Zoomer: Your Real Best Friend

Zoomer is a unique toy as it has very good AI and responds to objects around the environment. What makes this such an awesome toy is it's accurate response to your commands and voice while having it do many great tricks any dog can do. I loved how responsive this toy was to objects obstructing it's way as it is able to navigate away from objects as not to just keep on running towards them. How do you activate this AI doggie? Just look for the switch beneath it's upper body and flip it on. You can also charge the robo pooch with a USB charger. Press it's back button near it's tail to initiate random actions while pressing top of it's clickable head will give you his attention. Zoomer's eyes will light up when turned on and each light pattern shows a different reaction. Examples include question marks in which you can give Zoomer a command. Zoomer understands English, French, and Spanish. Could you imagine anything with this much AI? Not so much as Zoomer sets record for best AI in any robotic toy. Zoomer deserves an award for best AI in robotics. Zoomer's AI will help develop smarter and more advanced robotics so it can understand and meet demands of people and markets such as assemblty line manufacturing. More intelligent robotics will help make production in manufacturing and agriculture easier and reduce labor costs. Zoomer should be known for it's inspiration in not only robotics but smarter and more challenging video game AI including for example the use of Kinect 2.0 voice command in Xbox One games. Hopefully Zoomer will inspire video game developers to make AI understand and recognize the player(s) personally.

Air Hogs RC toys review

Atmosphere is an RC hover toy that when turned on will hover on it's own depending on wind conditions and eventually land. This toy doesn't use a remote but does use a charging base to charge the battery. This toy does amaze as it is fun to watch but be careful when handling it's blades, despite it being mere plastic. HeliX4 Stunt is another toy this time of Air Hogs' Elite class and can not only fly with a remote control but can also do stunts. It performs three stunts which are flipped with the right hand switch under the right analog. Controls work very well but requiring several AA batteries is a real energy drainer as it just seems ridiculous when a rechargable battery could have been used instead. The toy itself however is rechargable via USB port device. What's also nice is that it's less likely to be damaged thanks top it's design cause it will hit and land a lot. A very nice design by the way, looks like a drone.

From Game Consoles to Apps: The Transition

As well noted, Apps such as tablets and androids will someday replace hardcopy playing machines in favor of digital distribution and app style menus. However, today's apps are not well equipped to handle hardcore games due to both lack of hardware to meet demand and unfocused purpose on gaming, leaving casual games to dominate apps. Advantages of replacing home consoles with smaller app based ones include far lightweight, lower cost, and higher advantages for independent developers. Disadvantages include lack of hardware for more complex games, unorganized plan for accomodating both touchscreen and button controls gamers have enjoyed, and concerns over ability to be played on TV screen. There are several microconsoles on the market but neither have been able to have major elaborate games produced for their systems due to a more limited spec hardware than Wii U, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. How can these microconsoles advance to becoming major consoles that could play the same games as Wii U, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC? First, how much memory can it accomodate? Ouya and Nvidia Shield respectively have 1 GiB DDR3 SDRAM and 2 GB DDR3L RAM, which are about the same as Wii U(which has 2GB DDR3 Ram). Memory however doesn't cut the cheese as central processing units are needed to handle such high powered games. The objective here would be to upgrade the central processing unit power of these android based consoles so they can be as competitive as PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Plus, what form would they be in? Would they be much like Apple TV but with more processors fit for hardcore gaming. Nvidia Shield can play up to 29 streamed PC games and has an HDMI port to play on your TV Screen. The OnLive microconsole is interesting as it is like a small TV adaptor that streams games purchased on the internet to the adapted TV. The reason the OnLive microconsole can work like an Xbox 360 is due to cloud computing in which processors are run by another further source and generated to the player via adaptor. The OnLive microconsole was only $99.99 when it was released in either 2010 or 2011. Word from Wall Street Journal is Google plans to reveal an android console this fall and for gaming sake I hope it's not just another microconsole because Google could give Androids a chance to be as competitive and as powerful as the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One or above the Wii U at least. If Google's android console becomes just another microconsole, then it won't market as well as PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. If it's just as much of a console as Wii U, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One however, it will bring a new punch to the console wars and create a new media format for home consoles beyond merely being casual in nature. The most powerful of the microconsoles is Nvidia Shield so Google will need to make it more powerful than that. The Google android console will be called the Nexus Orbit and it will have features like no other. I will write another post about this next blog.

Just Reviewing Androids

First Android out of the two to be reviewed is Oregon Scientific Meep!, which is an android tablet for children. Meep! can do anything any other android can but is formated differently for kids and parents. For any kid tablet, parental settings and security must be available for parents. This android tablet operates much like any other android and has the same operating system. You can place apps, videos, music, games, pictures, and e-books on this tablet like you can on any other android plus the ability to open youtube, web browser, Meep! Store(with right settings), and of course parental sertting separate from regular settings. I will say it is quite squeaky when you rub your finger on it. This does however work well but touchscreen technology should not be squeaky. Second and final android discussed here is Ematic Funtab Pro which is also a children's tablet. This one looks and feels different than usual androids despite having the same operating system. I couldn't really do anything that relates to games and videos for example without setting up the kid-parent dashboard which requires an email address and password(possibly for parental controls). Once you understand, you'll see it works like any android tablet of it's operating system. Android tablets and phones each are unique depending on manufacturer and format, unlike Apple iPhones and iPads.

Disney Animated app review

Though Disney Animated isn't a game, it's an interactive app teaching the hows of Disney features. I found this helpful as I learn of how Disney animated features are made, created, composed, and produced. This tool is very helpful for learning about design and creation in any animated film or video game. Take for example Wreck-It-Ralph, which was animated using computer software. However, stories and ideas are first hand drawn, like a rough draft. This amazing app has lots of educational tools for designers in both film and video games as they illustrate what designing is like and how it's made to be genuine such as expression and movement. If rthe epression and movement didn't look real enough, it wouldn't look good at all. What else I learned is live actor models were used as inspiration and image for animated pictures, very helpful indeed as it helped give birth to Disneuy Masterpieces like Fantasia and Sleeping Beauty for example. Characters in animated features aren't real like actors seen in live action movies so they must be created step by step. A cartoon or Computer Generated character is only as it is created based on man's creation. This also applies to backgrounds and visual effects as these don't create themselves. So much artwork to look at and so much to learn about this and even much to interact with such as demos for animations including animating Vanelloppe's animations from Wreck-It-Ralph. Also, each animated feature was made to have some central focus such as the Genie Lamp in Aladdin. Also see how each animation is captured to be real as to veer away from looking like beta to looking like gold, by gold I mean final product. Visual effects such as water, nature, and landscape are very important. Acting and dialogue are very important for any animated feature or game as any story or dialogue is recorded before animation even starts so as to match the sounds and dialogue of the actions. What would any scene be without musical effects? You also learn about how Disney animated it's features such as going from manually capturing footage to use of computers known as CAPS(computer Animation Production System). What also makes this program great is interactive animations such as rotations which are important such as models for major objects such as the Tiger Cave in Aladdin, Cruella DeVille's car in 101 Dalmations, Pinocchio puppet in Pinochhio, Hippo Ballerina in Fantasia, and Pocahontas in Pocahontus. Also included are timelines of the disney classics which you can open up and see other events and technology listed in the timeline. All of what Disney animations have been is all told here in this app.

Disney Infinity revew

For Xbox 360, Wii, Wii U, Playstation 3, 3DS, PC*, and iPad*. *=Unreleased Disney Infinity has an unusual nature to it as it requires a USB plug in Power Base and figurenes for the Play Set mode you want to play in. For example, the starter pack includes Pirates of the Caribbean, Monsters University, and The Incredibles. Two platforms are where you place the matching figurines whereas the other Polygon shaped platform is where you place the orb that allows you to play the Play Set mode. Examples include Jack Sparrow as Player One in Pirates and another matching Player Two. Play Set mode is like a story mode for each franchise and the story modes are very well detailed. Play Set mode unlocks objects and sets for Toy Box mode. Characters much match franchises but you will need a mini-figurenes with the franchise logos on it. The character figurenes have circular bottoms and is two player while the access figurene is polygon shaped. Toy Box mode is a freestyle mode in which you can play any character you have as a figurene placed on the circular figurene base. Content for Toy Box can be unlocked via the Play Set mode. Toy Box mode is more convienent to play as it doesn't require matching figurenes for franchises. However, you will need to place a figurene to play as. Gameplay mechanics, graphics, and sounds all do great as there are no problems concerning these but I feel that having to have figurenes and an Infinity Power Base to activate characters will leave you either stuck with no more than few characters or spending even more money for additional play sets and characters. Why couldn't it have been that at the start of the game you have just Three play sets(Pirates of Caribbean, Monsters University, Incredibles) and the starting characters to go with them(Jack Sparrow, Sulley, Mr. Incredible) and unlock Worlds, Characters, and new Powers as you progress? It seems like the creators of this game wanted people to spend more money on additions than giving them more of a challenge that is seen in many other games. Kevin VanOrd of Gamespot and Nick Cowen of The Guardian were right to criticize the game in it's alternative system of content access by respectively saying "a platform designed to keep you spending money." and "get ready with those wallets." It's ridiculus that the game plus additions cost a total of AUD$460 at launch! Other criticisms include Characters repeating dialog too often and having a very very limited soundtrack, despite voiceovers and music sounding great. What could have been a great game thanks to amazing gameplay and graphics turned out to either leave you with little content or a burning hole in your wallet/pocket. The Sand Box mode however is a joyful experience of freedom in any game being much like Minecraft, building great structures and gameplay. The Sand Box mode surely expands the time gamers will want to be playing for. To be fair, Play Set mode does have great stories and they can get you more content for Sand Box mode. What ruins this game is the requirement that you use the USB plug-in power base which was unnecessary for the game developers to put in as the game would have worked out better just having starting stories and characters while all others could be unlocked via progress in the Play Set mode. For future games, game developers shouldn't make the same mistake they made with the dreaded Power Base.

Puppeteer review

A PS3 exclusive that is a side-scrolling platformer with a puppet show theme. The story behind this is the Evil Moon Bear King captures the souls of children to serve as his soldiers in his castle. A boy named Kutaro is cursed as a puppet and is beheaded. Kutaro however finds a replacement head and has a flying ghost cat named Ying-Yang who examines foreign objects and can find new heads for Kutaro. Kutaro must rescue the trapped souls of the children, freeing them back to Earth. The story brings out array of classical drama and some romanticism. Gameplay consists of Kutaro having different heads(holding 3 max at a time) with weach having their own magic abilities. Magic sissors also come to Kutaro's posession as they serve as his main tool such as cutting fabric, eliminating enemies, and freeing souls. Using this is very fun as it's the hallmark crown of the game and without it, Puppeteer just simply wouldn't be as much fun or interesting. Music in this game is very rivating as it captivates the story's image and backdrop with classical music from 18th to early 19th century Central Europe. Graphics in the game are highly acceptable for any PlayStation 3 game, plus it is also compatable with 3D technology, said to be one of the best 3D technologies given it doesn't comprmise framerate and also enhances graphics. Puppeteer's graphics and theme are very consistent as it gives feel to the theme of puppet shows and how they can be both playable and elaborate. Such amazxing design in puppetry.