One of the rumored features coming to the Xbox 360 spring 2011 dashboard update is PayPal support. Is this something you guys and dolls care about? In light of the PlayStation Network hack job, some gamers are especially wary about storing their credit card information on their consoles. PayPal, with its renowned buyer protection, might make console owners feel a bit safer. What say you?
What 2011 summer blockbusters are you looking forward to? Which ones are you on the fence about? Which giant movies are you definitely not going to see? Let’s all catch The Smurfs together!!! Anyone…
Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Pippa Middleton’s overrated hotness, receiving your first bad batch of coffee in years, or Christian’s short reign as World Heavyweight Champion, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
Thor unofficially kicked off the summer blockbuster movie season last week. Tonight I’m off to a screening of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. While I’m 50/50 on that movie, I’m greatly looking forward to Green Lantern, The Hangover Part II, Captain America, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II. I’m mildly curious about Kung Fu Panda 2, X-Men First Class, and Transformers: Dark of the Moon. For some reason, I can’t stop watching the trailer to The Smurfs movie.
And you? What 2011 summer blockbusters are you looking forward to? Which ones are you on the fence about? Which giant movies are you definitely not going to see?
Lady Gaga is teaming up with Zynga to expand her reach through the use of social gaming. Coming soon are GagaVille and Words with Gaga. I’m pretty sure you can figure out what those games are. In case you can’t, here are some wise words from VentureBeat’s “Dancing” Dean Takahashi:
On May 17, Zynga will launch GagaVille, a neighboring farm in Zynga’s FarmVille game. This will be a Gaga-inspired farm inside the game which will showcase Lady Gaga’s style and themes from her albums and videos. It will have things like crystals, unicorns and sheep on motorcycles. Users will get exclusive access in FarmVille to songs from Gaga’s Born This Way album before it is released on May 23.
In Zynga’s Words With Friends mobile game, there will be a Words With Gaga contest. If a player plays the special Gaga word of the day, they will be entered to win tickets to a concert on Lady Gaga’s next tour, plus a signed copy of Born This Way. Users will be picked randomly from May 17 to May 26 in the U.S.
Confession: I like Lady Gaga. Her music is catchy, she seems to genuinely love her fans, and I love the work she does with the gay community. I also think she’s hot in that “crazy girl” way. Most of you know that I love word games like Scrabble, WordFeud, and Words with Friends. With that in mind, I’m sure as hell going to play Words with Gaga. Who’s coming with me?!?
Google kicked off its Google I/O 2011 developer conference with a keynote full of announcements. Some were exciting, some were interesting, some were meh. Here are some random thoughts on today’s announcements. Of course I want to hear what you have to say about them as well. Let’s get to it!
Android Ice Cream Sandwich — The next major version of Android will be called Ice Cream Sandwich. It will combine the phone features of Gingerbread and the tablet features of Honeycomb into one mobile operating system for all devices. The UI will receive a major overhaul and the application framework — which hasn’t been detailed — should help developers code more efficiently for multiple devices.
I’m psyched to get some Honeycomb features on a phone…but I’m bummed that I’ll have to wait until Q4 2011 to get them. The UI enhancements are completely necessary; as powerful as Android is, it still feels rough compared to Apple iOS and HP WebOS. It’s a bummer that Ice Cream Sandwich will take so long, but at least it should have a cool Nexus phone to show off its features.
I’m also praying that the new application framework truly makes things easier for developers and greatly increases the allowed file size for apps (currently 50MB). After attending numerous developer panels, I’ve come to understand what a pain in the ass it is to create games for the platform. The file size limit is just stupid. Android gaming will always be a step or two behind iOS until that restriction is lifted.
Google Music Beta — The company’s cloud-based music-service is now official. Its incredibly unexciting placeholder name is Google Music Beta. As you’d expect, it allows you to store music on the cloud and listen to songs on numerous devices. Flash is currently required to use the service. Amazon recently launched its Cloud Player service and Apple is expected to announce its iTunes cloud plans next month, so this move was expected and necessary.
I was surprised by the elegance of Music Beta’s UI. It looks smooth and intuitive, which is surprising for a company that’s known for UI that’s rough (at best) and clunky (at worst). Google will allow users to store 20,000 songs on the cloud. Several writers have pointed out that this is higher than the 5GB allowance on Cloud Player, but few of them reminded their readers that buying an online album bumps the storage to 20GB.
Music Beta looks like it’s off to a promising start. Going into the conference I was kind of “meh” about the service, but the UI really surprised me. That said, I think the company is at a huge disadvantage since it doesn’t sell music. Buying MP3s from Amazon instantly adds them to Cloud Player and I expect iTunes to behave similarly. While Music Beta looks cool and smooth, it adds an extra step. On the plus side, Music Beta offers a number of free songs to download.
Movies on Market — Movie rentals will be available on Android Market. The first Android products that can use movie rentals are tablets running Android 3.1 (released today for Xoom). Android 2.2 phones will be able to rent movies in a few weeks. Google claims that it will have “thousands” of movie rentals available for $1.99 each. Movies can be “pinned” so that they can be watched offline.
I’m positive that Google is going to mess this one up. The interface is clunky — certainly worse than what I saw from a beta of the competing HTC Watch service. Netflix is also coming to Android. One huge advantage that Netflix has is that it has a consistent feel whether you’re watching through a gaming console, a phone, or a PC. Android’s movie rental service feels awkward and competes with Google’s recently announced YouTube rental service. I think it was a mistake to launch a separate service for Android. I understand that it wants to keep all Android commerce on Android Market, but it’s an enormous waste of the YouTube brand — you know, the brand known for video.
Teaming Up for Faster Updates — Google announced an initiative that will ensure that Android phones will support the latest updates for 18 months after they’re released, as long as the hardware can handle it. Working on update guidelines and efforts to speed up the process are AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, Vodafone, HTC, Motorola, Samsung, Sony Ericcson, and LG.
This is smart move that should have happened earlier. Although Google is slowing down the Android release schedule, it’s still fairly frequent. New Android phones are released every week (or it feels that way). Getting the latest software update is bottlenecked by hardware manufacturers and carriers. Bringing everyone together to make the process faster will keep phones competitive for a longer period of time and, more importantly, keep customers happy.
Also, that photo of Christina Aguilera is there for no real reason.
Google TV Gets Android 3.1 — *yawn* I was excited for Google TV when it was announced at last year’s show. The products have been disappointing, but not as disappointing as Google’s lack of support for the service. Hopefully new hardware and new software can help Google TV live up to its potential.
Android Accessories — Google is releasing a development kit to broaden the use of Android. It wants Android phones and tablets to be used with atypical products. It showed an Android phone being used as a heart rate monitor paired with a stationary bike. This could be fun…or it could be like the Wii heart rate monitor. *joke* I expect to see a ton of crap Android “accessories” at CES 2012. I’m positive that I could make a one-hour show about it.
Android @Home — Google is also working on ways to have Android control appliances and lights in the home. This is kind of neat in the “house of the future” kind of way…but I’m scared of a micro-Skynet scenario. I don’t want to die because I pissed off my refrigerator and it ordered my barbecue grill to roast me.
Your Turn — Those are my initial thoughts on today’s Google I/O announcements. Now it’s your turn! Please let me know what you think when you have a chance.
In case you didn’t know, Microsoft has just purchased Skype for $8.5-billion (cash!!!). Skype allows for audio and video communication using voice over IP technology (VoIP). The company plans to implement Skype in its Kinect and Xbox 360 products. Here’s a clip from the press release:
Skype will support Microsoft devices like Xbox and Kinect, Windows Phone and a wide array of Windows devices, and Microsoft will connect Skype users with Lync, Outlook, Xbox Live and other communities. Microsoft will continue to invest in and support Skype clients on non-Microsoft platforms.
With friends and family around the world, I’m a huge fan of Skype. The call quality is outstanding and the international rates are competitive. I use the free Skype-to-Skype service, as well as Skype Out calls to mobile phones. I’m excited to see how Microsoft implements Skype in its Windows Phone and Xbox 360 platforms…but I’m also a bit afraid of the company wrecking a perfectly good product. Let’s see how this one plays out.
Any of you excited by the Skype acquisition? What do you think it will add to your Xbox 360 gaming experience?
T-Mobile is holding a sweet contest that could snag you an LG G2X and a trip to E3 2011. Dubbed “The Battle for E3”, I’m fairly certain that the contest doesn’t contain any physical battling. Instead, you’ll have to post a short video on T-Mobile’s Facebook page and let the fans decide if you’re worthy to win. Here are some official details:
T-Mobile is introducing “Battle for E3” – an opportunity for consumers to compete for the ultimate T-Mobile gaming phone, the G2x, and a trip to this year’s E3 Expo in Los Angeles on June 7-9. To participate in the online competition, which kicks off May 15, all you have to do is upload a video (15 seconds or less) on T-Mobile’s Facebook page demonstrating how you are the ultimate gamer and ideal E3 “correspondent” for T-Mobile.
The videos will be ranked by fans voting on T-Mobile’s Facebook page and the top 10 entrants will each win a prize. The two most hardcore gamers, however, will win a G2x and the chance to attend the upcoming E3 Expo! Armed with T-Mobile’s hottest gaming phone – the T-Mobile G2x with Google – these two winners will chronicle their trip, host gaming challenges, conduct interviews and much more.
One unadvertised prize for RPad.tv readers is that you’ll get to hang out with me at the show! If you enter the contest, I promise to vote for you. Should you win, I expect you to make sure that I don’t punch any game developers at E3 parties. I don’t need another stupid Cliff Bleszinski story. I hope some of you enter. The G2X is a great phone and it would be awesome to see you at E3.
Some people feel that Sony is an innocent victim with its recent PlayStation Network service disruption. Others feel that the company was asking for it. What do you think?
Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Microsoft buying Skype for $8.5-billion, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s single life, or pot pies, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
Some people feel that Sony is an innocent victim with its recent PlayStation Network service disruption. Others feel that the company was asking for it. What do you think? On one hand, the company is losing millions — some say billions — of dollars restoring PSN and compensating its customers; certainly the company didn’t do anything immoral to warrant the hacker attack. On the other hand, a lot of pundits feel that Sony’s hard-line stance against hackers prompted the attack. To paraphrase Nietzsche, if Sony didn’t act like dicks to hackers then it wouldn’t have gotten dicked by hackers.
I can see both sides, but I haven’t made up my mind about the situation (the PSN situation, not Jersey Shore Situation). Naturally, I want to hear what you think! Is Sony just a victim here? Or was the company asking for it?
Fresh off his drubbing of “Sugar” Shane Mosley, Manny Pacquiao is set to star in a videogame called Manny Pacquiao: Pound For Pound coming to Android, iOS, and Facebook. Set for a Summer 2011 release, the game is being developed and published by Karkadann Games. Here’s a snippet from the press release:
Created for a casual gaming audience, and developed for PC, mobile, iPad, iPhone and Facebook, “Pound for Pound” Volume 1 takes gamers through narrative arcs, intense action and addictive game play, as Manny the martial arts action hero battles through the underground world of heinous villains on a mission of justice. Gamers not only wield Manny’s legendary combination of pummelling punches, with his lightning fast hands, but also a full arsenal of kicks and martial arts weaponry. Additionally, players will be able to customize and develop Manny into the ultimate mixed martial arts defender to fight hundreds of the most infamous enemies on a high-stakes fight.
I’ve never heard of the developer, but I’m excited for the game as a Pacquiao fan, an iPad 2 owner, and a Filipino-American. Even if the quality isn’t great, I’m sure I’m going to play the hell out of it simply because of Pinoy pride. Plus, it’s Manny Pacquiao fighting like Bruce Lee accompanied by a pet wolf! Next to Final Fantasy Tactics, this is the iPad game I want the most. I’ll try to get more info from the publisher. Until then, you can follow the game’s Facebook page.
Today’s poll is going to require some deep thought (Jack Handy). I want to know which “situation” did more damage, the PlayStation Network outage or the Xbox 360 red ring of death? It’s easy to go with the PSN outage since it’s fresh, but I’d love for you to take a step back and give it some thought. Is a hardware issue for some worse than a service outage for all? Which situation did more damage to the reputation of the respective console manufacturer? Kindly vote and discuss!
[poll id=”115″]
After a few slow weeks, May brings several interesting games to the table. Brink has been getting a lot of buzz — some of my reviewer friends are high on this game and some are meh on it. Virtua Tennis 4 looks to bring the series back to glory. LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean serves up the cutest version of Captain Jack Sparrow ever. MX vs. ATV Live should keep motor sports fans happy. The First Templar is flying under the radar, but a few of my friends are digging this adventure game, saying that it nicely blends old and new.
Any of you guys and dolls picking up new games this week?
