The third Silent Hill movie is still heading to theaters. According to Deadline, Return to Silent Hill will premiere on January 23, 2026. The film is directed by Christophe Gans, who also helmed the original 2006 adaptation.
Return to Silent Hill is based on the 2001 game Silent Hill 2. (Bloober Team's 2024 remake was one of our favorite games of the year.) The movie adaptation stars Jeremy Irvine and Hannah Emily Anderson. Akira Yamaoka, the game franchise's original composer, handles the score.
Konami / YouTube
Like the game it's based on, the film's protagonist is James Sunderland (Irvine). After a crushing breakup with Mary (Anderson), James lives up to the billing and… returns to Silent Hill. What he finds is a town transformed by a mysterious evil. As James searches for Mary, he faces terrifying creatures and unravels the truth. Psychological horror commences.
In 2022, Gans toldIGN that it's "totally independent" from the last two films. "Silent Hill is a bit like Twilight Zone, the Fourth Dimension, a place where anything and everything can happen," he said. In an interview with Le Point, Gans added that he wrote the screenplay during pandemic lockdowns. "I shot it in early 2023," he said (translated from French). "The film was supposed to be finalized in April 2024, but because of the executive producers, it dragged on, and I finished it last January." (Shots fired.)
The movie doesn't yet have a full theatrical trailer. But you can check out its 2022 teaser trailer below.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/return-to-silent-hill-is-coming-to-theaters-next-january-163409009.html?src=rss
Marathon isn't coming in September after all. Bungie said on Tuesday that it's delaying the shooter indefinitely. "We're using this time to empower the team to create the intense, high-stakes experience that a title like Marathon is built around," the company wrote.
Bungie wants to incorporate player feedback from the game's closed alpha playtest. (It ran from April 23 to May 4.) The company will continue closed testing over the next few months.
The developer wants to drill down on what makes the game "uniquely compelling." Bungie views this as a blend of survival, mystery, raid-like endgame challenges and combat. Adding more challenging AI encounters is also a priority. Ditto for enhanced visual fidelity and a darker tone that's more like the '90s originals.
Bungie
Last month, the game made headlines for the wrong reasons. Bungie admitted that Marathon's alpha version used stolen artwork. The developer said a former artist on its team pinched the assets without its knowledge. That incident wasn't mentioned in today's statement. Still, it's easy to imagine that could have played a part in the decision.
Delays are never fun for those eager to play. However, early testers had plenty of criticism. "Through every comment and real-time conversation on social media and Discord, your voice has been strong and clear," Bungie wrote. "We've taken this to heart, and we know we need more time to craft Marathon into the game that truly reflects your passion."
So, it sounds like the delay could be a wise decision in the long run. Bungie says it will provide its next update, along with a new release date, this fall.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/bungie-delays-marathon-indefinitely-190832450.html?src=rss
Peak Design is building on the success of its innovative Travel Tripod. The photography accessory maker is launching a new Pro Tripod on Kickstarter. The latest model comes in three flavors: Pro Lite, Pro and Pro Tall. As you might expect, their prices dwarf that of the (already expensive) Travel Tripod.
The Pro Tripod is scaled up for greater stiffness and maximum height. It has stronger legs, an all-CNC-machined hub and a flanged center column. This results in double the weight capacity of the Travel Tripod, which supports 20 lbs. The new Pro Tripod and Pro Tall Tripod each support 40 lbs. Meanwhile, the Pro Lite Tripod handles a bit less at 35 lbs.
Peak Design
When packed, the Pro models take up more space than the Travel model, but they'll still easily fit in a backpack. The Pro and Pro Lite Tripods measure just under 20 inches. The Pro Tall Tripod folds down to 22.9 inches. The Pro and Pro Tall models weigh just over 4 lbs, while the Pro Lite weighs 3.7 lbs.
Peak Design is also selling new accessories for those with the most demanding needs. The tilt mod will be essential for those who need the smoothest video. It converts the Pro line's standard ball head into a fluid pan-and-tilt one. The Pro Leveling Base enables quick leveling on uneven terrain. And the Pro Spike Feet will help the tripod grip slippery or loose ground.
Peak Design
If you thought the Travel Tripod was expensive, well, brace yourself. The Pro Lite Tripod is estimated to cost $800. The Pro Tripod is expected to cost $900. And the Pro Tall Tripod will retail for approximately $1,000. They're "estimated" prices since the products are only now arriving on Kickstarter. But, as is often the case with crowdfunding, pledging early will get you a discount.
If you're aghast at the pricing, well, that's entirely understandable. But consider that Peak Design is truly targeting professionals here. It isn't uncommon to see tripods from brands like RRS and Gitzo crack the $1,000 barrier. Engadget plans to review the Pro Tripod to see how it stands up (sorry) to pro-level needs.
The Pro Lite Tripod is expected to ship in October. Meanwhile, the company is aiming for February 2026 for the Pro and Pro Tall models. You can learn more in the video below and on the Kickstarter page.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cameras/peak-designs-new-tripods-take-aim-at-the-professional-set-165843064.html?src=rss
The Internet Archive made it easier to search for '90s-era GIFs. GifCities contains millions of animations from the decade of flannel shirts and Soup Nazis. The GIFs were pulled from old GeoCities webpages, which (mostly) bit the dust in 2009.
The new version of GifCities is much easier to search. You can now search semantically, based on the animation's content. In other words, it's much more likely to bring up the topic or scene you're looking for by describing it. In GifCities' old version, you could only search by file name. (If you're feeling masochistic, you can still access that version under a "Special search" tab.)
The updated GifCities also now uses pagination. That's a good thing, as the old version's infinite scrolling could make for slow browsing. You can also create and share "GifGrams." As the name suggests, these are custom e-greetings made from those ancient GIFs.
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive launched GifCities in 2016 to celebrate its 20th anniversary. If you're too young to know, GeoCities was the quintessential early internet web-hosting service. A precursor to social media, it was full of embarrassing fan pages, personal photo albums and "Under construction" GIFs. (You'll find plenty of the latter in this search engine.) Yahoo pulled the plug on most of GeoCities in 2009. (Disclosure: That's Engadget's parent company.) However, the Japanese version survived for another decade.
If you're of a certain age, you'll likely enjoy browsing the archive. (Or, learn what passed for internet humor before you were born!) Just note that many results are NSFW. I made the mistake of searching for "Mr. T," and I will now leave you to douse my eyes with bleach.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/the-internet-archive-modernizes-its-geocities-gif-search-engine-192315963.html?src=rss
Wikipedia is backing off a plan to test AI article summaries. Earlier this month, the platform announced plans to trial the feature for about 10 percent of mobile web visitors. To say they weren't well-received by editors would be an understatement. The Wikimedia Foundation (WMF) then changed plans and cancelled the test.
The AI summaries would have appeared at the top of articles for 10 percent of mobile users. Readers would have had to opt in to see them. The AI-generated summaries only appeared "on a set of articles" for the two-week trial period.
Editor comments in the WMF's announcement (via404 Media) ranged from "Yuck" to "Grinning with horror." One editor wrote, "Just because Google has rolled out its AI summaries doesn't mean we need to one-up them. I sincerely beg you not to test this, on mobile or anywhere else. This would do immediate and irreversible harm to our readers and to our reputation as a decently trustworthy and serious source."
"Wikipedia has in some ways become a byword for sober boringness, which is excellent," the editor continued. "Let's not insult our readers' intelligence and join the stampede to roll out flashy AI summaries."
This screenshot from 404 Media shows another version of an AI-generated summary on a Wikipedia page. The planned test would have only showed up on the mobile web version of the site.
Wikimedia Foundation
Editors' gripes weren't limited to the idea. They also criticized the nonprofit for excluding them from the planning phase. "You also say this has been 'discussed,' which is thoroughly laughable as the 'discussion' you link to has exactly one participant, the original poster, who is another WMF employee," an editor wrote.
A Wikimedia Foundation spokesperson shared the following statement with Engadget:
“The Wikimedia Foundation has been exploring ways to make Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects more accessible to readers globally. This two-week, opt-in experiment was focused on making complex Wikipedia articles more accessible to people with different reading levels. For the purposes of this experiment, the summaries were generated by an open-weight Aya model by Cohere. It was meant to gauge interest in a feature like this, and to help us think about the right kind of community moderation systems to ensure humans remain central to deciding what information is shown on Wikipedia.
For these experiments, our usual process includes discussing with volunteers (who create and curate all the information on Wikipedia) to make decisions on whether and how to proceed with building features. The discussion around this feature is an example of this process, where we built out a prototype of an idea and reached out to the Wikipedia volunteer community for their thoughts.
It is common to receive a variety of feedback from volunteers, and we incorporate it in our decisions, and sometimes change course. We welcome such thoughtful feedback — this is what continues to make Wikipedia a truly collaborative platform of human knowledge.
As shared in our latest post on the community discussion page, we do not have any plans to continue the experiment at the moment, as we continue to assess and discuss the feedback we have already received from volunteers.”In the "discussion" page, the organization explained that it wanted to cater to its audience's needs. "Many readers need some simplified text in addition to the main content," a WMF employee wrote. "In previous research, we heard that readers wanted to have an option to get a quick overview of a topic prior to jumping into reading the full article."
The organization didn't rule out future uses of AI. But they said editors won't be left in the dark next time. "Bringing generative AI into the Wikipedia reading experience is a serious set of decisions, with important implications, and we intend to treat it as such," the spokesperson told 404 Media. "We do not have any plans for bringing a summary feature to the wikis without editor involvement."
Update, June 13, 2025, 12:52PM ET: This story has been corrected to note that Wikipedia never actually started its AI summary test. The plan was announced, but cancelled before it took place. A statement from the Wikimedia Foundation has also been added, and the headline has been updated as well.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/wikipedia-cancels-plan-to-test-ai-summaries-after-editors-skewer-the-idea-200029899.html?src=rss
POLAND - 2022/12/07: In this photo illustration a Wikipedia logo seen displayed on a smartphone. (Photo Illustration by Mateusz Slodkowski/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Here's an AI-government collaboration of a less… unsettling variety than some. Google DeepMind is teaming up with the National Hurricane Center (NHC) for tropical cyclone season. The AI research lab claims it can predict hurricane paths and intensities with at least the same accuracy as traditional methods.
NHC forecasters have already begun using DeepMind's AI model. Google says they're designed to support, not replace, human NHC forecasters. (Although President Trump's National Weather Service cuts have already reduced its headcount.) The company is also careful to repeatedly describe its models as "experimental."
Google claims that its models offer fewer trade-offs than physics-based predictions. The more accurate those methods are at forecasting a hurricane's path, the worse they are at predicting its intensity. (And vice versa.) The company says its experimental system offers "state-of-the-art" accuracy for both.
DeepMind backs that up with data from real-life storms over the last two years. On average, its five-day hurricane track prediction gets 87 miles closer to the storm's actual path than ENS, a widely used traditional model. Google's was comparable to a 3.5-day prediction model. In other words, it's like gaining an extra 1.5 days of warning with the same level of confidence. The company says such an improvement typically takes over a decade to achieve.
Google
Alongside the NHC collab, Google is launching a new website that you can try. Now in a public preview, Weather Lab lets you see the AI storm predictions. It lets you view both live and historical predictions. You can even compare them to physics-based models to see how the AI version measures up.
It's important not to treat Weather Lab's experimental forecasts as official. But the website could come in handy if you live in Hurricane Alley. You can check it out now.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-deepmind-is-sharing-its-ai-forecasts-with-the-national-weather-service-173506456.html?src=rss
On Thursday, Bose unveiled its next-gen premium wireless earbuds. The latest QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds have enhanced adaptive noise cancellation, thanks to AI. Among their other upgrades over the originals are boosted call quality and wireless charging.
Since AI is the tech world's obsession, it's no surprise that Bose is jumping on that bandwagon. Here, the company uses it to improve adaptive noise cancellation. AI algorithms in the new model can smooth out sudden spikes in background noise while using aware mode. (That's the feature that lets you hear your surroundings while listening to music.) So, for example, the ANC should respond more quickly to a suddenly passing train or siren. In theory, that means fewer distractions from your music.
AI is also behind improved call quality in the second-gen QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds. Bose claims that its noise suppression system improves voice pickup and overall quality.
Bose
The new model supports wireless charging natively. The first-gen QC Ultra Earbuds only offered it in a roundabout way. You had to buy a $50 silicone cover for the case, which wasn't the most elegant solution.
The rest of the 2025 model's upgrades are subtler. Their ear tips now include a built-in earwax filter. That should make it easier to clean them and avoid sound degradation over time. You can also turn off the earbuds' capacitive touch controls in the app. The inability to do that was a common complaint about the 2023 originals. (They'll receive an update later this year that adds the same functionality.)
The second-gen Bose QC Ultra Earbuds retail for the same $299 as their predecessors. They'll be available in black, white smoke and deep plum. Later this summer, the company will start pre-orders and provide a release date.
SoundLink Plus
Bose
Alongside the earbuds, Bose announced two new Bluetooth speakers. The SoundLink Plus is a mid-range one, sitting between the SoundLink Flex and Max. The company's tagline for the speaker sums up the niche it wants to fill: "big enough to bring the bass but portable enough to take on the go."
The SoundLink Plus has one subwoofer, a tweeter and four passive radiators. It also includes an automatic tuning system called Active EQ. Bose says it adjusts its frequency response to match an optimal sound curve. It weighs 3.29 lbs. It supports Bluetooth Core 5.4.
The speaker supports up to 20 hours of playback. In a nice touch, you can use its USB-C port to charge your phone and other devices.
The SoundLink Plus costs $269. If you're looking to grab one, you won't have to wait long. Pre-orders open today, ahead of a June 26 launch. It will be available in black, blue dusk and citrus yellow. (The latter won't be available to pre-order until June 18.)
SoundLink Micro (second-gen)
Bose
Finally, Bose is rolling out a second-gen version of the SoundLink Micro. The speaker is still small — just slightly less so than the first model. (The second-gen Micro measures 4.06 x 4.06 x 1.54 inches.) But in exchange, you get much longer battery life. Bose says the new speaker lasts up to 12 hours, an increase from six hours in its predecessor.
The SoundLink Micro also includes some modernizations. First, it now works with the Bose app. The speaker also ditches the micro-USB charging from its predecessor in favor of USB-C.
Elsewhere, it adds the same Active EQ and Bluetooth Core 5.4 support in its mid-range sibling. The company claims that the speaker plays back sounds more clearly at higher frequencies. (And it does so without muddying bass.) It also has a removable nylon strap. This should be handy for attaching the speaker to bags, bikes, shower heads and the like.
The Bose SoundLink Micro will be available in black and blue dusk. It costs $129. The company will provide specific launch info later this summer.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/headphones/boses-second-gen-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-have-ai-enhanced-adaptive-anc-130057912.html?src=rss
You'll have to wait a little longer for The Legend of Zelda movie. Nintendo said on Monday that the film's new release date is May 7, 2027. That's six weeks later than the slot it announced earlier this year. The company attributed the rescheduling to production delays.
"This is Miyamoto," Nintendo's announcement post began. "For production reasons, we are changing the release date of the live-action film of The Legend of Zelda to May 7, 2027. It will be some weeks later than the release timing we originally announced, and we will take the extra time to make the film as good as it can be. Thank you for your patience."
Director Wes Ball in 2024
Reddit
We don't know much about the movie yet. Its director (Wes Ball) and screenwriter (T.S. Nowlin) are both known for The Maze Runner trilogy. Ball also worked on Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, the fourth installment in the modern reboots.
In 2023, Ball suggested that the film could have an anime influence. He described it as "this awesome fantasy-adventure movie that isn’t like Lord of the Rings, it’s its own thing. I've always said, I would love to see a live-action Miyazaki. That wonder and whimsy that he brings to things, I would love to see something like that."
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/nintendo-delays-the-legend-of-zelda-movie-155753324.html?src=rss
If you aren't thrilled with what EA has done with The Sims, another alternative is coming soon. The indie passion project Paralives launches in Steam Early Access on December 8.
Paralives has all the hallmarks of the life simulation genre. You can build your character, including physical and personality traits. It lets you make friends, move up in your career, fall in love and start a family (or not!). Design is central, too. You can craft your dream home, move walls and resize that stubby love seat into a full-on couch.
The game uses "innovative build tools that are easy to use but powerful for advanced builders." When designing your living space, you aren't limited to a grid. You can build on curves and customize any object's colors and textures. There's even an in-game measuring tape for those who want to get ultra-precise.
Paralives Studio
The game is the lovechild of Canadian developer Alex Massé, who began the project in 2019. Paralives Studio has now grown to a team of 13 with the sole focus of building "an innovative and fresh life simulation game." It's raised funds exclusively through Patreon. The team's development process is out in the open. You can browse its history and roadmap online, showing the full array of planned features.
Crucially, the young studio says Paralives will never have paid DLC — only free expansions. That's one way to take a shot at The Sims without even mentioning its name. And unlike the glitzy AI-fest inZoi, Paralives emphasizes depth and flexibility over presentation. Its simple and charming art style is a foundation for feeling and connection.
You can see for yourself in the release date trailer below. Grab Paralives on Steam Early Access (PC and Mac) on December 8.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/the-sims-like-paralives-hits-early-access-in-december-220014257.html?src=rss
Troy Baker will don the cartoon fedora and play the lead role in Mouse: P.I. For Hire. The game has garnered buzz for its unique blending of genres. Imagine a film noir-infused cross between Cuphead and Doom.
Baker will play Private Investigator Jack Pepper, the game's protagonist. He's a war hero turned detective who begins his journey responding to a cliché damsel in distress. Pepper's investigation then peels back the layers of the city's dark underbelly. It sounds like developer Fumi Games ticked all the items off the noir checklist.
Oh, and don't forget the minor detail that he's a rodent. Expect plenty of cheesy (meaning puns about cheese) one-liners.
Being a first-person shooter, Mouse: P.I. For Hire has plenty of Rambo-style room-clearing. Pepper's weapons range from conventional (shotgun) to comically ludicrous (turpentine cleanser). There's even an ode to Popeye: Down a can of spinach to beat your foes to smithereens.
The game's animation draws inspiration from the same 1930s cartoons as Cuphead. Like that game, Mouse: P.I. For Hire's monochromatic visuals are all hand-drawn. (But whether it's as punishingly difficult as the 2017 classic remains to be seen.) Watching the delightfully wacky trailers, it's easy to see why gamers are keeping an eye on this one.
It sounds like a wild ride. But that doesn't necessarily point to a game in need of an industry titan like Baker. So, perhaps there's more to the game's narrative than you might expect. Or, maybe The Last of Us actor is merely checking "played rodent" off his bucket list. (Couldn't blame him!)
Baker said he's been following the game's development from its first teaser. "Its art style, gameplay and 1930s film-noir aesthetic continue to win me over. I cannot wait to keep working with the team to bring Jack Pepper to life and hope to have some exciting things to share as we get closer to launch!"
You can check out the game's new trailer here. Mouse: P.I. for Hire arrives later this year. It will be available on all major platforms, including Switch 2.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/troy-baker-is-the-big-cheese-in-mouse-pi-for-hire-220033867.html?src=rss
AI companies claim their tools couldn't exist without training on copyrighted material. It turns out, they could — it's just really hard. To prove it, AI researchers trained a new model that's less powerful but much more ethical. That's because the LLM's dataset uses only public domain and openly licensed material.
The paper (viaThe Washington Post) was a collaboration between 14 different institutions. The authors represent universities like MIT, Carnegie Mellon and the University of Toronto. Nonprofits like Vector Institute and the Allen Institute for AI also contributed.
The group built an 8 TB ethically-sourced dataset. Among the data was a set of 130,000 books in the Library of Congress. After inputting the material, they trained a seven-billion-parameter large language model (LLM) on that data. The result? It performed about as well as Meta's similarly sized Llama 2-7B from 2023. The team didn't publish benchmarks comparing its results to today's top models.
Performance comparable to a two-year-old model wasn't the only downside. The process of putting it all together was also a grind. Much of the data couldn't be read by machines, so humans had to sift through it. "We use automated tools, but all of our stuff was manually annotated at the end of the day and checked by people," co-author Stella Biderman told WaPo. "And that's just really hard." Figuring out the legal details also made the process hard. The team had to determine which license applied to each website they scanned.
So, what do you do with a less powerful LLM that's much harder to train? If nothing else, it can serve as a counterpoint.
In 2024, OpenAI told a British parliamentary committee that such a model essentially couldn't exist. The company claimed it would be "impossible to train today's leading AI models without using copyrighted materials." Last year, an Anthropic expert witness added, "LLMs would likely not exist if AI firms were required to license the works in their training datasets."
Of course, this study won't change the trajectory of AI companies. After all, more work to create less powerful tools doesn't jive with their interests. But at least it punctures one of the industry's common arguments. Don't be surprised if you hear about this study again in legal cases and regulation arguments.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/it-turns-out-you-can-train-ai-models-without-copyrighted-material-174016619.html?src=rss
The Switch 2 versions of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom may require a purchase. They'll set you back $70 or $80 new, but if you already own the games, it's only $10 each. (And Switch Online Expansion Pack members get the enhanced updates for free.) Regardless, at least you have a sharper-looking open world to explore for paying a second time.
Here's the complete list of (free) updated games, which also includes Pokémon and Captain Toad.
ARMS – visual upgrades (resolution, frame rates and HDR)
Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain – GameShare (up to four players, local / online GameChat sharing)
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker – visual upgrades (resolution and HDR) and GameShare (two players in all courses, local / online GameChat sharing)
Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics – GameShare (up to four players can play 34 games, local / online GameChat sharing)
Game Builder Garage – visual upgrades (resolution), Joy-Con 2 mouse control
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe – visual upgrades (resolution)
Pokémon Scarlet – visual upgrades (resolution, frame rates)
Pokémon Violet – visual upgrades (resolution, frame rates)
Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury – visual upgrades (resolution, frame rates and HDR), GameShare (up to four players in Super Mario 3D World, two players in Bowser's Fury and local / online GameChat sharing)
Super Mario Odyssey – visual upgrades (resolution, frame rates), GameShare (two players, local / online GameChat sharing)
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom – visual upgrades (resolution, HDR)
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening – visual upgrades (resolution, HDR)
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/nintendo-rolls-out-switch-2-updates-for-super-mario-odyssey-and-other-switch-games-174202849.html?src=rss
Devolver Digital is devoting its Summer Game Fest stream to a single title. That's quite the departure for the Austin-based publisher. So, the company must see something special in Ball x Pit: The Kenny Sun Story. Get ready to find out about it on June 6.
Devolver isn't being shy about its enthusiasm for Ball x Pit. The publisher says it's a game the team "can't even put down — hundreds of hours later." Sounds promising!
So, what do we know about the game and its titular character? Not much. There's the teaser image above, featuring battle skeletons and other fantasy characters. Also, Devolver called it "a tremendous little game."
Expect to learn much more about Ball x Pit on June 6 at 8 PM ET. You can tune into Devolver Direct on YouTube and Twitch. (That's the same broadcast as the Summer Game Fest Live and Day of the Devs livestreams.)
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/how-to-watch-devolver-direct-at-summer-game-fest-2025-170014340.html?src=rss
The indie-focused Day of the Devs is nearly here. That's the portion of Summer Game Fest where smaller publishers step into the spotlight. It tends to be a worthwhile watch, often eclipsing the main show. Get ready to tune in on June 6.
What's on tap this year? Heart Machine's 2D sidescroller Possessor(s) will make an appearance. If you like hand-drawn art, horror and visual novels, this is your game. (Oh, and don't forget "very hot" demons!)
We'll also see more of Outersloth's "nightmarish life sim" Neverway. That title has a killer elevator pitch. "After quitting her dead-end job, Fiona starts over on a farm and becomes the immortal herald of a dead god." (As one does!)
Big Walk
House House
Untitled Goose Game maker House House is on the schedule. That will presumably mean a closer look at Big Walk. The "cooperative online walker-talker" eschews the hardcore competition common in online gaming. "Our favorite part of playing online coop games is when they give you enough direction for the group to keep up a good momentum," the studio said in 2023. "But it's relaxed enough that you're mostly just able to enjoy spending time with your friends." Expect a chill time with delightfully strange characters.
Expect much more beyond that small sampling. Day of the Devs kicks off on June 6 at 7PM ET. You can also stream it on YouTube and Twitch. Engadget will also be on the ground at Summer Games Fest with plenty of first-hand impressions.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/how-to-watch-day-of-the-devs-at-summer-game-fest-2025-150047219.html?src=rss
Twitch is getting more TikTok-ified with vertical game streaming. Also, "2K" (1440p) video will let you watch that League of Legends stream in a higher resolution. The ability to rewind streams is coming, too. CEO Dan Clancy made the announcements on Saturday at TwitchCon Europe.
Portrait-mode streaming makes it a little easier to watch gameplay on your phone. Until now, Twitch only supported the orientation for clips and IRL streams. Clips are short highlights that creators can share after a stream ends. And "In Real Life" content shows everyday activities rather than gameplay.
But some screens work much better in a landscape view. Fortunately, Twitch is also rolling out a dual-format mode. Creators can go live in vertical and horizontal orientations at once. You can watch the version that works best for your device. The company will begin testing "with a small number of channels" this summer. It will expand access later this year.
Twitch's 1440p streams should be a welcome addition. (Who doesn't like a sharper-looking video?) On the back end, it uses a newer HEVC codec that produces a better picture with a lower bitrate. And the platform's Enhanced Broadcasting tech automatically tweaks the viewer's resolution.
The 1440p streaming begins rolling out today to all partners and affiliates. But it's in an open beta, so creators may need to wait for access.
Finally, Twitch is rolling out a rewind feature. If you miss part of a stream, you can scrub back to catch up on what you missed. That feature isn't quite here yet, either. Twitch will test it with "a small number of viewers" this summer.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/twitch-is-adding-1440p-and-vertical-streaming-091533811.html?src=rss
Apple's big 2025 software reveal is nearly upon us. On June 9, the Worldwide Developers' Conference (WWDC) keynote will showcase the changes coming with its 2025 software. That includes — deep breath — iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS and visionOS.
Leaks suggest this year will be a biggie. In addition to the requisite Craig Federighi gags and a California-themed name for the latest macOS update, expect a significant visual overhaul — one of Apple's biggest ever — and (shocker) new Apple Intelligence features.
According to Front Page Tech's Jon Prosser, that may even include (nearly) round icons on the home screen and in Control Center. He also noted subtler changes, like a redesigned tab view within apps and the search box in Messages being moved to the bottom of the screen.
One of Apple's core goals with the new software is to unify the design language of its operating systems. The idea is to make it less visually jarring to hop between devices. If executed well, jumping from iPhone to iPad to Mac (and so on) will feel like touring different flavors of the same OS.
Apple's last big macOS makeover was with 2020's Big Sur. For the iPhone's software, you have to go all the wayback to 2013. That's when iOS 7 kicked skeuomorphic design to the curb, replacing it with a flat, minimalistic look. Minus some iterative changes, it's still the UI you see today.
A new naming scheme
Along with the big visual refresh, Apple is also rumored to be changing how it names its operating systems. Instead of having random version numbers at the end, the company is apparently planning to unify the names by year — so iOS 19 would become iOS 26, as it'll be Apple's platform for the coming year. The same goes for all of Apple's other software, so we're looking at iPadOS 26, macOS 26 and so forth.
Of course, it goes without saying that macOS should still get a California-themed name; hopefully Apple won't be throwing that tradition in the bin just yet. It'll stick around, according to Bloomberg: the current rumor is that the next version of macOS will be named Tahoe.
The iPad goes to work
Nathan Ingraham for Engadget
Could 2025 be the year the iPad Pro starts to feel… Pro? The high-end versions of Apple's tablet have been more than capable on a hardware level for generations. (Especially when they switched to M-series chips.) But the software has held it back. That's presumably because the company doesn't want to cannibalize Mac sales. After all, if the iPad Pro can truly replace a laptop, then fewer people would buy both.
The bad news for those wanting a full-on Mac experience: The iPad won't switch to macOS. The good news: iPadOS may get much more Mac-like. This year's update will reportedly focus on productivity, featuring improved multitasking and app window management.
It's not that Apple hasn't inched the iPad's software in that direction. It incrementally did so with Stage Manager in iPadOS 16. The year before, it added the multitasking menu at the top of app windows. But for many, those tweaks fell far short of the full-on productivity overhaul they craved. Will it be enough this time? Bloomberg's Mark Gurman thinks it will "likely go far enough" for most power users. (Is that a "Hallelujah!" I hear?)
Apple Intelligence
Apple
Even if leaks hadn't already suggested as much, this one would be a no-brainer. After all, AI has been every tech company's obsession since ChatGPT took the world by storm over two years ago. Expect a healthy portion of the keynote to be devoted to Apple's AI advances. These will reportedly include improvements to existing features and a few new ones.
Siri
Remember when Apple promised a more personalized Siri at last year's conference? The one that many wished would come ahead of the visual overhaul? Well, we're still waiting on that. The last official update we heard was in March, when the company toldDaring Fireball, "It's going to take us longer than we thought." (Oops!) Apple expects the new Siri features to arrive "in the coming year," a clear-as-mud description if ever there was one.
A report from The Information last month hinted that the upgraded Siri was nowhere near ready. The 2024 demo, where Siri condensed minutes of multi-app planning into mere seconds, reportedly came as a surprise to team members working on Siri. (Never an encouraging sign.)
Apple
Separate reporting this month from Bloomberg sheds a bit more light, adding that we probably won't hear much about those Siri upgrades at WWDC 2025. The publication described those updates as being months away from shipping. The company is also reportedly separating its Apple Intelligence and Siri marketing. The logic behind this is that users are so fed up with Apple's assistant that it's hurting Apple's AI push.
The company's 2024 presentation was undoubtedly impressive. It showed a more context-sensitive Siri that better understands what you're doing. It pulled info from various apps and spliced them together in a seamless flow. It recorded a specific type of video in a third-party app. It shared a meeting summary via email with a teammate. And it found missing information the user remembered reading... somewhere. It even controlled system settings and explained them when needed.
The bottom line: If or when Apple pulls off what it promised last year, that's big news for Siri. But don't hold your breath for it to show up at WWDC 2025.
According to Bloomberg, the Siri updates we do see will be much subtler. These would include adding the option to use Gemini instead of ChatGPT with the assistant.
AI battery management
Apple
Another iOS 19 scoop points to an Apple Intelligence feature that's easy to get behind. A new AI-powered battery management mode will reportedly analyze how you use your phone. It can then use that to make power-saving adjustments on the fly. If it works well, that could be pretty nifty.
It may also be a key ingredient to a new device: the "iPhone Air." Whatever Apple calls it, the rumored ultra-slim handset is expected to join Apple's lineup this year. Without this feature, the phone's smaller battery might struggle to make it through a typical day. (According to Gurman, it would last several hours less than Apple's other iPhones.) But with the AI battery feature activated, the svelte iPhone could become more practical.
Will we see this slim-jim iPhone at WWDC? Well, let's say you have as good a chance of Valve randomly showing up to announce Half Life 3 at Apple's conference. First, the svelte handset is expected to be part of the iPhone 17 lineup, which typically arrives around September. Second, Apple hasn't unveiled a new iPhone at WWDC since Steve Jobs showed off the iPhone 4 in 2010. So, in short, nope.
Virtual health coach
Apple
Apple is reportedly working on a virtual health coach. Allegedly codenamed Project Mulberry, the AI feature would pair a refreshed Health app with an AI-powered coach. Bloomberg says the feature would, to some degree, give you advice you'd usually seek from a doctor.
The virtual coach would collect data from your Apple devices and use AI to provide personalized health advice, chatbot-style. Apple is reportedly training the AI agent with data from company physicians. Meanwhile, outside experts would shoot educational videos.
In March, Bloomberg's Gurman said the virtual coach could arrive as early as iOS 19.4, which wouldn't likely come until early to mid-2026. But a quick aside in a report this month from Gurman and Drake Bennett mentioned that it could be a point of focus at WWDC.
A new gaming app
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman is predicting that Apple will introduce a centralized, pre-installed app for gaming on the Mac, iPad, iPhone and Apple TV. It'll include some of the features in the long-neglected Game Center service like leaderboards and matchmaking and pair them with a dedicated game launcher and editorial content including recommendations —including a push towards the Apple Arcade service.
Hair Force One
Apple
It wouldn't be an Apple keynote without some wacky Craig Federighi hijinks. Last year, Apple's software lead strapped on a hair-shaped helmet and skydived into Apple Park. At previous events, he showed off his parkour skills, summoned an iPad like he's a Jedi and jammed out on a three-necked guitar.
Say what you will about "Hair Force One." Federighi knows how to sell a sight gag. (With maybe just a teensy bit of help from Apple's visual effects artists.)
Betas and release dates
Following Apple's typical schedule, you can expect the first developer betas to arrive after the conference ends. (Likely the same day!) Public betas would follow early this summer. And you can expect the final versions of iOS 19, iPadOS 19, macOS 16 and so on to arrive alongside new iPhones this fall.
What not to expect at WWDC
While Apple's developer conference will be jam-packed if they serve up even a fraction of the expectations above, there are a few things we can pretty confidently take off the board, too.
With the possible exception of the Mac Pro, nearly all of Apple's hardware lines have either just finished an upgrade cycle (consumer Macs, most iPads) or are going to get updated in the fall as usual (iPhone, Apple Watch). As such, we're not expecting any major hardware announcements. Apple has talked about the Mac Pro at past WWDC events, but that computer is updated so infrequently that it's hard to say with any confidence that we'll see any changes.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/apple-wwdc-2025-what-we-expect-including-new-ios-software-updates-macos-ai-and-more-210051784.html?src=rss
All that's left now is our full review, and reviews take time. While we put Nintendo's latest through its paces, you can catch up on everything you need to know about the Switch 2 below. If you want to follow the Engadget team's experiences with it on launch day, you can check out our Nintendo Switch 2 launch day live blog.
What are the key new features of the Nintendo Switch 2?
Display and dock
The Nintendo Switch 2 has a 1080p 7.9-inch display with a 120Hz refresh and HDR compatibility. It also supports up to 4K output at 120Hz (with variable refresh rates) when docked.
Joy-Con and Pro Controller
The new Joy-Con 2 for Nintendo Switch 2 attaches magnetically with a button to release them. They have larger SL and SR buttons (the ones hidden when the Joy-Con are attached) to make playing multiplayer games on individual Joy-Cons more feasible. These buttons are also made of steel and attach to the Switch 2's magnets.
The analog sticks are no longer tiny nubs, and are closer in size to the ones you might find on a PS5 or Xbox controller. However, they do not have Hall effect sensors, the use of which can minimize the risk of the "stick drift" issue that plagued the original Joy-Cons.
The new Pro Controller for the Nintendo Switch 2 comes with everything you’d expect based on the refreshed Joy-Con 2: Namely HD Rumble 2 and the C button. There are also remappable GL/GR buttons around the back and a standard audio jack for connecting a headset.
Both options come with Amiibo support built in. The Switch 2 comes with two Joy-Con 2, as you’d expect, and additional pairs are priced at $95. The Pro Controller will cost $85.
The C button stands for "chat"
The new C button is a dedicated way to enter a chat session with friends. As well as the standard features you’d expect from voice chat, Nintendo has built a Discord-like video-sharing feature, which lets you show your gameplay to others and see other people’s screens while you’re playing.
The GameChat function works with a mic built into the console, though headsets are also supported. Nintendo will also sell a $55 camera that plugs into the USB-C port on the top of the console, which will allow you to stream your face along with your game.
Nintendo
GameCube support
The Switch 2 will work with GameCube games via the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack. The three titles available at launch will be F-Zero GX, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and Soul Calibur II.
Improved specs
Perhaps the biggest feature, though, is one you can’t see: The Switch 2 has an all-new processor and GPU and significantly more storage (256GB vs 64GB in the Switch OLED), along with support for faster and more capacious microSD cards. This will obviously lead to better first-party games and upgraded Switch experiences, but more importantly it will mean multi-platform games that had to skip the original, underpowered Switch will be able to be ported over. With games like Cyberpunk 2077 coming to the Switch 2 at launch, it seems like far more ports will be feasible than on the original console.
Digital Foundry has been able to confirm a bunch of the details of the Switch 2's specsthat Nintendo hasn't explained publicly, but the highlights are the consoles custom chip and faster storage. The Switch 2 uses a NVIDIA chip with eight ARM Cortex A78C cores, six of which are available to developers, and a GPU with the company's Ampere architecture. That's alongside 12GB of LPDDRX RAM and a custom FDE (file decompression engine) that decompresses game files without drawing power from the Switch 2's CPU.
Another major improvement comes in the form of networking — the Switch 2 supports Wi-Fi 6, which will improve the original's often glacial download speeds. Similarly, the new dock sports an Ethernet port for a rock-solid connection.
Virtual game cards
Virtual Game Cards are Nintendo’s way of making digital gamesreplicate the experience of physical copies. They let you lend digital games to friends and family, letting them enjoy the game on their system without buying a separate copy.
Of course, there are caveats. Much like a physical cartridge, only one system can play each Virtual Game Card at a time. You can only loan games to up to eight people, and each will need to be on the same Nintendo Family Account and local network. Finally, you can only share one game at a time, and the lending period lasts only two weeks. Although that’s a healthy list of limitations, the feature is still more than other consoles have offered — and, if we’re lucky, it will be something Sony and Microsoft are pressured to adopt.
Game-Key cards are physical Switch 2 games that only contain a portion of their game data. The first time you slot one in, your Switch 2 will download the rest of the game to your local storage and the Game-Key card becomes the "key" you need to use anytime you want to play it.
Nintendo says you'll have to have an internet connection the first time you boot up the game, but afterwards the card itself should be enough to let you play. You'll also be able to resell your Game-Key card in the same way you would a normal cartridge or disc.
This fusion of digital and physical has become fairly common on other consoles as the size of games has grown larger, but it's relatively novel for Nintendo. Since the Switch 2 is going to be running more demanding, high-fidelity games, though, it's a compromise that lets people still enjoy the common-sense benefits of physical game cards.
What's it like to play?
Nintendo gave the press a chance to check out the Switch 2 and a few of the games it highlighted. You can read our impressions of Mario Kart Worldas well as more general thoughts on how the Switch 2 feels in person. Right off the bat, Mario Kart World feels like an outstanding launch title, with more depth and better visuals than we've ever seen from a Mario Kart game. The core formula is intact, but there are a lot of new features and play styles to dig into.
As for the Switch 2 hardware, it feels like a major step forward from the original Switch — it has grown up a lot and feels far more polished and refined. And while it may not have an OLED screen, the 7.9-inch LED display Nintendo did use is outstanding.
When did the Nintendo Switch 2 come out?
Nintendo scheduled its launch for June 5, 2025. From a US perspective, the first consoles reached gamers' hands on June 4, with Australians and New Zealanders sharing images online and some streaming their experiences on Twitch and YouTube.
When did pre-orders open for Nintendo Switch 2?
Switch 2 pre-orders were initially set to begin on April 9, but the following week, Nintendo said it was suspending pre-order plans in the US "indefinitely" in reaction to a slate of tariffs imposed by President Trump.
Finally, when pre-orders opened on April 24, a hot mess ensued. Those who stayed up late trying to snag a Switch 2 were often left empty-handed as Walmart, Best Buy and Target’s websites weren’t fully equipped for the demand. Many customers were left with unmoving queues and error messages — a familiar process for many who’ve tried to pre-order a hot gaming or tech product in recent years. (Folks who pre-ordered a PS5 during the pandemic caught the nastiest case of deja vu.)
No retailers are currently taking Switch 2 pre-orders. Although there’s always the chance one will drop an unexpected stock refresh, your best option right now is to register your interest with Nintendo. That may not lead to a launch-day console, as Nintendo has warned, but it won’t likely be a crazy delay like those familiar to GPU buyers. And if your Nintendo cred ticks the right boxes (you have been subscribed to Switch Online for at least 12 months, have opted in to share gameplay data, and have at least 50 total gameplay hours), your odds will improve.
Costco is a dark-horse candidate for day-one availability. The retailer doesn’t appear to have taken any Switch 2 pre-orders, but a product listing claims it will have Mario Kart World console bundles in stock on launch day.
In any case, Nintendo says the console’s June 5 release date is unchanged.
In a somewhat disappointing update, Nintendo appears to be shipping "sold out" signs to retailers so that they can quickly let people know the Switch 2 isn't in stock. We can only read so much into that, but it seems likely that if you can't grab one on launch day from a retailer, you'll be waiting a while for them to come back in stock.
How much does the Nintendo Switch 2 cost?
On April 2, Nintendo announced that the Switch 2 would cost $450 standalone, or $500 with a bundled digital copy of the new Mario Kart game, Mario Kart World. That’s significantly more expensive than the original Switch, which launched at $300, and has remained at that price ever since. It’s also more expensive than the entry-level current-gen consoles from Sony and Microsoft.
The comparison looks a little better up against Valve’s Steam Deck, which costs $400 for the LCD model or $550 for the basic OLED model. The Steam Deck is more affordable than most PC handhelds.
When Nintendo delayed the pre-orders from the original date of April 9, it said it was doing so "in order to assess the potential impact of tariffs and evolving market conditions." With heavy US tariffs levied on Nintendo's Asian production centers, the implication was that would have little choice but to pass at least some of those costs on to American consumers. But Trump's April 9 tariff pivot — reverting to 10 percent across the board for 90 days for all countries except China, which now gets a triple-digit hit — further muddied the waters. That's because it's unclear how much, if any, of the components and assembly of US-bound Switch 2 consoles will originate in China.
Nevertheless, the company is keeping the price of the Switch 2 at $450 and the Mario Kart World bundle at $500. However, it noted that it had to increase the prices of Switch 2 accessories "due to changing market conditions" and added that other price modifications may occur in the future for a similar reason.
How much do the Nintendo Switch 2 accessories cost?
When Nintendo announced the rescheduled Switch 2 pre-order date for the US and Canada, it confirmed price increases for many of the console's accessories. The current US prices for the accessories are as follows:
Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller — $85
Joy-Con 2 Pair — $95
Joy-Con 2 Charging Grip — $40
Joy-Con 2 Strap — $14
Joy-Con 2 Wheel Set — $25
Nintendo Switch 2 Camera — $55
Nintendo Switch 2 Dock Set — $120
Nintendo Switch 2 Carrying Case & Screen Protector — $40
Nintendo Switch 2 All-In-One Carrying Case — $85
Nintendo Switch 2 AC Adapter — $35
Samsung microSD Express Card – 256GB for Nintendo Switch 2 — $60
The price of the Joy-Con 2 strap has gone up by $1, but the prices of other products have risen by between $5 and $10, with the dock set getting the larger increase. Thankfully, your Nintendo Switch 2 will come with a dock. Nintendo also released a list of accessory prices for Canada.
How long will the Switch 2's battery last?
Nintendo says that the Switch 2 will last between 2 and 6.5 hours on a single charge. This is similar to the original Switch, which was rated for 2.5-6.5 hours, though later revisions upped that figure significantly. The company cautions that "this time is an estimate ... battery life will depend on the games you play and usage conditions."
Based on video Nintendo shared in the Nintendo Today app, one way the Switch 2 will extend the longevity of its battery over time is with a new "battery preservation mode." When enabled, your Switch 2 will stop charging when it reaches 90 percent, saving its battery from the wear and tear of charging to 100 percent every time. This is a fairly common feature on smartphones, and it makes sense for a handheld console you charge every day.
A new battery mode won't change the Switch 2's estimated battery life, but it will slow the damage charging the console has, which keeps it usable for longer.
Is the Nintendo Switch 2 backwards compatible?
Nintendo confirmed in November 2024 that the Nintendo Switch 2 will be backwards compatible. It will also feature access to Nintendo Online, so users will be able to play all of those old retro titles.
In the initial Nintendo Switch 2 press release, Nintendo reiterated that physical and digital Switch games will work on the new system. However, it noted that "certain Nintendo Switch games may not be supported on or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2." We now have more information on which games are working thanks to a guide Nintendo put together.
Nintendo's software compatibility chart on April 2, 2025.
Nintendo
As of April 1, the vast majority of Switch 2 games are marked as compatible, but many popular games are said to have some issues. Nintendo has marked most of these as “under investigation,” suggesting a fix may be on the way in time for launch. Nintendo says it is manually testing every Switch game for compatibility.
Only one title is marked as incompatible: Nintendo Labo Toy-Con 04: VR Kit. This was part of Nintendo’s Labo range of games that worked with Cardboard accessories, and is incompatible as the Switch 2 doesn’t physically fit in the VR headset.
Will old games be enhanced in any way?
The original Switch has, to put it mildly, struggled to run some of the late-generation software that's come down the pike. Could these games be enhanced to take advantage of the increased horsepower of the Switch 2? That’s unclear. In an “Ask the Developer” page on its site, Nintendo says that old games are working through a real-time translation system, which sounds similar to how Rosetta allows modern Macs to run old software. With that said, the new and old Switch are much closer in hardware than that.
In the same developer interview, it’s said that in its testing of old games for compatibility, there were some occasions “where loading times became faster, or game performance became more stable,” but we don’t have any detail beyond that.
As well as backward compatibility, Nintendo is also offering up premium "Switch 2 Edition" upgrades for a select few games. These have improved resolutions and frame rates, and (in some cases) bonus features and content. What exactly that means will vary, but Nintendo did confirm that Metroid Prime 4: Beyond will have 4K/60 fps and 1080p/120 fps options on the Switch 2.
Games confirmed to have a Switch 2 Edition to date include:
Super Mario Party Jamboree
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Kirby and the Forgotten Land
Pokémon Legends: Z-A
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
In the case of the two mainline Zelda games, those upgrades will be included with a Switch Online + Expansion Pack membership or cost $10 each. Upgrades for the other games are also paid, but Nintendo has not said how much those will cost.
What will the cartridges taste like?
You may remember that the original Switch cartridges taste absolutely awful. This was on purpose, to discourage folks from putting the games in their mouth.
Similarly, the Switch 2 carts are also said to taste terrible, in large part to stop children or pets from accidentally ingesting them. It is not yet clear what substance Nintendo has coated the Switch 2 cartridges in to make them taste foul, but Nintendo's Takuhiro Dohta advised against licking them all the same.
"We don't want anybody to be at risk of any unwanted consumption," he told GameSpot. "We have indeed made it so that if it enters your mouth, you'll spit it out."
What are the launch games?
We expect this list to change substantially over the coming weeks and months, but the titles currently confirmed to be available on day one follow:
Arcade Archives 2 Ridge Racer
Bravely Default: Flying Fairy HD Remaster
Cyberpunk 2077
Deltarune
Fast Fusion
Fortnite
Hitman: World of Assassination
Hogwarts Legacy
Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess
Mario Kart World
Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour
Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S
Split Fiction
Street Fighter 6
Survival Kids
Yakuza 0: Director's Cut
That's everything we know about the Nintendo Switch 2 today. We'll update this article with any information we can gather directly from sources. Any changes made to the article after its initial publishing will be listed below.
Update, January 24, 2025, 12:36 PM ET: This story has been updated to include speculation about price, potential game enhancements and the taste of cartridges.
Update, February 5, 2025, 9:30AM ET: This story has been updated to note the time when the April 2 Nintendo Direct starts.
Update, February 24, 2025, 12:30 PM ET: This story has been updated to include speculation about storage and information about the new microSD Express standard.
Update, March 6, 2025, 2:30PM ET: This story has been updated to note recent FCC filings to indicate the presence of Wi-Fi 6 and NFC support.
Update, March 14, 2025, 12:15PM ET: This story has been updated to include pricing and sales speculation from analysts.
Update, March 20, 2025, 12:45PM ET: Updated to include a note about the Seattle Mariners new jersey patches featuring Nintendo and the Switch 2.
Update, March 27, 2025, 3:50PM ET: Updated to add details about the C button, Nintendo Today! and Virtual Game Cards.
Update, April 1, 2025, 10:16AM ET: Updated to add link to livestream and details on its length.
Update, April 2, 2025, 4:40PM ET: Added details from the April 2 Nintendo Direct event, including specifications, price, release date and launch titles.
Update, April 4, 2025, 11:17AM ET: Added details about pre-orders being put on hold.
Update, April 7, 2025, 1:56PM ET: Added details about the Switch 2 cartridges still (reportedly) tasting terrible, the lack of Hall effect sensors in the controllers and game upgrade pricing.
Update, April 9, 2025, 5:41PM ET: Added context on how the changing rules on the Trump tariffs may or may not affect Switch 2 pricing in the US.
Update, April 11, 2025, 7:11PM ET: Re-affirmed that May 8 is when Nintendo is confirming the first batch of pre-orders through its site, after a faulty report online suggested otherwise.
Update, April 18, 2025, 10:33AM ET: Added details about the new pre-order date for the US and Canada, as well as accessory pricing.
Update, April 30, 2025, 3:24PM ET: Updated pre-order info and added a Virtual Game Card breakdown.
Update, May 14, 2025, 11:50PM ET: Added info on Game-Key cards, battery preservation mode, and the Switch 2's specs.
Update, June 5, 2025, 12PM ET: Introduction was rewritten and tenses (for example, "When will" became "When did") were updated throughout the article to reflect that the Switch 2 is now available.
Jeff Dunn contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/nintendo-switch-2-has-officially-launched-heres-everything-you-need-to-know-143310136.html?src=rss
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