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The right light can elevate your live stream’s production values, and we tested the best streaming lights from Elgato and more to help you find the right fit.

Marshall has updated its Emberton and Willen portable Bluetooth speakers with speakerphone capability and Auracast compatibility.

A classic story is given an unforgettable film adaptation in our pick for the one (HBO) Max movie that you have to watch in August.

Netflix is now streaming one of 2024’s best shows. Here’s why you should watch it.

Gamescom 2024 is almost here. Exhibitors from over 60 countries will descend on Cologne, Germany, for what is now the industry’s biggest gaming event following E3’s demise. An opening night presentation will kick off the festivities with new game announcements, trailers, footage and other surprises (like the obligatory awkward celebrity cameos). You can watch the showcase right here on Tuesday, August 20.

As usual, industry stalwart Geoff Keighley will host the Opening Night Live festivities, which begin at 2PM ET on Tuesday. E-sports MC Eefje “sjokz” Depoortere will join as co-host.

Keighley has confirmed the showcase will include the following:

• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (“a new look” at the game)

• Monster Hunter Wilds (a new trailer)

• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (a play-through of the first campaign)

• Marvel Rivals (new heroes and updates)

• Dune Awakening (an “extended look” at gameplay)

• Civilization VII (the gameplay world premiere)

• The next game from Tarsier Studios, creators of Little Nightmares I and II

You can bookmark this page and tune in here to stream the event on August 20 at 2PM ET.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/how-to-watch-gamescom-opening-night-live-2024-130033275.html?src=rss

PC gamers have almost too many options when it comes to titles to play, which is a great problem to have. With decades of games to choose from (and the first port of call for most indie titles, too), the options are endless. You also get the perks of (nearly always flawless) backward compatibility and console-beating graphical performance — if you’ve got the coin for it when you’re building your perfect kit or picking up a high-powered gaming laptop. The whole idea of what a gaming PC is and where you can play it is shifting, too, with the rise of handheld gaming PCs like the Steam Deck. We’ve tried to be broad with our recommendations here on purpose; here are the best PC games you can play right now.

Best PC games to play right now

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-best-pc-games-150000910.html?src=rss

The relationship between tech companies and influencers can be murky. A recent post on Threads showed part of the sign-up form to receive Pixel devices for influencers and YouTubers, mandating that signees feature Google’s hardware “in place of any competitor mobile devices” or else “we will need to cease the relationship between the brand and the creator.”

First, our Engadget editors didn’t get this when they signed up for review samples for the four (yes, four) new Pixel phones. It transpired this was for the Team Pixel program, set up by Google to communicate with creators and, it seems, send them devices.

Google responded: “The goal of #TeamPixel is to get Pixel devices into the hands of content creators, not press and tech reviewers. We missed the mark with this new language that appeared in the #TeamPixel form yesterday, and it has been removed.”

It’s not yet clear if these Team Pixel members have received a new agreement, but will the demands remain, just not baked into a Google form or contract? The company is sending devices out so creators can try out (and talk up) the Pixel 9 series — if they don’t, Google may fail to see the point.

— Mat Smith

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​​You can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!

Fortnite returns to iOS in the EU as the Epic Games Store debuts on mobile

Fall Guys is on smartphones for the first time too.

Epic Games

Epic has finally brought the Epic Games Store to mobile devices. The app marketplace is now available on iOS in the European Union (after the bloc required Apple to allow third-party app stores on iPhone and iPad) and on Android worldwide. As a result, Fortnite is once again available on iOS without laborious workarounds. The store is bringing Fall Guys to iOS and Android for the first time, with nearly full parity with the console and PC versions, minus the level builder.

Continue reading.

How to watch all of Xbox’s Gamescom streams

And the big opening night stream.

Gamescom is Germany’s huge annual gaming trade show. This year, Microsoft has announced a major Xbox presence throughout the event. The first is the opening night livestream, which kicks off on August 20 at 2PM ET. While that stream isn’t Xbox-centric, we’re expecting some relevant news during the keynote. It will be available via the Gamescom YouTube page. Then there are three streams from Xbox, each focusing on a different slate of games.

Continue reading.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-google-apologizes-over-its-pixel-influencer-demands-111513252.html?src=rss

Reasons for the filings mainly center around accusations of degradations to regular cell service, but SpaceX and T-Mobile, partnered up, are disputing this and labeling the move anti-consumer.