The PC is one of the most popular gaming platforms in the world, and one that’s constantly changing. Here at The Verge we cover every aspect, including the latest hardware developments from companies like Nvidia and Logitech, massively popular games like Fortnite and Overwatch, and hugely influential digital platforms like Steam and itch.io.
Judge Donato is now ordering an evidentiary hearing in Epic v. Google, Law360’s Bonnie Eslinger reports from the courtroom. She writes Donato is “not sure the proposed deal will correct Google’s illegal conduct,” and was skeptical that Epic and Google “are suddenly BFFs.”
Correction: I originally wrote there was no way to bring up the task switcher on Claw — the best part of FSE — but that’s because MSI Center claimed I was on the latest BIOS when I wasn’t! With BIOS 10F, I can long-press Quick Settings to task-switch. Because that BIOS may have fixed other things too, I also need to re-test sleep (which wasn’t working for me).
AMD, October 30th: “Future driver updates with targeted game optimizations will focus on RDNA 3 and RDNA 4 GPUs.”
AMD, October 31st: “New features, bug fixes and game optimizations will continue to be delivered as required by market needs in the maintenance mode branch.”
AMD today, after a wave of anger: “Yes, game optimization and support for all RDNA Series 1 through 4 will roll out at the same time in both driver packages — including but not limited to CoD, Crimson Desert, and Resident Evil.”
The Huntsman V3 Pro TKL wired gaming keyboard, among other Razer accessories, can now be customized to feature the Dragon Lore skin from Counter-Strike for an extra fee. It’s a surprising collaboration given that Valve has banned its optional Snap Tap feature in Counter-Strike 2 since last year.
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The Xbox Ally is better with Bazzite.
Marcus Lehto, designer of Master Chief: “It really makes me sick seeing Halo co-opted like this.”
Halo 2 and Halo 3 design lead Jaime Griesemer:
“Using Halo imagery in a call to ‘destroy’ people because of their immigration status goes way too far, and ought to offend every Halo fan, regardless of political orientation. I personally find it despicable. The Flood are evil space zombie parasites and are not an allegory to any group of people.”
Stephen Totilo spoke to both; you can read more at his Game File.
When you’re actively using Gaming Copilot in Game Bar, it can use screenshots of your gameplay to get a better understanding of what’s happening in your game and provide you with more helpful responses. These screenshots are not used to train AI models, and Gaming Copilot is an optional feature that only has access to gameplay when you’re playing a game and actively using it.
The words “will never” do not appear in Microsoft’s statement.
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Turns out, only marginally more than a $3,000 one. But the MSI Titan 18 is a unique beast.
Halo Studios has rebuilt Combat Evolved for a new generation of players.
As Bloomberg reports, roughly $1.75 billion of value evaporated from the game’s pricey item skins market after an October 22nd update made it easier for players to acquire knife skins. If you’re an average player, that’s probably a welcome change, but it’s caused chaos for traders making thousands, or even millions, of dollars on high-rarity items.
Valve is testing a new Personal Calendar feature in Steam that generates a calendar of new and upcoming games you might like. Fortunately, you can lower the number of suggestions from the default of 100, which I found made my calendar way less overwhelming.
I think I got them all!
Razer is announcing a new Phantom White Collection of translucent gaming accessories. The see-through white peripherals are a follow-up to the original Phantom Collection, which was very green — very Razer.
These white versions look much better to my eyes, toning down the overall Razer-ness of it all. At least, as much as RGB-ified gamer lights can be “toned down.”
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At 9am PT / 12pm ET, I’m answering subscriber questions live in the comments on this story, with an Xbox Ally in my left fist and an Xbox Ally X in my right. Ask me anything about the new handhelds, or the future of gaming in general!
Maingear is making 50 limited edition Doom PCs that look metal af. The $2,999 Hurt Me Plenty, $3,999 Ultra-Violence, and $5,999 Nightmare models are a collaboration with case maker HAVN. Inside each is a TRYX 360 Panorama SE liquid cooler playing clips of classic Doom on its wraparound LCD. 🤘🏻
ARC Raiders, the upcoming extraction shooters from the makers of The Finals, debuts later this month, and Nvidia is ready. Today’s Game Ready driver (version 581.57) includes support for ARC Raiders, Pax Dei, The Outer Worlds 2, and Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2. It also has fixes for Steam overlay stability issues, Black Myth: Wukong graphic glitches, and Madden 26 stability problems.
Embrace looks like Elgato’s answer to Herman Miller’s Embody gaming chair. It has a five-step recline with adjustable tilt tension, a headrest, a mesh back, lumbar support, and arm rests that move up, down, forward, back, in, and out. It will be priced at $499.99, and Elgato is aiming to ship Embrace before the Christmas holiday period.
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Does a sale count? Either way, seven months later, Newegg is finally selling an entry-level RX 9070 at MSRP rather than scalping it. Guess it wasn’t “launch-only pricing” after all.
(In case you’re wondering why I call it “scalping,” I did a dive into changing sticker prices back in April.)
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Vampire Survivors developer Poncle is drip-feeding new features coming in the game’s 1.14 update, and online co-op is the first of five teased announcements.
Local co-op came to Vampire Survivors back in 2023, but I’m excited I’ll be able to bother someone other than my wife to play with me.
If you want to see an example of the new Web Shops for mobile and PC, check out the web shop for Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms.
[Epic Games]
You know how Sony’s quietly building a PS5-grade handheld? GPD’s kind of already done it — by stuffing the monster AMD Strix Halo chip in the Framework Desktop and ROG Flow Z13 gaming tablet into a handheld that needs SO MUCH electricity. Preorders are live at Indiegogo.
SteelSeries is launching its flagship Arctis Nova Elite gaming headset today, priced at an eye-watering $599.99. It’s the first gaming headset with wireless hi-res audio and SteelSeries is positioning it in a new category of luxury headsets that get closer to audiophile-grade performance. The Nova Elite can also connect to your phone, game console, and PC simultaneously.
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Battlefield 6 is arriving next week and Nvidia is releasing a Game Ready driver update just in time. The latest 581.42 release (download here) is optimized for both Battlefield 6 and FBC: Firebreak’s Breakpoint Update.
Battlefield 6 launches on October 10th with support for DLSS 4 Multi Frame Generation, DLSS Super Resolution, DLAA, and Nvidia Reflex.
There’s been a bit of backlash to the Xbox Ally handheld’s $999 price tag, which will be a stiff test of consumer interest in expensive console hardware. But it’s also a test of Microsoft’s “everything is an Xbox” philosophy, because this sure is expensive for an Xbox that only plays PC games, and not everyone is sold:
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Only Microsoft can release a thousand dollar device branded “Xbox” that can’t play Xbox games. Only a millionaire executive at this specific company could have hallucinated this.
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