Road to Mac OS X Snow Leopard: the future of 64-bit apps

Snow Leopard's across-the-board leap to 64-bits, from the kernel to all of its bundled apps, will make more memory available and boost performance. However, Apple will also need to manage its 64-bit lead and organize its developers. Here's why. ...

First look: Raptr, a gamer's Facebook with some rough edges

Ars gets a first look at a new social service called "Raptr," now in public beta, which lets gamers connect with their peers through shared titles and aggregate data from the most popular gaming services around. Read More...

Appletell review - Cubis 2 for iPod

Section: iPod + iTunes, iPod, iPod nano, Features, Review Genre: Arcade/puzzle Format: iPod Game Developer: Fresh Games, LLC Minimum Requirements: iPod classic, iPod 5G, iPod nano 3G, iPod Software v1.2 Price: $4.99 ESRB Rating: N/A Availability: Now Here, then, we have a game perfectly suited to the iPod. It’s suited to the controls, and it’s suited to the small screen. What it may not be suited to is your schedule. If you only break out an iPod game when you’re trying to kill time before an appointment or while you’re waiting for your kid’s trombone lesson to end, the addictive nature of Cubis 2 may cause you to be late on more than one occasion. And actually, I hate using the term “addictive,” as it’s never accurate when speaking about games. Do people go into violent shakes when they can’t play Cubis for a few days? Do they sell the Renoir and the TV set to finance a new iPod classic or iPod nano when they’ve worn out the controls of the 5G due to intense Cubis 2 gaming? I imagine not. But if you’re into puzzle/arcade-styled games such as Bejeweled (also available for iPod), you will probably enjoy Cubis 2, and maybe even find it’s the more satisfying gaming experience of the two. The gameplay centers around the traditional task of lining up three or more cubes of matching colors. The cubes then disappear, allowing others to fall into their place. It’s like house cleaning, but with bright, happy colors and music, and no dog getting in your way. The twist here is that the board is laid down flat, and the cubes stack on top of one another. The 3D perspective adds an extra challenge with more possibilities for combo moves, and it requires some unique controls. Rather than just click directly on the cubes you want to match up, you fire a cube onto the game board from either the left or the bottom. This is done by lining up your shot with the click-wheel, then sending it into play by hitting the iPod’s center button. Smooth and intuitive, although sometimes difficult to land directly on the row/column you want. When you shoot a cube onto the board, it either pushes away the cube it hits (provided there’s room to do so) or it causes cubes to disappear if it creates a match of three or more like colors. If the cubes disappear, the cube above it will fall and crack, if there is one. Cracked cubes shatter and disappear if another cube is shot through it. Keep this up until the board is clear, and it’s on to the next. As is always the case with games such as this, the developers keep things interesting by having different cubes behave in different ways. For instance, there’s the Lift Cube which wedges its way underneath the first cube it hits, then becomes a regular cube. Although highly annoying at first, these cubes will help you set up better chain reactions (for more points) once you learn how to use them properly. There’s a Stone Cube that can only be removed with Lasers or a Bomb Cube, so, of course, there are Lasers and Bomb Cubes, amongst other things. You don’t know when you’ll get these various cubes (the three cubes “on deck” are always visible), and learning how to utilize (or, in some cases, deal with) them is what provides the game’s challenge. Oh. And there’s a time limit. Isn’t that always the way? To keep things even more interesting, Cubis 2 contains four slightly different play variations. Arcade Mode is pretty much what I described above, in which you have to clear a certain percentage of blocks from the screen. Puzzle Mode gives you specific tasks, such as clearing all of the star cubes within a certain amount of time. Then, there are Morph Modes of both Arcade and Puzzle Mode which add Ghost Cubes that float around and mess up your strategies, making the game more complex. Depending upon what type of gamer you are, that could be a problem with Cubis 2. It’s more difficult than other games of this sort. The multi-layered action makes for a steeper learning curve than you’d expect, and it’ll be a while before you’re able to develop strategies that...you know...work. As a result, easily discouraged gamers will bail on this early even if they’re succeeding, because they’ll have no idea why they’re succeeding. On the other hand, those that stick with it will be rewarded with a more satisfying gaming experience with a longer shelf life than most other iPod games. To help you along with this, Fresh Games includes a few different screen backdrops from which to chose, as well as different cube styles. The variations aren’t that drastic, but they do give you something else to look at every now and then. Even better, the music does a nice job of drifting into the background when you play. This is what music in games like this should do; if it’s noticeable, it would get annoying very quickly. There are multiple version of Cubis 2 available online for free play, so I very much recommend you check these out to get a good feel for the game. If you enjoy it at all online, you’ll like it even more on the iPod. There are other games you can download from iTunes that you’ll learn and get into more quickly than Cubis 2, but not many you’ll enjoy for longer. Appletell Rating: Buy Cubis 2 See other iPod game reviews. This review was originally published at Applelinks. Full Story » | Written by Kirk Hiner for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Spore springs to life

Electronic Arts plans to unleash Spore, a virtual life game from Sims creator Will Wright, across multiple platforms including the Mac next week. But Chris Holt got a sneak peek at the game during a launch event in San Francisco on Thursday.

Macintosh/iPhone software update round-up - September 4, 2008

Section: Software + Apps, Miscellaneous, Third-Party, Mac + Computers, Software Macintosh and iPhone software updates and announcements for September 4, 2008: Ambrosia Software, Inc. has announced the release of the $2.99 mondo Top 5 Solitaire game for the iPhone. For solitaire lovers who want just the most popular games, but done in a professional, easy to use, and fun interface, this is the solitaire game for you. Internet radio is taking another step forward as a legitimate entertainment medium this month as the Intercollegiate Broadcasting System’s IBS Student Radio Network by Backbone (IBS-SRN) launches the Web’s first live music festival, called IBS-Palooza. Increasingly sophisticated college radio clubs combined with advances in Internet broadcasting technology will allow, for the first time, multiple stations to digitally share and play each other’s live content and provide valuable exposure to emerging local artists from around the U.S and around the world. This is expected to become an annual event on the IBS-SRN. IBS-Palooza will be available on the Internet from each participating school’s website, as well at WIBS and Apple’s iTunes Radio, College Radio category; September 19th through the 21st, 2008. Xeric Design, Ltd. has announced the release of EarthDesk 4.4. EarthDesk replaces the static desktop with an image of the Earth showing current sun, moon and city illumination, as well as real-time global cloud coverage, allowing users to track hurricanes and other weather systems on their Macintosh or Windows desktop. Version 4.4 improves the handling of satellite cloud images and is able to detect and ignore images with missing data sent from the satellite receiving station. Derman Enterprises has announced its first public beta of Sync’Em, a new sync hub for Macs. Sync’Em is designed to sync Microsoft Exchange, Google and Apple contact and calendar information. The new Sound Waves waterproof mp3 case was released at the recent Sydney International Boat Show. At last you are able to take your mp3 player with you, no matter where you want to go. The case is 100% waterproof to a depth of 5mtrs and has an adjustable arm band to fit almost any size arm. Bad Dog Apps has announced the availability of BdPricer for the iPhone and iPod Touch. BdPricer is the perfect shopping companion for the smart shopper. Simply enter the product you want to compare the price for and let BdPricer do the rest. Use BdPricer’s quick look up directory to find common items form 15 main product categories, with over 150 sub categories and 3,000 sub category items, to instantly find the products your are interested in. Karelia Software today announced the release of version 1.5 of Sandvox, a major update to its award-winning website creation software for Mac OS X. Version 1.5 includes dozens of new features and over 150 improvements, updates, and performance enhancements. Sandvox features drag-and-drop website assembly, live editing without a preview mode, fifty stylish and flexible designs, eleven page types, and nineteen different pagelets. Chromatic Bytes has announced a going back to school sale for their flagship vector drawing program, ZeusDraw. ZeusDraw goes back to school with a sale price of $59.99 from now until September 21. This is one third off the regular price of $90 USD. ZeusDraw is a vector drawing program with a fluid, graceful interface. It has a different, more intuitive approach to paths (Bezier curves) and great brushes. XChange International has announced the release of four more XTensions products for QuarkXPress 8 for Macintosh: ProPack, FlexScale, Crops XT and Nametag. The XTensions are available for upgrade from earlier versions as well as for new users. TweakerSoft has introduced AroundMe 1.0, their new application for the iPhone. Via GPS, AroundMe quickly acquires the users location and allows them to choose the nearest bank, bar, gas station, hospital, hotel, movie theatre, restaurant, supermarket, theatre and taxi. The selected listing is then displayed on a map and plots the route to the nearest address. The chosen information can be added to the contact list or even emailed to a friend. O’Reilly Media has introduced and opened registration for iPhoneLive, a new conference scheduled for November 18, 2008, at the Holiday Inn San Jose in Silicon Valley, California. Conference chairs Raven Zachary and Bill Dudney are creating a full day’s schedule featuring keynotes from visionaries and leading thinkers in the mobile space, “Build” and “Launch” tracks of breakout sessions, and panel discussions exploring the iPhone ecosystem. Some of the biggest names in the emerging iPhone industry will speak in the intimate setting of this new conference. Aspyr Media, in collaboration with Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions, announced that futureU, its new SAT prep video game, has shipped to retail stores nationwide for PC and Mac. futureU, the first game released under Aspyr and Kaplan’s partnership, represents a new medium for supplemental SAT prep, adapting test preparation material into a collection of fun interactive games. Full Story » | Written by Kirk Hiner for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Prime time goes virtual with games

Why watch TV when you can be the star? Digital video recorders have done away with the notion of prime time for millions of gamers. Now game publishers are offering interactive TV stories that have ushered in virtual prime time entertainment.