Since when did the cell phone become a digital Swiss Army Knife? Not that there’s anything particularly wrong with that—hold your horses because there’s a caveat involved here. And before my ADHD takes hold and blasts me into 199 different channels in space, I’m going to lay down that caveat right now: cell phone manufacturers are adding too many colors to a palette. It’s a phone that’...
Indeed, Ned... Winter is coming, and the cold, icy weather can be brutal on more than just your head and hands — it’s not too good for your devices either. If you live in a cold region, then you’ve probably got hats and gloves for yourself (maybe even some pelts), but what about all that tech you spent your hard-earned money on? Temperatures can play havoc with technology, from the...
This just in: the PS Vita is for games. Sure, that may sound like a really awkward statement to make for a portable gaming device, but it's one Sony was probably smart to clarify. Gamers and consumers actively buying products when the PSP was enjoying its wealth of pre-launch hype will probably remember what Sony was trying to get people excited for… everything but the games. They kept...
The state of serious gaming involves two kinds of players: PC and Console. Despite the widespread adoption of mobile gaming, I’m still hesitate to involve any association of depth with it. Regardless of the popularity of smartphones and tablets, the games remain gimmicky, and the gameplay superficial by the reluctance to stray from the touch-screen. However, there is hope for the mobile...
Remember getting a game, opening the case and finding an awesomely thick, well-colored and beautifully rendered instruction booklet within. What’s that you say, “barely?” Yeah, that’s my point. Instruction booklets are becoming a thing of the past in the world of video games, and it is one of the silent deaths in this medium that I think deserves a little more attention and fuss. I...
When it comes to user experience and immersive game play, smartphone apps just can’t compete with actual gaming devices. But that isn’t stopping iOS and Android apps from financially trouncing the big kahunas like Sony and Nintendo. Mobile analytics firm Flurry has data confirming that the two smartphone platforms are yielding even bigger bucks for game devs. Case in point: Two years...
As information embargoes lift around the web, you're going to see a good heft of reporting concerning NVIDIA's next major mobile processor, the Tegra 3. For me, the games editor for TechnoBuffalo, that means a write up centering around the gaming aspect of the hardware. NVIDIA sent around a presser containing a slew of key facts and points surrounding the Tegra 3 and what it brings to...
The gaming world caught a brief glimpse of this idea during Nintendo‘s E3 conference a few years ago. It was then that the company revealed the yet-to-be released (and probably never will be, if you ask me) Vitality Sensor. Stick your finger in the pulse-reading device, and your console will see your measured heart rate and design your gaming experience around that stat. Whether the...
Yesterday evening, our own Sage Lane’s recent article caught me by complete surprise. He wrote a story called “Why Shouldn’t Mario Play with Apple or Android?,” and the piece centered around his rationale for Nintendo’s flawed decision to avoid the smartphone platform. It’s a good feature, and it’s one that echoes some of the opinions that I’ve been reading around blogs, forums and...
The benefits for both Nintendo and the respective platforms appear obvious. Nintendo would make bookoo bucks on app purchases, and any Nintendo series, would add the legitimacy that the mobile app scene lacks. Let’s face it, as I’ve said before, smartphones are killing mobile gaming. The games are just not very fun or engaging. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like Nintendo is going to...