gamer
Latest
Adidas signs Ninja to its first pro gamer deal
Popular gaming streamer Tyler Blevins, better known as Ninja, has secured yet another brand deal. And this one may be the biggest one of them all. Ninja has just revealed a partnership with Adidas, making him the first pro gamer ever to be signed by the brand. The German sportswear giant told Engadget that the deal with Ninja is intended to show its commitment to gaming culture and "supporting creators who show dedication to excelling in their field." Moving forward, Adidas said, it will continue to find new ways to support the 2.3 billion gamers across the world. The company added that, ultimately, it is here to help athletes make a difference in their game -- no matter what games they're playing.
Watch Razer debut its gaming phone right here at 4 PM ET
We've been following the potential Razer gaming phone for a while now, with a recent leak potentially confirming some higher-end specifications (more RAM, better battery and display) sure to please mobile gamers. The company is setting up for a livestream today at 4 PM ET that could finally confirm the rumors.
Nextbit ends customer support for its Robin 'cloud phone'
When gaming peripheral maker Razer acquired Nextbit this past January, the phone maker promised to support the Robin, its beautiful yet flawed "cloud phone," providing updates and security patches through February 2018, along with warranty and customer support for another six months. Now that it's been that long, Nextbit tweeted that it has "shut down support for Robin" as of August 1st. A further clarification on Twitter notes that the company has "only ended customer support at this time, not software support." We've reached out to Nextbit and Razer for comment and will update when we hear back.
Razer is reportedly working on a phone just for gamers
Razer is known for its high-end gaming devices. The company has desktops and laptops, keyboards and mice, power banks and even projection systems aimed at core gamers. This past January, however, Razer acquired Nextbit and its "cloud phone" called the Robin. According to Bloomberg, that acquisition may pay off soon, as sources close to Razer say that the company plans to make a mobile phone targeted at gamers.
ICYMI: Mind-controlled mice kill on command
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: You might have thought things couldn't get any worse, but you'd be wrong. A recent study published in Nature showed that first, mice could be bred so that the neurons in their brains respond to laser lights. Then, the adult mice were hooked up to laser light helmets and when turned on, the hunt and kill area of the brain was triggered so that mice instantly attacked crickets in their cages. I have one thing to say: You can watch the 2009 movie, Gamer, if you want a prophecy of our future lives.
World's first 'gamer hotel' opens in Amsterdam
The first hotel dedicated to serving gamers has opened for business in Amsterdam. The Arcade Hotel, as it is named, is located in the city's De Pijp area. Each of its 36 rooms include gratis consoles and games. Guests can also use loaner handhelds for multiplayer adventures in the hotel bar -- there's even a comic book library that you can peruse. And for those who actually do leave their rooms, the hotel also offers a fleet of borrowable bikes (because that's how real Amsterdamians get around).
'Street Fighter' pros hardly even look at their character
Do something enough and it becomes second nature: muscle memory and instinct kicks in. But does that hold for the high-twitch dynamics of pro gaming-level Street Fighter 4? Japanese gaming site 4Gamer rigged up a gaming PC with SteelSeries' Sentry Gaming Eye Tracker, watching the gaze of Street Fighter pro-gamer Sako as he indulged in a few rounds. Rather than focus on his own player, or the opponent, his view typically rests somewhere between the two; the pro-gamer likely trying to gauge incoming attacks and connect distance for their own. As the Japanese site notes, it wasn't exactly a high stakes bout, but the video suggests, at least, that it's not where your character is, but where it's going that's important. Which is also this editor's life philosophy, coincidentally. See where the pros are looking, right after the break.
Ninja Bunny - The Bad Egg Adventure is a short lived trip
Ninja Bunny - The Bad Egg Adventure is a free game for iPhone and iPad that's available for iOS 4.3 or later. It pits the hero, Ninja Bunny against the villain, Bad Egg and his army of robots. My expectation of this game was a little mixed after reading about it on the App Store. Ninja Bunny is dropped into various environments where he runs and jumps through an assortment of obstacles that never seem to stop coming at you. The controls only allow you to jump up and throw ninja stars at your enemies. The actual gameplay is short lived at times. I didn't like that it takes three taps to get back to the new game. It was tad bit confusing because you don't restart on the same screen you were previously on. Additionally, each time you die Bad Egg's annoying maniacal laugh can be heard. The amount of enemies and obstacles on the screen at one time made it difficult to progress, so a good amount of persistence and determination are necessary when playing this game. When you kill an enemy, you'll see a gold coin appear above them, so you have to quickly jump to collect them. When you accumulate more coins, you'll have the option to visit the coin store to load up on items to add to Ninja Bunny's arsenal. You can use coins to buy costume upgrades and weapon upgrades for Ninja Bunny. The costumes vary in color, but don't appear to give Ninja Bunny any powers. The weapons available for purchase are ninja throwing stars, ice, fire, steaming poo, and a piggy bank. As Ninja Bunny progresses, he gains power ups that gives him a crazy out of control ability such as Adrenaline Rush which speeds Ninja Bunny up so he can fly by the enemies. The downside to Adrenaline Rush is it typically ends in his demise due to lack of control because it makes it difficult to make the jumps in time. Ninja Bunny can smash through a crate, grab a tank, and he's unstoppable for brief amount of time. The tank is a lot of fun because it fires ordnance at the enemies and obstacles to help clear the path. I enjoyed the funny graphics of silly characters like the flying Dracula, a zombie dinosaur, flying robots, and a lot of other fast flying and running enemies you'll encounter. The various settings such as Total Recall, Ice Ice Baby, Wall of China, Ancient Scars, and The Evil Dead, are pretty cool that they drop Ninja Bunny into. Overall, I would recommend Ninja Bunny - The Bad Egg Adventure if you want to be challenged in short bursts and don't have time for a long drawn out game play.
How would you change Samsung's Series 7 Gamer?
Can mainstream companies produce hardware that'll compete with specialist game rigs? That was certainly the idea behind Samsung's Series 7 Gamer, a laptop designed to muscle in on Alienware's patch. When we reviewed it, we found that performance more than lived up to the hype. Even its average speakers and tiny trackpad couldn't detract from that, or its "gorgeous" display. Still, did you own one? If so, share your experiences on it, you never know -- Samsung might even be reading.
CES 2013: Duo Gamer controller sees success after a half price cut
We posted about the Duo Gamer iPhone controller back when it first released in October of last year, but I hadn't gotten a chance to try it out yet. Fortunately, Duo is here on the floor of CES this week, and they of course had the controller on display and available for a demo. It's actually a really great controller -- the form factor is a little strange, but the buttons are quite responsive and the analog sticks are especially impressive, something that not a lot of iOS controllers have gotten right. Plus, the Duo Gamer is actually half the price it was when it started out. The company dropped the price from US$79.99 to just $39.99 late last year, and the company's rep says that (surprise) sales have gone up considerably since the price drop. So where's the catch? The biggest problem with the Duo Gamer is that because Duo has made a deal with Gameloft, this controller only works with Gameloft's games. Those games aren't bad -- they include big iOS hits like NOVA, the Asphalt series and Gameloft's Warcraft clone Order and Chaos Online. But that's it -- if you want to use the controller with any other titles, you're out of luck. That's kind of a shame. And Duo's representative told us that there were absolutely no plans to open up the controller at all. The company picked Gameloft to pair up with because it believed those were the most console-like apps on the store (not necessarily an invalid claim), and Duo says that even if it wanted to allow other app developers to make their apps compatible with the Duo Gamer, that decision would be out of their hands. Which is too bad -- it'd be nice if a solid controller like this had a more open API (stay tuned for news on the Phone Halo controller, which has a slightly more promising future). The Duo Gamer is a good piece of hardware, and it provides an impressive way to control these games. If you're a fan of Gameloft's titles and would like to use some buttons to control them, this is obviously a great option for you.
Nielsen says game consoles get men to use TV more: hurray, we think
We're not sure if we should always cheer figures that reflect sedentary behavior. Still, chalk one up for greater (if superficial) gender equality. Nielsen finds that, as of this past March, men who owned a modern game console like the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 or Wii were using their TVs almost as much as women: while males in the broader population typically spend 37 fewer minutes in front of the big screen every day than females, that gap shrank to a negligible 11 minutes when console use came into play. Unfortunately, the agency doesn't say just what's getting men to tune in for that much longer. Gaming is the most likely culprit, but a raft of streaming video options could have some of those refined couch potatoes watching Hulu or Netflix instead of playing one more round of Gears of War. If consoles have people of all genders spending more time together, we're in favor of it; given that men still spend over twice as much time on consoles as women, though, it's clear there's still a bridge to cross if we want more of a balance in the kinds of TV activity we enjoy.
Google report on game searches: Understanding the Modern Gamer
Scientific studies have a way of making well-rounded, conscientious people feel as if their lives are contrived, noting how their habits are shared by millions of other people and probably aren't that special in the long run.In the study "Understanding the Modern Gamer," Google does this with "millions of gamers," but knows how to make us feel special while we're being scrutinized: "Gamers are incredibly savvy Internet users whose searches reveal an extraordinarily high level of intention." Google notes that the gaming industry has "significantly transformed" in recent years and has studied our online search habits – desktop and mobile – for insight into purchasing processes and levels of engagement.Google finds that gamers are researching games before buying more often, with desktop searches in 2011 up 20 percent year-over-year; searches for marquee titles are up 29 percent. Pre-launch searches are up 37 percent and most gamers consider two different games before deciding on one.Despite protestations to sequels, gamers get involved in major franchises more heavily with each new game, becoming "active members of growing communities that are interested in year-round interaction with franchise content." Search volume for franchise titles increases significantly with each iteration, as shown in the above desktop and mobile graphs.Reviews remain relevant up to four months following a game's launch week. Search volume correlates with game sales: A game that accrues 250,000 AdWords clicks in the 10 months around launch is expected to sell 2 - 4 million units in its first four months.Major games now involve year-round digital interaction from consumers, Google finds. Aiding that year-round boost may be mobile searches, which are up 168 percent year-over-year.Read the full report after the break.
Samsung refreshing Series 7 Gamer with 3D display, AMD Radeon HD 7870M
If Samsung's first dedicated gaming laptop wasn't built to your liking, you're about to get another option -- the Series 7 Gamer is due for a refresh. The company's Samsung Tomorrow blog pegs the new build as the Series 7 Gamer Yellow 3D, which outshines the subtle design we praised in our review of the last model with -- you guessed it -- a bright yellow finish. Style aside, the new oversized notebook will swap out its current GPU for an AMD Radeon HD 7870M and, as the name implies, a 14.3-inch SuperBright (400 nit) 3D LED display. The new configuration will also split its twin drive bays between a 1TB HDD and a fast-booting 128GB SSD. There's no word yet on international availability, but folks in Sammy's homeland can pick up the rig on August 14th for 2.99 million Won, which rings up to about $2,643 here in the states. Check out the official announcement at the (translated) source link below.
Samsung Series 7 Gamer review: the company's first gaming laptop makes its way to the US
Sure, thin, light and power-efficient may be the latest trend in notebook design, but one category of portable computing isn't afraid of going against the grain: the oversized gaming laptop. These big machines often flirt with double-digit weights, with screens in excess of 17 inches and the most powerful chipsets under the hood. Samsung's Series 7 Gamer is no exception, of course, weighing in at 8.39 pounds and packing plenty of power. The machine's recent US debut isn't its first foray into the market, however -- this machine first appeared in Europe late last year, albeit with an older processor and GPU. Now, Sammy has brought the rig stateside, adorning it with new parts for the New World, namely a 2.3GHz Core i7-3610QM CPU and NVIDIA's GTX 675M graphics processor. How does Samsung's first oversized gaming machine measure up? Let's find out.%Gallery-159891%
Less banhammer, more gaming fun down under as Australia OKs R18+ game rating
Looks like folks from the land down under will be able to enjoy more of those upcoming titles featured recently at E3 2012. Australian gamers can now yell a collective "Get over here!" at more mature video gaming fare after the country's Parliament passed a new law to create an "adults-only" R18+ rating. The new classification puts video games on equal footing with films and other media that already allow mature content to be accessible in Australia via a similar rating. Prior to the creation of the new category, games deemed too mature for an MA15+ rating -- previously the strongest video game classification in Australia -- either had to be reclassified or banned from sale. One high-profile casualty that received a fatality from the old ratings system, for example, was the Mortal Kombat reboot. Lawmakers, however, agreed to pass the new rating law following years of consultation and strong public support for the change. One can only hope the legal tussle occurring in Australia between Apple and Samsung would reach an equally satisfactory resolution. [Image Credit: Associated Press]
iBuyPower rides new Valkyrie line of gaming laptops
Not content with the unveiling of its Chimera 4 and Erebus GT desktops, iBuyPower is turning its attention to gamers of a more mobile persuasion with the launch of its new Valkyrie line of gaming laptops. For $1,299, the base Valkyrie CZ-17 features a third-generation Intel Core i7-3610QM CPU, 8GB of RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670M GPU, 500GB 5,400 RPM hard drive, LAN E2200 module, backlit keyboard and a 17.3-inch, 1080p display. Folks who want to channel their inner Rich Uncle Pennybags can also configure the Valkyrie with more options such as an i7-3820QM processor, up to 32GB of RAM, dual HDD/SSD storage and a Blu-Ray drive. iBuyPower says the Valkyrie line is part of efforts to beef up its laptop offerings in order to compete with the likes of Dell/Alienware and ASUS. In the meantime, folks who've got Elmer Fudd's rendition of "Kill the Wabbit" stuck in their heads after reading the word "Valkyrie" can clear their minds by perusing the PR after the break.
SteelSeries announces Sensei Major League Gaming edition, keeps palms eager until August
For most of us, the humble mouse is but a tool for effective computer navigation, for gamers though, it's a matter of life and (virtual) death. SteelSeries knows this, and hopes its new Sensei Major League Gaming edition mouse will keep a few more of its faithful out of the MASH. It looks like much of the credentials of the original Sensei have been kept intact, the same 10.8-megapixel sensor, the 150 inches per second movement detection, 32-bit ARM processor, LCD display and so on. What's new then? For the main part, the CPI, which can now go from one to 8,200, or all the way to 16,400 if you use the double CPI feature. You'll have to wait until August to get your hand on it, with pre-orders (but no price as yet) set to open at the MLG Championship next week.
NVIDIA projects mobile SoC GPU performance to surpass Xbox 360 by 2014
Granted, we hope to see a new Xbox before 2014, but if NVIDIA has its way, mobile devices will have enough graphical prowess to surpass the current generation of gaming consoles by that time. The company brought the smackdown today with a chart that combines both historical and projected data, and while we don't recall NVIDIA exiting the desktop market in 2010, it reinforces the idea that smartphones and tablets of the future may stand as thoroughly enviable gaming devices -- provided that developers are willing to create enough visuals to make these things sing.
AMD's 'sweet spot' Radeon HD 7870 and 7850 graphics cards get reviewed, recommended
AMD's Radeon HD 7000-series onslaught continues, with still no 28nm retort from NVIDIA. The latest offerings are the 7870 priced at $349, and the 7850 priced at $249. Both are based on the Pitcairn GPU and hog the mainstream gamer spot below the Tahiti-based 79xx cards and far above the 77xx options. In terms of competition, these cards go head-to-head with the older NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 and GTX 560Ti, which currently retail for between $20 and $50 less. However, most reviewers found plenty of reasons to side with AMD despite the extra outlay, as you'll discover at the links below.HotHardware -- hailed the performance, low power consumption, noise levels and features of both cards, but noted that they're "not much faster than previous gen counterparts." For example, 3DMark 11 benchmarks generally beat NVIDIA's rivals by around two or three percent, while the Radeon HD 7850 barely scored any higher than its predecessor, the 6850, in that test.AnandTech -- found the 7870 to be "faster, cooler and quieter" than the GTX 570, with a roughly nine percent performance advantage that puts AMD "in the clear for the time being." As for the 7850, it was regarded as less of a steal, trailing the cheaper GTX 560Ti in some games -- including an eight percent lag in Battlefield 3.TheTechReport -- reckoned both the 7870 and 7850 are "better options than comparable GeForces," because they deliver more FPS-per-dollar when Arkham City, Battlefield 3, Crysis 2 and Skyrim performances are averaged out.PC Perspective -- concluded that the Radeon HD 7870 "more or less matches" the GTX 570 in the six games it compared, with two wins, two losses and two draws for the AMD card, but is still "pretty impressive" for the price. The HD 7850, meanwhile, "completely dominates the performance metrics" while using "56 fewer watts!"TechSpot -- gave the Radeon HD 7850 slightly higher marks for being the "best mainstream card to buy at $250," while also praising the HD 7870 delivering "excellent performance and overclocking" and "almost reaching the level of the more expensive HD 7900 boards."
Hi, Doris from HR, I write about dragons on the internet
A little over a week ago, Anne Stickney wrote a post about her experiences trying to explain her life in World of Warcraft to her father, a nearly 83-year-old veteran who has had more real-life adventures than we have had fake ones. Striking a balance between that life we live in the online World of Warcraft and our real lives in the non-virtual world is something that every WoW player has to do, but the degree of our involvement in the game often dictates how hard it is to find that balance. In the gay community, we very commonly describe coming out as a process that you don't only do once. During my day-to-day life, I might meet a new person, have someone from work ask if I'm dating anyone, friend someone from high school on Facebook, or write an article about coming out as a gamer for WoW Insider. Regardless of which situation fits you best, all of these are fairly regular situations that result in needing to come out again. Being gay and being a gamer -- not as different as you'd think I think the experiences of coming out as a gamer and coming out as gay have a few very important similarities. In both cases, they're secrets we tend to guard that aren't outwardly visual. Despite stereotypes, you can't actually know whether someone is gay unless they tell you. Likewise, you can't tell that the woman you just bumped into on the side of the road is actually a three-time Gladiator warrior unless you get into a conversation about it.
