Google Hangouts now receives SMS messages in the Android apps, a feature which irritates many users because of the fact that text messages and Hangout chats don’t sync in one conversation, even if they’re from the same contact. Luckily, there is a way of getting around this feature without deleting the app, and it’s as simple as disabling integration with SMS. Check out the video below for a quick tutorial on how to prevent Google Hangouts from receiving text messages.
Warning: Nexus smartphone users will have to install an alternative SMS app like Contacts+, Hello SMS or Go SMS Pro. Other phone models are normally equipped with a default alternative SMS app.
Default player
brightcove.createExperiences();
Now, you can peacefully receive texts and have chats via Hangouts without having to work through the confusion of multiple conversations with one person in the same app.
Slingshot is Facebook’s latest application. Presented as an alternative to Snapchat (who Facebook unsuccessfully tried to purchase), the app lets you to share photos and short videos. After taking a closer look, however, Slingshot doesn’t have much in common with the popular self-destructing messaging app. To help you decide if you want to install it, here are nine differences between the two apps.
The basic way of using Slingshot is unique. To view photos and videos from your friends, you’re required to send a message to them. This means that you can’t view anything sent to you unless you’ve participated in the conversation.
The hidden goal is to encourage interaction between people using the app. Slingshot also allows you to send photos or videos to all your contacts at once.
No countdown to destruction
Photos and videos do get destroyed in Slingshot, but instead of a countdown, the posts will erase after they’ve been closed, or when the person receiving the message responds with a reaction. When you start the app, content is displayed indefinitely, but if the message isn’t opened, it will be removed after 30 days. Slingshot also doesn’t require you to tap and hold the screen to view shared posts.
Advanced drawing
Slingshot lets you draw on photos before you send them, but an interesting addition is the full color chart, with options like choosing the size of the line. Unfortunately, you can’t draw on videos, and it doesn’t include filters, at least in version 1.
Automatic backup
Slingshot actually offers the option to automatically save all photos and videos sent through the app, completely opposite from Snapchat.
No notifications
The app doesn’t sent any type of notification that your message has been seen. It also doesn’t notify you if the receiver takes a screenshot.
Reactions
It’s possible to respond to a message with a reaction. The reply appears as a combination of two messages that you send. The concept is similar to frontback, an app that composes photos using the front and back cameras on your mobile device.
No text messaging or video
It’s possible to react to a reaction with a small bit of text, but Slingshot doesn’t have a chat function. Snapchat does have basic text messaging, which can be pretty useful.
Transparency about security
While it’s too early to determine the exact security level of Slingshot, basic tests show that there aren’t any traces of files downloaded to phones after messages are destroyed.
A big difference is the transparency Slingshot has about security. The Slingshot Help Center states that people can take screenshots, “so share responsibly”.
Different objectives
Slingshot isn’t here to replace Snapchat. The application don’t have the same purpose. Unlike Snapchat, Slingshot isn’t about sending messages that disappear or remain private.
The app is intended as a quick and convenient way to share photos and videos with a large number of friends. The fact that they self-destruct is more of a practicality than anything.
The audiences for both apps are diffferent because of the way they share content. Slingshot could actually be designed to be more suitable for younger audiences, something that Snapchat is trying to do.
Slingshot won’t replace Snapchat, but that doesn’t mean that Snapchat won’t try to become an alternative to Facebook.
Do you miss Dr. Kawashima and his brain training exercises? What if I told you that you can beef up your gray matter and swell your IQ by playing on your Android smartphone?
In this new episode in our series on the best Android games, I’ll present you with five great games that may well awaken your creative side.
Einstein™ Brain Trainer HD
Forget Dr. Kawashima! Professor Einstein is the new kid on the brain-training block. Fun games, bright graphics and engaging characters will make training your braining a very entertaining experience.
Easy to play, the Einstein™ Brain Trainer games are centered around mental calculations, spatial awareness and memorization. As well as testing your skills in each area, your final score will also be based on your speed. Pass as many of the rounds as possible to collect maximum points.
The game gets our approval thanks to perfect execution and challenging tests. It’s a entertaining game that will also strengthen your mental abilities, and it’s great!
Warning: The free version of Einstein™ Brain Trainer allows you to play just one session.
As its title indicates, Brain Yoga is a zen game where you’ll find a selection of activities designed to stimulate your brain. With its relaxing music and Eastern-themed graphics, this title is a real invitation to relax.
The strength of Brain Yoga is that although it’s difficult, it’s accessible. After each level, you can actually choose the difficulty of the following exercises. Another good point, Brain Yoga doesn’t impose any time limit so you can solve the puzzles at your own pace.
Memory, vocabulary, spatial visualization, and mental calculation are among the eight games included that cover a wide range of cognitive challenges. The perfect solution for stimulating your intellect without stress.
The free version of Brain Yoga only entitles you to one daily training session. Once that’s completed, you can still play other activities for free.
Don’t be fooled by this faux Escher scene. Monument Valley will work your brain with environmentalpuzzles. In this masterpiece, you’ll play with perspectives and dimensions to guide little Ida to her goal.
But behind impeccable graphics and an enchanting atmosphere, Monument Valley conceals clever challenges that could well give even regular puzzle masters some trouble.
In each level, you must manipulate the environment and play with optical illusions to help the heroine get to the exit. You will constantly question intuition about space and perspective to overcome the mazes in the game
It’s the out-of-the-box thinking and enchanting world that make Monument Valley a unique experience of its kind. A game that’s not to be missed under any circumstances.
Puzzle Restorer invites you to use your brain to restore color toart, which are unusual. You will don your restoration painter’s smock to recreate pixelated versions of iconic art from history.
Specifically, your goal is to reproduce a pre-defined model by drawing continuous lines on a canvas. You will have a tube of gouache and your legendary techniques as tools! A good way to train your logical thinking and spatial representation while reviewing the history of art!
Best IQ Test is heavily focused on mental arithmetic. What’s that? You don’t have a head for math? Me either! And yet, I loved this game and its captivating puzzles.
In Best IQ Test, you’ll have to solve some pretty accessible exercises (I can’t give you any more clues than that!) that will make you rethink your math and multiplication in a fun way. The secret? The Best IQ Test exercises are actually puzzles. There’s no guidance to explain how to use it and so it’s up to you to choose the right approach to finding the solution.
And if you get stumped on a particularly twisted riddle, you can always buy a clue. You just need to spend a few IQ points, the currency of the game that fluctuates with your successes and failures. I was surprised that I liked it so much, and I think you should know that the sight of an equation now gives me chills!
If rumors are to be believed, Apple is about to unveil a revolutionary Apple TV capable of running native video games. We have no idea when, since it didn’t happen at the last WWDC, as was rumored, but we live in hope!
Fortunately for Mac owners, you won’t have to wait for this hypothetical Apple console to play on their Mac OS. Yes, you read that correctly! You can already turn your Mac into a true games platform with these five exceptional applications.
Steam
Steam is the benchmark for all online video game shops. With its ever-expanding catalog, the virtual store from Valve is a boon for all fans of video games. Much to the displeasure of Mac critics, the number of games compatible with Mac OS continues to grow.
With 891 Mac games (and counting) across all genres, Steam will delight everyone, from gaming novices to hardcore gamers. From Dota to Borderlands 2 through Dust, Bioshock Infiniteand Call of Duty, the vast majority of the games that really count are available on Mac.
The creators of the GOG.com site (Good Old Games) are part of a truly separate species. These fanatics work day and night to extend the life of the greatest classic video games. Their aim? To enable new generations to play legendary games from the 80s and 90s. And they won’t settle for anything less!
Syndicate, Ultima, Thief, Baldur’s Gate, Alpha Centauri, Dungeon Keeper, Sim City 2000, Theme Hospital…Thanks to GOG.com, you can replay these cult titles on your Mac! And that’s not all: the online store also offers some of the best current games available, and always at very affordable prices.
GOG.com lets you buy cult games from the 80s and 90s that you can’t find elsewhere …
OpenEmu
We continue in the retro theme with OpenEmu, the ideal solution for replaying old console games on your Mac. Are your old game cartridges for Game Boy, Super Nintendo or Sega Mega Drive gathering dust in your attic? Perfect. OpenEmu allows you to emulate your console to replay your favorites via an elegant interface that’s accessible to everyone.
An application that has a truly impeccable finish, it transforms emulation into real pleasure. Emulating is so much better than it used to be! And, so as not to spoil anything, OpenEmu has near-perfect compatibility with many of the Bluetooth controllers available on the market, including those for PlayStation 3 and 4, Xbox 360 and Wii.
Say what you want about Electronic Arts, but you can’t deny that the gaming giant’s catalog is the stuff of dreams. Sim City, The Sims, as well as Dragon Age, Plants vs. Zombies, Lego, Tropico or even the Batman Arkham series…These exceptional games are available on Mac via Origin, the EA online store. Worst company in the world or not, EA helps (in its own way) to make the Mac a gaming platform in itself. It can’t be all bad!
The catalog of Mac games available on Origin is pretty tempting…
Humble Bundle
Humble Bundle is also great for players on Mac. This online shop offers weekly specials on packs of independent games which have been carefully selected. The site offers regular Bundles of games available on Mac and allows you to quickly create a nice collection without breaking the bank. Indeed, the secret of the Humble Bundle is that you set the prices yourself!
See a pack of games that interests you? Just choose how much you want to pay and proceed to the checkout! Simple, huh? In addition, a portion of the proceeds is automatically donated to a charity. Have fun and do a good deed? It’s win-win!
Sword & Sorcery, LIMBO, Amnesia, Bastion, Braid and Super Meat Boy – all in a Humble Bundle!
So now you have everything you need to turn your Mac into a true gaming platform…but what’s that you say? You’re not completely satisfied with these five exceptional applications? No worries! Here, Nick explains how to run Slender on Mac, but the method can be used for running any Windows game on Mac.
I must confess: I was impressed when Ubisoft introduced Watch Dogs to the press at E3 2012. Two long years later, I’ve completely changed my mind. Frankly, with just a week left until it’s release, I don’t expect much from this new game.
Default player
brightcove.createExperiences();
As I said back then, I followed Watch Dogs closely during its development. Where the game once created surprise and expectation, it all seems to have blown away in the past few months.
The gaming world has changed a lot in two years, and the tricks of the new Ubi game no longer impress me. Why am I not particularly fond of Watch Dogs? Let me explain why I won’t be lining up on May 27th to buy the game.
A sedated Tom Cruise
The game’s creators have said it themselves: it won’t be easy to grow attached to Aiden Pearce, the Watch Dogs anti-hero. Personally, I feel no empathy for this sedated Tom Cruise clone. Taciturn, rough, and with an explosive temper, it almost makes me miss the deplorable Ezio from Assassin’s Creed II.
I feel no empathy for this Tom Cruise clone on Valium.
Do we know anything about his personality, his desires, or motivations? Apart from a vague story of revenge, we have nothing. At a time when video games give life to heroes as complex and intricate as those in Papers, Please, The Last of Us or The Walking Dead, the Watch Dogs hero seems like a relic of the past.
United Colors of Ubisoft™
In addition to his unpleasant personality, our poor hero Aiden seems to be a victim of a typical pathology we find in games from the previous generation: he is the stereotype of your average white male hero in his thirties, a change for Ubisoft, who, in the past, wouldn’t hesitate to include characters of a Persian, Arab, American-Indian or Caribbean descent.
The average hero with brown hair in his thirties, or, zero originality in gaming.
Becoming a character who spends his days playing with a smartphone doesn’t make me dream. That’s what I do in reality all day. All things considered, Watch Dogs is more depressing than anything else.
I found an open wi-fi… Yippee!
The game takes place in a future that is so close to the present, that most of the super powers of our dear Aiden aren’t really that extraordinary. So, yes, while the game may be more realistic, I think I’d quickly get bored if my options are limited to disrupting traffic, creeping Facebook accounts that belong to people I don’t know, or watching videos from surveillance cameras.
All quiet on the Western front…
Aiden Pearce’s hallucinations remind me of Saints Row and GTA missions…
Although Ubisoft’s game will launch May 27th, you can experience some of its key mechanics playing other games that are already available. Inspiration? Emulation? Coincidence? Judge for yourselves.
Assassin’s Creed (doesn’t matter which)
In each episode of this excellent saga, you become a vigilante on the margins of society throughout an adventure rooted in the real world that will lead to a more complicated plot. Sound familiar?
If what you want is to roam freely through a city recreated to perfection, GTA V is the game for you. Even better, Rockstar’s game includes missions under the effects of hallucinogenic substances similar to the digital trips we can find in Watch Dogs.
With Deus Ex: Human Revolution, you’ll be able to enjoy the cyberpunk atmosphere of Ubisoft’s game. It’s the ideal way to become a hacker’s apprentice and familiarize yourself with the societal issues addressed in Watch Dogs. Start with the original.
If you dream about becoming a hacker, I recommend Republic, a game for iPad that combines hacking and infiltration stages perfectly, something we can also find on Watch Dogs.
Do you want to drive the most amazing cars through the busy streets of a U.S. urban area and play hide and seek with the police? Try the excellent Need For Speed: Most Wanted.
Split/Second gives the most aggressive drivers the chance to activate deadly traps at full speed. Let me know the day when Watch Dog’s Aiden Pearce is capable of bringing down planes or entire buildings onto those following him.
With only a week to go, I’m not too impatient about the Watch Dogs launch. In the past, Ubisoft has given us much more ambitious projects, and this new release doesn’t thrill me as much.
But, to be honest, I hope to be pleasantly surprised by Watch Dogs. Ubisoft has rarely disappointed me in the past, and the new game could well be a surprise with an unexpected storyline twist, or an unusual balance between its game mechanics.
In any case, we’ll see how the game is once it’s released at the end of the month.
In the meantime, check out the rest of this month’s game releases. Believe it or not, there’s a lot more to life than Watch Dogs.
We continue our series of the best Android games with a selection specifically designed for the most daredevil among you. Love challenges and not afraid of a little competition? Then you’ve come to the right place – the days of Sudoku and Bejeweled clones are numbered!
These five games are filled to the brim with frantic action in the purest tradition of arcade games from yesteryear. If frantic action doesn’t put you off and you’re a bit of a thrill seeker, then these games should make you happy.
Vector
Vector just might be one of the best running games available today on Android. Your mission? Run as far as possible, taking care to avoid obstacles in your way. If Vector resembles any game, it’s probably Canabalt, although Vector’s realistic parkour movements take it much further.
More lifelike than, well, life, Vector incorporates the fundamentals of the art of Movement: rolls, climbing, somersaults, acceleration. Players who might be missing Yamakasi will be in heaven! Vector pushes realism to the limit, so your character will stumble and stagger about when moves don’t go to plan. It’s a nervous little game that goes the distance with a tailored atmosphere and addictive gameplay to which a variety of new-to-the-genre movements are bring life.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking that Boson X is just another running game. This game really impressed me with its superhuman challenges, fiercely arcade-style gameplay and inimitable geek atmosphere. The toughest levels are pretty hard to overcome, but almost anyone can give the earlier levels a go. In a nutshell, put your Boson X reflexes to the test!
Like any good running game, you’ve got to run as far as possible while avoiding cliffs and other obstacles that will make life difficult for your beloved scientist. Your route will be blocked by various elements and trapped slabs which change with each game. One collision, and it’s game over.
But, unlike other titles in the genre, Boson X gives you a very specific mission. When you pass the blue tiles, you gain speed and get closer to your goal: 100% synchronization with elusive particles analyzed by your researcher.
Rayman Jungle Run was surely the best thing that’s happened to the Ubisoft saga since its return to 2D in 2011. If, like me, you loved the first forays of Ray Man onto mobile platforms, then there’s a good chance that you’ll fall in love with Ray Man Fiesta Run, the next in the adventures of the blond puff hero.
To the delight of fans of the series, Rayman Fiesta Run adopts the quick, nervous style of gameplay that made its big brother such a runaway success.
This time you’ll need to work your way through 75 levels pitfalls in your mission to try and collect as many Lums, those little yellow bugs that look like bees, as possible. Although hidden in all 4 corners of the levels, these fireflies might give a bit of trouble to the most hardcore of collectors. Can you manage to find them all?
Punch Quest is a high-speed action game with a stunningly simple concept. Your character will have to venture as far as possible into a dungeon while trying to survive waves of punches, slaps and uppercuts from enemies.
It’s useless worrying about the progress of the hero. In Punch Quest, your character will advance automatically and you’ll be free to focus on the distribution of punches thanks to the simple controls: one button for hitting directly in front of you, while the second button lets you to deliver uppercuts and make your character jump at the same time. It’ll be up to you to link these basic moves to create devastating combinations. This is truly an ode to the arcade games of the 90s!
Oh My Goat is a small, but horribly addictive game in which you help a small goat cross levels filled with obstacles that get increasingly dangerous. If your four legged friend is to advance through the 480 levels of the game, it’ll be down to you to control his jumps.
Contrary to what the colorful graphics and kid-friendly (see what we did there?) animations might indicate, Oh My Goat offers grown-up challenges and you’ll need skill and dexterity if you hope to overcome the most devious of the levels. Spread over 5 different environments, the game manages to remain varied through its Machiavellian obstacles. Wolf traps, sharp rocks, vultures…everything works together to put your reflexes to the test.
Luckily, your little ibex acquires new skills throughout his journey: acceleration, hovering, double jumps…you won’t be bored for a second. A really surprising gem of a game!
Players looking for real challenges will see these 5 titles as worthy heirs of the arcade games of yesteryear. The ideal solution for pushing your limits and putting your reflexes to the test!
If you think we forgot your favorite or you’ve got an Android game in mind that’s perfect for testing reflexes, then share your finds in the comments!
If you want to check out even more Android games, take a look at our entire best Android games series.
Four years after the release of Civilization V, the strategy game saga is back with Civilization: Beyond Earth. This new installment abandons the historical simulations of the past and propels us straight into the world of science fiction. The action in Beyond Earth unfolds about 200 years in the future. After events of unprecedented gravity (The Great Mistake), mankind is forced to abandon Earth to seek salvation on a new, more welcoming planet.
Default player
brightcove.createExperiences();
Civilization is one of the most prolific franchises in video game history: the series has sold over 21 million copies with barely a change in its 23 years of existence. This makes Beyond Earth a real gamble for the creators of the game.
Did the game trailer leave you wanting more? Me too! With that in mind, I’m going to explain why I’m excited about the release of Civilization: Beyond Earth… and why you should be too!
The spiritual son of Alpha Centauri
Alpha Centauri, the first Civilization to take place on another planet …
If you like strategy games, science fiction and you had a computer in the late 90s, chances are you’ve played Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri. Since its release in 1999, this strategy game has given players the ability to extend humanity’s adventure into the stars.
Critically acclaimed at the time, Alpha Centauri hasn’t had a true rival…until Beyond Earth, a worthy successor in terms of both story and gameplay. And when everybody already knows how good the original was, this new project leaves us very hopeful.
New kid on the block
Sid Meier revives the saga with new game mechanics…
Sid Meier and his team intend to revive the Civilization saga by providing new evidence that could change gameplay in a sustainable manner. That’s what Dennis Shirk, senior producer of the Civilization, series told Time magazine:
You’re not going to see an abundance of similarities between Beyond Earth and Civilization V. I mean, obviously you’re in space and colonizing a planet, but the gameplay systems we’ve introduced are all new, from the tech web to affinities to the way that the upgrade system works. We’ve diverged significantly from the original title.
Among the innovations in question, a system of semi-random quests should give rhythm to games, introducing scriptwriting elements which may change from one game to another.
Civilization: Beyond Earth also introduces a new search system replacing the traditional tech tree. In the new chapter, it will have Tech Web, a network of technologies allowing more organic and unpredictable development for searching.
But the most innovative aspect of Civilization: Beyond Earth will surely be its completely new game environment, an unknown planet inhabited by alien fauna. As in Alpha Centauri, players have the choice to live with indigenous forms of life or fight a merciless war against them.
Civilization first and foremost
Can you make the right choices and nurture your civilization?
Let’s get right to the point: Civilization V, the predecessor to Beyond Earth in the series, is quite simply one of the best turn-based strategy games in history. And I’m not the only one who thinks it. The 2010 title impressed everyone with the depth of the game, its graphics engine and historical accuracy.
Nearly 10 years after the release of the first episode, Civilization V has built on the mastery of Sid Meier and his team in a genre they helped to craft. With such a rich heritage and Firaxis at the helm, we can’t see how Civilization: Beyond Earth could fail.
If all goes as planned, Civilization: Beyond Earth will land on shelves in late 2014. To give you an idea of what Civilization in the stars is like, why don’t you play (or should that be that replay?) Alpha Centauri! The game has aged pretty well and is available on Windows XP, 7, 8 and Mac for a small fee from GOG.com (Good Old Games). Don’t deny yourself this pleasure!
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare has been unveiled with an explosive trailer. The game’s fans have a lot to look forward to: the new game takes us all the way to the year 2052. In the midst of huge explosions and Hollywood-style action scenes, though, it’s possible you might have missed some of the details.
Default player
brightcove.createExperiences();
Luckily for you, we’ve studied the images from the game and found a few details that might have escaped your eye. Here we’ll analyze 10 key details from the first Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare trailer to help you get the most information you can.
1. Exoskeletons in the closet
Exoskeletons play a central role in Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. In real life, early versions of the motorized armor are already capable of helping wearers to handle heavy loads and movement by increasing their physical abilities.
In the world of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, exoskeletons are common and the main character will be equipped with one throughout the solo campaign.
After each successful mission, the player will receive experience points that will increase and improve their armor’s special abilities:
Ultrafast escape to take shelter
Super jumps
Magnetic gloves to climb over smooth surfaces
Invisibility with optical camouflage
Ultrafast speed (time deceleration)
Although nothing has been officially leaked about other Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare modes, it’s likely that some of these powers will also be part of the multiplayer game following the example of Riley, the war dog introduced in Call of Duty: Ghosts.
2. On the shoulders of Atlas
The Atlas organization will be the main antagonist in the single player campaign of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. Originally, this group didn’t have the paramilitary force we can see in the first images of the game.
In the world of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, Atlas initially plays the role of a new kind of philanthropic organization: thanks to its unlimited private funds (see #3) and independence from the state, Atlas can intervene in large scale humanitarian disasters with a speed and efficiency that is out of the reach of traditional NGOs.
3. Jonathan Irons, a man of steel
Jonathan Irons is the founder of Atlas. Played by Kevin Spacey, this billionaire with an iron fist doesn’t hide his ambitions to control the United States. He plays a manipulative character that reminds us of the formidable Frank Underwood from the House of Cards series, which also stars this Oscar-winning actor.
4. Fog over San Francisco
Yep, you’ve seen what you think you’ve seen. One of the Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare missions will take place in San Francisco. If we believe what we can see in the trailer, this is a civil war between the Atlas troops and the regular army that will tear America apart.
In any case, it seems like Jonathan Irons’ actions will lead to the outright destruction of the Golden Gate Bridge, one of the most emblematic monuments in the United States.
5. Cold-blooded murder(s)
Once again, controversy seems to surround the new Call of Duty series. The first images from Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare seem to show the cold-blooded execution of a civilian (probably one of the journalists who is seen talking to Jonathan Irons in the trailer).
And for the icing on the cake, a character dressed in clothes that seem similar to the traditional attire of West African Muslims, witnesses the scene. Is he the next on the assassin’s list?
6. Hover bikes…on rails?
As we can see, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare will have scenes that involve driving or flying a hover bike. A small disappointment though: analysis of the trailer reveals that the scripted sequences will probably take place in the corridors that the series has used previously.
What, you think Call of Duty is being a little extreme with the sci-fi stuff? Then you’ll be interested to know that the the prototype for real hover bikes is currently under development!
7. Grenades for everyone
In Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare it will be possible to change the detonation mode of non-lethal grenades before tossing them. A loud explosion or detection of enemies and threats, it’ll be up to you to choose. The second mode will provide you with a considerable tactical advantage by revealing the position of enemies through walls.
8. Welcome to Nigeria
Lagos is currently the most populous city in Nigeria.The ‘Keep Lagos Clean’ billboards that can be seen in the trailer tell us that one or more missions of the single-player campaign will take place on the African continent.
9. Enough with the caterpillars, let’s have spiders instead
1, 2, 3, 4 … Yes, 4 legs! In addition to drones and half-man, half-robot soldiers, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare players will have to deal with revolutionary tanks. With their all-terrain legs, armor and heavy weapons, these armored vehicles are more dangerous than ever, and could prove particularly treacherous.
And as crazy as it sounds, the U.S. military is already interested in very similar quadruped devices. We’ve told you before, the future is now!
10. Railgun! Did you say railgun?
If you pay attention you can catch a glimpse of a firing sequence from a turret that seriously resembles a railgun. This technology, currently being tested by the U.S. Navy, uses electromagnetic force to propel projectiles that reach the staggering speed of Mach 10 (approximately 114oo ft/s).
After this article, the first trailer for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare should hold no more secrets. Although one last mystery makes me wonder. How do you explain the line that cuts through the letters A, L, U and T in the in the Call of Duty logo?
Aesthetic choice or hidden meaning?
Is it simply a designer’s aesthetic choice – the cuts are placed symmetrically on either side of the center of the logo – or is there some kind of hidden meaning? For now, we just don’t know.
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare will be released on November 4, 2014 for PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. In the meantime, don’t hesitate to share your theories in the comments!
In our The best Android games to… series, we go through the best Android games to play for any given time or place. This week, we continue with our quest for the greatest Android games, this week bringing the most relaxing games we could find on Google Play.
The 5 games we’ve picked are open invitations to kick back and relax. These little oasis of Zen are perfect for de-stressing between meetings or relaxing after a long day of work. Sit down and chill out; you’re in good hands.
KAMI: For origami fans
KAMI is a relaxing puzzle game where you have to fill the screen with colored folded paper within a predetermined number of moves. The early levels are pretty easy to master, but later ones will still stretch your brains with a carefully chosen dose of difficulty.
KAMI is super-relaxing, with Asian-inspired music and a visual style that takes its cue from Japanese origami. The game looks impeccable, and is easy to play. The app is perfect for chilling out without tying yourself in knots!
LYNE is a stripped-down puzzle that asks you to connect geometric shapes on a grid. Too easy? Behind the initial impression of simplicity, LYNE has worked a game mechanic that will require plenty of thinking.
You can’t cross connections, and each node has characteristics with strict requirements: some need multiple connections to activate, while others always need to be at either the start or the end of a chain. In addition to its interesting game mechanic, LYNE has beautiful minimalist menus, relaxing graphics, and discrete, chilled out music. It’s a haven of video game peace.
Strata is a handmade game that helps you relax by asking you to interlace ribbons. Choose the right combination of colors to match up the bands of color and complete the pattern.
This game is super-atmospheric thanks to its minimalist, but imaginative score. The soundtrack is composed in real time – each move you make, whether harmonious or dissonant, creates the music. It’s an original concept in a lush game world.
Splice is a puzzle game that plunges you into a mysterious, relaxing universe. In order to solve this little game’s micro-puzzles, you need to assemble groups of cells into predetermined arrangements. Splice is worth a try if only for the unique gameplay and trippy music – it will help you relax without numbing your brain.
As you might have guessed from the title, Color Zen invites you to manipulate colored shapes. Like KAMI, the aim is to fill the screen with color. This time, though, you’re not dealing with origami: in Color Zen, you’ll have to crash the colors together to make them spread around the screen.
Your mission is to choose the correct order the colors need to spread to fill the screen. Ambiance-wise, Color Zen is indeed very Zen, with minimalist geometric shapes and vibrant music with hints of trip hop and jazz fusion.
Life can be a little stressful, and from time to time, you need to let go a little. Forget the frantic games that monopolize the Google Play rankings, and put your time into these 5 Zen womderlands instead
If we’ve forgotten a game that you think is perfect for chilling out, let us know in the comments.
If you liked this article, take a look at last week’s installment in our The Best Android games to… series:
Broforce is a fast-paced action shooter with a cast inspired by the best American action movies ever made. Rambo, Barracuda, Chuck Norris and even Bruce Willis: stars from the 80s and 90s are ready to kick some pixellated butt.
Default player
<!–
By use of this code snippet, I agree to the Brightcove Publisher T and C
found at https://accounts.brightcove.com/en/terms-and-conditions/.
–>
<!–
This script tag will cause the Brightcove Players defined above it to be created as soon
as the line is read by the browser. If you wish to have the player instantiated only after
the rest of the HTML is processed and the page load is complete, remove the line.
–>
brightcove.createExperiences();
Attention: this list of characters, features and upgrade requirements apply to the Broforce Beta that was released on April 7, 2014. Some elements could change with the release of the final version of the game or subsequent updates.
Rambro
Inspired by: John Rambofrom the Rambo movies (played by Sylvester Stallone)
Inspired by: John Matrixfrom Commando(played by Arnold Schwarzenegger)
Unlocked after: 1 hostage freed
Main attack: Rocket-launcher
Special attack: 6-shot rocket
B.A Broracus
Inspired by: B. A. Baracus from The A-Team (played by Mr. T)
Unlocked after: 3 hostages freed
Main attack: Flamethrower (unlimited fuel)
Special attack: Exploding grenades
Brodel Walker
Inspired by: Cordell Walkerfrom the series Walker, Texas Ranger (played by Chuck Norris)
Unlocked after: 5 hostages freed
Main attack: Shotgun (5 short-range bullets per shot)
Special attack: Air strike (5 missiles)
Bro Hard
Inspired by: John McClane from the Die Hard movies (played by Bruce Willis)
Unlocked after: 8 hostages freed
Main attack: Uzi(continuous shots, medium-range)
Special attack: Blinding grenades
Mac Brover
Inspired by: MacGyverfrom the MacGyver series (played by Richard Dean Anderson)
Unlocked after: 8 hostages freed
Main attack: Dynamite (medium explosion zone)
Special attack: A turkey stuffed with dynamite (trigger by remote control by pressing the special attack button a second time)
Brade
Inspired by: Blade from the Blade movies (played by Wesley Snipes)
Unlocked after: 15 hostages freed
Main attack: Sword (very short range)
Special attack: Bradeis propelled forward, destroying everything in his path (blocks and enemies)
Bro Dredd
Inspired by: Judge Dreddfrom the movie Judge Dredd (played by Sylvester Stallone)
Unlocked after:20 hostages freed
Main attack: Semi-automatic pistol (medium range)
Special attack: Remote-controlled missile (moderate damage)
Bro In Black
Inspired by: Agent J from the Men In Black movies (played by Will Smith)
Unlocked after:25 hostages freeds
Main attack: The Noisy Cricket (strong recoil, long range)
Special attack: the Neuralyzer(long-distance beam that stuns enemies)
Snake Broskin
Inspired by: Snake Plissken from Escape from New York (played by Kurt Russell)
Unlocked after:31 hostages freed
Main attack: Sniper rifle (long-range, slow, significant damage)
Special attack: Molotov Cocktails
Brominator
Inspired by: Terminator from the Terminator movies (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger)
Unlocked after:37 hostages freed
Main attack: Gatlinggun (rapid fire, strong recoil)
Special attack: Temporary invincibility
Brobocop
Inspired by: RoboCop from the RoboCop movies (played by Peter Weller)
Unlocked after:46 hostages freed
Main attack: Semi-automatic pistol(medium range, fire several shots at once by holding down the attack button)
Special attack: Homing bullets
Indiana Brones
Inspired by: Indiana Jones from the Indiana Jones movies (played by Harrisson Ford)
Unlocked after:56 hostages freed
Main attack: Flare gun (medium range, low damage, inflame enemies)
Special attack: Whip (can reach elevated areas)
Ash Brolliams
Inspired by: Ash Williams from the The Evil Dead movies (played by Bruce Campbell)
Unlocked after:65 hostages freed
Main attack: Sawed-off shotgun, significant damage, slow, 5 bullets per shot)
Special attack: Ash Brolliams is propelled forward and kills enemies with his chainsaw
Bro Anderson
Inspired by: Neo from the Matrix movies (played by Keanu Reeves)
Unlocked after:74 hostages freed
Main attack: Punches (very short range, can dash by pressing attack button)
Special attack: Bounces bullets back to the shooter for a short period
The Boondock Bros
Inspired by: Conner and Murphy MacManus from the movie The Boondock Saints (played by Sean Patrick Flanery and Norman Reedus)
Unlocked after:86 hostages freed
Main attack: Automatic pistols (if one of the two brothers dies, it fires more quickly)
Special attack: When the two brothers are alive, the special attack summons The Duke, a 3rd character who copies the player’s actions. When one of the brothers is dead, the special move resurrects him.
Brochete
Inspired by: Machete from the Machete movies (played by Danny Trejo)
Unlocked after:98 hostages freed
Main attack: Knife throwing (medium range, fast, significant damage)
Special attack: Ultra-rapid knife throwing (medium range, super-quick, significant damage)
Bronan the Brobarian
Inspired by: Conan from the movie Conan the Barbarian (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger)
Unlocked after:113 hostages freed
Main attack: Sword (very short range, charge sword to deliver a devastating blow by pressing and holding the attack button)
Special attack: Bronan strikes the ground with his sword and destroys everything within a large range (enemies and blocks)
Ellen Ripbro
Inspired by: Ellen Ripley from the Alien movies (played by Sigourney Weaver)
Unlocked after:130 hostages freed
Main attack: Pulse Rifle(medium range)
Special attack: Flame thrower (long range, significant damage)
The Broforce heroes have no more secrets to hide from you. Now it’s time to choose your favorite, and let the pixel power flow!
Too impatient to wait for the game? Want to get down to the serious business of being a hero? Luckily for you, the Broforce developers have chosen to let players try the game for free on their website, so now you have no excuse not to have a go.
![How to deactivate Hangouts for Android in 15 seconds [Video]](https://articles-img.sftcdn.net/auto-mapping-folder/sites/3/2014/06/How-to-deactivate-Hangouts-for-Android-in-15-seconds-Video.jpg)
Forget Dr. Kawashima! Professor Einstein is the new kid on the brain-training block. Fun games, bright graphics and engaging characters will make training your braining a very entertaining experience.
As its title indicates, Brain Yoga is a zen game where you’ll find a selection of activities designed to stimulate your brain. With its relaxing music and Eastern-themed graphics, this title is a real invitation to relax.
Don’t be fooled by this faux 
The creators of the GOG.com site (Good Old Games) are part of a 
Humble Bundle is also great for players on Mac. This online shop offers weekly specials on packs of independent games which have been carefully selected. The site offers regular Bundles of games available on Mac and allows you to quickly create a nice collection without breaking the bank. Indeed, the secret of the Humble Bundle is that you set the prices yourself!
Vector just might be one of the best 
Don’t make the mistake of thinking that Boson X is just another running game. This game really impressed me with its superhuman challenges, fiercely arcade-style gameplay and inimitable geek atmosphere. The toughest levels are pretty hard to overcome, but almost anyone can give the earlier levels a go. In a nutshell, put your Boson X reflexes to the test!
Punch Quest is a high-speed action game with a stunningly simple concept. Your character will have to venture as far as possible into a dungeon while trying to survive waves of punches, slaps and uppercuts from enemies.
Oh My Goat is a small, but horribly addictive game in which you help a small goat cross levels filled with obstacles that get increasingly dangerous. If your four legged friend is to advance through the 480 levels of the game, it’ll be down to you to control his jumps.
Rambro
