Microsoft has updated the Xbox platform across PC, mobile, cloud and handheld gaming. Gaming Copilot, in beta, is now available on the Xbox mobile app, adding a “personal gaming sidekick” in your pocket. On Windows 11 handhelds, the “full screen experience” (FSE), which debuted on the ROG Xbox Ally, “is now available to all players on even more Windows 11 handhelds,” says Microsoft. Players who stream via cloud gaming can now choose the resolution on select titles, with support for up to 1440p. Plus, the Xbox app is coming soon for the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K. Continue reading Game Pass Grows as Microsoft Updates Xbox Across Devices

In 2026, Valve will release a trio of new hardware products to complement its popular Steam Deck portable gaming device. They are the Steam Frame VR headset, Steam Machine game cube designed to port the Steam library to TV screens, and the wireless Steam Controller. The three devices are made to work together and are optimized for SteamOS but can run different software as part of Valve’s “open PC ecosystem.” Prices are yet to be announced. The Steam Frame, Valve’s first device to run SteamOS on an Arm processor, has experimental display support for 144Hz and can connect accessories like sensors and tracking devices via a high-speed nose port. Continue reading Valve Unveils Frame VR Headset and Steam Machine Console

Samsung has begun rolling out conversational AI in several languages for its 2025 TVs using Vision AI Companion, a generative AI-based version of the company’s smartphone virtual assistant Bixby. The move, announced in September, lets viewers ask questions about what’s onscreen — or any topic — and receive customized recommendations or help managing tasks using natural two-way dialogue. Samsung describes the experience as interactive viewing that brings a visual element to query sessions and says it turns the TV into a connected community hub for the household powered by models from Perplexity and Microsoft. Continue reading Samsung Debuts Conversational Vision AI Companion on TVs

Sony Group reported a strong quarter ending September 30, with its semiconductor unit reaching an operating profit of nearly $900 million, up almost 50 percent year-over-year as the company’s most profitable segment for the quarter. The music group was another bright spot, with sales up 21 percent to $3.51 billion, and operating income a healthy $749 million. Consumer electronics and gaming were softer sectors. But overall revenue of $20.14 billion far surpassed the expected $19.36 billion, prompting Sony to raise its forecast by 3 percent. The company also announced a repurchase plan for $648 million worth of stock. Continue reading Sony’s Latest Quarter Beats Estimates Led by Music, Imaging

Cloud Streaming for the Sony PlayStation Portal portable gaming device has officially launched this month after a year in beta testing. PlayStation Plus Premium members can now play “a massively expanded selection of PS5 Games” on the wireless handheld unit without the need to connect to the PS5 console through Remote Play. Sony has retooled the home screen, adding three tabs dedicated to the different modes: Remote Play, Cloud Streaming and Search. Cloud Streaming “makes it easier to enjoy PS5 games on the go” anywhere with a high-speed Wi-Fi connection, playing even when the PS5 console at home is powered off or is in use by another account, according to Sony. Continue reading Sony Is Rolling Out Cloud Streaming for the PlayStation Portal

YouTube is strengthening its Community Guidelines around online gambling and graphic violence in gaming. Starting November 17, existing rules prohibiting content linking to online gambling sites or applications that are not certified by Google will also include links to sites involving digital goods with “monetary value,” including video game skins, cosmetics and NFTs. “Our policies are designed to evolve alongside the digital world,” Google says, explaining that the changes “keep pace with new trends, like gambling with digital goods, and to more closely align our guidelines for mature content with industry standards.” Continue reading Google Expands YouTube Rules Limiting Violence, Gambling

Netflix has shuttered its Boss Fight Entertainment, the game studio best known for developing the mobile “Squid Game:  Unleashed” multiplayer action game based on the streamer’s hit series franchise. The title went to number one on the charts in 26 countries, according to Boss Fight co-founder and CEO David Rippy, who posted a farewell on LinkedIn. The unit also developed “Netflix Stories,” described as “an interactive visual novel platform” based on Netflix shows “Virgin River,” “Emily in Paris” and “Selling Sunset.” Netflix reportedly plans to continue offering the Boss Fight titles even as it de-emphasizes mobile games. Continue reading Netflix Shutters Mobile Game Studio as Part of Strategy Shift

Electronic Arts has partnered with Stability AI to co-develop new models, tools, and workflows that empower game designers, artists and developers. The partnership comes on the heels of the publicly traded EA agreeing to go private in a deal valued at $55 billion, including debt, led by Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners, equity firm Silver Lake and the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF). The partners aim to “reimagine how content is built,” according to EA. The 40-plus years firm has of late been using machine learning and artificial intelligence to power real-time animation and physics simulation. Continue reading EA and Stability AI Partner to Develop Models, Creative Tools

Snapchat rolled out a host of new AR updates during Lens Fest, including new gaming tools, AR creation and monetization elements, and generative AI guidance Lens development. New Lens Studio AR creation options include “Realistic StyleGen,” which lets creators add more lifelike textures and lighting effects for virtual clothing, while “FaceGen” has been updated to provide more realistic digitally generated expressions. There is also a new 3D asset generator that turns people into digital representations, and “AI Clips” for the creation of image-to-video Lenses. In addition, Snapchat is debuting a “Lens Studio AI” chatbot to conversationally build AR lenses. Continue reading Snapchat Debuts FaceGen Expressions, Chatbot Lens Builder

Snapchat is developing a virtual 3D world where users can adopt Bitmoji avatars and socialize in an immerse digital environment. Called “Bitmoji Plaza,” the digital town center will live in the web version of the Snapchat app. The move shows Snap Inc. expanding its horizons and potentially setting up for other virtual worlds in preparation for the 2026 release of the company’s consumer AR glasses. While a Bitmoji world is an elementary transition to the metaverse, Snap is also expanding the use of Bitmoji stickers with a new app that lets Android and iOS users add them to messages. Continue reading Bitmoji Plaza: Snapchat Is Launching Virtual World on the Web

As part of an initiative to broaden its reach beyond TV shows and film, Netflix is adding party games to its programming lineup with a push beyond mobile. The streaming giant is offering diversions like “Pictionary” and “Boggle” to enhance fun for family and friends through the holiday season. “We’re creating a completely new way to play games — one that’s as easy as streaming a show on a Friday night,” Netflix explains, adding that all you’ll need to experience the gaming action is “Netflix and your phone.” Other games include “LEGO Party!,” “Tetris Time Warp,” “and a fresh take on the social deduction genre ‘Party Crashers: Fool Your Friends.’” Continue reading Netflix Will Offer Party Games via Its TV Service for First Time

Nvidia has made its Audio2Face open source, a potential boon for game developers and other 3D uses such as customer service. The generative AI facial animation system brings lifelike speech and expression to avatars on an accelerated basis using real-time facial animation and lip-sync. It works by analyzing acoustic features to create a stream of animation data that is then mapped onto a character’s facial poses. The data translates to “accurate lip-sync and emotional expressions,” says Nvidia, noting the imagery can be rendered offline for pre-scripted content or streamed in real time for dynamic characters with accurate lip-sync and emotional expressions. Continue reading Nvidia Audio2Face AI Avatar-Generator Is Now Open Source

Google is giving the Play Store an AI makeover with a new strategy behind Play Games and a new You tab for personalized content. A new Guided Search feature will help users find apps and games by typing in keywords or a generalized description rather than the app’s name. The hope is that artificial intelligence can turn the mobile marketplace into more of a destination rather than just a place to download apps. More than 4 billion people use Google Play, and the company would like to have them spend more time there. Play’s integrated gaming platform and You tab will begin rolling out this week, starting with select Play Points markets, and will be adding additional countries on October 1. Continue reading Google Optimizes Play Store for Games, Adds Personalization

Roblox is launching an in-app feature called Roblox Moments, a scrollable short-form video feed for users 13 and older to upload and share clips. The company is also debuting new AI tools including one that generates 4D objects “where the fourth dimension is interaction.” Real-time voice chat translation and agentic updates to the Roblox Assistant AI helper are among the other features announced at the Roblox Developers Conference, where the company promoted an 8.5 percent bump in creator revenue potential and introduced an “age estimation” initiative that will use facial ID in addition to other tools. Continue reading Roblox Demos ‘Moments’ Short-Form Video Feed, AI Features

Japan’s SoftBank has committed to investing $2 billion in U.S. chipmaker Intel as the company struggles to gain traction in the exploding artificial intelligence space and catch up in the mobile market. SoftBank has agreed to purchase roughly 87 million Intel shares at $23 per share to become the company’s fifth or sixth-largest shareholder. The move comes as the Trump administration deliberates converting the U.S. government’s CHIPS Act grants into a 10 percent equity stake in the company as part of its effort to revive American semiconductor manufacturing. Such a deal would make the government Intel’s largest stakeholder. Continue reading SoftBank Invests $2 Billion in Intel as Government Mulls Stake