Showing posts with label playing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label playing. Show all posts

Two goldfish duke it out playing Street Fighter on Twitch

Goldfish are tough competitors. Video screenshot by Amanda Kooser/CNET It all started innocently enough when a pet fish's owner decided to rig up an aquarium to let the swimming creature trigger Pokemon game commands. Throw in a live feed over popular gaming site Twitch, and it created a minor phenomenon.

Inspired by Fish Plays Pokemon, Andrew Hill has drafted his two pet goldfish to take each other on in an unending stream of Street Fighter II Turbo rounds.

Naturally, the feed is called FishPlayStreetFighter on Twitch. Hill rigged up his tank in a similar way to Fish Plays Pokemon by segmenting the tank into nine parts. When a fish wanders into one of the parts, a camera captures it and translates its movements into a key press. The Twitch stream includes video of the fish swimming around, along with corresponding video of the Street Fighter II actions they trigger.

Due to the random nature of the fish strolling about in the tank, a lot of the action involves the video game characters just jumping up and down and swiping and kicking at the air. But it's pure magic when the battle finally engages and you find yourself rooting for a fish.

Related stories This is real: 20K Twitch users are watching a fish play Pokemon YouTube reportedly to acquire streaming site Twitch for $1B Twitch Plays Pokemon: In conversation with the phenomenon's creator (Q&A)

To amp up the tension, Hill has offered up bios on the two contestants. AG.Aquarius, a yellow and orange fantail goldfish, "has an aggressive fighting style which relies on rapid movement and flowing combos." Robert the Bruce, a Black Moor goldfish, "is much more methodical in his technique, often pausing and waiting to counteract his opponents' style, then striking at the most opportune moments."

The stream is proving popular. It's heading toward 1 million views at a fair clip and has over 11,000 followers. Hill has already received some fan-made art submissions showing his fish all muscled out. It seems Robert the Bruce is a particular fan favorite, though AG.Aquarius has already attracted a sponsorship from Always Godlike, a professional fighting game team.

Hill tallies up the fish's wins and losses at the end of each day, along with amusing commentary worthy of a sportscaster. So far, the two aquatic buddies are pretty evenly matched. With the current arrangement, the fish can't trigger combos and special moves, but Hill is working to make this happen. I, for one, can't wait to see Robert the Bruce throw down a Spin Drive Smasher while AG.Aquarius counters with a Yoga Inferno.

Tags: Crave Gaming About the author

Tomorrow Daily 039: "Swarmies" of NASA robots, fish playing Street Fighter 2, and a shotgun flute

: "Swarmies" of NASA robots, fish playing Street Fighter 2, and a shotgun flute Your browser does not support the audio element.

Here are some links and notes for all the things on the show today:

NASA considers small robot swarms for hunting down resources on other planetsActual goldfish playing Street Fighter 2 on TwitchArtist transforms shotguns and scraps into robotic flutesInto It: Five Nights at Freddy's, and GIFYouTubeUser feedback: Your #TDCharging tweets, and our Phonetographer of the Day

Of course, you can find us everywhere on social media. Like, follow, and heart us as you desire!

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Uber accused of playing dirty in competition with Lyft

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick at LeWeb 2013. Stephen Shankland/CNET

Uber and Lyft have been engaged in a public battle to win over more customers for years, but it appears this competition may have taken a turn for the shady.

Lyft is alleging Uber employees have been booking and then canceling thousands of rides over the last nine months, according to CNNMoney. All told, 5,560 Lyft rides have been allegedly canceled by 177 Uber employees since last October.

This tactic would be effective because booking a ride would make a car unavailable to other customers, which could then turn potential passengers to other car-sharing platforms. It also hurts drivers because they spend time and gas money on bogus rides.

"It's unfortunate for affected community members that they have used these tactics, as it wastes a driver's time and impacts the next passenger waiting for that driver," Lyft director of communications Erin Simpson said in a statement emailed to CNET. "We remain focused on growing the business faster than any competitor through better customer experience and innovation."

Lyft believes part of Uber's plan is to recruit away its drivers. The data revealed by Lyft shows that some users canceled hundreds of rides from several accounts, according to CNNMoney. For instance, one person's phone number was tied to 21 accounts and tallied up a total of 1,524 canceled rides.

Uber has called the allegations "patently false."

Related stories Uber: Our poaching tactics 'likely too aggressive' Car-sharing showdown: UberX offers free rides in Lyft's new cities Lyft CEO: Uber's efforts have no impact on our growth Lyft steps up competition with up to 20 percent price drops Lyft pimps its ride, takes on Uber's 'stodgy' black car service

"Both riders and drivers help recruit new drivers to the Uber platform, where the economic opportunity is unmatched in the industry," an Uber spokesperson told CNET. "We recently ran a program where thousands of riders recruited drivers from other platforms, earning hundreds of dollars in Uber credits for each driver who tries Uber. Even Lyft drivers have participated in a successful campaign recruiting thousands of other Lyft drivers to Uber, where drivers make a better living than on any other platform."

This isn't the first time Uber has been accused of carrying out this dirty tactic. In January, the car service app Gett claimed about a dozen customers ordered almost 200 rides over a three-day period and then canceled them -- some when the driver had nearly reached the pickup destination. The company then cross-referenced the customers' names on LinkedIn and Twitter and determined they were Uber employees. After the rides were canceled, Gett drivers said they received text messages from the customers urging them to drive for Uber.

During the Gett debacle, Uber admitted the tactic was "likely too aggressive" adding that it "messaged city teams to curtail activities that seek lead generation by requesting transportation services."

However, if Lyft's allegations are true, it appears Uber simply chose another victim to prey on.

Tags: Mobile Apps Car Tech Tech Industry Mobile Uber About the author