Unsurprisingly,Assassins Creed Shadowsis a huge hit. The open world action RPG launched in late March and, within a little over a week, had crossed three million players across all platforms. That continues to reflect in the games sales data.Taking to BlueSky, Circana analyst Mat Piscatella recently revealed that in the week of its release,Assassins Creed Shadowswas the best-selling game in the United States in terms of dollar sales. It is, in fact, already one of the top five best-selling games of the year in the US so far. The open world action RPG enjoyed the second-biggest launch for a game in 2025, behind onlyMonster Hunter Wilds.Assassins Creed Shadowsalso had the biggest physical launch of the year in the UK, and reportedly Ubisofts second-biggest launch of all time, second only to Assassins Creed Valhalla.Assassins Creed Shadowsis available on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. Read our review of the game through here.Assassin's Creed: Shadows was the best-selling game of the week in the US and already ranks among the top 5 best-selling games YTD (dollars, w/e Mar 22, 2025).Only Monster Hunter: Wilds reached higher week 1 dollar sales in 2025 so far.Source: Circana Retail Tracking Service Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) 2025-03-31T14:49:02.545Z

Soulslike action RPG fans have another promising release to look forward to in the coming months in the form ofWuchang: Fallen Feather,and more details continue to emerge on the title. For instance, we now know how long the game is going to be- and its going to be quite substantial.In a recent interview with GamingBolt, developer Lenzee Games revealed that a playthrough ofWuchang: Fallen Featherswill be about 40-60 hours long on average. On top of that, the game will also promise plenty of replay value with multiple endings- more than three, to be precise, and each completely different from the others.The side quests will affect the main story, the developer said. Currently, there are more than three endings, and they are completely different endings, indicating the completely different fates of Wuchang.Wuchang: Fallen Feathersis due out sometime this Summer for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC, and will also be available via Game Pass, though a specific release date is currently unknown. Our full interview with Leenzee Games will be live soon, so stay tuned for that.

Meta is reportedly preparing a higher-end version of its Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses with a built-in screen to launch as early as by the end of the year, Bloomberg reports.The new glasses, codenamed Hypernova, can run apps and display photos, all controlled using hand gestures and capacitive touch on the sides of the frame. Bloomberg reports that the screen will only be visible on the right lens at the lower-right quadrant, and is best viewed when looking downward. When the device is turned on, a home screen appears and displays icons horizontally, similar to a Meta Quest.Hypernova will also feature an improved camera compared to the current model, and will continue building upon the idea of having an AI chatbot on your face, according to Bloomberg.Bloomberg says that Hypernova will cost over $1,000 and could sell for as high as $1,300 to $1,400. For comparison, the current Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses start at $299.Meta is reserving advanced augmented reality technology for its still-in-development Orion glasses. In contrast, the Hypernova will target the mid-tier smart glasses shown off in droves at CES, such as the Rokid Glasses that display green text.However, the Hypernova will command a higher price tag than other options, likely since it will come with the Orions neural wristband controller, codenamed Ceres.Meta is also working on a next version of Hypernova, with the codename Hypernova 2, that will have two screens, Bloomberg reports. The company is apparently planning to launch Hypernova 2 in 2027.

T-Mobile has officially closed its joint venture deal with the fiber provider Lumos, after taking down its webpage dedicated to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the process, as reported by Fierce Network. The now-blank page outlined T-Mobiles culture of fairness, respect, and inclusion and was online until at least March 26th, the Internet Archive shows.Its removal seems like a direct response to the threats from Federal Communications Chair Brendan Carr, who said companies should get busy ending any sort of their invidious forms of DEI discrimination during an interview with Bloomberg last month. He suggested that major deals, such as T-Mobiles plan to acquire most of US Cellular, wont happen if DEI is still in play.T-Mobile executive vice president Mark Nelson has already indicated that the company plans on complying with Carrs orders. In a March 27th letter to the FCC, he stated T-Mobile is conducting a comprehensive review of its DEI policies, programs, and activities, adding that the joint venture with Lumos will not promote invidious forms of discrimination. As pointed out by Fierce Network, the FCC signed off on the deal on March 28th. The Verge reached out to T-Mobile with a request for comment but didnt immediately hear back.Since becoming FCC chair, Carr has probed the DEI practices at Comcast, Verizon, and Disney. The Energy and Commerce Committee Democrats have responded by opening an investigation of their own, which will examine the time and resources the FCC has spent on bogus investigations.

Warning: This review contains full spoilers for Daredevil: Born Again episode 7!Many dominoes have been set up throughout the first half of Daredevil: Born Again, and boy is it great to watch them start to fall. Matt Murdocks personal and vigilante lives collide in violent fashion in episode 7, and the fun comes from watching him fight to keep them separate. (We all know thats a fruitless endeavor, of course.) Wilson Fisks story mirrors Murdocks, but the merging of his two lives as gangster and politician isnt a burden to him but an opportunity. This all comes about thanks to the serial killer artist known as Muse, whos sending big shockwaves through this little corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.Murdock starts off this episode feeling revitalized and energized after suiting up as Daredevil again, but his romantic moment with Heather Glenn (Margarita Levieva) quickly turns sour when she calls him out on his erratic behavior. She can plainly see that Murdock is hiding something, and she may even be on to the fact that hes Daredevil. Its fascinating to watch her see through all of Murdocks usual BS and use her therapist's ways on him to highlight his rather unhealthy method of coping with trauma. Daredevil may have just saved an innocent life, but you wouldnt know it based on how everyone is treating him. Detective Cherry (Clark Johnson) is mad at Murdock for blowing up his life by donning the horns once more, but its hard to feel invested in their argument, or their relationship for that matter, when Cherrys character has remained as paper thin as it was in the first episode. Can we please get him a flashback or dramatic monologue about his past or something?Mayor Fisk is put in a precarious spot this episode thanks to Muse, but he manages to spin it in his favor. His task force fails to find Muse before Daredevil, but that doesnt stop him from taking credit for his defeat and taking the opportunity to demonize all those who wear masks. Early in the episode, its almost funny watching Fisk explain why, yes, it would be bad for him if Daredevil were to be the one to stop Muse. Daredevil is the one who brought down his criminal empire, after all. Fisk sees New York City as his new empire, and hes doing every rotten thing he can to protect it from Daredevil this time around. Its truly scary how realistic his rise to political power feels, as though it were ripped from todays headlines. Daredevil: Born AgainMeanwhile, in Fisks private life, the subplot involving Vanessa and Luca the gangster finally reaches its bloody conclusion. I was never sold on the idea that Vanessa would actually betray her husband, so this whole side plot seems a bit empty. It always felt like Fisks Fisks inability to outrun his past life as a criminal would amount to something a bit bigger and more consequential, but alas, it doesnt. If anything, at least we got to enjoy the classic mafia-movie vibes of the final scene where Luca tries, unsuccessfully, to assassinate Fisk at dinner.The main thrill of this episode is the bloody brawl between Daredevil and Muse. I find it hard to believe that a young man with three months of martial arts training, even from a Taekwondo master, could go toe-to-toe with Daredevil like that, but Im willing to accept it as an excuse to have him go absolutely wild on Daredevil and push him to his limits. There isnt a lot of suspense leading up to the reveal that this psychotic guy is Muse, but they sure do a good job of making him as creepy and unsettling as possible. It makes Daredevils arrival at the last second to stop him all the more satisfying. The hook-through-the-shoulder move in particular got an audible reaction out of me. Other ThoughtsWhat are the odds that Glenn is a therapist not only to the Fisks but also Muse? Daredevils love interests do always end up being a magnet for supervillains, so that would at least count as some consistency from Marvel.Okay how much did Muses nose have to bleed to allow him to paint that much with it?

If your wallet has been pleading for mercy, it might just have to hold on a little longer because todays gaming deals are too good to ignore. Whether you're into high-speed hijinks, fantasy epics, or quirky co-op chaos, there's something to tempt every kind of gamer. With discounts this tempting, nows the time to grab a controller, a mouse, or a magic paintbrush and dive into something new!This Day in Gaming In retro news, I'm using a NOS burst to light 26 candles on a cake for Need For Speed: High Stakes. This beloved racing game wasn't just about sating one's velocity requirements while unlocking new whips; lose a High Stakes race, and you'd perma-lose your car. Us launch adopters loved that risk-versus-reward structure and the groundbreaking damage system that would go on to influence the future of racing simulations.Better yet, we had I highly localised Aussie version with Holden VT Clubsport and Ford AU Falcon XR8 featured prominently on the cover. Even cooler, winning the special HSV Pro Cup would unlock Craig Lowndes' MHRT VT Commo'. Using it to evade the fuzz down Durham Road (preferably in split-screen PvP) was mighty boss stuff.What are we ridin' in, Craig? *Blissful look* "Commodores."Aussie bdays for notable games- Super Star Wars (SNES) 1993. eBay- Need for Speed: High Stakes (PS) 1999. eBay- Pac-Man Vs. (GC) 2004. Redux- Nintendo DSi launch, 2009. eBay- FF Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time (DS) 2009. eBayContentsNice Savings for Nintendo SwitchOver on Nintendo Switch, Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed is a nostalgic joy, letting you wield a magic paintbrush to reshape the world. Meanwhile, It Takes Two delivers co-op perfection with its ever-changing mechanics and won a slew of GOTY awards.Expiring Recent DealsPersona 5 Tactica (-45%) - A$53Monster Hunter Gen. Ult. (-13%) - A$70Sonic Forces (-24%) - A$46MGS: Col. (-59%) - A$37Or gift a Nintendo eShop Card.Switch Console PricesHow much to Switch it up?Switch OLED + Mario Wonder: $539 $499 | Switch Original: $499 $448 | Switch OLED Black: $539 $448 | Switch OLED White: $539 $445 | Switch Lite: $329 $294 | Switch Lite Hyrule: $339 $335See itBack to topExciting Bargains for XboxXbox Series X deals pack a punch, with Hogwarts Legacy offering the chance to live out your wizarding dreams. One fascinating detail: while the game is set in the 1800s, developers hid references to modern Harry Potter lore, including a sneaky nod to the Room of Requirement. On a darker note, Lies of P takes the Pinocchio story and turns it into a twisted soulslike. Its eerie puppet designs were inspired by the haunting works of E. T. A. Hoffmann.Xbox OneInside & Limbo Bundle (-90%) - A$4EA Sports FC 25 (-57%) - A$48F1 24 (-55%) - A$50Carrion (-75%) - A$8Batman: Arkham Col. (-85%) - A$13Expiring Recent DealsOr just invest in an Xbox Card.Xbox Console PricesHow many bucks for a 'Box? Series X: $799 $749 | Series S Black: $549 $545 | Series S White:$499 $498 | Series S Starter: N/ASee itBack to topPure Scores for PlayStationFor PlayStation 5, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is slashed in price, making it the perfect time to experience Cal Kestis Force-fueled adventure. And then there's Tekken 8, where the King of Iron Fist Tournament continues with Jun Kazamas long-awaited return after a 25-year absence.Expiring Recent DealsPS+ Monthly FreebiesYours to keep from Apr 1 with this subscriptionRoboCop: Rogue City | PS5The Texas Chain Saw Massacre | PS4/5Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth HM | PS4Or purchase a PS Store Card.What you'll pay to 'Station.PS5 + Astro Bot:$799 $679 | PS5 Slim Disc:$799 $798 | PS5 Slim Digital:679 $678 | PS5 Pro $1,199 | PS VR2: $649.95 | PS VR2 + Horizon: $1,099 | PS Portal: $329See itBack to topPurchase Cheap for PCPC gamers arent left out, with Marvels Midnight Suns offering deep strategy at a fraction of the price. (Pro tip: if you pet the demonic Hellhound Charlie every day, you unlock special perks!) Otherwise, Frostpunk turns city-building into a brutal survival challenge. The developers, 11 Bit Studios, were so committed to the games bleak tone that they banned happy endings from the story.Expiring Recent DealsTomba! Special Ed. (-50%) - A$15No Man's Sky (-60%) - A$36Lego 2K Drive (-60%) - A$16Mafia III: Def. Ed. (-75%) - A$13Or just get a Steam Wallet CardPC Hardware PricesSlay your pile of shame.Official launch in NovSteam Deck 256GB LCD: $649 | Steam Deck 512GB OLED: $899 | Steam Deck 1TB OLED: $1,049See it at SteamLaptop DealsApple 2024 MacBook Air 15-inch (-12%) A$2,197HP Envy x360 16" 2-in-1 (-39%) A$1,399Lenovo ThinkPad E16 Gen 2 (-40%) A$1,129Desktop DealsHP OMEN 35L Gaming (-10%) A$2,799Lenovo ThinkCentre neo 50q (-35%) A$629Lenovo ThinkCentre neo 50s (-45%) A$1,018Monitor DealsDell G Series G2724D (-27%) A$398.60Samsung 57" Odyssey Neo Curved (-22%) A$2,499Component DealsAMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D (-8%) A$885.70Corsair Vengeance 32GB (-35%) A$82Kingston FURY Beast 16GB (-30%) A$48Storage DealsBack to topLegit LEGO DealsExpiring Recent DealsBack to topHot Headphones DealsAudiophilia for lessBack to topTerrific TV DealsDo right by your console, upgrade your tellyKogan 65" QLED (-50%) A$699 Kogan 55" QLED (-45%) A$549 LG 55" UT80 4K (-28%) A$869Back to top Adam Mathew is our Aussie deals wrangler. He plays practically everything, often on YouTube.

The Elden Ring spin-off will try some new things for fans.

Extensive footage of EA's new The Sims "game concept" surfaces onlineOoh, Rene.Image credit: EA News by Matt Wales News Reporter Published on April 2, 2025 The Sims 4 might be tootling along merrily, but it's now over ten years old and fans are getting increasingly impatient for clarity on what's next for the franchise - particularly given EA's somewhat confounding communications on the matter. Amid all this, extensive footage of EA's new The Sims "game concept" have now surfaced online, fuelling all sorts of disappointment as fans ponder a reality where the future of The Sims is, in fact, just a tacky looking mobile game.To recap, EA first began discussing its "next generation" Sims game, codenamed Project Rene, back in 2022. This, many assumed, would be The Sims 5 - until, that is, EA announced Project Rene wasn't The Sims 5, that The Sims 5 wasn't happening, and that whatever Project Rene was would instead co-exist alongside The Sims 4. It also teased a bunch of "cosy games, social and collaborative based gameplay, [and] mobile narrative games" coming under The Sims banner, before revealing Project Rene (whatever it was) would begin playtesting soon.In the six months since then, playtest footage has sporadiaclly leaked online, leaving fans largely unimpressed. And it seems unlikely the sudden influx of new gameplay footage (as flagged by PC Gamer) will change that, given the bland visuals, endless reward-incentivised to-do lists, and front-and-centre currency focus feels more like a free-to-play mobile wallet squeezer than a truly "next-generation" The Sims game. City Life Game with Friends gameplay.Watch on YouTubeEA describes the playtest - officially titled City Life Game With Friends over on Google Play - as "small parts of a larger game concept". And the newly shared footage focuses on the same multiplayer-enabled plaza location we've seen in numerous leaks before, only now festooned with even more garish free-to-play style window dressing as players stroll around, strike up conversations, and hand out a few muffins. It's not especially inspiring stuff - and given EA's refusal to clarify the nature of the project, it's unclear how horrified fans should actually be.All this, of course, comes as developer Krafton's highly anticipated The Sims competitor InZoi launches into Steam early access. And while I wasn't particulary impressed with InZoi during my time with it last month, it's unlikely anyone's going to be dazzled by anything resembling EA's City Life Game with Friends when Krafton's game is around.

Op-ed Cheap TVs incessant advertising reaches troubling new lows Op-ed: TV screensavers shouldn't show immigration ads from the Trump administration. Scharon Harding Apr 1, 2025 2:19 pm | 73 Credit: Getty Credit: Getty Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreTVs offer us an escape from the real world. After a long day, sometimes theres nothing more relaxing than turning on your TV, tuning into your favorite program, and unplugging from the realities around you.But what happens when divisive, potentially offensive messaging infiltrates that escape? Even with streaming services making it easy to watch TV commercial-free, it can still be difficult for TV viewers to avoid ads with these sorts of messages.Thats especially the case with budget brands, which may even force controversial ads onto TVs when theyre idle, making users pay for low-priced TVs in unexpected, and sometimes troubling, ways.Vizio TVs reportedly show Trump immigration messaging when in standbyAn experience recently shared by an apparent Vizio TV owner illustrates how ads delivered via TV operating systems (OSes) can take ads from annoying to intrusive and offensive.Reddit user DoubleJumps claimed last week that when their Vizio TV is idle, it plays calming nature video, calming music, and then loops a message from the [T]rump admin[istration] telling illegal immigrants to gtfo over and over and over again. They explained:I left the [TV] idle while I went to the other room to play with my dog. After about a half an hour, I started hearing [US Secretary of Homeland Security] Kristi Noem praising Trump and telling immigrants to get out of America, over and over. I went in to check, and caught this video looping 3 more times before it went back to the nature clips.The user added that when trying to replicate this, the TV played the video again after about 20 minutes, but only once.As Distractify detailed, the video in question includes Noem telling people who live outside of the US that the US government will hunt you down if they enter the country illegally. Noem also claims in the video that weak leadership has left our borders wide open, flooding our communities with drugs, human trafficking, and violent criminals.This TV will be out of my house by the end of the week. Fucking dystopian bullshit company," DoubleJumps said.Ars Technica hasnt been able to replicate this internally. We also havent seen other reports of Vizio TV owners seeing this ad. Vizio and parent company Walmart didnt respond to requests for comment.However, what DoubleJumps detailed is completely within the scope of Vizios advertising efforts. Vizio TVs have something called Scenic Mode, which has the sets show, per Vizio, relaxing, ambient content when your TV is idle for a period of time," along with ads. Scenic Mode can be disabled, but if it's enabled, the ads cannot be turned off. Vizio says the ads help it pay for things like the TVs free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels and help keep Vizio TV prices low.Vizio also has ties to political ads. It has previously boasted about its work with "a political candidate on an ad campaign that combined CTV ads with our Household Connect omnichannel feature to reach potential voters both on their TV sets and on other opted in devices." The company says it can play a "powerful role... in helping political campaigns reach their intended audiences."The possibility that the ad placement was a mistake doesn't bring that much comfort either. If TV OS operators want to be so dependent on the advertising business, they owe it to customers to at least make sure errors like this (assuming this was an error) don't happen.Idle TVs are advertisers playthingsEven though Vizio TV owners can turn off Scenic Mode, a company marketing screensaver ads as an experience that adds to the environment of your home or office shows how far some TV brands are willing to go to make advertising dollars. Selling screensaver ad space to politicians delivering threats and associating immigration with drugs, human trafficking, and violence suggests a lack of discernment over what sort of ads are shown where. A political ad shown during a TV commercial break is reasonable. However, seeing one when using a TV functionality that's supposed to offer relaxing, ambient content seems wholly misguided.But TV brands, especially more budget ones like Vizio, are increasingly looking for new places to show ads. And one of the biggest opportunities for more ad space is idle TVs.TV OS operators besides Vizio are trying to seize that opportunity. For example, in 2022, Roku launched Roku City, a screensaver for devices using Roku OS that shows an animated city with advertisements in the form of logos splattered across the city. Roku claims that Roku City reaches 38.5 million streaming households a week on average. A shot of a Roku City screensaver. Credit: Roku A shot of a Roku City screensaver. Credit: Roku Smart TVs and streaming devices running Amazons Fire OS have screensaver ads, too. Even LG, which is considered a more premium brand, launched screensaver ads in September, but users can disable them.Startup Telly is a standout example of a company trying to monetize idle TV time. Announced in 2023, Telly TVs have a secondary screen that can show ads when the TV is not in use. Telly TVs are free to purchase in exchange for providing the company with user data, including disclosing your favorite news outlets, film and TV genres, foods, and services, your gender and race, and other information before youre able to order the TV. The free Telly 4K TV has a second screen for showing ads. Credit: Telly The free Telly 4K TV has a second screen for showing ads. Credit: Telly After theyre set up, Telly TVs track user behavior, including what they watch and for how long, what they search for, and where they put their Telly. If users opt out of tracking, Telly charges them for the TV.Glance is another company demonstrating the strong interest advertisers have in TV screensavers. Glance is known for custom lock screens for phones that show things like news and weather. In December, it announced Glance TV, which essentially brings the same capability to TVs with Glance TV embedded into their OS. In addition to offering a different idle screen, Glance TV delivers targeted advertising and shoppable content to TVs when they go idle. Glance TV only delivers content from Glance's partners and doesnt gather information from the web, Digital Trends previously reported.Currently, Airtel Xstream streaming boxes and sticks, which use Android TV OS and are available in India, are the only devices supporting Glance TV.Bad ad choices make cheap TVs a harder sellBuying a budget TV means accepting some trade-offs. Those trade-offs have historically been around things like image quality and feature sets. But companies like Vizio are also asking customers to accept questionable advertising decisions as they look to create new paths to ad revenue.Numerous factors are pushing TV OS operators deeper into advertising. Brands are struggling to grow profits as people buy new TVs less frequently. As the TV market gets more competitive, hardware is also selling for cheaper, with some companies selling TVs at a loss with hopes of making up for it with ad sales. Theres concern that these market realities could detract from real TV innovation. And as the Secretary Noem ad reportedly shown to Vizio TV owners has highlighted, another concern is the lack of care around which ads are being shown to TV ownersespecially when all they want is simple ambient background noise.Today, people can disable ambient mode settings that show ads. But with some TV brands showing poor judgment around where they sell and place ads, we wouldnt bank on companies maintaining these boundaries forever. If the industry cant find a way to balance corporate needs with appropriate advertising, people might turn off not only their TVs more often, but also unplug from those brands completely.Scharon HardingSenior Technology ReporterScharon HardingSenior Technology Reporter Scharon is a Senior Technology Reporter at Ars Technica writing news, reviews, and analysis on consumer gadgets and services. She's been reporting on technology for over 10 years, with bylines at Toms Hardware, Channelnomics, and CRN UK. 73 Comments

Digital Foundry investigates.Nintendo gave us another glimpse of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond during the Switch Direct last week and some fans have been so impressed with the visuals on display they are convinced it's footage of the game running on Switch 2.If you, or anyone else you know are feeling the same way about what you're seeing, you might want to watch this latest clip from the team at Digital Foundry - perhaps unsurprisingly confirming there's no actual Switch 2 footage on display here.Read the full article on nintendolife.com