games & graphics
Google Earth’s 3D Timelapse Is Its Most Important New Feature in Years
Google Earth is already a powerful tool for observing our planet, but today it’s getting a major upgrade with the introduction of a new 3D time-lapse feature. Described by Google Earth director Rebecca Moore as the biggest update to Google Earth since 2017, Timelapse in Google Earth combines more than 24 million satellite photos, two petabytes of data, and 2 million hours of CPU processing time to create a 4.4-terapixel interactive view showing how the Earth has changed from 1984 to 2020.
Source: Google Earth’s 3D Timelapse Is Its Most Important New Feature in Years
NFTs Weren’t Supposed to End Like This
When we invented non-fungible tokens, we were trying to protect artists. But tech-world opportunism has struck again.
Robinhood app makes Wall Street feel like a game to win – instead of a place where you can lose your life savings in a New York minute
Wall Street has long been likened to a casino . Robinhood, an investment app that just filed plans for an initial public offering , makes the comparison more apt than ever . That’s because the power of the casino is the way it makes people feel like gambling their money away is a game.
Why Retro-Looking Games Get So Much Love
There’s a psychology behind our affection for retro gaming, and it’s only partly to do with nostalgia for the past.
They laughed, they cried, they killed monsters: How friendships thrived in video games during the pandemic
Combined with phone calls, texts and chat tools like Discord, video games from battle royal “Fortnite” to the immersive world of “Roblox” are giving people a way to share fun, escapist experiences with each other when their shared reality is darker. They also act as a conduit for discussing the harder topics, like depression. Whether it’s shooting aliens together in near silence or opening up about feelings of loss, playing games is serving a valuable purpose
Another Big Step Toward Digitizing Our Lives
On Beeple, Nyan Cat and the latest tech phenom: the non-fungible token, or NFT.
Source: Another Big Step Toward Digitizing Our Lives
Fear and self-loathing in Animal Crossing: New Horizons
“Where have you been all this time?” A wave of guilt washed over me as I read these words on the screen. Considering how 2020 dismantled our reality and created a new set of post-coronavirus social paradigms, the last thing I wanted was to explain myself to someone I thought would understand.
Source: Fear and self-loathing in Animal Crossing: New Horizons
$42 million, fake checks, and broken promises: How one teenager nearly forged his way into esports
Joshua Mullins told associates he was a multi-billionaire esports investor. In reality, he was a small-town kid with a passion for gaming and a knack for forgery.
Source: $42 million, fake checks, and broken promises: How one teenager nearly forged his way into esports
The reason virtual reality still hasn’t taken off
Virtual reality has existed for nearly two decades, but it still hasn’t proven to be “the future of technology” as most were expecting.
Apple to Launch Mixed Reality Headset in Mid 2022 and Augmented Reality Glasses by 2025
Apple plans to release a mixed reality headset “in mid-2022,” followed by augmented reality glasses type by 2025, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said today in a research note with TF International Securities, obtained by MacRumors. “We predict that Apple’s MR/AR product roadmap includes three phases: helmet type by 2022, glasses type by 2025, and contact lens type by 2030–2040,” wrote Kuo.
Source: Kuo: Apple to Launch Mixed Reality Headset in Mid 2022 and Augmented Reality Glasses by 2025
Why the future of work will look like a video game
Work should be about the human experience of information. You’ll hardly find a better place where this occurs than in a video game.
Billionaires See VR as a Way to Avoid Radical Social Change
The future of virtual reality is far more than just video games. Silicon Valley sees the creation of virtual worlds as the ultimate free-market solution to a political problem. In a world of increasing wealth inequality, environmental disaster, and political instability, why not sell everyone a device that whisks them away to a virtual world free of pain and suffering?
Source: Billionaires See VR as a Way to Avoid Radical Social Change
Pigs Taught to Play Video Game With Snouts
Pigs can play video games, scientists have found, after putting four fun-loving swine to the test. Four pigs – Hamlet, Omelette, Ebony and Ivory – were trained to use an arcade-style joystick to steer an on-screen cursor into walls.
They’re Flocking to America to Make a Fortune Playing Video Games
League of Legends teams in the U.S. lag behind their competitors in Asia, so they recruit the world’s best players by offering huge salaries. Hu Shuo-Chieh, known as SwordArt, is a star among players of the League of Legends video game.
Source: They’re Flocking to America to Make a Fortune Playing Video Games
Profile of Keith Gill, Who Drove the GameStop Reddit Mania
The investor who helped direct the world’s attention to GameStop, leading a horde of online followers in a bizarre market rally that made and lost fortunes from one day to the next, says he’s just a normal guy. From his profile by The Wall Street Journal: “I didn’t expect this,” said Keith Gill, 34 years old, known as “DeepF-ingValue” by fans on Reddit’s WallStreetBets forum and “Dada” by his 2-year-old daughter.
Source: Profile of Keith Gill, Who Drove the GameStop Reddit Mania
Discord bans Reddit’s WallStreetBets for hate speech as scrutiny intensifies
Discord has banned the server used by the controversial subreddit r/WallStreetBets for what it says are repeated violations of the company’s hate speech policies. The ban comes as the subreddit’s moderators briefly took the group private, saying they were struggling to keep up with an influx of new users.
Source: Discord bans Reddit’s WallStreetBets for hate speech as scrutiny intensifies
The GameStop folly isn’t just a get-rich-quick scheme. It’s a tale of inequality.
Perhaps the most surprising news this week centers around GameStop , a store that we don’t hear about much anymore. The video game retailer’s prospects have been dimming for years: Why go to a mall, particularly amid a pandemic, when almost everything you need is available online?
Source: Opinion | The GameStop folly isn’t just a get-rich-quick scheme. It’s a tale of inequality.
A Fight Over GameStop’s Soaring Stock Turns Ugly
The denizens of the Wall Street Bets subreddit helped push the flailing stock to dizzying heights—while a short-seller alleged an accompanying harassment campaign.
Mass Effect 2 Cut Non-Straight Relationships After Fox News Controversy
The Mass Effect series is one of the most beloved RPG series of all time. When the original Mass Effect released back in 2007, it turned heads all over the world for its fictional complicated political landscape, branching character-driven story, and deep RPG elements.
Source: Mass Effect 2 Cut Non-Straight Relationships After Fox News Controversy
Microsoft will increase price of Xbox Live Gold subscription plans in apparent push for Game Pass
Microsoft announced Friday that it’s planning to dramatically raise the monthly cost of its Xbox Live Gold subscription service , which is required for Xbox owners who want to play their console games online. “Periodically, we assess the value and pricing of our services to reflect changes in regional marketplaces and to continue to invest in the Xbox community,” Microsoft wrote in its announcement. “We’ll be making price adjustments for Xbox Live Gold in select markets.
Source: Microsoft will increase price of Xbox Live Gold subscription plans in apparent push for Game Pass