Matt Demers
Contributing since May, 2011
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117articles
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About Matt Demers
Matt Demers is a Toronto writer that deals primarily in the area of Android, comics and other nerdy pursuits. You can find his work on Twitter and sites across the Internet.
Latest Articles
[Review] Age Of Zombies Achieves Impossible: Comes With Virtual Joysticks That Don't Inspire Suicide
Call me a stickler, but I think games should play well before looking pretty. I think they should be functional, polished and most of all, not frustrating. This seems to elude most developers who insist on using on-screen joysticks for their products, as more often than not they're a buggy, non-responsive mess.
[Review] X-Men: The Arcade Game - Classic Arcade Nostalgia, Bad Translations Included
X-Men: The Arcade Game is a throwback to the days before X-Men: The Animated Series. That show, known for it's amazing title track and some pretty laughable moments, gave us the "traditional" X-Men lineup most of us know today. However, before that aired, there was a one-off pilot called X-Men: Pryde of the X-Men. In it, Wolverine had an Australian accent.
[Hands On] Happy Vikings Is A Mix Of Pleasant Puzzle Mechanics, But Does It Shine By Its Own Merits?
Sometimes, you have to go with what works. It's no secret that some mechanics are tried-and-true, and will allow you to please gamers while adding in your own twists. Sometimes, though, it's evident when a game borrows a bit too much and doesn't give enough back.
[Hands On] Mr. Mixit Turns Memory Matching On Its Head With A Surprisingly Good Soundtrack
Mr. Mixit puts a spin on the classic "memory match" formula by adding a turntable motif and some decent tunes. As Mr. Mixit, you drag shapes down from the monitors behind you to the turntable game area. After choosing two you think will match, you spin the turntables and try to get the image to overlap.
On paper, the OnLive game system seems like a revolution in gaming: instead of using your own console or hardware to play games, OnLive's servers sync and render gamplay on their own servers and stream it back to you in 720p. This would theoretically allow you to play any game you wanted at high settings, regardless of your available hardware.
Let's say you've got a problem of a scientific nature: you've got a group of rogue atoms wreaking havoc in your petri dish, and you need to get rid of them. They've managed to convert certain structures into deadly traps, and are content to just hang around like a college grad who just won't move out. Who do you send in to fix this problem?
Riptide GP emerged from the Tegra zone late in May, touting amazing graphics that the Android system is now capable of pulling off. However, is it all flash and no substance?
I'm a big fan of puzzle games on my Android. They tend to work well in a touch-controlled medium because their concepts are usually simple enough to pick up and play. Refraction is no different, and challenges players with over 120 levels of color-matching, light-bending goodness that will have even the smartest of you scratching your head for awhile.
It's often the case that a game does not necessarily have to be complicated in order to achieve success, and this point is proven in Chalk Ball. The premise is simple: keep a bouncing ball aloft by drawing lines on a chalk board, all while earning points towards a high score. Drawing shapes depletes your chalk meter, which is required to be able to scribble further.
Notion Ink's Adam Tablet to Get A Number of Updates (Including Honeycomb By June 27th), Another Round of Sales
The founder of Notion Ink has updated the corporate blog with a number of changes that are coming to the company's Adam. For those of you interested in the Tegra-2 powered 10.1-inch tablet, the company is also opening up sales again, albeit by invite only.
During the past couple months I've seen a growing trend in Android games that seek to emulate the style of Geometry Wars, a highly successful console and PC title. I've had the pleasure of playing both Tilt Arena and PewPew in the past, so why not throw one more into the mix?
[New Release] SwiftKey X Beta Hits The Android Market, Adds New Ways to Read Your Mind
Keyboard replacement developer TouchType has released a beta of its newest software, SwiftKey X, out to the public. Previously only available to the service's VIP subscribers, the keyboard replacement will be available for free for a limited time.
Miro 4 Allows for Torrenting, Video and Music Syncing, Podcasting and Everything Else Under the Sun
Miro is an open-sourced, free solution to your media problems with Android. It's touted as an all-in-one solution, and with its feature list, I'm not about to disagree. It offers a media player, BitTorrent client, video encoder, music store and device sync component all wrapped up in a single program, which covers some of the problems Android has run into without its own downloadable client.
[New In The Market] Robotek Brings Lasers, Explosions, and Risk-Based Mayhem To The Palm Of Your Hand
Just in case you thought today would be devoid of some kind of fun, developer Hexage decided to release its latest game, Robotek. You play as the last human holdout on a robot-conquered Earth, slowly working from one base to take liberate nodes, countries, continents, and eventually the planet back from your oppressors. Combat plays out in a strategic, turn-based style, but there's a bit of a twist to it.
Galaxy Tab 10.1 Gets ClockworkMod Recovery Across All Its Versions; Let The Flashing Commence!
Those of you who have gotten their hands on a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 will be pleased to know that you can now flash ClockworkMod Recovery on your tablet. This applies to the "regular" Galaxy Tab 10.1, the "Limited Edition" that was given out at Google I/O, and the 10.1v model (which is thicker and sold in different markets) as well.
Back in March we reported on a proposed patch to CyanogenMod that would allow users to deny apps access to certain permissions while retaining the connection to others. This lets users install applications they are interested in, while remaining mindful of their privacy.
[New Game Review] TNA Wrestling iMPACT Brings Bodyslamming On The Go, Avoids Hitting Rock Bottom
Before I get this post underway, I'd like to send my condolences to the family of "Macho Man" Randy Savage, who had passed away 2 days ago. Wrestling is a guilty pleasure of mine, and his rambling promos about the Danger Zone will always have a special place in my heart. RIP Randy.
[New In The Market] Text Clock Pro Indulges Our Literacy With a Dynamic, Readable Timepiece
Clock widgets, clock livewallpapers - when will we have enough of them? Never, I say! Every once in a while, a new clock variant comes out that pushes the limits of originality, and I think this is what we have here today with Text Clock Pro.
[Video Hands-On] HoopsAR Creates An Augmented Reality Basketball Game Right In Your Lap
Earlier today, a tip about a new augmented reality game called HoopsAR hit our inbox. Since augmented reality is a relatively new and kind of cool subject, I decided to take a deeper look and go hands-on. Before I could play the game, I needed to print out a basketball "ticket" which serves as the game board. The phone's camera then scans it and overlays the court on top of it in 3D.