64-Bit Forum

Games and Gaming News :: The Awful Anti-Pirate System That Will Probably Work

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:36 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: The Awful Anti-Pirate System That Will Probably Work
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

spidweb writes "Much virtual ink has been spilled over Ubisoft's new, harsh DRM system for Assassin's Creed 2. You must have a constant internet connection, and, if your connection breaks, the game exits. While this has angered many (and justifiably so), most writers on the topic have made an error. They think that this system, like all DRM systems in the past, will be easily broken. This article explains why, as dreadful as the system is, it does have a chance of holding hackers off long enough for the game to make its money. ...

Games and Gaming News :: FlightGear Reaches v2.0

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:36 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: FlightGear Reaches v2.0
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

distantbody writes "The flight sim project FlightGear has reached version 2.0. From the website: 'Highlights of this new version include: Dramatic new 3D clouds, dramatic lighting conditions, improved support for custom scenery, and many many new and detailed aircraft models.' Full list of improvements here. And of course the screenshots. The release coincides with the release of SimGear v2, the 'set of open-source libraries designed to be used as building blocks for quickly assembling 3d simulations, games, and visualization applications' on which FlightGear is based."<a href="http://games.slashdot.org/story/10/02/27/1010215/FlightGear-Reaches-v20?from=rss"><img src="http://games.slashdot.org/slashdot-it.pl?from=rss&op=image&style=h0&sid=10/02/27/1010215"></a><a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fgames.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F10%2F02%2F27%2F1010215%2FFlightGear-Reaches-v20" target="_blank" title="Share on Facebook"><img src="http://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png"></a>

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Source: Slashdot: Games
News for nerds, stuff that matters ...

Games and Gaming News :: Gaming With GPS On Your Smartphone

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:36 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: Gaming With GPS On Your Smartphone
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

Barence writes "If your handset doesn't get you out and about, tramping through mud, climbing around and hunting for hidden treasure, then something needs an upgrade. The iPhone, Blackberry's Storm and Bold lines, and many Symbian and Android handsets, now sport GPS, which makes your smartphone the ticket to join a global movement of outdoor games. These are outbound challenges that pit teams and solo players against themselves and each other in the search for hidden treasure, undiscovered landmarks, and hidden spots all over the world. ...

Games and Gaming News :: When PC Ports of Console Games Go Wrong

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:36 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: When PC Ports of Console Games Go Wrong
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

A post up at Gamasutra complains about the lack of effort put into the PC ports of some console games. The author picks on the unimpressively-reviewed Ninja Blade in particular: "Just as a quick guide to what we're dealing with here: when you create a new save file at the start of Ninja Blade on the PC, it warns you not to 'turn off your console.' Yes, Ninja Blade is one of those conversions: not so much converted as made to perfunctorily run on a different machine. ...

Games and Gaming News :: Examining Virtual Crimes

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:36 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: Examining Virtual Crimes
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

GamePolitics has an article about a research paper issued by the AU government's Institute of Criminology titled "Crime Risks of Three-Dimensional Virtual Environments." The paper discusses the legal questions raised by game worlds and avatars, ranging from regulation of in-game currency to a report of virtual rape.
"A person controlling an avatar that is unexpectedly raped or assaulted might experience the physical reaction of 'freezing,' or the associated shock, distrust and loss of confidence in using [3D virtual environments]. ...

Games and Gaming News :: Steam UI Update Beta Drops IE Rendering For WebKit

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:36 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: Steam UI Update Beta Drops IE Rendering For WebKit
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

Citing massive growth in their user base ("25 million users, 1000+ games, 12 billion player minutes per month, and 75 billion Steam client minutes per month"), Valve unveiled a revamped UI for Steam on Tuesday, opening the beta test to anyone who wants to try it out. There are many changes, and an increased focus on social features: "Right from within your own game Library, you can now track which of your friends plays each game or invite them to play one with you. ...

Games and Gaming News :: Quake 3 For Android

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:36 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: Quake 3 For Android
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

An anonymous reader writes "Over the last two months I ported Quake 3 to Android as a hobby project. It only took a few days to get the game working. More time was spent on tweaking the game experience. Right now the game runs at 25fps on a Motorola Milestone/Droid. 'Normally when you compile C/C++ code using the Android NDK, the compiler targets a generic ARMv5 CPU which uses software floating-point. Without any optimizations and audio Quake 3 runs at 22fps. ...

Games and Gaming News :: DirectX 11 Coming To Browser Games

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:36 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: DirectX 11 Coming To Browser Games
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

arcticstoat writes "Forget Farmville, Flash puzzlers and 8-bit home computer emulators. The next generation of browser games will be able to take advantage of DirectX 11 effects, not to mention multi-core processing and both Havok and PhysX physics effects. A new browser plug-in called WebVision will be available for Trinergy's new game engine, Vision Engine 8. This will enable game developers to port all the advanced effects from the game engine over to all the common browsers. ...

Games and Gaming News :: AU Internet Censorship Spells Bad News For Gamers

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:35 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: AU Internet Censorship Spells Bad News For Gamers
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

eldavojohn writes "Kotaku is running an investigative piece examining what internet censorship means for games in Australia. Australia has some of the most draconian video game attitudes in the world, and the phrase 'refused classification' should strike fear in game developers and publishers looking to market games there. Internet censorship may expand this phrase to mean that anybody hosting anything about the game may suffer censorship in AU. Kotaku notes, 'This means that if a game is refused classification (RC) in Australia — like, say, NFL Blitz, or Getting Up — content related to these games would be added to the ISP filter. ...

Games and Gaming News :: The Grown-Up Video Game

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:35 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: The Grown-Up Video Game
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

Phaethon360 writes "Now, more than ever, we're seeing many Mature ratings (M+, 17+, 1 being distributed by various national media regulators. But that isn't the only indicator for a game's intended audience. It doesn't take a thousand swear words, scantily clad women or gratuitous violence to differentiate a ten-year-old's game from a twenty-year-old's. The spectrum of human emotions encompasses a wider palette than just revenge, fear, and loss, but the games that shy away from these are frequently mistaken as being for a younger audience. ...

Wireless, and Mobile News :: Jabra Headset: Stylish Looks, Handy Charger

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:35 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: Jabra Headset: Stylish Looks, Handy Charger
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

It's not often that a product lives up to its name, but the Jabra Stone ($130, price as of February 10, 2010) does so quite literally. This sculpted black Bluetooth headset fits so neatly into its charging base that the combination looks like a smooth, black, plastic stone--albeit one with a micro-USB socket and a Jabra logo.

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Source: Computerworld Mobile and Wireless News
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Wireless, and Mobile News :: Jawbone Icon: An Upgradable Bluetooth Headset

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:35 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: Jawbone Icon: An Upgradable Bluetooth Headset
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

The shape is the same, and so is Aliph's distinctive noise-cancellation technology, but the new Jawbone Icon ($99 as of February 10, 2010) series of Bluetooth headsets sports a bit of style and a new level of user customization. And you can upgrade them in a manner usually reserved for cell phones and computers: with applications.

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Source: Computerworld Mobile and Wireless News
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Wireless, and Mobile News :: Acer Aspire 5740-6378: Affordable, But Lacking

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:35 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: Acer Aspire 5740-6378: Affordable, But Lacking
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

The Acer Aspire 5740-6378 parks itself next to most midrange laptops. It feels fast enough for all common productivity applications; carries a big, 15.6-inch screen; and has nearly all the inputs and outputs you could want. But it never reaches beyond that middle ground. Its big screen makes it a good portable movie player, but without a dedicated graphics processor or 1080p resolution, it balks at gaming and high-end media. If you can get by with only adequate video performance--and matching audio, trackpad, and battery performance for that matter--the Aspire achieves its midrange aspirations: It's not too slow and not too fast. ...

Wireless, and Mobile News :: A WiMax phone might help ailing Palm

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:35 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: A WiMax phone might help ailing Palm
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

After Palm Inc. admitted that its smartphone sales were below expectations, rumors started swirling that the company might be sold, or that it could be beefing up its product line with a WiMax smartphone for Sprint Nextel.

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Source: Computerworld Mobile and Wireless News
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Wireless, and Mobile News :: Laptops galore await at Cebit show

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:35 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: Laptops galore await at Cebit show
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

A raft of new netbooks, laptops and computers with 3D support will be on display at Cebit in Hanover, Germany, next week.

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Source: Computerworld Mobile and Wireless News
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Wireless, and Mobile News :: Palm's Woes Are All About Image

Ab — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:48:35 GMT

Author: Ab
Subject: Palm's Woes Are All About Image
Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:48 pm (GMT 0)

Palm reported on Thursday that its sales are not going as well as expected due to "slower-than-expected consumer adoption of the company's products." The blood is reportedly in the water, and many analysts, pundits and reporters are saying Palm may not be long for this world.

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Source: Computerworld Mobile and Wireless News
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Unix News and Headlines :: Manpower 3.1