fighter

Think "Star Wars" games have been done to death? I guarantee you've never seen anything like Star Wars Arcade: Falcon Gunner. It's like the PC classic "TIE Fighter" mixed with the ingenious UFO on Tape mixed with the Layar Reality Browser.

Confused? This video might help:

Millennium Falcon AR Test from Josh Shabtai on Vimeo.

As you can see, the game overlays itself on whatever appears in your iPhone camera lens. Point it at the night sky and, presto, you're blasting TIE fighters in outer space. Point it at the dog and, um, … Read more

Brace yourself for a lot of video game news on today's episode of The 404 Podcast as we discuss Wilson's obsession with throwing pigs at cats, Street Fighter experts offering lessons for $50 an hour, Rage running on an Apple iPhone, and BioShock Infinite!

Fresh off the success of this year's BioShock 2, the creators of the original game just announced a complete reimagining of the franchise in the form of BioShock Infinite. The original BioShock enjoyed countless game of the year awards, thanks to its creative storytelling. Ken Levine, creative director at Irrational Games, tells us … Read more

Apple refreshed its lineup of iMac desktop computers this morning to include faster CPUs and an improved graphics chip for games and video editing. The new computers also support larger hard drives (and even solid-state drives) with a higher capacity SDXC card slot for your media and start at $1,199.

Apple also announced a new line of Mac pro machines that offer up to 12 cores and Turbo Boost, a technology that can deliver even higher processor speeds. And the company unveiled a gorgeous 27-inch LED display to complement the new system.

Finally, Apple showed off the Magic Trackpad, … Read more

This week, we go on and on about incredibly difficult-to-pronounce product names, which is just every product Dong comes in contact with. No, I kid! Actually, no I'm not kidding. No, of course, I'm joking! Um, no, it's true, he really has a problem. Oh, come on, you guys fall for the easiest jokes. Seriously, he needs help.

Then, we talk about games. Dong's playing Starcraft 2 and brags about how he's beating beginners; and I'm knee deep in Super Street Fighter 4 and getting my hat handed to me.

Finally, power-line adapters and … Read more

You can now test your fighting prowess using the iPhone as the arena with Capcom's new release of Street Fighter IV.

With its roots in the arcade, the popular game found its way onto the Xbox 360, the PlayStation 3, and the PC before finally hitting the iPhone and iPod Touch last week. Using similar gameplay and a few of the same characters as its bigger screen brothers, Street Fighter IV works better than one might expect on the smaller format.

You can choose to play from among any of the six featured characters, including Japan's Ryu, French … Read more

Before we get to this week's apps, a news item over at AppleInsider indicates we may be getting a change to the iPhone operating system that many have been talking about. According to one AppleInsider's more reliable sources, the iPhone OS 4.0 could add multitasking support in the next OS update. This means you'll be able to run apps simultaneously making it possible to switch between apps without closing them.

A lot of smartphones already have multitasking support, so it's been one of the bigger complaints for detractors of the iPhone. Frankly, I think it'… Read more

This week on preGAME, hosts Jeff Bakalar and Mark Licea take a look back at all of the big announcements from last week's Microsoft X10 conference in San Francisco. Today's show is chock-full of debut trailers, announcements, and first look game play video of some of 2010's most anticipated Xbox 360-centric games.

But before we get into the big announcements, we'll chat about the death of local multiplayer. Long gone are the days of local four-player split screen action like Goldeneye 64. Now more than ever, game developers are overlooking the game play element that defined the "party game." Why is this upsetting trend so popular? And why do game developers choose to leave it out?

All this plus the week's headlines and releases on preGAME!

Want to be a part of our live taping? Make sure you head to http://cnet.com/live/pregame every Tuesday at 4 p.m. Eastern. If you missed any of the stories we talk about on today's preGAME, make sure to check out our links below.

SmackBots is a button-mashing robot-fighting game that's more than a little reminiscent of the classic childrens' game "Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots."

The interface makes great use of the iPhone and iPod Touch: you tap on the right side of the screen to swing your right fist, the left for your left, and both sides to block, and you tilt your device to move left or right. You fight against one other robot at a time, in two-minute rounds (best two out of three), and you choose your difficulty, either "Just Smacking Around" or "… Read more

As we speak, the Foo Fighters are playing a live show on Facebook, live from their own Studio 606, for their fans on the site. The concert is utilizing the same live-stream module we have seen in used in a variety of situations in the past, including CNN's live stream of Barack Obama's inauguration. This is combined with a live video module from Livestream to complete the experience.

This is a really cool thing for the band to do for its fans and something I hope we see more of in the future. As the Foo Fighters play, they are keeping an eye on the stream of status updates coming in, sometimes responding to comments and taking song requests.

There is an undeniable trend of live events moving online. The potential audience that can be reached is fairly significant and the costs are low. As shown by the Foo Fighters, a band can just broadcast a live show for their fans, from their own studio. The social element of Facebook, combined with this event, only enhances the experience.

If you want to check out the show, we have embedded the Livestream widget below (while the show lasts).… Read more