Good news Cut the Rope fans! You are no longer limited to playing your favorite game on your mobile device. Microsoft, together with ZeptoLab and Pixel Lab, has created an HTML5 version of of the popular game, which you can play for free on any major browser.

The free game includes 27 levels, and you can play it right now simply by pointing your browser to CutTheRope.ie. As mentioned, the game was developed entirely in HTML5, no Flash in sight (ideally), and was made especially for playing on Microsoft’s flagship browser, Internet Explorer 9.

If pure HTML 5 sounds too good to be true, you’re probably right. As mentioned in a Behind the Scenes page made by the game’s developers, some media playback issues in Chrome and Firefox forced them to fall back on a Flash plugin for correct music and sound effects. I tried the game on Chrome, and while it worked well, even with Flash disabled (except for some minor audio bugs), it wouldn’t even load when all of my plugins were automatically blocked. This might be due to a bug in Chrome.

While the game works well in all browsers, some levels, which are unique to this version, can only be unlocked by pinning the game to the taskbar, an exclusive feature to Internet Explorer 9. So this might be a good a time as any to try IE9, if you haven’t done so yet.

Happy Om Nom Nomming!

Source: PCMag

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/foobar2000-300x300.png?323f2c" alt="foobar2000 review" />Foobar2000 is the desktop music player of choice for audiophiles, tinkerers and anyone looking for a lightweight, efficient program. We have it listed on our page of href="http://www.makeuseof.com/pages/best-windows-software">the best Windows software for a reason, although it may not be obvious when you first install it. Foobar2000’s default interface is spartan and hides powerful features and nearly infinite customizability.

Cloud streaming services like href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/music-streaming-spotify-free/">Spotify and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/rdio-offers-free-limited-streaming-music-news/">Rdio are becoming more and more popular, but there’s still a place for desktop applications and local music collections. If you still play music stored on your computer, you owe it to yourself to check out Foobar2000.

Quick Layout Setup

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-23-13h29_17.png?323f2c" alt="foobar2000 review" width="580" height="420" />

After you install href="http://www.foobar2000.org/">Foobar2000 and start it up, you’ll see the Quick Appearance Setup window. Foobar2000 uses your system colors, a simple tabbed playlist pane and a traditional playlist layout by default. Here’s what it looks like:

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-23-13h33_38.png?323f2c" alt="foobar 2000 review" width="580" height="420" />

Now here’s what it looks like after selecting Visualization + Cover Art + Tabs, Blue, and Group by Albums in the Quick Appearance Setup window:

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-24-13h38_39.png?323f2c" alt="foobar 2000 review" width="580" height="415" />

We’re already getting an idea of how much we can customize Foobar2000. See how Foobar2000 now groups each album’s tracks in the playlist pane instead of repeating the same album name on every line? That’s the Group by Albums setting in action.

Feel free to play with the options here; you can reopen the Quick Appearance Setup window at any time by clicking the View menu, pointing to Layout and selecting Quick Setup.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-23-13h43_16.png?323f2c" alt="foobar 2000 review" width="530" height="342" />

Media Library

Like other media players, Foobar2000 can watch folders for new music and automatically update its media library. Foobar2000 automatically watches your user account’s music folder by default. If you store your music elsewhere, click the Library menu, select configure and use the Add button to add more music folders.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-23-14h15_28.png?323f2c" alt="fubar music player" width="580" height="425" />

Foobar2000 comes with two media library viewers — click the Library menu and select Album List to browse the albums in your library or select Search to search for specific music files.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-24-13h40_39.png?323f2c" alt="fubar music player" width="580" height="415" />

Any of these viewers can be added to your Foobar2000 layout, so you don’t always have to open them from the Library menu.

Advanced Layout Customization

Foobar2000’s layouts aren’t limited to the layouts provided in the Quick Appearance Setup window. You can use its layout-editing mode to assemble your own layout; just click the View menu, point to Layout and select Enable Layout Editing Mode to get started.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-23-14h26_11.png?323f2c" alt="fubar music player" width="532" height="342" />

Right-click an interface element in layout-editing mode and you’ll see a menu. Select Replace to replace the interface element with another one or select Cut to delete the interface element entirely.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-23-14h28_28.png?323f2c" alt="" width="580" height="420" />

Perform a cut on every interface element, including the vertical and horizontal splitters, if you want to start from scratch.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-23-14h30_17.png?323f2c" alt="" width="580" height="420" />

Just click an empty area and you’ll be prompted to add a new interface element. Add a splitter if you want to divide areas into sections and add multiple interface elements.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-23-14h39_35.png?323f2c" alt="" width="580" height="420" />

Here we’ve added playlist tabs at the top, a vertical splitter down the middle and a horizontal splitter on the left, which gives us two empty spaces on the left and one on the right. We’ve filled them in with an album list at the top left corner, an album art viewer at the bottom left corner and a playlist view on the right.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-24-13h58_59.png?323f2c" alt="" width="580" height="436" />

Click the Enable Layout Editing Mode option in the Layout menu again after you’re done to disable the layout editing mode.

ReplayGain

Different music albums and songs have different perceived volumes. If your music player is playing music from different albums, you might have to adjust the volume up and down as louder and quieter songs come on. ReplayGain does this for you — Foobar2000 can automatically scan your songs, determine their volume and change the volume in the background so everything plays at one appropriate volume.

You can choose between two ReplayGain modes from the Playback pane in Foobar2000’s preferences window. Album mode considers entire albums when setting the volume, preserving volume differences between songs on the same album. Track mode just considers a single track, so every song that plays will be about the same volume. Foobar2000 uses album mode by default, ensuring that volume differences between songs on a single album are preserved.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-23-14h52_09.png?323f2c" alt="" width="580" height="425" />

ReplayGain is enabled by default, but it depends on ReplayGain tags embedded in your music files. Many of your songs may not have these tags, but Foobar2000 can scan your files and add them. Assuming your music files are tagged correctly, the easiest way to add the tags is to select all your music in a playlist, right-click the selected files, point to ReplayGain and select “Scan Selection as Albums (by Tags).”

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-23-14h57_16.png?323f2c" alt="" width="580" height="420" />

Foobar2000’s excellent support for ReplayGain is one of the reasons audiophiles love it (another one is gapless playback; Foobar2000 automatically plays back music files with no pause in between them if the files support it).

Components

Components, available from href="http://www.foobar2000.org/components">Foobar2000′s components download page, are Foobar2000’s plug-ins. Components can extend Foobar2000 with support for new audio formats, add additional media library viewers or replace Foobar2000’s entire user interface.

Install components from the Components pane in Foobar2000’s preferences window after downloading them. Just click the Install button and browse for your downloaded components.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-23-14h45_18.png?323f2c" alt="" width="580" height="425" />

Components are also available on other websites. For example, you can download a component that adds support for Windows 7′s new taskbar features href="http://wintense.com/plugins/foo_w7shell">here.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/2011-12-24-14h11_10.png?323f2c" alt="foobar2000 review" width="305" height="246" />

Do you have any favorite components or other tips and tricks for Foobar2000? Let us know in the comments.

id="similar-stuff">
class="content-header">

Similar Stuff

class="stuff-list">

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-sync-your-itunes-library-with-your-music-folders/" rel="bookmark"> width="125" height="125" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/itunes-logo-150x150.png?323f2c" class="with-border wp-post-image" alt="itunes-logo" title="itunes-logo" style="width:125px;height:125px;" /> class="title">How To Sync iTunes Library With Your Music Folders

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-rediscover-music-mufin-player/" rel="bookmark"> width="125" height="125" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Mufin04-150x150.png?323f2c" class="with-border wp-post-image" alt="Mufin04" title="Mufin04" style="width:125px;height:125px;" /> class="title">Play and Re-Discover Music You Like with Mufin Player

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/sync-songs-media-player-instinctiv-mac/" rel="bookmark"> width="125" height="125" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/00-Instinctiv-Logo-150x150.jpg?323f2c" class="with-border wp-post-image" alt="00-Instinctiv-Logo.jpg" title="00-Instinctiv-Logo.jpg" style="width:125px;height:125px;" /> class="title">How To Sync Your iTunes Songs with Any Media Player [Mac]

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/gaming.jpg" alt="" />One of the most anticipated games of this holiday season was The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Call of Duty and Battlefield are terrific games, but it’s delightful to see something a little different become a bestseller. I love first person shooters, but to see a game like Skyrim become a blockbuster success is a beautiful thing. Modern video games tend to hold the player’s hand and assist them a lot more than in the past. It is refreshing to see a game like Skyrim come along and sell millions of copies.

Even with all the critical accolades Skyrim is receiving, I’m sure there are gamers who are still unsure if it is for them. Maybe they are scared that a game of this scope is too much for them. Maybe some of the crazy glitches that are so prevalent in Bethesda games turn them off. If you are one of those people, I am here to ask you to reconsider. I only do this because the game is that special. It is a once in a generation game. Anyone who considers themselves a gamer needs to sit down behind a controller or a mouse and keyboard and play Skyrim.  Here’s why.

The Crazy Stories

The crazy things that happen in Skyrim make the game something truly remarkable. What makes them so impressive when compared to other games is that, in many cases, they are difficult to duplicate. Every video game has outstanding things happen. In fact, that’s one of the main reasons we play them. With Skyrim, it feels like all the stuff that’s happening is just for you. You can tell your friends about something silly that happened, and they will have their own stories that differ entirely from yours. Many times these differences will occur on the same quest.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/skyrimbear.jpg" alt="" width="520" height="389" />

I’m about 30 hours into Skyrim. I recently had a fight with a couple of bears for a quest. My character is extremely magic heavy, and I wear light armor. Bears hit terribly hard, and my magic seemed to have minimal impact on them. After trying every creative strategy in existence to eliminate these bears, I decided it was impossible.

However, I realized there was a town near the cave, so instead of fighting the bears I decided to lure them to the town. It worked – the bear chased me all the way, and when he got there, the townspeople killed him with ease. However, I shot some fire at the bear during the epic battle, and my fire hit some of the townspeople. Thus, my celebration was shortlived, as the whole town attacked and killed me as soon as the bear fell.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/2011-10-25-skyrim_dragon-e1321895120545.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="325" />

That is just one small example of the kinds of things that happen in Skyrim. They feel as if they happened to me and me alone; not just part of some scripted experience.

The Massive Scale

Skyrim is enormous. It would be easy to spend 100 or more hours playing this game. For me, that is an immense value proposition. I can go out and buy 4 or 5 games and perhaps still not have it match the amount of content in Skyrim. Realistically, the only games that can compete with Skyrim for the amount of time you can dedicate to them are multiplayer-heavy games like shooters and MMOs.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Skyrim-Map-685x462-e1321894880670.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="391" />

What makes this game so special is not just that it’s massive; it’s the fact that almost all of the content in the game is so good. So many RPGs like Skyrim end up seeing the player doing a bunch of fetch quests and other useless tasks just to make the game longer. With this game, every little quest has a story, and every new area feels fresh and new. Making a long game is not necessarily spectacular; what is impressive is making a long game that has such rich content that it feels like a new game every time you play.

Improvements From Previous Elder Scrolls Games

This last reason is more specific to people whom some of the flaws from previous Elder Scrolls games have turned off. In the previous games, there was game breaking glitches. When I say game breaking, I don’t mean turn your console off and restart. I am talking glitches that would cause you to have to start the whole game over. This was obviously devastating. I had over 60 hours in Elder Scrolls IV, and then I hit a glitch where I was stuck in a spot, and there was no way for me to overcome said spot. I had to forget the 60 hours I had already spent and restart.

Thankfully, Skyrim seems to have none of these problems. There are some glitches, but they are all small. The game also keeps your last three auto-saves, so if you are stuck, it is easy to reload back and only lose a few minutes instead of dozens of hours.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/skyrimthirdperson-e1321894785796.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="326" />

Bethesda improved the third person camera as well. In Oblivion the third person camera was completely useless, but in Skyrim the game is fully playable from a third person perspective.

They have also improved the characters during conversations. Previous games were always very uncomfortable when conversing with a non-player character. Now, the characters have a lot more life, and conversations feel much more relaxed. This is important, because you do spend a lot of time conversing in Skyrim.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/The-Elder-Scrolls-V-Skyrim-Busty-Wench-e1321894422933.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="326" />

They took a winning formula and added much of what they learned from their experience with the Fallout games and made close to a perfect role-playing game.

Conclusion

I am going to go out on a limb here and say that Skyrim is certainly in the top five games I’ve ever played. I’m not writing a review in the traditional sense, but if I were to give Skyrim a rating I would have to give it a 10 out of 10. The bar for role-playing games is raised to an extent that I didn’t think was possible, especially in the current console generation. Please, if you fancy yourself a gamer, play Skyrim.

Let me know in the comments whether or not you agree with me, and if not, why.

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/hockey300.png" alt="hockey websites" />For as long as I can remember I have had hockey skates strapped to my feet. I started off playing baseball and basketball when I was a very small child, but once I discovered hockey I quit those other sports and focused all my effort and attention on it instead. I play some other sports casually, but when it comes to where my main focus lies, it’s hockey.

That being said, hockey is a complicated sport filled with all kinds of intricacies that need lots of knowledge and years of experience. However, there are plenty of hockey websites on the Internet that can offer all kinds of information for the budding hockey player. They have information from the basics of skating, to the type of equipment a new player needs to get up and running. The key is knowing which websites have the best information, and that is exactly what I am going to show you today. So without further delay, check out these websites for everything you need to know to become a hockey superstar.

href="http://www.hockeygiant.com/hockey-giant-buying-guide.html">Hockey Giant Equipment Guide

The Hockey Giant Equipment guide offers an individual guide for every single type of hockey equipment. It teaches you how to properly fit everything from skates to goalie pads. They go into an incredible amount of detail about each type of equipment that players will need for hockey.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/howtobuy.png" alt="hockey websites" width="306" height="296" />

For each type of equipment they go into much more detail than just the sizing, but they talk about how different types will do based on price and quality. They explain what is actually different between top of the line equipment and the basic stuff, which will allow a new player to decide how much they need to spend on their equipment. No matter how you slice it, starting hockey is an expensive proposition, especially for a goalie, but a guide like this will help make sure you get the most bang for your buck.

href="http://www.hockeyplayertips.com/">Hockey Player Tips

Once you have all your equipment sorted out, the next step is going to be learning the basics of hockey. While Hockey Player Tips offers skills and techniques for advanced players, they have more content for people just starting off than any other website I have come across.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/playertips.png" alt="how to play hockey" width="574" height="160" />

They have basic guides for skating, and how to add more speed and power to your stride. They have tips for how to play defense and how to properly shoot the puck. Basically, if there is something in hockey that you want to learn how to do, they have an article explaining it in detail.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/onetimer.png" alt="how to play hockey" width="556" height="227" />

Many of their posts come with videos, so you can see the technique being executed step by step. In addition to videos, many posts also include practice drills, so you can build your muscle memory for executing the technique in the heat of the game.

href="http://howtohockey.com/">How-To Hockey

Eventually, you will reach a level where just the basics don’t cut it, and that is where How-To Hockey really shines. They focus a lot more on team play and strategy than most websites. They don’t neglect the basics, but their content in terms of advanced stuff is well above most other hockey websites.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/deke.png" alt="how to play hockey" width="448" height="533" />

They have so many drills to help improve your hockey game. Every technique from toe drags to saucer passes are covered (don’t know what those are? Then go check out the site and you will!) Their drill section is nicely organized by skill level, so you can see a real sense of progression as you move through the different sections.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/cheat.png" alt="hockey websites" width="578" height="406" />

One of my favorite things on their site is the hockey href="http://howtohockey.com/hockey-cheat-sheet">cheat sheet. It offers a diagram of a hockey rink, and shows how you need to handle every situation depending on where you are on the rink. It is a really handy guide for coaches to give their players a quick overview of how they need to handle certain situations.

Conclusion

With these three hockey websites, everyone can learn to play. Starting all the way down at the bottom with purchasing your equipment and moving all the way to the highest levels of learning advanced dekes and plays, these three sites have you covered.

Where do you learn about hockey? Have these websites made you a better hockey player? Let us know in the comments!

Image Credit: href="http://www.shutterstock.com/cat.mhtml?lang=en&search_source=search_form&version=llv1&anyorall=all&safesearch=1&searchterm=hockey&search_group=&orient=&search_cat=&searchtermx=&photographer_name=&people_gender=&people_age=&people_ethnicity=&people_number=&commercial_ok=&color=&show_color_wheel=1#id=65773066&src=b5a32dead4252786e1d08efb8662d5f8-1-1" rel="nofollow">ShutterStock

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/image28.png" alt="" />One of href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/apple/">Apple’s biggest cons is their restrictions. True, their devices are amazing, superbly crafted and work like a charm, but why can’t they play more than one specific video format?

I’ve been spending my days converting videos into M4Vs that my href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/iPad/">iPad will agree to play, and even then I sometimes found myself confronted with the cryptic “the video cannot be played on this iPad” error. Apple, in general, tend not to approve alternative players that allow you to play multiple formats, and after some sort of disagreement, the VLC app was removed from the market.

True, I can jailbreak my iPad and just get VLC, but are there any alternatives that don’t require jailbreaking?

The Free Option: href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flex-player/id451024857?mt=8">FlexPlayer

FlexPlayer is a free media player for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch (OS 4.2 and later) which allows you to play many different video formats. According to its iTunes page, FlexPlayer supports “AVI, DivX, Xvid, VOB, MP4, MOV (plus many more)”. Let’s see if it really works.

When you first launch FlexPlayer, you will get detailed instructions on how to add videos. This is useful because adding videos to FlexPlayer is not done by just adding videos to your iTunes library. If you do that, you won’t be able to upload anything that’s not in the acceptable format, and the videos will not be added to FlexPlayer.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/2011-09-08-13h24_40.png" alt="2011-09-08 13h24_40" width="580" height="541" border="0" />

In order to add videos to FlexPlayer, plug in your device and launch iTunes. Select your device on the left menu bar, and then choose the “Apps” tab.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/2011-09-08-13h27_53.png" alt="2011-09-08 13h27_53" width="354" height="231" border="0" />

On this page, scroll down until you find the “File Sharing” menu. Look for FlexPlayer on the list and start adding videos. You can either click on the “Add” button or drag files straight into the documents interface.

As you can see, I tried adding an AVI file, an XVID file and a MOV file. All of them formats the iPad would not dream of playing normally.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/2011-09-08-13h27_21.png" alt="2011-09-08 13h27_21" width="580" height="441" border="0" />

When you add videos to the list, they will immediately appear in your FlexPlayer. You don’t have to sync it manually. The options are limited – you can watch videos and you can delete videos. That’s pretty much it.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/2011-09-08-13h25_25.png" alt="2011-09-08 13h25_25" width="579" height="507" border="0" />

And here you go, here is what watching an AVI looks like. Both video and sound worked without a hitch and I was able to play all three file formats with no problem.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/image29.png" alt="image" width="580" height="773" border="0" />

There are no further options that I could see, but the existing options worked great.

The Paid Option: href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id384098375?mt=8">CineXPlayer

CineXPlayer comes in two versions, an href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id384098375?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D4">iPad version ($2.99) and an href="http://itunes.apple.com/il/app/cinexplayer-the-best-way-to/id391790896?mt=8">iPhone/iPod touch version which is also iPad compatible ($1.99). I tried the iPad version, and my guess is that the iPhone version works on the iPad, but only as iPhones apps usually do – covering about 1/3 of your screen with a X2 option. In my opinion, this is not a good solution for a video app, but if someone has actually tried it and thinks differently, do tell us about it.

Now to business. CineXPlayer offers many more options. When you first launch it, you will get a tutorial, complete with screenshots, which explains exactly how to add video files.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/image30.png" alt="image" width="580" height="773" border="0" />

The method is identical to the one I described for FlexPlayer. Go to the “Apps” tab, scroll down, find CineXPlayer and add your files. Again, I tried adding an AVI, an XVID and a MOV.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/2011-09-08-13h57_27.png" alt="2011-09-08 13h57_27" width="514" height="376" border="0" />

After you’ve added movies, they will appears as thumbnails or as a list. As a default, CineXPlayer plays an amusing, computer-game-like background music when you browse your movies, which is somewhere on the border between annoying and fun. CineXPlayer offers folder options and you can catalogue your files for easy browsing.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/2011-09-08-14h42_58.png" alt="2011-09-08 14h42_58" width="529" height="328" border="0" />

The playing itself wasn’t perfect. My AVI file only played sound – no image. My XVID file played well, but when I tried it a second time there was suddenly no picture. Closing the app and re-launching it fixed it, but the AVI file remained picture-less. The MOV file played well.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/image31.png" alt="image" width="580" height="773" border="0" />

As you can see, CineXPlayer offers many more options – 3D (requires a further download), TV viewing, subtitles and social sharing to name a few.

The whole social sharing thing was a bit clunky, but I finally managed to get this window:

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/2011-09-08-14h30_04.png" alt="2011-09-08 14h30_04" width="433" height="411" border="0" />

Pretty cool if you’re into social sharing and want your friends to know what you’re watching. It seems to be limited to Facebook, though.

As opposed to FlexPlayer which lets you play videos and that’s it, there are some settings here you can adjust to your liking. You can also buy some add-ons to enhance your experience with CineXPlayer.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/image32.png" alt="image" width="580" height="773" border="0" />

Bottom Line

As much as I like tweaking things, I did not feel that CineXPlayer provided an overall better experience. This is probably due to the fact that not all the videos actually worked. If I can’t play all formats, all the extra settings become less relevant.

Having said that, the file type I couldn’t play has given me trouble on other devices, and your files might work like a charm. If the bear-bones interface of FlexPlayer is just not enough for you, give CineXPlayer a spin, it’s not that expensive and it seems to be well thought out. For me, I will stick with FlexPlayer for now. Sometimes you just can’t beat simplicity, and I sure do love the price tag that comes along with it.

Want to share your own experiences? Know of some more alternative players we should try? Share in the comments.

Image credit: href="http://thumb10.shutterstock.com/photos/thumb_small/751306/751306,1313340189,3.jpg" rel="nofollow">Shutterstock

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/google-chrome-logo-300x300.jpg" alt="" />Ever since Google Chrome took off in popularity, their app store has exploded with content as well. Chrome has always had extensions, but apps are a fairly new service from the Google browser. With any app store, there are always going to be lots of class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-cool-word-games-play-google-chrome-test-language-skills/">games and Chrome has lots available such as  class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-angry-birds-game-browser-free/">Angry Birds, class="vt-p" href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/mmcegpfdgcoclcdfkjahiimlikdpnina?hl=en-US&hc=search&hcp=main">Plants vs Zombies and class="vt-p" href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/mcbkbpnkkkipelfledbfocopglifcfmi?hl=en-US&hc=search&hcp=main">Poppit. Many of these games have already made huge waves on the Android and Apple app stores, so it serves to reason that they would eventually arrive for the the Chrome web store as well.

Sports games are a very popular genre for any gaming platform. For Chrome right now there doesn’t seem to be a lot of sports games out there, but there are some that are good. There are games from many of the major sports, but some of them are just terrible. For all you sports fans out there I have dug through the trenches of the Google Chrome Web Store to find the sports games that are actually worth checking out.

class="vt-p" href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/imlmfoojpnjiekkeolkpabbpbehfomeg?hl=en-US&hc=search&hcp=main">Baseball

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/baseball.png" alt="" width="570" height="399" />

This is a fairly simple game from the guys at MiniClip. It is an arcade baseball game that features two modes. There is the Bottom of the Ninth mode, and the Arcade mode. In Bottom of the Ninth you are the batter for your team, and your team is down by two runs. You have one inning to score three runs and win the game for your team. In the arcade mode you get ten pitches to rack up as many points as possible. There is a target on the field, and you have to try and hit the ball as close to the middle of the target as possible.

The hitting is simple and accurate. When the pitcher winds up to throw, the location of the pitch will appear on the screen. You have a couple of seconds to place your mouse over the ball and aim in the direction and height of where you would like the ball to go. You don’t have a lot of time to make this all happen, so you have to be quick.

class="vt-p" href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/dcilimldmomiaihcfkmaldanopfejefg?hl=en-US&hc=search&hcp=main">WGT Golf Challenge & class="vt-p" href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/mpedbpkelbhcbkdaglillalioeeekbpb?hl=en-US&hc=search&hcp=main">WGT Golf Game

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/wgt.png" alt="" width="427" height="395" />

WGT Golf features two solid games on the Chrome App Store. They have a skins game where you are tasked with trying to get the ball as close to the hole as possible, and a traditional 18 hole golf game.

The mechanics behind both games are the same, it just comes down to what kind of golf you are looking to play. The full 18 hole game is going to take a lot longer since you have to take multiple swings on each hole, whereas the skins game is just one swing to see how close to the pin you can make it.

To swing you simply click near the club, pull back and release when you reach your desired power level. It is a simple swing mechanic that is perfect for a game played in your web browser.

class="vt-p" href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/hoagfaoglpicblgbdiflhhgibpmknpga?hl=en-US&hc=search&hcp=main">The Champions 3D

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/soccer.png" alt="" width="432" height="321" />

This is a soccer game that feels a lot like a throwback to the sports games of the past. It plays and looks like much like an NES soccer game. You use WASD or the arrow pad to control your players on the field, and X or N to pass and C or M to shoot. The games are very quick, so it’s great if you only have a couple minutes to kill.

It is not an advanced soccer game, but if you want to tap into that old school feel and have some fun playing soccer I would check this one out.

class="vt-p" href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/poknhlcknimnnbfcombaooklofipaibk?hl=en-US&hc=search&hcp=main">Canvas Rider

class="aligncenter" style="border: 1px solid black;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/bike.png" alt="" width="567" height="371" />

I’ll start by admitting that calling this game a sports game is a little bit of stretch. It is a biking game, and biking is a sport, but the main reason I’m including this game in the list because it is awesome. It is an arcade game, but I had so much fun with it I had to include it. It is a throwback to Excite Bike from back in the day. You ride your bike along a path and try to not to flip over.

What makes this game so awesome is the fact that the tracks are all created by other users. It is just an all round good time, and I would recommend checking it out.

Conclusion

The Google Chrome app store is still a fairly new service, and with any new service like this there is going to be a lot of garbage. If you are willing to dig enough there are some fun games on there. While these sports games may not rival their Xbox 360 counterparts, they are still a lot of fun and worth checking out.

What sports games do you recommend for Google Chrome? Let us know in the comments.

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/soccer2.png" alt="play soccer games" />These days it seems like you can play just about any game online with other players across the world – games like class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/dir/lichess-online-chess-game-against-computer/">chess and other board games, and of course lots of multiplayer class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-top-quality-free-play-online-multiplayer-games-windows/">war games and class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/big-city-racer-free-multiplayer-racing-game/">racing games. I have to admit that I’m constantly on the lookout for new and fun multiplayer games, so I was pleasantly surprised to stumble across class="vt-p" href="http://netsoccer2.com/">Netsoccer 2, a multiplayer soccer game that you can play with other soccer (or football) enthusiasts around the world.

The cool thing about Netsoccer is that, unlike other soccer games you may have played either offline or online, you actually control an individual player, not the entire team. This gives the game a feeling like you are actually playing the sport – playing your position and moving around the field just like you would in real life.

Practice Makes Perfect

There isn’t much of a learning curve in this game.  The only control required is the mouse. However, it does take a little bit of practice to get used to, so to get started, click on the “Play” dropdown list and choose the “Free Practise” option.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/netsoc2.png" alt="play soccer games" width="579" height="434" />

All you have to do to control your player is place the cursor some distance away in the direction that you want to run. The further away you lead the cursor, the faster your player will run. As you approach the goal or another player and you want to kick, just tap the mouse.

The practice session pits your character against a goalie. So take a running start, and when you get within a comfortable distance, put the cursor where you want to kick and click the right mouse button. If you’ve aimed right and are running at a good speed, you may very well make a goal!

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/netsoc1.png" alt="play soccer games online" width="577" height="455" />

When you’re done playing and you want to step it up a bit, click on the “Play” dropdown again and choose either Training, Team Matches or Challenge.

How Gameplay Works

If you haven’t been invited to one of the password protected games, then you’ll have to choose from one of the other open servers that have active players.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/netsoc3.png" alt="play soccer games online" width="438" height="422" />

Once you join the server and you’re in the game, it’ll look like the screenshot below. You’re automatically placed on one of the teams, and you can see the individual player names just above the image of their character. These are real people that are playing the game alongside you – it’s a true team simulation!

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/netsoc3a.png" alt="play soccer games online" width="406" height="521" />

During the game, you can quickly communicate with your team (or both teams) by using the messaging system at the lower left corner of the screen. Just tap the function key for the communication desired and quickly type out your message. From what I’ve seen, for the most part, the games here are relatively “quiet” and there isn’t a whole lot of trash talk or chatter – although maybe that was just the time of day when I was testing.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/netsoc3b.png" alt="play soccer website" width="394" height="282" />

At the upper left corner of the screen you’ll see a “HUD” display that shows all player positions on the field. The dots representing the players are color-coded for each team, so this is a good area to glance at when you’re coming up with a strategy to get through the field. Look for a good opening and then either race your way through or pass to an open team member.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/netsoc3c.png" alt="play soccer website" width="357" height="368" />

Back at the main menu, by clicking on the “Stats” dropdown box, you can choose from one of several statistics displays to view. Take a look at your own profile and determine where you stand, or take a look at team standings and player standings across the entire network.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/netsoc7.png" alt="play soccer website" width="395" height="228" />

When you click on your own player name, you can also configure the appearance of your character. Unlike other team soccer games out there like class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/dir/ggoal-strategic-soccer-game/">Ggoal, the graphics on this particular game are actually pretty decent. They are clear enough so that you may want to take advantage of the character configuration feature to make the player look more like you.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/netsoc8.png" alt="" width="338" height="244" />

Don’t forget to keep an eye on the overall team and player standings, because you never know when your name may appear on the list! All it takes is a bit of practice and joining up with a team where you can really help out with your skills.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/netsoc9.png" alt="play soccer games" width="520" height="387" />

Of course, like any sport, the most important thing is to practice enough so that people actually want you on their team. The controls are simple enough to understand so that you can really focus more on strategy and how you place yourself and move on the field.

So give Soccer 2 a try and see if it quenches your thirst for all things soccer or football. Let us know what you think of the game, what your favorite features are, and whether there are any shortcomings. Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Image Credit : class="vt-p" href="http://www.sxc.hu/photo/540629" rel="nofollow">Sam

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/intro7.jpg?54167" alt="dolphin emulator" />The Nintendo Wii will go down in the virtual pages of history as being one of the most successful consoles of all time. The somewhat under-powered machine has been on the market since 2006 and has sold well partly due to its competetive price point and partly due to the groundbreaking motion controls.

As well as being a fun and accessible console system, the Wii has racked up quite a collection of games over its lifespan and now, thanks to the wonders of emulation and class="vt-p" href="http://www.dolphin-emulator.com/">Dolphin, you can enjoy Wii games, Wiiware, Wii Channels, Virtual Console and Gamecube releases in glorious HD on your class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/service/windows">Windows or class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/service/mac">Mac computer. You can even connect multiple Wiimotes and a sensor bar for the full Wii experience, with visuals you never thought possible.

Note: Despite the fact that Dolphin works on the PC & Mac, this walkthrough has been completed using the Windows version and thus contains some advice not applicable to Mac users.

Download & Install

You can download the latest version of Dolphin from class="vt-p" href="http://www.dolphin-emulator.com/download.html">the downloads page on the official site. The class="vt-p" href="http://www.dolphin-emulator.com/system-requirements.html">official system requirements are quite vague, though you’ll need a fast processor that supports SSE2 (the more cores the better) and a graphics card that supports Pixel Shader 2.0 or better.

There are two versions for Windows – 32bit and 64bit (if you’re not sure right click Computer in your Windows menu and choose Properties) – and a single Mac OS X install. The version I downloaded for Windows was class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/7zip-a-free-program-to-unzip-and-compress-uncommon-compression-formats/">packed with 7zip, though there are a host of archive managers that will class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/extraction/">extract the files.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/unpacking.jpg?54167" alt="dolphin emulator" width="580" height="372" />

Once the archive has downloaded, extract it to a location of your choice, and remember where you put it. After extraction you will be able to run Dolphin by double clicking Dolphin.exe. I’d recommend testing it straight away, as you might receive a nasty error or two.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/download_msredist.jpg?54167" alt="dophin emulator games" width="580" height="373" />

On Windows one of these errors (VCOMP100.DLL not found) is caused by a missing Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 Redistributable Package. 32bit users can download this class="vt-p" href="http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/confirmation.aspx?id=5555">here, and 64bit users class="vt-p" href="http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=14632">here. You will also need class="vt-p" href="http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=35">the DirectX 9 End-User Runtime if you haven’t already got it. By the time you have downloaded and installed these dependencies, you should be able to launch Dolphin.exe.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/vanilladolphin.jpg?54167" alt="dophin emulator games" width="580" height="450" />

Connect Wiimotes

Next you’ll want to connect your Wiimotes so that you can actually play using a real controller. There are other options, though you can’t beat the real thing and this is what we’ll be focusing on here. If you want to use the pointer then you’re going to need to buy a wireless infrared sensor bar and set that up on top or below your monitor, though you won’t need one for every game.

Before attempting to connect your controller make sure class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/bluetooth/">Bluetooth is set up on your machine, either via an internal chip or external dongle. On Windows, Wiimotes are connected by right clicking your Bluetooth icon in the system tray and choosing Add a Device. When the dialogue loads, hold the 1 and 2 buttons down on your Wiimote until the LEDs begin rapidly flashing.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/add_device.jpg?54167" alt="dophin emulator games" width="580" height="444" />

Your PC should have detected the Wiimote as Nintendo RVL-CNT-01, select it and choose Pair Without a Code. You won’t need to install drivers or anything – your Wiimote is now Windows ready (you’ll need to pair it with your Wii to use your console again, if you have one).

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/connectedtowiimote.jpg?54167" alt="dolphin emulator hd" width="310" height="168" />

Next go back to Dolphin and click on the Wiimotes button. Hit refresh and your Wiimote should buzz and assign itself a number denoting that it’s been found. Well done, you can now use your Wiimote with Dolphin. If you want multiple controllers then simply repeat the process.

Playing Games

The exciting bit! Dolphin gives you the option of launching games via your optical drive from original game discs, and from disc image files of games. As always, I must mention that downloading games you do not legally own is against the law. Then again there’s very little wrong with class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-rip-mount-multiple-isos-easily-windows-only/">creating backups from your own discs or supplementing your physical copy with a downloaded image someone has already created.

With your Wii game or disc image to hand, launch either by clicking File then Boot From DVD Drive or by clicking Open and choosing a Wii game image on your hard drive. When you’ve made your selection the game will launch, probably windowed if you’ve yet to alter display settings.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/startup.jpg?54167" alt="dolphin emulator hd" width="580" height="461" />

You might find that the game you launched is either too slow, too fast or glitchy. Don’t worry, tweaking Dolphin so that it’s perfectly set up isn’t too hard with class="vt-p" href="http://www.dolphin-emulator.com/performance.html">the performance guide on the official site. This will also give you a few tips about playing games in HD, which basically entails turning the resolution up (if you hadn’t worked it out already).

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/murumasa1.jpg?54167" alt="dolphin emulator" width="580" height="458" />

Naturally, if your PC didn’t handle the standard resolution very well then you’re not going to have very much joy at higher resolutions.

Conclusion

That’s pretty much it! You can find lists of class="vt-p" href="http://wiki.dolphin-emulator.com/index.php?title=Main_Page">compatible games on the official wiki, which should help guide you in the right direction. I tried New Super Mario Bros, A Boy and His Blob and Muramasa The Demon Blade on my aging Core2Duo with an 8400m. Initially the first two were not operating at full speed, with Demon Blade averaging 70% speed. After a quick performance tweak they’re all up to playable speed, so I’d better stop writing this article and get gaming…

Did you enjoy this how to? Have you tried it yourself? Do you use Wiimotes on your PC for other tasks? Let us know in the comments below. />
/> Follow href="http://twitter.com/MakeUseOf" target="_blank" >MakeUseOf on Twitter. Includes cool extras.

/>

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-wii-gamecube-games-hd-pc-dolphin-emulator-windows-mac/">Play Wii & Gamecube Games In HD On Your PC With Dolphin Emulator [Windows & Mac] is a post from: href="http://www.makeuseof.com">MakeUseOf

More articles about: href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/emulation/" title="emulation" rel="tag">emulation, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/gaming-tools/" title="gaming tools" rel="tag">gaming tools, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/hd/" title="HD" rel="tag">HD, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/nintendo/" title="nintendo" rel="tag">nintendo, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/wii/" title="wii" rel="tag">wii />

Similar articles:

class="st-related-posts">

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/top-3-sites-for-nintendo-wii-gamewalkthroughs/" title="Top 3 Sites For Nintendo Wii Game Walkthroughs (October 6, 2009)">Top 3 Sites For Nintendo Wii Game Walkthroughs (8 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/free-online-games-wii-browser/" title="The Best Free Online Games For The Wii Browser (January 15, 2011)">The Best Free Online Games For The Wii Browser (17 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-coolest-wii-addons-enhance-gaming-gadget-corner/" title="The 5 Coolest Wii Addons To Enhance Your Gaming [Gadget Corner] (July 25, 2010)">The 5 Coolest Wii Addons To Enhance Your Gaming [Gadget Corner] (18 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/desmume-a-free-nintendo-ds-emulator-to-play-nds-games-on-your-pc-nb/" title="DeSmuME- Free Nintendo DS Emulator to Play NDS Games on PC (September 30, 2009)">DeSmuME- Free Nintendo DS Emulator to Play NDS Games on PC (21 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/guide-nintendo-ds-homebrew-emulation-part-1/" title="A Brief Guide To Nintendo DS Homebrew & Emulation [Part 1] (February 14, 2011)">A Brief Guide To Nintendo DS Homebrew & Emulation [Part 1] (16 comments …)

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/logo2.png?54167" alt="low bandwidth games" />Everyone loves games. When you think of ways to kill time, games are one of the higher ranking activities. Whether at work, at home, or on the train, games are an important parts of our life.

class="vt-p" href="http://www.gamezer.com">Gamzer is here to make playing low-bandwidth games quick and easy with 4 games available from their free service. They offer Pool, Chess, Checkers and Gladiator. All 4 of these games are played against the computer or another real person. We have covered websites that feature online class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/cue-online-astonishingly-realistic-3d-billiard-games">pool and class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/dir/chesscom-play-game-of-chess">chess before, and Gamezer hopes to take your attention away and keep all your online gaming focused on their service that offers both, plus checkers and Gladiator.

Allow me to preface this with a little explanation of why someone would be interested in low-bandwidth games. Some Internet service providers don’t offer an unlimited plan, so users have to pay for the service based on how much data they actually use. By using a service like Gamezer they are able to still have fun playing online games, but aren’t forced into using a massive amount of data and racking up a huge bill.

Another reason someone may be particularly interested in low-bandwidth games is because they have a very slow Internet connection. If your Internet connection is slow, waiting for a high resolution 3D game to stream can take forever, and that is frustrating.

Registration

To begin playing games on Gamezer you have to register, which is a snap. Simply go to the main page and click the “play now” button or the link for whichever of the 4 games you would like to play. You will then be taken to the page where you can log in or register a new account. The link to register is on the right side of the page.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/register.png?54167" alt="low bandwidth games" width="192" height="202" />

After clicking on the register button you will taken to a screen to enter in your information such as your email address, language, password, and of course a “CAPTCHA” to make sure you are human.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/reg.png?54167" alt="play games low system requirements" width="493" height="361" />

Finding A Game

After you complete the registration process, your next goal will be to play some games. This process is easy enough, but it is not nearly as streamlined as it could be. Once you click the game you want to play you are taken to a screen to choose a lobby. You’ll want to look for one that has less than 130 people, since that is their maximum. If you choose “National Rooms” you can play with only people from your country.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/lobby1.png?54167" alt="play games low system requirements" width="543" height="290" />

Once in a lobby you can click “new game” to start a game against a computer opponent, or you can browse the area on the left side of the screen and invite another person to play. I find it kind of odd that there is no option for quickly being matched against another real live opponent who is looking to play. This can make finding a game a little more challenging than is necessary. That said, it never took me more than a couple of minutes to find a game, even if it isn’t the most streamlined process.

To actually invite a user, simply click the little arrow next to their name and wait for their response.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/find_user.png?54167" alt="low bandwidth games online" width="279" height="499" />

Quality Of Games

Gamezer’s bread and butter is definitively their pool game. That is where most of the players are, and that is the game with the best quality. The game doesn’t look great graphically, but that’s acceptable because of the nature of a low-bandwidth service such as this. The lower graphics allow the game to stream quickly, and without using much data.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/pool1.png?54167" alt="low bandwidth games online" width="580" height="311" />

The physics are good, and the balls move like you would expect them to. The chess and checkers games are also good, the Gladiator game however, not so much. It’s basically a 2D fighter, where you hack your sword at your opponent until one of you is longer standing. I played one full game of Gladiator, and decided my time was better spent playing one of the three other offerings on the site. However, being able to play an action based game such as this, while keeping your data usage low will certainly benefit many people.

Other Features

Gamezer features a very nice leader board so you can see how the best players in the world are doing. This is one area where Gamezer really beats out a lot of similar services. Most services of this type don’t keep track of your records or stats, so the games never seem to have any real sense of consequence. Being able to keep track of your performances keeps Gamezer competitive with other browser based gaming services.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/leader.png?54167" alt="low bandwidth games online" width="526" height="563" />

Major Flaw

Gamezer has one flaw that really hurt me. I think this image speaks for itself.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/nochrome1.png?54167" alt="low bandwidth games" width="288" height="192" />

As an avid Google Chrome user this upset me a great deal, and it pained me to have to dig out Firefox to check out the games. Hopefully the folks at Gamezer add support for Chrome down the line.

Conclusion

If you are in a situation where you need to play games while using as little data as possible, I think Gamezer just might be the service for you.

What free browser-based gaming services do you use? Have you used Gamezer before? What is your opinion? Let us know in the comments below.

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-low-bandwidth-online-games-with-gamezer/">Play Low Bandwidth Online Games With Gamezer is a post from: href="http://www.makeuseof.com">MakeUseOf

More articles about: href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/bandwidth/" title="bandwidth" rel="tag">bandwidth, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/connection/" title="connection" rel="tag">connection, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/online-games/" title="online games" rel="tag">online games />

Similar articles:

class="st-related-posts">

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/keep-track-of-your-connection-speed-and-usage-with-itraffic/" title="Keep track of your connection speed and usage with iTraffic (May 20, 2009)">Keep track of your connection speed and usage with iTraffic (6 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/microemulator-internet-lowbandwidth-rural-areas/" title="How To Use Microemulator To Use The Internet From Low-Bandwidth Rural Areas [Windows] (July 13, 2011)">How To Use Microemulator To Use The Internet From Low-Bandwidth Rural Areas [Windows] (12 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/have-you-ever-wondered-how-much-bandwidth-you-use-windows/" title="Ever Wanted To Measure Your Bandwidth Usage? (Windows) (April 18, 2009)">Ever Wanted To Measure Your Bandwidth Usage? (Windows) (10 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/zomgies-god-zombies-a-zombie-survival-game/" title="ZOMGies! – An Addictive Zombie Survival Game (January 28, 2010)">ZOMGies! – An Addictive Zombie Survival Game (32 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/yahoo-games-wordracer-is-my-boggle-game-of-choice/" title="Yahoo! Games: WordRacer is my Boggle Game of Choice (September 11, 2007)">Yahoo! Games: WordRacer is my Boggle Game of Choice (6 comments …)

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/play_ultimate1.png?54167" alt="" />Ultimate Frisbee has been around for years but in the last few years it seems to have been making a serious resurgence. With so many new players out there, it puts a serious burden on the guys who have been around to try and show these new players how the game needs to be played, and all the basic techniques that are required. Thankfully, there are plenty of websites that can handle this load for the old school players, and help the new guys learn a lot about the game off the field, so on the field they can focus on implementing, rather than learning.

It’s easy to think “I’ve been throwing a disk around since I was a little kid, Ultimate Frisbee should be easy for me”. When I first started playing I certainly thought this. However, as soon as I stepped on field and I realized just how many different ways you can throw a Frisbee, I knew it was time to do some digging for knowledge. At MakeUseOf, we have previously covered  class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/3-great-sites-for-beginners-to-learn-how-to-play-golf/">Golf,  class="vt-p" href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/learn-fight-ufc-fighter-3-sites/">Mixed Martial Arts and many other sports, so now it is time for us to teach you all about Frisbee.

Best Websites To Learn Ultimate Frisbee

I hope to save you the effort I went through digging around for good websites on Ultimate Frisbee by showing you the ones that I have found to be the best.

1. class="vt-p" href="http://youtube.com">YouTube

Obviously, when trying to learn anything, YouTube is an incredibly valuable resource. It’s not going to be the most organized way to find specific information about Ultimate, but it certainly has a lot of videos. There are some very prolific users on there who are worth subscribing to such as class="vt-p" href="http://www.youtube.com/user/rjmcleod04">Ultimate Rob and class="vt-p" href="http://www.youtube.com/user/brodiesmith21">Everything Ultimate.

class="aligncenter" style="border: 1px solid black;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/tube.png?54167" alt="" width="674" height="496" />

The one major thing YouTube offers that can’t seem to be found elsewhere is full games. It is very valuable for new players to watch high level teams play to really get a feel for how they position themselves, and what throws they use in certain situations. Plus, it is downright entertaining!

style="height: 430px; width: 580px;" width="580" height="430"> name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/P4Hx8oSsB4E?version=3" /> name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /> type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="580" height="430" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/P4Hx8oSsB4E?version=3" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always">

2. class="vt-p" href="http://ultitraining.wordpress.com/">UltiTraining

Their website is not the prettiest to look at, and it doesn’t get updated as frequently as some of the other sites on the list, but they do have a bunch of great articles to help new players learn some techniques. One of my personal favorites is their article about laying out (a layout is a technique for diving to catch a disc).

class="aligncenter" style="border: 1px solid black;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/ulti1.png?54167" alt="" width="632" height="340" />

class="vt-p" href="http://ultitraining.wordpress.com/2011/01/17/learning-to-layout-practice-progressions/">This article features some great drills for practicing laying out without hurting yourself. After all, in Ultimate Frisbee, style points can be worth just as much as actual goals.

3. class="vt-p" href="http://www.ultimatehandbook.com/blog/">Ultimate Handbook

Ultimate Handbook is another great site for techniques, but they take it a step further with a lot of strategy. They are the only site that I have found that features charts explaining the different plays and formations of Ultimate Frisbee. These charts are actually animated, so you can actually see how the play should break down.

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/chartsulti.png?54167" alt="" width="556" height="617" />

One of the most frustrating things for a new player can be to have one of the more experienced players on the field call out a set or a play, like a stack, and have no idea where they need to be. With the information in Ultimate Handbook, they can rectify the situation and learn the plays.

4. class="vt-p" href="http://www.ultipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page">Ultipedia

class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/ultipedia.png?54167" alt="" width="579" height="203" />

It’s pretty hard to make a list of the top websites for any topic without including a community based Wiki. The fact is, when enough knowledgeable people get together and share that knowledge, we all win. This is no exception with the Ultipedia. There is pretty much anything you would want to know about Ultimate Frisbee here.

Ultipedia also includes breakdowns of all the rules of Ultimate Frisbee. If you ever want to know how a rule works, this is the place to check.

5. class="vt-p" href="http://www.ultimaterob.com/">Ultimate Rob

class="vt-p" href="http://www.ultimaterob.com/">Ultimate Rob is a name that came up during the YouTube section, and while his YouTube channel is great, his website is where the real action is. There is such a wide array of information on his site that is mind boggling.

He has sections for the basics, for advanced players, technique breakdowns for every throw in the game, and even drills and training anyone can do to improve their Ultimate Frisbee game. Ultimate Rob even goes into the psychology behind the Ultimate Frisbee player. I especially enjoy his class="vt-p" href="http://www.ultimaterob.com/2011/05/19/positive-feedback/">article about positive feedback for new players.

class="aligncenter" style="border: 1px solid black;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/rob.png?54167" alt="" width="681" height="573" />

Overall, just an incredible website with so much content that is a must stop place for any one who wants to play Ultimate Frisbee.

Now Go Out & Play!

Now you have all the information, you need to improve your game at Ultimate Frisbee. So hit the field and implement all these new techniques. For all you pros out there, share these links with some of the new players in your group, and prepare to be much less frustrated by how bad they are.

Do you have any websites you use for Ultimate Frisbee? Share them in the comments! />
/> Follow href="http://twitter.com/MakeUseOf" target="_blank" >MakeUseOf on Twitter. Includes cool extras.

/>

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/learn-play-ultimate-frisbee-pro-5-websites/">Learn How To Play Ultimate Frisbee Like A Pro With These 5 Websites is a post from: href="http://www.makeuseof.com">MakeUseOf

More articles about: href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/fun/" title="fun" rel="tag">fun, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/learning/" title="learning" rel="tag">learning, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/sports/" title="sports" rel="tag">sports />

Similar articles:

class="st-related-posts">

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/top-10-youtube-dance-lessons-learn-cool-dance-moves/" title="Top 10 YouTube Dance Lessons To Learn Cool Dance Moves (October 18, 2010)">Top 10 YouTube Dance Lessons To Learn Cool Dance Moves (13 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/sporcle-games-make-learning-fun-again/" title="Sporcle – Cool Games That Make Learning Fun Again (May 1, 2009)">Sporcle – Cool Games That Make Learning Fun Again (6 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-make-an-ipod-touch-or-iphone-for-kids/" title="How To Make A Kid Friendly iPod Touch Or iPhone (January 8, 2010)">How To Make A Kid Friendly iPod Touch Or iPhone (17 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/game-classroom-%e2%80%93-put-the-fun-back-in-learning-with-educational-games/" title="Game Classroom – Put the Fun Back In Learning With Educational Games (December 23, 2009)">Game Classroom – Put the Fun Back In Learning With Educational Games (3 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/creaza-%e2%80%93-an-online-toolbox-for-creative-educational-fun/" title="Creaza – An Online Toolbox For Creative & Educational Fun (November 17, 2009)">Creaza – An Online Toolbox For Creative & Educational Fun (6 comments …)

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/intro6.jpg" alt="free online multiplayer games" />Continuing the tradition of tirelessly hunting down href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/top-five-free-online-shooter-games/">quality href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/4-sites-where-you-can-download-old-pc-games-for-free-nb/">free href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/8-awesome-free-opensource-games-enjoy-windows-mac-linux/">timewasters, today we’re highlighting some great free to play href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/online-games/">online games. If you spend much of your time in-game, casting spells or crouching to avoid a shower of bullets we’ve got you covered in this article.

Don’t forget to check out the minimum system requirements before downloading and getting disappointed. All of the games listed are free to download and play, though don’t be surprised when you’re asked to pay for additional in-game content (they’ve got to fill up the coffers somehow, after all).

href="http://www.leagueoflegends.com/">League of Legends

Originally based on a Warcraft III: Frozen Throne map called Defense of the Ancients, League of Legends is a session-based 5 on 5 multiplayer battle. Each team starts at opposite ends of the map, next to their “Nexus”, which they must defend. The winner is the team who destroys the enemy’s Nexus, simple as that.

width="580" height="430"> name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/0vKpfxHU6oc?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" /> name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /> type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="580" height="430" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/0vKpfxHU6oc?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true">

At the start of the game each player chooses a champion (of which there are currently 76 in total), though your choice will be limited based on your progress, or willingness to pay to unlock further characters. There are two game modes, Normal and Ranked, with Ranked introducing tougher restrictions and a Level 30 requirement to play.

Getting started is as easy as registering a free account, downloading the client and logging in. Before jumping into battle and failing miserably you’ll be walked through a tutorial, and given a basic introduction to controls, items and spells. Then you’re free to take on the world for guts, gold and glory.

href="http://battlefield.play4free.com/">Battlefield Play4Free

Do you enjoy shooting things? How about driving and flying whilst shooting things? Then the case is clear – you need to play Battlefield. Dating back to September 2002 when Battlefield 1942 was originally released, the Battlefield franchise has gone from strength to strength over the years and this free offering might stave off the hunger before Battlefield 3 lands.

width="580" height="430"> name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/zU6cA615Agc?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" /> name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /> type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="580" height="430" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/zU6cA615Agc?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true">

Incorporating heavily team-based capture and attack/defend game modes along with vehicle-driven warfare, your average match can be explosive to say the least. With tanks, planes, air strikes and fully destructible buildings there’s plenty of href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/desktop-enhancements/">eye candy and action to keep even the most seasoned players happy.

Certainly one to revisit if you remember the frantic, laggy yet golden days of BF1942 and Road to Rome.

href="http://vindictus.nexon.net/">Vindictus

Vindictus is a massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG) with some brutal hack-n-slash gameplay. Running on Valve’s fantastic href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/4-free-online-multiplayer-source-engine-mods-halflife-2/">Source engine, the game is visually pleasing even by today’s standards. The in-game objects can be interacted with, destroyed and picked up to be wielded as weapons.

width="580" height="430"> name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/p0C6BzI0l8E?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" /> name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /> type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="580" height="430" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/p0C6BzI0l8E?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true">

There are currently 3 classes to choose from (though 5 are planned) and regardless of class, teamwork is essential if you’re to advance the game and beat Vindictus’ 6 story-based episodes.

href="http://combatarms.nexon.net/">Combat Arms

Taking its cues from classics like Counter-Strike and the Call of Duty franchise, Combat Arms is a jam-packed free first person shooter from South Korean developer Doobic Studios. The game features a levelling system, with the player earning Gamer Points to spend on additional weapons and customization.

width="580" height="430"> name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/KXvJNOHlPG0?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" /> name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /> type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="580" height="430" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/KXvJNOHlPG0?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true">

There are a href="http://combatarms.nexon.net/Guides/Missions.aspx">ton of game modes to enjoy, including capture the flag, co-op play and various objective based game modes. Of course there’s always the option of flashing your cash, and this will allow you to buy unlocks with NX (the publisher’s credit system, which requires real money).

Combat Arms also features an integrated clan system and gaming leagues, making it quite a competitive corner of the web.

href="http://maplestory.nexon.net/">MapleStory

The final game on our list isn’t quite as meaty as the previous two, but may suit younger and casual online gamers. MapleStory is a side-scrolling MMORPG with simple controls and plenty of bright colours.

The game follows the typical RPG setup, with your character venturing into dungeons to defeat monsters, meeting fellow warriors, levelling up abilities and collecting in-game currency known as “Mesos”.

width="580" height="430"> name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6lM-_RD0bbs?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" /> name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /> type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="580" height="430" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6lM-_RD0bbs?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true">

In addition to developing the ultimate warrior, players can also form guilds, get married and even form families. Unsurprisingly, MapleStory is huge in South Korea where it was initially developed.

Honorary Mention: href="http://www.thedutycalls.com/">Duty Calls

width="580" height="430"> name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/eE_msAKWdOs?fs=1&hl=en_US&hd=1"> name="allowFullScreen" value="true"> name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"> src="http://www.youtube.com/v/eE_msAKWdOs?fs=1&hl=en_US&hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="580" height="430" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true">

War. War never changes. Oops, it just did! Not strictly a multiplayer game (well, it’s not strictly a game at all) Duty Calls is a Call of Duty parody released alongside the recent Bulletstorm as a marketing ploy. If you’ve played Modern Warfare (or any Call of Duty game since) then you’ll be giggling like a school girl for the most part.

Conclusion

Hopefully there’s enough multiplayer carnage here to at least whet a few appetites. The fact that these games are free to play at least gives you the ability to fully evaluate them before deciding to splash out on some upgrades. Then again, you might never feel the need to pay a penny and enjoy some quality games for the sweetest price of all.

Do any of these free online multiplayer games tickle your fancy? Have you got any other suggestions for us? We love to hear what you think, give us the low-down in the comments below.

Intro image: rel="nofollow" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/cat.mhtml?lang=en&search_source=search_form&version=llv1&anyorall=all&safesearch=1&searchterm=video+games&search_group=&orient=&search_cat=&searchtermx=&photographer_name=&people_gender=&people_age=&people_ethnicity=&people_number=&commercial_ok=&color=&show_color_wheel=1#id=76020703&src=400c62593c5c7e7a51fd7ec827f19e66-1-32">Shutterstock

Read comments: href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-top-quality-free-play-online-multiplayer-games-windows/#disqus_thread">Loved it? Hated it? Join discussion here …

href="http://api.tweetmeme.com/share?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-top-quality-free-play-online-multiplayer-games-windows/"> src="http://api.tweetmeme.com/imagebutton.gif?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-top-quality-free-play-online-multiplayer-games-windows/"> href="http://digg.com/tools/diggthis/login?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-top-quality-free-play-online-multiplayer-games-windows/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/diggme.png"> href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-top-quality-free-play-online-multiplayer-games-windows/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/fb.jpg"> href="http://www.google.com/reader/link?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-top-quality-free-play-online-multiplayer-games-windows/&title=5 More Top Quality Free To Play Online Multiplayer Games [Windows]&srcTitle=MakeUseOf.com"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/gbuzz-feed.png"> href="http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-top-quality-free-play-online-multiplayer-games-windows/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/stumble.png">

More articles about: href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/fps/" title="fps" rel="tag">fps, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/fun/" title="fun" rel="tag">fun, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/game-reviews/" title="game reviews" rel="tag">game reviews, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/mmorpg/" title="mmorpg" rel="tag">mmorpg, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/multiplayer-games/" title="multiplayer games" rel="tag">multiplayer games, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/online-games/" title="online games" rel="tag">online games, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/shooter/" title="shooter" rel="tag">shooter />

Similar articles:

class="st-related-posts">

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/spiral-knights-free-browserbased-massively-multiplayer-role-playing-game-sega/" title="Spiral Knights – A Free Browser-Based Massively Multiplayer Role Playing Game From Sega (April 18, 2011)">Spiral Knights – A Free Browser-Based Massively Multiplayer Role Playing Game From Sega (4 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/quake-live-free-online-shooter-in-your-browser/" title="Quake Live – Free Online Shooting Game in Your Browser (March 1, 2009)">Quake Live – Free Online Shooting Game in Your Browser (22 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-create-person-shooter-maps-cube2-2/" title="Play & Create First Person Shooter Maps With Cube2 (February 4, 2011)">Play & Create First Person Shooter Maps With Cube2 (51 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/neosteam-steampunk-victorian-fantasy-mmorpg-gaming/" title="NeoSteam – Steampunk Victorian Fantasy MMORPG Gaming (January 17, 2010)">NeoSteam – Steampunk Victorian Fantasy MMORPG Gaming (1 comments …)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/exteel-third-person-online-robot-shooting/" title="Exteel : Third-Person Online Robot Shooter Game (July 28, 2009)">Exteel : Third-Person Online Robot Shooter Game (4 comments …)

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/intro14.jpg" alt="uefa champions league" />For those of you who don’t follow href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/football/">football (the round ball, not the pig skin), the UEFA Champions League pits the crème-de-la-crème of European club football against each other for one of the most prestigious trophies in the world.

Football games generally require management, a fair understanding of the beautiful game or some impressive reaction times. Star Player is slightly different, and plays out in real time alongside the football match you’re watching at home, in the pub or round a friend’s house. Heineken calls it “dual screening” – sitting in front of the TV, watching the match and fiddling with your mobile. Now you can marry the two with Star Player, a free href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/facebook/">Facebook and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/ios/">iOS app that tests your knowledge and judgement, in real time.

Please note that landscape images depict the Facebook version and portrait images depict the iPhone version.

How It Works

The href="http://itunes.apple.com/app/heineken-star-player/id430931117?mt=8">Star Player app only allows you to play along when the football is on. Unfortunately this will not be for all major football matches, so forget playing along with the Premiership, Bundesliga and so on – this is top-notch European football only, and that’s because Heineken sponsors it.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/iphone_menu.jpg" alt="uefa champions league" width="358" height="518" />

10 minutes prior to the big match, players are able to join and wait in queue for kick off to begin. Once kick off begins, a timer appears on the screen (be it your PC via Facebook or your iOS device) which is synchronised with the time shown on your television. Whilst there can be slight inaccuracies in the time on your iOS device or laptop, you’re only at a disadvantage if your clock is behind; and it’s easy to re-sync.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_kickoff.jpg" alt="uefa" width="580" height="290" />

Heineken Star Player is human controlled, and not an automated process. For each and every game there is an expert behind the scenes, controlling what appears on your screen.

During the match you will be presented with a number of Match Moments where input is required from yourself regarding a moment of play. For example, when the ball goes out for a corner you might be prompted to choose one of four options – Goal, Saved, Cleared and Missed. All you’ve got to do is second-guess the game, and if you’re right you get some points.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/iphone_matchmoment.jpg" alt="uefa" width="358" height="518" />

There’s also a 30 Second Goal button with 8 chances (plus one extra via a power up) per match. If you think someone’s about to score (either team) and you’ve hit your 30 second goal button, you’ll be glued to the TV willing your overpaid idols to score. The earlier you hit the button, the more points you get.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_trivia.jpg" alt="uefa" width="580" height="290" />

You might also (during duller moments of the game) get a few href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/triviaonnet-online-mutli-player-trivia-games/">trivia questions pop-up. These are generally Heineken-tinged, but fun nonetheless – did you know it takes 78 regular-sized bottles of Heineken to fill the UEFA Champions League trophy? Nor did I, but it was a lucky guess.

Points, Power Ups & Badges

Your points are not only added to your Star Player profile, allowing you to keep track of your progress, but also help rank you amongst your friends. As well as a global leaderboard, fans are able to create their own 24-man leagues from within the app. These are free and unfortunately do not offer prizes; just a chance to brag. If your mates have already established a league, it’s easy to join too.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/iphone_duringplay.jpg" alt="heineken star player" width="361" height="516" />

In order to aid you on your trivia quest, 2 Who Wants To Be A Millionaire-style “Power Ups” are provided to help you – a 50:50 (taking away two wrong answers) and Max Points (if you’re sure of your answer use it and you’ll score top marks). Your final power-up is an additional 30 Second Goal chance – use them wisely.

As you complete certain criteria, you will be awarded Badges (a bit like href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/4-free-downloadable-xbox-360-games-dlc-grab/">Xbox Live Achievements and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/foursquare/">Foursquare Badges). These are displayed on your profile, and whilst they don’t really serve any external purpose it’s fun to keep track of your performances.

Tactics or Guesswork?

The real question is whether the game relies on tactics or complete luck – and it probably depends how much you like football. If you eat, sleep and breathe the beautiful game then you’ll probably find Star Player tests both knowledge of football and your ability to read the game you’re watching.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_palyingforgoal.jpg" alt="heineken star player" width="580" height="290" />

Waiting to find out exactly who will be taking the free kick, penalty or corner pays off (provided you’re familiar with the players). The 30 Second Goal button becomes hard to resist when you see a textbook cross, promising run or simply feel that goal is just round the corner.

Then again if you’re not a massive football fan, the game holds some promise there too. You don’t need any knowledge of the game to play along and the most you have to choose from in one action is four options – so you’ve got a 25% chance on every question.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_penalty.jpg" alt="uefa champions league" width="580" height="290" />

The fact that Star Player is free is as good a reason as any to try out some pretty impressive, real time tech. There’s not an awful lot left of this year’s Champions League, but the Star Player app will continue next year giving you plenty of time to rack up the points.

Conclusion

Star Player makes for a great companion to a football match, without being too distracting. Well-timed Match Moments, fun trivia questions and a great competitive element should appeal to football fans and casual viewers alike.

One quick last tip – if you’re playing on an iPhone or similar, you’ll need a fair chunk of battery (50%) to make it through the full 90 minutes (maybe more if it goes to extra time and penalties).

Are you interested in real time football games? Will you try out Star Player? Who will win the 2011 UEFA Champions League? Let us know in the comments below.

 

href="http://api.tweetmeme.com/share?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://api.tweetmeme.com/imagebutton.gif?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> href="http://digg.com/tools/diggthis/login?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/diggme.png"> href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/fb.jpg"> href="http://www.google.com/reader/link?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/&title=Play Your Part In The UEFA Champions League With Heineken Star Player [iOS & Facebook]&srcTitle=MakeUseOf.com"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/gbuzz-feed.png"> href="http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/stumble.png">

 

More articles about: href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/facebook/" title="Facebook" rel="tag">Facebook, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/football/" title="football" rel="tag">football, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/ios/" title="iOS" rel="tag">iOS, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/online-games/" title="online games" rel="tag">online games, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/sports/" title="sports" rel="tag">sports />

Similar articles:

class="st-related-posts">

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-two-best-free-online-soccer-games/" title="The 2 Best Free Online Soccer Games (February 15, 2009)">The 2 Best Free Online Soccer Games (13)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-top-five-idle-time-facebook-games/" title="The Top Five Idle Time Facebook Games (October 29, 2009)">The Top Five Idle Time Facebook Games (35)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-farmville-facebook-game-craze-easy-fun/" title="The FarmVille Facebook Game Craze – Easy & Fun (December 10, 2009)">The FarmVille Facebook Game Craze – Easy & Fun (15)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-best-9-fantasy-sports-online-resources/" title="The Best 9 Fantasy Sports Online Resources (January 2, 2010)">The Best 9 Fantasy Sports Online Resources (2)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-baseball-like-a-pro-with-mlb-dugout-heroes/" title="Play Baseball Like a Pro with MLB Dugout Heroes (July 31, 2009)">Play Baseball Like a Pro with MLB Dugout Heroes (4)

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/intro14.jpg" alt="uefa champions league" />For those of you who don’t follow href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/football/">football (the round ball, not the pig skin), the UEFA Champions League pits the crème-de-la-crème of European club football against each other for one of the most prestigious trophies in the world.

Football games generally require management, a fair understanding of the beautiful game or some impressive reaction times. Star Player is slightly different, and plays out in real time alongside the football match you’re watching at home, in the pub or round a friend’s house. Heineken calls it “dual screening” – sitting in front of the TV, watching the match and fiddling with your mobile. Now you can marry the two with Star Player, a free href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/facebook/">Facebook and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/ios/">iOS app that tests your knowledge and judgement, in real time.

Please note that landscape images depict the Facebook version and portrait images depict the iPhone version.

How It Works

The href="http://itunes.apple.com/app/heineken-star-player/id430931117?mt=8">Star Player app only allows you to play along when the football is on. Unfortunately this will not be for all major football matches, so forget playing along with the Premiership, Bundesliga and so on – this is top-notch European football only, and that’s because Heineken sponsors it.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/iphone_menu.jpg" alt="uefa champions league" width="358" height="518" />

10 minutes prior to the big match, players are able to join and wait in queue for kick off to begin. Once kick off begins, a timer appears on the screen (be it your PC via Facebook or your iOS device) which is synchronised with the time shown on your television. Whilst there can be slight inaccuracies in the time on your iOS device or laptop, you’re only at a disadvantage if your clock is behind; and it’s easy to re-sync.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_kickoff.jpg" alt="uefa" width="580" height="290" />

Heineken Star Player is human controlled, and not an automated process. For each and every game there is an expert behind the scenes, controlling what appears on your screen.

During the match you will be presented with a number of Match Moments where input is required from yourself regarding a moment of play. For example, when the ball goes out for a corner you might be prompted to choose one of four options – Goal, Saved, Cleared and Missed. All you’ve got to do is second-guess the game, and if you’re right you get some points.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/iphone_matchmoment.jpg" alt="uefa" width="358" height="518" />

There’s also a 30 Second Goal button with 8 chances (plus one extra via a power up) per match. If you think someone’s about to score (either team) and you’ve hit your 30 second goal button, you’ll be glued to the TV willing your overpaid idols to score. The earlier you hit the button, the more points you get.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_trivia.jpg" alt="uefa" width="580" height="290" />

You might also (during duller moments of the game) get a few href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/triviaonnet-online-mutli-player-trivia-games/">trivia questions pop-up. These are generally Heineken-tinged, but fun nonetheless – did you know it takes 78 regular-sized bottles of Heineken to fill the UEFA Champions League trophy? Nor did I, but it was a lucky guess.

Points, Power Ups & Badges

Your points are not only added to your Star Player profile, allowing you to keep track of your progress, but also help rank you amongst your friends. As well as a global leaderboard, fans are able to create their own 24-man leagues from within the app. These are free and unfortunately do not offer prizes; just a chance to brag. If your mates have already established a league, it’s easy to join too.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/iphone_duringplay.jpg" alt="heineken star player" width="361" height="516" />

In order to aid you on your trivia quest, 2 Who Wants To Be A Millionaire-style “Power Ups” are provided to help you – a 50:50 (taking away two wrong answers) and Max Points (if you’re sure of your answer use it and you’ll score top marks). Your final power-up is an additional 30 Second Goal chance – use them wisely.

As you complete certain criteria, you will be awarded Badges (a bit like href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/4-free-downloadable-xbox-360-games-dlc-grab/">Xbox Live Achievements and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/foursquare/">Foursquare Badges). These are displayed on your profile, and whilst they don’t really serve any external purpose it’s fun to keep track of your performances.

Tactics or Guesswork?

The real question is whether the game relies on tactics or complete luck – and it probably depends how much you like football. If you eat, sleep and breathe the beautiful game then you’ll probably find Star Player tests both knowledge of football and your ability to read the game you’re watching.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_palyingforgoal.jpg" alt="heineken star player" width="580" height="290" />

Waiting to find out exactly who will be taking the free kick, penalty or corner pays off (provided you’re familiar with the players). The 30 Second Goal button becomes hard to resist when you see a textbook cross, promising run or simply feel that goal is just round the corner.

Then again if you’re not a massive football fan, the game holds some promise there too. You don’t need any knowledge of the game to play along and the most you have to choose from in one action is four options – so you’ve got a 25% chance on every question.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_penalty.jpg" alt="uefa champions league" width="580" height="290" />

The fact that Star Player is free is as good a reason as any to try out some pretty impressive, real time tech. There’s not an awful lot left of this year’s Champions League, but the Star Player app will continue next year giving you plenty of time to rack up the points.

Conclusion

Star Player makes for a great companion to a football match, without being too distracting. Well-timed Match Moments, fun trivia questions and a great competitive element should appeal to football fans and casual viewers alike.

One quick last tip – if you’re playing on an iPhone or similar, you’ll need a fair chunk of battery (50%) to make it through the full 90 minutes (maybe more if it goes to extra time and penalties).

Are you interested in real time football games? Will you try out Star Player? Who will win the 2011 UEFA Champions League? Let us know in the comments below.

 

href="http://api.tweetmeme.com/share?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://api.tweetmeme.com/imagebutton.gif?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> href="http://digg.com/tools/diggthis/login?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/diggme.png"> href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/fb.jpg"> href="http://www.google.com/reader/link?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/&title=Play Your Part In The UEFA Champions League With Heineken Star Player [iOS & Facebook]&srcTitle=MakeUseOf.com"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/gbuzz-feed.png"> href="http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/stumble.png">

 

More articles about: href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/facebook/" title="Facebook" rel="tag">Facebook, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/football/" title="football" rel="tag">football, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/ios/" title="iOS" rel="tag">iOS, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/online-games/" title="online games" rel="tag">online games, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/sports/" title="sports" rel="tag">sports />

Similar articles:

class="st-related-posts">

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-two-best-free-online-soccer-games/" title="The 2 Best Free Online Soccer Games (February 15, 2009)">The 2 Best Free Online Soccer Games (13)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-top-five-idle-time-facebook-games/" title="The Top Five Idle Time Facebook Games (October 29, 2009)">The Top Five Idle Time Facebook Games (35)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-farmville-facebook-game-craze-easy-fun/" title="The FarmVille Facebook Game Craze – Easy & Fun (December 10, 2009)">The FarmVille Facebook Game Craze – Easy & Fun (15)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-best-9-fantasy-sports-online-resources/" title="The Best 9 Fantasy Sports Online Resources (January 2, 2010)">The Best 9 Fantasy Sports Online Resources (2)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-baseball-like-a-pro-with-mlb-dugout-heroes/" title="Play Baseball Like a Pro with MLB Dugout Heroes (July 31, 2009)">Play Baseball Like a Pro with MLB Dugout Heroes (4)

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/intro14.jpg" alt="uefa champions league" />For those of you who don’t follow href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/football/">football (the round ball, not the pig skin), the UEFA Champions League pits the crème-de-la-crème of European club football against each other for one of the most prestigious trophies in the world.

Football games generally require management, a fair understanding of the beautiful game or some impressive reaction times. Star Player is slightly different, and plays out in real time alongside the football match you’re watching at home, in the pub or round a friend’s house. Heineken calls it “dual screening” – sitting in front of the TV, watching the match and fiddling with your mobile. Now you can marry the two with Star Player, a free href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/facebook/">Facebook and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/ios/">iOS app that tests your knowledge and judgement, in real time.

Please note that landscape images depict the Facebook version and portrait images depict the iPhone version.

How It Works

The href="http://itunes.apple.com/app/heineken-star-player/id430931117?mt=8">Star Player app only allows you to play along when the football is on. Unfortunately this will not be for all major football matches, so forget playing along with the Premiership, Bundesliga and so on – this is top-notch European football only, and that’s because Heineken sponsors it.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/iphone_menu.jpg" alt="uefa champions league" width="358" height="518" />

10 minutes prior to the big match, players are able to join and wait in queue for kick off to begin. Once kick off begins, a timer appears on the screen (be it your PC via Facebook or your iOS device) which is synchronised with the time shown on your television. Whilst there can be slight inaccuracies in the time on your iOS device or laptop, you’re only at a disadvantage if your clock is behind; and it’s easy to re-sync.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_kickoff.jpg" alt="uefa" width="580" height="290" />

Heineken Star Player is human controlled, and not an automated process. For each and every game there is an expert behind the scenes, controlling what appears on your screen.

During the match you will be presented with a number of Match Moments where input is required from yourself regarding a moment of play. For example, when the ball goes out for a corner you might be prompted to choose one of four options – Goal, Saved, Cleared and Missed. All you’ve got to do is second-guess the game, and if you’re right you get some points.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/iphone_matchmoment.jpg" alt="uefa" width="358" height="518" />

There’s also a 30 Second Goal button with 8 chances (plus one extra via a power up) per match. If you think someone’s about to score (either team) and you’ve hit your 30 second goal button, you’ll be glued to the TV willing your overpaid idols to score. The earlier you hit the button, the more points you get.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_trivia.jpg" alt="uefa" width="580" height="290" />

You might also (during duller moments of the game) get a few href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/triviaonnet-online-mutli-player-trivia-games/">trivia questions pop-up. These are generally Heineken-tinged, but fun nonetheless – did you know it takes 78 regular-sized bottles of Heineken to fill the UEFA Champions League trophy? Nor did I, but it was a lucky guess.

Points, Power Ups & Badges

Your points are not only added to your Star Player profile, allowing you to keep track of your progress, but also help rank you amongst your friends. As well as a global leaderboard, fans are able to create their own 24-man leagues from within the app. These are free and unfortunately do not offer prizes; just a chance to brag. If your mates have already established a league, it’s easy to join too.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/iphone_duringplay.jpg" alt="heineken star player" width="361" height="516" />

In order to aid you on your trivia quest, 2 Who Wants To Be A Millionaire-style “Power Ups” are provided to help you – a 50:50 (taking away two wrong answers) and Max Points (if you’re sure of your answer use it and you’ll score top marks). Your final power-up is an additional 30 Second Goal chance – use them wisely.

As you complete certain criteria, you will be awarded Badges (a bit like href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/4-free-downloadable-xbox-360-games-dlc-grab/">Xbox Live Achievements and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/foursquare/">Foursquare Badges). These are displayed on your profile, and whilst they don’t really serve any external purpose it’s fun to keep track of your performances.

Tactics or Guesswork?

The real question is whether the game relies on tactics or complete luck – and it probably depends how much you like football. If you eat, sleep and breathe the beautiful game then you’ll probably find Star Player tests both knowledge of football and your ability to read the game you’re watching.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_palyingforgoal.jpg" alt="heineken star player" width="580" height="290" />

Waiting to find out exactly who will be taking the free kick, penalty or corner pays off (provided you’re familiar with the players). The 30 Second Goal button becomes hard to resist when you see a textbook cross, promising run or simply feel that goal is just round the corner.

Then again if you’re not a massive football fan, the game holds some promise there too. You don’t need any knowledge of the game to play along and the most you have to choose from in one action is four options – so you’ve got a 25% chance on every question.

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/fb_penalty.jpg" alt="uefa champions league" width="580" height="290" />

The fact that Star Player is free is as good a reason as any to try out some pretty impressive, real time tech. There’s not an awful lot left of this year’s Champions League, but the Star Player app will continue next year giving you plenty of time to rack up the points.

Conclusion

Star Player makes for a great companion to a football match, without being too distracting. Well-timed Match Moments, fun trivia questions and a great competitive element should appeal to football fans and casual viewers alike.

One quick last tip – if you’re playing on an iPhone or similar, you’ll need a fair chunk of battery (50%) to make it through the full 90 minutes (maybe more if it goes to extra time and penalties).

Are you interested in real time football games? Will you try out Star Player? Who will win the 2011 UEFA Champions League? Let us know in the comments below.

 

href="http://api.tweetmeme.com/share?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://api.tweetmeme.com/imagebutton.gif?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> href="http://digg.com/tools/diggthis/login?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/diggme.png"> href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/fb.jpg"> href="http://www.google.com/reader/link?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/&title=Play Your Part In The UEFA Champions League With Heineken Star Player [iOS & Facebook]&srcTitle=MakeUseOf.com"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/gbuzz-feed.png"> href="http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-part-uefa-champions-league-heineken-star-player-ios-facebook/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/stumble.png">

 

More articles about: href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/facebook/" title="Facebook" rel="tag">Facebook, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/football/" title="football" rel="tag">football, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/ios/" title="iOS" rel="tag">iOS, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/online-games/" title="online games" rel="tag">online games, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/sports/" title="sports" rel="tag">sports />

Similar articles:

class="st-related-posts">

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-two-best-free-online-soccer-games/" title="The 2 Best Free Online Soccer Games (February 15, 2009)">The 2 Best Free Online Soccer Games (13)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-top-five-idle-time-facebook-games/" title="The Top Five Idle Time Facebook Games (October 29, 2009)">The Top Five Idle Time Facebook Games (35)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-farmville-facebook-game-craze-easy-fun/" title="The FarmVille Facebook Game Craze – Easy & Fun (December 10, 2009)">The FarmVille Facebook Game Craze – Easy & Fun (15)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-best-9-fantasy-sports-online-resources/" title="The Best 9 Fantasy Sports Online Resources (January 2, 2010)">The Best 9 Fantasy Sports Online Resources (2)

href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-baseball-like-a-pro-with-mlb-dugout-heroes/" title="Play Baseball Like a Pro with MLB Dugout Heroes (July 31, 2009)">Play Baseball Like a Pro with MLB Dugout Heroes (4)

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/intro7.jpg" alt="html5 games"/> href="http://www.makeuseof.com/dir/tag/html5/">HTML5 signifies the href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-websites-html5/">evolution of markup language as we know it. Adding a range of new tags, multimedia capabilities and removing the need for many proprietary plugins, it is easy to understand how HTML5 is seen as a big step forward in href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/web-development/">web development.

Flash games were once the norm when it came to browser-based entertainment, but now thanks to the powerful nature of HTML5 many web applications, streaming services and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/service/games/">games are taking advantage of the new bells and whistles.

You’ll need a HTML5 compliant browser to join in, all of these HTML5 games have been tested with the latest stable href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/google-chrome/">Google Chrome on Ubuntu 10.10. Other HTML5 compliant browsers include Safari, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/firefox-4-internet-explorer-9-browser-showdown/">Firefox href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/firefox-4-internet-explorer-9-browser-showdown/">and href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/firefox-4-internet-explorer-9-browser-showdown/"> I href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/firefox-4-internet-explorer-9-browser-showdown/">nternet href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/firefox-4-internet-explorer-9-browser-showdown/">E href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/firefox-4-internet-explorer-9-browser-showdown/">xplorer href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/firefox-4-internet-explorer-9-browser-showdown/">9.

href="http://canvasrider.com/">Canvas Rider

Blatantly inspired by the classic Line Rider, Canvas Rider allows users to create, share and ride user-generated tracks. If you’ve ever played a physics-based bike game (think Trials, or the more recent Trials HD) then the concept will be very familiar.

class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/canvasrider.png" alt="html5 games" width="580" height="473" />

As a biker you must reach the end of the level, which is considerably easier said than done. Careful use of throttle and lean controls will help maintain your rider’s position on the bike, and when you’re sick of being thrown off all the time you can have a go at creating your own level.

There are hundreds of other users’ creations which can be easily filtered by popularity to reveal some beautifully-crafted levels. Chrome users can install href="https://chrome.google.com/extensions/detail/ebopbobaiphmoclojaeoenommfefljll?hl=en-gb">an extension for quick access to Canvas Rider.

href="http://www.mattpelham.com/vii/">VII

VII transforms your whole browser window into a monochrome platform world, with smooth animations, physics and responsive controls. Using both the mouse and keyboard you must navigate, manipulate and clear each screen before progressing. /> class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/vii.jpg" alt="free html5 games" width="580" height="301" />

Your telekinesis can be used to move or surf objects and solve thought-provoking puzzles and predicaments. The quirky art style and character (who vaguely resembles Roger from American Dad) plods along at a sombre pace, allowing you to take in all the HTML5 goodness along the way.

Technically brilliant, graphically pleasing and completely free; VII is a great little introduction to the world of browser-borne platform games.

href="http://upsidedownturtle.com/boredboredbored/">BoredBoredBored

Whilst VII takes on a more relaxed pace, BoredBoredBored employs a different approach – frantic, death-defying href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/play-arcade-games-pc/">arcade action. Using the arrow keys and your space bar, you (quite literally a dot) must avoid incoming enemy fire whilst propelling yourself into waves of oncoming enemies.

class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/boredboredbored.png" alt="free html5 games" width="580" height="303" />

Your only method of attack is accessed via the space bar, the longer you charge your shot; the greater your area of effect.

At the end of the game you will be given a breakdown of how terrible you are, that is unless you make it to the final wave. BoredBoredBored is a fine example of how HTML5 can be used to create an incredibly fast-paced arcade game that can run natively in a browser window.

href="http://gopherwoodstudios.com/sandtrap/sand-trap.htm">Sand Trap

Instead of taking advantage of one of the many physics engines for the Flash or Java platform, Sand Trap uses its own built-from-scratch HTML5 effort in this addictive puzzler. Each level contains a maze, and within that maze is a small amount of sand. By rotating the maze, it is your task to syphon the sand into the bucket.

class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/sandtrap.jpg" alt="free html5 games" width="580" height="646" />

Playing on its simple nature, Sand Trap soon becomes complex and very addictive; especially if you have a soft spot for physics games. This game would probably be even better with a touch interface, if you’re lucky enough to have a tablet PC or similar.

href="http://www.freeciv.net/">FreeCiv

Civilization in your browser – need I say more? For those of you who do remember the original Civ, FreeCiv is a faithful representation of the Sid Meyer classic that stole so much sleep from those who played it.

class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/freeciv.jpg" alt="html5 gaming" width="580" height="393" />

Those that don’t are in for a treat! Don’t let the flat, dated graphics distract you, in Civ the whole world is your oyster. You must explore, settle, trade, mine and generally build a turn-based empire from the comfort of your browser. There’s a tutorial to get you up to speed, and scenarios to play through if you wish.

The option to play against AI or href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/top-five-free-online-shooter-games/">other human players is yours, and you can fully customize your games beforehand. Bye-bye spare time!

The Rest

There were a few games that didn’t quite make the main list but distracted me long enough to warrant a mention, and these were:

href="http://www.benjoffe.com/code/games/torus/">Torus

class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Selection_282.png" alt="html5 gaming" width="539" height="422" /> /> A nifty take on Tetris, replacing the usual 2D interface with a fully 3D hollow sphere.

href="http://www.pirateslovedaisies.com/">Pirates Love Daisies

A delightful HTML5 tower defence game that gives some of the premium efforts out there a run for their money.

href="http://www.somethinghitme.com/projects/jslander/">JSLander

class="aligncenter" style="border: 0pt none;" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/jslander.png" alt="html5 games" width="580" height="277" />

A faithful Lunar Lander clone coded in HTML5 and JavaScript.

Hint: you’ll need a Y velocity below 6 not to crash and below 3 for the perfect landing.

href="http://www.worldsbiggestpacman.com/">World’s Biggest Pac-Man

An awesome selection of custom Pac-Man levels, all linked together. Bored of your current maze? Exit and seamlessly join the next!

Conclusion

If you’ve not upgraded to a HTML5 compliant browser yet, you’re probably missing out on the web’s hottest new tricks. As a Linux user, constant Adobe Flash crashes, glitches and sluggish behaviour is to be expected on my system. Not once whilst testing any of the games in this article did my PC flinch.

There are some things online that only Flash can do… for everything else there’s HTML5.

Any HTML5 games that tickle your fancy? Which browser do you use? Have your say in the comments below.

href="http://api.tweetmeme.com/share?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-impressive-free-html5-games-play-browser/"> src="http://api.tweetmeme.com/imagebutton.gif?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-impressive-free-html5-games-play-browser/"> href="http://digg.com/tools/diggthis/login?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-impressive-free-html5-games-play-browser/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/diggme.png"> href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-impressive-free-html5-games-play-browser/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/fb.jpg"> href="http://www.google.com/reader/link?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-impressive-free-html5-games-play-browser/&title=5+ Impressive Free HTML5 Games You Can Play In Your Browser&srcTitle=MakeUseOf.com"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/gbuzz-feed.png"> href="http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-impressive-free-html5-games-play-browser/"> src="http://www.makeuseof.com/images/rss-buttons/stumble.png">

More articles about: href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/fun/" title="fun" rel="tag">fun, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/html/" title="html" rel="tag">html, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/html-5/" title="html 5" rel="tag">html 5, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/online-games/" title="online games" rel="tag">online games />

View full post on MakeUseOf

class="align-right" src="http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/introwr.jpg" alt="home console emulators" />It’s time for the concluding part of my home console emulation series, and today I’m on the hunt for some tools to emulate some fairly recent machines. If you’ve missed the series so far you might want to check out href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/6-nostalgic-emulators-vintage-video-gaming-enthusiasts-19721980/">home consoles of the 70s, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-retro-emulators-play-early-80s-home-consoles-pc-19811986/">early 80s and the transition from href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-emulators-play-oldschool-16-32-bit-consoles-pc-19871993/">16 bit to 32 bit in the early 90s. Just don’t go downloading any games (ROMs) you don’t legally own, OK?

As the systems get more advanced, href="http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/emulation">emulation becomes more demanding and you may need a fairly recent PC, preferably a dual-core processor and a dedicated graphics card to get the most out of these.

id="more-66739">

1994 – Sega Saturn [ href="http://yabause.org/">Yabause]