Oppo lands in the UK big time with RX17 Pro and more

Chris Hare
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Oppo lands in the UK big time with RX17 Pro and more

Oppo has officially launched in the UK this week with leading retailer Carphone Warehouse, introducing two new smartphones – OPPO RX17 Pro and RX17 Neo – and brings its flagship smartphone OPPO Find X to UK consumers for the first time.

For the last 10 years, OPPO – the company that started the era of selfie beautification – has been focusing on manufacturing camera phones, while innovating mobile photography technology breakthroughs.​ Introducing a number of smartphone firsts, OPPO was the first brand to launch smartphones with 5MP and 16MP front cameras, the first to introduce the motorised rotating camera, the Ultra HD feature and the 5x Dual Camera Zoom technology.​

OPPO also has a proprietary charging technology, known as VOOC Flash Charge and its latest devices upgraded to Super VOOC, which currently offers the fastest fast-charge available on a smartphone. Allowing users to charge devices in only 10 minutes to get a 40% charge and 40 minutes to get a full charge.

OPPO marked its arrival to the UK tonight in London with an exclusive event held at the Tower Bridge where The Walkways were illuminated in an eye-catching blue and purple colour combo in homage to its new RX17 Series. OPPO’s handsets (RX17 Pro, Neo and Find X) will be available exclusively with Dixons Carphone, and will be available online at Carphone Warehouse & Currys from Tuesday 29th January for pre-order, and in Carphone Warehouse stores and online nationwide on 13th February.

Set to challenge the smartphone sector in the UK and across Europe, OPPO’s brand new RX series​ offers a revolutionary experience with its sleek design and advanced technology, to empower people to pursue extraordinary experiences. At their core, both the RX17 Pro and the RX17 Neo are built upon four founding pillars of design, innovation, community and young minds.

The eagerly anticipated RX series surprises with its artistic design, bespoke colour palette, and unique photography features. Introducing dynamic and vivid colours, and enhanced image quality with both devices. The RX17 Pro also goes one-step further, with its new Ultra Night Mode camera mode.

‘We are thrilled to announce the official launch of OPPO in the UK today, with the availability of RX17 Series in partnership with Carphone Warehouse. This has been one of the brand’s most anticipated European decisions so far and we are proud to be bringing OPPO’s long history of technological innovation and beautiful design to this market. We look forward to our future in the UK and are excited to be celebrating this moment with a special event in the heart of the thriving city of London,’ said Terance Tan, Executive Director of Sales at OPPO.

RX17 Pro: Intelligent camera brings new depths to smart phones

Specially designed for night shooting, the RX17 Pro features the latest hardware and software from the AI Ultra-Clear Engine, Smart Aperture and OIS (Optical Image Stabilization). This image-enhancing technology, produces outstanding definition for pictures. Making images clearer and brighter, with added intelligent noise reduction and highlight restoration so photos are refined to perfection.​

Equipped with a triple-camera set-up including 25MP front camera and 12MP/20MP rear camera, Sony IMX576 sensor, F1.5/F2.4 smart aperture and real-time HDR support, the RX17 Pro is designed to capture images effortlessly.

Other features include a 6.4 inch Waterdrop screen, including a ‘Hidden Fingerprint Unlock’ feature and ‘Smart Bar’ multitasking function. Corning® Gorilla® Glass 6, the most durable cover glass to date for high-impact resistance. Wireless payment, supporting NFC wireless payment, making the transition to mobile payments easy and convenient. Revolutionary Gradient Design, introduce a brand-new “Radiant Mist Color”, using 3D fog glass to give the body a soft look and feel, and resulting in a fingerprint resistant, durable design.

RX17 Pro is £549 and will be available to pre-order from Carphone Warehouse here & Currys on 29th January and, purchase in store and online from 13th February

The RX17 Neo: Lightweight and mighty

Precision engineering meets enigmatic design with the RX17 Neo with a 6.4-inch waterdrop display to create more screen space and a compact design, the smartphone is just as lightweight as it is advanced.

Its exterior is meticulously crafted to please the eye, displaying a dynamic colour range (Mocha red and Astral blue) as it moves between light and shadow. With its combination of original design and cutting-edge IMT gradient construction, no two angles will ever look the same.

Boasting a 25MP AI Front Camera and dual rear camera, it makes it easy to shoot and edit photos at the click of a button. The camera is backed up by an AI algorithm, which uses more than eight million reference points to ensure every dimension is brought into focus, it is like having powerful desktop-like photo editing software in the pocket.

The RX17 Neo, also features OPPO’s Smart Bar that lets users toggle through apps and functions with effortless freedom. As well as, a new Music on Display, so the screen can be turned off and still play music, video audio, or other media.

The RX17 Neo is £319 and will be available to pre-order from Carphone Warehouse here & Currys on 29th January and, purchase in store and online from 13th February

Find X: OPPO’s flagship

Available for the first time in the UK, the Find X is the first Android smartphone to feature 3D Structured Light Technology. Using 15,000 facial dot recognition and intelligent analysis, to produce 3D Face Recognition, which is 20 times safer than fingerprint recognition, for unlocking the phone. As the world’s first panoramic designed phone, the Find X combines two seamless pieces of glass with the front screen featuring a panoramic view. OPPO used COP flexible screen packing technology bringing the visual screen ratio to 93.8%. With the front almost all-screen, the user has an unprecedented visual experience.

The Find X is £799 and will be available to pre-order from Carphone Warehouse here & Currys on 29th January and, purchase in store and online from 13th February

Huawei helps to finish the Unfinished Symphony withthe power of AI

Chris Hare
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Huawei helps to finish the Unfinished Symphony withthe power of AI

Huawei has for the first time ever – combined the power of AI and human expertise to compose the final two movements of Schubert’s famous Symphony No. 8. Commonly known as the ‘Unfinished Symphony.’ The ‘Unfinished Symphony’ has remained incomplete for 197 years and despite numerous attempts, it remains one of the most intriguing pieces of unfinished symphonic music of all time.

Huawei’s completed version of Schubert’s Symphony No. 8 was created by running an Artificial Intelligence model benefitting directly from the processing power of the dual NPU (Neural Processing Unit) in the Huawei Mate 20 Pro smartphone – designed specifically with AI-based tasks in mind. Analysing the timbre, pitch and meter of the existing first and second movements of the symphony, the AI model then generated the melody for the final, missing third and fourth movements. Huawei then worked with Emmy award-winning composer, Lucas Cantor to arrange an orchestral score from the melody that stayed true to the style of Schubert’s Symphony No. 8.

“At Huawei, we are always searching for ways in which technology can make the world a better place. So we taught our Mate 20 Pro smartphone to analyse an unfinished, nearly 200-year-old piece of music and to finish it in the style of the original composer,” commented Walter Ji, President CBG, Huawei Western Europe. “We used the power of AI, to extend the boundaries of what is humanly possible and see the positive role technology might have on modern culture. If our smartphone is intelligent enough to do this, what else could be possible?”

Lucas Cantor, Composer said: “My role was to draw out the AI’s good ideas and fill in the gaps to ensure the final output was ready to be played by a symphony orchestra. The result of this collaboration with AI proves that technology offers incredible possibilities and the significant and positive impact it can have on modern culture.”

The final, Huawei-completed piece will be brought to life with a live performance at the iconic Cadogan Hall in London on Monday 4th February.

Schubert’s Symphony No. 8 in B minor is considered to be the archetypal ‘Unfinished Symphony’. Musicologists are still in disagreement as to why Schubert failed to complete the piece, some cite his ill health, others claim that he was distracted by his follow up piece of work, but what is agreed upon is that he was charting new musical terrain with the piece.

Preview: Anthem VIP Demo

Sean McCarthy
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Preview: Anthem VIP Demo

I have been both excited and hesitant about Anthem since it was first revealed. Most of my doubts came from the terrible launch of MASS Effect: Andromeda but trailers and gameplay trailers did give me some hope and right now I am really looking for another game I can team up with my friends and have at it. Everything about Anthem should tick all the boxes I like in gaming from playing in a fully customisable exo suit in the Javelins, an open sci-fi world and combat I can sink my teeth into. So, with my copy of Anthem pre-ordered I was ready to take part in the first public look at the game via the VIP Demo meant only for those who had pre-ordered and those who have subscribed to EA services. Well, it came to 5pm Friday January 25th and as I expected all the EA servers simply melted under the sheer volume of people trying to get into the demo. This would be the start of many issues with this demo, but I can say that after spending several hours in the demo, I am still quite hopeful for the full game.

Now by now the many issues with the VIP Demo across all platforms are well known and I will address them but for this preview I really want to focus on the gameplay itself as this was a demo or what it really was which was a massive test for the servers so focusing on those issues will not really help depending on how close to the final game release build this demo is based on. But they do need to be talked about and will do so before the end.

I will say that it was 14 hours since the demo went live on Friday evening, before I was able to get passed the main menu screen which is just nuts even for a server stress test. Once I did manage to actually get into the demo I actually really enjoyed the gameplay. The demo had a very small area to explore and be in and featured a short example of how story missing would flow and what I can only really describe as the Anthem version of what a Strike mission from Destiny plays like, an extended objective based ‘kill everything’ mission type. This was really a very limited demo and felt as though it was only really supposed to just give a taste of what to expect which I can understand, it gave you the opportunity to see the basics and foundations of the various systems in the game such as customisation, levelling up and working with different Javelin suit types.

You begin on Fort Tarsis, the human encampment which does feel a lot like the Tower on Destiny except you do not encounter any other players here. This is where you can interact with NPC characters who will act as stores and mission providers as well as having other lore type things to discover as you roam around in first person view. However, there was a lot of “not available in the demo” notices when trying to interact with people and sections which is understandable but it did make exploring Fort Tarsis pretty much redundant but you can see there will be places to find in the full game.

You interact with one character, well three identical people who identified as one person who made a request of you which created missions to do on the map, each came with some dialogue via a cutscene. I am really hoping that this is an early build of the game because it does seem as though no lessons have been learned form the facial animation issues with ME Andromeda, or this really was just a limited build as NPC characters looked very wooden, and some having random conversations as you walked around Fort Tarsis failed to have any facial animation at all despite having lines of dialogue. Even if you do allow for the fact that this is just a demo, such things are a little troubling just three weeks away from the game’s full release.

The Ranger Javelin is the first suit you get to try out, and this is where you customise your suit and select weapons from the Forge area, but also where you decide what mission to take on by selecting them via the world map. The system here is very straightforward and again, very similar to how Destiny allows players to select activities on its own navigation map. From here you can also invite friends to join your four-person squad whilst you have to wait for to join and ready up before the game launches into the world.  Customisation comes from the Forge option which can be selected from the map screen. The Forge allows you to customise the appearance and setup of any of the Javelin suits you have unlocked. I really liked the appearance customising options which even from a basic level allows you to select material textures for every part of the suit including colour options which gives right from the off a great chance to personalise your Javelin. Vynls and new suit parts can be purchased and found during gameplay, which instantly reminded me of the HALO Reach system. Now for the demo, Bioware did confirm that the economy in the game was not the same as it would be in the full game so still not able to work out how much grinding will be involved in earning the gold coin currency used to buy items from the forge and it also had a Purple Shard section which it is fair to assume will be the microtransaction currency but so far this is only suppose to be cosmetic so if it is, that does not concern me as long as there is no forced grinding to earn the same items via gameplay.

Weapons can also be crafted from the forge with schematics found or unlocked with progress and crafter to different tiers of quality with materials collected from the world. You have your standard gun types with heavy weapons saved for the Colossus Javelin, so this all feels very natural for any shooter game but again, the limited nature of the demo prevented real experimentation but I do like the fact I can spend time with gameplay to craft the weapons I want to use fairly easily so from this demo the ability to craft new weapons and to customise your Javelin’s right from the start really appeals to me.

But to the gameplay itself and I definitely believe it has promise because let’s face it, flying about in an advanced exo-suit is always going to be cool if done right, and on console at any rate, it works. Each Javelin has a jet pack which helps them sprint on the ground, jump and double jump, to dash and dodge but also to fly for short durations. Whilst in the air, a simple press of the left stick will trigger flight mode which is controlled by the left stick and pressing the right stick will enter hover mode. Both work and are visually stunning on screen, especially when exploring the different environments from mountainous to rain forest areas or even when moving around some of the cave-based encampments which can take you underground. Now on controller flight works great, but the Javelin can also operate underwater but the camera for me was a hinderance once underwater. Friends playing on PC have also complained about the flight system via mouse being very clumsy which will need to be addressed ahead of full release.

Combat is unique to each Javelin class and starting with the Ranger, which is an all rounder type of suit, was a great starting point. Carrying up to two standard weapons but also with the suits own combat system which can combo with other squad members as well, so for me the Ranger had a very cool mini ark rocket launched with RB and a grenade on LB. It could also create a shield bubble to either protect from enemy fire or boost squad gun damage. The super/ultimate move which is charged by killing enemies was a very cool looking rocket barrage which can lock on to multiple enemies. Now the demo put all players and suits at level 10 and could progress to level 15, a new Javelin option was unlocked at level 12 and I chose the huge tank Colossus Javelin and this was a very different experience to using the Ranger class. The Colossus can deliver massive amounts of damage with the default Autocannon which is a minigun of sorts. I also switched up the LB and RB weapons so the LB would trigger a shock cannon which would automatically hit enemies with shock damage whilst on RB I opted for an acid gun that did great amounts of damage. But it can also be used as a defensive unit as well as it comes armed with a full-on Captain America style shield which can be used to provide cover for teammates. Towards the end of the demo weekend Biioware did unlock all four Javelin classes but sadly it was too late in the day UK time for me to try and jump back in, but they did say that for the Open Demo next weekend, all VIP Demo players would have access to all four in that demo.

Gameplay felt very smooth and solid and just being in the world on an expedition allowed for random encounters and objectives to be undertaken around the story missions provided. There was also what I would again say at this point was something similar to a Destiny Strike mission with an extended combat mission which led up to a final Boss fight which was hugely enjoyable and if the full map has plenty of these, then it will offer quite a lot to do alongside campaign missions. Visually it looks great from the Javelins to the environments which we only got a taste of with this demo but all of it was very impressive with interesting looking enemies and wildlife to deal with making the world feel alive every time I launched into an expedition.

So, what worked in the VIP Demo I liked, but that sadly does not take away what did not work, and what didn’t work is worrying. Aside of the crazy server connection issues which was insulting if not expected, the issues with the demo build itself are more troubling such as the infinite loading screen I and so many others suffered, which was every time loading into or out of an expedition and having the loading bar stop at 95% and just staying there forcing players to close and reload the demo and hope to re-join the expedition or that any XP and items collected during an expedition were still there. There were also times when enemies would just vanish right in front of me including ammo and heath packs dropped by killed enemies which for an entire expedition when I had no ammo in my guns and had to rely on being revived just to get some health back. Bioware have released statements to say they have acknowledged all the issues and should have them addressed by the open demo weekend and for launch, but considering this was a VIP demo meant for people who have already either put their money down on a pre-order or pre-ordered the game, this was a rather poor showing.

Overall, I am still looking forward to Anthem and I do like what I manged to get to play both solo and with friends. But there is concern over the issues so many faced on all platforms, and with just three weeks till launch on February 22nd, Bioware and EA have some work to do to restore confidence in Anthem because if launch day comes and I have to wait 14 hours to play a game I have paid for, I among many others will be not as forgiving as we were with MASS Effect: Andromeda!

Over to you Bioware, you have a week to do better in the Open Demo!

Review: Ace Combat 7 Skies Unknown

Sean McCarthy
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Review: Ace Combat 7 Skies Unknown

The Ace Combat gaming series is one I have always been aware of but never actually played, so it is fitting that the next instalment in the now 20 year history of the series manages to elevate it even higher then before, especially on PS4 as it throws in some PlayStation VR missions as a bonus. I was not sure what to expect from it and in particular was actually a little worried about going into such an iconic series without any previous experience. Thankfully, this game ticked so many of my boxes that I was not expecting.

I do have to begin with just how visually stunning this game is and the blending of photo realistic graphics with standard gaming character models in the story mode truly makes this one of the best-looking games right now across both main consoles. I was really taken back by just how splendid each and every plane in the game looks against the backdrop of amazing environments the story missions and combat in the online multiplayer modes. Stunning does not do this justice and I was playing on a standard PlayStation 4, but taking the game to my friend’s PS4 Pro and his insane 60” 4K TV and Ace Combat 7 takes the award for most impressive visuals so far. The game is just so pretty I was often distracted during the story missions because I was spending too much time just taking in the view of everything.

Which brings me to the main mode of Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown, the story campaign. I should point out that the game is actually conscious that this title would have brought brand new players like me, to it and the series for the first time. So before actually getting into the game, players are offered two controls schemes to start with, more arcade style simplified controls or full on Expert level controls for those familiar with the series and for the super hardcore fan who can come in using flight sticks. I really appreciated this as for example you can take several driving racing sim games who do not take new players into account, so by immediately planning to give new players a less frustrating experience from the off is something I can both be thankful for and support.

The story campaign begins by introducing the player to Avril Mead, a mechanic who has built her own jet fighter from an old scrapyard. The player is introduced to the current state of the world which sees the two nations of Osean and Erusean forces, go to war following the surprise attack on Osean military locations by Erusean drone aircraft. Whilst taking her plane up for a flight, she is force to land and capture for flying illegally and sent to a prison where other criminally charged pilots and crew are kept. Throughout the campaign, the player is shown the impact of the war from the perspective of Avril whose story via cutscenes really drives the narrative whilst the player gets to focus on what is really important, gameplay via the missions.

Now as someone who was born and raised and lives in London, there was quite a surprise that hit me like a tonne of bricks the moment I stepped into the first mission. The player takes the role of a rookie pilot in the Osean airforce with the call sign ‘Trigger’, which for those unfamiliar with the greatest British sitcom of all time with ‘Only Fools and Horses’, is actually the name of a very lovable if slightly dim-witted character from that show. So, spending the entire campaign being called Trigger not only made me smile but was very entertaining for my UK audience when streaming this. But I digress. As a rookie pilot, we are part of the first response to the Erusean attack and run sortie missions to defend locations and battle to take back territory lost to Erusean forces.

The story itself is told via the cutscenes featuring Avril where the background and running commentary of the war after each completed mission and at first, as the player you can feel a little disconnected as Avril mentions events yet to play out so it is almost as if you are in flashback mode for a few missions until the narrative catches up with where Avril is, but the story is fun and adds the weight needed to compliment the sortie missions you are being sent to complete and are definitely worth listening too as they play out, and the campaign is very substantial with many twists and turns as you progress through it and even as someone new to the series, I never felt as though the story went over my head and filled with so much lore of the series that I was out of touch with what was happening.

Once aspect to the story missions I absolutely adored was the lack of hand holding the game will provide players once the player has been taught the basics of how to fly and use weapon systems. The first few missions are pretty run of the mill and full of dog fights and objectives to take out targets. But the difficulty spike after mission 3 was enough to grab my attention and stop me trying to play this like a generic arcade flying shooter. I paid the price for not paying attention to mission briefings which explained the objectives ahead that should have given me enough information to take the effort to picking the best plane and payload loadout for that mission. I was caught out simply thinking the one plane I was using was going to be good enough because it wasn’t. I was soon being outnumbered by attacking fighter planes and not completing objectives quickly enough due to relying on the basic set up.

 

At first when I failed, I did feel that the game was cheating me a little as every enemy fighter focused on me and every missile launched just seemed to lock on to me and none of the other AI pilots that were supposedly in my squad to help. But once I stopped tripping over my own ego and accepted that I was failing because I was screwing up, the game opened up in a whole new way. The game had not become suddenly too difficult, it simply evolved at a pace that I should have also been evolving my gameplay with. I finally took the time to look at the Plane Tree, which is where you can unlock new planes and weapon types and system upgrades using the MRP earned during missions. Once I began to look at improving the fighter plane that I was flying but especially the weapon loadouts it changed everything. If the mission had objectives for taking out ground targets then it was pointless having anti-aircraft missiles in my loadout. So, once I learned and began to refine my loadout to what the objective of the missions was, I instantly began to understand and appreciate the game more.

Once I had a handle on this and was still failing the mission, I had to then look at my own skill and how I was trying to play the objectives and for the most part it was trial and error but I loved it, even when the frustration of messing up kicked in, I knew the fault was mine and not the game. The game gives you all the tools and information the player needs to get the job done, so If I am spending too much time trying to take out the drone air fighters instead of focusing on the ground targets the mission wants me to take out so ran out of time to complete the mission, that blame landed on me, and I relished it. Ace Combat 7 is constantly forcing me to improve whether it be mission planning and execution but also in dog fighting, which is something players need to get to grips with not just for the story campaign but for the online multiplayer I will come to a bit later on.

I am a big fan of fighting games because I am constantly made to up my game and I am learning from every win and every loss and Ace Combat 7 did the same thing. When I messed up it was my fault, so each attempt at the mission was becomes a training lesson for me and changing how I approached the mission in order to get it right gave me real satisfaction when completing the mission. So much so that where in other games the story campaign is something you just experience for the story, in Ace Combat 7 it really is the go-to mode and I happily replayed missions to see if I could improve my score or completion time with the lessons I had learned and improvements made to my gameplay. The story campaign is thoroughly entertaining and as the meat and potatoes to the game which I will be more than happy to dine on again and again.

The competitive online comes in two modes consisting of Battle Royale and Team Deathmatch and this is just a joyful dogfighting session that can feel really chaotic and often overwhelming if you end up against hardcore and more expert players. Match Lobbies can limit the value of planes used to try and make it a more level playing field but I would suggest taking the time to find a very good plane and system upgrades to give you more of a fighting chance before stepping into the multiplayer as getting your butt handed to you can be rather demoralising. But this is true airplane dog fighting and once you find your groove it can be an exhilarating experience which compliments the story campaign wonderfully in terms of putting your skills to the test.

The PlayStation VR bonus missions are a fantastic bonus for PlayStation 4 users with the VR headset. I don’t as sadly motion sickness is a problem for me using PSVR however taking this game to my friend who has it and watching the gameplay and his reaction to it as one of the best VR experiences you can have right now with PSVR and just the fact it is a natural inclusion to the game at no extra cost. It is the truest way to play Ace Combat 7 as you are in cockpit view with the VR, looking from that viewpoint must feel insanely gratifying and I can only imagine how expert players with flight sticks and PS VR can take to this mode.

Ace Combat 7: Unknown Skies is a whole lot of gaming in just one title and is so impressive I want to actually go back and look at earlier titles in the series. It welcomed me in as a newcomer but then made me get better at the game naturally which I feel more games should do and follow the methods used in this game to do so. The story is solid and major highlight comes when you complete a story mission and are instantly treated to a cinematic replay of that mission with the player in control of the camera which is amazing, especially if you want to make your own gameplay content which is yet another example of how amazing the visuals are in this game along with the audio and soundtrack which elevate the action even more. The Multiplayer I can really take or leave it, right now my skills are not good enough to really make the most of it but challenging other players in a dogfight is still exciting even if I am really just canon fodder at this point. All capped off the bonus PS VR content for those with the kit making this a really complete experience on PS4.

This is a game I was not expecting to win me over just how easily as it did and it is really not hard to see how it has lived as long as it has at over 20 years as a gaming series. I felt challenged and rewarded as much as I felt excited by playing it and can easily see myself diving back in time and time again to experience it all over again.

 

CBeebies launches Go Explore app for little ones

Chris Hare
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CBeebies launches Go Explore app for little ones

Children can learn and discover with their favourite CBeebies characters in a new app, Go Explore, launching in app stores today on Apple, Android and Amazon devices. CBeebies Go Explore is packed with fun games linked to the curriculum, featuring Go Jetters, Hey Duggee and The Furchester Hotel, helping little ones to develop life skills and preparing them for primary school and beyond.

 

Set in a magical garden that encourages children to be curious, they can tap away to unearth some of its secrets – including musical butterflies, a squelchy muddy puddle and a hidden underwater area. From here, children can access all of the games as well as an outdoor cinema, which plays a range of short videos from CBeebies. These videos include the likes of Sing with CBeebies, Andy’s Safari songs and Go Jetters Funky Facts.

 

The games draw on the UK Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum and playfully introduce topics like making good health and self-care choices, recognising and using shapes and exploring different habitats. At launch, there are three games with more to be added in future. These include:

Go Jetters – Glitch Switch: Grandmaster Glitch is creating his very own safari park but has mixed some things up. Little ones can help the Go Jetters put things right by travelling across arctic, desert, wetland and forest habitats, finding objects and animals in the wrong place and returning them to where they belong. EYFS curriculum area: understanding the world.

Hey Duggee – Party Time: Duggee is having a garden party and everyone’s invited! Children can help the squirrels get ready for the party and join them in the party games. Activities include building the vehicles to get the squirrels to the party, helping Duggee find the right shape balloons, and design a cake with a variety of shaped decorations. EYFS curriculum area: mathematics – shape, space and measure.

The Furchester Hotel – Another Happy Guest: It’s another busy day at The Furchester Hotel and Phoebe needs help keeping all the guests safe, healthy and happy. Through lots of mini-games, little ones can help the guests do some stretching, create well-balanced meals, choose the right clothes for different weather conditions, and more. EYFS curriculum area: physical development – health and self-care.

Parents can also get involved through a den area in the app, allowing them to see which games their children are playing. This gives parents an overview of what their children are interested in, enabling them to talk to their little ones about the experiences and skills they are learning. The den also includes information on how each game is linked to the curriculum.

Cheryl Taylor, Head of Content, BBC Childrens, said: “CBeebies Go Explore is a wonderful way for children to have fun with their favourite CBeebies characters and pick up important skills. Parents have told us they want their children to learn soft skills so they can better deal with the world they’re discovering. And we know parents also want their children to learn skills that help prepare them for school and beyond. CBeebies Go Explore aims to help in both of those areas in a really fun way – built around children’s curiosity and zest for discovering new things.”

 

Jenny Chapman, Senior Product Manager, BBC Design & Engineering, said: “Go Explore is the latest in our range of four CBeebies apps for parents and children. We wanted to create world-class public service apps based on young children’s main areas of interest: playing, creativity, reading and stories, and pre-school learning. It’s a fantastic addition to join CBeebies Playtime Island, Storytime and Get Creative, and we hope parents and little ones will enjoy exploring with some of their favourite CBeebies characters.”

 

Go Explore and the three games were developed by BBC Childrens, Aardman Animations, Complete Control and Mobile Pie. BBC Children’s also worked with educational consultants to ensure that gameplay covers key learning from the UK Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum. It follows on from the BBC’s biggest investment in children’s content and services in a generation.

Review: Super Mario Party

Diogo Miguel
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Review: Super Mario Party

There’s no party like a Mario Party because a Mario Party has been going on since the Nintendo 64 days. One of Nintendo’s longest franchises has been released on every hardware system that it released since then. Now Mario and his pals are back to test more relationships with the release of Super Mario Party on the popular Nintendo Switch system.

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Win a Sennheiser GSP 550 Gaming Headset

Andrew Edney
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Win a Sennheiser GSP 550 Gaming Headset

It’s competition time again, and this time we are offering yet another lucky winner the chance to own a Sennheiser’s GSP 550 Gaming Headset worth over £200!

 

The GSP 550 gaming headset for PC delivers high-fidelity 7.1 Dolby surround sound, as well as crystal-clear communication with our noise-cancelling broadcast quality mic for the ultimate expansive audio experience. Its open acoustics and advanced ergonomics featuring a 2-axis metal hinge system and an adjustable headband ensure superior wearing comfort.

How to enter to win

We have a Sennheiser GSP 550 Gaming Headset worth over £200 to give away!

For your chance to win simply enter below:

Win a Sennheiser GSP 550 Gaming Headset

The closing date is 12.00am on 9th February 2019. This contest is only open to those in the UK – sorry!

And thank you to @SennheiserGamer for the prize.

ID@Xbox Releases for January 21st – 25th 2019

Andrew Edney
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ID@Xbox Releases for January 21st – 25th 2019

Each week a number of new ID@Xbox titles are released. Here is the roundup of the releases for this week.

At Sundown: Shots in the Dark

At Sundown is stealth driven, top-down multiplayer shooter in which up to 4 players compete in both online and local deathmatch.  With a variety of cool weapons to take each other out with and multiple maps across 6 different zones, only the BEST will dominate each round and survive the ultimate challenge to rise to the top at sundown!

Realm Royale

Be the last Champion standing in Realm Royale! Choose a class, then loot deadly weapons and powerful abilities to create your own Champion. Explore a fantasy world from horseback, and craft game-changing legendary gear. Can you survive the first 100-person fantasy Battle Royale?

The Walking Vegetables: Radical Edition

The world is under attack from vegetables, turned evil by dastardly aliens! You must answer the call and take up arms to defend the planet.

Heroes Trials

Welcome to Heroes Trials! This is a dynamic and fast-paced adventure game with a trial system that takes you through more than 10 different tests that will prepare you for the final challenge. Clear them and rise to the position of defender of your homeland… Or stay forever as a trainee!

JackQuest

A fast-paced fantasy action platformer, JackQuest wastes no time with its quick combat and steady progression, guiding players through a single-interconnected world full of secrets, collectable gems, and hidden challenges that are sure to keep completionists engaged for hours on end.

See you next week for another round-up of the new ID@Xbox releases.

Review: Reign of the Supermen

Sean McCarthy
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Review: Reign of the Supermen

What would a world look like if it had a Superman but lost then him, that is the question this sequel to the animated ‘Death of Superman’ tries to answer. After really enjoying the first part of this two-part story, I did have some fears heading into this film with so much from the story arc left to be told but I was also intrigued to see how it would be used to finish this adaptation for this is the first time that the rest of the story would be told and for me, I felt it was always going to have to be told through the DC animated universe to do it justice. But does ‘Reign of the Supermen’ live up to original story telling?

The story picks up six months after Superman died defeating Doomsday and making the ultimate sacrifice. We see the Justice League has continued on though still feeling the loss of their leader and friend. Lois Lane is still grieving as are Martha and Johnathon Kent. It is very clear right from the get go that this film makes the expectation that the audience has already watched Death of Superman because it really jumps right into the action with no real attempts to bring the viewer up to speed other than reminding them that Superman has died but as this is a two parter it is a pretty fair assumption to make.

What the audience does learn is that the four Supermen that were teased during the final moments in ‘Death of Superman’, are now active in the city fighting crime in their own way. The young Superman is cocky and arrogant and very much aware of the attention he is getting from the media. Next, we have someone dressed head to two in a Steel power armoured suit wearing Superman’s S Shield and cape. We also see the third Superman who looks strangely like the Virtual AI from Superman’s ship that he came to Earth In as a child introduced in the first film who is far more violent in his crime fighting and very stern in his approach. The fourth is the only one who makes the claim that he is the original Superman just remade as a Cyborg using Kryptonian technology, but says he has lost some of his memories as a result of his return.

So, the world has lost a Superman but gained four new ones, but there is doubt and suspicion about these new heroes and it is not long before we start to see that Lex Luthor himself is responsible for the young Superman, who is a clone of Superman created by Cadmus labs, designed to be Luthor’s return to popularity by controlling the replacement Superman. His aim is to show that he is a changed man, one that the city can look too in their time of need and his clone is the key to making it a reality. His cunning plan is to manipulate the US President into endorsing his “Superman” before the world during a public speaking engagement where the Justice will also be service as Guards.

This is where for me, the biggest change comes from the original comic book story as the gathering is suddenly attacked by Parademons through a boom tube portal which DC fans will recognise as being from the planet Apokolips run by Darkseid himself. The Justice League and young ‘Superboy’ go to the defence of the President and begin fighting. During the fighting, the same boom tube portal that brought the Parademons suddenly crashes down on top of the Justice League, transporting them off world, leaving behind only the Supermen. Now whilst I do not really have an issue with this cheap way of getting the Justice League out of the story for a bit it does add an element that did not feature in the original story but does make sense if you are a fan of this Animated Universe.

It also marks the shift of focus from four to only two of the Supermen as Steel, John Henry Irons, and the Eradicator take a back seat as the story centres on young Superman who is now referred to by most characters as Superboy and Cyborg Superman as Lois Lane continues her investigation to prove whether or not Cyborg Superman is the real Superman. Which is a shame because the Eradicator is vital component of the original story. But I do like how Superboy is handled as he learns more about his origin although his original powers and how he gets them is not used in this story. My main issue is that of Lex Luthor, who is rather annoying in this story as following Superboy’s failure to winover the backing of the President leads Lex to believing he is a failed clone so considers killing him and starting over but before he can be the evil Lex, we know he is, he just changes his mind and abandons him.

 

I also liked the reveal of the motivation behind Cyborg Superman which I will not spoil for this review, and how it ties together so much of the new 52 Animated Universe instead of sticking to how it originally played out. The big problem I have is how rushed the return of the real Superman is, who after having his body taken from his tomb is revealed to have been taken to the Fortress of Solitude where his robots and the Eradicator have been performing a revitalisation technique which brings him back to life but having exhausted all his solar energy stores in fighting Doomsday is now healed but not back to full strength. But realising he has no choice but to help stop Cyborg Superman, he goes after him with weapons and only some of his powers restored.

The ending does feel extremely rushed through though leaving no real time to explore the return of the real Superman but the final battle is animated really well and again, the voice cast do step up for the climatic finale and there are some lovely moments the story ends on. Overall this is a weaker telling of the main elements of the original “Reign of the Supermen” story but it definitely works as a follow up to ‘Death of Superman’ and if you can watch both back to back then you can appreciate them all the more as was intended.

The DC animated films have all been fun to watch from Warner Bros Animation studio, with them exploring everything from Justice League stories to Teen Titans and specific films for Batman with ‘Son of Batman’ and “Batman Vs Robin” as well as recently with Justice League Dark. This two-set film story for Superman was a natural progression and is still very entertaining to watch even if you know the original story really well. I have always said the animated DC universe is far superior to the big screen attempts to create a DCEU and they are a must watch for any DC Comics fan out there. This is not the strongest story telling they have done but in attempting to tell the full story arc rather than just focusing on the fight between Superman and Doomsday, fans will get a better understanding of the DC universe including the additions of Superboy and Steel to the roster of heroes they can feature.

I am already looking forward to the next animated film planned with ‘Batman: Hush’, another of my top DC comic story arcs. But for fans of this animated universe and for Superman fans, Death of Superman and Reign of the Supermen are worthy of a watch and a great addition to an already high-quality family of films.

REIGN OF THE SUPERMEN is out now on Digital Download and available on Blu-ray™ and DVD January 28th

Review: Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition

Diogo Miguel
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Review: Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition

Fans have been asking Bandai Namco to release an enhanced PlayStation 3 version of the popular Tales of Vesperia game in the West for years. All the pestering seems to have paid off as a Definitive Edition of the game was finally released roughly ten years after it was initially released as a timed Xbox 360 exclusive.

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Review: Death of Superman

Sean McCarthy
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Review: Death of Superman

One of my favourite story arcs of the DC Comics Universe has always been the crossover event “Death of Superman”, and back in 1992 when it first released and as a comic book series that ran through to 1993, I was among millions of other fans that could not believe that Superman was going to be killed off. But the genius way in which DC Comics handled it not only refreshed the character of Superman, but it became one of his best series of stories, for me at least. It is a story all comic book fans know and it has been told via animation before however, the full story has never been adapted as a feature length film set until now with the WB Animated film series based on the New 52 era of the DC Universe telling its own version of this iconic saga.

The telling of this story arc with this animated series does feel as though it was always going to be a natural chapter having already told the Flashpoint Paradox and many Justice League and Batman focused stories in this film series that launched in 2013. I have followed this series since then and have enjoyed the majority of the animated films as each new telling of the DC’s most iconic characters evolved to where we find them here for this two-part film collection. That knowledge would come in handy as quite a bit as this film does make reference to character relationships from those films. Thankfully though, Death of Superman has taken into consideration the reality that not everyone would have seen those previous films.

Which means that the first 30 minutes of the story is really focused on exposition and teaching the audience by bringing them up to speed on where all the characters are at this point in the universe such as referencing that it was Wonder Woman that Superman first had a romantic relationship with before Lois Lane whilst at the same time showing that the relationship is firmly Clark Kent and Lois Lane and this his secret is still unknown to her about him being Superman. The opening half hour also makes the effort to show just how vital Superman is to this world by having various characters such as the police who are seen attending a daring robbery by Intergang thugs equipped with advanced weaponry and Powered Suits, struggle to deal with it until Superman races in and very quickly puts the thugs down. This sequence even has Justice League members Flash and Cyborg arrive after being alerted to the disturbance only for Flash to end up being told by Superman to simply help with clean up as there is nothing left for Flash to do and Cyborg is tasked with investigating where the criminals obtained their weapons and armour.

The audience will already know what will happen to Superman but this is really a story of how it happens and what the consequences of the loss of Superman would be. This gives the story a natural slow pace at first with the main focus being on Clark’s relationship to Lois and coming to terms that in order for them to have a future he will have to reveal his secret to her and his fear about doing so. For Lois this also means meeting Clark’s parents who are coming to town to visit Clark, making their relationship go to the next level considering so far, they have kept their relationship a secret from everyone they work with at the Planet. There are some lovely moments as Clark goes to Diana for advice as well as asking Flash who has already told his wife Iris that he is the Flash. Everything is quite light and happy in the world, even the Justice League at their weekly meeting have very little to do which provides an opportunity for some humour as Batman reveals he will be missing their next meeting because he has to go to Damien’s school to meet his teacher which Green Lantern and Flash cant help but make fun of leading to Batman putting the fear of God into Flash without saying a single word which genuinely cracked me up.

So, everything is rosy in the world, Justice League have little to do, Superman’s arch nemesis Lex Luthor is under house arrest and the biggest issue for Supes is revealing to the woman he loves that he has basically been lying to her for years but hoping she will forgive him. It takes close to 45 minutes before the action really picks up and the introduction of Doomsday and I really liked how this adaptation used his appearance to change the tone almost immediately of the story. I also appreciated how little the changed the original comic book version of this story by having Doomsday arriving as an unknown entity that goes on a rampage forcing the Justice League to step in whilst Superman is off doing his own thing which in this case is being with his parents and Lois and dealing with his relationship stuff as the Justice League feel they can handle this threat without their biggest gun. The story does not shy away from just how violent Doomsday is and right away when he is literally tearing apart the Atlantians who are exploring the crash site at the bottom of the ocean where he landed is. This could make the film a little too grown up for a very young audience but the way in which he is introduced leave no doubt that this is a huge threat to Earth.

I would have preferred to see far longer encounters between the Justice League and Doomsday but they are very quickly put down by Doomsday one by one with Hawkman going down first and an arrogant Green Lantern the next to fall. Only Batman is able to avoid defeat but only barely escaping the monster’s attacks. If there was any hope the audience watching had that Doomsday could be stopped it all ended when Wonder Woman herself, second most powerful hero in the Justice League, failed to stop him came close to losing her life to him until Superman finally gets into the fight and flies in at speed to grab Doomsday away. Once it is Superman alone taking on Doomsday the pace of the fighting really steps up as does the scale in the fighting which is beautifully animated here with each of their blows causing shockwaves that smash every window in the skyscrapers of central Metropolis. This is truly a battle of the gods and there is a moment when following a powerful punch from Doomsday that sends Superman flying across the city into the wall of a building and seeing Superman realising that he is bleeding for the first time, realising that this monster is not just his equal in terms of strength, but a foe capable of injuring him for the first time.

The climatic fight itself still manages to maintain a certain level of humanity as Superman battles Doomsday but also tries to prevent collateral damage and innocents from being hurt such as a moment when Supes saves a child and telling the boy to run to his mother only for the boy to stop and run back to Superman to give him a big ol hug. This shows what Superman is ultimately fighting for just so beautifully, that he is fighting to save everyone he can which now for the first time could mean sacrificing his very life to stop a monster from destroying his adopted city of Metropolis. Of course this comes full circle when it comes to Lois Lane who has been following and reporting on the battle throughout which has even more impact due to Superman finally revealing his secret to her before he was called to engaged Doomsday leading to a change in how the original Doomsday Vs Superman fight ended and here, a brave Lois steps up to distract Doomsday by getting his attention which stops him from pummelling a weakened and close to death Superman. Seeing Lois about to be destroyed by Doomsday pushes Superman into one final but powerful attack and using every bit of might he has in his body, finally takes out Doomsday but results in him being impaled by one of Doomsday bone spurs.

I really loved how that was not how the story ends, with a scene borrow from “Funeral for a Friend” seeing the city, world and Justice League paying tribute to Superman as his body is placed in his memorial, the story is begins to set up part 2 of this story which is told in ‘Reign of the Supermen’. Of, course there are multiple teasers for the second part with side characters introduced and glimpses that fans in the know, will instantly get but the ending does take the time to let the audience know that the story is not over. This means that you will not get the full “Death of Superman” story told in this film and will need to watch the next film in order to have the full experience. I do appreciate that it does make that distinction without having to use ‘to be continued’ as an ending as the film ends by revealing that Superman’s body is missing from the tomb in the months since his death and that four new characters have risen wearing his iconic S shield.

This certainly does enough to tell part of the story and it stays true to much of the original telling of it from the comic books. The animation is spot on and there are some great moments from the voice cast including the return of Nathan Fillion to voice Green Lantern. It certainly had me excited to watch the final part in the next film. The pace is a little slow to start and it cuts short the Justice League battle with Doomsday, but it is still a very fun watch for any DC fan.

Winners of Huawei’s £10,000 ‘New Working Order’ bursary revealed

Chris Hare
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Winners of Huawei’s £10,000 ‘New Working Order’ bursary revealed

Huawei, has announced the winners of its New Working Order Bursary campaign – a £10,000 cash injection prize fund to help three young professionals within Generation Z take their passion projects to the next level.​ Lewis Hornby, Uma Dassaye and Sam Marchant have been named the overall winners of the competition, receiving a £10,000 cash prize each.

The ‘New Working Order’ Bursary was launched in conjunction with research from Dr. Chris Brauer at Goldsmiths, University of London, which revealed that Generation Z are more likely to be motivated by job satisfaction and working for the social good than by money. It also revealed that Generation Z have a strong self-starter mentality – with over half (52%) saying that they already have a passion project on the side.

For a chance to win the cash prize, Huawei asked entrants to explain in 500 words what their passions were and how they would use the bursary to help them achieve their ambitions. Over 630 entries were received, which were judged by Huawei’s New Working Order panel: Radio 1 DJ and podcaster Alice Levine, World Football Freestyle Champion Andrew Henderson and fashion blogger and influencer Freddie Harrel.

Three runners-up were also awarded a Mate 20 Pro smartphone to help them unlock their potential and get their ideas off the ground.

Justin Costello, Head of Marketing, Huawei UK & Ireland said: “As technology rapidly changes the way that we live, work and play, Generation Z are increasingly turning passions into pounds and exploring multiple skill-sets to build custom careers that are bespoke to them. The entries we received for our New Working Order Bursary campaign were truly inspirational, revealing the far-reaching ambitions of Generation Z in the UK. At Huawei, we believe that technology has the power to make anything possible, and therefore hope that our bursaries will both enable and support our talented winners as they pursue their passions in 2019 and beyond.”

Alice Levine, Radio 1 DJ and podcaster commented: “I’m really thrilled to be involved in this project – Gen Z are such an exciting generation full of creativity and ideas, and it’s so important to empower them to bring their passions to life. For me, working on multiple projects was the logical thing to do – like so many people, I’m interested in many things; I’m in to food, I love presenting, music, comedy – and I want them all to feature in my working life somehow. It was less a grand decision to shake up my career, and more a necessity to work on things I am passionate about.”

About the winners

‘Jelly Drop’ treats for dementia sufferers – Lewis Hornby

Many of the 50 million people living with dementia globally no longer feel thirst, don’t know how to quench thirst, or don’t have the dexterity to drink. In fact, around a third of all dementia-related deaths are due to dehydration. When Lewis’s grandmother was hospitalised as a result he designed Jelly Drops – bright, tasty and easy to grip treats that encourage people with dementia to hydrate independently, reducing their reliance on carers and improving their quality of life. Lewis is the founder of Jelly Drops. He graduated last year from the Royal College of Art, London with a Masters in Innovation Design Engineering, and he also holds a Masters in Civil Engineering from the University of Bristol.

Shellpod Shampoo – Uma Dassaye

Shellpod Shampoo aims to reduce plastic consumption globally. The product is a single-use ball of liquid shampoo that dissolves in water, making it an eco-friendly, biodegradable alternative to bottled liquid shampoo. It comes dry, meaning that it doesn’t require any plastic packaging and is 100% waste-free. Made with all-natural ingredients, it’s also cruelty and paraben free. The aim is to help rid the world of plastic dependence and give consumers access to a greener, more sustainable shampoo product. Uma is an undergraduate student at Cass Business School studying for a BSc in Actuarial Science.

‘Suzero’ low sugar snack bars – Sam Marchant (& Ollie Vagg)

After noticing the amount of sugar in snack bars labeled as healthy, Sam and his friend Ollie began baking their own 100% natural, less than 1g of sugar bars and selling them at Sam’s hockey club. After investing in a production kitchen, they started their first trading year in June 2018. Suzero bars are now available in over 500 stores across the UK, sold in 5 countries worldwide and with a total of 28,674 bars sold in just under six months. All the bars are produced by hand, with 100% recyclable packaging by Sam and Ollie. The boys founded Suzero at University in Hertfordshire after Ollie bet Sam that he couldn’t stop eating sugar for a whole month.

Resident Evil 2 trailer brings the Horror of Racoon City to Life

Chris Hare
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Resident Evil 2 trailer brings the Horror of Racoon City to Life

Capcom has released a brand new live-action video, Inspired by the 1998 production by George A. Romero, the video focuses on rookie cop Leon Kennedy arriving at his first day on the job and civilian college student Claire Redfield, trapped in the overrun Raccoon City in search for her brother Chris.

Produced by UK creative agency SpecialGun Productions, the advert enlists crew from such high-profile productions as Star Wars, Game of Thrones, Crazy Rich Asians, Mission: Impossible, and Black Mirror, in order to bring the terrifying world of Resident Evil 2 to life.

Resident Evil 2 will be available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Windows PC on tomorrow (25th January 2019).

KINGDOM HEARTS III Gameplay Overview Video

Chris Hare
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KINGDOM HEARTS III Gameplay Overview Video

With today’s release of the gameplay overview video, KINGDOM HEARTS and Disney fans can find out everything they need to know to master the powerful Keyblades and help the light prevail against the darkness ahead of the launch of KINGDOM HEARTS III on 29th January.

As the Heartless invade the universe, players must prepare Sora and his friends to protect the Disney and Pixar worlds against darkness and unlock the mysterious power of the Keyblades, which only the strong of heart can wield. For the first time in the KINGDOM HEARTS series, the Keyblades have the ability to transform into different forms with powerful new abilities and dazzling attacks inspired by the characters and elements of each world.Players can also learn how to use elemental magic for offensive and defensive purposes, such as creating ice slides and wind vortexes to navigate through the chaos in battle. Taking the form of classic Disney rides, players can utilize the power of the Attractions, or team up with Donald, Goofy and other legendary characters from Disney and Pixar worlds to turn the tides against the darkness.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKVUv1mPibU&feature=youtu.be

The new footage also gives fans a glimpse of the Gummi Ship and how to augment its speed, shield, firepower, and design as they journey between worlds, as well as the various other activities they will encounter along the way, including a trip down memory lane with classic Kingdom mini-games inspired by 1980’s-era LCD games and iconic Disney animated shorts.

KINGDOM HEARTS III will be available for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One / Xbox One X on the 29th January 2019.

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