Hands On With Batman: Arkham Origins, More Comic book video games might be getting consistently good with three upcoming sequels: Batman: Arkham Origins, Scribblenauts Unmasked, and LEGO Marvel Super Heroes. By Will Greenwald September 23, 2013 01:30pm EST Comic book video games are going through a sort of Rennaisance. While many comic book games have suffered from the same problems as other licensed games (I'm looking at you, Superman), we could be looking at a shining age for enjoyable comic book games thanks to series like Batman: Arkham and LEGO. I tried out three from Warner Bros. Interactive a few weeks ago, and they all showed promise. DC Comics is getting Batman: Arkham Origins and Scribblenauts Unmasked, while Marvel is getting LEGO Marvel Superheroes, all published by WBI. Batman: Arkham Origins is the third chapter in the Batman: Arkham series, serving as a prequel to the stellar Batman: Arkham City and Batman: Arkham Asylum. In it, the crime boss Black Mask has put out a bounty on Batman's head, and Batman has to fight off assassins while trying to get to Black Mask. I toured the Penguin's cruise ship, a mobile base he uses in Gotham City to avoid legal scrutiny, where the Penguin held some important information needed to go after Black Mask. Like in previous Arkham games, Batman can't soak up bullets, so he has to use stealth and tricks to fight armed thugs. The Penguin's goons patrolled large, opened parts of the ship, and forced Batman to jump between different spots near the ceiling to avoid being noticed. He can set traps and knock out enemies, paring down their numbers until there's just one panicked thug left. This section wasn't very different from previous Arkham games, with the same leaping from gargoyle to garoyle, quickly taking down enemies and disappearing when they see Batman mechanics. This is fine, because the stealth segments of the Arkham games have always been among the strongest parts. After that, Batman had to fight off a handful of unarmed Penguin goons, including some particularly strong criminals. The "Freeflow" combat of Arkham Asylum and Arkham City was similarly left alone, with a heavy reliance on counters to deal with multiple enemies. When a prompt appeared over a thug's head, pressing the counter button blocked his attack and often knock him out. The fight was mixed up a little by the strong goons, who could rush at Batman and pick him up easily. They weren't as mindless as the Titan goons from the other Arkham games, actively seeking out Batman with focus instead of running into walls. This meant performing different counter tactics, jumping back, and using different gadgets to weaken them so they can be defeated. This variety will hopefully spice up the game's combat. Freeflow fighting is incredibly satisfying, but past Arkham games have relied on very similar enemy types, with the more difficult mini-boss-style enemies just acting like rampaging bulls. Finally, Batman had to fight Deathstroke the Terminator, an assassin and a regular enemy of the Teen Titans in both comic books and animation (sadly, Ron Perlman does not voice Deathstroke in this game). The boss fights in the Arkham games have generally been the weakest points, so Deathstroke's fight was a refreshing surprise. Instead of using environmental obstacles or gimmicks to fight him, Batman had to use counters and times attacks, just like in Freeflow combat. As an assassin, Deathstroke is just as competent at fighting as Batman is, so he can counter, use tricks, and basically go against Batman head-to-head. Deathstroke could not only counter Batman's attacks, but even counter his counters, forcing a counter-attack war for who would stay standing. The fight occured in phases, with Deathstroke using his staff, his guns, and eventually taking out his sword while Batman wore him down, occasionally jumping out of range to attack from afar and forcing Batman to either dodge gunshots with smoke bombs or to rush in close before he got shot. This boss fight showed some surprising flexibility and variety, with mechanics far closer to the game's mainc ombat system than boss fights in previous Arkham games. We'll have to see how other assassins fight when the game comes out. Besides Batman: Arkham Origins, Warner Brothers Interactive is putting out the latest Scribblenauts game as a DC comics nerd experience. Scribblenauts Unmasked involves going into the DC universe to see which superhero is better, then frantically fixing the problems you made by going into that universe to begin with. It's all a big excuse to run around the DC universe's most famous locations and meet lots of heroes and villains. Besides the magic notepad that lets you create nearly anything (the staple of the Scribblenauts games), you can access the Batcomputer and go through 2,300 DC characters and items. Scribblenauts Unmasked will please comic book nerds just as much as children. The Batcomputer's library is startlingly thorough, and with the magic notebook you can summon nearly anything or anyone from the DC universe to solve your problems. I summoned several members of the Trenchcoat Brigade (John Constantine and Dr. Occult), some of the most obscure Legionnaires, Saint Walker, and even Thomas Wayne (who sadly didn't appear as a zombie or a gravestone, which would have been morbidly hilarious). Even if there weren't puzzles to solve, it would be easy to spend hours just putting together different superheroes and items in a room and having them fight. On the Marvel side, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes is also coming, and it looks to be as fun and fan-friendly as the previous LEGO games. You control your choice of Marvel superhero or villain, running through New York and using your powers to collect studs (the game's currency) and solve LEGO-based puzzles. The game has a roster of 150 characters and vehicles, so you can finally have that Squirrel Girl and Doctor Doom team-up you've always wanted. You can also create your own superhero with the parts and powers of your favorite characters, and unlock plenty of options and cheats in Deadpool's comic book shop on the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier, which serves as the game's main navigation hub. The demo took me through the Baxter Building, majestic headquarters of the Fantastic Four, which Doctor Octopus had taken over. Mr. Fantastic and Captain America had to fight octopus drones and activate switches to get up to the roof, where they fought the doctor. Mr. Fantastic could stretch and become different shapes to solve problems, while Captain America could throw his shield to hit remote switches. The game will have dozens of superpowers to choose from, so there should be plenty of replayability for completionists. Scribblenauts: Unmasked comes out Sept. 24 on the Nintendo Wii U and 3DS. LEGO Marvel Super Heroes will be available for all game systems on Oct. 22. Batman: Arkham Origins comes out Oct. 25 on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Wii U.

How to Multitask in iOS 7

In iOS 7, Apple rolled out a totally new way to manage your apps. Here's how to make it work for you.

• By Max Eddy
• September 23, 2013

Let's get this out of the way first: Yes, multitasking is not new to iOS. It was introduced all the way back in 2010 with iOS 4, where double-tapping the home button opened a tray of currently running apps that you could jump into or shut down. And yes, Android pioneered using screenshots to navigate the app manager, and a flick-to-quit interface. But in iOS 7, Apple introduced a totally new way to interact with your apps—one that brings the best ideas from Android to Apple users in a unique and entirely iOS way.

New Features for New Arrivals
If you're coming to iOS 7 from Android, you'll notice that instead of long-pressing the home button as you do on a Galaxy S III$199.99 at Best Buy or tapping the physical app manager button on a Nexus 7$229.99 at Office Depot, you access the app manager by double-tapping the home button.

Newcomers from iOS 6 will notice that they are now treated to big previews of apps that are running. To shut down an app, simply swipe upward over one of these previews and the app shuts down—no more jiggling icons and awkward x-tapping. Also, the big previews let you quickly see information in an app without having to leave the app you're in.

In OS X, apps and desktops continue to run normally when you view them from Expose or Spaces, but Android uses completely static screenshots. iOS 7 splits the difference. Unlike OS X, it won't keep running video in the app manager but smaller animations—like spinning progress wheels or the scrolling text in the Podcasts app—will continue to run.

iOS 7 will even allow some apps to update or reload while in app manager view, but it balances this against rationing battery and CPU power. Factors like recent notifications, connection, and frequency of use apparently make a difference on how often iOS lets a background app update. You can control more of these features from the Background App Refresh section in the General settings menu. Remember, shutting down apps you're not using will help save battery life.

Exiting the app manager is different as well. Tapping the home button again will take you back to where you launched the app manager from—either another app or the home screen. Scrolling all the way to the left lets you quickly jump to your home screen, and you can jump into a different app just by tapping on it.

Not Perfect
I have a few complaints about the new app manager. For instance, my iPhone 4S seems to frequently interpret my attempts to quit an app with a thumb swipe as a left or right scroll. I suppose it's better than frequently closing apps accidentally, but it is annoying. Also, I'd like Apple to come up with a function for down-swiping an app from the app manager.

These are minor quibbles because multitasking in iOS 7 is much better than either previous version of the operating system or even the most recent version of Android. It might take some getting used to, but, once it's a part of your work flow you'll wonder how you lived without it.

iOS Multitasking Main

Double tap the home button from the home screen or any app and you'll be taken to the new app manager in iOS. Note the large previews of each app, an idea taken from Android and a big improvement over iOS 6.

iOS Multitasking Orientation

iOS 7 will match the orientation of your phone in the app manager. Note that once you enter the app manager, the orientation will remain locked until you exit again.

iOS Multitasking Homescreen

To quickly jump to the home screen, simply scroll all the way to the left. If you entered the app manager from another app, taping the home button once will return to the app you just left.

iOS Multitasking Quit

To quit an app, simply swipe upward over the preview image. You cannot re-order apps in the app manager.

iOS Multitasking Video

Some preview images will continue to update while in the app manager view. Videos will not, but frequently used apps will.

iOS Multitasking Refresh

You can control the behaviors of background apps from the Background App Refresh menu. You can access it by tapping Settings, then General, then Background App Refresh.

iOS Multitasking Music.

While video and games will pause when you jump to the app manager, game audio will sometimes continue. Also, music and podcasts will continue playing until you open or enter an app with its own music.

Valve Tackles Living Room Gaming With SteamOS

• By Stephanie Mlot
• September 23, 2013 02:40pm EST

In the first of three announcements expected this week, Valve today revealed SteamOS, available soon as a free gaming OS for your living room.

"SteamOS combines the rock-solid architecture of Linux with a gaming experience built for the big screen," Valve said.

"As we've been working on bringing Steam to the living room, we've come to the conclusion that the environment best suited to delivering value to customers is an operating system built around Steam itself," the Valve website said.

SteamOS will be "available soon" as a free download, Valve said. The openness of the Linux platform will allow content creators to directly connect with consumers, and let users alter or replace any part of the software or hardware, it said.

Valve said a number of unnamed Linux-friendly game developers are already turning their attention to SteamOS, building new titles to run on the system.

Valve also revealed new living-room-optimized features that will soon reach SteamOS and the Steam client, including in-home streaming. Just turn on an existing computer and run Steam as usual, and the SteamOS machine will automatically stream Windows- and Mac-based games over your home network.

Once connected, users can share their favorite titles with family, each taking turns playing one another's games, while still saving individual game progress to the Steam cloud. But don't want Mom interfering with your first-person-shooter progress? Families will soon have more control over who has access to which titles in the Steam library.

"SteamOS will continue to evolve," Valve said, "but will remain an environment designed to foster these kinds of innovation."

The company has been working to bring the PC to the living room for a year; Valve got a head start with the December release of Big Picture Mode for Steam, which utilizes a traditional video game controller instead of a keyboard and mouse.

When Valve chief Gabe Newell tipped a big announcement for this week, many thought it was going to be the much-discussed Steam Box, an open source challenger to consoles like the Xbox and PlayStation. Discussions about a Steam Box emerged last year, and made headlines again at this year's CES, but Valve has yet to make any hardware announcements.

That could change soon: two more announcements are on tap this week. With its next reveal, scheduled for 1 p.m. ET Wednesday, Valve said it will "be adding you to our design process, so that you can help us shape the future of Steam." Keep an eye on Valve's websitefor more details.

The Best iPhone 5c Cases

Despite its unapologetically plastic build, your new iPhone 5c could use a case to keep it safe and sound. Here are 20 of our favorites so far.

• By Patrick Austin
• September 20, 2013

Past iPhones haven't been big on color. Apple's latest smartphone, the iPhone 5c, seems to have borrowed some iPod DNA. With a plastic build and five color choices including blue, green, pink, white, and yellow, the 16GB model is $99 with a two-year contract, half the price of the high-end 16GB iPhone 5s.

With the flagship 5s, you get a solid aluminum build, the first 64-bit phone CPU, Apple's A7, with motion coprocessor, the new Touch ID fingerprint sensor, which lets you lock your phone and make purchases with your fingertip, and an improved camera with a larger image sensor and aperture, bigger pixels, and a dual LED flash.

The 5c, on the other hand, packs last year's A6 processor, and the same 8-megapixel camera found in the iPhone 5. In fact, besides the new build, the 5c shares all the features of the iPhone 5. Aside from a few minor enhancements to the battery and the front-facing camera, the only difference is that both new iPhones ship with iOS 7, Apple's completely revamped mobile operating system.

Though the new 5c has a plastic build and lacks the upgrades of the 5s, the phone is sure to find an audience given its lower price and fun, colorful design. As with every new iPhone, third-party accessory manufacturers are scrambling to be first to market with new cases. The 5c was just released, but we're already seeing a variety of new designs ranging from super-thin fashion statements to bulked-up, ruggedized tanks that will keep your phone protected no matter how badly you abuse it.

We see new cases every day, so we'll update this list frequently. For now, check out some of the coolest cases you can get for your new iPhone 5c. Have a case you like that we missed? Let us know in the comments below.

Getting an iPhone 5s instead? Check out The Best iPhone 5s Cases.

Apple iPhone 5c Case

$29MSRP

Apple's new iPhone 5c may have a colorful outer shell, but it's pointless if your case covers it up. Apple's new iPhone 5c cases take advantage of the iPhone 5c's colorful plastic casing, with circular cutouts that let the hue shine through. The cases are constructed of silicone and lined with microfiber and are available in the same shades as the 5c itself, plus black, for a multitude of possible color combos

Belkin Grip Sheer Matte

$24.99MSRP

Clear cases are often made of slippery plastic. The Belkin Grip Sheer Mattedoes its best to let the 5c's color shine through while protecting it from slippage and light abuse. The matte-finish case is flexible and won't slide away from you. It's available in a smoky stone gray or plain old transparent.

Belkin View

$24.99MSRP

A clear case with a bumper for protection is an ideal complement to Apple's colorful iPhone. Belkin's Viewhas a clear plastic back to show off the 5c's color and a wrap-around bumper to keep it safe from drops. It's similar to Apple's bumper case for the iPhone 4/4s, but with an extra layer of plastic protection. You can get the case with a black, purple, or topaz bumper.

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BlackBerry Messenger for iOS and Android: Delayed

• By David Murphy
• September 22, 2013 01:50pm EST
• 
  

If you circled this weekend on your calendar and have been waiting with a Santa Claus-like interest for BlackBerry to release its BlackBerry Messenger app for Android and iOS, we have good and bad news for you.

First, the good news: Leaked versions of the Android and iOS apps have already made their way online, so a little sleuthing should allow you to grab and install the apps on your particular devices.

And now, the bad news: That leak prompted BlackBerry to officially disabled the Android version of the app for the time being, and has delayed the official release of both apps — in case you'd rather have them straight from the source — for an unspecified amount of time.

"The interest and enthusiasm we have seen already – more than 1.1 million active users in the first 8 hours without even launching the official Android app – is incredible. Consequently, this unreleased version caused issues, which we have attempted to address throughout the day," reads a blog post on BlackBerry's website.

BlackBerry goes on to suggest that interested Android users should sign up at bbm.com if they want to receive updates about the Android version of BlackBerry Messenger. As to when that might actually be, BlackBerry is a bit mum. The company indicates that it will ultimately launch the iOS and Android apps via a staggered, worldwide rollout, but it hasn't given any possible timeline, save for saying that it hopes to get to apps out "as soon as we are able."

Of course, it didn't help the situation at all that Google Play has seen a bombardment of fake "BBM" apps as of late. Clearly, spammers — or worse — have been attempting to use the app launch as a means for convincing people to download fake apps. In a number of cases, they aren't even bothering to write convincing text within the app's description. As Android Central reported yesterday, here's one example of what spammers might write about their fake apps:

"minion rush plants vs zombies Grand Theft Auto Vice City Marvel Avengers Alliance Minecraft Free and Full Papa Pear Saga Angry Birds Seasons Angry Birds Rio Fruit Ninja Free Angry Birds YouTube Adobe Flash Player 11 Gmail Street"

In other words, it's a blatant attempt to keyword stuff one's way to popularity. Google appears to have cleaned up its app store and kicked out most of the spammy apps, but a quick search for "BBM" highlights a few that remain. Spoiler: It's unlikely that the company "BBM for Android FREE" will be the one officially launching BlackBerry Messenger versus, say, BlackBerry itself.

Microsoft Surface 2 debut: Pricing, specs, and other info

Microsoft Surface 2 debut: Pricing, specs, and other info

Microsoft is readying its next-generation Surface tablets and peripherals for launch on September 23. Here's what we know (and think we know) about what to expect.

by Mary Jo Foley

 September 20, 2013 11:03 AM PDT

The Surface 2 will come complete with its own set of motorcycles. Um, no. But interesting peripherals are something to watch for come Monday's launch. (The Surface 1 is what's pictured here, btw.)

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

On Monday, September 23, Microsoft will be launching (but not shipping) its next-generation Surface tablets at an invitation-only event in New York City.

In the past few weeks, lots of leaks have revealed much of what's expected to debut at the launch. Though Microsoft officials haven't commented on or confirmed these specs, I've heard and seen information that leads me to believe they are correct.

The new Surfaces are going to look almost identical to the current Surfaces, as they are going to use the same 10.6-inch screens and VaporMg casing and be compatible with the same snap-on keyboard/covers the current Surfaces use.

They will have the same number of USB ports and they won't support LTE, just Wi-Fi. TheSurface 2, the successor to Surface RT, will be an ARM-based (Tegra 4) tablet with an estimated eight hours of battery life. It will feature a new ClearType full HD display, the one that debuted on the Surface Pro earlier this year. The Surface Pro 2, the successor to the Surface Pro, will run an Intel Core i5-based Haswell processor, and allegedly get seven hours of battery life instead of just four to five hours.

Windows SuperSite editor Paul Thurrott has the full list of expected Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2 specs, including weight, thickness, ports, and so on.

The more interesting part of Monday's Surface launch, in my view, will be the new Surface peripherals. In spite of Microsoft's claims last year that the company had no intentions of making a Surface Pro docking station, they built one. The new Surface docking station is expected to work with Surface Pro and Surface Pro 2 models only. It is expected to include one USB 3 and three USB 2 ports, according to leaks.

And the expected Surface Power Cover -- a thicker version of the Surface Type cover/keyboard, is coming, too. This cover will include a built-in battery that will extend the battery life of Surface Pro and Surface Pro 2 devices by some (still unknown) amount. I'm expecting new Touch and Type covers in a variety of colors at Monday's launch, too.

What about pricing and availability?
There are two big questions going into Microsoft's Surface 2 launch: Device availability and pricing. Obviously, Microsoft executives aren't commenting on either.

I've heard from one of my sources who has been in the loop on Surface information (and asked to remain anonymous) that both the Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2 may be generally available on or around October 22 -- right around the time Windows 8.1 is generally available, which is October 18.

I don't know if Microsoft will take preorders. I also don't have any information as to what the international and/or reseller distribution strategies look like. Microsoft was slow to make the first-generation Surfaces available outside the U.S. I am not sure what's changed in the company's distribution plans or capabilities on that front.

According to my source, it sounds like there are no huge price cuts in the works, which will surely disappoint those who've been expecting the so-so reception of first-generation Surfaces to have made Microsoft rethink its Surface pricing.

The aforementioned source told me Microsoft is planning to continue to sell its first-generation Surfaces alongside its new Surfaces. The supposed plan is to keep Surface RT pricing at its current level ($350 for the 32GB model with no cover included) and introduce the 32GB Surface 2 at $500. A 64GB Surface 2 will start at $600, the source said.

The Surface Pro will continue to start at $800. Surface Pro 2 will start at $900 for a 64GB version, according to the aforementioned source. There will be 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB models available at $1,000, $1,300, and $1,700, respectively, according to this source.

Touch and Type covers are still going to be priced separately, from what I've heard, as will the docking station.

I initially shared some of this pricing information as my "Rumor of the Week" on yesterday's recording of Windows Weekly (as some eagle-eared live listeners heard).

Keep in mind, this pricing and availability information is from one source only. The actual pricing/availability -- if Microsoft announces that information on Monday -- may be different.

Monday's Surface 2 event won't be streamed live, according to Microsoft. But I'll be filing and blogging from it for CNET sister site ZDNet, starting around 10:30 a.m. ET on September 23.CNET, too, will be live-blogging the event. Also: The Surface team will be doing a Reddit Ask Me Anything (AMA) on September 23 at 3 p.m. EST, as well, where anyone can submit questions.