Articles about Gaming

The CEO of Epic Games has slammed Google's "irresponsible" disclosure of a security bug in its hit game Fortnite. Tim Sweeney accused Google of trying to "score cheap PR points" by revealing a vulnerability in the game's installer.

Epic chose to bypass Google Play when it released Fortnite for Android leading to concerns about security. On Friday, Google revealed details of a security flaw that could be exploited to secretly install malware onto people's phones.

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While your computer's onboard sound might be "good enough," if you are serious about audio quality, it would be wise to invest in a sound card. USB variants in particular are a great way to easily update your desktop or laptop's sound. This won't just benefit listening to movies and music, but in some cases, gaming too.

Creative has long manufactured superior PC sound hardware -- its "Sound Blaster" products are legendary. Today, the company announces its latest such offering. Called "Sound BlasterX G6," the USB DAC offers an insane 130dB dynamic range. Best of all, it is compatible with PC (Windows and macOS), Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It will probably work with Linux-based operating systems -- such as Ubuntu and Fedora -- too.

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Three people have been killed and several injured in a shooting at a video game tournament in Jacksonville, Florida. A gunman shot two participants dead before killing himself at the event which was livestreamed on Twitch.

Police say that in addition to the three fatalities, eleven people were injured in the shooting. The shooter has been named as David Katz from Baltimore; he is said to have become angry after losing the tournament and pulled out a handgun.

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It seems that the concerns about Fortnite's security were well-founded -- although not necessarily for the reasons some people might have expected. Epic Games has been criticized for its decision not to make Fortnite available through Google Play, leading Google to show warnings to anyone conducting searches for the game.

Now a Google engineer just revealed that the first version of Epic's installer had a serious security vulnerability, placing Android users at risk. A post on Google's Issue Tracker shows that the installer could be abused to secretly download and install any app with any level of permissions -- a Man-in-the-Disk exploit.

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Security is a serious business (including for Fortnite-maker Epic Games), but it's not something most people take seriously enough -- as the number of weak and reused passwords out there shows. Epic, however, has just given players of its hit game an incentive to enable two-factor authentication on their account.

By enabling 2FA in Fortnite, players can unlock a hidden extra -- the Boogiedown emote. While this is undoubtedly a form of bribery, it is no bad thing. There are just a few simple steps you need to follow to access the new emote.

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In the world of non-console gaming, the Windows platform reigns supreme. That's not to say that Mac and Linux users aren't gamers, but their computer-based gaming choices are rather more limited thanks to developers' tendency to offer Windows support over anything else.

Now Valve is looking to change things with its Steam platform. The latest version of Steam Play makes it possible to play some Windows games on Linux, greatly increasing the size of the gaming catalog available to Linux-based gamers.

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When building a desktop gaming PC, there are many brands of RAM from which to choose. If you think "RAM is RAM" and the company producing it doesn't matter, think again. Cheap RAM can lead to some serious headaches -- for system builders, nothing is worse than an unstable computer that experiences random crashes. In other words, the cost savings by going with a no-name brand of memory simply isn't worth the aggravation.

There are a some specific brands of RAM by which I swear, such as G.SKILL and HyperX. Speaking of the latter, today, the Kingston gaming brand announces that its Predator DDR4 and DDR4 RGB RAM kits are getting both increased frequencies and storage capacities.

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The arrival of Fortnite on Android has not only been eagerly awaited, but also steeped in controversy. In addition to making the game a Samsung exclusive (for a few days, anyway), Epic Games decided to bypass Google Play and host APK downloads on its own servers.

But this isn't going to stop people looking for Fortnite in the Play Store. Google is well aware of this, and that there is the potential for fake, scam apps to appear, tricking users into downloading something malicious. As such, the company is taking action, and is showing a warning to anyone who searches for Fortnite in Google Play.

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We know that the gaming sensation Fortnite is making its way to Android. We know that the game will not be appearing in Google Play. There have been rumors for some time that Fortnite will be exclusive to Samsung devices for a short time after initial release, and a leaked APK for the game seems to confirm this.

Analysis of the APK shows that Fortnite may not only be exclusive to the Samsung Galaxy Note9, but also the Samsung Galaxy Tab S4. Owners of these devices could retain exclusive access to the game for 30 days.

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Fortnite for Android is one of the most eagerly-anticipated game launches of recent times, but the impending release could turn out to be something of a security nightmare. Following on from recent rumors, Epic Games has confirmed that Fortnite will not be made available through the Google Play Store.

Instead users will have to download the game directly from Fortnite.com -- something which means they will have to lower the security settings for their phone by allowing the installation of apps from unknown sources. Despite the security risks involved in this, Epic is eager to avoid paying a 30 percent cut to Google for Play Store distribution; but how long before the plan backfires?

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Fortnite quickly became a gaming sensation, and the wait for the battle royale game to come to Android has felt like a long one. While Fortnite for iOS is already a reality, Fortnite for Android remains somewhere on the horizon.

But that's not to say there is no news about the Android version of the game. A list recently came to light that seems to reveal the handsets that will support Fortnite, and there is a persistent rumor that the game will initially launch as an exclusive title for the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Note 9. Now it seems as though Fortnite may never make it to Google Play, with Epic Games seemingly looking to avoid paying Google a share of Fortnite-related income.

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Kingston's "HyperX" gaming brand is very well respected by both professional and amateur gamers alike. The company manufacturers top quality RAM, keyboards, mice, headsets, and more. Not only does this hardware function brilliantly, but they feature hip and cool designs too. And yes, looks matter.

Today, HyperX launches the previously announced Pulsefire FPS Pro RGB gaming mouse, and it is surprising affordable. If you aren't familiar, this "Pro" variant features an improved Pixart PMW3389 sensor compared to the Pixart 3310 found in the standard model. Plus, it has customizable RGB lighting -- a must for a gaming product these days!

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Following on from lawsuits files against console ROM sites LoveROMS.com and LoveRETRO.co, Nintendo has succeeded in getting a Game Boy Advance emulator removed from GitHub.

The company filed a DMCA request asking that a JavaScript-based emulator that enabled retro gamers to enjoy the likes of Mario in their web browser be removed, GitHub has complied with the request meaning that the emulator is now longer available through the site.

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Back in May, Sony launched a drop-dead gorgeous special edition PlayStation 4. Called "Days of Play," it featured a beautiful blue body, which was emblazoned with gold PlayStation button labels. I was quite smitten with the design, but there was one huge problem -- it wasn't a PS4 Pro. In other words, the special design was wasted on a console that wasn't Sony's most powerful.

Today, Sony unveils a new limited edition console that puts the aforementioned "Days of Play" variant to shame. And yes, this time it is a PS4 Pro! The "Limited Edition Marvel's Spider-Man PS4 Pro Bundle," as it is called, features a PS4 Pro with a red body and massive white Spider-Man logo on the top. The "Amazing Red" color, which Sony is calling it, is also on the DualShock 4 wireless controller. Rounding out the bundle is the "Marvel’s Spider-Man" video game disc.

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If you are a hardcore PC gamer, you are probably willing to spend almost anything to get an edge. For online multiplayer games in particular, not only is your CPU, GPU, and RAM important, but so is your networking hardware. From your modem, to your router, and ultimately your network interface card, what you have matters.

Speaking of NICs, there is an intriguing new offering from a company called Aquantia. Called "AQtion AQN-107 Gamer Edition," it is a 10G card, which yes, is total overkill. A standard gigabit card is fine for most gamers, but the thing is, this 10G card is quite affordable. Not only is the price reasonable, but it comes with specialized software for Windows that will prioritize gaming traffic and reduce lag. Maybe buying a 10G card isn't so crazy...

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