tiles Archives

AppWizard

April 23, 2026

Titanium Court review

Titanium Court is a game that combines match-three puzzles, autobattlers, and visual novels, developed by AP Thomson and published by Fellow Traveller, set to release on April 23, 2026. It features a narrative where the protagonist ascends to the throne of the Titanium Court amidst a war between two factions. Players engage in match-three mechanics to gather resources and eliminate enemy blocks, with gameplay transitioning to an autobattle phase where resource management affects soldier deployment. The game includes whimsical elements and random complications that influence strategy, while its writing and presentation offer humor and a surreal atmosphere. Despite the potential frustration from the match-three mechanics, the game is noted for its artistic vision and charm.

AppWizard

April 20, 2026

Inware now tells you even more about your Android device with expressive makeover [Gallery]

Inware 7.0 is set to be released this week, featuring a Material 3 Expressive design and new functionalities. The update is available for free on the Play Store and enhances the app's ability to provide comprehensive data about Android devices, including metrics like storage capacity, memory usage, camera specifications, and display characteristics. New insights include monitoring thermal throttling, 6GHz Wi-Fi utilization, Thread connectivity, and battery cycle count. The app interface has been redesigned with visually appealing tiles for key information, and it incorporates the Google Sans Flex font for improved readability. Additionally, the update includes better language translations and an overhaul of the app's architecture for a smoother user experience.

Winsage

April 19, 2026

Microsoft reportedly redesigning Start Menu in Windows 11 after actually listening to user complaints

Microsoft is updating the Start Menu in Windows 11, focusing on enhanced customization and improved performance. The update will allow users to disable specific sections, choose between small or large layouts, and toggle off elements like the recommended feed and pinned apps. The new Start Menu is expected to be more responsive, especially during heavy usage, and will improve search functionality. Feedback on the redesign has been mixed, with some users expressing dissatisfaction and nostalgia for the Windows 10 Start Menu.

Winsage

March 30, 2026

Part 2 – Babylon.js 9.0: Tooling updates and new geospatial features

Babylon.js 9.0 introduces several significant enhancements: - The Babylon.js Editor has improved rendering capabilities and functionality, providing an artist-friendly environment for building experiences on Windows, macOS, and Linux. - Inspector v2 is a complete overhaul of the debugging tool with a modern architecture, supporting custom extensions and a React-based UI. - The Lightweight Viewer has enhanced shadow rendering features and simplifies embedding 3D content on web pages. - The Playground has received upgrades including multi-file editing, ESM module imports, and local session history, along with automatic saving to local storage. - Large World Rendering and Floating Origin systems address precision loss in expansive scenes, ensuring smooth rendering and physics interactions. - The Geospatial Camera allows intuitive navigation of spherical planets with various interactive features and integrates with Large World Rendering. - Babylon.js now supports 3D Tiles for efficient visualization of large geospatial datasets, enhancing map data rendering capabilities. - A new Physically Based Atmosphere addon enhances realism in sky rendering using advanced scattering models. These updates aim to empower developers in creating stunning digital experiences.

AppWizard

March 29, 2026

I always add these 6 quick settings tiles to my stock Android phone when setting it up for the first time

Android 16 features a revamped quick settings menu, allowing users to personalize their experience by adding, removing, and rearranging tiles, including third-party options. The default setup includes only a few basic tiles, prompting users to enhance it during initial setup. The Pixel 10 includes a "hum to search" feature in its camera app and recommends adding the Now Playing button to the quick settings, which identifies songs playing in the background but not those hummed or sung. The Song Search feature helps identify melodies hummed by users. The battery saver feature activates automatically when the battery level drops below 20%, and users can add a shortcut for quick access. The Google Pixel 10 offers the latest Android features, impressive cameras, strong AI capabilities, and efficient multitasking in a compact design.

Winsage

March 27, 2026

Announcing Babylon.js 9.0

Babylon.js 9.0 has been released, marking the most extensive update to date, featuring new tools and enhancements for web developers. Key features include: - Clustered Lighting: Accelerates per-pixel lighting calculations by grouping lights into screen-space tiles and depth slices, improving performance in scenes with many lights. - Textured Area Lights: Area lights now support emission textures, allowing images to be used as light sources for realistic lighting effects. - Node Particle Editor: A visual tool for creating complex particle systems using a non-destructive node graph interface. - Particle Flow Maps and Attractors: Introduces flow maps for controlling particle movement and gravity attractors for dynamic effects. - Volumetric Lighting: A system for realistic light scattering through fog and haze, with configurable parameters for artistic control. - Frame Graph: A Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) system for managing the rendering pipeline, optimizing GPU memory usage by over 40%. - Animation Retargeting: Allows animations from one character to be applied to another with different skeleton structures, enabling animation sharing across diverse characters. - Advanced Gaussian Splat Support: Enhancements for Gaussian Splatting, including support for multiple file formats, shadow casting, and the ability to create and modify splat data programmatically. These features enhance the capabilities of Babylon.js for creating immersive web experiences.

AppWizard

March 19, 2026

Here’s everything new in Android Canary 2603: App lock, Bubbles, Wi-Fi & Mobile data toggles

Google has released Android Canary channel version 2603, which includes the March 2026 security patch for various Pixel devices. Key features of this update include a redesigned screen recording interface, enhanced system UI with increased blur effects, separate Quick Settings toggles for Wi-Fi and mobile data, and new options for App lock and Bubbles accessible through a long-press on apps. The screen recording feature allows users to record the entire screen or a single app, with options to manage audio and touch visibility. The update aims to improve usability and functionality for developers and users.

AppWizard

March 18, 2026

Pragmata’s stellar combat proves multitasking can actually be fun

Multitasking is integral to the gameplay of Capcom's Pragmata, where players control Hugh and his AI companion Diana while engaging in combat against robots. Players must aim and fire at enemies while simultaneously completing hacking mini-games that enhance damage output. The game features a variety of weapons, including assault rifles, electrified guns, and shotguns, which players can pick up and use throughout their journey. The hacking mechanics evolve as players progress, introducing new challenges and skills. The fast-paced combat and dynamic interactions between Hugh and Diana create an engaging experience, although the narrative and world-building remain partially unexplored.

AppWizard

March 14, 2026

Steam Next Fest challenged me with a word game that also contained fractions

Balatro has set a precedent in the roguelike genre by transforming playing cards into an engaging gaming experience. Cursed Words is a new roguelike game that focuses on forming words from a randomized grid of letters, with players earning points based on their creations. The game includes various items that influence the letters on the board, allowing for strategic gameplay. A notable strategy involves manipulating negative Void tiles to earn points. The game introduces numbers as wildcards that can represent letters when placed correctly. An item that transforms numbers into fractions adds complexity, allowing for multiple uses of these tiles. Cursed Words promises a rich experience within a familiar framework, with a demo available ahead of its anticipated release in 2026.

AppWizard

March 6, 2026

Building realistic Minecraft worlds with Open Data on AWS: How Arnis uses elevation datasets at scale

Arnis is an open-source tool that transforms real-world locations into Minecraft experiences using geospatial data from Amazon Web Services (AWS). It recently migrated to Terrain Tiles, a global elevation dataset, which has reduced data retrieval costs and improved accessibility for nearly 300,000 users. Users can select geographic regions and customize parameters to generate locations in Minecraft, with the conversion process occurring locally on their machines. The integration of elevation data was a key feature, achieved through a processing pipeline designed by contributors after consulting GIS specialists. This pipeline allows accurate terrain rendering globally, even in areas with significant elevation variations. The transition to Terrain Tiles eliminated the need for a commercial provider, simplifying the codebase and removing account-bound authentication for data access. Previously, users made around 2,000,000 elevation tile requests over three months, incurring substantial costs. Now, users benefit from free access to the Terrain Tiles dataset, enhancing the elevation feature's reliability and accessibility. The Arnis processing pipeline operates on the client’s machine without backend services or API keys, involving steps such as calculating tile coordinates, fetching terrain tiles from AWS, decoding them, applying smoothing, and voxelizing the map data. A local cache is used to minimize redundant reads, and the system defaults to flat terrain if the endpoint is temporarily unavailable. Future developments include a public Minecraft server for exploring generated worlds without downloading the application, automatic region selection for optimized data retrieval, expanded landform detection for better representations, and a terrain-only mode for custom city planning and adventure map creation.