gaming

Real-life status bar tracks game character's health

When trying to survive a harrowing near-death situation in a video game, it's likely that looking away from the action -- even just for a moment to check your health -- could mean certain doom. To avoid this gaming conundrum, Reddit user Bfayer created his own real-life video game status bar in the form of a 3-foot transparent tube filled with water and color-changing lights that shift based on his character's health (or mana, etc).

Bfayer calls his device the "Liquid Lifebar," which currently only works with the side-scrolling exploration game Terraria. The demo video shows the creation of the Lifebar and how the water rises, falls, and changes color according to his character's status as he fights monsters. … Read more

Fez lands on Windows

In the 2D/3D platformer, Fez, your protagonist Gomez embarks on an epic journey to uncover a universe-shattering mystery. The game's own journey from conception to the Windows platform has been nearly as monumental. First announced in July 2007, Fez's development was delayed for years. Creator Phil Fish's company, Polytron struggled with internal issues before finally demoing the game in 2011 and releasing a final version on Xbox Live in April 2012. Another year later, and the game finally lands on Windows, available from online distributors Steam and GOG.

Despite the long haul to release, Fez has … Read more

Pirate trolling and WWDC scholarships: The Week in Downloads

Every week, we compile the best new reviews, products, and features from the Download.com software catalog and blog, package them up in a tidy little newsletter, and e-mail it out to all of our lovely subscribers.

If you are a registered CNET member, you can sign up for the newsletter yourself (it's listed as "CNET Download.com Software Dispatch" under "Software News and Reviews"), or check back every Tuesday to read our latest roundup.

Top Download News and Features

Microsoft launches a public beta for its new Facebook app for Windows Phone 8 Game … Read more

Robot Unicorn Attack 2: More wishes, more powers, more glory

When I first learned that Cartoon Network's Adult Swim released a sequel to Robot Unicorn Attack (RUA) a few days ago on iOS, I could barely contain my excitement.

As one of the first apps I ever downloaded onto my device, it holds a special place in my heart. I forked over $2.99 for it, and ever since then, I was able to travel to a world with so much wonder and color, my eyes cried rainbows after 10 minutes of gameplay.

And while it's hard to improve a game that already features jumping dolphins and severed … Read more

The 404 1,260: Where we work out the bugs (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Greenheart Games takes ironic aim at pirates.

- Samsung Galaxy S4 India launch weirdly tries "Gangnam Style."

- Original iPhone reportedly to be "obsolete" on June 11.

Bathroom break video: News reporter gets owned.… Read more

Rockstar debuts new character trailers for Grand Theft Auto V

The latest trio of trailers in a series of previews of Rockstar Games' Grand Theft Auto V has hit. These character videos take a deeper look at the tribunal stars of the game: Michael, Franklin, and Trevor.

Be sure to check back later this week for a major update to our continuing coverage leading up to the September 17 release of Grand Theft Auto V.

See more Grand Theft Auto V coverage at our sister site, GameSpot.

Greenheart Games takes ironic aim at pirates

Yesterday, along with the genuine release of Game Dev Tycoon (Windows demo; Mac demo; Lite version for Windows 8), developers Greenheart Games treated some online gamers to an extra "gift" in the form of a cracked version of the game, which they then seeded via BitTorrent protocol.

Soon after seeding the cracked version of the game, thousands of users downloaded it. As those players progressed through the game--which takes players from producing games in a garage to becoming global leaders in the industry--establishing and growing their companies, they were blocked from proceeding further with the following, not-so-subtle hint--delivered … Read more

Drop: Minecraft creator's new Web game

Inspired by Terry Cavanaugh's Hexagon franchise, the ending of Fez, and his own apartment ceiling, Markus Persson, aka Notch, released a new Web game yesterday, in lieu of a contribution to this year's Ludum Dare competition. The game, titled Drop, puts you in a whirling representation of Notch's ceiling, where you must type the spinning letters in order, before the ceiling rushes up to crush you. Instead of frantically moving the arrow to find the path in Hexagon, you'll be typing words like "gnostic" and "journey" as fast as you can to … Read more

Pop Letters Word Game for Kids 2.3 Review

Learning is a lot more fun with the range of apps now available for the iPad. Using what they know of learning habits and the natural desire of almost every child to play with an iPad or iPhone, developers are creating ever more interesting and engaging educational apps. Pop Letters is an interesting take on the act of learning letters that many young children will find entertaining, even if it is ultimately lacking in features.

The idea behind Pop Letters is for children to quickly tap the onscreen letters, right after the game announces them. At any given time, there … Read more

Assassin's Creed series turned into epic slasher movie saga

Some people take cut scenes in a video game for granted, skipping mercilessly past eye-popping visuals and compelling -- or sometimes forgettable -- dialogue.

With more than 55 million copies sold, the Assassin's Creed series holds a special place in the hearts of many gamers, but Indiana astronomy tutor Andy Gilleand took things to a new level. Gilleand carefully created movies out of the cut scenes and gameplay from the five main titles in the series. In total, the movies collectively span over 16 hours and average about 3 hours each. … Read more