Articles by Jonathan Charles
Nintendo President On Wii U: Barriers Removed For Hardcore Gamers
In an interview with Forbes, Nintendo President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) Reggie Fils-Aime said that the company accommoates hardcore gamers with Wii U's improved hardware and developer support.
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Halo 4: Flood Return In Infection Gametype
The press embargo for Halo 4 was lifted last week, revealing details on the opening missions in the game’s campaign along with the new “Dominion” gamemode. According to leaked screenshots of the French Official Xbox Magazine, the zombie-killing Infection mode allows players to be the being-consuming Flood.
Samsung Galaxy S3 Developer Edition Now Available: Expensive Option For Openness
Photos surfaced online last month of the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update for Samsung's Galaxy S3, though it was seemingly a non-consumer version of the phone. For consumers looking to get early previews of updates, the Developer Edition may be the answer. However, it comes at a price.
BlackBerry: Service Outages Continue To Create Bad Publicity, Say Analysts
BlackBerry's CEO Thornsten Heins apologized for outages in the smartphone service, though now corrected. Analysts quickly described the problems as bad publicity for the struggling phone maker as it struggles to maintain users.
Halo 4 Dominion Mode Brings Battlefield 3 Conquest Mode
343 Industries spoke about wanting to create concise playlists in Halo 4 after the 20-plus playlists in Halo: Reach. Of course new game modes will be introduced, and one of the modes is called Dominion.
Reasons HTC Presented Compelling Devices For Windows Phone 8
HTC's recent announcement of HTC 8X and 8S for Windows Phone 8 presented a compelling case for users to switch to Microsoft's mobile platform. The devices brought more color and different hardware compared to competitors, with designs described as the physical representation of a live tile.
Wii U's Budget Turtle Beach Headsets Represents Nintendo's Competitive Market
The words "Nintendo" and "competitive gaming" usually do not belong together in the minds of most gamers. The company is aiming to change that with the announcement of two Turtle Beach headsets for Wii U, its next-generation gaming console.
iOS 6: General Launch Sees 15 Percent Market Share, Eclipses Jelly Bean
iOS 6, the latest version of Apple's mobile platform, was released on Wednesday, and the operating system is already on 15 percent of Apple devices. The news contrasts Google's Android Jelly Bean and Ice Cream Sandwich, which do not have widespread adoption on Android devices despite the former having been released during this past summer.
HTC Unveils Its Windows Phone 8 Smartphones, Design Takes Precedence
HTC's press event on Wednesday unveiled the company's, and Microsoft's, flagship Windows Phone 8 devices. THe HTC Windows Phone 8X and 8S represent devices for the high-end and mid-range consumer, respectively. HTC added during the announcement that it worked with Microsoft to create the flagship phones, though Nokia seemed to be the flagship partner. Before this announcement, Nokia's Lumia 920 was the flagship Windows 8 smartphone.
iOS 6 Maps: What’s The Problem?
Apple's launch of iOS 6 on Thursday introduced a major feature in the mobile operating system: Maps. Apple ditched Google Maps and replaced it with an in-house alternative, but issues have blighted the service and prompted users to ask why Apple did not keep Google Maps.
Guild Wars 2: 40 Levels In, How Is The Game?
Guild Wars 2 has almost completed its first month on sale, with developer ArenaNet having its share of relatively minor issues. The game sold two million copies in two weeks, but are the sales justified?
Unity Support Comes To Wii U As Two Parties Reach Agreement
Nintendo and Unity announced on Wednesday that the Wii U console will support the Unity development engine, bringing the accessible engine to Nintendo's next-generation console. The engine will be available for current and future Unity developers.
Roku Updates iOS And Android Apps As Streaming Stick Is Unveiled
Roku unveiled its Streaming Stick, a peripheral designed the bring the functionality of Roku in a USB-sized stick which connects to HDTVs. The Streaming Stick is available for $99.99. The size of a hand, it connects via a HDMI port on a MHL TV allowing devices to be powered by high definition TVs. The device functions essentially as a Roku box, without a remote.
Windows 8 System Builder Edition Available At Retail Instead Of Other Copies: Why?
Reports suggest that Microsoft's System Builder version of Windows 8 is to be available at retail during launch, while the full non-upgrade version of Windows 8 will not be offered at retail. This version is not upgradable, but the digital upgrade versions Microsoft began offering earlier in the year are an option for existing Windows users.
PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale: Feature Parity, 60FPS, Alongside Console Version
PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale is Sony's take on the Super Smash Bros. formula; Sony and Nintendo are among the few companies that have a strong enough IP backlog to make the formula work. The mobile version for PlayStation Vita is not a second-rate version of the console title, reiterated the official PlayStation Blog.
Twitter's New Apps Put The Focus On Users: The Details
On Wednesday, Twitter unveiled a complete redesign to its mobile apps, bringing a focus to user content. The changes move the Home, Connect, Me categories to the left of the screen.
New Halo 4 Video Shows More Exile Gameplay, Big Changes
Video game Web site Giant Bomb played Halo 4, again, with 343 Industries game designer David Ellis and studio producer Che Chou. The game of Capture the Flag was played on the map Exile.
PlayStation 3 Gets Slimmer, Cheaper, And Larger: The Details
Sony unveiled a new PlayStation 3 on Tuesday. An FCC patent earlier in the year had hinted at a slimmer design, and the new model is 20 percent thinner and 25 percent smaller than the current model.
Nokia Lumia 920: 5 Reasons We're Excited About The Flagship Smartphone
Nokia unveiled the flagship Windows Phone 8 smartphone, Lumia 920, last week. It attracted lots of attention for its striking hardware and competitive internals. Here's why we are so excited about the smartphone.
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: Device Share Almost Doubles
Google's Android smartphone platform is commonly criticized because the majority of devices do not use the latest versions of the software. That is unlikely to change soon, as findings reveal that the latest version, Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, is used on just over one percent of devices.
Wii U Deluxe Edition Sells Out; Early Days, But Hints At Wii-Like Success
Mobilenapps.com reported recently that in an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime said that early Wii U sales were strong. GameStop corroborated the news by revealing that the Deluxe edition of the console has sold out.
Borderlands 2: VGChartz Claims Gearbox Title Sold Over 1 Million Units
Gearbox debuted Borderlands 2 this week, and the loot-collecting first-person shooter is launching to a strong critical reception. Though its figures should be taken with a grain of salt, VGChartz claims over a million units have been sold.
Apple iMessage Is Seeing Outages: Why?
iOS users on Apple's official community support forums are reporting that the iMessage functionality is seeing sporadic outages, despite messages appearing to be sent. The source of the problem is currently unknown.
Apple Sets The Trend: Tablets Used By Almost 50 Percent Of Users
A new survey revealed that just 50 percent of smartphone users buy apps, according to a survey from App Developer's Alliance. Android users in particular were described as "cheap" for downloading apps for free, though the behavior seems more widespread than the Android platform.
Cyan Nokia Lumia 920 Could Arrive Soon, Suggests New Video
Nokia’s Lumia 920 smartphone, unveiled last Wednesday, did not come in the iconic cyan color found on the Lumia 900. That could be changing with a new trailer for the smartphone hinting at a cyan color.
Reggie Fils-Aime On Wii U: We're Not Diluting Mario
Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime said in an interview with GamesIndustry.biz that while nervous about Wii U's launch, he is galvanizing Nintendo's American brand. In the interview, the console's price, launch titles, and competitors were also discussed.
iPhone 5: Demand Is 20 Times Larger Than iPhone 4S
It perhaps is unsurprising that Apple's iPhone 5 smartphone saw record pre-orders when users could order on Sept. 14. The software giant claimed it is "blown away" by the demand, seemingly outpacing 2011's iPhone 4S.
