Does Apple's victory over Samsung mean every Android phone and tablet make has to change its designs? And goes Google have to cut a deal?

The jury has spoken, awarding Apple some $1.05 billion in damages from Samsung for infringing on its utility and design patents covering the iPhone and the iPad. Although the trial is not over — Judge Koh could decide to throw out some or all of the jury’s decision, and of course Samsung will appeal the decision in a process that could take years — the verdict represents a substantial victory for Apple and its claims that Samsung’s mobile phones and tablets copied key elements of Apple’s flagship products.

Apple’s late co-founder Steve Jobs famously decried Android as a “stolen product,” and although Apple’s suit was specifically against Samsung, in some ways the South Korean company served as stand-in for the entire Android ecosystem, representing not just fellow phone makers like HTC, Asus, LG, and Sony, but also Google itself.

The jury’s decision doesn’t mean Apple has killed Android, nor does it mean Android devices are suddenly going to disappear from store shelves. However, Android device makers are going to have to think carefully about their products going forward — and Samsung is probably going to suffer a setback in the U.S. market.

Will Samsung’s Android phones disappear from the market?

Maybe some of them. Assuming the California jury’s decision of favor of Apple stands, Apple’s next logical move will be to seek import bans on Samsung devices that the jury has found to be violating its patents. That’s a lot of products — including the Galaxy S and Galaxy S II smartphones offered by a variety of U.S. carriers. However, it does not affect all Samsung phones and tablets: For instance, the recently-introduced Galaxy S III smartphone is not impacted by the decision, and the jury actually ruled Samsung’s tablets didn’t copy the iPad’s trade dress.

Bottom line: Several of Samsung’s budget-oriented Android phones and older flagship devices may eventually disappear from the market. The silver lining for Samsung is that many of those devices are nearing the end of their lifespans, or aren’t designed to be for sale very long. (Certainly none have a lifespan like Apple’s iPhone 3GS, released more than three years ago and still available today.) Samsung will fight Apple on import bans, and may succeed in keeping devices on the market or at least creating a delay. But — for now — Samsung’s current flagship smartphone and tablet products will remain on sale, and you can bet Samsung’s future smartphones and tablets will be increasingly divergent from Apple’s.

Samsung isn’t the only party that can file an appeal. Apple is almost certain to challenge the jury’s decision that the iPad’s trade dress wasn’t protectable. However, even if Apple wins, potentially infringing Samsung tablets like the Galaxy Tab 10.1 will have been off the market for a long time. Samsung may still find itself on the hook for more damages.

Apple is separately seeking a ban on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus over its unified search feature; however, that case should not be impacted by today’s jury decision.

Will other Android devices be banned?

Probably not, although the ramifications of the Apple-Samsung case are less clear for companies like HTC, LG, Sony, Asus, and Google/Motorola that also make Android devices.

Several of Apple’s complaints against Samsung have to do with the appearance of physical products and onscreen icons. So far, Samsung is the only device maker Apple has accused of copying the trade dress and onscreen icons of the iPhone. Although plenty of Android devices bear a resemblance to the iPhone or iPad, so far other device makers seem to be in the clear as far as the design of their physical devices and their on-screen icons. (Indeed, HTC’s Sense UI and stock Android icons have always been quite a bit different from Apple’s iOS icons.)

Other Android device makers may face more difficulties on the software side. Samsung (and others) are sure to claim Apple’s patents covering interface techniques like pinch-to-zoom and one-finger scrolling are invalid (Samsung itself took a pretty strong shot at the bounce-back patent), but it might be moot. As the global confrontation between Apple and Samsung has become more and more heated in the last year and a half, many device makers have already shifted away from things like the bounce-back behavior. It’s safe to say Android device makers will now now start moving away from tap-to-zoom and other scrolling behaviors covered by the patents Apple asserted against Samsung. After all, Apple has already persuaded one jury those patents are strong: Who’s going to roll the dice against Apple and hope they’ll do better?

Apple has already had some success forcing phone makers to redesign around its patents. Apple is currently suing HTC for violating software patents — and managed to get a ruling from the U.S. International Trade Commission barring importation of phones that can detect and act on data items like phone numbers in otherwise unformatted content. (That’s the ruling that delayed the arrival of the HTC One X and Evo 4G LTE back in May.) HTC had to design around the patent to avoid the import ban.

Between the HTC import ban and the jury verdict against Samsung, Apple can be expected to hold Android device makers’ feet to the fire. Bottom line: Expect Android device makers to quickly rework their devices to avoid behaviors that could be covered by Apple’s patents.

Who will cut a deal with Apple?

It’s one thing for Android device makers to alter their devices and software after one of their brethren has been found guilty of patent infringement. But that doesn’t make up for past infringement and the flurries of patent infringement lawsuits and requests for import bans that have already been filed.

With the Samsung victory under its belt, Apple is unlikely to let bygones be bygones. Apple is now in a strong position to go to Android device makers and offer them a choice between stepping into Samsung’s shoes in a courtroom trial… or working out a licensing deal. During the Samsung trial, Apple revealed that it had offered to license its crucial patents to Samsung for $30 per smartphone and $40 per tablet. Samsung said no, and now it looks like it’s going to have to pay Apple a billion dollars. Other Android device makers may agree to license Apple’s patents just to avoid litigation.

That scenario would significantly tarnish Android. Most Android device makers are already paying a per-device royalty to Microsoft to protect them from the possibility of patent litigation, making the “free and open” operating system something less than free. (Financial terms aren’t available, but many estimates have Microsoft receiving about $5 for every Android device.) If Android device makers have to pay per-device royalties to Apple — especially anything in the range of $30 per phone or $40 per tablet — Android’s claims of being “free” amount to nothing. In fact, Android would be a bigger revenue generator for Apple and Microsoft than it is for Google.

The onus falls to Google to protect its ecosystem. So far, Google has indicated it’s willing to go to bat for Android — after all, shoring up Android’s patent position was a lot of what Google’s $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola was all about. In fact, Google’s Motorola division just filed suit to block imports of iPhones, iPads, and Macs, claiming the devices infringe on seven Motorola patents. But Google’s patent benefit from Motorola doesn’t seem to be as strong as it first appeared — and now Apple has a major court victory under its belt.

Google will now be under pressure to cut a patent licensing deal with Apple that not only protects Motorola devices from infringement suits from Apple, but covers all Android device makers. The main reason Google might be willing to make that kind of deal would be to prevent Apple from hobbling the Android ecosystem with a divide-and-conquer approach. If Apple goes to every Android device maker and demands exorbitant royalties — like $30 per phone or $40 per tablet — what are some of those device makers likely to do?

1. They might pay up, which would drive up the cost of Android devices with what amounts to an “Apple tax.”
2. They might choose to fight Apple in court, perhaps with financial backing from Google.
3. Or they might abandon Android, probably for something like Windows Phone.

Scenarios one and three would both be very bad for Google. And, as Apple just proved with Samsung, number two looks like a longshot.

[ Android images via Shutterstock / Palto ]

The Wall Street Journal is now offering free Wi-Fi via 1,300 hotspots located around New York City and San Francisco. The service will wrap up at the end of September.

In an effort to pick up a few new subscribers while at the same time gathering useful user data, the Wall Street Journal is offering free Wi-Fi across large parts of New York City and San Francisco from now until the end of September.

More than 1,300 hotspots have been set up by the news company, located in areas such as Times Square, Union Square, and the West Village. In fact, almost 70 percent of Manhattan is covered by the free service. It’s also available in parts of Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx.

As for San Francisco, the Journal’s Wi-Fi network can be joined in locations such as Washington Square, Nob Hill, and Fisherman’s Wharf.

If you’re an existing digital subscriber with the Journal, you can jump right in using your usual log-in information. Print subscribers and new users, on the other hand, must first register – for free. The network will be easy to find, aptly named “The Wall Street Journal WiFi”.

New Yorkers on the move are already able to hook up to a number of hotspots provided in a joint initiative by Boingo and Google Offers. Their service has six MTA stations offering free Wi-Fi, along with 200 other locations throughout Manhattan. Like the Wall Street Journal’s offer, Boingo and Google’s service will cease to be free come the end of summer.

Oh, and don’t forget New York’s pay-phone kiosks too – the city government has created free Wi-Fi spots using 10 of its public pay-phone kiosks in Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn. The set-up is part of a pilot scheme which, if all goes well, could see all 12,360 of the city’s kiosks turned into free hotspots. In another local government initiative, a number of parks in New York are also offering free Wi-Fi.

[paidContent via engadget] [Image: Alex Mit / Shutterstock]

A US jury ruled in Apple's favor Friday, agreeing that Samsung had infringed a number of the Cupertino company's patents. Samsung called the verdict 'a loss for the American consumer.'

The jury in the US Apple-Samsung patent infringement trial ruled on Friday that the Korean tech giant has infringed a number of Apple patents, and as a result has been ordered to pay the Cupertino company just over $1 billion in damages.

Samsung called the verdict “a loss for the America consumer” while Apple said it applauded the court for “sending a loud and clear message that stealing isn’t right.”

Read the statements in full below:

Samsung:

Today’s verdict should not be viewed as a win for Apple, but as a loss for the American consumer. It will lead to fewer choices, less innovation, and potentially higher prices. It is unfortunate that patent law can be manipulated to give one company a monopoly over rectangles with rounded corners, or technology that is being improved every day by Samsung and other companies. Consumers have the right to choices, and they know what they are buying when they purchase Samsung products. This is not the final word in this case or in battles being waged in courts and tribunals around the world, some of which have already rejected many of Apple’s claims. Samsung will continue to innovate and offer choices for the consumer.

Apple:

We are grateful to the jury for their service and for investing the time to listen to our story and we were thrilled to be able to finally tell it. The mountain of evidence presented during the trail showed that Samsung’s copying went far deeper than even we knew. The lawsuits between Apple and Samsung were about much more than patents or money. They were about values. At Apple, we value originality and innovation and pour our lives into making the best products on earth. We make these products to delight our customers, not for our competitors to flagrantly copy. We applaud the court for finding Samsung’s behavior willful and for sending a loud and clear message that stealing isn’t right.

For more information on the outcome of the trial, head over to here.

[The Verge via 9to5Mac]

A jury has ruled that Samsung violated a number of Apple patents related to its mobile devices, and must pay $1.05 billion in damages.

In a landmark ruling, Samsung has been found guilty of infringing upon many of Apple’s patents related to its mobile devices. Samsung will be forced to pay Apple a total of $1,051,855,000 in damages. The amount is less than the $2.5 billion Apple requested, but still a major victory for Cupertino.

The jury was required to fill out a 20-page verdict form, which contained 33 multi-part questions concerning the infringement by Samsung through its more than 20 smartphones and tablets. The jury was asked to decide whether or not Samsung infringed on a variety of Apple’s patents, including hardware design and software patents, as well as “trade dress,” which refers to design aspects that are non-essential to the function of a device.

Here’s how the patent violations break down:

Software

While mobile has definitely been at the forefront of this case, Apple has plenty of software patents it accused Samsung of infringing on. Here is a quick look at how the software-related decisions came down.

• Patent ‘381 (the “bounce back” action): The jury ruled in Apple’s favor and found that all of Samsung’s accused products infringed on this patent. Concerning this patent, all Samsung devices were found for inducement (meaning Samsung made its U.S. counterparts infringe on the patent). Samsung was also found guilty of willful infringing on this patent.
• Patent ‘163 (the “double tap to zoom” action): The jury ruled in Apple’s favor and found that with the exception of eight mobile devices, Samsung infringed on this patent. Samsung was also found guilty of willful infringing on this patent.
• Patent ‘915 (the “pinch to zoom” and other zoom and scroll function actions): The jury ruled largely in Apple’s favor, saying the only Samsung devices exemptions are the Intercept, Replenish, and the Ace. Concerning this patent, all Samsung devices except the Replenish were found for inducement. Samsung was also found guilty of willful infringing on this patent.

Hardware

• Patent ’677 (design of the front of the iPhone): Samsung violated this patent with all devices, aside from the Galaxy Ace.
• Patent ’087 (design of the back of the iPhone): Samsung violated this patent with all devices, save the Galaxy S 4G, and Vibrant.
• Patent ’305 (design of Apple app icons): Samsung violated this patent with all of its devices.

Trade dress

Samsung argued that patent D’893 was not protectable, but the jury ruled against this decision. However, Apple was only able to prove that trade dress of the iPhone 3G is protectable. All other iPhone models, and the iPad, do not have protectable trade dress, the jury ruled. The jury found that the Samsung Fascinate, Galaxy S i9000, S 4G, Showcase, Mesmerize, and Vibrant all diluted the iPhone 3G trade dress. The Captivate, Continuum, Droid Charge, Epic 4G, Prevail, S2 (AT&T), S2 i9100, S2 (T-Mobile), Epic 4G Touch, Skyrocket, and Infuse 4G were not found to dilute iPhone 3G trade dress.

Samsung sues Apple… and loses

Samsung also filed suit against Apple, but the jury ruled that Apple had not violated any of Samsung’s patents. Apple was not able to prove that Samsung’s patents were invalid. But Apple will not have to pay Samsung any damages.

Conclusion

Apple did not win everything — but it won big. This case will have consequences for both the consumer electronics market, as well as the patent system itself, for years to come.

“The mere existence of a case like this will further push patents into the realm of a ‘commodity’ that is stockpiled by large tech companies for the purpose of stifling competition,” said Kevin Afghani, a patent attorney, in an email with Digital Trends. “This causes companies to think of patents first, and innovation second, which is opposite of the intended purpose of the patent system.”

Molly McHugh contributed reporting for this story.

The productivity platform continues to assert itself with a new niche, Corporate-focused application and a smart notebook from Moleskine.

Today, Evernote kicked off its second annual developer Trunk Conference, complete with a little numbers showing off and some big announcements for the productivity platform. Before diving into the new launches, here’s a quick look at Evernote’s growth:

• Evernote now has 40 million users
• 15,000 developers are using the Evernote API
• 8 in-house Evernote-made apps

For quite awhile now, it’s been clear that Evernote is more than just an app. What began as a mobile answer to the legal yellow pad has evolved into a rich, note-taking, memory-making ecosystem that is multi-device and function focused. That’s in part largely thanks to its devotion to developers, who have created a rich variety of apps to keep Evernote current, useful, and competitive. Evernote users don’t have to settle for stagnancy. Some recent fundraising hasn’t gone unnoticed either, which CEO Phil Libin explained to me earlier this year as a sweet spot where the company “can take the most risks, experience, and do what we love.”

Evernote Business

And today we’re getting to see some of the fruits of their labor and the effects of this fundraising. First new development: Evernote Business, which “includes everything Evernote has to offer with a number of powerful new features designed exclusively to meet the needs of our business users,” says the company. Evernote is already a popular platform for corporate use, but it’s traditionally worked in a much more personal sense. This means Evernote will start competing with the likes of Yammer, Asana, and Do from Salesforce – although it’s a paid service, not a free one with premium features, and will cost $10 a month.

Among the new tools are features like an admin console, a billing system, and easy on-boarding for current users. Interested in beta testing? You can sign up here, otherwise you’ll have to wait until December when it’s formally launched.

Smart Notebook

Also announced at the Truck Conference was the Evernote Smart Notebook by Moleskine. Evernote’s job is to eliminate the need for last-gen note-taking (e.g. with paper and and writing utensil), but the collaboration between old and new could easily be a popular one for the almost-converts who just can’t put down the pen.

“We’ve partnered with Moleskine to develop a new, limited edition Evernote Smart Notebook that’s designed specifically for the new Evernote iOS application,” says Evernote. “Together, we created a gorgeous notebook that includes a number of special features that allow you to take your ideas off the written page and place them right into Evernote, where they’ll be searchable, organized and available forever.”

The two have come together to design a special type of page that the new Evernote iPhone app can very clearly read. It creates a high contrast visual so the image you’ll have in the app is far more life-like than other pictures of text you take, and it’s supposed to be able to accurately recognize handwriting as well.

It also comes with Smart Stickers, which the app will read for auto-labeling your written entries.

The Smart Notebook is definitely a bit of a novelty item, but at $30, it’s an interesting and affordable one – and there are plenty users (ahem… this one right here) who can’t give up the physical act of list-making just yet. 

EA Sports debuts a new engine for Madden 13 along with plenty of new bells and whistles that show where the franchise is heading.

The trick to keeping an annual franchise alive is to never stop trying new things. That can be a risky proposition, of course, as messing with a successful formula is essentially toying with the emotions of diehard fans. The fans know what they like, and the developers are basically forced to give them what they don’t know they want yet, while still keeping the franchise true to itself. The alternative is to leave the series alone and let it stagnate. Activision faces this problem annually faces with Call of Duty, but they have addresses it by using multiple developers. Sports games, however, don’t have that luxury, and no game is under the gun year in and out much as EA Sports’ Madden series.

Which brings us back to this review of Madden 13.

The Madden franchise is one of the best selling and culturally significant video game franchises ever made. Productivity plummets nationwide when the latest edition drops, and everyone from stars to politicians have been known to go a few quarters. But you already know that. The question is, is this year’s revamp significant, or just another short yardage gain for the series?

Infinity Engine for the Win

Madden 13 will be the first version of the game to adopt the new Infinity Engine, which changes the physics of the game slightly, but that slight change has a significant impact on the way the game moves.

The new engine introduces several notable changes to the movement on the field, but none more so than the introduction of momentum. There was always a touch momentum at work in the previous games, but it was always minor. Momentum while tackling was never a big deal, but hitting someone and having the defender’s body morph into the receiver was odd looking, and made some of the catches look arbitrary, since the animation was not always reliable. The new physics make up for that, sometimes too much so.

When a player smashes into another, his momentum will carry the hit player in whatever direction momentum dictates. This makes the receiving more realistic than before, and when a receiver is hit, you know it. The downside manifests in some more unrealistic quirks: Occasionally, when an offensive player is running with the ball and hit but not tackled, he can spring off the defender like they are made of rubber. It’s almost like the defender is being helpful and giving the runner a nice little push. This can happen in the blink of an eye, and players that escape a tackle move faster than humanly possible for a split second. This doesn’t happen too often, but it happens often enough that the engine definitely needs some fine tuning. Overall though, the new engine is big step forward and the emphasis on momentum, along with the new tackling animations, are a significant advancement.

Minor tweaks for major depth

Pass trajectories debuted in NCAA Football 13, but they appear more finely tuned in Madden 13. When you are controlling the QB, you now have several more options on where and how you throw the ball. This gives you a huge amount of options on passing – but it also takes some getting used to.

Make no mistake: This represents an advancement for the series, geared towards longtime players who will recognize and appreciate the subtleties introduced in the passing game. It gives you far more control, and you now have the ability to shred defenses more than ever before. However, rookies and casual players will need more practice to put the ball exactly where they want it, steepening the learning curve.

There is still a bit of inconsistency on the defense, and defenders can suddenly come out of nowhere at warp speed, but not as often as in the past. This has more to do with the continued shift in the series away from players constantly running deep plays. There used to be a time when you could have two minutes left on the clock and score multiple touchdowns. Those days are more or less gone, and you will need to be smarter than in past games and run shorter plays, saving the big plays for special occasions. This should be nothing new for veterans of the series.

There are also a few other minor tweaks that will add depth to the gameplay. You can opt out of a play action after the ball is snapped, for example, and the QBs have more animations to give you a better sense of how they should be throwing. A planted back foot is always going to be ideal, but a new receiver icon color system that tells you when they are looking for the ball will be more important.

The other side of the ball

My biggest complaint about Madden 13 is on the defensive side of the ball. The offense has seen minor changes that require more skill and practice, but once you learn the new pass trajectory system, the defense is at your mercy.

Previous Maddens were marred by the occasional superhuman defender, who would seemingly become momentarily omniscient. They could be running ahead at full speed, and without looking, knock down a ball. It was eerie how good they were, or if you were on offense, simply frustrating. The problem now shifts in the opposite direction, which is more realistic, but also a bit unbalanced.

Defenders no longer seem to know where their targets are at all times like they used to, and instead have to rely on their defensive routes – which is great – but it also means they can be burned often. Defenders will still swarm on any deep play, but short plays are easier for a defender. The game is harder than ever before, and the defensive AI can still step it up, but the improvements have made offense easier and defense harder. It is a balance issue more than anything.  

This is still an improvement over the deus ex machina defensive plays that probably caused a few broken controllers, but it still needs work, as a skilled offensive player can now pick apart defenses.

Licensed by the NFL

As with all Madden games, you expect a certain number of bells and whistles to accompany the presentation, and a fair amount of commentary from knowledgeable, real-life people (at least since John Madden left and took with him with patented nuggets of wisdom along the lines of “if you want to win, you need to score more points than the other team”).

This time around you are joined by Jim Nantz and Phil Simms, who begin the game with an animation of them in the booth, discussing the game. The commentary is varied and smart, but as players tend to play in patterns unique to them, you will soon hear repeated lines. This is a minor quibble, and one that may never change. For the most part though, the commentary is astute, and you will often hear bits about the players, the team rivalries, and other lines specific to the play and game you are on, which can be remarkable.

Outside of the game itself, Madden 13 offers a lot of additional content beyond the typical quick play, franchise mode, and online games. If you sign up on NFL.com’s Fantasy Football league, you can link your accounts and track games, and ESPN has plenty of video content to watch, along with the active ticker that you’ve come to expect.

There is also a “Best of 2011” section, which gives you specific scenarios from 2011 that you are tasked with recreating. The game may start you on the 20 with a tied game and a minute to go, or you could be down by 14 as the fourth quarter starts. There are five selections at a time, and these will be frequently updated, which offers a lot of potential content. It isn’t a new idea, but it’s a good one.

All of the former game modes return as well. Previous offerings have tried to make the franchise mode into a role-playing-like experience, and a bit of that remains, but EA Sports seems to have decided to stick with improving the core mechanics over trying new ways to play, and I’m totally OK with that.

One new iteration for Xbox users is the Kinect inclusion, which allows you to call audibles vocally. It is a bit gimmicky, but it is both fun, and has some actual gameplay benefits, especially when playing other real-life people online. You can call out the play you would like, as well as the player you want targeted, and that goes for both offense and defense. For a casual player, this will be a fun inclusion, but for seasoned veterans that know the ins and outs of both Madden and football in general, this adds a surprising level of depth to the game, and makes the plays more precise.

Conclusion

Madden 13 is a work in progress. The Infinity Engine shows a promising future for the series. The new pass trajectories, momentum, and new animations give the game a new level of precision that the series hasn’t seen before. The system still needs a bit of work though, and this is where the annual nature of the franchise shows stress. More time to polish the game would have been nice. 

The changes to the series bode well, and I am already looking forward to next year’s offering. That doesn’t mean that this year’s game is a bust though, far from it. Madden 13 is an improvement over Madden 12 – not a huge one, but enough that going back to older versions is tough.

Madden 13 doesn’t reinvent the franchise, but it’s still the best entry in it, without question. Putting all other questions and qualms aside, the series is still fun even after all these years, and that’s a remarkable accomplishment. It also shows the direction that the series is heading, and it is a good one.

Score: 8.5 out of 10

Game director Gavin Moore explains how the unique idea behind Puppeteer came to be, and how the game will leverage technology to give players an experience unlike any other.

One of the most unusual gaming experiences to emerge from Gamescom 2012 was Puppeteer, a title that uses PlayStation’s Move technology to manipulate marionettes through platform levels. It turns the genre inside out by having the world, which takes place within a magical puppet theater, revolve around the game’s central character, the boy-turned-puppet Kutaro. Gavin Moore, the game director on Puppeteer, talks about what Japan Studio has in store for PS3 gamers in this exclusive interview.

Where did the idea for Puppeteer come from?

Puppeteer was created to try to re-awaken the imagination of my son, because I found he was playing games and getting very bored with them. When I was a kid, I would play on a game for hours and there would be nothing in it. It would be a text adventure and you’d be typing “north, north, north, east, there’s a dragon, you’re dead.” But you still were hooked because your imagination was working. Graphically, now games are so good and so overpowering and there’s so much information that my son was getting bored doing the same thing, like shooting guys again and again. So I sat down and thought about it and decided to make a game that was so magical that every time you went forward through the game, it changed on you all the time. So you never know what’s coming next. Puppeteer is set in a magical theater, and as you progress through the game, all the scenery moves around you, instead of you moving through the environment.

How have advances in technology allowed your team to bring Puppeteer to life?

The PS3 is a very powerful machine, and it’s been out there for a long time, so our code is very, very good now. We’re really getting in there at the core elements of those chips and making it all talk together. That’s helped us create a really good cloth technology, which we developed in-house. Normally, cloth technology is the cape on Batman and it looks great and everything, but it has no real gameplay essence apart from looking great. Our character carries a pair of magical scissors and we actually decided to create these new bosses in the game that are completely made out of cloth. You can actually cut through them and the more cloth you cut the more damage you do. It’s all very dynamic real-time cloth physics and it looks awesome.

What were some of the influences stylistically that impacted Puppeteer?

On Puppeteer, we decided we were going away from the photorealistic side and instead focused on a more stylized world with the look of a Tim Burton or Terry Gillian style inside this theater, with a handmade feel. That really gave us a lot of freedom. We didn’t have to worry about wrinkles on faces, reflections in eyes, hair shades and all that stuff. We could really concentrate on recreating that theater. What we did was actually recreated the theater physically inside the PlayStation 3.

We have a full theater lighting rig which has 140 real-time lights that are volumetric, and we project texture through those lights as well. If we want to create rain instead of creating a particle system, we actually project it through a light and then it all falls down and it’s all 3D across the whole of the set and the characters and everything.

Will this game be stereo 3D?

It won’t be stereo 3D because we’ve written a new type of 3D, which obviously uses a lot less processor power. I think it’s roughly six or seven percent of the CPU, which is very handy for us. It will be 3D, and it looks great in 3D. We have a fixed camera, so everything is moving around the character. Instead of in a normal game, where you’re following a character and you get that sickness feeling in 3D because you feel like you’re in a boat. Because the camera is fixed and everything is moving in and out of the stage all the time, it’s really dynamic in 3D.

Can you talk a little bit about the character Kutaro and the game’s story?

The character is a boy named Kutaro. The theater is run and owned by this slightly eccentric, but charming, character called Gregorious T. Oswald and his latest play is called the Perilous Journey of a Boy Named Kutaro. In his story Kutaro is stolen away to the moon by the maleficent Moon Bear King and turned into a puppet. He displeases the king, who eats his head and throws him away. But Kutaro finds that he’s not dead and he can run around without any head on his shoulders. He starts picking up things and puts them on his head and starts to use these different abilities. In order to get his true head back, he steals the Moon Bear King’s magic scissors, and that’s when his troubles really begin.

What audience do you feel this game will appeal to?

It’s really interesting, because as a single-player game it’s a pretty tough, hardcore action game. But as a two-player game, where the secondary player can fly around and touch and control objects, you can actually help the first player. You can get in the way of enemy attacks, knock things out of the way, move things, and help find things. But you can also be naughty and pull Kutaro’s head off and throw it away if you want to. Heads are your life in this game, so if you get hit, if you take damage, your head falls off and it rolls around the ground for three seconds, which is the rule for food, right? You have three seconds to pick it up and you’re safe. We put stuff in there for the second player to play around with. If you’re a gamer like I am, it’s great fun to play on the run. It’s a little bit challenging, but then if you want to sit down with your wife, girlfriend, or kid, it becomes a great family game to sit around and watch as well. It’s a spectacular sort of theatrical piece.

Is Capcom giving Xbox 360 owners a taste of Resident Evil 6 DLC ealier than PS3 and PC players?

Capcom wants Resident Evil 6 to be Call of Duty. It’ll tell you up front that it just wants to make a game that’s all things to all people—a patient horror game, a tactical shooter, and a balls to the wall action spectacle—but we all know the truth. Look at Resident Evil.net. Look at all those exploding helicopters. You’re not fooling anyone, Capcom.

There’s another way in which Resident Evil 6 is following Call of Duty: Black Ops 2’s lead: Downloadable content for the game is coming to Xbox 360 before any other platform.

Microsoft’s Xbox 360 Japan Twitter feed (via Kotaku) made the announcement on Friday morning.

Now Capcom hasn’t weighed in on this just yet. We’ve reached out to Capcom’s American office to see if this is true for all territories, just Japan, or whether it was just a poorly phrased Tweet. We’ll update this when we hear from them.

It isn’t, however, unlikely especially if the downloadable content in question is for the game’s competitive Mercenaries mode. Timed exclusive DLC is the closest thing to a console exclusive publishers are willing to make in this day and age. Capcom is after all already offering a plethora of exclusive DLC bonuses through retailers GameStop, Best Buy, and Amazon. 

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The latest GTA V screenshots tease some of the exotic vehicles we can hope to pilot, plus offer a glimpse at the impressive new graphics.

Though we still lack a solid release date for Grand Theft Auto V, Rockstar continues its slow, tantalizing trickle of information on the game with a new batch of four, never-before-seen screenshots. While these images don’t explicitly outline any of the game’s features, or reveal any crucial plot points, they do offer an interesting jumping off point for speculation on what we might see in Rockstar’s latest.

That bi-plane for instance, has already made an appearance in the first trailer Rockstar offered for its game, though we were concerned that it might have been a random fly-by, as opposed to a hint that GTA V will feature planes that players can fly. This image could be the same, though this increased focus on the plane itself leads us to assume it plays a more significant role in the game than simple background decoration.

With the key focus in any Grand Theft Auto title being swiping and driving fancy cars, two of those images are quite intriguing: Specifically that shot of the faux Lamborghini, and the image of that guy clinging to the side of a car-carrying semi truck. While we’ve got our fingers crossed that stealing a car from the back of a moving truck is an option in the game, even if it isn’t, we can still rest easy knowing that GTA V‘s fictional Los Angeles analogue is as populated with enticing vehicles to snatch as its real-world iteration.

As for the chopper, while we like the idea of firing automatic weapons at low-flying helicopters, it reminds us of the one big flaw in the GTA series to date: the gunplay. It’s always been a pain to aim weapons properly in Rockstar’s most popular series, so we’re keeping our fingers crossed that this last image indicates that the developers have finally nixed all the aiming issues and that in GTA V it’s entirely possible to take out a chopper by shooting its pilot in the head with an AK-47 from the top of a nearby watertower. Please Rockstar, don’t let us down on this one.

This week's special edition of Digital Blend is all about Star Wars in honor of Star Wars Celebration VI.

Greetings from a galaxy far, far away! Your regularly scheduled Digital Blend is on hiatus this week since I’m down in sunny Orlando, Florida for Star Wars Celebration VI. As you’re reading this, I’m either wandering around the show floor of the Orange County Convention Center in a fanboy daze or sitting and watching some geeky panel or another.

In honor of this year’s Celebration, we thought it would be a good idea to celebrate Star Wars as only Digital Blend can, with a look at some of the best Force-infused gaming you can find for under $20. Pretty much everything in the realm of interactive Star Wars things can be purchased in that price range right now, so I’m really more interested in highlighting a few personal favorites in this week’s column. Read on for the rundown… and may the Force be with you. Always.

LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars :: X360 / PS3 / Wii / PC :: $19.99 or less

There are many LEGO games and many Star Wars LEGO games. LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars is the best in both regards. You don’t have to watch the TV series to enjoy the game, though it does faithfully follow the events of the animated series’ first and second seasons. This LEGO game is packed with content: individual episode-based missions, unlockable bounty hunter missions, a dizzying number of Republic and Separatist quick-hit ground missions, light RTS elements, an elaborate hub, and the usual diverse offering of unlockable characters and vehicles. If you wrote this one off because it has nothing to do with the movies, you should definitely consider revisiting it.

Star Wars: Jedi Knight Collection :: PC :: $19.99

For less than $20 you get yourself Star Wars: Dark Forces, the Star Wars FPS that started it all, as well as the more Jedi-focused follow-ups/spin-offs, all of which fill out the back story for one of the most beloved characters in the franchise’s Expanded Universe, Kyle Katarn. You’ll wield a lightsaber, face off against light or dark Jedi depending on the path that you choose. earn new powers, and basically just feel like a Force-powered badass. LucasArts has yet to replicate the experience of being a Jedi as well as it did in the Jedi Knight series. Some of these games are pretty old now, but they’re all still well worth your time.

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic I & II :: PC :: $9.99 apiece

You can still get these older games for your vintage Xbox consoles, but PC will be the ideal choice for most. This is a particularly timely pick, since this week marks the release of KOTOR 2 on Steam. The original Knights of the Old Republic remains one of BioWare’s best games and is still unrivaled as the best Star Wars RPG ever made. Obsidian’s KOTOR 2 continues the story, though it is highly recommended that you track down a mod pack to integrate the content that ended up being cut from the game. It was never officially released, but fans have done the work of making most of it functional in the years since the game’s release. You really can’t go wrong with either of these titles.

Star Wars: Empire at War :: PC :: $19.99

Maybe you missed this under-the-radar Star Wars RTS. Bringing together space battles, land battles, and a galaxy-spanning meta-game, Empire at War aimed high. It didn’t deliver on every level, but it’s a solid game that was improved upon with the Forces of Corruption expansion pack. Both the core game and the expansion are now part of a Gold Pack release that can be had for $19.99. Serious Expaned Universe fanfolk should take note: this game might be a bit rough around the edges, but there’s quite a large mod community that has added everything from rebalancing and rule changes to entirely new units and factions, including deep cut EU content like the Yuuzhan Vong. Definitely worth a look for armchair admirals.

Star Wars: The Old Republic :: PC :: FREE

Technically, BioWare’s Star Wars: The Old Republic MMORPG doesn’t go fully free-to-play until fall 2012. It’s halfway there now though, with every one of the game’s eight classes, split by four apiece between the two factions, playable to level 15. That’s enough for roughly 10-15 hours per class if you really dive deep and explore. Best of all, once the game goes fully free-to-play, you’ll already have a head-start with a somewhat developed character (or characters). Even if the multiplayer-oriented elements don’t excite, just think of each character class as an 80 hour-plus BioWare-scripted RPG campaign set in the Star Wars universe. Complete with nods to the two KOTOR games. It’s not quite a follow-up to those classics, but it’s a solid game. Also, did I mention that it’s entirely free? Just check out part one and part two of my review if you’d like to know more.