Archive for December, 2007
Monday, December 31st, 2007
It’s been a tick since we saw the oh-so-snazzy RoverPC G5, and we must say, the RoverPC P6 cranks up the sexy by a few orders of magnitude. The Windows Mobile 6-based handset, which is sure to make those not in Russian mighty envious, sports a 300MHz Samsung 2442B processor, a 2.4-inch 320 x 240 resolution touchscreen, 64MB of RAM, 128MB of Flash ROM, a microSD expansion slot, Bluetooth, miniUSB, a 2-megapixel camera and a built-in media player to boot. Additionally, the phone checks in at just 15.1-millimeters thick, rocks a dark gray motif and touts tri-band GSM connectivity. So go on, pick one up for around 7990 rubles ($323) — just don’t rub it in when you do, alright?
Posted in Mobile News | No Comments »
Monday, December 31st, 2007
Samsung’s new P720 and F490 handsets already made themselves known at a recent press event in the Ukraine but, given that we unfortunately couldn’t make the trek there ourselves, we didn’t exactly get that great a look at ‘em. Now thanks to the folks at Mobile-Notes, however, we’ve got some better pics of each of the handsets, along with a video that shows them off from every angle (check it out after the break). In case you missed the original announcement, the P720 and F490 pack 3 and 5-megapixel cameras respectively, along with dual SIM card slots on the former and a 432 x 240 touchscreen on the former. Both will also be available in the first half of next year, with the F490 trickling out sometime in the first quarter for $600, and the P720 following in Q2 for $500.
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Monday, December 31st, 2007
In the past year, we’ve had plenty of hands-on time with Capcom’s Devil May Cry 4, but most of that has been in non-linear chunks that haven’t really allowed us to get to grips with the storyline and how newbie Nero gets to replace veteran Dante as the series hero. But we recently got an early Christmas present in the form of full review code for the PlayStation 3 version of Devil May Cry 4, and we can now report just exactly what goes down in first five levels of the game.
The opening cinematic of Devil May Cry 4 shows Nero–hiding his Devil Bringer arm in a sling–running through the streets whilst battling a group of demons. His destination is a large church where the Order of the Sword is having a meeting-cum-recital, with Nero’s beloved Kyrie singing up an operatic storm. But just as Order leader Sanctus takes to the podium, Dante–the hero of the previous three Devil May Cry games–bursts in through a glass ceiling Batman-style and promptly pops a cap in Sanctus’ face. This, of course, sends the Order into a frenzy, and it’s at this point that you get to take control of Nero–apparently a member of the Order of the Sword himself–as he tries to take Dante down.
This opening one-on-one fight serves as a tutorial, where players are introduced to Nero’s various moves, having to perform them properly before moving on (execute three jumps, roll-dodge successfully three times, and so forth). After you’ve dealt enough damage to Dante, the game cuts to another cinematic where Dante flees before reinforcements from the rest of the Order arrive to help Nero. It seems poor Sanctus is well and truly snuffed out, and the Order’s second-in-charge Credo orders Nero to track down the assassin, who is apparently heading towards Fortuna Castle.
The end of the first level was also our first glimpse of Devil May Cry 4’s level-up system. Just as in previous games in the series, red orbs collected throughout a level can be used to buy items such as health stars or even increases in Nero’s life bar. Proud Souls–allocated at the end of each level–are what are used to upgrade abilities for Nero and his various weapons (the Devil Bringer arm, the Blue Rose revolver, and the Red Queen sword).
The second level of the game is the same one which has been demoed several times already in the previous year, and is the one which sees Nero traversing city streets, a wharf area, and finally ending up in a boss battle with a massive fiery boss named Berial. This boss battle is a great example of the effectiveness of Nero’s Devil Bringer arm, particularly the Snatcher ability which allows him to grab enemies from afar as well as launch himself at distant targets. In general gameplay, the Snatcher worked best when staying away from mobs of enemies, grabbing one from a distance, and pummelling them before repeating the process with another hapless opponent. In the first boss battle, we found using the Devil Bringer arm to propel Nero to the back of Berial’s head in order to avoid his sweeping, long range attacks an extremely useful tactic.
Glimpses of the third level have been seen previously, including the snowy mountainside where Nero takes on two ice wolf-like creatures and his first meeting with the butt-kicking (not to mention extremely anatomically enhanced) Gloria. After this, Nero heads inside Fortuna Castle itself, which serves as a hub area of sorts for the next few levels of the game. The interiors of Fortuna will be familiar to veterans of the Devil May Cry series, and features the same dark hallways, open cathedral-like spaces, and gothic look which has become a hallmark of the previous games. After dispatching a few enemies, players will run across the first “puzzle†of the game, a large torture chamber with spikes on the ceiling that Nero has to fly through using the Devil Bringer arm’s Snatcher. The puzzle is more difficult than it initially looks–quick reflexes are needed in order to glide from one snatch point to the next, as even a second’s hesitation will steepen the angle of Nero’s approach to the next point and send him crashing into the ceiling spikes. At the end of the third level, Nero squares off against a large, armoured opponent with a wicked-looking shield and lance. This One Winged Knight is practically invulnerable to head-on attacks, so players will once again need to use the Devil Bringer arm to quickly propel themselves behind the enemy to do maximum damage.
Defeating the Knight will earn Nero the ability to move large statue-like objects called Gyro Blades around the castle. Most of the fourth level of the game requires players to find and move these Gyro Blades to a certain spot in order to open up the door into the next boss fight area. The blades–which are moved by punching them with Nero’s Devil Bringer–can also be “charged up†with a few sword strikes, which then does greater damage to any foe that touches the blades. The boss that Nero squares off against in the open courtyard is a large toad creature named Bael. As opposed to Berial, Bael uses mainly ice-based attacks, and also has two rather unique “lures†which are used to confuse players.
After the intense Bael fight, the fifth level seems a little more sedate, and essentially has Nero exploring the castle further before uncovering a new ability which allows him to jump to high, out-of-reach places. Acquiring the Wing Talisman will activate special jump pads scattered throughout the castle, an ability Nero uses to jump to a high chandelier in the castle’s main entrance, which he then swings into a wall to reveal a hidden area: a secret laboratory.
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Monday, December 31st, 2007
Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity is the upcoming sequel to Sonic Riders and casts Sega’s venerable hedgehog in a hoverboard racer with a selection of familiar faces. Yes, we know that Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and many other characters from the Sonic universe are a speedy lot and can even fly, but hey, it’s the future and they need hoverboards now; roll with it. The original game was a multiplatform release for the GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox, and likewise Zero Gravity is hitting the PS2 and Wii. We got our hands on work-in-progress versions of the game on both platforms to see what Sega is cooking up in the aftermath of the promising but uneven original.
If you missed the first game, Sonic Riders transplanted Sonic and company to a tech-heavy future and pitted them against Dr. Eggman, as well as a new set of avian foes dubbed the Babylon Rogues. The focus of the original game revolved around–surprise–retrieving chaos emeralds from the Rogues and Eggman. This time the action is a bit more mysterious, given that you find yourself teaming up with Eggman and the Rogues to discover what’s up with meteorite fragments and robots rampaging in the city. As luck would have it, your investigation of the aforementioned mysteries involves much competitive hoverboard racing, as these kinds of investigations apparently do.
The game features a broad selection of modes, some of which are unlocked the more you play. The core of the single-player game is the story mode. When you first start the game, your only option is to play with Team Sonic through the heroes’ storyline (no, not the acclaimed NBC sci-fi show). Once you work through it, you’ll unlock the Rogues’ storyline, which is called Babylon. Each story takes you through a series of races in which you’ll need to place first to progress. Although you’ll go through the same generally themed locales, there are some radically different tracks on each side that offer some variety. In addition to the story mode, you’ll also have a normal race option that lets you choose free race, time attack, or world grand-prix races that support different configurations of players that run the gamut from two to four. The survival mode offers three race types–relay, ball, and battle–for one to four players. A world rankings option lets you see your standing against players around the world via the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, and also lets you download ghost data. (The PS2 game is obviously lacking the online support found in the Wii version.) An in-game shop offers a walk on the wild side to visit a Chao-run black market that lets you spend rings you earn during races on performance-enhancing gear for your assorted racers. (The game now features a roster of more than a dozen unlockable racers.) Finally, you’ll find a comprehensive tutorial mode to familiarize yourself with the game.
The racing mechanics in Zero Gravity have been tweaked some since the original game, although they still hinge on gravity and air manipulation. The game’s core mechanics still focus on you guiding a racer on a hoverboard through insanely designed courses. However, the new wrinkle to the action is the additional abilities made possible by the meteorite. You’ll be able to perform special tricks at key points on the track, all of which help fill the GP meter you’ll need to trigger special abilities. You’ll also want to collect rings in order to power up your hoverboard’s speed and abilities. The upgrades are permanent for the race you use them in and let you increase your speed, configure your board (to morph it into a vehicle), and refill your GP meter. Your big guns in a race will be the different gravity powers you’ll be able to use to perform tight turns, earn massive speed boosts, and race along walls to discover shortcuts.
We found the controls for our riders to be decent enough if we stuck to the conventional options offered by the game. The PS2 game handled fine, with an intuitive button layout that made zipping around easy. The Wii was a bit more of a challenge because two of its control-scheme options revolve around using the remote. The first option has you hold the remote sideways, and you tilt and twist it to steer your racer and activate some of his or her abilities. The second option has you hold the remote normally, pointed directly at the screen, and lets you steer by twisting the remote left or right. Although both options are commendable for making use of the remote, they didn’t quite offer the precision we were looking for as we tried to smoke the competition. Thankfully, the game’s third control option lets you use a GameCube controller, which helped us considerably.
The game’s presentation is shaping up well, with a good mix of sights and sounds that create the unique world you’re racing in. The visuals in the game are solid on both platforms, with the Wii benefitting from more polish than the PS2 game. Sonic and company look good and sport a simplified, refined look as compared to their typical 3D platforming appearances. The Rogues are equally well done, although neither group of racers will blow you away. The tracks fare quite a bit better thanks to a fanciful design and a good amount of variety. There are some issues with the game’s camera that make things annoying but don’t really break anything crucial. The game runs fine on both platforms, but as you’d expect, the Wii game looks better. Finally, the game’s audio provides a solid accompaniment to the visuals and serves up peppy voice acting and breezy, fast-paced tunes.
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Monday, December 31st, 2007
We’ve definitely seen some outlandish attempts at improving or outright replacing the humble credit card, but South Koreans will soon be able pay for purchases using the most easy-to-lose system we’ve seen yet — by inserting a special USB flash drive into a slot. The system, which is being rolled out by Shinhan Card and VIsa, also lets users pay for online purchases by sticking the drive into their computers’ USB ports, and Shinhan is also rolling out new terminals that will enable contactless payments using the device as well. Of course, the drive itself is locked down tighter than a drum, but we still aren’t convinced a bulky flash drive is a better option than phone-based or biometric payment systems.
Posted in Technology | No Comments »
