Activision is finally doing something about the tremendous file sizes of recent Call of Duty games. The company is announcing that both Modern Warfare and the free-to-play Warzone will be much easier on hard drives after the next update. The space savings vary depending on what platform the game is installed (and which content packs you have installed), but they’ll be at least 30GB if you have both full games installed — meaning you’ll actually have enough room to install another AAA game if you like.
The update is set to be released on March 30th, but while it may be easier on your hard drive, downloading it won’t be easy on your internet connection. Activision says the one-time Season Two Reloaded update will be larger than usual (up to 57GB for those who just play Warzone). The good news is that future updates shouldn’t be as big, but you will want to mind your data caps.
According to the blog post, the space savings come from file optimizations and “streamlining content packs.” It’s also worth noting that individual content packs can be removed, getting rid of game modes you don’t play. For example, you can uninstall single player and Special Ops if you only fire up Call of Duty to play with friends. The blog post mentions that some users will have to reinstall content packs to get the optimized versions, but Activision wasn’t immediately available to comment on the circumstances that would cause that.
The specific space savings for each platform are listed below, but to add some context, let’s imagine you’ve got Warzone and Modern Warfare installed on your PlayStation 4. After the update, you’ll have freed up enough space to install The Witness (4.2GB) and Ratchet & Clank (26.3GB) — which are now both free on the PlayStation Store.
Insomniac Games’ 2016 remake of Ratchet and Clank is one of the most popular first-party exclusives released during the PS4’s life span. And today, the developer announced that the game will receive a next-gen optimization patch sometime next month to take advantage of the PS5’s hardware.
The new update will allow PS5 owners to run the game at 60 frames per second. If you own a PS4 copy digitally or physically, you will receive the update free of charge. Additionally, the update will be available for users who play Ratchet & Clank via the PlayStation Plus Collection.
The patch comes at an interesting time for the Ratchet & Clank franchise as the game’s highly anticipated sequel, Rift Apart, is slated to release as a PS5 exclusive on June 11th. More importantly, the 2016 remake is currently free to own as part of Sony’s “Play at Home” initiative with the offer available until March 31st at 8PM PT / 11PM ET. No PS Plus subscription is required to redeem.
Sony is officially closing its PlayStation Store for the PlayStation 3 on July 2nd, with the store shuttering for Vita devices on August 27th. The shutdowns mean you’ll no longer be able to purchase digital copies of games or DLC for the PS3 and Vita. Sony is also removing the remaining purchase functionality for its PlayStation Portable (PSP) on July 2nd.
Thankfully, you’ll still be able to download and play previously purchased games, videos, and media content. The only thing that’s changing, at least for now, is that you won’t be able to purchase PS3, PS Vita, or PSP digital games and videos. In-game purchases will also stop after the stores are closed.
You’ll also still be able to purchase cross-buy content following the closures, allowing you to access the PS3 and PS Vita / PSP versions of games that come with cross-buy support.
Sony’s PS Vita.
News of the closures originally surfaced last week from TheGamer, and many had feared the closures would prevent people from downloading games to their devices. That’s clearly not the case, which is good news if you still own a PS3, PSP, or Vita and you want to continue accessing your games. The only thing that’s really changing here is you won’t be able to buy new digital games and content unless the games have cross-buy support.
Sony’s PS3 originally launched in November 2006, and more than 80 million units of the console were sold in total. The Vita didn’t fare as well, with over 10 million units sold in total, but the PSP was a hit with more than 80 millions sold during its 10-year lifetime.
If you are looking to buy Microsoft’s most powerful console to date, the Xbox Series X, you can try your luck again right now at Best Buy. The retailer also has the more affordable, all-digital Series S available for $299.99.
Due to the high demand, we expect the supply to run out very quickly, so don’t hesitate if you’re hoping to score one.
Xbox Series X
$500
Prices taken at time of publishing.
The Xbox Series X is Microsoft’s flagship console, serving as its most powerful (and biggest) option that costs $499.99. While the Series S is aimed at smooth 1440p performance, the Series X is focused on fast 4K gameplay.
$500
at Best Buy
Xbox Series S
$300
Prices taken at time of publishing.
The Xbox Series S costs $299.99. Compared to the Series X, it’s far smaller, less powerful, and it has half the amount of SSD storage built in. It also lacks a disc drive.
$300
at Best Buy
Once you’ve secured your next-gen Xbox, you might want to buy some additional items, such as games to play on your new console. I strongly recommend picking up a subscription to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, which includes a wide array of first- and third-party titles, including a slew of Bethesda games following Microsoft’s acquisition of ZeniMax.
Of course, if you plan to share this console with a loved one, I also recommend buying an extra controller, as the console only comes with one controller.
While on the topic of buying new stuff, it’s not a bad idea to get a TV that will take advantage of next-gen hardware. If you have money to spend, Best Buy is currently selling a Vizio 65-inch 4K OLED TV for $1,500 — that is $500 off its usual price.
Vizio 4K OLED TV
$1,200
$1,300
8% off
Prices taken at time of publishing.
Vizio is a newcomer to the OLED TV space, but it’s using the same beautiful LG panel as everyone else — and pricing it for much less. The Vizio OLED should be a perfect fit for either the Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5, thanks to its fluid 120Hz 4K gaming capabilities, and the perfect blacks will make your Netflix content look great, too.
Josef Fares has strong opinions. The director of Hazelight Studio — whose latest co-op game, It Takes Two, is out today — rocketed into the spotlight at The Game Awards in 2017 with an off-the-cuff, impassioned speech about the joys of interactive video games that culminated in his meme-worthy “Fuck the Oscars!” line.
Years later, Fares (who, ironically enough, started off as a filmmaker) is still standing firm on his pro-game stance. “Look, my background is a filmmaker. The whole thing with ‘fuck the Oscars’ was actually kind of special,” he tells The Verge. “One, you have to remember when I was there on the set, everybody was talking, ‘Oh this like the Oscars, it’s like the Oscars.’ And I was like ‘Fuck the Oscars!’ because I was actually saying ‘Fuck the Oscars — because we should celebrate gaming now.’ It’s not that I have anything personal about the Oscars.”
It Takes Two is Fares’ third game, following Brothers:A Tale of Two Sons and A Way Out. Hazelight’s latest game takes a similar tack to A Way Out, in particular: it’s an exclusively co-op game that you can’t experience at all unless you’re willing to play with a friend or partner (either next to you on a couch or over the internet). According to Fares, the studio never even considered adding any sort of AI companion.
“They are designed from the beginning like that, so you have to communicate with someone,” he says. “It’s not possible to play with a random [person]. It’s not a matchmaking game where you are just randomly connected. If you want to play with someone you don’t know at all, you must have the ability to talk because if you’re not talking, you can’t progress.”
Communication is a fitting foundation for It Takes Two, which sees a husband and wife on the verge of divorce who are then magically transformed into a pair of Pixar-esque dolls and forced by a magical talking book to work out their differences.
A Way Out offered a thematically compelling narrative pulled out of a crime novel that was let down by dull gameplay that didn’t actually do much to take advantage of the cooperative nature of the game. It Takes Two flips the script: it offers a bizarre, almost nonsensical story lifted up by clever cooperative mechanics. Each of the two characters tends to split up their abilities between levels. For example, an early level gives players a pair of guns — one character can fire sap, while the other ignites it.
The more diverse gameplay isn’t an accident. “We’ve become better at finding cold co-op mechanics that can be combined,” says Fares. “So you really feel the need of co-oping. Also, I talked a lot about marrying the story and the gameplay… we tried to connect the abilities to the character as well. With May, for instance — it’s her toolbox, so she has the hammer.”
The result, though, is that It Takes Two is a much more complex game than A Way Out. To start, it’s a platformer. And while it won’t demand the kind of pixel-perfect skills as something like Celeste or Spelunky, it’s a harder game to get into than the relatively simple A Way Out. Add in the (admittedly more interesting) new mechanics that change from level to level, and the game runs the risk of overwhelming newer or less experienced players.
Still, the resulting game is a unique one, despite the uneven storytelling. As Fares rightly comments, there’s almost no one else out there making these kinds of games. “Of course there are co-op games out there that have your campaign and your add-on co-op campaign and so on, but none are actually designing, writing everything from the beginning as we do at Hazelight.”
“I think that opens up… both creatively, but also the dynamics between the characters that you’re playing, that you’re using different abilities, how you can cooperate, and also what’s going on on the couch,” says Fares. “I think there’s so much stuff to explore there.” He views the experience as similar to watching a movie or a TV show: it’s something you do together. “So why not enjoy a story together in a game?”
And it’s that level of interaction that helps games stand out to Fares from film. “The whole idea is understanding that making the interactive experience [for a game is] totally different than a passive experience as a movie,” he says. “So I sometimes hear when they talk about ‘We should bring on more movie people [to make games].’ Sure, we can be inspired on how they tell stories and so on, but we need to find our own way to tell stories in an interactive way.”
And while Fares won’t give too many details on what Hazelight’s next project will look like or if it’ll be another co-op experience, he definitely thinks there’s more room for other developers to join in — and not just with optional cooperative experiences, like with survival games or shooters like Borderlands or Halo.
“We should have our single-player narratives; I love those. But I think there’s a market here, and I think people really appreciate this type of game, you know. To play something with someone that you love or a friend or a father or a mother or whatever — just experience something together and not just a shooter game, you know what I mean?”
It Takes Two is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X / S.
(Pocket-lint) – The PlayStation 4 is a superb console, and over the course of its lifespan it’s played host to some of the finest games ever released, so whether you’ve had a PS4 for ages or you’re picking up a new one you’ve got a lot to look forward to.
However, one problem the console can have is overheating – especially with games released in the last couple of years, it can really struggle and whirr its fans super loudly to keep up. That can be distracting, so getting hold of a cooling system can be a really good idea to keep the noise down. Here are some of the very best options.
The best cooling systems for your PlayStation 4
OIVO
OIVO PS4 Stand
A great stand that brings cooling alongside controller charging and storage.
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If you’re going to get a cooling stand for your PS4, you might as well go the whole way and get a stand that does more than one thing.
This great unit from OIVO has fans to keep air flowing through your PS4 at all times, but also a pair of really handy docks to charge your controllers while you’re not using them. Plus, at the back of the stand there are handy slots for game storage, making it a real power station.
Beboncool
Beboncool PS4 Stand Cooling Fan
Another almost equally impressive stand.
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If you want a stand that offers the same rough capabilities as the one above, but with a slightly bigger and sturdier foortprint, this could be a great choice.
Beboncool’s stand has cooling as well, alongside the game storage, so they’re pretty neck-and-neck in terms of what they offer – it might just come down to your taste in how they look!
Kootek
Kootek Vertical Stand
If you want a smaller stand, this could work nicely.
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For those looking for a slightly smaller stand, and who don’t really mind about game storage, this option from Kootek is a great choice.
It’s got fans to keep your PS4 cool as you game, plus two controller storage slots, and those will also charge your gamepads. However, it’s much smaller than those above so is perfect if you’re shorter on space.
Pecham
PECHAM Vertical Stand for PS4
Two controller chargers and a great fan system.
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Another smaller stand is offered up by Pecham, which has also managed to fit in both controller charging and PS4 cooling.
You’ll get quiet but noticeable cooling for the PS4 itself, and room to store and charge two controllers as well, on a stand that’s a little bigger than the one from Kootek above.
Elecgear
ElecGear External USB Cooler
Great for those looking to keep things slimmer.
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This great little device from ElecGear is a useful option for anyone who doesn’t want a stand – it’s simple extra fans and clips onto the side of your console.
That makes it perfect if your TV and console setup is already finely tuned, and it hardly adds any bulk to the PS4 at all. Just be sure to pick up the right version according to what console you own!
Kingtop
Kingtop PS4 Universal Controller Charger
A great final option, with solid cooling.
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Our final case is another one that offers two controller charging points and a simple cooling system using fans.
That makes it very much standard, although it has a fairly nicely designed look and feel and doesn’t take up too much space.
Sony’s “Play at Home” initiative continues with a huge stack of excellent games, including Astro Bot Rescue Mission and Subnautica, that are free to own for a limited time. No PlayStation Plus membership is required, meaning you can keep these games forever.
From now through April 22nd at 11:59PM PT, the following titles will be free to claim for PS4 and PS5 users: ABZÛ,Enter the Gungeon, Rez Infinite, Subnautica,Astro Bot Rescue Mission, Moss, Thumper, and Paper Beast. The last four games require a PSVR headset to play. PS5 owners will need a PlayStation Camera adapter to use the headset with the console.
Sony plans to offer more games as part of the initiative until sometime in June. Currently, Sony is offering Ratchet & Clank, which PS4 and PS5 owners can redeem at no cost until March 31st. The company is also planning to give away Horizon Zero Dawn for free beginning on April 19th.
Gaming platform Rec Room is now a unicorn, valued at $1.25 billion during a recent funding round of $100 million. It appears to be one of the first, if not the first, virtual reality-focused startup to achieve unicorn status, a notable feat since Facebook’s landmark acquisition of Oculus VR for $2.4 billion in 2014 helped established the modern VR business.
Founded in 2016, Rec Room is a free app that lets players build custom virtual spaces and games that can be played across various platforms. The Seattle-based company launched on Steam as a VR-focused platform, and in 2018, expanded to non-VR platforms. It’s now available on Xbox, PlayStation, iOS, and PC. CEO Nick Fajt said in an interview with The Verge that VR usage on the platform climbed over the holiday season due in part to sales of the Oculus Quest 2 headset.
In 2020, Rec Room saw a 566 percent increase in revenue — most of that comes from in-game purchases — and it now has more than 15 million lifetime users. Fajt says the company now has 1 million monthly active VR users, a number that tripled during the pandemic, TheWall Street Journal reported.
The platform’s primary users are teenagers between ages 13 and 16, Fajt said, so Rec Room benefited from students being online longer during the coronavirus lockdowns of 2020. But it was also growing in popularity before people were confined to their homes.
“The pandemic accelerated trends we’d been seeing for several years,” Fajt said. “A lot of people are looking for a digital third place that’s distinct from home and school or work where they can meet up with friends, hang out, explore, and be creative. I think that’s been true whether teenagers were going to school physically or on Zoom. People need a space like this.”
He added that while it’s possible the platform may see a decrease in users once teenagers can gather in person, he sees Rec Room as more than just a replacement for real-life socializing. “It’s helping a lot of people maintain connections with friends that are hundreds or thousands of miles away,” Fajt said. “These are friends separated by physical distance not just social distance. So if Rec Room has become part of your routine, I suspect it will stay that way even beyond the pandemic.”
Rec Room is preparing for an IPO in the coming years. In the meantime, other gaming platforms are continuing to grow thanks to a boost from pandemic audiences. Roblox, an online gaming platform for slightly younger users than Rec Room’s, also has seen a sharp uptick in use during the pandemic. Roblox went public via direct listing earlier this month and said in its prospectus that it has 31.1 million daily users, who spent an average of 2.6 hours daily on the platform in the past year.
Roblox told The Verge last summer that over half of US kids and teenagers under the age of 16 play the game. During the pandemic there has been much hand-wringing about kids’ increased screentime, but games like Roblox and Epic Games’ Fortnite provide socialization, just not the in-person kind we may be used to.
Before the pandemic, some of the appetite to develop new AR and VR hardware had started to wane — Sony PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan suggested in October that an update to Sony’s PlayStation VR headset was still a few years away. (Sony has since teased more details about its next iteration of PlayStation VR with a formal product announcement, followed by images of its new controllers.)
But other companies have for years been ramping up their efforts in AR and VR hardware. The Information reported earlier this month that Facebook has some 10,000 employees — roughly a fifth of its workforce — focused on new devices in both fields, and the company has already shown off prototypes of experimental research products and plans to release a pair of Ray-Ban-branded smart glasses later this year. Apple has long been rumored to be working on AR and VR hardware, too, and recent reports suggest the iPhone maker will debut a VR device sometime in 2022.
“The market has shown an increased appetite for gaming companies,” Fajt said. “I think that will only grow as more data becomes available about the strength and durability of these businesses.”
Sony and Sucker Punch’s PlayStation 4 hit Ghost of Tsushima is being adapted into a movie with John Wick director Chad Stahelski at the helm, Deadline first reported on Thursday. Sony confirmed the film’s development in a blog shortly after.
The game, which stars samurai warrior Jin Sakai as he fights a huge Mongol army to protect the island of Tsushima, is heavily inspired by classic samurai films like those from Akira Kurosawa, so it seems like natural fit for the big screen.
“We’re excited to be partnering with Chad and 87Eleven Entertainment, to bring their vision of Jin’s story to the big screen,” said Asad Qizilbash, head of PlayStation Productions, in a statement to Deadline. “We love working with creative partners like Chad, who have a passion for our games, ensuring we can create rich adaptations that will excite our fans and new audiences.”
“We are happy to partner with Sony Pictures to make this happen,” Nate Fox, game director at Sucker Punch, said in a statement on the PlayStation blog. “And Jin is in very good hands with the film’s director. Chad Stahelski created something special with John Wick. His vision for what could be, backed up by years of experience, combined to create some of the finest action scenes ever created. If anyone could bring to life the razor-sharp tension of Jin’s katana combat, it’s Chad Stahelski.” Fox also confirmed that the Ghost of Tsushima game has sold 6.5 million copies since its release last July.
Ghost of Tsushima is Sony’s latest game franchise to be adapted into a movie. Tom Holland is starring as Nathan Drake in a movie adaption of the Indiana Jones-like Uncharted series that’s set to release on February 11th, 2022. Sony’s upcoming big-screen take on Metal Gear Solid will star Oscar Isaac as Solid Snake.
Sony is also working on a TV adaptation of The Last of Us for HBO, which will star The Mandalorian’s Pedro Pascal as Joel and Bella Ramsey, known for her role as Lyanna Mormont in Game of Thrones, as Ellie.
The oft-forgotten Final Fantasy VIII has made its way to smartphones, just a few decades after it originally debuted.
Today, Square Enix launched the classic roleplaying game on both iOS and Android; it’s available for $16.99 right now, but that price will jump to $20.99 starting on April 5th. Final Fantasy VIII first launched on the original PlayStation back in 1999, though this version is the more recent remaster, which hit consoles like the Xbox One, PS4, and Switch in 2019. The game is also available on Steam. In addition to improved visuals, the remaster includes some quality-of-life tweaks, like the option to speed up combat and world exploration.
And while Final Fantasy VII tends to garner much of the franchise’s nostalgia — and the big-budget remakes — VIII is a notable entry in the series, one that saw Final Fantasy expand into more adult storytelling. It was still full of battles and monsters and magic, but the core of the experience was on a budding romance.
“The Final Fantasy series always placed emphasis on drama, and with Final Fantasy VII, from a broad perspective, I believe we reached the pinnacle of depicting a story where ‘protagonists face a large force of evil,’” director Yoshinori Kitase told The Verge in 2019.
“On the flip side, the series has evolved on a more granular level since Final Fantasy IV, as it began to include narratives that focused on characters’ emotions. With the advancement of CG technology allowing for a more delicate expression of characters’ emotions, we decided to take on the challenge to focus on ‘love,’ which delves deeper into the internal aspect of humankind, as our theme.”
With clear audio, a great microphone and an understated but attractive design, the Fnatic React+ is aimed at eSports gamers, but it’s a great all-around headset for media and working from home too. The bundled USB sound card adds great-sounding 7.1 virtual surround sound to PC gaming, and a 3.5mm jack means you can use it with other gaming devices too.
For
Very good virtual 7.1 surround
Simple, attractive design
Superb microphone clarity
Swappable ear cushions
USB-A and 3.5mm
Against
Vestigial inline volume/mic switch is redundant when using USB
No software
Earcups don’t swivel
The Fnatic React+ adds virtual surround sound to the feature set that made the original React popular with gamers: large, clear drivers with very good gaming audio quality and excellent stereo separation, a design that remains comfortable throughout long gaming sessions, and a microphone with top-of-its class clarity. All that is wrapped in an understated design that looks cool enough for eSports gaming but subtle enough for teleconferencing.
The React+ pairs the original React headphones with Fnatic’s XP USB sound card (no relation to Windows XP), which adds 7.1 simulated surround sound at the touch of a button, and an extra set of earpads. Yet, the cans are still cheaper than many of the best gaming headsets, at just $99.99 as of writing. The resulting package, while not without its quirks, offers superb performance for a headset in its price class.
Fnatic React+ Specs
Driver Type
53mm
Impedance
23 Ohms
Frequency Response
20 – 40,0000 Hz
Microphone Type
Cardioid boom, detachable
Connectivity
3.5mm or USB Type-A
Cables
3.9 feet (1.2m) 3.5mm cable
3.3 feet (1m) USB cable
6.5 feet (2m) extender/mic splitter
Weight
0.8 pounds (348g)
Lighting
None
Software
None
Extra
1x extra set ear cushions
Design and Comfort
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
For a design marketed directly at the eSports crowd, the Fnatic React+ headset has a tasteful, understated aesthetic that lacks any elements you’d likely describe as bling. There’s no RGB lighting here, just a tasteful matte-black plastic finish with white accents. There’s a Fnatic logo on each earcup, and the company name is subtly embossed on the side of and on top of the headband.
The one hint of color is the soft, bright orange mesh fabric inside the earcups, helpfully stamped “R” and “L” to assist in putting them on correctly when the microphone is unplugged. The React+ ships with comfortable, memory foam-filled, faux leather-covered earpads installed. But you can also swap these for the included velour earpads. Those will feel more airy, particularly helpful for gamers who get warm while playing.
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The oval, enclosed earcups are mounted on adjustable metal hangers, which feel very solid and should hold up well to regular use. The earcups completely enclose your ears, providing very good passive noise isolation. They can swivel vertically for comfort when being worn, but there’s no horizontal swivel axis to fold them out and flatten them for easier transport or storage.
With either set of pads in place, the React+ headset was comfortable even on my rather large head. At 0.8 pounds, it’s not as lightweights as some wired headsets. The similarly specced MSI Immerse GH61, for example, is 0.6 pounds. Thankfully, the React+ didn’t feel overly heavy in use. The clamping force is solid enough to provide good noise isolation without becoming uncomfortable over time, which is not always the case with my big noggin. Meanwhile, a strip of memory foam padding across the inside of the headband aids in comfort.
When using the microphone, it snaps solidly into the left earcup, but if you’re playing a solo game, listening to music or watching a movie, you can easily pop it out.
The React+ also includes Fnatic’s XP USB sound card, which the company also sells separately for $23. The sound card is enclosed in a small, oval controller with a 3.5mm jack on one end and a 3.3-foot-long USB-A cable on the other. Its matte black design matches the headphones, with rocker switches for headphone volume and microphone level, a button to toggle 7.1-channel surround sound and a microphone mute switch on the side. The controller adds little weight to the headphone setup, and the rockers are well-positioned for quick adjustment when gaming.
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Overall, it’s well-designed, but an additional analog volume dial and microphone switch near the top of the headphone cable (left over from the original design that didn’t include the sound card) can cause frustration if you accidentally brush the analog volume dial and wonder why the volume dial on the soundcard suddenly won’t go high enough. That said, if Fanatic had omitted the analog controls from the React+ bundle, they’d be unavailable when using the headphones sans soundcard with other devices.
The headset also comes with a 6.6-foot extension cable that splits the microphone and audio jacks for devices that don’t support both on a single connector.
The one design element I’d change, if given the chance, is that the 3.5mm cable is permanently attached to the headset. Without a removable cable, the headphones will be rendered useless if the primary cable is damaged by your cat, kids, or other sinister elements.
Audio Performance
The 53mm drivers Fnatic uses in the React+ are calibrated for gaming, with a separate chamber for bass frequencies to help separate them from mids and lows. This helps keep bass from explosions and gunshots from overwhelming other game sounds. Though the sound is relatively pure, mids and highs are slightly boosted, and the result is much better audio clarity from complex game soundscapes than you’d expect in headphones in this price range. Playing Metro 2033, Call of Duty: Warzone and Apex Legends, environmental sound and voices remained clear even in heavy combat situations.
This clarity isn’t lost when engaging the React+ virtual surround sound by pressing the surround button in the center of the USB sound card controller. The effect is convincing and adds a more enveloping quality to the audio without changing it to the point where clarity is lost.
Playing Watch Dogs: Legion, the surround sound significantly enhanced immersion as I walked and drove around the city. Even in the sedate environment of Microsoft Flight Simulator, the directional audio as I panned around my plane in external views was noticeably more enveloping than the default stereo audio heard with surround disabled.
The in-game soundscape of the React+ is excellent because the bass separation, large drivers and clarity across frequencies means you won’t miss important dialogue or environmental sounds in the heat of play. It’s a significant improvement over using headphones geared for music playback while gaming, where heavy bass emphasis can muddy the audio.
These cans also sound great when watching movies on the PC, as those same characteristics also keep audio clear during film and TV action sequences.
Conversely, the one area where the cans are more pedestrian is music. Albums like Logic’s The Incredible True Story and Kenrick Lamar’s DAMN. benefit from the boosted bass on more music-oriented headsets, and Pink Floyd’s classic Dark Side of the Moon sounded off with emphasized mids and highs of the React+ when compared to my (admittedly more expensive) Sennheiser Momentum 2.0 wired headphones.
With the leatherette ear cushions, the passive noise isolation from the large earcups is excellent; in my home office I only heard the loudest outside sounds when playing games. They also do a good job of keeping the noise from leaking out and disturbing others nearby. It is passive isolation, though, so if you use these to listen to music on your next flight, they can only block out so much. The velour cups are slightly less isolating than the leatherette.
Microphone
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
The detachable cardioid microphone includes a pop filter and has a flexible but stiff arm that stayed in position well and never came loose during gaming. There’s no noise cancellation, but it targets the mouth well enough that it didn’t pick up environmental sounds when I was gaming.
Fellow players reported that my vocals were very clear. And when I listened to audio from the microphone recorded on my PC, it sounded very pure, although perhaps a tiny bit higher in pitch than natural. As you’d expect from a headset marketed squarely at the eSports market, Fnatic does a great job with the microphone here.
In addition to a microphone mute switch, the XP sound card controller includes a mic level adjust rocker as well. This is great when you’re in-game, and your teammates complain about your mic’s volume. It’s much easier to quickly adjust mic sensitivity with the rocker instead of having to tweak it using audio settings on your computer.
Features and Software
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The headset uses a 3.5mm TRSS plug to connect to the USB sound card. You can omit the sound card and use the plug to connect to other devices. Fnatic says the headset is compatible with Macs, as well as Xbox, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and (if you still have a headphone jack or adapter) mobile phones. The USB adapter is only fully supported under Windows, but we found the headset worked well plugged directly into an Xbox Series X controller and a Switch, though we missed the surround sound and the ability to adjust microphone levels.
There’s no bundled software, so you won’t be able to adjust equalization in-game. That said, the ability to toggle surround sound and adjust microphone and volume levels using physical buttons is more convenient when in-game than having to switch to an app.
Bottom Line
For a penny under $100, the Fnatic React+ performs like a more expensive headset. Audio is clear and sharp, both in your ears and coming from your microphone. The addition of effective, clear virtual 7.1-channel surround sound addresses the chief complaint about the original React (if you bought that, Fnatic offers a $29.99 bundle that includes the XP USB sound card and velour earpads to bring it up to React+ level), and the additional volume controls on the USB soundcard are a godsend if you need to quickly make adjustments during a frantic battle.
I’d love for the primary headset cable to be removable though. Not only would that make it less susceptible to being taken out by cable damage, but then we could omit the analog volume dial and microphone mute switch, which are redundant when using the USB sound card.
Overall, the Fnatic React+ offers superb audio for gaming and movies, decent–if unexceptional–music playback, and the headphones look cool without turning your head into a light show. So you’re not going to get strange looks if you’re wearing them during a Zoom call. The React+ also offers stiff competition to some of the best gaming headsets too, such as the HyperX Cloud Alpha. The React+ comes in at around the same price but adds 7.1 surround sound to the mix.
You can certainly find headsets with more features, but not in the React+’s price range. For gamers on a budget, this is a top choice.
We already knew that Resident Evil Village will release on a slew of platforms, including the PS5 and Xbox Series X / S. And today, Google announced that the game will also arrive on Stadia. To encourage you to buy this version, Google will throw in a free Stadia Premiere kit to anyone who preorders Resident Evil Village before May 21st. The promotion is available for both the Standard and Deluxe Editions of Resident Evil Village, which cost $60 and $70, respectively.
Normally priced at $100, Google’s Stadia Premiere Edition features a white Stadia controller, a Chromecast Ultra, and, for new users, a one-month trial subscription to Stadia’s Pro-tier service. Stadia Pro includes 4K streaming and a growing collection of free games, similar to Sony’s PlayStation Plus service.
Google had a similar promotion last year when it offered complimentary hardware if you preordered the Stadia version of Cyberpunk 2077. The Resident Evil Village promotion announcement comes at an interesting time as Stadia’s future looks questionable. In February, Google shut down its internal Stadia development studio. That same month, reports from Bloomberg and Wired shed light on some of the tech giant’s failures in building its cloud gaming platform.
Before Resident Evil Village arrives on May 7th, Google also announced today that Stadia Pro members can redeem a free copy of Resident Evil 7 Gold Edition when the game launches on the cloud gaming service on April 1st.
Mustafa Mahmoud 2 days ago Console, Featured Tech News, Software & Gaming
Back during the PlayStation 5 reveal event, Sony showed off a game by the name of Project Athia. Published by Square Enix, this PS5 console exclusive showed off very little, but what was shown was intriguing. Now, Square Enix has given fans a second look at the game, as well as announcing the official name and release year.
During the Square Enix Presents Spring 2021, the publisher showed off a new trailer for Project Athia, revealing that the PS5 and PC game will in fact be called Forspoken. At the original reveal event, no release date was given for Forspoken, and while we still don’t have a full date, the publisher confirmed that it will release some time in 2022.
“Introducing Forspoken, The New Narrative-Driven Adventure Set in a Beautiful Yet Cruel World. Play as Frey Holland, a young woman who must harness her magical abilities to survive in a fantastical yet dangerous world of Athia,” reads the description for the game.
While the original trailer showed off a world that appeared to be very traditional in nature, this latest trailer injected much more personality, with the protagonist seemingly hailing from a modern era, and somehow ending up in the mythical world of Athia – though we will have to wait to find out more.
Though not too much was shown, enough was revealed to keep fans hungering for more. Hopefully much more of this promising game will be shown off between now and its release in 2022.
KitGuru says: What do you think of the trailer? Are you interested in Forspoken? Do you think it will hit 2022? Let us know down below.
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Home/Software & Gaming/Marvel’s Avengers roadmap revealed, Black Panther expansion coming
Matthew Wilson 2 days ago Software & Gaming
Last night during the Square Enix Presents showcase, the publisher announced its future plans for Marvel’s Avengers. For the first time since launch, Crystal Dynamics has put out a roadmap, detailing the content we can expect over the next six months, which includes a Black Panther expansion.
Marvel’s Avengers did not get off to the best start, with technical issues plaguing the multiplayer and a lack of meaningful content updates to keep players coming back. That will start to change this year, with a six month roadmap detailing new content updates all the way through Summer 2021.
The roadmap starts with last night’s Hawkeye update, which includes a new campaign called ‘Future Imperfect’. Over the Spring, we’ll be getting the ability to play missions as any combination of heroes and Tachyon Missions with scaled power levels to give players something to grind out. Following that, there will be the Red Room Takeover update with new HARM room content, a new villain sector focusing on the Cosmic Cube and a new War Zone missions, including patrols and wasteland assignments.
Once all of that is out of the way, the next big thing players have to look forward to is the War for Wakanda expansion, which brings Black Panther to the game, increases the level cap, adds the Wakandan jungle to the game and features a new story.
Smaller updates include end-game progression, multiplayer megahives, new outfits – including MCU inspired outfits, balance updates, new gear and progression tweaks, collectibles and more matchmaking improvements.
Interestingly, Spider-Man is not part of the current roadmap, so the PlayStation exclusive character has seemingly been delayed and may not arrive in 2021 after all.
KitGuru Says: At this point, it is quite clear that Marvel’s Avengers should have been delayed six months, but hopefully this roadmap and expansion will help breathe some new life into the game. What do you all think of the new Avengers roadmap? Will you be jumping back in for the Black Panther expansion?
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Matthew Wilson 2 days ago Featured Tech News, Software & Gaming
Sony Interactive Entertainment is expanding its esports presence this year with the acquisition of Evolution Championship Series, otherwise known as EVO. The renowned fighting game tournament is now part of the PlayStation family.
Sony and a new esports upstart company known as RTS jointly acquired the fighting game league and will oversee all operations moving forward. However, EVO founders, Tony and Tom Cannon, will remain involved in advisory roles.
Welcoming @Evo into the PlayStation family: https://t.co/I3J5iOKhha
Sony Interactive Entertainment and new esports venture RTS have jointly acquired the Evolution Championship Series pic.twitter.com/efOkbf61lU
— PlayStation (@PlayStation) March 18, 2021
Speaking on the acquisition, SIE’s VP of global competitive gaming, Steven Roberts, said: “Fighting games have been a vital part of PlayStation’s legacy and our community since the very beginning, and we’ve been thrilled to partner with Evo over the years. This joint acquisition with RTS marks a new chapter of collaboration with Evo’s co-founders, Tom and Tony Cannon, and their passionate community of fighting game fans.”
While EVO is now part of the PlayStation family, multi-platform games are still welcome to the line-up, so Super Smash Bros. isn’t going to suddenly be booted from the line-up – unless Nintendo pulls it.
EVO 2021 is set to take place between August 6th to 8th and then again on August 13th to 15th using an online format due to the on-going pandemic. The games line-up currently includes Street Fighter V: Championship Edition, Mortal Kombat 11: Ultimate, Tekken 7 and Guilty Gear Strive. Nintendo is currently evaluating whether it will allow Super Smash Bros. Ultimate to be included.
KitGuru Says: I’m not great at fighting games myself, but they can be very fun to watch. Evo has been a huge part of the esports scene for years now, so it is great to see a huge gaming company swoop in and back it like this. Do many of you tune into Evo each year?
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