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Fortnite. | Image: Epic Games Fortnite: Chapter 4 introduced a new island to the long-running battle royale game, but the most important change might actually be under the hood. As part of the update, the game moved to Unreal Engine 5.1, which might not sound like a big deal, but it means that Fortnite is now taking advantage of some of the lofty visual features Epic has been talking about since UE5 debuted (so long as you’re playing on a PS5, Xbox Series X / S, or high-end PC, that is). It’s a lot of fancy words, but the gist is that this five-year-old game is now one of the best showcases for next-gen hardware.As part of the upgrade, Fortnite now supports Unreal tools like Nanite (more detailed geometry), Lumen (better lighting and reflections), and Virtual Shadow... Continue reading…

Pilots are watching the drones on a map while monitoring them for any issues. The upper screens show live feeds from different landing “nests.” | Image: Wing Wing, the delivery-by-drone company under Alphabet’s umbrella, is revealing its new remote operations center where pilots can monitor multiple missions at a time. Its latest facility is stationed in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area, the same place it's been operating local deliveries for companies like Walgreens.The Texas location makes it so operators can easily manage drone flights in different time zones, specifically ones in both Virginia (the company’s first delivery location) and nearby Little Elm, Texas. Wing also has another center in California, and plans to build out more. The Verge connected with Wing spokesperson Jacob Demmit and drone pilot Tom Hillier on a video call for a demonstration.Operators like Hillier use multiple... Continue reading…

Ricardo Tomás / The Verge An investigation from The Markup found that Uber is slow to respond to law enforcement requests, leaving drivers vulnerable to repeated attacks. Continue reading…

The DJI Mini 3 weighs just 249 grams, which means it falls under certain regulations that permit sub-250 gram drones to fly without registration. | Image: DJI After weeks of leaks, DJI has officially announced the DJI Mini 3, a more affordable version of the original DJI Mini 3 Pro drone that targets amateurs and first-time flyers.The DJI Mini 3 is available for purchase today and costs $499 when paired with a DJI RC-N1 controller, or $634 with the DJI RC controller. The DJI Mini 3 Fly More Combo is also available for $658, which includes the Mini 3 drone, a DJI RC-N1 Remote Controller, a Shoulder Bag, a Two-Way Charging Hub, and two extra Intelligent Flight Batteries.The DJI Mini 3 will also be available for $409 as a drone-only unit (not including a controller or charger) sometime in early January 2023. By comparison, prices for the Mini 3 Pro start at $759 when paired with a DJI RC-N1... Continue reading…

Death Stranding 2. | Image: Kojima Productions Star Wars, Death Stranding, Street Fighter, Super Mario, and much more. Continue reading…

Image: FromSoftware FromSoftware only just released Elden Ring in February of this year, in a trailer at The Game Awards, the famed developer’s revealed that its next big project is Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon. It’s set to be released in 2023.It’s difficult to know exactly what to expect based on the Armored Core VI’s esoteric trailer, which featured a lot of lingering shots of giant mechs. But the trailer definitely creates an awesome mood that I hope captures what it’s like to play the game itself. Armored Core VI will be available on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X / S, Xbox One, and PC via Steam when it’s released next year.

Elba plays a new character named Solomon Reed. | Image: CD Projekt Red Cyberpunk 2077 is getting a major expansion next year, and it will include a major addition to the cast: Idris Elba. His appearance was confirmed as part of a new Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty trailer released during The Game Awards 2022 on Thursday.Elba will play a character named Solomon Reed, as noted in a tweet from developer CD Projekt Red (CDPR). That tweet also included a few details about the new content in Phantom Liberty: it will take place in an “all new district” of the game’s Night City setting, and it will be a “spy-thriller expansion.” And don’t worry, the new trailer also featured the voice of Keanu Reeves, who will be back to play Johnny Silverhand.

Norman Reedus in Death Stranding 2. | Image: Kojima Productions Death Stranding is back. Hideo Kojima revealed his next game at the Game Awards this evening — and yes, it still has creepy babies. Death Stranding 2 will once again star Norman Reedus and Lea Seydoux and it looks just as strange as its predecessor, at least based on the debut trailer. It also appears that DS2 is a working title right now. The game doesn’t have a release date but it’s coming to the PS5.The enigmatic director had been teasing the reveal in the lead up to this evening’s event, going so far as to reveal key cast members like Elle Fanning and Shioli Kutsuna. This will be Kojima Productions’ second major release, following the original Death Stranding, which debuted on the PS4 before expanding to other platforms. The sequel... Continue reading…

A screenshot from Earthblade. | Image: Extremely OK Games Extremely OK Games, the makers of the beloved indie platformer Celeste, shared a first trailer for the studio’s next game, Earthblade, at The Game Awards 2022 on Thursday.In Earthblade, you play as a character named Nevoa as you explore a “free-roaming, dynamically-loading map,” according to an email sent shortly after the trailer debuted. The game has 2D pixel graphics to Celeste, but Earthblade looks to take place in a more fantasy-inspired world. Image: Extremely OK Games The main character from Earthblade approaches a mysterious mirror. The trailer doesn’t reveal too much about the game itself, but the email has a few details about what you can expect. “We think that this ‘seamlessness’ will likely be E... Continue reading…

Cal Kestis and BD-1. | Image: Respawn Entertainment Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, the sequel to 2019’s Jedi: Fallen Order, will be released on March 17th, 2023, as revealed at The Game Awards on Thursday. The next game starring Cal Kestis and the adorable droid BD-1 got its first trailer in May, and on Thursday, we got our first look at what it will be like to actually play the game thanks to a new trailer at Geoff Keighley’s big awards show.This new game takes place five years after the events of Jedi: Fallen Order. It looks to be a continuation of everything that made the first game better than expected, and that’s a good thing, in my mind. (You’ll be able to wield two lightsabers!) Jedi: Survivor will be available on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC.Jedi: Survivor is once again... Continue reading…

The first title from Ghost Story Games, a new studio led by BioShock creative lead Ken Levine, has finally been revealed. It’s called Judas, and based on the first trailer, it looks an awful lot like, well, BioShock. There’s no release date yet, but Judas is listed as coming to the PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC, and is described as a “single player, narrative first person shooter.”Here’s the basic story description:

A screenshot from the first trailer for Hades II. | Image: Supergiant Games Supergiant Games, the makers of Hades and Bastion, revealed their next game at The Game Awards 2022: a direct sequel to Hades called Hades II. This one seems to focus around witches and magic, and the game’s Steam page mentions that it’s “rooted in the Underworld of Greek myth.” You play as a character named Melinoë, the Underworld Princess, which is pretty metal. (She is the sister of Zagreus, the protagonist of the first game, according to Supergiant’s website.)But a lot of what you might know from Hades looks to be back: the same perspective, similar action-focused gameplay, voiced conversations with a lot of different characters, and Darren Korb’s excellent music were all featured in the trailer. Image: Supergiant... Continue reading…

A new feature from Alarm.com knows when to arm and disarm your security system so you don’t have to. | Image: Alarm.com Millions of smart home security systems are getting a bit smarter this week. A new feature called Smart Arming brings a little flexibility to Alarm.com systems’ arm and disarm settings, making you less likely to trip the alarm by mistake and more likely to actually use it.Smart Arming is available now on systems powered by Alarm.com, a company that provides both hardware and software to hundreds of local and national home security companies. Instead of a rigid on / off schedule, Smart Arming lets you schedule arm and disarm windows, then uses information from security sensors in your home that you select to determine when to set the alarm or disarm it within those windows. It’s like the difference between a programmable thermostat that... Continue reading…

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney. | Illustration by Laura Normand / The Verge Sweeney says he’s willing to go to the Supreme Court to fight Apple’s control of the App Store. But first, he’s hoping Congress will act before it’s too late. Continue reading…

Getting close and personal is getting easier. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Google’s updating its camera app to give Pixel 7 Pro users more control over its macro mode by adding a toggle that lets them manually turn it off or on instead of having to rely on the auto mode that my colleague Allison Johnson described as “kinda unpredictable.” While the phone can still try to detect if you’re close enough to a subject like it has since launch, it’s nice for there to be an actual menu for those who want finer-grain control.According to Allison’s testing, the new options live in the settings cog accessible in the top-left corner of the camera’s viewfinder. Google’s added a “macro focus” option that lets you choose between off, auto mode, and on. According to 9to5Google, you were previously only able to temporarily... Continue reading…

That’s ToeJam on the right, alongside Earl, in case you didn’t know. Nothing can possibly prepare us for the all-encompassing funk of a movie starring ToeJam and Earl. According to The Hollywood Reporter, a ToeJam & Earl movie is currently in development at Amazon Studios in partnership with Unanimous Media and Story Kitchen.ToeJam & Earl is just the latest video game franchise getting a movie tie-in. In addition to bigger names like Super Mario Bros. and Sonic the Hedgehog getting contemporary adaptations, we’re also slated to see an anime version of Tomb Raider coming to Netflix as well as a live-action version of It Takes Two, which are also being handled by Story Kitchen. ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove is the latest mainline appearance of the extraterrestrial duo. ToeJam &... Continue reading…

Kristen Radtke / The Verge Big tech companies including Microsoft, LexisNexis, and Palantir have helped fuel the militarization of local police forces and the Department of Homeland Security’s demand for high-tech surveillance, according to a new report from The Action Center on Race & the Economy (ACRE), LittleSis, MediaJustice, and the Surveillance, Tech, and Immigration Policing Project. Researchers working on the project dug into how these companies benefit from a hidden and misunderstood source of funding, which requires states to dump money into law enforcement activities if they want to receive money for things like emergency medical and response services.The report is specifically concerned with FEMA’s Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) grants, which... Continue reading…

It’s one crypto newsroom, Michael. What could it cost? | Micha Huigen / The Verge What happens when a story has impact? Continue reading…

Illustration by Laura Normand / The Verge Twitter Blue may relaunch at two different price points depending on where you subscribe from, according to a new report from The Information. The premium subscription could cost $11 when purchased via Twitter’s iOS app, or a reduced $7 per month if users subscribe via Twitter’s website. The price disparity is likely an attempt to circumvent the 30 percent commission Apple charges on many in-app purchases.The premium subscription originally launched at $7.99 a month in early November, when it was only available via iOS (with no option to subscribe via other platforms like Android or the web). But its rollout was quickly paused after numerous users took advantage of one of its trademark features — access to Twitter’s coveted blue... Continue reading…

President Joe Biden at TSMC’s Arizona facility. | Photo: Andy Blye TSMC prepares to manufacture processors in its new Arizona facility, and Call of Duty returns to Nintendo consoles. Continue reading…

Your iCloud data is about to get a lot more secure. | Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge With iOS 16.2, Apple is bringing advanced security features to more of your data. Among other things, it is adding highly secure end-to-end encryption for iCloud backups under the name Advanced Data Protection. This means that essentially only you can access the data stored in your iCloud device backup — Apple doesn’t have the key to access it. This is a strong layer of security, and although it takes a little bit of work to set up and requires you to take more responsibility for recovering your data, it’s well worth the effort if you’d like to make sure that you’re the only one who can access your backed up information.Here’s how to set up end-to-end encryption for your iCloud backups on your iPhone. You’ll need to be running iOS... Continue reading…

Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge Indiana’s attorney general filed a pair of lawsuits against TikTok on Wednesday, accusing the company of misleading users about its ties to the Chinese government and showing mature content to minors, as first reported by The New York Times.In his first complaint, Attorney General Todd Rokita claimed that TikTok deceived parents on the amount of sexual and drug-related content accessible to young users of the app. In a second complaint, Rokita’s office argued that Chinese-owned TikTok wrongfully misled users about the Chinese government’s authority to view sensitive user data obtained through the app.“The TikTok app is a malicious and menacing threat unleashed on unsuspecting Indiana consumers by a Chinese company that knows full well... Continue reading…

Image: From Software It’s a dangerous endeavor to boot up Elden Ring right now. There’s a short lull in the holiday release season, so it would be very, very easy for me to be lured back to the Lands Between, where I spent over 100 hours mastering katanas and the art of glintstone pebbling things to death from a great distance. In fact, Elden Ring wasted no time reminding me why it will likely be named Game of the Year tomorrow at the Game Awards because the second I loaded in after months of neglect, I almost got myself killed in the dumbest, funniest way. As I was reacclimating myself to the controls, I accidentally aggro’d one of those Ohioan T-rex dogs off-screen and had to quickly remember which button was dodge, then remember the nuances of dodging p... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Want to stream She-Hulk: Attorney at Law or Andor? Then you might want to quickly sign up for a Disney Plus subscription. On Thursday, December 8th, Disney will debut a new ad-supported tier that’ll cost $7.99 / month. The existing ad-free plan, meanwhile, will increase from $7.99 / month to $10.99.However, the good news is that you can avoid the price hike so long as you subscribe to an annual ad-free plan before the end of today, December 7th. Even better, you don’t need to be a new subscriber, either. Right now, in fact, both new and returning customers can still subscribe to a year of Disney Plus for $79.99 before it increases to $109.99 on Thursday.In case you’re wondering, the ad-free annual plan offers a few extra perks, like... Continue reading…