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The Xbox Elite Series 2 controller is now customizable in Design Lab
For the first time, you can choose the color of the thumbstick base and ring.
Microsoft’s Xbox Elite Series 2 wireless controller is now available in white
It's also selling a separate component pack for $60.
HTC will sell its Cosmos Elite headset and faceplate tracker separately
If you've already got a HTC Vive, you might be in two minds about forking out for the complete Cosmos Elite bundle. If you've got base stations and controllers already, why drop dollars on more? But HTC has you covered. In the coming weeks, it will be launching a headset-only version of the Cosmos Elite and the external tracking faceplate as standalone products. And as is the case for the complete Cosmos Elite package, both purchases will come with a redemption code for Half-Life: Alyx.
UK honors 'Tomb Raider', 'Worms' and other classics with retro postage stamps
The UK's video game legacy is being honored with a new set of commemorative stamps from the Royal Mail. The collection, which will set you back £14.25 (nearly $19), features iconic designs from the likes of Wipeout, Lemmings, Micro Machines, Worms and, of course, Tomb Raider.
What's coming to Netflix in September: 'The Politician' and 'The Spy'
We're edging into the final embers of the summer and as the weather starts to turn for many of us, we'll perhaps find ourselves curled up on the couch a little more often to stream some movies, shows and whatever else happens to be on offer. To wit, Netflix has revealed much of what's coming to its platform in September.
Jabra's newest wireless earbuds promise better sound and voice control
Apple's AirPods aren't the only truly wireless earbuds out there. In fact, Jabra is releasing the third generation of its own take on the technology: the Elite 65t and Elite Active 65t wireless earbuds. In addition to these two new models, Jabra is showing off a wired pair of Bluetooth earbuds, the Elite 45e, at CES this week.
There's a secret, celebrity-only version of Tinder
Celebrities have the same needs that the rest of us, they're just wealthier, better-looking and demand more privacy. It's why Tinder quietly set up a special members-only version of its app, called Tinder Select, to keep elite bloodlines in the elite. As the name implies, it's a secret dating world where only the beautiful and the wealthy can connect. Unfortunately, the great unwashed don't have a chance of getting in unless you're invited by a core group of members.
'Elite Dangerous' will return to Oculus Rift on launch day
Elite Dangerous has been a confirmed VR title since 2013, and has supported the Oculus Rift development kit for well over a year. But development hasn't exactly been fast-paced. At present, the giant open-world space adventure game only runs on a very outdated Oculus firmware, essentially meaning that gamers have to choose between playing Elite Dangerous or everything else. That's going to change soon though, as Elite Dangerous will officially be supported on the headset and released on the Oculus Store on launch day, March 28th. If you've already purchased Elite Dangerous through other means, Oculus says you'll be able to get the new edition free of charge. Players will be able to "migrate" their game to the Oculus Store using a free code from developer Frontier. It's not entirely clear if players will be able to enjoy the same experience directly through the launcher that shipped with the Steam version. Right now the Steam page only lists the HTC Vive as supported under VR, but that could change closer to the release date. We've reached out to Frontier for clarification.
Xbox One update brings back Xbox 360's universal controller settings
You don't need to drop $150 on the Xbox One Elite controller to get access to one of its most prominent features: remapping the gamepad's buttons. Tucked away inside the Xbox One's new Windows 10-flavored menus is the app for changing what buttons do what on your standard Xbox One controller as well. Perhaps most notably, you can permanently invert the Y-axis (controlled with the right analog stick by default) to make aiming and moving the camera in third-person and first-person games, respectively, more to your liking. That feature is something that the Xbox 360 had at launch with its "game defaults" options that appeared during initial setup for the system. In terms of how the app works from the Elite to the vanilla controller, it's pretty similar aside from not being able to adjust thumbstick and trigger sensitivity. You'll find the new addition under Settings > Ease of Access > Button Mapping.
Xbox One Elite controller review: A better gamepad at a steep price
Is a gamepad worth $150? That's the question Microsoft is asking with the Xbox One Elite controller, a revamp of its almost two-year-old paddle that shipped with the Xbox One. The company isn't targeting this as a device for the mainstream, though. Rather, the Elite is instead for highly competitive gamers -- the type that'd mod their controllers with third-party accessories for greater precision. The customization it offers comes at a steep price, costing over twice as much as the standard $60 controller.Why should you care? Because the vanilla Xbox One controller feels like a cheap knock-off of the vaunted Xbox 360 pad that came before it. Microsoft said it spent over $100 million designing it, considering smell-o-vision and even a built-in projector for the gamepad, only to wind up with a mostly inferior clone. It has too many sharp edges, feels incredibly hollow and seems, well, cheap. Honestly, one of the biggest reasons I don't play my Xbox One much as my PlayStation 4 is because I prefer the latter's DualShock 4 controller. Keep all that in mind when you consider the following statement: I've been using the Elite controller for almost a week and I haven't wanted to put it down; this is the Xbox One gamepad we should've had from the outset.
Space-sim 'Elite: Dangerous' comes to Xbox One on October 6th
We're still not sure when No Man's Sky is coming to PS4, but in the meantime Xbox One fans have their own slice of space exploration nirvana to look forward to. Elite: Dangerous has been out on PC for some time, and since June it's also been available to Xbox players as part of the Xbox Game Preview program. Now, creator Frontier Developments has confirmed that the full console version will be launching on October 6th. The game is incredibly immersive, with an enormous galaxy and beautifully designed ships to pilot. The vast, empty nature of space comes with its drawbacks, however -- if you're expecting an endless stream of dogfights and nail-biting supply runs, you might be disappointed. The first in a series of "Horizons" expansions is due on PC this holiday, adding planetary landings, but it's unclear exactly when it'll make the lightspeed jump to Xbox One.
This is how you'll customize the Xbox One 'Elite' controller
We got up close and personal with the Xbox One's incredibly expensive Elite controller at E3, but how do all those modular bits and bobs work? A new video from Microsoft out of Gamescom sheds some light on just that. The Elite's customization goes much deeper than just swapping out different lengths of thumbsticks: you can adjust trigger deadzone, download custom button-binding profiles for certain games, tweak haptic feedback intensity on a motor-by-motor basis and even completely remap button functions. Long story short: if standard gamepads regularly fall short for your high-level needs, this is the paddle for you.
Frontier lays off 15 employees
Frontier Developments has axed 15 positions from its Halifax studio somewhat unexpectedly, leaving this branch of the overall studio with a somewhat hazy future. According to investor reports, the move is the result of a refocusing of the company's business plan around its two major games, and with all of the expertise on Elite: Dangerous and the upcoming Coaster Park Tycoon concentrated in Cambridge, it simply made more sense to reduce staff in the satellite studio. No word on what this means for the long-term health of the Halifax location, which may very well be facing the axe as well. Our deep consolation goes to all employees affected by the layoffs.
One Shots: Haiku edition
Believe it or not, I have been listening to you guys in the comments, and I know that there's been an ongoing desire for One Shots to provide the full-size pictures that are otherwise shrunk by our size limitations. So I'm happy to announce that starting this week, I'm including a gallery at the end of the column that will allow you to pull up larger screenshots if so desired. A few weeks ago I issued a screenshot challenge for folks to send in a haiku poem in addition to their picture. A select few of you did, starting with this striking pose from Final Fantasy XIV by reader Wolfyseyes: Facing this challenge One thought repeats in my mind: Please, please, please don't suck
PAX South 2015: Hangin' with Frontier, playin' Elite on the Oculus Rift
Readers of the Choose My Adventure column may remember that I spent the month of September smuggling beer, shooting NPCs, and dodging space rocks in Frontier Developments' Elite: Dangerous. Though the game was in early beta, I found lots to do and lots to love about the space simulator that isn't that other space simulator. Realistic physics, challenging flight controls, and beautiful design work made the game stand out to me as unique and promising (other Massively staffers seem to agree), and I've revisited it since and enjoyed it every time. Thus, I jumped at the chance to check Elite out again at PAX South 2015, this time with the experience enhanced by a rad HOTAS setup and the ever-so-popular Oculus Rift. Guided by producer Eddie Symons, I bluffed my way through a combat demo and discovered that when it comes to shooting things in space, being able to look and fly separately is a great thing indeed.
Global Chat: Guild Wars 2's economy is broken
Guild Wars 2's economy remains a hot-button issue even two-and-a-half years after its release. In this week's exploration of the blogosphere, one writer pulls out all the stops to let you know what's broken about this MMO's economy -- and how it can be fixed. In addition to this thoughtful read, Global Chat will hear some snark on silly hotbar icons, pontificate about poor MMO names, deliver The Repopulation first impressions, and invite you to participate in a grand MUD experiment. Let's get going!
Elite: Dangerous maps out update beta schedule, teases expansions
In a development post released today, Elite: Dangerous Executive Producer Michael Brookes laid out Frontier's plans for the game's inbound major updates following the tiny 1.05 patch this morning. Update 1.1 is set to enter beta the first week of February, Brookes says, and will focus on mechanics for player collaboration and route planning. Who gets to join that beta? Currently beta testing will be available for those who already have beta access for the main game. For players participating in the beta tests there will be a separate mechanism for playing so testing does not affect your game and that you can continue to play the retail version as well. Options for players currently without beta access to be able to purchase beta access will be available. Details will be made available nearer the time. Depending on how the update Betas go in test, we expect them to be released to everyone a week or so after the Beta release. Brookes also teased E:D's upcoming paid DLC as well as the multiplayer-focused 1.2 update, the beta for the latter of which is expected in March.
The Daily Grind: Would you like community filters in your MMO?
I was browsing the Elite: Dangerous forums the other day when I came upon this ad for a PvE-only private group. It's a good idea in theory, as it's a way for a large, dedicated community to insulate themselves from griefers and other undesirables while still playing an online multiplayer title. I'm not sure if the functionality is a net positive for games with player-run economies and the like, but it's an interesting option for developers to consider going forward. What do you think, Massively readers? Would you like similarly large-scale ignore options and community filters in your MMO? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Frontier expanding Elite's dev team, feature set
The latest Elite: Dangerous newsletter is out, and while it's chock full of tidbits for fans of the space sim title, perhaps the most interesting revelation occurs in the development update section. "We're expanding the team working on the game so that we can maintain a regular schedule of updates as well as working on the paid expansions," Frontier says. Those regular updates aren't limited to fixes, either, as "new features and content for all" is part of the plan. First up are the wings, "associated multiplayer features, and additional ships" that the devs hinted at in 2014.
Elite: Dangerous rolls back decision on billionaire rollback
There was a bit of a to-do recently about money in Elite: Dangerous. A bug caused numerous players to receive a credit "refund" that wound up making them instant billionaires, which might have had some long-term ramifications for anyone who had hoped to actually play in the sandbox economy in the future. While the developers had initially opted against wide-scale rollbacks, asking instead for affected players to choose whether to be rolled back or not, that decision has been reversed. Unexpected billionaires will find all of their bug-gotten gains rolled back and removed, with the development team contacting those affected personally to make sure that nothing legitimate gets caught in the crossfire. Meanwhile, players who found a way to exploit the game explicitly will also see their gains removed. So those who were hoping for rollbacks in the wake of these issues will be happy; those happy with billions of credits for no real effort will be... less happy. [Thanks to Cotic for the tip!]
