Steam

A couple weeks ago, fully reclined horizontally on a couch at Valve HQ, I watched a video streaming from the web via a virtual browser window floating in the open air of Linux. When I slipped the Steam Frame off my head, I congratulated a Valve industrial designer who worked on it. I had just spent four days in Galaxy XR with a thick rigid strap and a knob on the back of my head preventing me from even thinking about what I had just done so comfortably in Steam Frame. "I don't think I've experienced that in a hard shell before," I told the Valve representative. "I don't think it's been done before," he replied, holding Steam Frame's cushioned battery in one hand. "Starting from this and going along the strap, that's why we eliminated all sorts of knobs or mechanism in the back that could protrude and prevent the user from laying back." A great many people consuming the news of Valve's announcement find themselves curious but unconvinced the private company will land at a compelling price for the LCD-based standalone VR system. Many wanted a Quest killer and some wanted a high-end successor for their wired PC VR system. Half-Life 3 hasn't been announced and Valve isn't working on VR games right now. So without trying Steam Frame themselves, or knowing the price, we're seeing people reporting potent withdrawal symptoms from extended use of copium. Over the course of our recent discussion about Steam Frame, David and I found ourselves in a circular loop with our audience, essentially trying to sort out whether people could be both disappointed in Valve's choices and sequestering funds anyway for hardware purchases sometime next year. While we won't have a review of Steam Frame for you until sometime next year, meanwhile, Bigscreen claimed high sales numbers on Valve's announcement day, likely from buyers who were waiting to see what Valve decided before committing to the Beyond 2 for their wired PC VR setup. Steam Frame's Value VR headsets really didn't go into bed before the Vision Pro, and there's no hard-backed strap design sold by Apple. I've probably worn Apple's headset as many hours in bed as I have seated, with standing active use representing a very small fraction of my time in Vision Pro. Yes, I miss Beat Saber and Walkabout Mini Golf and Half-Life: Alyx, but I recently got access to those with ALVR streaming and PlayStation VR2 controllers. What keeps me in Vision Pro for so many hours is that the headset multitasks iPad apps in a way no iPad can while going places no iPad goes. Because I had so many surfaces around me I could use, I spent hundreds of hours in an Apple VR headset and only the tiniest sliver of that time found me interacting with fully immersive VR games. When calculating the value of Steam Frame, your equation is deeply flawed if it assumes VR use solely in standing or seated scenarios. If you can't imagine the headset's grayscale passthrough as a tunnel through reality taking you from sitting on the couch to reclined in bed, so you can continue playing your favorite Steam game for another two hours, then you have no frame of reference to calculate whether Valve's upcoming headset will add value to your life. Valve sent out the first developer kits for Steam Frame in ski goggle cases. Its rear battery pack and cushion can travel inside the facial interface. Any VR headset made 2014 to 2025 that used your Steam library required external equipment making it difficult to even imagine why you might want to fall asleep in the falling snow on the helipad from the opening level of Metal Gear Solid. I had that environment on Quest set as my home from SideQuest before Meta replaced it with its new immersive home space. I've found that when trying to relax in a place like that with the front-heavy Quest, the battery strains the soft strap's ability to hold the headset to your eyes. Even without the battery on the front of the face in Vision Pro, using Apple's Dual Loop Band, I found the headset too loose to be held comfortably by its soft strap when turning on my side in bed. I've already shared my impressions of Apple’s new Dual Knit Band, but if there are any Vision Pro M2 and M5 owners with the strap in our audience I'd invite them to share more widely their experience with whether that balanced soft strap allows them to wear it in more places. When I was at the San Francisco airport earlier this year returning to New York from my demo of Bigscreen Beyond 2, I spotted another Vision Pro owner in the terminal. He was carrying the large white bag strapped to his rolling luggage that Apple sold when the headset first launched. Meanwhile, I had the much more portable grey Belkin bag Apple started selling some time after, with my headset stored vertically and a flip out cover built in to protect the lenses. Instead of strapped around my luggage, my bag goes over the shoulder with a pocket for a folding keyboard or, in recent weeks, you could find the Muse pen a useful companion ready to pop out and move windows or sketch something. Why am I spending so much time telling you about the places a $3,500 headset goes? Because we all know Valve’s standalone makes trade-offs to come under the price of the $1,000 Index, but until you wear one you can't believe that all of these choices result in a headset you might be interested in wearing on a 6 hour flight. When that happens, whatever the price, it will literally be measured as a fraction of what Apple charges to take Vision Pro into those same places. The relevant comparison for calculating value here isn't the OLED of Vision Pro vs. the LCD of Steam Frame. The comparison to think about is whether you're sitting back comfortably or craning your neck downward at a physical display. Are you looking at the back of a seat rest for six hours or playing your favorite Steam game? I was only half kidding about those copium withdrawals. If Valve pulls the trigger on Half-Life 3, there's a good chance it will run flat on Steam Frame just like Portal 2 does. SteamVR supports all PC VR headsets but Valve has really only directly supported three devices in a decade of VR – Vive, Index, Frame. And their developers are not making a VR game right now. But if Valve makes the third game in any of their trilogies? Imagine how the variables in the value equation change if Steam Frame is the most comfortable way to enjoy Half-Life 3 on a flight, train, or in bed on the ceiling. Wake up, Mr. Freeman. View the full article

Xbox has revealed its ****** Friday deals, announcing discounts on a variety of games, Xbox Game Pass, and accessories. ****** Friday is one of the best times to take advantage of price cuts on everything to do with gaming, and Xbox fans who have been eagerly waiting for this ***** have a lot to look forward to. View the full article

It's happening — the brilliant Silent Hill 2 Remake is finally arriving on Xbox Series X/S, and it's being released with a hefty 50% launch discount. Fans have spotted that the game is already available to purchase via the Xbox Store in Australia, where it's already Friday, November 21. Store pages for the game in other regions are also available, though the game cannot yet be purchased elsewhere. When it does become available — likely when midnight passes tonight — the game looks to have launched at half price. The *********** version has a recommended retail price of AU $99, currently reduced to AU $50, which is something at least after the long wait. As of yet, publisher Konami is yet to make the launch official, though we are just hours away from Microsoft's impending Xbox Partner Preview showcase, where the console maker is set to detail a raft of new third-party announcements. You can tune into that later today, Thursday, November 20 from 10am Pacific, 1pm Eastern, or 6pm *** time. Silent Hill 2 Remake has been available since October 2024 on PC and PlayStation 5, though its eventual arrival on Xbox Series X/S has long been expected. Last month, a new Xbox version of the game popped up on the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), suggesting it was finally almost time — and here we are. Silent Hill 2 Remake has sold 2.5 million worldwide, something which has propelled sales of the overall franchise past the 10 million mark. IGN's Silent Hill 2 Remake review returned an 8/10. We said: "Silent Hill 2 is a great way to visit – or revisit – one of the most dread-inducing destinations in the history of survival horror." Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You can reach Tom at [email protected] or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social View the full article

Steins;Gate Re:Boot will be released with English support on Steam in 2026 through Spike Chunsoft. View the full article

The new Steam Machine's price may be more akin to a PC than a console, according to a YouTuber who spoke with Valve on the matter. While this isn't Valve's first foray into the console market, expectations are high after the company redefined the handheld space with the Steam Deck. There's still a lot that gamers don't know about the Steam Machine, but it sounds like those holding out for something cheaper than current-gen consoles may be in for disappointment. View the full article

The new starting screen makes some big promisesView the full article

It's a good time to be a fan of space-based strategy. Stellaris might have faced an early wobble with Shadows of the Shroud, but it's recovering, and Galactic Civilizations 4 just unveiled a two-year, five-part expansion plan. Not to be outdone, a new Sins of a Solar Empire 2 update, Diplomatic Repercussions, is answering some of the biggest requests from players. "We've been implementing a steady stream of improvements during 2025," director of publishing Brian Clair notes, "but we wanted to go out with a bang and deliver an update that would excite the fans." Read the rest of the story... RELATED LINKS: New Sins of a Solar Empire 2 DLC makes the 4X game even ******* and more complex Space 4X game Sins of a Solar Empire 2 adds culture mechanics alongside new DLC Space strategy game Sins of a Solar Empire 2 just made its AI much tougher View the full article

Halo 2 is largely regarded as the best entry in the sprawling Halo franchise, and is arguably the most iconic FPS of all time, paving the way for multiplayer experiences in gaming for decades to come. As such, it's no wonder players are eager for a remaster or remake of Halo 2, and a new fan-created project is getting people hyped over what that might actually look like. View the full article

"...just like everyone else..."View the full article

Testing, testing, testingView the full article

On Thursday, Games Workshop dropped a coy trading update onto its corporate website, giving investors a heads-up about the business' profits for the first half of the financial year ahead of the report it plans to publish in January. There is some predictable bad news - in 2024 and 2025, the explosive launch of Space Marine 2 gave the firm its highest licensing revenue ever, but now almost all of that tailwind has gone, and licensing revenues have fallen by almost 50% year on year. Yet core sales of Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 have more than picked up the slack, and GW is, once again, on track to deliver record-breaking profits. Read the rest of the story... RELATED LINKS: Warhammer 40k's Space Marines now have 100 units on their roster - how is this sustainable? The best Christmas gifts for Warhammer and Warhammer 40k fans in 2025 Warhammer 40k's shiny new Ultramarines command unit, the Victrix Honour Guard, is busted View the full article

The time has come: Best Buy has kicked off its ****** Friday *****, and it's full of excellent deals to look through. This is especially true on the video game front, where we've spotted quite a few exciting deals already. One that's jumped out to us is Silent Hill f, which has received a $20 discount that's dropped its price from $69.99 to $49.99. This applies to both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X versions of the game (see the deal here at Best Buy), so no matter the platform you play on, you can still save if it's been on your radar. Silent Hill f Drops to $49.99 for ****** Friday For Silent Hill fans, or even those who are interested in the games but haven't jumped into one yet, we found in our review that Silent Hill f "serves up a fresh new Japanese setting to explore, a fascinatingly dark story to unravel, and plenty of twisted freaks to torment you with." We even consider it one of the best Silent Hill games, so you're in for a treat when you play. On top of that, it was also recently nominated for Best Narrative, Best Audio Design, and Best Performance from Konatsu Kato for this year's Game Awards. If you've been hoping to pick it up, now is as good a time as any. Best Buy isn't the only retailer that's dropped its ****** Friday deals today. Amazon's big ****** Friday ***** has also kicked off, and if you're looking for more video game deals, it has plenty up its sleeve for shoppers to scoop up. To stay on top of discounts as they pop up from other retailers, check out our breakdown of ****** Friday 2025 for information on start times and what we expect to see this year. Follow IGN Deals Coverage The IGN Deals Team has over 30 years of combined experience finding the best discounts and preorders available online. If you want the latest updates from our trusted team, here’s how to follow our ****** Friday coverage: Sign up for our IGN Deals NewsletterSet IGN as a preferred source in GoogleFollow us on social mediaIGN Deals on XIGN Deals on InstagramIGN Deals on FacebookIGN Deals on TikTok[/url] Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN. View the full article

Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake got me to reflect on what parts of the original Dragon Quest I I found special, and it manages to elevate Dragon Quest II into one of my new favorite games in the series. View the full article

Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road has sold more than 500,000 copies worldwide following its launch last week on consoles and Steam. View the full article

Demonschool from Ysbryd Games and Necrosoft Games is now available worldwide on consoles and PC platforms. View the full article

Demonschool is clearly inspired by the horror hits of the early aughts, yet it produces a thrilling strategy game that stands on its own two devilish hooves. View the full article

Fallout 4's Anniversary Edition is off to a very rocky start, with performance and bugs that have caused a major backlash against the game. Fallout fans were already upset about the Anniversary Edition launch in the first place, hopeful they'd be getting an announcement about a highly anticipated remake or even the next mainline entry in the franchise. View the full article

PlayerUnknown Production's next step toward Project ArtemisView the full article

Games Workshop is once again expecting big profits despite an expected slowdown in licensing revenue from blockbuster video game Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2. Games Workshop’s main business is the ***** of miniatures fans assemble and paint for use in tabletop wargames, such as Warhammer 40,000. But it is increasingly an IP business, with huge revenue from smash hit video games such as 2024's Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, and animations, such as Amazon’s Warhammer 40,000 Secret Level episode. Last year, Games Workshop and Amazon finalized a deal for Henry Cavill's Warhammer 40,000 Cinematic Universe, which will involve the creation of films and television series. Space Marine 3 is also in development. In a trading update, the Nottingham, ***-based tabletop wargame company said it now expects revenues of at least £310 million for the six months to the end of November 2025, which would amount to a 15% rise from the same ******* last year. Pre-tax profit is expected to be about £135 million for the half year, up from £126.8 million last year. Shares in Games Workshop were up 12.8% on the news this morning. That’s despite expected licensing revenue of at least £16 million, which would be down from the £30.1 million reported during the same ******* last year. Space Marine 2 may well be the most successful Warhammer 40,000 video game ever made. It sold over 7 million copies less than a year after going on *****, and, according to Saber Interactive exec Tim Willits, changed everything for the studio. Even Games Workshop itself has talked about the money it’s made from Space Marine 2, and protagonist Titus is now leading the charge on the next narrative expansion of the Warhammer 40,000 setting. In January, Games Workshop said it was on the hunt for the next blockbuster Warhammer video game, but CEO Kevin Rountree also expressed a degree of caution on potential future video game success, admitting hits like Space Marine 2 are few and far between. “We recognise that successes like these for Warhammer are not a given in the world of video games,” Rountree said at the time. “Clearly we are looking for the next one. We remain cautious when forecasting royalty income.” Meanwhile, Games Workshop had warned that Donald Trump’s tariff plans could damage its profits by up to £12 million, but it seems the impact has yet to significantly dull financial performance. Games Workshop’s primary business is of course the ***** of tabletop wargames and their miniatures, with an expansive bricks and mortar retail business providing a foundation for the hobby. In July, Games Workshop said that a “cute looking pipistrelle bat” was “delaying our work on our new temporary car park.” Yes, really. Photo by Uli Deck/picture alliance via Getty Images. Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at *****@*****.tld. View the full article

October was an incredible debut month for Battlefield 6: it's officially the best-selling title in franchise history in the U.S., and the best-selling game in the U.S. as of last month. This comes from Circana's monthly report, which states that Battlefield 6 is the best-selling game of 2025 on both Xbox and PC, and the second best-selling on PlayStation so far, behind NBA 2K26. It also says that Battlefield produced the highest single month tracked full game dollar sales total of any video game in three years. That means it sold more than the last few Call of Duty games did in their debut months, including Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II in October of 2022. Is this troubling news for Call of Duty: ****** Ops 7 when the November report comes out? We'll see. Battlefield 6 is followed by Pokemon Legends: Z-A, which is the second best-selling game of October and, per Circana, the best-selling physical game year-to-date. Notably, because Nintendo does not share digital sales data, its second-place spot is entirely based on physical sales. Other debut games for October included The Outer Worlds 2 at No.7, Little Nightmares III at No.8, and Ninja Gaiden 4 at No.11. Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake didn't make it to the top 20, but it was No.6 on Nintendo platforms for the month. There weren't any other major outliers in the charts this time around. Hardware spending was up 36% year-over-year to $351 million, with the Nintendo Switch 2 offsetting declines in the other three major consoles: Nintendo Switch (sales down 52% year-over-year, wonder why?), Xbox Series (down 37%), and PlayStation 5 (down 22%). The Nintendo Switch 2 sold approximately 328,000 units in October, 68% ahead of the original Nintendo Switch's pace and 3% ahead of the PlayStation 4, which was the previous record-holder. Thanks to Battlefield, the Nintendo Switch 2, and a good month for mobile, overall game hardware, content, and accessories spending was $4.9 billion for the month, up 3% year-over-year. October 2025 U.S. Top 20 Best-Selling Games:Battlefield 6 (NEW)Pokemon Legends: Z-A (NEW)*Ghost of YoteiNBA 2K26EA Sports FC 26Madden NFL 26The Outer Worlds 2 (NEW)Little Nightmares III (NEW)Digimon Story: Time StrangerBorderlands 4Ninja Gaiden 4 (NEW)EA Sports College Football 26Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2*Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice ChroniclesSonic Racing: CrossWorldsSilent Hill: fMinecraft*Helldivers IIGrand Theft Auto VRed Dead Redemption II * Indicates that some or all digital sales are not included in Circana's data. Some publishers, including Nintendo, do not share certain digital data for this report. Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to [email protected]. View the full article

Monsters are Coming! Rock & Road and The Crew Motorfest have joined the lineup of titles available to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC subscribers, with the former being a day-one release. Xbox Game Pass adds fresh titles every month for subscribers of all tiers to enjoy, with several becoming available on launch day and adding to the appeal of becoming an Ultimate or PC subscriber despite the recent price increases. View the full article

Tripwire Presents and Arctic Hazard's Viking-era turn-based tactical RPG Norse: Oath of Blood launches in February. View the full article

Battlefield 6 developer DICE has made a highly requested change to Conquest, increasing the ticket count on all maps from 1,000 to 1,200 as part of a new backend update that is live on all platforms right now. DICE says it has been closely reviewing feedback from the Battlefield 6community since the game's launch in October, while also evaluating win rates, objective play, and more. As a result, the studio has now opted to tweak Conquest with more changes, this time in an attempt to maintain match length and ensure the focus remains on objective play. View the full article

В сети обратили внимание, что эксклюзивы Xbox ни разу в истории The Game Awards не претендовали на главные награды престижной церемонии. Издание Insider Gaming называет ситуацию показательной — Microsoft является частью большой тройки платформодержателей, но её работы не имеют такого признания, как у игр Sony и Nintendo. View the full article

Now that you've officially met Snow White, it's time to work on building your friendship with her in Disney Dreamlight Valley. The first mission she offers you is Handle With Care, and it's got some decently tricky parts to it. Since the ranch has fallen into a state of disrepair, Snow White is hoping you can help her fix it up a bit. This is your main goal in the mission, but it comes with some tricky tasks, so here's how to complete Handle With Care in Disney Dreamlight Valley. Table of contentsHow to complete Handle With Care in Disney Dreamlight ValleyProgress in the Ghost Town questGather resources to repair the Wishblossom TopiaryInteract with the Careblossom Topiary to repair itGather resources to build your Blooming Rock GardensPlace the Blooming Rock Gardens around the Careblossom TopiaryDress your horse with Snow White's saddleCare for your horse to summon sparksCheck on the Careblossom TopiaryHow to complete Handle With Care in Disney Dreamlight Valley Screenshot by Destructoid To complete the Handle With Care quest, you need to help Snow White fix up the ranch. There are quite a few specific missions she sets you on in this quest, some of which are rather tricky, so here's a full breakdown of how to get it done. Progress in the Ghost Town quest Before you can officially kick off the main part of this mission, you're tasked with progressing further in the Ghost Town quest. You need to work through this main story mission until you lower the bridge to access the Wishing Way area. Gather resources to repair the Wishblossom Topiary Snow White's first official quest for you is to help fix up the Wishblossom Topiary. You need to gather an array of key materials to repair it, though, including: 12 Dry Wood – Can be found on the ground near trees throughout many different biomes, including the Sunlit Plateau, Frosted Heights, Forgotten Lands, and all of Wishing Alps. Eight Rusty Hinges – Can be found by digging anywhere in the ground around Wishing Alps using your Royal Shovel. 10 Pebbles – Can be acquired by digging around different biomes, including Dazzle Beach, Forest of Valor, Sunlit Plateau, Forgotten Lands, and all of Wishing Alps. Two Pyrite – Can be found by mining rock spots throughout Wishing Alps. Interact with the Careblossom Topiary to repair it Screenshot by Destructoid Now that you have the materials you need, it's time to fix up the Careblossom Topiary. Head to the front entrance of the ranch, close to where the train you arrived on the island from is located. You can find the Careblossom Topiary sitting in the square right in front of the train station. Approach the topiary and interact with it to transfer all of the repair materials you gathered. Then, track down Snow White around the ranch to chat with her about your progress. Gather resources to build your Blooming Rock Gardens Next up, Snow White wishes for you to make and place some Blooming Rock Gardens. You'll need to collect some more resources to craft them, though, including: Five Pink Crocus – Can be found growing in the wild throughout the Wishing Alps area. This includes Wishblossom Ranch, Ranch Highlands, Silver Summit, Delver Dale, and Wishing Way.Four Purple Crocus – Grows in the wild throughout the entire Wishing Alps area, including Wishblossom Ranch, Ranch Highlands, Silver Summit, Delver Dale, and Wishing Way.Two Yellow Crocus – Found growing in the wild all around Wishing Alps. This includes Wishblossom Ranch, Ranch Highlands, Silver Summit, Delver Dale, and Wishing Way.15 Reclaimed Barn Wood – Can be found on the ground near trees throughout the Wishing Alps biome, including around Wishblossom Ranch, Ranch Highlands, Silver Summit, Delver Dale, and Wishing Way. Once you have everything you need, head to a crafting station and switch over to the Furniture tab. Select the Blooming Rock Garden option to get started crafting four of them. Screenshot by Destructoid Place the Blooming Rock Gardens around the Careblossom Topiary Open Furniture mode and place all four Blooming Rock Gardens you made close to the Careblossom Topiary, which is the massive topiary you fixed up right by the entrance to Wishblossom Ranch. You can place them anywhere you like as long as it's decently close to the topairy. I chose to put mine on each of the four horseshoes around it. Once you're done, meet up with Snow White to chat again. Dress your horse with Snow White's saddle Snow White has a gift for you in return for all of your hard work, and it's a special new customization option for your horses. Your next task is to equip the saddle, which can be done by opening your Inventory, clicking on the Mounts page, selecting the Customize option while riding on one of your own horses, clicking on Snow White's quest icon, and equipping Snow White's Saddle. Take a picture of your horse with the new saddle once you have it on. Then, meet up with Snow White again to show off your horse's new look and discuss what needs to be done next. Screenshot by Destructoid Care for your horse to summon sparks Your next task is to care for your horse to activate horse sparks, which is a special once-a-day bonus you can trigger by fully performing all care actions in a day. To activate this special ability, you need to: Feed your horse all three requested daily items.Brush your horse.**** your horse.Check on the Careblossom Topiary Return to the Careblossom Topiary near the front of the Wishblossom Ranch world. All of the care you put into this island has resulted in the Careblossoms finally blooming. Snow White will appear to chat with you, and as soon as she does, the Handle With Care quest will be complete. The post Handle With Care quest walkthrough in Disney Dreamlight Valley appeared first on Destructoid. View the full article