Extreme Data Usage from Google Play All Access Leaves the Service Unusable

Posted by on May 23, 2013 at 6:47 pm in Tech

Extreme Data Usage from Google Play All Access Leaves the Service Unusable

Holy data usage Google!

Out of Google I/O came Google Play All Access, an unlimited streaming service almost identical to Rdio, Spotify and a handful of others. Google offered a free 30-day trial and although I’m pretty happy with Rdio, I decided to give it a try. Why not, right? At work, I stream music all day over 4G without an unlimited data plan so after a few days with Google Play All Access, I was surprised to see the dreaded text telling me that I hit my monthly data allowance. Read the rest of this article…


Are People Really Still Mad About The Xbox One Unveil?

Posted by on May 23, 2013 at 3:43 pm in Gaming

Are People Really Still Mad About The Xbox One Unveil?

Everything will make much more sense in a few hours!

It’s been over 50 hours since Microsoft unveiled their new console, but the reaction appears to still be largely negative, which wasn’t the impression I got, but there might’ve been a key difference: Microsoft had already stated that this wasn’t a games event. Do you realize how much this changes their E3 press conference? On the flip side, people, (even developers! (even games sites!)) seem to be giving Sony a lot of credit where, in places, it’s largely undeserved and so little information is available.

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Listen/Watch “Reach For The Dead” From Boards Of Canada’s New Album

Posted by on May 23, 2013 at 1:55 pm in Entertainment

Listen/Watch “Reach For The Dead” From Boards Of Canada’s New Album

Oh man, oh man, oh man…

Hoo boy was I excited when Warp announced that a new Boards of Canada album was in the wings. Due out June 11th in the US (right in the middle of E3, of course), Tomorrow’s Harvest is the group’s first LP since 2005. Yeah, it’s been that long. Well, today they dropped the first single off the record, titled “Reach For The Dead”. Yeah, it’s weird to say “single” in the context of a BoC release.

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Time To Throw Away That Tube TV; Xbox One Won’t Support It

Posted by on May 23, 2013 at 1:31 pm in Gaming

Time To Throw Away That Tube TV; Xbox One Won’t Support It

I didn’t notice the lack of analog output before, did you?

When you think about it, the Xbox 360 kinda launched at an awkward time. It supported resolutions up to 1080p if your TV supported it, but it was all through the three-cable component video feed. Since many gamers still clung to their big CRT-based sets, like me, Microsoft needed to establish parameters for two major sets of display ratios. No longer. If you want an Xbox One in your house, you need HDMI. No analog trickery is going to work this time.

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Would You Buy A New ‘Crackdown’ Game On Xbox One?

Posted by on May 23, 2013 at 12:18 pm in Gaming

Would You Buy A New ‘Crackdown’ Game On Xbox One?

While the franchise was never triple-A quality, it was still a lot of fun.

It only takes the quick glimpse of a Crackdown achievement on display at Microsoft’s Xbox One premiere to set forth a bunch of rampant speculation about the future of the franchise. When Microsoft made the announcement seven years ago that they had brought on David Jones, the original creator of Grand Theft Auto, to make an exclusive first-party title for the Xbox 360, the crowd went wild. But is there any value left in the series after all these years?

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Star Command (iOS) Review: The Spaceship Manager Of My Dreams?

Posted by on May 23, 2013 at 10:59 am in Gaming

Star Command (iOS) Review: The Spaceship Manager Of My Dreams?

To boldly go…

It’s been eight months since I reviewed FTL: Faster Than Light, but we’re still waiting for many of Kickstarter’s first class of games to graduate to really understand if crowdfunding is a viable way to make them – and not just make them, make good ones. I must admit, Star Command was the first game I bought for my iPad – a new purchase all its own – and I look forward to more games like it. Like FTL, Star Command is a spaceship manager, but unlike that masochistic Roguelike, this integrates hints of X-COM and Bullfrog-era strategy tropes to become a charming strategy game all its own.

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‘Wizardry’ And ‘Mortal Kombat’ To Release Digitally: “Hello, Old Friends!” And “Why Are You Still Here?”

Posted by on May 23, 2013 at 6:00 am in Gaming

‘Wizardry’ And ‘Mortal Kombat’ To Release Digitally: “Hello, Old Friends!” And “Why Are You Still Here?”

Wizardry? OHAI!

Today we got a couple of interesting press releases. One of them got me really excited because it takes me back to younger days when gaming was on the rise and new developers were pulling out all the stops in attempts to constantly one-up each other. The other was really interesting because it gave me the same sense of morbid fixation one gets whilst watching crash tests at the end of a night of binge drinking and serial fornication.

Gosh, I love those crash test videos!

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Ruffles’ “Tangy Honey Mustard” Starring Ruff McThickridge! [VIDEO]

Posted by on May 22, 2013 at 8:17 pm in Off-Grid

Ruffles’ “Tangy Honey Mustard” Starring Ruff McThickridge! [VIDEO]

“What is this?” you may be wondering. Well, our sponsor, Ruffles, has put together this awesome campaign for their newest flavor Tangy Honey Mustard! Our heroes Ruff McThickridge and his sidekick Bo Dato are craving the victory of the Ruffles Cup, but they must overcome evil forces! Luckily for them, they have Mora Crunchy and a bomb-defusing sloth on their team! You must check out the video. Must; because it features muscle cars, seventies action cliches and cheesy stereotypical one-liners that you’ll enjoy! Read the rest of this article…


Tesla Pays Back $452M Loan Nearly A Decade Early, Justifies Government Investment?

Posted by on May 22, 2013 at 5:17 pm in Tech

Tesla Pays Back $452M Loan Nearly A Decade Early, Justifies Government Investment?

Tesla repaid their loan nine years early.

There are some sensical reasons to not be a Tesla fan. Purely electric vehicles are still expensive, early going and not terribly practical for people with long commutes. They take all night to charge, they won’t cross country, Tesla’s Supercharger stations are hardly anywhere. Still, even if you can’t fall in love with the company’s progress, its ability to cut us from our oil dependence or the high quality of their Model S sedan, you can keep this in mind: they paid off their government-issued alternative fuels loan super early. Nine years early.

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Worth Buying Again: ‘Alan Wake’ Humble Bundle Is Up!

Posted by on May 22, 2013 at 4:51 pm in Gaming

Worth Buying Again: ‘Alan Wake’ Humble Bundle Is Up!

Eh, so maybe the game part isn’t terribly fun, but name your own price? Worth it!

The gods are shining down on Remedy this week. After a big unveiling of their newest game during Microsoft’s Xbox One conference, Quantum Break, the legendary bullet-friendly developer is now presenting their entire Alan Wake anthology for whatever amount you want to pay for it. Sam Lake, the company’s creative director, also gives us a heads up on where the franchise is going. Spoilers: nowhere any time soon.

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