Gaming

PC servers for Dark Souls games have temporarily gone offline after a vulnerability was discovered that could allow hackers to execute code remotely on affected computers. Reportedly, the exploit can also plague Elden Ring. Only the PC PvP servers have been taken down, console servers are still up.

Xiaomi's gaming phone brand Black Shark has announced that a 2021 flagship is now available to buy on AliExpress. However, it is not the latest 4S Pro, but the 4 Pro that came before it. Then again, the Snapdragon 888-powered, 120W-charging phone is priced at an attractive discount at the moment.

It's probably the sleekest UPS you can find in the market right now for about $259 USD. However, a few small quality-of-life changes could have made it even easier to use.

Synthetic benchmark results for the upcoming Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 graphics card have been shared, and it seems to be another nail in the coffin for the brand-new AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT board. While the RTX 3050 appears to be likely yet another successful addition to Team Green’s lineup, the much-lambasted RX 6500 XT is practically destined to fail.

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 has yet again been put through a Genshin Impact gaming test, this time versus the Apple 15 Bionic on the iPhone 13 Pro Max. The results? Well, not particularly impressive, especially in terms of power consumption.

The Lenovo Legion Y90 is expected to make its grand debut sometime in the future and a new leak has now revealed all major specifications of the gaming phone ahead of time. Notable takeaways include a stunning 18 GB of RAM and 144 Hz AMOLED with 720 Hz touch sampling.

The Core i7-11800H CPU and GeForce RTX 3080 mobile GPU complement the bright, high-contrast 4K OLED screen well and are able to run all current titles smoothly. The GPU comes with 16 GB of video memory. Another plus: The laptop integrates a Thunderbolt 4 port.

RedMagic, which has been building its brand of flagship Android smartphones over the last few years, now seems to have ambitions to expand its gaming ecosystem beyond this platform in 2022. The OEM is now slated to do so with its inaugural monitor, not to mention a VR headset, that might debut alongside the 7 series of mobile devices in the near future.

Attempting to mine Ethereum with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 will be a futile endeavour. The graphics card can hit a peak hash rate of 13.66MH/s due to its in-built hash-rate limiter. This should make it unattractive to miners, allowing more gamers to pick one up on its January 27 launch.

As if GPU prices weren't already high enough, Nvidia has now silently increased the European prices for all Founders Edition RTX 30-Series graphics cards like the RTX 3070 due to purported currency exchange rate fluctuations.

Valve has tested numerous games for Steam Deck compatibility, its RDNA 2-based handheld games console. So far, just over 40 have been certified as playable, including Cuphead and Death Stranding, among others.

Sony's stock has fallen by US$20 billion following the news of Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard. This is the sharpest drop in Sony's shares since 2008, demonstrating the impact of Microsoft's deal on the gaming industry. It will be interesting to see how Sony responds to Microsoft and the Xbox Game Pass service.

Industry insider Tom Henderson has learned that EA could make Battlefield 2042 free-to-play in "some capacity" after the game's failed launch and the ensuing player exodus.

Intel's top-of-the-line Arc Alchemist dGPU manages to perform on par with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti on SiSoftware's benchmark. The listing tells us that it packs 16GB of VRAM and is clocked at 2.1GHz. Intel is expected to unveil its graphics card lineup sometime in Q1, 2022.

After Intel officially launched its brand-new Alder Lake CPUs a few months ago, more and more compatible Z690 motherboards are being released, some of which are apparently designed for very demanding gamers with deep pockets and sky-high expectations.

The wireless X Hyperspeed variant of Razer's popular Basilisk gaming mouse is currently on sale for US$35 at Amazon, which is a decent deal for gamers who are in need of a new and sleek pointing device.

The RTX 3070 Ti manages to slightly outclass the median score of an RTX 3080 mobile GPU and it even matches a desktop Titan RTX from a few years ago in OpenCL tests. The first laptops powered by the RTX 3070 Ti mobile GPU are expected to go on sale in early February starting at US$1,499.

With a certified frequency range from 10 Hz to 40 kHz, the Sharkoon SKILLER SGH50 gaming headset provides an excellent audio experience for more than just online or offline battles that require accurate reproduction of explosions, footsteps, or engine sounds. Those interested can already acquire it for less than 60 Euros (US$68).

From displays to chassis designs, we take a look at 3 of our top picks for laptop features that should be in our laps right now, but just haven't quite made it. Are these features truly innovations or just cheap gimmicks OEMs will use to sell you a laptop for one or two years?

Advertised by AMD as capable of delivering an optimal 1080p gaming experience "with the fastest clocks on a gaming card in the world's first 6nm discrete GPU," the Radeon RX 6500 XT has a starting price of US$199.99. Unfortunately, finding in stock these cards, and even most custom versions with prices below US$250 seems impossible.

MediaTek has confirmed that it is working to support the roll-out of Wi-Fi 7 already. These products are projected to incorporate new and upgraded specs for improved speeds and bandwidths compared to Wi-Fi 6 or 6E. MediaTek aims to have its first examples of its new chipsets and components on the market by 2023.

Gigabyte's beefy 17-inch gaming laptop is heavily discounted and can basically be bought for the current price of a desktop Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080, which turns this deal into a decent upgrade opportunity for high-end gamers.

The Schenker XMG Pro 17 we just tested shows the attempt of the manufacturer to also design and advertise large gaming laptops as a slim solution for creative professionals. While this may turn off some gaming enthusiasts who value the highest performance, it may also attract another target group.

Humble Choice has suspended its support for Mac and Linux systems as the company develops a new launcher for its subscription. The launcher will only be available for Windows PCs on February 1. Subscribers on Mac and Linux have until the end of the month to download DRM-free games from the Trove collection that are still supported, as some of these indie games will no longer be available in Mac and Linux versions.

Anbernic is preparing to release a Windows-based handheld, the first by the company. While the device resembles many contemporary devices, Anbernic has settled on some unusual button placements, even if they could prove rather useful.

In the largest deal in gaming history, Microsoft acquired Activision Blizzard for a record US$68.7 billion. The purchase, which was made entirely with cash, will cement Microsoft as the third-largest gaming company in the world. The deal is targeting 2023 for a closing date.

Either the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 or RTX 4090 Ti is likely to come with a TDP rating of 600 W. If accurate, desktop PC builders would have to look into securing at least a 1,200 W-capable power supply unit (PSU) for maximum efficiency. The “Lovelace” RTX 40 series is expected to launch at the end of 2022.

Lenovo has showcased its first-gen Legion Android gaming tablet in a new video teaser showing the slate in full from all angles. The clip gives the impression of being a full trailer for the slate's upcoming launch, reinforcing earlier leaks and teasers concerning its design in the process. Then again, a date for this event is still forthcoming.

The Sharkoon TG7M RGB case comes with a tempered glass side panel, an air-permeable mesh front panel, four preinstalled RGB LED fans (with space for three others), an addressable RGB controller, and can accommodate a 360 mm-long radiator. The manufacturer's suggested price is 109 Euros (roughly US$124).

A new leak says that AMD could launch upgraded versions of the Radeon RX 6900 XT, RX 6800 XT, and the 6700 XT with the RX 6x50 moniker in Q2 2022. It is expected to run faster 18Gbps memory modules and an upgraded GPU.

The VA panel allows for 2x to 3x higher contrast ratios than your typical IPS alternative for truer blacks and more vibrant colors. At just $299, you can't find another 32-inch monitor from a well-known maker with the same features as the S3222DGM.

Shocking prices have turned up for AIB partner variants of both the GeForce RTX 3090 Ti and the GeForce RTX 3050. The top-end RTX 3090 Ti was spotted via a Swiss comparison site listed at prices equivalent to US$3,500 and upwards. The entry-level RTX 3050 turned up in an Amazon Japan listing for well over its United States MSRP of US$249.

Two separate reports online state that Nvidia has asked AIB partners to halt GeForce RTX 3090 Ti production due to problems related to the hardware and BIOS. Nvidia is yet to announce the graphics card officially and is expected to do so sometime in January 2022.

RedMagic is expected to keep its line of high-performance Android gaming flagship phones going with a new 7 series in 2022. Now, one of them has allegedly shown up on Geekbench with some appropriately top-end specs. Furthermore, it is touted to launch alongside an even more powerful Pro variant.

his would be the third version for the RTX 3060 Ti model. It appears to be based on the GA103 GPU also powering the RTX 3080 Ti laptop variants and rumor has it that its specs are identical to the current GA104-based version, but it might be fabricated on Samsung's improved nodes, so we could actually see decent supplies and lower prices.

With solid enthusiast-grade specs like the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H, Nvidia RTX 3070 and an enticingly discounted price, this deal on the sixth generation Lenovo Legion 7 may be worth consideration for gamers who are currently looking for an upgraded laptop.

The Ayn Odin handheld gaming console is finally set to ship on Monday, January 17. However, only the first 200 backers will be shipped a device at this time. While production is ongoing, closures due to the celebration of Chinese New Year are sure to delay future shipments.

The Steam Deck is on track to reach gamers by the end of February 2022, Valve has confirmed. It is also incentivizing developers to optimize their titles for the handheld as a part of the "Steam Deck Verified" program.

Xiaomi has announced the Gaming Mouse Lite, a budget gaming mouse with RGB lighting. The Gaming Mouse Lite also has a Pixart 3327 optical sensor, five DPI presets and a 1,000 Hz polling rate, all for CNY 129 (~US$20).

The launch of the GeForce RTX 3070 Ti 16 GB remains on the cards after months of delays. The RTX 3070 Ti 16 GB may be even less of an upgrade from the RTX 3070 Ti than the RTX 3080 12 GB is from the original RTX 3080, though.

The Black Shark 5 Pro is tipped as a flagship smartphone with the latest top-end Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor, as befits its brand's 'gaming' reputation. However, its vanilla variant has allegedly leaked with specs from 2021. To be more exact, they seem to match those of the current 4S Pro flagship nearly exactly.

One-netbook has started selling the ONEXPLAYER mini globally, a 7-inch handheld powered by an Intel Core i7-1165G7 processor. The ONEXPLAYER mini costs at least 60% more than the Steam Deck though, even during One-netbook's pre-sale period.

Sharkoon's latest case, namely the TG4M RGB, features a tempered glass side panel, an air-permeable mesh front panel, four preinstalled RGB LED fans, an addressable RGB controller, and enough room for most users. The manufacturer's suggested price for this ATX case is 74.90 Euros (roughly US$86).

A leaker reports that Xiaomi is preparing to launch a Redmi K50 model aimed at Esports players. Accordingly, the version will feature the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, currently one of the most powerful smartphone chipsets on the market. The device is also thought to house X-axis linear motors, among other features.

A new rumour online states that it will be a tad easier to get your hands on an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 on January 27. Nvidia seems to have a large batch at its disposal to keep up with launch day demand.

NVIDIA has released SHIELD Experience 9, a new UI for its TV sticks and boxes based on Android 11. The upgrade involves a bevy of new features, support for aptX-compatible Bluetooth devices, Dolby Vision HDR and the latest Google entertainment apps included. Some users can even unlock a trial of Peacock Premium.

Take-Two interactive has announced that it will be purchasing Zynga for US$12.7 billion dollars in an effort to boost its stance in the mobile gaming sector as well as incorporate Zynga's popular games to establish itself as a leading mobile developer. The move will aid Take-Two Interactive in broadening its scope and reach new audiences across the globe.