prototypes Archives

AppWizard

July 13, 2026

“Child of Minecraft and Sim City”: Creator of Ori and No Rest for the Wicked Showed a New Game

Thomas Mahler has unveiled a new build of his game, Luma, developed during a recent GameJam. Luma is a culmination of prototypes he has been working on for the past decade and combines elements of Minecraft and SimCity. Mahler shared screenshots of a vibrant city he built in Luma and highlighted the game's dynamic experience with both daytime and nighttime settings. He expressed excitement about the game's aesthetics and the potential for players to build a space station and colonize the Moon or Mars. A demonstration of Luma's gameplay is available through a provided link.

Tech Optimizer

July 6, 2026

Why most AI projects fail: It’s infrastructure and people

AI technology faces significant criticism for its low success rates in delivering business results, with studies indicating a 95% failure rate for enterprise AI solutions and only 9% of organizations in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa achieving measurable outcomes from AI initiatives. Four main shortcomings hinder the transition of AI prototypes to production: 1. Deployment Flexibility: Prototyping environments often lack the necessary flexibility for large-scale production deployment, particularly in regulated sectors. 2. Data Sovereignty: Production transitions can complicate data sovereignty at enterprise and regional levels. 3. Reliability: High availability is crucial for production environments, but vendor-managed platforms may not guarantee seamless upgrades or hardware swaps without downtime. 4. Disconnect in Tool Selection: Developers often choose tools for prototyping without considering production implications, leading to difficulties in scaling. The shortage of database administrators (DBAs) is exacerbated by the increasing use of AI tools, with 84% of developers utilizing them according to a 2025 survey. To address these challenges, Merrick suggests leveraging AI DBA agents to support human DBAs and improve database management efficiency. He emphasizes the need for both robust data infrastructure and enhanced operational support to improve the success rates of AI prototypes.

AppWizard

June 15, 2026

As Dead by Daylight turns 10, Behavior unveils game-changing overhaul that will “make the next ten better than the first”

Dead by Daylight has evolved over ten years from a lineup of three characters to 43, including iconic horror figures. The game has expanded into comic books, spin-offs, and music. Executive Producer José Ramos confirmed there will not be a Dead by Daylight 2, focusing instead on evolving the existing game. A significant visual update is planned for 2027, enhancing character animations, environments, and audio. New creative modding capabilities and prototypes for new game modes, including a 1v1 experience and a zombie mode, are in development. The anniversary event will introduce a new survivor, Shane Wiigwaas, the first Indigenous character, and improvements to voiceovers for existing survivors. A new zone related to Dwight Fairfield's backstory will be added, and upcoming content includes new horror icons and collaborations with various franchises.

Winsage

June 13, 2026

On this day: Microsoft’s unreleased Moonraker smartwatch still feels ahead of its time

Microsoft developed an unreleased smartwatch called Moonraker, codenamed LS-50, designed to run on Windows OS with a Modern UI. It was intended to launch alongside the Lumia 930 but was canceled after Microsoft's acquisition of Nokia's devices and services division. Prototypes were showcased at Mobile World Congress, but the device never reached consumers. Recent images of the Moonraker were shared by Microsoft design employee Pei-Chi Hsie on Tumblr before being removed.

AppWizard

June 8, 2026

After seeing Thief Remastered, I’m calling it: That doomed Deux Ex remaster should get rebooted with Nightdive in charge

Nightdive Studios is remastering Thief: The Dark Project, showcasing it at the PC Gaming Show with a nostalgic trailer and modern enhancements. The remaster will preserve the game's medieval settings and improve low-poly NPC designs, along with including a DVD extras menu featuring art, prototypes, and behind-the-scenes footage. In contrast, Aspyr's remaster of Neverwinter Nights 2 added essential features like Steam Deck support and resolved bugs, while their upcoming Deus Ex remaster lacks significant upgrades and has received negative feedback from fans. Both Thief and Deus Ex are part of The Embracer Group, which is observing the reception of these remasters. Aspyr has faced challenges, including losing the Knights of the Old Republic remake and legal issues with Disney. The Deus Ex remaster has been indefinitely delayed, raising concerns among fans about its management and future.

AppWizard

June 3, 2026

Google is reportedly buying Android app code from Play Store devs to train AI models

Google is initiating a program to acquire code from Android app developers, referred to as a “confidential content offer pilot,” to enhance its AI capabilities and improve developer tools. The program aims to compensate developers for sharing their code, including active and archived projects, creating additional revenue opportunities. Selected developers are being contacted via email, which highlights the potential benefits of participating in the program, such as influencing future collaborations with Google.

AppWizard

June 3, 2026

Google Is Quietly Buying Code From Play Store Developers to Train AI

Google has reached out to select Android app developers with a proposal to monetize their codebases through a "confidential content offer pilot." Developers are invited to share their active production code and archived projects, allowing them to generate additional revenue while retaining full intellectual property rights. The licensing agreement is non-exclusive. The initiative aims to enhance Google's AI coding tools by utilizing real-world code from developers, including unused prototypes and side projects. This move comes as Google faces competition in the AI coding space from companies like Anthropic and Microsoft.

Tech Optimizer

June 2, 2026

Accelerating developer productivity in the agentic AI era with Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL

Pravin, who leads engineering for Amazon Aurora, shared an anecdote about his son and friends using AI-assisted coding tools to develop an app without needing to worry about database setup. Elizabeth from AWS Databases noted that teams can now deliver projects in days instead of months, with a broader demographic of builders, including analysts and designers. Engineers in Pravin's organization are creating agents that significantly reduce on-call work, and product managers are drafting documents more efficiently. Aurora aims to address the challenges posed by rapid development changes by adhering to three core principles: meeting developers where they work, absorbing workload variability, and growing with applications. Aurora PostgreSQL is integrated into AI coding tools, allowing developers to set up databases quickly. It features a serverless model that automatically scales to meet fluctuating demands, accommodating workloads from small projects to large-scale applications. The database supports existing tools and frameworks, ensuring compatibility and easing migration challenges. Examples of successful transitions to Aurora PostgreSQL include SurveySparrow, which achieved cost savings and improved query latency, and Netflix, which reported significant performance improvements. Aurora's flexibility allows developers to use both serverless and provisioned instances within the same cluster, optimizing operations without data migration. It also provides options for tuning performance and maintaining an up-to-date database with minimal disruption. Aurora Global Database enables applications to expand across regions without overhauling the data layer, supporting cross-region disaster recovery and low-latency reads. Companies like S&P Dow Jones Indices and DraftKings have successfully leveraged Aurora to support their growth and operational needs. Aurora PostgreSQL is designed to empower developers, facilitating innovation across various project scales.

AppWizard

May 31, 2026

Factorio’s next major update will also be its last, as its developer announces it has ‘reached a good place to conclude active gameplay development’

Wube Software is concluding its development of Factorio after 13 years, with the upcoming 2.1 patch being the final significant update. Post-release support will transition to minor quality of life patches. The 2.1 update will not introduce major new features but will include quality-of-life improvements, minor new features, polish, bug fixes, and enhancements to modding support. The studio is exploring new ideas for future projects and has added three new team members to facilitate this transition.

AppWizard

May 20, 2026

Google’s AI Studio enables rapid Android app creation in minutes

Google has introduced enhanced web-based AI tools in its AI Studio platform, allowing users to generate complete native Android applications from natural-language prompts. This process enables individuals without programming skills to create installable APKs in minutes. The Build mode accepts plain-English descriptions to construct comprehensive native Android projects, which can then be customized in Android Studio. The tools support integration with third-party APIs and Web3 SDKs, allowing AI-generated apps to interact with blockchain functionalities. This development offers opportunities for the cryptocurrency sector, enabling decentralized finance protocols or wallet providers to create lightweight companion apps without extensive engineering teams. The integration with the Android ecosystem positions Google to reshape competitive dynamics in mobile app development. However, there are security concerns regarding the AI-generated code, particularly related to vulnerabilities in rapidly generated mobile apps that interact with smart contracts.