Gaming

If you’re a fan of rugged wearables and pocket monsters you’ll want to mark July 1st in your calendar as the day you can preorder Casio’s new Pokémon-themed G-Shock GA-110 watch through a lottery system on the company’s Japanese online store. It’s priced at ¥33,000, or around $204, and expected to release on July 17th.

After Valve confirmed its Steam Machines all use one 16GB RAM stick, not two 8GB ones, a helpful commenter has explained why.

Nice way to get around having to just sit and wait for an update to download. Microsoft is testing the feature for Xbox Insiders.

In an interview with Gamers Nexus, Valve had said that the PCs would ship with either one 16GB stick of RAM or two 8GB sticks of RAM. “We misspoke here - all units will actually have one 16GB stick of RAM,” the company says in a follow-up statement to the channel. “It’s possible that this might change in future builds, but the units that customers are currently signing up for will all come with one 16GB stick of RAM.”

“I think it’s a little bit less important to have a fixed performance target for 5 years or something for a product like [the Steam Machine],” Valve’s Pierre-Loup Griffais tells PC Gamer. “I don’t think we’re thinking about it with quite as long of a time frame as something like a Steam Deck.” Though it doesn’t sound like there are any near-term plans for a refresh of some kind.

Following 2021’s GB Operator and the SN Operator that launched last year, Epilogue is teasing a third version of its USB cartridge slot that will now let you play and archive original N64 cartridges on computers or handhelds like Valve’s Steam Deck. According to a teaser video on X, the 64 Operator will launch sometime this year.

Sure, you’ll be able to order a physical edition of the game when preorders open tonight, but Rockstar says the box contains a download code anyway. If you’re buying GTA VI, don’t expect to be able to sell it when you’re done.

When is a gadget simultaneously good value and overpriced?

Unfortunately, it’s not Spinball-themed, but it looks fun all the same.

Virtuix announced a new version of its Omni One treadmill that now supports the Meta Quest 2 and Quest 3 headsets directly as part of the Made for Meta program. For $2,595 you can physically run, walk, jump, and crouch to navigate VR games using the Omni One for Quest without crashing around your living room.

Thirty years ago today the N64 was released in Japan. To help mark the occasion, 8BitDo has announced new clear blue versions of its Ultimate 2 Wireless controller and Retro 87 Keyboard. The $59.99 controller is available today, while preorders are now open for the $99.99 keyboard, which won’t ship until August 14th.

Courtroom Chaos — Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger follows the Snoop Dogg-themed courtroom game that launched last year on Luna, and they’re both part of Amazon’s new plan for games.

If you’re looking for a compact Switch 2 travel dock, go with GuliKit’s new $30 option. If you want more functionality, Jsaux’s new $60 6-in-1 solution can connect the Switch 2 to a TV, access the internet over ethernet, charge four additional Joy-Cons plus Nintendo’s Pro controller, and fold up for travel.

Valve has been trying to crack the living room for more than a decade, and the new Steam Machine is its best attempt yet. It’s a little bit PC, a little bit console, and a lot pricy — starting at $1,049, it had a lot to live up to. The Verge’s Sean Hollister has been testing the device, and shares his findings on whether the Steam Machine can hang with PlayStation and Xbox. He also explains why, despite a never-ending list of challenges, Valve is still trying to make this device work.

According to Aftermath’s Chris Person, Valve pointed to the Steam Deck’s recent price increase as an indicator. Following those changes, the PC handheld costs $789 for the 512GB version and $949 for the 1TB version. The Steam Machine, on the other hand, starts at $1,049.

It’s one of a few new tidbits in a splashy Entertainment Weekly profile about Xbox, which comes at a curious time for Microsoft’s gaming division with troubles including looming layoffs and studio closures.