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Microsoft is beleaguered in the console market, handily beaten by Sony and Nintendo, and the company now has to make a hard decision about the future of Xbox consoles--at least that's what ex-PlayStation boss Shawn Layden thinks.

Xbox is at a very contentious point right now, having broken exclusivity on first-party games in a bid to maximize profits. Players feel this could diminish the Xbox platform long-term as exclusive content traditionally helped propel hardware sales--people would buy Xbox to play games like Halo, Gears of War, and Forza. Ex-PlayStation boss Shawn Layden tells GamesIndustry.biz that Xbox consoles just don't have enough differentiation to claw back console market share, and that Microsoft's current stance in the console market reminded Layden how SEGA stopped making consoles in 2001, just 3 years after the failure of the Dreamcast.

"Watching what Xbox has been doing recently, I do get Dreamcast flashbacks," Layden said, pointing to SEGA's spiraling demise in the console market in the early 2000s.

There's a new fastest AI when it comes to Pokémon Red speed runs and it's GPT-5, beating out the previous record by a long way.

OpenAI's most recent model took just 6,470 steps to complete Pokémon Red, compared to ChatGPT-o3 which beat the game in 18,184 steps.

As TechRadar, which spotted this feat, points out, 6,500 steps translates to about a full week of gaming (non-stop) - well, just under a week - so it's not exactly fast. Well, not compared to a human speed runner (apparently something like 2,000 steps is possible, and the record time is for completion is 1 hour and 44 minutes).

Roblox has found itself in hot water after it banned a YouTuber called "Schlep," who claims to have been directly involved in the arrest of at least six child predators operating on Roblox. Schlep makes videos on exposing the online predators present on the Roblox platform, and Roblox sent him a cease and desist letter as well as banned all of his Roblox accounts.

The response from the community has been nothing short of an uproar, with Roblox players now calling for the removal of Roblox CEO David Baszucki with a petition that has already attracted more than 65,000 signatures. For more details on the banning of Schlep, check out this article here.

Roblox has since responded to the uproar from the community with a new lengthy post by Roblox chief safety officer Matt Kaufman, who acknowledged the recent situation and gave more details on why Roblox bans vigilante users.

A prominent leaker has revealed there won't be a Nintendo Switch 2 version of Call of Duty Black Ops 7 when it launches later this year. The title will be arriving on current-gen consoles and PC.

The news comes from billbil-kun, a very well-known leaker with a healthy track record within the video games industry. Billbil-kun took to their personal X account to share the news, with the leaker writing "No Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 on Switch 2 at launch!" In addition to revealing the news about a lack of Switch 2 version for the upcoming title, the leaker also unveiled the release date for Black Ops 7, which is November 14, 2025.

Billbil-kun stated the date coincides with information provided by another prominent leaker, TheGhostOfHope, who wrote on X last July that the game would be released on November 14, 2025. As for a Nintendo Switch 2 version of the game, billbil-kun writes they were unable to confirm if Activision is planning a port for Black Ops 7 at a later date.

Apple's new iPhone 17 Pro smartphone will reportedly start at $1049, an increase of $50 over the iPhone 16 Pro, but it will have double the base storage.

The new iPhone 17 Pro will start with 256GB of storage for $1049, versus the 128GB starting point at $999 for the iPhone 16 Pro. The iPhone 16 Pro Max starts with 256GB of storage at $1199, while both the Pro models sport up to 1TB of storage if you want to splash the cash.

The new 256GB base model of the iPhone 17 Pro ups the game, where pricing it at $1049 will replace the 128GB model at $999. Instead of a $50 price increase, consumers might see Apple's new pricing as a good proposition -- a faster iPhone with a newer chip, better cooling, double the base storage for just $50 more.

Apple is expected to release its new Vision Pro 2 headset with a newer M-series processor later this year, with previous reports stating it'll feature the current M4 chip, but new reports confirm that the Vision Pro 2 headset will pack the latest M5 chip.

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has said that the new Vision Pro headset would feature Apple's higher-end in-house M5 processor, but Mark Gurman from Bloomberg has said that the Vision Pro successor would feature the same M4 chip found inside of the latest MacBook Air and iPad Pro models versus the newer M5.

But, in new reports from MacRumors, inside of Apple's own code, it looks like the next-gen Vision Pro 2 headset will use the new M5 processor. The new Vision Pro 2 won't have any huge design changes or hardware updates apart from the new M5 processor, but recent reports have suggested that we could see a new strap that makes the headset more comfortable to wear over longer periods of time.

MaxSun is about to start shipping its new Intel Arc Pro B60 Dual graphics card, which packs 48GB of GDDR6 memory, in China next week for $1200.

The new MaxSun Arc Pro B60 Dual 48GB is a dual-GPU graphics card powered by the BMG-G21 GPU, yet Intel hasn't officially confirmed the launch of its B60 or B50 graphics cards, but they're expected to hit system integrators (SIs) in the weeks ahead.

This isn't a regular dual-GPU graphics card of years gone, but rather the board is host to two GPUs, each with eight PCIe Gen5 lanes, functioning as two separate graphics adapters.

The new ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5060 White Edition, available in OC and non-OC variants, sees the company introduce a white variant for its popular, compact, and affordable Dual lineup. The 2.5-slot design sports twin axial-tech fans with 0dB modes, a vented backplate, Dual BIOS support for Performance and Quiet modes, and an all-white version of the standard black Dual shroud.

The ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5060 White Edition is for those out there putting together or looking for a mainstream gaming GPU for their white colored rig, which is increasingly becoming one of the most popular choices among gamers in the Asia market.

The OC Edition ships with a 2535 MHz overclocked Boost Clock speed that reaches 2565 MHz in OC Mode, with the non-OC standard edition shipping with the 2497 MHz reference Boost Clock speed and a 2527MHz OC Mode.

AMD's next-generation Zen 7 processors will be coming to the current AM5 socket according to new leaks, with 32 cores and 64 threads being on offer with flagship Zen 7 chips in the future... all on AM5.

In a new video from Moore's Law is Dead, the leaker says that over the last couple of weeks he's been hearing more information and seeing more documentation regarding AMD's next-gen Zen 7 CPUs on the current AM5 socket. This has been a "recent decision" over at AMD, with plans changing recently that would see 32C/64T chips based on the future-gen Zen 7 architecture on AM5.

AMD committed to the AM5 socket lasting until 2025 and beyond back in December 2023, with Zen 3, Zen 4, and the current-gen Zen 5 processors all launched on AM5. AMD's next-gen Zen 6 processors will be released in 2026, also on AM5, while Zen 7 should be released in 2028, with these leaks suggesting Zen 7 is also on AM5.

TrendForce's latest investigation into the display and monitor market shows that OLED monitor shipments are growing thanks to the "robust gaming demand" in markets like Europe and China. The report forecasts that OLED monitor shipments will reach 2.66 million in 2025, which represents an annual growth rate of 86%.

The report also notes that the distribution of OLED monitors will also see Europe's market share growing to match North America, with China's share forecasted to hit 21% - an increase from 14% in 2024. The report notes that although brands have been concentrating on the U.S. market for OLED monitor expansion, tariff uncertainty "is likely to push brands to diversify risks by ramping up shipments to Europe and China."

The firm also predicts that this growth will continue over the next few years, with OLED monitors and displays projected to represent 5% of the total monitor market by 2028. It's currently sitting on 2%.

Intel's next-gen Core Ultra 300 series "Arrow Lake Refresh" CPUs are coming later this year, with leaks on the flagship Core Ultra 9 385K processor being around 5-10% faster in gaming.

The performance leaks are from Moore's Law is Dead, where in his latest video he said that Intel's new Arrow Lake Refresh processors won't be Zen 6 competitors for AMD, but will beat the current fleet of Zen 5 chips, but won't beat the Zen 5 + X3D processors like the Ryzen 7 9800X3D and 9950X3D.

Intel will reportedly be increasing clock speeds with aims for 6.0GHz (up from 5.7GHz on Arrow Lake) while there will be "quite a bit" of an increase to the ring bus clock speeds, and plans to increase the die-to-die clocks to eliminate bottlenecks that were seen in Arrow Lake.

HP has announced a new line-up of HyperX audio products for gamers that includes two new headsets and microphones. Leading the pack is the premium HyperX Cloud Alpha 2 Wireless gaming headset that is said to offer pro-grade sound with up to 250 hours of battery life when connected via low-latency 2.4 GHz wireless. It also supports dual connectivity with simultaneous Bluetooth and 2.4 GHz wireless connections.

The HyperX Cloud Alpha 2 Wireless is powered by custom 53 mm drivers that have been tuned to deliver distortion-free spatial audio. However, the most notable feature, and something that helps the HyperX Cloud Alpha 2 Wireless stand out from the pack, is the included RGB Base Station. This audio control hub includes programmable buttons and a large dial, which should lead to more intuitive control when connected to a desktop PC.

Throw in a flexible and durable metal frame and a high-quality microphone, and the HyperX Cloud Alpha 2 Wireless is sounding pretty impressive. However, the $299.99 USD price tag does make it one of the most expensive gaming headsets on the market. This isn't the only new wireless gaming headset announcement from HyperX today, as the company has also unveiled the new HyperX Cloud Flight 2 with replaceable earcup plates.

NVIDIA's GeForce NOW library continues to expand, and this week's additions should please veteran PC gamers who have been gaming since long before cloud gaming was a thing. Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Definitive Edition is out this week, and it's a remastered version of Relic's classic RTS game that includes all expansions, campaigns, and other content with enhanced visuals.

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War dates back to 2004, a time when the RTS genre was still a big thing in the PC gaming space. Dawn of War introduced a new spin on the genre by adding strategic points to capture and hold, a mechanic that would be expanded upon in Relic's other RTS classic, Company of Heroes. Dawn of War's Definitive Edition includes new 4K visuals, improvements to the user interface, and is available on GeForce NOW.

Also joining the library is the recent Heretic + Hexen re-release from Bethesda, id Software, and Nightdive Studios, which received a surprise announcement and release as part of QuakeCon 2025. With over 110 campaign maps, including brand-new missions, and remastered 4K 120 FPS widescreen visuals, Heretic + Hexen is the return of the cult classic Doom meets high-fantasy first-person shooter series from the early 1990s.

GPD has just announced its new Win 5 gaming handheld, with the company claiming it's the world's fastest gaming handheld, powered by AMD's new Ryzen AI Max+ 395 "Strix Halo" APU. Check it out:

The new GPD Win 5 gaming handheld is powered by the AMD Strix Halo APU with 16 cores and 32 threads of Zen 5 processing power, and a powerful 40 GPU cores of RDNA 3.5 integrated GPU goodness with the Radeon 8060S, capable of driving 120FPS+ gaming on the go.

GPD has no physical keyboard on the Win 5 gaming handheld, but it does have a built-in (and replaceable) battery. GPD offers battery backpacks with 80 Wh of capacity, as there is no internal battery on the Win 5 gaming handheld. The company has released videos showing that it takes a few seconds to replace the battery, but there's no confirmation on how much these battery packs will cost from GPD.

Diablo 4's new update mentions paladins, fueling speculation that the class will show up in season 11.

Blizzard just changed the name of Diablo 4's build designation, possibly indicating something is on the horizon. According to Blizzard-focused publication WoW Head, Diablo 4's vendor build recently changed names from Fenris to "Paladin," which could mean that the classic character is coming over to modern Diablo. The vendor build is basically the full software package that Blizzard sends to Battle.net, Steam, PlayStation Store, Xbox, etc.

It's believed that the aura-infused Diablo 2 class could show up as part of Diablo 4's season 11, which was hinted at by the patch 2.5 moniker.

The US government will be charging NVIDIA and AMD a 15% sales tax on AI chips sent to China, with reports suggesting they'll use that 15% sales tax to pay down US debt.

During a recent interview with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, he was asked about where the agreement with NVIDIA came from. Bessent discussed that Trump came up with the deal, adding that "the President is one of the most open-minded people I know. He does everything at first principles. Why did we do things this way? Why shouldn't we do it the other way?"

Bessent believes that the new deal would be beneficial to NVIDIA and other chip makers, providing them with a path to "expand into China that can make NVIDIA chips the bellwether for Chinese technology and then the US taxpayer gets a share of that". He also remained open to the agreement being applied outside of the technology industry, but reiterated that right now in its current form, it is unique to NVIDIA and AMD.

If your custom Battlefield 6 Portal content is good enough, you might land a job at DICE to work on the franchise.

DICE could use its Portal custom content creator to recruit new game devs. On paper, this sounds similar to how Bethesda will often hire top-tier Elder Scrolls and Fallout modders to help work on new projects; Elianora, for example, became part of Starfield's dedicated object-placement "clutter team" because of her work on previous mods.

"Remember, I come from a world of Quake mods, and how we'd hire people off of these amazing mods that they did on the internet. I have a secret desire to find the best of the best and target them for maybe working with us," Battlefield lead Vince Zampella said in a recent interview with Gamer Update's Jake Lucky.

Apple is rumored to be working on an AI tabletop robot for a 2027 release, which would revolutionize personal interactions with AI. The device sports a Pixar Lamp (Lumo) style design, with a 7-inch iPad-like display mounted on a moveable arm designed to act like a super-interactive version of Siri.

In a new article from Bloomberg, it's being reported that Apple is calling its device the "Pixar Lamp" internally, envisioned to act like a person being in the room with users, capable of back-and-forth conversations and discussions like planning trips, or where to have dinner that night.

The interactivity with the Siri-powered "Pixar Lamp" is said to be similar to how OpenAI's voice mode works, enhancing the user experience with dynamic and context-aware responses. We know that Apple is working on a next-generation version of Siri specifically for this robot, enabling the software to remember information and have more natural conversations.

Former PlayStation Worldwide Studios boss Shawn Layden indicates that Game Pass may not actually be healthy for game developers, saying that the service turns them into "wage slaves."

Despite its high value proposition, Xbox Game Pass is one of the most contentious subscription services on the market. Critics say that Game Pass could devalue games over time, and the FTC trial in 2023 did confirm that Game Pass "cannibalizes" game sales, that is to say users choose to subscribe rather than to buy.

We've talked about Game Pass a whole lot here at TweakTown, and we were the first to report on the $1.9 billion revenue figure in 2022. Since then, Game Pass has more than doubled its earnings; Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says Game Pass made nearly $5 billion last year.

Battlefield 6 runs amazingly smooth on decent hardware, but in new testing we see the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor being around 30% faster than the Intel Core i9-14900K in new testing. Check it out:

Testing Games spent some time comparing both of the CPUs against each other at 1080p, 1440p, and the glorious 4K resolution using NVIDIA's flagship GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card running Battlefield 6 in open beta form. The game is quite CPU-bound at lower resolutions, where the 9800X3D chews it up and delivers around 29% more performance than the 14900K.

This is all running the Ultra graphics preset, where the 9800X3D also consumes around 40% less power, with 1% and 0.1% lows being impressive for smoother gameplay. The GPU usage was hitting 80-90% using the 9800X3D, while sitting at just over 70% using the 14900K. There are parts where the performance gap between the 9800X3D and 14900K was sitting at around 25%, but it's still a huge gap between the two processors, showing AMD come out on top in Battlefield 6.