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HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Bernard Smalls / @BeanzGotGamez / V2 PS5 DualSense Controller
The best controller right now, the PS5 DualSense Controller, is getting a significant battery boost, according to numerous reports.
Reportedly, PlayStation will address one of the major complaints about the PS5 DualSense Wireless controller, battery life, with the arrival of an “updated” version of the PS5 accessory.
GamesRadar+ noticed a V2 PS5 DualSense Wireless Controller on Best Buy’s Canadian online shop, and according to the leaks, it will have an astounding 12 hours of battery life, a significant improvement from the maximum 5 hours you get out of the current DualSense model.
Outside of the better battery life, the V2 PS5 DualSense Controller will also feature the same features as the original, like headset jack, built-in microphone, and haptic triggers across its rear and face.
Regarding price, PS5 owners will not have to break the bank for better battery life; the new PS5 DualSense Controller is listed at 90 CAD, about $67, and the current model costs $69.
PlayStation has yet to confirm its existence, but it could be waiting for the rumored February State of Play presentation to make the big announcement.
Sony has also been busy filing interesting patents that could hint at the future of new controllers, like one version featuring a touchscreen instead of a touchpad.
That same controller can also use predictive AI to light up particular buttons as analog sticks and shoulder triggers to provide hints to gamers during gameplay.
It sounds impressive, but also so far away.
We welcome a PS5 DualSense Wireless controller that can get us through gameplay sessions without having to wire up to the console after 5 hours.
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Photo: Bernard Smalls / @BeanzGotGamez
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: SEGA / Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth / Druski
Is there anyone out here securing more bags than Druski? Not many. The internet comedian is teaming up with SEGA for a new live-action trailer for one of the year’s most anticipated games, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.
In the trailer, Druski serves as your guide to beautiful beaches, people, and fun activities in Hawaii while also showing the darker side of paradise in the world of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.
Druski uses his signature comedic style mixed with clips and gameplay from the upcoming larger-than-life RPG and the latest installment in the famed Yakuza franchise.
Synopsis From SEGA:
Two larger-than-life heroes brought together by the hand of fate, or perhaps something more sinister… Ichiban Kasuga, an unstoppable underdog who’s no stranger to crawling up from rock bottom, and Kazuma Kiryu, a broken man facing down his last days. Experience one-of-a-kind combat with dynamic, fast-paced RPG battles where the battlefield becomes your weapon, and anything goes. Live it up in Japan and explore all that Hawaii has to offer in an adventure so big it spans the Pacific.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is one of the many titles that help kickstart the 2024 year in gaming, following up what many call one of the best years in video games with 2023.
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Previews For Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth Are Positive
Previews for Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth have already hit the web ahead of reviews, and most are very positive.
Following her preview of the game, Brittany Bombacher, aka the BlondeNerd and co-founder of the What’s Good Games podcast, said she would be “SO surprised if it doesn’t end up being my GOTY.”
In its preview of Like a Dragon, Push Square said Infinite Wealth is “the first PS5 must play of 2024.”
We shall see.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth launches on January 26, 2024, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Windows, and Steam (PC).
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Photo: SEGA / Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Jeff Kravitz / Getty / Ice-T
Many gamers have been wondering when, in a time when we have gotten some fire remakes, EA will spin the block and bring back Def Jam Vendetta. Hip-hop legend Ice-T shared a theory about why the game hasn’t come to fruition, and spoiler alert: there’s a good chance it won’t ever come back.
Ice-T spends much of his downtime when he’s not acting by picking up the sticks and is a playable character in Def Jam: Fight For NY.
He decided to chime in on Def Jam Vendetta being left in the vault and threw cold water on many gamers, hoping for the video game to return with his theory on the matter.
The game, which featured rappers like Ludacris, Snoop Dogg, even Joe Budden, and anyone involved in the Hip-Hop world, including Jacob The Jeweler, was as if they took wrestling video games like WCW/NWO Revenge and merged it with Street Fighter to deliver what many call one of greatest fighting games ever.
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“So many people ask me why this game hasn’t been brought back for the newer consoles. Maybe because they’d have to pay for voice and music rights again. Maybe?” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
He continued, “Here’s the BIG problem.. I don’t think they paid ANY of us ANYTHING to be in that original game… I know I didn’t get any type of substantial money. It’s was a situation where you didn’t want to be left OUT of the game. Well….. Yesterday’s price is not Today’s price..!”
Notable gamer, streamer, and famous Blerd actor Khleo Thomas further explained why the game might never be remade.
The “Colors” crafter did point out that he did receive the bag for his voice work in GTA V and Gears of War.
Welp.
Def Jam Teased The Games Possible Return In 2020
Neither EA nor Def Jam have ever confirmed this to be the roadblock keeping the game from returning, but it seems plausible. Def Jam, under Kevin Liles’s leadership, hinted at bringing the game back in a tweet, writing: “#itsinthename Thinking I should bring back the series. How many of y’all would like to see this happen #DefJamEnterprises let me know.”
Def Jam even got people’s hope in August 2020 when they tweeted that fans wanted them to make another fighting game. The record label even said they would announce special news if their X account hits a million followers.
Nothing came of it.
If Def Jam Vendetta does come back, count as one of the many who will welcome the news, but we have zero faith that the game will make it onto next-gen systems.
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Photo: Jeff Kravitz / Getty
HipHopWired Featured Video
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Source: Xbox / Developer Direct
Xbox is showing its hand early in 2024.
Following a strong 2023, Xbox is looking to keep the momentum going and announced it will hold its first Developer Direct of the new year, and they will be bringing the heat.
The Developer Direct, which goes down Thursday, January 18 at 12:00 pm PT/3:00 pm ET, will give Xbox fans an “inside look” at highly anticipated titles coming to the Xbox Series S | X.
Like the previous Developer Direct, the game creators themselves will be taking us on a journey to Sweden to give us our first look at MachineGames Indiana Jones, Obsidian’s Irvine studio to learn more about Avowed, Oxide Games’ Maryland home for more insight on Ara: History Untold and finally across the pond to England to see more of Ninja Theory’s Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II.
In the announcement of the Developer Direct, Xbox notes that we can expect updates from Activision Blizzard later in the year while promising the show will be “just a selection of our slate of upcoming games from Xbox.”
Following the Developer Direct, ZeniMax Online Studios will host The Elder Scrolls Online 2024 Global Reveal at 1 pm PT / 4 pm ET / 9 pm UK to preview 2024’s biggest update.
Xbox Has Gamers Buzzing With Excitement Early In 2024
The reactions to the upcoming Developer Direct are ones full of excitement because these are games that Xbox fans have had high on their lists and now are finally getting to see more of.
“Getting details on Indiana Jones this early into 2024 was not on my bingo card. Machine Games has always been one of my favorite studios and I am expecting them to knock this reveal out of the park,” GamerTag Radio and Kinda Funny creator Parris Lily wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
You can add us to the list as well. We also want to see precisely what MachineGames’ Indiana Jones game looks like. You can see more reactions to the news in the gallery below.
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Photo: Xbox / Developer Direct
2. Possibly
3. A spicy take
4. We all did
6. Will they?
Throughout history, music has embraced constructive change and innovation. And we will do so again as we confront the opportunities and risks of artificial intelligence.
Done right, AI should offer avenues for new growth and artistic accomplishment. When creators’ rights are respected, innovation thrives.
Already, music companies have unveiled compelling projects that use AI technologies in groundbreaking ways — with full consent and participation of the artists and rights holders involved. Working together with responsible AI companies, music companies are finding new ways to enhance production and marketing, gain new understandings from data and research, and improve wellness and health. They’ve used it to help identify new audiences for artists and pioneer new ways to celebrate iconic catalogs and performers. This is just the beginning of a new era of possibilities.
But many AI developers are resisting collaborative efforts by the creative sector to develop a responsible policy framework for AI, even though the elements of such a framework are straightforward and common-sense. In short, AI companies must honor:
Authorization: only use copyrighted music if it is authorized (for example, through a license)
Transparency: keep and disclose adequately detailed records of the content on which they train their systems
Authenticity: prevent deepfakes, voice clones, and similar violations of individuals’ rights in their own voice, image, name likeness and identity.
These foundational, consensus principles are detailed by the Human Artistry Campaign and supported by virtually the entire creative community. They set forth a baseline for responsible development and deployment of AI.
But as if on cue, some of the worst instincts of Big Technology have returned. Some AI developers claim it’s “fair use” to scrape up protected music so it can be copied and repackaged by their models. That’s just wrong.
Put bluntly, that’s digital theft.
In every legitimate market in the world, the use of others’ property requires the owner’s consent and agreed-upon compensation. Together, for example, music and technology have developed a burgeoning streaming market built on the common-sense principle that use of copyrighted creative works requires licensing and consent.
Indeed, the developers’ claim that they can use decades’ worth of iconic and extremely valuable recordings for AI without bothering to ask or pay the rightsholders is so far-fetched that former Stability AI developer Ed Newton-Rex quit his job in November rather than be party to an extreme effort to rip off artists and misappropriate their work, explaining via X:
“Companies worth billions of dollars are, without permission, training generative AI models on creators’ works, which are then being used to create new content that in many cases can compete with the original works. I don’t see how this can be acceptable[.]”
It’s not.
This is why transparency is essential. AI developers must keep accurate records of the copyrighted works used by their models and make them available to rights holders seeking to enforce their rights. We need rules requiring that developers maintain adequately detailed records and share this information — or bear the consequences if they fail to produce it. We were pleased to see that the European Union enshrined this as a core principle in its landmark AI Act.
AI policy must also establish clear rules protecting every performer’s right to their own voice, image, name and likeness — the most fundamental cornerstones of individual identity. AI fakes that mine an artist’s body of work to create artificial replicas and voice clones, fashion phony endorsements, or depict individuals in ways they haven’t consented to represent the worst kind of personal invasion. Congress needs to put an end to wrongful appropriation of the most central components of individual human identity.
These are the challenges of 2024.
We either work to continue a strong and sustainable foundation for music in the era of generative AI that moves both art and technology forward together, or generative AI devolves into just another “move fast and break things” novelty that fails to deliver anything of value while eroding our culture.
These are the choices policymakers will face this coming year. Let’s work to help them forge the right path.
Mitch Glazier is chairman/CEO of the Recording Industry Association of America.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Apple / Vision Pro
Apple is making headway in the video game, sneakingly dropping a video game console with its iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max phones. Now, the company that Jobs built is ready to jump into the VR world with its Apple Vision Pro headset this year.
Surprise, the Apple Vision Pro is dropping on February 2, which is much sooner than many people thought. Apple CEO Tim Cook announced on his X, formerly Twitter account, that the $3,500 headset is ready to launch.
Apple first revealed the headset during its Worldwide Developer Conference last June, and pre-orders for the ridiculously expensive device begin January 19 at 8 AM ET.
Along with the release date, Apple also shared the price of the Zeiss prescription lenses users can get with them. Readers will start at $99, while prescription lenses cost $149.
The base model, which will cost you an arm and leg, comes with 256GB of RAM and these other accessories:
Solo Knit Band and Dual Loop Band
A light seal and two light seal cushions
Apple Vision Pro cover
Polishing cloth
Battery
USB-C charging cable and USB-C power adapter
For $3,500, users will also get a 4K display for each eye, and a dedicated dial on the side of the headset will allow users to switch seamlessly from virtual to augmented reality.
A dual-chip setup comprised of Apple’s in-house M2 chip and the new R1 chip will power the Vision Pro, and thanks to some impressive eye, head, and hand tracking capabilities, users don’t need to use the controller to navigate the interface.
Can Apple Make Up Ground on Meta?
Apple is a bit late to the VR/AR game dominated by Meta, which is currently on its third headset, the Meta Quest 3, and it’s also a lot more affordable.
With the Vision Pro, Apple is pushing it to be used with apps like FaceTime, Photos, and Movies while allowing users to watch spatial videos recorded on the iPhone 15.
Apple also says users can access over 150 3D titles through the Apple TV app using the Vision Pro. This is all possible because Vision Pro runs visionOS, the company’s latest operating system.
So watching shows like Monarch: Legacy of Monsters on the Vision Pro will be one epic experience.
But is it worth $3,500? That’s the big question.
We know fans of the Apple brand are not scared to swipe their cards for the latest tech from the company, and we are intrigued to see if that continues to be the case with Vision Pro.
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Photo: Apple / Vision Pro
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: NYVGCC / 2024 New York Game Awards
The video game award season is not done yet. The New York Video Game Critics Circle annual New York Game Awards are back, and the nominations have been revealed.
The annual New York Game Awards are back for its 13th iteration. Thursday, January 4, the nominees were announced during a live stream at the Paley Center for Media.
The winners will be revealed during the awards show held at the SVA Theater on January 23. Returning to host will be Circle president and founder Harold Goldberg, NYVGCC senior intern Makeda Byfield, and the 2020 Andrew Yoon Legend Award recipient and former President of Nintendo of America, Reggie Fils-Aimé.
Co-President and Head of Creative at Naughty Dog, Neil Druckman, is this year’s recipient of the Andrew Yoon Legend Award. Last year, the Chief Executive Officer of Gaming, Phil Spencer, took home the prestigious honor.
“This past year has offered so many amazing games, and we’re thrilled to celebrate the magnificent work of these developers with this year’s New York Game Awards,” said Harold Goldberg, president and founder of NYVGCC. “Our team of journalists, interns, and volunteers at NYVGCC look forward to hosting and honoring so many talented people who work in the video game industry on January 23. Get your tickets now to join us for a very special awards show!”
This year’s nominees include:
Big Apple Award for Best Game of the Year
Alan Wake II
Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon
Baldur’s Gate 3
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
Hi-Fi Rush
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Starfield
Off Broadway Award for Best Indie Game
A Space for the Unbound
Chants of Sennaar
El Paso Elsewhere
Jusant
Pizza Tower
Sea of Stars
The Talos Principle II
Viewfinder
Herman Melville Award for Best Writing in a Game
Alan Wake II
Baldur’s Gate 3
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
Starfield
Tchia
Thirsty Suitors
Statue of Liberty Award for Best World
Alan Wake II
Baldur’s Gate 3
Chants of Sennaar
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
Final Fantasy XVI
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Starfield
Tin Pan Alley Award for Best Music in a Game
Alan Wake II
Baldur’s Gate 3
Final Fantasy XVI
Hi-Fi Rush
Tchia
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Great White Way Award for Best Acting in a Game
Amelia Tyler as The Narrator in Baldur’s Gate 3
Ben Starr as Clive Rosfield in Final Fantasy XVI
Elizabeth Saydah as Riley in Oxenfree II: Lost Signals
Idris Elba as Solomon Reed in Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
Melanie Liburd as Saga Anderson in Alan Wake II
Neil Newbon as Astarion in Baldur’s Gate 3
Coney Island Dreamland Award for Best AR/VR Game
Asgard’s Wrath 2
Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR
Body of Mine
Horizon Call of the Mountain
Humanity
We Are One
Central Park Children’s Zoo Award for Best Kids Game
Disney Illusion Island
Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2
Pikmin 4
Super Mario Bro. Wonders
Tchia
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
A-Train Award for Best Mobile Game
Hello Kitty Island Adventure
Honkai: Star Rail
Kimono Cats
Laya’s Horizon
Monster Hunter Now
Terra Nil
Freedom Tower Award for Best Remake
Dead Space
Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective
Metroid Prime Remastered
Resident Evil 4
Star Ocean: The Second Story
Super Mario RPG
Joltin’ Joe Award for Best Esports Player of the Year
Alexis “Zen” Bernier (Team Vitality) – Rocket League
Arslan “Arslan Ash” Siddique (Twisted Minds/Red Bull eSports) – Tekken 7
Choi “Zeus” Woo-je (T1) – League of Legends
Lee “Faker” Sang-Hyeok (T1) – League of Legends
Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut (Team Vitality) – Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
Paco “HyDra” Rusiewiez (New York Subliners) – Call of Duty
Chumley’s Speakeasy Award for Best Hidden Gem
9 Years of Shadow
American Arcadia
Conrad Stevenson’s Paranormal P.I.
Outer Terror
Slay the Princess
Videoverse
NYC GWB Award for Best DLC
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania
God of War Ragnarök: Valhalla
Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores
Resident Evil 4: Separate Ways
Vampire Survivors: Coop Mode
Knickerbocker Award for Best Games Journalism
Andrea Long Chu, Vulture
Blessing Adeoye Jr., Kinda Funny Games
Brendan Sinclair, GamesIndustry.biz
Ed Smith, PCGamesN/Bullet Points Monthly
Hanif Abdurraqib, The Paris Review
Nicole Carpenter, Polygon
Reid McCarter, Bullet Points Monthly
Good luck to all those nominated. Keep it locked on HHW Gaming for a recap of the night.
If you want to be in the building, purchase tickets here.
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Photo: NYVGCC / 2024 New York Game Awards
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Xbox / Series S Toaster
Xbox is making a solid push to take over your home entertainment centers and kitchens.
The Microsoft-owned gaming company also sells a Series S toaster to compliment your Xbox Series X Compact Fridge that you can still pick up for only $199.
For just $40 bucks, you can show your allegiance to Team Green with this next-generation toaster, and it comes with many features to help you unlock many achievements in your toasting game.
Thanks to the Series S Toaster’s ability to toast the Xbox sphere logo on your bread, you can showcase your love for Xbox. The toaster can fit two slices of bread, has six browning levels, an LED countdown to eliminate those surprise jump scares, and a removable crumb tray to keep things tidy around the kitchen.
There is also an anti-jam function and automatic temperature control.
It can also toast your bagels or English muffins and features a defrost setting.
The Series S Toaster was originally only available in France in March 2023. Wario64, who dedicates time to sharing video game-related deals on X, formerly Twitter, the toaster’s wide availability.
With the arrival of the Series S Toaster, Xbox continues to push out exciting items and collaborations. Ahead of the launch of Starfield, the company linked with Tempur for a one-of-a-kind “Dream Chair.”
Xbox also dropped mini hoodies for Xbox controllers.
There were also insane console collaborations with movies like Barbie, Wonka, Sonic The Hedgehog 2, and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
It would be nice to see PlayStation doing something similar with appliances.
Just saying.
You can pick up the Xbox Series S toaster by heading here. It will make the perfect gift for the gamer in your life.
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Photo: Xbox / Series S Toaster
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. In the lead up to New Year’s Day, Amazon has all sorts of deep discounts on tech and gaming gear — like […]
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Rockstar Games / GTA 6
Another day, more stolen data from a respected video game developer has leaked.
*HHW Gaming will not be providing any links to any of the hacked material.*
Spotted on Insider Gaming, the mega hack that saw over 100 GB of stolen data last still haunts Rockstar Games.
Reports began to surface Christmas night that GTA V’s source code leaked in full, along with the Python code for GTA 6 and numerous files from the scrapped Bully 2 game.
Per Insider Gamning:
Until now, transactions were reportedly being held behind closed doors, with key data such as GTA 5’s source code, stolen by a teenager in a hotel room with a mobile device last year, changing hands in secret.
It has now been shared online, according to recent screenshots.
Not only that but it has also been claimed that every file relating to Bully 2 – the follow-up to 2008’s Bully – has also been leaked. In another screenshot that is floating around, fresh Python code from GTA 6 has also been revealed, along with some early, conceptual materials from GTA 5, such as an original rendition of the game’s map.
The leaks of GTA V’s source code are concerning because they could lead to the creation of “highly sophisticated cheats,” according to the website’s report.
More News From The Rockstar Games Hack
That wasn’t the only thing to come from the hack; leaked source code revealed plans for eight pieces of DLC for GTA V that Rockstar Games decided not to release due to the popularity of GTA Online and work on next-gen versions of the game.
The names of the reported DLC include:
‘SP Assassination Pack’
‘SP Manhunt Pack’
‘SP Norman Pack’
‘Agent Trevor’
‘Relationship Pack’
‘Enterprise Pack’
‘Prologue DLC’
‘LibertyV DLC’
This latest news also comes on the heels of reports that the young teenager responsible for the hack was sentenced to life in a hospital prison.
Oh, and the big Insomniac Games hack also released stolen material after PlayStation, and the video game studio did not pay the ransom demand.
We hope that in 2024, the leaks will come to an end.
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Photo: Rockstar Games / GTA 6