Archive - 2013

Team Fortress 2 Gets Oculus Rift Support this Week

2013/03/18

March 18, 2013 — Valve, creators of best-selling game franchises (such as Counter-Strike, Half-Life, and Left 4 Dead), today announced the addition of an experimental Virtual Reality mode to Team Fortress 2. The new mode will be released in the coming days as part of an update to the popular Free to Play game.

Anyone with an Oculus Rift Developer Kit will be able to use their device to play all of Team Fortress 2 on the PC. All game modes and classes are supported with the new Virtual Reality mode.

“When we first played an early version of Virtual Reality mode in Team Fortress we were blown away by the immersion we experienced.”, said Joe Ludwig at Valve. “VR is just getting started, but it is going to have a big impact on gaming. This update will let us share that experience with more of the Team Fortress community.”

“Valve’s done an incredible job bringing Team Fortress 2 to virtual reality! TF2 is the most-played game in my Steam library, so you can imagine how excited I am to play it in the Rift with all of our backers,” said Palmer Luckey, Founder of Oculus VR, Inc.

In addition to gaining access to the new Virtual Reality mode, owners of the Oculus Rift will also be granted a unique Oculus Rift in-game hat. Steam codes to redeem for this item will be sent out by Oculus.

Team Fortress 2 is Valve’s Free to Play team-based online game. The game has had more than 350 updates since its release with The Orange Box in 2007.

John Riccitiello Leaving Electronic Arts

2013/03/18

Jerry Paxton

Industry News, News

The Associate Press is reporting that Electronic Arts CEO, John Riccitiello, is stepping down on March 30th. The report claims the CEO, who has led EA since 2007, broke the news to the company in an official letter to its employees.

“My decision to leave EA is really all about my accountability for the shortcomings in our financial results this year,” Riccitiello wrote in a message to EA employees. “It currently looks like we will come in at the low end of, or slightly below, the financial guidance we issued to the Street, and we have fallen short of the internal operating plan we set one year ago. And for that, I am 100 percent accountable.”

Also according to the report, upon news of Riccitiello’s leaving, the company stock rose 67 cents a share.

Polk Audio Ultra Focus 8000 Headphones Review

2013/03/18

Jerry Paxton

News, Reviews, seal of excellence, Tech News, Tech Review

Polk Audio’s new, flagship headphones are the UltraFocus 8000. Featuring active noise-canceling, elegant styling and a $349.95 dollar price point, I went into this review expecting my ears to feel like angel babies wrapped in pillow of clouds. Was I disappointed? Not one bit.

Out of the box, the Polk Audio UltraFocus 8000 active noise-canceling headphones come in their very own black, attractive carrying case. Polk Audio has gone to great lengths to add elegance and class to this pair of headphones, and the added care the case provides is welcome. Getting everything unpacked, I was blown away by the headphones large, massive shape. This is one big pair of headphones! The headphones feature a black, graphite-like pattern in the headband which reads “polk audio” when light reflects off of it a certain way. The headband features a very comfortable pad which, even after several hours of wear, did not rub my skull the wrong way. These are some really comfortable headphones to wear.

The first thing I did once I got the UltraFocus 8000 all hooked up (thankfully, Polk Audio includes two AAA batteries in the box) was start up iTunes and play some music. Laying back in my office chair, with some soft jazz playing, I nearly drifted off to sleep. Pulled back into focus by a co-worker walking by, I put some pep in my step by switching over to Operation Ground and Pound from Dragonforce. I love those guys. Anyhow, I played several genres of music on these headphones and had a terrific listening experience. As far as the UltraFocus 8000’s active noise-cancellation technology, it’s easy as flicking a switch on the side of the headphones. It is surprising just how well the active noise-cancellation works, and whatever technical sorcery is involved has paid off in spades. Turning the function on allowed me to keep out a ton of ambient noise so I could really focus on the music I was hearing.

Even though the Polk Audio UltraFocus 8000 headphones are not designed primarily for video gaming, at this price point I feel like I would be remiss not to review them in that function as well. Thankfully, they performed exceptionally. Testing the headphones out on my PC gaming rig was very simple, as I plugged them into the Audio Control Module of my Sound Blaster ZxR sound card. I played several nights worth of gaming using these headphones, and was consistently impressed with their ability to generate clear sound. With a sound card featuring such a high signal to noise ratio, I was pleased to finally have the chance to match it with a pair of headphones featuring a similar sensitivity level.

Overall, the Polk Audio UltraFocus 8000 headphones feature great noise-cancellation technology as well as the ability to reproduce clear and crisp audio – even when the volume is cranked up to dangerously-high levels. You can purchase the Polk Audio UltraFocus 8000 headphones over at the company’s official website. Additionally, we have loved this product so much that we are awarding it our “Seal of Excellence”. Congrats, Polk Audio!

[easyreview title=”Polk Audio Ultra Focus 8000 Headphones Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”5″] Our Rating Scores Explained

Images

Manufacturer’s Specifications

MSRP: $349.95
Available Finish: Black
Headphone Type: Active Noise Canceling
Style: Over Ear
Transducer Type/Size: Dynamic Balance, 40mm diameter
Input Connections: Gold-plated 3.5mm
Maximum Sensitivity: 110dB
Minimum Impedance: 100 ohms
Total Frequency Response: 8Hz-28kHz
Apple Remote and Push-to-Hear Controls: On-Ear
Dimensions: 7″ W x 7.6″ H x 3.5″ D (at the widest point of the earpieces)
Product Weight (without batteries): 8.9 ounces
Warranty: 1 Year, Parts and Labor

Six Flags Great Adventure Announces March and April Events

2013/03/18

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News

For those of you planning to attend Six Flags Great Adventure in the next couple of months, the park has released its March and April events schedule, which includes a visit by the Jersey Shore cast, Physics Day, and more. Checkout the full pr information below.

Full PR Text

Opening Day Presented by Lowe’s—March 23

“Spring Fix” benefit concert to feature Ne-Yo and Jersey Shore Cast
Six Flags Great Adventure opens for its 40^th season March 23 at 10:30 a.m. The cast of “Jersey Shore” including Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, Jenni “JWOWW” Farley, Vinny Guadagnino, Sammi “Sweetheart” Giancola, Ronnie Ortiz-Magro and Deena Nicole Cortese will reunite at the Jackson theme park as part of “Spring Fix,” an alternative spring break event sponsored by MTV, mtvU and United Way to help rebuild communities devastated by Hurricane Sandy. Multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning Motown Records artist Ne-Yo will headline the show, with additional performances by Sammy Adams and Timeflies. “World of Jenks” star Andrew Jenks will also attend for a day of roller coasters, games and giving back. The concert will begin at 3 p.m. and is free with park admission to all Six Flags guests. A portion of the day’s proceeds will be donated to United Way. Tickets available atwww.sixflags.com/mtv

Six Flags Spring Break—March 23 to April 1

The theme park will operate daily for Spring Break from 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Physics Day—April 26 (Exclusive to physics students and teachers, not open to the public)
Six Flags Great Adventure will become an outdoor classroom for the 31^st annual Physics Day on Friday, April 26. For this exclusive event, the park will host teachers and students for a number of physics challenges designed to set theory into motion. Students will solve teacher-designed problems based on ride experience, while measuring forces on roller coasters such as Nitro, El Toro and GREEN LANTERN, plus other park rides. Additional physics days will be held on Thursday, May 2 and Friday, May 3.

Six Flags Step Invitational—April 27
The Six Flags Step Invitational will feature teams of all ages from New Jersey competing with fancy footwork for cash prizes and bragging rights. The event takes place on Saturday, April 27 and tickets include entry to the park and competition. For ticket and registration information, visit www.njstepteam.org

March for Babies®—April 28

Six Flags Great Adventure will host March for Babies®, a walk-a-thon to benefit babies of Ocean County, on Sunday, April 28 beginning at 8 a.m. Participants of all ages will gather in the park to raise money for the March of Dimes® and their mission to give every baby a healthy start. Registration for the walk begins at 7:30 a.m. For more information or to register, visit www.marchforbabies.org

General Park Information

For more information, guests can call 732/928-1821 or visit www.sixflags.com/greatadventure

EA Announces SimCity Fiasco Free Games List

2013/03/18

Jerry Paxton

News, Windows PC News

If you remember, EA showed the industry how to handle mistakes last week when it announced that gamers affected by the SimCity launch issues would be granted a free game for their troubles. Today, the gaming giant released the list of games that gamers would be able to select from, which includes Battlefield 3, Dead Space 3, and Mass Effect 3. Kudos again, EA!

From the Official Instructions on Game Redemption

Starting today, every player that has activated their copy of SimCity will receive an email that will give directions on how to redeem this offer, and you can also find more information on our FAQ. We’ll be opening up the redemption portal country-by-country so some of you may see it a little sooner than others. The portal will be live worldwide for everyone to select their game by March 22. We don’t want any of you to miss out on your free game, so please note that you must register your copy of SimCity before March 26, 2013 at 06:59 AM GMT and you must claim your free game by March 31, 2013 at 06.59 GMT.

Games List

Title

Battlefield 3 (Standard Edition)

Bejeweled 3

Dead Space 3 (Standard Edition)

Mass Effect 3 (Standard Edition)

Medal of Honor Warfighter (Standard Edition)

Need For Speed Most Wanted (Standard Edition)

Plants vs. Zombies

SimCity 4 Deluxe Edition

Mars War Logs Screenshots Are Stunning

2013/03/18

Jerry Paxton

News, PlayStation 3 News, Screenshots / Photos, Windows PC News, Xbox 360 News

Focus Home Interactive and Spiders Studio have released some new screenshots for their upcoming Mars War Logs, which is due out on Windows PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 platforms this Spring.

Screenshots

Captain Kirk MIMOBOT USB Drive Review

2013/03/17

Jerry Paxton

News, Reviews, Tech News, Tech Review

MIMOCO sent us over one of their new “Star Trek X MIMOBOT Series 1” USB drives for review. Being Spock fans, we were hoping to see our favorite pointy-eared science officer when we opened the package but, instead, were gleefully-greeted by the phaser-wielding Captain James T. Kirk, clad in his gold uniform. In terms of design, each of the new Star Trek X MIMOBOTs are well-drawn and have a stylized representation of the characters they represent. MIMOCO has long-been known for stylish, stylized USB drives and the Star Trek ones are no exception.

In terms of using the MIMOBOT USB drive, it performed very quickly and was ready to use about a second after I inserted it into the USB port. I absolutely hate it when I put a USB drive into my computer and it takes a long time to recognize and load. This was simply not an issue here. It recognizes and loads the drive so quickly, you should be ready to transfer files by time you pull your hand back to your mouse.

This USB drive also includes some cool little extra for fans of Star Trek, like wallpapers for various desktop and tablet resolutions, Star Trek icons, and even the awesome mimoDesk Star Trek program which, looking like an LCARS console from Star Trek: The Next Generation, includes a ton of digital comic books and videos (commercials, trailers, etc). The highlights of these mimoDesk extras for me were certainly the original series Star Trek comic books.

Overall, the MIMOCO Captain Kirk MIMOBOT USB drive is an excellent storage option with lightning-fast drive recognition. Additionally, the stylized and well-drawn representation of your favorite Star Trek characters as well as the included Star Trek extras should be enough to make this a no-brainer for Trekkies looking for a USB drive. The only real “con” I discovered in using this USB drive is that it does not support USB 3.0 transfer speeds and MIMOCO, at the time of this writing, does not sell a USB 3.0 version.

[easyreview title=”Captain Kirk MIMOBOT USB Drive Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”4″] Our Rating Scores Explained

Specifications

Pre-loaded digital Mimory™
Available in 8GB, 16GB, 32GB, & 64GB capacities
Hi-speed USB 2.0
Win/Mac compatible
2.5” tall by 1” wide
One-year limited warranty

Weekend Box Office for March 15-17, 2013

2013/03/17

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, Movie News, News

Oz The Great and Powerful leads the weekend box office two weeks in a row, bringing in $42.2 million dollars. In a surprising turn, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone came in third position with $10.3 million on its opening weekend, about $8 million lower than its industry estimate.

The Top Ten

Oz The Great and Powerful $42.2M / $145M
The Call $17.1M / $17.1M
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone $10.3M / $10.3M
Jack the Giant Slayer $6.2M / $54M
Identity Thief $4.5M / $124M
Snitch $3.5M / $37.3M
21 and Over $2.7M / $22M
Silver Linings Playbook $2.6M / $125M
Safe Haven $2.5M / $67M
Escape From Planet Earth $2.3M / $52M

Aliens: Colonial Marines PC Patch Will Have Improved Visuals

2013/03/16

Jerry Paxton

News, Windows PC News

Looks like PC gamers upset with the lackluster visual quality of Aliens: Colonial Marines won’t have to wait much longer for some relief. Sometime in the next week, Gearbox Software will be releasing a “rather large” update for the game which will include improved textures and other visual improvements. Crossing my fingers we get a final product similar to the game demo we were shown at E3!

Official GBX Post

March 14 2013 Update:

Thanks for all the feedback!

The PC update is currently in the final stages of testing and expected to roll out within the next week.

This update contains the changes that were in the recent update for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions, along with some additional changes that will be part of future updates for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. This update also includes several PC-specific changes, notably: improved texture resolution, various visual improvements, the addition of a mouse smoothing option, and some fixes for PC-only crashes.

As this update is rather large, those players with limited or bandwidth-capped access may want modify their auto-update settings by right-clicking Aliens: Colonial Marines in their Steam Library, choosing Properties and selecting the Updates tab.

Battlefield 4 Invite Reveals GDC Press Event

2013/03/16

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, PlayStation 3 News, Windows PC News, Xbox 360 News

Looks like Electronic Arts and DICE will be unveiling their hotly-anticipated Battlefield 4 at this year’s GDC in San Francisco at 7pm on March 26th, 2013. The invite reads “Please join us to celebrate a brand-new era of Battlefield”. This could allude to the game being on next-gen systems (which would be expected), or, perhaps it alludes to the game being set in the near-future? They tried this before with mixed results in Battlefield 2142, but it would be interesting to see what they could do a second time around.

UPDATE: Looks like being set in the future is a no-go. AllGamesBeta has found the promo image this invite image is based on below: