VR headsets have had a shaky start despite their obviously awesome nature: Oculus has only sold around 200,000 headsets while the golden standard of VR, the HTC Vive, has shipped even less - around 160,000 units since launching in 2016.
One of the reasons that sales might not be rocketing through the roof is the HTC Vive’s relatively stringent specs list that asks users to have an Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 or AMD Radeon R9 290, and an Intel i5-4590 or AMD FX 8350 CPU.
But a new feature might just help you bridge the gap between your older hardware and that resource-hungry VR headset you’ve had your eye on: It's called Application Adjustment Resolution and it's available right now to try out in SteamVR.
Specifically, what the latest feature allows games on Steam to do is set custom rendering resolutions, separate of the headset’s own resolution.
In practice, that means you can render games at a lower resolution to be less hardware intensive - or, if your GPU isn’t hitting max capacity - request that the games be rendered at a higher resolution.
When is the Vive Pro coming out again?
Now, there could be any number of reasons why Valve is applying this update this week ... but, all things considered, it’s likely because the HTC Vive Pro is due out on April 5.
The Pro, which offers a higher native resolution of 2880 x 1600 could enable some really high quality performance for those of us with ultra-powerful rigs.
But, for those with less-than-gaming grade PCs or for pieces of resource-intensive content, the new update will allow your GPU to scale the resolution back to a more appropriate level.
The software update is just the first of many Valve has planned to coincide the release of the HTC Vive Pro, all of which can be obtained by opting into the SteamVR beta program located inside the system settings in Steam.
External graphics card support, a feature promised by Apple since the launch of macOS High Sierra back in September 2017, has finally arrived via version update 10.13.4 that is available now.
Apple has detailed how the feature works through a support page on its website, noting that this function only works with Macs that support Thunderbolt 3 connectivity. So, that means MacBook Pro models released since 2016, iMac models since 2017 and the brand new iMac Pro.
Of course, you’ll also need this update installed, which is available through the Mac App Store.
Having an external graphics card, or eGPU, connected to your allows for far more functionality than just improved graphics brunt, however. Here are the highlights of what the feature allows for, straight from the horse’s mouth:
Accelerate applications that use Metal, OpenGL, and OpenCL
Connect additional external monitors and displays
Use virtual reality headsets plugged into the eGPU
Charge your MacBook Pro while using the eGPU
Use an eGPU with your MacBook Pro while its built-in display is closed
While that’s more than perhaps many were expecting from this change, there is one glaring shortcoming of the feature.
Nvidia is a no-show
Sadly, the list of supported graphics cards is rather small, and even at that the list of graphics card enclosures that support each model is even smaller. Without getting buried in the minutiae, which you can find on Apple’s support page, here are the supported graphics cards:
AMD Radeon RX 570
AMD Radeon RX 580
AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100
AMD Radeon RX Vega 56
AMD Radeon RX Vega 64
AMD Vega Frontier Edition Air
AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100
Notice something missing from this list? That’s right, Nvidia’s graphics cards are nowhere to be found. Apple makes no mention of neither Nvidia nor its products within this support page detailing eGPU support.
So, regardless of the wattage of your eGPU enclosure, we certainly wouldn’t recommend trying out Nvidia graphics cards with your Mac computer. (Also, don’t try using eGPUs while running Windows in Boot Camp – Apple notes that this is not supported.)
It’s unclear as to why Apple has omitted Nvidia support entirely from its eGPU feature, but considering that none of its iMac or MacBook Pro models offer the option, it makes a little more sense. This is a massive boon to users wanting to game and get creative on Mac, but here’s to hoping that the list of supported hardware is widened out in the future.
These are the best Macs we’ve tested this past year
PlayStation VR bundles are cheaper than ever as Sony recently cut prices around the world on all headsets and camera/software packages. And we can't wait to help you stick your faces in it, especially as the discounts are particularly excellent now.
We have all the latest PlayStation VR prices below, along with some tempting offers on the camera, Move controllers and games. Originally £350/$399 the headset's new starting price is just £259/$299.
Below you'll find our guide to the best PlayStation VR bundles out there for the headset along with bundle options often include the camera or games too, we'll let you know which ones are the best value for money.
This PlayStation VR bundle deals page can also help you prepare by picking up the other kit you'll need to enjoy the best PlayStation VR experience. You'll want to pick up the PS4 camera as you need it for the PlayStation VR headset to work. You could also grab a couple of PS Move motion controllers, as some VR games support them. You can also use these items with a small number of Move-based PS4 games like SportsFriends or Just Dance. If you're looking for the ultimate upgrade, check out our PS4 Pro deals.
The grid below will be regularly updated with the latest PlayStation VR headset prices headset from different retailers. After seemingly endless stock shortages, units seem to be back in stock at most stores. Which is fantastic news with 2017 seeing some great PlayStation VR games to enjoy like Resident Evil 7 and Farpoint.
PlayStation VR bundles (USA)
PlayStation VR bundles (UK)
PlayStation VR game deals
Keep an eye on this handy chart below as we'll update it with the latest prices for a wide range of PlayStation VR games. To compare prices on individual titles, click the 'View all deals' button at the bottom of the chart.
PS4 camera deals
It's crucial you buy a PS4 camera along with your VR headset, otherwise, it will not work. Don't pay more than the standard £40/$60 for the camera though. Sony released an updated, rounder (see image above) model with a built-in TV-mount and there are deals included in the chart below, usually priced around £40-£45, which isn't bad considering the new clip. The older PS4 camera is also compatible with PlayStation VR. If there's nothing tempting below, maybe try for a new/preowned unit via eBay?
The PlayStation Move motion controllers are very much an optional purchase as not every game supports them. Many that do, also have options to use the standard DualShock 4 PS4 controller instead.
Move wands aren't as readily available as the cameras at the moment, but there are deals to be found if you shop around -or let us do it via that magical box below. some of the more expensive results are actually for twin packs. We'd advise a little caution if you're considering preowned units, as the lack of use in recent years may have dulled the charge capacity of the battery compared to new controllers. If you want to try your luck (and probably save a fair amount), here are some handy links for eBay.
We'll update these prices on a regular basis and add any bundles that may appear featuring the headset, camera, controllers or games.
Need an extra standard controller? Check out the best DualShock 4 deals.
PlayStation VR game deals
Keep an eye on this handy chart below as we'll update it with the latest prices for a wide range of PlayStation VR games. To compare prices on individual titles, click the 'View all deals' button at the bottom of the chart.
Looking for the best Far Cry 5 PS4, Xbox One and PC prices? We don't blame you as it's easily the biggest game of the year so far and the reviews have been pretty darn good since its release earlier this week.
Far Cry 5 is Ubisoft's newest entry to the much-loved open world shooter series and is out now on PS4, Xbox One and PC. There are currently no official plans to release Far Cry 5 on the Nintendo Switch.
Below you'll find the latest prices for Far Cry 5 on PS4, Xbox One and PC. Under those prices you'll find another comparison chart for the Gold Edition of the game along with an explanation of what's inside.
No Man’s Sky has been a PS4 console exclusive up until now, but this summer it's final coming to the Xbox One.
On top of the base game, the port will include all the existing expansions including Foundation, Pathfinder, and Atlas Rises updates. Speaking to The Verge, game founder Sean Murray says No Man’s Sky will also be enhanced for the Xbox One X with HDR and 4K support.
Beyond a simple port, Hello Game also announced it’s working on the game’s largest update called No Man’s Sky NEXT that will also arrive alongside the new Xbox One version. The developer gave only few details about the update noting that it will be free and it will be its biggest update yet.
With NEXT slated to be the game's largest update yet and the last expansion, Atlas Rises, introduced 30 hours of single player content, quick travel, land vehicles and base building, No Man’s Sky could practically be a whole new game come this summer, and we expect it will feature heavily into Microsoft’s E3 2018 keynote.
Fancy getting stuck into Assassin's Creed: Origins today for an incredibly low price? Well, if you have an Xbox One or Xbox One X, you're in luck as we've spotted some deals that smash anything else out there. We've shopped around for the best PS4 price too.
First up we have a fantastic deal on a digital Xbox One copy of Assassin's Creed: Origins with a super low price for gamers in the UK, US and Australia. Better yet, it comes with a free code for Assassin's Creed: Unity. Then there's a sweet all-time low price for the physical version in the States, followed by a rare UK discount too.
This is how you're meant to spend your Easter weekend, folks.
Do you like your demons and blood splatters rendered in the highest possible resolution when gaming?
Then Bethesda and iD Software have you covered – they're updating the gory shooter Doom to take advantage of the power of the Xbox One X and PlayStation 4 Pro.
On the top tier consoles, it'll now output at a max-resolution of 4K, adding extra visual fidelity (and frights) to the demonic invasion.
HDR hell?
HDR support and higher framerates are not mentioned in Bethesda's announcement blog post, it'll still be welcome news to owners of the newer consoles looking to breathe new life into their library of older games.
Doom, released in May 2016, was already a versatile game, running on an engine that had a dynamic resolution scaler that allowed it to be ported admirably to the lower-powered Nintendo Switch.
However, until this point it had been locked at a 1080p resolution on the PlayStation and Xbox platforms, so a return to Hell just in time for the Easter break makes for a welcome surprise.
Best VR Headset Buying Guide: Welcome to TechRadar's round-up of the best Virtual Reality Headsets on PCs, phones and consoles you can buy in 2018.
The best VR headset is out there. You just have to figure out which one is right for you.
Easier said than done, right? How do you chose? Do you go for performance or price? For something you can slot a smartphone into or need a powerful PC to run? These are just some of the questions that go into picking out the right device from all of the best VR headsets on the market.
The VR headset space is getting more crowded by the day. Where once Oculus Rift and HTC Vive dominated the conversation, new headsets are springing up left and right, some even without wires.
On the flip side, more powerful VR headsets are coming to the fore as well. The HTC Vive Pro, which releases on April 5, is an pretty sizeable upgrade over the HTC Vive. It is also much more expensive at $799 / £799 (about AU$1,015).
Then, of course, there are the mobile headsets, namely the Samsung Gear VR and Google Daydream View. These, too, are about to meet a major rival in the form of the standalone Oculus Go.
You can skip down below to see our choices and explanations in depth, but it's important to note that recent price cuts have brought the so-called traditional VR headsets more closely in line with one another.
We're still talking the difference of $100 or more, but the price gap between the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, for example, has gotten much smaller.
The three best on the market right now, the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and PlayStation VR, are unsurprisingly also the most expensive of all the mainstream VR headset offerings. These three offer unparalleled immersion through superior refresh rates, extremely high resolutions and both the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift offer room-scale tracking and motion controllers for your hands right out of the box.
Each headset has its own distinctive strengths and weaknesses, and if you're not aware of these before you buy, it could be a very costly mistake to make. But that's exactly why we put this guide together.
When it originally released, the HTC Vive was streets ahead of its nearest competitor, the Oculus Rift. It supported room-scale tracking out of the box, and came with two motion controllers that allowed it to offer a much more immersive experience.
Now, however, the gap has narrowed. Nowadays the Oculus Rift matches much of the Vive's functionality and includes two motion controllers of its own.
But the Vive still has the edge over the Oculus because, for our money, the room-scale tracking is that much better. The feature allows you to walk around a space that's 4.5 x 4.5m big, adding another dimension to the feeling of presence that you experience while using it; you're not just pressing up on an analogue stick, you're using your legs to walk.
That's if you have enough space in your real room, of course.
The headset itself contains two 1080p screens which makes for a very crisp image. Unfortunately it's not quite high-resolution enough to prevent you from being able to discern individual pixels when you wear it, but this is still the highest resolution headset on the market right now alongside the Oculus Rift.
The Vive's downside, however, is its price. Despite its price cuts, it's still expensive, and not a purchase many people will make lightly. Plus, you still need to have a PC set-up to run the headset, adding to the cost.
The original HTC Vive itself could also soon face some serious competition from the HTC Vive Pro, due out on April 5. The new headset features built-in headphones and a resolution upgrade to 2880 x 1600. The HTC Vive Pro is, however, much more expensive than the regular Vive, coming in at $799 / £799 (about AU$1,015).
There's no getting around the fact that in order to run either the HTC Vive or the Oculus Rift you need a pretty substantial gaming PC, which is a hefty investment for most people.
That's not the case with Sony's PlayStation VR, which requires little more than a PS4 console to run.
Considering the huge difference in power between the PS4 and PC, the PlayStation VR is a surprisingly capable virtual reality headset. Its refresh rate is nice and responsive, and we've had no problems with the reliability of its head-tracking.
Thanks to Sony's backing, the selection of PlayStation VR games is also impressive. There were dozens available at launch, and many more have followed over its first year on sale.
Sony has addressed one of our biggest complaints with the PlayStation VR - that its accessories are sold separately - by launching a variety of packs and bundles with devices like the PlayStation Camera included. However, PlayStation Move controllers, while are included in some bundles, aren't in every one.
While you have to be wary of the additional charges involved, depending on what bundle you opt for, recent price cuts have made the PlayStation VR even more affordable. It may not be the top VR headset, but the PSVR is certainly making a strong case to users.
The current VR arms race is all thanks to one man: Oculus founder Palmer Luckey. As a teenager, Luckey collected VR tech and was fascinated with making his own headset in his garage. Numerous prototypes and a $2 billion Facebook buyout later, Oculus is still the biggest name in VR.
It's seen some decent upgrades over the years thanks to the inclusion of the Touch controllers (which we'd argue are slightly superior to the Vive's), and a couple of key price drops.
Yet, compared to the HTC Vive's room-scale technology, the Rift isn't quite as good. The reason is that while the Vive is designed to let you walk around in any direction, by default the Rift has you place its two sensors in front of you. This means that the tracking is more single-sided, and you can't let yourself get turned around, or else the sensors will lose track of you.
The experience is a bit different when you add a third sensor to the mix, but if you're comparing apples-to-apples, we still believe the Vive does room-scale a heck of a lot better.
That being said, by being cheaper than the Vive, the Oculus Rift offers a very compelling mid-range virtual reality option for those with less space to spare.
Xiaomi’s long awaited Mi Mix 2S smartphone is now officially unveiled, but that’s not the only interesting announcement from today’s event. The announcement was followed by a surprise launch of the Mi Gaming Laptop. Yes, the company has also launched, what they call a “gaming laptop that can be carried to work”.
Xiaomi, during the launch, stressed on the fact that the Mi Gaming Laptop doesn’t look and feels like a gaming laptop, as it is 20.9mm (0.82 inches) slim and weighs 2.7kg (5.95 pounds). Sporting decent mid-range hardware, the laptop is aimed to offer semi-pro level gaming at an affordable price.
The 15.6-inch laptop has a seventh generation Intel Core i7 processor, 16GB of RAM and a combination of a 256GB SSD with 1TB HDD. It has an expansion slot for an extra SSD to allow space for extra storage. Graphics are powered by Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060, which is a mid-level graphics card.
There’s a toned down variant as well, which has the entry-level Nvidia GTX 1050 Ti graphics card with 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD and 1TB HDD.
Despite of its minimalistic look, Xiaomi has ensured the feel of a gaming laptop by fitting RGB keyboard with 16 million colors. Also, there’s a one-key turbo cooling system to minimize heating while rendering high-end games.
Will it release outside of China?
We haven’t received any confirmation from the company about its arrival outside of China. But, we can assume that it won’t arrive, as we haven’t seen any laptop from Xiaomi debuting outside of its home region yet. The only reason why we hope to see this in our own territories is because the company has been looking to expand its product portfolio reach lately.
Even if they have future plans to release it more widely, a lot will depend on its price, as there are already gaming notebooks in the market which offer similar specifications at a competitive price.
The USP of the laptop is its minimalist design and slim form-factor, which could give it an edge over its competitors. Also, it is currently among the among the top affordable gaming machines on the market.
Price and availability
The Mi Gaming Laptop with a GTX 1060 inside is set to be sold for 8,999 RMB (about $1,399, £999, AU$1,819 or Rs 93,000), and the GTX 1050 Ti variant will cost 5,999 RMB (about $999, £799, AU$1,299 or Rs 62,000). As of now, the laptop will only be available in the Chinese market.
After weeks of rumors and various leaks, ASRock is officially joining the graphics card world with its first set of AMD Polaris GPUs.
ASRock is kicking off its new Phantom Gaming range of GPUs with the company’s take on the Radeon RX 580 8GB, Radeon RX 570 8GB, Radeon RX 560 4GB/2GB and Radeon RX 550 4GB/2GB.
As with most third-party graphics cards, the Taiwanese company has added its own spin, with a custom cooler featuring dual ball-bearing fans. Meanwhile, the aluminum alloy composite heatsink incorporates an ‘extra-large’ copper base and heat pipes.
Each card is also capable of switching into an overclock mode and a lower-power state for silent operation. On top of each graphics card featuring multiple modes, ASRock is introducing its own Phantom Gaming Tweak software to help users further customize the GPUs’ fan speed, core clocks, memory and frequency.
ASRock’s first fleet of graphics are supposedly available now, but we’ve yet to see listings or prices for them online. We’ll update this post as soon as the information is available, though we imagine they’ll all be sold out immediately in the current cryptocurrency climate.
If you’re currently using a third-party Nintendo Switch dock, particularly ones from Nyko, you should probably stop. Kotaku reports that third-party Nintendo Switch docks are bricking consoles following Nintendo’s recent 5.0 Switch firmware update.
Kotaku cites several sources from Reddit and Nintendo’s own forums reporting that since this most recent numbered update, Switch docks from Nyko, FastSnail and Insignia are causing system errors. These errors range from rendering the console unable to turn on to losing all game save data.
Both Nyko and Nintendo have responded to Kotaku, confirming that they’re aware of these issues. Specifically, Nintendo supplied the following statement:
“Unlicensed products and accessories do not undergo Nintendo’s testing and evaluation process. They might not work at all with our game systems, and they could have compatibility problems with certain games, the Nintendo Switch system itself, and other licensed accessories and peripherals.”
Essentially, following one of its own Switch system updates that has rendered several consoles inert after they came in contact with these third-party docks, Nintendo is asking you to only use its own dock accessory. Naturally, this isn't cheap – it costs $89 / £79 / AU$129, whereas most third-party docks call for far less cash.
Here’s hoping that Nintendo soon releases a more compact, sensible and less egregiously expensive docking station for its immensely popular console. Sadly, something tells us we shouldn’t hold our breath.
Destiny 2 has arrived on all platforms but though the game has finally been released that doesn't mean the news and updates are going to stop – this is a game that's only going to grow over time.
With that in mind, we've created a one stop shop for all of your Destiny 2 update needs. Here you'll find the latest news on what's being added to the game and when updates are coming.
Make sure you take some time to check out our definitive Destiny 2 review to get an idea of whether or not this is the game for you. Convinced it is? Then you might be interested in our tips and tricks for getting started. Whether you're completely new to the Destiny universe or just need to brush up on all that jargon, this guide will ease you in.
Cut to the chase
What is it? The highly-anticipated follow up to MMO shooter Destiny
When it is out? Now
What can I play it on? PS4, Xbox One and PC
Destiny 2 developers: Bungie and High Moon Studios
Destiny 2 publisher: Activision Blizzard
What's new in Destiny 2
Destiny 2's long-awaited Go Fast update has finally arrived, with an aim to address player concerns that the game feels just a little, well, slower than its predecessor.
As the name suggests, this update is all about speeding Destiny 2 gameplay up with increases across all movement speed as well as faster cooldown for abilities and faster super power recharges.
These speed increases will extend to the competitive Crucible where respawn timers and revive lockout countdowns have been reduced. PvP and PvE weapon powers are also likely to feel a touch different and campaign modes will feel punchier.
Planned improvements
The Masterwork system which is currently in place for legendary weapons will now encompass armor and now raid armor will be unique with individual perks.
Timers are being removed from Nightfalls and will now include Strike Scores with leaderboards like in the original Destiny. Private matches and and six-versus-six matches will also be making a return in the spring.
Open and clan chats are now coming to the Tower on PC, which very angry PC players will be glad to hear.
Finally, Valor and Glory are two new forms of progression rank coming to the Crucible with the former being awarded for how much you play and the latter for how well.
Fans of the original Destiny will notice that a few of these changes are actually making the old new again. Still, Bungie is well aware that improvements need to be made and work seems to be underway.
That's what's coming over the next few months, but to reads the plans in their entirety you can visit Bungie's official blog.
DLC
Major Expansion 2018
Activision has confirmed that a "major expansion" will be coming to Destiny 2 towards the end of 2018. The information emerged during an Activision Blizzard investor call (Via Polygon), but no further details on what the expansion would actually contain were revealed.
Presumably the expansion will be on the scale of, if not bigger than, The Curse of Osiris and will suitably top off the extensive updates and improvements Bungie has said it will be working on over the course of the year.
During the call Activision's Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg said that sentiment towards Destiny 2 is “already starting to shift," adding that the team has "a great expansion coming in May, and a major expansion coming at the end of the year, and those events have always been opportunities to re-engage our communities and win back people who have churned out."
Expansion I: The Curse Of Osiris
The first DLC expansion for Destiny 2 is due to launched on December 5 2017.
This expansion will take the player to the planet Mercury where they'll be tasked with getting Osiris' help to defeat a Vex plot and according to a listing they'll continue their "Guardian's journey with all-new story missions and adventures."
In the game they'll ”Journey through time and space to learn the secrets of Osiris, avert a dark future, and rebuild the ties between the legendary Warlock and his greatest student—Ikora Rey.“
According to this listing there's also going to be new story missions, themes weapons, armor and gear, new cooperative activities, new competitive multiplayer arenas and more besides.
This DLC will mark the first appearance of the legendary Warlock via a brand new storyline.
It's also been announced there'll be new raid content, a new Mercury patrol area and the return of Destiny 1's lighthouse as a third social space.
PlayStation owners will have exclusive access to a Crucible map, set in Titan's New Pacific Arcology.
You can watch the trailer below:
Alexa skill
Good news for Destiny 2 fans who own an Amazon Alexa-enabled device - you have a new skill to try out! Announced by Amazon and Activision at the recent AWS re:Invent conference in Las Vegas, the Ghost Skill will allow players to control their in-game guide and companion through their Alexa device.
For example, when playing the game it'll be possible to say "Alexa, ask Ghost to" and request anything from information on which of your friends are online, what you should pursue next in the game, or find out more about the in-game world. Conveniently, this takes away the need to click through menus for certain actions and has the potential to streamline gameplay.
This is the first time this kind of skill has been created for a voice assistant and according to Activision, the aim is to bring a part of the game into the player's real world and make it more immersive as a result.
Voiced by Nolan North the skill is available to download for free from the Alexa app now.
For anyone that would like even more of Destiny 2 in their home, Amazon also announced a limited edition Destiny 2 Ghost speaker. This WiFi enabled speaker looks like in-game Ghost and even uses Nolan North's voice to respond to your enquiries. However, it's worth noting it does still require an Alexa-enabled device such as an Echo Dot in your home so it doesn't work on its own.
The speaker is available for pre-order now from Amazon for £79.99/ $89.99 and it'll be available from December 19.
Getting to grips with the touchscreen controls of PUBG on mobile isn’t easy and it’s being made more difficult by a group of players who are apparently using a mix of emulation and mouse and keyboard controls to gain unfair advantages in mobile-only matches.
According to Motherboard, there are a number of PUBG Mobile players who are using Chromecasts, Chromebooks or emulators to gain either the advantage of a much larger screen or to access mouse and keyboard support.
Given the fact that mouse and keyboard players are considered to have a big advantage over gamepad-using console players, mobile players are unlikely to stand a chance with their slower and less accurate controls. In fact, this is a controversy both Fornite and PUBG face on console already.
Mobile mayhem
This isn’t the greatest news for PUBG Mobile after reports emerged that the game is populated by a large number of bots which were apparently used to pad out numbers and fill matches with easy-to-kill players
However, while the bots are reportedly there to help L-plate mobile players warm up to the game, this workaround has the potential to make things far harder for them. It’s not entirely clear what Tencet will be able to do about the problem at the moment but if it’s not solved before it grows, a large potential audience who want to play PUBG Mobile just as it is could be put off.
If you've been a hardcore Guardian since the original Destiny came out, Destiny 2 may have felt like a bit of a step backwards in one key way. After a slew of re-balancing updates, everything just felt a little... slower.
Looking to answer fans' fears that the sequel had started to lose its energy, developer Bungie has now released update 1.1.4, aka the "Go Fast" update.
And, like its name suggests, it's all about picking up the pace of the game once more. All movement speed has been increased, whether on the ground or in the air, and abilities cooldown much faster now, with super power recharges occurring more quickly too.
Rebalancing
Re-balancing a persistent online game like this can sometimes be a dicey experience – what if your favorite class or weapon gets downgraded? Bungie hope to avoid this by gently raising the power of under-powered weapons, rather than "nerfing" the top-tier gear.
The increase in speed will also be found in competitive Crucible play where, among other changes, respawn timers and revive lockout countdowns have been reduced. You'll find that the PvP and PvE weapon powers may feel slightly different after the update – the campaign modes will feel punchier, with competitive play's weapons dialled down a notch for more engaging face-offs.
The full change list can be found here. Is it enough to get you to dust off your rocket launcher?
Destiny 2 DLC, news and updates: everything you need to know
If you’ve been holding off jumping on the virtual reality bandwagon, Sony may have just announced the incentive you need to make the leap: a price cut. On the official PlayStation Blog, Sony confirmed that the PSVR headset will be receiving a permanent price cut in the US and UK from March 29.
In the UK, the headset will now start from £259, down from £349. This will get you the PSVR Starter Pack, which includes the headset, the PlayStation Camera, a download code for PlayStation VR Worlds and access to The Playroom VR.
In the US, there’s a wider variety of bundles discounted. Prices now start from $299.99, down from $399.99, for the DOOM VFR bundle which includes PS VR headset, PlayStation Camera, PS VR Demo Disc 2.0 and the Doom VFR Blu-ray Disc.
Immerse yourself for less
There’s also a more expensive but expansive Skyrim VR bundle which is now $349.99 down from $449.99, coming with the PS VR headset, PlayStation Camera, two PlayStation Move controllers, the PS VR Demo Disc 2.0 and the Skyrim VR core game as well as all of the official add-ons.
Between its launch in October 2016 and the end of 2017, Sony confirmed that the PSVR had sold over 2 million units making it the best selling high-end virtual reality hardware on the market.
Not only is this price drop another boon for pushing virtual reality further into the mainstream, it’s an essential way for PlayStation to keep its VR headset competitively priced in the face of the recent HTC Vive price cut.
Simultaneously, the outlet’s sources say that Microsoft has signed off on the final Windows Insider Preview build of Redstone 4 – its internal name for the next big WIndows 10 update – as Build 17133. This means that Build 17133 will, barring any issues, be what Microsoft releases to manufacturers (RTM) for loading onto new products.
Said Build 17133 has already been released to Windows Insider Preview members enrolled in the Fast Ring of its public beta test program open to anyone who’s interested. The build itself doesn’t introduce any new features, but rather fixes minor problems in previous beta releases – a telltale sign that Microsoft's testing process is complete.
Spring Creators Update has sprung
In fact, Microsoft’s Dona Sarkar wrote in a blog post announcing the release of Build 17133 that “we are in the phase of checking in final code to prepare for the final release.”
Knowing this, it’s easy to be confident that Microsoft is awfully close to releasing the official, public version of its Windows 10 Spring Creators Update. Plus, the purported April 10 release date falls on a Tuesday, the typical day of the week for Windows 10 updates to drop.
The Spring Creators Update is expected to bring with it a host of major changes to the operating system (OS), including the Timeline feature that was originally slated for last year’s Fall Creators Update as well as the Fluent Design look applied to the entire interface.
Near Share, a unabashed answer to Apple’s AirDrop file sharing technique carried out over Bluetooth, will arrive on the OS in addition to faster Bluetooth device pairing. Progressive web apps, programs that can be downloaded via Microsoft’s Edge browser and used therein so as to answer to Google’s Chrome web store, will be featured as well among many more changes.
With all this in mind, we’ll be waiting with bated breath to hear from Microsoft shortly so as to get our hands on the final build of the Windows 10 Spring Creators Update in time for this purported April 10 release date.
Apple has likely just made its aesthetic-obsessed Mac fans very, very happy, with the wireless Magic Mouse 2, Magic Keyboard and Magic Trackpad 2 in its Space Gray color going up for sale on their own.
Up until now, these accessories were only available with the purchase of an exorbitantly-priced iMac Pro computer. Today, the input devices were made available for individual sale, with no announcement, directly following the debut of the New iPad 2018 for students.
However, knowing how badly sought-after these colors are, Apple has decided to charge extra for that demand – a peak Apple move. All three of these peripherals cost another 20 dollars or pounds for nothing more than a fancy color swap.
To be clear, the standard white-and-silver Magic Mouse 2, Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad and Magic Trackpad 2 cost $79 or £79, $129 or £129 and $129 or £129, respectively.
For those same peripherals in Space Gray – with absolutely nothing else changed – Apple wants $99 or £99 for the Magic Mouse 2 and $149 or £149 for the Magic Keyboard and Magic Trackpad 2, respectively.
Of course, we anticipate these to be sold out within minutes of this time of writing, and that’s on entirely on you if you want your Mac accessories to match your shiny new MacBook Pro or 12-inch MacBook.
As for us, we’ll stick to this perfectly fine, white wired Mighty Mouse that works (nearly) all the same.
Updated:It's been a while since we've heard anything about Crackdown 3 but the head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, has spoken. On Twitter, Spencer confirmed that there's a date locked in for the game and that there's a plan in place with more details coming soon.
It's not a great deal of information, but it'll be welcome to Crackdown fans who have been somewhat in the dark.
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First announced back at E3 in 2014, Crackdown 3 has walked the knife-edge of vaporware, often going months without any update. For instance, the game’s official site’s last blog post was eight months ago. However, what has been shown in the past proves it to be one of the most promising games coming to Xbox One, and a project that can really take advantage of the upcoming Xbox One X.
The killer feature that everything else in Crackdown 3 is hooked on is destruction, although this wasn't present at the E3 2017 showing, which focussed more on the game's offline single-player mode.
While online, everything in Crackdown 3’s city can be destroyed, using a cloud-based physics calculations system. Fire enough rockets into a building and it will topple and fall, crushing any buildings, vehicles, and hapless players in its path.
Ahead of its scheduled release later this year we’ve gathered all the news, rumors and info about the game into one place. Gear up agent, this is everything you need to know about Microsoft’s next big exclusive.
Cut to the chase
What is it? The elusive sequel to one of Xbox 360’s best exclusives
When it is out? Spring 2018
What platforms will it be on? Xbox One, Xbox One X and PC
Crackdown 3 trailers and images
At E3 2017 we were treated to a brand new trailer for the game featuring Terry Crews.
If you want a more historical view, this is what the destruction tech underpinning Crackdown 3 looked like three years ago:
Impressive, but a little sterile.
Now, this is what it looks like with a nice coating of Crackdown 3:
IGN was able to capture more than 15 minutes of the game in action, which gives us the best look of the state of the game two years ago:
Finally, this is the last footage of Crackdown 3 release, the team showed what happened if you laid out hundreds of explosive barrels and started firing at them without consideration for your poor console’s processor:
Crackdown 3 release date
It was announced in August 2018, just a few months before the game's planned November release date, that Crackdown 3 would be delayed until early Spring 2018.
Crackdown 3 hands on impressions
We had the chance to try out the game's single-player mode for ourselves at E3 2017, where we were free to roam around a small portion of the city.
In our demo we were left to our own devices without any pressing mission objectives to get in the way. Naturally this meant that we focussed our attention on collecting agility orbs, which are collectable items that, as their name suggests, make your character more agile.
The combination of a hefty double jump and a dash move meant that we could scale a large building with relative ease. The downside of this is that the game can feel very floaty, with our character's lack of weight very apparent.
Weapons have a forgiving amount of lock-on to them, and the close-up weapons felt especially satisfying to use.
Beyond this, we didn't discover much about the game that wasn't known before. For all intents and purposes this is a very similar feeling game to the Crackdown games that have come before, albeit with a map that's over twice the size.
Crackdown 3 confirmed features
Besides showing off the game’s technology, Microsoft and the game’s developers have kept their lips sealed about the larger story and gameplay of Crackdown 3. There are some things we’re certain about, though.
100% destructible (multiplayer) environments
The tentpole feature of Crackdown 3 is its destruction. There is a scale and detail to its demolition like nothing we’ve seen in a game before. You can start small, shooting a hole in a wall to create a sniper spot, or you can carve out the bottom floor of a tower block and watch the thing topple in real time, raining debris on the city below.
While some of the rendering work is done on your machine, the destruction has been made possible by cloud-based computing, with most of the calculation work being offloaded to other machines. This solution apparently increases the processing power of the Xbox One by more than 20 times.
Unfortunately, this level of destruction is only available in the game’s multiplayer modes. In the campaign, even if played in co-op, you will only have access to a limited level of destruction to avoid having to keep the console constantly connected to the internet.
A city that responds to your actions
Although the single-player city can't be destroyed, Sumo Digital was keen to emphasise that you'll still have a big impact on the city.
Destroy enemy outposts and you'll find that others are reinforced, making them harder to take on.
This essentially means that, although you'll be able to approach your targets in any order, the difficulty will scale with how many you've taken down.
A completely non-linear campaign
Right from the beginning of the game you're free to explore the entire city and go wherever you want. You're not just unrestricted in a physical sense, but in terms of the game's story you're also free to proceed however you wish.
While the developers said that there will eventually be a kingpin to take down, they stopped short of describing exactly who it is.
What they did say was that you're free to go about finding your way to them however you please, although whatever route you take is going to involve a whole load of explosions.
Attacking enemies across the city will raise the ire of the various heads of the criminal empire, who'll then be forced to reveal themselves as they send their troops after you.
We like the look of this openness, but we worry that it might end up making the game feel repetitive. Thankfully it seems like there'll be plenty of different ways to go about making trouble in the city, such as attacking monorail stations or rescuing prisoners.
Co-op campaign
Since the first Crackdown the series has supported co-op in the main campaign, this feature is returning in Crackdown 3. As with Crackdown 2, it can be played with four players.
To get into co-op, up to three players jump into the host's city. Ultimately this means that any progress made will only apply for one player, although if you continue to play as the same group then this won't matter so long as the same person acts as host each time.
Agility orbs are back
Agility orbs, a Crackdown trademark, are making a return. This glowing balls, hidden all around the game’s city are, depending on who you speak to, the best or the worst thing about Crackdown. Every orb you collect increases your character’s abilities but there are hundreds of them, many of them hidden away in hard to reach places. If you ask us, Crackdown has a lot to answer for with the current state of collect-athons in games.
Crackdown 3 rumors
The rumors surrounding Crackdown 3 haven’t been so much about what will be in the game but what state the game’s development was in.
Rough development
While Crackdown 3 is supposedly on track now, according to industry insider shinobi602, someone who’s leaks have often been right on the money, claimed earlier this year that “development was rough”. He added that “there's still issues but nothing like Scalebound.” Microsoft famously canned Scalebound earlier this year.
Crackdown 3 wishlist
There is still a lot about Crackdown 3 we don’t know but our hopes for the game are that it will plug the gaps left in the first two games.
Flying vehicles
Crackdown’s cities have always begged to be seen from the air. While your character could eventually leap great distances, they couldn’t take to the skies indefinitely. We’d love to see a jet join your agency issue car, finally giving you the tools to explore the city how it was meant to be seen.
Just imagine crashing it through a fully destructible skyscraper!
A final boss you can kill at the start of the game
Bear with us, this isn’t as strange as it seems. So, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild shook up the open world genre in a lot of ways, but one of its best was the game’s structure. Rather than have you gradually unlock chunks of the world, you were given everything immediately, including the ability to march straight to the centre of Hyrule and right the game’s final boss, Calamity Gannon.
Neat idea. Except, Realtime Worlds wanted to do this 15 years ago with the original Crackdown.
Talking to Kotaku UK, Ruffian Games’ Billy Thomson, who worked on Crackdown and Crackdown 2, said that “Dave [Jones] really likes games that have got absolutely no structure at all, completely freeform. [...] To the point that the guy that was meant to be the final kingpin could be killed at the very start.”
At the time, that design ethos created a lot of problems so the team didn’t fully embrace Jones unstructured approach. Crackdown 3 promises to allow you to approach its campaign in whatever order you please, but will it go far enough?
Here's to hoping Crackdown 3 is good enough to join our list of the best Xbox One games.
March 27, 2018 at 11:20PM
Julian Benson,Jon Porter
[Update:New Death Stranding rumor klaxon! Death Stranding is a game that has several famous faces attached to it at this point, but the latest rumors suggest that Diane Kruger could be the next one.
It's already been mentioned by Hideo Kojima that the game will have a female protagonist of some kind and recentdeep dive videoin the game's casting suggests that it's Kruger. On her instagram, the actress has been spotted wearing the same motion capture suit that Norman Reedus has been photographed in. The video also calls attention to instances where Kruger has praised Kojima and been seen to be receiving Kojima productions merchandise. This is, of course, all purely conjecture but it's certainly worth keeping an eye on.]
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To say there’s a buzz around Death Stranding would be an understatement. It may be a confused and excited buzz, like the kind you would hear from a hive of bees that have suddenly found their extinction is in reversal, but it’s a buzz nonetheless.
This is largely because Death Stranding is set to be the first title from Kojima Studios, the company set up by revered Metal Gear Solid creator, Hideo Kojima.
After his well-publicized departure from Konami, Kojima announced Death Stranding at Sony’s E3 2016 presentation and made something of a massive impression.
We don’t know much about the game at all at the moment but there are enough trailers, small details and rumors out there that we’re interested and keen to know more.
Cut to the chase
What is it? Honestly, who really knows. It’s the debut title from Hideo Kojima’s new studio Kojima Studios.
When can I play it? Sometime in the next 2 years. Maybe.
What will it cost? Likely to be around $60/£45/AU$59
The most recent Death Stranding trailer featured at the Game Awards 2017. Coming in at nearly eight minutes long, this isn't a quick watch and unfortunately it doesn't answer many of the questions we have about the game (actually we think we have more). Watch it for yourself below:
The reveal trailer that was shown at E3 in 2016 may have been more than 3 minutes long, but it didn’t reveal much about the game at all other than that it would star The Walking Dead’s Norman Reedus.
A second even longer and 4K trailer was shown at The Game Awards at the end of 2016. This trailer starred Hannibal’s Mads Mikkelsen and Guillermo Del Toro and although it didn’t give us any more of an idea of what the game will actually even be about (in fact leaving us more confused than we were before) it did send expectations soaring.
From what we can guess, the events of the second trailer take place before the events of the first, since the baby being transported in the incubator (in the second) is almost certainly Norman Reedus (as seen in the first trailer). They have the same handcuff and stomach scars.
As for what this means we have absolutely no idea. Bear in mind Kojima has, in the past, been a fan of including footage in trailers that never made it into the final game. Anyone remember the 'Grand Theft Auto' exchange from the first MGS3 trailer?
Release date
There’s no definite release date just yet but Kojima did tell fans during the 2016 Tokyo Game Show that Death Stranding would be out before 2019. During a recent interview at the 2017 Game Awards, Kojima seemed to be happy with the development progress of the game, stating that a lot of work had been done with the Decima engine.
In an interview with Dengeki PlayStation (via Wccftech) at the end of 2017, Kojima said that development of the game was going well: “Development on Death Stranding is going well enough that [Sony Interactive Entertainment] told us, ‘We have never before seen a game being created at such a fast pace.’ We are planning an announcement that will further surprise everyone in 2018.”
This bodes well for a late 2018 release.
What do we know so far?
Gameplay
At the moment, we don’t know all that much about Death Stranding other than that it’ll be an open world action title starring Norman Reedus and Mads Mikkelsen.
It’s not likely, however, to be the standard open world action fare we’ve grown used to, not that we’d expect anything standard from Kojima.
According to Kojima his first title with Sony is going to be “slightly more edgy” and in an interview with IGN he stated that though he wants “to create something that’s what people expect” he also wants to bring “something new that people haven’t seen before.”
Unfortunately, this raises more questions than it answers.
We do know that Kojima is planning to do something different with the game’s mechanics, most notably around the concept of dying and involving the baby that has appeared in every trailer. Kojima told IGN his plans for the mechanics of Death Stranding were inspired by a Japanese short story.
In the story it’s stated that the first tool mankind creates is a stick for protection but that the second tool mankind created was a rope to keep things close and secure. “Most of your tools in action games are sticks” Kojima explained, “You punch or you shoot or you kick. The communication is always through these 'sticks.' In [Death Stranding], I want people to be connected not through sticks, but through what would be the equivalent of ropes… But of course you will be able to use the sticks too.”
Unfortunately we haven’t seen any gameplay that would give us a better insight into how this rope approach will actually work.
In an interview with The Telegraph, Sony Interactive Entertainment America's President, Shawn Layden, admitted that he's played Death Stranding and that the game is, indeed, "up and running."
After Hideo Kojima appeared at this year's E3 without any new information about, or footage from, Death Stranding, rumors began to circulate that the game is in for an extremely drawn out development process.
However, the mysterious game is apparently far enough along that Layden has played some prototype levels, though he admits "I couldn't explain to you what the game is..."
When asked if the game is as revolutionary as is being promised, Layden says it's "all that and more!" after what The Telegraph calls a "thoughtful pause."
Layden isn't the only person that's struggled to get to grips with Death Stranding; at a Q and A session at the E3 Coliseum, Kojima himself said that his own team didn't understand the game: "I started explaining a year ago to the team what I wanted to make. No one got it!"
Before this, the game's star Mads Mikkelsen admitted he "got lost" when Kojima tried to explain the game's plot to him.
Though it's comfort to know that the game has gotten to the point in its development process that Layden is able to get hands on with it, it's less comforting that so many people close to Death Stranding are so perplexed by it. Or maybe that's exciting? We have to say we can't wait to find out more.
Sporadic details
Though Kojima has been coy, he’s given some nice teases into what we can expect from Death Stranding in terms of tone and gameplay modes.
At the Tokyo Game Show, Kojima told fans the game would have a female protagonist and would feature online co-op play.
We know the game will run on the Decima engine which was created by Horizon: Zero Dawn developers, Guerilla Games. Kojima praised this engine during PSX 2016 as being an excellent engine for creating open world games, something that Horizon: Zero Dawn’s reception suggests has an element of truth to it.
Though its unsettling trailers suggest otherwise, Kojima has said that Death Stranding won’t be as dark as some fans are expecting. It’s certainly not a horror game, he told Glixel, and it would have comedic moments which isn’t entirely surprising considering the overarching tone of the Metal Gear series.
An impressive cast
We already knew Death Stranding had some big names attached to it including Norman Reedus and Mads Mikkelsen . But now we know they'll be joined by writer and actress Emily O'Brien and the voice of video games, Troy Baker.
O'Brien recently posted a picture to Instagram which showed her alongside Baker and Reedus, with a caption stating "Honored to be working alongside these two fine lads on [Hideo Kojima's] new project Death Stranding."
While Baker is well known for his starring roles in video games such as The Last of Us and Bioshock Infinite, O'Brien has had roles on both TV and in games, featuring in Telltale's Guardian's of the Galaxy and Batman: The Enemy Within as well as Rock in a Hard Place.
Players won't die
In a recent interview with IGN, Hideo Kojima was slightly more open with details than he usually is. The strange underwater sequence from the 2017 Game Awards trailer for example? That's apparently a kind of purgatory where players will go and freely explore when they die in the game, though Kojima notes that "death will never pull you out of the game."
The game apparently explores the themes of life and death and it's for this reason that Kojima would like to explore the traditional death mechanic in games and let players know that in-game death isn't the end for them when it happens.
In this underwater area, he explains, “you're not dead or alive. It's the equivalent of that screen that says 'Continue?' and a counter ticking down towards zero.” When players decide they're ready to leave and return to the game world, they won't be returned to a point before their death. Instead the game acknowledges their defeat and coming back to life is more of a reincarnation than a respawn.
There's a weird time rain
During the trailer shown at the 2017 Game Awards, fans noticed there's a strange kind of rain that has an effect on time. In makes plants grow in wilt and makes human bodies age and degenerate when it touches them. The rain is apparently called Timefall and it has a big role to play in the game's story.
What's the deal with the babies?
There's been some seriously strange recurring baby imagery in the footage we've seen for Death Stranding that's included Norman Reedus cradling a baby while standing nude on a beach as well as having one living inside his throat. According to Kojima in an interview with IGN, the baby is apparently the same baby and it's a part of the game mechanics as well as the overarching plot. We assume it's related to the idea of not ever finitely dying but Kojima didn't confirm this.
There will be online elements
We already knew there would be online co-op elements in the game after Kojima confirmed it at the Tokyo Game Show, but in a recent IGN interview he acknowledged that he's been keeping up with recent players reactions to things like microtransactions.
“I think there are a lot of people out there who still enjoy single-player games, aside from some microtransactions." This suggests that while the game will have online co-op elements, they won't make up the entirety of the game.
What could it all mean?
Though the game’s trailers don’t tell us much about how we’ll eventually play Death Stranding, they do reveal some important thematic elements.
Quotes from William Blake, the repeated appearance of ruined dolls, and the inclusion of what looks like oil (but could very well be ink) and dead sea creatures suggests Kojima will be exploring the fractious relationship between man and the natural world and the impact it has on us and future generations.
The littering of dead crabs on beaches and tanks with definitely living tentacles coming out of them suggests to us a post-apocalyptic world over-run with robotic sea creatures which would certainly be interesting. After all, Kojima is working closely with Guerilla Games whose Horizon: Zero Dawn game focused on robotic dinosaurs.
There’s also a curious mix of futuristic technology and elements of the past in the game’s various trailers.
In the second game trailer though Mads Mikkelsen is wearing a modern army uniform and appears to be using some kind of cable, the undead soldiers around him are wearing WW2 era uniforms and the game world outside of the tunnel he’s in is almost certainly from the second world war time period.
Whether this mix of past and future will manifest itself as time travelling or simply alternate universe science fiction isn’t clear.
Safe to say, as a Kojima title, there’s a lot of mystery and symbolism at play here and fans online are tearing through what little materials there are to try and find out more information about the game.
We’ll keep updating as more solid information becomes available.
[Update:There's a rumor doing the rounds on Reddit at the moment which suggests that Borderlands 3 will be revealed on June 10 for a September release alongside an image that appears to announce the game. The image that's been posted looks, to us, highly suspect, but the date on which the game is being rumored for announcement is smack bang on the day of Microsoft and Bethesda's E3 press conferences.
A reveal on Bethesda's stage is unlikely, but Microsoft's? There's a chance. We would certainly take this with a grain of salt at the momentThough the post has since been removed from Reddit, it can still be found onGoogle Cache.]
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It’s been 5 years since Gearbox released Borderlands 2 and given that the game was beloved by critics and players alike, we wouldn't be at all surprised if a third proper entry was in the words (and no, the Pre-Sequel doesn't count).
Borderlands 3 may not have been officially confirmed but at this point pretty much everyone suspects that it’s in the works.
This isn’t just because it makes sense for Gearbox to develop a sequel based on the previous performances of games in the franchise; there have also been strong hints from the game’s developers which you can read more about below.
Cut to the chase
What is it? The as-yet-unconfirmed third numbered game in the first-person shoot and loot franchise
When can I play it? We can't be sure but we suspect late 2018 to 2019
What can I play it on? It’s likely to be released on PS4, Xbox One and PC
Release date
As Borderlands 3 hasn’t been confirmed as being actively in development quite yet, Gearbox has unsurprisingly not given it a release date either.
However, based on a Take-Two investor call, a release window of October 2018 to September 2019 could be a possibility. During the call, Take-Two’s CEO Strauss Zelnick said that a “highly anticipated new title from one of 2K’s biggest franchises” is in development for the fiscal year of 2019 which runs between October 2018 and September 2019.
This doesn’t make any direct reference to Borderlands 3, however, it’s the most likely candidate for “a highly anticipated title” release from an existing franchise given that 2K-owned Rockstar's Red Dead Redemption 2 is out before the period starts, and Gearbox has said another Borderlands game will be coming.
News and rumors
So, Borderlands 3 hasn’t been confirmed by name as being in development right now. That is true. But there’s been plenty of teasing from Gearbox over the past year or so that makes us feel pretty confident that it’s coming.
Hope in a press release
In a recent press release from Take-Two Interactive, the parent company of Borderlands publisher 2K Games, Red Dead Redemption 2 fans may have been given reason to be disappointed, but Borderlands fans were given hope. Following Red Dead Redemption 2's delay, Take-Two is confident that 2019 will be a successful year financially thanks to this as well as the launch of a “highly anticipated new title from one of 2K’s biggest franchises.”
It wasn't said that this new title would be Borderlands 3, however, given Gearbox's frequent teasing it seems like the most likely candidate.
The Flamethrower
A recent interaction between Randy Pitchford and Elon Musk has thrown yet more weight behind the rumor that a new Borderlands game is in development.
After Tesla CEO and all-round benevolent billionaire Elon Musk released a 'Boring Company' flamethrower for sale as a reward for the community having purchased 50,000 hats, Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford got in contact to see if he could put the gun in the "next Borderlands game."
To everyone's surprise, Musk agreed to the bizarre request - making the Boring Company Flamethrower the first confirmed weapon in the unannounced game.
PAX West 2017
At this year’s PAX West, Pitchford announced during a panel that 90% of the Gearbox team is “working on the thing I think most of you guys want us to be working on.”
Given that he had just acknowledged much of the audience was present at the panel because they’re fans of the Borderlands franchise, we’d say this is quite a heavy-handed hint even though Borderlands 3 wasn’t explicitly mentioned.
The IGN Interview
Around the same time as the PAX West panel tease, Pitchford also took part in an IGN Unfiltered interview where he said that if another Borderlands game were to be made, it would be more of a true sequel as opposed to another Pre-Sequel spin-off.
Pitchford stated that the next Gearbox game will be a “really big, worthy” step forward for the franchise before adding “if we’re going to do one, it’s going to be that” to take the the certainty of his statement down a notch.
Randy takes to Twitter
In April 2017, Pitchford took to Twitter to post a picture of himself wearing a motion capture suit with the caption “Doing a shoot... I may or may not be a psycho bandit in a video game we may or may not be working on. Also, happy Bulletstorm launch day!”
Given that Psychos are a Borderlands enemy we’d say this tweet can be read with a fairly large nudge and wink.
The GDC presentation
Before all of this Pitchford took to the stage during Epic Games’ Unreal presentation at GDC in March 2017, where he showed off new rendering tech that “may be used in a future Gearbox game.” He explicitly said the footage shown was not from a video game but what was shown was highly reminiscent of Borderlands.
He also revealed that this new tech is capable of simulating different physics depending on a planet’s properties. Specifically he said “there might be different physics and the sun and the moons might be in different positions than what we’re used to on Pandora.”
Not only does this hint heavily that Borderlands 3 is in the works, it suggests that we’ll be able to explore more settings than we have before.
PAX East panel
You’ll notice a lot of the hints that Borderlands 3 is coming have come from Randy Pitchford. That trend continues all the way back through to April 2016 when, during a PAX East panel, he gave the biggest sign that Borderlands 3 is coming.
"It's no secret, obviously there's going to be another Borderlands," he revealed during the panel. On Twitter he also revealed that Battleborn's art director Scott Kester will be the art director on Borderlands 3.
He did, however, say that the game might not actually be called Borderlands 3: "We don't even know if we're going to call it that. We could call it Borderlands 4 for all we know."
Some changes
If Borderlands 3 is in the works, however, there are likely to be some changes from the first two titles. The first difference will be that writer, Mikey Neumann, will not be on board as he was unfortunately forced to resign from the project due to health complications. The lead writer on Borderlands 2, Anthony Burch, has also since left the company. There’s been no hint with regards to who’ll be taking up the pen after their departures.
Another change is that the voice behind Claptrap, David Eddings, has left Gearbox for Rooster Teeth so it’s unlikely he’ll be taking up the role again.
If you’ve been holding your breath for Microsoft to finally bring USB-C connectivity to its devices beyond Surface Book 2, hold onto it just a little while longer. The Verge reports that Microsoft promises to release its USB-C dongle for the Surface Connect port before the end of 2018.
Specifically, a Microsoft spokesperson told The Verge that the USB-C Surface dongle is “on the roadmap for later this year”.
This comes after the firm clearly missed its previous target launch of 2017, having teased the product back in May of last year alongside the Surface Pro debut. Further to this point, infamous Microsoft leaker WalkingCat on Twitter posted a purported render image of the dongle.
Judging by this render, the dongle will support a single USB-C connection, which seems odd considering the thing’s size and the port it connects can otherwise support several connections at once.
Will Microsoft finally go all-in on USB-C?
There’s no clear reason as to why the USB-C Surface dongle missed its mark last year and has been delayed through to the end of 2018, and pricing has not been mentioned.
However, this is a strong indication that the next line of Surface Laptop and Surface Pro products will include USB-C ports within their chassis. And, frankly, it’s about time.
We’re at last at a point where USB-C is reaching ubiquity, and perhaps Microsoft sat on this a tad too long – while its competitors adopted the technology a bit too quickly. You can’t seem to win with these things.
While the news of a USB-C dongle for Surface Pro and Surface Laptop is exciting for those who’ve amassed a collection such accessories over the past year, this is perhaps even more interesting for what it may mean for future editions of those two products altogether.
Microsoft has unveiled its brand new Code of Conduct and you might be interested to know that using offensive language in Xbox Live, Skype, Office – shared documents – could land you in some sh**.
This is all part of the new Microsoft Service Agreement, which comes into action on May 1 2018. Under this new agreement, Microsoft says: “we've clarified that use of offensive language and fraudulent activity is prohibited."
Now, we’re sure you’re not one for a foul mouth but if you do find yourself caught out, you could be looking at account suspensions or bans from Xbox Services, time cut off your Xbox Live Gold membership or lose funds tied to the account. Microsoft says it could even close “your Microsoft account immediately with good cause.”
Keep it clean
This is unlikely to happen as soon as you let an F-bomb fall, of course. Microsoft has said it will investigate incidents and that it reserves the right to “review Your Content in order to resolve the issue,” but promises “we do not monitor the Services and make no attempt to do so.“
It's hard, however, to see what constitutes offensive language exactly. We guess if you wouldn’t like it said to you, not saying it to anyone else would be a good guideline to follow but greater clarity is needed here.
It is, of course, unlikely that every instance of swearing on its services will raise Microsoft’s ire. For many, friendly conversations have a natural flow of swear words which have no offensive intention, so enforcing this kind of rule would very difficult, perhaps impossible, without unfairly punishing a large number of users.
We imagine that given Microsoft has said it won’t be monitoring its services, a blanket bleep out is not what's being attempted here. It’s likely Microsoft is trying to make it clear that verbal abuse on any of its platforms will not be tolerated.
The fact that Microsoft says it'll be investigating "alleged violations" of these terms of service suggests that users will have to be reported by someone before Microsoft picks up on your activity. However, it's not clear from whom these allegations will need to come or whether one report will be enough to get you in trouble. Greater clarity is perhaps needed on how exactly Microsoft's attention will be drawn to your activities.
Xiaomi’s long awaited Mi Mix 2S smartphone is now officially unveiled, but that’s not the only interesting announcement from today’s event. The announcement was followed by a surprise launch of the Mi Gaming Laptop. Yes, the company has also launched, as they say, a “gaming laptop that can be carried to work”.
Xiaomi, during the launch, stressed on the fact that the Mi Gaming Laptop doesn’t look and feels like a gaming laptop, as it is 20.9mm slim and weighs 2.7kgs. Sporting decent mid-range hardware, the laptop is aimed to offer semi-pro level gaming at an affordable price.
The 15.6-inch laptop has a seventh generation Intel Core i7 processor, 16GB of RAM, and a combination of a 256GB SSD with 1TB HDD. It has an expansion slot for an extra SSD to allow space for extra storage. Graphics are powered by Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060, which is a mid-level graphics card.
There’s a toned down variant as well, which has the entry level Nvidia GTX 1050 Ti graphics card with 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD and 1TB HDD.
Despite of its minimalistic look, Xiaomi has ensured the feel of a gaming laptop by fitting RGB keyboard with 16 million colours. Also, there’s a one-key turbo cooling system for to minimise heating while rendering high-end games.
Mi Gaming Laptop Photo Gallery
Will it come to India?
We haven’t received any confirmation from the company about its arrival in India. But we can assume that it won’t arrive in the country as we haven’t seen any laptop from Xiaomi debuting in India yet. The only reason why we hope to see this in India is because the company has been looking to expand its product portfolio in the country lately.
Even if they have future plans to bring it in India, a lot will depend on its price as we already have gaming notebooks which offer similar specifications at a competitive price.
The USP of the laptop is its minimalist design and slim form-factor, which could give it an edge over its competitors. Also, it is currently among the among the top affordable gaming machines on the market.
Price and availability
The Mi Gaming Laptop GTX 1060 version is set to be sold for 8999 RMV (Approx Rs 93,000), and the GTX 1050 Ti variant will cost 5999 RMB (Approx Rs 62000). As of now, the laptop will only be available in the Chinese market.
