Category: Technology

Surely I wasn’t the only one caught off guard that this trailer featuring Milo Ventimiglia, a cybernetic butterfly and a tentacly upside-down hell world turned out to be the announcement of Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, right? Nevertheless, that just happened at the conclusion of the Xbox Games Showcase, and Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is officially on the way. Today’s teaser comes ahead of an official reveal that’s slated for this summer.

The game is set in the year 2035, when “the world is on the brink of chaos, ravaged by conflict and psychological warfare following the narrative events of Black Ops 2 and Black Ops 6.” According to Activision, it’s “the first-ever consecutive release within the series, set more than 40 years after the events of Black Ops 6.” It’s all kinds of futuristic, and will see David Mason and crew facing “a manipulative enemy who weaponizes fear above all else.”

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 will be available on Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Xbox PC, Xbox Cloud, Xbox Play Anywhere, Battle.net, Steam, PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4. Xbox Game Pass subscribers will also get it on launch day.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/heres-our-first-look-at-call-of-duty-black-ops-7-184709483.html?src=rss 

Xbox fans don’t need to wait any longer to play Final Fantasy XVI on their Series X/S. Two years after the action RPG debuted on PS5, it got a surprise release on Xbox’s consoles on Sunday. Its sudden arrival was announced during the Xbox Games Showcase as part of Summer Game Fest.

The game’s now available via the Xbox PC app as well. Granted, Final Fantasy XVI has been on Steam and the Epic Games store since last September, but some folks might have been waiting for its arrival on Xbox. Buying Final Fantasy XVI once on any Xbox platform means you’ll be able to play it across console, PC and cloud with synced progression.

A complete edition that includes both Final Fantasy XVI expansions is available for Xbox. There’s a standard edition that includes the base game as well. 

The arrival of Final Fantasy XVI on Xbox means that you can now play all the mainline, single-player Final Fantasy games on Microsoft‘s consoles, save for the Final Fantasy VII remakes. However, Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade is coming to Xbox this winter — just in time for those new Xbox gaming handhelds.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/final-fantasy-16-suddenly-arrives-on-xbox-series-xs-185542283.html?src=rss 

A renowned Apple engineer who was instrumental in developing modern-day computing has died. Bill Atkinson, who was part of Apple’s original Macintosh development team, died of pancreatic cancer at 74, according to a Facebook post made by his family on June 5.

His contributions to Apple and the Macintosh personal computer are still widely used today, including fundamental UI elements like the menu bar, double-clicking and the selection lasso. However, Atkinson’s work goes much deeper than that, since he’s partly responsible for the foundational design language that influenced Apple’s early days. His legacy includes creating MacPaint, an application that showed the world what a graphics-based system looks like at a time when text-based systems were the norm, and developing QuickDraw, a graphics toolbox that the Macintosh and Lisa computers use. To make computers more user-friendly, Atkinson also designed HyperCard, an Apple application that introduced hypertext to everyday users and not just programmers. Tim Cook paid tribute to Atkinson, posting on X, that he was a “true visionary whose creativity, heart, and groundbreaking work on the Mac will forever inspire us.”

Beyond Apple, Atkinson was one of three co-founders for General Magic, a software and electronics company that supplied products to Motorola and Sony in the 90s. Later, he worked with Numenta in 2007, which was a startup focused on artificial intelligence. Atkinson was also a seasoned nature photographer, publishing a book called Within the Stone that highlights polished and cut rocks with close-up shots. Atkinson is survived by his wife, two daughters, stepson, stepdaughter, two brothers, four sisters, and dog, Poppy.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/influential-apple-engineer-bill-atkinson-dies-at-74-191024913.html?src=rss 

Originally announced as “Project Bloom,” Game Freak’s upcoming action-adventure game made a formal appearance at the Xbox Games Showcase as Beast of Reincarnation. The studio describes the game as a “one-person, one-dog” RPG and it’s supposed to be coming out in 2026.

Based on the trailer, the game is set in a post-apocalyptic Japan that’s returned to nature due to some kind of beast-born blight. As the main character “Emma the Sealer,” you’ll travel through the wilderness, engaging in “demanding, technical combat” alongside your dog Koo, all in the hopes of “saving humanity” from the sickness that’s plaguing the land. 

Game Freak is best known for its work on the Pokémon games, but the developer has made an eclectic collection of other projects between mainline entries, including Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On! and more recently, Pandoland. “Project Bloom” was originally supposed to be published by Take-Two’s Private Division label, but when the label was sold in 2024, Game Freak’s game was taken up by a new publisher called Fictions.

Beast of Reincarnation is coming to PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC in 2026. It’ll also be available through Xbox Game Pass at launch.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/beast-of-reincarnation-is-a-one-person-one-dog-rpg-launching-in-2026-192305237.html?src=rss 

It’s not Psychonauts 3, but Keeper already looks to be a visually stunning and highly original gaming experience. Double Fine Productions and the company’s art director Lee Petty showed off the official announcement trailer for its latest title during the Xbox Games Showcase at Summer Game Fest 2025. It’s not as hype as the news of Persona 4 Revival or The Outer Worlds 2, but this quirky third-person adventure game looks like a fun departure from your typical AAA title.

As seen in the trailer, Keeper puts you in control of a magically reassembled lighthouse that’s since grown legs and has a strange desire to venture towards the central mountain peak of the island. There’s no dialogue for this game, but you won’t be alone since an equally adventurous seabird joins you on your mysterious mission. There’s little revealed about the storyline, but the trailer shows that the lighthouse’s beam of light can interact with the island’s wildlife, while your trusty winged companion can take care of anything out of your reach.

For diehard fans of the Psychonauts franchise, Keeper‘s vibrant and striking visuals might be the only thing to scratch that itch for a while. Double Fine Productions previously confirmed in June 2023 that it’s not working on Psychonauts 3, following hints at a potential reveal that summer. Double Fine’s Keeper will be available on Xbox Series X / S, Xbox PC, Xbox Cloud, Xbox Game Pass and Steam on October 17.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/psychonauts-developers-trippy-island-adventure-keeper-comes-out-on-october-17-193405665.html?src=rss 

The Persona 4 remake is real and its going to be called Persona 4 Revival. Atlus shared a trailer for the game during the Xbox Games Showcase, confirming its upgraded, likely Unreal Engine 5-powered visuals, and that it’s coming to Xbox platforms.

The trailer is remarkably short, all you really get are shots of Persona 4’s small-town countryside setting, snippets of the game’s score, some spooky TVs and the gray-haired player character running around. But if you’ve played the beloved RPG, you don’t need much more to get the gist.

Persona 3 Reload was released in 2024, featuring the Tokyo-set third game in the franchise, but with new graphics powered by Unreal. This next remake seems like its going to continue the trend with the fourth game in the franchise. Notably, without the voice talent of Yuri Lowenthal or Erin Fitzgerald, who both confirmed the existence of the remake and that they wouldn’t be in it at the end of May.

Persona 4 Revival is coming to Xbox Series X / S, PC, Xbox Cloud Streaming and PS5. It’ll also be available on Xbox Game Pass at launch.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/persona-4-revival-is-real-and-coming-to-ps5-pc-and-xbox-182120544.html?src=rss 

Asobo Studio announced at the Xbox Games Showcase that its new entry in the Plague Tale series is a prequel set 15 years before its last game. Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy is focused on the smuggler Sophia from A Plague Tale: Requiem, and is scheduled to be released in 2026.

Based on the brief description from the game’s trailer, Resonance follows a young Sophia as she “seeks her independence as a fierce plunderer in the unforgiving world of the 14th century.” The trailer shows Sophia on the run, escaping conflict, exploring mysterious ruins, and generally being pursued by danger, alongside more ominous vignettes showcasing Asobo’s typically lush visuals.

If surviving a plague made the first two games seem grim, escaping a flaming ship or battling in a gladiatorial arena doesn’t make Sophia’s past adventures seem all that more for fun. Still, there’s very little to go on, and quite a bit more to learn before Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy comes out in 2026. 

Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy is currently set to be released on Xbox Series X / S, PS5, PC and Xbox Cloud Streaming. It’ll also be available from day one through Xbox Game Pass.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/asobo-studios-next-plague-tale-game-is-a-prequel-arriving-in-2026-183305421.html?src=rss 

Apple‘s next big UI overhaul, reportedly called “Liquid Glass,” is ready for its big reveal. According to Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, the upcoming interface redesign will feature “sheen and see-through visuals of a glassy surface.” More specifically, Apple’s new design language will have “transparency and shine effects” in its toolbars, in-app interfaces and controls.

It may sound like a superficial makeover, but it’s rare that Apple makes such a major change to its UI. The last big change for iPhones came from iOS 7 when Apple ditched its iconic skeumorphism design in favor of a more simplified design we have today.

However, Gurman reported that Apple could be getting Liquid Glass ready for the eventual 20th anniversary of the iPhone next year. According to Gurman, the upcoming 20th anniversary release of the iPhone will have “curved glass sides around the entire phone, even at the edges.” On top of that, this special iPhone will have “extraordinarily slim bezels and no cutout section in the screen” to better match the upcoming redesign. 

It’s not the first time we’re hearing about Apple’s rumored redesign, which was expected to draw inspiration from the Apple Vision Pro. With this Liquid Glass design, Apple could unify the look of its interfaces across all of its devices and make it less of a dramatic visual shift when switching between your Vision Pro and iPhone. This big visual change is expected to align across the board with iOS 26, macOS, watchOS, iPadOS, and tvOS. We’re expecting to see Apple’s Liquid Glass debut during WWDC 2025 which will kick off on June 9, 1PM ET/10AM PT.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/apple-will-reportedly-demo-its-liquid-glass-interface-redesign-with-see-through-visuals-at-wwdc-165823089.html?src=rss 

Xbox kicked off its Summer Game Fest showcase by revealing the release date to The Outer Worlds 2, the sci-fi first-person RPG from Obsidian Entertainment, via a new trailer. The sequel is coming out on October 29, 2025 and Xbox plans to follow-up its stream with an in-depth look at the game.

Like the original The Outer Worlds, the sequel continues its satire of end-times capitalism, focusing in the trailer on the player character’s Earth Directorate agent working against various companies vying for destructive, dangerous technology. What that looks like in practice is freezing and exploding enemies with a variety of out-of-this-world weapons — shrink rays included. Knowing Obsidian’s output, there’s bound to be plenty of non-lethal ways to get what you want, too.

The Outer Worlds 2 is coming out on October 29, 2025 for Xbox Series X / S, PS5, PC and streaming through Xbox Cloud Streaming.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/the-outer-worlds-2-arrives-on-october-29-172540150.html?src=rss 

We’re been hearing rumors for what feels like an eternity about Microsoft working with ASUS’ ROB division on a gaming handheld device and we got confirmation during the Xbox Games Showcase at Summer Game Fest. There are two variants of the handheld: the ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X. 

Microsoft didn’t reveal pricing, but the handhelds are coming this holiday. Details on how much the systems cost, pre-orders, accessories and more are coming soon, the company said. The Xbox Ally will initially be available in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and, shockingly enough, the US.

The Xbox Ally is powered by the AMD Ryzen Z2 A Processor, and has 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD storage. The Xbox Ally X is the more powerful model. It has a AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme processor, 24GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. They each have a microSD card reader, so you won’t need to worry about shelling out for proprietary storage options to have extra space for your games.

The two models seem to have the same screen, a seven-inch 1080p, 16:9 display with a 120Hz refresh rate and 500 nits of brightness. They both boast “HD haptics” and have a dedicated Xbox button. 

The Xbox Ally has hall effect analog triggers, while the Xbox Ally X has “impulse triggers for enhanced control.” It sounds a little like Microsoft and ASUS are taking a page out of the PlayStation DualSense playbook there. Anyway, both of the Xbox Ally systems have two assignable back buttons and 6-axis IMU — a fancy way of saying that they’ll probably have gyro controls.

The ROG Ally devices run on Windows 11, naturally. Both models come with a charging stand. Microsoft has designed a full-screen Xbox user interface for the handhelds.

Xbox head Sarah Bond says that every game included in the showcase will be playable on the Xbox Ally, but didn’t make clear whether all of those would run natively on the devices. The reveal trailer also included a notable focus on Hollow Knight: Silksong, for what it’s worth.

This story is developing, refresh for updates…

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/rog-xbox-ally-handheld-gaming-devices-are-real-and-coming-this-holiday-171550555.html?src=rss