AMD has announced that owners of RDNA 3 GPUs can now enjoy the benefits offered by its latest version of AI-powered upscaling, FSR 4.1. This comes a few weeks earlier than its July estimate, with the promise for more devices down the line, too.

FSR Upscaling 4.1 functions similarly to other upscaling technologies on the market, and comes much closer to the performance and quality of Nvidia's market-leading DLSS than previous iterations. It's the same technology that underpins the PlayStation 5 Pro's PSSR 2, with Sony layering on its own work on top of what AMD has engineering here.

https://twitter.com/jackhuynh/status/2069059207383720091

The upscaling suite was previously exclusive to the company's latest GPUs, the RX 9070 and 9070 XT, but will now be available to many, many more RDNA 3 GPUs, such as the popular 7800XT and XTX. You'll need the latest version of AMD's Adrenalin software, which you can grab here.

Devices with RDNA 3.5 APUs, such as Valve's Steam Machine and the Xbox ROG Ally X, will eventually get FSR 4.1 support, with AMD working on lightweight AI models specific to the lower memory bandwidth of these and similar devices.

AMD has also committed to supporting even older RDNA 2 cards with FSR 4.1 sometime in 2027. That, unfortunately, isn't likely to include the one in Valve's Steam Deck, which might have given more life to the aging, and now more expensive, handheld gaming PC.

Hideo Kojima has shared new insight into the Death Stranding movie, while director Michael Sarnoski has revealed a key detail about it as well.

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Kojima said he wanted to "try a different path" with the adaptation of Death Stranding for film. That path, he said, is to make a "two-hour art movie" as opposed to re-telling the story of the games.

Kojima admitted this plan might not work.

"I don't know if this will be successful, but that's the goal," he said.

The Death Stranding movie is in the works at A24, which just reached an AI-training deal with Google, and is also behind the Elden Ring film from director Alex Garland.

Sarnoski, who earned acclaim for directing the movie Pig starring Nicolas Cage and later made A Quiet Place: Day One, told The Hollywood Reporter that Death Stranding is his next project. Sarnoski, who is also writing the script, said he's still working on the script, but he's confirmed it's the next movie he'll direct "for sure."

Sarnoski's latest project was The Death of Robin Hood, which stars Hugh Jackman as Robin Hood and released on June 19.

The Death Stranding movie doesn't have a cast, release date, or any other concrete information yet. However, Sarnoski previously talked about how the film will feature characters not seen in the game, but with the overall aim of "keeping it honest to the game."

Kojima himself was approached to direct the Death Stranding movie, but he declined. Kojima won’t be “involved too much” because if he were, he said he would “start saying a lot of things.”

Kojima is also working on a new game for Xbox called OD, and a new screenshot was shared in the Entertainment Weekly story linked above.

Valve has officially announced the Steam Machine's price, and if you're looking to get one of the not-consoles when they launch on June 30, you're going to have to spend over $1,000 at minimum. As you can probably guess, eager players on the internet were not exactly thrilled by that news, and they let their voices be heard on social media.

Some questioned if the Steam Machine should even be released at all at this point, pointing to the massive price tag that was required as AI puts a strain on the hardware supply chain.

https://twitter.com/MischiefsYT/status/2069109998882345354

And with the Steam Machine serving as a type of PC more than a traditional console, others questioned why someone would pay such a high price when building a custom PC would be cheaper.

https://twitter.com/kishswim/status/2069110413782855948

YouTuber SpawnWave was perhaps even more blunt with his assessment, believing the system is so expensive may effectively have no audience.

https://twitter.com/SpawnWaveMedia/status/2069126457108910157

One Twitter user pointed to the trend we've seen with consoles in years past, with more accessible systems often performing better commercially than the more-expensive alternatives. The Sega Nomad, for those too young to remember, literally played Sega Genesis games on the go, yet no one talks about it today.

https://twitter.com/OctorokR/status/2069117845129343447

And as we approach the inevitable PS6 and Microsoft's Project Helix, others pointed out that we may be looking at a sign of things to come. The days of $500 consoles, at launch or otherwise, are likely long gone.

https://twitter.com/GameRiot/status/2069114442734784591

The Steam Machine officially releases on June 30, with preorders beginning on June 25. A waitlist is available for a chance to order one.

Epic Games is teaming up with DC and Warner Bros. to bring Milly Alcock's Supergirl to Fortnite, alongside her cute little pooch Krypto.

Epic has posted a video showing Alcock's reaction to seeing her Supergirl outfit in the game. "I think it's pretty cool," she said. While she's excited to see her Supergirl come to Fortnite, she thinks her canine companion will steal the show. "I think I will soon be forgotten and Krypto will reign," she said.

Alcock also had a plea for people playing Fortnite with her Supergirl skin: "Make sure I win in the game when you play with me. Do me proud."

https://twitter.com/Fortnite/status/2069140977491779691

Supergirl and Krypto come to Fortnite later this week, just in time for Supergirl's release in theaters on June 26. A Fortnite skin based on David Corenswet's Superman was added to the game last year for the 2025 Superman movie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJNjhV5o5qs

In other Fortnite news, The Simpsons are returning to Fortnite--and in a big way. Later this year, Epic will add UEFN support for The Simpsons, allowing people to create maps and modes using officially licensed The Simpsons assets. As you can imagine, the first thing people will probably do is try to make Hit & Run.

The specs and pricing for Steam Machine have been revealed, and the preorders are opening soon. But if you'd rather sidestep that headache and build your own Steam Machine, Valve is officially making it easier for players to do so.

While speaking with The Verge, Valve's Pierre-Loup Griffais confirmed that the recently launched SteamOS 3.8.10 is part of the company's ongoing attempts to make the Steam operating system "more compatible with desktop hardware." That includes "improved compatibility" with the most recent Intel and AMD platforms.

"If you have something that is similar to the use case of a Steam Machine, where you have a PC that's gonna be plugged into a TV, and has a single hard drive that you’re not going to try and dual boot … you can put SteamOS on there, and you'll have an experience that is very similar to a Steam Deck docked or a Steam Machine," said Griffais. "With some caveats, of course ... The core bits of the experience are there. The SteamOS graphics driver, the shader precompilation … you can get at all of that with the SteamOS."

However, SteamOS doesn't currently support Nvidia drivers. Griffais noted that Valve and Nvidia are "collaborating ... very closely" on the issue, but compatibility with SteamOS may not be ready to go this year.

Building a high-end PC on par with Steam Machine may not be much cheaper than the $1,049 for the 512GB model. But players' custom builds can potentially address some of Steam Machine's shortcomings in terms of video memory and graphical power.

In response to the chaotic launch of Steam Controller preorders, Valve is trying a new procedure with Steam Machine. After the initial reservation list is closed on June 25, Valve will send out randomized invites to get a Steam Machine to discourage bots and resellers.

Valve's Steam Machine finally has a price, and its far steeper than anyone was likely imagining. That goes for Valve, too, with the company indicating that its original target was significantly less, and would've made a lot more sense for the hardware on offer.

Speaking to both IGN and Aftermath, engineers from Valve indicated that the Steam Machine's price increased similarly to that of the Steam Deck, whose own price was increased by around 35% for the base model (and closer to 50% for the 1TB versions). Assuming Valve is talking about the lower figure of the two, some quick math suggests that the Steam Machine was likely originally priced at or around $750, a figure that was widely guessed at the time.

But that was in November 2025, when the now-apocalyptic RAM crisis was just starting. Since then, memory prices have surged globally. The United States of America has fared best, with an average 163% increase, while other regions, like Japan and the UK, have seen increases of 619% and 219% respectively, Regardless of where you live, building a PC has become prohibitively expensive, with few signs suggesting that is changing soon. And unfortunately for Valve, it got caught in the storm at the exact wrong time.

The Steam Machine was never expected to be a cheap device. Even Valve has played down console comparisons, pointing towards its ability to be a fully featured desktop PC along with a living room gaming device. But at over $1,000 for its entry-level model (which ships without a controller), it has become an expensive luxury that struggles to justify its cost through performance alone.

As Digital Foundry breaks down in its extensive performance review, the Steam Machine struggles to keep up with the base PS5 in many games tested, while just equaling it in others. There's caveats to those results (consoles have settings that PCs sometimes can't replicate, for example), but you can expect to have a similar game-playing experience to a PS5 that costs, right now, half the price of the Steam Machine. And if you want some extra graphical grunt, the PS5 Pro is a much more powerful platform, and still cheaper. At an original price of $750, the Steam Machine made a lot more sense.

Valve's Steam Machine isn't a console. It isn't subsidized as one. It can do a lot more than any on the market, too. But it's also an expensive way to play PC games, and one that doesn't make as much sense anymore in the current market.

Valve has finally announced the price of the new Steam Machine, and it'll be over $1,000 when it launches on June 30. In addition to confirming the price and release date, Valve published a new FAQ that runs through some key particulars about the system, including how it is not meant to be described as a console.

"We think of Steam Machine as an extension of PC gaming, not as a console," Valve said.

This is not a game console.

In making its point, Valve said a console like an Xbox or PlayStation device would typically be sold at a loss, with Microsoft and Sony making up the loss with software and services revenue. Games sold for a console might be "locked in to the hardware" on a traditional console, but that's not the case for the Steam Machine.

"We think this can make sense for a single business in the short term but that open ecosystems are better for customers over the long term. PC gaming's history proves this: The openness of the PC gaming space has enabled it to be the primary driver of hardware and software innovation for decades," Valve said.

The company went on to say one of the strengths of the PC gaming market is giving players the ability to play the games they want on the hardware they want, and the Steam Machine is a solution for this.

"But it's not the only solution, and we don't want it to be," Valve said.

Valve wanted to charge less for the Steam Machine, the company told IGN, but the so-called "RAM-aggedon" drove up prices. The Steam Machine will now start at $1,050 and scale up from there.

The Steam Machine price coming in at more than $1,000 for the base model is indeed a shock, but it's also indicative of a wider trend of increasing prices due to the AI-fueled demand for components and memory. The prices of Xbox and PlayStation consoles have already gone up, and Nintendo is raising the price of the Switch 2 in September.

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma recently commented on the price of gaming consoles, saying they have become too expensive and that "radically different" models are needed. She specifically said it's untenable to ask mass audiences to pay thousands of dollars for new consoles.

If you're trying to secure a Steam Machine, you're going to encounter a preorder queue that is a little different in response to issues that came up with the Steam Controller.

The Steam Machine starts at $1,049 for a 512GB model, up to $1,428 for a 2TB model with Steam Controller and swappable face plates. Early impressions of the device generally find it’s a decently powered gaming PC that’s very user-friendly, but less powerful than a custom build for the same price.

A fan recreating Ocarina of Time has scrapped the project, citing fears of "Nintendo ninjas" following the official announcement of the Switch 2 remake.

According to IGN, YouTuber CryZENx pulled the plug on their The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time PC recreation after at least a decade of working on it. In a blog post on their official Patreon, CryZENx told their community that the "Ocarina of Time project [has] officially stopped." CryZENx didn't provide an exact reason for the cancellation, but in the comments, they explained that "it's better to just stop the project for now or I would [have] disappeared … because of Nintendo ninjas."

It's no secret that Nintendo is quite litigious when it comes to its IP. Just look at the lawsuit the company levied against Palworld developer Pocketpair, which appears to be nearing its end. The company also went after an alleged pirate in October 2025 for hosting piracy sites. And in May 2025, Nintendo threw its blue shell at the gaming accessory company Genki for "unauthorized" Switch 2 mockups, with that lawsuit getting settled in September of that year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZGKmisSDmk

It would seem that CryZENx doesn't want anything to do with Nintendo's lawyers, hence why they're ending development. Their YouTube channel is filled with videos showcasing the project (which was being built in Unreal Engine), so it's entirely possible Nintendo may come a-knocking.

Despite fearing "Nintendo ninjas," CryZENx polled their community in that same Patreon blog, asking what other projects they should work on. The list is stacked with Nintendo IP, from Diddy Kong Racing to Twilight Princess to Metroid Prime Hunters.

Nintendo finally revealed The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake during its summer Nintendo Direct Showcase. The announcement was short and contained zero gameplay, but it generated millions of views--as well as concerns that it may smooth down the game's rougher edges. We'll find out when it lands on Nintendo Switch 2 sometime this year.

The Elder Scrolls 6 is one of Xbox's most-anticipated upcoming games, and game director Todd Howard has now said the studio must stick the landing.

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Howard confirmed that the majority of the developers at Bethesda Game Studios are working on The Elder Scrolls 6 currently.

"We know we need to get it right and it's been a long time," he said.

Indeed it has been a long time. The game was announced more than eight years ago now, and to date, only one video has been released, and it was only a title reveal.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkFdqqyI8y4

The game did not show up at the Xbox Games Showcase earlier in June. Xbox chief content officer Matt Booty said this was because Microsoft was waiting for "the right moment" to show the game again.

"When you decide to show it, you want it to be the best you’ve got,” he said. “And also that when you show the game, you’re also giving them a promise of, 'Hey, it’s coming soon.'”

Howard has questioned whether it was the right call to announce The Elder Scrolls 6 so early. “I have asked myself that a lot,” he said. “I don’t know. I probably would’ve announced it more casually.”

He later said announcing The Elder Scrolls 6 in the way that Bethesda did was “not my preference,” but it happened anyway.

He went on to joke: “Just pretend we didn’t announce it. It doesn’t exist. No one has heard a word.”

Season 4 Reloaded arrives later this week, and award winning actor Nicolas Cage will join Call of Duty's growing list of operators for Black Ops 7 and Warzone. In addition to the Hollywood star, Season 4 Reloaded includes new weapons, limited-time events, and the Kowakujo Zombies map. The popular Black Ops Classic mode also becomes a permanent addition in Black Ops 7.

Season 4 Reloaded goes live on June 25, and this midseason refresh is themed as Call of Duty's Summer of Action update. All of the major announcements can be found below.

Limited-time events and new weapons

One of the main highlights of the midseason update are the new free weapons being introduced. Season 4 Reloaded will add the Executioner's Duet melee weapon and the classic AN-94 assault rifle from Black Ops 2 as the final weapons of the season.

Nick Cage event rewards

Nicolas Cage also highlights the Summer of Action update as a new operator. Cage is known for iconic action and adventure roles, such as National Treasure, Con Air, Gone in 60 Seconds, and most recently, Spider-Noir.

The actor arrives as part of Call of Duty's new "Nick Cage event." This works just like RoboCop and many other recent events with both free and paid event tracks. Call of Duty's paid event passes are usually priced at $10. Both tracks include cosmetics themed around Nicolas Cage, but the operator himself can only be unlocked in the paid pass.

More multiplayer maps and modes Remake of the Launch map from BO1

Two more maps and modes are added with Season 4 Reloaded. 

Zenith is a brand-new 6v6 map set within Karma's hidden cliffside manor. Launch is a remake of the Black Ops 1 map set at a rocket launch facility, and this is also a standard 6v6 map.

As for game modes, Team Blueprint Sharpshooter arrives as a 6v6 mode where weapon blueprints rotate every few seconds. Each weapon cycle swaps to the same new weapon for every player, and this continues until a team reaches the score limit. 

In this mode, players earn power-ups instead of scorestreaks for achieving elimination streaks. The bonuses are as follows: 

• 1-Streak: Faster movement speed
• 2 -Streak: Faster reload speed
• 3-Streak: Faster sprint recovery
• 4-Streak: Faster aim-down-sights speed
• 5-Streak: Double score

The second mode is called Knife Fight, which is a melee-only variant of the fan-favorite Gunfight mode.

Black Ops Classic update

The Black Ops Classic playlist features movement and gameplay inspired by older games in the series, which removes Black Ops 7's advancing omnimovement and various equipment. Due to the mode's popularity, Treyarch has made the playlist permanent in Black Ops 7.

This mode only features the game's remastered maps from the older Black Ops games, but a few more throwbacks are being added into the rotation in Season 4 Reloaded. This list includes Launch, Fringe, Hacienda, and Gridlock.

New Zombies map and Wonder Weapon New Oni enemy type

Season 4 Reloaded introduces a brand-new Zombies map called Kowakujo. This map's story revolves around Takeo, and the setting takes place at his family’s castle in Japan. The main story quest will go live with the big update, where players are tasked with fighting Nyxara's army, liberating the Shadowsmith, and uncovering the curse that holds Takeo's soul.

The map features the new Oni enemy type. Oni are armored enemies with the power of electricity, and they also wield melee weapons.

The Wonder Weapon for this map remains "redacted," and Treyarch says players will need to discover it as they play.

Endgame

A new act of missions arrives in Endgame called Operation King Killer. Additionally, Season 4 Reloaded adds the new Guardian skill track, described as a skill that allows players to withstand more damage, support teammates, and punish attackers. The Psych Grenade is also added as a new minor ability.

Warzone Map Update for Rebirth Island Rebirth Island gets a makeover

Warzone's Rebirth Island Resurgence map is getting a seasonal new look for the midseason update. The snow has melted around the prison, and Rebirth Island gains a colorful new setting with updates to the grass and trees on the island.

New Warzone modes

The midseason update adds Squad Gun to Warzone. This mode is played on the smaller Resurgence maps. It’s basically Call of Duty's Gun Game mode in Warzone, for the first time ever. Squads will drop into matches with the objective of being the first to cycle through a pre-determined number of weapons, eliminating enemy targets to progress to the next weapon. The first squad to cycle through every weapon wins the match.

From July 9 through 13, players can jump into limited-time matches of Warzone's Buy Back Quads mode. This is a returning mode where players want to acquire as much cash as they can, as eliminated players with at least $4,000 will automatically redeploy.

One World of Warcraft player has created their own private version of Azeroth, populated not by other players, but with AI-powered bots. 

As detailed on the wowservers subreddit, user Mr-Nilsson_85 explained how they created a "proof of concept" of what a Wrath of the Lich King-era WoW server played entirely by bots looks like, turning one of the world's premier MMORPGs into what is essentially a single-player game. The server hosts 1,800 bot "players" that go about playing the game as real players normally would--completing quests, leveling professions, killing monsters, and equipping better gear.

Despite being against the game's terms-of-service, bots aren't exactly anything new in WoW, having existed almost as long as the game has been around. They usually come in the gold-farming variety, completing repetitive tasks like mining and vendoring ore over and over again. But these bots are different, as their ability to chat with each other and potential real players is powered by DeepSeek AI. As Mr-Nilsson_85 explains, the bots have predefined "topics" to talk about among themselves, "but they do respond to each other, and they do respond to the player."

At first glance, these AI conversations can look fairly legitimate. But upon closer inspection, many of them seem to be monologuing into the void of the game's general chat, like one that proudly declares "Grinding Ravenholdt rep all day!" or another exclaiming "Man, Ulduar's my jam!"

https://www.reddit.com/r/wowservers/comments/1u8k6lm/private_server_with_1800_bots_ai_chat_deepseek/

One interesting wrinkle is that the AI-powered chat for these bots isn't attached to the actual scripts controlling their gameplay, so there is no way to currently influence their actions. That means a real player can't ask a particular bot to pull a specific enemy, trade an item, or wait for mana. That might make grouping up with these bots a challenge, but for those who prefer to play MMORPGs like WoW solo, with other players largely serving as set dressing, it's an interesting concept. 

Reactions to Mr-Nilsson_85's creation on Reddit are mixed. Some players seem legitimately impressed and excited about the possibilities of an AI-powered MMO that could turn online worlds into single-player experiences. Others point to it as evidence of the "dead internet theory," the idea that most online content and interactions are now generated by AI, in action. Some mostly just seem depressed by the idea, with one user calling the AI server "dystopian." 

The idea of a "single-player MMORPG" powered by NPCs masquerading as players isn't entirely unheard of. Erenshor, an indie game released in 2025, is built around that same idea.

In other WoW news, developer Blizzard recently sued the makers of yet another WoW private server, accusing them of "large scale, egregious, and ongoing infringement" of Blizzard's intellectual property. It's the third WoW Classic private server takedown in recent months, leading some fans to believe Blizzard is preparing for a major announcement related to the old-school version of the MMO.

Ahead of its launch on June 30, reviews and impressions on Valve's Steam Machine have arrived. Designed to be a living room PC, the compact unit is launching during an expensive time for gamers, as the ongoing memory and storage crisis, coupled with AI data center demands, has seen an explosive surge in hardware prices. Is the Steam Machine worth its price?

According to impressions from various outlets, Valve has managed to cram an impressive amount of hardware into the small PC gaming cube, but that focus on portability (or avoiding even more exorbitant prices) has had an impact on its graphical capabilities. The Verge calls it a gaming PC that punches above its weight but still "isn't ready for the console wars" just yet.

Steam Machine and Steam Controller

"While you won’t be able to run the most intensive games at a true 4K resolution because you’ll run out of video memory and graphical power too quickly, I found the Steam Machine’s frame rate is incredibly stable and pairs well with TVs that support variable refresh rate (VRR)," The Verge wrote in its review. "There’s just enough horsepower to, say, play Indiana Jones or Returnal at 1440p medium spec, or Forza Horizon 6 at 1440p high spec, or Cyberpunk 2077 at upscaled 4K with high spec, or Shadow of the Tomb Raider at true 4K and medium."

But how does the Steam Machine compare to established devices like the PS5 or Xbox Series X|S consoles? Not too well, from a financial standpoint.

"At $1,049, the Steam Machine is unlikely to win over the hearts and minds of PlayStation and Xbox faithfuls, but it is easily the best living room PC I’ve ever used, despite being a bit weaker than either of the base consoles," IGN explained. "That price probably disqualifies Valve’s new mini gaming PC in the eyes of many console faithfuls, but it makes a lot more sense for its intended purpose as an entry-level gaming PC."

Where the Steam Machine does shine is as a PC gaming unit that takes up very little space and is very quiet when running games. "The Steam Machine is quiet. I mean, really, really quiet. The single, geometry-optimized 120 mm fan at the back does an admirable job of moving large amounts of air at whisper-like levels, so much so that I don't think you'd notice it at full pelt over any other ambient noise," PC Gamer wrote.

If you're interested in grabbing one, preorders for the Steam Machine will officially open on June 25 ahead of its June 30 shipping date. Prices start at $1,049 for the 512GB model with no controller, and go up to $1,428 for a 2TB Steam Machine with a controller and swap-out face-plates. You can also join the waitlist now to be notified when preorders are live.

Xbox is going full steam ahead with a slate of films and TV shows, which now includes a live-action adaptation of Rare's 2018 pirate-filled, social-sim adventure game, Sea of Thieves.

According to a June 22 Entertainment Weekly report, Xbox has "over a dozen adaptations in the works." Some of these projects are already known--Death Stranding is getting a film, Netflix is fully supporting an animated and live-action Gears movie, Fallout has a new season, and Minecraft is getting a sequel film.

But one that may come as a surprise is that Sea of Thieves will get the live-action treatment, too, with American filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton (Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) producing. No director has been attached to the project just yet, though.

Matt Booty, Xbox's newly minted chief content officer and executive vice president, teased to Entertainment Weekly what the film's story would be about.

"The main character of a Sea of Thieves game is actually the player and the community," Booty said. "So if you sit down to think about Sea of Thieves, it's not, 'Who are the main characters? What's the plot?' It's a super social game, but there's a tone to Sea of Thieves. It's built on a very cooperative community, so you can start to sense what that's going to be like."

Developed by Rare Limited and published by Xbox Game Studios, Sea of Thieves is an open-world pirate action-adventure game that launched on Xbox consoles in 2018. You create a pirate, helm a ship, and sail the seven seas in search of bodies to shoot and booty to plunder. While you can play solo, the game was built with multiplayer in mind, so it'll be curious to see how Hollywood brings a live-action adaptation of a primarily social game to life.

At long last, Valve has revealed the price for its highly anticipated Steam Machine. The system will officially cost $1,049 for its 512GB version without a Steam Controller and it launches on June 30. From there, the price increases to $1,349 for the 2TB model without a controller, and $1,428 with a controller. Preorders will open up on June 25, but you can join a waitlist now to be eligible for an opportunity to preorder one.

On June 25, a select number of those who registered interest will be randomly selected to be able to place a preorder. This is being done in reaction to challenges with preordering the Steam Controller, and Valve says it gives users a fair amount of time to actually place an order, while providing it with time to "do some extra validation on the signups to make sure they're real accounts." Orders are limited to one per household and must meet a few criteria, including having made a Steam purchase prior to April 27.

Though not Valve's first attempt at offering a Steam-branded PC for the living room, the Steam Machine is arguably its most exciting. The system runs on Valve's own SteamOS, similarly to the portable Steam Deck, and it can function as a standard PC, complete with a separate operating system. Valve will also be using a Steam Machine Verified badge for games on its platform, just like it does for Steam Deck.

Steam Machine tech specs

CPU

• Semi-custom AMD Zen 4 6C / 12T
• Up to 4.8 GHz, 30W TDP

GPU

• Semi-Custom AMD RDNA3 28CUs
• 2.45GHz max sustained clock, 110W TDP

RAM

• 16GB DDR5 + 8GB GDDR6 VRAM

Power

• Internal power supply, AC power 110-240V

Storage

• 512GB NVMe SSD or 2TB NVMe SSD
• Both models include a high-speed microSD card slot

Earlier this month, Valve indicated that it was ready to lift the veil on the Steam Machine and its next-generation VR headset, the Steam Frame. The company committed to a summer release window for both devices, and a few months earlier, it launched its new Steam Controller.

In case you missed out on grabbing one when preorders first went live, you're going to be in for a long wait, as new stock will only arrive in 2027.

Just how far in advance was God of War Laufey planned by its developer, Sony Santa Monica Studio? Almost a decade ago, as actress Deborah Ann Woll--who provided the motion capture and voice acting for the game's protagonist, Faye--recently spoke about how she first heard about the project in 2018.

"I've known about this for nearly 10 years, and I haven't been able to talk about it," Woll said to CGM. According to Woll, God of War 2018 director Cory Barlog first pitched the idea to her back then, and he even had ideas then to pair Faye with a sidekick: Phranque, the talking cube (voiced and also motion-captured by actor Jack Quaid, while wearing a cube-shaped harness).

"It's wild. Like when Cory brought me in to talk about doing Ragnarok and showed me the 2018 game, he already had a poster for the Laufey game with me and a cube. A cube that's been there since the beginning. It's deeply a part of the lore," Woll added. The Daredevil actress also explained how the previous God of War games had been hinting to this moment, and how the reveal trailer had left her jaw on the floor.

https://youtu.be/upjpP54xDIc

While previous games starred Kratos in the lead role, God of War Laufey is the first title in the series not to feature the infamous god-slayer in a leading role. Woll also spoke about this shift, saying that Faye's story allows for more diverse stories to be told in the God of War universe with themes that are universal to all people.

While it doesn't have a release date yet, the lengthy gameplay reveal for God of War Laufey has gotten people talking and formulating many theories. For a closer look at some of them, you can check out a list of all the deceased gods who could appear in the game, how Faye's sword could reveal an ugly truth, and where the game fits into the franchise.

God Of War TV Show Cast: All The Actors And The Roles They Play For The Prime Video Show View Images

Actor Deborah Ann Woll, who plays the main character Laufey AKA Faye in God of War Laufey, has further discussed the game and its story. The previous God of War games featured Kratos in the lead role, but Laufey focuses on Faye's story. Woll said in an interview that it feels "extraordinary" to think that some people will play the God of War game because the main character is a woman, and a woman played by a popular actor like she is.

"We need as much diversity as possible within these stories so that we can tell even more stories. This is all just about enjoying each other’s perspectives and widening our experiences. If I get to, in some small part, do that for women within gaming, I’m very excited about that," she told CGMagazine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szwYBVY7FsU&rco=1

Woll also pushed back against the idea that God of War Laufey is a game only for women--the themes are universal, she said.

"I think we find universality through specificity. And there is nothing about this experience that Faye is having that anyone else of any gender could not relate to," she said. "This is a story about a parent. This is a story about regret. This is about being a better person than who you were before. And are you enough? Can you possibly make up for those wrongs? It’s about preparing your family for your loss. What do you want to leave to them to make sure that they’re okay?"

She said these are all "universal ideas that don't have anything to do with gender."

"We’re just going to see it through this woman’s perspective. I think about the people who, maybe because of their childhood or their parents now really related to Kratos and Atreus’ story. And felt really seen by that. I love the idea that now we’ll have more people who feel seen by Faye’s story, and hopefully those same people will also feel seen by that," she said.

God of War Laufey is in development now for PS5, but the game does not have a release date yet. In addition to Faye, the game stars a gelatinous cube character named Phranque played by The Boys actor Jack Quaid.

Google is investing $75 million into the privately owned movie studio A24 for AI-based research, according to sources speaking to The Wall Street Journal. A24 is the film studio making the Elden Ring movie from director Alex Garland. It's also behind the upcoming Death Stranding movie from Pig director Michael Sarnoski.

Google is already heavily invested in the media space with its juggernaut YouTube platform, but this would be Google's first investment in a movie studio.

In a blog post, Google confirmed the reporting and said it was a "first-of-its-kind partnership."

"The collaboration pairs a world-leading research lab with the industry’s most filmmaker-forward studio to help artists develop new workflows and techniques. This ensures the tools of the future are shaped by the creators who use them," Google said.

The deal is for "deep research and collaboration" between A24 and Google "spanning multiple projects over time."

"By anchoring Google DeepMind's innovations directly within the creative process, A24 and its filmmakers can help shape new technology in service of their vision and expand their storytelling possibilities," Google said. "This hands-on collaboration provides Google DeepMind with invaluable feedback and guidance from leading artists. In addition, Google has made an investment in A24."

The statement added: "Looking ahead, the partnership represents the beginning of a collaborative journey, one rooted in research and shared curiosity. While the initial focus is on bridging the gap between cutting-edge technology and next generation entertainment, the specific goals, technical outputs and creative milestones of this initiative will evolve over time. As A24 and Google DeepMind’s researchers work side-by-side to test, iterate and build, this partnership aims to expand what is possible in the future of entertainment."

Google will reportedly not get access to A24's content library or data, and there is no reason to believe any of these tools would be used in the Elden Ring or Death Stranding movies.

A24 is an independent company but has been ramping up lately, having raised funds in 2024 that led to a reported valuation of $3.5 billion.

A24 working with Google on AI research is likely to cause backlash, in part because A24 has a public perception of being more of a boutique, auetuer-driven studio. Beyond that, there is a growing trend of people rebelling against AI in general in all facets of life.

The movie studio landed its biggest hit ever this year with Backrooms, which has earned $272 million worldwide. It's A24's most commercially successful movie ever, well ahead of the No.2 movie, Marty Supreme ($191 million).

A24 has also signed Curry Barker (Obsession) to write and direct a new Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie.

AI has been a hot-button issue across all industries, including film. The SAG-AFTRA union went on strike in part due to concerns about AI. Video game actors also went on strike and won key AI protections.

CD Projekt joint CEO Michał Nowakowski  understands that some fans of the developer have lost faith in the company "indefinitely" following the Cyberpunk 2077 catastrophe. At the same time, the executive said the Polish developer feels optimistic about its chances to "make it back" with The Witcher 4.

Speaking to Edge (by way of GamesRadar), Nowakowski said Cyberpunk 2077's troubled launch in December 2020 was "heartbreaking" for the studio.

For anyone just catching up, Cyberpunk 2077 launched in a troubled state, and the game had such serious technical issues that Sony pulled it from the PlayStation Store, with players able to claim refunds.

A scene from Cyberpunk 2077.

Despite the issues at launch, Cyberpunk 2077 enjoyed one of the most commercially successful debuts in the history of video games, and CD Projekt's management team was handsomely rewarded with massive bonuses.

Cyberpunk 2077 was later reinstated on the PlayStation Store, and CD Projekt Red steadily supported the game with numerous patches over the years. It's now sold more than 35 million copies, reaching that number faster than The Witcher 3. The turnaround for the game, culminating with the game's 2.0 release and the launch of the Phantom Liberty expansion, was considered to be one of the most compelling turnaround stories in games.

But the reputational damage remains intact, Nowakowski said.

"I'm not 100% convinced we went through the full redemption arc," he said. "I'm convinced that we lost the faith of some people indefinitely, and that's a fair thing. But I do hope we will be able to make it back--if not with The Witcher 4, then with whatever comes next."

The Witcher 4 doesn't have a release date yet. It's one of multiple games in the works at CD Projekt Red, with some of the others being a remake of the original Witcher, a new IP, and a game with Saudi Arabia.

With people wondering if GTA 6 preorders will kickstart a new $80 era for standard edition PS5 and Xbox Series X|S games, one new release on Steam already has Rockstar Games beat: Congratulations On Your Purchase. The new red carpet-simulator launched not too long ago, and it can be yours for the mere price of $1,000.

Designed to be a "first-person luxury experience" set inside a palace, the Steam listing says that players can expect a red carpet, a chandelier, and a velvet rope barrier to protect them from "the wrong kind" of people. As for the gameplay, there is no combat, no enemies, no quests, no skill trees, and one box that contains only the feeling of having arrived somewhere important.

Developer Minimal Viable Prestige is also brutally honest about what you can expect from their debut game. "You paid for this. Not accidentally. Not on impulse. You saw the price. You read the description. And then you bought it anyway. Welcome."

For $1,000, I was expecting character models not to look squished.

Of course, players are protected, just in case they take a bad stumble near their PC, open up Steam, input their credit card details, and then click through several confirmation pages during their fall. Steam's refund policy allows for a game to be returned, provided that it hasn't been played for more than two hours or owned for more than two weeks.

Congratulations On Your Purchase might be expensive, but several other special editions of games have also been priced high over the years while offering more content overall in comparison. This $750 Stylish Edition of Resident Evil 6 came with a wearable replica of Leon S. Kennedy's leather jacket, and an $800 Assassin's Creed Origins collector's edition was limited to just 1,000 units.

If you had cash burning a hole in your pocket for a publicity stunt, there was the $190,000 edition of Grid 2 that included an actual car, one Dying Light player could get a custom-built zombie apocalypse shelter, and Saints Row 4 even offered to send you to space if you purchased the one-of-a-kind $1 million special edition.

Prefer not to spend $1,000 on a single game? Then check out our favorite recommendations from the recent Steam Next Fest. All the demos are free to play, and we're pretty certain that each game won't be too expensive when they eventually launch in full.

GTA 6 preorders go live on June 25, and ahead of that, one retailer posted listings for the game showing higher-than-expected price points. A prominent and reliable reporter, however, has said those were just placeholders.

The retailer fnac listed GTA 6's standard edition at €89.99, which is about $103 USD. The listings scaled all the way up to €199.99 ($230 USD). However, billbil-kun of the magazine Dealabs said these listings are just placeholders.

"So those prices are random ones," they wrote.

Many are expecting GTA 6's price for the standard edition to be more than $70, but that remains to be seen. In any event, $80 games are already here.

GTA 6 preorders will go live on June 25 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, so the long wait to find out how much the game will cost will soon be over. In addition to a standard edition, it's expected there will be premium versions people can buy. Many are also theorizing that Rockstar will release a new GTA 6 trailer this week to get people even more hyped up and encourage them to preorder the game.

GTA 6 launches on November 19 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. A PC edition of the game has not been announced, but history suggests it is coming ... eventually.