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Amazon Fire TV Omni Series review: An acceptably affordable Alexa TV
This cheap 4K TV offers all of the smart features you'll ever need, especially if you can grab one on sale
The Amazon Fire TV Omni Series sits somewhere at the low end of smart TVs, but this doesn't mean Amazon's Omni TV sets aren't worthwhile. As a matter of fact, what you get for your money is going to be hard to beat, as these smart TVs are running Amazon's Fire OS, which means Alexa is built-in, offering a wide selection of voice commands to keep you hands-free as you watch your favorite shows and movies.
Samsung Gaming Hub launches on 2022 smart TVs with access to Stadia, GeForce Now, and Xbox Cloud Gaming
Luna game streaming access is coming soon
Samsung has been talking about its smart TV Gaming Hub since CES, with things ramping up over the last few months, like Microsoft announcing its TV app for its Xbox Cloud Gaming service. More or less, Samsung has been working behind the scenes to secure cooperation from all of the big game streaming services out there, and it's just about done it. Today marks the official launch of the Samsung Gaming Hub, complete with access to Stadia, GeForce NOW, Xbox Cloud Gaming, and Utomik. The only odd man out is Amazon's Luna, but it is coming soon. There is one caveat. You'll need a 2022 Samsung TV to gain access to the Gaming Hub, such as the Neo QLED 4K.
Pokémon GO developer cancels four projects just two days after announcing a new game
Niantic faces economic turmoil, lays off 8% of its staff
Two days ago, Niantic announced yet another augmented reality game, this time themed around the NBA. But it would seem Niantic has been struggling to reproduce the success of Pokémon GO, despite having slapped all manner of brands on similar games over the last few years, like Harry Potter: Wizards Unite (already shuttered as a failure), Catan: World Explorers (also canceled), and Pikmin Bloom. One-trick-pony just about sums up the company, and even though it's put in a lot of effort to build out its AR tech as a platform (known as Lightship), it would seem the success of Pokémon GO isn't enough to carry the studio forward as its branded clones fail to find similar success. In comes Bloomberg with a recent report that the company is facing a time of economic turmoil, per a leaked internal staff email, and so the studio has canceled four upcoming games while laying off 8% of its staff.
Niantic's next game aims to be a slam dunk, will settle for a free throw
Why play basketball for exercise when you can play a video game instead?
Some may say Niantic is a one-trick pony. They wouldn't be wrong, as the company has been pumping out similar augmented reality games for years. Of course, Pokémon GO is the developer's largest success, though lesser games like Pikmin Bloom and Ingress have their own audiences. Well, there's a new release coming from the studio, officially licensed through the NBA, and it's called NBA All-World. While details are light, we know the game will offer Niantic's familiar real-world mechanics paired with 1-on-1 basketball action, which will offer some form of collecting, along with fashion, because why not. While Niantic has yet to deliver on its two previously announced games (Transformers: Heavy Metal and Peridot), it would appear a third title is in the works, with pre-registration available today on Niantic's website.
Razer Kishi V2 review: Micro switches make all the difference
Razer's managed to improve one of Android's best controllers
Razer hit the ground running back in 2020 with a slick mobile controller designed in partnership with Gamevice, known as the Razer Kishi. It's been two years since its release, and it was growing a little long in the tooth thanks to a size limitation inherent to the design where large phones and large camera bumps didn't fit.
Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent is coming to Android next month
A recent Twitch stream finally revealed the release date for the West
Since February, we've known that Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent would be coming to Android in the West sometime this summer. We've already gone hands-on with the beta if you're curious to see how the game plays. Beyond the Western beta, the gacha game has been available in Japan since 2020, but it's finally making its way to the US and Europe next month. As a matter of fact, Square Enix has revealed in a recent Twitch stream that the game is set to arrive on July 27th, which is a little over a month away.
Android's best platforming series expands today with a brand new release
Dadish 3 brings tons of infectious pixel art to Android with 50 new levels
Thomas K. Young has been busy creating some of the best Android games out there since he released Super Fowlst in 2018. In 2020, Dadish launched on mobile, an incredibly adorable pixel-art platformer about a father radish embarking on an adventure to save his vegetable children. The game proved to be pretty popular on mobile, and so we received a sequel in 2021 appropriately named Dadish 2. Seeing that both games have racked up over 1.5 million installations on Android, it's no surprise to see that Dadish 3 has launched today, bringing 50 new levels to explore and a slew of collectibles/secrets to discover.
Apex Legends Mobile Season 1 Cold Snap update brings the battle royale a new but familiar hero
The game's first mid-season update is here, with improvements to matchmaking
Apex Legends Mobile launched on Android this past May, and it's still on its first season (as this is a live service battle royale, after all), but today marks the announcement of a new legend, though they won't be officially available until Thursday, June 16th. Today's mid-season update also signals the arrival of a new battle pass with new rewards, along with a unique game feature that freezes its surrounding area, offering frozen loot boxes with a special currency that can be spent on loot in the Seasonal Shop. Plus, there are some bug fixes to go around, addressing player frustrations with the game's matchmaking.
Capcom's Ace Attorney Trilogy is finally available on Android in English, and it's on sale until June 15th
Nine years after the iOS release, the courtroom adventure trilogy finds its way to Android
Capcom's Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy never made its way West with an English translation as it did on iOS in 2013. Sure, Capcom went on a spree bringing plenty of other titles in the series to mobile in 2017, but the original trilogy never saw a release outside of Japan on Android. This all changes today as Capcom has finally launched the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy on Android in English, and you can currently pick up a copy on sale for $18.99 in celebration of its release.
Samsung TV owners won't need an Xbox to play games like Starfield
Microsoft will soon take its next step with Xbox Cloud Gaming by introducing a TV app
Xbox Cloud Gaming may still be in beta and only available to those who subscribe to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate (the most expensive version of the three tiers of Xbox Game Pass that are available), but Microsoft has big plans for the service. The company is primed to launch a game streaming app for Samsung smart TVs (exclusive to models produced in 2022) on June 30th across 27 different countries, which means the entirety of Xbox Cloud Gaming's library will be playable on these TVs, along with a free version of Fortnite that doesn't require a subscription to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.
Marvel Snap officially launches in its first region, bringing a new season to the collectible card game
If you were in the closed beta, your progress will carry over
Marvel Snap was revealed in May, a collectible card game from Hearthstone's former director Ben Brode. The game entered into closed beta testing at the time of its announcement across a handful of regions, and it would appear that the Philippines is the first region to see an official launch, rolling out today to everyone in the country on both Android and iOS (the game is even coming to PC, but at a later date). Today's launch also ushers in a new season, Atlantis Beach Club, offering an appropriate summer theme where you'll explore Atlantis with heroes like Wave, Cosmo, and of course, Sub-Mariner. There's even a new video to accompany the launch and new season, which you can watch below.
Razer's second-gen Kishi controller gets some big upgrades and a price to match
The Razer Kishi v2 is finally here, with microswitches and an all-new design
The original Razer Kishi controller for Android came to life with the help of Gamevice, a controller manufacturer that nailed the familiar landscape side-by-side orientation necessary for comfortable gameplay. Plenty of companies have followed Gamevice's and Razer's lead with similar controllers since the Kishi's launch in 2020, like the GameSir X2 or the Backbone One, but Razer's Kishi is still the most recognizable of the bunch, and today Razer has announced the sequel, the Razer Kishi v2, and it goes on sale today for $100.
Minecraft's The Wild Update brings new biomes, mobs, and blocks to your favorite sandbox survival game
Explore the deep dark and the mangrove swamp in today's Minecraft update
It's been seven months since the second part of Minecraft's Caves & Cliffs update dropped, and today marks the release of the next big update, with a focus on the great outdoors (how appropriate for summer). The latest patch is known as The Wild Update, and just like previous updates, players can expect new content, like two new biomes (the deep dark and the mangrove swamp), new blocks (sculk blocks and mud blocks), and new mobs (warden, allay, and frog). Microsoft has even released two trailers that detail the two new biomes, which you can watch below.
Diablo Immortal wants $110,000 to fully gear up a single character
As you can imagine, the internet is outraged
Diablo Immortal started rolling out to the masses on June 1st, with the official release date of June 2nd. This left little time for everyone to test the stable version of the game outside of beta, but over the weekend, many gamers and streamers have been digging into the free-to-play MMORPG, and what everyone has discovered is that it will take an incredible sum of money to fully max-out a character, over $100K. While Blizzard hasn't been shy about the fact Diablo Immortal would be pay-to-win through its Crests system that rewards the Gems necessary for improving gear, having revealed this predatory mechanic after the first alpha, this is at odds with the lead game designer Wyatt Cheng claiming that there is "no way to acquire or rank up gear using money" which has clearly turned out to be untrue, angering the internet just as much as the failed announcement for the game in 2018.
Diablo Immortal hands-on: Between the Devil and the deep blue sea
Blizzard's greed apparently knows no bounds
Yesterday Diablo Immortal started rolling out to the masses even though today is the game's official release date on mobile (with the PC beta going live today too). Since the stable version has been available for over 24 hours now, and since today is release day, I've taken the opportunity to dive deep for a hands-on, to offer my early impression of the stable release, with a lengthy gameplay video included that showcases precisely how Diablo Immortal plays (this includes the in-game shop and all settings). So if you've been eager to see what the stable release of Diablo Immortal has to offer, today's hands-on is for you.
Diablo Immortal is out on Android, just ahead of PC beta release
The game is incredibly polished, but it's also pay-to-win
It's no secret that Blizzard has taken its time developing Diablo Immortal over the last four years. The 2018 announcement didn't go over very well, leaving a dark shadow over the game for some time. Still, in recent years Blizzard has been very upfront about the game's development, almost to a fault, as it was apparent the ARPG would be pay-to-win since the alpha, and the recent news the game is blocked in a few countries over its excessive monetization isn't a good sign either. Still, there's an entirely new world of PvE to explore that isn't held back by the game's many ways to pay, which means the story content is viable for all free players.
Android Police's weekly app roundup has moved to a monthly cadence, covering the best Android apps to land on Android in the past month. With this move, we are now offering several months' worth of roundups in collapsible lists; this way, you have a singular place to go when looking for worthwhile Android app releases. Whether you require a new way to receive calendar notifications or are simply looking for a tie-in app for your new audio buds, you've come to the right place.
Ghost Recon Breakpoint saves are working again on Stadia, and Ubisoft is very, very sorry
A six-day turnaround time over a holiday weekend
This past Friday, we reported on an issue with Ghost Recon Breakpoint on Stadia, where many players lost their saves. Gone, into the aether. At the time, Google was aware of the bug and working on the problem, though Ubisoft was silent. Well, it would appear that after six days of lost saves on Stadia, not only has Ubisoft fixed the issue, it has apologized for the downtime of those affected, so it's looking like Stadia has clean hands.
Square Enix is bringing a classic PS2-era JRPG to Android with a slick-looking refresh
Romancing SaGa: Minstrel Song is arriving this winter
Square Enix has been on a tear lately, releasing new premium games on mobile at a breakneck pace, and next up is another Romancing SaGa title, and this time it's Minstrel Song, a PS2 remake of the original Romancing SaGa game released in 1992. Well, Square Enix has seen fit to remaster the PS2 game, revealed during a SaGa livestream in Japan. Thankfully the developer has released an English trailer, so it would appear that a global release is planned across Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Steam, with an expected release sometime this winter.
Delete After Reading is a new text adventure from Unmemory's developer, and it's coming to mobile
Shape your destiny by stealing a highly-coveted video game
Unmemory is a delightful text-based adventure game from Patrones & Escondites that landed on Android in 2020, and the developer has a new title in the works called Delete After Reading. Much like Unmemory, Delete After Reading is an indie text adventure, and this time around, you'll solve puzzles while escaping rooms, all in an effort to steal a coveted video game, though unintended consequences may unfold. Basically, Patrones & Escondites has a fresh adventure game in the works, and there's a trailer available if you'd like to take your first look.