Tag: sony

PS5 Slimmer Variant Will Reportedly Launch November 10 in the US, Spider-Man 2 Bundle Leaked

The release date for the slimmer and lighter mid-gen refresh of the PS5 has seemingly leaked online, alongside details about its first bundle. As per reliable tipster Billbil-kun — notorious for accurately leaking monthly PS Plus games ahead of time — the new PlayStation consoles with smaller form factor will go on sale November 10 in the US before spreading out to other regions; both disc and digital versions. A bit before that, on November 8, Sony would be bundling it with the newly launched Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 at $559.99, which is the same amount as the existing standard edition bundle. While not explicitly mentioned, the content should be the same, with a digital voucher for the game, alongside a themed controller.

Billbil-kun’s report — machine translated from French — claims that the Spider-Man 2 bundle will only include the disc version of the PS5 slim ‘without dedicated design,’ which is probably in reference to the special edition red-and-black PS5 where it appears as if the console is being consumed by Venom’s black symbiote. That said, it’s unclear whether he is simply referring to the detachable disc drive or the entire console side plate. Sony unveiled the new PS5 Slim, last week, billed as being 30 percent smaller than the base PlayStation 5, in addition to shedding 18 and 24 percent weight depending on the versions. It will be available next month and features a glossy top half and a matte bottom, separated by a streak of black. Just like the original launch, it will be available in two versions: Digital Edition and one equipped with a detachable Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive.

The drive also comes with a white plastic shroud that keeps it safe from dust and debris, and can simply be slotted on. The PS5 slim disc edition is priced at $499.99 (about Rs. 41,555), just like the original. The PS5 slim Digital Edition costs $449.99 (about Rs. 37,400) — up from $399 — albeit one could always buy the Blu-ray drive separately and just slot it in. The drive is sold seprately for $79.99 (about Rs. 6,650). On the hardware front, both consoles stay the same in terms of processing power and graphics, but there’s a minor upgrade to the internal storage, jumping from an 825GB SSD to a 1TB SSD. It’s worth mentioning that once Sony manages to sell its whole inventory of launch edition PS5s, this new slimmer variant will be the only one available to buy.

The report further notes that several Japanese sellers, including the regional Amazon site, have opened pre-orders/ bookings for the PS5 slim, with the aforementioned November 10 date. As of July, the Sony has sold 40 million PS5 units worldwide, with the company allegedly expecting to surpass that with refreshed console sales. In India, the current-gen standard PS5 disc edition is listed at Rs. 54,990, while the Digital Edition comes in at Rs. 44,990. Both editions are now readily available across both online and brick-and-mortar stores. In fact, it appears that its sales are lagging in the country, which would explain the frequent discounts we’ve been seeing recently. Sony also plans to launch the PlayStation Portal handheld gaming device, later this year, which lets players seamlessly stream their games from their console onto the smaller screen via Wi-Fi.

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Xbox Game Pass Will Not Include Activision Games Like Call of Duty Until 2024, Phil Spencer Explains Why

Call of Duty and other Activision Blizzard games won’t appear on Xbox Game Pass until next year. On the Official Xbox Podcast, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer claimed that players wouldn’t be seeing a big drop of those titles immediately, due to the lengthy regulatory challenges the company faced in its buyout attempt. Since it was uncertain whether the acquisition would be approved by Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) until recently, Xbox wasn’t able to do the groundwork for adding the catalogue to their gaming subscription service. Ahead of the deal’s closure, Activision Blizzard confirmed on Twitter that the upcoming Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III and newly-launched Diablo IV won’t be coming to Game Pass soon, but Spencer’s statement covers older titles as well.

This is in stark contrast from Microsoft’s acquisition of ZeniMax Media, where just two days after the buyout, 20 Bethesda back catalogue games, including franchises like Fallout, DOOM, Dishonored, and more were flooded onto Game Pass — free to play for members. “So now that the deal is closed, we’re starting that work. But there is work,” Spencer said on the podcast, attesting that Activision Blizzard’s tweet is ‘accurate’ in terms of the 2024 timeline. He further assured that there’s no ‘secret celebration drop’ coming in the next few weeks, while acknowledging that fans have the right to be disappointed about it. It’s a long-term acquisition though, granting Xbox a lot of time to experiment with the average gamer’s ever-growing needs, and to that effect, Phil states that he’s excited about the future.

The elephant in the room, of course, is Call of Duty. Spencer reiterated on the same podcast that the franchise will maintain ‘100 percent parity’ across all platforms, including PlayStation for a 10-year duration. The acquisition shouldn’t cause other players to miss out on exclusive content or timing, which is something the Blue team took advantage of by granting early access to multiplayer beta and an exclusive operator called Lockpick this time. The bundle will be available only to those who pre-order Modern Warfare 3 on PS4 and PS5 for a year, until November 9, 2024. That said, Spencer said that there could be some performance and resolution changes depending on the platform. Baldur’s Gate 3’s Xbox port is an example, where the developers are unable to include split-screen coop on the lower-end Xbox Series S due to technical limitations. However, the in-game content is expected to remain the same (at the time of writing).

“We have no goal of somehow trying to use Call of Duty to get you to buy an Xbox console,” he said, adding that he doesn’t think making platform exclusive beta weekends helps players. The regulatory process for Activision Blizzard acquisition took more than a year, thanks to the US FTC stepping in to express concerns that Microsoft’s $69 billion (about Rs. 5,74,528 crore) deal was anti-competitive and that it had plans to make Call of Duty exclusive to Xbox. During those court proceedings, PlayStation boss Jim Ryan also claimed that a bunch of video game publishers he’d been speaking to unanimously agreed that Xbox Game Pass was ‘value destructive.’

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Microsoft-Activision Blizzard $69 Billion Deal Closes as UK CMA Gives Approval

Xbox maker Microsoft closed its $69 billion (nearly Rs. 5,75,620 crore) deal for Activision Blizzard on Friday, swelling its heft in the video-gaming market with best-selling titles including Call of Duty to better compete with industry leader Sony.

Originally unveiled in January 2022, the biggest deal in the gaming industry cleared its final big hurdle — an approval from Britain — earlier in the day after Microsoft agreed to sell streaming rights for Activision’s games to allay competition concerns.

The completion is a major win for the US tech firm in its push to attract more people to its Xbox consoles and Game Pass subscription service. Microsoft’s gaming revenue trails that of Sony, whose PlayStation consoles outsell the Xbox.

“Today is a good day to play,” Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer said in a post on the X social media platform, formerly known as Twitter. He will oversee the Activision business, with the video-game publisher’s CEO Bobby Kotick staying on until end-2023.

Spencer has touted the purchase as a way for Microsoft to break into the more than $90-billion (nearly Rs. 7,50,800 crore) market for mobile games.

Activision makes popular mobile titles including Candy Crush Saga and Call of Duty Mobile — games that were excluded from the cloud streaming deal Microsoft signed with France’s Ubisoft Entertainment to secure approval from Britain.

“Microsoft instantly has more than $3 billion (nearly Rs. 25,000 crore) of mobile revenues,” said Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter.

“The big benefit is that Microsoft has a vision that they are going to deliver games through a subscription, and they need more content to give subscribers. So, this is a big step toward having sufficient content,” he said. 

Regulatory hurdles

The deal still faces opposition from the US Federal Trade Commission, which failed in its previous attempt to block the purchase. The FTC said on Friday it was focused on its appeal, but would “assess” Microsoft’s agreement with Ubisoft.

But analysts believe that will change little. “The impact of an FTC challenge will be limited to incremental concessions in the future,” DA Davidson analyst Gil Luria said.

The main hurdle came from Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority, which had originally blocked the deal in April over concerns it could give the US tech giant a stranglehold on the nascent cloud gaming market.

The deal was the biggest test of the CMA’s global power to take on the tech giants since Britain left the European Union.

The regulator said on Friday “sticking to its guns” in the face of criticism from the merging companies had delivered an outcome that was better for competition, consumers and economic growth. 

Microsoft’s concession on streaming was a “game changer”, the CMA said, adding that it was the only competition agency globally to have delivered this outcome.  

“The new deal will stop Microsoft from locking up competition in cloud gaming as this market takes off, preserving competitive prices and services for UK cloud gaming customers,” it said in a statement. 

The CMA’s block had drawn fury from the merging parties, with Microsoft saying that Britain was closed for business. 

The British government only offered limited support to the CMA, with Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt saying that while he did not want to undermine its independence, regulators also needed to focus on encouraging investment.

CMA Chief Executive Sarah Cardell said the regulator had “delivered a clear message to Microsoft that thedeal would be blocked unless they comprehensively addressed our concerns and we stuck to our guns on that.”

She said the CMA took its decisions “free from political influence” and it would not be “swayed by corporate lobbying”.

The CMA would see it as a victory, but would need to be careful not to over-regulate the tech sector, Quilter Cheviot equity analyst Ben Barringer said. 

“There are fears the UK is a bad place to do business and the tech industry in particular will be watching its moves closely,” he said.

The European Commision gave the green light in May when it accepted Microsoft’s commitments to license Activision’s games such as Overwatch and World of Warcraft to other platforms.

© Thomson Reuters 2023

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PS5 Cloud Streaming Arrives This Month for PS Plus Premium Members: 4K Streaming, Save Syncing, More

Sony is launching cloud streaming for the PS5 console, later this month. The feature will be available to PS Plus Premium — highest-tier — members only, letting them stream select Game Catalog titles like Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Horizon Forbidden West, Ghost of Tsushima, and more, without having to download or actually own them. Unfortunately, it’s getting a staggered rollout, first launching in Japan, Europe, and North American regions, promising ‘hundreds’ of PS5 games in the future. The company confirmed the addition and testing of cloud streaming in June, as part of its pivot towards the technology, further solidified by its PlayStation Portal handheld device.

PS5 cloud streaming is slated to launch October 17 in Japan, followed by Europe on October 23 and North America on October 30. Furthermore, players can stream any titles they own digitally — no download needed — such as the new God of War Ragnarök, Resident Evil 4, and Dead Island 2, to name just a few, including any additional DLCs. As for quality, it appears the report from August was right, with Playstation offering four high-quality resolutions to choose from — 720p, 1080p, 1440p, and 4K, all with 60fps and SDR or HDR output. While players can certainly choose their preferred resolution, the results will ultimately depend on the type of internet connection they have. Sony recommends at least 15mbps for 1080p streaming and above 38mbps for 4K.

Technically, cloud streaming was made available when the refreshed PS Plus was launched last year, though it was limited to PS4, and the Classics Catalog containing PS2 and PS3 games. In addition to capturing screenshots, one can record up to three-minute-long clips of their gameplay, which will be downloaded locally onto PS5’s Media Gallery — also accessible via the PlayStation phone app. It’s also worth noting Sony’s choice of words, which states that the features from above will be available ‘exclusively’ on the PS5, ‘at launch’ — suggesting we might be able to stream games to other devices in the future. All of this will be packaged with the existing benefits of a PS Plus Premium subscription, which includes Game Trials (timed demos) for new titles, an assortment of free games every month, exclusive discounts, and access to online multiplayer and cloud storage.

In August, Sony raised the prices for its 12-month-long PS Plus plans, despite not providing a good enough justification for the membership, thanks to a lacklustre set of free games recently. The hike caused a bunch of fans to express their dismay by cancelling their subscriptions, so hopefully, the addition of PS5 cloud streaming works well in PlayStation’s favour. In fact, Sony claims the feature is already out in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Cyprus, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK, and the US. As stated before, India is nowhere on that list and in Sony’s upcoming staggered rollout plan.

PlayStation Plus Deluxe subscription starts in India from Rs. 849 per month.

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Gotham Knights, Disco Elysium, and Alien Isolation lead PlayStation Plus Extra, Deluxe Games for October 2023

Gotham Knights leads the pack of new titles coming to the PlayStation Plus Extra and Deluxe/ Premium game catalog, this month. Starting October 17, all higher-tier PS Plus members can hop onto their Batcycles and ride around the streets of Gotham City, beating up all kinds of volatile criminals in the hopes of unmasking the enigmatic Court of Owls. Players can switch between Batgirl, Robin, Nightwing, and the Red Hood throughout the story to investigate Batman/ Bruce Wayne’s death, and build out their character via a gear system. Gotham Knights wasn’t nicely received at launch due to a myriad of performance issues across console and PC, in addition to having a repetitive gameplay loop. It will be available on the PS5 only.

The award-winning literary RPG Disco Elysium is another big entry this month, throwing you into the shoes of an alcoholic amnesiac detective going through an existential crisis, while navigating madness, politics, and the horrors of addiction. Serving as a love letter to tabletop games, its rich narrative leaves several loose-hanging threads to explore, through interrogating characters, solving cases, accepting bribes, and consuming drugs to temporarily boost your stats. Disco Elysium arrives on the PS4 and PS5, and being The Final Cut version, the entire game is voice acted. Follow it up with Eldest Souls, a pixelated top-down souls-like set in a desolate wasteland created by the Old Gods. Armed with a greatsword forged using the purest obsidian, a lone warrior is tasked with defeating them in punishingly difficult boss battles and restore the world back to the way it was. Eldest Souls will be out on PS4 and PS5.

Halloween month calls for horror games, and the October PS Plus catalog brings some pure classics, starting with Alien Isolation where the aspect of fear is intensified by the idea that you’re stranded on a spaceship, lightyears away from Earth. It’s set 15 years after the events of the Alien (1979) film, and follows Ellen Ripley’s daughter Amanda, as she embarks on a trip into the stars to uncover the truth behind her mother’s disappearance, only to be hunted by a deadly Xenomorph on the prowl. Alien Isolation will be free-to-play for PS Plus Extra and Premium members on October 17. Then there’s Dead Island Definitive Edition, where an eclectic group of four are caught amidst a zombie outbreak on the tropical island of Banoi; forced to crack open infected skulls, smash heads, and slice down appendages to survive.

In Outlast II, two investigative journalists, tracking clues on the seemingly impossible murder of a pregnant Jane Doe, are pulled into a dark and corrupt Arizonian town, where a plump cultist Sullivan Knoth carries out ruthless murders under the Lord’s name. Those looking for a more plot-heavy affair can check out The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes, in which a group of Special Forces excavating for weapons of mass destruction end up uncovering a long-buried Sumerian temple — a nest for some deadly creatures. It can be played in co-op mode, as well.

All these and more were unveiled on the PlayStation Blog and will be available exclusively to PS Plus Extra and Deluxe members in October (PS Plus Deluxe is called PS Plus Premium in select markets). Last month’s catalogue included NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139…, Sed Meier’s Civilization VI, and This War of Mine to name just a few.

Here’s the complete list of free games available to PlayStation Plus Extra and Deluxe/ Premium subscribers, starting October 17.

The blog post also lists the PS Plus Classics catalogue for October, available exclusively to PS Plus Deluxe/ Premium members. This month brings Tekken 6, Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny, Ape Escape Academy, and IQ Final.

PlayStation Plus Deluxe subscription starts in India from Rs. 849 per month, whereas the Extra subscription begins at Rs. 749 per month.

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PS5 Updated With Smaller Form Factor, 1TB Storage; Will Go on Sale Next Month

Sony is all set to refresh its PlayStation 5 lineup for the holiday season, with the long-rumoured slimmer redesign of the PS5 confirmed to release next month. Sony unveiled the new PS5 models late Tuesday, showcasing design changes that have helped the console become smaller and lighter. While the PS5 slim’s processing power and graphical capabilities remain the same as the original PS5, the mid-gen console refresh, which has a slightly smaller form factor than its infamously bulky predecessor, does get slightly bigger internal storage, up from an 825GB custom SSD to 1TB. The PS5 slim also brings the option to add an external UHD Blu-ray disc drive to its digital edition console. Notably, the disc edition of the redesigned PS5 slim maintains its pricing at $499.99 (roughly Rs. 41,615), but the digital edition gets a $50 price bump and will cost $449.99 (roughly Rs. 37,452), up from $399.

“To address the evolving needs of players, our engineering and design teams collaborated on a new form factor that provides greater choice and flexibility,” Sid Shuman, senior director of SIE Content Communications, said on the PlayStation blog. He added that the new PS5 had seen a reduction in volume by more than 30 percent, and weight by 18 percent and 24 percent compared to the original PS5s. The side panels on the console have also been redesigned, with the two covers split into four separate removable entities. These allow you to add the Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive, which will be sold separately for $79.99 (roughly Rs. 6,657), on the PS5 digital editions later.

An attachable Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive can be purchased separately
Photo Credit: Sony

There’s another bit of additional and optional cost involved with owning the new PS5 models, too. The original PS5 allows you to set it up either horizontally or vertically with the help of the included stand that clamps on and screws into the console, keeping it in place. Now, the new PS5 Slim models will ship with a horizontal stand, but to set it up vertically — which is perhaps the PS5’s default orientation and appears on all marketing material for the console — you’ll need to buy a redesigned ring-style vertical stand, which will put you back $29.99 (roughly Rs. 2,495).

Sony will also release new PS5 console covers for the new slim variant in different colours in early 2024. These would include a matte Black colourway and the Deep Earth Collection colours in Volcanic Red, Cobalt Blue, and Sterling Silver, with more colours planned for future, according to the PS blog. The PS5 slim covers will start at $54.99 (roughly Rs. 4,576).

The redesigned PS5 slim will go on sale next month in the US at select local retailers and direct.playstation.com where available, with a global rollout planned for the following months. There are no official dates available for the launch in Indian markets, but one can expect the refreshed models to hit the shelves in the coming months. The original PS5 remains popular in the country, with stocks of the console easily available on e-commerce websites and retail stores. According to Sony, however, the new slimmer PS5 will be the only model available once the original PS inventory is sold out.

The PS5 physical edition costs Rs. 54,990 in India, while the digital edition comes in at Rs. 44,990. Sony is also planning to launch the PlayStation Portal, a handheld game streaming device to serve as a companion to the PS5, later this year. While a concrete release date has not been announced, the handheld will be sold at $199.99, or about Rs. 16,500.

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Naughty Dog Has Reportedly Laid Off 25 Employees, The Last of Us Multiplayer Game Is ‘On Ice’

The Last of Us maker Naughty Dog is reportedly among the latest game studios to be hit with layoffs. As per Kotaku, the first-party PlayStation studio is cutting off at least 25 developers, with the most affected members being quality assurance (QA) testers, whose contracts have been shortened. Affected workers are expected to continue working until the end of October, and they allegedly won’t be receiving any severance payments. Turns out, the full-time staff — last recorded headcount being 400+ in July — are not being laid off, with employees in general being ‘pressured’ to keep the news internal.

While 2023 has been an incredible year for games, the people making them have been suffering for some time now. Massive layoffs, high-ranking executives leaving, and studio shutdowns like we saw with Volition, thanks to the poorly received Saints Row reboot It seems like all it takes for investors to pull the plug now is one bad-selling game, though it’s bizarre to see uber-successful studios like Naughty Dog suffering the same fate. The team kicked off the year on a great note with HBO’s live-action adaptation of The Last of Us, which has now earned 24 nominations at the upcomingEmmy Awards. It’s also weird when you think about Naughty Dog’s prestigious position in Sony’s eyes, with co-President Neil Druckmann claiming that the team has the luxury of creating what it’s passionate about, rather than chasing trends.

Kotaku also touched upon the long-gestating The Last of Us multiplayer spin-off title, noting that the game is ‘ basically on ice’ at the moment. A report from May revealed that development on the game had been scaled back and required more time to cook, as a means to ‘reassess its quality and long-term viability.’ As part of the process, several developers were reallocated to other projects and Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) invited Halo and Destiny creator Bungie to evaluate the zombie-killing multiplayer experience. At the end of the testing, Bungie was unimpressed, raising concerns about the project’s ability to maintain an online player base for long periods, thereby leading to the internal shake-up. For now, though, the San Francisco-set spin-off isn’t cancelled.

It is worth mentioning that the TLOU multiplayer experience would also be the first to not include Druckmann as a lead writer or director. By the end of 2023, he might also be the only one left to lead Naughty Dog, given co-President Evan Wells has chosen to retire after a 25-year stint at the company. Its latest release was in March — the PC port of The Last of Us Part I, which was received poorly due to performance issues. Then there’s also an untitled ‘brand-new single-player’ game that the studio has got cooking, which many are hoping is The Last of Us Part III. An Uncharted sequel is unlikely since Druckmann already confirmed that the team is moving on from that franchise.

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PlayStation Boss Jim Ryan Is Retiring After Almost 30 Years at Sony

Jim Ryan, PlayStation head and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, is leaving the company after an almost 30-year stint. In a press release, Sony confirmed that he will be retiring in March 2024, with COO Hiroki Totoki being appointed as the interim CEO of the company from April 1, 2024. Ryan merely served four years as CEO, having replaced John Kodera in 2019, and most notably oversaw the launch of the PS5, which has sold over 40 million units worldwide, as of July. It’s unclear who will eventually be taking over as the new CEO, but for the time being, Totoki will assume the role of SIE chairman in October.

“As you will have seen today in the news, I have announced my retirement after nearly 30 years at Sony Interactive Entertainment,” Ryan said in a prepared statement. “I did not take this decision lightly and I absolutely love SIE and our community, but of late I’ve been finding it increasingly difficult to strike the right balance between having my home in the UK and my job in the United States.” Prior to Sony’s press release, Bloomberg games reporter Jason Schreier broke the news about the exit, causing some to wonder if it had something to do with Ryan not being able to block the Microsoft x Activision Blizzard deal. As it turns out, he’s simply retiring and is thankful for what the company has achieved across generations.

Meanwhile, Totoki will ‘work closely’ with Sony Group Corporation Chairman and CEO Kenichiro Yoshida to navigate the future of PlayStation and even decide who will take over the CEO role. Personally, I think it’d be interesting to see if Herman Hulst, Head of PlayStation Studios and co-founder of Guerilla Games (Horizon Zero Dawn), takes on the position, considering he has hands-on experience with games and their development. Meanwhile, Ryan’s approach was more business-oriented, as depicted by his push for live-service games, restructuring seminal developers like Japan Studio, introducing a cloud-based handheld game streaming device, and raising base prices of the PS5 console and more recently, the 12-month plans of PS Plus service.

That said, some important acquisitions were made under his leadership as well, ranging from Returnal maker Housemarque, Destiny creator Bungie, Bluepoint Games, and porting veterans Nixxes Software amongst others. The last of them was crucial in bringing PlayStation exclusives like Spider-Man Remastered over to PC, allowing more gamers to experience quality AAA titles from some of the best narrative game developers in the world. He also oversaw the launches of blockbuster first-party titles like God of War Ragnarök and Horizon Forbidden West, in addition to launching the PS VR2. On the side, Ryan has been in the headlines for trying to prevent Microsoft’s $69 billion (about Rs. 5,74,142 crore) buyout of Activision Blizzard.

There seems to have been no bad blood between the two companies, however, as Xbox chief Phil Spencer conveyed his best wishes to Ryan on Thursday in a post on X. “Jim Ryan has been a great contributor to our industry and a fierce leader for PlayStation. I wish him the best in what he does next. Thank you for all you’ve done for the community over the last 30 years, Jim,” Spencer said.

Soon-to-be interim CEO Totoki also lauded Ryan’s career at Sony, praising the PS5 launch in particular. “I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Jim Ryan for his outstanding achievements and contributions over his 30-year career at Sony, including the great success of launching the PlayStation 5,” Totoki said in a statement. “I will work with Jim and the senior management team closely to ensure our continued success and further growth.”

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PlayStation Plus October 2023 Free Games: The Callisto Protocol, Farming Simulator 22, and Weird West

PlayStation Plus’ monthly free games for October 2023 have been announced. The three titles will be available to members of PS Plus Essential, Extra, and Deluxe/ Premium plans, starting October 3. PS Plus members can sneak their way through the horrifying confines of a gory space prison in The Callisto Protocol, build out large-scale prosperous lands in Farming Simulator 22, and dive into the world of Weird West, which throws gunslingers on an unforgiving land teeming with dark fantastical creatures. These games can be added to your PS4 and PS5 games library until November 6, after which you’ll need to hold on to your PS Plus subscription for continued access.

Alternatively, if you enjoy any of the said titles, you can buy them for permanent access — all progression will carry over, of course. Sony confirmed the additions on the PlayStation Blog late Wednesday, reminding that PS Plus members have until October 2 to add September’s free games to their library, which include the poorly-received Saints Row reboot, the sandbox MMO Black Desert, and the machine-battler Generation Zero.

PS Plus October 2023: The Callisto Protocol

Serving as a spiritual successor to Dead Space, The Callisto Protocol pits you in the futuristic maximum security Black Iron Prison, which has been overtaken by bloodthirsty parasitic aliens. Assuming the role of an inmate Jacob Lee, players must fight their way through endless hordes by navigating through blood-soaked claustrophobic passageways, and in the process, uncover a larger conspiracy. Hack off limbs, blast them into fleshy bits, or use your telekinetic powers to grab foes from a distance and chuck them into razors. The game launched to mixed reception for not being inventive and sticking way too close to Dead Space’s roots.

Game director Glen Schofield recently left Striking Distance Studios to ‘pursue new opportunities,’ which could partly be attributed to The Callisto Protocol’s poor sales. It will be available to play on both PS4 and PS5.

PS Plus October 2023: Farming Simulator 22

Push through the challenging conditions of the four seasons to grow a prosperous farm and in time, an agricultural empire in Farming Simulator 22. You can choose to create a lush vineyard, breed cattle on hillside landscapes, or cultivate produce ranging from wheat, potatoes, and more. Experiment with over 400 tools and machinery — named after real-life brands — to gain the best results and enhance the farming experience by checking out free community-created equipment. The game also has a massive expansion planned for November, which adds an entirely new Central European map for your growing needs.

Farming Simulator 22 will be available to play on both PS4 and PS5, with support for cross-platform multiplayer.

PS Plus October 2023: Weird West

In a dark fantastical reimagining of the Wild West, this isometric RPG has you switch between the roles of five unique characters, ranging from a bounty hunter, a pigman, a shapeshifting entity, and more to uncover the supernatural secrets that reside in its sandbox universe. Locations and the acts you perform for a faction are totally reactive to player choices, with permadeath being one of them. While it largely follows an explore-loot-kill gameplay loop, there are some crafty stealth options mixed in there for good measure, which is to be expected with the involvement of Raphaël Colantonio, who previously helmed Dishonored.

Weird West will be available to play on both PS4 and PS5.

Earlier this month, PlayStation also announced the set of games coming to its September Game Catalog, available to PS Plus Extra and Deluxe/ Premium tier subscribers. Standouts are NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139…, Civilization VI, Unpacking, and a lot more.

PlayStation Plus subscription in India starts at Rs. 499 per month for Essential, Rs. 749 per month for the Extra plan, and Rs. 849 per month for the top-tier Deluxe. The monthly free games are included with all three tiers.

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Sony WF-1000XM5 With ANC, Up to 36 Hours Total Battery Life Launched in India: Price, Specifications

Sony WF-1000XM5 were launched in India on Wednesday. The earbuds, succeeding the Sony WF-1000XM4, were initially released earlier this year in July. The true wireless stereo earphones come with an 8.4 mm Dynamic Driver X and are powered by an integrated Sony Processor V2 along with Sony’s QN2e Active Noise Cancellation chip. They are offered in a compact design and in two colour variants. They will be available for purchase in India soon and are currently available for pre-booking.

Sony WF-1000XM5 price in india, availability

The newly-launched Sony WF-1000XM5 earbuds are priced at Rs. 24,990 and will be available for sale in India starting October 18. For customers pre-booking the product till October 15, Sony is extending an offer where the earbuds can be had at a special discounted price of Rs. 21,990.

They are offered in Black and Silver colour options. The company says that it will be available for sale both online and offline through the official Sony Center website, major electronic stores, and leading e-commerce portals like Amazon and Flipkart.

Sony WF-1000XM5 specifications, features

With an 8.4mm Dynamic Driver X, the Sony WF-1000XM5 earphones are powered by the Sony Integrated Processor V2 and QN2e chips, the latter of which is expected to improve the Noise Cancellation feature. The earbuds support SBC, AAC, LDAC, and LC3 audio formats.

The earbuds come equipped with DSEE Extreme upscaling technology and an Ambient Sound Mode. Sony claims that the WF-1000XM5 earbuds’ bone conduction sensors and deep neural network (DNN) programming can improve call quality regardless of any loud background noise or other disturbances.

Sony’s WF-1000XM5 support Bluetooth 5.3, Google Fast Pair, multipoint connection, head-tracking function, and 360 Reality Audio. They come with an IPX4 rating and the earbuds can also be paired with Sony’s Headphones Connect app.

In terms of battery life, with ANC activated, the Sony WF-1000XM5 earbuds are claimed to offer a maximum call time of up to six hours and music playback time of up eight hours. Meanwhile, with the noise cancellation feature turned off, the earbuds are said to offer a call time of up to seven hours and music playback time of up to 12 hours. The case can offer up to 24 hours of additional battery life and support wireless charging along with fast charging. The earbuds weigh 5.9 grams each. The buds with the case weighs 39 grams, which measures roughly 64.6mm x 40.0mm x 26.5mm in size.

Apple unveiled its first mixed reality headset, the Apple Vision Pro, at its annual developer conference, along with new Mac models and upcoming software updates. We discuss all the most important announcements made by the company at WWDC 2023 on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
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