth). Not surprisingly, this will involve a lot more than watching an off-screen assassin cut produce into pieces -- the project is currently envisioned as a live-action comedy that sees a ragtag group becoming Fruit Ninjas to, naturally, save the world.
'Fruit Ninja VR' is now available for the HTC Vive
Fruit Ninja on mobile is fun, but we're sure some of you would prefer slashing oranges, apples and watermelons like you would a real sword katana. We hope you have an HTC Vive then, because the virtual reality version of the fruit-slicing game is now out on Steam for the headset. The VR version transforms Vive controllers into traditional Japanese swords in game, which you can use to show a bunch of succulent fruits who's boss.
Get the real 'Fruit Ninja' on the VR platform of your choice
This is Fruit Ninja. There are many like it, but this is Halfbrick Studios'. And while it's been imitated over and over for regular apps as well as VR, there's only one original. It's headed for VR via the HTC Vive and several other platforms later this month.
'Fruit Ninja' studio removes 'designer' as a role
Fruit Ninja studio Halfbrick recently fired its final two designers, as reported by Kotaku Australia on Monday. This marks a structural shift for the company: Halfbrick doesn't plan on hiring new designers and instead wants its artists, programmers and other employees to work on game design together, Chief Marketing Officer Nicholas Cornelius tells Engadget. "The roles were made redundant and not laid off," he says. "This is because of a change in the way teams will work at Halfbrick."
Halfbrick wants to watch it all burn with Colossatron: Massive World Threat
The makers of Jetpack Joyride and Fruit Ninja want you to destroy the planet. From the halls of the first annual PAX Australia comes Colossatron: Massive World Threat. Sure, the game's whole mass-destruction-via-aliens concept sounds a lot like Rampage, but as the announcement trailer shows, it's oh so much more. Players take control of a modular robotic snake, using all manner of upgradeable weapons and abilities to wreak wanton top-down chaos on an unsuspecting populace. The goal? Causing as much property damage as possible. Think of it as a modern take on Godzilla with a campy anime slant and you're mostly there. The Queensland, Australia developer's latest will be playable at its booth for the duration of the show. Can't make it to the expo? Skip past the break for the debut video.
Fruit Ninja meets real Ninja with CamBoard's Pico gesture camera (video)
You can play Fruit Ninja with your fingertips, you can play it with your eyes, so it's reasonable enough that hand waving should control it too. And while gesture-sensing technology is hardly new, Teutonic outfit pmdtechnologies has been teasing a miniaturized edition of its depth camera that's ripe for embedding into small consumer electronics devices. All we've got so far is a short video (after the break) outlining its potential, but that's enough to hope someone can go head-to-head with Microsoft in the space.
Hands-free Fruit Ninja: NUIA makes it easier to code PC apps with eye control (hands-on)
We know what you think this hands-on is about. That laptop you see up there has a Tobii eye-tracking sensor affixed to it, and you're probably wondering why we're still dwelling on it after getting hands-on twice at CES 2012 and once more at CES 2013. But that's not what we're here to show you today. While wandering the halls of Mobile World Congress, we came across NUIA (Natural User Inter Action), a German company whose software is designed to make it easier for developers to code apps that make use of eye tracking sensors, such as Tobii's. In particular, devs will only have to write one extension, even if they're making use of multiple sensing devices (e.g., eye control and gesture recognition). That comes in handy for a game like Fruit Ninja, as the required gestures extend beyond the bounds of what Tobii can do by itself. (Tobii lets you do things like zoom in, select objects and scroll, but not swipe flying fruit.) If you venture past the break, you'll see yours truly trying (and occasionally succeeding) at Fruit Ninja, though obviously this game is just one use case (albeit, a very fun one). There's nothing stopping developers from applying this to creative, productivity or even enterprise apps, too. As for availability, well, it's pretty clear the hardware will have to come before the software -- a NUIA spokesperson told us she doesn't expect its kit will be commercially available until sensing devices like Tobii become integrated into Windows 8 PCs. And if Tobii is any indication, that might not happen until next year at the earliest.
Daily iPad App: Jack Lumber goes chop socky on trees
Sega has just started publishing other developers' games on the App Store through an initiative called Sega Alliance with Jack Lumber, a game by the folks who made Smuggle Truck (or Snuggle Truck, if you caught it post-censorship). This is a title that's heavily inspired by the great Fruit Ninja, but instead of just ripping off Halfbrick's apple-slicing classic, it actually iterates forward on that game quite a bit. For one thing, instead of just slicing through the air as quickly as you can, Jack Lumber will actually pause and slow down the logs you're meant to be cutting through, which lets you set up a little more strategy to your slices. You can cut through multiple logs in one swipe for bonus points, and some logs have to be cut in a certain directly, or chopped twice for maximum points. The game's great fun, and the goofy "Trees killed my grandma" cartoon aesthetic goes a long way towards making the game really colorful and interesting. If you like Fruit Ninja, Jack Lumber is a must buy, and even if you're looking for something new from a line-drawing game, this one's well worth a look. Sega definitely started off its publishing choices right. Jack Lumber is universal and available from the App Store now for just 99 cents. Edit: A previous version of the post listed the wrong publisher. Apologies for any confusion.
Visualized: what your screen looks like after 22 straight hours of Fruit Ninja
Twenty-two and a half hours, actually. Qualcomm's gaming marathon is nearing its end right now. Thirty-two gamers set out to break the Guinness world record for the "longest video game marathon on a tablet" at 2:30PM PT yesterday -- when we popped in this afternoon, 26 were still standing (well, sitting), a couple having fallen to that human weakness that is sleep. Those Galaxy Tabs that were still in use, however, had certainly seen better days. More photos of the event, which caps off at 4:30PM PT today, in the gallery below. All of these overtired gamers are competing for a grand prize of $20,000 -- more than enough to buy a nice new screen shammy.
ASUS enlists BlueStacks to run Android apps on Windows PCs, skips all the OS juggling
Turns out that you won't have to buy a Transformer AiO and use two whole operating systems to run Android apps on that ASUS Windows PC -- the Taiwan PC builder has struck a deal to run Bluestacks' App Player for key software on the ASUS@Vibe side of its new Open Cloud Computing service. The code layer will give free rein to play games like Fruit Ninja or Defender as well as run more sober titles like Evernote and Pulse. Apps will be available across every type of PC ASUS makes, including Eee PC netbooks and other models without touchscreens, but they won't always be gratis. ASUS is providing free Android apps for just the first six months of service and will be charging an unspecified rate for unlimited access afterwards, so you may want to opt for that Transformer AiO or a PadFone to run mobile apps the old-fashioned way.
Padzilla Two mates iPad and Kinect for Fruit Ninja madness
If you've ever wanted to see what a cross between an iPad and a Kinect would result in, Crunchy Logistics just unveiled its Padzilla Too video display that utilizes both. The bound-to-be pricey display projects what Crunchy Logistics claims is the largest reproduction of the iPad in the world onto a wall. The 24-feet wide and 12-feet tall iPad screen, constructed with 3.5mm LED wall matrix display technology, can be controlled by Kinect gestures. Check out the video below. How long do you think it'll take before we see a giant game of Angry Birds taking place? [Via The Verge]
Amazon Appstore for Android celebrates a year of life, deals for a week
Whatever Google can do, Amazon can do... too? Sure seems it, as the latter is celebrating a rather momentous occasion by giving back to the people that have brought it this far: you (and you, and you!). The Amazon Appstore for Android has officially been alive and kicking for 12 months, and Bezos and co. are slashing prices for a week instead of tossing one forgettable party. We're told to expect rock-bottom rates on iconic titles such as Fruit Ninja, Wolfram Alpha, Splashtop Remote Desktop, Dr. Seuss's The Shape of Me and Other Stuff, TuneIn Radio Pro, TETRIS, PAC-MAN, The Lost City, MONOPOLY, AccuWeather Platinum and more. Birthday deals start today with one of the top paid apps, Plants vs. Zombies, at 67 percent off, and you can expect to see more in the coming days. Crack open that dusty wallet and hit the source link, vaquero.
Halfbrick working on new iOS game, 1.3 update for Jetpack Joyride
Halfbrick Studios' Phil Larsen is a happy guy. Not only has his company scored a huge hit with Fruit Ninja (with over a million copies sold on Xbox Kinect alone), but the studio's Jetpack Joyride is a hit as well, garnering over 19 million across various free and paid incarnations. Halfbrick, says Larsen, is working on a new IP for iOS that we'll see by the end of the year. Until then, the group is working Jetpack Joyride version 1.3, which introduces an entirely new feature: Gadgets. Gadgets are perks that can be added to Barry's jetpack. They're purchased with coins picked up during play (which ties in to the game's in-app purchase system) and tweak the gameplay in several ways. For example, the "Freeze-o-matic" allows Barry to slide farther when he dies. The "Flying Pig" turns slot machine coins into pigs that explode into fireworks of rewards, and a gadget called "Gemology" converts coins into gems, which give five times the reward when collected. You can have three gadgets running at a time, and when they're all combined, they can either help a lot (by making some very challenging missions relatively easy), or make the game crazier than ever. Gadgets aren't just add-ons to the jetpack. They affect the game in several ways, which Larsen says will allow Halfbrick to expand the game a lot going forward. Fifteen gadgets will be introduced when the update goes live, with more coming after that. "We can definitely support this game lots more." I asked Larsen about the Jetpack Joyride knockoffs on the App Store. Larsen shrugged them off. "They're not as good as Jetpack Joyride, so why bother?" he asked with a smirk. Halfbrick is an independent company, though obviously it's been growing, even as the Australian game economy is in a downturn. Larsen says the developer has about 57 employees right now, and given the games' popularity, they could stand to grow a bit more. But Larsen also says Halfbrick isn't interested in being purchased by a larger developer, either. Of course there have been offers, but in the end, he says, "We like what we do." Taking a deal with a larger developer might upset that, so it definitely seems like Halfbrick is more interested in making its own games than pitching in, no matter how big the potential payoff may be. As for that impending new iOS title, Larsen won't say much more than that he "...would love to release another iOS game this year." Certainly Halfbrick is working on something (and maybe even more than one thing), but the current focus is Jetpack's update. As for whether a new game would be paid (like Fruit Ninja has been) or freemium (like Jetpack Joyride has been for most of its success), Larsen said both strategies are still valid, depending on the game. "We've made more money on Fruit Ninja paid than we've ever done" selling Jetpack Joyride's in-app purchases, says Larsen. "We can sell games and we can do freemium. Does that mean Fruit Ninja's more universal? Probably yeah." Larsen admits that Jetpack Joyride could probably have skewed more towards a casual audience. It originally started paid and then was sent free to find its audience. But it's hard to second guess Larsen and Halfbrick given all of their company's success, and Fruit Ninja and Jetpack Joyride still set quite a few bars for app quality on Apple's App Store. The company has done really great things so far -- we're intrigued to see just what's coming next.
Exent's GameTanium Mobile launches for Android tabs
OnLive users may have been dining at the all-you-can-eat gaming table since December, but now it's time for the GameTanium crew to pull up a chair. Game provider Exent has brought its subscription platform to Android tablets and offers unlimited access to titles such as Fruit Ninja, Baseball Superstars and T-Racer HD. The service rolls in at a cent under six dollars a month, and there's a three-day free trial for those with commitment issues. The new mobile service is available right away via a direct .apk, so if you want in, skip past the Android Market and take a peek at the press release after the break instead.
Fruit Ninja plushies coming soon to a wrapped gift near you
Angry Birds can't have all the fun, right? Halfbrick Studios is set to embrace the iOS marketing frenzy by releasing a pair Fruit Ninja plush toys. The sensei and a smiling (or is that sliced?) watermelon in a branded headband will introduce the series. The sensei is available right now on the company's web store for US$15.99, while the watermelon will be available "soon" for just a buck less. I have to admit, these are pretty darn cute. Halfbrick Studios is not only a talented set of game designers, but a really nice group of folks as well. Does this mean we'll soon be getting a Jetpack Backpack from Jetpack Joyride? I don't know how cuddly a sliced watermelon is, but Fruit Ninja is a great game, and I wouldn't mind having one of these guys under my tree come this holiday season.
Music video: iPhone games get real
This video by Australian band Hey Geronimo is the cutest thing. The group painstakingly recreated scenes and characters from popular iPhone games for their song, "Why Don't We Do Something?". I love the Angry Birds in the car, the flying Fruit Ninja fruit and the cat battling Flight Control airplanes (plus that flight attendant -- meow!). My favorite, however, is definitely the little Cut the Rope doggie. The video looks great as they nailed the look of each game. It's pretty much the perfect thing to watch on a busy Friday afternoon. Enjoy, and have a great weekend!
Facebook, Twitter, Netflix and 'several thousand' more apps set to hit Kindle Fire next week
Sure there's little doubt that Kindle Fire will offer up Amazon's top-tier reading features when hits next week, but let's be honest, this is a tablet we're talking about here -- we want to hear about the apps. The budget slate will also play host to "several thousand" other Android apps next week, according to Amazon, including some top-tier names like Facebook, Netflix, Pandora, Rhapsody, Twitter, Comixology, plus popular games like Fruit Ninja and Doodle Jump. The $199 slate starts shipping November 15th. Press release after the break.
BlueStacks App Player lets you run Android apps on Windows PCs or tablets (video)
If you've been dreaming of a world where Android apps are free to roam across your Windows desktop, you're in luck, because BlueStacks has just turned your reverie into reality. Today, the startup unveiled an alpha version of its App Player -- software that allows users to run a host of Android apps on Windows PCs, tablets or desktops, without requiring them to make modifications to their original OS. Available as a free download, this early test version comes pre-loaded with ten apps, and can support an extra 26, on top of that. BlueStacks' free Cloud Connect app, meanwhile, allows you to port third-party apps directly from your handset to your computer, though some games, including Angry Birds and Fruit Ninja, are prohibited. Those, it turns out, will be included under a paid version of the App Player, which BlueStacks hopes to launch at a later date. You can take the free software for a spin at the source link below, or meander past the break for a demo video, along with a pair of press releases.
