E3's digital event now officially ditched following cancellation of in-person show - Eurogamer.net

But Summer Game Fest is forging ahead.

E3 has officially ditched its digital-only event this year, which, following the cancellation of its in-person show back in January, means there'll be no E3 at all in 2022.

E3's 2022 started to look shaky in January, when show organiser the ESA confirmed it wouldn't be holding a physical event this year due to potential risks from covid - though several journalists subsequently suggested it had actually been scrapped before Christmas - marking the third year in a row E3's in-person component has been cancelled.

Instead, there were reports the Entertainment Software Association was once again planning a digital offering in place of this year's live show - in a similar manner to last year's virtual event - but the organisation has now confirmed E3 will be skipping 2022 entirely.

"We will devote all our energy and resources to delivering a revitalised physical and digital E3 experience next summer," the ESA said in a statement shared by IGN. "Whether enjoyed from the show floor or your favourite devices, the 2023 showcase will bring the community, media, and industry back together in an all-new format and interactive experience. We look forward to presenting E3 to fans around the world live from Los Angeles in 2023."

E3's long-time domination of the video game calendar has, of course, grown increasingly wobbly in recent years - even before the pandemic hit, an increasing number of publishers, including Sony, EA, and Activision, had started abandoning the show. And its troubles have only become more pronounced during the pandemic - its own digital event proved largely lacklustre in 2021, with a wider number of publishers enjoying success with their own digital showcases outside of the E3 umbrella throughout the year.

And while E3 has continued to flounder in a world of online-only events, the likes of Geoff Keighley's Summer Game Fest have stepped in to fill the void. Last year's Summer Game Fest delivered a months-long programme of reveals and announcements - and now, following today's E3 statement, Keighley has confirmed he's ready to do it all again this year.

"Excited to share that Summer Game Fest will return this June with a slate of events," the omnipresent host wrote in a tweet shared shortly after today's E3 news. "We'll be producing another Kickoff Live show with announcements, news and first looks. Much more to share in the coming weeks, along with some very cool new elements for '22."

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2022-03-31 20:07:00Z
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Exclusive: Microsoft is moving ahead with an Xbox Game Pass Family Plan - Windows Central

Source: Matt Brown | Windows Central

What you need to know

• Xbox Game Pass is Microsoft's Netflix-like game subscription, providing access to hundreds of games for a relatively low cost.
• One way in which it isn't like Netflix is the lack of a Family Plan, allowing you to attach additional accounts to one subscription.
• That is all set to change, as we can exclusively confirm plans for an Xbox Game Pass "Family Plan" are moving ahead.

Rejoice, Xbox fans, for Microsoft is about to plug an annoying gap in its Xbox Game Pass (XGP) service. Xbox Game Pass is Microsoft's all-you-can-eat Netflix-like game subscription service, giving you access to hundreds of games for a relatively low monthly fee. Multiple plans give you games across PC, Xbox consoles, or the cloud on mobile devices, featuring all of the best Xbox games from Microsoft on day one.

One glaring omission from Xbox Game Pass, historically, has been the lack of any sort of Xbox Game Pass "Family Plan," which would let you share access to the service among a household. We've written about the need for such a plan before, especially since Nintendo offers a Family Plan for its online services, and platforms like Disney+ and Netflix have had it for years now.

I'd heard about Microsoft's desire to create a Family Plan quite a while ago at this point, although there were details to work out about how royalties might be distributed, and how licenses from third-party publishers would be compensated for users who weren't attached to the main plan. According to trusted sources familiar with Microsoft's efforts, we can now confirm that Xbox is moving ahead with an Xbox Game Pass Family Plan, which could be set to launch sometime this year.

Source: Matt Brown / Windows Central

From our information, paying on a higher tier for an Xbox Game Pass Family Plan will net access for five players for games across the entire library, and will be far cheaper than paying for five separate XGP accounts as is necessary today. Utilizing Microsoft's Family Account system already in use for Office 365, players within the same country will be able to play together using a single XGP subscription managed by a central account holder, in much the same way as Netflix.

Some details remain unclear for now, though. For example, will there be separate Family Plans for PC Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass console, or will it all be exclusive to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate? And the exact pricing is also unknown as of writing, besides that it will reportedly be far cheaper than having to pay for several separate accounts as required today.

We're not sure exactly when all of this will be announced, but it does seem as though Microsoft is readying up to make this public in the relatively near future.

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Not Your Phone

Microsoft's Your Phone renamed Phone Link, and Honor joins the fun

The Your Phone app for Windows PCs is undergoing a name change shifting to the more appropriate Phone Link. Likewise, the Android app changed from Your Phone Companion to Link to Windows. Plus, Honor is now part of the exclusive club with advanced Phone Link features.

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2022-03-31 16:36:33Z
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OnePlus 10 Pro review: settling in - The Verge

The 10 Pro is OnePlus all grown up. The days of a scrappy upstart challenger are gone — that much was clear with last year’s 9 and 9 Pro, with true flagship specs and prices to match.

This year, OnePlus has sharpened its vision of a legitimate flagship phone to challenge the big brands, and the result is a sophisticated, sleek device. It’s not just a cheaper flagship; it’s a real alternative to Samsung and Google, with an identity all its own.

That’s not to say that OnePlus has entirely closed the gap between itself and the big Android brands. The 10 Pro’s $899 price makes more sense than last year’s $1,069 9 Pro. (There was a less expensive version, but it never came to the US.) But at the same price, there are good reasons to consider the Pixel 6 Pro or the $999 Galaxy S22 Plus over the 10 Pro. OnePlus has some work to do to catch up to those competitors in the camera department, for one. And it still hasn’t worked things out with AT&T, so there’s no support for that carrier’s 5G network — just 4G.

Those are some major considerations, and they keep me from freely recommending the 10 Pro to just anyone looking for a premium Android phone. But I’m encouraged by the direction the company is taking with the 10 Pro, and if this is indeed the new OnePlus, I like where it’s headed.

With a 6.7-inch screen, the OnePlus 10 Pro is no doubt a big phone. It features a 1440p LTPO OLED panel that’s gently curved on the long edges. Its 20:9 aspect ratio is a hair taller than the S22 Plus and Pixel 6 Pro’s displays, and it matches their top refresh rate of 120Hz. Side by side, I can see that the display doesn’t get quite as searingly bright as the Galaxy S22 Plus’ when they’re both exposed to direct sunlight, but it’s bright enough to use comfortably, even outdoors.

The 10 Pro features an aluminum frame along with Gorilla Glass Victus on the front and Gorilla Glass 5 on the back panel. OnePlus took a page out of Samsung’s book and blended the metallic camera bump housing into the side rails of the phone, and it’s a good look. They may be cribbing someone else’s work, but at least it’s one of the smart kids in the class.

OnePlus is doing that thing again where the carrier version of the phone — only sold through T-Mobile in the US — has an IP68 rating, but the unlocked version doesn’t. OnePlus says there’s no build quality difference between the unlocked phone and the one on T-Mobile’s shelves. Do with that information what you will.

The physical size differences between the 10 Pro and any other big flagship Android phone are small — just a few millimeters in either direction, depending on what device you’re comparing it to. That said, it feels a little sleeker and easier to handle, owing partly to that taller screen. It’s easier for me to wield than the Pixel 6 Pro, which just feels needlessly chunky the more I use it. The 10 Pro’s in-display optical fingerprint sensor is fast and responsive, too, which is an advantage versus the Pixel’s slow fingerprint scanner. All around, it’s an enjoyable phone to carry and use, even for this small phone fan.

The OnePlus 10 Pro uses this year’s top Qualcomm chipset, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. At launch, the only variant sold in North America will be the 128GB version with 8GB of RAM — OnePlus says its 256GB / 12GB RAM will be available in the US at a later date. These specs offer plenty of processing power for day-to-day tasks. I noticed some very occasional stutters with heavier tasks like playing Genshin Impact, but for all intents and purposes, this is a speedy device that delivers flagship-level performance.

Like any other 2022 flagship phone, the 10 Pro offers 5G connectivity. It’s just sub-6GHz 5G, no super-fast millimeter wave (mmWave), which isn’t a problem for the vast majority of people. There’s full low- and mid-band 5G support on T-Mobile right from launch, but the story gets complicated for the other major US carriers. At launch, the 10 Pro won’t have certification to use Verizon’s 5G network, but OnePlus says it’s working with the carrier to obtain it. In all likelihood, Verizon 5G support will arrive shortly after launch like it did last year for the 9 and 9 Pro.

But also like last year, there’s no support for AT&T’s 5G network and no plan to add it at a later date. That means the 10 Pro will be stuck on 4G even as AT&T lights up new mid-band spectrum over the next couple of years that should make a big improvement to its 5G speeds. The Galaxy S22 Plus and Pixel 6 Pro both offer full 5G support on all three major carriers with no caveats, so that’s a substantial miss for the 10 Pro, especially if you’re hoping to use it on AT&T.

The 10 Pro includes a big 5,000mAh battery that, in my experience, easily gets me through a day of moderate (and even some heavy) use. Using the Galaxy S22 Plus, I felt like I had to keep an eye on my battery percentage and was down into the single digits by the end of the day. That’s not the case with the 10 Pro, though I will qualify that claim by saying that, since I’m on Verizon, I wasn’t able to test it on 5G.

I did enable every battery-draining setting I could think of, including the phone’s high-performance mode, 1440p screen resolution, Always on Display enabled, and the fastest screen refresh rate available. Even on a day mostly spent off of Wi-Fi, with some 4K video recording and navigation in the mix, I never ended up in uncomfortably low battery percentages.

There’s more good news on the battery front: the OnePlus 10 Pro supports fast charging, and there’s a fast charger provided right in the box. You definitely won’t get that with a Samsung or Google phone. In the US, the phone supports 65W charging, while other regions can charge at up to 80W. OnePlus says that this only accounts for a two-minute difference in the total time it takes to charge the phone, and realistically, 65W is plenty fast — just over 30 minutes to bring the battery from 0 to 100 percent. At no point while I was testing this phone did I wish that it would charge faster.

All this is to say, you probably won’t need to recharge the 10 Pro in the middle of the day unless you spend a lot of time gaming or streaming video. But if you do need to top the battery off, you’ll be able to do so quickly and without having to spend another $30–$50 to get a fast charger.

The 10 Pro ships with OnePlus’ version of Android 12. It got off to a rough start when it was released for the 9 and 9 Pro, but the launch bugs seem to have been resolved, and I haven’t noticed any significant issues. The Shelf is back — that’s a home screen page where you can put your widgets and an inspirational message / daily affirmation / quote from a ’90s disaster movie. It now features OnePlus’ search feature called Scout, which is similar to Spotlight on the iPhone. It’s not new new, but this is the first time the feature has appeared in a phone sold in the US. It’s a nice way to quickly find contacts, apps, and settings without scrolling through menu pages.

I’ve seen other device makers embrace Android 12’s focus on interface customization, but OnePlus doesn’t seem as keen on it. With a Pixel or Galaxy phone running Android 12, you can choose a color palette inspired by your wallpaper to apply to system-wide controls and app icons. OnePlus offers a fair amount of personalization options, but they’re a little more limited, and they all have more of a “OnePlus” flavor to them. You can have the phone sample colors from a photo in your camera gallery and apply them to a stylized, graphic wallpaper. It’s neat but a decidedly different vibe — one that’s a little more grown up and a little less playful.

OnePlus has boosted its support policy to provide three major OS updates and four years of security updates for the 10 Pro. That’s not as good as what Samsung and Google offer, but it’s getting closer. Google also promises three major OS updates for its own devices but has extended security support to up to five years. Samsung still offers the best support among Android device makers, with four years of OS upgrades and five years of security updates. OnePlus isn’t matching that, but it’s taking a step in the right direction.

There are three rear cameras on the 10 Pro. The fourth cutout on the camera bump belongs to the flash, not a silly monochrome sensor or something like that, thank goodness. There haven’t been any major updates to the rear camera hardware compared to the 9 Pro, but the selfie camera is upgraded with double the resolution.

• Main: 48-megapixels f/1.8 with OIS
• Ultrawide: 50-megapixel f/2.2
• Telephoto: 8-megapixel f/2.4 with OIS
• Front: 32-megapixel, fixed focus

This isn’t exactly the same camera system as last year, and there are some software-based improvements. There’s now an option to shoot in HEIF (High Efficiency Image Format), a compressed still photo format with 10-bit color that Apple has also adopted. It’s not on by default, but you can enable it for all three rear cameras. Provided you’re viewing a HEIF image on a display that supports it, you’ll see a subtle improvement in the range of color it can reproduce compared to a standard 8-bit JPEG. The 10 Pro can shoot 8K video at 24p, albeit with a fairly heavy crop, and offers 4K shooting up to 120p for slow motion.

OnePlus has introduced a new RAW shooting mode, too, called RAW Plus, which is accessible in the camera app’s Pro mode. It’s a computational RAW mode, like Apple’s ProRAW and Samsung’s Expert RAW. Unlike standard RAW shooting, computational RAW modes include data from multiple frames to give you a final RAW image with more flexibility for post-processing.

I’m glad to see it on the 10 Pro, though in the limited testing I’ve been able to do with it, I’m not seeing the noticeable improvements over standard RAW shooting that I saw using Samsung’s version. The RAW Plus file sizes aren’t substantially bigger than the standard RAWs either, which leads me to believe it’s not compiling a lot more information into that computational RAW file. Maybe this feature is a work in progress. In any case, RAW Plus gives you standard DNG files, so you can tinker with them in any RAW processing software like Lightroom or an app like Snapseed.

There are a few more additions to the camera feature set, including three new color filters called Master Styles named for Hasselblad ambassadors, a long exposure mode, and manual exposure controls for video recording. OnePlus has also tweaked its image processing for noise reduction and dynamic range.

This list of updates is frankly a little underwhelming, especially considering that OnePlus’ camera capabilities were already lagging behind that of Samsung and Google. Samsung’s phones now produce some of the best portrait mode photos from any phone, and Google just updated its very good Pixel camera system with all-new hardware. The images I’ve taken with the 10 Pro are good, and the ultrawide camera is still better than most, but I can’t say I’m impressed otherwise.

Night mode photos are weirdly over-brightened, and the camera sometimes has a tendency to overexpose images, even in moderate indoor lighting. Portrait mode photos look okay, but side by side with the S22 Plus, it’s obvious how much further ahead Samsung is. I hope OnePlus will put a little more effort into the next iteration of its camera rather than relying so much on its Hasselblad partnership to do the leg work.

There are a lot of things I like about the OnePlus 10 Pro, starting with the day-to-day experience of using the phone. It just looks nice. Its software is nice. It isn’t fussy or loaded with a lot of apps I don’t need. It’s pleasant to use, like a phone should be.

OnePlus has taken another step in the evolution of its flagship offerings, and it’s a good one. This feels like a device that knows what it is and who it’s for, more so than the 9 and 9 Pro. But it’s tough to recommend this phone when the Pixel 6 Pro is right there, at the same price, with full 5G support on every carrier and a much better camera system. The Galaxy S22 Plus is a little more expensive, but it also has a better camera system, broader 5G support, and will get an additional year of OS upgrades, so that extra $100 might be money well spent in the long run.

Camera quality and 5G compatibility are likely major considerations for someone buying a premium Android phone in 2022, so it’s a shame that the OnePlus doesn’t measure up in those categories. But there’s a likability factor, too. And depending on your priorities, that might be more important than taking better portrait mode photos. The new OnePlus has some more work to do, but it definitely knows how to make a likable phone that feels one of a kind.

Photography by Allison Johnson / The Verge

Every smart device now requires you to agree to a series of terms and conditions before you can use it — contracts that no one actually reads. It’s impossible for us to read and analyze every single one of these agreements. But we started counting exactly how many times you have to hit “agree” to use devices when we review them since these are agreements most people don’t read and definitely can’t negotiate.

To use the OnePlus 10 Pro, you need to agree to:

• OnePlus’ Terms and Conditions, its End User License Agreement, and Privacy Policy
• Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service
• Google Play Terms of Service
• Install updates and apps: “You agree this device may also automatically download and install updates and apps from Google, your carrier, and your device’s manufacturer, possibly using cellular data. Some of these apps may offer in-app purchases.”

There are also several optional agreements that you need to get past during setup:

• Participation in Co-Creation User Programs, which includes built-in app updates, push notifications for surveys and product updates, and system stability reporting
• Join OnePlus’ Red Cable Club
• Assistant Voice Match
• Back up to Google Drive: “Your backup includes apps, app data, all history, contacts, device settings (including Wi-Fi passwords and permissions), and SMS.”
• Use location: “Google may collect location data periodically and use this data in any anonymous way to improve location accuracy and location-based services.”
• Allow scanning: “Allow apps and services to scan for Wi-Fi networks and nearby devices at any time, even when Wi-Fi or Bluetooth is off.”
• Send usage and diagnostic data: “Help improve your Android device experience by automatically sending diagnostic, device and app usage data to Google.”

In total, that’s seven mandatory agreements and seven optional agreements.

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2022-03-31 14:30:00Z
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Nintendo Switch Sports - Official Overview Trailer - IGN

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2022-03-31 09:21:01Z
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Sony exec Jim Ryan believes live service games will dominate over subscriptions - Eurogamer.net

Supporting "sustained engagement over a long period of time".

Sony exec Jim Ryan believes the future of gaming is in live service games and that subscription services won't reach the levels seen in other media.

Ryan discussed the June launch of Sony's revised PS Plus subscription with GamesIndustry.biz, but believes live service games are more likely to become the dominant model.

"That phenomenon of the live service game... that has, in a very large part, fuelled the enormous growth in the gaming industry that we've seen over the last ten years," he said.

"I think that trend towards live services will continue, and if you look for a model in our category of entertainment, which supports sustained engagement over a long period of time, live services games arguably fit that bill better than a subscription service."

He adds: "Subscription has certainly grown in importance over the course of the last few years.

"Our PlayStation Plus subscriber number has grown from zero in 2010, to 48 million now. And we anticipate, for our services, that we will see further growth for the subscriber number.

"But the medium of gaming is so very different to music and to linear entertainment, that I don't think we'll see it go to the levels that we see with Spotify and Netflix."

In the same interview, Ryan discussed why first party games won't be released day one on PS Plus.

Last month we reported that Sony was looking to launch more than 10 live service games before March 2026.

The company's $3.6bn acquisition of Bungie was a strategic move to assist with this. "The strategic significance of this acquisition lies not only in obtaining the highly successful Destiny franchise, as well as major new IP Bungie is currently developing, but also incorporating into the Sony group the expertise and technologies Bungie has developed in the live game services space," said Sony exec Hiroki Totoki at an investor presentation following the acquisition.

"We intend to utilise these strengths when developing game IP at PlayStation Studios as we expand into the live game services area."

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2022-03-30 15:37:00Z
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PS Plus April 2022 PS5, PS4 Games Announced - Push Square

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April 2022's PlayStation Plus games have been confirmed — and look, we know that it's a little more difficult to get excited for regular old PS Plus when Sony's just announced an overhaul of the service, but a whole lot of people still care about their monthly games. So let's take a look, shall we?

As was leaked earlier in the week (what? No way!), these are the PS Plus games for April 2022:

Yeah...the reception to that aforementioned leak wasn't great, but from our perspective, it's worth pointing out that Slay the Spire and SpongeBob are both pretty good games in their own right. Meanwhile, Hood is one of those competitive-co-op hybrids that never really took off, despite some decent reviews. Hopefully it gets a new lease on life thanks to Plus.

All three games will be available to download from Tuesday 5th April.

What's the verdict then? Feel free to wait for PS Plus Premium in the comments section below.

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2022-03-30 15:30:00Z
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New Alpina B4 gets four doors, outpaces BMW M4 Competition - Autocar

2 mins read

30 March 2022

Alpina has filled the gap between the BMW 4 Series and BMW M4 Competition with the second-generation B4, which gains a pair of rear doors for the first time.

Based on the BMW 4 Series Gran Coupé, the new Alpina B4 Gran Coupé arrives just weeks after the Buchloe-based tuning brand was acquired by BMW and is thus officially named the BMW Alpina B4.

It's expected to be the final addition to the marque's current-generation line-up of modified BMW models.

As with the firm's take on the BMW 3 Series, the Alpina B3, the new B4 uses a tuned version of the 'S58' twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre straight-six petrol engine, sending 488bhp and 538lb ft through an eight-speed automatic gearbox to both axles – only slightly less power and 59lb ft more torque than the 503bhp M4 Competition.

Despite the power deficit and weighing 240kg more than the two-door M4 Competition, the B4 is actually 0.1sec quicker than the more hardcore car from 0-62mph, needing just 3.7sec for the sprint, and it just pips it for top speed, too, topping out at 187mph.

The B4 manages 28mpg on the WLTP cycle and emits 229g/km of CO2. 

Modifications to the engine include bespoke turbine housings that "convert exhaust gas energy into boost pressure" at low engine speeds, a larger intercooler, an upsised air filter system and an optimised cooling system. 

The gearbox has been reinforced, too, to cope with the substantially boosted torque output and is configured to send the bulk of the engine's power rearwards, "as befits the athletic character" of the car. 

Unlike the M4, the B4 is geared towards providing not only "high-level driving dynamics but also lots of comfort for relaxed touring". The chassis has therefore been extensively modified in keeping with this billing. 

Alpina lists upgrades including new bulkhead reinforcement struts, stiffer bushings and mounts, bespoke front anti-roll bars and a unique spring-and-damper configuration among the hardware changes that give the B4 a distinct character. Variable dampers are said to give "noticeable differentiation between the various driving modes", while three different modes of steering response are available.

The brakes have been upgraded, too, with four-piston callipers gripping 395mm discs at the front and floating callipers paired with 345mm discs at the rear. Drilled, lightweight composite discs are optionally available.

As is customary for an Alpina car, the styling differences over the standard 4 Series are much more subtle than those of the M4. Unique bumpers, spoilers, exhaust exits, side skirts and badging are the obvious tells, plus there's a new interpretation of the brand's hallmark 20-spoke alloy wheel design. 

Alpina says a new manufacturing process means these 20in wheels tip the scales at just 12kg each.

They're wrapped in high-performance Pirelli P-Zero tyres designed especially for Alpina. 

The B4 is now available to order ahead of deliveries getting underway in July, priced from £80,663. 

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2022-03-30 10:52:30Z
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Dyson announces wearable air purifier with noise-cancelling headphones built in - Sky News

Dyson has announced its most unusual product yet; a wearable air purifier with a pair of noise-cancelling headphones built in.

An initial reveal of the Zone headphones - the first headphones Dyson has released - doesn't come with many specifics about cost or battery life, nor how much the headset weighs.

But the company says that after more than six years in development the device has moved from being something with a snorkel-like mouthpiece and a backpack to the gadget unveiled today - with a release aimed before the end of this year.

Image: Dyson said it started having internal conversations in 2016 about developing some kind of 'purification on the move' technology

Where did this come from?

Dyson said it started having internal conversations in 2016 about developing some kind of "purification on the move" technology, based on its existing air purification technology.

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During initial trials in the smoggy city of Beijing the company struck upon the idea of integrating noise-cancelling headphones.

Doing this also meant the company was able to design the headset so the air filters could be placed in the earcups, minimising some of the unusual bulkiness in previous prototypes.

More from Science & Tech

In its final form the Zone uses a visor to channel "a continuous stream of purified air to your nose and mouth, without touching your face" according to Dyson, which will help address stuffiness.

A separate attachment is also going to be offered that could allow people to turn the headphones into a sealed, full-contact mask.

Image: Dyson's Zone headphones come with an air purification unit

The two-stage purification system is "capable of filtering city fumes and pollutants" and uses a miniaturised version of Dyson's existing air purification technology.

Each filter would need to be replaced after about a year and are capable of filtering out 99% of particle pollution, according to the company - depending on how much use the headphones get.

It follows Public Health England warning that air pollution is the single biggest environmental threat to health in the UK, "with between 28,000 and 36,000 deaths a year attributed to long-term exposure".

Some reviewers have said despite the music and the noise-cancelling technology, the whirring of the air purification units is still audible. Dyson says more information will be forthcoming nearer to launch.

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2022-03-30 09:15:42Z
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Sniper Elite 5 - Official Marksman Trailer - IGN

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2022-03-29 20:00:05Z
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April's Xbox Games With Gold include Hue, Another Sight, and MX vs ATV Alive - Eurogamer.net

With April inching ever closer, Microsoft has hoisted its Games With Gold sack once more, upending it to reveal a fresh selection of titles being made available as part of Xbox Live Gold (and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate) subscriptions next month, which this time look an awful lot like Hue, Another Sight, Outpost Kaloki X, and MX vs ATV Alive.

Hue, if you're unfamiliar, is puzzle adventure that sees players wandering a grey world and using their colour-based powers to push ever forward. Puzzles are largely built around the ability to change the background colour of the world, either causing previously invisible objects to be made visible or to colour-match obstacles so they disappear. Developer Fiddlesticks Games expands on that premise to deliver an experience that's as sweet as it is clever - and Xbox Live Gold subscribers can grab it as part of Games With Gold from 16th April to 15th May.

As for Another Sight, it's a "surreal fantasy adventure" with another distinctive mechanic at its core. Here, players take on the role of a partially sighted girl named Kit and her cat Hodge, flipping between the two and using their respective abilities to solve puzzles and progress - Hodge being smaller, more agile and able to view much more of the environment on-screen, and Kit being more attuned to noises around her and able to manipulate larger objects. It's available on Games With Gold from 1st-30th April.

Games With Gold's other two offerings for April, as is the norm for the service, are both from the Xbox 360 back catalogue. MX vs ATV Alive first released for the console back in 2011, serving up some off-road racing action, while 2004's Outpost Kaloki X is a sci-fi city-builder, putting players in charge of creating and maintaining their own fantasy space station.

MX vs ATV Alive will be available on Xbox Games With Gold from 16th-30th April, while Outpost Kaloki X can be snagged from 1st-15th April.

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2022-03-29 16:17:00Z
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Xbox Games With Gold for April 2022 Revealed - IGN - IGN

Microsoft has announced that March 2022's Games with Gold are Another Sight, Hue, Outpost Kaloki X, and MX vs ATV Alive.

As revealed on Xbox Wire, the four Games with Gold will be available to anyone with Xbox Live Gold or Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, with Another Sight and Outpost Kaloki X available on April 1.

Another Sight is a side-scrolling fantasy adventure where players take control of a girl and her cat in a journey beyond reality. It was released in 2019 and takes around five or six hours to complete.

Also available on April 1, but only until April 15, is Outpost Kaloki X, a light-hearted space-station tycoon game with ridiculous characters and stories that released almost two decades ago in 2004.

In our 7/10 review, IGN said it's "an entertaining and surprisingly deep experience. For anyone looking for a quirky, unique experience, it's worth it to shell out to drop this onto your hard drive."

Available later in the month on April 16 is Hue, another game which concludes after around six hours. This 2016 platformer has players change the colour of the environment to solve puzzles, reveal hidden objects, and phase out obstructions.

Being released on the same day but only available for two weeks until April 30 is MX vs ATV Alive. This off-road racing game from 2011 was the fourth in the series and fans of the genre will know what to expect.

In our 6/10 review, IGN said: "MX vs. ATV Alive is plenty of fun, but not nearly as complete or polished as other racers released during this generation."

Be sure to redeem March 2022's Xbox Games with Gold before they leave the service, that includes The Flame in the Flood, Street Power Soccer, Sacred 2: Fallen Angel, and SpongeBob's Truth or Square.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

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2022-03-29 16:07:17Z
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Rumour: PS Plus PS5, PS4 Games for April 2022 Leaked Early - Push Square

Three things are certain in life: death, taxes, and Dealabs leaking the PlayStation Plus lineup each month. Yes, once again, the French retailer has apparently gained early knowledge of Sony's PS Plus games, meaning we now know April's lineup with near certainty.

So, what are they? According to Dealabs, April 2022's PS Plus games are:

So, nothing too high profile here, but all three games are pretty good ones. We imagine some might have been expecting more, especially with a purported reveal of whatever Project Spartacus is coming this week. Still, there's good variety here at the very least.

Hood: Outlaws & Legends is a multiplayer game combining stealth and action as you compete to steal some treasure. We rather liked it, giving it a 7/10 in our review. Elsewhere, SpongeBob Rehydrated is a good time too — we called it a "vibrant remake of a much loved PS2 platformer" in our review. Finally, Slay the Spire is an addictive, cleverly designed roguelike card game. There's no review on the site, but take this author's word for it; it's worth a try.

Anyway, unless this gets debunked between now and tomorrow's official announcement, this appears to be legit, but obviously it's not 100 per cent confirmed as yet. Still, what do you make of this PS Plus lineup? Discuss in the comments section below.

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2022-03-29 08:15:00Z
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Apex Legends Warriors event includes upgrades for PS5 and Xbox Series X and S - The Verge

Respawn Entertainment has confirmed that Apex Legends upgrades for the PS5 and Xbox Series X / S consoles will launch tomorrow with the new Warriors collection event. Until now, the battle royale shooter has shared versions across the console generations. But when the update is released — usually around 1PM ET — console players will finally be able to join those on PC with support for natively rendered 4K (except on the Series S), HDR, better shadow maps, and greater level of detail distances.

All versions on consoles are still limited to 60Hz, with 120Hz gameplay listed as an upgrade coming in the future (however, once the PS5 supports 120Hz output, it will be able to force it even on games that don’t have support built-in if you want to give it a try). When I talked to the developers before the launch of the current season, Defiance, they said that we would see new next-gen features roll out throughout the year with the new seasons. Other features confirmed in the works are adaptive trigger and haptic support for the PlayStation 5 DualSense controller.

The Warriors Collection Event will bring next-gen versions of Apex Legends to PS5 and XSX!

PlayStation players: check out the info below to learn how to update your game
Xbox players: no action is needed. Apex will update via Smart Delivery.

: https://t.co/Hye8qEKTVh pic.twitter.com/5HfUSAYkWD

— Apex Legends (@PlayApex) March 29, 2022

The other area where the systems differ is how players will get their updated versions. On Xbox Series X and Series S, the Smart Delivery tech Microsoft uses means that your console should automatically download the correct version without any intervention once it launches. On PlayStation, it’s a little more complicated. If you have the game installed on a PS5 already, you’ll find the title in your Game Hub, select Options instead of Play Game, and then tell it to download the PS5 version. If you don’t have it installed but have played it before, you’ll just find the game in your library, and make sure to choose the PS5 version when prompted.

Across all consoles and PCs, the second half of season twelve includes many fixes to stop things like hackers who enabled dual-wielding weapons and various glitches that could be used to exploit weapons with a charge mechanic like the Rampage LMG or Sentinel sniper. There’s also, of course, a new assortment of cosmetic upgrades to buy and a new heirloom that players can acquire to use with the character Crypto.

The Warriors event will also bring back the Control limited-time mode for another two weeks, with a few improvements and a new map. It was well-received by players last time around, but there’s no word yet on whether we can expect it to become a regular part of the game or if we’ll see even more ways to play that get away from the standard battle royale setup.

One thing that wasn’t mentioned at all in the update was last week’s massive leak of content that revealed new characters, skins, weapons, and emotes that the developers are working on. The extent of the leaks claimed to stretch over the next couple of years for the game, but based on the changes we’ve seen, I think there may be more Apex Legends surprises that haven’t been uncovered yet.

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2022-03-29 01:08:52Z
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