DJI has lost its lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Defense, failing to remove its designation as a Chinese Military Company. US District Court Judge Paul Friedman ruled the Pentagon has broad discretion to make such designations, finding sufficient evidence that DJI qualifies as a “military-civil fusion contributor” based on its recognition by China’s National Development and Reform Commission as a National Enterprise Technology Center. The designation provides DJI substantial government benefits including cash subsidies, special financial support and tax benefits.

The judge rejected several of the DoD’s other claims for insufficient evidence and noted the department confused two different Chinese industrial zones when attempting to prove DJI’s factories were in state-sponsored areas. DJI faces a total import ban on new products this December and US customs has already stopped many consumer drone shipments. The company says it is evaluating legal options.

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Electronic Arts is close to reaching a $50 billion deal that will turn it into a privately held company, according to The Wall Street Journal. The video game company filed for an IPO way back in 1990 and has been public ever since, but now a group of investors are in talks with the company to take it private. Those investors reportedly include private equity firm Silver Lake, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners, whose largest source of funding is also Saudi’s PIF. 

It’s worth noting that EA’s shares are already tied to major financial organizations, even though it’s publicly traded, with Saudi’s PIF owning almost 10 percent of the company. As Reuters notes, analysts believe Saudi is interested in buying out EA due to its annual release of popular sports titles, including Madden and NHL, which makes for predictable earnings. 

Saudi has made several major investments in the video gaming industry overall as part of its efforts to prepare for a post-oil economy. In addition to its investment in EA, it also purchased stakes in Take-Two Interactive, Activision Blizzard, Nintendo and the Embracer Group. In March, Pokémon Go maker Niantic sold its gaming division to a Saudi-owned company, as well. Unlike PIF and Kushner’s Affinity Partners, Silver Lake doesn’t have a huge stake in EA at the moment and doesn’t have notable gaming investments other than its stake in Unity. 

Bloomberg and The Financial Times report that the company could announce the buyout as soon as next week, but details could change since nothing has been finalized yet. If the $50 billion deal does push through, it’ll become the biggest leveraged buyout of all time. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/ea-reportedly-plans-to-go-private-with-help-from-silver-lake-and-saudi-arabia-123011751.html?src=rss

Setting your PlayStation 5 as your primary console ensures other users on that system can access your digital games and PlayStation Plus benefits. This includes offline access to your library and shared access for other local profiles on the same device.

This guide explains how to enable Console Sharing and Offline Play on your PS5, along with tips to manage your account and avoid common issues. After all, sharing is caring, and this can be a great way for your squad at home to experience a stack of games at no extra cost, while claiming all the trophies (and the glory) for their own profiles.

What Console Sharing and Offline Play do

Console Sharing and Offline Play is the PS5 equivalent of designating a “primary” console. When enabled on your PlayStation 5, it provides the following perks:

• Any local user on that console can play games from your library.

• Any local user can access your PlayStation Plus subscription benefits, including online multiplayer and game catalog access.

• Local users can also play your digital games without an internet connection.

This feature is tied to your PlayStation Network (PSN) account and can only be active on one PS5 console at a time. Therefore, if you sign into a new console and activate this setting, it will be disabled on the previous system.

Before you begin

To set your PS5 as your home console, you need:

• An active PlayStation Network account

• A stable internet connection is required to enable the feature initially

• Physical access to the console where you want to activate Console Sharing

You should also confirm that your account is the one used to purchase digital games or subscribe to PlayStation Plus. This ensures shared access will work correctly.

Step-by-step: How to set your PS5 as your home console

Follow these instructions to enable Console Sharing and Offline Play:

Sign in with your main account

• Turn on your PlayStation 5 and log in to the PSN account that owns the games and subscription.

Go to Settings

• From the Home screen, select the gear icon in the top-right corner to open the Settings menu.

Select Users and Accounts

• Scroll down and open the “Users and Accounts” section.

Navigate to Other

• In the left sidebar, scroll to and select “Other.”

Open Console Sharing and Offline Play

• Choose the option labeled “Console Sharing and Offline Play.” This section controls access to your games and services.

Enable the feature

• If the feature is currently disabled, select “Enable.” You will see a confirmation message that this PS5 is now your active console for sharing and offline access.

Once enabled, other user profiles on the console will be able to launch your digital games and use PlayStation Plus features. You will also retain access to your library even when disconnected from the internet.

How to check or disable Console Sharing

You can return to the same settings page to check if Console Sharing is active. If you see “Disable” as the available option, the feature is currently turned on for that console.

If you want to remove access or switch primary status to another console, select “Disable” to turn off Console Sharing on your current system. Then, repeat the setup steps on your new console.

Important limitations and rules

There are a few restrictions you should keep in mind:

• Only one active console: You can only enable Console Sharing and Offline Play on one PS5 per account. Activating it on a second system will automatically deactivate it on the first. For example, if you enable it on your console at home and then go to a friend’s place and activate it on their PS5, it will deactivate the feature on your home console.

• No remote deactivation option: Unlike previous console generations, you cannot deactivate this feature from a web browser. You must do it manually from the console or activate a new one.

• Game sharing applies locally only: Console Sharing only applies to users on the same PS5. It does not let others on different consoles access your content, even if they are signed into your account elsewhere.

Network issues may affect access: While offline play is supported, some Digital Rights Management-protected (DRM) content may occasionally require a revalidation online. DRM is a form of access control technology that limits the copying, distribution and use of digital media to authorized users. So with this in mind, it’s a good idea to launch games at least once while connected to the internet after downloading.

Common scenarios

Sharing games with family

If multiple people use the same PS5, enabling Console Sharing allows each user to access the same game library without needing to purchase extra copies. Each person can have their own profile and saves while still playing the same titles, nipping any gaming-related arguments in the bud before they happen.

Playing offline

If your internet connection is unreliable or you plan to use your PS5 in a location without internet access, enabling this feature ensures your downloaded games and PS Plus benefits remain accessible.

Upgrading or replacing your console

If you purchase a new PS5 or switch devices, you will need to re-enable Console Sharing on the new console. However, make sure to disable this feature on the old system before selling or giving it away. If you forget to do this, it will remain active on your old console until you enable it on the new one.

What happens if you don’t enable Console Sharing

If Console Sharing is turned off:

• Only the account that purchased the games will be able to launch them.

• Other users on the same console will be blocked from opening digital games tied to your account.

• PlayStation Plus features like online play and game catalog access will not be shared.

• You may lose access to your games when offline.

Enabling Console Sharing ensures uninterrupted access for all users and prevents unexpected restrictions, especially during outages or while gaming away from home. It only takes a few minutes to set up, but it can save you plenty of headaches.

Setting your PS5 as your home console by enabling Console Sharing and Offline Play ensures that you and other users on the same system can access your digital library and PlayStation Plus features. It’s a one-time process that helps avoid re-downloads, account switching, or unnecessary duplicate purchases. While only one PS5 can be linked at a time, switching is easy through the system settings.

As long as you remember it only applies to one console at a time, Console Sharing and Offline Play can make your PS5 experience smoother for both you and anyone else using it.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/how-to-set-your-ps5-as-your-home-console-120059735.html?src=rss

We’re about a quarter of the way through the 21st century.

Summers across the global north are now defined by flash floods, droughts, heat waves, uncontainable wildfires, and intensifying named storms, exactly as predicted by Exxon scientists back in the 1970s. The United States secretary of health and human services advocates against using the most effective tool we have to fight the infectious diseases that have ravaged humanity for millennia. People are eagerly lapping up the misinformation spewed and disseminated by AI chatbots, which are only just getting started.

It is against this backdrop that a climate scientist and a vaccine developer teamed up to write Science Under Siege. It is about as grim as you’d expect.

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Late last week, The Hollywood Reporter ran a story about an “AI Stan Lee hologram” that would be appearing at the LA Comic Con this weekend. Nearly seven years after the famous Marvel Comics creator’s death at the age of 95, fans will be able to pay $15 to $20 this weekend to chat with a life-sized, AI-powered avatar of Lee in an enclosed booth at the show.

The instant response from many fans and media outlets to the idea was not kind, to say the least. A writer for TheGamer called the very idea “demonic” and said we need to “kill it with fire before it’s too late.” The AV Club urged its readers not to pay to see “the anguished digital ghost of a beloved comic book creator, repurposed as a trap for chumps!” Reactions on a popular Reddit thread ranged from calling it “incredibly disrespectful” and “in bad taste” to “ghoulish” and “so fucked up,” with very little that was more receptive to the concept.

But Chris DeMoulin, the CEO of the parent company behind LA Comic Con, urged critics to come see the AI-powered hologram for themselves before rushing to judgment. “We’re not afraid of people seeing it and we’re not afraid of criticism,” he told Ars. “I’m just a fan of informed criticism, and I think most of what’s been out there so far has not really been informed.”

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Welcome to our latest roundup of what’s going on in the indie game space. It’s been a packed week, with tons of new releases worth highlighting and Tokyo Game Show taking place.

Before we get started, make sure to check out our recap of Kojima Productions’ 10th anniversary showcase if you need to catch up. I can’t quite get my head around how a literal walking sim from Hideo Kojima might work. Sony had a bunch of things to show off during its PlayStation State of Play this week, including a few tasty-looking indies like Chronoscript: The Endless End. So too did Xbox in its Tokyo Game Show stream — Double Dragon Revive looks neat, as does Rhythm Doctor.

Also, the developers and publishers of several of this week’s arrivals delayed them to get some breathing space from Hollow Knight: Silksong… only to run right into Hades 2. That’s extremely unfortunate. But the teams behind some newcomers — Baby Steps, CloverPit, Aethermancer, Star Birds and Deadly Days: Roadtrip — are doing something about that. They’ve teamed up for a special Steam sale and bundle of their games. Love to see indie developers supporting each other.

New releases

Hades 2 is finally out of early access on PC. The full game is now available on Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 as well.

Reviews have been pretty stellar for Supergiant’s sequel. I played a little of it in early access last year, but decided to hold off getting in too deep until the full version arrived. And, of course, I now have a ton of other games to play. I’ll absolutely spend some time with Hades 2 eventually. But there’s another roguelite that’s soaking up a lot of my time right now…

I feel grimy when I’m playing CloverPit. I’m imprisoned in a tiny, rusty, metallic room that wouldn’t look out of place in Silent Hill‘s Otherworld. I have a debt to pay and deadlines to meet, with some coins, lucky charms and a slot machine to help me reach my goals and hopefully escape. Failure means plunging into a dark abyss.

Whenever I haven’t been playing EA Sports FC 26 in my free time, I willingly keep returning to this disgusting cell. I try desperately to find synergies between the lucky charms to break the slot machine and make sure I earn enough coins to resolve the arrears. Offers made by telephone, almost Deal or No Deal-style, can help while perhaps adding a greater risk of losing all my coins.

Panik Arcade has stressed that this is a horror game, not a gambling simulator. The whole idea is to bend the rules in your favor. 

I haven’t yet had a successful run. I did pretty well a few times with builds focused on cherries and diamonds, though deadline 11 has remained out of reach for me thus far. No spoilers here, but there’s a big jump from the 10th deadline’s debt level. 

The game is incredibly sticky, and I can see myself sinking many, many more hours into CloverPit. (I won’t be alone there. I just watched a video of someone who put 155 hours into the demo.)

CloverPit, which is published by Future Friends Games, is out now on Steam. 

I had fun with the Baby Steps demo this summer, but after looking forward to this literal walking simulator for a couple of years, I realize that I’m more likely to watch a YouTube video of someone playing it than try to beat it myself. I’d probably do that on a treadmill so I can get my own steps in at the same time.

This is the latest game from Bennett Foddy (QWOP, Getting Over It), Gabe Cuzzillo and Maxi Boch, who previously made Ape Out together. It sees “an unemployed failson” being forced to get up off his rear end and make it to the peak of a mountain. To take Nate there, you’ll need to pick up one foot and move it onto (hopefully) stable ground before moving his other leg, taking one clumsy step at a time to reach his destination.

Baby Steps is supposed to be as funny as it is frustrating. You will fall. A lot. Sometimes in a way that erases much of your progress. But as with working out, progress is the point. If only Nate would actually use his damn arms for stability as well. Then you might really start to see some results.

Baby Steps is out now on Steam and PS5.

I’ve had my eye on Bloodthief for a while. It’s a vampiric, medieval take on fast-paced dungeon running in the vein of Ghostrunner with Ultrakill-style murdering. A solo developer who goes by Blargis is behind this game, which hit Steam this week.

Giving so much of my attention to CloverPit and don’t-call-it-FIFA (and a few others we’ll get to momentarily) means I haven’t much time to check out Bloodthief yet. Still, I look forward to being as terrible at it as I am at Ghostrunner 2.

One of the highlights of Playdate Season 2 is Blippo+, a parody of cable TV. The FMV experience from Yacht, Telefantasy Studios, Noble Robot and publisher Panic has moved into the color TV age, as it’s now available on Nintendo Switch and Steam.

As you channel surf the otherworldly broadcasts and observe the offbeat alien TV personalities doing their thing, you might start to piece together a deeper story that’s playing out across the shows and news programs. Blippo+ is such a strange, wonderful thing. I’m glad it exists and that more people have the chance to enjoy it.

Consume Me is a coming-of-age life sim about a student who is entering her last year of high school and dealing with the stress and complexity of that painful time. For Jenny, that means managing chores (such as laundry and walking the dog), her studies, dates with her boyfriend and an eating disorder. Time management is a key factor, and you’ll try to stay on top of everything by playing minigames.

Consume Me, which is based in part on co-developer Jenny Jiao Hsia’s own experiences as a teenager, won the Seamus McNally Grand Prize at this year’s Independent Games Festival. AP Thomson, Jie En Lee, Violet W-P and Ken “coda” Snyder are the other developers of the game, which Hexecutable published. Consume Me is out now on Steam for PC and Mac.

Hotel Barcelona brought together two famed game directors, Swery (Hidetaka Suehiro), of Deadly Premonition fame and No More Heroes creator Suda51 (Goichi Suda). The latter came up with the concept for this game, which Swery announced all the way back in 2019. So the roguelite had been in the works for quite some time before it checked in to PC and consoles this week.

Here, you’ll fight your way through a hotel that serial killers have overrun. You can rope in a couple of friends to help you thanks to multiplayer support. In the style of many FromSoftware titles, you’ll also have the option to invade other players’ games and play spoiler by taking them out and undoing their progress. That seems really mean, though. I don’t know why anyone would do that.

Hotel Barcelona, from Swery’s White Owls Inc. and publisher Cult Games, is out now on Steam, Xbox Series X/S and PS5. 

Upcoming 

Annapurna Interactive is always a publisher worth paying attention to given its strong track record. This week, it revealed three upcoming adventure games during a showcase at Tokyo Game Show. I checked out demos for a couple of them, and I’ve already added all three to my wishlist.

D-topia is set in an apparent utopia run by artificial intelligence. You play as a maintenance worker who tries to keep things humming along by solving logic puzzles in the factory and helping out others with their problems. Your choices decide how the story plays out and, shock horror, things might not be going entirely smoothly behind the scenes.

I dig the very clean look here. It reminds me a bit of Mirror’s Edge. The dialogue in the demo is fun too. Expect to see this narrative-driven puzzler from Marumittu Games land on Steam, Epic Games Store, Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, PS5, Xbox Series X/S and Windows PC via the Xbox App in 2026.

Also coming to Steam, Epic Games Store, PS5, Xbox Series X/S and Windows PC via the Xbox App next year is People of Note by Iridium Studios. This is billed as a “musical narrative adventure” that sees pop singer Cadence seeking stardom with the help of other musicians who specialize in other genres. You’ll need to time your attacks to the beat to make them more effective, while genres play a role in making battles more dynamic. 

Turn-based combat generally isn’t my bag and I didn’t enjoy it in this demo either. However, Iridium wants people to be able to play the game their way. People of Note will include the option to disable things like turn-based combat and environmental puzzles. That immediately makes the game more appealing to me, especially because I like what I’ve seen of the world, story and characters. The promise of “full-length cinematic musical sequences” sure sounds good to me too.

The third game Annapurna showed off is Demi and the Fractured Dream. I haven’t had a chance to try the demo for this one as yet, but it looks like a Zelda-esque action adventure with environmental puzzles, platforming and plenty of hacking and slashing. As Demi, a cursed hero who is trying to save the world by slaying a trio of Accursed Beasts, you’ll have a variety of tools and spells at your disposal. Time your dodges just right, and you’ll power up your next set of attacks. 

This game from Yarn Owl is coming to Steam, Epic Games Store, Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, PS5, Xbox Series X/S and Windows PC via the Xbox App in 2026.

This week’s State of Play included a gameplay trailer for Halloween, from IllFonic and co-publisher Gun Interactive. We also got a release date for it. The horror game is coming to PlayStation, Xbox, Steam and Epic Games Store on September 8, 2026. Why it’s not dropping in late October is beyond me.

This is an asymmetric multiplayer game in the vein of Friday the 13th: The Game (also from IllFonic and Gun) and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, which Gun published. Three teammates will play as civilians who are trying to save the intended NPC victims of Jason Voorhees. If you’d rather go it alone, though, you can terrorize Haddonfield, Illinois as the legendary killer in a single-player mode.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/hades-2-slot-machine-horror-and-other-new-indie-games-worth-checking-out-110000884.html?src=rss

Meta is making humanoid robots its next massive “AR-sized bet,” investing billions into a project led by top roboticists. The focus will be less on hardware and more on software dexterity, aiming to license its robotics platform to manufacturers much like Google licenses Android. The Verge reports: During a recent conversation at Meta’s headquarters, CTO Andrew Bosworth said he stood up a robotics “research effort” earlier this year at the direction of CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The team’s existence has been reported on before, but Bosworth hadn’t discussed its strategy in-depth until our interview. “I don’t think the hardware is the hard part,” he told me ahead of Meta’s recent Connect conference. “I’m not saying the hardware isn’t also hard, but it’s not the bottleneck. The bottleneck is the software.”

To demonstrate, Bosworth picked up my glass of water from a table between us. “If you know robotics, one of the biggest problems that you have is dexterous manipulation,” he said. “These robots, they can stand, they can run, they can do a flip, because the ground is a super stable thing.” By contrast, a robot trying to pick up the glass of water would likely “immediately crush it or spill all the water.” While Meta is currently building its own humanoid, or “Metabot” as it’s called internally, Bosworth envisions the company licensing its software platform to other robot manufacturers. “I don’t care about us being the hardware manufacturers,” he explained.

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United Launch Alliance’s Atlas 5 rocket launched 27 more Project Kuiper satellites for Amazon from Cape Canaveral, bringing the constellation’s total to 129 in orbit. By the end of the year, Amazon expects over 200 satellites will be deployed, with commercial service starting in several countries by early 2026. Spaceflight Now reports: This is the third batch of production satellites launched by ULA and the fifth overall for the growing low Earth orbit constellation. […] The 27 Project Kuiper satellites will be deployed at an altitude of 280 miles (450 kilometers) above Earth. Control will shift over to the Project Kuiper team at their 24/7 mission operations center in Redmond, Washington. The separation sequence began about 20 minutes after liftoff, concluding about 15 minutes later. From there, they will confirm satellite health, and eventually raise the satellites to their assigned orbit of 392 miles (630 km) above Earth.

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