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The ripples from Concord’s seismic implosion are still fanning out since Sony decided to take the game offline earlier this month. Now, the game’s director has reportedly decided to bow out gracefully. Kotaku reported that game director Ryan Ellis of Firewalk Studios told staff members that he’s stepping down from his position. Ellis, who cofounded Firewalk after a stint as the creative director of Destiny 2, will remain with the studio but only in a support role.
Meanwhile, the staff at Firewalk are still waiting to hear what Sony plans to do with their underperforming game. Just two weeks after Concord’s release, Sony pulled the team shooter offline on September 6 and issued refunds to everyone who bought the game for the PlayStation 5 or PC from Steam and the Epic Games Store. Sony said in a statement that it pulled the game in order to “explore options, including those that will better reach our players.” Naturally, Kotaku reports that a lot of Firewalk’s staffers are worried about the status of their jobs in the wake of Concord’s disappointing release.
The extremely poor sales of Concord make it one of the biggest bombs in industry history. Analysts estimate that it only sold 25,000 copies on Steam and for PS5 in its first six days.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/concords-disastrous-launch-reportedly-leads-to-its-directors-self-demotion-215515013.html?src=rss

The ripples from Concord’s seismic implosion are still fanning out since Sony decided to take the game offline earlier this month. Now, the game’s director has reportedly decided to bow out gracefully. Kotaku reported that game director Ryan Ellis of Firewalk Studios told staff members that he’s stepping down from his position. Ellis, who cofounded Firewalk after a stint as the creative director of Destiny 2, will remain with the studio but only in a support role.

Meanwhile, the staff at Firewalk are still waiting to hear what Sony plans to do with their underperforming game. Just two weeks after Concord’s release, Sony pulled the team shooter offline on September 6 and issued refunds to everyone who bought the game for the PlayStation 5 or PC from Steam and the Epic Games Store. Sony said in a statement that it pulled the game in order to “explore options, including those that will better reach our players.” Naturally, Kotaku reports that a lot of Firewalk’s staffers are worried about the status of their jobs in the wake of Concord’s disappointing release.

The extremely poor sales of Concord make it one of the biggest bombs in industry history. Analysts estimate that it only sold 25,000 copies on Steam and for PS5 in its first six days.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/concords-disastrous-launch-reportedly-leads-to-its-directors-self-demotion-215515013.html?src=rss

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Get ready to question humanity’s control over the technology that surrounds us because another season of Netflix’s Black Mirror is in the works. Earlier today, the official Black Mirror X page revealed the cast of the new season coming next year along with some other interesting clues and Easter eggs.
The video features an old, flickering computer screen that appears to unload a complete data dump of the entire cast for season 7. Some of the names that jumped out at us includes Oscar nominee Paul Giamatti, Doctor Who star and Oscar winner Peter Capaldi (he won in 1995 with his live action short film Franz Kafka’s It’s a Wonderful Life), Awkwafina, Issa Rae, Tracee Ellis Ross and Rashida Jones. 
The list also included some of the cast who played virtual crew members of the USS Callister from the iconic fourth season episode of the same name. The names from the USS Callister episode that appeared on the list include Cristin Milioti, Jimmi Simpson, Billy Magnussen, Milanka Brooks and Osy Ikhile.
We’ve known for a while now that series creator Charlie Brooker has been planning to revisit the crew of the USS Callister. The season 4 opening episode starred Jesse Plemmons as the chief technology officer named Robert of a top tier game studio and a big fan of a Star Trek-esque TV show called Space Fleet. By day, he gets pushed around and little credit for the company’s success from his colleagues and staff. He uses immersive virtual reality technology to play as Space Fleet Capt. Robert Daly away from work on a virtual starship and takes out his frustrations and anger on the crew in increasingly cruel and inhumane ways. The crew members were replicated in the game using his boss and staff members’ DNA that Robert obtained without their permission or knowledge. The crew revolt and escape to the open Internet while leaving a seething “Capt. Robert” stranded in the game.
TCKR_Confidential_NotForDistribution.mp4 pic.twitter.com/NdaGRQYtba— Black Mirror (@blackmirror) September 19, 2024
Of course, this wouldn’t be a true Black Mirror reveal if it didn’t contain some clues and hidden items in the teaser. The loading screen features the studio name Tuckersoft, a reference to the game studio in the interactive “Bandersnatch” movie. The cast names are listed in alphabetical order by first name but they’ve been broken into eight groups. There are some cryptic phrases between the scrolling group names like “Too soon?”, “A rose for a rose” and “Shields 58 percent.”
Could these be episode titles? The latter definitely sounds like a reference to the USS Callister and Brooker and company love symbolic episode titles taken from songs for their tech hell stories like “Shut Up and Dance” and “Hang the DJ.” The new Black Mirror episodes haven’t even landed yet and they’ve already screwing with our heads.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/black-mirror-season-7-cast-revealed-in-a-cryptic-computer-message-203343148.html?src=rss

Get ready to question humanity’s control over the technology that surrounds us because another season of Netflix’s Black Mirror is in the works. Earlier today, the official Black Mirror X page revealed the cast of the new season coming next year along with some other interesting clues and Easter eggs.

The video features an old, flickering computer screen that appears to unload a complete data dump of the entire cast for season 7. Some of the names that jumped out at us includes Oscar nominee Paul Giamatti, Doctor Who star and Oscar winner Peter Capaldi (he won in 1995 with his live action short film Franz Kafka’s It’s a Wonderful Life), Awkwafina, Issa Rae, Tracee Ellis Ross and Rashida Jones. 

The list also included some of the cast who played virtual crew members of the USS Callister from the iconic fourth season episode of the same name. The names from the USS Callister episode that appeared on the list include Cristin Milioti, Jimmi Simpson, Billy Magnussen, Milanka Brooks and Osy Ikhile.

We’ve known for a while now that series creator Charlie Brooker has been planning to revisit the crew of the USS Callister. The season 4 opening episode starred Jesse Plemmons as the chief technology officer named Robert of a top tier game studio and a big fan of a Star Trek-esque TV show called Space Fleet. By day, he gets pushed around and little credit for the company’s success from his colleagues and staff. He uses immersive virtual reality technology to play as Space Fleet Capt. Robert Daly away from work on a virtual starship and takes out his frustrations and anger on the crew in increasingly cruel and inhumane ways. The crew members were replicated in the game using his boss and staff members’ DNA that Robert obtained without their permission or knowledge. The crew revolt and escape to the open Internet while leaving a seething “Capt. Robert” stranded in the game.

Of course, this wouldn’t be a true Black Mirror reveal if it didn’t contain some clues and hidden items in the teaser. The loading screen features the studio name Tuckersoft, a reference to the game studio in the interactive “Bandersnatch” movie. The cast names are listed in alphabetical order by first name but they’ve been broken into eight groups. There are some cryptic phrases between the scrolling group names like “Too soon?”, “A rose for a rose” and “Shields 58 percent.”

Could these be episode titles? The latter definitely sounds like a reference to the USS Callister and Brooker and company love symbolic episode titles taken from songs for their tech hell stories like “Shut Up and Dance” and “Hang the DJ.” The new Black Mirror episodes haven’t even landed yet and they’ve already screwing with our heads.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/black-mirror-season-7-cast-revealed-in-a-cryptic-computer-message-203343148.html?src=rss

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An Austin-based startup best known for its VR and mixed reality workspace software for other companies’ headsets now has hardware of its own. The Immersed Visor appears to sit somewhere between a Vision Pro Lite and Xreal Plus: a lightweight head-worn device that creates a high-resolution spatial computing environment on the cheap (well, relatively speaking).
Teased to death for months, Immersed founder Renji Bijoy finally unveiled the Visor at an Austin event on Thursday. The device, a bit more than glasses but much less than a full headset, gives each eye the equivalent of a 4K OLED screen. It has a solid 100-degree field of view. It supports 6DoF tracking (meaning it responds to motion on different axes, not just simple head rotations), and it offers hand and eye tracking and support for over five screens in a virtual or mixed reality environment.
Immersed
In the presentation, Bijoy revealed that the Immersed Visor only weighs 186g, slightly less than an iPhone 16 Pro. It’s 64 percent lighter than the Meta Quest 3 (515g) and around 70 percent lighter than the Apple Vision Pro (600 to 650g). Weight and ergonomics have been drawbacks for many early adopters of VR and mixed-reality tech. (That includes some customers of the $3,500 Vision Pro.) So, trimming the Visor’s weight to about the same as a high-end smartphone could, in theory, help it succeed where competitors struggled. Part of that comes from (in borrowing a trick from Apple) a wired battery pack you stash in your pocket.
But unlike those devices, the Immersed Visor doesn’t include an app store or onboard experiences like games. Instead, it’s tailored for work: link it to your Windows, macOS or Linux computer (wirelessly or wired), and get stuff done on its immersive array of virtual screens. Its 6DoF tracking means you can stand up, lean or twist, and the virtual screens will remain planted where you put them, rather than awkwardly following you through space.
Like the company’s workspace app for Meta Quest and Vision Pro, you can operate either in a passthrough view of your space or an entirely virtual one. (It includes pleasant virtual environments like a mountaintop ski resort by a cozy fire.) You can also work with others in a shared space.
The device runs on the Qualcomm XR2+ Gen 2 chip, which debuted at CES 2024. The chip supports up to 4.3K per-eye resolution and can handle content up to 90fps.
Immersed
Immersed has chosen an unconventional pricing scheme. The device starts at $1,050 to buy outright. But you can get it for $400 upfront if you agree to a subscription model: $40 monthly for 24 months or $60 monthly for a 12-month term. Oh, and that model doesn’t ship until “six months after” October, meaning April 2025. If you want a device that starts shipping next month — i.e., the “Founder’s Edition” — that price increases to $1,350 outright or $700 plus the monthly subscription fee (same prices as the later-shipping version).
In theory, the Immersed Visor could hit a sweet spot for many spatial computing-curious folks who want something cheaper than the Vision Pro, with a higher resolution than the Meta Quest 3 and that’s (perhaps) less like a beta product than Xreal’s AR glasses. Whether it succeeds on those points, well, we won’t have a clue until we get some hands-on time. As far as I can see, no major media outlets (including Engadget) have shared hands-on demos of the device. As this year’s wave of absurdly hyped AI gadgets reminded us, big promises mean nothing if you end up with a $1,000 paperweight.
You can watch the presentation below and, if it tickles your fancy, pre-order from Immersed’s website.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ar-vr/the-immersed-visor-aims-for-spatial-computings-sweet-spot-201031456.html?src=rss

An Austin-based startup best known for its VR and mixed reality workspace software for other companies’ headsets now has hardware of its own. The Immersed Visor appears to sit somewhere between a Vision Pro Lite and Xreal Plus: a lightweight head-worn device that creates a high-resolution spatial computing environment on the cheap (well, relatively speaking).

Teased to death for months, Immersed founder Renji Bijoy finally unveiled the Visor at an Austin event on Thursday. The device, a bit more than glasses but much less than a full headset, gives each eye the equivalent of a 4K OLED screen. It has a solid 100-degree field of view. It supports 6DoF tracking (meaning it responds to motion on different axes, not just simple head rotations), and it offers hand and eye tracking and support for over five screens in a virtual or mixed reality environment.

In the presentation, Bijoy revealed that the Immersed Visor only weighs 186g, slightly less than an iPhone 16 Pro. It’s 64 percent lighter than the Meta Quest 3 (515g) and around 70 percent lighter than the Apple Vision Pro (600 to 650g). Weight and ergonomics have been drawbacks for many early adopters of VR and mixed-reality tech. (That includes some customers of the $3,500 Vision Pro.) So, trimming the Visor’s weight to about the same as a high-end smartphone could, in theory, help it succeed where competitors struggled. Part of that comes from (in borrowing a trick from Apple) a wired battery pack you stash in your pocket.

But unlike those devices, the Immersed Visor doesn’t include an app store or onboard experiences like games. Instead, it’s tailored for work: link it to your Windows, macOS or Linux computer (wirelessly or wired), and get stuff done on its immersive array of virtual screens. Its 6DoF tracking means you can stand up, lean or twist, and the virtual screens will remain planted where you put them, rather than awkwardly following you through space.

Like the company’s workspace app for Meta Quest and Vision Pro, you can operate either in a passthrough view of your space or an entirely virtual one. (It includes pleasant virtual environments like a mountaintop ski resort by a cozy fire.) You can also work with others in a shared space.

The device runs on the Qualcomm XR2+ Gen 2 chip, which debuted at CES 2024. The chip supports up to 4.3K per-eye resolution and can handle content up to 90fps.

Immersed has chosen an unconventional pricing scheme. The device starts at $1,050 to buy outright. But you can get it for $400 upfront if you agree to a subscription model: $40 monthly for 24 months or $60 monthly for a 12-month term. Oh, and that model doesn’t ship until “six months after” October, meaning April 2025. If you want a device that starts shipping next month — i.e., the “Founder’s Edition” — that price increases to $1,350 outright or $700 plus the monthly subscription fee (same prices as the later-shipping version).

In theory, the Immersed Visor could hit a sweet spot for many spatial computing-curious folks who want something cheaper than the Vision Pro, with a higher resolution than the Meta Quest 3 and that’s (perhaps) less like a beta product than Xreal’s AR glasses. Whether it succeeds on those points, well, we won’t have a clue until we get some hands-on time. As far as I can see, no major media outlets (including Engadget) have shared hands-on demos of the device. As this year’s wave of absurdly hyped AI gadgets reminded us, big promises mean nothing if you end up with a $1,000 paperweight.

You can watch the presentation below and, if it tickles your fancy, pre-order from Immersed’s website.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ar-vr/the-immersed-visor-aims-for-spatial-computings-sweet-spot-201031456.html?src=rss

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One day after X started to come back online for some people in Brazil, the country’s Supreme Court is threatening the social media company and Elon Musk-owned Starlink with hefty daily fines. In a new order posted online, Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes ordered regulators to “reactivate” blocking of X and said that the two companies could be hit with close $1 million a day in fines for not complying.
The latest order from Moraes, who has been publicly sparring with Musk for months, comes after X became accessible again in Brazil for many users on Wednesday. The company said in an earlier statement the change was “an inadvertent and temporary service restoration” that happened as a result of changing network providers.
Following Brazil’s ban last month, X reportedly shifted to using Cloudflare’s servers in the region, which made it more difficult for Brazilian ISPs to carry out the block. The company said Wednesday it made the change in network providers in order to “to provide service to Latin America” and that it expected its service in Brazil to go offline again “soon.”
Now, Moraes says that X could be fined the equivalent of $921,000 a day, beginning September 19, for each day of “non-compliance” with the ban. Starlink, which previously saw its Brazilian bank accounts frozen amid the dispute, faces “joint liability” if X doesn’t pay, according to the order. Moraes also ordered the country’s internet regulator to “take immediate measures to prevent access to the platform by blocking the ‘CDN Cloudflare, Fastly and EdgeUno’ servers, and other similar ones, created to circumvent the court order that suspended the operation of the old Twitter in Brazil.”
X didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/brazil-threatens-daily-fines-for-x-and-starlink-for-non-compliance-with-ban-194542476.html?src=rss

One day after X started to come back online for some people in Brazil, the country’s Supreme Court is threatening the social media company and Elon Musk-owned Starlink with hefty daily fines. In a new order posted online, Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes ordered regulators to “reactivate” blocking of X and said that the two companies could be hit with close $1 million a day in fines for not complying.

The latest order from Moraes, who has been publicly sparring with Musk for months, comes after X became accessible again in Brazil for many users on Wednesday. The company said in an earlier statement the change was “an inadvertent and temporary service restoration” that happened as a result of changing network providers.

Following Brazil’s ban last month, X reportedly shifted to using Cloudflare’s servers in the region, which made it more difficult for Brazilian ISPs to carry out the block. The company said Wednesday it made the change in network providers in order to “to provide service to Latin America” and that it expected its service in Brazil to go offline again “soon.”

Now, Moraes says that X could be fined the equivalent of $921,000 a day, beginning September 19, for each day of “non-compliance” with the ban. Starlink, which previously saw its Brazilian bank accounts frozen amid the dispute, faces “joint liability” if X doesn’t pay, according to the order. Moraes also ordered the country’s internet regulator to “take immediate measures to prevent access to the platform by blocking the ‘CDN Cloudflare, Fastly and EdgeUno’ servers, and other similar ones, created to circumvent the court order that suspended the operation of the old Twitter in Brazil.”

X didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/brazil-threatens-daily-fines-for-x-and-starlink-for-non-compliance-with-ban-194542476.html?src=rss

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Google has found another way to turn your eyeballs into money: by turning paused YouTube videos into a new real estate for ads. A YouTube communications manager told The Verge they’ve seen “strong advertiser and strong reviewer responses” since they “rolled out Pause ads to all advertisers.”
YouTube first started looking at using ads on pause screens in 2023 with select advertisers. Google’s chief business officer Phillip Schindler announced last April that advertisers loved the new ad concept. YouTube’s viewers aren’t as enthusiastic about the idea.
Reddit users posted screenshots of the new pause screen ads and to say they aren’t happy with the ads is the understatement of the year.
The new ads aren’t just showing up on the website. Ads also pop up when you pause videos on the YouTube mobile app, according to others on the site.
Pause screen ads are not a new concept. Streaming services like AT&T’s DirecTV and Hulu show ads when the screen is paused if you have one of the lower tier subscription plans. Some Amazon products like the Fire tablets also show ads on the lock screen and Amazon announced last May that it plans to expand its ad space offerings for living-room devices, according to Amazon’s official blog.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/youtube/youtube-is-now-showing-ads-when-you-pause-videos-193622495.html?src=rss

Google has found another way to turn your eyeballs into money: by turning paused YouTube videos into a new real estate for ads. A YouTube communications manager told The Verge they’ve seen “strong advertiser and strong reviewer responses” since they “rolled out Pause ads to all advertisers.”

YouTube first started looking at using ads on pause screens in 2023 with select advertisers. Google’s chief business officer Phillip Schindler announced last April that advertisers loved the new ad concept. YouTube’s viewers aren’t as enthusiastic about the idea.

Reddit users posted screenshots of the new pause screen ads and to say they aren’t happy with the ads is the understatement of the year.

The new ads aren’t just showing up on the website. Ads also pop up when you pause videos on the YouTube mobile app, according to others on the site.

Pause screen ads are not a new concept. Streaming services like AT&T’s DirecTV and Hulu show ads when the screen is paused if you have one of the lower tier subscription plans. Some Amazon products like the Fire tablets also show ads on the lock screen and Amazon announced last May that it plans to expand its ad space offerings for living-room devices, according to Amazon’s official blog.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/youtube/youtube-is-now-showing-ads-when-you-pause-videos-193622495.html?src=rss

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Autonomous vehicle outfit Cruise is slowly returning to operation in California following an incident in which a pedestrian was struck and dragged by a robotaxi for approximately 20 feet in October 2023. The company posted on X that it is reintroducing human-operated mapping vehicles to the streets in Mountain View and Sunnyvale. Its next stated goal is “to progress to supervised testing with up to 5 AVs later this fall.”
The past year has not been a pretty picture for Cruise, which was acquired by GM in 2016. On October 2 last year, a pedestrian in San Francisco was hit by a human driver who fled the scene, but the impact put her in the path of a Cruise driverless taxi that dragged her 20 feet and ultimately stopped on top of her leg. After the incident, Cruise was stripped of its license to operate autonomous vehicles in California. The company stopped all operations of both its driverless cars and its manned robotaxi service in order to engage in a comprehensive safety review.
CEO Kyle Vogt resigned in November, followed by the exit of co-founder and chief product officer Daniel Kan. GM announced plans to slash Cruise’s funding and to restructure leadership based on external safety reviews. Nine more members of Cruise leadership were dismissed in December, and nearly a quarter of the company’s workforce was also cut that month. The final blow was an investigation by the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission in January 2024, questioning whether the company failed to disclose additional details about the accident during reviews with regulators.
Since then, however, Cruise has gradually been bouncing back. Vehicles with drivers returned to Arizona in April and to Houston in June. The re-emergence in Texas was paired with an announcement that GM would invest $850 million into Cruise in support of its operational costs. Now it’s rejoined the California market, if in an extremely attenuated capacity. These new excursions have all been preliminary and none of the driverless cars have returned to the streets yet. But Cruise still has a long road ahead to prove its safety credentials and win back public trust.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/cruise-resumes-operations-in-california-thankfully-with-human-drivers-191522681.html?src=rss

Autonomous vehicle outfit Cruise is slowly returning to operation in California following an incident in which a pedestrian was struck and dragged by a robotaxi for approximately 20 feet in October 2023. The company posted on X that it is reintroducing human-operated mapping vehicles to the streets in Mountain View and Sunnyvale. Its next stated goal is “to progress to supervised testing with up to 5 AVs later this fall.”

The past year has not been a pretty picture for Cruise, which was acquired by GM in 2016. On October 2 last year, a pedestrian in San Francisco was hit by a human driver who fled the scene, but the impact put her in the path of a Cruise driverless taxi that dragged her 20 feet and ultimately stopped on top of her leg. After the incident, Cruise was stripped of its license to operate autonomous vehicles in California. The company stopped all operations of both its driverless cars and its manned robotaxi service in order to engage in a comprehensive safety review.

CEO Kyle Vogt resigned in November, followed by the exit of co-founder and chief product officer Daniel Kan. GM announced plans to slash Cruise’s funding and to restructure leadership based on external safety reviews. Nine more members of Cruise leadership were dismissed in December, and nearly a quarter of the company’s workforce was also cut that month. The final blow was an investigation by the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission in January 2024, questioning whether the company failed to disclose additional details about the accident during reviews with regulators.

Since then, however, Cruise has gradually been bouncing back. Vehicles with drivers returned to Arizona in April and to Houston in June. The re-emergence in Texas was paired with an announcement that GM would invest $850 million into Cruise in support of its operational costs. Now it’s rejoined the California market, if in an extremely attenuated capacity. These new excursions have all been preliminary and none of the driverless cars have returned to the streets yet. But Cruise still has a long road ahead to prove its safety credentials and win back public trust.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/cruise-resumes-operations-in-california-thankfully-with-human-drivers-191522681.html?src=rss

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The long-awaited PC port of God of War: Ragnarok is out. This comes nearly two years after the game was released for PS4 and PS5 to positive reviews. This is a pretty big deal on its own, but the port has a feature that not even the original console release had. Players can finally tell Kratos’ son Atreus to shut the heck up, as first reported by Kotaku.
In the original release, Atreus was like Ocarina of Time’s Navi on Adderall. He was, in a word, talkative. Even worse? He tended to ruin puzzle solutions by offering up hints unprompted. Many players complained that this happened even when they weren’t attempting a puzzle. 

In any event, the settings tab includes an option to reduce puzzle hints. This applies to the babbling Atreus, but also other companions throughout the game. I’m no game designer, but adding a mute button to some characters doesn’t seem like a difficult fix. In other words, bring this to the console versions Sony. Digital children should be seen and not heard.
The PC port also brings some other features to the table. There are now audio descriptions for the game’s cinematics and a set of streamer gifs to use on Twitch or YouTube. Of course, the port integrates with both NVIDIA and AMD’s upscaling tools, with support for ultrawide monitors. Let’s hear it for playing games as nature intended, with a ridiculous aspect ratio of 32:9.
The port needs a massive amount of hard drive space, anywhere from 175GB to 190GB, so start the install early in the morning for an afternoon play session. It’s available now via Steam and the Epic Games Store. As a bit of bad news, the PC specs required to play this game are on the beefy side, so performance on the Steam Deck will likely be underwhelming. Redditors are saying that it runs, but is only playable in 30FPS on the lowest settings.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/god-of-war-ragnaroks-pc-port-is-out-and-it-fixes-one-of-the-games-most-annoying-quirks-185925455.html?src=rss

The long-awaited PC port of God of War: Ragnarok is out. This comes nearly two years after the game was released for PS4 and PS5 to positive reviews. This is a pretty big deal on its own, but the port has a feature that not even the original console release had. Players can finally tell Kratos’ son Atreus to shut the heck up, as first reported by Kotaku.

In the original release, Atreus was like Ocarina of Time’s Navi on Adderall. He was, in a word, talkative. Even worse? He tended to ruin puzzle solutions by offering up hints unprompted. Many players complained that this happened even when they weren’t attempting a puzzle. 

In any event, the settings tab includes an option to reduce puzzle hints. This applies to the babbling Atreus, but also other companions throughout the game. I’m no game designer, but adding a mute button to some characters doesn’t seem like a difficult fix. In other words, bring this to the console versions Sony. Digital children should be seen and not heard.

The PC port also brings some other features to the table. There are now audio descriptions for the game’s cinematics and a set of streamer gifs to use on Twitch or YouTube. Of course, the port integrates with both NVIDIA and AMD’s upscaling tools, with support for ultrawide monitors. Let’s hear it for playing games as nature intended, with a ridiculous aspect ratio of 32:9.

The port needs a massive amount of hard drive space, anywhere from 175GB to 190GB, so start the install early in the morning for an afternoon play session. It’s available now via Steam and the Epic Games Store. As a bit of bad news, the PC specs required to play this game are on the beefy side, so performance on the Steam Deck will likely be underwhelming. Redditors are saying that it runs, but is only playable in 30FPS on the lowest settings.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/god-of-war-ragnaroks-pc-port-is-out-and-it-fixes-one-of-the-games-most-annoying-quirks-185925455.html?src=rss

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Apple Intelligence is edging closer to being ready for primetime. Apple has released the public beta of iOS 18.1, which includes some of the major generative AI features that the company has been talking up over the last few months.
We’ll have to wait a few more weeks for the public versions of iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 18.1 to bring Apple Intelligence features to everyone with a compatible device. The public betas should be more stable and less risky to install than the developer betas, but it’s still definitely worth backing up your data to your computer and/or iCloud before putting this build of iOS 18.1 on your iPhone.
Right now, the only iPhones that support Apple Intelligence are the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, but that will change on Friday when Apple ships the iPhone 16 lineup. M-series iPads and Macs will support Apple Intelligence too.
For now, you’ll need to have your device and Siri language set to US English to access Apple Intelligence tools. If you want to use Apple Intelligence in a language other than English (or in a localized version of English), you may need to wait until at least December for the public versions of the operating systems that support it.
Apple is gradually rolling out Apple Intelligence tools over the coming months, so not all of them will be available right away. The initial wave of features includes the ability to transcribe phone calls (and audio notes in the Notes app) and get summaries of the key details. Writing tools (rewriting, proofreading and summarizing), email prioritization and smart replies, notification summaries and photo clean up features are also on the docket. You’ll be able to create memories in the revamped Photos apps and check out the first incarnation of the redesigned, glowing Siri (including the ability to type requests to the assistant).
You’ll need to wait longer for certain other features, including ChatGPT integration, Genmoji, Image Playground (i.e. image generation) and Siri’s ability to better understand personal context. Apple will roll those out over the coming months.
How to get the new Apple Intelligence features
On your iPhone, go to Settings > General > Software Update > Beta Updates and select the iOS 18 public beta option. Once the iOS 18.1 public beta is available for your device, you’ll be able to see it on the software update page. You might need to free up some space before you can install the beta. To enable Apple Intelligence, go to Settings > Apple Intelligence & Siri > Join the Apple Intelligence waitlist.
The public beta installation process is almost identical on iPad. On your Mac, you’ll need to go to System Settings > General > Software Update. Click the info symbol next to the ”Beta updates” option and you should be able to install the iOS 18.1 public beta from there when it’s available.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/the-ios-181-public-beta-is-here-bringing-apple-intelligence-almost-to-the-masses-175248580.html?src=rss

Apple Intelligence is edging closer to being ready for primetime. Apple has released the public beta of iOS 18.1, which includes some of the major generative AI features that the company has been talking up over the last few months.

We’ll have to wait a few more weeks for the public versions of iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 18.1 to bring Apple Intelligence features to everyone with a compatible device. The public betas should be more stable and less risky to install than the developer betas, but it’s still definitely worth backing up your data to your computer and/or iCloud before putting this build of iOS 18.1 on your iPhone.

Right now, the only iPhones that support Apple Intelligence are the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, but that will change on Friday when Apple ships the iPhone 16 lineup. M-series iPads and Macs will support Apple Intelligence too.

For now, you’ll need to have your device and Siri language set to US English to access Apple Intelligence tools. If you want to use Apple Intelligence in a language other than English (or in a localized version of English), you may need to wait until at least December for the public versions of the operating systems that support it.

Apple is gradually rolling out Apple Intelligence tools over the coming months, so not all of them will be available right away. The initial wave of features includes the ability to transcribe phone calls (and audio notes in the Notes app) and get summaries of the key details. Writing tools (rewriting, proofreading and summarizing), email prioritization and smart replies, notification summaries and photo clean up features are also on the docket. You’ll be able to create memories in the revamped Photos apps and check out the first incarnation of the redesigned, glowing Siri (including the ability to type requests to the assistant).

You’ll need to wait longer for certain other features, including ChatGPT integration, Genmoji, Image Playground (i.e. image generation) and Siri’s ability to better understand personal context. Apple will roll those out over the coming months.

How to get the new Apple Intelligence features

On your iPhone, go to Settings > General > Software Update > Beta Updates and select the iOS 18 public beta option. Once the iOS 18.1 public beta is available for your device, you’ll be able to see it on the software update page. You might need to free up some space before you can install the beta. To enable Apple Intelligence, go to Settings > Apple Intelligence & Siri > Join the Apple Intelligence waitlist.

The public beta installation process is almost identical on iPad. On your Mac, you’ll need to go to System Settings > General > Software Update. Click the info symbol next to the ”Beta updates” option and you should be able to install the iOS 18.1 public beta from there when it’s available.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/the-ios-181-public-beta-is-here-bringing-apple-intelligence-almost-to-the-masses-175248580.html?src=rss

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The original PlayStation console, otherwise called the PS1, came out in Japan in late 1994. So we are quickly coming up on the console’s 30th birthday. To commemorate the occasion, Sony just revealed nostalgia-tinged redesigns of both the PS5 and the forthcoming PS5 Pro. They look like the original PlayStation, with that classic gray colorway and the old-school logo. Gamers of a certain age will have a hard time resisting these things. Sony did something similar in 2014 with the PS4 for the console line’s 20th anniversary.
This isn’t a quick and dirty redesign. There was legitimate thought put into this. The updated DualSense controller doesn’t quite match the original design, but does mesh with the overall aesthetic. Sony’s throwing in a retro-looking cable connector housing, PlayStation-shaped cable ties and a themed vertical stand. The box even looks like it came from a Toys “R” Us in the 1990s. 

There are two bundles to choose from. The PS5 bundle ships with the digital version of the console (so no disc drive,) a standard DualSense controller, the aforementioned accessories and additional goodies like a sticker, a poster and, uh, a PlayStation paperclip. 
The PS5 Pro bundle includes everything mentioned above, but includes both a standard controller and the DualSense Edge. It also includes a retro cover for the optional disc drive and the charging stand. It’s easy to dunk on that costly PS5 Pro when it looks basically the same as a regular PS5. It’s much harder to do when it looks like it stepped out of a 1995 fever dream.
Sony
Even the bizarre pseudo-portable PlayStation Portal is getting a themed refresh, which features the iconic gray exterior. Sony fans can even pick up redesigned controllers without springing for an entire console.
Preorders start on September 26 at participating retailers and via the company itself. These items will be released on November 21. That’s just a couple of weeks after the PS5 Pro launches. To that end, Sony’s only making 12,300 of the PS5 Pro retro consoles, so we recommend getting that preorder in early. The company hasn’t released pricing information, unfortunately, and it’s likely that the PS5 Pro bundle will absolutely obliterate bank accounts. We reached out to ask about pricing and will update this post when we hear back.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/playstations-30th-anniversary-ps5-and-ps5-pro-consoles-are-so-very-pretty-170713396.html?src=rss

The original PlayStation console, otherwise called the PS1, came out in Japan in late 1994. So we are quickly coming up on the console’s 30th birthday. To commemorate the occasion, Sony just revealed nostalgia-tinged redesigns of both the PS5 and the forthcoming PS5 Pro. They look like the original PlayStation, with that classic gray colorway and the old-school logo. Gamers of a certain age will have a hard time resisting these things. Sony did something similar in 2014 with the PS4 for the console line’s 20th anniversary.

This isn’t a quick and dirty redesign. There was legitimate thought put into this. The updated DualSense controller doesn’t quite match the original design, but does mesh with the overall aesthetic. Sony’s throwing in a retro-looking cable connector housing, PlayStation-shaped cable ties and a themed vertical stand. The box even looks like it came from a Toys “R” Us in the 1990s. 

There are two bundles to choose from. The PS5 bundle ships with the digital version of the console (so no disc drive,) a standard DualSense controller, the aforementioned accessories and additional goodies like a sticker, a poster and, uh, a PlayStation paperclip. 

The PS5 Pro bundle includes everything mentioned above, but includes both a standard controller and the DualSense Edge. It also includes a retro cover for the optional disc drive and the charging stand. It’s easy to dunk on that costly PS5 Pro when it looks basically the same as a regular PS5. It’s much harder to do when it looks like it stepped out of a 1995 fever dream.

Even the bizarre pseudo-portable PlayStation Portal is getting a themed refresh, which features the iconic gray exterior. Sony fans can even pick up redesigned controllers without springing for an entire console.

Preorders start on September 26 at participating retailers and via the company itself. These items will be released on November 21. That’s just a couple of weeks after the PS5 Pro launches. To that end, Sony’s only making 12,300 of the PS5 Pro retro consoles, so we recommend getting that preorder in early. The company hasn’t released pricing information, unfortunately, and it’s likely that the PS5 Pro bundle will absolutely obliterate bank accounts. We reached out to ask about pricing and will update this post when we hear back.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/playstations-30th-anniversary-ps5-and-ps5-pro-consoles-are-so-very-pretty-170713396.html?src=rss

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Google is rolling out a really useful update for Google Password Manager, allowing users to sync passkeys across their many devices. Up until this point, folks could only save passkeys to Google Password Manager on Android, so the cross-device utility was limited. It was possible to use the passkeys on other devices, but it would require users to scan a QR code. 
The update allows for passkey saving via Google Password Manager on Windows, macOS, Linux and, of course, Android. ChromeOS is currently being beta tested, so that functionality should come sooner rather than later. Google also says that iOS support is “coming soon.”
Once saved, the passkey automatically syncs across other devices using Google Password Manager. The company says this data is end-to-end encrypted, so it’ll be pretty tough for someone to go in and steal credentials. 
For the uninitiated, a passkey is slightly different from a password. A passkey is a digital credential that allows users to sign in to an account without using a password. The company’s been using passkeys across its software suite since last year.
Today’s update also brings another layer of security to passkeys on Google Password Manager. The company has introduced a six-digit PIN that will be required when using passkeys on a new device. This would likely stop nefarious actors from logging into an account even if they’ve somehow gotten ahold of the digital credentials. Just don’t leave the PIN number laying on a sheet of paper directly next to the computer.
Google passkeys can already be used with the company’s productivity software, of course, but also with Amazon, PayPal and WhatsApp. Google Password Manager is built right into Chrome and Android devices.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/google-passkeys-can-now-sync-across-devices-on-multiple-platforms-160056596.html?src=rss

Google is rolling out a really useful update for Google Password Manager, allowing users to sync passkeys across their many devices. Up until this point, folks could only save passkeys to Google Password Manager on Android, so the cross-device utility was limited. It was possible to use the passkeys on other devices, but it would require users to scan a QR code. 

The update allows for passkey saving via Google Password Manager on Windows, macOS, Linux and, of course, Android. ChromeOS is currently being beta tested, so that functionality should come sooner rather than later. Google also says that iOS support is “coming soon.”

Once saved, the passkey automatically syncs across other devices using Google Password Manager. The company says this data is end-to-end encrypted, so it’ll be pretty tough for someone to go in and steal credentials. 

For the uninitiated, a passkey is slightly different from a password. A passkey is a digital credential that allows users to sign in to an account without using a password. The company’s been using passkeys across its software suite since last year.

Today’s update also brings another layer of security to passkeys on Google Password Manager. The company has introduced a six-digit PIN that will be required when using passkeys on a new device. This would likely stop nefarious actors from logging into an account even if they’ve somehow gotten ahold of the digital credentials. Just don’t leave the PIN number laying on a sheet of paper directly next to the computer.

Google passkeys can already be used with the company’s productivity software, of course, but also with Amazon, PayPal and WhatsApp. Google Password Manager is built right into Chrome and Android devices.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/google-passkeys-can-now-sync-across-devices-on-multiple-platforms-160056596.html?src=rss

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