Player housing is a staple of the MMORPG genre, giving long-term players their own private space to decorate as they see fit. This has been hugely successful for MMOs like Final Fantasy 14, but Blizzard has never explored such a system for World of Warcraft. That has finally changed, with the game finally set to get its own player housing system. 

As part of the next World of Warcraft expansion, titled “Midnight”, players will be able to buy their own homes and show them off to other players. The feature has already been in development for a while now, but Blizzard is now officially announcing it in order to gather fan feedback on what players want from a WoW housing system. This will give the developers a chance to pivot if they've skipped over a crucial feature.

As you can see in the image above, Blizzard has also shown its new roadmap for 2025, which confirms that the team plans to officially reveal the World of Warcraft: Midnight expansion next summer. The new expansion is part of a trilogy known as the Worldsoul Saga, which kicked off with last year's release of The War Within.

We'll have to wait around six months to really get a proper look at World of Warcraft: Midnight and the new player housing update. Hopefully, the expansion is on track to release in late 2025.

KitGuru Says: This is the sort of thing that would have been great to have back in WoW's heyday, when it was known as the biggest social game. Nowadays, a lot of MMO players are more solo-minded, but perhaps more systems like this can encourage random groups to form more often. 

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Last night, Blizzard held its Warcraft 30th Anniversary stream and just as predicted, the company did indeed reveal a new remaster for its original RTS, Warcraft: Orcs & Humans. That wasn't all though, there is also a remaster for Warcraft 2, and even a major update for Warcraft 3: Reforged. 

The Warcraft 1 & 2 remasters are already available via Battle.net. The new versions of the games feature new hand-drawn art, HD assets and UI improvements. Warcraft 1 in particular will see a big control update, improving game speed and adding a right-click to move option. Players of both remasters will also be pleased to know that they can now select more units to move around compared to the original games.

A big patch for Warcraft 3: Reforged, which was Blizzard's worst-rated game of all time, will overhaul the game's lighting and environments, and the game will also get additional UI improvements. Hopefully after this update, Warcraft 3: Reforged will be a bit more palatable to fans who were disappointed by the game at launch.

All three classic Warcraft RTS remasters also include a graphics toggle, so you can easily switch between modern and classic graphics modes. A bundle including all three games, as well as the original versions of Warcraft 1 & 2, is now available on Battle.net for £34.99.

KitGuru Says: I missed out on the Warcraft RTS games back in the day, as I was much more enamoured with Age of Empires, Age of Mythology and Empire Earth. Hopefully, these remasters will be a good introduction to the classic games for newcomers like myself. 

 

The post Blizzard unveils Warcraft 1&2 Remastered and major Warcraft 3 patch first appeared on KitGuru.

Today sees nine more games joining GeForce Now, including additional Call of Duty titles, like Black Ops Cold War and COD: Vanguard. This week also sees the addition of new Game Pass titles to the GFN library. 

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War was a somewhat rushed game. Originally, it wasn't going to be a Black Ops title, but due to issues behind the scenes, Activision was forced to move the project over to Treyarch to meet deadlines. Still, the game did go on to find success thanks to a good selection of multiplayer maps and a decent, blockbuster campaign. Vanguard was a better title in my opinion, with it being the most recent ‘World War' era COD game, although its campaign does not reach the same heights as Call of Duty: WWII.

Here are the five games joining GeForce Now this week:

• Farming Simulator 25 (New release on Steam, Nov. 12)
• Sea Power: Naval Combat in the Missile Age (New release on Steam, Nov. 12)
• Industry Giant 4.0 (New release Steam, Nov. 15)
• Ara: History Untold (Steam and Xbox, available on PC Game Pass)
• Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (Steam and Battle.net)
• Call of Duty: Vanguard (Steam and Battle.net)
• Magicraft (Steam)
• Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy (Steam and Xbox, available on PC Game Pass)
• Spyro Reignited Trilogy (Steam and Xbox, available on PC Game Pass)

Oddly, STALKER 2 is not mentioned here, despite that game being a day-one title for Game Pass on Xbox and PC. Hopefully we'll get some clarity on that next week.

KitGuru Says: What do you think of this week's GeForce Now update? 

The post GeForce Now adds nine more games this week first appeared on KitGuru.

Obsidian's new fantasy RPG, Avowed, was originally planned to release this year. In fact, we should be playing the game right now. However, months after announcing the release date, Microsoft made the decision to delay the game. Now, Xbox head, Phil Spencer, has revealed the reason behind the delay.

As we've heard previously, the Avowed delay had nothing to do with quality concerns, or issues with the game. In fact, it sounds like the game didn't need more time at all. Instead, Avowed was pushed back to February 2025 in order to not overcrowd Microsoft's late 2024 release schedule.

In order to ensure Avowed doesn't get lost amongst the flurry of new games releasing in Q4, including Xbox's own major releases like Black Ops 6 and Indiana Jones, Avowed was moved from late 2024 to February 2025. Speaking on the decision, Phil Spencer said the following in an interview with Game File:

“We didn’t move it because Obsidian needed the time. They’ll use the time. Matt Booty and I, we plan it out, we talk with the Game Pass team. We said, ‘Okay, let’s make sure we pace this out a little better’.”

Spencer has spoken previously about wanting a major exclusive for Game Pass every quarter. When a situation arises where multiple projects are ready to release in close proximity, it makes sense to spread them out a bit to achieve that goal.

KitGuru Says: I was disappointed Avowed was delayed as that was my big Q4 game, but February isn't too far off. Will you be picking up Avowed when it releases next year?

The post Xbox head reveals reason behind Avowed delay first appeared on KitGuru.

The team at GOG has done fantastic work over the years bringing DRM-free games to the masses. Now, they are kicking this up a notch with the GOG Preservation Program, which aims to maintain classic games to ensure they continue to run on modern PCs. Over 100 titles are already included in the program with various improvements supplied by GOG. 

GOG is going all-in on its game preservation efforts. The lack of DRM on GOG titles already ensures easy access to games well into the future. However, now, GOG is also committed to delivering improvements to keep these classic games accessible as hardware and operating systems like Windows, continue to mature.

Some of the classics included in the GOG Preservation Program include hits like Heroes of Might and Magic 3, Diablo, Warcraft, Riven, Myst, Alpha Protocol, Resident Evil 1-3, Carmageddon, Empire Earth, X-COM: UFO Defense, Earthworm Jim, Ultima, Legacy of Kain and more.

For titles included in the program, GOG will make sure the games are still compatible with modern operating systems, like Windows 11, and provide fixes or improvements where needed. For instance, various issues with the classic Resident Evil games have been fixed in the GOG version. Other titles have had additional localisations added, making the game playable in more languages, and in some cases, GOG has made renderer improvements and fixed cutscenes.

You can find all of GOG's Preservation Program titles, as well as patch notes with details on updates, HERE.

KitGuru Says: GOG is a true gem in an industry that is often trying to lock down software and leave games lost in time. 

The post GOG kicks off Game Preservation Program with over 100 titles first appeared on KitGuru.

Apple has announced the opening of Apple La Vaguada, in north Madrid, marking the city's fifth store and its first in ten years.


Just over a decade on from the opening of its Apple Puerto del Sol store, Apple is adding a new retail location around 10 miles away. The new store is located on the top floor of Madrid's La Vaguada Shopping Center, on the Avenue de Monforte de Lemos.

Apple revealed the store with a new Apple Store webpage for it, which says it will open on Friday, November 28, 2024. "Let's do cool things," says the new store page, in translation.


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Apple will be bringing back "Mythic Quest" to Apple TV+ for its fourth season in the new year, with spin-off series "Side Quest" to air right after its conclusion.


Arriving over three years after Apple renewed the show, "Mythic Quest" is finally nearing the release of its fourth season. It's also going to bring along its spin-off, renamed "Side Quest" from the original title "Mere Mortals."

The main show, "Mythic Quest," will start from January 29 with two new episodes, reports Variety. One new episode will be released every week, until it ends on March 26.


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All it takes is cracking open your Mac Studio and voiding your warranty, but it's been proven that you can upgrade to 8TB SSD for less than half what Apple charges.


Now may not be the best time to buy a Mac Studio, since it's likely that an M5 version may be just a few months away. But it is never, not ever, the right time to pay Apple's SSD upgrade prices because they are so very much overpriced.

You just may not have to. We'll have to see what happens when this gets out into the hands of more users, but a successful Kickstarter campaign by Polysoft was offering SSD upgrades for both the M1 and M2 models of the Mac Studio.


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The original Mac Studio still offers a lot of performance, but a comparatively-priced M4 Pro Mac mini offers a better deal. Here's what $1,200 could get you in either Mac flavor.


Introduced in March 2022, the Mac Studio promised high performance in a compact casing. Effectively a Mac mini on steroids, the Mac Studio aimed high with its performance, while still sticking to the concept of a small block of computing power.

The Apple Silicon chip generations have flown by, with the newest Mac models sporting an M4 chip. This may be a three-generation difference, but the original Mac Studio is still showing its worth to consumers.


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OWC has released the Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 SSD, an external drive that takes advantage of the M4 Pro and M4 Max Mac's connections.


As part of its M4 Mac upgrades, Apple upgraded some of the ports on its M4 Pro and M4 Max models to use Thunderbolt 5. Following a preorder period, OWC has now started to ship a drive that takes advantage of the increased amount of bandwidth.

The OWC Envoy Ultra is a Thunderbolt 5-based portable SSD, claimed to be the first in the world. Taking advantage of the massive bandwidth of Thunderbolt 5, it can transfer data to and from a Mac at speeds exceeding 6,000MB/s.


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Google is increasing the competition with Siri and Apple Intelligence on iPhone, by releasing a standalone iOS app for Gemini.


Google's Gemini has been available to use for some time on the iPhone, but as part of the main Google app. Now, Gemini is available as its own standalone app for iOS, and is being framed even more as a personal AI assistant.

In an official blog post, Google explains that the app offers something called Gemini Live, a version of the assistant offering "free-flowing conversations." Using Live, users can have a back-and-forth conversation with Gemini, complete with the ability to interrupt mid-response, or to pause a conversation to pick it up later.


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The UK's "Which?" consumer group and publication is to sue Apple over what it claims is the company's anti-competitive way of locking users into paying for iCloud storage.


It's not the first lawsuit against Apple over iCloud storage, and the company's free 5G has certainly been aggravating for many years. Now Which? has announced what it describes as a landmark legal claim over Apple's "rip-off prices" for iCloud.

"We believe Apple customers are owed nearly 3 billion pounds [$3.8 billion] as a result of the tech giant forcing its iCloud services on customers and cutting off competition from rival services," said Anabel Hoult, Which? CEO, in a statement. "By bringing this claim, Which? is showing big corporations like Apple that they cannot rip off UK consumers without facing repercussions."


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The G.SKILL WigiDash is a touch screen accessory for PC users, allowing you to not only monitor your hardware and real-time performance with the likes of AIDA64 and HWInfo, but also allows for widgets to control functions from volume/media playback to Twitch chat or even Spotify.

AGON by AOC is raising the bar again with its latest creation: the AGON Pro AG276FK. This 27-inch Full HD gaming monitor boasts a Fast IPS panel and an astonishing refresh rate of 520Hz, making it one of the first monitors with these specs to be released.

The AGON Pro AG276FK's foundation is its advanced 27-inch Fast IPS panel, which delivers a Full HD resolution with a 520 Hz refresh rate and response times of up to 0.5 ms GtG and 0.3 ms MPRT. With a peak brightness of 400 nits and DisplayHDR 400 certification, this monitor offers a basic HDR experience. The inclusion of Adaptive-Sync technology combats screen tearing and stuttering, fostering a smooth and responsive play environment.

Packed with gamer-centric features, the AG276FK offers an array of pre-calibrated gaming modes optimised for various genres, allowing quick transitions between colour presets. Additional features such as the built-in Frame Counter and Shadow Control allow players to monitor their performance and enhance their visual experience. Moreover, an on-screen display (OSD) menu provides rapid access to essential gaming settings.

The monitor also incorporates the latest Motion Blur Reduction (MBR) and MBR Sync technologies to enhance motion clarity in competitive scenarios. MBR Sync combines the benefits of backlight strobing technology with variable refresh rate compatibility, granting gamers a clean, tear-free experience. A Low Input Lag mode further optimises the device by bypassing unnecessary visual processing, ensuring the fastest response to player inputs.

The AGON Pro AG276FK features a highly adjustable stand with 130 mm height adjustment, tilt, swivel, and pivot options, complemented by a sleek, low-profile design. This ensures optimal positioning during intense gaming sessions. Connectivity options are plentiful, featuring two HDMI 2.0 connectors, two DisplayPorts 1.4, and a USB hub with four USB 3.2 ports. The AGON Pro AG276FK is set for release this month with an MSRP of £499.99.

KitGuru says: Driving a consistent 520 FPS in an FHD monitor isn't for all systems, but for those who can, the AGON Pro AG276FK is a monitor worth considering for those who favour smoothness over resolution.

The post The latest AOC AGON monitor boasts a whopping 520Hz refresh rate first appeared on KitGuru.

Lollipop Chainsaw is a highly interesting video game. Released back in 2012, the hack-and-slash title was the brainchild of video game director Suda51 and famed film writer/director James Gunn. Over a decade on from its release, a remaster (in the form of Lollipop Chainsaw RePOP) finally dropped back in September – to higher-than-expected sales.

As reported by the Japanese publication Gamebiz (and translated by Automaton), Dragami Games’ parent company ‘Extreme’ published their latest fiscal earnings report, revealing that the recently-released Lollipop Chainsaw RePOP has “significantly exceeded initial sales targets.”

The success of the remaster has helped to raise the company’s overall revenue forecast for the year, with a projected 5.9% increase in net sales and a 52.1% boost to net profit – though we did not get any concrete sales figures for the title itself.

Given the fact that the last-gen version of RePOP is set to arrive next month, it’s possible that future projections might need to be reevaluated once again. We will have to wait and see.

KitGuru says: What did you think of Lollipop Chainsaw back in the day? Did you pick up the remaster? Would you like to see the series continue in some form or another? Let us know down below.

The post Lollipop Chainsaw RePOP sales have exceeded expectations first appeared on KitGuru.

Since its launch a couple years ago, SEGA has heavily supported Apple’s Arcade subscription service with new and original games. Following the likes of the well-received Sonic Dream Team, it seems SEGA Hardlight is cooking up a Sonic Rush-styled Apple Arcade experience.

In a now-deleted post to social media (archived by ResetEra user ‘ezidro3’), the developers of Sonic Dream Team ‘SEGA Hardlight’ shared a teaser image of a silhouetted Sonic in the same styling to the DS Sonic Rush series.

Alongside this, the teaser included the Apple Arcade logo (confirming that it will be an iOS exclusive) as well as a 2025 release date.

Sonic Rush is a very different game to Sonic Dream Team (with the former being a 2D pixel-art game for one), and so it will be highly interesting to see what exactly they have planned for this title – whether it will be a remaster/port or a long-time-coming sequel.

We will have to wait until next year to find out. Hopefully it (and Sonic Dream Team) come to more platforms eventually.

KitGuru says: What do you think of the teaser? Are you intrigued? Will these games ever come to other platforms? Let us know your thoughts down below.

The post SEGA accidentally teases another Apple Arcade exclusive Sonic game first appeared on KitGuru.

In a surprising move, Sony announced a PlayStation-published LEGO game based on its popular Horizon IP earlier this year. Intended to be a more family-friendly conversion of Zero Dawn’s narrative, LEGO Horizon Adventures has just launched for all to enjoy – with critic reviews now out in the wild.

With a MetaCritic score of 71 and an Opencritic rating of 72, LEGO Horizon Adventures has received a somewhat mixed reception, with reviews either skewing to the positive or mixed position – though very few overall negatives.

That said, according to critics, the game does offer a strong showing and will likely resonate well with younger audiences or more casual family members.

Unfortunately, one of the biggest downsides seems to be the game’s short length alongside relatively repetitive gameplay – especially for its asking price of £59.99.

Of course, the game will likely strike a chord with its intended audience of younger players, and so we will have to wait and see what the general public thinks of LEGO Horizon Adventures as more people get their hands on it and play through the full experience.

KitGuru says: Are you going to pick up the game? Will it be a sleeper hit sales-wise? Would you like to see PlayStation do LEGO versions of more of its games? Let us know down below.

The post LEGO Horizon Adventures launches to mixed critic reviews first appeared on KitGuru.

Corsair first entered the monitor space back in 2021 with the 32QHD165 and has since released a handful of screens to the market. Today we are checking out the company's latest offering, the Xeneon 34WQHD240-C, packing a 21:9 ultrawide QD-OLED panel from Samsung along with a 240Hz refresh rate and 1000 nits of peak brightness. Retailing for £1149 here in the UK, we put this monitor through its paces and find out if it's worth buying.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro
00:44 Design and first impressions
02:12 Connectivity and OSD
03:41 Panel analysis – brightness and gamut
05:00 Greyscale + colour accuracy
06:26 sRGB mode
07:36 Calibrated results, viewing angles
08:17 Some QD-OLED specifics
10:09 Response times and gaming experience
12:19 HDR performance
14:13 Closing thoughts

We've reviewed plenty of QD-OLED monitors this year, both in 4K/240Hz and 1440p/360Hz form. Today we're checking out our first 240Hz ultrawide model though, via Corsair's Xeneon 34WQHD240-C. This is the screen I first got hands-on with back at Computex 2024 and I've been keen to get one in for a proper review ever since.

Initially landing in the UK at £1149, when I started writing this review Corsair had dropped by the price by £170 and the 34WQHD240-C was retailing for £979.99. It has since gone back up to full price, so let's find out what this display has to offer.

Specification:

• Screen Dimensions (width x height): 812.04mm x 359.86mm
• Screen size (Measured diagonally): 34″
• Resolution: 3440×1440
• Panel type: QD-OLED
• Max refresh rate: 240Hz
• Adaptive sync: Nvidia G-Sync Compatible Certified, AMD FreeSync Certified
• Color Space: 1.07 Billion (10bit data)
• HDR: True Black HDR400
• Display inputs: HDMI 2.1 x2, DP1.4 x1, USB-C DP ALT with PD 65W x1
• Additional Ports: USB-C Upstream with PD 15W x1, USB-A 5Gbps with KVM x4, 3.5mm Audio output x1
• VESA Compatibility: 100 x 100
• Weight without stand: 7.2kg/15.8lbs
• Warranty: 3 years

Firmware tested: V102

The post Corsair Xeneon 34WQHD240-C Review (Ultrawide 240Hz QD-OLED) first appeared on KitGuru.

The release of iOS 18 brought a number of new features to Apple's Journal app, including the new ability to search and sort entries.


Apple's Journal app was originally introduced in December 2023 alongside iOS 17. In October 2024, it received its first major update, as part of the iOS 18 upgrade.

There's new support for noting one's state of mind, if desired, along with the ability to print individual entries, and more. The biggest new addition to Journal in iOS 18, though, is the arrival of search and sort functionality.


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Keep an eye out for SSD deals as S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl wants to eat up at least 160GB of space, and that's before your first save file.  Not only…

Apple's professional apps, Final Cut Pro, Final Cut Camera, and Logic Pro, have all received major updates. Here's what you need to know.


There is a suite of Mac, iPhone, and iPad apps offered by Apple for everyone from the novice to Hollywood professional for audio and film development. Several have been updated with new features that address new formats offered by iPhone 16 like Spatial Video and 120 fps 4K video.

Apple provided updates to Logic Pro, Final Cut Pro, and Final Cut Camera. More minor updates were provided to the Compressor app and iMovie.


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In the past year we have seen Xbox begin to open the floodgates when it comes to bringing previous system exclusives to PS5 and Switch. While Microsoft’s CEO has shared some mixed messaging with regards to Xbox exclusives, Phil Spencer has now confirmed that there are no “red lines” when it comes to bringing games to PlayStation/Switch.

In an interview conducted by Bloomberg, the head of Xbox Phil Spencer sat down to discuss a range of topics. Alongside the official confirmation that Micorosft are actively working on a portable Xbox handheld, Spencer offered some insight into their current approach regarding exclusives.

According to Spencer, “I do not see sort of red lines in our portfolio that say ‘thou must not,’” though he did add that “It's too early to make any sort of decision on the next version of Halo.”

Of course, following the porting of Sea of Thieves, Pentiment and Grounded, the PS5 is set to get its first proper taste of the Xbox platform’s shifting plans with the upcoming release of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle – arriving just a few months after its Xbox launch.

As mentioned, the CEO of Microsoft Satya Nadella recently claimed that “Growth of our Gaming business is determined by the overall active user base through Xbox enabled content, availability of games, providing exclusive game content that gamers seek;” quite a contrary state of that of Phil Spencer's.

That said, we’ll have to simply chalk it up to inefficiencies in the messaging pipeline due to Microsoft being a massive $3 Trillion company.

KitGuru says: What do you think of Spencer’s updated messaging? Will Halo come to PlayStation? How long after its launch do you think it’ll take? Let us know down below.

The post There are no “red lines” with Xbox games coming to other platforms first appeared on KitGuru.