Sony is likely not pleased. Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge While it’s thankfully getting much easier to buy a PlayStation 5, the nearly two-year-old console has had enough time with modders to slowly (very slowly) get picked apart. Now, hackers have demonstrated how a recent IPV6 kernel exploit utilizing a Webkit vulnerability can allow users access to a Debug Settings Menu in the PS5’s dashboard. This menu allows a user to poke and prod around settings usually reserved for developers, including a package installer that can install PKG files for PS4 and PS5 games. While this may sound like the trappings of a bustling homebrew scene and fertile ground for pirates, the use cases are still fairly limited at this time. Read More

Almost two years after the PlayStation 5 went on sale, it seems that modders have found a way to jailbreak the console, albeit with some significant limitations. As IGN notes, a modder known as SpecterDev revealed the apparent jailbreak, which is described as an experimental IPV6 kernel exploit that takes advantage of a WebKit vulnerability. It appears the jailbreak will only work on PS5 systems that run firmware version 4.03 or earlier. If you have updated your PS5 since last October, you're probably not going to be able to try the exploit. Even then, it seems that trying to install the jailbreak only works around a third of the time. As for what you can actually do with a jailbroken PS5 right now, you'll gain access to the system's debug menu. You might be able to install games from outside of the PlayStation Store as well, but it's not possible to run sideloaded software.  It's... beautiful. The PlayStation 5 has been jailbroken. pic.twitter.com/54fvBGoQGw.— Lance McDonald (@manfightdragon) October 3, 2022 Modder Lance McDonald tried the jailbreak and was able to install the PS4 demo P.T., Hideo Kojima's famed, delisted teaser for the canceled Silent Hills. (PS4 units with P.T. installed often pop up on eBay.) However, McDonald wasn't able to start playing the game. While the exploit offers read/write access to the PS5, there's currently no way to execute sideloaded files. P.T. isn't backward compatible on PS5 in any case. As it stands, it doesn't seem likely that this jailbreak will be in widespread use anytime soon, due to its limitations and the fact that Sony could ban modders' accounts. On top of that, there's the risk of bricking the console at a time when it still isn't super easy to buy one. Still, this could give other hackers and modders a foundation on which to build more robust jailbreaking tools. Read More

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is on the horizon, premiering on November 11, 2022, and much like the vibrant but mysterious titular nation, it’s starting to reveal some of its secrets to the world. Read More

No Man’s Sky running on a Nintendo Switch. Image: Hello Games Sean Murray from Hello Games talks about bringing the game to the Nintendo Switch, as well as the other changes players can expect with No Man’s Sky’s big 4.0 update on October 7th. Read More

One of the major problems that worked against Stadia from the jump was the fact that Google didn't secure blockbuster exclusives for the cloud gaming service, which it will shut down in January. Sure, people were able to play the likes of Red Dead Redemption 2,Cyberpunk 2077 and Destiny 2 on the platform, but those are all available elsewhere. As it turns out, Google may have spurned the chance to have an exclusive title from one of the biggest names in gaming. According to 9to5 Google, at one point Hideo Kojima was working on a Stadia-only follow-up to Death Stranding, which debuted on PlayStation in 2019 and later arrived on PC. Death Stranding has some asynchronous multiplayer elements. Other players might be able to use ladders, roads and other items that you place in the world, for instance. However, the planned follow-up was said to be a fully single-player game, which might have been the reason why Google canceled the project. According to the report, Google canned the game, which was described as an episodic horror title, after seeing the first mockups in 2020. Stadia vice-president and general manager Phil Harrison is said to have made the final decision to kill the project. For what it's worth, in a May 2020 interview, Kojima claimed one of his projects had recently been canceled. Stephen Lam / reuters Google reportedly abandoned the project in the belief that there wasn't a market for single-player games anymore. Of note, CD Projekt Red just announced that Cyberpunk 2077 (which, again, was released on Stadia) has now sold 20 million copies, less than two years after its eventfuldebut. By mid-2021, Death Stranding itself had sold more than 5 million copies. The lack of big exclusives is far from the only issue that led to Stadia's downfall. A questionable business model and a seemingly rushed rollout didn't help, and nor did Google's reputation for ruthlessly killing off its own products. Even though Stadia has excellent game streaming tech and some passionate fans, it never took off as Google hoped. The company will shut down the platform on January 18th and issue refunds for all hardware and software purchases (except for Pro subscriptions). Ubisoft is working on a way to give people who bought its games on Stadia access to PC versions. The news of Stadia's demise blindsided developers, from giants like Destiny 2 studio Bungie to indie studios whose titles were supposed to hit the now-closed Stadia store in the coming weeks. As Axios notes, it isn't clear whether Google has a broad plan to reimburse studios for costs they expected to recoup after launching their games on Stadia. There are concerns about what Stadia's closure means for game preservation too. While Google didn't secure AAA exclusives, Stadia has some indie games that aren't available elsewhere.Future Publishing via Getty Images Meanwhile, some are calling on Google to unlock the Stadia Controller's Bluetooth functions. The argument is that, if people can more easily use the controller on other platforms, it's less likely that the gamepad will become e-waste. The controller connects directly to WiFi for Stadia games in order to minimize lag. You can also hook it up to devices with a USB-C cable. As for Kojima, he has a Death Stranding sequel in the works, according to the game's star, Norman Reedus. It also emerged in June that Kojima has teamed up with Xbox Game Studios for his next title. That game will be powered by Microsoft's cloud technology. Read More

Good news for native advertising haters, bad news for one Kris Jenner: Kim Kardashian is officially being fined by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Committee for promoting a crypto asset on her Instagram. Read More

Nick Barclay / The Verge Twitch will begin testing a way for its users to boost their chat messages on the platform. Called “Elevated Chat,” the “experiment” is meant to let users elevate their chat messages for a specific time using a one-time fee. The fees are presented in five different tiers ranging from 30 seconds to two and a half minutes, with fees ranging from $5 to $100. The feature is currently available for a “limited number of channels” on the platform. The option to elevate chats may appear at either the top of the chat or at the bottom of a video, and a user can purchase an Elevated Chat depending on how long they want to keep their message up. Read More

Stadia, Google's ill-fated attempt at a cloud gaming service, will shut down in January. Players will be refunded for all their hardware and software purchases, except for Stadia Pro subscriptions. As it turns out, some folks will be able to keep playing certain games elsewhere. Ubisoft will help people who bought its titles on Stadia to transfer their purchases to PC. “While Stadia will shut down on January 18th, 2023, we’re happy to share that we’re currently working to bring the games you own on Stadia to PC through Ubisoft Connect,” Ubisoft senior corporate communications manager Jessica Roache told The Verge. “We’ll have more to share regarding specific details as well as the impact for Ubisoft+ subscribers at a later date.” Google has already shut down the Stadia store, so if you were thinking of buying an Ubisoft game, getting a refund, then gaining access to the PC version for free, you're out of luck. Ubisoft hasn't revealed when it will offer Stadia players access to their games on Ubisoft Connect. It also hasn't confirmed whether Stadians will be able to transfer their save data over to PC. That said, the Ubisoft+ subscription service includes a cloud save feature, so hopefully the company can figure out a way to maintain players' progress if they switch to a PC version. While this is a nice gesture from Ubisoft, it might come as a small comfort to some of those who've been enjoying the likes of Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Far Cry 6 and Rainbow Six Siege on Stadia. One of the big advantages of many cloud gaming services, including Stadia, is that they work on almost any computer, phone or tablet as long as you have a good internet connection. However, folks who don't have a capable gaming PC might not be able to take advantage of this offer. Ubisoft hasn't been put off the idea of cloud gaming after the collapse of Stadia. Its Ubisoft+ channel is available on Amazon Luna, for one thing. “We believe in the power of streaming and cloud gaming and will continue to push the boundaries on bringing amazing experiences to our players, wherever they are,” Roache said.  While Google has abandoned Stadia, it will still license the solid game-streaming tech to other companies through an initiative called Immersive Stream for Games. AT&T and Capcom have utilized the white-label version of the tech. Perhaps Ubisoft, whose Assassin's Creed Odyssey was used in the first public test of what would become Stadia, will be interested in taking Google up on the offer too. Read More

Not to beat a dead horse, but doesn’t it seem today that all you see is violence in movies and sex on TV? Over on HBO, an uncle is romancing his niece and everybody on Industry is romancing everyone else. Read More

Google announced the shutdown of Stadia with little warning. Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge News that Google would be closing down Stadia was a big surprise for everyone, including the developers making games for the platform. Read More

This week, Cherlynn and Devindra dive into the massive amounts of news from Amazon’s recent event. There’s a Kindle you can write on! And Amazon also wants to track your sleep on bed. We discuss what’s interesting about all of this gear, as well as why we still don’t trust Amazon with some of our data. Also, Cherlynn tells us what she likes (and doesn’t) about the Apple Watch Ultra, and Devindra explains why the Sonos Sub Mini is a pretty great value. Stay tuned to the end for our chat with Josh Newman, VP of Mobile Innovation at Intel. He discusses Unison, Intel’s new app for sending texts and taking calls on your PC via your iPhone or Android phone. It’s something PC users have been waiting for, and it sounds like Intel is serious about making it work smoothly.Engadget · Everything Amazon! And we review the Apple Watch Ultra Listen above, or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you've got suggestions or topics you'd like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcasts, the Morning After and Engadget News! Subscribe! iTunes. Spotify. Pocket Casts. Stitcher. Google Podcasts. RSS. Topics Amazon hardware event unveils a writable Kindle, QLED Fire TV, and Alexa improvements – 1:19. Google’s Search On event details new features for search and maps – 26:29. Apple Watch Ultra, Fitbit Sense 2, and Sonos Sub reviews – 39:54. Intel and Samsung debut a PC with a slidable screen – 58:37. Intel’s 13th gen CPUs look impressive – 59:54. NASA’s Dart mission might have smacked an astroid out of orbit – 1:05:32. Oura releases 3rd generation smart ring – 1:06:42. Working on – 1:07:34. Pop culture picks – 1:08:24. Intel Unison interview – 1:15:26.Livestream Credits Hosts: Cherlynn Low and Devindra Hardawar Producer: Ben Ellman Music: Dale North and Terrence O'Brien Livestream producers: Julio Barrientos Graphic artists: Luke Brooks and Brian Oh. Read More

Within weeks of learning that the chess world has been thrown into turmoil over anal bead-related cheating allegations, we are now faced with another massive tournament scandal. And this time, it’s erupted from the stinking, steaming guts of the competitive walleye fishing community. Read More

Adorable and ethically questionable. Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Earlier this year, Bandai America announced that the TinyTan Tamagotchi, a new handheld game featuring the members of BTS, was on its way. The $19.99 gadget is up for preorder now, and it ships on October 3rd. As a fan of all things BTS and K-pop who also happens to review things for a living, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to test it out. The conceit of a Tamagotchi is innocuous enough. It’s a teensy egg-shaped device with a screen in the middle and three buttons across the bottom. Traditionally, that screen is occupied by a virtual pet — you feed this pet, play games with it, and such by pressing various combinations of said buttons. Read More

Ahead of bringing its Arc desktop GPUs to everyone in a couple of weeks, Intel has revealed more details about what to expect from the graphics cards in terms of specs and performance. The A770, which starts at $329, will have 32 Xe cores, 32 ray-tracing units and a 2,100MHz graphics clock. In terms of RAM, it comes in 8GB and 16GB configurations, with up to 512 Gb/s and 560 Gb/s of memory bandwidth, respectively. As for the A750, which Intel just announced will start at $289, that has 28 Xe cores, 28 ray-tracing units, a 2,050MHz graphics clock, 8GB of memory and up to 512 Gb/s of memory bandwidth. All three cards, which will be available on October 12th, have 225W of total power. Intel claims that, based on benchmarking tests, you'll get more bang for your buck with these cards than NVIDIA's mid-range GeForce RTX 3060. It says the A770 offers 42 percent greater performance per dollar vs. the RTX 3060, while the A750 is seemingly 53 percent better on a per-dollar basis. It claims that, in most of the games it tested, the A770's 16GB configuration delivered better ray-tracing performance than the similarly priced RTX 3060 (which, in fairness, debuted back in early 2021). When it came to Fortnite, Intel says the A770 had 1.56 times the ray-tracing performance of the RTX 3060. Of course Intel is going to tout its GPUs as being better than the competition. We'll have to wait for the results of our own Intel Arc benchmarking tests to have a true sense of the performance. In any case, it's looking like NVIDIA is about to have more competition on the GPU front. Only this time, it's from an established brand that just so happens to be behind many of the processors powering the PCs that might very well have used NVIDIA cards otherwise. Read More

Rest easy, political comedy fans, The Daily Show existed before Trevor Noah (led by Craig Kilborn and, more notably, John Stewart) and it will continue to exist without him. The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that the series will not only continue but remain on Comedy Central rather than switching to Paramount+. Read More

Image: Google Google is shutting down Stadia, its polarizing cloud gaming service, only four weeks after the company’s target audience of me, Makena Kelly, actually started using it. When Stadia was announced in 2019, Google pitched it as the future of gaming, providing a more accessible alternative to expensive PC rigs or whatever $500 next-gen console iteration was on the horizon. And when Stadia finally launched, it worked. Sure, features were missing, and connections were shaky, but suddenly I had access to a handful of games that would have previously cost me hundreds of dollars in hardware and controllers to play — a steep investment I wasn’t willing to make for games I may have only thrown on for a few hours. Read More

It's only natural that a person's tastes and preferences change over time. So after years of thirsting for big, beefy gaming laptops with shiny lights, I've started gravitating towards more understated all-rounders that don't scream "Look at me." And for the last few generations, MSI's Stealth 15M line has been one of the best at balancing good performance with a discreet appearance. But unfortunately, it feels like MSI is coasting with the 2022 model. While there aren't a ton of major flaws, things like the Stealth's display, battery life and audio just aren't quite as nice as I would've liked.Design For a gaming notebook, the Stealth 15M is about as incognito as it gets. It's got a simple, somewhat boxy build with a matte black finish (which is a bit of a fingerprint magnet, by the way). The only visual flair, at least on the outside, is MSI's dragon logo, which gets a new holographic treatment for 2022. Then you open it up and you get MSI's lovely Spectrum backlit keyboard, a big speaker grill that runs the width of the deck and a smallish touchpad. Along its sides MSI includes a good selection of ports including four USB 3.2 ports (two Type-A and two Type-C, one of which supports DisplayPort), a full-size HDMI 2.1 connector and a combo headphone/mic jack. And with a weight of just under four pounds (3.96 lbs), the Stealth is actually a touch lighter than a lot of other 15-inch gaming laptops (and some 14-inch systems too).Display, sound and webcam On paper, the Stealth 15M's screen looks like a perfect match for its specs. It's a 15.6-inch IPS panel with a 144Hz refresh rate. It even has a matte finish to help prevent distracting reflections. The issue is that because it has somewhat dull colors and a tested brightness of around 250 nits, movies and games look kind of lifeless. Sure, if you like gaming in darker environments, it's not a big deal. But its mediocre light output also means that in sunny rooms, it can be difficult to read text, especially if you're someone who prefers dark mode apps.Sam Rutherford/Engadget As for audio, the Stealth features dual two-watt speakers that can get pretty loud, though they are lacking a bit of bass. Don't get me wrong, they’re perfectly fine, I was just hoping for a little more considering the size of its grille. And then perched above the display is a 720p webcam which is serviceable but it doesn't deliver the kind of quality you'd want for live streaming. It's more so you can show your face during Zoom meetings, and that's about it. But once again, while nothing is egregiously bad, I feel like MSI is doing the bare minimum here. Its speakers are just ok, its webcam doesn't even capture full HD and that big chin below the display makes the whole laptop look sort of dated.PerformanceSam Rutherford/Engadget When it comes to performance the Stealth has plenty of oomph thanks to an Intel Core i7-1280P CPU and an NVIDIA RTX 3060 GPU. Our review unit even comes with a 1TB SSD and 32GB of RAM, the latter of which is arguably overkill given the rest of the system's specs. However, you'll want to make sure you figure out where the Stealth's fan speed settings are in the MSI Center app, because when this thing spins up, you're in for more than just a subtle whoosh. In Shadows of the Tomb Raider at 1920 x 1080 and highest settings, the Stealth averaged 106 fps, which is just a tiny bit better than the 102 fps we got from the similarly-sized Alienware x14. Meanwhile, in Metro Exodus, the Stealth tied the Alienware's performance, with both machines hitting 55 fps at full HD and ultra settings. So not exactly face-melting horsepower, but still more than enough to play modern AAA titles with plenty of graphical bells and whistles enabled.Keyboard and touchpadThe Spectrum keyboard on the Stealth 15M has a soft, cushy press, though sadly, you can't adjust its color pattern like on a lot of other gaming laptops. Sam Rutherford/Engadget One thing I really like about the Stealth 15M is its Spectrum keyboard. Not only do the keys have a soft, cushy press, they let just the right amount of light to leak out the sides, adding a little razzle dazzle without searing your retinas. And of course, you can turn everything off if you want to go fully undercover. Below that you get a touchpad that measures just four inches wide and two and half inches tall, which can feel a bit cramped at times. That said, having an undersized touchpad isn't as big of a deal as it might be on a more mainstream notebook. Most gamers will probably carry an external mouse since touchpads really aren’t ideal for gaming.Battery life Perhaps the biggest weakness of the Stealth 15M is its battery life. It comes with a 53.8Whr power cell, which feels frustratingly small compared to the Alienware x14, whose battery is 50 percent larger at 80Whr, despite both systems being about the same size. That results in some pretty disappointing longevity, with the Stealth lasting just four hours and 15 minutes on our local video rundown test versus 9:45 for the x14 and 5:42 for the more powerful Razer Blade 15.Wrap-upSam Rutherford/Engadget After using the Stealth 15M for a while, I'm not really mad, I'm just disappointed. I love the general design and aesthetic and the Stealth delivers a great balance of performance and portability. In a lot of ways it feels like a more grown-up take on thin-and-light gaming laptop. The issue is that it almost feels like MSI has neglected the Stealth line. Compared to previous years, the main upgrades for 2022 are a refreshed CPU and GPU along with a new badge on its lid. That's not nothing, but I know MSI can do better and I'm really hoping to see the Stealth get a full redesign sometime soon. Ultimately, assuming you can stomach the short battery life, the value of the Stealth 15M hinges a lot on its price. I've seen this thing listed as high as $1,700 from retailers like Walmart, which is simply too much. At that point, you're much better off going for a notebook with a slightly smaller screen like the Alienware X14 and getting very similar performance, or opting for Asus' Zephyrous G14 while also saving a couple hundred bucks in the process. But if you can nab the Stealth for under $1,400, a lot of the system's trade-offs become a lot more palatable. I just wish this version of the Stealth felt more like James Bond and less like Agent Cody Banks. Read More

Pop culture obsessives writing for the pop culture obsessed. Read More

A screenshot from Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Image: Ubisoft Stadia may be shutting down next year, but if you’ve purchased Ubisoft titles on the cloud gaming platform, you’ll be able to transfer those purchases to PC at some point in the future, Ubisoft confirmed to The Verge. “While Stadia will shut down on January 18th, 2023, we’re happy to share that we’re currently working to bring the games you own on Stadia to PC through Ubisoft Connect,” Ubisoft senior corporate communications manager Jessica Roache said in a statement. “We’ll have more to share regarding specific details as well as the impact for Ubisoft+ subscribers at a later date.” This means that players who may have invested in Ubisoft’s games on Stadia will be able to play them again on their PC down the line. Read More

Sackboy: A Big Adventure has joined the rapidly expanding list of PlayStation games that Sony is bringing to PC. The PS5 launch title (which is also available on PS4) will pop up on Steam and the Epic Games Store on October 27th. Sony says the PC version will support 4K resolution, have a targeted framerate of 120 FPS and offer variable refresh rates. You'll be able to explore Craftworld in an ultra-wide format as there's support for a range of screen ratios, including 21:9. Those with recent NVIDIA GeForce RTX GPUs should get a performance boost as well via DLSS2. There's also haptic feedback and dynamic trigger support if you use a DualSense controller. Alternatively, you can play with a mouse and keyboard. Sackboy: A Big Adventure won't require an ultra powerful gaming rig. You will need at least an Intel Core i5-6400 or AMD FX-6300 CPU, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 or AMD Radeon R7 265 GPU, 8GB of RAM and 60GB of storage. It's shaping up to be a busy fall for PlayStation on the PC gaming front. The Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves collection will hit Steam and the Epic Games Store on October 19th. Spider-Man: Miles Morales is also slated to land on PC by the end of the year. Read More

Hollywood continues to prefer one blonde among them all: Marilyn Monroe. A pop culture centerpiece since the 1950s, Monroe has gone from one of the most iconic and fascinating movie stars of all time to one of the most sought-after characters an actress could ever hope to play. Read More

Stadia is shutting down in January. Here’s how to get a refund for your games and hardware. Image: Google Google Stadia is shuffling off this mortal coil on January 18th, but thankfully, Google is offering refunds for anyone that purchased Stadia hardware or games from the Stadia store. Google has made an official statement with details regarding the Stadia platform and when users can expect refunds, but here’s a synopsis of what we know so far. Stadia will remain operational until January 18th, and you’ll continue to have access to your games until then, giving you the opportunity to transfer progress and tie up other loose ends. However, Google has disabled the Stadia storefront, so you won’t have the ability to make any additional purchases. Read More

It's been nearly a year and a half, but you'll soon get to find out what happens next in Mythic Quest. Apple has revealed that season three of its game developer comedy series will debut on TV+ November 11th. There aren't more details about the plot, but the new episodes follow the impact of a studio shakeup. And of course, you can expect up-to-the-minute technology jokes. Let's just say there's a creative reinterpretation of "NFT." The series was created by and stars Welcome to Wrexham subject Rob McElhenney as Ian, with Charlotte Nicdao as Poppy. The show has drawn attention not just for making game development an enjoyable topic for a TV series, but its connection to the industry — Ubisoft is involved in the production alongside Lionsgate and 3 Arts Entertainment. As it is, Apple has a number of high-profile season releases due this fall. The second season of spy production Slow Horses arrives December 2nd, while the immigrant anthology Little America (the work of husband-and-wife team Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon) continues December 9th. Apple now has a string of well-known shows in the pipeline, even if Ted Lasso remains its biggest attraction. Read More

Big Mouth is back for another round of humiliation, sexual awakening, and disgusting monsters farting out babies. And based on the trailer for season six, John Mulaney and Nick Kroll are getting the whole family involved. Read More

Despite claims to the contrary as recently as July, Google is shutting down its Stadia games streaming service after all. The company says players will have access to their games and be able to play them until January 18, 2023. After that, Stadia will join the long, long list of products that have been killed by Google. Those who have invested money into Stadia will be fully reimbursed. "We will be refunding all Stadia hardware purchases made through the Google Store, and all game and add-on content purchases made through the Stadia store," Google wrote in a blog post. "We expect to have the majority of refunds completed by mid-January, 2023. We have more details for players on this process on our Help Center." The reasoning behind the "difficult decision" isn't surprising. Google said the service "hasn't gained the traction with users that we expected." It's a shame, since the streaming tech at the core of Stadia works really well and the service had a passionate, if small, community. Read More

Sacheen Littlefeather, the Native American actor and activist who declined Marlon Brandon’s Oscar on his behalf at the 1973 Academy Awards ceremony, has died. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences shared the news via Twitter on Sunday. Read More

Each option (except for the Hori Split Pad Pro and 8BitDo USB Adapter) is compatible with all Switch models, including Switch Lite. The best controllers for your Nintendo Switch aren’t the ones that come with each system. The removable Joy-Cons included with all Switch consoles (except for the Switch Lite) are convenient since they can be detached to use as wireless controllers for two people. But their tiny, contourless design isn’t that comfortable for long gaming sessions or large hands. And don’t get me started on the dreaded Joy-Con drift. Thankfully, you have plenty of alternatives, though only some of them are worth your money. In this buying guide, I focus on wireless controllers that are comfortable and reliable and a few with unique features that enhance your play time, like input customization and long battery life. Read More

Razer, Qualcomm and Verizon are working together on a 5G gaming handheld. The carrier teased the Razer Edge 5G at Mobile World Congress Las Vegas. Details on the device are sparse, but what we do know is that it will feature Qualcomm’s Snapdragon G3x Gen 1. Announced in December, the chipset features an Adreno GPU capable of running Android games at 144 frames per second, with support for 10-bit HDR built-in. Additionally, it offers both 5G and WiFi 6E connectivity courtesy of the company’s FastConnect 6900 system. BREAKING: @Verizon, @Razer and @Qualcomm are teaming up on the world's first 5G mobile gaming handheld—Razer Edge 5G! It will allow you to play your favorite games regardless of whether you are gaming in the cloud, on an app or streaming from your console. https://t.co/TYPw5xFyeFpic.twitter.com/F9Vg3CfABl.— George Koroneos 🗿🍹 (@GLKCreative) September 28, 2022 At the end of last year, Qualcomm and Razer released a Developer Kit that was designed as a showcase of the G3x’s capabilities. The device featured a 120Hz, 6.65-inch OLED display, four-way speakers and built-in controls. If we had to take a guess, the Razer Edge 5G will hew closely to that prototype. In the teaser it shared today, Razer showed off enough of the Edge 5G to reveal it will feature a design that’s a tad more refined than the last Razer device to bear Edge branding. According to Verizon, the Android handheld can play games locally, in addition to streaming them from the cloud and consoles. That puts the Razer Edge 5G in an interesting spot between Logitech’s G Cloud Gaming Handheld and Valve’s Steam Deck. The former is a dedicated cloud gaming device and costs $350, a hefty price for its limited capabilities. The Steam Deck is more expensive but can run games like Elden Ring, Stray and Hades natively. And if you already own those titles on Steam, you don’t have to pay for them again. What the Steam Deck doesn’t have is 5G connectivity, and that’s something that could make the Razer Edge 5G an interesting option when it’s released. Razer, Qualcomm and Verizon promised to share more information about their collaboration on October 15th at RazerCon. Read More

Netflix’s Dahmer—Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story’s eye-catching nature continues to prove a double-edged sword amidst new criticism from a production assistant who worked on the set. Read More

Image: Google I’ve had a love-hate relationship with Google Stadia, but I’m certainly going to miss it now it’s shutting down. While the writing has been on the wall for Stadia pretty much since it launched, I was one of the many (or the few as the joke goes) to be intrigued by this cloud-powered future of gaming. I paid the entry fee for a (mostly) empty stadium, but I enjoyed it anyway. It hasn’t been easy to like Stadia. The first few months of the service felt like a beta I was paying Google to test. I couldn’t initially connect the Stadia controller wirelessly to a PC or phone; the browser streaming wasn’t as high quality as the Chromecast output; and Google Assistant integration was useless. Read More

You won't have to wait long to earn bonuses for playing and buying PlayStation games. Sony now says its PlayStation Stars loyalty program debuts in the Americas on October 5th, while Australians and Europeans will have access October 13th. Stars is already active in Asia, including Japan. The program is free, although you will receive some benefits if you're a PlayStation Plus member. You currently have to access Stars through the PlayStation App on mobile devices if you want the "full" experience. You can sign up on the web, however, and Sony expects to reach PlayStation consoles in the future. As previously explained, you earn rewards in PlayStation Stars by completing activities and campaigns ranging from the very basic (playing any game once a month) to the challenging (being one of the first to score a game's platinum trophy in your region). You'll earn loyalty points you can put toward your PlayStation Network wallet, digital collectibles (no, not NFTs) and certain products. You can also receive collectibles directly. You can improve the number of rewards you get by advancing through trophy- and purchase-based status levels. However, you'll have to top that up 13 months after the end of the calendar year when you reached them. If you reach level 2 this October, you'll have until January 31st, 2024 to do something extending that status. The strategy and its motivations aren't new. As with Microsoft Points and Nintendo Gold Points, this gives you an incentive to keep coming back to your console — and spending money. Given that it's free, though, it might be worth a try even if you only occasionally fire up your PS5. Read More

It’s no secret that Billy Eichner’s rom-com Bros didn’t please everybody—the intended purpose behind a wave of premature review bombs was to make that clear as publicly as possible. Read More

In the end, were we not the ones getting played?. Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Come January, Google will be shutting down its Stadia cloud gaming service. In some ways, the move isn’t much of a surprise — as my colleagues have pointed out, there’s been doubt about whether Google was in it for the long haul with Stadia basically ever since it was announced in March 2019. If you’ve been listening to what the company said about the service, though, you’d be forgiven for being blindsided. Up until the very end, Google insisted there’s a wonderful future for Stadia, and that players should keep signing up for and using the service, despite rumors that it was about to go bust. Now that Stadia’s officially being shut down, let’s take a look at the times Google promised us this wouldn’t happen. Read More

Ubisoft has once again delayed its long, long-awaited pirate sim Skull and Bones. Last we heard, the game was scheduled to hit Xbox Series X and S, PlayStation 5, Steam, Epic Games Store, Google Stadia, Amazon Luna and Ubisoft Connect on November 8th. That's no longer the case, as the publisher has pushed back the release date to March 9th. "We’re very eager for you all to get your hands on Skull and Bones and dive in headfirst to the dangerous and exciting world of building your own pirate empire," the company wrote in a blog post. "To give you the best possible experience we’ve decided to take a little more time to make sure we can deliver exactly that." Skull and Bones was already four years behind schedule. We had our first hands on with it in 2017 and it was supposed to be out the following year. However, Ubisoft went back to the drawing board when the game was already deep into development to turn it into a more realistic pirating experience. While the news of yet another delay will come as a disappointment to those who've already been waiting five years for the game, you still might be able to get your hands on it before March. Ubisoft is planning to run an open beta of Skull and Bones. It will share more details soon. Read More

The pacing of House Of The Dragon is a curious thing, oscillating between a breakneck speed that hardly lets us learn the names of its players before it dispatches them and lethargic, plodding slowness. Read More

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Google had big plans for its cloud gaming service, but it never tipped the scales. Soon, Google will be shutting it down. Read More

Over the last year, Valve has been more forthcoming about plans for its biggest Steam sales, including by revealing the dates well ahead of time. The company says the cadence will change starting in 2023. It will replace the Lunar New Year sale (which debuted in 2016) with the spring sale, which will run from March 16th to 23rd. Valve said a spring sale was a popular request from developers and publishers, many of whom believed that the Lunar New Year edition (which typically took place in late January or early February) ran too close to the December holiday sale. "It will allow us to create more space between our four major seasonal sales and provide more opportunities throughout the year for developers to expand and execute their discounting calendar," Valve added in a blog post. "We think many publishers will still opt to discount games around the Lunar New Year holiday, using the custom discount tools. But we suspect customers will be better served by a little bit more time between the big Steam-wide seasonal sales." This makes sense, as the winter sale is arguably one of Steam's two biggest events of the year, alongside the summer one. Spacing things out more could be helpful for developers and publishers (that said, there's not much time between the autumn and winter editions). Moreover, this move will shorten what was a lengthy gap between the Lunar New Year and summer sales, which could be handy for those who receive a Steam Deck and don't want to wait too long to pick up a ton of discounted games for it. Meanwhile, Valve reiterated the dates for the next two major sales. The autumn edition will run from November 22nd to 29th, while the blockbuster winter sale will take place between December 22nd and January 5th. Read More

Spoiler warning: The following contains spoilers for House Of The Dragon episode seven. History repeats itself on House Of The Dragon (or establishes itself, given Game Of Thrones takes place after HOTD). Targaryens ride dragons, would-be rulers battle for the Iron Throne, and sneaky dudes align themselves with potentially powerful women in an assortment of horrific ways. So it is with Larys Strong (Matthew Needham), who may immediately remind you of Varys (Conleth Hill)—not just in name—and perhaps even more so with Littlefinger (Aidan Gillen). Read More

Intel’s Arc A750 arrives next month. Image: Intel Intel surprised PC gamers earlier this week with $329 pricing for its top Arc A770 GPU, matching Nvidia’s RTX 3060 retail pricing. While it’s still difficult to find an RTX 3060 at $329, Intel is now undercutting Nvidia’s popular GPU with a $289 starting price for its A750, a card it claims should be able to trade blows with the RTX 3060. We’re still waiting on independent reviews of the Arc A750, but Intel did release 48 benchmarks last month showing that it should be able to beat or come close to Nvidia’s RTX 3060 performance in modern games. Intel tested its A750 directly against the RTX 3060 across 42 DirectX 12 titles and six Vulkan games, and the results look promising. Read More

You'll soon have an alternative if the Monster Hunter games are feeling a bit stale. EA and Dynasty Warriors creator Omega Force have introducedWild Hearts, a feudal Japan-inspired twist on the beast slaying formula. You (and your friends, in co-op) take on giant creatures using not just the usual bows and swords, but gadgets you build on the spot. You can craft giant mines that explode when a monster draws near, or harpoons that hold these enemies in place. Omega Force isn't a stranger to the concept. It developed the monster-slaying Toukiden franchise in the 2010s. In that sense, the team is mainly refining an experience it has been developing for years. Wild Hearts will arrive on February 17th, 2023 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC (via Epic Games Store, Origin and Steam). You'll learn more about the gameplay in an "extended" debut on October 5th. It's too soon to say if the game will be derivative or a fresh take, but it could serve as a welcome fix for Monster Hunter fans who've exhausted the most recent titles and are looking for more. Read More

Bros is by no means cinema’s first queer rom-com. But the fact that it’s the first from a major studio, with all the big-budget marketing and buzz that entails, is significant enough that writer-director Nicholas Stoller ( The Five-Year Engagement, Neighbors) and writer-star Billy Eichner elected to grapple with that benchmark in the film itself. There’s a self-awareness to Bros in telling a story that couldn’t possibly encapsulate the entire panorama of the LGBTQ+ community, but one that feels obligated to try given how few examples have come before. So how did Stoller, who pitched Eichner the idea of a classically formulaic romantic comedy about two gay men, pull off that unlikely feat while also acknowledging its novelty? Having characters argue about how to best represent every color of the LGBTQ+ rainbow is one way. Raucous sex scenes that prioritize laughs is another. But best of all, Stoller lets his typically outspoken star air grievances—in character—from toxic masculinity to heteronormativity’s stranglehold on popular culture. It’s the synthesis of these elements, critical and celebratory, deeply progressive and charmingly old-fashioned, that puts Bros in conversation with queer cinema that’s come before. Read More

Image: Ustwo Games / Netflix The quality of Netflix games has gone from simple, cotton candy-like fluff suitable for short bursts in a waiting room to bespoke, narrative experiences that require hours of strategic thinking. Desta: The Memories Between is the latter. Now I’m going to say some words that make sense independently but seem confusing when smashed together: Desta is a dreaming dodgeball roguelike friendship simulator. I promise you, it works. Read More

Nintendo's approach to online gaming has sometimes been awkward (having to use your phone just to chat, for example), but it just took an important step forward. The Vergereports Nintendo has updated the Switch Online apps for Android and iOS with Splatoon 3 home screen widgets. You can quickly review your recent game stats, gaze at your screenshot album and check the stage schedule to see when a favorite game mode will come into the rotation. You can only slightly customize the widgets, and some occupy more screen real estate than others. You'll need to clear some room if you want the stage schedule, while the photo album is relatively small. iPhone owners can also forget about iOS 16 lock screen widgets. You'll need a Switch Online subscription to use these features, although that isn't surprising when they're tied to the Splatoon 3 multiplayer experience. When combined with the game's matchmaking improvements over Splatoon 2, though, they indicate that Nintendo is getting the hang of internet gaming. Read More

Vampires might have experienced an explosion in popularity in the mid-2000s, but they’ve always been lurking in the darkness. From the vampy (and campy) 1960s soap opera Dark Shadows to new series like Interview With The Vampire and Vampire Academy, the genre just won’t die. Read More

Worlds 2021 champions Edward Gaming in Iceland. Photo by Clive Rose/Riot Games Inc. via Getty Images The weather is cooling down, leaves are starting to change color, and PSLs are everywhere, which can only mean one thing: it’s time for the League of Legends World Championship. The annual esports tournament, better known simply as Worlds, kicks off on September 29th. Following a few years of competitions hampered by COVID-related restrictions, the 2022 edition looks to be more in keeping with the spectacle fans are used to. This year, the event is taking place across several cities in North America, starting off in Mexico City and culminating with the finals in San Francisco, where none other than Lil Nas X will be performing at the opening ceremony. Read More

Netflix has launched the ability to create public handles for its games, laying the foundation for additional features that would make the service more social. People can use this public username across all its titles, allowing them to find friends (or to meet new ones) to play with in multiplayer games like Rival Pirates without having to reveal their Netflix name and profile icon. It's also what's going to be displayed on leaderboards for single-player games, such as Dominoes Café and the platformer Lucky Luna.  As TechCrunch had previously reported, there are codes in the app suggesting that the company is also working on ways that would allow users to invite each other to play games and to show other people that they're online. Netflix didn't confirm that those features were underway, but Mobile Games Product Manager Sophia Yang said in the company's announcement that the launch of game handles "is only the beginning in building a tailored game experience for our members around the world." Yang added: "We’ll continue to adapt and evolve our service to meet the needs of our members..." Seeing as Netflix recently revealed that it's going all in on games and is building its own studio in Helsinki, Finland, it wouldn't come as a surprise for the company to roll out features that would make its service more interactive. To set a public nickname, Android users can select the games tab in the navigation bar and navigate to "Create your Netflix game handle." iOS users will first have to download Rival Pirates or Lucky Luna and then launch the game to get a prompt asking them to create a handle. Read More

We’re only seven episodes into House Of The Dragon and so far we’ve lost just about every character worth cheering for. Some of them were introduced and almost immediately killed off, some were with us from the beginning but barely got any consideration before being rudely dispatched. Read More

Google is shutting down Stadia, its cloud gaming service. The service will remain live for players until January 18th, 2023. Google will be refunding all Stadia hardware purchased through the Google Store as well as all the games and add-on content purchased from the Stadia store. Google expects those refunds will be completed in mid-January. “A few years ago, we also launched a consumer gaming service, Stadia,” Stadia vice president and GM Phil Harrison said in a blog post. Read More

Overwatch 2 is set to go live and free-to-play on October 4th, and in preparation for the big day, Blizzard has outlined a suite of moderation tools aimed at curbing abusive and disruptive player behavior. The new system will require a phone number to be linked to every account, and will introduce audio transcriptions of reported voice chat interactions, among other changes. Blizzard is calling the initiative Defense Matrix, named after D.Va's hologram shield ability. The phone-linking system, SMS Protect, means every Overwatch 2 player will need to connect a phone number to their Battle.net account, and that number can't be used to operate or create another account. This makes it easier to enforce suspensions and bans, and makes it harder for players to cheat the matchmaking system. SMS Protect isn't a new idea in the world of competitive online gaming, and it's a proven way to reduce smurfing — a practice where skilled players create new accounts and creep into lower-tier matches, whether to boost their friends, avoid a ban or simply troll. Another notable feature of Defense Matrix is the addition of audio transcriptions for problematic voice chat recordings and automated review tools for the resulting text. The transcription process relies on players reporting abusive speech as it happens — but once someone is reported, this system collects a temporary recording of the match's voice chat and transcribes it to text. That text is then analyzed by Blizzard's existing AI-driven abuse-detection tools.  When it comes to the longevity of the recordings and text files, Blizzard said the following: "Once the audio recording has been transcribed to text, it’s quickly deleted as the file’s sole purpose is to identify potentially disruptive behavior. The text file is then deleted no later than 30 days after the audio transcription." The studio said audio transcriptions will roll out in the weeks after launch. Additionally, the general chat feature won't exist in Overwatch 2, leaving Twitch streamers one fewer outlet for their watch-me spam. Blizzard outlined the complete Defense Matrix strategy on the Overwatch blog, alongside checklists for existing and new players. October 2nd is the final full day to play the original Overwatch, and Overwatch 2 is scheduled to go live worldwide at 3pm ET on October 4th. Read More

Reno 911! is back. Again. After more than a decade off cable, relegated to the shifting interests, names, and runtimes of Quibi, Paramount+, and The Roku Channel, Lieutenant Dangle is bringing those getaway sticks back to Comedy Central. Per a network press release, the series returns on Wednesday, October 19, at 10:30 p.m. Now, don’t get too excited. Despite the press release claiming Comedy Central was premiering “all-new episodes,” judging by the trailer, it looks like we’re getting a repackaged version of the Roku Channel’s most recent season. Reno 911! Defunded was the second season of the show’s 2020 revival. Before that, Quibi ran Reno 911! through its 10-minute video format before the crew put together a feature-length film for Paramount+, Reno 911!: The Hunt For QAnon, which speaks to the concept’s elasticity. After that, a second season of the Quibi revival was ordered, with production outliving the app that greenlit it. Read More