Author - boothby

Apple Unveils new iPad Pro Lineup

2017/06/05
boothby
Geek News, News, Tech News

San Jose, California — Apple today introduced an all-new 10.5-inch iPad Pro and a new 12.9-inch iPad Pro, featuring the world’s most advanced display with ProMotion technology and incredible performance with the new A10X Fusion chip. The new 10.5-inch model reduces the borders by nearly 40 percent to fit into an incredibly compact package that still weighs just one pound. Combined with powerful new iPad features in iOS 11 coming this fall, like the all-new Files app, customizable Dock, improved multitasking and deeper integration of Apple Pencil, iPad Pro gives users the ability to be even more productive and creative.

“These are by far the most powerful iPads we’ve ever created with the world’s most advanced displays featuring ProMotion, the powerful new A10X Fusion chip and the advanced camera system of iPhone 7,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s vice president of Product Marketing. “Together with iOS 11 these new iPad Pro models will radically change what users can do with iPad.”

The Most Advanced Display Featuring ProMotion

The stunning, redesigned Retina display in iPad Pro features ProMotion, a new technology that delivers refresh rates of up to 120Hz for fluid scrolling, greater responsiveness and smoother motion content. With ProMotion, Apple Pencil is even more responsive with an industry-best, 20-millisecond latency for even more fluid and natural drawing. ProMotion also improves display quality and reduces power consumption by automatically adjusting the display refresh rate to match the movement of the content.

The advanced Retina display is Apple’s brightest iPad display yet and features antireflective coating, making content easier to see indoors and out. True Tone dynamically adjusts the white balance of the display to match the light around you for a more natural and accurate viewing experience. A wide color gamut enables iPad Pro to deliver digital cinema-standard colors.
Groundbreaking Performance Powered by A10X Fusion Chip

iPad Pro delivers groundbreaking performance, connectivity and versatility to tackle the most demanding tasks. The powerful new 64-bit A10X Fusion chip provides performance that is faster than most PC laptops shipping today, so tackling complex tasks like editing photos and 4K video, rendering 3D images or playing games feels effortless. A six-core CPU and 12-core GPU deliver up to 30 percent faster CPU performance and 40 percent faster graphics performance than the industry-leading A9X chip, while delivering all-day battery life.¹

iPad Pro is the perfect device to shoot, edit and share pro-quality photos and videos. It features the same advanced front- and back-facing cameras as iPhone 7, including a 12-megapixel camera with optical image stabilization, along with a 7-megapixel FaceTime HD camera. iPad Pro also features a four-speaker audio system, providing powerful, clear and rich stereo sound in any orientation. An embedded Apple SIM2 and support for 802.11ac Wi-Fi and LTE Advanced3 make it easier to stay connected when traveling in more than 180 countries and regions.
Touch ID on iPad Pro is more responsive and gives users a simple and secure way to unlock iPad, keep personal information private within apps and approve purchases from the App Store, iTunes Store and iBooks Store. With Apple Pay on iPad, paying for physical goods and services within apps or on websites in Safari has never been easier.4

iOS 11 Introduces Powerful iPad Features

iOS 11, coming this fall, introduces powerful new features for iPad, including:

  • A new customizable Dock that provides quick access to frequently used apps and documents from any screen;
  • Improved multitasking, including a redesigned app switcher that brings Spaces to iOS, making it easier to move between apps or pairs of active apps, used in Split View and now Slide Over;
  • The new Files app that keeps everything in one place, whether files are stored locally, in iCloud Drive or across other providers like Box, Dropbox and more;
  • Multi-Touch Drag and Drop, which is available across the system to move text, photos and files from one app to another, anywhere on the screen;
  • A new document scanner in Notes, which lets users easily scan single or multi-page documents, removes shadows and uses powerful image filters to enhance readability; and
  • Deeper integration with Apple Pencil, with support for inline drawing to write along text in Notes and Mail, Instant Markup to easily sign documents, annotate PDFs or draw on screenshots, and a new Instant Notes feature, which opens Notes from the Lock Screen by simply tapping Apple Pencil on the display. New searchable handwriting makes it easy to search for handwritten text or characters.

Apple Pencil and Smart Keyboard

Apple Pencil and Smart Keyboard, available for purchase separately, bring breakthrough levels of precision and utility to iPad Pro. Advanced sensors in Apple Pencil measure both pressure and tilt for natural drawing, annotating and note-taking. A new full-sized Smart Keyboard has been custom designed for the 10.5-inch iPad Pro, offering a thin yet durable keyboard that never needs to be charged or paired over Bluetooth and is easily foldable into a protective Smart Cover.

  • The 10.5-inch iPad Pro comes in silver, space gray, gold and rose gold and starts at $649 (US) for the 64GB with Wi-Fi model and $779 (US) for the 64GB Wi-Fi + Cellular model. The 12.9-inch iPad Pro is available in silver, space gray and gold and starts at $799 (US) for the 64GB Wi-Fi model and $929 (US) for the 64GB Wi-Fi + Cellular model. For more information, visit apple.com/ipad.
  • The new iPad Pro models are available to order beginning today from apple.com and will start delivering to customers next week. Both models will also be available next week in Apple Stores, through select carriers and Apple Authorized Resellers (prices may vary) in the US and 37 additional countries and regions, including Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. India, Turkey, UAE and other countries and regions will follow later this month. Brazil, Mexico, South Korea and other countries and territories will follow in July.
  • Apple Pencil is available for $99 (US). The Smart Keyboard is available in charcoal gray for $159 (US) for the 10.5-inch iPad Pro and $169 (US) for the 12.9-inch iPad Pro with layouts for over 30 languages, including simplified Chinese, French, German, Japanese and Spanish.
  • A new Leather Sleeve is available for both the 10.5-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro in a range of colors for $129 (US) and $149 (US), respectively. A new Apple Pencil Case is available in a range of colors for $29 (US). iPad Pro Smart Covers are available in polyurethane and leather in a variety of colors for $49 (US) and $69 (US) for the 10.5-inch iPad Pro and for $59 (US) and $79 (US) for the 12.9-inch iPad Pro at apple.com and Apple Stores.
  • Every customer who buys iPad Pro from Apple will be offered free Personal Setup, in-store or online, to help them customize their iPad Pro by setting up email, showing them new apps from the App Store and more.5
  • Anyone who wants to start with the basics or go further with their new iPad Pro can sign up for free sessions at apple.com/today.

Raiders of the Broken Planet Background Story Video Developer Diary

2017/06/05
boothby
Geek News, News, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News

June 5, 2017 – MercurySteam have released the second developer diary for Raiders of the Broken Planet, that focuses on the the background story of its 4 divided by 1 asymmetric shooter. Currently in closed beta Raiders of the Broken Planet takes a pulp sci-fi approach melding comic book visuals with an intense narrative that involves various factions fighting for an mythical power source.

In one of the moons of Saturn, a scientific expedition from earth discovers the remains of a space ship stranded millions of years ago. The explorers enter the ruins and discover Aleph, an incredible power source that is the key to interstellar travel. Motivated by private interest and corporate greed, the organisation sends a group of paramilitary factions to the Broken Planet. On arrival, an accident renders the paramilitaries technology useless and the factions begin a battle for supremacy, Aleph and the alien technology that can return them back to earth.

In addition, the developer diary delves deeper into the role of the antagonist and his role not only in the story but how the counter operative adds to the overall adventure aspect of the game.

Check out The Background Story Developer Diary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JNjACTvgTU
View the 4 Divided by 1 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=705m76iebys
Check out the website: http://www.raidersofthebrokenplanet.com
Sign up for the closed beta: https://www.mercurysteam.com/raiders-of-the-broken-planet/beta

The Long Journey Home Review

2017/06/05
boothby
Geek News, News, Reviews, Windows PC News, Windows PC Review

The Long Journey Home puts players in charge of leading a space vessel back to Earth after being flung into the far reaches of the cosmos. To accomplish this, the player will have to collect and manage resources, maintain diplomacy with alien life, and fight their way out when diplomacy breaks down. This roguelike game is rough and tough, but that’s simply the nature of those kinds of games.

In The Long Journey Home, players will first select the four crew members for their voyage. Each of these crew members has strengths and weaknesses, as well as an item they bring aboard with them to help with the journey. Once selected, you’ll then select the ship and lander craft you’ll pilot. Again, each kind of craft has its strengths and weaknesses, as well as an interesting look all its own. You have a good amount of customization available to you in these steps to help cater the game to your play style. Finally, you’ll select the difficulty level you desire and start your journey. Daedalic recently added a new, lower-difficulty option called “Story Mode”. Story mode made a huge difference for me as it brought what was, at times, very tedious to a more fun and forgiving level. I highly suggest Story Mode when you do your first play-through of The Long Journey Home unless you absolutely LOVE those difficult roguelike experiences.

Moving your ship requires understanding of Newtonian physics and players must take care to perform thruster burns at just the right direction and duration. Otherwise, you could overshoot your destination and waste precious fuel turning around or, worse yet, crash into a star or planet! Crash into one of those, and you’re gonna have a bad time. Once you fly to a planet or celestial body you want to explore or exploit, you then land on it with your lander craft. Controlling the lander was fun and reminded me of the old-school Lunar Lander game. In this interface, you can drill and collect as long as resources are available, then achieve escape velocity and altitude to return to your ship. The whole goal of the game is to make it back to Earth, so collecting these resources is vital to that end. You will use these resources to repair your ship, refuel it, and a whole lot more.

Of course, the cosmos is vast and full of like, so you will meet a plethora of aliens along your way. Some will be agreeable and, others, not so much. Which brings us to combat. Ship to ship combat is handled quite nicely in The Long Journey Home and, for me, in a pretty realistic way that I would imagine actual space combat to take place some day. Again, you must utilize Newtonian motion in your combat maneuvering, but you also need to charge your weapons and line up enemy ships in a position that your shots will hit. While combat is not the sole focus of The Long Journey Home, it is handled well enough to be a welcome diversion from mining and navigation the stars.

Overall, Daedalic Entertainment’s The Long Journey Home is a tough, roguelike space survival game where you must plan carefully in order to bring your ship and crew home. The game is available now on Steam for under $40 dollars.

[mks_col]

[mks_one_half]The Pros

  • Pleasing visuals
  • Story Mode difficulty raises the overall fun factor

[/mks_one_half]

[mks_one_half]The Cons

  • Standard game difficulty can get tedious

[/mks_one_half]

[/mks_col]

The Long Journey Home Review Score

[mks_icon icon=”fa-star” color=”#1e73be” type=”fa”][mks_icon icon=”fa-star” color=”#1e73be” type=”fa”][mks_icon icon=”fa-star” color=”#1e73be” type=”fa”][mks_icon icon=”fa-star-o” color=”#1e73be” type=”fa”][mks_icon icon=”fa-star-o” color=”#1e73be” type=”fa”] (3 out of 5 stars)

 

Cristiano Ronaldo FIFA 18 Cover Athlete

2017/06/05
boothby
E3, Geek News, News, PlayStation 4 News, Xbox One News

Redwood City, Calif. – June 5, 2017 – Today, Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) announced Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid C.F. as the global cover star of EA SPORTS™ FIFA 18, launching worldwide September 29, 2017 on PlayStation®4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch™, PlayStation®3, and Xbox 360* systems.

To deliver innovation in FIFA 18, Cristiano Ronaldo’s data was recently recorded during a training session at a mobile EA Capture studio in Madrid. Data capture of Ronaldo’s acceleration, run cadence, skills, and shooting technique were all recorded to bring veracity to his likeness and personality in FIFA 18. His data also informed important gameplay elements including fluidity, player responsiveness and explosiveness. Fans can learn how Ronaldo fueled FIFA 18 by tuning into EA PLAY on June 10 at 12:00pm PT on EA.com.

“The world’s best player has helped fuel the biggest leap forward on the pitch that we’ve ever delivered,” said Aaron McHardy, Senior Producer for EA SPORTS FIFA. “We are extremely excited to partner with Cristiano – working with him we learned a lot about his unique play style and what makes him so special. His passion, energy and global fanbase make him the perfect ambassador for FIFA 18.”

“It is a real pleasure to be on the cover of FIFA 18,” said Cristiano Ronaldo. “It’s a great feeling and I am grateful to have been chosen.”

A forward for both Real Madrid C.F. and the Portugal national team, Ronaldo is frequently ranked the best player in the world and is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. Ronaldo was named FIFA Men’s Player of the Year in 2016, and recently scored his 100th goal in European competition, the first player ever to do so. He is Portugal’s most-capped player, with 138 appearances for the national team, as well as Portugal’s all-time top goal-scorer. He has also won the coveted Ballon d’OR and the Golden Boot, among a multitude of other accolades.

Those who pre-order the Ronaldo Edition** of FIFA 18 on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One or PC will receive three-day early access, up to $60 worth of additional content**, including 20 jumbo premium gold packs (1 per week for 20 consecutive weeks), eight special edition FIFA Ultimate Team™ kits designed by artists on the FIFA 18 soundtrack and a Cristiano Ronaldo loan player for five FUT matches.

FIFA 18 fans can get their hands on the full game before launch day, with Ronaldo Edition and ICON Edition** owners getting three-day early access, letting them start playing on Tuesday, September 26, while EA Access and Origin Access members can enjoy up to 10 hours of play time starting Thursday, September 21 as part of the EA Access and Origin Access Play First Trial.***

Fans eager to learn more about FIFA 18 won’t have long to wait, as new details about the game will be announced at EA PLAY on June 10. Those in the Los Angeles area can also join us in Hollywood to get their first hands-on with FIFA 18 at the EA PLAY FanFest.

Join the EA SPORTS FIFA community at Facebook and on Instagram. Follow us on Twitter @easportsfifa and use the hashtag #FIFA18.

FIFA 18 is developed by EA Vancouver and EA Romania and will be available worldwide on September 29 for, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 systems*.

EA Access and Origin Access members receive a 10 percent discount** when they purchase a digital version of FIFA 18 on Xbox Live and Origin.

The EA SPORTS™ brand is one of the leading sports entertainment brands in the world, with top-selling videogame franchises, award-winning interactive technology, fan programs and cross-platform digital experiences. The EA SPORTS studios create connected experiences that ignite the emotion of sports through videogames, including Madden NFL football, EA SPORTS™ FIFA, NHL® hockey, NBA LIVE basketball, Rory McIlroy PGA TOUR® golf,SSX™ and EA SPORTS UFC®.

For more information about EA SPORTS games, including news, video, blogs, forums and game apps, please visit www.easports.com to connect, share and compete.

The Long Journey Home Gets Story Mode Update

2017/06/02
boothby
Geek News, News, Windows PC News

HAMBURG – Jun. 2, 2017 – Daedalic Entertainment has today announced the first major update to The Long Journey Home, the company’s ambitious space RPG, with the addition of a new ‘Story Mode.’ Designed based on feedback from the engaged community of The Long Journey Home players, this new mode offers a perfect introduction to the game, as well as a way for players to experience the aliens, questing and other parts of the diverse and colorful galaxy without being burdened by the fight for survival and some of the harsher dangers of unplanned intergalactic travel.

New players are especially invited to try Story Mode to experience a smoother introduction to space before challenging the Adventure (formerly Explorer) and Rogue Modes, which continue to offer the more survival-focused, hardcore gameplay that has won the heart of streamers across Twitch, where every decision counts and mismanaged resources or diplomacy mean death.

Specifically, Story Mode provides a far friendlier galaxy to explore, where resources are more abundant and valuable, where aliens are more generous with their trade agreements, and featuring far more planets with Earth-like conditions and fewer extreme hazards. Players are also equipped with a more resilient Lander and additional assistance for tricky parts of the game, such as easier orbiting around planets and reduced damage from celestial threats. Additionally, the pirate presence has been reduced throughout the galaxy. With these changes, players will be free to take their time crossing the galaxy, better upgrade their ships for advanced challenges like bounty hunting, and enjoy the atmosphere and witty script instead of wondering where the next refuel is coming from.

We still recommend Adventure Mode as the ideal way to play The Long Journey Home, with Rogue Mode for the ultimate survival challenge. However, Story Mode is the perfect way to get into the game, and get to grips with its systems, as well as simply enjoying the Journey. We have, however, added a few quality of life additions to all modes, including the much requested secondary confirmation before destroying installed devices and a dedicated windowed mode.

The dev team has issued a statement on Facebook, addressing the recent update: https://www.facebook.com/notes/the-long-journey-home/iasa-responds-to-mission-criticism-with-new-story-mode/1033286360134872/

Daedalic will continue to monitor player feedback on The Long Journey Home and implement improvements to enhance the game in order to deliver the best adventure space game experience for its players. Join our community to let us know what you’d like to see.

CHANGELOG IN BRIEF

New Mode: Story Mode

  • Reduced planetary difficulty conditions
  • More abundant galactic resources
  • Resources worth more in trade and for ship repair/maintenance
  • Increased Lander strength
  • Reduced impact/heat/environmental/drilling damage in the Lander
  • Reduced fuel consumption in the Lander
  • Enemies cannot lock player into Encounter
  • Aliens offer more credits and more generous deals in trade
  • Reduced flyover damage in event of failed orbit
  • Greatly reduced pirate presence
  • Larger orbit window

General Changes

  • Explorer mode renamed “Adventure Mode”
  • Devices now require timed button press to uninstall/destroy
  • Can now jump back to same system if required
  • Lander roation speed and thruster agility increased
  • Reduced pirate presence
  • Native fullscreen mode
  • Many bug-fixes and scripting tweaks

Pathfinder Adventures Coming to Steam

2017/06/02
boothby
Geek News, News, Windows PC News

PARIS – June 2, 2017 – Asmodee Digital, leaders in digital board game entertainment, today announced a partnership with the role-playing game experts at Obsidian Entertainment to bring Pathfinder Adventures to Steam on June 15. Under the deal, Asmodee Digital will publish the award-winning card-based RPG on Steam worldwide, plus the previously-released mobile game on the App Store and Google Play.

“We’re thrilled to be working with the storytelling pros at Obsidian to bring this award-winning RPG to new audiences on the Steam platform,” said Asmodee Digital. “Combining Obsidian’s role-playing game experience with our specialty in digital board games will make for a strong player experience that does the Pathfinder brand justice.”

“Pathfinder Adventures is a game close to our hearts that allows us to bring the table-top game to life on Steam,” said Obsidian Entertainment. “We’re excited to share our love of the strategy, teamwork and chance in Pathfinder to a new audience, and our partnership with Asmodee Digital is vital in connecting with gamers the world over.”

Conan Exiles Update 27 Video

2017/06/02
boothby
Geek News, News, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News

Oslo, Norway – June 2nd, 2017 – Funcom just released the 27th update to its Early Access open-world survival game Conan Exiles. The update takes aim at giving players more options to defend themselves, including shielding their bases from the towering and destructive avatars of the gods – a feature request popular among players. The update also introduces drawbridges, siege cauldrons, crenelated walls, explosive orbs, and elevators.

Since launching into Early Access on January 31st 2017, the development team has been working tirelessly to introduce new content, improve mechanics, and eradicate bugs and exploits. The team has added siege weapons, a new dungeon, a dye system, new armor and weapons, new decorations, avatar defenses, new building pieces, and much more. The team continues to push hard to further develop the game as it heads towards full launch. The game will also be released onto Xbox One as part of the Game Preview program in Q3 2017, followed by full launch on PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 in Q1 2018.

Conan Exiles quickly became a smash hit with the open-world survival audience, selling almost half a million units in the first month. Since it was released, the development team has worked hard on adding new content and features, as well as eliminating bugs and improving the game based on player feedback. Conan Exiles is an online survival game where players get to build anything from small homes to entire cities, explore a huge open world, team up with other players, or seek to dominate their enemies through brutal player vs. player combat.

You can learn more about Conan Exiles and see the latest updates from the developers on www.conanexiles.com. For more information about Funcom, please visit www.funcom.com.

Arma 3 Jets DLC Community Guide Video

2017/06/02
boothby
Geek News, News, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News

In celebration of the successful Jets DLC take-off, Bohemia Interactive today published a brand new episode in the official Arma 3 Community Guide series. The new video examines all of the aspects of jet employment in Arma 3, such as the various types of jets, munitions, sensors, threats, and tactics. In addition, the studio posted a new devblog, in which Creative Director Jay Crowe explains the role of jets in the Arma 3 sandbox, describes how the Jets DLC marked the first collaboration with a third-party development team, and offers a brief update on Arma 3’s 2017-2018 development roadmap.

Released two weeks ago, Arma 3 Jets is the first of several new DLC which Bohemia Interactive has planned for Arma 3’s fourth year of post-release support. Upcoming DLC packages include the Arma 3 Malden (free), “Orange” (working title), Tac-Ops, and Tanks. Compared to what was previously announced, the most notable change in the roadmap is that the “Orange” DLC has now been moved to the third quarter of this year. The free Malden DLC is still scheduled for release on the 16th anniversary of the Arma series; June 22nd – alongside Bohemia Interactive’s new (and free) tactical multiplayer shooter, Argo.

With Arma 3 Jets, as well as each of the upcoming DLC, Bohemia Interactive continues its DLC strategy of delivering new premium content together with free platform updates for everyone who owns Arma 3. This enables the studio to build upon the Arma 3 platform while avoiding a split in the game’s playerbase, as well as still being able to fund development (more info). In the case of the Jets DLC, the premium content includes three new air-superiority fighter jets, an Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV), and a showcase scenario. The supporting platform update (1.70) delivers a significant overhaul to the experience of jets by introducing more advanced targeting and detection systems, an expanded damage model for fixed-wing aircraft, the ability to customize a vehicle’s loadout, and an aircraft carrier which can be positioned across the terrain as a static object via the in-game scenario editor.

To help players become true sky fighters, the latest Community Guide examines the new platform features in greater detail, and offers practical and useful tips on how to master aerial combat in Arma 3. Previous installments in the Community Guide series covered topics such as infantry combat, multiplayer teamwork, helicopters, sniper and launcher teams, combined arms warfare, air assaults,guerrilla warfare, ground vehicle crew, machine gun teams, defense, and reconnaisance. The complete Community Guide playlist is available on Arma 3’s YouTube Channel.

For more information on the Arma 3 Jets DLC, be sure to read the latest devblog, and visit the official website atwww.arma3.com/dlc/jets. To keep track of all the latest news, please follow and/or subscribe to Arma 3 on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Steam

Secret World Legends Combat Trailer

2017/06/01
boothby
Geek News, News, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News

OSLO, Norway – June 1, 2017 – Reimagined, rebooted and revamped, Funcom’s MMO The Secret World will emerge this month as the shared-world RPG Secret World Legends. Now fully free-to-play (learn more about the new business model here), Secret World Legends promises to shake the foundations of the 2012 MMO as it introduces a newly designed progression system, improved visuals, a sharpened focus on the player’s journey through the world and story, as well as a revamped action combat system.

Today Funcom is excited to release a new video where lead developers explain just how different combat will feel in Secret World Legends. In addition to moving from traditional MMO tab-targeting to a more action-inspired reticule mode, each of Secret World Legends’ nine weapons features entirely new and unique mechanics that are sure to keep even the most experienced players on their toes.

Secret World Legends plunges players into a shadowy war against the supernatural in an adventure that crosses our world with the realms of ancient myth and legend. As players traverse the globe unraveling complex investigations into the unknown, they’ll need to uncover clues and use their own wits as much as their characters’ abilities. A highly extensive and customizable arsenal of firearms, weapons, gear and otherworldly powers will give players the strength to battle the forces of darkness as they dig deeper into these vast and mysterious lands. Players can go at it alone and enjoy over 100 hours of story at their own pace, or team up with others as they explore the world and unravel its mysteries.

Secret World Legends will launch on June 26 via Funcom’s own channels and on Steam on July 31. For more information, please visit www.SecretWorldLegends.com.