Technology | The Guardian

Glu Mobile has made nearly $100m from its first celebrity game, with Spears and Katy Perry in its future plans to repeat the successOops, can they do it again? Games firm Glu Mobile has made nearly $100m from its Kim Kardashian: Hollywood mobile game, and now it is hoping to repeat the success with Britney Spears.The publisher has signed an eight-year licensing deal with the musician to make an official mobile game “featuring the voice, likeness, and creative influence of Ms. Spears” that will launch in the first half of 2016.Related: Will the next Angry Birds come out of India? Continue reading...

Jude Rogers, with 11-month-old Evan in tow, tests the latest technologyMan has been tested through history. Abraham underwent trials, Hercules suffered labours. Women have been tested too, and I am among them, having been asked to assemble and review baby technology while in charge of 11-month-old Evan.Driven by a birth boom, this market is rotund. A staggering £900m a year is spent on baby products, with new gizmos issued at the rate of stinky nappies. Innovation is key. Why have a simple buggy when yours could have headlamps and an odometer? Educational toys are old news: here’s Baby’s Own Tablet! The marketing literature says this stuff is for people who “enjoy staying on top of the hottest trends ...[and] we know your children feel the same way”. “Gimmicky tat for credulous ******”, my husband sighs, wrestling with an allen key. Electronic kiddie entertainment or assistance is useful, but there is a darkness behind the trend too.

The place to talk about games and other things that matter Continue reading...

The star of Goldeneye 007: Reloaded describes what makes digital performance in games different from film or stage Continue reading...

Monad design studio goes on tour with its range of ecosystem-inspired instruments Continue reading...

Technological advances have put the world at our fingertips, but is being connected all of the time really good for us?At a conference in Cannes eight years ago, I sat next to a producer who was working on an ambitious TV project about anthropology. We were both listening to a speech by a TV executive and I was in full conference flow, frenetically typing (badly) and flicking between emails. I must have been exhausting to sit next to, because at the end he turned to me with a mixture of weary astonishment and concern. “It’s not good for you to work like that,” he said. “Why don’t you just listen, and think about what he is saying?”I very much felt that I had been listening – look at my reams of digital notes, my laptop hunch, my aching fingers. I couldn’t be working any harder! And there certainly weren’t any other journalists in the room kicking back and absorbing the atmosphere. “Have you ever tried meditation?” he asked me. I didn’t exactly dismiss what he said, but felt like meditation was something other people did, and I thought I was happy and fulfilling my obligations with my furious, restless output. Continue reading...

Millions are watching videos of cyst extractions, botfly removals and blackhead treatments. But what’s fuelling the explosive growth of the online community?• Warning: graphic content

Rightwing politician demands an investigation into U2’s album giveaway, which he says ‘spammed youths with illegal content’ and promoted gay sex Continue reading...

Founder David Byttow says Secret does not represent his original vision amid criticism that it had become a forum for online abuseThe anonymous networking app Secret is shutting down. Founder David Byttow took to Twitter and Medium to spread the news, saying: “Secret does not represent the vision I had when starting the company.”With a heavy heart, I've decided to shut down Secret, wind-down the company, and return the remaining money. https://t.co/HZUCMe3xFu Continue reading...

Bungie has announced fresh details of its latest downloadable content, and we’ve played the new multiplayer maps and Trials of Osiris eventThe Reef is open. That’s the high concept behind House of Wolves, Destiny’s second downloadable content package. The strange floating junkyard that players glimpsed all too briefly during the game’s story missions will provide the core of the expansion, and the focus of its new competitive (PvP) and co-operative (PvE) content.Here lurk the Awoken, a human race that once fled to the outer reaches of the galaxy when the period of glorious galactic expansion was brought to a cataclysmic end by The Darkness. Now the tribe lives among the abandoned remains of a thousand derelict starships, ruled over by a Game of Thrones-like royal family. The Fallen, one of the alien races seeking to invade Earth, has rebelled against the Awoken, and now their queen has enlisted the help of the Guardian to seek revenge: her key target, the Fallen sect known as the House of Wolves. Continue reading...

The photo-sharing app has blocked searches for the eggplant or aubergine emoji after users employed it to denote a penis. Other sexualized produce remains unaffectedIs that an emoji in your Instagram feed, or are you just happy to see me?Instagram has launched a surprise crackdown on the symbol for an eggplant, or aubergine, which the Guardian can reveal is employed by some users to represent a penis when posting a message with their pictures. Continue reading...

Google’s online video service will make a series of films with AwesomenessTV, as well as bagging exclusive rights for new shows by The Fine Brothers and SmoshYouTube is getting into the movie business, although its films will be getting their premieres online rather than in cinemas.Google’s online video service has announced a partnership with multi-channel network (MCN) and DreamWorks Animation subsidiary AwesomenessTV to make a series of films featuring YouTube stars.Related: ‘Traditional TV viewing for teens and tweens is dead. Not dying. Dead.’Related: YouTube backs digital star Stampy's new Minecraft show Wonder Quest Continue reading...

From exploding kittens to electric bikes to space telescopes, crowdfunding has revolutionised the way we create. So how do you do it? Continue reading...

Google Handwriting Input, Office Remote, Handpick, Football Manager Classic 2015, Skullduggery, Implosion – Never Lose Hope and more Continue reading...

Online administrator blocks user account of ‘David Coburn MEP’ over attempts to alter article about the Ukip politician 69 times in six days Continue reading...

Artists say GetArtUp, which allows businesses and wealthy individuals to rent pieces, has mistreated pieces and some have never been returned Continue reading...

Sales put Samsung back in front in terms of volume, but war with Apple over larger-screened phones takes its toll on profitsSamsung has reclaimed the top spot in global smartphone sales, beating Apple and Lenovo, despite its profits slipping 39%.

Head of news Kate Torney outlines growth plan, saying corporation intends to increase investment in online services by 40% over next three years Continue reading...

It took thousands of years to find cheap metal cutlery that didn’t react disagreeably with food Continue reading...

The place to talk about games and other things that matter Continue reading...

Those who decry violent video games don’t understand that simulating an activity can act as a replacement, not just an encouragement

After trial with PC manufacturer Dell, the biggest cryptocurrency company in the world heads to Britain, buoyed by ‘forward-looking’ regulators

Users should not panic about a Facebook-style filtered timeline just yet, but Dick Costolo says curation will happen for ‘logged in users’ as well as passing visitorsTwitter will expand its efforts to “curate” tweets and media for its users, according to chief executive Dick Costolo, although his latest comments to analysts stopped short of signalling a Facebook-style filter for people’s main timelines.In the social network’s latest earnings call, Costolo was asked whether Twitter plans to expand to all users the curated feed of noteworthy tweets that logged-out users see when visiting its site.Related: Twitter misses forecasts after results are published early – on TwitterRelated: Twitter's 'Instant Timeline' is actually a really good idea Continue reading...

Tech firm pulls in first-quarter revenues of $436m as Dick Costolo blames ‘lower-than-expected contributions from some of our newer products’ Continue reading...

Flagship smartphone has a slightly curved quad HD screen, laser auto-focus camera and removable battery and storage making it a direct challenge to Galaxy S6LG has launched it latest G4 flagship Android smartphone, which boasts a slightly curved quad HD screen, a low-light camera and a leather back.The G4 is LG’s attempt to maintain the momentum gained by the company’s G3 last year, which introduced a quad HD screen to the smartphone market and garnered favourable reviews for being one of the most usable phablets – smartphones with screens 5.5in or bigger. Continue reading...

UberEats promises customers lunch in less than 10 minutes as it expands service from Los Angeles and Barcelona – but faces a growing field in the Big Apple Continue reading...

If you use Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or the internet, you may have noticed some striking images and videos over the past few days. Little cartoon presidents pole-dancing. Cartoon celebrities performing karaoke. Your friends creating avatars of themselves pole-dancing and performing karaoke.

WPP chief says the on-demand service needs other sources of revenue to help fund its $4bn-plus content budget

Alex joins ‘genderless’ character Steve, as he ‘doesn’t really represent the diversity of our playerbase’, explains gaming company

Roy Price, who persuaded Woody Allen to make his first TV series, joined by HBO’s Michael Ellenberg, Discovery’s Rich Ross and John Landgraf from FX Continue reading...

Treyarch says it is making big changes to the CoD blueprint, with co-op campaigns, RPG progression and a new approach to space and movement. But worry not – this is still a game about shooting people in the face“I read the other day about these bio-hackers who are injecting their eyeballs with some bioluminescent fluid that gives them night vision – it’s crazy.”

Ex-Wings frontman has more followers on Japanese messaging app than on Twitter and Facebook combined

The Liberal-Conservative coalition promised accountability, transparency, and ‘ending the storage of internet and email records without good reason’. Here’s a report card on how they fared

Double Fine has released the second part of its successfully crowdfunded point-and-click epic, but the road to release has not been easyTim Schafer, co-creator of some of the most beloved adventure games in history, is sitting in an office in Guildford, home to cobbled high streets, grassy hills and Peter Molyneux. He’s talking to me about the barges of England – or “houseboats” in American parlance. Guildford has lots of them. A series of canals criss-cross through the city providing a getaway for those seeking to sell up, buy a floating idyl and escape the rat race, with its work pressures, traffic jams and functioning toilets.So what’s the designer of the Monkey Island series, whose hobbies include getting embroiled in some of the greatest dramas of modern consumerism doing staring at a bunch of hippie ships in The River Wey? Tim is dumbfounded by my cynicism. “It’s Fable!” he says. Continue reading...

They might all be trying to push the right buttons, but how much importance do the parties give technology in their pledges for power? Continue reading...

Tabletop games offer a face-to-face opportunity to convey a message that the impersonal world of online gaming misses

The place to talk about games and other things that matterTuesday already! Continue reading...

Apple’s much hyped smartwatch is carefully crafted with a masterful design, but poor battery life and confusing software mean curious consumers should waitApple’s first attempt at a smartwatch shows promise with notifications, voice calls and fancy pressure-sensitive taps, but is very much an expensive first generation product with bugs, quirks and confusions.

Animal charity Wood Green partners with Handy cleaning service to offer selection of rescue cats in need of temporary foster homesLondoners who find themselves sharing their homes with mice can now foster a cat in order to get rid of rodent invaders.Handy, an on-demand cleaning and DIY service, has partnered with animal charity Wood Green to offer rescue cats in need of temporary foster homes through its app. Continue reading...

Apple sells 61.2m iPhones in first three months of 2015 and brought in revenues of $58bn, but latest numbers do not include Apple Watch Continue reading...

The Digital News Initiative is likely to be seen as an attempt for Google to improve its image after recently being accused of anti-competitive behaviour Continue reading...

Half of media company’s awards from public vote in contest known for recognising excellence on the internet Continue reading...

A plan that links culture, the creative industries and education would encourage economic growth and draw new talent from universities Continue reading...

Russian hackers infiltrating White House email system last year raises ‘red flag’ that Obama’s BlackBerry and Clinton’s ‘home brew’ system are also susceptible Continue reading...