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Ultima Forever reduces most freemium prices after Canadian beta
Ultima Forever, being made by EA for iOS platforms, has received some major tweaks to its freemium currency prices. The RPG has been available in Canada as a beta for a while now, and producer Carrie Gouskos says the biggest change – besides performance adjustments – has been to the cost of things. In the free-to-play RPG, your character has items that will break over time. You'll need to spend keys of various qualities (that can be earned in game, or purchased with real money) to repair those items. Gouskos says player feedback made it clear that repair costs were too high, and repairs for the highest quality items have been lowered from about 60 keys to around 8 or 10. Additionally, the cost to increase storage space in your stash was lowered, as the team found it was a mistake to charge people an increasing cost for simply wanting to collect more of the game's items. One price went up: The cost to loot the highest quality chests was raised a bit to make up for the decreased costs elsewhere. Gouskos also says that once players had good items on their characters, they tended not to loot as much as when they first started playing. For her part, Gouskos says she's "worked too hard to have people not play" the game, so she's striving to make sure there's a way to play that's both free and fun. The team is still considering providing an optional "buyout" fee to essentially negate the game's freemium elements, but no matter how the final product works, says Gouskos, making the game fun takes priority over the tangled monetization model. If you want to make money from a freemium game, says Gouskos, "you've got to get people to love your game first."
Patch 5.4 PTR: Datamined NPC, mount, and pet models
Along with the recently released patch 5.4 patch notes, our friends at MMO-Champion have data-mined some new models including armor for tier 16 and season 14 gear. Garrosh Hellscream gets a new look and we get a sneak peek at the latest sha! Everything behind the cut contains spoilers for the upcoming patch 5.4. Click through and view at your own risk! Please note: This post contains spoilers for patch 5.4.
TUG wraps up Kickstarter, shows off art video
TUG has crossed the finish line of its Kickstarter with its fists thrust triumphantly toward the sky, as the little sandbox that could has raised its funding goal and then some. While it fell short of its first $300,000 stretch goal, over 7,200 fans have thrown their financial support behind this quirky "social experiment." Break out a bottle of the bubbly to celebrate if you must, but we'll be drinking in this new art style video by the TUG team. At six minutes long, the video shows off TUG's concept art and models while the team discusses how it's trying to create a unique look for this title. Check it out after the jump!
University of Glasgow makes 3D models with single-pixel sensors, skips the cameras (video)
Most approaches to capturing 3D models of real-world objects involve multiple cameras that are rarely cheap, and are sometimes tricky to calibrate. The University of Glasgow has developed a method that ditches those cameras altogether. Its system has four single-pixel sensors stitching together a 3D image based on the reflected intensity of light patterns cast by a projector. Reducing the pixel count lowers the cost per sensor to just a few dollars, and extends the sensitivity as far as terahertz wavelengths. Real-world products are still a long way off, but the university sees its invention as useful for cancer detection and other noble pursuits. Us? We'd probably just waste it on creating uncanny facsimiles of ourselves.
Daily iPhone App: Robot Unicorn Attack 2 turns Adult Swim's biggest hit freemium
Adult Swim has built up a nice stable of games on the App Store, and the biggest workhorse in it is Robot Unicorn Attack, a Flash game that's an endless runner where you play as the titular creature dashing and jumping to '80s music playing in the background. That game's been very successful, but due to the music licensing, Adult Swim's never been able to turn it freemium, which is a business model that potentially offers a bigger audience (and more profits). Robot Unicorn Attack 2, however, is built freemium from the ground up. It's free to download, and the game earns you a currency which you can spend on powering up your unicorn, customizing it with various extra items, buying boosts to help your score and so on. The music has changed to something a little more easily licensed, though you can still buy a number of real licensed songs (Corey Hart!) via in-app purchase. And while there's not multiplayer per se, there are also daily and weekly challenges, designed to get you to beat your own high score, or fight for your faction in a larger competition. The game itself hasn't changed much, though the boosts and the upgrades do pack a pretty solid punch (you can add plenty of extra jumps to your unicorn's repertoire, and even fly once you've reached full speed). Developer PikPok (best known for their great Monsters Ate My Condo games) has done an excellent job here riffing on the original title, while still keeping Adult Swim's freemium requirements in place. Robot Unicorn Attack 2 is definitely worth a download -- the freemium elements aren't always successful, but this is a solid update on Adult Swim's most charming game.
Allods Online overhauls female model and animations
Female Xadaganians in Allods Online are in for a treat come patch 3.05. The devs recognized that the characters didn't look up to snuff compared to the other races and genders and thus have devoted some time to giving them (yes) a makeover. Are we in an '80s romcom montage or what? The makeover for the women includes a more detailed character model, improved animations, an additional face, and more hairstyles. The team is also tweaking hair models so that locks of hair will now be seen falling from inside of whatever helm that character is wearing. To promote the Xadaganian makeover, gPotato released a video diary starring actress Nataliya Zemtsova. Zemtsova was used for the motion capture and voiceovers of the new models and is apparently amazed that you can assign a character a name. Check it out after the jump!
Mists of Pandaria Beta: Jaina Proudmoore gets model update
Wowhead News has datamined the latest beta patch and discovered an update to Jaina Proudmoore's look. Her hair has mostly turned white, presumably due to traumatic events and not to age. The hair matches what we've seen in previous art that accompanied the spoilerific Battle of Theramore voice clips. A closer view of her full body, which you can see using Wowhead's model viewer, shows that her robes are rather tattered as well. Jaina has changed her appearance before. Back in patch 3.3, she went from looking like a random human to getting her own model -- a much-needed change, but no in-game event was the basis for the update. In Mists of Pandaria, however, the events at Theramore seem to have put Jaina through enough to make her look rather battleworn. The Battle of Theramore isn't officially implemented on beta servers yet. Sapperwix says there will be no new content with today's beta build, only the temporary removal of the Jade Forest, so it will be some time before we see this new Jaina in action. What do you think of Jaina's new look? It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
Qumarion 3D modeling mannequin coming soon for $750, still won't play with your kid (video)
Trying to get convincing, natural poses out of 3D models can be tricky, so it's a relief that two Japanese universities' joint ventures, the University of Electro-Communications' ViVienne and the University of Tsukuba's SoftEther, are close to wrapping up work on their posable mannequin. Now called Qumarion, the model formerly known as QUMA uses 32 sensors across 16 body joints to translate the humanoid statue's pose to the computer screen simply by bending limbs, much like you would the legion of action figures you had when you were eight. Neither you nor your kids will be using Qumarion to storm Fort Barbie anytime soon, but the 120 frames per second sample rate over USB does mean that poses are mirrored in your modeling tools almost instantly. You also won't have much longer to wait to buy one for your fledgling anime production: the mannequin and custom modeling software from Celsys should be bundled together sometime within the summer for a comparatively frugal $750.
Digital artists imagine Siri's face
If you're like me, you've probably anthropomorphized Siri. I think of her (as a US resident I have a female voice) almost as a person and address her as "Siri" when I make requests. I'm not alone as a recent contest from Shapeways, a 3D printing service and online marketplace, asked its community to submit their ideas of what Siri looks like. The contest recently ended and the New York-based start-up released its winners in both the 3D and non-3D Inspiring Design category. You can check out the winning entries and the runners-up on Shapeways's website. [Via The Huffington Post]
The world of World of Warcraft recreated in Minecraft
Minecraft players are well-known for their insane, over-the-top LEGO building projects, but one may have all the rest beat. A player named Rumsey is in the process of recreating the entire world of Azeroth from World of Warcraft inside the game, and while it's not completed quite yet, it's already incredibly impressive. Rumsey says that he had to cheat a little: Instead of placing every single block by hand, he wrote a piece of software that helps to automate the process of making full-scale version of the world. He's recently completed one continent -- Kalimdor -- and has plans to do the others as well as all of WoW's dungeons. He says that the only problem he's run into is Minecraft's height limit of 128 blocks, so he's had to employ mods to get around that. When the project is complete, Rumsey has hopes that it will be hosted online for tourists to visit this much blockier version of their favorite WoW stomping grounds.
Hiroshi Ishiguro's android mannequin creeps out Japanese shoppers (video)
If you didn't think mannequins were creepy enough already, maybe this will change your mind. In an attempt to lure shoppers, Japanese department store Takashimiya installed an eerily lifelike interactive robot for its Valentine's window display. The retailer called on robotics guru Hiroshi Ishiguro to provide the humanoid dummy, which can not only wink and yawn as people approach, but also display a range of emotions -- beyond boredom, indifference and oblivious content, we assume. While this was just part of the store's seasonal promotion, it might be a hint at where visual merchandise is going. Whether Ishiguro's model "model" will crossover into more professional roles like her sister, however, is unclear. Want to see that cheeky wink for yourself? Then hit up the video after the break.
AR goggles take crime scene technology to CSI: Miami level
Dutch researchers are looking to catapult crime scene investigation into the 21st century through the use of augmented reality (AR). The prototype system, designed by the Delft University of Technology, employs a pair of AR goggles, two head-mounted cameras and a portable laptop rig to allow investigators to build virtual crime scenes by tagging evidence and placing objects they are viewing. After mapping an area, additional law enforcement personnel can review the investigator's work and request additional information -- asking the CSI to define or place additional objects. Researchers hope that the 3D renders will be used as court-admissible evidence in the near future; the technology is set to be tried on a real Dutch crime scene later this year. We can see it now: Lieutenant Horatio Caine whips off his shades and tosses on a pair of (equally stylish) crime-fighting goggles... YEAAAAAAAAH!
Atari follows up freemium Breakout Boost with paid Breakout Boost+
A little while back, Atari continued its releases of updated classic games for iOS with Breakout Boost, a freemium version of the classic brickbreaking game that offers updated graphics and a few new mechanics to go with them. This week Atari announced another title called Breakout: Boost+, and while the general trend on the App Store recently is to go more towards freemium, Atari has actually made a move away from it. Breakout: Boost+ is a paid title, currently available for 99 cents. The "plus" version includes 100 levels that aren't available in the free version, and it doesn't appear to have any in-app purchases. Other than that, the gameplay appears to be about the same, adding in power-ups and those improved graphics to the standard Breakout gameplay. It's an interesting choice; during a time when most games are dropping their price down to free to get the largest possible audience, Atari has followed up a free launch with a title that falls back on the old paid model while still leaving the freemium version available. TUAW asked Atari what the deal is. Atari CEO Jim Wilson tells us that this title is definitely not a relaunch, and the choice to offer a paid app doesn't necessarily reflect disappointment with the free version. "Breakout: Boost was a big success for Atari that generated over 2 million downloads," says Wilson, "and we plan to continue supporting the title, having released an update since launch to enhance the initial free levels." Presumably both versions will be updated going forward, so customers can either download the free version as a trial, or buy the paid version to get access to all of the content right away. This kind of experimentation definitely shows that Atari, a very traditional gaming company, is looking to grow its mobile offerings, especially on iOS. According to Wilson, "This latest release of Breakout: Boost+ is just one small step among many more to come that expands on our mobile games offering and an effort to keep iterating on our games to address consumer demands -- in this case, a call for an upfront premium download." It sounds like at least some of Atari's customers wanted the more traditional paid model rather than the freemium offering. It'll be interesting to see how these two apps do in the App Store going forward.
Apple moves to ban Steve Jobs action figure
Do you remember the Steve Jobs action figure that was so life-like it was creepy? It appears the model may never see the light of day because of Apple's proactive legal team. According to a report in the Telegraph, Apple is threatening to sue InIcons, the company that created and marketed the figurine. Apple supposedly sent a letter to the company that said it's illegal to use a company's logo, a person's name or his or her likeness without consent. InIcons has been taking pre-orders for the action figure and expected to ship it sometime next month. InIcons hasn't said what it would do, but comments from InIcons' Tony Cheung suggest the company isn't going to step down. Cheung recently spoke to ABC News and said: "Apple can do anything they like. I will not stop, we already started production." Cheung also says his legal team advised him his figurine is in compliance with the law because it's not sold with any replica Apple products. As for Jobs' likeness? Cheung says Jobs is "not an actor, he's just a celebrity. There is no copyright protection for a normal person." He further argues that "Steve Jobs is not a product...so I don't think Apple has the copyright of him." InIcons is not the first company to create a Steve Jobs action figure. MIC Gadget produced a life-like action figure last year, but it was shut down by Apple's legal team. [Via MSNBC and ABC News]
Android Market web store update adds user review filters, changes lives
It looks like Google has rolled out yet another update to its Android Market web store, bringing a slew of new filtering features for especially investigative users. In particular, the refresh allows consumers to filter user reviews by a handful of parameters, including star ratings, app version and device model. Best of all, you can use any or all of these filters simultaneously, thereby allowing you to isolate, for example, all five-star reviews of a specific app from users of a specific handset. It certainly sounds like a useful addition, and one you can check out for yourself, at the source link below.
Lyneborg bot carves models of magnetic fields, dares the future to have a look (video)
If you're going to create a robot that carves something, have it carve models of an invisible field. This is what Frits Lyneborg, creator of the Yellow Drum Machine, has done with a new homemade bot that uses a combination of motors, pulleys, small drills, makerbeams and magnetic sensors. The end result is a robot that, when combined with the interpretative software, can literally read a magnetic field and move the robot's components to cut an accurate model from a crumbly-yet-strong material known as 'Oasis Brick.' You can witness the magic yourself in a video after the break, and if you've any advice for making it better, drop Frits a line there in the via link.
NerdHeist 2011: Razer Blade prototypes stolen from Razer R&D
After what we can only imagine was an exciting and Hollywood worthy laser-grid-circumnavigating vault heist, two experimental Blade prototypes have been stolen from a Razer research and development laboratory in the San Francisco bay area, according to a Facebook post made by Razer CEO Min-Liang Tan. It's unclear as to whether or not these were the only two prototypes, but it's safe to say that any loss like this is a significant one, and that the prototypes are worth far more than the $2,800 retail price originally quoted for the laptop. Tan is asking for anyone with information about the theft to send an email to cult at razerzone dot com. The Blade, revealed earlier this year at PAX, makes use of a proprietary user interface and LCD touchpad; trade secrets which Razer must desperately (and understandably) want to keep out of the hands of the competition. We're not saying this was corporate espionage, of course, but we are heavily implying that.%Gallery-131790%
Visual Spicer creates a 7-foot tall papercraft Gundam, films the entire process as a timelapse (video)
Believe it or not, the massive seven-foot Gundam you're looking at was mostly constructed out of paper -- 720 sheets, to be exact. The papercraft artist behind the model, Taras Lesko (aka Visual Spicer), began creating it nearly a year ago, and estimates that it took him about 350 hours and four to five months to complete. As explained on his video commentary, the process started with building a store-bought model for photographs, using the shots to render it in 3D on his computer. After that, he created various templates using a variety of programs, which were then printed, cut and assembled into place. Notably, the final product has 1,250 total parts, weighs in at about 10 pounds and packs an internal 12-piece foamboard skeleton to stand. All of that is only the part of the final product, though. Taking it a few steps further, he created a bevy of "fantasy shots" (like the one above) with his brother, Ivan -- and of course, Photoshop -- and even filmed both endeavors as timelapse videos. According to Taras, the aim was to make something "bigger and better" than the four-foot papercraft Gundam, which he made nearly three years ago and burned to ashes on video prior to this project -- we'd say mission accomplished. You'll find the construction timelapse video after the break, along with more related vids and photos at the source link below. [Thanks, Christos]
Massively mammillary online: Evony hires model to be the... face of the game
Quick -- what's missing in your life? No, not your dog; that beast is never coming back and you might as well get used to it. We're talking about Evony's tasteful, classy, and omnipresent chest-centric ads that had absolutely nothing to do with the gameplay itself. While Evony eventually replaced those ads with ones that showed elements from the actual game, it was only a matter of time before the bosoms of glory returned. To solve the crisis of the irrelevant breasts, the game studio hired a model to portray an in-game character, Eva, in a new series of ads. According to the press release, Eva was chosen by the game's players to find the right look for the person to represent the game. Eva will be displayed as both a real model and cartoon version. Undoubtedly, this is the high point of civilization as we know it, and everything will go downhill from here.
Maide Control iPad app lets you build and view 3D models with your bare, sweaty hands (video)
Looking for a hands-on 3D controller that won't require any five-fingered peripherals? Check out Maide Control -- a new app that allows users to manipulate 3D CAD data from the comfort of their iPad displays. Available for $4.99 on iTunes, this app will wirelessly sync an iPad with any compatible 3D program, thereby enabling modelers to mold and view their designs using an array of multitouch gestures. You can also use Maide Control to showcase models on larger displays (say, at a company presentation), or to connect multiple iPads to the same render, in case you're working on a more collaborative project. For now, the app only supports Google SketchUp and Rhino on Windows only, though the company plans to incorporate other 3D apps and Mac support in the near future. Wiggle past the break to see a pair of demo videos, or hit up the source link below to download the app directly from iTunes.
