Gaming - Page 142

Resident Evil 9 will leverage the power of Capcom's high-end RE Engine to deliver an immersive horror experience, and visual quality will be a big part of how this is achieved.

Capcom recently surprise-announced Resident Evil 9 Requiem, complete with a February 27, 2026 release date for the next survival horror chapter. Not many details were known about the game but Capcom has started to reveal more tidbits via press release materials and give players an idea of what to expect from Requiem.

According to the developer, Resident Evil 9 will represents a "significant evolution" in graphical fidelity that will deliver "unprecedented" amounts of immersion to players. Capcom has been working on a next-gen upgrade to its RE Engine called RE neXt and Requiem could be utilizing parts of this upgrade. Capcom notes that RE9 will also "harness the full power of modern consoles," potentially indicating PlayStation 5 Pro optimizations alongside heightened performance on PS5 and Xbox Series systems.

Microsoft has proved it can remove the Windows 11 bloatware if it really wants to, as its new PC gaming handhelds come without all that software that bogs down a system.

Microsoft has been heavily criticized in the past for Windows 11 having so much bloatware, which is a slang term for pre-installed software that isn't critical to the functionality of the operating system. Bloatware can come in various forms, and common Microsoft-added bloatware is as follows: Microsoft Teams, OneDrive, Candy Crush Saga, Spotify, TikTok, Instagram, Disney+, Microsoft News, Dropbox, etc. Essentially, any piece of additional software that comes pre-installed with Windows 11 and wasn't requested by the user upon installation could be considered bloatware.

The problem of Windows 11 containing so much bloatware has reached a point where independent developers have created two-click tools to remove all bloatware after Windows 11 has completed its installation. You can check out one of those tools here. However, Microsoft has proved with its announcement of new Windows 11-powered PC gaming handhelds called the ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X that it can cut Windows 11 down to its absolute basics to obtain better performance.

In a recent interview with Jonathan Lacaille, IOI's 007 franchise director, it was revealed what the developer is aiming for gameplay-wise with the upcoming 007 First Light.

Lacaille said during the interview with GamesRadar that 007 First Light will be taking from the traditional IOI experience, which, for those who don't know, is the developers behind the iconic Hitman franchise. However, keeping to that same IOI style wouldn't enable the developer to truly capture the character of Bond, nor "tell the full story of who Bond is". A compromise was made, and according to Lacaille, 007 First Light will integrate "what IOI does best," while also adding in new aspects of storytelling that will "really bring the full Bond experience."

One of those new aspects is giving players the ability to drive, which is a big part of the Bond character. IOI had never developed driving before, as it's not present in the Hitman games. Additionally, Lacaille said that 007 First Light will have more shooting than the Hitman games, which was a "failing condition in Hitman". However, Bond fans should know that IOI is aware that Bond isn't just a run-and-gun character, so there won't be "shooting and shooting and shooting". Instead, the developers are making sure to provide players with many "tools to feel as smart as Bond".

Ninja Gaiden 4 received a new trailer at the Xbox Games Showcase, along with an official release date from the developers and publishers behind the title.

Team Ninja, the developers behind the Ninja Gaiden series, confirmed the latest installment in the franchise would be arriving on October 21, 2025, and to celebrate the release date, we got a new blood-soaked trailer that includes some awesome gameplay. The title was first announced at the Xbox Developer Direct in January and will let players step into the shoes of Yakumo, a new protagonist who is under relentless assault from the Divine Dragon Order. Yakumo is able to release a powerful Bloodraven Form, enabling powerful abilities that enhance his swordplay.

PlatinumGames Producer and Director Yuji Nakao shared more about the game on Xbox Wire Japan, where he explained players will now be able to weave in the Obliteration Technique, a powerful finishing blow that eliminates enemies, into a variety of combos, which opens up the playstyle to more creative approaches at disposing of enemies. Combat isn't the only aspect of the game that has changed, as the Ninja Gaiden experience has evolved as a whole.

The upcoming sequel to Ghost of Tsushima, Ghost of Yotei, has been officially rated by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). The rating has revealed some new aspects of the game previously unseen in trailers.

In Ghost of Tsushima, players could take protagonist Jin Sakai to hot springs where he would reflect on his past and also receive buffs, such as increased maximum health. These hot springs were used as both a gameplay mechanic through Sakai's reflection, on which he would think about his father, Lord Shimura, and responsibilities as a samurai, while also serving as a vital location for upgrading the character, as his maximum health permanently increased once he entered.

Not only is the location beneficial for progressing the game as the player gains more health, but it's also used as a location to add more emotional depth to the character through the reflection process. It appears Naoki, the protagonist in Ghost of Yotei, will also be taking advantage of these hot springs for her own benefits, with the ESRB rating the game M for, "Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Language, Partial Nudity, Use of Alcohol." The ESRB also writes, "During the course of the game, a female character's exposed buttocks is depicted in a hot spring."

The Nintendo Switch 2 has made its way into the hands of millions of gamers, with reports indicating it's the most-sold console in a 24 hour period. Unfortunately, those millions of Switch 2 owners are currently unable to watch YouTube on their new console. That is about to change.

The official TeamYouTube X account has responded to Switch 2 owner, demonstrating that the official YouTube app downloaded from the Nintendo eShop doesn't currently work on the Switch 2. TeamYouTube responded to the video confirming YouTube is not yet available on the Nintendo Switch 2, and that its planning on making it available soon. TeamYouTube further explained in another response on X that it's currently "working with Nintendo to make YouTube available on the Switch 2 soon."

It is odd that YouTube isn't already an available app on the console, especially when considering the Switch 2 has a kick-stand making it a somewhat ideal device to watch videos on. However, Nintendo does appear to be generally moving away from the Switch 2 being a multi-media device, as the company recently confirmed that streaming services such as Hulu, Crunchyroll, and InkyPen are not usable on the Switch 2.

Xbox has just wrapped up its showcase at Summer Games Fest where it revealed a slew of new titles gamers can get excited about, and during a segment on future release, Xbox head Phil Spencer teased when Gears of War fans will be able to sink their teeth into the next title in franchise.

Gears of War: E-Day was originally announced at the 2024 Xbox Showcase, and according to Spencer, the game is slated to release sometime in 2026. An unfortunately vague or extremely wide launch window, but at the very least, Gears fans now know they will be getting the latest game in the franchise sometime next year and not the year after. As for E-Day, the title is set 14 years before the first Gears of War game, which was released November 14, 2006, meaning that when E-Day releases, the series will be 20 years old.

E-Day is slated to be an origin story that tells the tale of the first Locust emergence on Sera. It will star the iconic Marcus Fenix, and is the first title in the series since Gears 5 released in 2019. In other Gears of War news, it was only last month that Microsoft announced a Gears of War remaster that will also be coming to PlayStation for the very first time. Gears of War: Reloaded is launching on August 26 for Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation, and PC, with the idea behind the remaster being to attract gamers who were too young to play the series when it first released, and fill them in on the story ahead of the release of E-Day. Smart moves by Xbox/Microsoft.

Xbox has officially unveiled the ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X, two new gaming PC handhelds powered by Windows 11 that first began in a cardboard box.

A partnership between Xbox and ASUS has spawned two new PC gaming handheld devices, marking the existence of the first Xbox handheld initially dubbed Project Kennan. Both devices are powered by Windows 11, with the Xbox Ally X being the much more powerful model of the two with a stunning 24GB of RAM, which is 8GB more than the Series X console and the brother handheld, Xbox Ally (16GB). Both consoles feature a dedicated Xbox button that launches the Xbox app, 7-inch 1920 x 1080p resolution displays with a 120Hz refresh rate and VRR. However, the first iterations of the handhelds were a cardboard box design.

Xbox has released a behind-the-scenes video for the ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X, giving details about the creation of both handheld devices and the beginning stages of the development process. Throughout the video, Xbox shows that the first prototypes of the console were provided by ASUS, and all of the components were placed in a cardboard box. The video states that these components weren't just for show, as the handheld could be powered on and was even tested with Quake.

AMD has just released a new AMD FSR Technical Preview driver for RDNA 4 GPU owners that expands FidelityFX Super Resolution 4 (FSR 4) support, bringing the current complete list to 65 games. The preview driver was released alongside AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 25.6.1 for the new Radeon RX 9060 XT, which also expanded FSR 4 support with 14 new titles.

AMD's FSR 4 sees the company's upscaler shift to a new, powerful AI approach, finally bridging the image quality gap between it and NVIDIA DLSS. And with FSR 4 adding AI-powered Frame Generation, Neural Shaders, and a DLSS Ray Reconstruction-like denoiser for ray-tracing later this year, RDNA 4 is leveling up Radeon in a big way.

The downside is that FSR 4 requires powerful AI hardware, so it's exclusive to the new RDNA 4-powered Radeon RX 9000 Series. Also, as AMD's driver-level FSR 4 override requires at least FSR 3.1 to be natively available in a particular game, the adoption (even with 20+ new titles) is tracking much slower than DLSS 4.

It's official: The first $80 Xbox game has been announced, and it's not one that we were expecting.

Today, Microsoft and Obsidian announced that The Outer Worlds 2 would launch on October 29, 2025, complete with a $79.99 price tag. The news isn't exactly a surprise; Nintendo was the first to introduce $80 games with Mario Kart World, and Microsoft even warned gamers that price hikes were on the way.

"The Outer Worlds 2 will be available in two editions: Standard Edition for $79.99 USD and a Premium Edition for $99.99 USD," reads the Xbox Wire blog.

ZOTAC is reportedly launching its new F5 Fragrance, a new fragrance for gamers that will speed up their reactions, keep their senses aligned, and more... and this time, it's not an April Fool's Day joke.

In a new post on Facebook by HKEPC, we're hearing that ZOTAC's new F5 Esports Perfume has been designed for gamers to keep their "body smell refreshed in intense gaming, fight mental fatigue, improve attention, and speed up reactions". ZOTAC first teased its new gamer fragrance earlier this year as an April Fool's joke, but now it is real.

On the original post earlier this year, ZOTAC explained that its F5 Fragrance uses a "proprietary blend of caffeine, taurine, and other secret ingredients". As for what the F5 Fragrance actually smells like, the company says that it is a combination of sea breeze, cypress, mint, and white musk" that delivers a "aquatic and woody scent" upon gamers.

Xbox's new handheld will use AMD's AI chip technology to help supercharge the user experience, but exact details remain unclear.

Today, Microsoft made history by announcing the first-ever Xbox handheld. ASUS is manufacturing a duo of Xbox handhelds--the ROG Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X--for release in 2025. The higher-end Ally X has AMD's AI Z2 Extreme chip, which leverages an NPU (Neural Processing Unit) for integrated AI capabilities.

We're not exactly sure how Microsoft is using the AI features for the Xbox Ally X, but the company has made strides in its AI gaming efforts with its MUSE generative AI platform, which can render gameplay in real time, as well as Copilot for Gaming, a digital assistant for gamers.

Xbox gaming CEO Phil Spencer teases the return of a classic Xbox franchise in 2026, one that's been there from the beginning...and it could be Halo.

Today, Microsoft made waves by announcing the first Xbox handheld, revealed a bunch of games including Black Ops 7, and also solidified the Xbox PC brand label. 2026 will be a big year for gaming with GTA 6's release, but Microsoft is celebrating 25 years of Xbox next year, complete with a nostalgic games lineup that hearkens back to the days of yore.

The lineup of games includes the new Fable reboot, the sixth Gears of War game, and even a new Forza title. But there's one game that hasn't been announced just yet, and it's set in a series that was with Xbox from the start. While nothing's been confirmed so far, it's possible that this franchise is Halo.

Today Skybound Games announced a new fighting game based on the Invincible superhero series, and it looks to be exactly what fans were asking for.

Invincible VS is an ultra-violent fighting game where players face off in teams of 3, smashing each other with melee attacks, combos, unique abilities, and tag-team specials. Invincible VS will also feature a story-based cinematic mode, which is presumably where the animations from the trailer are from, as well as an arcade mode for online co-op and PVP across multiple platforms.

Interestingly enough, the game is being worked on by the original developers of Xbox's more recent Killer Instinct reboot from 2013. Invincible VS is developed by Quarter Up, the first in-house studio at Skybound.

Activision has announced Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, a future-based shooter that brings player-favorite modes.

This year's Call of Duty will indeed be a Black Ops game. Microsoft and Activision revealed Black Ops 7 at today's Xbox showcase, confirming a few light details along the way.

Activision marketing head Tyler Bahl teased that there's "madness incoming with Black Ops 7's story," and press materials note that the game will have psychological warfare elements. The game will have co-op campaign, multiplayer, and zombies, and more details will be revealed in the coming months.

Final Fantasy 7 Remake is finally coming to Xbox in 2025, Square Enix today announced, while also simultaneously making a surprising shadow drop.

It's official: Final Fantasy 7 Remake Integrade is coming to Xbox consoles and Xbox PC in 2025, more specifically this winter (remember that winter in Japan runs from December to February).

Final Fantasy 16, on the other hand, is now available on Xbox PC and Xbox Series X/S. There's an added bonus: The game supports the Play Anywhere cross-buy initiative, so one purchase lets you play either on console or on a Windows PC. The base version is $50, and there's a $70 complete edition that packs in all the DLC.

ASUS and Microsoft have officially revealed the first Xbox handheld, and it's a Windows 11-powered PC with a new console-like UI.

There's two new Xbox-branded gaming PC handhelds on the way: The ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X. The devices are actually made by ASUS in close partnership with Microsoft. No pricing has been announced, and the duo will be available this holiday.

The Xbox Ally X will be much more powerful with 24GB of RAM (8GB more than the Series X and the Xbox Ally, which both have 16GB of RAM) and the new AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme processor, which leverages an AI-based NPU to help with gaming workloads. Both the Ally and Ally X feature a dedicated Xbox button that calls forth the Xbox app, a 7-inch 1080p 120Hz screen and Xbox-inspired handgrip controllers (check below for the full spec sheet).

Controversy has pushed Splitgate 2 developer 1047 Games to lower the prices of in-game cosmetics by as much as 50%.

Yesterday, 1047 Games announced a battle royale mode for Splitgate 2 at the Summer Game Fest. On its own, that's not very controversial, but company CEO Ian Proulx went on stage wearing a hat saying 'make FPS great again' and gave some very gamer-centric takes for the leader of a professional games company: "I'm tired of playing the same Call of Duty every year, and I wish we could have Titanfall 3."

The marketing stunt stole headlines due to its MAGA political parallels, but gamers were quick to criticize Proulx and the Splitgate team because of the game's highly expensive microtransactions. Splitgate 2's premium currency is called Splitcoin, and it's sold in a way that typically requires users to buy more than they need for any one cosmetic purchase. Splitgate 2's battle royale launched with a Nano Swarm cosmetic pack that cost 8,000 Splitcoins, or $80, which is actually a discount because 1047 Games originally priced the Nano Swarm pack at 14,550 Splitcoin (an astronomically high $145). The Nano Swarm bundle includes six cosmetics: 4 weapon skins, a character skin, and a custom portal design.

Tencent widens its grip on the video games industry with an investment into one of the most popular game devs of 2024.

Tencent acquired 15.75% of Helldivers II developer Arrowhead in 2024, new reports from Swedish newspaper Dagens Industri indicate.

Overall, Arrowhead was valued at 5 billion kronor, which is about $522 million. With 15.75% of shares purchased, and a valuation of $522 million, Tencent bought around $82 million of Arrowhead's shares. The Swedish video games developer made around $76 million in operating profit throughout 2024 on roughly $100 million in revenue, representing a thunderous 76% profit margin. Helldivers 2 was one of the most popular games of 2024 and has sold over 12 million copies to date.

Atomic Heart developer Mundfish have announced The Cube, an genre-mashing shooter spinoff set in the Atomic Heart series.

Not only is Atomic Heart 2 on the way, but there's a new online shooter in the works too. It's called The Cube, and it throws players into a very unconventional battleground: a giant floating Rubik's Cube-like structure that's full of volatility across an unpredictable, ever-shifting map.

The Cube is an MMORPG shooter that may have roguelike and/or extraction shooter elements, and the design itself is quite stylish and unique with its alternate history themes and visuals. There's a very X-Files meets Control otherworldly mystique with Mundfish's experimental shooter.