Without making it sound like the moon landing, the App Store from the early 2010s to 2017 offered something close to a gaming utopia. Experimental and expressive titles found their way to audiences that were genuinely mainstream in their size and demographics. These games could hold their own against those whose core gameplay loops weren’t always designed according to the most ethical of principles. But, de Jongh says, alongside the App Store redesign, something else changed at Apple. The recommendations of indie gems started to dry up, supplanted by plugs for sports titles, branded titles (which mobile developers have increasingly turned to), and, of course, free-to-play goliaths, the “stuff that just makes money.” Gaming on the iPhone, previously a breath of fresh air, began to feel stale: Rather than inspiring emotions such as wonder and calm, as Monument Valley does, the titles that dominated this new era of the App Store were more likely to leave players with a sense of shame and guilt. Now, in 2024, it’s clear that Monument Valley is emblematic of a creative golden age for mobile games, albeit one that has been unequivocally consigned to history. The future it pointed to has fizzled out—little more than a faded dream, and maybe a naive one at that.
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Even Apple Arcade has sputtered. It burst onto the scene in 2019 with a generous slate of games from an all-star lineup of studios, including Simogo (Sayonara Wild Hearts), Dinosaur Polo Club (Mini Motorways), and, naturally, ustwo (Assemble With Care). But in 2020, the service reportedly pivoted (canceling contracts in the process) from one-and-done premium-esque titles to “sticky” games, i.e., those with high replay value. Last month, another report alleged the “smell of death” around the service. De Jongh, who also helps fund indie games, hasn’t heard of a single title that has signed to Apple Arcade in the past year. “Either they’re going to radically shift direction again, make their minds up about it, or the whole thing is going to get killed,” he says.
The researchers studied eight apps: Safari, Siri, Family Sharing, iMessage, FaceTime, Location Services, Find My and Touch ID. They collected all publicly available privacy-related information on these apps, from technical documentation to privacy policies and user manuals.
The fragility of the privacy protections surprised even the researchers.
As spotted by 91mobiles, two new iPad model identifiers have been registered on the Indian BIS certification database. It’s been a long time since new iPad model identifiers have been introduced as Apple last released a new iPad model almost eighteen months ago, the biggest gap ever between Apple tablet generations.
Apple is sending an email to Apple Card users today informing them of a “system error” that occurred on Monday. According to the email, this led to some Apple Card users erroneously being told they weren’t enrolled in Scheduled Payments.
This application shows not only your Mission Control desktops but also any applications you might have open in full screen, which can help you keep track of multiple full-screen windows, if that's something you do frequently.
With its dedicated focus on photos and videos from your loved ones, Retro is progressively rolling out features that could quickly turn it into a must-have for long-distance friends, extended families and everyone who likes to carefully curate photos and pick the best ones from their camera roll.
A few years back I switched to consuming pretty much all my content through the Apple TV, and it’s put me in a contradictory situation when it comes to the set-top box: appreciative of how quietly and competently it does its job, and all too aware of where it could be so much better.
Engineers at Apple have been exploring a mobile robot that can follow users around their homes, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the skunk-works project is private. The iPhone maker also has developed an advanced table-top home device that uses robotics to move a display around, they said.
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The robotics work is happening within Apple’s hardware engineering division and its AI and machine-learning group, which is run by John Giannandrea. Matt Costello and Brian Lynch — two executives focused on home products — have overseen the hardware development. Still, Apple hasn’t committed to either project as a company, and the work is still considered to be in the early research phase. A spokeswoman declined to comment.
I do not need a robot to follow me around in my house. I also don't need a robot to bring me beer. Firstly, I don't drink beer. Even if I do need beer, I can go get them from the fridge myself, just like I don't need a remote control to change television channels when I can easily walk up to the television and do it myself.
(Television channels? What are television channels?)
What I do want is a robot to clean my house, collect and wash and fold and put back my clothes, clean my toilet, and, yes, clean my dishes.
And in the future, when I am really old and cannot easily walk, carry me around to where I want to be.
Free me from all the boring stuff I need to do, so that I can focus on my creative stuff. Like watching Apple TV+ for inspiration, listening to podcasts for research, and reading books for... fun.
Just make sure it is following the three laws of robotics. Especially the first one. I will not compromise on that one.
:-)
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Oh, and Apple, maybe you can also invent some AI robot to help you write better documentation and better error messages. I still don't know why the widget of my hobby project failed to even launch on one of the simulator, but not the other.
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Early this year I just re-played the two Monument Valley games in Apple Arcade. So great. And so sad there aren't anymore Monument Valley games.
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Thanks for reading.