Gaming

The tipster behind a recent claim that the Nintendo Switch 2 would actually materialize as the Nintendo Focus has offered up some new details about the Switch successor console, some games, and even a Pro controller. Interestingly, there was a time when the Nintendo NX, which later became the Switch, was rumored to be heading for release as the Nintendo Focus.

LG US has just augmented its UltraGear series of gaming monitors with new variants, two of which have 27-inch screens and one of which is 32 inches. Of those, the 27GR83Q-B has a 240Hz refresh rate, whereas the 27GR93Q-B and 32GR83Q-B are 144Hz. Nevertheless, all three are touted as "battlefield centerpieces" with AMD FreeSync Premium, 1ms latencies and offers of 30% off their RRPs with free fast shipping for a limited time.

Darin Tyrone Harris, the man who recently leaked over 40 minutes of gameplay of the much-hyped open-world RPG Starfield, has been arrested for property theft. He had uploaded videos showing him mailing allegedly stolen copies of the game that he had posted for sale online. Starfield will be launching at the start of September on Xbox and Steam.

With a generous 38-inch IPS curved panel (2300R curve), the Alienware AW3821DW provides a VESA DisplayHDR 600-compliant visual experience and features G-Sync Ultimate support. This monitor with 144 Hz refresh rate and 1 ms response time is now 24% off on Amazon, so it goes for US$959.98 instead of US$1,259.99.

From screen upgrades to retro docks, there are some truly fascinating Steam Deck accessories kicking about, whether already released or on the horizon. Here are four tantalising options to kick Valve's handheld gaming experience into high gear.

RedMagic touts its 8S Pro as the most "evolved" Android gaming smartphone on the global market due to its "True Full AMOLED Screen" experience driven by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2's Leading Version. However, its immediate successor the 9 Pro could be even better adapted thanks to an upgrade to the upcoming 8 Gen 3, according to a new leak.

The cyber criminal from Great Britain supposedly connected to the internet via a regular Amazon Fire TV Stick and a television set in his hotel room, which he used to gain unauthorized access to the source code of the highly anticipated sixth main entry in the Grand Theft Auto series, also known as GTA 6.

Various bundles of Sony TVs and the PlayStation 5 console are currently discounted at Amazon in the US. 4K models, such as the X90L Series and A80L Series, in sizes between 55-in and 85-in, are included in the offer. While the bundles had been reduced in price previously, further reductions make them even cheaper.

A couple of leaks concerning the expected PlayStation 5 Pro console have turned up, resulting in some contrasting news in regard to the device’s so-called Viola APU. It seems the PS5 Pro specifications will leave it with around twice the GPU compute performance of the PlayStation 5 despite still sporting a Zen 2-based CPU component.

The open-box GIGABYTE AORUS 15 gaming notebook in excellent condition has been discounted to less than US$800 at Best Buy. The laptop features a 15.6-inch FHD 144 Hz display, a Core i5-13500H CPU, and an RTX 4050 GPU. Furthermore, thanks to spare slots, the RAM and storage can be augmented providing some future-proofing.

In an interview with IGN, Phil Spencer stated that Microsoft doesn't plan to launch any new Xbox consoles, effectively shutting down rumours about an Xbox Series X Pro being in the pipeline.

The RTX 4060 Ti might be getting a price drop according to a new leak from Moore's Law Is Dead. Per one of the leaker's "best NVIDIA sources", the company will drop prices of the RTX 4060 Ti in the coming weeks to compete with the RX 7800 XT and RX 7700 XT GPUs that AMD is expectedly revealing at Gamescom.

The Corsair Platform:6 modular desk has been revealed ahead of its release later this year. You can choose from a wide range of accessories to adapt the desk, such as adjustable height legs and extra width. A rail system with dual monitor arms, a wire management tray and USB charging ports come as standard.

Qualcomm has revamped its handheld gaming console SoC offering with the new Snapdragon G Series. The Snapdragon G Series is now comprised of three tiers — the G1 Gen 1, G2 Gen 1, and the G3x Gen 2, which is an upgrade over last year's G3x Gen 1 used in the Razer Edge 5G. According to Qualcomm, the Snapdragon G3x Gen 2's 8-core Kryo CPU offers a 30% performance gain while the Adreno A32 GPU offers a 2x improvement over the previous generation.

The Alienware AW2524HF is Dell's second attempt at releasing a 500 Hz gaming monitor. While the Alienware AW2524HF shares many of the same core features as the Alienware AW2524H, the Alienware AW2524HF is significantly cheaper than its namesake and supports AMD FreeSync Premium instead of NVIDIA's alternatives.

Philips has announced the Evnia 49M2C8900, a rival to the ASUS ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD. Equipped with a 49-inch QD-OLED panel, the Evnia 49M2C8900 has a 1440p resolution, a 240 Hz refresh rate and modern I/O. Philips has revealed pricing and availability for its new ultra-wide gaming monitor too.

Sony has unveiled two new PlayStation-branded audio products, the Pulse Elite and Pulse Explore. The former is a headset with a retractable boom mic, and the latter is a pair of TWS earbuds. Both will support the company's new PlayStation Link audio technology.

Project Q, Sony's mysterious handheld, has now officially been announced as the PlayStation Portal. Its 8-inch LCD screen can stream games at 1080p 60 FPS. It can be pre-ordered at a later date for US$199.99.

MSI has just released the special Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Edition of its Stealth 16. The laptop still has a 13th-gen Intel Core i9 processor and RTX 4070 graphics for its OLED display, but comes with a new "esthetic" design and new unboxing experience based on its officially licensed branding. The OEM asserts that it will thus deliver a "luxury gaming experience" combined with "extreme performance".

The Odyssey Ark (G97NC) is a modest update on last year's model. Allegedly launching in October, the new Odyssey Ark adds DisplayPort 1.4 and a KVM switch, among other changes.

The Kishi V2 Pro has debuted as Razer's latest snap-on controller for smartphones. It is touted to make mobile gaming "hardcore" with "precision" triggers, microswitches and re-mappable buttons, enhanced with the in-house haptics necessary for "console-worthy" realism and responsitivity. To this end, its special edition has a branded button for Xbox Game Pass.

AYANEO has confirmed initial Pocket S details. The AYANEO Pocket S will be one of the first devices powered by the Snapdragon G3x Gen 2, a chipset that promises to outperform the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and its overclocked variants.

Samsung has finally released the Odyssey Neo G9 G95NC, a 57-inch gaming monitor that it announced in January 2023. The Odyssey Neo G9 G95NC is already available to order in Europe and the UK, where it retails for €2,499 and £2,199, respectively. US residents must wait until October before they can pre-order the US$2,499 gaming monitor, though.

With a 3-side virtually borderless design and a stand with adjustable height, pivot, and tilt, the 27-inch LG Ultragear 27GP850-B sports 2,560 X 1,440 pixels, 1 ms reponse time, and a refresh rate of up to 165 Hz. Thanks to a 30% discount, it can be purchased on Amazon for US$299.99 instead of US$429.99.

The expected console commonly known as the Nintendo Switch 2 has once again been named the Nintendo Focus by a would-be leaker who recently provided alleged release date and price details. This time around, there is a supposed logo for the next-generation Nintendo console along with some details about games, including Arms 2.

CD Projekt Red showed off some Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty gameplay footage at Gamescom 2023. It includes new weapons, cyberware, missions and a previously-inaccessible district, some of which will be available in the base game. The DLC will be playable on September 26 on current-gen consoles and PC.

The ultra-heavy behemoth of a gaming laptop has hit one of its lowest sale prices yet as Dell now grants a substantial discount on the RTX 4080-powered model variant of the Alienware m18, which may be a suitable offer for high-end gamers who are in the market for a powerful 18-inch desktop replacement.

Forza Motorsport can now be pre-ordered via Steam and Microsoft Store. Its system requirements are lax, allowing the game to run on older hardware. Those who purchase the Premium Edition can play it on October 5, while the rest will have to wait until October 10.

ASUS has now confirmed pricing for the ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD, a gaming monitor that the company debuted in May. The company has also revealed a rough release window for the ultra-wide gaming monitor, which is much earlier than any of the company's other new ROG Swift OLED gaming monitors.

ASUS has brought several gaming monitors to Gamescom 2023, including the ROG Swift OLED PG32UCDM. According to ASUS, the ROG Swift OLED PG32UCDM is the world's first 4K OLED gaming monitor that also has a 240 Hz refresh rate. ASUS has revealed a release window for the ROG Swift OLED PG32UCDM too, plus a few other specifications.

Atari is hoping to capitalize on nostalgia with the 2600+, a modern recreation of the company's 1977 2600 console. The new 2600+ has modern amenities but supports original Atari 2600 and 7800 game cartridges.

ASUS has announced the ROG Swift OLED PG34WCDM, one of several gaming monitors shown by the company today at Gamescom 2023. Based around a bright OLED panel, the ROG Swift OLED PG34WCDM also has an 800R curvature, a 1440p native resolution and a 240 Hz refresh rate, among other features.

The Legion Go is Lenovo's first gaming handheld, with the company cancelling the Legion Play last year. Based on several benchmark listings, it appears that Lenovo has decided to go the way of One-netbook and equip the Legion Go with a 1600p display, which also has a 16:10 aspect ratio.

The Legion 9i will serve as a new flagship gaming laptop for Lenovo when it lands later this year. Not only does the Legion 9i utilise an Intel Core i9-13980HX processor and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 16 GB GPU, but Lenovo has also included a water cooling system and a 99 Wh battery, among other features.

Developed by NEXON and set to arrive at Gamescom 2023, The First Descendant will launch as the world's first title to comply with the HDR10+ Gaming visual standard. The open beta test of the aforementioned game is scheduled to kick off on September 19 globally (except for China, unfortunately).

AYN Technologies is now selling the Odin2, its Snapdragon 8 Gen 2-based gaming handheld. Originally available from US$268, the Odin2 has a 6-inch and 1080p display, an 8,000 mAh battery and runs Android 13, among other features.

An RTX remaster of Half-Life 2 is on the way. According to NVIDIA, Half-Life 2 RTX is being developed by 'four of the top Half-Life 2 Mod teams', who are using various techniques to improve image quality from the original game. NVIDIA has also released a short Half-Life 2 RTX video, highlighting the visual improvements even at this early stage of development.

According to reports, AYANEO is preparing to launch a second Android gaming handheld, with the Pocket Air already in the pipeline. Supposedly being developed under the codename Project S, the AYANEO Pocket S may feature a Qualcomm chipset that outperforms the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. Renders of the alleged AYANEO Pocket S have also surfaced online.

AYANEO has teased a second version of the Pocket Air, which should also be significantly more powerful than the Dimensity 1200 edition that it had already announced. The Snapdragon version of the Pocket Air will directly rival the AYN Odin2 that launches tomorrow from US$299.

With a 2,560 X 1,080 pixels and a 29.5-inch VA panel with 1500R curve, the Acer Nitro XZ306C Xwmiiiphx also delivers up to 200 Hz refresh and a minimum response rate of 1 ms. Bundled alongside HDMI and DP cables, it is now down by 37% and goes for a 30-day-low US$219.99 instead of Amazon's list price of US$349.99.

Best Buy is selling the Alienware m16 for only US$1,699.99. Featuring a Core i7-13700HX CPU, an RTX 4070 GPU, and 16 GB of DDR5 memory, the laptop appears to be a worthy mid-range contender. Additionally, the notebook packs a 16-inch QHD+ IPS panel rocking a 165 Hz refresh rate, a 3 ms response time, and 100% coverage of the sRGB gamut.

The 2023 ASUS ROG Strix G18 with an 18-inch 240 Hz QHD+ display, a Core i9-13980HX, and an RTX 4080 has been discounted by a juicy 16% at Best Buy. The notebook also comes with 16 GB of dual-channel DDR5-4800 memory and 1 TB of PCIe storage both of which are expandable thanks to SO-DIMM and M.2 slots.

Acer has started selling the Predator X32Q FS in China. Equipped with a 32-inch IPS panel, the Predator X32Q FS has a 4K resolution, a 150 Hz refresh rate and 1,152 Mini LED local dimming zones, among other features.

Samsung has announced a second generation of its innovative The Freestyle projector, designed to throw a 1080p image of 30 to 100 inches in size anywhere in an automatic "Point and Play" manner. This new variant is shipped pre-loaded with a Hub full of gaming apps such as NVIDIA GeForce NOW, Amazon Luna, Twitch and Xbox Game Pass out of the box.

Often criticized by players for its class system, which is a downgrade from the one in Warhammer: Vermintide 2, Warhmmer 40,000: Darktide will get a massive improvement in October. The upcoming refresh will bring RPG-style skill trees for each of the four classes currently available in the game.