Angry Birds arrive on Windows Phone 7 at last

You can more or less claim that the cycle is complete – Rovio's insanely popular Angry Birds franchise is now available across most major mobile operating systems, having already appeared on iOS, Android, and now, Windows Phone 7. It would almost feel as though something was missing if your smartphone misses out on the Angry Birds phenomena, as there is something about those hair-tearing attempts at collecting three stars for each level, while unlocking all those golden eggs.

You will be able to download the ever popular Angry Birds game from the Windows Marketplace for $2.99 a pop, and for those who think that they can resist this game, you can always opt to “try" it for free.

With 165 levels for you to plow through, it might just end up being one of the better spent $2.99 on an app for your Windows Phone 7 handset. Of course, your boss might beg to differ since games are generally associated with a lower level of productivity around the cubicles.
source: Ubergizmo

World of Fourcraft transforms New York City into Risk game

Remember the board game Risk that required you to place plastic armies on a map so that you can conquer the world without much bloodshed, but with plenty of dice rolls in your favor? Well, the phenomenon that is known as Foursquare has met with Risk, thanks to the "World of Fourcraft" which relies on Foursquare and Google Maps APIs to transform New York City into a giant game of Risk. You will be able to decide on just which team you are on by swearing allegiance to one of New York City's five boroughs. Once you check into a neighborhood on Foursquare, it will be equal to placing a plastic man on a country in the board game. There will be an (hopefully fair) algorithm that decides just which faction owns the neighborhood via the number of people who have checked into it on each team. The idea hasn't really caught on at the moment though, with just around 100 players checked in at the moment.

After three days, Manhattan is in position to take top spot, picking up the "Best Location Hack" award at the hackathon in the process. Sorry, winning gives you bragging rights and nothing else – not even coupons.
source: Ubergizmo

Free World of Warcraft until level 20

If you have always wanted to have a go at World of Warcraft all this while, but never really got around doing so, now might be a good time to start. It seems that Blizzard is kicking off a brand new trial account system which will do away with the time limitations of the current free trial accounts. To put it in plain English, new players are able to play in an unrestricted manner up to level 20, before the game starts asking you to pay up.

Once you've done that, you can opt to “kill off” your character – or rather, ditch him/her and leave it at that, or pony up $20 that Blizzard asks so that you can continue losing sleep over the game. With the Burning Crusade expansion, you are able to touch level 70 while enjoying the Outlands area alongside the Blood Elf and Draenei races.

Blizzard has also come to a decision which might earn the ire of loyalists – the Burning Crusade expansion will be made completely free to those who has the game, but have yet to purchase the expansion. There will not be any compensation for those who have already bought the game prior to this, sorry. Will these developments cause you to take the World of Warcraft jump?
source: Ubergizmo

Dark side of movie tie-ins with Razer Transformers 3 Death Adder mouse

[Major spoiler alert after the jump if you haven't watched the movie yet] Are you rushing to get movie tickets for Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon? Well, I've already watched it at the midnight premiere, and you can be sure that it will still be ringing in the dough for Michael Bay and company, although don't expect to have a storyline which is worthy of an Oscar. I personally find the loopholes in the story as large as Optimus Prime's mechanical gonads. Razer, the gaming peripheral company, has a tie in with the Transformers franchise, churning out a Transformers version of their best-selling Death Adder mouse.

Imagine this, in the second movie, earth was about to be destroyed by the Decepticons, but here in the third (spoiler alert!), you see Megatron claiming that he and Sentinel Prime were in the cahoots together right from the beginning to bring Cybertron to whichever planet they landed on, which happened to be earth. How could this be if they were willing to blow earth up prior?

Back to the special edition Death Adder mouse – it will come in red, yellow, silver and purple paint, where they will retail for $69.99 a pop. Apart from the external cosmetic details, everything inside remains the same as the current market version. It won't come with a medal from President Obama though…
source: Ubergizmo

Operation Star Wars Puts R2D2 On The Slab

Watch as C3PO finally gets R2D2 where he wants him

The classic game of Operation is fun and all, but even in its sanitized card, plastic and metal form, digging into the faux-flesh of the human body is kind of gross. As somebody so squeamish he can barely cut his nails without feeling nauseous (don't get into a slap fight with me unless you want to get sliced), it's a game I'd love to play but sadly never will.

Or will I? Operation Star Wars has you playing a surgeon C3PO, operating on your little blue and white lover, R2D2. The robotic game of doctors and nurses has you welding the tweezers to pull out not bones but lightsabers, Leia holograms and tiny versions of Darth's helmet and the Death Star.

Who knows how these things got in there (or how you're supposed to grab a hologram with tweezers)? And who cares? If you've ever wondered what is inside the blooping body and brain of Artoo, now you know: tiny, abstract representations of the real world, just like we carry in our own heads. I guess robots and humans aren't so different, after all.

Available for pre-order, shipping September. $30.

Operation Star Wars [ToyWiz via Red Ferret]

Fruit Ninja Kinect Will Make Its Way To Xbox Live Arcade Later This Year

Whenever someone gets an iOS device, it's sort of like an unspoken rule that one of the games that they have get, apart from Angry Birds which is a given, would be the popular fruit slashing game Fruit Ninja, which is developed by Halfbrick Studios. A couple of months back in March, we reported that some German students managed to create a VR version of Fruit Ninja, with the use of a Wii controller. Granted the graphics weren't as eye catching as the actual game itself, it was still a pretty interesting concept, one of which Halfbrick Studios decided to pick up on, in an attempt to port the game over on to Microsoft's Xbox console, making use of the Kinect.

As it turns out, a working version of the game has already been created, and instead of using fingers to slash the fruit, users will use their arms instead. They will have to stand in the middle of the screen with their “shadow” being projected into the middle, and then slash away with their arms. The good thing about the Xbox Kinect version is that you will be able to use both arms, so there'll be a better chance of you slashing all the fruit, although we're guessing this will provide quite a workout.

Several new features will be added to Kinect version, such as a “challenge mode” where the player will have to complete various objectives. A “party mode” will also be featured whereby two players will be able to get in on the fruit slashing action, although we probably recommend standing far apart to avoid any accidents. Other features that can be found on the iOS game will also be making its way over, such as the special bananas and the pomegranates.
source: Ubergizmo

Batman: Arkham City Box Art Revealed

Here's a look at the box art for Warner Brothers' upcoming Batman: Arkham City title. As mentioned before, this action-adventure stealth video game will hit PS3, Xbox 360 and PC on October 18th. [Hooked Gamers]

World Of Warcraft Now Free To Play Up To Level 20

Blizzard has announced that World of Warcraft is now free to play up to level 20. Known as World of Warcraft Starter Edition, the video game allows players to play at their own pace without having to worry that the free trial will expire. When they reach level 20, they can continue playing but will stop earning experience, making it impossible to level up. Players will need to upgrade to the full version of the game in order to play more than level 20. [G4tv]

Sony sued for negligence over PS3 hack

It's been two months since the personal details of 100 million PSN and SOE users were stolen and Sony is still dealing with the fall-out.

Sony has faced a lot of criticism over the monumental PSN hack that saw the data of millions of users compromised. Though the hack happened two month ago (and many more companies and agencies have been hacked since then), time has done little to calm those who feel Sony didn't do enough to protect user data. In fact, three PlayStation users in New York have filed suit against the the electronics giant claiming negligence.

The plaintiffs, named as Felix Cortorreal, Jimmy Cortorreal and Jacques Daoud, are accusing Sony of negligence, privacy violations, and breach of contract, and say the company failed to protect users despite warnings from staff. According to HotHardware, the case alleges that Sony ignored warnings from its own staff, made no attempt to address the smaller break-ins now seen as precursors to the huge breach, laid off security personnel right before the breach occurred, and failed to properly safeguard consumers' information.

Though it remains to be seen whether Sony did ignore warnings from staff, the lawsuit claim that Sony failed to adequately protect customers' information may have a grain of truth to it. Following the breach, the company openly admitted that the attack exploited a “known vulnerability” in the web application server platform used in PSN. Sony CIO Shinji Hasejima said in early May that though the flaw was generally known, Sony management was not aware of it. The company also revealed that the attack went undetected for a period of time because its security team was tied up dealing with DDoS attacks that happened around the same time.

In related news, Sony chief Howard Stringer has once again apologized for the breach and credited users for their loyalty to the PlayStation brand. Speaking during a shareholders meeting, Stringer told attendees, “Our brand perception, you'll be happy to know, is clearly improving again.” It has also emerged that Stringer will be taking a 16 percent pay-cut this year. TGDaily reports that his compensation for the fiscal year just ended was 345 million yen, or about $4.3 million, and 500,000 shares of Sony stock, which are worth 518 million yen at the moment.
source: 2DayBlog.com

Game Gear modded to become Handy Gear

If you happen to see the Handy Gear somewhere, hold your horses before accusing it of being a cheap rip-off model of the original Sega Game Gear. This is actually lovablechevy's project over at Ben Heck's forum, where it sports a custom case that was created using the famous Sega Game Gear, a Master Gear converter, a PSOne display, in addition to other odds and ends to complete the portable console.

To put it plainly, this portable gaming device is capable of supporting Game Gear and Master System titles, and you need not exhaust your rechargeable AA battery collection, since it sports a built-in rechargeable battery that plugs into an AC outlet whenever it runs out of juice. The major drawback for this DIY project would be its rather hefty two-plus pounds of weight.

Definitely not something you will tote around to keep you entertained these days, especially on a long commute, but it is worth a look if DIY projects are your cup of tea.
source: Ubergizmo

World of Warcraft Starter Edition lets you reach lvl 20 for free

If there was one thing that's keeping humanity safe from total enslavement to the grind of World of Warcraft, it was the fact that you have to pay to play the game for longer than a couple of weeks. Well, now we're all doomed. Blizzard is replacing its 14-day WoW trial with a so-called Starter Edition of the massively multiplayer life usurper, which lets you reach level 20 without shelling out a penny. Of course, like any good gateway drug, this freebie is capped at the thoroughly insufficient 20 number and is sure to agitate folks into buying the full product. One small step for a software company, one giant leap forward for global obesity rates. God help us all...
source: 2DayBlog.com

Zenonia 3 launches on Android – full game currently free

It appears mobile publisher GAMEVIL is having a little experiment with the free gaming model, as the third installment of its popular Zenonia role-playing franchise has just launched on the Android Market for ZERO COST.

Previously, the asking price for Zenonia 1&2 has been around the $5 mark, give or take the odd promotional period, so this is a rather risky move to take for a big-news sequel…

…bit it does mean Zenonia 3 is bound to STREAK into the free game downloads #1 spot overnight. Currently there don't seem to be any ads on it either. But perhaps they'll pop up once the game is on everyone's phones?
source: Eurodroid

Dead Rising 2: Off the Record Release Date Announced

Capcom has finally revealed the release date for their upcoming Dead Rising 2: Off the Record title. This action-adventure video game is scheduled to hit North America and European shelves on October 11th and 14th. [Gematsu]

Lego Star Destroyer: 50-Inches Long, 3,000 Pieces

Ever wanted to re-make the opening shot of Star Wars Episode IV in Lego, but could never find a Star Destroyer big enough? If you'd really wanted to do it, you probably would have just bought a whole lot of gray Legos and gotten on with it. But for the lazier film makers, we have just the thing: The Lego Star Wars Super Star Destroyer.

This thing is huge. In fact, I have a feeling the minifigs were Photoshopped into the image above because it doesn't show the scale: the assembled kit is 124.5 cm long, or just shy of 50 inches, and weighs 3.5 kilos, or almost eight pounds. Lets just say your kids probably won't be playing with this very often.

The kit has more than 3,000 (mostly gray) pieces, and comes with Vader, Admiral Piett, Dengar, Bossk and IG-88. It also comes with a tiny, cute regular Star Destroyer. I bet you never thought you'd hear the words “tiny” and “cute” used to describe such a hulking death machine.

Predictably, it isn't cheap. The kit will sell for $400 when it launches in September. That's a lot for a toy, but still not enough to stop me considering it.

Lego Star Wars Super Star Destroyer [Lego via Uncrate]

Razer trots out Transformers 3 Edition DeathAdder, Vespula and laptop case

After what we're guessing was a fruitful tie-up with Tron, the fine folks at Razer are back at a similar well; this time, the company's dishing out a limited run of gear that's been splashed with color and branding from the upcoming Michael Bay train wreck blockbuster, Transformers 3. I guess everyone wants to milk something out of Shia Labeouf and Bumblebee.

Outside of being doused with red, yellow, silver and purple paint, the special edition DeathAdder mice ($69.99 a pop) are identical to the version already on the market. If that's just not enough, there's also a dual-sided Vespula mouse mat ($44.99) to commemorate the film, not to mention a foursome of colored laptop sleeves ($49.99 each) that'll make public your infatuation. Curiously absent? A handwritten letter of congratulations from Shia LaBeouf.
source: 2DayBlog.com

Original Crysis arriving on Xbox 360

When Crysis was first introduced to the PC back in 2007, it was notoriously famous for bringing even the best gaming rigs down to their knees. For many years it remained the go to game when it came to testing out the performance of a computer's graphic capabilities. Well it's now 2011, and technology has come a long way since then. Crysis 2 was released recently, and while it came with jaw-dropping graphics, it wasn't as unforgiving as its predecessor when it came to running on the computer mostly due to the fact that it was developed with consoles in mind as well.

Now it looks like the original Crysis is going to go where it has never been before: to the Xbox 360. Today, the South Korean Game Rating Board (GRB) approved Crysis for the Xbox 360, signifying its arrival on the console. The folks over at Inven (a South Korean game site) even contacted EA Korea for confirmation and it looks like the listing was no mistake. No release date has been given but it'll be interesting to see what had to be cut in order to make the transition to the Xbox 360 since the old game was such a resource hog. Stay tuned for more details.
source: Ubergizmo

Androcade Doubles As A Controller And As A Stand

Forget those tiny joysticks that you paste on your screen which also eats into your screen's real estate. How about taking a look at the Androcade instead? It creator, Scoot2084 made it shaped like the Android mascot and it's even green in color too! As you can see in the photo above, it not only can act as a stand of sorts for your Android device, but it can also double as a arcade controller for your Android games, with joystick, buttons and all!

With Arduino and the use of a Bluetooth shield, the Androcade lets you control your Android device wirelessly. If you want to read how he went about creating the Androcade, just head on down to his website for additional information and how to build your own Androcade if you wished. He even provides links to the necessary hardware and the code that you would require in order to get it working. We're guessing we won't be seeing the Androcade in stores any time soon, but we wish we did because not only is it incredibly cute, it also brings us back to the good old days of feeding quarters into arcade machines and button mashing.

Sony PlayStation Network Welcome Back promo ends this weekend

For those of you who were affected by the Sony PlayStation Network outage that lasted almost a month, Sony decided to compensate for the downtime by giving away a whole bunch of free goodies to everyone on its network. Well, for those of you who have yet to redeem your games - we've got some bad news for you. The window of opportunity for you to download your freebies is closing in just a couple of days.

The Welcome Back program ends this Sunday (July 3rd) - come independence day, if you haven't redeemed those games you'll never get a chance to download them for free again (bar some sort of promotion in the future, hopefully not another Welcome Back). Head here to find out more about what you can get from the Welcome Back program.
source: Ubergizmo

Sony's 'Welcome Back' campaign to end this Sunday, hurry up if you hadn't claim yours

Four weeks ago today, Sony announced its ‘Welcome Back' campaign following the weeks-long PSN outage that began in April. Now, the program is entering its final weekend, giving you just two more days to download your pair of free PS3 or PSP games, along with 100 virtual items from PlayStation Home and 30 days of PlayStation Plus. To claim your gratis package from the PlayStation Store, click on the “Welcome Back” tab and make your pick. Sure, a few hand-outs may not make up for those countless days you spent offline, contemplating a switch to other networks, but free stuff is free stuff, so head over to PSN to claim what's rightfully yours before the clock strikes midnight on July 3rd.
source: 2DayBlog.com

Artist wants to build a replica of Counter-Strike's de_dust map

If you were big on FPS games in the early 2000s, I'm pretty sure you would have been part of the Counter-Strike-playing crowd, and if you were you would probably remember every nook and cranny of one of its most famous maps: de_dust. Now imagine being able to explore the map - in real life. While de_dust wasn't based on a real location, a famous modern artist known as Aram Bartholl wants to change all that - by creating a life sized replica of the map.

The artist who is known for combining elements of the virtual world with reality, has written up a proposal for money that will be used to research, create small scale models and promote the de_dust replica that he intends to build. “Why would anyone want to build de_dust?” you might ask, and Bartholl has his reasons for choosing it:

Computer games differ from other mediums such as books, movies or TV, in that spatial cognition is a crucial aspect in computer games. To win a game the player needs to know the 3D game space very very well. Spatial recognition and remembrance is an important part of our human capability and has formed over millions of years by evolution. A place, house or space inscribes itself in our spatial memory. We can talk about the qualities of the same movies we watched or books we have read. But millions of gamers experienced the same worlds in computer games. They all remember very well the spaces that they've spent a great deal of time in.

Computer game architecture and game maps have become a new and yet undiscovered form of cultural heritage. How many people in the world have seen the real Time Square, the Kaaba in Mecca or the Tiananmen Square with their own eyes? Millions of players share the experience of the same computer games and 3D spaces they have 'lived' in for a significant amount of time in their lives.

A computer game map like 'de_dust' appears to be more real than many other places in the world such as artificially constructed places like supermarkets, airports or cities like Dubai. Unlike current computer games (with their endless worlds and terrains), game spaces of the 1990′s were still limited in size due to graphic card and processor power limitations. A respectively small and simple map like 'de_dust' offered a high density of team play with repetitive endless variations.

It sounds like a great idea and one that I would fully support (yes, I used to be a CS-fanboy). Hopefully Bartholl receives the grant and the green light to go ahead with the project. I can't wait to see how it turns out to be like. Head over to Bartholl's website to check out his other impressive masterpieces.
source: Ubergizmo

Evil Controllers 4th Of July Sale

In celebration of Independence Day, Evil Controllers is holding a 4th of July sale. For all the Evil Controllers fans, if they purchase one of the many mods that the company has to offer, they will be able to add on any of the build your own controller parts for free! Evil Controllers provides an array of mods from adjustable fast reload, auto-burst to their most popular Master Mod. Some mods will be offered as low as $74.99 each. The sale will begin on Friday, July 1, 2011 at 3:00 p.m. EST and will end on the evening of 4th of July, or until supplies last. [Evil Controllers]