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'Flying' microchips could ride the wind to track air pollution
Researchers have created a winged microchip around the size of a sand grain that may be the smallest flying device yet made.
Amazon bans foreign sales of plants in US after mysterious seed deliveries
Amazon is banning sales of foreign plants in the US after a string of mysterious seed deliveries in the country.
Arctic seed vault grows as defense against food crisis
In light of President Donald Trump's rise to power, some people are seriously worried about the planet's health. Count The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists among that group, since they recently pushed the Doomsday Clock to two and half minutes to midnight. Even if they think humanity is closer to extinction than it was just a couple months ago, we're now better prepared to respond to a food crisis.
Prospero the robotic farmer robotically plants seeds, makes humans even more lazy (video)
Let's face it -- humans are lazy, yet incredibly industrious. We've seen everything from a self-making bed, to a channel-changer to even a touchless keyboard. And now, we're blessed with a robot that plants seeds for us. That's right, the image you see above is of a five-legged machine that has the ability to complete all of the necessary steps to grow a plant. Thanks to a Parallax Propeller chip that's mounted on a Schmart Board, Prospero is able to autonomously navigate in any direction and avoid obstructing objects. There's a sensor that lies under its body that senses where seeds have been deployed. If the robot detects that the ground is in need of a seed, it'll dig a hole, drop the seed, move the soil back over the hole and then spray paint the ground white to note that the process was successful. The belly of the bot is also equipped with fertilizers and herbicides, and Prospero can 'talk' (via infrared) to other robots in order to maintain crop-creating efficiency. You can check out a 48-second clip of the planting process after the break. Or, if you're a harvest-enthusiast, hit the more coverage link for 5 minutes of glorious green thumb action.
Apple looking to patent sharable apps, considers calling them 'seeds'
You know that killer new app you just got for your iPhone? Could you beam us a copy to try? Of course you can't -- it doesn't work that way -- but someday soon it might. The fine folks at Patently Apple recently unearthed an Apple patent app that describes a way to transfer apps over peer-to-peer Bluetooth or shiny, star-filled WiFi. The idea goes that if a company wants to spread a program by word of mouth, it might as well make it shareable too, and so the owner of an app could transfer an "application seed" to friends and associates with a similar device. You'd pick from a menu of apps to beam over, where only those greenlit by their developer would be available to send, and your recipient would receive a trial version -- or somewhat less excitingly, a link to the App Store -- over the air. The patent app suggests that recipients could even share the demo in turn, generating generation after generation of word-of-mouth sales, and that companies might even reward particularly influential sharers in some way. What's that rumbling we hear? Just the gears turning in the minds of men plotting the next great pyramid scheme.
Shinji Mikami opening new Tokyo-based studio, Tango
[M for Mature] Shinji Mikami didn't just have a hand in bringing the Viewtiful Joe and Devil May Cry series to gamers. He also helped create the survival horror genre in 1996 through Resident Evil -- so the dude has a pretty impressive resume. Now, he's working with Platinum Games on Vanquish, the upcoming sci-fi shooter set in a fictional future United States in the grip of a cold war with Russia. According to an interview in this week's Famitsu magazine (via 1UP), Mikami's also working on opening a new independent studio called Tango. His current studio, Straight Story, was formed in 2006 (shortly before Seeds shut its doors and became Platinum Games) and is currently contracted to work on Vanquish and that action-horror project with Grasshopper Manufacture. Upon completion of Vanquish, Straight Story will "fold up" and Mikami will focus on the now 13-strong Tango. Mikami wants to see Tango "grow to 100 people or so in five to seven years." After Vanquish, Mikami will relocate from his current digs in Osaka to Tokyo, where he hopes to recruit some of the young up-and-comers Japan has to offer. As for Tango's first project, that's still up in the air. "I'd like to make a choice with the rest of the team as we grow our numbers," he said. "I've been speaking with a number of publishers as well, but we haven't signed any contracts yet."
Sega talks Platinum Games deal, franchises
In a Q&A session with Gamespot, the folks at Sega detailed some of their plans and expectations for the recently announced four-game publishing deal with Platinum Games. The agreement, which grants Sega exclusive rights to Mad World (Wii), Bayonetta (PlayStation 3 / Xbox 360), Infinite Line (DS) and a mystery title from Resident Evil designer, Shinji Mikami, was officially announced during a special event last week."The guys at Platinum are just at the top of their game right now, and what they've delivered is so clearly AAA in every way, when they started to show us product, we had to have it," said Sega of America president, Simon Jeffery. When asked about the marketing challenges inherent in starting up three (possibly four) new IPs, Jeffery notes that Sega is in it for the long run. "What we've seen today is the starting point, but all of those games--Bayonetta, Madworld, Infinite Line--won't be one-offs," he explained. "They're all uniquely different enough from everything in their space to build complete franchises out of. The whole foundation of PlatinumGames is built around that long-term strategy."Though talk of franchises this early in a game's life would normally elicit concern, the ex-Clover talent at Platinum Games could certainly do with the commercial success to match their critical acclaim. Y'know, aside from the Devil May Cry and Resident Evil guys.
Atsushi Inaba wants to work with Nintendo platforms
Fans of the Viewtiful Joe franchise (or anything from Clover, really) will likely know the name Atsushi Inaba. The closing of Clover was very sad, but eventually led to SEEDS and, now, Platinum Games. So, just what interests Inuba and co. lately?Why, the DS and Wii, of course. When asked by 1UP on which platforms were desirable launching pads for a new title, Inaba said "Of course the Wii and DS are attractive platforms; they're platforms that aren't competing by way of the graphics. It's more about the gameplay." We couldn't agree more, because playing is believing with the Wii. Immediate releases from Platinum Games might not be on the horizon, however, as Inaba stated "we do want to create games on Wii and DS. But we have staff that has been creating games on the newest technology, like the PS3 and Xbox 360, so we are not interested in cutting that out."But, this interview is supposedly a bit late hitting the net, so there's also that to consider.[Via Go Nintendo]
Resident Evil's Shinji Mikami begins work on new project
"YEEEeeeees!!!"We couldn't agree more with Shinji Mikami's recent exclamation on his blog, where he announced that work had finally begun on a new, untitled project. The blog entry (translated by IGN) explains that the Resident Evil creator has managed to assemble a development team for his first endeavor under the Platinum Games banner. Though he says that more staff will be required to complete the game, we don't expect the lack of creative talent will pose much of a problem considering the company he's keeping at the studio.Mikami, eventually joined by Viewtiful Joe's Atsushi Inaba and Devil May Cry's Hideki Kamiya, departed Capcom in 2006 to form a new company, Seeds. In September 2007, it was announced that Seeds had merged with ODD Incorporated and ruined changed its name to "Platinum Games." NOOOooooo!!!
Ex-Clover dev team buries 'Seeds' to form 'Platinum Games'
Shortly after producing the strikingly beautiful Okami and relentlessly challenging God Hand, Capcom's Clover Studios was duly rewarded with cold commercial apathy and prompt liquidation. In February, the studio's lead designer trifecta -- Viewtiful Joe's Atsushi Inaba, Resident Evil's Shinji Mikami and Devil May Cry's Hideki Kamiya -- formed a new studio, Seeds, and began the process of hiring new employees. Just over seven months later, it appears that Seeds will wither before producing even a single game. The company's recruitment website now states that Seeds will undergo a merger with a company called "ODD," resulting in a change of name to "Platinum Games" as of October 1st. No upcoming projects are mentioned, though one would hope that the new title becomes reflective of the success that's eluded Clover for so long.[Via IGN]
The Apple crop circle
Reader Marc sent us pictures and video of his "Apple garden," which appears to be a large Apple logo on his spacious lawn in Jersey, just off the coast of France. At first I thought it was just a cutout of the grass, but his picture gallery shows that it's growing, so it must be seeded that way. Interesting. Does whoever plays (is that lacrosse?) on the field mind?Marc also tells us the airport is nearby, and so he says it's something for travelers to look at as it goes by. He's planning to do a flyby with a paraglider, and maybe even some timelapse footage of the thing growing. Cool stuff. For some reason, I can't help but think of crop circles while looking at this, and that makes me think of Close Encounters: "This... means something."
New Mac OS X 10.4.9 client and Server builds seeded to developers
A little TUAW birdie has informed us that a new series of Mac OS X 10.4.9 client and server builds have been seeded to developers. The build versions are as follows: Mac OS X v10.4.9 (Intel) Build 8P2132, Mac OS X v10.4.9 (PowerPC) Build 8P132, Mac OS X Server v10.4.9 (Universal) Build 8P2132 Manual Updater, Mac OS X Server v10.4.9 (PowerPC) Build 8P132 Manual Updater. While the client build has a significant list of changes (104 to be exact), the Server build reportedly has absolutely zero. This isn't necessarily indicative of an imminent release, but a lack of changes for at least one build could offer some hope. Unfortunately, we don't have a list of what these changes are right now, so we might wind up knowing just as soon as you do.
Capcom, Clover, and a little Wii name-dropping
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Capcom_and_ex_Clover_devs_hard_at_work_on_mysterious_new_Wii_title'; If someone mentions an amorphous new Wii game in space, we're gonna hear about it, so when Capcom marketing VP Charles Bellfield name-dropped our favorite console in an interview with Kyle Orland over at Gamasutra, our ears perked up. But Bellfield was coy about unleashing any of the juicy details. "I would love to give you my product lineup for the next five years, but ... *laughs* ... we are developing a new title for the Wii platform. We will be making announcements in the coming months as to what these different titles are." Those former Clover employees who are not busily planting Seeds will be hard at work on this title, as well as others. A new title indicates that it's probably not the Wii Okami you've been hoping for. In fact, Bellfield was quick to push the fact that Capcom is all about churning out original IPs. With the diversity of Capcom's stable of awesome, we can't possibly speculate on what they may have in store for us, but we'll be spending these "coming months" idly dreaming of zombie wolf attorneys.
ex-Clover developers are working on Resident Evil 5
So, while many of those involved in the now-defunct Clover Studios have moved on to create the new studio Seeds, apparently there are a few developers who were reassigned to Capcom's Resident Evil 5. But didn't Seeds have some of the people involved in the creation of Resident Evil anyway? It would've been wise to ask for Seeds help, but alas.Charles Bellfield, VP of Marketing, addressed that very issue. "What actually happened is Mikami-san, Kamiya-san and Inaba-san chose to leave the company and do something else and the rest of the Clover team was just incorporated back into the rest of Capcom's development talent pool." What do you guys think? Should Capcom have bit the bullet and asked Seeds to help with Resident Evil 5 or will they be just fine without the creative minds behind the franchise?
Former Clover members now working on Resident Evil 5, new Wii game
Capcom's VP of marketing, Charles Bellfield, recently demonstrated extraordinary levels of courage and patience when he was sealed in a (possibly metaphorical) room with our very own Kyle Orland. The experience yielded an interesting interview on Gamasutra, one that touches on the fate of Clover Studios and the not-so-elusive Ace Attorney 3. On the topic of Clover Studios and its untimely liquidation, Bellfield asserts that several members of the team have simply been integrated into other Capcom groups. "So, for example, some of the team that worked on Clover titles are now helping Takeuchi-san on Resident Evil 5, helping Inafune-san on a new title for the Wii, so I think it's very much the skill set still stays in the company when those individuals stay and, unfortunately, three individuals chose to leave." The three referenced individuals, namely Shinji Mikami, Atsushi Inaba and Hideki Kamiya, have since formed their own studio, Seeds.Later in the interview, Bellfield expresses some surprise as to the success Phoenix Wright has found in America, with the original title now having shipped over 100,000 copies since its introduction. "It's shipped steadily for the last year, and we've just shipped Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Justice for All and we have more coming up, so I think again it's like a good book, it's that word of mouth that gets people out there to learn more about the game." With that, Bellfield likely confirms what we've suspected since Capcom launched it's Ace Attorney 3 contest last week -- the third Phoenix Wright adventure is likely being localized as we speak. English, that is.
Clover Studios replaced by Seeds?
After the lackluster sales of the absolutely gorgeous and stunning Okami, Capcom closed down their Clover Studios -- also responsible for Viewtiful Joe. Well, doors officially close next month, but it doesn't seem to be the end of the Clover team. Far from it, in fact. Atsushi Inaba, CEO of the defunct Clover, has created a new software development studio named Seeds. There are over 50 members on staff, including the director of Devil May Cry and creator of Resident Evil, Hideki Kimaya and Shinji Mikami, respectively. Most of the Clover team has signed on as artists, composers and character designers. What isn't known is if this new studio will have any ties to Capcom. In either case, seems we won't be lacking the artistic, gorgeous games Clover is known for. Good luck, Seeds!
Clover bosses start Seeds, blogger strains to resist botany metaphors [update 1]
Four months ago, we started mourning the sad loss of Clover Studio, the development house responsible for beautiful, original games like Viewtiful Joe, Okami, and God Hand. Well, now we can wipe our cel-shaded tears away! Atsushi Inaba, Hideki Kamiya, and Resident Evil/Devil May Cry creator Shinji Mikami have held their V-Watches aloft, shouted "Henshin a-go-go, baby!" and transformed the moribund Clover into a new development studio, called Seeds. And they want you! You know, if you're a qualified programmer or artist of some kind. According to the site, they are in the process of looking for new people to help them make some "weird, amazing games." We Fanboys are hoping that they (and whoever publishes their future work) turn their attentions to the two weirdest, most amazing consoles we can think of. These guys have some prior DS experience, and they've no doubt noticed that the DS has done a little bit of business in Japan, so it seems likely they'll be weirding and amazing it up on two screens in the near future.[Via Game|Life][Update 1: Those insidious italics!]
Former Clover members start up new studio
You know something's rotten in the games industry when the reward for producing a magnificent adventure like Okami is the complete liquidation of your studio. All is not lost, however, as the former members of Capcom's Clover Studios have moved their aspirations to fresher soil. GameDaily BIZ reports that the team's new studio, Seeds, is currently in the process of hiring new employees to join a current roster of 51.Amongst those lies a designer trifecta: Viewtiful Joe's Atsushi Inaba, Resident Evil's Shinji Mikami and Devil May Cry's Hideki Kamiya. Seeds has yet to announce any projects, but a cel-shaded, survival-horror title (with a guitar-wielding protagonist) would certainly be a good start.
