Gaming - Page 198

Another day, another Nintendo Switch 2 leak, and this time around, it has come in the form of an anonymous Reddit user that has attracted quite a lot of attention on the r/NintendoSwitch2 subreddit after showing evidence of their claims to a subreddit moderator.

The purported leak comes from Reddit user "NextHandheld" who took to the subreddit on December 14 to announce they have managed to get their hands on a "final release" Nintendo Switch 2. The user goes on to say that subreddit users can "Ask me anything" and that proof will be posted on Christmas Day. The post quickly gained quite a lot of attention with many users reporting the post as false as the user didn't provide any evidence within their post that their claims were legitimate.

But things started taking shape differently in the comment section after a r/NintendoSwitch2 moderator commented saying NextHandheld provided them evidence of information that currently isn't public, and that they didn't want to share the evidence because it could reveal their identity to people around them. Take the following information with a healthy amount of skepticism, and know the only official information about a next-generation Nintendo console is that an announcement for one is happening this fiscal year, which ends in April 2025.

Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon was always meant to be the descendant of the Witcher series, CD Projekt asserts.

Ciri, not Geralt, is the star of The Witcher IV. For many, this isn't a surprise. But the choice has nonetheless caused slight controversy--whether it be Ciri, her appearance, or CD Projekt's choice, there's some ruffled feathers.

On the heels of The Witcher 4's big reveal at The Game Awards, key members of the studio are going on press tours to discuss their new femme fatale protagonist.

Ubisoft is reportedly taking cues from an old-school Nintendo classic with its new Far Cry game.

Ubisoft is currently working on two new Far Cry games, sources tell Insider Gaming's Tom Henderson. The publisher is developing a mainline franchise entry, known among gamers as Far Cry 7 and internally codenamed Blackbird, and a new multiplayer-based extraction shooter that's codenamed Maverick. Both games have apparently been pushed back from their original 2025 schedule to a 2026 launch.

Developed by Ubisoft Montreal and created in Massive Entertainment's proprietary Snowdrop Engine (the franchise shifted from the previous Dunia engine over to Snowdrop), Blackbird, aka Far Cry 7, will feature an interesting new gimmick for the series: A countdown clock.

After a long four-year redemption arc, CD Projekt doesn't want to jeopardize its success streak and is significantly emphasizing Q&A with The Witcher 4.

CD Projekt is doing everything it can to ensure that The Witcher IV doesn't become another Cyberpunk 2077 situation. The sci-fi FPS launched onto last-gen consoles in 2020 with disastrous performance and caused significant reputational harm to the Polish game dev. The studio bounced back with multiple free Cyberpunk 2077 updates and the game's lauded Phantom Liberty expansion.

Now all eyes are on the studio for the latest entry in the beloved Witcher franchise, which was recently announced at The Game Awards 2024. The Witcher IV stars Ciri as the main protagonist, pitting players against fearsome monstrosities in an epic fantasy storyline that chronicles Zireael's brutal journey to become a professional monster hunter.

A new Elden Ring game is coming in 2025, but it's not what you'd expect. Here's everything you should know about Elden Ring: Nightreign.

Surprise! FromSoftware is working on a new Elden Ring game, but instead of a major AAA release, the project is a co-op survival roguelike. The game is called Nightreign, and it's a full standalone experience that won't require the base game in order to play.

Nightreign isn't a live service game, but it does have some unique online-oriented mechanics. Having already redefined what AAA games could be amid an ocean of GaaS titans, FromSoftware is keen on putting their mark on the online roguelike genre too.

Elden Ring's new Nightreign spin-off might be a squad-based roguelike with emphasis on multiplayer, but don't expect to see a bunch of battle passes show up.

In a sea of billion-dollar games-as-a-service titans, FromSoftware is bucking the trends for online games. The developer's new Elden Ring: Nightreign multiplayer game won't have monetized battle passes or microtransactions. Instead, FromSoft is taking the old-school approach of delivering a full experience at launch rather than carving up in-game content and selling it across seasons.

In a recent interview with PC Gamer, Nightreign game director Junya Ishizaki (yes, Miyazaki is not directing Nightreign) outlined this no-nonsense approach:

Nintendo's next-generation console has been the subject of rumors for many years now, but it seems things are picking up to a new speed as we approach the end of the timeframe for when Nintendo will make an announcement about the successor to the Nintendo Switch.

The only official information we have about the Nintendo Switch successor from Nintendo is that an announcement for the console will be made during this financial year, which runs until April 2025. Additionally, Nintendo has confirmed that it will continue with the current Nintendo Switch until the end of the current financial year, which means we won't be seeing any surprise launches any time soon. However, that doesn't mean we won't get a surprise unveiling.

Until that undoubtedly incredible moment, fans will have to make do with leaks and speculation, and to satisfy that hunger, a Chinese accessory manufacturer has seemingly released a slew of images depicting what appears to be Nintendo's unreleased console. The new images emerged online and were quickly posted to the Nintendo Switch 2 subreddit, and they showcase the design of the upcoming console, such as button placement, Joy-Cons, and more.

SCRY has launched a new line of coolers designed to provide smart AI-powered cooling to PS5 consoles, with each of the coolers providing real-time temperature control, quiet operation, and aesthetics.

The new line of AI-powered PS5 coolers is the Artic, Artic S, and Artic Pro, which were birthed out of several reports that PS5 consoles were prone to overheating, resulting in gamers being presented with an error message that prompted them to shut down the console and wait until it cooled down before powering it back on. Additionally, several reports from 2023 cited PS5 USB ports as "melting" the male end of a controller cable.

SCRY set out to provide a solution for those users that were unlucky enough to have a faulty PS5 console, or an environment that pushes an otherwise perfectly standard console to these extreme temperatures where faults like this occur. Below is a selection of images that show an Artic S cooler equipped to a PlayStation 5 Pro, and with the smart thermoregulation powered by SCRY's proprietary Smart Thermal AI chip, the cooler dynamically adjusts fan speeds to regulate high temperatures and prevent overheating. SCRY's cooler is able to reduce temperatures by up to 10°C (50°F) when the system is at load.

'GFFE: G-buffer Free Frame Extrapolation for Low-latency Real-time Rendering' is a new research paper published by Intel engineers on GitHub. The detailed report describes how Intel is looking to create a version of frame generation, as seen in DLSS 3, FSR 3, and Intel XeSS 2, "without introducing additional latency."

Technology like DLSS 3, a GeForce RTX 40 Series game changer, uses AI hardware to generate new frames and boost in-game performance. However, frame generation can cause noticeable lag without the latency reduction that naturally comes from rendering a game natively at 150 FPS.

This is why DLSS 3 works alongside NVIDIA Reflex to help improve latency and deliver a smoother, more responsive experience. Intel's new approach to frame generation is slightly different because it is not precisely frame generation but frame extrapolation.

Valve's Certified Refurbished program for its Steam Deck PC gaming handheld offers a more affordable alternative to buying a brand-new model.

Valve says each Certified Refurbished Steam deck undergoes over 100 tests covering everything from the display to controls, audio, and even battery life. The result is a unit that meets or "even exceeds the performance standards of new retail units."

With the Steam Deck OLED launching late last year, Valve has announced that the Certified Refurbished program for Steam Decks now includes OLED models. With pricing confirmed by Valve, picking up a refurbished Steam Deck OLED will be the cheapest way to grab one of the popular gaming handhelds and still be covered by Valve's one-year warranty.

Specs and information about the upcoming Lenovo Legion Go S gaming handheld leaked recently. This handheld would present a more budget-friendly option than the beefier Legion Go, with a Steam Deck competitive price point that could end up being as low as $399. Rumors are pointing to coming pre-installed with SteamOS, making it the first third-party handheld to ship with Valve's custom operating system.

According to a new report at The Verge, which includes the leaked images you see here, Lenovo is also planning to release a new full-sized Legion Go that could be powered by AMD's upcoming Ryzen Z2 Extreme chip that is expected to be announced or unveiled at CES 2025.

However, the big selling point for many will be Lenovo's decision to replace the Legion Go's large 8.8-inch IPS LCD screen with an OLED panel. As seen in the Nintendo Switch and Steam Deck, an OLED screen can be a game changer in its own right, elevating visuals with increased color accuracy and unbeatable contrast.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, the second chapter in the remake trilogy, will be released on January 23, 2025, for PC. Square Enix made the announcement during The Game Awards, with a trailer confirming that the PC version will include enhanced visuals compared to the PlayStation 5 release, including improved lighting, enhanced models and textures, and DLSS support.

Square Enix released the game's PC specs and hardware requirements in a follow-up post. If you want to play with the enhanced 'High' quality graphics in 4K at 60 FPS, you'll need a GeForce RTX 4080 or Radeon RX 7900 XTX graphics card. And no matter the resolution, you'll need 155GB of SSD storage to play.

On the plus side, the minimum 1080p spec only requires a GeForce RTX 2060, Radeon RX 6600, or Arc A580 - and overall, the CPU requirements are pretty light. However, the game doesn't support GPUs with DirectX 12 Ultimate capabilities.

Xbox first-party studio Obsidian Entertainment has two big single-player first-person RPGs coming in 2025: the fantasy-themed Avowed and the highly anticipated sci-fi sequel The Outer Worlds 2. Over the weekend, we got a new trailer for The Outer Worlds 2, showcasing some impressive visuals and action while confirming that the game will simultaneously debut on Xbox Series X|S, PC, and PlayStation 5.

There has been much confusion surrounding Microsoft's strategy for releasing games under its first-party Xbox Game Studios banner, which now includes games from Activision, Blizzard, and Bethesda. While titles like Starfield were exclusive to Xbox consoles and PC, others were not. Microsoft's gaming chief, Phil Spencer, recently said there were no "red lines" when it comes to bringing Xbox games to PlayStation.

This was in direct response to the new Halo teaser we recently got, where he was asked if the next Halo game would also launch on PlayStation. According to industry insider Jez Corden, the days of Xbox Game Studios exclusives for Xbox consoles and PC are effectively over.

ASUS has a lot to share at CES 2025 in a few weeks' time, announcing not one but two events for the show: ASUS ROG on January 6, and Always Incredible on January 7.

The company has announced the two new events with individual countdowns, but the ASUS ROG event should be the star of the show for enthusiasts and gamers. We can expect new waves of gaming laptops, desktops, graphics cards, motherboards, and everything in between. ASUS always unveils slews of new products, including prototypes that we sometimes see in the future, and sometimes not at all.

AMD and Intel are expected to announce new processors at the event aimed at laptops, with the Ryzen AI 300 series "Krackan" APUs, "Strix Halo" and "Strix Max" APUs for workstation and higher-end laptops. Intel will have its new Core Ultra 200H series debut at CES 2025, and ASUS should have motherboards, laptops, and more for them.

Blizzard has just announced its latest Overwatch 2 collaboration, introducing Overwatch 2 x Avatar: The Last Airbender, which drops into the game on December 17. Check it out:

The developer has multiple new skins in the theme of Avatar: The Last Airbender, with new skins for Mei, Zenyatta, Orisa, Venture, Genji, and Kiriko. Not only are there new skins, but you can complete challenges to earn themed sprays, voice lines, and player icons.

The upcoming Overwatch 2 x Avatar: The Last Airbender runs between December 17-30, so gather your Gaang and summon the strength of water, earth, fire, and air in Overwatch 2.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is coming to PC in early 2025, Square Enix has announced at The Game Awards 2024.

While currently facing disappointing game sales, Square Enix could have an uplift at the tail-end of its fiscal year thanks to sales of a mainline Final Fantasy game. The publisher revealed that FF7 Rebirth will release on PC through Steam and the Epic Games Store on January 23, 2025.

Gamers can pre-order Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's PC version now and get a -30% discount, dropping the $69.99 price tag down to a more manageable $48.99. Now here's the real interesting part of Square Enix's promo: You can buy both FF7 and its sequel, FF7 Rebirth, for $69.99. That's essentially a 2-for-1 deal now that Square Enix is pricing its PC games at $69.99 MSRP.

The epic fantasy world of George R.R Martin's Game of Thrones is being returned to in an officially licensed action RPG that features Jon Snow, white walkers, The Wall, and much more.

The Game Awards 2024 has just wrapped up, and among the selection of new game announcements was a trailer for Game of Thrones: Kingsroad, developed by Netmarble. The new action RPG game is brought to fans by HBO and Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment and will take gamers to the events that take place in the critically acclaimed TV show. According to the official title description from Netmarble, King Robert Baratheon is now dead, and the Lannister family is desperately clinging to the Iron Throne.

Additionally, King Robert Baratheon's brother, Stannis Baratheon, is currently gathering his forces to reclaim the Iron Throne while simultaneously, the North is bubbling at the fallout of the Red Wedding. The game will seemingly put players into the role of a Northman who journeys to The Wall, where he meets Jon Snow, whose character model is based on Kit Harrington from the Game of Thrones TV show. The trailer shows the protagonist fighting against white walkers, the undead, giants, and much more.

Naughty Dog's critically acclaimed The Last of Us Part II Remastered will be released on April 3, 2025, on PC. Nixxes and Iron Galaxy are working alongside Naughty Dog on the port. The game is based on the enhanced PS5 version released earlier this year and will include "the high performance and robust features that PC players expect."

"We're all thrilled to bring The Last of Us Part II to the PC audience, including all the great new features we added in the Remastered version for PS5," The Last of Us Part II Remastered Game Director Matthew Gallant said. "We hope players enjoy the captivating story, rich combat mechanics, extensive behind-the-scenes commentary, and test their skills in the roguelike mode No Return."

The game will be optimized for PC, and although we don't have details on platform-specific features outside of full PlayStation DualSense controller integration, the studios behind The Last of Us Part I for PC are at the helm and should be adding similar features and support to the game.

Naughty Dog, the landmark developers behind the Last of Us and Uncharted game series, today announce a surprising new direction for the studio's latest project.

Naughty Dog's new IP was revealed at The Game Awards 2024, and it's nothing that we expected. The new game is called Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, a name that hearkens back to the old golden PC big box days of yore where it seemed every game had some sort of outlandish subtitle.

Intergalactic's stylish four-and-a-half-minute trailer was pure visual eye candy, matching high-tech deep sci-fi futurism set thousands of years from now with 80s-style, old-school analog designs. The result is an eclectic mix that blends Alien with Guardians of the Galaxy, complete with the pizzazz and madcap flair you'd find a drifting bounty hunter space punk.

Mafia: The Old Country premiered its first cinematic gameplay trailer at The Game Awards. The 2K and Hangar 13-developed game showcases its brutal 1900s Sicily setting. Described as "the start of a new crime saga for the acclaimed Mafia franchise," it features a story that goes back to the roots of organized crime.

Although this and previous Mafia games are linear, narrative-driven experiences, the fact that you could drive around cities to take on crime-related missions has always meant that the franchise has been closely linked to Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto series. Despite their very different styles, Mafia and GTA comparisons have been made for almost two decades.

The trailer for Mafia: The Old Country also provides a release window, Summer 2025, or sometime during June, July, or August. With the highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6 on track for a holiday 2025 release, no doubt 2K will want to get its crime game out months before the gaming world collectively jumps into Rockstar's next GTA game.