Here at KitGuru we know you are sick of hearing about AI, however we have more bad news in this episode of Leo Says and it's all about the impact of AI. The shock is that Nvidia only has a minor part in this particular drama with the spotlight falling on Sam Altman of OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT.

Previously we have blamed Nvidia for the runaway price of gaming graphics cards and now we can point the finger at OpenAI as we tell you about horrible, terrible and shocking things that are happening in the memory market where the cost of DDR5 has doubled in just the past two months.

Kitguru says: We are used to surges and pricing cycles but this time it feels different and we have a strong feeling that things won't change for the better in 2026 and may persist through 2027. Buckle up, it's going to get rough

The post Leo Says 83 – Nvidia, OpenAI & Rising RAM Prices: The Hidden Story first appeared on KitGuru.

We've covered many of MSI's Black Friday deals so far, focussed around monitors and DIY PC hardware. Today, MSI rolled out its list of laptop deals, cutting prices across gaming and business-oriented models.

Then MSI Prestige 14 AI Studio laptop is down from £1,399 to £979, packing an Intel Core Ultra 7 processor, 32GB of DDR5 memory and an RTX 3050 laptop GPU. For something with a bit more gaming grunt, there is the MSI Thin 15 with its 144Hz display, 13th Gen Intel Core i5 processor and RTX 4050 GPU, giving you access to more modern features like DLSS Frame Generation in supported titles. Normally, this model goes for £999 but is now down to £599.

The MSI Vector 16 HX AI houses a 16″ 16:10 QHD+ 240Hz display, an Intel Core Ultra 7 255HX, 16GB of RAM and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti for £1,499, down from its usual £1,899 price. For a cheaper option, the MSI Cyborg 15 Gaming Laptop has an Intel i7-13620H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 for £939.99.

If you are after a laptop with a current-gen GPU, then this newer MSI Cyborg 15 model with an RTX 5060 GPU instead is currently down to £1,049.

These are just a handful of the best deals, if you shop around at retailers like Currys, SCAN, Overclockers UK and even CyberPowerPC, you'll find a host of models at a discount for the next week or so.

KitGuru Says: Are you planning on picking up a new gaming laptop during the Black Friday sales this week?

The post MSI slashes laptop prices for Black Friday this week first appeared on KitGuru.

Microsoft has released the first public preview build of the Xbox Full Screen Experience (FSE), expanding its availability beyond handheld devices. The feature, previously limited to sub-10-inch displays like the ROG Xbox Ally X, is now officially accessible for testing on traditional desktops, laptops, and tablets via the Xbox Insider program.

The Full Screen Experience is designed with console-style navigation in mind, transforming the standard Windows 11 desktop into a streamlined, controller-first environment. Microsoft states that this mode also pauses background maintenance activities and mutes notifications to ensure consistent frame delivery. Furthermore, running FSE instead of the standard Windows Explorer shell can reportedly save approximately up to 2GB of system memory.

Once the FSE is enabled in Windows Settings, the interface can be accessed via Task View, Game Bar settings, or by pressing Windows key + F11. To access the official preview, users must be enrolled in both the Xbox Insider Program and the Windows Insider Program (Dev and Beta Channels). To join the Windows Insider and Xbox Insider programs, you first need to sign up for the Xbox Insider Program and install and open the Xbox Insider Hub application. In the app, go to Previews > Preview of PC Games, then select Join. Moreover, you'll also have to sign up for the Windows Insider Program and join the beta or dev channels.

The functionality is rolling out gradually with the latest Windows 11 preview release, 26220.7271. Microsoft expects that the Xbox Full Screen Experience will be rolled out to all Windows 11 users sometime next year.

KitGuru says: Are you interested in the new Xbox Full Screen Experience? Will you try it out while it's still in beta, or wait for the full release?

The post Microsoft rolls out Xbox Full Screen Experience preview for Windows 11 PCs first appeared on KitGuru.

Google and Nvidia have teamed up to introduce the GeForce Now Fast Pass, a new cloud gaming subscription tier built exclusively for Chromebook owners. The service offers access to over 2,000 “Ready-to-Play” titles from users' existing game libraries (Steam, Epic, Xbox, etc.), and every new Chromebook purchase now includes a one-year subscription for you to try it out.

The Fast Pass is positioned as a significant upgrade over the existing free service. It eliminates pre-roll advertisements and grants priority server access, allowing Chromebook users to skip the potentially long waiting queues often associated with the free plan. The service connects users to Nvidia's GeForce RTX servers, although not the latest RTX 5080 servers. The service also tops out at 1080p/60FPS at this tier, while Ultimate members get access to more resolution and frame rate options.

However, the new tier does come with a strict usage cap. Fast Pass members are limited to 10 hours of cloud gaming per month. While up to five unused hours can be carried over to the following month, this limitation positions the tier as a casual gaming supplement rather than a replacement for paid plans. For comparison, Nvidia's higher-tier subscriptions, which start at $9.99 per month, offer up to 100 hours of monthly playtime.

Neither company has confirmed the pricing of the Fast Pass outside of the one-year Chromebook bundle.

KitGuru says: Do you think this new tier will convince more gamers to get a Chromebook?

The post Nvidia launches GeForce Now ‘Fast Pass’ tier exclusive to Chromebooks first appeared on KitGuru.

The slow performance of the Windows 11 File Explorer has been a complaint since the operating system's debut. Microsoft has finally addressed this fundamental shortcoming, though the solution is less an architectural fix and more a clever workaround.

Microsoft (via Windows Central) has officially acknowledged the performance problems and is testing a solution in the latest Windows 11 Insider Preview builds, specifically 26220.7271. The key change is that File Explorer will now be preloaded into memory by default when the system boots or is idle. This keeps the necessary components resident in RAM, drastically reducing the “cold start” latency experienced when the user clicks the taskbar icon.

The company's motivation for this brute-force fix is clear: users often compare the sluggish start to the near-instantaneous file managers found in competing operating systems, with many pointing out that the problem did not exist in Windows 10. The performance degradation is widely attributed to the blending of modern XAML and WinUI components with the older Win32 shell, which supposedly creates unnecessary initialisation overhead.

While the fix should provide a snappy, near-instant launch, it has been met with skepticism, as some argue it masks the root cause of the inefficiency in how File Explorer was programmed. For users concerned about the permanent memory footprint, Microsoft has included a user-facing option in File Explorer's Folder Options to disable background preloading. The feature is expected to roll out to all Windows 11 users in a future update next year.

KitGuru says: Have you ever felt File Explorer was slow? Will you enable this option when your system supports it, or would you prefer to have more free memory?

The post Microsoft acknowledges Windows 11 File Explorer lag first appeared on KitGuru.

Chieftec has introduced a new Micro-ATX chassis, The Cube, that draws design inspiration from large audio speakers. As the name suggests, the case sports a minimalist, boxy design, with its signature look provided by a large circular front vent covered in breathable fabric, reminiscent of a subwoofer. 

The Chieftec The Cube is a compact 34.1-liter enclosure that measures 385 x 265 x 355mm (DxWxH). Despite its size, the case offers solid component compatibility, including support for mATX and Mini-ITX motherboards. There's also space for graphics cards up to 335mm long and CPU coolers up to 160mm tall. The chassis also supports standard ATX power supplies up to 160mm long (depending on whether internal drive bays are used). For storage, the system can house two 3.5-inch HDDs and two 2.5-inch SSDs simultaneously.

The unique front design houses a single 200mm PWM fan that comes pre-installed, ensuring high-volume, quiet airflow. The top of the chassis supports additional cooling, including up to two 120mm fans (or a single 200mm fan) or a 240mm liquid cooling radiator. There's also space for a 120mm fan at the rear.

The connectivity panel is located above the front grille and features dual USB 3.0 Type-A ports, a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C port, and audio jacks. The case is currently available only in black. The product is already available in the EU, priced at approximately €70.

KitGuru says: The case looks interesting and could certainly pass for a subwoofer, although we do wonder if the fabric covering the vent may restrict airflow. 

The post Chieftec’s latest mATX case looks like a subwoofer first appeared on KitGuru.

Last month, IO Interactive made headlines with its latest HITMAN elusive target mission, bringing legendary martial artist Bruce Lee into the game. Now, IO Interactive has a new target for Agents to take out, the one and only Slim Shady.

Eminem vs Slim Shady is the latest elusive target contract for HITMAN: World of Assassination. The new mission will see players take on a mission from the rapper himself, as he looks to put his Slim Shady persona to rest for good. The mission takes place in a reworked version of an existing Hitman map, but rearranged to look like an asylum, complete with a radio broadcasting studio, all littered with references to past Eminem albums. Yes, that does include a poisoned plate of Mom's Spaghetti.

IO Interactive CEO Hakan Abrak called the collaboration “something truly special and unique”. Better yet, the mission will be free to all owners of the game across PlayStation, Xbox and Switch consoles, as well as PC, mobile platforms and even the VR versions of the game.

Eminem is the latest in a growing list of celebrity cameos within Hitman. We recently, saw Bruce Lee added to the game, but other past appearances have included Sean Bean, Jean‑Claude Van Damme, Conor McGregor and more.

KitGuru Says: Will you be checking out the new elusive target mission in Hitman?

The post Latest Hitman elusive target mission puts Agent 47 up against Eminem first appeared on KitGuru.

While Valve has still not announced exact prices for its upcoming hardware launches, members of the hardware team have been dropping some hints. After confirming that the Steam Machine will not be priced ‘like a console', two Valve workers have now added that PC gamers should expect pricing in line to a DIY PC of a similar performance level. 

After telling LinusTechTips that the Steam Machine will not be positioned as a console competitor price-wise, two Valve workers also appeared on the Friends Per Second podcast last week, adding a bit more clarification to Valve's thinking when it comes to price.

“If you build a PC from parts and get to basically the same level of performance, that’s the general price window that we aim to be at”.

They added that “obviously, our goal is for it to be a good deal at that level of performance”, so Valve won't be marking it up like we often see in the pre-built PC business. However, the Steam Machine will not be a ‘subsidised' device like consoles often are, where companies like Sony and Microsoft eat a portion of the hardware cost to get people on the platform, and then make up that money by taking a cut of software sales.

Valve does take a cut of everything sold on Steam, so it isn't like Valve couldn't do this. However, it is currently a tricky time in the hardware world due to AI corporations buying up all available supply to feed massive datacentres, leaving little left for the consumer electronics market. As a result, it is expected that certain devices, like the Xbox Series X/S consoles, will soon go up in price again due to rising memory costs. It is possible that this on-going uncertainty is why Valve hasn't nailed down a price point already.

KitGuru Says: Given everything we know so far, how much are you expecting the Steam Machine to cost? At this point, my guess would be anywhere between $800 and $999. 

The post Valve drops more hints on Steam Machine’s PC-like pricing first appeared on KitGuru.

While the team at Treyarch have made a ton of positive changes with the launch of Black Ops 7, the Call of Duty name is currently far from its peak, with the highly successful launch of Battlefield 6 serving as an interesting point of contrast. Even so, Treyarch have been teasing that Black Ops 7 will have a massive Season 1, with the post-launch update officially set to arrive in a little over a week’s time.

Even prior to the official launch of Black Ops 7, Treyarch began to tease their content roadmap for the game’s first Season, confirming a number of upcoming additions including:

• 6 new multiplayer maps
• 7 additional weapons
• New main Zombies map (Astra Malorum)
• Two Zombies Survival maps (Exit 115 and Zarya Cosmodrome)

While we have yet to receive the full entire roadmap, the team have started to offer some more details, taking to Twitter to confirm that Season 1 will officially launch on the 4th of December.

As mentioned, Call of Duty is in a bit of an awkward spot right now. While Black Ops 7 is in many ways objectively one of the best Call of Duty entries in recent years, sentiment surrounding the franchise as a whole has fallen off a cliff somewhat.

As such, it will be interesting to see whether “the biggest Season 01 ever” will be enough to shift the general sentiment. We won’t have to wait long to find out.

KitGuru says: Have you been playing Black Ops 7? What do you think so far? Can Black Ops 7 win back jaded fans? Let us know your thoughts down below.

The post Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 Season 1 release date officially announced first appeared on KitGuru.

Back in early 2024, a rumour first popped up claiming that Ubisoft had greenlit the development of an Assassin’s Creed Black Flag remake. Since then, we’ve heard various bits and bobs surrounding the project – including the extent to which they plan to alter the game’s overall formula. Though still yet to be officially announced, insiders have claimed that AC’s Black Flag Remake is slated to arrive in just a few months.

As reported by known industry leakers Insider-Gaming, the long-rumoured yet-still-unannounced Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Remake could be arriving in just a few months time – more specifically before the end of March 2026.

This follows on from comments by Ubisoft themselves who recently revealed that they have an unannounced project scheduled to arrive before the end of the fiscal year (aka. the 31st of March 2026).

Going into slightly more depth, the leakers stated that this Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Remake is “scheduled to release the week of March 23rd” (most likely on Tuesday or Friday).

As mentioned, this is far from the first time we’ve heard of a Black Flag remake, with previous reports claiming that quite a few changes are being made, including but not limited to:

• Removing all of the modern day elements from the game
• Edward having his own loot and gear stats
• Combat being less ‘choreographed’ than the original
• A more dense map with fewer loading screens

Of course, we will have to wait for an official announcement before jumping to conclusions. That said, given how close the remake seemingly is to its release, we might finally get an unveiling during this year’s Game Awards.

KitGuru says: Are you looking forward to the Black Flag remake? Can it live up to the original? What are your thoughts on the leaked details so far? Let us know down below.

The post Long-rumoured Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Remake reportedly launching in March first appeared on KitGuru.

Following the somewhat controversial release of Street Fighter V, Capcom came back bigger and better with the arrival of Street Fighter 6 in June of 2023. Since launch, the latest entry in the much-loved fighting game franchise has continued to consistently sell well, with Street Fighter 6 having now officially surpassed 6 million copies sold.

Making the announcement on Twitter, the game’s official page confirmed that Street Fighter 6 “has now sold over 6 million units worldwide! Our utmost gratitude to everyone who has hit the streets and to all those who will soon join us.”

For context, Street Fighter 6 managed to sell 1 million copies in its first 3 days on the market back in June 2023 – going on to push to 2 million by the end of its first month. By January of 2024 SF6 had surpassed 3 million copies.

Capcom then announced in September of 2024 that SF6 had reached a total of 4 million. This figure was then increased to 5 million earlier in June of this year. Of course, now 5 months later and Street Fighter 6 has officially sold 6 million copies.

That said, the game still has a ways to go in order to meet expectations, with Capcom’s President claiming prior to the game’s release that they hope Street Fighter 6 will reach 10 million copies when all is said and done.

Given that Capcom still has plenty of post-launch support planned for Street Fighter 6, it could very well hit its target within the coming years.

KitGuru says: What do you think of SF6? Between it, Tekken 8 and MK1, which have you been playing more? Let us know down below.

The post Street Fighter 6 officially surpasses 6 million copies sold first appeared on KitGuru.

If Bethesda is known for one thing, it’s featuring a ton of bugs in its games. Luckily, dedicated modders have for years kept the likes of Fallout 4 stable with countless mods, bug fixes and other optimisations – a majority of which were recently broken thanks to Fallout 4’s controversial Anniversary update. Just a few weeks later and a double-edged sword of an announcement has been made, with Fallout 4 set to receive yet another update which many fans have not been asking for.

Taking to their steam page to make the announcement, the team at Bethesda Game Studios unveiled a new update coming to Fallout 4 which should fix many of the issues introduced with the recent Anniversary update – including but not limited to:

• Fixed a crash that could occur when selecting ‘Purchase Credits' on PC 
• Fixed a crash when selecting ‘Download all owned Creation Club Creations’
• Switching Xbox user profiles no longer causes softlocks or loss of controls
• Performance improvements in the Creations menu across platforms
• Fixed softlocking when entering/exiting the Creations menu repeatedly
• Players can now like/unlike creations in the Load Order menu as intended

The full list of patch notes can be found HERE and does include plenty of welcome fixes. That said, as mentioned this update will once again break a ton of key mods which Fallout 4 fans have used for years now.

Response to the update has been rather negative, with many Steam users expressing frustration at the fact that their mods will once again be broken while offering little in the way of benefits. Of course, users on PC can block Fallout 4 from updating in order to preserve their games, but regardless it is becoming quite clear that fans have started to tire of Bethesda’s cycle.

KitGuru says: Will you be updating your Fallout 4 copy? Should Bethesda stop messing with the game or should they try to fix the problems that they caused with the previous update? Let us know down below.

The post Fallout 4 update aims to fix some of what Bethesda broke with its Anniversary Edition first appeared on KitGuru.

Boulies is no stranger to a review here at KitGuru in recent years, but we've only ever looked at the company's chairs. That changes today as we assess the Magvida dual-motor electronic sit stand desk. It features what Boulies call the EMO system (Expandable Magnetic Organisation) which allows add-ons and attachments to be stuck to the underside of the desktop… But can a chair company make a decent desk?

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro
00:49 Pricing
01:24 Build Process
03:41 Build Quality / Materials
04:54 PC mount
05:42 EMO System / Management Straps
06:33 Clean system possible?
06:44 Included in the package
07:15 Day to day use / Wobble
07:56 Dual Motor System
08:56 Mats thoughts

Specifications

• Desk Size – 140 x 70cm
• Height Range – 61.6-127cm
• Desk Feet Width – 68cm
• Maximum Load – 120kg
• Desk Top Construction – MDF with Steel
• Frame Construction – Steel (SPCC, RECC)
• Motor Speed (Vertical Lift) – 32mm/s
• Noise Level – ≤45dB

You can buy the MagVida desk directly from Boulies HERE. Full RRP is £679.99, Black Friday 2025 pricing is £299.99.

Pros:

• EMO magnetic mounting system is clever and convenient.
• Legs and frame feel solid.
• Cable management tray works well.

Cons:

• Too much wobble when at full height.
• Instruction manual needs a proof read and polish.
• Magnetic silicone cable straps do not have strong enough magnets for any substantial amount of cables.
• Expensive when at full RRP when considering the MDF desktop.
• Screws are low quality and thread easily.

KitGuru says: The MagVida is a decent desk let down by too much wobble and poor quality screws. We'd only consider it when on sale.

The post Boulies MagVida Standing Desk Review first appeared on KitGuru.

Krafton and PUBG Studios have officially revealed PUBG: Black Budget, a new tactical extraction shooter that is moving the franchise beyond the classic battle royale format. The game will be a PvPvE extraction shooter built around tension, survival, and a unique supernatural premise.

Players will take on the role of a contractor sent to a remote 2.5×2.5 km island to recover top-secret technology. The twist is that the island is trapped in a time loop and is being consumed by a supernatural phenomenon known as the Anomaly. The longer a player stays in a session, the more unpredictable and difficult extraction becomes.

PUBG: Black Budget supports up to 45 players per session in three-player squads, featuring dynamic PvPvE encounters against both other Contractors and hostile entities. Unlike traditional battle royales, the focus is on extracting valuable artifacts and uncovering the truth behind the black-budget initiative named Sapiens, with progression tied to expanding a personal base, crafting new equipment, and improving character skills.

The system requirements have also been published. The minimum requirements are reasonably accessible, comprising an Intel Core i5-8400 CPU (or AMD Ryzen 5 2600), 16 GB of RAM, and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 or AMD Radeon RX 6600 graphics card. As for the recommended specs, it includes an Intel Core i5-12400 CPU (or AMD Ryzen 5 5600) and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 or AMD Radeon RX 6800, along with 16 GB of RAM. The game will require 30 GB of storage space. You can find the detailed specifications below:

MINIMUM:

• OS: Windows 11
• Processor: Intel Core i5-8400, AMD Ryzen 5 2600
• Memory: 16GB RAM
• Graphics: Nvidia RTX 2060 8GB, AMD Radeon RX 6600
• DirectX: Version 12
• Network: Broadband Internet connection
• Storage: 30GB available space
• Sound Card: No Recommendation

RECOMMENDED:

• OS: Windows 11
• Processor: Intel Core i5-12400, AMD Ryzen 5 5600
• Memory: 16GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA RTX 3070, AMD Radeon RX 6800
• DirectX: Version 12
• Network: Broadband Internet connection
• Storage: 30GB available space
• Sound Card: No Recommendation

Krafton will launch a Closed Alpha Test next month, running over two weekends: December 12th–14th and December 19th–21st. PC players interested in participating can request access via the game's Steam page.

KitGuru says: Did you play the original PUBG? Will you register for PUBG: Black Budget's closed alpha?

The post KRAFTON announces PUBG: Black Budget, closed Alpha set for December first appeared on KitGuru.

The integrated GPU architecture for Intel's upcoming Nova Lake processors has been subject to conflicting leaks. While initial Linux kernel patches suggested the CPUs would feature Xe3P graphics, an architecture also used by the Crescent Island datacenter GPU, a new report claims otherwise.

Coelcanth's Dream has shared a list of changes for most Nova Lake device IDs, including the low-power U-series, desktop-class S-series, and the standard H-series. These IDs were mapped to GMD 30.4.4 and 30.5.4, which referred to the Xe3-LPG architecture, the same one confirmed for Panther Lake. No mention of Xe3P (GMD 35.11.0) was present in this patch, suggesting Nova Lake iGPUs would be based on Xe3 instead. Still, Coelcanth's Dream believes Nova Lake's iGPU will have more advanced display and media engines than those of Panther Lake and Wildcat Lake, as the initial Linux kernel patches imply.

However, VideoCardz cited its own sources stating that Nova Lake will use a mixed GPU architecture across its product stack. Apparently, a small number of top-tier mobile parts, specifically the high-end Nova Lake-H chips, will feature the true Xe3P graphics tile. This top configuration will reportedly use 12 Xe3P cores and is slated to succeed the highest-end 12 Xe3 setup found in Panther Lake.

This dual-architecture strategy means that the Nova Lake lineup will likely see a split in branding. Given that the current Xe3 iGPUs are launching under the Arc B-series moniker, and Xe3P is confirmed to use the high-performance Arc C-series branding, the overall family could feature a mix of both Arc B and Arc C integrated graphics solutions, depending on the specific SKU.

KitGuru says: Even if some Nova Lake SKUs use Xe3P GPU cores, do you think the difference over standard Xe3 GPU cores will be significant or just a slight improvement?

The post Intel Nova Lake may use mix of Xe3 and Xe3P GPU cores first appeared on KitGuru.

Sony has been selling its games on PC for a few years now and at this point, many are expecting more and more PlayStation-published titles to release day-one on PC alongside consoles. How much money has Sony made by opening up its games to the PC market? Well according to new analysis, the number should be over $1.5 billion. 

Alinea Analytics has published its research on PlayStation games sold via Steam, the biggest PC games store. Judging by the numbers, Helldivers 2 is far and away the biggest PlayStation-published game on Steam, having sold just shy of 13 million copies.

Sony's single-player games have achieved muted numbers by comparison, but the top-sellers are all in a pretty close range. Horizon Zero Dawn has reportedly sold 4.5M copies on Steam, while God of War (2018) is just behind at 4.2M. After that, Days Gone is the fourth bestselling game at 3.4M copies, which must have people at that studio scratching their heads after Sony cancelled all plans for a sequel. Marvel's Spider-Man is the 5th bestselling game at 2.7M copies sold.

As far as overall revenue goes, PlayStation Studios is said to have brought in as much as $1.5B through the Steam platform, across 43M games sold. Valve does take a cut of Steam revenue but given that most PlayStation titles have accrued more than $50M, the cut will be a minimal 20%, rather than the full 30% cut Valve typically takes from Steam sales. Ultimately, that means Sony's take-home pay was around $1.2B overall, while Valve received over $300M for providing the platform.

KitGuru Says: I am surprised that Spider-Man isn't a bit higher. Interestingly, Helldivers 2 is the only current-gen game in the top 5, but that could be in part due to the higher prices for titles like God of War: Ragnarok, Horizon Forbidden West and Spider-Man 2. This shows that PC gamers are typically more patient and willing to wait for deep discounts before buying a game. 

The post PlayStation games have generated $1.5B through Steam first appeared on KitGuru.

Despite debuting with a $499 price tag in 2020, an Xbox Series X now costs as much as $650 when bought new at retail thanks to multiple price hikes. It turns out, there could be another major price increase coming, as Microsoft didn't plan ahead for the current RAM shortage. 

The current AI boom has seen large companies like Microsoft partner, OpenAI, buying up much of the global memory supply, leaving just a sliver of the supply chain for consumer electronics. According to Moore's Law is Dead, this will soon lead to global shortages in the consumer market, which could send Xbox Series X prices skyrocketing even higher.

The video claims that Microsoft “didn't plan ahead at all” and failed to acquire plentiful stocks of GDDR6 memory ahead of time, despite being well aware of the moves in the AI space, being partnered with OpenAI, amongst other companies. Apparently, Microsoft sales reps are already warning that this memory market squeeze will soon impact consumer pricing for Xbox Series consoles.

The video also claims that Sony did plan ahead and currently has plentiful memory resources to avoid raising the price of PlayStation 5 consoles. This is what is enabling the company to offer Black Friday discounts this year, while Xbox consoles may not see a discount at all.

KitGuru Says: Microsoft is well aware of what's happening in the AI world, so the lack of foresight here seems like a major blunder, assuming the report is accurate. 

The post Xbox Series X prices could climb higher due to AI-driven memory shortages first appeared on KitGuru.

Just ahead of this weekend, a rumour began doing the rounds claiming that Naughty Dog's next game, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, would release in 2026. As is often the case, a quote was taken out of context, causing many insiders to jump in and state that the game definitely won't be coming out next year. 

On a recent podcast, Colin Moriarty speculated that Naughty Dog's new IP may release in 2026. Unfortunately, redditors took this quote out of context and what was presented as speculation suddenly became a reported rumour. After the news began doing the rounds, Moriarty wrote on his X account to clarify that he has not heard some any sources that the game would be coming out next year.

Jason Schreier, perhaps the most credible industry insider, also commented on the viral Reddit thread to say “I can assure you that Intergalactic is not coming out in 2026”. Jeff Grubb, another games reporter, said something similar (via IG), saying that after seeing the rumour, people reached out to him to say that the game would not be ready for a 2026 release.

Naughty Dog hasn't released a new game since The Last of Us Part 2 back in 2020, so fans are eager to see their next work. Unfortunately, the situation at Naughty Dog has been a little complicated in recent years. The studio spent much time working on ‘remasters' for both The Last of Us and The Last of Us 2 and wasted several years working on The Last of Us Online, only for the game to be cancelled after a Bungie-led review of live-service projects.

With that in mind, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet likely hasn't been in full production for very long, meaning it could easily be another two or three years before the game is ready to release. If that is accurate, then the game could very well end up being a cross-generation release for PS5 and PS6.

KitGuru Says: It will be a long time before we see Naughty Dog's next game first-hand. Even if the game had been planned for a Holiday 2026 release, the recent delay of Grand Theft Auto 6 to November next year would have likely blown those plans up. 

The post False Alarm – Naughty Dog’s next game won’t be releasing in 2026 first appeared on KitGuru.

Intel has somewhat confirmed the unveiling of its highly anticipated Panther Lake CPU family, scheduled for the first week of January to coincide with CES 2026. The launch event is officially slated for January 5th, signaling a broad, mainstream introduction for the new processors.

Spotted by @momomo_us (via Wccftech), Intel is planning to reveal the new Intel Core Ultra Series 3 Processors on January 5th. Seeing there's a literal panther in the imagery for the event, it seems pretty clear that we're talking about Panther Lake.

This architecture is set to be one of the most important consumer launches of next year, as it will be the first CPU family to adopt Intel's cutting-edge 18A manufacturing process, which incorporates innovations such as RibbonFET and PowerVia. The new lineup is expected to deliver significant architectural advancements, including new P/E-core designs, the ‘Celestial' Xe3 iGPU architecture with up to 12 cores, and a 5th-generation NPU designed to push edge AI capabilities.

Intel will be using a slightly modified naming strategy this time, introducing the ‘Core Ultra X' branding. This designation is reportedly reserved for SKUs that feature the full 12-core Xe3 iGPU. These models will range from Core Ultra 9 down to Core Ultra 5 SKUs.

KitGuru says: What are your expectations for Panther Lake? Do you think it will help Intel turn the tide back in its favour?

The post Intel teases Core Ultra 3 debut for CES 2026 first appeared on KitGuru.

MSI has rolled out a huge number of discounts across a wide range of components this week. If you are new to PC gaming and looking to build your first gaming rig, sorting through all of these components can be a bit of a daunting task, so we're here to make that process easy for you with a list of PC builds to suit different budgets, giving you a great starting point for your Black Friday shopping list.

Build 1 – Powerful AAA gaming for £1000:

The Case:

The right PC case is the foundation of any PC build. The space afforded to you on the interior can dictate future upgrades and the amount of cooling supported will also have an impact on component selection. MSI has a great starting point here with the MAG PANO 100L PZ, available in both black and white colour options for £99.99 during the current sales. This case supports full-size ATX motherboards, with room for a 360mm liquid cooling radiator in the roof, side or bottom of the case. It also has a 270-degree panoramic tempered glass panel, so when your build is finished, you can marvel at your craftsmanship from multiple angles.

The Motherboard:

If you are looking to go with an AMD Ryzen processor, then you can pair this with a MAG B650 TOMAHAWK WIFI motherboard, which supports Ryzen 7000, Ryzen 8000 and Ryzen 9000 series desktop processors. It has a WiFi module built-in, so you'll be able to get connected to the internet as soon as your build is ready, without the need for any additional gear such as dongles. It also has a premium heatsink design for efficient M.2 SSD cooling, and support for fast DDR5 memory (up to 7600MT/s), giving you headroom for future upgrades. During the sale period, this motherboard can be found for £129.99.

For an Intel alternative, you could go with a B860 Gaming Plus WiFi instead, which offers a similar feature set, but with support for Intel Core Ultra desktop processors instead, and support for even faster DDR5 memory (up to 8800MT/s), priced at £169.99.

Pair one of these motherboards with either an Intel Core Ultra 5 or an AMD Ryzen 5 series processor and you'll be well on your way to having a solid gaming machine.

The Cooler:

As the MAG PANO 100L PZ case listed here supports 360mm radiators, we would opt to maximise that space with an MSI MAG CoreLiquid I360 AIO cooler, discounted to £89.99 during the Black Friday sales period. This should be plenty of cooling capacity to reign in the CPUs we suggested above, but it will also give you headroom for future upgrades, so if you decide to jump up a tier to a Core Ultra 7 or Ryzen 7 processor in the future, you won't have to re-invest in a new cooler.

The Graphics Card:

The graphics card is the heart of any gaming PC and is where the bulk of your gaming performance will come from. As this is a more cost-conscious build, we would recommend going for the MSI RTX 5060 Gaming OC, which is currently down to £289.99 during the sales period. This graphics card will pack plenty of punch for 1080p gaming and in titles that support DLSS 4, you'll be able to supercharge your frame rates with Multi-Frame Generation, allowing you to fully maximise your monitor's refresh rate, even in blockbuster AAA titles.

The Power Supply:

While this will make for a powerful 1080p gaming system, you won't need a massive amount of power to get it up and running. You could get away with a 650W power supply here like the MAG A650BN (£47.99), but we would opt for a 750W model like the MAG A750GL PCIE5 (£59.99) to give you some extra headroom if you ever want to upgrade to a higher-tier GPU like an RTX 5060 Ti or RTX 5070.

The Cost:

Pricing all of this up, you can get all of the MSI components listed here for a total of £639.95 (AMD) or £679.95 (Intel) during the promotional period. An Intel Core Ultra 5 245 or AMD Ryzen 5 9600X will cost you around £200 at the moment, and you'll also need some DDR5 memory, we'd suggest a 32GB kit, which can be found for around the £130 mark if you forgo RGB lighting. You will also want to add in at least a PCIe 4 M.2 SSD for current-gen games, which will add a further £70 to the build cost for a 1TB model.

Adding on those extras brings the total build cost up to just over £1000. The end result is a well-rounded gaming PC that will far outperform a current-gen console, with headroom for future upgrades later down the line.

Build 2 – The Project Zero build

The Case:

For this build we are going for a more compact Micro-ATX system, centred around the new Back-Connect motherboards like the MSI Project Zero, allowing you to put together a system with minimal cables visible at the front of the case. The chassis of choice this time is the MAG PANO M100R PZ, which despite its compact size, still has room for a 360mm AIO liquid cooler and as many as ten 120mm case fans to aid with airflow. It also has a 270-degree panoramic tempered glass window to show off your near cable-free build, all for £74.99 during the sale.

The Motherboard:

As this is a Micro-ATX build, we will naturally be opting for an M-ATX motherboard here, specifically, the MSI B650M Project Zero. This is an AMD motherboard, supporting Ryzen 7000, 8000 and 9000 series desktop processors, DDR5 memory up to 7600MT/s and with lots of heatsinks covering most of the bare PCB area, creating a cohesive look all around.

Project Zero in this instance means Back-Connect power sockets, so you'll run all of your power cables and plug them in at the back of the motherboard, allowing you to hide all of your cables behind the motherboard tray. The only cable you'll need to route around the front is your graphics card cable.

The MSI B650M Project Zero motherboard is on sale for £199.99.

The Cooler:

As this case can support a 360mm AIO cooler in the roof, we will maximise our cooling with a MAG CORELIQUID i360 cooler, filling up the space nicely. This cooler embraces the philosophy of simplicity with its clean lines, which fits well in a Project Zero build. Currently, this cooler can be found for £89.

The Graphics Card:

This time around we are making the jump up from an RTX 5060 to an RTX 5060 Ti 16GB graphics card. The extra VRAM will help you out if you are running games at higher resolutions, and the extra power afforded by the Ti variant will get you comfortably into QHD gaming territory.

During the Black Friday sale, MSI's RTX 5060 Ti 16G Ventus 3X OC graphics card can be found for £429.99.

The Power Supply:

For the PSU, we'll go with the same MAG A750GL PCIE5 featured in the previous build. This offers plenty of headroom if you'd prefer to go with a Ryzen 7 CPU over a Ryzen 5 model, and you'll have plenty of power left for things like extra fans and storage drives. As noted earlier, this power supply can be found for £59.99 during the sale.

The Cost:

The total cost of the MSI components here comes to £824.95. Add on £200 for a Ryzen 5 9600X, £130 for 32GB of non-RGB DDR5 memory and £120 for a 2TB PCIe 4 M.2 SSD and we have a total build cost of £1,274.95, a reasonable price considering the upgrades made here compared to the £1000 build.

Build 3 – High-end 4K gaming rig

The Case:

With this build, we are moving up a performance tier, so we've opted for the MSI MPG VELOX 300R AIRFLOW PZ instead. This case supports dual 360mm radiators, so if you ever want to make the jump to liquid cooling for both your CPU and GPU, you'll have room to do so. This case also supports larger E-ATX sized motherboards and comes with two large 160mm dual-layer blade fans behind the mesh front panel, bringing lots of cool air into your system to battle the heat generated by high-end components.

The MSI MPG VELOX 300R AIRFLOW PZ is currently on sale for £99.99.

The Motherboard:

The AMD option for this build is the MSI MAG B850 TOMAHAWK MAX WIFI, which supports Ryzen 7000, 8000 and 9000 series desktop processors, and DDR5 memory up to 8400MT/s. This board stands out thanks to its 14+2+1 Duet Rail Power System, making it a good choice for those who want to squeeze out some extra CPU performance through overclocking. Currently during the sales period, this motherboard can be found for £229.99.

If you are looking to build your PC around an Intel processor, then the MSI MAG Z890 TOMAHAWK WIFI is our choice here. This motherboard supports the latest generation Intel Core Ultra desktop processors and DDR5 memory with speeds up to 9200MT/s. It has a 16+1+1+1 Duet Rail Power System and is built to last using server-grade materials. This motherboard can currently be found for £239.99.

As this system falls into the higher-end tier of gaming PCs, we would recommend going with a Ryzen 7 9800X for an AMD-based system, or an Intel Core Ultra 7 265K, both of which can be found for under £300.

The Cooler:

For this system, we are going with the MAG CORELIQUID I360 AIO cooler. This cooler comes with enhanced aesthetics thanks to its dual-sided infinity mirror on the CPU block, and the cooler comes with a fan cable management cover so you can hide your cables and keep the system looking clutter-free. The fans are equipped with LDB bearings, improving the total lifespan and keeping operation stable.

The included mounting hardware supports both current-gen Intel and AMD sockets, so you won't have to worry if you ever decide to make the move from one CPU vendor to the other. This cooler should also be perfectly capable of transitioning with you through future CPU upgrades. Currently, it is discounted to £89.99.

The Graphics Card:

For this system, we want to make sure it is capable for high refresh rate QHD (1440p) gaming, so we've opted for the MSI RTX 5070 Ti 16G EXPERT OC, which is currently down to £799.99. If you prefer the look of the MSI Gaming TRIO cooler, then the MSI RTX 5070 Ti Gaming TRIO OC is also on sale for £849.99.

With an RTX 5070 Ti, you'll have plenty of VRAM for high-resolution gaming and as we've seen in our previous reviews, this GPU is more than capable at both 1440p and 4K resolutions, even when turning on performance-hitting effects like ray-tracing. With DLSS 4 Multi-Frame Generation, you can supercharge frame rates even further to enable 120Hz-240Hz gaming in supported AAA titles.

The Power Supply:

As this is a more powerful system with plenty of capability for overclocking, we will also need a higher capacity power supply. Based on the suggested CPUs, paired with an RTX 5070 Ti, you'll need at least an 850W unit, but that won't leave much headroom if you decide to upgrade to something like an RTX 5080 later on. As a result, we are opting for the MSI MPG A1000G PCIE5 power supply for this build. With 1000W of power, you'll have plenty of headroom for overclocking your CPU and GPU, and you won't have to swap out the PSU if you later decide to move up to a higher tier GPU.

Currently the MSI MAG A1000GLS PCIE5 PSU can be found for £129.99.

The Cost:

Pricing all of this up, you can get all of the MSI components listed here for £1,399.95 for the AMD motherboard variant, or £1,409.95 for the Intel motherboard version. Add on an extra £300 for your CPU, £150 for some RGB-lit DDR5 memory and £120 for a high-speed 2TB M.2 SSD and we're looking at a total build cost just under £2000, less than the price of a single RTX 5090.

If you have a bit more money on-hand, then you can upgrade the RTX 5070 Ti to an MSI RTX 5080 Gaming Trio OC for £999 during the current sale.

If you do opt for an MSI build, then you'll also be eligible to take part in several promotions. Many of the products listed here are part of the MSI Shout Out campaign, which you can participate in to earn up to £35 in Steam credit. The ‘Empower your Final Quest‘ promotion is also running concurrently, offering additional opportunities to obtain free Steam codes from your purchase. With the next Steam sale just around the corner, now is a good time to have some spare Steam credit handy to boost your library.

If you need a gaming monitor to go with your new system, then MSI also has a ton of discounts there too, including massive price cuts on their best OLED displays.

You can find all of MSI's Black Friday deals and promotions, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Are you planning on picking up some new hardware during the Black Friday sales this month? 

The post From Budget to Beast: PC Builds Using MSI Black Friday Deals first appeared on KitGuru.

JEDEC has updated its classification system for DDR5 memory modules as higher-capacity unbuffered variants begin entering production. The organization is replacing the previous general CUDIMM label for 4-rank designs, introducing the new, specific term: CQDIMM (Client Quad-Rank Unbuffered DIMM).

Brought to our attention by Guru3D, this new terminology is being made to distinguish 1- or 2-rank modules from the much higher-density 4-rank designs, which include the upcoming 128 GB and eventual 192 GB variants. Previously, all unbuffered DDR5 DIMMs fell under the CUDIMM umbrella. However, 4-rank modules pose distinct challenges for memory training and compatibility due to the higher load they place on the memory controller and bus.

The new classification will be useful to motherboard manufacturers and system integrators. It allows for greater precision when developing firmware and Qualified Vendor List (QVL) entries for next-generation platforms like AM5 and the upcoming LGA-1851, where rank structure directly impacts stability.

Manufacturers have already begun migrating their engineering sample documentation and roadmaps to the new CQDIMM label, confirming the industry's move toward standardised nomenclature for high-capacity builds.

KitGuru says: Although CQDIMM will easily find its way into the professional segment, most mainstream consumers won't have to worry about the new nomenclature for a few years.

The post JEDEC introduces CQDIMM standard for 128GB 4-rank DDR5 modules first appeared on KitGuru.

Dispatch consistently garnered more and more hype as each episode dropped over the past few weeks. Now with all eight episodes out, the game has hit a new sales milestone, achieving over two million players. 

The milestone, shared on BlueSky, is particularly notable given the developer's pedigree. AdHoc Studio was founded by former talent from Telltale Games and Night School Studio, with expertise that is clearly resonating with fans of the narrative adventure genre.

The current season, which has consistently grown its audience throughout October and November, wrapped up with its final episode just a week ago. The finale left a few threads open for a potential sequel, although a season two has not yet been confirmed.

As of now, the game has over 84K reviews on Steam with a user score of 97%, making it one of the highest-rated games of the year on the platform. Critics received the game equally well, with a score of 88 (94% recommended) on OpenCritic.

KitGuru says: Have you already tried Dispatch? Do you think it deserves the praise it's getting?

The post Episodic superhero game Dispatch hits 2 million players first appeared on KitGuru.

Gamdias has been expanding its lineup with a focus on airflow inside a small form factor, but what happens when you combine the Athena M4M chassis, a full setup of Notus M1 ARGB fans, a Chione P5 360 AIO and the Helios P2A 1300G power supply? You get a compact system with cooling ready to take on anything from gaming to heavier workloads, all within the Gamdias ecosystem. Join us to see how it comes together in our latest featured build video!

Timestamps:

00:00 Smoke intro
00:19 Unboxing the Case: Gamdias Athena M4M
00:42 B Roll Of Empty Case
01:21 Unboxing the Fans: Gamdias Notus M1 ARGB
01:41: B-Roll Of fans
03:03 Motherboard: MSI B650M Project Zero
03:07 CPU Installation: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D
03:13 RAM Installation: 32GB XPG Lancer RGB DDR5-6000MT/s
03:30 M.2 SSD Installation: 1TB Corsair MP700 PCIe Gen5 NVMe M.2 SSD
04:28 AIO Unboxing: Gamdias CHIONE P5 360
05:16 AIO B Roll
08:03 Power Supply Unboxing: Gamdias Helios P2A 1300G
08:40 PSU B Roll
09:57 Graphics Card Installation: ASRock Taichi Radeon RX 9070 XT

Case: Gamdias Athena M4M – Available to purchase now from Amazon UK priced at £66.99 HERE.

• Mesh Front Panel with Lighting Strip – Athena M4M features a fully perforated front panel, allowing for strong airflow. It’s also equipped with a built-in lighting strip that adds a clean, modern aesthetic.
• Three Pre-Installed NOTUS M1 Fans – Pre-installed with three 120 mm NOTUS M1 PWM fans, providing solid out-of-the-box airflow without the need to purchase additional fans immediately.
• Front-Mounted PSU Design – Front-mounted PSU design helps with cable management for a clean build and contributes to a more efficient airflow path.
• Dual 360 mm Radiator Support – Two 360mm radiators supported — one at the top and one at the bottom for flexibility when running a high-performance liquid cooling setup.

Specifications

• Case Type: Micro Tower
• Dimensions (L x W x H): 446 x 235 x 347mm
• Motherboard Support: Mini-ITX、Micro-ATX
• Expansion Slots: 5
• Storage Bays: 1 x 3.5″ + 1 x 2.5″ or 2 x 2.5″
• Max GPU Length: 395mm
• Max CPU Cooler Height: 175mm
• Max PSU Size: ATX up to 150mm
• Pre-installed Fans: 2 x 120mm BK PWM (Front), 1 x 120mm ARGB PWM (Rear)
• Fan Support: Top 3 x 120mm, Bottom 3 x 120 mm, Front 2 x 120 mm, Rear 1 x 120mm
• Radiator Support: Top 360 mm, Front 240mm, Bottom 360mm
• Dust Filters: Bottom, Front, Top, Side
• Front I/O: USB 3.0 x 2, Type C x 1, HD Audio x 1, LED Control x 1

CPU Cooler: Gamdias CHIONE P5 360 – Available to purchase now from Amazon UK priced at £126.37 HERE.

• Pump Top Mounted IPS Display – with 480 x 480 resolution and 60 Hz refresh rate. The screen can be customised to show real-time system info, as well as custom images and can be manually rotated for always correct orientation.
• High-quality Performance Fans – Included fans feature hydraulic bearings and hidden daisy-chained cabling routing so cable clutter is kept away from view, as well as built-in ARGB lighting effects.
• A high-performance pump – featuring a 12-slot 10-pole motor with rotational speed up to 2700rpm and optimal fluid circulation as well as quiet operation.

Specifications

• CPU Socket Compatibility: LGA2066 / 2011-v3 / 2011 / 1851 / 1700 / 1200 / 1151 / 1150 / 1155 / 1156 / AM5 / AM4 / AM3+ / AM3 / AM2+ / AM2 / FM2+ / FM2 / FM1
• Radiator Material: Aluminium
• Radiator Dimensions: 396 x 120 x 27 mm
• Radiator Tube Length: 400mm (Approx)
• Cold Plate Material: Micro-Skived Copper
• Pump Connector: 4-Pin PWM
• VRM Fan: N/A
• Fan Dimensions: 120 x 120 x 25 mm
• Fan Speed (PWM): 400 – 2200 RPM±10%
• Fan Max Airflow: 81.81 CFM
• Fan Max Air Pressure: 3.15 mmH2O
• Noise (dBA): 11 – 34.91 dBA
• Fan Bearing: Hydraulic
• Fan Connector: 4-Pin PWM
• LCD Screen: 3.4-inch IPS
• Warranty: 5 Years

Fans: Gamdias Notus M1 ARGB – 3 pack available to purchase now from Amazon UK priced at £12.99 HERE. (Black Friday deal, normally £19.99)

• High airflow/performance design — delivers up to 57.56 CFM maximum airflow for powerful cooling.
• Closed-loop control system + advanced P/Q curve — optimises performance across different speeds and loads.
• Quiet operation — labelled “whisper-quiet” by GAMDIAS, making it suitable for noise-sensitive builds.
• Optimised tip clearance — the design minimises air leakage around the blade edges for more efficient airflow.

Specifications

• Dimensions: 120 x 120 x 25 mm
• Colour Option: Black
• Speed: 400 – 1600 RPM±10%
• Max Noise Output: 25dBA
• Max Airflow: 57.56 CFM
• Max Air Pressure: 1.75 mmH2O
• Bearing Technology: Hydraulic
• Lighting Effect: ARGB
• LED Number: 8
• Connector: 4Pin PWM Connector 3Pin ARGB Connector
• Swappable Blade: Yes

Power Supply: Gamdias Helios P2A 1300G – Currently unavailable in the UK

• 80 PLUS Gold Efficiency — The Helios P2A 1300G is certified to the 80+ Gold standard, meaning it delivers high efficiency and less wasted power.
• Fully Modular Design — All cables can be disconnected, helping to provide cleaner builds and easier cable routing.
• Native 12VHPWR Connector — Includes a 12 + 4-pin 12VHPWR cable, making it ready for latest gen graphics cards and power demands.
• Heavy-Duty Protection Suite — Equipped with comprehensive safety protections including over-voltage (OVP), under-voltage (UVP), over-power (OPP), short-circuit (SCP), over-current (OCP), and over-temperature (OTP).

Specifications

• Type: ATX 3.1
• Dimension: 150 x 150 x 86 mm
• Certification: Meets 80 PLUS Gold efficiency
• Power Factor Correction: APFC with PF value of 0.99
• Peak Power: 1690W
• Protections: OVP / UVP / OPP / SCP / OCP / OTP
• Fan: 135mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing (FDB) silent fan
• Silent Mode: Yes
• AC Input: 100-240V~ / 15-8A / 50-60Hz
• DC Output: +3.3V / +5V / +12V / -12V / +5Vsb
• Modularity: Fully Modular
• Warranty: 7 Years

Build Specification:

• CPU – AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D
• Motherboard – MSI B650M Project Zero
• Graphics Card – ASRock RX 9070 XT Taichi
• Memory – 32GB (2 x 16GB Modules) XPG Lancer RGB DDR5-6000
• Storage – 1TB Corsair MP700 PCIE Gen 5 NVMe M.2 SSD
• CPU Cooler – Gamdias Chione P5 360
• Power Supply – Gamdias Helios P2A 1300G
• Case fans – Gamdias Notus M1 ARGB
• Chassis – Gamdias Athena M4M
• Operating System – Windows 11

KitGuru says: Gamdias might not be a familiar name for all, but the company has an extensive range of reasonably priced hardware. Will you check Gamdias out for your next build?

The post Gamdias Athena mATX Featured Build (9070 XT + 9800X3D) first appeared on KitGuru.

Poncle, the developer behind the breakout hit Vampire Survivors, has unveiled a spin-off game called Vampire Crawlers. The announcement, teased with a satirical trailer promising high-fidelity graphics before revealing more 2D pixel art, shows the studio is applying its unique chaos engine to an entirely new genre.

Set for a global rollout next year on Xbox and Steam, Vampire Crawlers is described as a deckbuilding dungeon crawler played from a first-person perspective. Poncle founder Luca confirmed that the game will reimagine characters, enemies, and artifacts from Vampire Survivors as cards, but the pace is entirely up to the player. As per the developer, “it's about mowing down hordes of enemies with cards while exploring dungeons, playing as slowly or as quickly as you want”.

Luca notes that the design borrows from the largely forgotten ‘blobber' genre, which was popular on PC in the 80s with titles like Eye of the Beholder and Legend of Grimrock. In essence, the game presents a first-person, grid-based dungeon interface married to a fast-paced card combat system.

The concept has been in development for roughly 4 years, stemming from the founder's desire to create genre spin-offs shortly after Vampire Survivors' success. Luca clarified that exploration will not be “a too heavy component” of Vampire Crawlers. Instead, the dungeon layout is intended to add structure and provide “interesting choices about what to do in between fights”, offering more dynamic decisions than simple menu navigation.

KitGuru says: Did you try the original Vampire Survivors? Will you be trying Vampire Crawlers when it gets out?

The post Vampire Survivors studio reveals spin-off Vampire Crawlers first appeared on KitGuru.