Tag: feedback
Netflix is expanding its early feedback program to more subscribers
Netflix currently has a relatively small group of about 2,000 subscribers who it invites to preview upcoming projects and provide feedback about them ahead of release, but that number’s about to grow significantly as the streamer looks to maximize its profits in an increasingly competitive streaming market.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Netflix plans to open up its Preview Club program to “tens of thousands” more subscribers across the globe in order to glean reactions from people that might end up being used to make last-minute tweaks to the streamer’s films and movies ahead of their broader release.
That’s reportedly what happened with Adam McKay’s Don’t Look Up after a small Netflix test audience said that they thought the…
With explicit feedback, AI needs less data than you think
Clmbr’s new at-home smart climbing machine will offer live feedback and coaching in 2023
Clmbr’s at-home climbing machine offers a Peloton-esque experience for those folks wanting to practice going up and down, instead of forward. The company is today unveiling its new model, the Clmbr O2, with a number of hardware refinements for greater stability. But it’s the new service, Clmbr Vision, that’ll be the most interesting to explore when it makes it debut. The company says that Vision will offer “live, dynamic coaching and feedback while [users] exercise.”
Sadly Vision isn’t coming until the start of 2023, but users can enjoy many of the tweaks the new-and-improved O2 will offer. That includes a simplified center console that improves the machine’s overall strength, and new gears and brakes that provide a broader range of resistance options. These changes will also, it’s promised, improve the lifespan of the machine (key, given how much time you’ll spend thrashing around on it). Not to mention an improved display, which is thinner and offers “crisper graphics” and more responsiveness, as well as the tech needed to offer Vision.
Unfortunately, there’s no word on when users can benefit from the new live coaching, but the price isn’t changing. The O2 will set you back $2,799, much as the current model does (except, like now, when it’s on sale). Early birds who put their cash down between September 1st and October 31st, however, will be able to snag the machine for $2,295, with shipping expected to start in December.
‘The Last of Us Part I’ accessibility options include DualSense haptic feedback for dialogue
The Last of Us Part I, a complete remake of PS3 classic The Last Of Us, will hit PS5 on September 2nd (and PC at some point in the future). Not only will the game include all of the extensive accessibility options from 2020’s The Last of Us Part II, Naughty Dog has revealed some extra ones that it’s including.
One that takes advantage of the DualSense controller seems particularly novel. “[A feature that] started as a prototype but ended up being really successful during playtesting is a feature that plays dialogue through the PS5 DualSense controller as haptic feedback,” game director Matthew Gallant told the PlayStation Blog. “That way a deaf player can feel the way a line is delivered, can feel the emphasis, along with the subtitles to give some sense of how that line is delivered.”
Another big accessibility update is audio descriptions for cutscenes. Gallant said Naughty Dog teamed up with a company that delivers descriptions for TV, movies and game trailers. The feature will be available across all the localized languages in The Last of Us Part I. “We’re expecting this to be an accessible experience for blind players, for deaf players, for players with motor accessibility needs,” Gallant said.
The blog post details all of the settings, including presets for vision, hearing and motor accessibility. You can expect visual aids and a way to zoom into a specific section of the screen using the touchpad. You’ll be able to fully remap the controls — there’s even the option to link a command to shaking the DualSense. There are also in-depth settings for motion sickness, navigation, traversal, combat, the heads-up display and, of course, difficulty.
It’s heartening to see Naughty Dog place so much emphasis on making its games as accessible as possible. Not every developer has the resources of that studio, but here’s hoping more game creators take inspiration from Naughty Dog’s work in this area. In the meantime, if you want to find out much more about The Last Of Us Part I, you can read Engadget’s review on August 31st.