Posted by: xSicKxBot - 04-22-2019, 09:43 PM - Forum: Windows
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See the road ahead with traffic camera images on Bing Maps
The Bing Maps Routing and Traffic Team is constantly working to make navigation and route planning easier! Hot on the heels of our previous announcement about traffic coloring, the Bing Maps team is proud to announce that we have made it possible for users to access traffic camera images along a planned driving route! You can now see traffic camera icons along a short to moderate-length route. By clicking on a traffic camera icon, you can view the latest image from the traffic camera at that location.
Confirming Traffic Conditions
In the example below, the orange colored segment of the route indicates that traffic on I-405 South is starting to get backed up. With traffic camera images now available, you can confirm local traffic conditions with just a click of the camera icon along the route.
Checking Extreme Weather Road Conditions
Gaining access to the traffic camera imagery not only helps with checking for traffic, accidents and general navigation, but can be invaluable to users when traversing areas impacted by extreme weather conditions, such as heavy snowfall, wind storms, flooding, etc.
Getting to and from the resort for your annual ski trip can become both challenging and dangerous when the roads are covered with snow and ice. This past February, Washington state was hit with unprecedented snowfall. Many sections of road near the Snoqualmie Pass were rendered impassible because of record amounts of snow, resulting in motorists getting stuck and stranded. With traffic camera images now accessible along the route, you can quickly check for dangerous road conditions before heading out.
In the example below, it snowed throughout the day at Alpental on April 13. The traffic camera image shows that the road was clear and safe for driving at 5:48 PM despite the snowfall.
Getting a look at the road ahead can help you avoid heavy traffic and tricky road conditions, so be sure to check out the “traffic” option with camera imagery on Bing Maps when you are routing your next trip at https://www.bing.com/maps/.
Sprint, AT&T reach settlement in lawsuit over rebranding 4G as ‘5G E’
By Roger Fingas Monday, April 22, 2019, 04:27 pm PT (07:27 pm ET)
A settlement has emerged in Sprint’s lawsuit against AT&T, which accused the rival carrier of “blatantly misleading consumers” with its use of the term “5G E” to market high-speed 4G connections.
“We have amicably settled this matter,” an AT&T spokesperson explained to the Dallas Business Journal. The exact terms of the agreement haven’t been made public.
AT&T will, however, get to keep using “5G E,” according to other Journal sources. If true, that would suggest Sprint was compensated or simply decided to drop legal action.
AT&T first began using “5G E” around early January, for instance showing the label on connected iPhones. That drew an outcry not just from Sprint but T-Mobile and Verizon, all of which have held off on the 5G label outside of authentic networks.
U.S. 5G is still in its earliest phases. Verizon has marginal coverage in Chicago and Minneapolis, and while AT&T did launch real 5G in December, that’s only in the form of a portable hotspot — phone support is still in progress.
iPhones aren’t expected to include 5G modems until 2020. That may be a result the now-ended Apple v. Qualcomm battle, as well as slow development by Intel. Indeed Intel dropped out of the 5G race shortly after the Qualcomm settlement.
The stylish shooter XIII is coming back as a remake slated for release on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch this year. The original 2003 game was known for its mind-bending story, and the remake is said to be borne out of a desire to introduce the story-driven game to a new generation who may have missed it more than a decade ago.
An announcement on the PlayStation Blog includes a few pieces of concept art for both the environments and one character, showing off the new visual style. Among other things XIII was known for its cel-shaded aesthetic, which has been maintained here but updated with a lot more detail.
In XIII, you play as an amnesiac soldier named Thirteen. You've been accused of killing the President of the United States, and the story revolves around your efforts to uncover the truth with only a few clues to go on. This remake is said to be based on the first five volumes of the comic series.
"XIII has a unique and potentially interesting premise, and some will certainly want to drag their way through the single-player campaign just to watch the story unfold, but the game doesn't really differentiate itself from the wide array of other first-person shooters on the market," said critic Jeff Gerstmann in GameSpot's 2003 review. "The cel-shaded graphical style works in the context of trying to re-create a comic book, but the models and other graphical elements fall short. Given the extreme amount of competition in this genre, fans of first-person shooting are advised to spend their time elsewhere."
Guide: Celebrate Game Boy’s 30th Anniversary With This Lovely Merchandise
The Nintendo Game Boy turns 30 this Sunday, and to celebrate this amazing occasion we’ll be running a series of related features this week, right up to the big day.
As the humble Game Boy’s 30th anniversary approaches, Nintendo’s classic handheld has never been cooler. If you want to make a statement about your love for all things Game Boy, then we have rounded up some of our favourite Game Boy related merchandise for your consideration.
Whether you are after a Game Boy themed t-shirt, keyring or alarm clock, fear not – we’ve got you covered.
Please note that some of the links on this page are affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase we may receive a small percentage of the sale which helps support the site. Please read our FTC Disclosure for more information.
Used Game Boy Consoles
Of course, any self-respecting Game Boy fan needs an actual Game Boy console. Bonus points if you pick up an original DMG-01 model, but we won’t judge you too harshly if you opt for a Game Boy Pocket to cut down on the cost of AA batteries.
Game Boy Clothing
Once you have a Game Boy console in hand, you just need some related clothing to go with it. A t-shirt, a hoodie, a baby romper suit. Anything will do.
Lots More Game Boy ideas
If you want something more subtle to show off your Game Boy love, we’ve got lots more ideas for you here.
Which Game Boy themed item from our list took your fancy?
Feature: Our Favourite Memories Of The Original Game Boy
The Nintendo Game Boy turns 30 this Sunday, and to celebrate this amazing occasion we’ll be running a series of related features this week, right up to the big day.
As the 30th anniversary of the Game Boy’s Japanese debut approached, we here at Nintendo Life Towers were thinking a lot about the ol’ DMG-01. The appeal of that chunky lump of grey plastic endures to this day, despite multiple hardware revisions and being superseded by umpteen portables. Yes, it’s bulky by modern standards, and these days you’ll find a better screen on your average set of bathroom scales, but the OG Game Boy remains a reassuringly solid and comfortable bit of kit in your hands.
A quick survey around the office reveals that a few staff members are too young to have owned the original version of the console, but thanks to the backwards compatibility of the Game Boy line (right up to the Micro variant of the Game Boy Advance), there’s nobody that doesn’t get a dose of the warm fuzzies at the mention of the classic system and its huge library of games.
We’ve already heard what developers thought of the all-conquering handheld and now it’s time to listen to us blather on for a paragraph or two about what makes the Game Boy so special. So, grab a fistful of double-As and saddle up for a nostalgia trip…
Ryan Craddock, staff writer
Sadly, I’ve never owned an original Game Boy, but the Game Boy Color (close enough, right?) was my very first gaming console. I vividly remember being painfully jealous of my next door neighbour who had a Game Boy with a copy of Pokémon Blue, and my little, six-year-old self would go round every day, play on it for as long as I could (without saving over his progress) and then do it all over again the next day.
Eventually, my mum treated me to my very own Game Boy Color (which had only been out for a year or two) and a copy of both Pokémon Red and Blue. I’m not exaggerating when I say that Pokémon took over my entire life as a kid – it was everything – and that love for the series, and later Nintendo, has led me right to where I am today on this very site.
Being so young meant that I couldn’t collect the sheer number of games I do for consoles these days, so I can’t declare myself as a ‘super fan’ of the system as such, but the Game Boy family of consoles kickstarted my love for a hobby which has always stayed with me and I can’t give them any better praise than that.
Dom Reseigh-Lincoln, reviewer
The Game Boy wasn’t just a flashy toy to me. It was the start of a lifelong love of handheld gaming. And every game – even the bad ones – felt that bit more important because I could play them anywhere. It even got me into genres I might otherwise have never played. The cryptically named Soccer sent me football mad (including it’s amazing soundtrack). The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening cemented the series into my being long before Ocarina of Time. And, of course, I spent endless hours playing WWF Superstars. My love of PSP, Vita and Switch all come back to that big yellow Game Boy that meant so much.
Gavin Lane, staff writer
It’s only very recently that I tracked down an original Game Boy of my own – back in the day I briefly played on a red Game Boy Pocket (which has since been lost to time or, possibly, distant relatives) before upgrading to a beautiful turquoise Game Boy Color at the same time I swapped Pokémon Blue for the enhanced Yellow version. It was on that which I played my select library of original Game Boy games. The one that really stands out in my memory (besides the brilliant Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, of course) is the simply named Tennis.
No, this game didn’t have any ‘Super’ prefix or a new-fangled colon-subtitle to get you excited! Back in those days you could name your game after the sport it emulated and that was quite enough, thank-you-very-much; no bells, no whistles, just tennis. Even today I find the control you have over your shots impressive, and – blasphemous as it may be – it’s not Tetris I turn to for a bite of retro-relaxation, it’s Tennis.
Quiet, please.
Gonçalo Lopes, contributing writer
My experience with the original Game Boy is hard to compress in just a few short paragraphs but I am not one to shy away from the challenge. While I was a very happy Commodore Amiga owner at the time (1991), it was not the ideal digital entertainment platform in a world where my parents ruled the TV screen (never got a monitor for it, they were expensive).
I stumbled upon the first news of the Game Boy like pretty much everything else in a pre-internet connected world: through the magic of foreign press. A Game & Watch with interchangeable games and the innards of a souped-up ZX Spectrum with a 20+ hour battery life? You can keep your colour games, Game Gear and Lynx, I need something that could last me 300-kilometre bus trips and doctor appointment waiting rooms while still fitting in my pockets. Portugal was going into the transitional period of enforcing EU copyright laws (i.e. the end of over-the-counter piracy) and video game consoles were starting to at last show up in local toy stores. Sega nearly immediately took over the country with its usual flare and aggressive marketing, but Nintendo eventually began sneaking into toy stores and the Game Boy arrived fashionably late along with the outdated 8-bit NES.
As you might imagine, things on the playground weren’t easy for Nintendo fans; games became extremely expensive overnight and none of us could afford more than one system and maybe a game every couple of months. Most of my friends turned to SEGA and they simply could not comprehend why I was so happy to return to 8-bit and a system with only 4 colours and no backlit screen. However, thanks to my monthly investment in foreign press I knew exactly what was happening in the US and Japan, with companies like Capcom and Konami releasing portable miracles every other month. Even better, local toy shops began sneaking in (thankfully region-free) Game Boy imports onto their inventory so it wasn’t long before my humble collection grew outside of official European offerings.
I am still discovering nowadays new Game Boy games by exploring the Japan-only catalogue and I have played so many brilliant titles it is truly impossible for me to pick a single game as “the one”. But like most wonderful journeys it all began with my first game and to most people’s surprise it was neither Super Mario Land nor the packed-in Tetris (which I still replay often). It was a very humble first-party developed shmup called Solar Striker. I played it so much I reckon I still know every pattern and safe spot needed to defeat all end-of-level bosses. Further proof of my eccentricity, I never played or owned any Pokémon games; when those came out I was already knee-deep into Japanese Super Famicom imports.
Besides the undeniable staying power of the system, the beauty of the Game Boy remains that there is no ‘right way’ to enjoy its fantastic game library. There is something for everyone if you look beyond the obvious choices. Who knew that 30 years later it would find a whole new life as the weapon of choice among chiptune music artists? It was a luxury back then and obsolete or not, a luxury today and tomorrow; you simply can’t put down this brick.
Alex Olney, video producer
My brother and I both got a Game Boy Pocket each one Christmas back in what must have been the mid-nineties, which considering our age was unthinkable, as we usually had to share everything. Both of them are still both going strong today, but mine was certainly put through its paces in its heyday.
One fine-ish day, I was feeling rather unwell and so stayed home from school so as not to infect all the other small humans. Naturally the shiny electronic brick was used whenever this happened, but this was before I properly understood how to take care of the things that I owned and didn’t want to be damaged. As I was given some cold medicine from my mum, I didn’t really want to pause the game, so I dried drinking it from the tiny plastic cup hands-free. What resulted was the sticky syrup slipping southwards and landing on my console’s D-pad. It soaked in beautifully, and not wanting to let my family know what a complete boob I’d been, I tried to hide it and clean it up as well as I could. Over the coming weeks the D-pad was getting stickier and stiffer all the time, making Alleyway even more unplayable than it was before.
I’d resigned myself to the fact that it was broken, and nothing was going to fix it short of some miracle my dad could perform with some power tools behind closed doors. After a few weeks in a drawer however, the sugary glue had completely hardened, and although it could still be seen through the clear body of the device, one quick press snapped its bonds in twain, and although slightly gritty, the system was working perfectly again. These little buggers are borderline invincible.
Liam Doolan, news writer
I played a wide variety of releases during the original Game Boy generation, but one game I’ll always cherish is the 1998 action-adventure title James Bond 007, created by the now-defunct developer, Saffire Entertainment.
While the Pokémon craze was growing in popularity here in the west, somehow I found myself playing this on the side, on a regular basis. Compared to various other Game Boy games at the time – such as Pokémon Red and Blue – the design of James Bond was a little rough around the edges. Long story short, I ended up getting stuck in a number of difficult segments throughout the game due to its design but managed to persevere.
I eventually saw the credits roll and to this day, it’s still one of my favourite Game Boy games – and memories – of all-time.
Austin Voigt, contributing writer
All these crisp emulator screen caps everywhere… THIS is what we saw in the old days!
My first experience with the Game Boy was in my next-door neighbor’s kitchen, and I remember it like it was yesterday. While my friend was my age, their parents allowed them to have a Game Boy, and mine did not (because they thought videogames were the devil’s work, apparently). I’d played the SNES copiously in my youth on my uncle’s system, but this was the first time I’d experienced handheld gaming that could just move anywhere with you – mind-boggling! We played Super Mario Land while listening to the Lion King soundtrack (yeah, it was quite a few years after the initial release – I’m a youngster), and I remembered thinking: “This is the future, people. Handheld gaming, music on CDs… what next?!” Ah, if only Little Austin could see what Nintendo’s doing now…
Darren Calvert, operations director
As I started my gaming life as something of a Sega kid with the Master System, like so many others my age in the UK, I have fond memories of the Game Boy as it introduced me to all the great Nintendo franchises long before I would go on to pick up a battered old Mattel NES for myself. While many of my cherished Game Boy memories were playing Vs Tetris against my best friend outdoors via the game link cable, I also remember being completely addicted to Super Mario Land at that time too.
A local video game store which we frequented used to have the latest issue of Famitsu on the counter for customers to browse and I remember how excited we were to see the first screenshots for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Fall of the Foot Clan which we promptly imported a whole year before it arrived officially in the UK. Gargoyle’s Quest was another fond import in 1990; we had no idea what was going on in the RPG section of the game, but it didn’t matter. We muddled through until we could get to the next slice of Firebrand platforming action.
The Game Boy was always with us wherever we went for many years, along with a stash of AA batteries of course. While the Sega Game Gear and the Atari Lynx did their best to challenge the humble Game Boy, nothing could beat its vast selection of games which were ideally suited to its small monochrome screen. 30 years later, many of these classic games are still great fun to dip into.
Those are just some of our memories, but that unassuming lump of grey plastic stokes the old nostalgia fires like Doc Brown’s Presto logs – share your own memories in the comments below and let’s all bask in the warm green glow of the (backlight-modded) DMG-01…
Today we're putting your Melee knowledge to the test: can you name every Super Smash Bros. Melee character in under five minutes? Once you're done, be sure to comment your score in the comments below, and remember to share with your friends to see who has the superior gaming knowledge.
Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (April 20th)
Well, what another busy week we’ve had. Joker finally arrived in Smash Bros. Ultimate, Capcom announced a new plug-and-play arcade stick, and Reggie has been stealing all of the headlines with his retirement, but now it’s time to sit back, relax, and talk about which games we’ll be playing over the weekend. As always, members of the Nintendo Life team have gathered to talk about our plans below and we’d love for you to join in with our poll and comment sections. Enjoy!
Ryan Craddock, staff writer
I’m rather determined to make the best use of this long weekend as possible but, at the time of writing this, I’m not exactly sure how I’ll be doing just that. There’ll probably be a little bit of Yoshi’s Crafted World in there (my partner and I are slowly working towards completion on that one) but I’ve also developed a sudden desire to pick up any and every older game possible to start a proper collection.
My younger self foolishly decided to sell off a lot of old games and I’m growing more annoyed at myself with each passing day. As such, I might end up trying to figure out the best ways to pick up lots of games or even a console or two that I’m missing for future purchases – there’s the pesky matter of saving money for important life things to deal with first, but hopefully one day I’ll be able to treat myself! My N64 library, in particular, could use a good boost…
Gavin Lane, staff writer
Last Friday I was out of the flat when my Labo VR Kit arrived, but the building superintendent took the delivery. Phew! Unfortunately, I arrived home late that night and said package would remain locked in his office until Monday morning. To add insult to injury, I could see the damn box sitting there through the window!
So, that means I’ll be constructing my cardboard blaster this weekend instead. I’ll also be tinkering with my recently procured original Game Boy in honour of its birthday on Sunday. It’s got a line of dead pixels, but that won’t stop me enjoying some classics. It could do with a cleanup and a backlight, too… I feel a project coming on! Have a fantastic long weekend everyone.
Gonçalo Lopes, contributing writer
I have decided to skip Cuphead until the physical release hits so this weekend will be once again filled with all sorts of Super Robot Wars T insanity. I will partake in Splatoon 2’s Spring Fest and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate‘s Castlevania themed spirit event while giving Joker a proper go. I will also be surely spending an insane amount of time playing Super Nintendo and Game Boy for “nostalgic research”.
My game of the week goes to the artistic carnage of Katana ZERO. When a game gets refused certification in Australia, you know you are in for a good time!
Austin Voigt, contributing writer
My plans this holiday weekend will involve finally sinking my teeth into My Time at Portia, finishing the buildouts for the rest of the Labo VR kit (I’ve only gotten through about half), as well as getting a bit further in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (I hadn’t played this game before – but I got it ultra-cheap thanks to Target’s catalog misprint, so I finally caved). Excited to have so many new games to dig into!
Which games are you playing this weekend? (449 votes)
EA Has No Plans To Release Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order On The Switch
Last week, EA and Respawn Entertainment revealed Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was coming to PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC this November.
The game stars a character named Cal Kestis who is a survivor of Order 66 and is forced to conceal his Jedi powers to stay alive.
Not long after the game was revealed, EA community manager Jay Ingram was asked over on Twitter if there were any plans for it to be released on Nintendo’s hybrid device in the future.
He responded by saying there were “no such plans” as amazing as the system is:
Not long ago, Respawn Entertainment responded to questions about a potential Apex Legends port for the Nintendo Switch.
While nothing is currently planned, the developer would “love” to bring the game to the Switch and is hearing all of these requests from Nintendo fans.
For anyone still seeking a Star Wars fix on the Switch, it looks the only option, for now, is Star Wars Pinball by Zen Studios, due out on 13th September.
Would you like to see more Star Wars games on the Nintendo Switch in the future? Leave your thoughts below.
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 04-22-2019, 12:51 AM - Forum: Lounge
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Amazon Prime's The Boys Gets Very NSFW Trailer
Coming to Amazon Prime Video on July 26 is the latest comic book adaptation, The Boys. Amazon recently revealed the first trailer for the upcoming show, and it is most certainly not safe for work. Seriously, watch this on your own time.
Based on the Dynamite comic of the same name, the series follows a world where superheroes have become celebrities, and a group titled The Boys are tasked with covering up said heroes' screw-ups when they abuse their powers. Check out the first trailer for the series below.
The Boys are made up of Hughie (Jack Quaid), Billy Butcher (Karl Urban), Mother's Milk (Laz Alonso), Frenchie (Tomer Capon), and The Female (Karen Fukuhara). Additionally, Simon Pegg guest stars as Hughie's father. There are also the featured superheroes on this series, The Supes of the Seven, which consists of Homelander (Antony Starr), Starlight (Erin Moriarty), Queen Maeve (Dominique McElligott), A-Train (Jessie T. Usher), The Deep (Chace Crawford), and Black Noir (Nathan Mitchell).
The original comic series, which also was for a more adult audience, debuted in 2006 under the Wildstorm banner--before moving to Dynamite six months later. It was created by writer Garth Ennis and artist Darick Robertson, and the series was known for its over-the-top moments.
GameSpot spoke with Simon Pegg back at New York Comic-Con about his role and the adaptation as a whole. "They showed me the stuff that they'd already shot that was surprising and shocking, but for all the right reasons," he said. "I think Garth almost and Darick together, obviously because Darick Robertson was drawing it, together they were trying to almost dare somebody to adapt it. It was almost the unadaptable comic book, even more so than Preacher I think."
Limited Run Games Teases Lumines Remastered Physical Release
Last June, the rhythm-based puzzle game Lumines Remastered was released on the Switch eShop. We said it was a premier puzzle experience and awarded it nine out of ten stars. The Switch version ended up becoming the best-selling version of the game, too.
If you’ve had this one on your wishlist for a while now, you might want to hold out a little longer as physical distributor Limited Run Games appears to be teasing a hard copy. While it’s unclear what platforms this announcement is for, what we do know is that more will be revealed next week on 22nd April.
If you’re still not convinced, here’s the announcement trailer for Lumines Remastered. Noticeably the music matches the audio in the above teaser.
On a related, but separate note, pre-orders are now live for Minit on Limited Run Games and Special Reserve Games.
Is Lumines a game you’ve been wanting to add to your physical collection? Tell us down in the comments.
