There are some things in life that you just have to have, no matter how impractical they may be. This sofa designed to look like a PlayStation controller is exactly that - and I have to have one.

This design comes from Muddycap (shared by Yanko Design) and fits nicely into Muddycap's other chair design: it's impractical, but lust worthy. The same designer has a chair that's shaped like a pigeon as well as a set of keys, which looks about as comfortable as the Iron Throne.

Based around the classic DualShock PlayStation controller, there's space for two gamers in the centre, leaving the rest of this sofa to the iconic design.

Sadly it's just a 3D model, which makes it even more frustrating as I won't be able to buy one, but you can see how - thanks to the D-pad on one side and the buttons on the other - that this sofa could expand its skills beyond just looking great.

With so much space taken up by the design, it's begging for a pull-out fridge or snack drawer to the sides, or maybe just a charging dock for controllers at each end.

If there's one criticism of this as an actual gaming chair, I'm not sure it would be slouchy enough for me. I'm either almost horizontal as I become the sofa during long sessions, or I'm standing in the middle of the room when things get more fraught.

This is a far cry from the best gaming chairs, which give you full adjustability, lumbar support and arm rests, so this sofa is less of a Call of Duty chair and more of a Mario Kart chair, you know, where precision might be less important.

While I'm going through a crisis trying to figure out how I can commission a furniture builder to make me this sofa, PlayStation is enjoying its own crisis after announcing that PlayStation will stop physical disc releases from 2028.

That's going to put a nail in the used game market and while PlayStation would probably rather sell you the game at a higher price, for those seeking out games they missed well after release, getting it second hand has always been a way to snap up a bargain.

While PlayStation and its gaming community wrangles with that hot potato, I'm going to measure up my lounge and see exactly where I might fit a PlayStation controller sofa.

The handheld gaming PC market has become increasingly crowded over the past couple of years, but ONEXPLAYER is aiming well above the likes of the Steam Deck OLED, Asus ROG Ally X and Lenovo Legion Go 2.

Its latest X2 Mini Pro is built around AMD's Ryzen AI Max+ 388 processor, one of the company's powerful Strix Halo chips, pairing an 8-core, 16-thread CPU with Radeon 8050S graphics. That's desktop-class silicon squeezed into an 8.8-inch handheld, backed by up to 64GB of LPDDR5X RAM and 2TB of SSD storage.

There's a 144Hz OLED touchscreen with a 2.5K resolution, detachable controllers inspired by the Nintendo Switch, an optional magnetic keyboard cover that turns it into a compact Windows tablet. Plus there's support for an external liquid cooling dock for those wanting to squeeze every last frame from demanding games.

The entry-level model starts at around $2,399 with 48GB of memory and a 1TB SSD, while the fully loaded version with 64GB and 2TB storage reaches roughly $2,799. That's several times the cost of a Steam Deck OLED, and enough to buy multiple Nintendo Switch 2 consoles instead.

For most gamers, that's likely to be a step too far. But ONEXPLAYER clearly isn't chasing the mainstream. Instead, it's targeting enthusiasts who want the fastest handheld PC currently available and are prepared to pay desktop-PC money to get it.

Whether the X2 Mini Pro can justify that price in real-world gaming remains to be seen, but on paper it's shaping up to be one of the most powerful handhelds we've ever seen.

Steam Machine owners disappointed by the demise of Dbrand's gorgeous Companion Cube case have been handed a second chance – provided they have access to a 3D printer and a little patience.

Just weeks after Valve pulled the plug on Dbrand's officially planned shell over licensing issues, maker Jaron has released a fully printable alternative through the Printables community.

Rather than copying Dbrand's files, the creator says the model was built entirely from scratch using publicly available images as reference, complete with detailed assembly instructions and a list of the extra screws, magnets and components required.

The result is remarkably close to the design that captured PC gamers' imaginations before it was cancelled. It transforms Valve's compact gaming PC into the instantly recognisable Weighted Companion Cube from Portal, complete with layered panels and contrasting colour sections that can be produced on a standard single-extruder printer using filament swaps. It's not exactly a beginner project, but it looks well within reach for experienced makers.

The Companion Cube isn't the only project breathing new life into Valve's latest hardware. The growing modding community has also begun releasing replacement faceplates, alternative shells and even entirely new small-form-factor PC builds inspired by the Steam Machine's design.

"The Orange Box", is a greta example. This is a far more powerful custom gaming PC housed inside a SilverStone chassis but styled around Valve's ecosystem. Alongside printable accessories and cosmetic upgrades, these projects suggest the Steam Machine could end up becoming just as interesting for modders as it is for gamers.

If nothing else, it's proof that cancelling an official accessory doesn't necessarily kill the idea. As long as the maker community keeps designing clever alternatives, some of gaming's best concepts can still find a way into players' homes, one layer of filament at a time.

Xbox is testing a way to provide cloud gaming access for free, without the need for Game Pass membership. It is ad-supported and allows Xbox gamers to access their own library of games on different devices at no extra cost.

Initially available to Xbox Insiders with an Xbox account, the service is currently limited. It allows play in one hour sessions and you'll have to sit through adverts before each game starts, but the core experience is then uninterrupted.

Any Xbox gamer can join the Insider program to be part of the test, you just need to download the Xbox Insider Hub on your Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One or Windows PC and follow the sign-up instructions.

As this is not part of Xbox Game Pass, you won't have access to games outside those you've already purchased and own. You might also find that some of your games are unsupported, but Xbox is adding new games to the list all the time, so you might find additional titles become available over time.

Xbox free cloud gaming test – other details

It's also worth remembering that this is just a viability test for now – there's no guarantee that Xbox will continue to offer the service in future. However, it believes that there is a need for a free service for users who cannot easily access a console or PC.

It could also help Xbox One owners who are yet to upgrade play enhanced Xbox Series X/S games on their consoles.

The adverts that will be shown have been carefully vetted, the company claims, to ensure they meet the correct standards. They will also be "what players expect on each platform".

If you are an Xbox Insider and do not currently subscribe to an Xbox Game Pass tier that includes cloud gaming, you should be able to help test the ad-supported service now. It'll be available for a "limited period", although it's currently unclear how long that will be.

Amazon has followed Netflix by adding games to its Prime Video service, but it's raced ahead in quality and quantity. That's because the new "Games" tab on the Prime Video app gives you direct access to its ever-growing library of Luna games.

That means you will be able to play the likes of the multiple award-winning Dispatch, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, EA Sports FC 26, and the Harry Potterverse RPG Hogwart's Legacy for free, straight from Prime Video itself.

Luna is Amazon's cloud gaming service, which gives all Amazon Prime members access to a catalogue of console and PC quality games to stream over the internet. The game is run on remote hardware with the video feed streamed to your TV, while the controller codes are sent in the opposite direction.

There's a small amount of lag (latency) in comparison with playing directly on a PS5, for example, but everything is still very playable. All you need is a Bluetooth controller connected wirelessly and away you go.

Some of the games can even be played using a mobile phone or tablet as the controller, including an expanding selection of party games for family and friends to enjoy together.

That includes the new season of Courtroom Chaos, with Arnold Schwazenegger as the judge.

Other games available on the platform include some of Amazon's own properties, such as the most recent Tomb Raider trilogy. Fallout 4 is also available, to complement the TV series on Prime Video.

The Games tab is now available on Fire TV models in the UK and US, with a wider rollout coming "in the months ahead".

Hopefully that will include Prime Video apps on TVs and streaming devices from other manufacturers. As things stand, you can play Luna games through a browser on most devices by heading to the dedicated website.

I'm a child of Nintendo, and even if I won't always defend every generation of the franchise, it's always fun to remind myself that I've played Pokémon right since its very first games. The games have been long-term companions, but that doesn't mean I'm not open to new options.

Those of my generation have long known about a rivalry between Pokémon and Digimon, but the reality is that the former clearly won the war. It's a way bigger deal and has way more cultural capital – but that doesn't mean that Digimon's been left behind. Rather, it's just branched out in different ways.

I saw a decent amount of praise for Digimon Story Time Stranger when it came out last year, but didn't have a chance to play it – until now. A Switch 2 version of the game came out this month, and that's given me the opportunity to see what this parallel monster-collecting game has to offer.

I've been really pleasantly surprised by the setup of Time Stranger, which is actually way more like a Persona game than it is a Pokémon one. You're dropped into a funky sci-fi plot set in Tokyo and involving time travel without being too complicated, and soon introduced to Digimon, which are basically monsters that come into the real world from a parallel virtual one.

What I didn't realise is that Time Stranger, a bit like the Persona games, doesn't have linear evolution for its monsters. When you level up a Pokémon far enough, it'll evolve, but other than a few exceptions like Eevee, it'll always do so into the same new Pokémon. Not so in the world of Digimon – most monsters have a few forms they can turn into, turning the whole list of them into a sort of web that you can explore over time.

That one twist is enough to hook me – in Pokémon, unless you're aiming at competitive play, there's never a good reason to keep a Pokémon non-evolved, but in Time Stranger I'm already holding off to earn more stats and unlock new, more interesting-looking evolutions.

All of that sits outside of the core gameplay, too, which involves running around exploring environments and fighting turn-based battles. This uses a fairly familiar rock-paper-scissors system alongside some elemental twists, but it's really simple to learn, with a battle-speed toggle that makes less important fights far quicker.

I always like it when time-savers like that are available from the get-go, and after about three hours of gameplay I'm clearly just hitting the game's main stride, with new areas to access and the story developing at a decent clip. Another major advantage over Pokémon? It's got actual voice acting, even if some of it's a little over-the-top.

The game hits Switch 2 with both a quality mode that aims for 30fps at higher resolutions, and a 60fps at 1080p option. Neither really sticks to its target all that well, but I've found the 60fps mode much more enjoyable, so that's what I've been going with.

If you're in the market for an RPG that'll scratch a lot of that Pokémon itch while we wait for Winds and Waves, I think this is the best option out there right now, especially when you play on the Switch 2, so be sure to check out the free demo on the eShop to give yourself a taste of what it has to offer.

Xbox is currently undergoing a reset which has resulted in a vast amount of jobs being lost across the business. It is also dramatically changing strategy – nigh-on reversing a decade of decisions to refocus the company and brand. And it seems that some of the endeavours are working.

It has been revealed that, in the US at least, sales of the Xbox Series X and Series S consoles have "more than doubled" year-on-year.

In comparison, hardware sales for PlayStation and Nintendo have dipped – with the latter falling by 79%.

To be fair, that's understandable. The Nintendo Switch 2 launched in June 2025 so the company reported a massive spike in sales as pre-orders were shipped and launch stock sold out quickly. The sales for June 2026 were always likely to be much lower.

More interestingly, perhaps, is that PS5 sales dipped by 19% YOY. But then, Sony did recently raise its console prices significantly. And the Xbox Series X/S equivalent price hike is yet to come into affect.

It'll occur in just over a week, on 1 August, so consumers could be snapping up the consoles before that happens.

The sales figures are also relative. Mat Piscatella of data firm Circana revealed on Bluesky that while Xbox performed better than many expected last month, it still sold fewer consoles that its rivals. The Nintendo Switch 2 continued to be the best-selling option, in both units and dollars earned, with the PS5 in second.

Uncertainty in the games business

Whatever the trends, the games market is still looking uncertain at present. When it comes to the next generation, at least.

Xbox has admitted that its Project Helix plans might have to change in the light of the ongoing components crisis. Its hope to launch a "premium" PC/console hybrid might have to be scaled back to remain affordable.

Meanwhile, Sony is said to have delayed the PS6 for similar reasons, and we all know what happened with the Steam Machine. While it seems to have found a market, it is undeniably overpriced for what you get.

And so it seems we'll see this current console generation continue for the foreseeable, which is good news for those who already own a PS5, Nintendo Switch or Xbox Series X/S. At least the games are still coming thick and fast.

Meta is giving away free Xbox Game Pass membership with its own Meta Horizon+ subscription. That will give every Meta Quest owner who signs up a library of more than 50 Xbox games to stream on a virtual display in their headset, with 10 hours of cloud gaming access per month.

It's a similar deal to the one Discord started offering its Nitro subscribers in May. You don't have to pay any extra, but you will currently need an Xbox controller to play the games.

That's until Meta pushes a forthcoming update to the Touch Controllers for the Quest 3 and Quest 3S. They will soon be able to emulate an Xbox controller too, with the firmware patch rolling out "in the coming weeks".

The games in the new free Xbox Game Pass Starter Edition include the likes of Fallout 4, Fallout 76, Overcooked 2, Grounded and DayZ. They don't give you a full, immersive VR experience but you can play them on a huge virtual screen inside the headset – up to the equivalent of a 26-foot display.

You can even choose to play them from within an Xbox-themed virtual space.

Of course, a Meta Horizon+ subscription doesn't just include Game Pass, it also gives you access to more than 100 virtual games you can download and play on a Quest.

A subscription costs $59.99 / £59.99 per year or $7.99 / £7.99 per month, with the first month free for new members. That's a lot of gaming for the usual price of just one console title.

You'll just need to own a compatible headset and away you go. We're also hoping to hear plans on new Meta Quest devices during Meta Connect in September.

Whatever happens T3 will keep you informed all the way.

There's a big old genre of gaming that I've never quite got to grips with, despite a lot of trying, and that's skating games. I've never been a real-life skater, but the fashion and attitude has always been attractive, and that's meant I've tried over and over to get into giants of the genre like Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, without ever really finding my jam.

Little did I know that the way I'd finally get my satisfaction was to swap skating on a board for literally tricking an entire train – the barmy premise of Denshattack!, which is out now on basically all platforms. It sees you take on the role of a train driver in a world where trains can do things you'd basically never believe outside of an anime.

Luckily, anime is very much the aesthetic here, as you make your way through a sci-fi future Japan full of abandoned train tracks. This is a world where rebels pilot trains in a sport called Denshattack, and do so much like skaters, pulling off wild tricks, rail grinds and more.

You drop into a course with a set objective, whether it's to make it to the end of a more linear one or to get a certain amount of combo points in an open-ended arena, and from there it's all about free-styling your way to success. With a variety of button presses, you can jump, drift around corners, and pull off tricks in the air, and chaining these moves together is your best path to profit and speed.

Each track also has a range of secrets to find, from collectables to interactions with the passing world (using your train's horn to startle some birds, for instance). These give you stretch goals to keep an eye out for as you race, and they're consistently fun to achieve.

The aesthetic is also great, all cel-shaded and stylish, with really colourful stages that zip past with an impressive sense of speed. Back in the days of the Switch 1, I think this is a textbook example of a game that might have been really compromised either by blurry visuals or a lower frame rate, but on the Switch 2 it's been a buttery-smooth joy both in docked and handheld mode.

I didn't expect it to get its hooks into me, but a few hours in I'm really loving the core design choices at play. The game's welcoming if you just want to experience its pulpy story and don't have that much manual skill to get high scores, but the skill ceiling is incredibly high for those who want to find it.

This is one of those games that you have to see in motion to really appreciate, and I'm confident that watching the trailer I embedded further up this story will go a long way towards clarifying whether it's for you. Don't be put off by the story, either – it's littered with skip buttons if you just want to get to the train-skating.

That's what I've been doing, honestly, and I've had a stellar time doing it. Weird games are the way forward, I think, and this is a great example of a low-cost game that deserves to build up a cult audience.

Xbox might be shifting back to a tried and tested exclusives model in the coming year, but one remaining consequence of its foray into cross-platform is that Master Chief will soon arrive on PlayStation 5 for the first time.

Halo: Campaign Evolved will officially release in just a week's time, on 28 July and it marks a real shift for the series. There's just one thing – it will only be available to purchase on PlayStation, while Xbox Series X/S and PC owners can get it for free with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass membership.

Rebuilt from the ground up, the remake of Halo: Combat Evolved (originally released for the first Xbox) retains the same gameplay and mission structure, but with dramatically improved graphics. It also features some control changes, such as when driving the Warthog.

The campaign mode is the real star – as the tweaked title suggests – although you still get four-player online co-op. There are new missions too, as well as a healthy serving of additional weapons, vehicles and enemies.

Those who pre-ordered the Premium Edition will actually get to play the game in early access from Thursday, 23 July, but if you're an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscriber, you don't have much longer to wait.

The additional Xbox Game Pass games for July 2026

Shift at Midnight is another day one release for Ultimate and PC Game Pass members that's arriving soon – tomorrow, in fact. While Hell is Us will be added for all members, including Premium, from Thursday.

Mistfall Hunter is coming at the end of the month, on 30 July, as a new release also. And Corsair Cove will be available for PC only the day after.

Xbox has announced a couple of games coming next month, too. Both Heretic + Hexen and Beast of Reincarnation will be available from 4 August. The latter is yet another day one release.

Sadly, there are eight games being removed from the service at the end of July, with the pixel-perfect platformer Celeste being a particular favourite. I advise you download and play it in the days you have left.

The Steam Machine was never intended to be one of the most expensive games consoles of all time. It was meant to be an affordable entry point to PC gaming in the living room.

However, AI came along and munched on available RAM chips like locusts in a wheat field, and Valve's good intentions ended up going awry. So, instead of a cheap and cheerful PC console, we got an overly-priced, under-spec'ed mini PC (albeit one that's cute).

That's not to say it's been a flop. Even starting at over $1,000, Valve is struggling to make enough units to meet demand. It is thought to have sold up to 15,000 Steam Machines so far and many on the lengthy waiting list are still awaiting.

If you're still undecided though, or are waiting for a price drop in future, we might have some bad news. There's every indication that the price will actually go up at some point.

As quoted by Jason Schreier at Bloomberg, one of the engineers that worked on Steam Machine, Yazan Aldehayyat believes the scarcity of components and the knock-on effect on prices isn't going to get better anytime soon: "Honestly, it’s still getting worse," he said.

The products and stock currently being sold are old, he suggested, and are soon to run out: "What people are seeing on retail shelves right now, from our observations, is lagging what we’re seeing from a bulk supply by at least three to six months."

The likely result of further price hikes for RAM and storage is that Valve will be facing higher costs to make more Steam Machines. And as a small company, those costs are likely to be passed on to the customer – just as they are now.

Aldehayyat's colleague, Pierre-Loup Griffais recently admitted that the existing elevated price the Steam Machine "ends up matching pretty closely" to the cost of its components. A sombre thought.

It could be why Valve has seemingly switched tact in recent times, from wanting its own console in some gamers' hands to wanting Steam OS in everyone's. It has recently started to release a version of its excellent front end and gaming platform for PCs of all shapes and sizes.

And so, if you want a more powerful Steam Machine, that's entirely possible. You just won't be buying it from Valve.

As a lover and collector of retro gaming tomfoolery, I've been a big fan of the HyperMegaTech Super Pocket handhelds since they first emerged in 2023, but few of them have ticked my boxes as much as the latest.

The Super Pocket – Rare Edition has the same specs as the other six in the collection (that are currently available) but with one important distinction. Rare has been inarguably one of the finest game development studios for four decades, and so the games library found here demands attention.

There's Banjo Kazooie, which is the headline inclusion (of course), and some of its console greats from the 8-bit, 16-bit era and Game Boy era, such as Battletoads and Conker's Pocket Tales. But what really helped transform me back to my own childhood, and even help me realise a long-standing ambition, are the ZX Spectrum games.

One in particular, in fact.

Rare started out life as Ultimate Play the Game and it ruled the scene in the 80s. Its games were inventive, highly addictive and often took the Speccy's limited hardware to whole new levels. And considering its earliest games had a file size lower than an average email today, they still hold up well.

Jetpac is the one that I remember most fondly – not least because I never managed to complete it first time around. I likely never got past the third or fourth level, in fact.

It ran on a 16K Spectrum, so was accessible to all owners (I had a 48K model that was also custom upgraded to eke a bit more from it), and its simple platforming premise made it a quick, fun experience. Still does.

It's why it was the first game I loaded on the new Super Pocket and I can now finally say I have bested it. Well, I've beaten the eight levels before it loops back and ups the difficulty, but that's pretty much my original childhood target.

Now I have to finally finish Knight Lore, which is also present, and I can retire happy. Until the Rare collection 2 arrives, that is.

What is the Super Pocket?

Unlike many retro game handhelds, the Super Pocket is a cartridge-based handheld that comes with a collection of preinstalled games. You cannot add your own roms or emulators, but each of the included titles has been optimised to work perfectly on its 2.8-inch 4:3 IPS display and using the Game Boy-style controls.

It is made by Blaze, the company behind the Evercade products, so while you can't add downloaded games, you can purchase Evercade cartridges and use them with the Super Pocket, too – thanks to the cartridge slot around the rear.

That opens up a vast library of additional games that you can purchase and collect.

There are several Super Pocket models available – all for £50 or under. Other particular favourites include the Atari Edition (of which I have the special edition version with fake wood panelling on the front) and the Neo Geo Edition, which includes 14 classic games.

As they are all officially licensed, much like the cartridges, there's no worrying about "illegal" roms or setting up different emulators. You can add shaders to the display, to make it look like there are scanlines to mimic the CRT TVs of the period, but things are keep simple. It truly is a pick-up and play device.

Now please excuse me, there's a Knight that needs Loreing – or something. Ahem.

It's not every day that Aston Martin unveils an entirely new car, let alone one that hasn't been teased and leaked for months beforehand, but today it's announcing an SUV to potentially complement the DBX – except there's a major asterisk to that.

You see, this is what's being politely called a "digital-only" launch, which is a euphemistic way of saying that the newly announced Dreadnought will only exist in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 when it comes out later this year.

Unsurprisingly, for a car that's going to be featured in the world of a military shooter, it's a military-grade SUV that's intended to get people around big maps quickly, and was designed "without the restraints of the physical world".

That was apparently a great bit of fun for Aston's designers, although it's not like the end result is the maddest-looking car you've ever seen. It apparently sports "advanced armour technologies", which is almost certainly a way of saying that it'll be able to take quite a lot of punishment in-game before it gives up on you.

If there's one bit of the car that is hard to argue with, I'd say it's that paint job, which is indeed peak Aston Martin, using the brand's iconic Chiltern Green colour to really rich effect.

In design terms, you can tell that the lack of real-world shackles did indeed let Aston Martin go a little crazy – it's a wild-looking slice of car, raised up on enormous tyres and with a really interesting, sleek look despite its size.

Right now, it's a little unclear whether the car will be featured in the game's singleplayer campaign, but we do know that it'll be in the big new map being added for the DMZ extraction shooter mode and the returning Warzone battle royale mode. In each case, players will be able to use it to get around the map nice and quickly.

I'm expecting to learn quite a lot more about Modern Warfare 4 in the next few weeks, too. Lord knows that Xbox (which has now owned COD for quite a while) will be desperate for a big win in terms of the game's sales. It won't be on Game Pass, as we know, but with the last couple of COD entries having failed to capture the zeitgeist, and Battlefield 6 having a fairly stellar time, this is a big entry for the biggest traditional shooter brand in the land.

Sony has announced the latest lineup of games coming to the PS Plus game catalogue and, in a break from the norm, they will be staggered over the next couple of weeks in the UK, US and Japan.

That's a release strategy more akin to Xbox Game Pass than PS Plus in the past, but we're sure PS5 fans won't be whinging as the excellent Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora will be leading the way.

It'll be available for PS Plus Extra and Premium members from 21 July in all regions, and is one of the best first-person action adventure games I've played in many a year. It's also arguably one of the best movie tie-ins ever made.

The other games being added might be available a little sooner or later, with the dates jumping around a bit depending on where you live.

Rise of the Ronin, for example, is available for PS5 in the UK, US and Japan now, but in other regions from 21 July.

Firefighting Simulator: Ignite, also PS5-only, will be available everywhere from 21 July, while Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind will be added for PS5 and PS4 from 28 July in UK, US and Japan, 21 July everywhere else.

That's the same day another of my favourite first-person games arrives, too. Dying Light (the PS4 version) will be joined by Citizen Sleep 2: Starward Vector (PS5), as well as Snow Bros. Wonderland.

Things are a bit more regular when it comes to the new (old) games being added to the classic catalogue for PS Premium members. Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy and Indigo Prophecy (AKA Fahrenheit in the UK) will be available globally on 21 July.

Physical media has been in the news a lot lately, not least when it comes to gaming. PlayStation has announced that it is ditching discs for a digital-only future, Xbox is likely to follow suit, and some games are being released as download codes in boxes – including GTA 6.

But ask PC gamers about it and they'll point out that bar some special releases, they've had to make do with digital downloads for years. Steam is the biggest storefront for PC game purchases and there are no physical copies to be found. Well, until now...

One gamer has built an ingenious cartridge system for PC that can play Steam games from custom SSD-based cartridges.

Taking to the PC Master Race Reddit (via Tom's Hardware), Jibril-sama detailed how they turned cheap SATA SSD cards into game cartridges, and built a dock to read and play them automatically.

Steam Game Cartridges from r/pcmasterrace

The SATA dock is plugged into a PC, while the custom software detects when an SSD cartridge is mounted. An execute script then loads the game.

The builder even custom built the cartridge casings using 3D printing and added cover art.

"Got a couple of used 2.5-inch SSDs for cheap so I decided to make a game cartridge system," the Redditor revealed.

“Games are actually on those SSDs with a script to auto-navigate Steam to the game's page. Auto-starting the game right away is also possible."

Each SSD used cost Jibril-sama just €7 (less than £6), so the project is affordable. Whether it could be replicated by others is unclear at present. There are also question marks over Steam updates and patches for each game, which will be tricky to keep on top of.

However, they can be manually installed once each SSD is plugged in and the creator doesn't seem too concerned as the cartridges are for "games that I want to replay once in a while".

They also look good on a shelf, we expect.

Two renowned games controller manufacturers surprised many at CES in January, with both 8BitDo and GameSir each announcing similar accessories for those running emulation software on their phones.

But while GameSir managed to get its Pocket Taco to market speedily, it's taken a while for its rival to catch up. And so, if you wanted to turn your iPhone or Android device into a Game Boy, you really only had the one option.

Until this week, that is. It looks like 8BitDo is finally ready to take orders for its FlipPad which, like the Pocket Taco, adds physical Game Boy style controls to a mobile phone.

The 8BitDo FlipPad works differently to the Taco in that it connects via USB-C rather than Bluetooth. That could potentially provide a lower latency experience – ideal for the twitch-friendly controls of classic platformers. It can also flip down when you need to use the full screen, without needing to remove the add-on.

According to Russ at Retro Game Corps (via NotebookCheck), the 8BitDo FlipPad will be available to pre-order this week, from Wednesday 15 July. It'll then ship from 30 July.

And a pleasant surprise is that it is claimed to cost just $30 (around £22). That's cheaper than the Pocket Taco, although you can also see that drop at times during big sales periods.

There are no further details yet – not even on the pre-order page location – but we'll keep you informed as and when there's more.

Obvious to some but not all, you'll have to provide your own emulators and games (roms), and it's advised you stick to games that can be played on the top-half of your phone's screen. You'll also need to consider that there is no thumbstick, so games that work with a D-pad will work best – such as Game Boy, Game Boy Color, SNES, Mega Drive/Genesis, etc.

Indeed, considering the only colour option expected to be released for now is based on the Game Boy DMG, that's clearly the main intention anyway.

Xbox is in the news for all the wrong reasons at the moment, with 1,600 employees sadly losing their jobs in the last few days, with the same number again poised for redundancy next year too.

It ends a decade of investment by Microsoft into studio and publisher acquisitions, and in Xbox Game Pass – the subscription service thought to be the future of the brand. The gambles simply didn’t work out.

But that doesn’t mean it is ready to give up on Game Pass just yet. And with this month’s lineup of free games, it seems to be business as usual. The addition of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 on 21 July is a true highlight, as it becomes available to Xbox Game Pass Premium members, as well as Ultimate and PC Game Pass.

It is without a shadow of doubt one of the greatest remakes of all time, with two essential skateboarding games updated with modern graphics and control systems.

It’ll also be joined by Gears of War: Reloaded (now for Premium members), Tamashika, Ascend to Zero, PBA Pro Bowling 2026, Quarantine Zone: The Last Check, Mavrix by Matt Jones, FixForce, and The Planet Crafter. While Fogpiercer is coming to PC.

There’s just one caveat… the list of games leaving Game Pass is arguably even better.

Sadly, if.you haven’t played the excellent Dungeons of Hinterberg yet, you only have a week left to do so. The same with Powerwash Simulator and Shadow of the Tomb Raider Definitive Edition.

They lead a lineup of 10 games being removed on 15 July, which seems like more than usual. Let’s hope this doesn’t become a trend.

Still, regardless of Xbox’s current issues and the great “reset” it’s undertaking, taking to the half-pipe in Mr Hawk’s Converse All-Stars should take your mind off it for a while.

The games console scene is currently going through its biggest most troubling times since the 80s. PlayStation has announced it is ditching physical media releases, sparking much anger, Valve's Steam Machine has underwhelmed with its performance for the price, and Nintendo is withdrawing the Switch family of consoles in Europe.

But they all seem minor inconveniences in comparison with what's going on over at Xbox.

A company-wide reset has resulted in studio closures and mass layoffs across the brand – with 1,600 losing their jobs immediately and another 1,600 redundancies expected to follow next year. It has left Xbox's game makers on tenterhooks at best, unemployed at worst.

Asha Sharma, who took over as CEO earlier this year admitted that the gaming giant was in shambles, with the last decade of acquisitions and strategical decisions not paying off. It is simply losing money on the likes of Xbox Game Pass and many of the studios it bought, and is thus restructuring for a complete reset.

Some might wonder where that leaves Project Helix – the company's next Xbox machine, which was originally announced as a premium PC/console hybrid. But while that's facing its own challenges due to the ongoing components crisis, it seems it's business as usual for the hardware division.

In fact, that's the part of Xbox that will now be given more attention.

According to T3's sister site Windows Central and its sources, Helix is "safe and on track".

The hardware division has been hit by the layoffs the least, while the team working on Project Helix have been tasked to find ways around the RAM and storage pricing issues that are plaguing every corner of tech right now.

According to the site, they are tackling "margin pressure" through "aggressive innovation". This will hopefully reduce costs yet keep the core ideals of the next-gen console – maintaining its premium capabilities through workarounds, rather than reducing the spec, as Valve seems to have done with the Steam Machine.

Of course, that might have put Project Helix back by a few months, even a year, but with the latest announcements, it seems the entire company is backing on it to be a success.

That will come as scant compensation to those who have lost their jobs so far, or are worried that they will be in the next round of planned cuts. But Xbox itself might be able to weather the storm.

The only question is, will you still be waiting on the other side?

Although the big news came out last week, not this, it's still a complicated time to talk about a big new videogame. After all, we know now that PlayStation won't produce discs from January 2028 onwards, something that basically ushers in the end of being able to own most games physically – so it's interesting to consider how many more Assassin's Creed titles will ever come out on a disc, for instance.

I've written about a few of the ways in which this is basically a disaster, already, so I won't dwell again, but it does put a slightly sour twist on things when you play a game as detailed and vibrant as the new remake of Black Flag, which I've had for a little over a week and enjoyed hugely.

I've been playing the game on my gaming PC, not as a deliberate gesture of rebuke to PlayStation, but rather because the 5070 Ti inside it simply gives me the best experience out of the options I have access to, and because I've been testing an ultrawide monitor to really make things as "PC gaming" as they can get.

It's been fun to underline just how good that experience can be when everything works straight out of the box, too. Black Flag Resynced is one of the most gorgeous videogames I've ever played, with its version of the Caribbean offering you a new vista practically every time you pass an island.

The game's also a lovely throwback to an era when you could polish off the mainline story of a big game like this in a couple of dozen hours, rather than something like 75 of them, and the speed at which its story clips along has been refreshing to enjoy.

I was a big fan of Assassin's Creed Shadows, and I'll maintain that its version of Japan was more interesting to explore in mechanical terms than the more stylised one offered up by Ghost of Yotei the same year. Now, Black Flag Resynced has confirmed for me that Ubisoft (despite rumblings in industry terms) has clearly reached a point of impressive technical mastery over its Anvil in-house engine.

The game is well-optimised, and I've been getting a pretty smooth 80fps experience with everything maxed out, Nvidia's wizardly frame generation at 2X, and the resolution at a scary 3440 x 1440 because of that ultrawide. The fact that the game ships with that resolution natively supported is a lovely bonus, of course, and ultrawide owners will know it's never a given.

Similarly, I haven't really encountered many bugs or issues – the game really does just feel like a substantial facelift for a beloved entry from years ago. I'm not sure exactly what made Ubisoft choose Black Flag as its first proper remake, but I'm extremely hopeful that we could get revamped versions of the Ezio games now, to really get my nostalgia firing.

Just like with Shadows, the single technological inclusion that has most consistently blown me away is the global illumination – a lighting system that radically transforms how daylight and other conditions look, making them unfathomably more realistic and impactful.

When you pair this with dynamic weather and water simulation, which is really superb, you get the recipe for some incredibly dramatic conditions, from huge seaborne storms to dappled sunshine through palms on islands, and it's amazing to see a game equally good at portraying nature and human settlements.

Gameplay, meanwhile, is just as you'd hope for, which means it's extremely identifiably the same game as before, with the same tools and abilities, but there have been some modernisations to improve how intuitive things are. For example, the post-launch improvements to the parkour model from Shadows are here from the start, including a dedicated jump button and easier exits from climbing.

The naval combat, meanwhile, remains rewarding and surprisingly challenging – if you think that the "brace" command is optional, for instance, you'll soon realise the opposite, and you really can't take on boats much better-equipped than you. By contrast, combat on foot is refreshingly simple, like the old days of the franchise, with far fewer enemies that act as damage sponges, a problem for modern AC games.

It all makes for a bit of a throwback, one that lets you take things at the pace you want (with difficulty options for those who need more challenge). Except, it's a throwback that looks absolutely enviable, and while I've no doubt the game will be a real looker on the PS5 Pro too, I'm glad to be playing it on PC.

2026 is turning into a fairly terrible year for the gaming industry, with the last few weeks in particular feeling like a parade of one depressing announcement after another. Hot on the heels of Sony declaring that it's binning off all physical disc publishing from early 2028, Xbox has now swung the axe that we all knew was hanging over its gaming portfolio.

Alongside some other layoffs around Microsoft's large empire, Xbox is being hit extremely hard, with a total of 3,200 people set to lose their jobs as part of what it's calling its most significant restructuring ever. 1,600 of those professionals will be laid off today, making for an absolutely brutal day.

There's no real way to sweeten that pill, and to its faint credit, the announcement that Xbox has published is frank and self-critical. It also confirms much of the reporting and rumours that have circulated around the gaming giant for years now, including the theory that its Game Pass bet isn't all that close to paying off, and that its acquisitions look extremely suspect in terms of a return on the investment.

In fact, the acquisitive phase that Xbox went through now seems to be definitively over, and the fact that four (or potentially five) of the development studios it bought are now trying to transition back to independence is quite the indictment of both its strategy and its management.

If the likes of Double Fine and Ninja Theory manage to survive, finish their current projects, and go on to greener pastures, then it'll almost be the perfect confirmation that the problem was Xbox and its approach from the beginning.

In theory, those studios will be taking their IP with them, so franchises like Psychonauts and Hellblade needn't loiter in limbo for the rest of time, but it's still far too early to be feeling particularly optimistic about any of this.

That Xbox is now admitting it has too many layers of management, and that those layers are often too disconnected from the projects over which they have power, is more surprising than the facts themselves. It also means that the next generation of Xbox hardware is even more important than it already looked.

With the Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S generations having seen Sony establish a crushing lead in hardware sales, if Xbox is to have any hope of remaining a genuine competitor, it surely needs Project Helix to be a big hit. How might that happen, given the rumours about lofty prices and no disc drive mean it's unlikely to be obviously differentiated from the PlayStation 6?

Well, raw power has some appeal, obviously, but I honestly couldn't plot a way out of this mire from Xbox's point of view, although cost reduction does have a certain depressing logic to it. Microsoft runs a brutal business, and these decisions are often made by spreadsheet, so it's no surprise that a terrible downturn in Xbox's fortunes has brought these layoffs about, whether it's self-inflicted or not.

The question is whether this makes for the leaner and more efficient Xbox that this press release is trying to sketch out, or whether it just makes an ailing division look more anaemic and therefore easier to cut further when things don't turn around. That's the fallacy behind all layoffs, of course, and I'm not in a pay grade that gets to solve such issues.

With the memory crisis showing signs that it'll get worse before it gets better, and Xbox now shrinking its roster of franchises, though, it's hard to avoid the sense that we're going through some sort of end of days in gaming. What the landscape will look like in five years is hard to predict, but it's a little difficult to imagine Xbox having the same presence that it does now.

It's had a glorious run, but Nintendo is to discontinue its Switch family of consoles.

Released over a decade ago, the original Nintendo Switch faced its fair share of criticism – mainly due to a poor launch lineup of games. However, that proved to be short lived with the console and its follow-ups – the Switch Lite and Switch OLED – proving incredibly popular ever since.

Indeed, Nintendo has shipped around 160 million of them since. That's almost 50% more than the hugely popular and successful Wii.

But all things must come to an end, and Nintendo is calling time on the Switch. As revealed on an official support page (via VGC), it will cease providing units to retailers by February next year. Nintendo will also stop selling Switch consoles on its own web store.

This has partly been prompted by new EU regulations that come in effect that month. They state that any electronics with chargeable batteries must make those batteries easy to repair and replace. Manufacturers must adhere to these new rules or face a ban in the European Union.

Nintendo will release a new version of the Switch 2 for the region, with a user-replaceable battery, but it doesn't make sense to release upgraded models of the consoles it succeeded.

As for existing Switch owners, your console will continue to be supported with updates, games and Switch Online for the foreseeable future. The announcement specifically relates to new consoles sold.

It's not exactly clear if this will affect all regions or just EU member states for now, but it seems likely that it's a global decision. The Switch has had a 10-year run, after all.

Hopefully, with retailers looking to shift their remaining stock from now until February 2027, it'll mean that big sales periods, like Black Friday, will see Switch units at very affordable prices. So it might mean you can pick one up for a bargain – if you don't own one of the 160 million consoles already out there, of course.

One of the perks many Amazon Prime members forget about – or simply aren't aware of – is the ability to play games on multiple devices through Luna. Amazon Prime includes a free Luna subscription and that means more than 100 games are available to play at no extra cost over the cloud.

There are party games for families and friends to play on a TV, using their mobile phones as controllers, and there are AAA and indie hits you'd normally only see on a console or PC.

The list is regularly updated and this month it includes one of my own personal favourite games of 2025 – the multiple award-winning Dispatch.

An interactive adventure game for adults, Dispatch puts you in the shoes of former superhero Robert Robertson, the "dispatcher" of a group of misfit heroes who fight crime around Night City. You're like a taxi cab controller sending them to trouble spots.

However, the team is made up of ex-supervillains and aren't exactly responsive to being bossed around.

The game is split into two styles and mainly hand animated. There are the interactive adventure parts, where your dialogue choices and actions determine the story, while the dispatching element is like a time-management game, in which you are scored at the end.

It makes for a fascinating blend of play. And it's hugely addictive, with the full game split into multiple episodes that you can't help continuing with long into the night.

In many ways, it's like an interactive version of Invincible – the animated series based on the comic books of Robert Kirkman and Ryan Ottley. It's adult and pulls no punches, but also with a sharp, dark sense of humour.

Voice actors include Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad) as the lead, seasoned video games and animation star Laura Bailey, and Casino Royale, The Last of Us and Westworld's Jeffrey Wright.

How to play Dispatch for free

You can play Dispatch anywhere Luna is available, either on PC or Mac by heading to the official web page and streaming from there, or on any other compatible device.

That includes streamed via Fire TV Sticks and Ember TVs; on iPhone, iPad and Android devices; or many Samsung or LG smart TVs.

You just need a Bluetooth controller for TV play, although you can also play using a mouse (trackpad) and keyboard on a desktop PC / Mac or laptop.

Amazon Luna also includes a wide variety of other great games, such as Death Stranding: Director's Cut, Control: Ultimate Edition, Alan Wake II, and another personal fave, Dave the Diver. EA Sports FC 26 can be played for free as well, right now.

Games stream at 1080p 60fps where possible, although you can drop the resolution down to 720p in the settings if you're worried about data usage. You will need minimum broadband speeds of 10 Mbps for 1080p gaming.

Prime members should also remember that Amazon gives away a big bundle of PC games for free each month, to download and keep. You can claim them on the same Amazon Luna homepage.

When Grand Theft Auto 6 – or GTA VI as it's widely known – went live for pre-order last week, the internet almost came grinding to a halt, such was the huge interest in the upcoming game.

What quickly transpired, however, is that pre-orders of the game, including boxed versions, wouldn't actually ship with any disc inside. And, increasingly, it seems that such a physical version may never transpire.

Indeed, every GTA VI pre-order that arrives on 12 November – ahead of the 19 November go-live date – will contain a download code only, providing ample time for players to download the game instead.

Which raises the question: why bother with a boxed copy at all? You might as well just download it in the first place, right?

Death of the disc

It's also having a waterfall effect, as Sony just revealed that PlayStation would be axing disc formats from January 2028.

That means future PlayStation consoles will be digital download only – a format that, frankly, nobody asked for or actually wants. Such is the huge nature of Grand Theft Auto, however, it seems to have somehow made it acceptable.

Gaming communities and retail stores are up in arms about this announcement – and rightly so. As reported on TechRadar, Game has vouched to "not sit idly by" as Sony removed the physical format and swathes of its business.

It's broader than that, though, as no physical media means no second-hand market. And that just isn't good for gamers. If you're buying GTA VI for £70/$80 and, god forbid, you don't enjoy it – then, as has been the case for decades, you'd likely sell it on at a lower price to another player.

The option for gamers to function in that way has provided less 'risk' in their purchases. Sure, there are demos in abundance to sample games, but the big open-world titles of today might not gel with all players, or quickly lose their appeal. Not knowing is part of the fun of play.

Digital divide

The knock-on effect of that is potentially huge. If a gamer is willing to spend X amount on titles in a given period, only being able to do so at full price – and, as we've so often seen, an elevated price compared to physical – from a digital download store will limit the volume of their purchasing power.

Fewer games getting played, fewer explorations from players and therefore experiments from studios actually creating the games – simply fewer benefits to the industry as a whole.

It's like what's happened (and continues to happen) in cinema: arthouse struggles to find an audience, while huge-budget blockbusters are the only mindless movies that pass time and again. Not that everyone asked for it.

In gaming, just as is pointed out in a savvy Reddit thread, the move to digital only is akin to removing your purchase power altogether: "You are renting permission to play it," remarks the post. It shifts the power in a way that, ultimately, is less beneficial for gamers.

The Nintendo Switch 2 recently celebrated its first birthday, meaning we’ve now had a good year or so to really put Nintendo’s latest hybrid console through its paces.

Just after it launched, I wrote about three games in the console’s initial lineup that really showed off the improved hardware, and in the months since I’ve played a lot more.

Unlike its predecessor, which in its latter years shipped too many limp third-party ports that sometimes even had to turn to the cloud to get a game running, the Switch 2 has come right out of the gate with a host of very impressive efforts that you wouldn’t think twice about playing on the platform. And a number of Nintendo’s own games have been lookers too.

There have been loads of Switch 2 games that have impressed me in its first year, but here are three that have really stood out.

Star Wars Outlaws

It would have been a bit of a shame if the first truly open-world Star Wars game had skipped Nintendo platforms altogether, but luckily Star Wars Outlaws made its way to Switch 2 a year after it first launched. And it’s a bit of a stunner.

The game is understandably scaled back compared to the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions, with a noticeably softer image in handheld and docked mode and less visual detail to pore over. But that’s to be expected.

What’s remarkable is that Ubisoft’s development teams have managed to translate this feat of virtual Star Wars tourism to a handheld platform without it feeling completely compromised.

The game’s signature ray-traced reflections remain intact and Kay Vess can whizz around Tatooine’s vast desert on her speeder bike at a mostly rock solid 30fps. Unless you’re doing side-by-side comparisons with the game running on a PS5, it’s hard not to marvel at how good it all looks.

Star Wars Outlaws launched with some frustrating mandatory stealth sections that made parts of the game a bit of a slog, but thankfully those have long since been removed, allowing you to scoundrel your way through the galaxy in any way to see fit.

Motion controls in the Switch 2 version make the fairly rudimentary gunplay a lot more enjoyable, and the game features some of the best HD Rumble effects I’ve experienced on the console. And the best thing of all? Ubisoft has somehow managed to fit this sprawling Star Wars epic into a 20GB(ish) file. May the storage space be with you.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle started its life as one of the crown jewels in this generation’s Xbox lineup, before instantly becoming one of the best PS5 games when it eventually made its way to Sony’s console. A couple of years later, MachineGames completed a hat-trick of excellency with its miraculous Switch 2 version of the game.

I’m happy to report that Indy’s whip-cracking original adventure is no less thrilling on Nintendo’s hybrid. In fact, I might have enjoyed the brilliant tutorial section – a deeply nostalgic playable recreation of Raiders of the Lost Ark’s opening scene – even more on Switch 2 than I did on my PS5 Pro, largely owing to the novelty of playing through it in bed.

In relentlessly high-speed first-person games, the 30fps target we get here might be a non-starter, but it’s less of an issue in this one, with Indy spending as much time puzzling as he does knocking out Nazis. And I found the slapstick brawling to be just as much fun at half the frame rate.

A lot of the graphical features, including ray-tracing, survive the transition to Switch 2, and while the game’s stunning environments are rendered at a much lower resolution than on more powerful hardware, DLSS is mostly very good at maintaining the detail.

MachineGames pulled out all the stops with its Switch 2 version of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, implementing gyro and even mouse control options. Do I wish it also had Wii-style motion-controlled whipping? Of course, but you can’t have it all.

Pokémon Pokopia

At first glance, this ingenious Pokémon-infused hybrid of Minecraft, Animal Crossing and Dragon Quest Builders doesn’t look like a game you’d use to highlight the Switch 2’s power. But as well as being a delightful game about restoring a mysterious post-apocalyptic world with the help of endearingly upbeat monsters, Pokémon Pokopia is also quietly a technical showpiece for the console.

While its visuals won’t immediately wow you like Cyberpunk 2077’s, the cute and colourful art style really pops, complimented by a lighting system that really brings your blocky Poké-paradises to life.

Once you’ve really started to fill out your Pokédex and build up some towns, Pokémon Pokopia quickly becomes a very visually busy game, so it’s a testament to the developers that I very rarely noticed frame drops whether playing in docked or handheld mode.

The handheld resolution is slightly blurrier in motion, but I’m happy to make that tradeoff for the rock solid performance.

Pokémon Pokopia may also be the best advert yet for the Switch 2’s mouse controls. Playing this way makes it a lot easier to build and terraform with precision, while techniques like Rock Smash are more intuitive when you can directly point at the blocks you want to pound.

I do still wish using the Joy-Con as a mouse was more comfortable, but I’m very glad it’s an option when I sit down to rebuild my grateful Pokémon’s broken home.

Sony's announcement yesterday signals the end of physical game media – when it comes to current and next-gen consoles, anyway. Xbox is also rumoured to be following suit.

It means that from 2028, we'll no longer be able to buy games on disc for PlayStation consoles – PS5 and, most likely, PS6. If Xbox does indeed also ditch the disc, Project Helix will be digital-only too.

However, one much-loved gaming giant is bucking the trend. Sega is embracing physical games for a special release, and anyone with a Mega Drive / Genesis or an FPGA homage (such as the Mega Sg) will appreciate the gesture.

That's because it will be releasing two "Legacy Cartridges" in collaboration with iam8bit, to celebrate the 35th anniversary of its famous blue mascot.

Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 will come on playable Mega Drive / Genesis-compatible cartridges, with additional collectable bumph in "nostalgic" packaging.

There will also be a surprise cartridge "infused with Chaos Emerald energy" with one in eight orders.

How much do the Sonic the Hedgehog cartridge reissues cost?

Each bundle costs $99.99 and is available to pre-order now. The first wave of orders will be shipped in Q3 this year, the second in Q4, while all remaining pre-orders will be sent to customers in Q1 2027.

The sets look superb for retro gaming enthusiasts for sure, but are also a reminder of what we are set to lose when PlayStation puts a nail in the coffin of its physical releases. Digital copies are just not the same, and certainly not collectable.

And, as it also showed recently with the announcement that 100s of movies are being removed from PS5 owners libraries, they're not permanently yours either – no matter how much you pay for them.

Still, at least there's the likes of iam8bit and Sega, plus Evercade with its expanding cartridge library to keep the retro flag flying.

Sony has announced the games coming to all PlayStation Plus members next Tuesday, and they are lead by a bit of a surprise inclusion.

Xbox recently made a big decision on Call of Duty when it comes to Game Pass Ultimate, but PS5 and even PS4 owners will be getting one of the best entries in the series at no extra cost.

In preparation for this year's Modern Warfare 4, PS Plus subscribers will get the cross-gen bundle of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III.

Comprising a four to five hour single-player campaign, multiplayer and a Zombies mode, the game sees Captain Price return to track and take on Vladimir Makarov. It's also notable for introducing open world areas to its campaign missions, and giving you more freedom on routes and gameplay styles.

What's interesting is that Xbox – owner of Activision Blizzard – recently announced the decision to stop adding Call of Duty games to its Xbox Game Pass Ultimate service, in order to cut the monthly price.

Admittedly, that comes into effect with COD: Modern Warfare 4 and beyond, but it's a strange look putting another big release on the rival PS Plus platform soon after – even if it's already available on Game Pass.

I'm sure PlayStation fans won't care though.

It'll be available for PS4, PS5 and PS5 Pro from Tuesday 7 July, as will For the King II and CrossCode – two additional PS Plus games for the month. All members can redeem them – Essential, Extra and Premium.

They'll be available to grab until Monday 3 August.

PlayStation Plus pricing and membership tiers

There are three tiers of PS Plus membership. You will need to subscribe to one of them if you want to play multiplayer games online. However, each also offers additional benefits.

PS Plus Essential is the cheapest. Priced at £6.99 / €8.99 / $9.99 / AU$11.95 per month it gives you online play, plus three or four free games at the start of each month.

PS Plus Extra sits in the middle. It costs £10.99 / €13.99 / $14.99 / AU$18.95 per month, and adds access to a game catalogue of more than 300 full games to download.

PS Plus Premium is the most expensive tier and has all of the above and more. It is priced at £13.49 / €16.99 / $17.99 per month, and includes game demos, and an additional catalogue of classic games. There's cloud streaming too, for many games. That works across PS5 and the PS Portal handheld.

Note: in some regions – including Australia – PS Plus Premium is replaced with PS Plus Deluxe for AU$21.95 per month. This is the same as Premium, but without the cloud streaming.

Well, what a time it is to announce this one. Hot on the heels of news that GTA 6 won't have a disc in its "physical version", we're now learning that all PlayStation consoles will stop getting physical game disc releases from January 2028 onwards.

PlayStation announced the move in a surprisingly short blog post, with little deeper explanation of its thinking beyond touching on market trends (which are hard to ignore). It's blunt: "Physical game disc production for all new games releasing on PlayStation consoles will be discontinued starting January 2028".

In its own continuing words, "This is a natural direction for Sony Interactive Entertainment to adapt to consumer trends as the general preference for digital media significantly outpaces physical discs."

Closing the gap

There's no getting away from the fact that around 85% of games sold right now are digital, with physical media ever-shrinking, but this is still an absolutely enormous step, and one that will have major effects on the whole gaming industry.

After all, you'd put solid money on a PlayStation 6 coming out sometime around 2028 based on the current trajectory, and some observers would say this basically confirms that it will be digital-only. Unlike the PlayStation 5 Pro, it would also seem likely that it won't have an optional disc drive, since that drive would only be for older PS5 games anyway.

This will mean that, unless there are major changes to how purchasing works on PlayStation consoles at some point, the PlayStation Store will be the only way to get games directly on Sony's consoles, with the physical market becoming entirely code-in-a-box, and no likelihood of used games.

Digital ownership

Given that PlayStation is already fighting a multi-billion-pound lawsuit here in the UK around the prices on the PlayStation Store, it's hard to avoid the suspicion that this is a fairly dire change from the point of view of most consumers. After all, even if you rarely bought used discs, you always had the option to, and that option will now disappear.

On top of that, we're not even a week on from Sony catching major flak for deleting purchased movies from people's PlayStation accounts, underlining just how tenuous the concept of "ownership" is when you don't have a disc in hand.

It's also worth remembering that it's harder to actually capture the scale of the used market from retailers like CEX and marketplaces like eBay – again, there are plenty of buyers who will suffer from being restricted to digital purchases only.

Given the discontent generated by the lack of a disc in GTA 6's box, expect a fairly significant wave of backlash to be generated in the coming days. There's almost certainly nothing that anyone can do to change Sony's mind on this, but that won't stop people from making their unhappiness known, and loudly.

I wrote about a whole load of retro gaming deals during the recent Prime Day week, with the community treated to bucket-loads of bargains. But the most popular by far was the cheap-as-chips offer on the R36S.

This gaming handheld might not be the most powerful or famous, but is capable of emulating up to original PlayStation games and comes with many thousands of classic games on a microSD card. What's not to like at just £30.99?

One retailer is still selling the R36S for its Prime Day price, and so you can still snag the biggest retro gaming deal even after the event has long ended.

The only caveat is that shipping might take a little longer, although the exact same model is also available from another retailer for just £2 more – at £32.99. And this one is Prime-enabled so is eligible for next day delivery.

Stock is running low though, so you'll need to be quick to secure yours.

What is the R36S retro gaming handheld and is it worth it?

The R36S is a decently spec'ed gaming handheld with a 3.5-inch 640 x 480 4:3 display. It runs on the Rockchip RK3326 processor, which has been the bedrock of retro gaming devices for a few years.

That means it is capable of playing all the 8-bit and 16-bit games comfortably – such as NES, SNES, Master System and Mega Drive – as well as original PlayStation titles.

You might even be able to eke a bit of PSP or N64 gaming out of it.

Most suppliers include a card filled with dubiously sourced ROMs (the games) and so it comes largely plug-and-play.

Gaming accessory manufacturer has made a habit of rubbing console manufacturers up the wrong way – with PlayStation and Nintendo in particular having issues with the upstart start-up. However, it seems to have gone too far this time.

Before Valve managed to announce its launch plans and pricing for the Steam Machine, Dbrand cheekily announced its own case for the forthcoming console – one that was based on the Weighted Companion Cube in Valve's Portal.

It looked great, got loads of publicity – including from T3 – and influencers took to YouTube to say just how cool it was. The only issue is Dbrand had missed out one important thing – permission.

At no point during its seven-month development did Dbrand ask Valve if it could make the case.

That has turned out to be a fatal decision, as the Companion Cube is now set for the dustbin. Valve's legal team not only requested the product was removed from the accessory firm's webstore along with all marketing videos and images, but it refused to enter licensing negotiations.

The Steam Machine Companion Cube is no more.

Dbrand has issued a humble statement explaining the situation, and has taken full responsibility: "On 12 November 2025, the day the Steam Machine was announced, we put up a concept render and sign-up page to see if anyone would be interested in a Companion Cube enclosure.

"It went moderately viral, with over fifteen thousand people signing up to be notified in the first day. In the months that followed, we built the idea into something real without ever asking Valve if we could.

"We’re going to regret that decision for a very long time," it says.

"Over the next seven months, we poured our souls into this project. More than a thousand hours went into engineering from our industrial design team. Forty-four sets of injection molding tools were developed, one for each of the cube's sub-components.

"The entire product was redesigned from scratch more than once, just to get the way it cradles the console exactly right. We literally rented out a university campus to film the launch video. By the end, we were losing money on every $99 Poverty Cube sold, but it didn’t matter. This had turned into a passion project for the entire organisation.

"Unfortunately, being proud of the thing we made did not give us the right to make it."

The statement also goes on to say that none of this is Valve's fault, and that the legal team have been "direct, fair, and respectful throughout".

And if you are one of those who pre-ordered your Steam Machine Companion Cube last week, you will receive a full refund by the end of the day today.

That seems to be it for the project sadly, and we're no longer going to be able to put our new (and expensive) Steam Machines in what seems like their natural shell. Still, Dbrand will have a new range of skins to check out soon.

And it'll be hoping we'll do so in droves – after all, it has tooling and many man hours to pay for.

Although the pre-order process is well underway, we still have months to wait before Grand Theft Auto VI actually arrives. It'll be released on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S on Thursday 19 November, and if you're anything like us, we're struggling to contain our excitement.

However, you can get yourself prepared in the meantime. Not only are there plenty of official screenshots and a couple of trailers online, a community project has popped up to give us a virtual tour around Leonida, including Vice City and the other confirmed and rumoured areas of the game.

We're apparently getting the largest open world setting seen in a GTA game yet – at least according to a listing accidentally posted on Amazon's Brazilian site. And you can scroll around it, Google Maps style on an interactive website.

There are pins where it's believed each of the release game screens are taken from, while additional information has been gleaned from leaks and other art.

Of course, Leonida is loosely based on Florida, including its own Keys area, while Vice City is Miami – and there are nods to some real-world photos for comparison.

It's a truly impressive project and if the game does indeed allow you to travel the length and breadth of the map on show, it will indeed be huge. Let's hope so.

Back to the Amazon leak and the listing also revealed (via VGC) that there will be dynamic weather conditions and, perhaps most excitingly, an in-game social network to "watch viral videos, follow influencers, and discover world events".

NPCs will also reportedly have their own lives – navigating their our routines and random events around you.

Hopefully we'll find out a bit more soon, with a third game trailer thought to be on its way. You'll have to make do with the map for now though, and check out the pre-order details if you haven't have managed to place yours yet.

I've been a huge fan in the last few years of Square Enix's push on what it calls 2D-HD. This art style involves 2D sprites superimposed on 3D environments that can be much more intricate than they used to be in truly 2D pixel-based games of yore, and it's already proven that it can look pretty stunning in the right circumstances.

Until this month, all of the 2D-HD games that Square had released had been old-school RPGs with turn-based battle systems, and I've really enjoyed plenty of them. Still, its latest game in the lineup, The Adventures of Elliot, confirms that there was indeed room for a different approach.

This game is more of a traditional action-adventure game, much like the older titles in the Zelda franchise, and it really clearly demonstates that there's still so much life in the art style.

The game sees you play as Elliot, the titular adventurer and all-around good guy, as he's drawn into a fairly classic RPG plot. His local king has a dastardly advisor with his own eye on power, and when he uncovers a way to get it involving time travel, he kicks off the plot in a big way. That plot sees you following him through sort of wormholes to explore the world in multiple different eras.

You travel from pre-history all the way through to the future, seeing how the world grows and decays, and how the place of magic within its society waxes and wanes, too. It's a really fun idea, although it's fair to say that there's a lot more dialogue than I expected from the genre, and some of it can get a tiny bit dull and predictable.

What's much more reliable rewarding, though, is the game's visual style, which really does make the most of its retro aesthetic to propose a way forward for ambitious RPGs. Rather than games that need to cost hundreds of millions to make over the course of half a decade, this game looks beautiful and artistic with a much more limited approach.

Its environments are sweeping and evocative, but they're also not always that high-resolution, and while the game runs really smoothly on the Switch 2, that might well be partly because it's not actually that graphically demanding. I intend this as praise, to be clear – it's really clever management.

The gameplay is also nice and fun, with a very old-school approach to actual movement and combat, but a faster pace thanks to more movement speed. It also remixes things by giving you what are effectively unlockable perks for the various weapons you collect.

These perks can change how you use a weapon quite substantially, for example making it way more profitable to use slower power attacks than quick ones, or vice-versa. They're a fun way of keeping you on your toes and changing up your play-style in small but meaningful ways.

I'm about five hours into the game, so I can't pretend to know exactly how its story will play out, and I'm looking forward to it hopefully throwing me some curveballs (although reviewers have maybe indicated that won't happen much). What I know, though, is that the strong visual presentation of The Adventures of Elliot offer a map of how we could more well-made, well-presented games from big studios, rather than them all chasing photorealism.

Sometimes the old ways can be blended with the new, and 2D-HD certainly proves that retro gaming is as relevant as ever right now.

The PlayStation 5 Pro is expensive. Like, really bloody expensive. But, hot on the heels of Rockstar Games announcing Grand Theft Auto 6, I'm going to take the tumble and actually buy one. Gulp.

Sure, I don't need one, as I already own an original PS5 console. And, to be fair, I use that aplenty thanks to its disc drive – my 4K Blu-ray Club wouldn't have an output source otherwise. So I'll need to buy that pesky separate Sony disc drive, too. And probably a dedicated 4K Blu-ray player.

So, why now? The PS5 Pro launched back in November 2024, so it's kinda getting old already. But we've already seen a price increase since that date – and not a small one, either, as it was a £90 / $100 hike back in April. That's not down to inflation, it's down to market conditions.

When that happened I was further put off rather than thinking "I'd better get in line to buy one". But now, just two months on from that rise, I think yet more bad news could be imminent. Nothing's official yet, mind.

The Xbox impact

Take, as a key example, the recent Xbox boss's comments in revealing significant price rises for Microsoft's console across the board. That's not an isolated issue, it's down to significant memory price increases that affect the whole PC and games industries – and beyond, quite frankly.

So, in my mind, it's not a case of if Sony will be forced to follow suit, but rather when. Currently PS5 Pro sales have significantly dropped – but that's no surprise, as many rushed to buy in April, with a 50% sales drop thereafter being a direct consumer response to the price rise.

But here's what I believe will happen next. As someone who's just ordered GTA VI, which arrives this November, there's now a 'countdown clock' ticking away for the next five months. The game's release is undoubtedly going to be huge – and people are going to want to play it in the best way possible.

The GTA VI effect

Right now, even Sony is leveraging that GTA VI "plays best on PS5". In that official blog post, a number of reasons are given – but a key one, for me, is that the game "leverages the PS5’s ultra-high speed SSD, enabling you to experience ... near-instant load times."

The step up from PS5 to PS5 Pro is sizeable. Current rumours suggest that you'll get a locked frame rate on the Pro version. So it'll "play even better on PS5 Pro" (my words, not Sony's – yet, anyway). And people, myself included, are going to want a slice of that pie.

I think that's eventually going to cause a sudden rush of PS5 Pro purchases. Not right this second, granted, as people need to brush the April price rise off their shoulders and have ample time to forget it ever happened. But once they do and more Pro units continue to sell, the stock dwindles, the production line needs to source more components – and, you guessed it, those will cost more.

Result? The increased production is pushed onto you and I, the consumers. So I cannot see how the PS5 Pro won't be more expensive by the time GTA VI launches this November. I'm sure an official bundled box set will be arranged prior to the holiday period to really capitalise on the game's launch.

The offer of good credit

As it stands, however, promotional bundles are already available. Indeed, EE is currently selling one in the UK market for £808. I can't even find a Pro console on Amazon – which seems to me like a precursor to what's incoming.

Therefore EE's deal above is tempting. In particular as the offer of 9 months interest-free credit is an option, at £89.78 per month to cover the full purchase (longer payment plans are available – but the APR is high, so you'd pay over the odds).

I could hit the 'payday f-it button' right now, have a PS5 Pro in my lounge by next week, and have everything – GTA VI included – paid off and fully my own by next March. There's not going to be a PlayStation 6 to worry about in 2027, so assume an earliest 2028 launch for that – and I'm sure my Pro as a trade-in option will provide a decent discount as and when.

I know, it's bonkers to drop almost £800 / $900 on Sony's best current console. But with Valve's Steam Machine showing where prices are heading and, get this, the Xbox Series S (not X!) now set to cost more than a Switch 2, prices surely aren't going anywhere but up. And I want to be ahead of that curve – even if I'm a little late to the party already.

The Switch 2 is among my most-used gadgets this year – and that's more than a full year after the console initially launched. Can you believe it?

Compared to my PlayStation 5 it gets more of my time. And don't start me on the Xbox Series X, which I've not switched on for probably a couple of years now.

In a welcome turn, however, Nintendo's console has seen a welcome little discount as part of Amazon's sale – so you can get it cheaper than it's been throughout 2026.

Check out the Switch 2 discount deal

Prime Day 2026 – T3's picks of ALL the best deals

If you were to buy one from Amazon within the Prime Day period – i.e. before the end of Friday 26 June – then you'd also have spent over the £80 threshold for an automated £20 voucher to spend next month.

I know a lot of people had been reluctant to pick up a Switch 2 at launch day. One, because it was nigh-on impossible to get stock. Two, because some were doubtful of the games line-up for day one.

I, however, have loved the first-party games coming out – and you won't get those Nintendo gems anywhere else. Mario Kart World still remains epic fun. The unsung Welcome Tour is well worth having, too.

More recently, however, we've been treated to additional all-new gems. From the joyous Yoshi And The Mysterious Book, to Donkey Kong: Bananza, these two titles alone warrant getting hold of Nintendo's console.

Even many of the remakes feel, to me at least, like all-new games. Star Fox is the most recent example, which I can barely believe is based on the 30-year-old original. One of the greatest Zelda games ever is also due at the end of this year, in Ocarina of Time.

All of which is to say: the Switch 2 has heaps of quality on board already, with more to come, and if you've survived the heatwave and fancy treating yourself on payday then I've not seen a better deal on the console this year.

To call the Switch 2's Star Fox "just a remake" of the original 1997 N64 game, Star Fox 64 (well, Lylat Wars as I and so many others knew it – as that was the obscure European release name), would be to do it a disservice.

I've spent the last week-and-a-bit playing Star Fox on Switch 2 and, for me, it's set the nostalgic floodgates wide open – taking me back to school-age memories, yet keeping me in the here and now thanks to the game's complete and total graphical rework. It's added much more, too.

Cut from a new cloth

When a game is knocking on the door of being three decades old, I often ponder: "Was it just good for the time, or good enough to stand the test of time?" Now, I couldn't fire up Lylat Wars, as I no longer possess an original N64 console, but have since gone down YouTube rabbit holes to watch online playthroughs.

The look is night and day, with the Switch 2 version not simply adding a greater draw distance and sharper definition visuals. It's fully reinvested in the Lylat System's worlds, with new objects, visual and sound effects, voice-overs, and even brand new cut-scenes to tie the storyline together. To me it simply feels like a brand new game.

Yes, Fox McCloud's father's voice-over sounds amateurish, but – spoiler alert! – he dies in the opening cut-scene anyway. Set the game's timeline to five years later and we're left with an entertaining ensemble in Fox, Slippy Toad, Falco Lombardi, Peppy Hare and General Pepper – all of whom convey their characters' personalities convincingly.

While the cut-scenes set the backstory, it's the in-game action that really sells Star Fox. Once again, Nintendo has proven its genius – as the core structure of this rail shooter is effectively the same, but doesn't feel dated like you might expect. Indeed, for those who never played the original, it'll feel completely fresh.

Perfect timing

That's why now is such a great time for Star Fox to release for the Switch 2. Nintendo has savvily managed to sit between generations, so whether you were a teenager when the original dropped or are one now and exploring the new release for the first time, it's like digging into an all-new game.

It's more than stood the test of time, too, with great controls – if you can handle the inverted Y-axis (which you can change in settings), which I remember causing quite a stir among friends back in the day – and what is simply fun shooting fare.

There's an essence of arcade shooter about Star Fox, not that it ever enters the difficulty realms of an old-school side-scrolling shooter from the 1980s (that surely inspired its very core in the first place – R-Type, anyone?).

Huge replayability

But while a single run-through won't take an age – indeed, you'll "complete it" in an evening – there's heaps more to this game. And not just throwaway tidbits. Medal-earning challenges, multiple routings through the game's pathway, a true final boss, and incremental difficulty modes. They're addictive enough to keep you returning – which is exactly what I've feverishly been doing in the evenings over this past week.

The Switch 2 brings yet more to the party, too, with a Battle Mode that I'm sure will be the mainstay for many online gamers – as here you can embark on 4v4 dogfights (foxfights?) and squeeze never-ending playtime out of this release. If co-op is more your thing, however, then that's also present and correct for the main storyline.

When the franchise seemed like it might be dead and done – thanks to Star Fox Zero's poor performance upon release a decade ago – the Switch 2's new release shows that's anything but true. It was Zero's much-maligned Wii U controls that were its core criticism, though. With a controller in hand, the Switch 2 game feels much more natural.

Not that you have to play Star Fox with a controller. Another Switch 2 feature, mouse control, has also been added as an option. It gives you a cockpit view and table-top inputs – which, personally, I loathe. The finicky nature and hard-to-see viewpoint feel too removed from the game for me. But I'm sure some will love this setup.

More reimagination than remake

Sure, Nintendo has been leaning more than a little heavily on its stock in remakes to help propel the Switch 2 along. That's felt taxing at times (and I've heard many others say so), when there's been no true new Zelda or Mario game for the latest console.

We did get brand new Donkey Kong game and a joyous side-scrolling Yoshi title, mind, plus I've loved all of the remakes to date. Star Fox, however, looks to elevate the practice from remake to reimagination – and that's great footing ahead of the Switch 2's Ocarina of Time release later this year.

Until then, whether you played Star Fox 64 (or Lylat Wars) or not, I thoroughly recommend grabbing Star Fox for the Switch 2. It's such a fresh take on the classic that it will be new for those who've never played the original, while feeling anew for those who lived through the N64's 90s reign.

Grand Theft Auto VI pre-orders only opened yesterday and we already have a deal on the cover price.

Usually £69.99 in the UK, Amazon has dropped the price of the Playstation 5 version. Order it through Amazon therefore and you'll be paying less than at other retailers.

Admittedly, it's not a massive discount, but you still get 3% off a game that's only been available to pre-order for a day so far. And, as they say, every little helps.

This pre-order is for a physical copy of the standard edition, which will play on both PS5 and PS5 Pro. You do need to be aware though that it doesn't include a disc – you get a download code in the box itself.

There has been a leak suggesting a disc version will be released after launch, around December time, but for now, you'll have to download the game just as you would if you bought it digitally on your console.

You will thought get your pre-order shipped early, with Rockstar claiming the download code in a box versions being sent out on 12 November – a week before the release date. That's to allow you to preload the game so you can play it from day one.

We're keeping an eye out for other GTA 6 deals, which we'll bring you as soon as we spot them. We'll also keep an eye out for PS5 Pro deals, as we suspect that'll be the best way to play the new Grand Theft Auto on release.

So come back to T3 often to find out more.

It's been a rough year for gaming hardware, with prices that just keep on rising, but Xbox's latest round of hikes is arguably the most shocking yet. That isn't because they're unexpected (they're very much not), but rather because they push pretty much all of Xbox's current-generation hardware into territory where you'd be hard-pressed to recommend that anyone at all should buy them.

The announcement was made in typically low-key fashion, in the form of a blog post on Xbox Wire, and there's no sugar-coating it. The post confirmed that on 1 August 2026, Xbox's 512GB consoles will get a $100 rise, while 1TB versions will go up by $150.

The damage that this set of price rises will do is perhaps underlined by the fact that Xbox didn't then do the math for its readers, but here's what the hikes actually look like in practice:

• Xbox Series S (512GB): Up from $399.99 to $499.99
• Xbox Series S (1TB): Up from $449.99 to $599.99
• Xbox Series X Digital (1TB): Up from $599.99 to $749.99
• Xbox Series X (1TB): Up from $649.99 to $799.99y

Those are prices that are almost impossible to swallow, in all honesty, and they're particularly terrible where the Xbox Series S is concerned. Once Nintendo's price rises come into force in September, the Series S will be the same price as the Switch 2, and there's no planet where I'd recommend the former over the latter.

Meanwhile, $750 for an Xbox Series X also looks fairly laughable when compared to the PS5 Pro for $100 more, and again, there's no way I'd point anyone towards Xbox's console when the comparison is made. If you bring the standard PS5 into play at $599 (for now), there's just no competition whatsoever.

Xbox's blog post is full of explanations for the hikes, with the biggest being the rise in memory component costs, as we all know by now – although in this case, Microsoft itself is obviously a big driver of the AI boom that's fuelling the crisis, something that isn't acknowledged.

Perhaps the most important part of the post, though, is the second half of this line: "Unfortunately, console storage and memory prices have increased by more than 2.5x, and we expect another doubling by the fall of 2027."

That's right, folks – this is far from the end of things, and if that doubling comes to pass in the next 12 months, we might get to the point where once mainstream consoles are priced at genuinely luxury levels. People have been speculating about $1,000 PS6s, but at this rate, the Xbox Series X might get to that point well before a new generation of consoles is ready.

That should worry basically anyone interested in console gaming – the market wasn't built up around consoles priced this prohibitively, and there's no way the impacts of unaffordable hardware don't ripple out over time. Xbox is already bleeding badly from a console war that was honestly already lost midway through the Xbox One era, but this could be another dismal turn.

With a scattergun approach to exclusive titles now leading to unpredictability about its biggest franchises, and layoffs happening left, right and centre in studios that it owns, Xbox is in full-blown crisis, whatever it's projecting in press releases.

It probably does need the reset that it claims to be going through, but it's hard to know what'll come out of that process. The Xbox Series S was intended to be a cheap entry point to get people hooked on Game Pass, but when it's $500, and Game Pass is no longer the top priority, where does that leave things?

We might know more in a year or so, as its plans for the next generation continue to leak and be reported on, but right now, there's only really one thing I can say – buying an Xbox just went from an interesting choice to a downright bad idea.

While we don't yet know numbers, if we were to guess how many copies of Grand Theft Auto VI have been pre-ordered so far, we'd estimate "sh*t-loads".

Amazon US, for example, sold out of PS5 copies at one point. And that's even considering that the physical edition doesn't include a disc – it's just a download code in a box.

It's certainly proven contentious. Many will pre-order the game through the PlayStation or Xbox stores on their consoles, of course. But even if you do so online, through the likes of Amazon, Argos, GameStop or Best Buy, you still have to download the game entirely.

And there will be no trading it in again once you've finished, as the code will have been redeemed to your account forever.

• GTA 6 pre-order stockists, prices and details here

However, there might be some better news coming for those who would rather own GTA 6 on a disc. Polish website PPE (via VGC) claims that a disc version could be coming in December – a month after the game is launched (on 19 November).

PPE already got it spot on when it suggested the physical box would be download code only at the pre-order phase, long before we found out.

The leaker has also got retail information right before the launch of other major releases.

Whether this is enough to make you hold off from a pre-order purchase is another thing. After all, there is no physical release for the Grand Theft Auto VI: Ultimate Edition, and according to the people we know who have ordered the game already, that's the version they've opted for.

You can currently only get that on the respective digital stores from PlayStation and Xbox. And considering it contains exclusive in-game items and at least one mission, it seems an attractive option for just a little more cash (£20 extra in the UK, $20 in the US).

Ever since I bought my Lenovo Legion Go S (SteamOS) during the Black Friday sales last year, I've used it on a daily basis. More powerful that the Steam Deck and with a larger, 8-inch display, it is a superb PC gaming handheld that can play just about everything I chuck at it.

And, with the Steam Summer Sale underway, even the games are very affordable.

Now you get another change to experience it for yourself, as the 1TB Z2 Go version is available at a rock-bottom price. John Lewis is selling the Lenovo Legion Go S (SteamOS) for just £449.99 – almost £50 off.

If you consider that the Steam Deck starts at £649 for half the storage and a lower-spec'ed processor, it's a no-brainer really.

The 8-inch touchscreen display on the Lenovo Legion Go S also features a 120Hz refresh rate and supports variable refresh rate (VRR) technology. That means it games will run smoothly even if the frame rate jumps around a bit.

And, just like the Steam Deck, the Legion Go S runs on SteamOS, so it works exactly the same way as Valve's own handheld. You get the same experience and can buy games from the Steam Store in the same way.

I bought the step-up model running on the Z1 Extreme CPU myself, which also comes with increased RAM. And while that Black Friday price is not available this time around, Very.co.uk is offering the variant with a very decent £100 off.

That puts it in the same ballpark as the 1TB OLED Steam Deck, but with a vastly superior processor, screen resolution, refresh rate and RAM. Also, that version of the Steam Deck is hard to find in stock.

Whichever model piques your interest, you can be assured you're in for a whole lot of mobile PC gaming fun. I've certainly not looked back since.

It's been a busy week in the world of PC gaming, which is always going to be the case when Valve has a big announcement to make. It chose this week to finally confirm the pricing for its long-awaited Steam Machine, and to start collecting registrations for its randomised pre-order system.

With the most affordable version (sans Steam Controller) coming in at £879 / $1,049, there's no way to sugarcoat it – the Machine looks pretty overpriced relative to the raw performance on offer. In fact, I'm not the only person questioning it – our news editor Rik is wondering whether he needs to cancel his pre-order registration already.

If you want a flexible PC gaming machine right now, though, there's actually good news. Thanks to Prime Day, there's a really nice saving on the excellent Asus ROG Xbox Ally, which is relatively recently-launched and offers far more bang for your buck if you're happy playing on the go.

The state of the gaming market means that deals like this are likely to be looked back on in 12 months with pure nostalgia – the price rises we've all been seeing seem to be inevitable and have no real counter, so brace yourself for far crazier prices in a few months' time.

For now, though, this deal will get you a really handy gaming machine for portable use. It can also be docked to connect to an external display, although you probably shouldn't expect the world from it in performance terms. On its own two feet, though, it's a great bit of kit, and with support from Xbox it's actually more user-friendly than many pure Windows alternatives.

If you're looking for something a bit more old-school, though, we've also rounded up the best retro gaming deals this Prime Day – check them out here.

When I reviewed the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Elite last year, I named it the best gaming headset I've ever used, but still couldn't give it the pure five-star verdict you'd assume would come with that. The big issue? Its absolutely massive price, which hasn't really come down at all since release – until now.

For the first time, Amazon Prime Day has brought in a tasty discount on the Nova Elite, slashing £50 off its asking price to make it a bit more palatable. That said, it's still a chunky amount of money for a headset, and the fact remains that there's another SteelSeries deal on an older headset that I think is the better pick right now.

Check both those deals out below, and keep reading to see why I think the second is the smarter option.

For many of us, the difference between spending £549 and £199 will be quite enough to make this an open-and-shut case, but if you need some persuasion, here's my pitch. I used the Arctis Nova Pro Wireless as my daily headset for years, from the moment it released until the day I got my hands on the Nova Elite.

Would I go back? Not willingly – the Nova Elite is basically perfect from my point of view, outside of that price. However, did I notice a gigantic upgrade when I moved to the more expensive headset? Not immediately, and only when paying careful attention.

My point is this – the Nova Pro Wireless is still a stunning headset, and represents a massive upgrade over many others you might have used. It was the standard to beat for years, and while it's now been superseded by the Nova Elite and Nova Pro Omni, at this price, it's still hard to ignore.

So, if you've been saving for the Nova Elite, then this is definitely a good time to buy it, with its first proper discount. If you just want a great headset at a great price, though, jump on the Nova Pro Wireless while this discount lasts.

The biggest game of the century so far is nearly here – GTA 6 is open to pre-order now, ahead of its release on PS5 and Xbox on 19 November. Still, you might have some questions about it, not least because every screenshot and trailer of the game released so far appears to be jaw-droppingly high-fidelity.

If you're a PS5 owner wondering about the game's compatibility, or if you don't currently own a console but plan to buy one to play what is a genuinely titanic gaming release, you're in the right place – here are some key answers about what hardware the game will run on, and how.

Will GTA 6 require a PS5 Pro?

Here's the big headline question – given how good it looks, will you need a PS5 Pro to run GTA 6? No.

Rockstar has long since confirmed that the game will release for the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S consoles, meaning that it will be available to play on base hardware from the launch of this generation. That means that if you have a PS5 right now, you're absolutely fine to play the game when it launches.

It also means that if you don't have a console, you can choose between a PS5, PS5 Pro, Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S as to where you end up playing it. The game isn't releasing on PC at first, although that will hopefully come later, and it also hasn't been announced for the Nintendo Switch 2.

Will GTA 6 be PS5 Pro enhanced?

This is a more difficult question to answer. According to the PlayStation Store listing for GTA 6, the game will indeed be enhanced for the PS5 Pro. However, Rockstar and PlayStation have said absolutely nothing about what this actually means.

Sometimes game developers tell us before a game releases what the differences will be between playing on PS5 and PS5 Pro, whether it's higher resolutions, framerates or better ray-tracing.

In this case, we don't know anything about what'll improve; that said, we have months to go before it comes out, so there's no reason to believe that we won't get these details eventually.

Frankly, given the extra power offered by the PS5 Pro compared to every other console on the market right now, it's a given that the game will run better, but we'll have to wait for further details to know in what ways.

Will GTA 6 be better on PS5?

Here's another more contentious question. In theory, the versions of GTA 6 coming to PS5 and Xbox should be the same in terms of content, PlayStation and Rockstar have a marketing partnership pushing people towards the PS5.

A recent blog post confirms that there will be various PS5-specific enhancements, too, including using the DualSense's haptic triggers, its built-in speaker, and the console's 3D sound engine for more immersion.

In practice, none of those will be all that game-changing (and I always turn the DualSense's speakers off in-game as I hate how they sound), but these little touches do mean that the game will arguably have slightly more to offer on PS5 compared to Xbox, if you're keeping track of all the minutiae.

Where to pre-order GTA 6 on PS5

If you're a dedicated PlayStation gamer and you want a copy of GTA 6 locked in for launch day, you'll find some links above for pre-orders. It's worth knowing and reiterating that the "physical copies" being sold in stores won't actually have discs, though.

They're going to be download codes in boxes, which is a frankly grim step that nonetheless will mean that Rockstar is completely safe from pre-release leaks. The firm indications are that a disc version will follow eventually, but it's fairly rotten to know that this won't be available at launch.

I've played a lot of Switch 2 ports in the year and change since Nintendo's latest console arrived – and I've written a fair few pieces about how, in some ways, those ports justify the console on their own. Still, there's no denying that some are more impressive than others.

If you're searching for the console port that I think most impressively shrinks down a huge experience without compromising it, and which makes the best case for the Switch 2's graphical prowess, it might be Assassin's Creed Shadows. It took Ubisoft a while to build it, and then some important post-release patches to polish it, but the Switch 2 version is endlessly impressive.

It lets you explore this stunning recreation of Japan without any compromises in terms of content – everything that's in the PS5 and Xbox versions of the game is here, too. That also makes it brilliant value with hundreds of hours of content to get through. So, the fact that it's basically the only big Switch 2 game on sale for Amazon Prime Day is quite noteworthy.

The game sees you swap between two characters – one a hulking fighter and the other a stealthy ninja, letting you take different approaches as you explore the open world. That world, meanwhile, is staggering, full of small settlements and with a couple of bustling cities, too.

It's the atmosphere of rural Japan that is most memorable in it, though, and the way the game lets you take your time to make your way through its mountains, valleys, fields and plateaus. It had me taking screenshots every five minutes, which isn't true of every game, that's for sure.

I really think that getting a port this masterful, especially one that only came out this year, for less than £30 is a fairly huge steal. The fact that there are no other major Switch 2 games on sale makes it all the more prized, and something of a hidden gem in this Prime Day extravaganza.

As with RAM chips, SSD cards have seen their prices soar to ridiculous levels in the last six months or so – mainly due to AI data centres snaffling up components like pigs with truffles.

That's been awful news for PS5 owners wanting to upgrade their storage, or those opting to build their own PCs rather than buy a Steam Machine.

However, Amazon Prime Day looks to be our saviour. I've found many SSD cards – including PS5 compatible variants – is some great deals. The discounts mean they're around pre-RAMageddon prices.

So here are my top five picks, for the UK and US. Just remember though, Prime Day ends at midnight tonight, Friday 26 June, so you'll you don't have long to check out.

Top 5 editor's picks:

There are plenty of other options available in the Prime Day sale. However, these are the five that have stood out most to me, and the ones I'd consider buying myself.

You will need to be a member of Amazon Prime to get the deal prices, but if not already you can sign up for a 30-day trial in the UK here, or US here.

Prime gives you a host of additional benefits, including Prime Video and free PC games and game streaming, but if you don't want to continue after Prime Day, you can cancel and not pay a penny in subscription fees.

It's also worth considering that Amazon UK has a £20 voucher promotion for Prime Day, so if you spend £80 or more in a single transaction (can be on multiple items in the same basket) you get a free £20 Amazon voucher back. Read more about that here.

Amid a UK heatwave, the internet has also gone into total meltdown, as Rockstar Games finally announced Grand Theft Auto 6's pricing – and pre-orders became available today, Thursday 25 June.

Almost immediately, Amazon US sold out of pre-order allocation – not that it really matters, as the boxed copy is only a code for a digital download anyway – but the UK site hasn't fallen to the same fate.

Indeed, you can pre-order a copy for PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X easily. But why pay the full £69.99 asking price up front, when Amazon offers this great little hack so you can secure the game for under £25.

It's wonderfully simple, too. Not only does Amazon offer a whopping 4-pence discount off the £69.99 RRP, the retailer also permits you to split the payment into thirds – with £23.32 up front, then the same sum twice more.

That's one additional payment of £23.32 in December 2026 and the final £23.31 balance in January 2027. That grand total is the very same – there's no fee, percentage charge or any funny business. Amazon offers it on many products – as pointed out in my Prime Day sale hacks feature.

You'll need to select the 'Pay in 3 monthly payments of £23.32' checkbox at the Basket stage, before going to the checkout, to make this feasible. It could be easily missed. And there's not a penny to pay until the date of dispatch, which ought to be 11 November for the 12 November pre-install ahead of the 19 November activation date.

Rockstar Games hasn't released a third trailer for Grand Theft Auto VI as yet, however, and if its previous releases in the series are anything to go by then don't expect one until much nearer the official release date. For now, the publisher is keeping things fairly under wraps.

The latest information is that GTA VI will be available in two forms: the standard game and the Ultimate Edition – the latter priced at £89.99 in the UK. This unlocks "an exclusive collection of premium vehicles, weapons, apparel, and action," should this be of interest to you. It'll also come with a month's worth of GTA+ for GTA Online play.

Whichever version you choose, my advice would be to get yourself in the pre-order line nonetheless. But also to not worry too much: the Xbox and PlayStation Stores will have unlimited access to download codes, so you're not going to go short.

Do be aware of scams, however, as the high-profile launch of the game has already seen fake 'beta test' sites for early access pry upon people – and steal money, crypto or assets in the process. Stay vigilant, only use reputable sources, and note that there is no early access – so don't fool for it!

Now for the inevitable countdown over the next 5 months, as GTA fever once again grips not only the gaming community, but the wider world – from stock markets to social impact, this game is an event rather than just yet another release.

Buying a gaming laptop can be one of the most intimidating purchases you could hope to make. They're really expensive, whatever part of the market you're shopping in, and just like any other laptop, they're in danger of being replaced by newer, better-value versions at any moment.

That's one of a few good reasons why it's always worth waiting for big sales events to buy one, as the discounts tend to be really deep – and with Amazon Prime Day now in full swing, a window has opened up. If you're in the market for a new gaming machine and you want to make some impressive savings, there are oceans of deals to check out.

To help you narrow things down, I've picked out four top deals that I think you'll want to know about, all of which offer impressively low prices for well-specced machines. They also each make the Steam Machine's recently announced pricing look pretty suspect, so check them out below.

As a lover of retro games and retro gaming devices, big sales events like Amazon Prime Day prove to be essential. I'm always on the look out for a bargain on a new mini or full-size arcade unit, reissued console, or yet another handheld to add to my collection.

And even though 2026 is proving to be challenging for the hobby, with new devices more scarce due to the ongoing RAM crisis, there are plenty of deals on existing goodies to be had.

• Shop all Amazon Prime Day deals

I've been scouring Amazon throughout the Prime Day week to bring you the very best bargains before it ends later today. Just make sure you checkout before midnight tonight, Friday 26 June.

Also remember, you will need to be an Amazon Prime member to get most of the deals I find, but if you're not already, you can sign up for a 30-day free trial before a subscription fee is taken from your account.

I've been hunting down US deals too, so if you're in the States, there should be something for you as well.

Top 5 editor's picks:

Back in black

Released at the tail end of last year, this special edition of The C64 Mini features 25 classic Commodore 64 games and a console-like experience. It's very plug and play.

You can even add your own game ROMs via USB and play them in 720p over HDMI.

It's not exactly a Prime Day deal, but you can get The C64 Mini Black Edition for just £64.95 right now (down from £89.99) and the best news is you don't even need to be a Prime member.

Great Evercade cartridge deals

With a new Evercade handheld on the horizon and plenty out there that already support the game cartridges, it's definitely worth checking out the deals on Amazon for Prime Day.

Both of the first two Activision collections are reduced by 34%, for example. And there are deals on other collections too.

Here are some of my personal picks:

• Evercade Activision Collection 1 – was £19.99, now £13.29
• Evercade Activision Collection 2 – was £19.99, now £13.29
• Evercade The C64 Collection 2 – was £19.99, now £15.19
• Evercade Duke Nukem Collection 2 – was £19.99, now £18.99
• Evercade Delphine Collection 1 – was £19.99, now £18.99

US deal: a favourite but odd retro games handheld

Here's a deal for the US now that Prime Day has kicked off in the States too. The R36T is similar to the R36S that I've also featured on this page – in terms of internal hardware and emulator support – but it's also one of weirdest devices around (yep, I already own one).

It is modelled after a CRT TV of the 60s and 70s and even has a covex covering on the display to make it look rounded at the edges. It adds to the retro feel, for sure.

You can nab one from Amazon US for just $38.35 in the deal (the white model) – a great discount on the usual $69.99 price. Other colours are available too.

It's a time machine on your desk

There are a myriad of portable, mini arcade machines but only a few have a game library as extensive as this one.

The My Arcade Atari Micro Player Pro gives you the arcade experience, but with 100 classic Atari games (from the likes of the Atari 2600). And so, at £34.42 (down by 15%) that works out at around 34p per game.

There are some real bangers in there too, such as Missile Command, Asteroids and Centipede.

A lifesaver for retro console collectors

If you prefer to collect original console hardware rather than reissues, yet you'd rather play on your modern flatscreen TV, you'll need an analogue to digital video converter.

And one popular solution is available with decent Prime Day discounts in both the UK and US.

The Mcbazel OSSC Open Source Scan Converter v1.6 has 19% off on Amazon UK and 20% off in the US. That makes it £88.02 and $89.59 respectively.

It essentially coverts Scart, VGA and component feeds into HDMI, and and can now even convert analogue audio to output digitally over HDMI.

When the controller's bigger than the TV

The Jaleco Mini TV Retro Console is a weird little device – the included controller is bigger than the 3-inch display – but it comes with 168 games (NES, it seems) on an included microSD card and has its own rechargeable battery, so doesn't need to be plugged in.

It's also available at a super low price in the US, with Amazon currently selling it for just $24.21. I've got pairs of socks that cost more.

I personally like the wood-effect version best, but it's also available in other colours.

Retro gamers in the UK can also find the device, and while it's not part of Prime Day, it's just £24.27.

The best retro games console ever?

As well as buying several ready-made retro consoles, I've been building my own out of different mini PCs in recent times, using Linux-based operating systems, such as Batocera and Bazzite.

I recently made a plug-and-play multi-emulator console from a Geekom A5, which you can read about here, but there's a great deal on the more powerful Geekom A6 that's capable of running up to PlayStation 3 in high resolutions and frame rates. It can even handle Switch games, if that's your sort of thing.

You can get the latest version of the Geekom A6 £100 off in the UK and $125 off in the US right now, with pricing down to £499 and $524 respectively.

The original and the best

It might not immediately make you think of retro gaming, but here are the facts: Tamagotchis are from the 90s (retro), and they're little pet-keeping management sims (gaming). That makes them a retro gaming handheld. Of sorts.

They're not too pricey at the worst of times, but if you want to save a few quid, now's the time to pick one up – you can get around 15% off a whole heap of them through Amazon right now. The biggest question is what colour you want yours to be?

Embrace the cartridge with Lara Croft's help

Yesterday, we brought you several deals on Evercade cartridges – collections of games that you can use with numerous Evercade and Blaze devices. Now we have a great offer on one of the handhelds.

The Evercade EXP-R is a horizontal handheld with a 4:3 800 x 480 IPS display and built-in Wi-Fi. It will work with any Evercade cartridge, but this deal also comes with the first three Tomb Raider games, as originally released on the original PlayStation.

Normally retailing for £99.99, you can now get the bundle for £73.97 – that's 26% off!

Boost your original consoles

This might be a little niche, but the SummerCart64 is a great add-on for an original N64 or cartridge-based reissue, such as the Analogue 3D. It's a flashcart with a microSD card slot on which you can store 100s of N64 ROMs. All legally sourced, of course.

It even supports 64DD (disc drive) games and PAL and NTSC versions.

The "Kaico Edition" SC64 is available with a 15% discount for Prime Day, so is now priced at just £63.74 on Amazon UK.

The deal is also available on Amazon US, with the SC64 now $70.39 (down from £82.99).

Wall art for the discerning retro games fan

A bit of a change in pace, this collectable piece of wall art is something no retro games cave should be without.

Made by the excellent ThumbsUp! and officially licensed, the Atari 3D Wall Art pays homage to classic cartridges originally released for the Atari 2600 (AKA VCS). It comes in its own frame and measures 400 x 287 x 22mm, so should look great on any wall.

Perhaps the best news is that, for Prime Day, it's just £17.99 – a massive reduction of over half the price. I'll let you into a secret, I've already bought one, and the Pong landscape variant.

The computer that started it all

For many Brits of a certain age, it was the ZX Spectrum that introduced them to gaming. The first truly affordable home computer was revolutionary and thanks to budget games, it became a million seller.

That's why inventor Sir Clive Sinclair was awarded a white version – the 1980s consumer version was black – but now you can have exactly the same yourself.

The Spectrum White Edition is something to behold (yep, I own one myself) and allows you to play Speccy games both from the box (there are 40 include) and from a USB drive. It also has the good, old fashioned Spectrum Basic built in, so you can code your own.

And all this for just £110.49 – 15% off the usual price. That's cheap for a chance to own a slice of history.

My favourite bartop arcade machine

I've already featured a few Evercade deals – on the cartridges and EXP-R handheld – but this is the best yet.

The Evercade Alpha is my favourite bartop arcade unit (I own a couple more, including one I built myself from a Raspberry Pi) and the Taito version is now just £177 on Amazon UK. That's 23% off the usual £229.99 price.

For that, you get 10 built-in games, including Bubble Bobble, Space Invaders, and Rastan, with multiple, swappable marquees to customise it yourself. Plus, as this is an Evercade machine, you can add any of the brand's game cartridges to expand the library (up to two cartridges at a time).

Perfect for arcade gaming – and a neat DS solution too

By far and away, one of the weirdest retro gaming handhelds I own is the MagicX Zero 40 – but that doesn't mean it doesn't have its merits – especially at its US Prime Day price of $60.79 (down from $86.99). Indeed, unless you're willing to fork out a lot more for a dual screen device, this is one of the best handhelds for Nintendo DS emulation.

That's because it comes with a vertical 4-inch 480 x 800 display, allowing you to split the DS screens top and bottom. The Zero 40 is also great for vertical (TATE) arcade games, like scrolling shooters and Bombjack.

This deal even comes with a card full of ROMs, including many of the above, if I'm not mistaken, so this is a great deal.

A modern take on a true classic

While some would prefer the old-school styling of the Atari 2600+ remake, the up-to-date alternative from My Arcade is rather good too.

The My Arcade Atari GameStation Pro is just £79.52 in the UK for Prime Day, with a 15% drop, and offers an Atari VCS experience without needing separate cartridges. You get over 200 games preinstalled, in fact, and two wireless joysticks in the box, while the console itself is relatively tiny.

So, if you want to experience some of Atari's earliest hits on a big screen TV, this is a great and easy option.

Anyone up for pinball?

As well as arcade machine reissues, Arcade1Up made digital pinball tables before its untimely demise last year. However, many of its product lines were bought/saved by other manufacturers, and that includes the Toyshock – Haunted House table on sale for Prime Day.

Priced at £659.99 (down from £699.99), it features 12 classic Gottlieb tables on its 24-inch digital screen, including the lead game Haunted House.

You get the same sort of flipper buttons and score board of the traditional table, but with the ease of switching between games easily.

Hidden US deal gets you $10 off the Anbernic RG Rotate already

The Anbernic RG Rotate is a wholly unique retro gaming handheld. Running on Android and with a 3.5-inch 1:1 touch display, it looks like an MP3 player when shut. However, rotate the screen and it exposed Game Boy-style controls underneath.

I recently bought one of these myself from Anbernic directly and love how compact it is. Surprisingly though, a hidden deal on Amazon US has $10 off the aluminium Aurora Silver version already.

You can get it for $129.99 in a deal away from the prying eyes of Prime Day.

Build it and they will come

Not all retro games consoles come plug and play – or with a microSD card filled with 1,000s of dubiously sourced games – some are more of a project. And there's no more satisfying project than building your own retro games console from scratch.

I've done it a few times, using mini PCs and different generations of Raspberry Pi boards, and my last build with the latter featured a case that's now on sale for Prime Day.

The Retro Gaming Nes4Pi Case doesn't come with the Raspberry Pi itself or a power supply, but everything else is provided – including a mini fan to keep it cool. Priced at £21.24 in the deal, you even get heatsinks and a couple of SNES-like USB controllers. You just need to source a Pi 4B and install RetroPie separately.

PSP gaming for peanuts

TrimUI released a new version of its horizontal handheld a few months ago, and that has lead to an incredible deal on the former model.

The TrimUI Smart Pro is capable of up to PSP emulation, which is handy considering the form factor and its 4.96-inch 16:9 display. And at just $75.64 (down from $88.99) it's a real steal for the category.

All three colours – gray, white and black – are available in the deal too, so you can choose the one to suit.

Essential reading

We're entering the last stretch for Prime Day and there are still some essential retro gaming picks in the deals – especially when you look off the beaten track.

Lost in Cult is an independent design studio and publishers and most of its hardcover books are excellent reads for retro gamers. They are not in the Prime Day sale as such, but still have huge discounts right now.

• The Console Chronicles – £30 was £40 (25% off)
• A Handheld History – £26.77 was £35 (24% off)
• Joysticks to Haptics – £25.51 was £35 (27% off) – also just £2.99 on Kindle
• Arcade Adventures – £29.37 was £35 (16% off)

There's also The Anime Archives – a historical look at anime movies and TV shows. That's currently available with 20% off, at £27.93. However, like Joysticks to Haptics, the Kindle version is just £2.99 right now – a must!

MagSafe mobile gaming

Gamepad manufacturer Abxylute has a handy clip-on controller that attaches to the back of your phone, as long as it incorporates magnets – ie. an iPhone with MagSafe. It can then be slid down the rear when you want to play.

The Abxylute M4 comes in multiple colours (including GameCube indigo), has a D-pad, buttons (in the Nintendo configuration), and two flat profile thumbsticks. It also features triggers on the rear.

It's down to just £39.49 in the Prime Day sale, down from £49. Other colours are available for the same deal price.

Forget the name, this is one of the best budget handhelds

Yes, Miniloong is a weirdly funny name for a handheld manufacturer, but putting that aside, its Pocket One is a very decent debut.

Featuring a 4-inch 960 x 720 4:3 display, it's a nicely put together device that's capable of up original PlayStation comfortably, plus some PSP and N64 games.

It's also down to $79.99 on Amazon US – a $20 price drop for the remainder of Prime Day. That makes it worth a punt for me.

You can't beat (em-up) this cheap-as-chips mini arcade deal

Prime Day is nearing its close, but that doesn't mean there aren't new bargains to be had.

UK gamers will adore this cheap as chips mini arcade machine for sure, with the original Mortal Kombat running on a backpack-sized unit.

The best news is that it's now under a tenner – priced at just £9.06, down from an original price of £29.99. Get that deal over here!

As I predicted at the end of last week (and reiterated yesterday) Valve finally launched its Steam Machine yesterday, announcing pricing, full specifications, and the pre-order process.

And as with many others, I expect, the moment the page went live I jumped at the chance to register my interest in purchasing one. Now though, I'm not so sure.

The price is obviously a barrier. Starting at £879 / $1,049 for the 512GB model without a Steam Controller makes it considerably more expensive than the more powerful PS5 Pro. And if I needed a Steam Controller too (I already have one), that'd be £938 / $1,128.

Then there's the 2TB version at a whopping £1,149 / $1,349 or £1,208 / $1,428 with the controller, putting it in the desktop gaming PC category.

However, I was still willing to take a punt on the 512GB version. I have a spare 1TB SSD card lying around that I could upgrade it with, so storage wasn't my concern. And while still expensive, I appreciate the market conditions and challenges presented by the ongoing components crisis.

But then I discovered something else – a decision Valve has made that affects performance and one I'm not sure I'll be able to live with.

Steam Machine specs issue

There are some red flags when it comes to the Steam Machine's specifications, which don't really match the original promise of 4K 60fps gaming. But according to several online reviews that have appeared already (such as from Digital Foundry) it's still possible to eke decent 1440p performance out of the PC console in AAA games.

The "semi-custom" AMD Zen 4 6-core / 12-teraflop CPU and AMD RDNA 3 GPU with 28 compute units seem decent enough, even though the latter is effectively a cut back version of the three year-old Radeon 7600 graphics card with 8GB of VRAM.

Where it gets more concerning is when you consider the on-board RAM. While it sports 16GB of DDR5 RAM, Valve has opted for a single stick solution, rather than dual. This is something I've seen a lot during RAMageddon, especially from mini PC manufacturers and it truly throttles performance.

For example, I built my own Steam Machine alternative months ago, from a Geekom A7 Max mini PC with 16GB of internal RAM. That too shipped with a single stick of DDR5 (5600MHz) and it struggled. I ended up adding an extra stick, increasing the graphics rendering performance by up to 80%.

But even when I tested it with two 8GB sticks instead, I was getting anywhere up to 20% more performance from the same amount and type of RAM.

It seems Steam Machine reviewers are seeing this in tests. It is underperforming in comparison with equivalent machines running the Radeon 7600 GPU.

One solution is to split or add to the RAM, which is something I might end up doing as I do have spares, but it's hardly the plug and play experience a console is designed for. And if I'm tearing it apart to add my own SSD and RAM, why not build my own Steam Machine (again).

After all, while I've been using the third-party Linux alternative Bazzite on my Geekom and AceMagic mini PC builds, Valve will soon launch Steam OS for all PC types so you can do it on your own.

It's certainly food for thought.

Steam Machine alternatives

That being said, I do love the design of the Steam Machine, and once FSR 4 arrives on it, higher performance will be possible.

I've also recently converted a Geekom A9 Max to a Steam Machine-alike, with its more powerful, AI-supported internal processing and GPU and am getting 1440p gaming out of it, but it isn't quite the same. Oh, and it's also well over £1K.

You could build a small form factor PC from scratch, of course, and even with component shortages, you might manage it for less than the 2TB Steam Machine, but that's hardly the point. In that respect, the Steam Machine isn't for you.

It's a games console, not a gaming PC replacement. It's designed to sit under a TV, not a monitor. It's really a PC for those who don't like PCs. And that's why I might hold onto my slot in Valve's lottery, after all.

Either that or just switch on my PS5 Pro and enjoy that instead.

As we await body-melting temperatures across the UK this week, let's take a moment to think of our poor overheating tech!

After my colleague described his PlayStation 5 Pro as "sounding like a dying asthmatic cat," it got me thinking about how I can save my console from also getting cooked.

Part of that will come down to cleaning your PlayStation – dust is your biggest enemy, which builds up en masse – but I've also just learnt about various cooling accessories for Sony's console.

So the UK heatwave can be damned, as I'm going to bag one of these beauties to keep my console running. As I also use it for apps on the big screen, including YouTube, it's not just to the benefit of my gaming.

I am, however, keeping in mind that Amazon Prime Day does begin on Tuesday 23 June, which presents a strong change of greater discounts.

Indeed, when looking over the price history – one of my top tips, per 7 Mistakes Everyone Makes With Amazon Prime Day – there are typically discounts, so I may wait one day longer to see if that shifts.

Beyond the Kiwihome option there are plenty of other solutions out there, too, as you can see an example of below:

Again, pricing has fluctuated in the recent past. Indeed, mere days ago this product was a little less – so I'd be inclined to await Amazon Prime Day kicking off proper first of all.

I'd best add some factor 50 sunscreen to my basket whilst I'm at it, as this week's heatwave is going to be an absolute scorcher – so also a good excuse to catch some rays.

We've waited 13 years for a new Grand Theft Auto game and will have to wait a few months more, but the game is nearing its final stretch. Pre-orders for GTA VI on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S have opened around the world, including in the UK, US, Europe and Australia.

Available both digitally and in physical boxes (with a caveat, which you can read about below), you can now place your order from PlayStation, Xbox and multiple retailers. So, here's everything you need to know, including pricing.

Grand Theft Auto VI release date – when can I play it?

GTA 6 will be available from 19 November 2026 for PS5, PS5 Pro, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S.

All pre-orders will be able to be pre-loaded ahead of the release date, so you can play the game as soon as it's launched.

That includes physical pre-orders, as they will contain a download code rather than a disc. In fact, you will get your boxed copy a week before release (on 12 November) to enable you to pre-load the game in time.

Grand Theft Auto VI pricing details – how much does it cost?

There are two versions of Grand Theft Auto VI available – a standard and an "Ultimate Edition.

The standard edition of Grand Theft Auto VI is $79.99 / £69.99 / €79.99 / AU$129.95.

The Grand Theft Audio VI: Ultimate Edition includes exclusive vehicles, weapons, apparel, and even missions. This is priced at $99.99 / £89.99 / €99.99 / AU$159.95.

To sweeten the deal, all pre-orders made before 20 November 2026 will also receive a "Vintage Vice City Pack". This will include items that hark back to GTA: Vice City.

Digital pre-orders will get a free month of GTA+ too, to redeem in GTA Online and play classic Rockstar GTA games at no extra cost.

The game is available physically from multiple retailers, but be aware that the box merely contains a download code for the digital version. It will be available the week before launch, however, so buyers can pre-download the game to play on day one.

Grand Theft Auto VI on Xbox Game Pass and PS Plus – will it be free to subscribers?

As far as we know, there are zero plans to launch Grand Theft Auto VI on either Xbox Game Pass or PS Plus, for any members.

GTA V has appeared on both services over the years – as have other Rockstar games – but only after they've been available to buy for a considerable period.

If you do want to play GTA 6 at launch – and likely the year or so after – you'll have to buy it.

Grand Theft Auto VI pre-order stores – where can I order it?

You can now order GTA 6 from multiple retailers, both in digital and physical forms. However, as we've said above, the physical copy for PS5 and Xbox only contains a download code, NOT a disc.

It is likely therefore that the vast majority of pre-orders will be made on the PlayStation Store or Xbox Store.

Note, the Ultimate Edition is only currently available at one of those stores. You can also get the standard edition from them, as well as at third-party retail outlets (see the top of this page).

Grand Theft Auto VI formats – will there be a PC or Nintendo Switch 2 version?

Rockstar Games has given no indication on whether it plans to release a Nintendo Switch 2 version of GTA 6 somewhere down the line. However, it would be highly unusual if it didn't introduce the game for PC eventually.

There's no date or announcement as yet, but the studio generally adds a Windows edition a year or two after its console releases. We therefore fully expect an enhanced, PC Grand Theft Auto VI at the tail end of 2027.

Grand Theft Auto VI – the hidden trailer

One last thing, although the cover art trailer didn't include any gameplay or cutscene footage, there is a new clip sneakily hidden on the Rockstar Games website.

You can see it on the page if you scroll down, with the mouse scroll wheel making an animated vista move. Here you can see a brief pan backwards through Vice City as the sun is setting.

This has lead to Digital Foundry suggesting that ray tracing support seems to be in the game. There's little more than that for now, but maybe we'll be treated with a more extensive trailer on pre-order day.

If you've ever played a great racing game, whether it's more welcoming like Forza Horizon 6 or a more simulation-style title, you've probably wondered if you'd have more fun with a proper racing wheel. It's definitely one of the biggest and most immediate upgrades you can add to your gaming setup, if you're willing to spend the extra money compared to a simple controller.

You'll get way more control over what you're doing in-game, but also a lot more immersion to go with that – it can take your lap times to the next level, but also make it more fun and challenging, if you like.

The downside is normally that good racing wheels are quite expensive, but Prime Day starts tomorrow, and there's an excellent set of discounts live on Logitech gear right now, including the racing wheel and pedals combo that you'll find below.

The best part of this set of deals is that it's on the very latest version of Logitech's racing wheel, which has looked the same over the years but has been given some small and telling upgrades. The G923 is the newest, and it adds better force feedback to make it quite something in the hands when you're driving.

You'll get feedback that really reacts to the road you're racing on, and it'll help you control things even more accurately, making this the version to buy rather than the older G29.

Don't be surprised if this goes out of stock fairly soon, too – it'll be popular, so if you want a great Prime Day deal, you might want to jump on it.