PlayStation 4 Bundles ‘Infamous: Second Son’

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With the PlayStation 4 system now available in stores, some people may have a tough time locating the hardware before it’s sold out. Not to worry – Sony already has plans to introduce a blockbuster bundle early next year.

Brian Fleming of Sucker Punch, the developers behind the upcoming Infamous: Second Son, has confirmed that a bundle is in the works, one that includes both the highly anticipated sequel and a PlayStation 4 console, along with other possible goodies surrounding Sony’s PlayStation Plus program.

Though an official date wasn’t given, the system is expected to arrive early next year alongside the game’s spring 2014 release. A release date and price should be confirmed shortly.

The PlayStation 4 system is available now.

Source: IGN

Smart TV Apps On The Rise

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Smartphones and tablets may not be the only place to look for smart apps anymore — TV’s are definitely taking part.

A new report from BI Intelligence indicates that with a market featuring 800 million pay TV households worldwide, a lot of users are turning to online services to spend their time. These include watching free Internet video content, browsing websites, connecting to social networks and, of course, using apps. Free Internet video content takes the cake at 41 percent, according to the report, while the others follow closely behind.

Video consumption behavior has some users turning to apps to get their programming, such as Netflix, Hulu Plus and other services. As a result, TV makers may start including said apps with more of their television models, taking advantage of the smart TV model as a result. Several already are, but it could become more commonplace than you may think.

Source: Business Insider

Android, Windows Gain Smartphone Share

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The mobile phone revolution is picking up – and Android is leading the charge.

A report from Gartner has stated that an approximate 456 million phones have been sold for the third quarter of 2013, and the statistics behind that number are staggering. Out of those models, a whopping 82 percent are Android based, while 55 percent of them are smart phones in general.

This number is a 5.7 percent increase from the previous third quarter in 2012, with a bigger boost for smart phones. That’s a rise from the 40 percentile it held last year.

Out of units sold, Samsung hold the lead with approximately 25.7 percent of the market share, followed by Nokia, Apple, LG Electronics and others. It’s a small rise from the 22.7 percent lead it held during the previous third quarter, and a bit ahead of Nokia’s 13.8 percent.

It’s important to remember that these market share numbers on reflect the units sold during that time period, and it’s not the same as the number of units already sold or in actual usage. Still, it shows the latest trends in operating systems, and who’s gaining ground and who’s losing it.

Source: TechCrunch

The Looking Glass Screen

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Your mirror is quite useful when it comes to cleaning up for the day, combing your hair and checking if there’s anything in your teeth. However, Posh View has introduced a new technology where you can do even more.

The new smart mirror, introduced by the manufacturer, is an interactive reflective surface that utilizes a touch-screen display. Sure, that means getting your fingerprints on it in some spots, but it also means gathering data as if you were interacting with a computer, such as the day’s weather, news from certain outlets and more.

The iMirror comes with a small camera, so it can use facial recognition to sort out which information goes to whoever is standing in front of it. It can store multiple faces as well, in case you need it to remember not just you, but members of your family.

The iMirror currently retails for $2,750, but it’s a fairly cool device if you’re looking to take your imagery to the next level. You can learn more about it on the official Posh Mirror page. Can gaming in your iMirror be far away

Source: Posh Mirror

Twitch Tops Streaming Sites

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Twitch.tv has come a long way over the past few years, first streaming to only a limited few but now becoming the ideal channel for video games to show what they can do to an online audience.

Analytics firm comScore has reported that the video platform boasts the largest audience and most-engaged users across all sites dedicated to the video gaming audience. Twitch is reported to have ten times the number of videos over all of its competitors, and five times more videos watched per viewer and minutes watched per viewer.

“The growing popularity of live video on Twitch has been apparent in all corners of the video game industry, ranging from individual gamers to the biggest publishing, developing and media brands,” said Jonathan Simpson-Bint, Chief Revenue Officer, Twitch.

That audience will continue to grow with this week’s arrival of the PlayStation 4 console, as well as next week’s Xbox One. Both will utilize Twitch.tv for streaming purposes.

“While comScore’s top ranking of Twitch confirmed what we already saw coming in terms of the broadcasting and spectating trend, it’s just the beginning. We expect the movement to really take off when the broader console community gets its first taste of the live experience on the Xbox One and PS4.”

Source: MCV UK

GameStop Pulls Out All The Stops

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Sony’s gearing up for the launch of the PlayStation 4 tomorrow with a bevy of launch events, and GameStop has been working closely with Sony to make this launch special. GameStop’s store on Market Street in San Francisco is going to be host to one of the biggest store events, and the [a]list daily spoke with GameStop’s Jason Cochran, VP of store operations and strategic initiatives, who leads the store operations, field management and store teams. He also drives execution of GameStop’s strategic initiatives, including mobile electronics and downloadable content (DLC).

The launch event in San Francisco is going to be something special. “We’re going to have lots of prizes, contests, celebrity autograph signings, such as developers from Sucker Punch, Bungie, and Human Nature studios,” said Cochran. “We’ll have a DJ there and just a ton of fanfare, a ton of excitement. Most importantly, the customers who come in to make the purchase with us there are really going to have an exceptional experience.”

GameStop has been working towards this event for months. “We worked really hard over the last six months in anticipation of this coming weekend and next weekend with the Xbox One launch,” noted Cochran. “On Sunday we had a pre-launch party nationwide for the PS4 launch.” At that event customers were able to get an addition 90 percent trade credit bump on console trade-ins to help them get a PS4, and GameStop will hold a similar even this Sunday to help customers prepare for the Xbox One.

This is a celebration that GameStop hasn’t had in a while, where two new consoles are launching almost at the same time. “Some stores will have DJ’s, some stores will have tournaments, some stores will have free giveaways. It’s just a fanfare that literally hasn’t happened in over six years since the PS3 launch,” said Cochran. The excitement is palpable even at GameStop headquarters. “Everyone here is walking around with a big smile on their face,” said Cochran.

The launch party begins at 6 pm at the GameStop on Market Street in San Francisco, and other GameStops will have their own schedules. Cochran recommends checking in with your local GameStop to see exactly what’s going on, but every store will be doing something.

If you haven’t pre-ordered a PlayStation 4, you may be able to snag one at GameStop tonight. Some people are already waiting in line in order to have the best chance at scoring the new console. Sony is shipping some inventory to stores that hasn’t been allocated to pre-orders, though Cochran can’t say how much that might be. He also notes that in some cases people may cancel their pre-orders for some reason, which would free up additional consoles to be sold to customers.

Tackling Tanks On Tablets

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Startup company Wormhole Games is attempting to make its mark on mobile with an unusual strategy — a mobile game releasing only for iPads initially and trying for both broad appeal and enough depth to get hardcore gamers into it. The [a]list daily spoke with co-founders James Kelm (COO and executive producer) and Jamil Moledina (CEO and creative director) about this game and their plans for tackling the market.

Wormhole Games is a startup packed with experience from companies like Electronic Arts, Google, Apple, Funzio, LOLApps and Zynga. The name of the company refers to the theoretical concept of the wormhole as a bridge between two parts of the universe, and Wormhole Games is attempting to connect ” the broad success of free-to-play mobile games with the irresistible fun of arcade games.”

Moledina and Kelm have a really strong passion for classic action-arcade games. “We grew up with games like Super Mario Bros. and Legend of Zelda that were built on incredibly strong characters and really fun game play. We felt that was a big opening in the free-to-play side of the App Store,” said Moledina.

“We love these larger format touch screen devices that are available now in the market,” said Kelm. “We felt now was the time for a ballistic, multiplayer tank game where it was genuinely fun to blow stuff up.” Tank Nation provides a new spin on the classic artillery battle genre and adapts both controls and field of play to the large touch screen of the iPad. The objectives are to build a selection of over-the-top tanks, battling through the nations of a post-apocalyptic world, ultimately competing in the Tank Nation Tournament.

The game has garnered an enthusiastic response from beta testers, and Wormhole is looking forward to the broader release today. Of course, the big challenge for all mobile games these days is finding an audience. “That’s a critical question that every developer has to answer,” agreed Moledina. “We’ve raised enough to be able to do all the essential tasks of user acquisition.” Kelm noted some of what Wormhole has done. “Making a game that has a broad appeal and is accessible for a broader audience is the first step,” said Kelm. “We’ve localized the game in 14 languages, and we’ve tried to create a product that will generate its own word of mouth.”

However, Kelm realizes that success of Tank Nation rests on more than just the game itself. “This is as much about building a game as it is about building a community,” said Kelm. “If we build a game that people can love, the community will start to build organically. In our beta, players were contacting us saying ‘When are you going to have a forum? When are you going to have a wiki? When can I tell other people about this? ‘ We’re excited by this enthusiasm, and we have ways to tap into it worldwide.”

Wormhole is focused on creating more content for Tank Nation first and foremost, though other platforms are under consideration. “We certainly intend to broaden out to other platforms as we proceed,” said Moledina. ” You can certainly expect iPhone in the near future. James and I have worked on enough mobile games to understand the importance of continuing content updates and events.”

The focus for Wormhole Games is to make Tank Nation the best game it can be, and build everything else on that foundation. “At Google they say, ‘It’s better to build a product that one person loves than 20 people just sorta like,” said Kelm. Even better, of course, is to get millions of people to love the game, and that’s the challenge facing Wormhole Games in the months ahead.

Nepia’s Magical Papercraft

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Japanese tissue maker Nepia has a message about the forests which transcends language. This ad thanks the forests for their varied animals and, of course, the trees which provide the paper.

The Fall Of A Gladiator

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Unlike the previous chapters that have dealt with General Marius Titus, this chapter details a gladiator of Rome. While death has been good for him throughout his life, he now must yield himself up for the sake of Rome.