Continue reading »]]> Today, I am reviewing Survivalcraft, a Minecraft clone on the Windows Phone platform (the first one and darn good!).

Since I’m reviewing a game for the Windows Phone, I thought it fitting to write the review from my Windows Phone (Samsung Focus). I’ve been holding back by review until the first update for the game was released as it brought (among other things) the ability to take in-game screenshots. Woohoo! I have a screenshot app on my phone (Sideloaded, thanks to the ChevronWP7 unlocker) but it doesn’t currently support screenshots in games or videos. So I wanted to wait until I had good visuals before completing the game review.

Note: I have never played the original Minecraft, this review will not be a comparison.

A ship maroons you on the shores of an infinite block world.

As the game starts, you see a ship sailing away – leaving you stranded on the beach. You’re on your own now!

How rude! Hmph! ... Hey.. hey wait! Come back!

….

What is the only reasonable response to such treatment in an infinite block world?

First, since I have the screenshot, we wait a little longer – staring forlornly after the ship. But you know you can’t stand there forever, the sun will set eventually on your little (large) strip of sand and you’re not going to want to be exposed when night falls (even though there’s no creatures yet).

You need shelter.

How do you find shelter in an infinite block world?

Start digging! You’ve got a long way to go before you have a respectable dwelling but there’s no reason to stop there. Go exploring, spelunking, base-jumping (sorry, no parachutes), build an underground lake or fall into an underground lake from very far above after removing the block directly beneath your feet!

Woops!

WELCOME TO SURVIVALCRAFT!

Developed for the Windows Phone platform by kaalus, Survivalcraft seems much more fulfilling than your average mobile game. You can build yourself a monstrous, sprawling castle that wraps around whole mountains or a giant, glass, floating tower. Or, you can go the route I’m working on right now which is; urban development. You can catch a glimpse of my in-progress highway system (the straight roadway) in the photo above. I have two roads that blaze straight lines in from the beach that you start on that are connected far inland. Everywhere inside those roadways is now undergoing urban development, which means it’s all going to be leveled like when you use the leveling tool in Sim City. Flat. Then, a city!

That’s gonna take a while but everything will go much quicker and more smoothly since the Alpha 1.1 version was released. There are a whole slough of new features, which you can read about HERE (on the developer’s blog). So if you had looked at it before and it wasn’t quite up to your standards, I really think it’s worth another look, because..

..damn this game is addicting.

Crafting, building, destroying, falling, climbing.. maybe a little sleeping. I’m having a lot of fun with this game and there aren’t even any creatures to threaten your safety… yet! They’re certainly on the way. I was pretty skeptical about the movement-controls and how well this would all work but I’m really having a blast (I hope my girlfriend isn’t getting jealous). The developer is listening to the community to help determine the direction of this game and he’s doing a great job of implementing the features that the users really want.

Great job bringing this lovely blockiness to Windows Phone kaalus! Thanks to the original Minecraft developers for giving kaalus a (seemingly, as I haven’t played it) great beast to start with!

It’s time to go ruin some block world habitats and scenery for my urban development. You should visit the Survivalcraft links below. I definitely recommend buying this game at the lower price before it gets too hot – and it is definitely heating up.

• Developer kaalus’ blog site: http://kaalus.wordpress.com
• Get Survivalcraft for Windows Phone: http://tinyurl.com/SurvivalcraftWP7
• Survivalcraft Community Forum: http://survivalcraft.lefora.com (what? “InstantIdiocy” is a Moderator an Administrator there?!)
• Facebook page for Survivalcraft for Windows Phone: http://facebook.com/Survivalcraft.WP7
• Web-based IRC chat for Survivalcraft: http://tinyurl.com/SurvivalcraftChat
• Survivalcraft Wiki Page: http://survivalcraftwp7.wikispaces.com – [unofficial]
• Le wiki français: http://survivalcraft.wikispaces.com – French-language Wiki - [unofficial]

-Posted from WordPress for Windows Phone.

Continue reading »]]> SPOILER ALERT: I’m going to recommend this watch to you in the review. I couldn’t make myself wait until later in the review to suggest it; you should go buy this watch. I’ve never been happier with any item I’ve strapped to my wrist. But I suppose you want more than just my recommendation, so let’s break it down.

The Casio Waveceptor WVM120 is a solar-charged, atomic-time-keeping wristwatch that is meant to survive people like me who are rather cruel to their possessions (really, I just think things should be able to be used). It’s not an ocean-diver’s watch, I wouldn’t recommend it in the field of battle, I have my doubts about its performance in space and I don’t think it could take a direct hard blow from a hammer. But none of that matters to me, because I’m just a regular guy who ends up in a lot of situations where a typical watch would probably end up in pieces – and many have. Not this one though, so far it’s a wrist-tank (or at least an armored car). But for all that it’s not intended to do, I have a feeling this watch would show me up and perform just fine in space or combat.. or space combat.

The first thing I tend to break on a watch is the strap or the clasp. The Waveceptor didn’t come with any fancy strap made from adamantium links, exotic leathers, kevlar or any other sort of strange material. It’s just a basic black resin strap with a simple buckle clasp.  They also have a silver metal band but I opted for the resin as metal on watches usually irritates my wrist. But so far, the strap is in perfect condition, the buckle looks like new still, the metal hardware doesn’t irritate my skin and the strap is comfortable overall. I’m about 9-10 months into the life of this watch and the fact that it’s still 100% intact is amazing.

The watch itself has a completely digital display, clean lines, no extra dials or knobs just for looks, a stainless steel back (that also doesn’t irritate my wrist!!) and bezel, 4 buttons that are very easy to press, a very durable face and an overall feeling of quality and durability. It looks good sitting on the wrist of pretty much anybody; whether they be in a business suit, swim shorts & flip-flops or hiking gear. The display is easy for me to read but it should be noted that some of the text on it is rather small. I have great vision but it might not be so easy for others to read. It has lots of features, so mastering the functions of the watch are definitely the only negative aspect of this watch. It doesn’t take too long to get the hang of it though and if you keep the booklet handy for a while, you should have no problem. Let’s take a look at those features, shall we?

When people look at my watch at first, they tend to dismiss it as just a basic cheap-ish watch. I recently had a friend make a comment about how he was surprised I didn’t have some fancy watch on, considering my penchant for tech toys and gadgets. I was happily obligated to explain to him that I did indeed have a fancy watch on my wrist and here’s what make’s it awesome:

• Solar-panels on the front face keep an internal battery charged. Casio claims that the watch will keep accurate time even if it goes without any light for 8 months.
• Watch has a handy power-saving function. Every morning when I pull my watch out of the drawer to put on, the display is off until it gets some light. I’m guessing it’s a light & activity-based function. If it was only light-based, it wouldn’t matter if it could go for 8 months with no light source, you wouldn’t see anything. So, pressing buttons probably also keeps it awake and if you’re nowhere near a light source for that long, you’ll be using the light button!
• Receives atomic-time calibrations automatically from all over the world. You shouldn’t ever really have to manually set this watch but you can if you like.
• Once the initial setup of the watch is complete, it will automatically adjust the time when you travel through different time-zones. It may not update immediately upon entering the new time-zone but it will at some point shortly after.
• You can view World Time in all sorts of other places.
• Comes with 4 daily alarms and 1 snooze alarm, as well as the friendly hourly chime (I haven’t really used these yet, I have an alarm clock by the bed).
• It features a handy countdown timer and a 1/100 second stopwatch.
• Water resistant to 100M. That means it could probably be worn to around 30 feet of water-depth for a couple hours no problem. Water resistant to 100M does not mean you can wear it 300 feet under water.
• Very durable and reliable construction. Every part of the watch feels like it was meant to last a long time under good use. The band is tough but flexible and comfortable and the watch itself isn’t too bulky or covered in extra pieces that can get caught on something and break. The metal of the clasp feels solid and tough. The buttons work easily but aren’t flimsy. I think you get the point, it’s durable .

There is a longer list of “features” but I consider those just “technical specifications” which isn’t what I’m too concerned with for this review. You can view the full spec-sheet here if you would like though! My goal is to give you a rundown of what the features actually mean to the average user and to share my perspective of the product as it relates to my needs.

Given all of that, here’s my official position on the Casio Waveceptor WVM120 Solar/Atomic Wristwatch (that really makes it sound like a super-hero gadget or something doesn’t it?):

Buy it. Unless you need something glamorous (really guys? “bling” is for teenagers), this watch will not let you down. It’s sort of a Jack-of-all-wristwatches. It has a lot of great features and durability, but it’s not meant for deep-diving, extreme physical impact (like using it to deflect an enemy bayonet attack) or extremely-formal fancy occasions. Here’s a list of tons of things you could definitely do with this watch on your wrist:

• Skydiving
• Rock climbing
• White-water rafting
• Shallow scuba diving/snorkeling/swimming
• Washing dishes
• Doing construction
• Work in an office
• Spelunking
• Camping
• Showering
• Makin’ love
• Sniping
• Living underground with no light source for months on end
• Competitive cross-country blind-folded llama herding
• I think we’re getting off the track…
• Etc.

Basically, aside from the most extreme situations, this watch can take it all. The water resistance means that, literally; it can take a lickin’ (say, from a giraffe or a St. Bernard) and keep on tickin’. I’m not getting paid to say any of this, I paid full price for this watch like 9 months ago – I just freakin’ love this watch! I might order another one just in case I do try to deflect gunfire or do a 500ft dive and the watch lets me down. I have nothing negative I can say about this watch for myself. I don’t like flashy watches, I don’t need a deep-diver’s watch and I avoid heated military combat situations. This has been the perfect watch for me and I hope I never have to buy another.

Here’s some photos from the Amazon product page, I’ll add some shots of how well it’s held up later.

Front of the watch.	The back-plate and the resin strap.
Buttons on the side, large but not obnoxious.	The measurements of the Waveceptor WVM120
Some people like to see the packaging .	More to come!

Continue reading »]]> Allow me to start with this statement; yes, I know Cisco dropped the Flip camcorder line (flipped them off?) back in April. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t still tons of these things floating around for sale and probably will be for a while. along with accessories. I certainly hope so anyway, I’m rather fond of the little thing. Support for Flip camcorders will be available until 12/31/2013. Cisco decided to sit on the product instead of selling it off, so they likely intend to use something of it in future hardware, or maybe try to re-release it later on. Either way, I think they should have restructured their strategies in a way that could improve the Flip market now, not kill it. Oh well, that’s neither here nor there, I’m here to talk about the camcorder itself.

It doesn’t get much simpler than this. I mean really. The front of it has a big red button (which you are very much supposed to press!), surrounded by a finger-friendly directional-pad. Then 1 more button flanks the directional-pad on either side, Play & Delete. Operation is a piece of cake! Here’s how it works:

1. Power on the Flip. Power button is on the right side of the Flip.
2. To start recording a video, point the camera and press the red button.
3. To stop recording a video, press the red button again.

• To zoom in/out press Up/Down on the directional-pad.

Voila. You just recorded 720p video. And you can record 2 hours of it. Sure, it may not have tons of settings to play with while in viewfinder mode, but I’m pretty sure that’s the point . This little pocket camcorder is very easy to use.

Managing the videos on the device is just as easy as recording them! Here’s what you do:

1. Power on the Flip. Power button is on the right side of the Flip (I’ll bet you remember that from just a second ago!).
2. Press Left/Right on the directional-pad to cycle through your recorded videos.
3. Select a video and press the Play button. Or, press the Delete button, whichever you like =D. It won’t let you accidentally delete very easily either, which is good!

• Pressing Up/Down on the directional-pad, while sitting idle on the view-finder, adjusts the zoom.
• Pressing Up/Down on the directional-pad during playback adjusts the volume of playback.

I’m not trying to re-write the owner’s manual here, just give you an idea of how user-friendly this thing really is. I’d take some video of it in action but I don’t have another camcorder, ha! I will show you some action-shots of the Flip as well as some sample recordings taken with it though. For now, let’s break it down.

Flip UltraHD product box

The Flip was meant to be an easy-to-use pocket camcorder. Something you carry on you to capture those moments where you say, “Damn! I wish I had gotten that on video!”. Something that you can have out of your pocket and recording high quality video in just a couple seconds, if you’re quick. A camcorder that can be used by people who don’t really get along with technology, just as readily as those who can dismantle your cellphone and put it back together in under a minute. It was also intended make painless the process of sharing the video you just recorded. In all of these areas, it definitely does the job.

What this device isn’t, is a top-end, professional, 1080p, studio-quality, waterproof, infinitely-expandable camcorder. But it’s also not $200! Bang for the buck, this camera is worth it. It’s really a shame that Cisco dropped this line, they could have gotten a lot more business out of it. Let’s go over some pros and cons.

PROS:

• Very easy to use, for just about anybody.
• Useful software included for interfacing with your computer.
• 720p HD video @ 60 Frames Per Second.
• Easy flip-out USB interface.
• Nice low price tag.
• Feels pretty durable.
• 8GB internal memory (Apple fans should like this more than expandable-memory types).

CONS:

• Cisco discontinued this product line indefinitely.
• Not 1080p.
• No expandable memory slot.
• No still-photo option (though you can choose individual frames from the videos with the included software)
  
• The included rechargeable battery may not last long enough to get the full 2 hours of video (though you can put different batteries in it, maybe some longer-lasting digital camera batteries).
• For a portable carry-everywhere camera, it could use some waterproofing and extra durability.
• The included software seems to be a bit buggy, specifically in regard to downloading product updates. But, being that it’s discontinued, I wouldn’t expect anymore software updates ;D.

When I was shopping, I was comparing this camera to the Kodak PlaySport (Zx3) HD Waterproof Pocket Video Camera. It does 5MP still photos, captures 1080p video, it’s waterproof and the camera line is still in business. But; it was more expensive, didn’t do 60 FPS @1080p, looked like a bit more than the 11yr old receiving it would need, had no internal memory (SD card only) and seemed more like something I should be buying for myself.

So, considering who we got the camera for, the price we paid (about $130) and what our needs were – I’m confident that we got the right camera. I may still go look at that Kodak for myself (I like to think I’ll be more responsible with the SD cards floating around but I’m just a guy haha) but this little Flip has filled exactly the gap it was supposed to.  Here’s hoping Cisco revises their opinion of the Flip line and brings it back!

Regardless, as I mentioned, you can still pick up this camera in lots of places as long as stock is available. The price will probably keep dropping for a while until everybody sells out, then they’ll be expensive again ha. There’s also tons of accessories available for it. If you have a child or technologically-impaired friend/family who needs a very friendly camcorder, I definitely recommend this one for a good buy.

Here’s some shots of the Flip UltraHD and a sample video:

Front of the Flip camera. Notice the simple interface.	Back of the Flip.
This is where the Flip name comes from. The simple flip-out USB port.	The ports on the bottom of the Flip. HDMI, "Flip Port", battery cover lock switch & a tripod mount.
Box contains: camera, protective pouch, wrist-strap, rechargeable battery pack and a user guide.	Flip UltraHD product box, all by its lonesome.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lhf63MNB1aI

Continue reading »]]>

Review: Demo for Duke Nukem Forever

WARNING: Spoiler alert

Summary: The demo is pretty much what we’ve all seen online about the game. You start out in the restroom, where you can piss at the urinals and fling poo against the walls. You see plans about using the stadium you’re in as a friendly base and overhear EDF soldiers. Following them out, you get to see what you’ll be up against. Now it’s your turn to kick some ass! Running through the tunnels, you make your way to an elevator with a weapon called the Devastator, which you pick up on your way out to the fight.

A little circle-strafing and constant rocket fire was all it took to defeat the simpleton boss – then a field goal and the first level was over. In the second part of the demo.. Oh wait, there is a part between the two, but I won’t ruin the surprise (even though you’ve seen the girls before from previously released footage).

Then it’s on to Highway Battle: part 2, where you get to drive a monster truck. Now, first off, I’m a PC player. I play with a keyboard and mouse. I don’t like using a controller with the computer. If you want to play with a controller, use a console! But of course, this turned driving into a very difficult task. The controls for the truck with the keyboard are interesting and obviously mapped from a controller to a PC. At any time you can get out of the truck, but that’s not the purpose of this part of the level. It’s meant for driving. So, suffering through the controls, overhead bombing raids, enemies and boulders, to top it all off you run out of gas.

Now it’s hoofin’-it through the Anderson Mine on foot to find some gas, while overhead enemies are flying over and being dropped off up ahead. You start off with an M1911 with a laser sight but no iron sights, although you can tighten your view with alt fire, which helps.

The second area is a mining area, which offers a lot of different opportunities to try out the weapons randomly placed throughout the level and a few different types carried by some of the enemies. This includes the M1911 Pistol, the Railgun, the Shotgun (with a front and pistol grip, my favorite gun so far), Pipe Bombs (with remote detonators), the Shrink Ray (which as it sounds will temporarily shrink enemies), The Ripper (a 3 side-by-side barreled machine gun), the RPG (with vehicle lock-on) and a Mounted Machine gun (watch out that it doesn’t overheat).

Using the Mounted gun was fun until the Aircraft came in and destroyed it, but the RPG made short work of it and I was on my way once again and off to the mines. This is where they show off all sorts of lighting and water effects, along with some interesting game play mechanics with the mine-carts. It also shows your ability to interact with certain objects, in this case barrels and mine-carts (mainly pushing them into place so you can go for a ride). After exploring the mines and fighting insects and finally finding the shack with the gas cans, I ride out of the tunnel into the daylight over insects and pig-men alike, finally ending up right in front of your truck. Fill the tank and… End of Demo. Exit Video Cinematic.

For More Screenshots:	CLICK HERE

RATINGS:

Duke Feeling: Good. It felt and sounded like Duke.

Graphics: Good, but nothing spectacular.

Controls: Alright. If using a keyboard and mouse, driving might be difficult.

Overall Rating: Alright, but I’ll pass. If you’re a hardcore Duke fan you’ll enjoy it, but for me it’s Duke Nukem with alright graphics. I personally got enough of it from the demo and will pass on it for the PC since it felt like it was meant for a console,  I’ll probably rent it through Gamefly for my PS3.

Overall Impression: I’m not sure about Duke Nukem this time around. YES, I understand it is a DEMO, but it’s still a representation of the final product. The game engine plays like it should have been released a long time ago. I mean, it looks nice; shiny, reflective surfaces all around, Duke Nukem spitting out one liners, and executing moves on enemies that have him utterly destroying them with big weapons and pretty explosions. For a Duke Nukem game, it’s not bad.

For me though, I don’t like the feeling of needing a controller. I understand you can get a cheap controller for the PC but why should I have to? That’s why I have a mouse with a bunch of buttons on it and I aim better with my mouse than I do with my thumb. I’ll probably rent it through Gamefly and play it on the PS3, but I think I’m gonna pass on this one for the PC. I give a nod to the developers and all those involved in finally bringing us Duke Nukem Forever, but honestly, I outgrew Duke Nukem waiting for it to come out and I think it’s time to say goodbye to a dear friend.

Review by Preston “Devasin” Patton