Temple Run 2 is Here! First Impressions

I was completely letting my guard down when I found out that Temple Run 2 was coming today! I've seen countless games that have similar gameplay as this over the months that the original was out and they were equally addictive. The first thing I did when I got home today was try out Temple Run 2 as it already released on the App Store for the Philippines. It already surpassed my expectations of a true sequel while still keeping the simplicity and fun of the original.

It may look the same but you can see here that they've changed the visuals and it really looks better. You may also notice that the bonus points bar has been replaced with the Power Meter where you double tap to activate the power on the top left (the default is Shield, which protects you from anything but falling) which is harder to fill up this time around because it needs around 200 coins for the meter to be full. I also found the game generally harder compared to the original because it now lets you rely more on your skill in this game rather than gathering more coins (although you still have that strategy present here).

Overall, I loved this game just as much, maybe even more than the original. I will update this for new developments with Temple Run 2 and I hope those who loved the original will love this too!

Here's the link to download (iOS only, Android coming next week): https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/temple-run-2/id572395608

ENJOY!

On The Verge of Reading: My Fave Tech Site

TheVerge.com: More than just tech. 

(Sorry for not posting about WWDC and the Windows Phone Summit. Don't worry though, I will come back with those thoughts plus Google I/O for comparisons.)

I love technology. It inspired me to where I am right now, studying for a degree in Computer Science. It also gave way to another side of me: the geeky side. The side of me that always pays attention to all the new gadgets that are coming out, even though they're not available in our part of the world. I also owe it to technology, which brought innovations like the Internet that actually enables me to get this information on technology ever so quickly.


Despite the vast number of sites out there dedicated to technology, whether vague or specific, I like how The Verge covers it. The site may seem to look like a normal tech news site, but it's actually more than that. There are certain stories made here that goes out of the normal news-centric theme and goes to the point where it tells you how that certain technology (or lack of it) can change our lives.


Of course it wouldn't be a meaningful tech site without podcasts. The Verge has two. First is The Vergecast where they discuss the week with pretty much anything that The Verge stands for. Even the humor and quirkiness of the podcast makes this a unique experience to listen and to watch. It is usually hosted by their Editor-in-Chief, Joshua Topolsky, and two other hosts, usually would be Nilay Patel and Paul Miller but it could be anyone else from their team.


Then they have The Verge Mobile Show which was formerly known as The Verge Mobile Podcast, since they made the leap to video. This one's hosted by Dieter Bohn, Vlad Savov and Chris Ziegler. They usually talk about the week in mobile technology, since the drive in consumer technology is dependent on how the players in the mobile space. I've been following this faithfully since mobile is what I'm deeply interested in and I hope that competition will continue to thrive.


They also do a monthly web show, called On The Verge where they have guests from the big players in technology, tech culture, and everything else that affects it. An episode's usually an hour long, and usually contains interviews and featurettes that are usually funny and informative.


What I can say is, the people behind this amazing site are amazing and I hope they continue on the promise of a good insight of technology and how it can influence our lives. :)


Will catch up with the month of tech that is June.