Raptr, the leading social network for gamers, has launched a social news platform, adding a significant new dimension to its popular service. The milestone expansion will enable users to submit stories that are then voted on by the community and automatically targeted based on a person’s gaming profile and gameplay activity. The evolved Raptr is now available to the eight million strong user base.
“At Raptr we’re reinventing the way people stay connected and informed about the games they care about”, said Dennis Fong, CEO of Raptr. “We’re excited by the launch of the new community-driven website because it builds upon the success of our existing service and provides a new way to discover and share content.”
Raptr now intelligently delivers the most relevant content based on the games and platforms you own, your recent gameplay, and what your friends are sharing. Raptr also helps players discover additional content by determining your gaming preferences, such as gaming genres, developers, and publishers that interest you. Users can submit and share a mix of content including news, videos, screenshots, status updates, and reviews.
Raptr’s full feature set includes:
Personalized news feed
Community-curated content
Expanded topics to include all things related to gaming
Suggestion engine to help you discover new games
Automatic gameplay and achievements tracker on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3
Centralized buddy list and friend tracker
In-game chat and web browsing for PC games
More than eight million people already use Raptr to track their gameplay and connect with their friends across PC, console, and web games. Raptr tracks more than 23 million gaming sessions and over a billion minutes of gameplay each month, providing users real-time insight into what’s hot in gaming.
For more information about Raptr, please visit the Raptr website.
Sony PlayStation PSN Store to be relaunched on Tuesday 24th May.
Sony expects the PlayStation store to be back online tomorrow, according to a memo sent by Sony to developer and publishing partners.
When the PlayStation store returns, Sony will begin by resuming the scheduled releases that were interrupted by the PSN downtime.
Alongside the store’s relaunch will be content originally scheduled for 26th April and the first PlayStation update affected by PSN downtime. Three days later on 27th May, there will be another store update for games originally scheduled for 3rd May.
The following week, the PlayStation store will update twice on 31st May and 3rd June, covering content that was supposed to release during the past three weeks. At that point, the PlayStation store will be back on schedule and return to a single content update each week.
Though these are Sony’s stated plans for relaunching the PlayStation store, the memo says that the firm is willing to adjust content releases on a case-by-case basis.
Users will also be able to download their free games as part of Sony’s ‘Welcome Back‘ programme once the PlayStation store returns.
Atari Europe, one of the world’s most recognised publishers and producers of interactive entertainment, have announced the release of Star Raiders®.
Originally introduced in 1979, Star Raiders blazed an all new trail, becoming the first ever first-person space combat title.
The game inspired several generations of “space combat simulation” titles throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s. The exciting new take on this Atari treasure pays tribute to the original while ushering in an all new, captivating episodic experience. The game offers familiar battle elements including space warps and galactic tactical maps with all new features like radical battle transformations and customizable ships.
The return of Star Raiders combines tense aerial assaults and dogfights with a new compelling storyline, striking visual style and exhilarating single player gameplay.
Star Raiders is now available on the Xbox 360®video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and Windows PC Download.
Developed by Incinerator Studios, Star Raiders carries a retail price of 800 Microsoft Points (£7.19/€8.99). For more information visit www.starraiders.com.
Spider Jack woke up with one thing on his mind: food!
Help Spider Jack swing through 75 stages of peril-filled puzzles to reach his dinner. Tap “hook points” to cast Jack’s web through obstacle courses and nimbly avoid dangers. To keep the itsy-bitsy spider climbing, cut previous webs so Jack can cast new lines in his pursuit of delicious bugs.
Any gamer can enjoy feeding Jack and collecting stars in each stage, earning high scores to share on Crystal and Game Center. Send 15 stages to friends via a unique “gifting” feature. Look for new puzzles, new hook points, and new themes on a regular basis through updates.
New Puzzle Game Mobile Phone App ‘Spider Jack’ from Chillingo.
Download Spider Jack for the iPhone/iPad http://itunes.apple.com/app/id427582033?mt=8 and Spider Jack HD from the Apple Store. http://itunes.apple.com/app/id427582611?mt=8
The current generation of video gaming devices not only allow you to play games with friends and family, but also with other video gamers across the world, without having to leave your home.
The most popular devices are not simply designed for playing games on, although that is of course their primary purpose, but with enhanced multimedia functions like video and music support and web browsing, you have a powerful all-in-one device.
Console graphics have never appeared quite as real as they do right now and along with better video output and improved multimedia functionality, with a stronger emphasis on social media and interactive gameplay, we can pack those board games away forever as video games have never looked so welcoming.
It is the latest Nintendo Dsi that has most recently been grabbing the headlines, due mainly to it’s basic 3D qualities that allow users to play games on an adjustable 3 Dimensional screen without the need for special glasses.
Being portable the previous model Nintendo Dsi has become particularly popular with both the younger generation of school children as well as the older Saga generation, due mainly to its advertising campaigns to keep the brain active.
However it is the Microsoft Xbox, Sony Playstation and Nintendo Wii that you will find in most households, a stand alone gaming console that can connect to the internet, play DVD’s or Blu ray Discs as well as offering unlimited interactive gaming facilities.
For first time purchasers choosing one machine from the three top sellers will often come down to either price, peer pressure or a particular game availability, as with the Wii Fit for instance.
Unless you are pre ordering the latest yet to be released device, the likliehood is that shopping around the major outlets will get you a cut price machine with a bundle of free games or goodies thrown in. This is particular true once a new generation machine has been announced and the market needs to clear it’s current stocks.
While I can think of a few addicted gamer friends who own more than one video gaming console, the general truth is that there is an awful lot of brand loyalty shown by gamers, so be sure to compare the systems on the market before deciding which suits your needs the best.
