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Deathloop, It Takes Two, And Forza Horizon 5 Lead Game Developers Conference Award Nominations

With just over two months until the 22nd annual Game Developers Choice Awards, the conference organizers have announced the nominees across each of the award show's nine categories. Leading the pack in nominations is Arkane Studio's Deathloop, the hit immersive-sim-meets-first-person shooter GameSpot lauded as our Game of the Year last month. Deathloop's six nominations are followed closely by Hazelight's It Takes Two, which received five, and Forza Horizon 5 with four.

Among the categories Deathloop has been nominated for are best audio, best design, best narrative, best visual art, the innovation award, and, last but not least, Game of the Year. The vibrant and cheeky multiplayer platforming title It Takes Two received its nominations for best design, best narrative, the social impact award, the innovation award, and Game of the Year, while Forza Horizon 5--the latest entry in the hit racing sim series--earned them for best audio, best technology, best visual art, and Game of the Year.

In addition to these three titles, Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, Unpacking, Psychonauts 2, Halo Infinite, and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart also got a fair bit of love from the GDC. Several independent and studio debuts have also made some serious waves, including Kena: Bridge of Spirits, Inscryption, Unpacking, and Wildermyth.

You can read up on every game nominated for a GDC award--as well as all the honorable mentions--over on the conference's official webpage. Here's a list of the contenders for the award show's top nine categories:

Best Audio

Best Debut

Best Design

Innovation Award

Best Narrative

Social Impact Award

Best Technology

Best Visual Art

Game of the Year

The Game Developers Choice Awards is part of GDC 2022, which will be held in San Francisco and virtually from March 21-25.

Forza Street Shutting Down Later This Year

Another one bites the dust. Less than two years after it first landed on the Play Store, underwhelming drag-racer Forza Street is shutting down for good this spring.... Continue reading

The post Forza Street Shutting Down Later This Year appeared first on Droid Gamers.

The best Xbox games to play in 2022

What are the best Xbox games you can get your hands on in 2022? With Microsoft continuing to push its multi-platform strategy, the company’s gaming ecosystem now includes the newly-released Xbox Series X|S as well as Xbox One and PC. We’ve seen plenty of crossover between the three platforms, so pinning down which games to talk about can be tricky, but we think we’ve done a pretty good job. In recent years, Microsoft has been busy snapping up some of the industry’s best talent by acquiring studios left, right, and centre. On top of that, the past several months have given us some of the best Xbox games in years with the return of major flagship franchises. For our picks of the best Xbox games to play, we’ve gone for a selection that includes brand new must-play exclusives that show off the console’s power, old Xbox faithfuls, and a handful of likely less well-known options. The Best Xbox Series X Games As ever we’ll be closely monitoring this list as new Xbox games arrive, adding those titles worthy enough to make the cut. As we push through 2022, we’ll hopefully see exclusive upcoming games like Hellblade II, Starfield, and Scorn step into the ring. For now, let’s took a look at best games Xbox players can dive straight into. Forza Horizon 5 Halo Infinite Ori and the Will of the Wisps & Ori and the Blind Forest Microsoft Flight Simulator Gears 5 Sea of Thieves Yakuza: Like a Dragon Halo: The Master Chief Collection Psychonauts 2 Scarlet Nexus Forza Horizon 5 Forza Horizon 5 is one of the best racing games in general, and it’s definitely at its best on the Xbox Series X. You’ve never played a better-looking racing game than this, and the way the recreation of Mexico weaves from one biome and one event to the next makes it stunning to play too. If you want to make your way around a huge world and just soak in the sheer beauty of it all, Forza Horizon 5 is one of the best Xbox games around for that. Oh, and Forza Horizon 4 looks pretty special with its Series X upgrade as well… Halo Infinite It might have been a year late, but Halo Infinite was worth the wait. 343 Industries have really nailed down the feel of Halo, while also taking the series in a new direction. The campaign and Master Chief’s battle against the Banished now has an open world structure, with the Zeta Halo providing a great playground that’s made all the better by having a new grappling hook. Then there’s the multiplayer action which is just a lot of fun, and fully free to play if you don’t fancy the campaign. There’s more to come for Halo Infinite, such as co-op campaign and changes to multiplayer progression, but it should be high on your “to play” list for Xbox and PC. Ori and the Will of the Wisps & Ori and the Blind Forest This is a bit of a cheat, because we’re actually going to go ahead and include both Ori and the Will of the Wisps along with Ori and the Blind Forest here, because they’re both excellent games. The Ori games are very challenging “Metroidvania” titles where you guide a little forest spirit through increasingly challenging situations. If you want something that feels a little retro but with loads of modern extras, then check this out. Microsoft Flight Simulator Microsoft Flight Simulator should be the dullest console offering of the new generation, but it’s not. Exclusively on PC and Xbox Series X|S, Flight Simulator lets you take out a growing hangar of different light aircraft as you explore and traverse planet Earth, and it’s a perfect example of zen gaming. Peaceful, tranquil, and yet utterly immersive, you can’t take your hands off the controls for fear that your aircraft will plummet into the ground. While the only real downside is that you’ll have to take off again, you’ll still lose precious moments you could have spent performing yet another fly-by of your house. Gears 5 Gears 5 might have released a year before the Xbox Series X came out, but it’s easily one of the best looking games on the new hardware thanks to a free game update that enhanced lighting and other effects. Not only that, but The Coalition released Gears 5: Hivebusters, a DLC campaign to play through solo or in three player co-op that takes the series to new and truly gorgeous locations. If you’ve completed Gears 5 in the past, then Hivebusters is well worth checking out (and bundled in with Game Pass Ultimate). Not a fan of the Gears series’ chunky cover shooter combat? How about a slick XCOM-like spin off in Gears Tactics? Sea of Thieves Nobody would have expected Sea of Thieves to grow into the fantastic game it is today when it launched, but here we are. Sea of Thieves is a multiplayer pirate game that basically lets you live out any and every dream of the high seas you’ve ever had. If you want to play it and make up a crew to sail around looking for booty, then you can, if you’d rather get into ship-based combat, then you can, and if you want something more relaxing, you can always just go fishing. There’s been years of updates that have improved and polished the game, not to mention a whole Pirates of the Caribbean tie-in story that you can play with your swarthiest chums. Yakuza: Like a Dragon It’s always cool to see a long-running game series mix things up a bit, and that’s exactly what Yakuza: Like a Dragon does. Rather than being an action game, Like a Dragon goes full RPG with turn-based battles, characters who serve different roles, and some of the strangest summons in gaming history. Basically, if you’re looking for a good time, get on this. Make sure you check out our Yakuza: Like a Dragon guide series to get the best head start and scoop some of those hard-to-find collectables. Halo: The Master Chief Collection Sure, Halo Infinite might be the shiny new thing, but it can’t hold a candle to the absolutely vast collection of Halo gaming that you get within Halo: The Master Chief Collection. You’ve got the entire Xbox and Xbox 360 saga with Master Chief at its centre as you start, continue and then finish the fight against the Covenant, but there’s also Halo 3: ODST, Halo: Reach and Halo 4 bundled in as well. The collection has been significantly updated (and its multiplayer fixed) since its 2014 Xbox One release, so if you’re playing on Series X you get the games in running 4K, dozens of hours of campaign to play through, and more multiplayer game types and modes than you can shake a sticky grenade at! Want to fully finish the Halo fight? Well, Halo 5: Guardians is also playable via backward compatibility, and there’s also the real time strategy spin-offs Halo Wars and Halo Wars 2. Halo Wars 2 is the first game to feature Halo Infinite’s Banished foes. Psychonauts 2 Psychonauts 2 is a worthy successor to Double Fine’s cult classic. The platforming and combat gameplay is tighter, the world design is as varied and inventive as ever, and while the story is full of twists, turns and comedic moment, there’s also a wonderful sense of empathy and tenderness throughout. The game has a bit of a leg up over the PlayStation 5 on Xbox Series X. Where the PS5 plays the game at 1440p thanks to running in backward compatibility, the Series X has a native version of the game that can target native 4K. The varied and inventive worlds that Double Fine has created shine through regardless of where you play it. Scarlet Nexus Scarlet Nexus manages to mix an intriguing story, a constant sense of intrigue, and a wonderful over-the-top battle system together into a game that’s a blast to play. On Xbox Series X it comes with a crisp and clean anime visual style that makes the truly wild enemy designs really stand out as you battle for the future of mankind. This is easily one of the best JRPGs to come out in the 2021, and that’s saying something!

‘Forza Street’ for iOS and Android Is Shutting Down This Spring, Final Update Now Available

Originally released worldwide on iOS and Android back in May 2020, Forza Street (Free) from Turn 10 Studios and Microsoft …

Microsoft doesn’t see Game Pass as a replacement for game purchasing

Phil Spencer emphasized the importance of choice in a recent interview.

Aya Neo Pro Review: This Switch-Like Handheld Gaming PC Is Superb

Not that long ago, quality PC gaming setups were confined to bulky desktop setups. Even early gaming laptops looked more like battle stations than sleek machines. Needless to say, the landscape has changed significantly in recent years, and now we're even seeing an influx of handheld gaming PCs. Perhaps influenced by the enormous success of the Nintendo Switch as a hybrid console, more and more companies are attempting to garner an audience for portable, palm-sized gaming PCs. While most people are probably aware of the upcoming Steam Deck, there are others that hit the market before Valve's handheld, including the impressive and surprisingly powerful Aya Neo.

Successfully crowdfunded via Indiegogo, the Aya Neo released last summer, but the studio behind it quickly began work on a redesign with better materials. The result is the Aya Neo 2021 and Aya Neo Pro, both of which released late last year. We got our hands on both models and have been testing them for about a month. With a premium build quality and tremendous performance for its size, the Aya Neo is a remarkable handheld PC. Though the Aya Neo is quite pricey--models range from $925 to north of $1,300--it can be thought of as an alternative to a mid-tier gaming laptop with the added bonus of being fully portable. It's too early to say if the Aya Neo is better than the still-unreleased Steam Deck (which is significantly less expensive), but it's an extremely solid piece of tech that is definitely worth considering if you're in the market for this sort of gaming machine.

Note: Since performance is similar across both devices, the rest of this review applies to both models except when otherwise stated.

What's in the shell?

The amount of power crammed inside of the Aya Neo's relatively sleek shell is pretty astounding. The Aya Neo Pro is fitted with an AMD Ryzen 7 4800U processor (Ryzen 5 4500U in the base model) and integrated AMD Radeon Graphics. These are mid-tier mobile processors with low power consumption. The processor and integrated graphics are complemented by 16GB of DDR4X RAM--more than enough for modern PC games--and a 1TB NVMe SSD (the base model also comes in 512GB). The Aya Neo has a gorgeous 7-inch LCD IPS screen that displays at 1200 x 800 resolution with 215 pixels per inch.

Aya Neo Pro

Overall, the specs of the Aya Neo are similar to the Steam Deck, with the Aya Neo offering a better CPU (on paper) and the Steam Deck boasting a better GPU. As a direct comparison, the 512GB Aya Neo costs $275 more than the highest tier Steam Deck with the same amount of storage space.

That said, the Aya Neo can be used as more than just a gaming machine. While the Steam Deck will use a proprietary Linux-based OS, the Aya Neo is a Windows PC. That means you can connect it to a monitor, sync up or connect a keyboard and mouse, and use it as a machine for everyday productivity, too. Yes, most people who are buying a handheld gaming PC are using it primarily for gaming, but you can also use the Aya Neo for your other computing needs as well. It is true that you'll be able to run other operating systems, including Windows, on the Steam Deck, but it's too early to say how the Steam Deck will behave when not using its default OS.

A Switch-like design

The first time I saw the Aya Neo, I instantly thought of the Nintendo Switch. No, it doesn't have detachable controllers, but it retains the general shape that was popularized by the Switch. The Aya Neo uses nearly identical low-profile thumbsticks and has the same offset layout, with the left thumbstick above the D-pad and the right stick below the face buttons. Thankfully, it has a conventional directional pad that feels great to use for old-school side-scrollers. Meanwhile, the face buttons (A/B/X/Y) are laid out like the Xbox controller, which makes a ton of sense considering the Aya Neo can essentially function as a portable Game Pass machine that is capable of offline play for supported games. The triggers have a nice ergonomic design which makes them feel like a natural resting spot for your index fingers. The shoulder buttons are a tad thicker than the ones on the Switch Joy-Cons.

As a PC, the Aya Neo also has a number of other menu and settings buttons. Four buttons are located on each side. The buttons on the left side are game-focused, including Start, Select, and a nifty button that pulls up the Xbox Game Bar. The buttons on the right are PC task-focused: Windows Home, Escape, Task Manager, and an on-screen keyboard prompt.

The Aya Neo has a plethora of buttons that act as shortcuts

The Aya Neo also has three USB-C ports, which can be used for charging, connecting USB peripherals with the help of the included adapters, and accessing external storage devices. Stereo speakers that pack a surprising punch are located on the bottom of the handheld, but the 3.5mm headphone jack is on top next to the volume buttons. I'm in the camp that all headphone jacks should be on the bottom of handhelds, but it's not really a problem here since the Aya Neo can connect to headphones via Bluetooth or 2.4Ghz adapters.

If you're used to holding the Nintendo Switch, the Aya Neo--and other PC handhelds--will feel quite heavy at first. At roughly 650 grams (1.4 pounds), the Aya Neo is approximately 50% heavier than the recently released Nintendo Switch OLED. It's also thicker, as you would expect, due to the need of proper ventilation through the backside and top fans. That said, at 10.4 x 4.17 x 0.79 inches, the Aya Neo is certainly compact when you consider the components inside. After dozens of hours of testing, I've never felt like the Aya Neo was straining or uncomfortable to hold for long periods of time.

Although it's thicker than the Switch, the Aya Neo has a surprisingly compact design.

Not only does it look great and feel good to play, the Aya Neo has an incredibly impressive build quality. Of course I can't speak for the longevity of the internal components, but the buttons, sticks, D-pad, and shell have a premium feel to them. The hard plastic shell in particular is top-notch when it comes to design. I've never held a handheld gaming device that felt as sturdy and smooth as the Aya Neo. It may sound silly, but whereas most handhelds--including the Nintendo Switch--feel like toys (they are toys), the Aya Neo feels like a piece of high-end tech that's meant for the office. The Aya Neo is available in white, black, or a retro-themed color scheme.

Performance

A truckload of tech and a fancy-looking design don't matter if the performance doesn't meet expectations, though. Thankfully, the Aya Neo was capable of handling a wide variety of games that I threw at it. It actually surprised me in some instances. With some tinkering in the settings, the Aya Neo ran Microsoft's two biggest holiday exclusives, Halo Infinite and Forza Horizon 5. In Forza's case, I was able to average around 60fps with mostly medium settings. Meanwhile, Halo Infinite ran closer to 30fps, but it was still very playable.

Just like any PC, performance varied on a game-by-game basis, but many of the ones I tried were capable of running at 40-50fps or higher, including Doom Eternal, Psychonauts 2, Grand Theft Auto V, Kena: Bridge of Spirits, The Forgotten City, and Call of Duty: Warzone. Older AAA games like Rage 2, The Witcher 3, Prey, and the Tomb Raider trilogy, among others, all ran great, too. A lot of these games defaulted to "high" settings, though getting the best combination of visual fidelity and frame rate required some adjustments to the settings. I wound up locking in at around 30-40fps to get the best visual performance possible for a lot of games.

Other games, such as the aforementioned Halo Infinite, ran at settings that I was personally fine with but might bother some enthusiast PC gamers. Hardware-intensive titles such as Control and Red Dead Redemption 2 were only capable of roughly 30fps with low settings. If you're used to gaming on powerful rigs or modern consoles, the performance drop will be quite noticeable.

Aya Neo Pro running The Gunk with high settings.

Despite the Aya Neo's impressive performance for many games, I don't really view it as a replacement for a PC rig, high-end gaming laptop, or modern console. While it gets the job done for a lot of AAA games, as future blockbuster releases continue to get more graphically intensive, what's under the hood here won't keep up. That's not a knock on the Aya Neo, though, as I imagine the same will be true for the Steam Deck and other handheld gaming PCs. That said, you can also use the Aya Neo as a cloud streaming device with services like Xbox Cloud Gaming, Stadia, and GeForce Now. Xbox Cloud Gaming worked wonderfully on the Aya Neo.

Considering that the vast majority of indie games release on PC in addition to various consoles, the Aya Neo could be used as an indie and Game Pass machine. The options here are nearly endless, and with PC games often costing less and on sale more often, you can get a lot of bang for your buck. Not to mention the free games that the Epic Games Store gives out every week, Amazon Prime monthly free games, and the massive PC Game Pass library. Essentially, even if you aren't an avid PC gamer, you can create a relatively huge library of games without spending a lot of money.

One of my main concerns with Aya Neo before I tried it was heat and fan noise. Surprisingly, it runs quietly, even when it's obvious the fans are working overtime to cool down the system. The top of the console and center of the back panel do tend to get a tad hot (not to the point it hurts) when the fans are really running, but the Aya Neo's premium shell does keep the spots where your hands naturally rest at a normal temperature.

Tiny PC woes

The practicality of the Aya Neo--and other handheld PCs--as a portable device is certainly debatable. The Aya Neo Pro is advertised to offer five to six hours of battery life. That's a pretty decent figure as far as modern handheld gaming devices go, but while playing graphically intensive games I found that number to be cut in half. So if you do plan on taking the Aya Neo on the go, you'll want to grab a suitable portable battery pack.

There's also the Windows desktop problem. Windows for desktops wasn't designed with handheld gaming machines in mind, and it really shows when navigating the operating system on a 7-inch touchscreen. Using the Aya Neo as a mobile Windows PC isn't ideal without additional peripherals. While the touchscreen is responsive, messing around with tiny task bars and file options isn't all that intuitive and can be a pain.

The manufacturer designed a proprietary program called Aya Space that collects your games and apps in a user-friendly style that makes it much easier to use the Aya Neo when swapping between games. Steam's Big Picture mode is also great on the Aya Neo, so I wound up launching that every time when booting the handheld to give it a console UI feel.

Which model is right for you?

As mentioned, there are currently two different models of the Aya Neo available now: the 2021 and the Pro. The 2021 is available in 512GB or 1TB editions, while the Pro is available in only 1TB. I tested both versions for this review, and I found that the difference was negligible for gaming. The Pro is a tad faster when it comes to loading and navigation, but in-game performance was about the same. So you'd have to decide if the additional speed is worth the price bump. The 2021 model is probably the best value at this time considering that the most powerful version of the Aya Neo isn't actually out yet.

The company just announced a fresh lineup dubbed Next. The Aya Neo Next has an AMD Ryzen 7 5800U processor, a Radeon Vega 8 GPU, and comes with up to 32GB of RAM. Multiple versions of the Next (standard, Advance, and Pro) will be available to order via crowdfunding starting in February. Prices will range between $1,265 and close to $1,500 for the top-tier model at launch.

Aya Neo Pro

So, if you're interested in any model of the Aya Neo, I th ink the smart move is to either purchase the Aya Neo 2021 for the value or wait for one of the Next models if you're looking for the best performance. After all, the Next's base model is very close in price to the Pro.

Also, if you're looking to up the Switch-like factor, you can grab an official Aya Neo dock to connect the handheld to your monitor or TV. We didn't have the chance to test the dock for review, but you can simply use a USB-C to HDMI cable to play your games on a monitor or TV. I mostly used a monitor (with peripherals) when navigating the operating system, but I found performance to be solid for gaming on both my 1080p 60Hz monitor and 4K OLED TV.

Specifications

Aya Neo 2021Aya Neo ProAya Neo Next
CPUAMD Ryzen 5 4500UAMD Ryzen 7 4800UAMD Ryzen 7 5800U
GPURadeon Vega 6Radeon Vega 6Radeon Vega 8
RAM16GB16GBUp to 32GB
Storage512GB or 1TB1TB1TB or 2TB
Resolution1280 x 8001280 x 8001280 x 800
Display7-inch IPS touchscreen7-inch IPS touchscreen7-inch IPS touchscreen
Battery life3-6 hours3-6 hoursN/A
PortsUSB-C x3USB-C x3USB-C x3
Dimensions10.4 x 4.17 x 0.79 inches10.4 x 4.17 x 0.79 inchesN/A
Weight648 grams648 gramsN/A
PriceStarting at $925Staring at $1,215Starting at $1,265

The bottom line

The Aya Neo is a well-designed handheld PC that offers solid performance and versatility thanks to its use of Windows. With a premium build quality, a gorgeous 7-inch IPS display, and great sticks/buttons, the Aya Neo is an excellent option for those who are interested in taking the plunge into handheld PC gaming. The ability to use it as a traditional PC with peripherals attached is a major bonus here. It's definitely on the pricier side, especially when you compare it to the Steam Deck, but there's no denying that it achieves what it set out to do.


Steven Petite tested the Aya Neo and Aya Neo Pro for upwards of 100 hours over the course of a month. Sample units were provided for the purpose of this review.

Forza Street Is Closing Up Shop In Spring 2022, Final Update Out Now

Xbox and Turn 10 Studios have announced that Forza Street--the mobile Forza experience that first debuted in May 2018--will be closing for good later this year.

The closure was confirmed in a Q&A post on the official Forza support site, laying out the team's final plans for the mobile racing game. The game will remain playable until Spring 2022, but no specific month or day was confirmed.

While no specific reason for the game's closure was revealed, the post did mention that the team will be using the experience from Forza Street to build future projects. The post also mentions that anyone who purchased in-game currency in the last 30 days will be retroactively refunded, and that all remaining currency should be spent in the game or else it will be lost forever.

"Forza Street is only playable until Spring 2022," the post reads. "After its closure, the game and its features will no longer be accessible. Players who still have the game installed after this date will see an information screen after starting up the game and will be unable to play."

The final Forza Street update has gone live as of January 10, which also marks the closure of the game's in-app store. The update, per the post, includes the following:

  • A new unreleased car
  • 12 weeks of Spotlight++ featuring Rare & Epic cars, starting on January 17, 2022
  • Faster Energy recharge and increased Energy storage
  • Reduced wait times on car shows
  • Reduced prices on the vast majority of items purchased with in-game currency

Forza Horizon 5 Weekly Challenges Guide – Series 3 – Summer

Let’s kick off with the very latest in the series, covering the fun found in Forza Horizon 5’s Season 3 - Summer, taking in the lion mural, the latest Danger Sign jumps and where exactly you'll find the most solar panels to smash...

The post Forza Horizon 5 Weekly Challenges Guide – Series 3 – Summer appeared first on TheXboxHub.

Forza Horizon 5 Series 3 Cars Revealed

Playground Games has recently unveiled the list of cars coming to the game with the upcoming series 3 update.  With the start of the new year 2022, Forza Horizon 5 kicked off with the start of Series 3. With every new Series, a number of cars are added to the game which includes various classics […]

The post Forza Horizon 5 Series 3 Cars Revealed appeared first on TalkEsport.

Top 5 Most Anticipated Xbox Games Launching in 2022

Nobody can argue that the year 2021 was a bang for Microsoft and the Xbox platform as we saw the launch of Psychonauts 2, Forza Horizon 5, Age Of Empires 4, and Halo Infinite alongside the inclusion of EA Play in the ever-so-popular Xbox Game Pass.  The year 2021 was also a great year for […]

The post Top 5 Most Anticipated Xbox Games Launching in 2022 appeared first on TalkEsport.

U.S. Patent No. 6,699,127: Real-time replay system for video game

U.S. Patent No. 6,699,127: Real-time replay system for video game Issued March 2, 2004, to Nintendo of America, Inc. Filed: September 27, 2000 (claiming priority to June 20, 2000) Overview: […]

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