Author Archives: Chris Morris

What Is Bitcoin?

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The dollar, euro and yen might be the primary language of currency traders today, but online, all the talk is about bitcoins.

The digital currency has been around for nearly two years now, but it burst onto the radar of the mainstream world in June, when Gawker published a story about an underground Website where you could trade the currency for illegal drugs. The chatter surrounding the story eventually faded, but a lot of people were left confused about bitcoins. What are they? How do they operate? And what, aside from illegal narcotics, can they be used for?

Read more at CNBC.com

FBI arrests 16 in hacker crackdown

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‘Anonymous’ may not be quite as anonymous as they believed.

The FBI has arrested 16 people as part of a crackdown on the Internet’s best-known hacker group. These come on top of five arrests by British and Dutch police yesterday, which were part of a coordinated effort.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog

GoldenEye remake on the way — again

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James Bond might be in a holding pattern on the big screen, but 007’s getting quite a workout in the gaming world.

With its remake of the seminal shooter GoldenEye 007 proving a hit on the Wii last winter, Activision is sprucing up the game for high definition consoles, with plans to release it later this year.

Read more at Yahoo! Games

App Review: Tower Defense: Lost Earth

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The fact that the name of Tower Defense: Lost Earth has people talking more than the game is a worrisome sign, but it’s one the developer brought on itself by trademarking the genre. That mini-controversy aside, this is actually a very solid addition to the category. The game is welcoming to newcomers and has a wide variety of weapons to choose from. And it offers enough modes that even genre veterans will be sufficiently challenged that they’ll have fun.

The resource management portion of the game is well done and the challenge mode is particularly fun. The story in the campaign mode is disposable, though. And despite it all, there’s a feeling of having been here before. Also, the fact that the developer charges $4 more for the universal app ($4.99 for the version that works on iPad and iPhone vs. 99 cents for this iPhone/iPod Touch only version) seems excessively greedy.

Read more at Common Sense Media

Now open: The World of Warcraft/Starcraft theme park

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Mickey Mouse may have two theme parks under his belt, but The Horde is getting ready to rush his castle.

What seemed like the stuff of a fanboy fantasy – a theme park dedicated to mega-hits World of Warcraft and Starcraft – has opened its gates in China. Dubbed “World Joyland,” the park is located just north of Shanghai and brings new meaning to the term “E ticket.”

Read more at Yahoo! Games

App gives sneak peak into Star Wars blu-ray extras

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Curious what George Lucas and Co. have in store for the “Star Wars: The Complete Saga” Blu-ray collection? The discs won’t be available until Sept. 16, but an upcoming iPhone and iPad app will spill some of the beans.

The Star Wars Blu-ray: Early Access App, available for free tomorrow (July 20) in the App store, promises to offer an early look at footage and bonus materials from the collection. All totaled, the blu-rays will have over 40 hours of bonus footage.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog

Interview: Ubisoft’s Guillemot Talks Early Adoption Of Wii U

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Ubisoft’s chairman and CEO Yves Guillemot talks to Gamasutra editor-at-large Chris Morris about his company’s early adoption of the upcoming Nintendo Wii U, and about how the new transition means that Sony and Microsoft need “new machines soon.”

When it comes to early adoption, gamers don’t have anything on Yves Guillemot.

The chairman and CEO of Ubisoft has long taken the approach that as a new gaming system approaches, his company wants to be one of the flag bearers for the launch lineup. It did it with the Xbox 360. It did it with the 3DS. And it’s planning to do it once again when Nintendo’s Wii U hits store shelves next year.

Read more at Gamasutra.com

App Review: Video Time Machine

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There may be no bigger time sink in the app store than Video Time Machine. The 10,000 videos in a variety of categories (from ads and news clips to music videos and movie trailers) kick-start a nostalgic feeling that prompts you to watch “just one more.” At its heart, it’s entirely dependent on YouTube uploaders, but developer Original Victories has handpicked some of the most representative of the eras. Just as fascinating are the historical videos, which show actual footage of the Titanic or the first sound ever recorded. It’s an app that’s easy to get lost in — and one where you absolutely won’t mind it when that happens.

Read more at Common Sense Media

App Review: Build A Car

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Build A Car is a trainwreck. It is a buggy, uninspiring, slapped together piece of software that would be a waste of your time if it was free. As it stands, though, it’s a waste of both time and money. The controls are sloppy. The magnetic qualities of elements is baffling (hover a wheel or another vehicle body over one on screen and they stick together and cannot be separated). And even if you do create a fun vehicle, all you can do is stare at it, then trash it and start over. This app is simply not worth a moment’s consideration — no matter how much of a vehicle enthusiast your little one might be.

Read more at Common Sense Media

Ubisoft fights used sales with online pass system

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Add Ubisoft to the list of publishers who are throwing up barriers for buyers of used games.

The French publisher has unveiled a new system dubbed the Uplay Passport that will include a one-time code with each game, giving players access to locked content — including online multiplayer. Buyers of used copies will have to shell out $9.99 to utilize those features.

Read more at Yahoo! Games