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Pre-owned Switch 2 consoles that have been modded are reportedly being bricked by Nintendo's anti-piracy policyRedditor Bimmytung says they bought a second-hand console from Walmart, only to discover that the Switch 2 is permanently offlineNintendo has been blocking access to online services on the console if players have modded the console using the MIG Flash toolIf you're thinking about purchasing a second-hand Nintendo Switch 2, you may want to think twice, as Nintendo's anti-piracy policy has reportedly left some consoles permanently offline.As IGN reports, Redditor Bimmytung shared a post explaining how they bought a pre-owned Switch 2 from Walmart, only to find that it had been 'bricked' by Nintendo after booting it up.Earlier this month, it was reported that Nintendo had been blocking access to online services on the console if players had used MIG Flash, a tool used to allow players to backup copies of games.Before the Switch 2 launched, Nintendo suggested in its user agreement that it had the power to 'brick' devices that are modded."Nintendo may render the Nintendo Account Services and/or the applicable Nintendo device permanently unusable in whole or in part", it reads.Those affected will be presented with error code "2124-4508," which will permanently block players from accessing online services, which is exactly what Redditor Bimmytung has experienced.Found one. Didn't end well. from r/switch2"Been casually looking for a Switch 2. Today I was driving between work sites and stopped at two different Walmarts. At the second one I find a Mario Kart edition sitting in the case and couldn't believe my luck," Bimmytung said."Physically it's fine, everything seems there. Notice that the Mario Kart code is scratched off. Hmm. Naturally wonder if the original buyer redeemed the code and returned the system. They knocked $50 off the price so I figured I'd roll the dice and at least have the hardware. Bought a Pro Controller 2 while I was at it.The Redditor continued, saying, "Get home and go to finish the setup - quickly get Error Code 2124-4508. A quick Google search shows me I'm screwed. FML. Thankfully my local Walmart accepted the return without any fuss but still... I wish nothing but enthusiastic double gonorrhea to the lowlife scum that did this."Users with a 'bricked' Switch 2 would essentially be unable to access any multiplayer games like Mario Kart World, the eShop, Game Chat, and more.Thankfully, stores like Walmart can accept refunds, but if you were to buy a second-hand console from eBay without knowing if it had been modded, you're out of luck.You might also like...The Nintendo Switch 2 is the company’s least ambitious console to date, but its improvements are astronomicalI’ve spent 150 hours with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and the Switch 2 Edition is an incredible upgrade'I don't even know if I wanna play anymore' - Pokémon player left devastated after Nintendo Switch 2 system transfer lost over 1,000 hours of gameplay and 20 years of data

Acer just announced several new budget-friendly laptops, and they each offer access to NVIDIA's latest RTX 5050 GPU. This GPU features 2,560 CUDA cores and 8GB of GDDR7 VRAM.

First up, there's the Acer Nitro V 16 AI Copilot+. This model is available with an AMD Ryzen 5 240, Ryzen 7 260 or Ryzen 7 350 CPU. It's also available with up to a RTX 5070 GPU. These laptops ship with a 16-inch WUXGA 180Hz display and 16GB of RAM. Storage options start at 512GB. Prices start at $900. The Nitro V 16 line will be available at Walmart this August.

Acer

The standard Nitro V 16 will also be available this August, though at various retailers beyond Walmart. It ships with either an Intel Core Ultra C5 210H or C7 240H CPU. It offers 16GB of RAM and up to 1TB of internal storage. The 16-inch display is available with either a 165Hz or 180Hz refresh rate. Prices start at $1,000.

Acer

The Nitro V 15 laptop comes with either an Intel Core i5 13420H or i7 13620H CPU, with storage options up to 1TB. The laptop offers 16GB of RAM and a 15.6-inch FHD 165Hz display. It'll be available at the end of July at Walmart, Microcenter, Newegg and several other retailers. Pricing starts at $900.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/new-budget-friendly-laptops-from-acer-feature-nvidias-latest-rtx-5050-gpu-160018329.html?src=rss

MindsEye's disastrous launch has resulted in layoffs at developer Build A Rocket BoySources told IGN that layoffs are expected to affect over 100 employeesBuild A Rocket Boy has confirmed that the redundancy process has begunBuild A Rocket Boy has been hit with layoffs following MindsEye's disastrous launch.The futuristic, single-player narrative game was released earlier this month for PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC, to an overwhelmingly poor reception.From performance problems, bugs, and countless other technical issues, Mindseye's Steam page now sits at a 'Mostly Negative' rating with over 1840 user reviews, with Build A Rocket Boy promising fixes.Now, two weeks after launch, sources tell IGN that the studio has begun the redundancy process amid the game's poor release, and layoffs are expected to affect over 100 employees.An anonymous source told the publication that there's no word on how many people will be impacted, but that the standard 45-day consultation process started on June 23, which is triggered when an employer proposes 100 or more redundancies within 90 days in the UK.It's understood that Build A Rocket Boy has roughly 300 UK employees currently working at the studio, and around 200 abroad."We can confirm that we have had to make the painful decision to notify our hardworking team of some internal changes at Build A Rocket Boy," the studio has now confirmed in a statement to IGN."While we are working to reassign roles for as many of those impacted by these changes as possible, sadly we are initiating a formal consultation process that may result in redundancies. This decision has not been made lightly, and we are committed to handling this process with transparency, fairness, and respect for all employees. We will provide further details to the team over the coming weeks.""The launch of MindsEye has been a significant milestone for Build A Rocket Boy, but we know that we still have a lot more to do to grow our community in the coming years. The challenges we’ve faced have only strengthened our resolve and, while we are deeply saddened by today’s decision and thankful to our incredible team, this shift allows us to focus on delivering ongoing updates and performance optimization for MindsEye, while also ensuring the long-term success of Build A Rocket Boy’s future ambitions."The studio has previously confirmed that it has post-launch plans "already in motion" for the game and that players can expect more updates and refinements "coming shortly after release".It also said it had plans to support the game for years, but hasn't revealed its roadmap just yet.You might also like...The Nintendo Switch 2 is the company’s least ambitious console to date, but its improvements are astronomicalI’ve spent 150 hours with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and the Switch 2 Edition is an incredible upgrade'I don't even know if I wanna play anymore' - Pokémon player left devastated after Nintendo Switch 2 system transfer lost over 1,000 hours of gameplay and 20 years of data