Civilization is a game I’ve been playing for more or less 15 years, across multiple iterations of the series, and yet each new version always seems to feel fresh. After spending nearly 20 hours with a special preview version of Civilization VI, I can safely say that the same is true of this upcoming game, which manages to deliver all the familiarity you’d want as a Civ fan, with… Read More
On this week’s episode of TCBC, after a brief Disrupt-induced hiatus, longtime TechCruncher Greg Kumparak dishes on Pokémon Go – what made it so appealing at launch, what’s going on with product development, and where he’d like to see it go in the future.
Greg and I are both big Pokémon fans, so it’s a subject about which we have no shortage of things to say. Read More
The Philadelphia 76ers became the first American professional sports franchise to own an e-sports team with the purchase of pro gaming outfits Dignitas and Apex. If this isn’t proof positive that online pro gaming is big business, I don’t know what is. Read More
If you’re at all interested in retro gaming, you’ve probably come across 8Bitdo, the company that makes throwback Bluetooth controllers inspired by classics like the SNES and NES. Now, it’s paying homage to another classic, the Apple II. The company’s new Kickstarter project seeks funding for a game controller called the AP40, featuring a full load-out of buttons,… Read More
Now that the dust has settled from Foursquare’s big split, the company is pushing forward with a few new executives and a brand new office in Los Angeles. The company has recently brought on Gareth Paul Jones — former head of mobile partner integrations at Twitter, who previously held positions at companies like Apple, TRUSTe, and Google — as Director of Technology Services.… Read More
It’s hip to be square — well, cubical, really. That’s the feeling I got from the amount of voxel-based offerings on the show floor at PAX West — and these 3D pixels fit the bill whether they’re powering a stylized dungeon crawler or simulating a whole planet. Read More
Mobile gaming company SGN announced today that it has a new name, Jam City.
This isn’t the first time the company has rebranded — it was called MindJolt before acquiring SGN and then taking on the name in 2012.
The change may be an inevitable reflection of the company’s — and the industry’s — transition from social to mobile games. CEO Chris DeWolfe (who… Read More
You know how sometimes you look at a piece of research and think, “I suppose it’s an interesting technical problem, but isn’t teaching an AI to hunt and kill humans a pursuit fundamentally dangerous to the continued existence of mankind?” This is one of those times. Read More
Game streaming is something that everyone working in streamed video wants a part of, and now Facebook Live can stream Android games (and other apps) via the BlueStacks desktop emulator for PC and Mac. The integration is pretty smart, and while it was previously available for Twitch, the addition of Facebook Live support means mobile games streamers can potentially reach a different, more… Read More
Signia Venture Partners has closed its second fund at $85 million to lead early-stage deals in emerging tech startups mostly in and around San Francisco. For the unfamiliar, Signia is typically the first money in and the lead investor in the companies it backs, writing $1-2 million in seed stage deals or $2-8 million in later stage rounds. The firm was started in 2012 by Rick Thompson, the… Read More
The full version of Minecraft: Education Edition is finally arriving on November 1, following an extended testing and free trial period that began this summer. The version of Minecraft aimed at educators and schools came out of Microsoft’s acquisition of learning game MinecraftEdu earlier this year, which built upon Minecraft to give teachers tools to build lessons around STEM, art,… Read More
The new Pokémon Sun and Moon games are still a couple of months away, with a release date set for November 18, but the news keeps trickling out about its new Pokémon and features. The new Pokémon revealed today include version specific creatures for each of the two games, and new evolutions that differ in Sun and Moon as well. Plus, a new in-game feature lets you show your Pokémon a… Read More
I walked into a store and bought two today (there were plenty more around) so chances are you won’t have to resort to overpaying on eBay for a pre-order slot. After only a few hours playing with the Go, I already feel like it has a good chance of pulling me back into the game, at least for a little while, and the entire experience of using it is pretty painless. The Go Plus was easy to… Read More
Razer originally started as a hardware company making mice, keyboards and other peripherals optimised for dedicated computer gaming, with its mantra being “For Gamers, By Gamers.” Now, 18 years into its life, it’s changing things up a bit. While the company continues to build hardware and its newer software business, Razer is now also announcing zVentures, a new… Read More
Razer’s not your average startup. For one thing, there’s the fact that the company has roots dating back to 1998, making it enough to vote or buy a lottery ticket here in the US (except in Nebraska, Louisiana and Iowa, apparently). Also, the company has devoted a good number of its resources toward funding and supporting other startups through ventures like OSVR and Razer zVentures,… Read More
If there’s one industry that’s consistently blowing past expectations, it’s competitive gaming. The e-sports market is expected to reach nearly a half-billion dollars this year, and gamers who take part in it are constantly trying to heighten their skills.
Mobalytics is aiming to bring visual analytics to competitive gamers so they can discover their weaknesses and make… Read More
Pokémon Go will come to Android Wear, it seems. At TechCrunch Disrupt SF this afternoon, John Hanke, CEO of Niantic Labs – the company behind the most viral and profitable mobile game of all time – confirmed that his team will look into bringing game to other mobile platforms which are interesting in terms of both gameplay and mobility. Asked specifically if Android Wear was on… Read More
Malaria is treatable and preventable. And yet, the World Health Organization reports that almost half the world’s population — 3.2 billion people — are still at risk of contracting the life-threatening disease. At the Disrupt SF Hackathon, a group of teenage girls is gamifying malaria prevention to help halt the spread of the disease. They’re Aruna Prasad, 16,… Read More
How do you convince a potential car buyer your vehicle is a future-focused choice? One way is to get one of the most iconic creators of cinematic futurescapes to help you build a virtual world that people can drive the car through themselves. Toyota enlisted Syd Mead, the creative visionary behind Blade Runner and Tron‘s vehicles, architecture and more. Mead provided concept art and… Read More
Apple just announced that it is working with Nintendo to deliver a new game on the App Store called “Super Mario Run.” As the name implies, Super Mario Run is a runner game – think “Temple Run” – that lets you tap to jump, and tap longer to jump higher. The longer you run, the more coins you collect, and you simply finish the race by getting to the flag at… Read More
Sony unveiled a new, sleeker version of its PlayStation 4 today as promised. The PS4 Slim is basically the same as its predecessor inside, but in a smaller shell and with a new price tag at $299 with a retail availability date of Sept 15. The new model is the “standard PS4 going forward,” according to Sony, and will replace the original console hardware. What they say is almost… Read More
Sony is revealing the details of an upgraded version of the PlayStation 4. Sony Interactive Entertainment President Andrew House said the new version of the console — dubbed the Pro — is specifically designed to support 4K TVs and high dynamic range video. In other words, it can offer more beautiful, detailed graphics than the existing PS4. Sony’s Mark Cerny said… Read More
If you’re not familiar with the Mass Effect series of sci-fi role-playing games, then you’re missing out. The new PS4 Pro that Sony unveiled today can handle 4K, and Bethesda used the opportunity of the event to give us our first look at Mass Effect: Andromeda gameplay, which does take great advantage of the added resolution capabilities. The latest Mass Effect game will support 4K… Read More
Sony is having a PlayStation event tomorrow in New York, where it plans to provide an update on its PlayStation business and PS4. Most people agree that means it’s going to show us a couple of PlayStation hardware updates, including a previously announced more powerful PlayStation 4 (supposedly codenamed “Neo”) with support for 4K and more robust virtual reality, and a… Read More
Only ’90s kids will remember this. 