Valve Takes on Live Game Streaming with Steam Broadcasting

The game streaming space, one that has been dominated by Amazon’s Twitch and various gamer YouTube channels, has proven that today’s gamers are just as interested in watching others play as they are in playing games themselves. In response to this trend, game developer Valve, the company behind Steam’s game services, has announced Steam Broadcasting, a tool that allows members to become viewers by tuning into the live gameplay of other users within the Steam gaming community.  Continue reading Valve Takes on Live Game Streaming with Steam Broadcasting

Nintendo Characters Come to Life with Interactive Gameplay

Nintendo recently released a Wii U version of the popular “Super Smash Bros.” in addition to a series of Amiibo toy figurines designed for interactive gameplay. While facing the growing popularity of less expensive games for mobile devices, Nintendo has also recently struggled to compete with other console manufacturers, leading to disappointing overall sales of its Wii U. Nintendo hopes that the Amiibo line can reignite interest in some of its most beloved characters such as Mario and Luigi. Continue reading Nintendo Characters Come to Life with Interactive Gameplay

DreamWorks Developing 360-Degree Rendering for VR Films

DreamWorks Animation is working on new technology that will bring its pre-rendered CGI films to virtual reality headsets like the Oculus Rift and Gear VR. To support headtracking, the company has developed “Super Cinema” technology that pre-renders the entire 360-degree image so that no matter which way a user turns his/her head, the frame is already generated. This technology would allow consumers to have an immersive VR experience even on lower-end hardware. Continue reading DreamWorks Developing 360-Degree Rendering for VR Films

Fuffr Develops Multitouch Tech with Focus on Mobile Gaming

Sometimes a smartphone’s surface is just not big enough to make the most of mobile and social gaming. Even today’s largest smartphone screens have limitations that can hinder the multiplayer gaming experience. That is where Fuffr comes into play. The company has designed a mobile case that projects infrared lights to the surrounding areas of the phone, so that these areas too, can be used as multitouch surfaces for gameplay and a variety of other applications. Continue reading Fuffr Develops Multitouch Tech with Focus on Mobile Gaming

Virtual World Game Offers New Level of Interactive Storytelling

“Dragon Age: Inquisition” is a true testament to how sophisticated story-based virtual world games have become. The video game experience has become as immersive as any other story telling medium, told using compelling techniques that game developers have experimented with over the years. “Dragon Age: Inquisition” — while not the first video game to offer sophisticated interactive narrative — has been deemed one of the most ambitious story-based games of the year.  Continue reading Virtual World Game Offers New Level of Interactive Storytelling

Study Shows Media Violence Not Linked to Societal Violence

A study recently published in the Journal of Communication found that no significant association exists between media violence consumption and societal violence. Researcher Christopher Ferguson of Stetson University conducted two studies, one which compared movie violence and homicide, and the second which focused on video game violence and youth violence rates. The findings point to an increase in media violence, but not a correlating increase in real-life violence. Continue reading Study Shows Media Violence Not Linked to Societal Violence

Nvidia to Stream Games via Grid Cloud-Based Gaming Service

Following a positive response to the Shield Android tablet, Nvidia hopes to win gamers over once more with the launch of its game-streaming service later this year. The Grid cloud-based service is slated for a North American launch later this month with Europe and Asia scheduled for next year. Nvidia will aim to release new games frequently, every week or so, to quickly amass a library that exceeds 100 games. The gaming service hopes to capture consumers of the Shield products market. Continue reading Nvidia to Stream Games via Grid Cloud-Based Gaming Service

Nintendo Finds New Ways to Profit from Existing Wii U Games

During the recent Nintendo Direct live-streaming broadcast, the company directed its Wii U focus on two familiar games: “Mario Kart 8” and “Super Smash Bros.” However, Nintendo continues to struggle to find software makers for Wii U games. Most of the presentation was devoted to how Nintendo will keep the currently available games interesting. In order to sell more existing games, the company plans to add content to games such as “Mario Kart,” “Hyrule Warriors,” and “Pikmin 3.” Continue reading Nintendo Finds New Ways to Profit from Existing Wii U Games

SkreensTV Wants to Bring Everyone Together Around One TV

A company called SkreensTV hopes to reinvent the way families share the living room television with a new approach to split screen technology. With up to five HDMI inputs, the new device enables users to split one TV screen to display content from various sources including pay TV, streaming services, social network sites and gaming consoles. With the use of a tablet or other mobile device, users can adjust for size and rearrange the positioning of the content being projected onto the larger screen. Continue reading SkreensTV Wants to Bring Everyone Together Around One TV

New Google Chromecast Apps Turn the TV into a Game Board

Google’s Chromecast streaming device now supports new game apps that viewers can play on their TV screens. The games include both board game classics, like sped-up versions of Scrabble and Monopoly, in addition to new titles. Users must download the corresponding game app to their mobile phones and then they can use their phones to play the games on their TV screen. The relatively quick games are more like mobile games than they are like traditional video games. Continue reading New Google Chromecast Apps Turn the TV into a Game Board

Taylor Swift Music Video Offers a New Take on Virtual Reality

Pop star Taylor Swift’s new music video “Blank Spaces” comes with an app that offers fans an interactive experience in the video’s pristine mansion setting. The app is available for iOS and Android, and it gives viewers a chance to explore the scenes featured in the music video, see Swift dance just a few feet away, and discover Easter eggs with extras such as Polaroids. This app may point to the future of music videos, and could provide an ideal testing ground for virtual environments. Continue reading Taylor Swift Music Video Offers a New Take on Virtual Reality

Review: Google Nexus Player Should Appeal to Cord Cutters

According to reviewer Tim Moynihan writing for Wired, Google’s $99 Nexus Player, a new streaming box running Android TV, offers “the closest a platform has come to a usable form of the Web on your TV — the parts of the Web curated by Google, at least.” The Nexus Player provides a seamless way to navigate the Internet on your television with features such as voice command, YouTube streaming and the ability to cast practically anything from the Internet to your TV screen.  Continue reading Review: Google Nexus Player Should Appeal to Cord Cutters

Ellen DeGeneres Goes Interactive with Ellentube App and Site

Ellen DeGeneres is launching Ellentube, a website and app that will screen exclusive content from her popular daytime television program. The TV personality already runs one of the largest YouTube channels focused on television content. Now, along with executive producers Mary Connelly, Ed Glavin and Andy Lassner, DeGeneres has created Ellentube for interactive use. Fans will be able to upload videos, the best of which will be deemed suitable for a showcase on her daily program. Continue reading Ellen DeGeneres Goes Interactive with Ellentube App and Site

Instagram Launches Carefully Curated Autoplay Video Ads

Facebook’s Instagram introduced autoplay video ads into its users’ feeds last week. Activision, Banana Republic, the CW, Disney and Lancome are the initial advertisers to strike a deal with Instagram for the 15-second spots. The company reviewed all of the video ads before the launch to ensure that they fit with Instagram’s overall vibe and contain fresh content. Other social network competitors, like Tumblr and Snapchat, have also recently added autoplay video ads. Continue reading Instagram Launches Carefully Curated Autoplay Video Ads

Oculus Rift Virtual Reality Technology Not Just About Gaming

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg imagined that the Oculus virtual reality technology his company acquired would eventually go beyond gaming — and it looks like that trend is already taking shape. Developers from a wide variety of industries are working on new apps for the Oculus Rift that could be used by stock traders, educators, psychiatrists, astronauts, filmmakers and others. The Oculus Rift is making VR more accessible because of its relatively low cost and growing variety of content. Continue reading Oculus Rift Virtual Reality Technology Not Just About Gaming