sword

Subscribers have just a couple days before Netflix forces them into higher priced plans, iTunes Match gets released to developers, and Windows 8's Explorer window gets the ribbon from Office.

Links from Tuesday's episode of Loaded:

The Nintendo Wii launched with a Zelda game and now it looks like it will also go out with one, too. Call it the last Wii game you'll ever buy, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword will finally release in North America on November 20. Interestingly enough, the time in between the two Zelda games spans the entire life cycle of the Wii, so it's only fitting the console's last major piece of software be another adventure featuring our little green hero from Hyrule.

We've been critical of Nintendo for seemingly leaving the Wii hanging in terms of software support, but if our time with Skyward Sword at E3 2011 is any indication of the game's quality, we're highly optimistic about the final product. … Read more

With the introduction of the touch screen on smartphones, game developers had to come up with new control schemes that would work intuitively on the iPhone. And as iOS games evolved over time, new genres of games started to crop up that were perfect for touch screens and on-screen buttons.

One of those game genres is the castle defense strategy game. Even though you could play desktop and browser-based versions of these games, the touch screen on the iPhone worked so well that they were incredibly easy to pick up and play.

This week's collection of iOS apps is all about castle defense games. The first has a World War I feel as you battle your enemies across a series of dug-in trenches. The second lets you play as a character from the popular Evil Dead franchise as you fight off skeletons and other ghoulish enemies. The third is a new game in which you'll choose from three races to fight your enemies in a humorous battle to create the ultimate barbecue sauce.… Read more

Fruit Ninja is a simple, but well-made game that challenges you to slice and dice fruit with a ninja sword as it flies onto your Android screen. The controls are extremely simple, requiring you to swipe your finger through a flying fruit as you would slice with a ninja sword. There are three game modes: Classic, Zen, and Arcade. In Classic you're challenged to slice fruit as it flies on screen while avoiding occasional bombs that will end the game immediately or allowing three fruits to drop below the bottom of the screen. In Zen mode you won't … Read more

Wired's Chris Kohler posted a very telling gallery of reader-submitted dusty and neglected Wii consoles, games, and controllers on his Game|Life blog.

The photos look more like some sort of modern archaeological exhibit, displaying motion controllers seemingly frozen in time from the last moment they were used.

It's no secret that the Wii has lost plenty of steam since its enormous 2006 launch, with most gamers complaining of gimmicky software and lack of compelling blockbuster third-party titles. It seems Nintendo has even given up on the console, too. At the company's 2011 E3 press conference only … Read more

The big news this week from the world of Apple was the discovery that iPhones have been tracking users' locations as they go about their daily lives. Apparently, whenever you use Google Maps, or take a picture, or do anything that consults the GPS, your location and a time stamp are recorded in a log file on your iPhone. Apple is not using this information for anything, but it's not surprising many people find this particular previously unknown feature pretty unsettling.

Like probably anyone who heard this news, I had a lot of questions about what was being recorded, why it's being recorded, and what Apple has to say about it. Fortunately, our very own Josh Lowensohn and Elinor Mills put together an extensive FAQ to help you get all the info about the iPhone location-tracking function. Apple has not yet commented, but it will be interesting to see what happens in the coming weeks and whether the company will strip this functionality from later versions of the iOS.

This week's apps are a DJ app that lets you mix music on the go and an artistic adventure game that is both challenging and very engrossing.… Read more

A couple months ago a tech demo called Epic Citadel hit the App Store showing off Epic Games' Unreal III graphics engine on an iOS device. There wasn't much action to Epic Citadel besides walking and looking around at an intricate castle landscape, but the graphics were nothing short of jaw-dropping for the iOS. Epic promised that games were coming soon using the esteemed graphics engine, and iOS gamers everywhere waited to see what Epic could come up with that would work on a touch-screen device.

Infinity Blade, Epic's first game for the iOS, is finally here and … Read more

One of the biggest splashes in the iOS gaming scene came during an Apple keynote earlier this year when a preview of an upcoming game from Epic, using the Unreal engine, showcased graphics that seemed like they came from a next-gen console. A free preview of this game, called Epic Citadel, debuted shortly afterward. As a demo of the graphics prowess in the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad, it was unparalleled.

The full game is now available, and its name has changed to Infinity Blade. The universal app costs $5.99, and the bottom line is this: its graphics top … Read more

Complicated at first but easy to grasp, Samurai II: Vengeance offers a balanced mix of slashing, bloody violence, and a puzzle-solving storyline.

The highly anticipated sequel to the critically acclaimed Samurai: Way of the Warrior brings a retooled gameplay method, ultrasmooth manga-inspired graphics running at 60 frames per second, and, of course new, bloodier fight techniques.

Daisuke seeks vengeance on his arch-rival, Orochi, and will stop at nothing to defeat him. The 3D levels are tracked by a dynamic camera that floats in and out of the action, revealing vicious adversaries and challenging obstacles in each level.

The battle sequences … Read more