HyperX, the gaming division of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., today unveiled new additions to its award-winning product line at CES 2021. Participating in the digital version of CES this year, HyperX continues to support the gaming community by expanding its professional-grade products used by gaming pros and HyperX fans. The new products revealed during the virtual show include the company's first 60 percent keyboard, the HyperX Alloy Origins 60 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard; a new charging accessory, the ChargePlay Duo Controller Charging Station for Xbox Series X/S and global availability1 of the Pulsefire Haste Gaming Mouse, Cloud II Wireless Gaming Headset and Cloud Revolver Gaming Headset + 7.1.

"Gaming became an even more go-to activity this year as people searched for safe, entertaining ways to stay connected with friends and family," said Daniel Kelley, director of corporate marketing, HyperX. "HyperX's new product lineup reflects our ongoing commitment to the ever growing gaming community to deliver best in class products for whenever or however one plays."

CD Projekt RED today issued an apology to gamers for a buggy release of Cyberpunk 2077, a game that the studio treated as its magnum opus. The open-letter apology addressed to gamers at large, and signed by CDPR higher-ups; in particular expressed regret to gamers on older-generation game consoles such as the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Cyberpunk 2077 looks and plays terrible on these older consoles, despite the studio charging the same $60 for the title. Game assets such as textures are of the lowest possible resolution, as is the geometry, draw-distance, and even crowds and character models. In particular, CDPR acknowledged the fact that before launch, the studio hadn't shown footage of how the game plays on these older consoles, which deprived gamers of making more informed choices.

As a token of apology, CDPR offered gamers on these older consoles full refunds on their games purchased on Xbox or PSN. Those with physical copies of the game may return it to their retailers for refunds. CDPR set up an e-mail support service for those facing difficulties in getting refunds. For those who decide to give CDPR a chance at redemption; the studio promised a major game patch slated for January 2021, and a follow-up second-patch in February. The PC version of Cyberpunk 2077 is getting regular updates through all the platforms it's sold on (GOG, Steam, and EGS).

Teaming with 343 Industries, Seagate today announced the latest addition to its popular line of storage for gamers - Game Drive for Xbox Halo: Master Chief Limited Edition. Celebrating the legendary Master Chief from the Halo video game franchise, this limited edition Game Drive features a one-of-a-kind sleek case design that celebrates the Master Chief John-117. A limited Master Chief vinyl die-cut sticker set also comes in the box for fans to collect. The new drive is available in 2 TB and 5 TB capacities so gamers can install more games and downloadable game content by balancing their gaming workload between console and external HDD.

Gamers can easily begin their Halo journey as the Game Drive is compatible with and automatically recognized by the full family of Xbox One devices, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S consoles, and easily installed in under two minutes through Xbox OS. It is USB 3.2 Gen 1 bus powered and does not need a separate power cord to play so fans can unite in their mission from anywhere. Users can play legacy games and archive next generation games on the Game Drive which can store more than 502 downloaded games.

CORSAIR, a world leader in high-performance gaming peripherals and enthusiast components, today launched the CORSAIR HS70 BLUETOOTH Wired Gaming Headset with Bluetooth, the latest addition to the award-winning HS Series of gaming headsets. With two wired connection options - high-fidelity 24-bit / 96 kHz USB and 3.5 mm - along with Bluetooth, the HS70 BLUETOOTH simultaneously mixes wired gaming audio on Switch, PS4/PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/Series S, or PC and wireless Bluetooth audio from a mobile device, enabling clear voice chat with your team or incoming phone calls, while still hearing everything you need on the battlefield. Constructed with high-quality 50 mm neodymium audio drivers and plush memory foam ear cups, the HS70 BLUETOOTH puts you comfortably in command.

The HS70 BLUETOOTH combines wired gaming audio from a console or PC with wireless Bluetooth audio on your mobile device, enabling seamless connection with voice chat apps, music, or phone calls without interrupting gameplay. Bluetooth connectivity enables a comprehensive audio experience with apps such as the Switch mobile app, integrated seamlessly alongside wired game audio from the Switch console. A detachable noise-cancelling uni-directional microphone reduces ambient noise for superb vocal clarity, and a rechargeable battery lasts up to 30 hours on a single charge so you can play long into the night.

Developer CD Projekt Red has announced that Cyberpunk 2077 is now facing another delay - this one of just 21 days. The game is now slated for release on December 10th, which gives the developer more time to work on the launch-day patch so that everything runs as smoothly as possible when the game is out in the wild and in the hands of millions of expectant gamers.

The developer clarified that the reason for the game's delay is the need to launch it concurrently on all platforms they've committed to - current-gen, next-gen, PC, and Stadia. In total, the developer is working on polishing and testing nine different versions of the game (PS4, PS4 Pro, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox One S, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, PC, and Stadia). This is just mind-bogglingly complex, as you might expect. We also have to take into account that CD Projekt Red has its own shoes to fill when it comes to final quality, and we must remember that first impressions make or break a videogame's reception in the current climate (remember Mass Effect: Andromeda or any other number of games). It seems that the cautious, methodical approach may be the best one for such a high-stakes release. I, for one, would much rather enjoy a game with less chances of game-breaking bugs than a rushed release - especially considering the amount of platforms the game is shipping for.

CORSAIR, a world leader in high-performance gaming peripherals and enthusiast components, today announced the launch of its first officially licensed headset for Microsoft Xbox, the HS75 XB WIRELESS Gaming Headset. Compatible with Xbox One and the upcoming next-generation Xbox Series X and Series S, the HS75 XB WIRELESS delivers the fantastic sound and comfort that the CORSAIR HS Series is known for, connecting directly to your Xbox console via Xbox Wireless without the need for a wireless receiver, or to a Windows 10 PC via the Xbox Wireless Adapter for Windows (sold separately). Complete with immersive Dolby Atmos for precise three-dimensional sound and a noise-cancelling uni-directional microphone, the HS75 XB WIRELESS is the perfect companion for your current or future Xbox console.

Great sound starts with great audio drivers, which is why the HS75XB WIRELESS utilizes custom-tuned 50 mm neodymium drivers with the range to hear everything you need on the battlefield. Coupled with Dolby Atmos spatial audio - a first for a CORSAIR headset - you'll feel closer to the action than ever before. To ensure clear communication with your teammates, the HS75 XB WIRELESS is equipped with a uni-directional microphone, along with on-ear game audio and chat mix controls so you can easily switch focus from hearing the action to hearing your squad, and vice versa.

Today, HP debuted new OMEN accessories featuring Warp Wireless Technology with OMEN Command Center integration to offer a wireless ecosystem that transforms gaming experiences. The company also adds NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series GPUs to its OMEN 30L Desktop empowering users with the freedom and flexibility they need for top-notch gaming experiences. The wireless accessories will be showcased during OMEN Underground, featuring world renowned skater Tony Hawk co-hosting an 8 person Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 tournament, starting at 1:00 p.m. PDT today on the official PAX Arena Twitch channel.

During these unprecedented times, gaming benefits are being unlocked as people spend more time at home exploring new ways to be entertained and find mental well-being. PC gamers are spending an average of four additional hours or more a week gaming. This is driving today's gamers to look for new, powerful accessories that unclutter play spaces while offering the power to play all day with pristine latency. Cable management is a serious issue for most gamers, as they want a clean desk. HP designed a new wireless accessories portfolio - OMEN Frequency Wireless Headset, OMEN Vector Wireless Mouse, and OMEN Spacer Wireless TKL Keyboard - featuring Warp Wireless Technology - for flawless audio, wire power without the wire, and long-lasting game play. Leveraging Warp Wireless Technology with its 2.4 GHz connection technology, gamers get a secure, flexible, and immersive wireless experiences within the OMEN ecosystem. Pairing the new wireless accessories with an OMEN 30L Desktop featuring an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series GPU, wireless and powerful gaming takes on the next level of play.

It's time for players of all skill levels to lace up their boots and step into the ring: WWE 2K Battlegrounds is here! Developed by Saber Interactive and available now for the PlayStation 4 system, the Xbox One family of devices, including the Xbox One X and Windows PC via Steam, Nintendo Switch system and Stadia for $39.99, WWE 2K Battlegrounds brings fast-paced action and an assortment of power-ups, special moves, unconventional melee items and interactive environments to take the brawl to the next level. Players can take on the challenges alone or compete with friends and family on the couch or online in cooperative and competitive multiplayer modes.

"We're excited to add WWE 2K Battlegrounds to 2K's growing portfolio of WWE and licensed sports properties, and to offer yet another way for gamers to enjoy WWE video game action," said David Ismailer, President at 2K. "This arcade-style brawler offers a completely different experience from our WWE 2K simulation franchise and WWE SuperCard collectible card battling game, that we're confident fans will enjoy."

Activision today announced the worldwide launch of its much-anticipated Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 and 2, a remaster of the first two successful titles in the iconic, billion-dollar Tony Hawk video game franchise. In one game package, players will experience all the levels, tricks, and pro-skater characters from the original blockbuster hits from 1999 and 2000, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2, fully remastered in 4K resolution and bolstered with new ways to play, new pro-skaters to choose from and new music. In addition, the game includes features that allow players to customize their own skate parks and outfits and share them with friends.

"I'm thankful for the quality and care that Activision and Vicarious Visions have put into the remaster to revive the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series in the best way possible," said Tony Hawk. "For years, fans have asked me about bringing these games back, and I'm proud to say that we finally have a game that delivers on the expectations that nostalgic fans want, while inspiring a new generation to pick up a controller, and perhaps even a real skateboard."

NVIDIA at its GeForce "Ampere" launch event announced the RTX IO technology. Storage is the weakest link in a modern computer, from a performance standpoint, and SSDs have had a transformational impact. With modern SSDs leveraging PCIe, consumer storage speeds are now bound to grow with each new PCIe generation doubling per-lane IO bandwidth. PCI-Express Gen 4 enables 64 Gbps bandwidth per direction on M.2 NVMe SSDs, AMD has already implemented it across its Ryzen desktop platform, Intel has it on its latest mobile platforms, and is expected to bring it to its desktop platform with "Rocket Lake." While more storage bandwidth is always welcome, the storage processing stack (the task of processing ones and zeroes to the physical layer), is still handled by the CPU. With rise in storage bandwidth, the IO load on the CPU rises proportionally, to a point where it can begin to impact performance. Microsoft sought to address this emerging challenge with the DirectStorage API, but NVIDIA wants to build on this.

According to tests by NVIDIA, reading uncompressed data from an SSD at 7 GB/s (typical max sequential read speeds of client-segment PCIe Gen 4 M.2 NVMe SSDs), requires the full utilization of two CPU cores. The OS typically spreads this workload across all available CPU cores/threads on a modern multi-core CPU. Things change dramatically when compressed data (such as game resources) are being read, in a gaming scenario, with a high number of IO requests. Modern AAA games have hundreds of thousands of individual resources crammed into compressed resource-pack files.

Today, we announced updates to Halo Infinite's launch timing. Our vision at Xbox and 343 Industries has always been to deliver the most ambitious Halo game ever for our fans, while also balancing the team's well-being. To do that, we will need some more time to finish the critical work necessary to launch Halo Infinite, which will come in 2021.

We have plenty to keep you busy until Chief arrives: there will be thousands of games to play, spanning four generations, when Xbox Series X launches globally this November and over 100 optimized for Xbox Series X titles, built to take full advantage of our most powerful console, are planned for this year. And with brand new console features like hardware-accelerated Direct X raytracing, framerates up to 120 frames per second, faster loading times, and Quick Resume for multiple games, playing will look and feel better, no matter which games you choose to play on day one.

Microsoft has recently announced a completely rebuilt store for Xbox One. The new Microsoft Store on Xbox has been designed to be run twice as fast as before with launch times of under two seconds. The store has gained a new navigation system which makes it easier to find specific content along with a revamped search feature that offers more filter options. The wish list and checkout features have been updated to increase transparency and help keep track of game pricing. The new store also incorporates advanced safety features which ensure potentially inappropriate content is hidden for child and content restricted accounts. The new Microsoft Store on Xbox will be progressively rolling out to Xbox Insiders starting August 5 before a complete rollout this fall.

Today, Electronic Arts Inc. revealed new innovation in fan favorite modes coming to EA SPORTS FIFA 21. From more ways to play with friends through new social elements, to having more control than ever to manage every career moment, players can experience The World's Game like never before. FIFA 21 also embraces a new generation of football with Paris Saint-Germain's Kylian Mbappé, gracing the cover across all editions and available worldwide on October 9, 2020 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC via Origin and Steam.

"Being on the cover of FIFA is a dream come true. From my time at Bondy to Clairefontaine to the World Cup, this marks another big milestone. I've been playing this game since I was a kid and I am honored to represent a whole new generation of footballers and be in the same group as many other amazing footballers who I now share this honor with," said Kylian Mbappé.

Today at Ubisoft's first digital press conference, Ubisoft Forward, the company announced that Watch Dogs : Legion will launch on October 29, 2020, on, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Stadia and for Windows PC on Epic Games and UPlay. The game will also be available on UPLAY+, Ubisoft's subscription service. Watch Dogs: Legion will also release on Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 upon the launch of the consoles.

Built with a next-gen concept, Watch Dogs: Legion introduces "Play as Anyone," a never-before-seen gameplay innovation created by Ubisoft Toronto**, the studio behind Watch Dogs: Legion. Play as Anyone gives players the entire city of London to choose their roster of resistance members from. Every single person in the open world can be recruited and played, is unique and has a backstory, personality and skillset. Watch Dogs: Legion will also support hardware-accelerated DirectX Raytracing on Xbox Series X and full ray-tracing support on NVIDIA RTX-equipped PC devices, bringing real-time ray-tracing reflections to the streets of London. Players who purchase Watch Dogs: Legion on Xbox One or PlayStation 4 will be able to upgrade their game to the next-gen version (Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5) at no additional cost.

NACON the French video game and peripheral company has recently announced a new licensing agreement with Microsoft to create officially licensed accessories for Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC. NACON announced the partnership during a recent online event where they also announced their upcoming games and upcoming mobile gaming accessories. NACON already sells a relatively popular range of controllers for PS4, PS3, and PC so this agreement is a logical next step for the company.

NACONHaving already sold over 3 million officially licensed PlayStation 4 controllers, NACON is immensely proud to announce they have entered into a licensing agreement with Microsoft to create and distribute official accessories designed for Xbox One, Xbox Series X and PC.

HyperX, the gaming division of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., today expanded its Alloy keyboard line up with the release of the HyperX Alloy Elite 2 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard. The new Alloy Elite 2 gaming keyboard is based on the original Alloy Elite design and boasts HyperX red linear mechanical switches built for performance, longevity and an 80 million lifetime click rating per switch. The keyboard includes dedicated media keys with quick access buttons and volume wheel and uses HyperX designed pudding keycaps with translucent dual-layer style and signature HyperX font to enhance LED and RGB light.

The HyperX Alloy Elite 2 features a signature light bar with LED lighting, dynamic RGB lighting effects with per-key lighting and RGB colors. Alloy Elite 2 is built with solid steel frame for durability, offers dedicated media buttons and a large volume wheel along with quick access buttons for brightness, lighting effects, and game mode. Alloy Elite 2 also includes a USB 2.0 pass through, 100 percent anti-ghosting and full N-key rollover functionality.

Square Enix and Marvel have partnered to bring gamers from all around the world a perfect combination - science fiction movies and the ability to play one as a game. Together, Square Enix and Marvel have made a game called Avengers, based off of the Avengers movie trilogy. Today, Square Enix will be hosting a live stream at 10 AM PT time, to show off the gameplay, showcase missions and co-op abilities, and much more. You can join the live stream once it starts here. Besides the live stream, the company has announced that it will offer a free upgrade to the next generation of consoles, for anyone who buys the game for the current generation. That means that if you purchase the game for your current Xbox One or PS4 console, you will get a free upgrade for PS5 or Xbox Series X consoles. The game is going to launch on September 4th.

The genre-defining Tony Hawk's Pro Skater franchise made its mark on videogames in the '90s touting the top names in skateboarding at the time. With the launch of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 and 2 on September 4, 2020, the legacy continues with some of the most preeminent pro skaters in the world today -- Nyjah Huston, Leo Baker, Leticia Bufoni, Aori Nishimura, Lizzie Armanto, Shane O'Neill, Riley Hawk and Tyshawn Jones -- joining the lineup of OGs in the remaster.

"Modern-day skateboarding originated from a generation of skaters who grew up playing the original Tony Hawk's Pro Skater games," said Michelle Bresaw, Vice President of Product Management and Marketing at Activision. "The world-class pro skaters we're adding to this remaster took the tricks and combos from the videogame and made them possible in real life. We're proud that the remaster will represent the skate culture landscape today with a diverse roster of skaters that will appeal to any gamer."

Bandicoots get ready fur it, Crash is moving 4-ward into 2020 with a brand-new game that's built from the ground up and "It's About Time." No, literally! Activision Blizzard, Inc., and developer Toys for Bob, are giving fans the true sequel to the original trilogy with Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time. Our lovingly absurd marsupials are back and putting a fresh spin, jump and wump on conflicts of cosmic proportions, discovering expansive new worlds, unexpected allies, larger-than-life boss battles and powerful new Quantum Masks that must be united to restore order to the multiverse. Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time will be available for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 4 Pro, Xbox One and Xbox One X on October 2, 2020. Pre-orders are available now.

Microsoft is preparing to launch a competitive product to Google's Stadia and Amazon's Project Tempo, which are both game streaming services. To Microsoft's advantage, the company has experience in building gaming systems and using cloud technology to integrate them. While both Google and Amazon are cloud providers and have the infrastructure to implement game streaming services, Microsoft has its Xbox division, which has been in the gaming industry for a long time. Despite already owning the infrastructure, Microsoft wants to use the hardware from its Xbox consoles as a base of the upcoming game streaming service called Project xCloud.

According to sources of Tom Warren, senior editor at Verge, Microsoft will be re-using the Xbox SoCs found in their consoles. According to the source, in the beginning, Microsoft is going to use Xbox One S blades to power its game streaming service. After that, the company will upgrade its servers with more powerful Xbox Series X SoC. As a reminder, the Xbox Series X SoC has 8 Ryzen CPU cores based on "Zen 2" µarch, RDNA 2 GPU capable of delivering 12 TFLOPs, 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and a mighty fast SSD. This will be enough to satisfy game streaming service demands and power all of the AAA titles users will be playing once it is available.

During Electronic Arts Play 2020 event, Respawn, the maker of popular battle royale Apex legends, has announced that Apex Legends is getting cross-play support. Not only that, but Respawn is now launching Apex Legends on Steam and Nintendo Switch platforms so the cross-play can be bigger than ever. Now, players that use either PC (Steam or EA Origin), Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, can be brought together and play against each other. However, Respawn didn't just announce the cross-play support. Along with it, they have announced a new seasonal event called the "Lost Treasures Collection". In this event, players get a new game mode called "Armed and Dangerous Evolved". This game mode allows for new player abilities and resurrection of knocked out players. You can find more about it in the video below.

New technology eliminates background noise for clear voice communication with ASUS AI Noise-Canceling Mic Adapter, ROG Strix Go, ROG Theta 7.1 headsets and more. ASUS today announced new AI Noise-Canceling Microphone (AI Mic) technology that intelligently eliminates unwanted background noise for clear voice communication for work or play. The new technology uses chipset-based machine learning to filter out and remove other human voices and ambient sounds like wind or traffic noise. This new technology is now available on the ASUS AI Noise Canceling Mic Adapter and the latest ROG headsets.

ASUS AI Noise-Canceling Mic Adapter is the world's first USB-C to 3.5 mm adapter with integrated AI Mic technology. It connects to any headset via a 3.5 mm audio jack to provide users with crystal-clear voice communication. The built‑in chipset handles all of the sound processing, so the adapter does not affect the performance of the mobile device, PC or laptop it is connected to. Weighing just 8 grams, the AI Noise-Canceling Mic Adapter includes exclusive ASUS Hyper-Grounding technology to prevent electromagnetic interference for noise-free audio. In select markets, it is available with a USB Type-C-to-Type‑A adapter.

Today, Electronic Arts Inc. launched the first wave of 25+ EA games on Steam, with more on the way. Starting today, players can explore BioWare 's award-winning Role-Playing Games - Dragon Age : Inquisition and Dragon Age II, experience high-speed, white-knuckle driving action in Need for Speed Heat, Need for Speed: Rivals and Need for Speed (2016) and battle it out in the wacky, fun and over-the-top shooter, Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville. A selection of the bold and innovative games from EA's indie development partners like Unravel, Unravel II, Fe and Sea of Solitude will also become available. Additionally, these games and many others will be available as part of an EA Access subscription on Steam that will launch to players later this summer.

"We want to make it easy to play the games you love, wherever you want to play. Delivering games to the Steam community is an important step in achieving this goal," said Mike Blank, SVP, Strategic Growth. "Not only are we excited to have our games on Steam, but we look forward to bringing them even more value when our subscription becomes available in the Summer."

SteelSeries today introduced the Arctis 1 Wireless for Xbox gaming headset. The headset uses a USB type-C 2.4 GHz wireless dongle, and a lossless audio format between the dongle and the headset. A type-C to type-A cable is included, as is a 4-pole male-to-male 3.5 mm cable for analog mode. The headset supports Xbox One, Xbox One X, and PlayStation 4, and SteelSeries claims it should work with the upcoming Xbox Series X. The wireless setup has a range of 9 m, and the headset has a battery life of up to 20 hours of use on a full charge.

As for its key specs, the headphones portion uses 40 mm drivers, offers 98 dB (SPL) sensitivity, 20 Hz to 20 kHz frequency response, and 32 Ω impedance, with under 3% THD. The microphone, which is suspended on a detachable stock, responds to 100 Hz to 6.5 kHz, and -38 dBV/Pa sensitivity, offering bi-directional noise-cancellation (for the microphone). Available now, the Arctis 1 Wireless for Xbox is priced at USD $119.99.

2K and its Hangar 13 development studio today announced Mafia: Trilogy, a new collection featuring the only interactive entertainment series that lets players live the life of a gangster across three distinct eras of organized crime in America. Combined, the critically acclaimed Mafia crime dramas have sold-in more than 18 million units worldwide. Now, for the first time on modern consoles, experience all three entries of the revered action-adventure series together in one definitive organized crime saga.

Players who purchase Mafia: Trilogy digitally prior to August 28 will be able to access Mafia II: Definitive Edition and Mafia III: Definitive Edition immediately on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Steam, and will be able to download Mafia: Definitive Edition as soon as it becomes available on August 28. The Mafia: Trilogy physical edition will release in full on August 28, and is currently only planned for release in select EMEA and Asia regions. (For full release details, please refer to the Mafia: Trilogy fact sheet.)