News

Asus GPU Tweak III software notifies ROG Astral GPU users of any potential GPU sagIt's possible thanks to a built-in gyroscope and accelerometerThe feature appears to be unavailable in the latest version of the application

Considering the multitude of Nvidia and AMD third-party GPUs that come with different designs and sizes, GPU sag is an undeniable issue (even if the recent RTX 5000 series has largely been a move in the right direction from the comically large RTX 4090). Fortunately, a popular GPU and motherboard manufacturer has introduced a solution - well, sort of.As reported by VideoCardz, Asus' ROG Astral RTX 5000 series GPUs have an 'Equipment Installation Check' feature within the GPU Tweak III software, which alerts users if their GPU has tilted or moved out of place. This is made possible thanks to a built-in gyroscope and accelerometer, effectively helping detect GPU sag.The strange thing is that this feature hasn't been included in any of the ROG Astral GPU marketing. GPU Tweak III, a GPU monitoring and tuning software, has several features to prevent issues, such as Power Detector+, which indicates any potential issues with the 12VHPWR cable - but this GPU sag preventative measure was only just discovered by users.This is perhaps even more baffling: according to Asus forums, the Equipment Installation Check feature is no longer available in the latest version of the software. Whether the omission was entirely intentional is unclear at this moment, but it's a feature that GPU and motherboard manufacturers should consider including going forward.

(Image credit: Wirestock Creators / Shutterstock)

I see this as nothing but a win, and I'm hoping other manufacturers can follow suit...

There's nothing worse than finding your PC components damaged due to cases of oversight or necessary precautions being forgotten: that's why GPU sag should be taken far more seriously.Fortunately, I've never had it happen to me since I made it my priority to obtain a good anti-sag stand (I'm using a fairly chunky GPU), but it's easy to see the potential damage to the PCIe slot or the GPU itself in the long run if there isn't any support inside your case for a heavy graphics card.It's a different conversation if you're using a GPU riser cable (in a mini-ITX build, for example) as the card can be placed vertically to alleviate concerns of sag - but good luck placing some of today's modern beefy third-party GPUs in those cases.Of course, this won't apply to all GPU owners, as it seems the heavier GPUs are mostly third-party high-end offerings to compensate for cooling: prime examples are my current GPU, the Asus TUF RTX 4080 Super, a triple-slot card, and the ROG Astral RTX 5090.It's good to see that Asus even thought about a feature to at least notify users of any sag or movement: in my experience, it's not always easy to tell if your GPU is sagging, so while some might see it as a nonsensical addition, I'd argue it's one worth applauding.However, it's gone at the moment and no one knows if it will return: if it doesn't come back (which I'll be shocked by), then I'll be hoping other GPU manufacturers have at the very least taken note.

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Nvidia's rumored RTX 5080 Super could feature 24GB of VRAM - could it be enough to match the RTX 4090's performance?Nvidia and AMD are going to hate me for this - but I'm going to keep telling people not to buy overpriced GPUsNvidia's RTX 5060 8GB GPU is rumored to launch at $299 - but history suggests it will cost more at retailers

The consequences of President Trump’s tariff policies are starting to kick in. Crowdfunding platform Kickstarter just announced something called a "Tariff Manager Tool" that lets creators add new surcharges to funded projects. This should help these creators deal with the unexpected costs of Trump’s global trade war.

Here’s how it works. Creators will be able to apply per-item surcharges to account for tariff-related cost increases. These charges will appear as a separate line item on the payment page for folks who have funded the project. It only applies to items heading to US-based shipping addresses.

Not everyone will want to, or be able to, pay an additional fee for something they backed months or years ago when the economy was stronger. Backers will be given the option to decline the surcharge, in which case a creator can issue a refund. A blog post does suggest that backers and creators could find "another resolution," beyond a refund, but didn’t get into specifics.

"We understand that asking backers to pay an additional fee—especially after a campaign has ended—can be sensitive," Kickstarter said. "Our goal is to provide you with the flexibility and transparency necessary to navigate those conversations with clarity and care."

Many Kickstarter projects rely on parts manufactured in China, Vietnam and other places that are now subject to exorbitant tariffs. This is poised to be exceptionally brutal for American small businesses, but Kickstarter creators face another hurdle. Backers typically fund a project months or years before fulfillment. It’s going to be unpleasant to find a new surcharge for something funded back in 2023 or whenever.

Boardgame publisher Stonemaier Games is suing Trump over the tariffs, which if left intact will basically bankrupt their business in a few short months.Let's hope other manufacturers join in. pic.twitter.com/9IOcCfLhz7— Max Cool (@VitoComedy) April 21, 2025

A tabletop game maker called Stonemaier Games is suing President Trump over these tariffs. The small Missouri-based company has joined an upcoming lawsuit that alleges the president’s actions have put the livelihood of its employees in jeopardy. The suit challenges the constitutionality of the tariffs and noted that they will cost the company $1.5 million in additional import fees. Stonemaier is primarily known for the excellent Wingspan, which made our list of the best board games.

Retailers across the country, both large and small, have been warning consumers that prices are about to shoot up in May and that many products could become totally unavailable. This is due to both the tariffs and a recent executive order by Trump that eliminated a loophole that allowed small packages to avoid additional import charges. If you’ve been eyeing a particular gadget, you should probably get on that sooner rather than later.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/kickstarter-adds-a-tariff-manager-to-let-creators-add-surcharges-to-previously-funded-projects-170851069.html?src=rss

DragonForce is selling its ransomware as a service that can be rebrandedThe group will handle malware development, leak sites, and moreRaaS democratizes malware – as if AI hadn't done enough damage

Inspired by drug gangs, ransomware group DragonForce is bringing a new business model to the ransomware scene, and it involves cooperating with other ransomware gangs.DragonForce has now been observed offering a white-label affiliate model, allowing others to use their infrastructure and malware while branding attacks under their own name.With this model, affiliates won't need to manage the infrastructure and DragonForce will take care of negotitation sites, malware develpoment and data leak sites.

DragonForce evolves the ransomware scene with a new business model

"Advertised features include administration and client panels, encryption and ransom negotiation tools, a file storage system, a Tor-based leak site and .onion domain, and support services," cybersecurity researchers from Secureworks explained.Secureworks explained that, in a March 2025 underground post, DragonForce rebranded itself as a "cartel," announcing a shift to a distributed model. DragonForce first appeared in August 2023.Anubis, a much newer ransomware group that's been operating since December 2024, has also launched its own affiliate scheme, including a traditional ransomware-as-a-service product that nets affiliates 80% of their ransoms.Much like artificial intelligence has already democratized access to coding, these models are further extending access to ransomware, meaning that less technical threat actors can target victims. The flexibility and reduced operational burdens are also key selling points.The exact number of affiliates using these schemes is virtually untraceable, however Bleeping Computer has reported that RansomBay has already joined DragonForce's scheme."Cybercriminals are motivated by financial gain, so they are adopting innovative models and aggressive pressure tactics to shift the trend in their favor," Secureworks added.The usual principles apply when it comes to protecting yourself from any type of ransomware – regularly patching internet-facing devices, implementing phishing-resistant multi-factor authentication (MFA), maintaining robust backups and monitoring networks for malicious activity are all important steps to take.

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US bans Nvidia's H20 just as Huawei reveals its next-gen Ascend 920 AI chipAscend 920 may fill China’s AI chip gap post restrictions Nvidia faces $5.5 billion hit as Huawei seizes opportunity

On April 9, 2025, the United States announced plans to further tighten restrictions on AI chip exports to China, including Nvidia's H20 processor, a reduced-performance chip which the company created to comply with earlier US export regulations while continuing sales in China.Huawei, which has been positioning itself as China’s answer to Nvidia for some time, was likely waiting for the announcement because just one day later, at a partner conference, it revealed the Ascend 920, its next-generation AI chip.Set to enter mass production in the second half of 2025, according to DigiTimes Asia, the chip is expected to be built on SMIC’s 6nm process and offer up to 900 TFLOPs of BF16 compute and 4000GB/s of memory bandwidth, supported by HBM3 memory modules. It will also support PCIe 5.0 and next-generation interconnect protocols to aid large-model training.

An effective alternative

With the Nvidia H20 now restricted in China, industry analysts believe Huawei’s new chip could bridge the gap.Although real-world benchmarks are not yet available, the Ascend 920’s specifications suggest it could be an effective alternative to Nvidia's H20 and may be welcomed by Chinese companies like Tencent and ByteDance, which will now require substitutes for the restricted chip.While the current Ascend 910C is estimated to deliver about 60% of the Nvidia H100’s inference performance, the Ascend 920 reportedly improves training efficiency by 30% to 40% and is tailored for Transformer and Mixture of Experts models.Nvidia had been making strong sales in China through the H20, with sales reportedly growing 50% quarter over quarter before the ban. The new license requirement from the U.S. Department of Commerce effectively halts those sales, and Nvidia is expected to write off $5.5 billion in lost business as a result.Huawei also announced its AI CloudMatrix 384 Supernode solution at the same event.This rack-scale platform, described as a 'Nuclear-level product', reportedly exceeds the performance of Nvidia’s GB200 but consumes more power, something that is not seen as a major concern in China compared to the West.

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Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders are technically open in North America, but if you haven't managed to grab one already, you may have a tough time doing so before the console's June 5 release date. After what felt like a long delay from Nintendo's original April 9 pre-order date, the company finally opened up pre-orders in the US and Canada on April 24. A couple of (technically messy) hours later, stock at third-party retailers such as Walmart, Target and Best Buy promptly sold out. GameStop opened up its pre-orders later that morning and quickly met the same fate, with the company later confirming its online stock had dried up as well.

Some users were reportedly able to order through Walmart as late as Saturday, April 26, but as of our latest update, the retailer has taken down one of its Switch 2 pre-order pages entirely. Another listing is still live but out of stock. For now, none of the other aforementioned retailers are currently accepting pre-orders either.

We'll update this post if that changes — particularly as Walmart opens up "Walmart+ Week" sales event — but right now the only other retailer confirmed to accept pre-orders is Nintendo itself. That said, the device maker is only offering the Switch 2 through an invite system, for which it began accepting registrations on April 2. The first wave of those invites will go out on May 8, though the company recently updated its pre-order page to say that some may not receive their pre-order email until after the June 5 launch date.

How to pre-order the Nintendo Switch 2

As noted above, third-party retailers like Best Buy, GameStop, Walmart and Target opened their pre-orders on April 24 as scheduled. Best Buy, Walmart and Target pre-orders opened at midnight, while GameStop's in-person and online pre-orders started at 11am. However, all of those retailers have either sold out of their stock or list the console as "coming soon" as of this writing.

We also expect the Switch 2 to be available from Amazon some time in the future, but links are not live on the site yet, and there's been no indication as to when that might change. Other membership-based retailers like Costco and Sam's Club have posted Switch 2 listings as well, though it doesn't appear as if those stores will accept pre-orders. Newegg has also added a Switch 2 page but isn't offering an option to buy just yet.

At this point, we recommend signing up via Nintendo's website if you haven't already. It's free to register and you'll eventually get an email that will allow you to order the console, even if you have to wait until after the June 5 launch day. However, note that Nintendo says it will prioritize invites "on a first-come, first-served basis" to those who've paid for its Switch Online service for at least 12 months and logged at least 50 hours of total Switch gameplay time. (You'll also need to have opted into sharing gameplay data with Nintendo, which you can confirm in your account's privacy settings.) So if you're just registering with Nintendo today, don't be surprised if it takes some time for your invite to arrive.

Either way, if you're desperate to catch a restock, it's a good idea to create accounts with each of the retailers above and ensure all of your shipping and billing info is correct. Downloading each store's mobile app and signing up for notifications may help too, though that could get annoying fairly quickly. We'll continue to update this post as time goes on with the latest Switch 2 pre-order information.

Pre-order Nintendo Switch 2

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Pre-order Nintendo Switch 2 + Mario Kart World bundle

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*As of 1:40pm ET on Monday, April 28, Amazon has not listed either Switch 2 console package for sale. We will update this article with direct links if they arrive; until then, we're linking to the site's Nintendo-focused hub.

How to pre-order Switch 2 accessories

The Switch 2 has a number of accessories that you can buy separately. While the console didn't get a price adjustment when Nintendo announced the new pre-order date, many of these accessories did. The new Switch 2 camera now costs $55 instead of the original $50 price tag; the new Switch 2 Pro controller costs $85 instead of $80; an extra pair of Joy-Con 2 controllers will set you back $95 instead of $90 and a Joy-Con charging grip is going for $40 instead of $35. Check out Nintendo's official statement for all of the accessory price adjustments. You can still pre-order many of these devices now, though stock has become spottier at certain retailers.

Samsung microSD Express Card – 256GB for Nintendo Switch 2 for $60

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Joy-Con 2 bundle for $95

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Switch 2 Pro Controller for $85

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Switch 2 camera for $55

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Hori Nintendo Switch 2 Piranha Plant Camera for $60

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Joy-Con 2 charging grip for $40

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Joy-Con 2 Wheels (set of 2) for $25

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Switch 2 all-in-one carrying case for $85

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*As of 1:40pm ET on Monday, April 28, Amazon has not listed any first-party Switch 2 accessories or games for sale. We will update this article with direct links if they arrive; until then, we're linking to the site's Nintendo-focused hub.

More Switch 2 details

We knew from the teaser trailer for the Switch 2 that Nintendo's new hardware would be bigger and would have a new approach to the detachable Joy-Cons. The new Joy-Con 2 have a new C button, mouse controls and a built in gyroscope for tilt control. The console has a built-in mic to support a new feature called Game Chat that will let you communicate with friends in-game. The device is indeed a bit larger, with a 7.9-inch LCD screen that supports a 120Hz refresh rate, HDR and a 1080p resolution.

When docked, you'll be able to play at up to 4K on your TV, and Nintendo says it improved the consoles internal speakers as well. The new dock also has a built-in fan to keep the console cool and help maintain performance during long play sessions. The Switch 2 has dual USB-C ports for charging, and the base storage amount has increased to 256GB. The Switch 2's storage can be expanded like the previous model, but it will only work with newer microSD Express cards.

Tariffs and the Nintendo Switch 2

During its most recent Direct presentation at the start of April, Nintendo showed off more of the Switch 2 than it ever had before. That included the reveal of the April 9 pre-order opening date, in addition to the original $450 starting price. Shortly after, President Trump announced sweeping tariffs on China and other countries, prompting Nintendo to delay pre-orders in the US and Canada.

In a reversal, President Trump then announced a 90-day pause on steep tariffs affecting 75 countries, but also announced that the tariff imposed on China will go up even further (right now, it sits at 145 percent).

We now know that the original $450 price for the Switch 2 will remain the same in the US and Canada, but based on its official statement, it appears Nintendo is leaving the door open for potential future price increases.

We also know that Nintendo started moving some of its Switch console manufacturing to Vietnam in 2019. The increased tariff for Vietnam was set to be 46 percent, but that appears to be on hold for now in favor of a 10 percent tariff that’s now in effect for the 90-day pause period.

It has been speculated that Nintendo will boost production of Switch 2 consoles in Vietnam so it can stay on schedule, even if it sells the console at a loss in the short term. It appears the company will have to seriously ramp up production to keep up with Switch 2 demand: according to Nintendo, 2.2 million people entered the pre-order lottery in Japan alone, which is far more devices than it is expected to deliver in that region on launch day.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/nintendo-switch-2-pre-orders-latest-updates-as-console-remains-sold-out-at-gamestop-walmart-target-best-buy-and-others-140931015.html?src=rss

Beats is launching its Pill speaker in Blush Pink and Navy BlueIt's also announced that the Pill is Beats best-selling speaker everYou'll still get bold sound and all-day battery life from the Pill

Last summer, Beats brought back its Pill speaker, and after testing it, we found it to be an impressive offering with robust sound and excellent bass. Further, in typical Beats fashion, it launched in a few different shades: Champagne Gold, Matte Black, and Statement Red.Now, ahead of summer travel in 2025, Beats is expanding the selection of colors for the Pill, and both are stunners. Introducing the Beats Pill in ‘Blush Pink’ and ‘Navy Blue.’ Better yet, these don’t come with a price increase either.You will need to track down each shade at a specific retailer, though. In the United States, fans of pink will need to visit Target, while those looking for blue will need to head to Walmart. Easier than heading out the door, though, is locking in an order online – both are priced at $149.95 and are shipping now.

(Image credit: Beats)

If you’re in the United Kingdom, you can get ‘Blush Pink’ from John Lewis for £149.99. Those in Canada can head to Walmart, with pricing to be confirmed at a later date.Now, both of these shades look great, though the Blush Pink is a bit more fun in our opinion, offering a more summer-y shade in a very light shade of the color. Depending on how the light hits it, the speaker might pop even a bit more.It’s also a full-color job on the rear and front, as well as the attached lanyard and buttons. The Navy Blue is a proper representation of the name, offering a deeper shade of the color.Either route, ‘Navy Blue’ and ‘Blush Pink’ expand the color options, offering two fun shades alongside the original trio of Champagne Gold, Matte Black, and Statement Red.Regardless of the color you get the Beats Pill in, you’re scoring what Beats is now confirming is “its bestselling speaker" ever, in that it's sold more of the new Beats Pill in the nine months it’s been out for compared to all past Pill launches.

(Image credit: Beats)

That's quite an accomplishment and speaks to why TechRadar gave it a full four out of five stars.The excellent audio from the Pill is produced by a new racecourse drive that sits front and center, angled upward. You can also pair two of these speakers together for a stereo and more room-filling experience. You’ll also get up to 24 hours of battery life, and the Pill is quite durable, thanks to its IP67 rating.Lastly, while you’ll recharge it using the USB-C port on the back, the Pill supports passthrough, allowing you to recharge another device by simply plugging it in.Now, if you’re sold on Blush Pink or Navy Blue, you can get Pill for $149.99 from Target or Walmart right now. More importantly, though, if you’re okay with black, gold, or red, you can score it for just $129.95 (was $ 149.95) at Walmart right now.

You can get the Beats Pill in black, gold, or red at Walmart for just $129.95.View Deal

If you’re curious as to what else Beats has been up too, check out our first look at Beats Cables – yes USB-C to USB-C cables – here.

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Spain, Portugal and parts of France have experienced a massive power outage. The interruption of service extends to the capital cities Madrid and Lisbon, both of which have been left without electricity and internet. Seville, Barcelona and Valencia have also been impacted.

A grid operator in Portugal has attributed the outage to “extreme temperature variations” in a statement given to the Independent. Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has offered a slightly different take, stating that there is no “conclusive information” regarding the cause of the blackout.

The aforementioned grid operator also warned that it could take up to a full week to restore power, though others have suggested things could be up and running within ten hours. Spanish power company Red Electrica has stated that it has already restored power to some northern parts of the Iberian Peninsula.

Due to the outages, airports have been disabled and events like the Madrid Open have been cancelled. Spain’s major railway operator Renfe has noted that trains are stuck at stations or along their routes due to the lack of electricity.

The exact moment Spain, Portugal and other parts of Europe lost power. pic.twitter.com/B0O4oQDHfh— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) April 28, 2025

How exactly would extreme temperature variations cause such a severe blackout? It has been reported that the grid experienced “anomalous oscillations” that led to fluctuations in the amount of voltage carried to power lines. This could have forced these power lines out of sync with one another, according to a professor who spoke to The Times.

“These oscillations reportedly caused ‘synchronisation failures’ between the electrical systems, leading to successive disturbances across the interconnected European network,” Professor Chenghong Gu said. “This is why we are seeing many customers in different parts of the EU grid being cut off.”This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/theres-a-massive-power-outage-cross-spain-portugal-and-parts-of-france-183025048.html?src=rss

There are plenty of good reasons to delete your X account, whether it's because of a general desire to not do anything to help Elon Musk, a distaste for the curdled culture of the platform or the allure of greener social pastures like Bluesky or Threads. Whatever your reason, the process of deleting your account is simple, and by design, pretty hands-off. In order to get rid of your X account, you'll first have to deactivate it. Once you go 30 days without logging in, it will be permanently deleted.

How to deactivate your X account

Ian Carlos Campbell for Engadget

Deactivating your X account makes your profile page, posts and associated username disappear, though posts you were tagged in before you shutdown in your account will still be viewable. Deactivating also makes it impossible for you to post or view your timeline, unless you reactivate. It's one of the strongest ways to "take a break" from X, but also the only way you can get your account permanently deleted.

If you need any of your data before you deactivate and delete, you'll want to make sure you initiate that process and receive your archive before you deactivate. X says it can't send an archive from an account that's been deactivated.

Open X.

Click on the More section in the sidebar menu.

Click on Settings and Privacy.

In the Your account section of Settings, click on Deactivate your account.

Read through X's warnings and then click on Deactivate.

Enter your account password to confirm you want to deactivate, then click Deactivate.

Now just make sure that you don't log in for 30 days, and your account will be permanently deleted. This won't necessarily delete web search results that mention your X account or your posts, but it will eliminate records of you on X itself.

FAQs

How do you reactivate your account?

If you have a change of heart before your 30 days are up, it is possible to reactivate your account so you can use it again. To reactivate your account, head to X.com or the X app and login with your credentials. You'll be asked if you want to reactive your account. Once you confirm that you do, you'll be logged in and be able to post and view your timeline. X notes that some of your account features like followers and likes may take a while to fully restore.

Is all of your information actually deleted when your X account is deleted?

While deactivating your X account and letting it be deleted does remove all of the public-facing parts of your social media presence, X does keep some of your information to "ensure the safety and security of its platform and people using X." The full list of data X collects and how it uses it is available in X's data processing explainer, as far as you should be concerned, though, a deleted account is gone.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/how-to-delete-your-twitter-or-x-account-185813976.html?src=rss

The extraction-shooter genre is getting a little more crowded and a lot more stylish with the announcement of Mycopunk, a four-player, first-person romp from indie studio Pigeons at Play and publisher Devolver Digital. Mycopunk is coming to Steam in early access this year.

Mycopunk stars four eccentric robots who’ve been hired by an intergalactic megacorporation to exterminate an invasive, violent fungus that’s taken root on a valuable planet. Each robot has a specific class and moveset, but players can use any weapon or loadout with any character — and that’s a huge benefit, because there are a ton of wacky guns, upgrades and ammo options in this game. For example, there are bouncing shotgun pellets, bullets that hover in place and then dive down when you press the trigger again, and a rocket launcher move that also makes you fly. Customization is a big part of the Mycopunk experience, and there are about 40 upgrades for every weapon, plus unique ability trees for each robot. A spatial upgrade system lets you activate abilities by placing their molecular strands on a honeycomb grid, combining effects in powerful and silly ways.

The main loop in Mycopunk involves gathering your team, setting mission modifiers, and then dropping onto a planet to kill hordes of massive, tentacled fungus monsters. With each run, you have to accomplish your corporate-directed goal, collect resources for future upgrades and generally survive the onslaught. Missions are fast-paced and the action shifts throughout, dropping new enemies, minibosses and environmental dangers until your final escape.

The hub world, where you hang out between missions, is surprisingly vast and packed with surreal touches, like a giant TV screen that only shows a sitcom about roaches. All abilities are unlocked in the hub so you can freely test out your character, plus there are vehicles to drive around, a sparring area, a recreation sphere, snack machines, and secret passageways to explore. It also has Roachard, your mission control contact who happens to be a big roach.

Devolver Digital

Visually, Pigeons at Play took inspiration from your coolest friend’s favorite comic book artist, Moebius, which lends the game a gritty, hand-drawn vibe. Mycopunk looks like a living graphic novel, blending retrofuturism with slick mechanics to create a rich, tactile experience. It specifically reminds me of Rollerdrome, a gorgeous game that I will never stop talking about.

Mycopunk started out as a senior thesis project for the Pigeons at Play crew, but it’s transformed into something much larger (kind of like a well-fed fungus). Mycopunk is charming and surprisingly deep, with dozens of cute touches that come straight from the developers’ history of playing co-op shooters together. For instance, to revive a teammate you have to literally find and reconnect two halves of their broken robot body, instead of just pressing X over their corpse in the middle of a hectic battlefield. Each character also has their own dance moves, and one of the available upgrades lets you move a swarm of bullets through the air like a murderous orchestra conductor.

A demo for Mycopunk went live on Steam today and the game is set to enter early access later in 2025.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/mycopunk-is-an-upbeat-love-letter-to-extraction-shooters-192337609.html?src=rss

A group of researchers covertly ran a months-long "unauthorized" experiment in one of Reddit’s most popular communities using AI-generated comments to test the persuasiveness of large language models. The experiment, which was revealed over the weekend by moderators of r/changemyview, is described by Reddit mods as “psychological manipulation” of unsuspecting users.

“The CMV Mod Team needs to inform the CMV community about an unauthorized experiment conducted by researchers from the University of Zurich on CMV users,” the subreddit’s moderators wrote in a lengthy post notifying Redditors about the research. “This experiment deployed AI-generated comments to study how AI could be used to change views.”

The researchers used LLMs to create comments in response to posts on r/changemyview, a subreddit where Reddit users post (often controversial or provocative) opinions and request debate from other users. The community has 3.8 million members and often ends up on the front page of Reddit. According to the subreddit’s moderators, the AI took on numerous different identities in comments during the course of the experiment, including a sexual assault survivor, a trauma counselor “specializing in abuse,” and a “Black man opposed to Black Lives Matter.” Many of the original comments have since been deleted, but some can still be viewed in an archive created by 404 Media.

In a draft of their paper, the unnamed researchers describe how they not only used AI to generate responses, but attempted to personalize its replies based on information gleaned from the original poster’s prior Reddit history. “In addition to the post’s content, LLMs were provided with personal attributes of the OP (gender, age, ethnicity, location, and political orientation), as inferred from their posting history using another LLM,” they write.

The r/chnagemyview moderators note that the researchers’ violated multiple subreddit rules, including a policy requiring the disclosure when AI is used to generate comment and a rule prohibiting bots. They say they filed an official complaint with the University of Zurich and have requested the researchers withhold publication of their paper.

The researchers didn’t respond to an email from Engadget. In posts on Reddit and in a draft of their paper, though, they say their research was approved by a university ethics committee and that their work could help online communities like Reddit protect users from more “malicious” uses of AI.

“We acknowledge the moderators’ position that this study was an unwelcome intrusion in your community, and we understand that some of you may feel uncomfortable that this experiment was conducted without prior consent,” the researchers wrote in a comment responding to the r/changemyview mods. “We believe the potential benefits of this research substantially outweigh its risks. Our controlled, low-risk study provided valuable insight into the real-world persuasive capabilities of LLMs—capabilities that are already easily accessible to anyone and that malicious actors could already exploit at scale for far more dangerous reasons (e.g., manipulating elections or inciting hateful speech).”

The mods for r/changemyview dispute that the research was necessary or novel, noting that OpenAI researchers have conducted experiments using data from r/changemyview “without experimenting on non-consenting human subjects.” Reddit didn’t respond to a request for comment, though the accounts that posted the AI-generated comments have been suspended.

“People do not come here to discuss their views with AI or to be experimented upon,” the moderators wrote. “People who visit our sub deserve a space free from this type of intrusion.”This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/researchers-secretly-experimented-on-reddit-users-with-ai-generated-comments-194328026.html?src=rss

Google DeepMind has enhanced and expanded access to its Music AI SandboxThe Sandbox now includes the Lyria 2 model and RealTime features to generate, extend, and edit musicThe music is watermarked with SynthID

Google DeepMind has brought some new and improved sounds to its Music AI Sandbox, which, despite sand being notoriously bad for musical instruments, is where Google hosts experimental tools for laying down tracks with the aid of AI models. The Sandbox now offers the new Lyria 2 AI model and the Lyria RealTime AI musical production tools.Google has pitched the Music AI Sandbox as a way to spark ideas, generate soundscapes, and maybe help you finally finish that half-written verse you’ve been avoiding looking at all year. The Sandbox is aimed mainly at professional musical artists and producers, and access has been pretty restricted since its 2023 debut. But, Google is now opening up the platform to many more people in music production, including those looking to create soundtracks for films and games.The new Lyria 2 AI music model is the rhythm section underlying the new Sandbox. The model is trained to produce high-fidelity audio outputs, with detailed and intricate compositions across any genre, from shoegaze to synthpop to whatever weird lo-fi banjo-core hybrid you’re cooking up in your bedroom studio.The Lyria RealTime feature puts the AI's creation in a virtual studio that you can jam with. You can sit at your keyboard, and Lyria RealTime will help you mix ambient house beats with classic funk, performing and tweaking its sound on the fly.

Virtual music studio

The Sandbox offers three main tools for producing the tunes. Create, seen above, lets you describe the kind of sound you're aiming for in words. Then the AI whips up music samples you can use as jumping-off points. If you've already got a rough idea down but can’t figure out what happens after the second chorus, you can upload what you have and let the Extend feature come up with ways to continue the piece in the same style.The third feature is called Edit, which, as the name suggests, remakes the music in a new style. You can ask for your tune to be reimagined in a different mood or genre, either by messing with the digital control board or through text prompts. For instance, you could ask for something as basic as "Turn this into a ballad," or something more complex like, "Make this sadder but still danceable," or see how weird you can get by asking the AI to "Score this EDM drop like it's all just an oboe section." You can hear an example below created by Isabella Kensington.

AI singalong

Everything generated by Lyria 2 and RealTime is watermarked using Google's SynthID technology. That means the AI-generated tracks can be identified even if someone tries to pass them off as the next lost Frank Ocean demo. It’s a smart move in an industry that’s already gearing up for heated debates about what counts as "real" music and what doesn’t.These philosophical questions also decide the destination of a lot of money, so it's more than just abstract discussions about how to define creativity at stake. But, as with AI tools for producing text, images, and video, this isn't the death knell of traditional songwriting. Nor is it a magic source of the next chart-topping hit. AI could make a half-baked hum fall flat if poorly used. Happily, plenty of musical talents understand what AI can do, and what it can't, as Sidecar Tommy demonstrates below.

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Top executives from Wargaming and Lesta Games, the joint developers of World of Tanks, could have their stakes in their respective companies seized by the Russian government, according to reports from Russian news organizations RIA and RBC.

Malik Khatazhaev, the head of Lesta Games, and Viktor Kisly, the head of Wargaming, are reportedly being accused of extremist activities by Russia's Prosecutor General (the country's equivalent of the US Attorney General) because of Wargaming's support of Ukraine, RIA reports. The Prosecutor General is looking to seize all of the executives' shares in their respective companies.

Development of World of Tanks was split in 2022 when Wargaming left its offices in Russia and Belarus, and transferred development of the Russian version of the game to Lesta Games. Russia began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine that same year. In response, Wargaming ran a campaign in World of Tanks raising money for medical aid in Ukraine in 2023. The Russian government has decided to interpret that pro-Ukrainian fundraising as anti-Russian extremist activity. Why Lesta Games is being accused of the same thing isn't entirely clear, but it is the company that's technically still under the Prosecutor General's jurisdiction.

Neither Lesta Games nor Wargaming have released an official statement, but Lesta Games did comment in a company Telegram channel, RBC reports. "The company works in full compliance with the legislation of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus, so we have no grounds for any concerns or concealment of information," Lesta Games writes. "We have not violated anything and we have nothing to fear."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/russian-regulators-are-trying-to-seize-assets-from-the-developers-of-world-of-tanks-202157310.html?src=rss

Browsers are the new frontline, but today’s DLP can’t see the real threatsData Splicing Attacks break through enterprise browser securityAngry Magpie reveals how fragile the current DLP architecture is in a browser-first world

A newly uncovered data exfiltration technique known as Data Splicing Attacks could place thousands of businesses worldwide at significant risk, bypassing all leading data loss prevention (DLP) tools.Attackers can split, encrypt, or encode data within the browser, transforming files into fragments that evade the detection logic used by both endpoint protection platforms (EPP) and network-based tools - before these pieces are then reassembled outside the protected environment.By using alternative communication channels such as gRPC and WebRTC, or secure messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram, threat actors can further obscure their tracks and avoid SSL-based inspections.

Threat actors now splice, encrypt, and vanish

The growing reliance on browsers as primary work tools has increased exposure. With more than 60% of enterprise data stored on cloud platforms accessed via browsers, the importance of a secure browser has never been greater.Researchers demonstrated that proxy solutions used in many secure enterprise browsers simply cannot access the necessary context to recognize these attacks because they lack visibility into user interactions, DOM changes, and browser context.Additionally, endpoint DLP systems struggle because they rely on APIs exposed by the browser, which do not offer identity context, extension awareness, or control over encrypted content.These limitations create a blind spot that attackers can exploit without detection, undermining many enterprises’ ability to defend against insider threat scenarios.What makes this discovery even more urgent is the ease with which these techniques can be adapted or modified. With new code, attackers can easily create variants, further widening the gap between evolving threats and outdated protections.In response, the team introduced Angry Magpie, an open source toolkit designed to replicate these attacks. Security teams, red teams, and vendors can use the tool to evaluate their defenses.Angry Magpie allows defenders to assess their systems’ exposure in realistic scenarios, helping identify blind spots in current implementations of even the best DLP solutions.“We hope our research will serve as a call to action to acknowledge the significant risks browsers pose for data loss,” the team said.

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Wholesome Direct, an annual showcase of cute and cozy games, is returning on Saturday, June 7 at 12PM ET / 9AM PT. This year's event will show off "a vibrant lineup of artistic, uplifting, and emotionally resonant games from developers of all sizes from around the world," according to Wholesome Games' announcement post.

Last year's Wholesome Direct covered over 30 games, including updates to already released titles and the reveal of entirely new games. The definition of "wholesome" is generally as broad as event organizer Wholesome Games needs it to be, but Kamaeru: A Frog Refuge from the 2024 Direct is a good example of the kind of game this showcase likes to feature. It's a cute concept (a management game about running a wildlife refuge), has a beautifully illustrated art style and features relaxed, but deep gameplay. Many of the projects that fill out the average Wholesome Direct lineup fit a similar description.

Wholesome Games hasn't yet announced which developers will be featured during the Wholesome Direct, but the odds are good that its own Wholesome Games Present publishing label will have some games in the mix. Is This Seat Taken?, a puzzle game about figuring out seating arrangements, doesn't have a release date yet and would be a natural fit for the show.

Wholesome Direct 2025 will stream on YouTube and Twitch on June 7 at 12PM ET / 9AM PT. The showcase falls right in the middle of Summer Game Fest, a group of loosely-affiliated game showcases that start airing on June 6, 2025.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/wholesome-direct-2025-will-premiere-on-june-7-214501921.html?src=rss