Archive for March, 2010
Blackmagiccomputers.com: Apple Taking Reservations For The Ipad
by admin on Mar.05, 2010, under Articles
Apple has announced that the WiFi model of the iPad will be available in stores on April 3, and that the company will begin taking preorders for the device on March 12. Apple also said that the 3G model will be available in late April.
The company originally announced that the WiFi iPad would ship in late March, missing its self-imposed deadline by a few days. Still, a Saturday release will be good for those who plan to make an event out of the launch. (Don’t pretend it didn’t cross your mind! I’ve waited in enough lines with Apple fanatics to know better.) In addition to the 3G model, the WiFi model will also become available to Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK in late April.
The best part about the preorders is that they’re not just for delivery—Apple says customers can also reserve an iPad to be picked up at a retail store when they become available on April 3. This should hopefully mitigate the need to camp out for the device on launch day. While you wait for March 12 to roll around and decide whether you’re getting a WiFi or 3G device, check out our iPad photo gallery from the event. And don’t forget to vote in our poll!
Blackmagiccomputers.com: Portal 2 is official, first image inside
by admin on Mar.05, 2010, under Gamer's Lounge
Valve has been teasing something Portal-related all week, starting with some mysterious updates followed by a brand new ending for the game. And if all of this led you to believe that the puzzle-based shooter would be getting a sequel, well, you’d be right.
The news was revealed via Game Informer, which will be featuring the game on its next cover. No real details have been revealed, although the game will be a “full-fledged, standalone sequel,” as opposed to the original, which came packaged with The Orange Box. We should have plenty of good information when the magazine hits newsstands though, as it features a full 12-page spread on the game.
For now, we can do little but speculate, and revel in the glorious cover image.
Blackmagiccomputers.com: The challenge, opportunity of PS3: God of War III interview
by admin on Mar.05, 2010, under Gamer's Lounge
There have also been some much more subtle changes to the game which help improve the overall experience. One example is the placement of the on-screen button prompts, which now appear at the edge of the screen instead of right in the middle of the battle.
“So, someone on the team had this idea—’Why do we have these buttons right in the middle of the screen? Why don’t we have them on the side and just use peripheral vision?’” Palamarchuk told Ars. “It’s something we absolutely love. It really lets you focus on what’s happening and you can watch and enjoy the graphics and the moves Kratos is pulling off, or whatever is going on, and not worry so much about the button presses. While they’re still there, they’re almost taking like a background role to you just enjoying the game.”
In the section I was able to play—which is the same as the one Ben wrote about earlier this week—one of the most striking features is the shift in perspective during the battle with Poseidon. You actually see his death through his eyes. And Palamarchuk says that we can expect more new ideas like this throughout the game.
“One thing about God of War, we don’t want to just have one idea and use it throughout the entire game,” he explained. “There are a couple new things that we haven’t shown, and I’m not actually allowed to even talk about, but as you progress through the game you’re going to see new things. For example, the new perspective that you have throughout the Poseidon fight. So we’re taking a lot of advantages of the technology of the PS3 with our design as well.
“So it’s just not about visuals but it’s also how can the new technology help with the design aspects. You’re going to see puzzles maybe based off lighting and things like this, because 90 percent of the lighting is dynamic, so we’re able to do a lot with that. And just a lot of animations that we weren’t able to pull off in the past and we really took advantage of incorporating that into our puzzles and the gameplay.”
God of War III will be hitting the PS3 on March 16. Look for our review ahead of the official release.
