Tag Archives: author_name|Kris Holt

Hades hits iOS as a Netflix mobile exclusive on March 19

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Hades is a major get for Netflix as a mobile exclusive. The dungeon crawler is one of the best games in recent memory and it could help bolster the growing audience Netflix has built for its strong library of games. Subscribers will be able to play Hades on their iPhones and iPads at no extra cost on March 19. You can preregister so you're ready to go when the game hits the App Store.

You play as Zagreus, the son of Hades, as you battle through a randomized set of chambers and enemies in an attempt to escape from the Underworld. This is a roguelite game. Every time you die, you'll go back to the start and lose most of the perks you picked up during a run, but you'll gradually unlock permanent upgrades that will help Zagreous make it to Mount Olympus. You may also be equipped with extra knowledge about a certain enemy or trap that caused your demise.

In addition, Zagreus will receive gifts from other Olympians to help him hack and slash through his enemies. It's his interactions with the other characters that form the backbone of the story and help make Hades stand out.

Developer Supergiant Games had long thought of Hades as a good fit for mobile, given its pick-up-and-play nature. Although Netflix's games are typically available on both iOS and Android, that won't be the case for Hades, at least for now. Supergiant has stuck with iOS for the mobile versions of its games (already having a Mac version of Hades helped here since that platform and iOS both use the Metal API). Not only that, the studio is made up of a small team. While Supergiant was preparing the mobile port of Hades, it was also working on the sequel to the 2020 hit.

It took over a year of extra development time to get Hades ready for mobile devices. "The foremost goal was to make this an uncompromising version of Hades," while making sure the game was "as performant and smooth as possible," Supergiant creative director Greg Kasavin recently told reporters.

A major focus of that work was making sure to get the touch controls just right. The buttons have haptic feedback. You can resize and reposition the controls and save your configuration. What's more, the buttons are customized for each action. So, when you go to pet the adorable multi-headed devil dog Cerberus, there'll be a dedicated button just for that. Don't worry if you prefer to use a Bluetooth controller or a plug-in gamepad such as the Backbone One, since Hades will be compatible with those. Other features include 60 fps gameplay, cloud saves, achievements and offline play.

Hades is coming to Netflix Games at an ideal time for Supergiant. It will both bring new eyes to the game and give longtime fans an excuse to revisit the classic ahead of the sequel's arrival. Hades II is set to go into early access on PC this spring.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/hades-hits-ios-as-a-netflix-mobile-exclusive-on-march-19-170014127.html?src=rss

Hades hits iOS as a Netflix mobile exclusive on March 19

Posted on by

Hades is a major get for Netflix as a mobile exclusive. The dungeon crawler is one of the best games in recent memory and it could help bolster the growing audience Netflix has built for its strong library of games. Subscribers will be able to play Hades on their iPhones and iPads at no extra cost on March 19. You can preregister so you're ready to go when the game hits the App Store.

You play as Zagreus, the son of Hades, as you battle through a randomized set of chambers and enemies in an attempt to escape from the Underworld. This is a roguelite game. Every time you die, you'll go back to the start and lose most of the perks you picked up during a run, but you'll gradually unlock permanent upgrades that will help Zagreous make it to Mount Olympus. You may also be equipped with extra knowledge about a certain enemy or trap that caused your demise.

In addition, Zagreus will receive gifts from other Olympians to help him hack and slash through his enemies. It's his interactions with the other characters that form the backbone of the story and help make Hades stand out.

Developer Supergiant Games had long thought of Hades as a good fit for mobile, given its pick-up-and-play nature. Although Netflix's games are typically available on both iOS and Android, that won't be the case for Hades, at least for now. Supergiant has stuck with iOS for the mobile versions of its games (already having a Mac version of Hades helped here since that platform and iOS both use the Metal API). Not only that, the studio is made up of a small team. While Supergiant was preparing the mobile port of Hades, it was also working on the sequel to the 2020 hit.

It took over a year of extra development time to get Hades ready for mobile devices. "The foremost goal was to make this an uncompromising version of Hades," while making sure the game was "as performant and smooth as possible," Supergiant creative director Greg Kasavin recently told reporters.

A major focus of that work was making sure to get the touch controls just right. The buttons have haptic feedback. You can resize and reposition the controls and save your configuration. What's more, the buttons are customized for each action. So, when you go to pet the adorable multi-headed devil dog Cerberus, there'll be a dedicated button just for that. Don't worry if you prefer to use a Bluetooth controller or a plug-in gamepad such as the Backbone One, since Hades will be compatible with those. Other features include 60 fps gameplay, cloud saves, achievements and offline play.

Hades is coming to Netflix Games at an ideal time for Supergiant. It will both bring new eyes to the game and give longtime fans an excuse to revisit the classic ahead of the sequel's arrival. Hades II is set to go into early access on PC this spring.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/hades-hits-ios-as-a-netflix-mobile-exclusive-on-march-19-170014127.html?src=rss

MLB The Show 24 features women ballplayers for the first time

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This year’s edition of MLB The Show is just a couple of weeks away, and Sony's San Diego Studio has shed more light on what to expect. For the first time in the series, you’ll be able to create and play as women ballplayers in the Road to the Show mode.

In Road to the Show: Women Pave Their Way, there will be a dedicated story in which you can build a career as a pro female baseball player. While it includes all the usual features of Road to the Show, this version of the mode will have a buddy character and depict a “unique-to-women storyline following a lifelong friendship as it develops in professional baseball,” according to a PlayStation Blog post.

Your career path will likely be different on each playthrough. San Diego Studio added fresh commentary, MLB Network segments and other features tied to this new addition to the game.

Other major sports games have added women players over the last several years, including FIFA (now EA Sports FC), the NHL series and NBA 2K. It's good to see MLB The Show joining them.

In addition, MLB The Show 24 will continue to showcase stories from the Negro Leagues under a partnership with the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. The latest edition of the series will feature 10 new Negro League Legends, each of whom has their own storyline. Among those players is Toni Stone, who was the first woman to play full time in the leagues.

Meanwhile, MLB The Show will remain in the odd position of being a Sony-developed and published game that's coming to Game Pass on its release date. Subscribers will be able to play MLB The Show 24 via Xbox consoles and the cloud at no extra cost starting on March 19.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mlb-the-show-24-features-women-ballplayers-for-the-first-time-160007024.html?src=rss

MLB The Show 24 features women ballplayers for the first time

Posted on by

This year’s edition of MLB The Show is just a couple of weeks away, and Sony's San Diego Studio has shed more light on what to expect. For the first time in the series, you’ll be able to create and play as women ballplayers in the Road to the Show mode.

In Road to the Show: Women Pave Their Way, there will be a dedicated story in which you can build a career as a pro female baseball player. While it includes all the usual features of Road to the Show, this version of the mode will have a buddy character and depict a “unique-to-women storyline following a lifelong friendship as it develops in professional baseball,” according to a PlayStation Blog post.

Your career path will likely be different on each playthrough. San Diego Studio added fresh commentary, MLB Network segments and other features tied to this new addition to the game.

Other major sports games have added women players over the last several years, including FIFA (now EA Sports FC), the NHL series and NBA 2K. It's good to see MLB The Show joining them.

In addition, MLB The Show 24 will continue to showcase stories from the Negro Leagues under a partnership with the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. The latest edition of the series will feature 10 new Negro League Legends, each of whom has their own storyline. Among those players is Toni Stone, who was the first woman to play full time in the leagues.

Meanwhile, MLB The Show will remain in the odd position of being a Sony-developed and published game that's coming to Game Pass on its release date. Subscribers will be able to play MLB The Show 24 via Xbox consoles and the cloud at no extra cost starting on March 19.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mlb-the-show-24-features-women-ballplayers-for-the-first-time-160007024.html?src=rss

Facebook, Instagram and Threads are back online after a two-hour outage

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Meta says it has resolved an issue that prevented people from accessing services such as Facebook, Instagram and Threads. The problem appears to have started at around 10AM ET, with outage reports for the services (and WhatsApp) spiking on Down Detector at that time.

Facebook booted several members of the Engadget team back to the site's login screen and left them unable to sign back in for a couple of hours. Feeds on the other services were not loading for many users. However, fellow major Meta service WhatsApp was working for some, including me. 

"Earlier today, a technical issue caused people to have difficulty accessing some of our services," Facebook spokesperson Andy Stone wrote on X. "We resolved the issue as quickly as possible for everyone who was impacted, and we apologize for any inconvenience."

Update 3/5 11:32PM ET: Updated to note that the outage has been resolved.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/its-not-just-you-facebook-instagram-and-threads-are-all-down-155024905.html?src=rss

Microsoft is running an Xbox partner showcase on March 6

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Microsoft has announced its second games showcase of 2024 and this one is all about projects from its third-party partners. The second Partner Preview stream is set for March 6 at 1PM ET. It will run for around 30 minutes and feature more than a dozen new trailers from publishers including Capcom, Nexon and EA.

Three games have been confirmed for the showcase. We'll find out details about traversal and combat in Tales of Kenzera: Zau, an EA-published 2D Metroidvania game that's set to arrive next month. Abubakar Salim, who voiced Bayek in Assassin's Creed Origins, is the game's creative lead and will narrate the Partner Preview trailer.

In addition, we'll see gameplay from Capcom's strategy-action game Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess and The First Berserker: Khazan, an action RPG from Nexon. Microsoft is also promising details on more titles that are bound for Xbox, PC and Game Pass. This is a common refrain every time one of these streams takes place, but since we know it's coming to Game Pass on its release day, perhaps this will finally be when we learn more about Hollow Knight: Silksong.

You'll be able to watch the stream on Xbox channels on YouTube and Twitch (YouTube streams will be available in 4K, but Twitch is limited to 1080p). Microsoft says it will make the showcase available in more than 40 languages, including American Sign Language, British Sign Language and English Audio Descriptions. For the first time, Microsoft will offer versions of an Xbox stream in Bengali, Māori, Punjabi (Gurmukhi), Swahili, Tamil, Urdu and Zulu.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/microsoft-is-running-an-xbox-partner-showcase-on-march-6-173008112.html?src=rss

Microsoft is running an Xbox partner showcase on March 6

Posted on by

Microsoft has announced its second games showcase of 2024 and this one is all about projects from its third-party partners. The second Partner Preview stream is set for March 6 at 1PM ET. It will run for around 30 minutes and feature more than a dozen new trailers from publishers including Capcom, Nexon and EA.

Three games have been confirmed for the showcase. We'll find out details about traversal and combat in Tales of Kenzera: Zau, an EA-published 2D Metroidvania game that's set to arrive next month. Abubakar Salim, who voiced Bayek in Assassin's Creed Origins, is the game's creative lead and will narrate the Partner Preview trailer.

In addition, we'll see gameplay from Capcom's strategy-action game Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess and The First Berserker: Khazan, an action RPG from Nexon. Microsoft is also promising details on more titles that are bound for Xbox, PC and Game Pass. This is a common refrain every time one of these streams takes place, but since we know it's coming to Game Pass on its release day, perhaps this will finally be when we learn more about Hollow Knight: Silksong.

You'll be able to watch the stream on Xbox channels on YouTube and Twitch (YouTube streams will be available in 4K, but Twitch is limited to 1080p). Microsoft says it will make the showcase available in more than 40 languages, including American Sign Language, British Sign Language and English Audio Descriptions. For the first time, Microsoft will offer versions of an Xbox stream in Bengali, Māori, Punjabi (Gurmukhi), Swahili, Tamil, Urdu and Zulu.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/microsoft-is-running-an-xbox-partner-showcase-on-march-6-173008112.html?src=rss

Prime members can save up to 50 percent on Blink Outdoor 4 security cameras

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Prime members can access a bunch of perks for their monthly subscription fee, from the likes of Prime Video and ad-free Amazon Music to delivery and games at no extra cost. They’re also eligible for discounts on certain products, such as Blink security cameras. A five-pack of Blink Outdoor 4 cameras has dropped by half to $200. That’s the lowest price we’ve seen for this particular bundle.

If you’re in the market for a single security camera, it’s worth noting that you can buy one Blink Outdoor 4 unit for $65 if you’re a Prime member. That’s 46 percent off and also a record low.

The Blink Outdoor 4 is our pick for the best wireless outdoor security camera. Compared with previous models, it has a wider field of view (at 143 degrees on the diagonal), enhanced motion detection and, according to Amazon, better image quality and low light functionality. There's also person detection available to those who take out the Blink Subscription Plan, which includes features such as cloud storage for video clips. Otherwise, you can save video locally by buying a Sync Module 2 separately and connecting a USB storage drive.

Despite the product's name, the Blink Outdoor 4 is suitable for indoor use too. It runs on a pair of AA batteries and the cells will last for up to two years before you need to replace them. The cameras are also weather resistant and support night vision, motion detection and two-way audio. It's worth bearing in mind that the only voice assistant Blink supports is Alexa, which makes sense since Amazon owns the brand.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/prime-members-can-save-up-to-50-percent-on-blink-outdoor-4-security-cameras-151735553.html?src=rss

Prime members can save up to 50 percent on Blink Outdoor 4 security cameras

Posted on by

Prime members can access a bunch of perks for their monthly subscription fee, from the likes of Prime Video and ad-free Amazon Music to delivery and games at no extra cost. They’re also eligible for discounts on certain products, such as Blink security cameras. A five-pack of Blink Outdoor 4 cameras has dropped by half to $200. That’s the lowest price we’ve seen for this particular bundle.

If you’re in the market for a single security camera, it’s worth noting that you can buy one Blink Outdoor 4 unit for $65 if you’re a Prime member. That’s 46 percent off and also a record low.

The Blink Outdoor 4 is our pick for the best wireless outdoor security camera. Compared with previous models, it has a wider field of view (at 143 degrees on the diagonal), enhanced motion detection and, according to Amazon, better image quality and low light functionality. There's also person detection available to those who take out the Blink Subscription Plan, which includes features such as cloud storage for video clips. Otherwise, you can save video locally by buying a Sync Module 2 separately and connecting a USB storage drive.

Despite the product's name, the Blink Outdoor 4 is suitable for indoor use too. It runs on a pair of AA batteries and the cells will last for up to two years before you need to replace them. The cameras are also weather resistant and support night vision, motion detection and two-way audio. It's worth bearing in mind that the only voice assistant Blink supports is Alexa, which makes sense since Amazon owns the brand.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/prime-members-can-save-up-to-50-percent-on-blink-outdoor-4-security-cameras-151735553.html?src=rss

Elon Musk sues OpenAI and Sam Altman for allegedly ditching non-profit mission

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OpenAI co-founder Elon Musk has sued the company, his fellow co-founders, associated businesses and unidentified others. He claims that, by chasing profits, they’re violating OpenAI’s status as a non-profit and its foundational contractual agreements to develop AI “for the benefit of humanity.”

The suit alleges that OpenAI has become a “closed-source de facto subsidiary” of Microsoft, which has invested $13 billion and holds a 49 percent stake. Microsoft uses OpenAI tech to power generative AI tools such as Copilot.

According to the filing, under OpenAI’s current board, it is allegedly developing and refining an artificial general intelligence (AGI) “to maximize profits for Microsoft, rather than for the benefit of humanity. This was a stark betrayal of the Founding Agreement.”

The suit defines AGI as "a machine having intelligence for a wide variety of tasks like a human." Musk argues in the suit that GPT-4, which is purportedly "better at reasoning than average humans," is tantamount to AGI and is "a de facto Microsoft proprietary algorithm."

Musk has long expressed concerns over AGI. He claims the theoretical tech posits "a grave threat to humanity," particularly "in the hands of a closed, for-profit company like Google."

According to the filing, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and fellow co-founder Greg Brockman persuaded Musk to help them start the non-profit and to fund its early operations in a bid to counter Google's advancements in the AGI space with DeepMind. He noted that their initial agreement called for OpenAI's tech to be "freely available" to the public. Musk claims to have donated $44 million to the non-profit between 2016 and 2020 (he stepped down as an OpenAI board member in 2018). As TechCrunch reports, Musk previously said he was offered a stake in OpenAI's for-profit subsidiary, but rejected it due to "a principled stand."

Muskl, of course, has some skin in the game. Since the public debut of OpenAI's ChatGPT in November 2022, there's been a battle between tech giants to offer the best generative AI tools. Musk joined that rat race when his AI company, xAI, rolled out ChatGPT rival Grok to Premium+ subscribers on his X social network last year.

When Altman swiftly returned to power after OpenAI's board shockingly fired him in November, he's said to have appointed a new group of directors that is less technically minded and more business-focused. Microsoft was appointed as a non-voting observer. “The new board consisted of members with more experience in profit-centric enterprises or politics than in AI ethics and governance,” the lawsuit alleges.

The suit accuses the defendants of breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and unfair business practices. Musk is seeking a jury trial and a ruling that forces OpenAI to stick to its original non-profit mission. He also wants it to be banned from monetizing tech it developed as a non-profit for the benefit of OpenAI leadership as well as Microsoft and other partners.

Competition regulators in the US, the UK and European Union are said to be examining OpenAI's partnership with Microsoft. It was reported this week that the Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating whether OpenAI misled investors. Several news organizations have sued OpenAI and Microsoft as well, alleging that ChatGPT repurposes their work "verbatim or nearly verbatim" without attribution, infringing upon their copyright in the process.

In a couple of internal memos seen by Bloomberg, OpenAI said it "categorically disagrees" with the lawsuit Musk has filed. Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon denied that OpenAI has become a "de facto subsidiary" of Microsoft and said that Musk's claims "may stem from [his] regrets about not being involved with the company today." Altman also said in another memo that Musk is his hero and that he misses the person he knew who competed with others by building better technology.

Update, March 02, 2023, 1:47AM ET: This story has been updated to include OpenAI's internal memos about the lawsuit.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/elon-musk-sues-openai-and-sam-altman-for-allegedly-ditching-non-profit-mission-160722736.html?src=rss