Android and Me |
- Android Gaming Weekly: Men in Black 3, The Dictator, 100 Floors, Big Win Soccer
- Sonic keeps on rolling, win an Acer Iconia Tab A510
- Jury rules in favor of Google in the Oracle patent trial
- NVIDIA’s Kai platform will deliver $199 quad-core tablets
- Rumor: Galaxy Note 10.1 to include S-Pen slot, bump to quad-core Exynos
| Android Gaming Weekly: Men in Black 3, The Dictator, 100 Floors, Big Win Soccer Posted: 23 May 2012 05:35 PM PDT  Welcome back to our regular column Android Gaming Weekly, where we recap all the new releases and highlights every Wednesday. We post small bits throughout the week related to Android games, but readers have requested a condensed summary that makes it easier to keep up with all the latest news. Read on for this week's best in Android gaming. Top 7 New Games This WeekWe always try to find the top rated games each week, but now I'm going to limit my recommendations to the Top 7 games. The number of quality games comes and goes each week, but I felt like 7 suggestions was a nice odd number that I could achieve each week. Let me know what you think of the new format in the comments below. Mass Effect Infiltrator Developer says: “The fate of the galaxy lies in the balance. From the makers of the critically acclaimed Dead Space on Android comes an all-new, original Mass Effect storyline – made exclusively for mobile!” Taylor says: I purchased this game yesterday and it’s awesome. The graphics are some of the best Android has to offer and the duck-and-cover gameplay is easy to pick up and play. I’ve only played the first two levels, but I’ll be spending a lot of time with this game over the coming week. Men in Black 3 Developer says: “The official game of Men in Black 3, putting players in charge of the agency. We are the best-kept secret in the universe. We are Earth's best, last, and only line of defense. We are above the system. Over it. Beyond it. We are “them”. We are “they”. We are the Men in Black.” Taylor says: I’m not a huge fan of the freemium model and the gameplay looks uninspired, so I don’t think I’ll be spending any of my time on this. But it’s still MIB 3 and the early reviews are good, so I thought we should share it. Death Racing
Developer says: “Challenge the extreme of speed and distance! Fast paced 3D racing game and easy to get started. Unlock most fantastic cars by skillful plays, and challenge the extreme of speed and distance!” Taylor says: The developer Feeling Touch has a pretty good track record, and this game looks like it offered some fun twitch action. It’s free and it should make a good time waster. 100 Floors
Developer says: “Apple app store’s #1 game now on Android! Challenge Yourself and see if you can make it to the top! Advance to the next floor by solving the puzzle! 30 levels of puzzles are waiting to be solved! More levels on the way.” Taylor says: We love a good puzzle game and this one is free. I never played the iOS version, but the dev claims it was the top puzzle game on Appls’s App Store some time back. The Dictator: Wadiyan Games Developer says: “The Wadiyan Games lets you step into the shoes of the General Aladeen and compete in his four favorite events – running, swimming, fencing and boxing. The game also features the ultimate finishing moves for each event. Additional sporting events and backdrops can be unlocked with in-app purchase. The app was blessed by General Aladeen and based on the upcoming Paramount Pictures feature film The Dictator in theaters nationwide.” Taylor says: This game could suck, but I enjoyed the movie and thought this would make me laugh. Just installed it right now, but haven’t played any levels yet. Gobber Ninja Developer says: “Gobber is a chameleon able to perform the most incredible flying stunts! Gobber learned from his masters and needs your help to complete his training. Go through several events where speed, action and skill will be the keys to victory. Gobber has to catch all the stars and flies to surpass all challenges and reach the highest peaks!” Taylor says: It’s a teenage ninja mutant lizard. Gameplay looks like an interesting mix of Cut the Rope with some extra platforming elements. The game is free so I’d say it’s worth a download if you like what you saw in the trailer. Big Win Soccer Developer says: “Welcome to world class football fun with Big Win Soccer! No matter what you call the "beautiful game", Big Win Soccer is the game for everyone. CREATE your own unique dream team, COMPETE against opponents from around the world, WATCH your team battle it out on the pitch, BOOST your player's passing, shooting, dribbling and other skills and get ready to hoist the Daily Trophy for the ultimate BIG WIN!” Taylor says: Last week we featured Big Win Hockey and it was met with good reviews, so this week we wanted to share Big Win Soccer. Once again the game is free, so soccer fans should check it out. Android Games Coming SoonAngry Birds Heikki
This week Rovio launched a new teaser site for their upcoming game Angry Birds Heikki. Expect this latest chapter in the Angry Birds series to have a focus on Formula 1 racing as Heikki Kovalainen is one of the top racers in the circuit. Not much else is known about the game, but it should be released around June 18th. Ubisoft’s Babel Rising 3D comes to Android on June 14th PocketGamer reports that Ubisoft will bring their remake of the popular iOS game Babel Rising to Android on June 14th. In Babel Rising 3D, gamers take the role of a god attempting to stop the construction of a tower, by blasting construction workers with lightning and setting them on fire. Pocket Planes DroidGamers reports that NimbleBit will bring their “bitizens” back for another run in Pocket Plans. This follow up to Tiny Tower places the pixel people in an airline management simulation where they have to fly cargo to over 250 cities around the map. If you are a fan of Kariosoft games, then you might want to keep an eye on this. Games I'm currently playingMachinarium: We featured this game last week and I went ahead and purchased it after watching the trailer and reading the reviews. The early puzzles start off pretty easy, but the game gets hard real fast. There are clues that allow you to kind of cheat, but even with the help some of the puzzles take a lot of work to solve. The graphics, sound, and story are all amazing, so I’m sticking with this game until I finish it and find my robot girlfriend. What Android games are you playing?Find any great new Android games this week? Share your favorites in the comments below so we can check them out.
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| Sonic keeps on rolling, win an Acer Iconia Tab A510 Posted: 23 May 2012 02:14 PM PDT  Sonic the Hedgehog has become one of the world’s best-known video game characters, with his series having sold more than 80 million copies. Gamers have normally enjoyed new releases of the series on home game consoles, but Sega is now releasing the latest Sonic 4 Episode II on mobile platforms at the same time. Read on as we celebrate the latest release and give away an Acer Iconia Tab A510. The TrailerThe DownloadSonic 4 Episode II is available as a paid title for $6.99 and a lite version is free to install. The Game
The Sonic 4 saga continues with Sonic's beloved side kick, Miles “Tails” Power. Players can now experience the Sonic 4 saga as never before with the addition of a brand new engine; bringing you gameplay with updated physics and HD graphics. “Sonic 4 Episode II is very special because we've integrated community feedback into the game.” said Haruki Satomi, Senior Vice President of Digital Business at SEGA of America. “We have some of the most loyal and dedicated fans and I hope they enjoy this next chapter in the Sonic 4 saga.” For the first time Android gamers can enjoy an experience that is nearly identical to the PS3 and Xbox versions, and it comes at half the price. Players with Tegra 3 devices like the HTC One X or ASUS Transformer Prime will enjoy higher quality textures, better lighting and glow effects, and objects on screen that are absent from other mobile versions. Episode 2 also features a collaborative multiplayer mode where players can team up with a friend via Bluetooth and take control of Sonic and Tails as they battle against Dr. Eggman and Metal Sonic. We just installed the game on our devices, so look for our full review in the coming weeks. Release dates:
Pricing:
Episode Metal bonus pack: Players who have Episodes I and II installed on the same device will gain access to a new bonus pack called "Episode Metal." This unlockable story will feature a playable Metal Sonic, four exclusive levels, and allow players to discover the rebirth of Metal Sonic and learn more about how he survived the events at the end of Sonic CD. If you missed the first episode, grab it from the link below. Benefits of Tegra 3 Tegra 3 offers gamers the most technically advanced mobile version.
 Non-Tegra vs Tegra 3 version of Sonic 4. The Contest – Win an Acer Iconia Tab A510
“Featuring NVIDIA quad-Core performance, the latest Android 4.0 OS and an amazing productivity suite, you can multitask at a new level and surf the web without waiting. Preloaded entertainment apps like Kindle, Netflix and Google Music keep your entertainment at your fingertips wherever you are. So whether you need to be productive on the go or just want to stay entertained, the Acer Iconia Tab A510 will keep you at the top of your game.” How to EnterTo enter to win the tablet, all you’ve gotta do is tweet at @NVIDIATegra with the hashtag #Sonic. Tell them how much you loved #Sonic as a kid, why Tails rules- whatever you feel like sharing. Use your own words, we love creativity! Just make sure to include @NVIDIATegra and #Sonic in your tweet. For your convenience, we’ve included a tweetbox below: Multiple chances to win: Today is marks the middle of a multi-week promotion. We will have additional Tegra 3 powered tablets and smartphones to give away, so be on the lookout. Sega also provided us with some limited edition action figures and comics to give away, so go buy the game if you want a chance at winning some more swag. Contest RulesThis contest is open to residents of any country. Entries will be accepted for 48 hours after the contest goes live. We'll announce the winner on this page and on our Twitter account as soon as we draw. As always, we’ll be tracking tweets and picking winners via RowFeeder.
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| Jury rules in favor of Google in the Oracle patent trial Posted: 23 May 2012 11:37 AM PDT  The jury has ruled that Google did not infringe on Oracle’s patents in what has been referred to by the presiding Judge as the “World Series of Intellectual Property cases.” The potential ramifications of an Oracle win in this case were dire in the eyes of many Java developers, so this news will likely be celebrated by many outside the Android community as well. While the jury’s ruling precludes Google paying any damages on this part of the claim this does still leave the other question which the Judge took off the table for the jury and that is whether the Java APIs that Google used can be copyrighted at all. Google and Oracle will be submitting briefs to the Judge on that question today, but there is no timeline for the Judge to make a ruling on that question at the moment. This is certainly a great day for Google’s legal team, but in all likelihood we will see this decision appealed so it’s not quite time to break out the champagne yet.
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| NVIDIA’s Kai platform will deliver $199 quad-core tablets Posted: 23 May 2012 09:27 AM PDT  “At $199, you can just about buy a tablet at a 7-Eleven,” said Jen-Hsun Huang, NVIDIA CEO, when he was discussing the future of tablets powered by his company’s quad-core Tegra 3 processor. We have been discussing rumors of a $199 “Nexus tablet” for months and now it appears that could become a reality soon. At NVIDIA’s annual meeting of stockholders the company revealed their new Kai platform, which will enable quad-core tablets running Android 4.x Ice Cream Sandwich to be developed and brought out to market at the $199 price point. ASUS previously announced their $249 MeMo 370T tablet at CES, which included a quad-core Tegra 3 processor, but that device never came to market. Rumors suggested that Google was collaborating with ASUS to lower the price to $199 and sell it in their Play Store, but we are still waiting on official confirmation. Now that the Wall St. Journal is reporting that up to five OEM partners will sell devices through the new Google Play Store, it looks likely we will see the ASUS 7-inch tablet finally go on sale. We don’t know exactly when it will hit stores, but Google’s annual developer conference is scheduled to begin on June 27th and that is when most are expecting some kind of announcement. Some of the details and specs could change, but it’s highly likely we will be able to purchase a $199 tablet with Android 4.x and a quad-core processor in the coming months. I tend to gravitate towards the larger 10-inch tablets, but this 7-inch, $199 tablet should be the best deal available when it arrives. Anyone still saving up for this?  The ASUS MeMo 370T that never went on sale looks similar to NVIDIA's Kai platform.
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| Rumor: Galaxy Note 10.1 to include S-Pen slot, bump to quad-core Exynos Posted: 23 May 2012 08:00 AM PDT  According to recent reports out of Android Next and Tablet Community, the Galaxy Note 10.1 is about to get some pretty significant spec bumps before its released later this year. Android Next reports that the Note 10.1 may have ditched the expected dual-core Exynos processor for the quad-core Exynos with Mali 604 GPU found in the Galaxy S III. If true, the bump to a quad-core Exynos quickly makes the Note 10.1 one of the best tablets available on the market when its released later this year. The quad-core Exynos processor delivers exceptional performance, and should keep the Note 10.1 blazingly fast in both generic and heavy use situations. It has previously been reported that Samsung delayed the Note 10.1 to include the quad-core Exynos chip, but Samsung has denied those claims. We obviously hope Samsung is putting the quad-core Exynos chip into the Note 10.1. When Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Note 10.1 at Mobile World Congress in February, many were taken aback by the fact that the tablet didn’t include a slot for the signature S-Pen found in the Note series. Tablet Community reports that Samsung has gone back to the drawing board to include an S-Pen slot, and has managed to actually make the tablet thinner at the same time. In order to fit the newly-granted slot, Samsung had to slim down the S-Pen a bit. To account for those who want a thicker pen, Samsung will be selling a casing for the S-Pen that adds some heft to the accessory. Again, these are just rumors at this point, though ones we hope will become reality once the tablet hits retail outlets. We’ll hopefully learn more about the final design of the Note 10.1 soon, as we draw ever nearer to an expected launch date.
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