Author: News Room

Ever tried cancelling a subscription only to be greeted with a “Wait! Here’s a discount!” message? It looks like PlayStation has started borrowing that playbook. A growing number of users report being offered discounts of up to 50% on PlayStation Plus when attempting to cancel their memberships, making it one of the biggest retention offers Sony has rolled out in recent years. Not everyone gets the same deal Based on reports shared across Reddit, the offers appear to vary depending on the subscription tier and duration. The most generous deal seems to be 50% off a three-month PlayStation Plus Extra…

In the wake of Xbox’s planned layoffs across its gaming division, which will impact 3,200 employees, with 1,600 of those workers immediately let go yesterday, Doom developer id Software has been hit particularly hard. A new report suggests the legendary studio has lost roughly half of its staff.Game Developer reports that, per its sources, id’s headcount has been reduced by around 50 percent. An affected senior employee corroborated this figure in a LinkedIn post. The studio’s QA department was hit particularly hard, according to one of Game Developer’s sources. Most of id Software’s employees unionized last December, but it’s unclear…

For much of the past decade, Xbox had one big idea: be the Netflix of gaming. Under Phil Spencer, Microsoft invested tens of billions of dollars into Game Pass, bought some of the industry’s biggest publishers, and pushed the idea that subscriptions, not consoles, would define gaming’s future. According to a new report from Bloomberg, that vision is now being rethought. A new direction for Xbox Rather than centering Xbox around subscriptions, Microsoft’s gaming business is reportedly beginning to place renewed emphasis on hardware, first-party games, and flagship franchises. Bloomberg reports that Asha Sharma, who recently took over leadership of…

Marvel Rivals introduced its newest season, The Mystery of Thebes, in a livestream earlier today, which will add the new characters Jubilee and The Hood into the game. The cinematic trailer was followed by the routine dev vision video where creative director Guangguang and lead combat designer Zhiyong go over balance changes and new team-up abilities, but this update was anything but routine. In addition to overhauling the Team-Up system (more on that later), they’ve almost completely reworked Black Widow’s mechanics. In a game where most heroes have generally similar power levels, Black Widow has consistently been the least powerful character…

Microsoft Teams is getting a meaningful update that overhauls almost every part of how you use the app, from AI-assisted meetings to a cleaner chat layout. Most of the changes are already in testing, and several are scheduled to roll out before the end of the summer. Starting with the most interesting addition: an upgraded AI Facilitator that can listen to your meeting, spot when someone seems confused, and generate a response (via Windows Report).  So what exactly is changing in Teams? The AI Facilitator can step in with an AI-generated answer in the chat when it detects silence in…

Marvel Rivals, the comic book-themed hero shooter from Netease, aired a livestream today to reveal what’s coming to the game in its ninth season, which is set to start this Friday, July 10. The stream kicked off with a cinematic trailer briefly showing the two newest heroes – Jubilee and The Hood – but primarily focusing on X-Men antagonist Apocalypse. As he finishes a monologue about his quest for power, he’s suddenly impaled through the back with a sword from an unseen attacker. You can watch for yourself below. Jubilee joins the game as a Strategist (the game’s healer-adjacent class) and…

AI smart glasses have a trust problem. Even when they’re not recording, simply wearing a camera on your face can make people around you uneasy. Solos’ latest answer isn’t another blinking LED or software toggle. Instead, it’s a piece of plastic. Two different approaches to solving the same problem The company has unveiled two privacy-focused additions to its wearable lineup: the camera-free AirGo A6 smart glasses and a new Privacy Kit for the AirGo V2 that physically blocks the camera whenever users don’t want it active. Unlike many AI smart glasses entering the market, the AirGo A6 doesn’t include a…

For years, one of the biggest requests from Steam Machine owners has been official Windows support. Valve has finally delivered. The company has released a full set of Windows drivers for the Steam Machine, making it possible to install Windows 11 without relying on unofficial workarounds or missing hardware support. The update includes drivers for the device’s graphics, audio, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, SD card reader, and other key components, making Windows a much more viable option than before. Windows on a Steam Machine is now officially supported According to Valve, the new driver package is designed specifically for users who want…

Google just made the Pixel 11 launch official. The Made by Google 2026 event is scheduled for August 12, 2026, a week earlier than last year. It kicks off at 6 PM ET in New York City, noticeably later than Google’s usual timing.  Along with the date confirmation, Google dropped an invite image showing a gold metal frame, which could be our clearest look yet at the Pixel 11 Pro’s design: flat frame and premium finish.  So what’s actually showing up on August 12? Expect the full Pixel 11 lineup, including four models. I’m talking about the standard Pixel 11,…

The Blood of Dawnwalker, the new game from Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, co-director of Wither 3 and Cyberpunk, was recently on the cover of Game Informer. Brian Shea saw the game’s early hours, but this was my chance to play it and make different choices.My time with The Blood of Dawnwalker begins idyllically, with protagonist Coen and his family preparing supper atop a hill. But as the sun sets, that peace quickly fades when his sister, Kunka, runs off into the woods. Coen goes after his sister, Kunka, and when he catches up, she reveals she’s been turned into a vampire before betraying Coen…