Етикет Лични

Though Square Enix has released quite a few ports of its older titles, like Final Fantasy and The World Ends With You on iOS, Final Fantasy All The Bravest marks its first Final Fantasy app that was designed specifically for Apple's devices.

Square Enix calls All The Bravest a "pick-up-and-go RPG," an accurate description for the game, which incorporates the Final Fantasy series' Active Time Battle mechanic. The system has been greatly simplified, and battling consists of tapping party members to attack with little to no strategy involved. The game also does away with typical time consuming RPG activities like exploration, dungeon crawling, and dialogue.


Our sister site TouchArcade went hands-on with the game, and has this to say about the gameplay:

In the game, you can control up to 30 different classical Final Fantasy heroes across series of fights against classical villains. To attack, you tap on a character or, as we've discovered, just swipe up and down on the screen to activate all of them. After each attack, characters are smacked with a cool down timer, which keeps them from being able to attack for a few seconds.

Every enemy kills with one hit, regardless if it's just a basic Final Fantasy goblin or one of the horseman of the apocalypse. In addition to being flimsy, heroes are one note: they attack, that's it. You can’t activate special skills, you can’t target enemies, and they can't buff each other.

If you haven't caught on, this definitely isn't the Final Fantasy you know, but there’s a lot of the series' touches present. The presentation is old-school Final Fantasy. The enemies and heroes are, too. The simple "save the world" narrative hooks are all present and accounted for, as well as the late title card.

Final Fantasy All The Bravest comes with a much lower price tag than Square Enix's other offerings, which have cost as much as $17.99. Unfortunately, the initial purchase price is supplemented by a heavy focus on in-app purchases. 35 "premium" characters are unlocked at $0.99 each, and resurrecting a fallen party requires purchasable currency as well.

Final Fantasy All The Bravest can be downloaded from the App Store for $3.99. [Direct Link]

Patently Apple highlights an interesting Apple patent application published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office today. The application describes a removable clip for a mobile device such as an iPod, with the clip integrating tactile or trackpad like controls to be used either while attached to the device or as a remote control.

In one embodiment, an apparatus includes a body having a bend and a user interface area, a connector adapted to couple to a corresponding connector on an electronic device, and a plurality of conductive elements. The bend enables the user interface area to wrap around a portion of the electronic device when the connector is coupled to the corresponding connector on the electronic device. In another embodiment, a portable electronic system includes a removable user interface and an electronic computing device having a display surface, where the removable user interface is couplable to the electronic computing device such that the removable user interface is disposed over at least a part of the display surface.

Various embodiments of Apple's removable clip with tactile controls
Despite the patent application having been filed in July 2011, the diagrams in some cases depict a classic iPod with a relatively small screen and a click wheel on the front of the device. Various embodiments of the invention show the touch portion of the clip being used on the front of the device, either with on-screen content shrinking to fit below the clip or with content being displayed behind the transparent clip to provide a dynamic interface for the clip's tactile buttons. Alternatively, the clip could be mounted in reverse to place buttons on the rear of the device, or removed entirely and clipped onto a connector on a headphone cord to serve as a remote control for the device.

As with many of Apple's patent applications, the removable clip may never make an appearance in an Apple product, but the document provides an interesting glimpse at some of the areas of interest for Apple, and certain aspects of the technology could eventually appear in a different form.

Engadget reports that Sprint will finally begin offering its Total Equipment Protection (TEP) plan for the iPhone beginning January 25. The TEP plan offers coverage not only for device failures that occur outside of Apple's standard warranty but also loss, theft, and damage.


The TEP plan consists of two parts, an $11 monthly fee for the service and then a significant $150-$200 deductible for cases where the phone requires replacement due to loss, theft, or physical damage. Consumers have 30 days from the date of purchase of their device in which to enroll in the program.

AT&T offers a similar program, although it costs $6.99 per month with a $199 deductible for all iPhone, iPad, and iPad mini models. Verizon's Total Equipment Coverage carries a special higher rate for iPhone compared to other devices, with the monthly fee set at $9.99 and deductibles ranging from $169-$199 depending on model.

Amazon today announced that it has optimized its MP3 music store for Safari on iOS devices, marking yet another step in the company's effort to eat into the iTunes Store's dominant position in the digital music market.

“Since the launch of the Amazon Cloud Player app for iPhone and iPod touch, a top request from customers has been the ability to buy music from Amazon right from their devices. For the first time ever, iOS users have a way do that – now they can access Amazon’s huge catalog of music, features like personalized recommendations, deals like albums for $5, songs for $0.69, and they can buy their music once and use it everywhere,” said Steve Boom, Vice President of Amazon Music.

Features of the Amazon MP3 store on the mobile web browser include:

- The Amazon MP3 mobile website for iPhone and iPod touches is built on HTML5, which means customers can make purchases directly from the Amazon MP3 mobile website at www.amazon.com/mp3 on their iPhones and iPod touches
- Selection of over 22 million songs and over two million albums at everyday low prices
- Access to everyday deals like $5 albums, $0.69 songs, and free songs from artists on the rise
- Individualized recommendations based on purchase history
- Immediate availability and seamless playback of purchases in the Amazon Cloud Player app
- Free storage of all Amazon MP3 purchases in Amazon Cloud Player

Amazon's move to optimize its MP3 store for iOS devices comes over five years after the store debuted, but seems to be part of a renewed effort by Amazon to challenge the iTunes Store. The company has invested significantly in its Cloud Player services as a competitor to iTunes Match, and Amazon has just launched its new AutoRip feature to provide free digital versions of tracks purchased on CD, including for many orders dating as far back as 1998.

Imangi Studios' iconic endless runner Temple Run proved to be a huge success, having been downloaded more than 170 million times since it launched in mid–2011, and today, a surprise sequel to the original game hit the App Store.

Temple Run 2 features the same danger-filled action-packed experience found in the first Temple Run game, but it includes new power ups, a mine cart, zip lines, and an even bigger monkey, according to the App Store description. The game is also set in a new environment and it features enhanced graphics.

Our sister site TouchArcade got an early look at the game and had this to say:

Right from first boot up you'll get a sense of deja vu as the camera sweeps in on the cursed idol that has been the cause of so much running over the past year and a half. You're still being chased by freaky monkey creatures – well, just one giant creature, actually – and you’re still using a combination of swipes and tilts to jump or slide past obstacles and collect coins. This is totally Temple Run.

However, just because the key components remain the same doesn't mean there isn't a ton of new stuff in Temple Run 2. Quite the opposite. The game takes place during the "golden hour" that’s just before sunset in a new temple floating high up in the sky. This sequel has received a big upgrade in terms of visuals and animation over its predecessor, and it makes a difference. It’s a beautiful game for sure.

Temple Run 2 is currently available as a free download from the App Store. [Direct Link]

Only twelve and up, sorry.

As we reported a couple of days ago, the iOS game from the National Rifle Association (NRA), NRA: Practice Range, has been coming under fire from various media outlets and political organizations for being a shooting game that is rated for anyone four years of age and up.

Apparently, Apple heard some of the outcry, and revised the rating in the App Store, which now says the shooting game is “Rated 12+ for the following: Frequent/Intense Realistic Violence.”

Furthermore, a new petition on signon.org, a user-created petition site associated with political action group MoveOn.org, is calling for the game to be removed from the App Store completely, saying that “the app itself is shameless, insensitive and counterproductive, whether played by a 4-year-old or a teenager.” The petition finishes with a request to Apple to remove the app from the App Store.

The petition itself so far has 1,528 signatures of a total 2,000 sought as of the time of this writing. The iTunes app store has over 700 five star reviews, and close to 400 one star reviews, reflecting a clearly politicized consumer base. The total 1446 Ratings for the game are averaged, however, for a 3.5 star rating overall for this version.

While changing the rating for the game may have a limited effect, as many children download all sorts of games from the App store without any parental supervision, at least Apple took the step and changed the rating to something just a bit more realistic. However, there are plenty of games on iOS that use guns and violence to a greater extent than this NRA app does. Removing this one app, or even the slew of other apps that represent guns in a variety of gratuitous or responsible ways, will not change the real fact that our society is going through a significant discussion of guns and their role in our world. It’s only fitting that the App Store would reflect the larger societal concerns as it comes to have more and more visibility in our culture as a whole.

Source: App Store
Via: Electronista

Related Stories

PowerSync Roller 20 Powers, Syncs And Rolls 20 iPads MiniWhat An iPhone Mini, iPhone 5S And iPad 5 Could Look Like [Gallery]Apple Introduces New Payment Plans For Product Purchases In ChinaDigisocial Mixes Snapshots, Audio, In A Bid To Build Yet Another Social NetworkDespite Drop In Stock Value, Most Analysts Are Bullish On AAPL [Report]

Those models sure are good looking and happy!

So, here’s an interesting new idea. Take a little bit of Instagram, with it’s ability to snap quick pictures and apply fun visual filters, and combine that with a push-to-record feature that lets you add audio commentary, music, whatever you like, to the picture itself. Digisocial aims to be the next big social thing, obviously, with a well-designed, free app that’s easy and fun to use.

The problem is, of course, a matter of scale.

Playing around with Digisocial today, I was able to take quick snapshots, applying real-time filters to the images as I went. I was prompted to record audio to go with the picture. It felt a little odd at first, but it does add some interesting possibilities. For example, when looking through the stream of other users’ photos, there were a bunch of images that included music, or funny captions, all using high quality audio.

Once an image is posted to the service, friends who are also on Digisocial can like it, add an audio comment, or type a text comment. The social interaction is up front and center here, which makes the idea that much more compelling. You can follow users on the service, which is free and can be connected with via Facebook.

Digisocial works really well, is easy to use, and offers enough of a twist on the familiar Instagram-type concept to be worth a free download. The main issue, for now, is that there aren’t a huge number of people using the app, as it just released to the App Store a few days ago. None of my Facebook friends were on the service, and while I can invite them all, I don’t want to spam each of them with an invite if I can help it.

Features
∙ Combine photos & images with HD voice capture to provide the richest, most vivid sharing experience. Allow your moments to come to life.
∙ Apply various filters to your images and share easily with one-click sharing on Facebook and Twitter.
∙ Voice comment on your friends’ posts instantly and tell them what you think.
∙ Meet new friends and connect with old ones across all of your social circles.
∙ Share your content privately, with your friends or for the whole world to see.
∙ Create chat groups and stay in touch with your friends with Voice Instant Messaging (VIM), images and text anywhere in the world.
∙ Share and control your content in an Ad-Free environment.

Because the app is free, and the devs promise it always will be, and the privacy policies are clear, this could be a great competitor to other services out there. Check it out in the App Store, and send me some pictures with audio. Fun!

Source: App Store

Related Stories

PowerSync Roller 20 Powers, Syncs And Rolls 20 iPads MiniWhat An iPhone Mini, iPhone 5S And iPad 5 Could Look Like [Gallery]Apple Introduces New Payment Plans For Product Purchases In ChinaDespite Drop In Stock Value, Most Analysts Are Bullish On AAPL [Report]Apple Revises Age Guidance For iOS NRA Shooting App, Petition For Removal Appears

Apple today added installment payment plans to its online store in China, giving Chinese buyers the option to purchase iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks via credit.

Consumers can choose to pay in installments on merchandise that costs between 300 yuan ($48) and 30,000 yuan ($4,800), through a plan from China Merchants Bank Co.

As Bloomberg notes, the credit option puts expensive devices like the iPad and the iPhone into the reach of Chinese workers, who often cannot afford to purchase Apple's devices.

Apple, based in Cupertino, California, is trying to make its products more affordable in China after being surpassed by local suppliers such as ZTE Corp. and Lenovo Group Ltd. in the smartphone market. The iPhone 5, released in China last month, is priced at 5,288 yuan on Apple's local site, equal to about six weeks' pay for the average urban worker.

"There is an enormous mid-range consumer market that they are not tapping into," said Mark Natkin, managing director of Marbridge Consulting Ltd., a Beijing-based market research firm. "They're trying to figure out how to make products more accessible to that market segment. This is a good step in that direction."

In the Foxconn factories where Apple's mobile devices are assembled, junior level workers make approximately 1,800 yuan per month, which means the iPad and the iPhone are nearly unattainable without an installment option

Apple is currently offering payment plans over three, six, 12, 18, and 24 months. A promotion that lasts through January 23 makes payment plans lasting a year or less interest free. Payment plans with 18 installments incur a fee of 6.5 percent of the selling price, and 24 installment plans have a fee of 8.5 percent.

Earlier this month, Facebook updated its Messenger iOS app with beta support for making VoIP calls between Facebook accounts. That feature was initially limited to Canadian iOS accounts but is now being opened to all U.S. accounts, reports The Verge.

To access voice calling, open the Facebook Messenger app, open a chat with someone, and click the 'i' button in the top right corner. If the feature has been activated -- and the other user also has Facebook Messenger for iOS installed -- there should be a "Free Call" button. If it's greyed out, try tapping it anyway. Facebook is rolling out the feature to all users over the next several days.

What this means is that if you live in the US, you can now call other Facebook users for free over Wi-Fi or using your phone's data connection while you're on the go. When you call someone, a push notification appears on their screen that says "Ellis Hamburger is calling," for example. The feature is especially critical for people with bad cell service at work or at home, and for those who want to conserve cell phone minutes. It's also a huge step for Facebook — which with a single feature emerges as one of the largest communities of VoIP users in the world. Yes, competitors Viber, Vonage, and Skype have had the feature for some time, but all have much smaller user bases.

Facebook's efforts create a calling system that can potentially reach its more than 1 billion users, providing a massive competition to other VoIP services like Skype, as well as allowing teenagers using iPod touch devices to make phone calls to friends using Facebook's app.

Facebook Messenger for the iPhone is a free download from the App Store. [Direct Link]

Apple today seeded build 12D54 of OS X Mountain Lion 10.8.3 to developers, marking the seventh beta iteration of the newest version of Mountain Lion. 10.8.3 was first seeded to developers in November.

Build 12D54 comes just eight days after build 12D50, and like the previous build, contains no known issues or features. Build 12D50 brought only minor changes, and asked developers to focus on testing AirPlay, AirPort, Game Center, Graphics Drivers, and Safari.

9to5Mac notes that the new build contains significant changes to WiFi, but additional changes are unknown. Registered developers can download the update on Apple’s Developer Page.