Author: Max Milella

To call the history of 3D Sonic games checkered would be a massive understatement. Like most platforming legends, the Blue Blur had some growing pains in the early days of his evolution into the third dimension, and has had some infamously bad titles since then. If you’ve never set eyes on 2006’s Sonic the Hedgehog (often dubbed Sonic ’06) count yourself lucky. When Colours was released for the Nintendo Wii back in 2010, it marked a turning point for modern 3D Sonic games, throwing out the nonsense and cutting to the quick of what makes a Sonic game great: speed. Ultimate retains everything that made the initial release…

Yesterday evening Microsoft held its Surface event, where it showed off a slew of new hardware in its line of unique products. Here’s what we think were the most exciting announcements. Surface Laptop Studio https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOb31Uc4XKM We know you’re normally supposed to save the best for last, but we just feel like we need to talk about this piece of kit right now. First things first, look at it. Just look at it. This thing is a work of art. The Studio seems a bit like a spiritual successor to Microsoft’s line of Surface Books, the last of which was the…

It’s become fairly common practice for tech companies to have details of their new and upcoming products leaked before officially revealing them, to an almost ridiculous degree. As a particularly apt example, the dust had barely settled after Apple’s September event last week, where it unveiled its new iPhone 13 line, when iPhone 14 leaks began flooding the internet.  Understandably, no company will be too pleased when some anonymous internet channel spoils its surprises. As it turns out, Apple CEO Tim Cook is particularly frustrated by leakers within the company, saying they “do not belong [t]here”. In an email to…

You’d be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn’t in some way been touched by Roald Dahl’s stories. Be it through his books themselves, or their respective movies (such as both adaptations of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Wes Anderson’s brilliant rendition of Fantastic Mr Fox) the author’s tales and the joy they elicit span generations. And the next stage in Roald Dahl storytelling appears to be on Netflix.  Netflix nostalgia bomb On Wednesday the 22nd of September, Netflix announced that it had acquired the Roald Dahl Story Company (RDSC), the organisation responsible for keeping Dahl’s stories alive today.  The…

Twitch has had a long and tumultuous history with the music industry, causing frustration for both streamers and publishers alike. Publishers are concerned with the streaming platform allowing streamers to stream their music without proper licensing, resulting in many content creators receiving Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) strikes and having their content taken down. Similarly, some content creators feel that they have been wrongfully DMCA struck for music they feel they should have been allowed to use. Some DMCA strikes have been particularly bizarre, such as when Dragonforce guitarist Herman Li had his account suspended for performing his own music…

Whether you’re a small startup or a Big Tech goliath, there’s a pretty simple rule when it comes to investors: be honest with them. Turns out, Twitter’s investors feel that the company hasn’t been entirely transparent with them, and the microblogging platform has proposed an $809 million settlement for a lawsuit they filed back in 2016. The suit alleges that the company misled its investors about its user engagement figures, which are important in determining growth metrics. Twitter in trouble The suit describes a 2014 event Twitter held where it provided allegedly misleading growth projections, reports The Verge. At the…

Mars is no picnic. If you ever get the chance to wander across its rusty surface, you’re going to have to put up with dust storms, night temperatures far below freezing, and just enough radiation to make even Bruce Banner sweat a little. Fortunately, NASA’s released a pair of new interactive experiences to let you explore the Red Planet from the comfort of your home.  Mars for your Mac (or Windows PC) If you want to trundle along with the Perseverance rover, which has been exploring the planet for the past few months, then head over to “Explore with Perseverance”. …

Acer makes some great products, both for work and play. Whether you’re a student, a graphic designer or a COD no-lifer, there’s something in its catalogue for you. For example, the Chromebook Spin 311 is a handy little laptop that adds a neat spin to the Chromebook formula and is a great device for work and light streaming, but not much more than that. Small packages To start, this machine is small. Tiny even. At even 30cm across in length, and just under 2cm thick, this Chromebook is just about tablet-sized. It’s light too, weighing in at just over a…

In case you didn’t know, Microsoft is gearing up for the Surface Pro 8’s launch next week, and has a showcase planned for this Wednesday. Unfortunately for the tech goliath, a handful of spoilers have surfaced ahead of the event, and they leave very little up to the imagination.  Rumours on the Surface A tweet from notorious leaker @Shadow_Leak tells all, accompanied by an image that looks a lot like a retail listing. The tweet claims that Microsoft’s new flagship 2-in-1 tablet/laptop will ship sporting a 120Hz 13in display fitted into a gorgeously slim and stylish screen.  The Surface Pro…

Telegram’s last update brought in a veritable landslide of new features and upgrades to old ones. Now, the social media app (which recently hit the over 1 billion downloads mark) is getting a handful more nifty upgrades. Individual chat themes Telegram’s always had a nice selection of personalisation and customisation features, but this is a welcome addition. You can now decorate each one of your chats with individual themes. There are currently 8 themes, each of which has smaller details you can change within them, such as animated backgrounds and background patterns, new paint jobs and colour gradients for message…