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Other than a Days Gone remaster, Sony’s first State of Play stream of the year was fairly light on first-party games. At least that was the case until the very end of the showcase.

The company announced the long-awaited next game from Returnal developer Housemarque. The third-person action title is called Saros, and it stars the always-delightful Rahul Kohli. The actor plays Arjun Devraj, “a powerful Soltari Enforcer searching for answers on a lost off-world colony,” per the trailer’s YouTube description. 

The clip shows Arjun waking up on a beach with a gun by his side. “Every time the sun dies, madness reigns,” he says as an ominous eclipse occurs. Moments later, a giant being with eight arms and a broken, pointy headpiece emerges from the depths. The creature summons balls of fire in its hands as Arjun readies himself to battle it.

Housemarque says Saros is a new game, but it’s one that builds on the roguelite foundations of Returnal and its repeatable runs — just in case Arjun saying “After every death, I always come back stronger” in the trailer wasn’t clear enough. In this game, your resources and progression persist after each run. You’ll have an “evolving set of weapons and suit upgrades” to help upgrade your loadout, though as in Returnal, the world will change after every death. 

One other major difference between Saros and Housemarque’s last game is that Arjun isn’t alone on this planet. Details about other characters in the ensemble cast, the story and gameplay will be revealed later.

Sony liked Returnal enough to buy Housemarque and add the developer to its stable of PlayStation Studios, so it’ll likely have high hopes for this one. Saros is slated to arrive on PS5 in 2026.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/saros-is-the-next-game-from-housemarque-coming-to-ps5-in-2026-232243078.html?src=rss 

Google will start testing a feature this year that uses machine learning to weed out children trying to access adult content on YouTube. The “machine learning-based age estimation model” will try to predict whether a user is under 18 and, if so, apply appropriate age filter settings to their account. The announcement came amid a flurry of Google child safety announcements as the US Senate considers a bill that would ban pre-teens from social media.

YouTube CEO Neal Mohan first mentioned the ML age restriction feature on Tuesday in his letter about the platform’s “bets” for the coming year. “We’ll use machine learning in 2025 to help us estimate a user’s age — distinguishing between younger viewers and adults — to help provide the best and most age-appropriate experiences and protections,” he wrote.

A YouTube spokesperson clarified to Engadget that the model will make its predictions using data like the types of info the person searches for, the categories of videos they watch and the age of their accounts. For example, if someone frequently searches for info about mortgage lending or taxes, that probably points to the person being over 18. Ditto for an account that’s over 20 years old.

If the ML model predicts that someone is underage, YouTube will apply its standard protections to deliver a more age-appropriate experience. Of course, the platform blocks explicit (and otherwise age-restricted) videos from under-18 users. Google’s underage restrictions also include its SafeSearch Filter, which (as its name suggests) blocks explicit content from search results.

YouTube told Engadget it will begin testing the filtration tool by the end of this year. The platform plans to roll it out globally in 2026. Although YouTube’s CEO first announced the feature, Google will test the feature in other areas, too. However, we don’t yet know where else the new ML feature will pop up. Google isn’t alone in trialing such a feature.

Google isn’t alone in trialing such a moderation feature. Last year, Meta said it would use an “adult classifier” tool to identify underage Instagram users posing as adults.

Google also said on Wednesday that School Time, a feature previously only available as a smartwatch app on the Fitbit Ace LTE and Galaxy Watch for Kids, will roll out to Android phones and tablets. Part of Google’s Family Link parental controls app, School Time will let parents determine what phone features and apps their children can use during school hours. Parents can choose which apps remain active (like, say, learning-friendly apps) while allowing messages and calls from certain contacts. The idea is to minimize screen time and help kids focus on their work while still green-lighting emergency contacts.

Along similar lines, the Android Family Link app will let parents approve or deny contacts to add to their children’s devices. (This is another feature making its way over from the Galaxy Watch for Kids.) Parents can then limit calls and texts to only approved contacts. However, that feature isn’t quite here yet: Google says it will roll out “in the coming months.”

Finally, this spring, parents using Google parental control features can add tap-to-pay to their children’s Android phones. (Google said this was coming last year.) Parents will be able to approve a payment card, add or remove further cards and view the child’s transactions. Google says the feature will also work for things like gift cards and concert tickets.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-will-use-machine-learning-to-try-and-tell-if-a-user-is-under-18-204713279.html?src=rss 

Blizzard is making some major changes to Overwatch 2 for its Season 15 update, including adding all new gameplay in the form of a perks system and the return of loot box rewards, on top of the new heroes and skins.

Overwatch 2 has been through several changes since it left early access in 2023, many of which brought the game from the revamped structure that made it a sequel to something that works more like a free-to-play version of the original Overwatch. Perks are legitimately new, though. Now during a match you’ll be given two opportunities to pick a perk for your hero. One minor perk after leveling up for the first time, which adds smaller upgrades like a passive ability or a cooldown reduction, and one major perk that can alter the play style of your hero. For example, Torbjorn can pick from turrets that stick to ceilings and walls (a frankly diabolical upgrade) or an even more powerful “Level 3 turret.”

As a reward for your hard work in-game, Blizzard is also adding to Overwatch 2‘s battle pass system by reintroducing loot boxes as another way to get cosmetics. You can earn loot boxes by completely weekly and event rewards, and you’ll get one Legendary Loot Box for having the Free Battle Pass or two Legendary Loot Boxes for having the Premium Battle Pass, as well. Beyond publishing drop rates for boxes, Blizzard is guaranteeing that “a Rare or better item will drop in every single box, with an Epic item within five consecutive boxes and a Legendary item within twenty consecutive boxes.”

Coming a bit later in Season 16, Overwatch 2 will get an entirely new “Stadium” game mode that draws clear inspiration from competing shooters Counter-Strike 2 and Valorant. In a Stadium match you’ll be placed on a team of five fighting to earn currency across seven possible rounds. In-between rounds you can spend that currency to unlock upgrades and customize your abilities as you play. Stadium will also let you pick between the traditional first-person mode or a new third-person mode, which should make it easier to aim some of the wilder abilities you can unlock during a match.

The cherry on top to all these changes are new quality of life features Blizzard plans to add this year, like the ability to ban specific heroes from a match, and vote on maps you want to play. Of course, there are also two new heroes in the works: Freja, “a former search and rescue operative turned bounty hunter” with an explosive crossbow who will be playable in a free trial weekend during Season 15 before joining the game in Season 16, and a hero currently being called “Aqua” who will land in Season 18 and can control water.

Season 15 launches on February 18, while features like hero bans and map voting are coming later this year, in that order, according to Blizzard.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/overwatch-2s-next-update-overhauls-the-game-with-perks-and-loot-boxes-212409206.html?src=rss