Light Phone has introduced two pretty essential new first-party tools via a new software development kit. lightOS is built on top of the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) after all.

Weather & Authenticator (for 2-factor-authentication) will be available to users “if they are interested in adding them” via a web-based dashboard that you can access on a computer.

The introduction of an Authenticator tool means you can finally use the Light Phone to login to your Google account securely, for example, without relying on less secure SMS 2-factor-authentication.

Currently the Light Phone only supports phone calls and SMS, an alarm, a timer, a calculator, a calendar, a directory, directions, notes/voice memo, and “a simple” music or podcast player.

There’s no email, no web browser, no WhatsApp or iMessage or Spotify, or any other app for that matter.

But Light Phone is also introducing a software development kit, which is where this news gets a little interesting.

As the company describes it:

The introduction of the Light Developer Program takes that even further, giving users the ability to create tools for their Light Phones and then providing a new platform – a “tool library” – to share those tools with one another. We’re looking for interested developers and users who want to help test new tools. It’s going to be a great collaboration!

So a dumb phone that might suddenly have an app store of sorts. Interesting!

But it isn’t a totally open, commercial free-for-all. Light Phone claims that

For the majority of our users this means that in addition to our Light tools, you can also browse a collection of vetted, user-created tools. Installation is seamless from the dashboard.

The Tool Library will only include tools that are blessed by Light, vetted and supported by the community and adhering to the Light ethos. Each tool must serve a clear intentional purpose, and of course, respect user-privacy to the fullest extent.

I’ve always found the most challenging concept with the Light Phone 3 being just how central smartphones are to many aspects to life. When I was in Tokyo the other day I needed my phone to pay for public transit. I needed my phone to get my visa share code. And later when I had to go to the airport I needed the Uber.

But there are genuine reasons why smartphones have become an addictive part of everyday life. Instagram didn’t remove the reverse-chronological feed to actually improve the user experience. It introduced it to keep you on the platform for longer and to see more and more ads.

In a similar way, the chances of Spotify introducing an open-source player just for the Light Phone is basically nil. Apps like Instagram and Spotify are designed with additional monetisation in mind, a stickiness that just isn’t possible (or profitable at least) on a Light Phone. Even seemingly well-intended apps like WhatsApp will likely never come to the Light Phone as they are just as much an entry-point into real monetisation as more obvious apps like Instagram.

Either way, the SDK allows developers to build with a unified UI component system (using Android’s Jetpack Compose), implement push notification support, and access media on the device (which could make some kind of streaming service possible). The company says this means apps can access “audio, video, images and other files with encrypted APIs for sending and receiving data with LightOS”.

Interestingly developer mode also allows APK sideloading, but “pre-existing apps that were not built with the provided SDK may not work well (or at all) on the Light Phone III due to the screen size, or lack of GMS certifications, among other technical reasons. The SDK will allow users to ensure their APK will work seamlessly on the Light Phone via LightOS.”

You can read more about it here.

Rockstar Games opened pre-orders for the hotly anticipated GTA sequel overnight with a bang.

A standard release is available for AU$129.95, while an ‘Ultimate Edition’ costs a whopping AU$159.95.

Of course, if you adjust for inflation, these figures aren’t as crazy. But if you adjust for the lack of wage growth in many countries over the years, it’s still a big jump up from a $99.95 starting price in Australia just a few years back. Mix it in with console price increases and gaming suddenly becomes a lot more of a luxury than it was previously.

The ‘Ultimate Edition’ includes:

Welcome to Leonida, the state where anything goes. Seize everything this massive world has to offer with an exclusive collection of premium vehicles, weapons, apparel, and action threaded across all aspects of Jason and Lucia’s story:
· ’95 GROTTI CHEETAH: Grotti's signature mid '90s sports car and ode to Shore Drive, the ’95 Grotti Cheetah is complete with a minimalist, retro-futuristic livery and available to punctuate later-stage action.
· HAWK & LITTLE MORGAN REVOLVER: His and hers versions of this powerful revolver with classic Vice City stylings sourced from the Vercetti Estate, including palm-tree-etched grips, engraved detailing, and high-performance scope.
· PERSONALIZED WEAPON VARIANTS: Personalized sidearms with detailed engravings for Jason's Girardi ES9 pistol and Lucia's Klose K17 pistol.
· VICE CITY STYLE: Whether poolside or side by side, Jason and Lucia can look the part with exclusive outfits, hairstyles, tattoos, and more.
· JASON’S SAFEHOUSE VEHICLES: Switch gears and soak up the sun in an Army fatigue-tinged Dinka Enduro motorcycle or Crest Kayak.
· GANADO RETRO BUILD: Inject some muscle and classic stylings into Jason's well-worn Vapid Ganado low-riding pickup with exclusive mods.
· SHITZU SQUALO: Perfect for casting in Gambit Bay and reeling in catches of all sorts, this gradient pink and blue Squalo docked at Washington Beach is made open-ocean-ready with an explosives-laden weapons crate.
· '67 VAPID DOMINATOR BUGGY & GARAGE: A Mud Club monster offering impressive off-road handling for the backwoods of Mount Kalaga and beyond. Conveniently store it at the Paradise Garage in Watson Bay, which features a weapon locker plus a secure place to deposit stolen goods to be fenced.
· GOODTIME GEAR: A capsule collection of apparel and accessories inspired by the Goodtime State’s hit TV show character, Macca the Alligator.
· PTT YOUNGIN$ COMPOUND: Raid the compound of one of Southside Vice City’s loudest and most socially active gangs and escape safely to score some special items and distinct contraband.
· CLASSIC CAR COLLECTION: Track down a variety of abandoned classic and work-in-progress project cars and revitalize them to their former glory in this special commission from eccentric collector and local fixer, Wyman.
Special Destinations Only Open for Business with the Ultimate Edition:
· RIDEOUT CUSTOMS: Transform vanilla vehicles into magnificent works of art with detailed interiors, exquisite rims, and donk stylings.
· SARA'S UNISEX SALON: Get signature salon styles for both Jason and Lucia, including facial hair for Jason and makeup and nails for Lucia.
· STOCK 305: Style various unique and exclusive looks for Jason and Lucia at Stockyard’s premiere destination for elevated streetwear.
· ELECTRIC FANG TATTOO: Choose from over 50 signature tattoos for both Jason and Lucia — all designed by the artist collective FAILE at Stockyard’s most iconic ink bar.
· ONE-EYED WILLIE’S: Visit Lake Leonida’s storied mod shop, specializing in off-road modifications and hand-painted automotive artistry.

The physical release of GTA VI will also be just a code in a box, as opposed to any kind of disc. While this is likely some sort of security precaution to avoid the game leaking, it does seem to indicate that the title can’t be printed to disc early and may come in hot and buggy! Normally a game would need to be finalised in a playable form weeks or even months in advance to be able to be manufactured to a physical disc.

After months of speculation around memory shortages and other global pricing impacts, Valve announced the release date and price of Steam Machine

And a weird detail about its reservation system is that if you reserve today, you won't be at the bottom of the waitlist - at least until June 26 (Friday) at 3AM Sydney time/AEST to be precise. Units then ship June 30 (AEST).

Valve is going with a new system where it will close initial reservations at that time, randomise it, and then email people who managed to grab one.

For me? I'm definitely on the list, but it's still a bit of a toss-up whether the FOMO will get to me. I love the concept of the device - being able to play games like Spyro: Reignited Trilogy or Red Dead Redemption 2 at 60fps on my couch. And as a Steam Deck convert, I'm slowly growing a Steam library and would love to play a lot of my games at a higher resolution. But it remains to be seen whether I can stomach the slightly AI-inflated prices. Here's how much it'll cost in Australia:

Steam Machine 512GB: 1,609 AUD

Bundle: Steam Machine 512GB + Steam Controller: 1,728 AUD

Steam Machine 2TB: 2,109 AUD

Bundle: Steam Machine 2TB + Steam Controller: 2,228 AUD

Both the Steam Machine 2TB and 2TB bundle options come with two additional faceplates: red fabric, and solid walnut.

Here's how Valve describes the Steam Machine in a press-release:

• Small and compact (a roughly 6-inch cube!)
• Over 6 times the horsepower of Steam Deck: Play your favorite games on Steam, including AAA titles.
• Powered by SteamOS, an OS optimized for gaming
• Runs cool and whisper-quiet
• 4K gaming at 60 FPS with FSR (thanks to semi-custom AMD desktop class CPU/GPU)
• Built-in power supply
• 2x2 Wi-Fi 6E plus Bluetooth 5.3 with dedicated antenna
• Ready for all kinds of peripherals and monitors
• And there's a cool LED strip!

In a 2024 interview with TV Tonight, then Chief Content Officer at the ABC Chris Oliver-Taylor showed an interest in reality formats at the ABC.

The interest seems to have stuck despite Oliver-Taylor's departure, with a revival of 1997's 'Race Around The World' airing tonight on the ABC. It's not exactly a cooking series or a singing competition, but the competitive element gives the show a familiar hook.

Each week six amateur filmmakers create a film that is judged by a panel, as well as viewers at home. And after a 28 year break, the format still works...mostly.

The format isn't as novel as I assume it would have been back in the 90s. Everyone can now FaceTime abroad or send movies to friends and family.

The more connected world we live in now also means that more risky films can't always be produced. Some of the films shown on Sunday's episode could put participants, or even the filmmakers, at greater risk than they would have experienced in 1997. Back then an Australian TV show wasn't likely to be shown anywhere else, at least not in realtime. In 2026 I was able to watch the show live from London through a VPN in the highest quality ABC iView has to offer.

'Race Around The World' gives amateur documentarians a plane ticket, a camera and a small budget. The cameras are a little too good at times, a lot more polished than the digital cameras of the 90s. But I'm happy to see there isn't too much production interference in the films themselves. You still get scratchy voiceover work and poorly mic'd interviews.

The films also seem to be uniquely produced by the filmmakers, each with a clearly different direction and approach. My biggest fear with the new series was that the polished, risk-averse ABC of 2026 would be tempted to step in and stop certain films from being made, or guide the process too much.

But this doesn't seem to be the case. At times participants were forced by the judges to defend their process and detail it, including the specific editing or structural decisions of a film. Luckily it seems there is still a relatively hands-off approach to the show.

And the format really shines with these assessments from the judging panel and the competition element. It's almost like a course in media literacy.

When you watch the 6PM nightly news, the studio host never follows a story by questioning the decisions behind the construction of the story, the questions the journalist asked, the music used.

'Race Around The World' does question these decisions, with discussion of narration, editing, structure, music, participants. Are there too many participants. Is the documentarian too involved, or not involved enough. Was there a story thread they missed.

I found it to be the real glue of the show. It makes you not just consume a story, but also question it and discuss it yourself. Maybe you disagree with the judges too. I did a few times, particularly around my favourite film about the Michael Jackson impersonator who moonlights as a wrestler. I will remember the Moonwalker DDT for many days to come.

It's hard not to feel like an armchair documentarian while watching. Part-way through the third film I did start to think about how I'd approach it myself. And just like a cooking show where you might root for, or against, a certain amateur chef, the show is all about questioning what you're seeing and putting yourself in the shoes of the people making the work you're seeing.

Instagram

Create an account or log in to Instagram - Share what you’re into with the people who get you.

Instagram

Some of the films weren't great, to be honest. I hope people don't see that as a failing of the format. It's actually the whole point.

I'm sick of seeing polished shows on the ABC that are clearly made in a way to appease the News Corp. and Daily Mail critics of the world. Those publications should be challenged, and preferably ignored. And I hope the Australian public actually gives the participants a chance to improve. There is a real lack of opportunity in Australian TV for people to start small and grow.

My biggest hope is that we see the feedback from the judges spill into the next films we see. Because just like in reality show, you want to see the participants improve and thrive, not just because you'll see a better film, but because the show inherently gives you a bit of a connection to the contestants.

I'm really excited to see where it goes.

'Race Around The World' airs on the ABC at 7:30pm Sunday and on ABC iView.

To celebrate new stock of the Orchid, the company's "chord-generating synthesizer" the device was on display at a Soho pop-up shop in London.

I visited the shop and tried the new clear 'arctic' colourway, as well as the other 'burnt yellow' standard edition. And even as someone not too musical (excluding the guitar) it was really easy to pick-up and play.

The clear model is US$699, while the regular model is US$649. If I get a job I might pick one up.

From Telepathic Instruments, the Orchid features:

A single-octave, velocity-sensitive keyboard, used to determine the root note of chords.

The upper row of Chord Type buttons determine the type of chord, while the lower Chord Modifier buttons add colour and complexity to your chord. Multiple modifiers can be used in combination... just be careful of too much jazz.

Two Voicing Dials allow you to move fluidly up and down the keyboard, one note at a time, causing a continuous cascade of chord voicing inversions, dramatically altering a chord’s tonal character.

Nine rotary encoders to access, modify and save an array of sounds, performance styles and effects. Record, layer, and manipulate musical phrases in real-time, or save it as a loop while switching between 20 pre-programmed drum beats.

Two integrated stereo speakers for immediate audio feedback. For when you want to *just jam*.

Starting September 1 the Nintendo Switch 2 will cost AU$769.95, which is the current cost of a Switch 2 + Mario Kart World bundle. Currently the console is available for AU$699.95.

— 小島秀夫 (@hideokojima.bsky.kojimaproductions.jp) 2026-04-29T23:00:49.022Z

HOYTS Cinemas, Australia’s number one cinema chain with more than 30% of national admissions and IMAX Corporation has announced an agreement for 10 new state-of-the-art IMAX® with Laser locations across Australia and New Zealand. The deal will significantly expand the companies’ existing partnership — reignited last year with an agreement for four new IMAX locations. The latest expansion marks the largest IMAX agreement to date for Australia, nearly doubling IMAX’s footprint in the region.

In total, IMAX’s partnership with HOYTS will grow from four locations to 14 over the next two years. At least three new locations are set to open before the end of 2026, with additional locations set to open throughout 2027 and 2028.

The new HOYTS IMAX locations will be equipped with IMAX with Laser, IMAX’s most advanced cinema experience. Developed from the ground up for maximum immersion, IMAX with Laser delivers crystal-clear 4K images, precision audio, and state-of-the-art projection technology, setting a new standard for moviegoing.

The system features a groundbreaking optical engine, custom-designed lenses, and proprietary IMAX technology that delivers brighter images, deeper contrast, and the widest range of colours exclusively to IMAX screens.

[…]

The momentum will continue with the upcoming 2026 Filmed For IMAX slate, which includes the Warner Bros. release Mortal Kombat II and Disney/Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu in May.

You won't have to dust off that orange VHS tape for this one.

I try not to let nostalgia get me, but Limited Run Games latest collection, Rugrats: Retro Rewind Collection, has me weirdly excited in the most boomer way.

Included in the collection are the following classics:

• Rugrats: Search for Reptar (PlayStation 1)
• The Rugrats Movie (Game Boy / Game Boy Color)
• Rugrats: Time Travelers (Game Boy Color)
• Rugrats: Studio Tour (PlayStation 1)
• Rugrats in Paris: The Movie (PlayStation 1 / Game Boy Color)
• Rugrats: Castle Capers (Game Boy Advance)

I have such vivid memories of Search for Reptar that I'll definitely be giving this a download on Nintendo Switch. It also comes out on PS5.

The collection also features:

Rewind & Save Anywhere: Made a bad jump? Just rewind the clock. Need to stop for snacks? Save your progress at any moment.

Retro Screen Filters: Play with crisp modern pixels or toggle on classic CRT and handheld filters for that authentic 90s glow.

Digital Museum: Browse high-resolution scans of the original manuals and box art. It’s like owning the physical copies all over again!

Music Player: Kick back and listen to the iconic soundtracks with a dedicated in-game audio player.

There's also a Deluxe Edition with a Jewelcase (extremely tempting) and:

Rugrats: Retro Rewind Collection Game Retro Styled CD Jewelcase (holds cartridge or CD), CD Soundtrack, Reptar Puzzle Piece Keychain, Sticker Sheets

Rugrats: Retro Rewind Collection is available physically too via Limited Run Games, sadly not on an orange cartridge. Pre-orders go on sale May 1 US-time and the game launches on digital stores May 15 US-time.

From Valve's press release:

Steam Controller is built with all the inputs to play all of your games on Steam however you like to play them: PC, laptop, Steam Deck, and any device running Steam or Steam Link (including Windows, Mac, and Linux PCs). It is also designed to work with the upcoming Steam Machine and Steam Frame.

The controller has magnetic thumbsticks with TMR technology, technically different to Hall effect but similarly anti-drift and precise. It also features trackpads with a similar look to the Steam Deck (which we loved in our review here).

The Steam Controller also features grip buttons, "grip-enabled Gyro" that Valve calls "Grip Sense" and uses a unique wireless puck for apparently more reliable and consistent communication than standard Bluetooth.

Valve says it supports 35+ hours of gameplay from a single charge. It'll be releasing May 4th, 2026, at 10 am San Francisco time. In other regions it will cost:

US: $99 USD / Canada: $149 CAD / EU: €99 / UK: £85 / AUD 149 / PLN 419

And it launches in "U.S., CA, U.K., EU, and AU; as well as in Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Taiwan through an official distributor (Komodo Station)".

Two additional episodes of Season 3 are set to air April 12 in the US. The show does not currently appear on any Australian streaming services.

In the announcement (we have a full transcript below) Cusack and Hadel describe wanting to take a break from "really grinding on this show non-stop without any breaks 24/7". Cusack says "after we finished season 3, Zach and I just both had the same feeling where we felt pretty burnt out after putting years and years into this."

Zach Hadel continues, saying "even from the very very beginning of the show, we always said, oh man, how great would it be to really try to make the show as good as it could be and really put 110% into it and then go out what feels like on top, what feels like leave them wanting more rather than people going, oh, that show is still on the air? Oh god."

Cusack insisted that "this is not the end of Zach and I collaborating," while keeping the door open for a return to Smiling Friends if the pair feels it's right to do so. But this will not be in the short-term.

Michael Cusack is likely better known in Australia as the creator of a very popular set of YouTube one-offs, some following Damo and Darren.

'Ciggie Butt Brain,' which features the duo, has 10 million views on YouTube. Cusack also created 'YOLO: Crystal Fantasy' for Adult Swim and 'Koala Man' for Hulu / Disney+. His many US series show animated glimpses of Australiana, and especially of his upbringing in Wollongong. Cusack attended Unanderra Public School and the Wollongong High School of the Performing Arts.

Speaking to the Illawarra Mercury in 2023, Cusack described the difficulties he faced trying to work with Australian networks like the ABC:

"I'm completely done with networks like the ABC because in my opinion they're not really interested in representing an Australia that is, I think, what Australians want to see. I think because we're here, we have to hide certain things. We're a little bit embarrassed to be our true selves. We're kind of stuck in this strange situation where we don't know if we want to be seen as silly or serious. We definitely have an identity issue in Australia, but Americans can see us a little bit differently.

And described how much more open US networks are to his unique local humour:

Americans are very interested in buying Australian shows. They love Australian humour - you'd be surprised. That's got its problems - they also see us as on a very surface-level basis, but the good thing about that is you can actually counteract that and make them learn more about Australia through exposure - get a little bit more in-depth than things like Crocodile Dundee and Steve Irwin. My goal is to make them understand things like Woolies, Telstra and Centrelink as much as we do as Australians."

‘Ciggie Butt Brain’ animator’s US TV deal takes Wollongong party girls to the world

Six and a half years since he birthed YouTube royalty Damo and Darren, Michael Cusack’s first fully-formed series…

Illawarra Mercury

Here is the full transcript from the announcement video (edited slightly for clarity):

Michael
Hello everybody. How's everybody doing?

Zach
Hello everybody.

Michael
Hello Zach.

Zach
And hello Michael. Well, we said hello to the world. We said hello to each other. We should probably get into the real meat and potatoes of why we're here, and I'm going to cut right to the chase. This is not a bit. This is not a joke. Michael and I are here to announce that Smiling Friends will be ending after season 3 is done.

Michael
Yes. And we know that's super disappointing to hear.

Zach
Well, I think people's first question might be why? What's the reason?

Michael
Yes, that's that's it. We should explain why. And to be perfectly honest, after we finished season 3, Zach and I just both had the same feeling where we felt pretty burnt out after putting years and years into this, but also pretty accomplished. Like we just came to this feeling where we're like, I think that could just be it after season 3. And we both felt like it was right.

Zach
Yeah I mean, even from the very very beginning of the show, we always said, "Oh man, how great would it be to really try to make the show as good as it could be and really put 110% into it and then go out what feels like on top, what feels like leave them wanting more rather than people going, "Oh, that show is still on the air. Oh god." It just feels, like you said, after several years of really really grinding on this show non-stop without any breaks 24/7, we got to a point where we just felt like that's a good spot to end it. And we wouldn't want to be doing more seasons half-hearted like with half, you know, or burnt out or not feeling it. That's not fair to us and it's not fair to the audience to give you guys fucking slop. That's not really, that sucks.

Michael
Yeah, exactly. And people might wonder, we could give it to other people to run it, like another show, like a like all these other shows that run for ages, but I don't know. We It just feel too weird. It's not that type of show. It's so from Zach and I from the scripts, from all of it. We're so control freaky over it.

Zach
And it would be the same show. It's just not that kind of show. It's not built like that.

Michael
Unfortunately. But yeah, I mean, it's very weird to do this, but this was our decision. And it wasn't, you know. Adult Swim are very supportive. When we told them exactly this, they said, you know, if you're not feeling making a cartoon, we're not going to stop you. Go have a break. Either come back or don't. That's the other thing. We could come back in the future and make more episodes if we if you want if we feel like it. And they've been super cool and said they would let us do that. Uh, but maybe not. Like, who knows? We'll have to determine that in the future.

Zach
And we're the ones that feel feel like it's a better thing. If we tell you guys, oh yeah, we're taking a really long break, a hiatus for a couple of years, that feels almost like we're promising you something. It's easier and it's better and it's cleaner to say this is a good spot to to end it. If we really feel inspired, if we really feel like we've got great ideas and we're hungry to do it again, uh we you know, absolutely we'll come back maybe for a special or some more episodes. But it's got to be right and it's got to be done right. And we have to know that we're going to make something that's great for you guys that you guys can enjoy.

Michael
Yeah.

Zach
And that we enjoy.

Michael
Exactly. And this is not the end of Zach and I collaborating. It's not the end of us making projects on our own, too. It's just this show. We just feel like we've we've done it. Like we feel like we got it out of our system and that's it. Zach, is there anything else?

Zach
We squirt we squirted the whole thing out of our systems. It's all shot out everywhere.

Michael
Yes. Uh well, there is some good news.

Zach
Oh, there is?

Michael
A little bit of good news. I know that's very disappointing. But there's also going to be two extra episodes of Smiling Friends coming out that we've completed, coming out on April 12th at 11:00 p.m. on Adult Swim. So, these are just two episodes we're working on last year. And they're not finales.

Zach
And they're part of season 3. So, these are two episodes. Season 3 has 10 episodes total, which is the eight you guys have already all seen, plus these two ones, which are little stragglers, little rogue planets out there, but they're not thematically related. They're not big finales. So, hopefully you enjoy two other little stragglers. Maybe you will, maybe you won't. I hope you do. Heavens. I hope you do. I hope.

Michael
I think they will.

Zach
Oh, I me too. I mean, that'd be wonderful.

Michael
Yes. But look, we know this is very disappointing and it's been very hard. It sucks. We know and it's been very hard to even record this for it because it's just a very difficult thing to say for us. So, we hope you understand. We hope you've enjoyed what we've done. It's been amazing. The fans have been so good and so it's it's been the best. It's been a ride of a lifetime, but I hope I hope you would see where we're coming from. Uh, Zach, do you want to add anything else?

Zach
Just I mean for real like the the the show got way bigger than either of us ever imagined, you know, all the fan art, all the costumes, like literally every people sharing memes, all all of it, every part of it. Uh every drunk guy at a bar that gets right up on my nose and goes, I love that.

Michael
I love that the most. That's usually me to be honest.

Zach
That, that's just you Michael. But all of it's really it's been surreal and great and the crew for real who brought this insane, can I say insane, project brought to life.

Michael
That's all all because of them genuinely. Our crew has been so amazing on this show.

Zach
Go hire them. Hire everyone. Hire all of our crew, hire all of our crew

Michael
Yes and we wanted. even though this has been kind of an awkward recording, to do we wanted to do this because we wanted you to hear us you know say this honestly rather than just like a picture with text.

Zach
Which sucks. Nobody wants to see that. No, it's better to just hear it from us. And it's a bummer. It's a huge bummer. We know. But we're still going to be doing stuff. Anyway, that's I guess that's it, isn't it, Zach?

Zach
Well, as the little cartoon guy said, that's all, folks. I think that's all, folks.

Michael
Yes, true. So true. Thank you, everyone.

Zach
Thanks, everybody.

Bungie and Sony have announced that upcoming title Marathon has a release date. The game is arriving March 5, 2026, alongside a Limited Edition DualSense controller.

In a generation of just plain boring Limited Editions, the Marathon controller actually looks nice and unique. Lets hope the game is equally special and not another live-service PlayStation dud. Eat your heart out The Last Of Us: Factions (which was cancelled) and Concord (which was shut down just weeks after its launch).

Some Apple Music radio shows were put on an early hiatus around September 2025, with notable show Time Crisis, hosted by Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig, taking an unexpected break. The show is often a top show on the Apple Music section inside Apple Podcasts, which is the only rare insight we get into the listenership of Apple Music 1. When the station still went by its original Beats 1 branding, its tagline was "Worldwide. Always on.". But it's also pretty normal for radio shows to take a holiday break, usually later in the year.

In November, show co-host Jake Longstreth said that "Apple told us that all their shows are on hiatus until next year" and apologised for the "recent absence" that wasn't hinted at on-air.

Other artist-hosted shows have not been updated since around the same time as Time Crisis, though it's hard to know which shows are intended to be seasonal, and which shows like Time Crisis generally run more consistently.

Apple's own staffed shows, such as The Zane Lowe Show and The Matt Wilkinson Show, have continued to run through the "hiatus".

Last week the Time Crisis shows Twitter account posted a return date of January 31 2026:

In 2020 I bought the special edition island-themed Nintendo Switch console and worried it wouldn't arrive before lockdowns started. My console was being delivered to my workplace too, which really made me worry that I might not be able to pick it up for weeks as the world shut down. But because Nintendo is Nintendo, an even bigger fear here was that I'd be unable to eventually transfer my island to the new console at all if it arrived weeks late. 2020 was a time of complete unknowns and it meant that small, insignificant worries like this felt bigger than they were.

People forget that at launch save file transfers weren't possible at all for New Horizons. In July 2020, 4 months after release, an island backup tool was released, allowing you to keep a backup of your island on the internet. But to continue the bizarre secrecy around island life, the tool required, and still does require, a real life phone call to Nintendo to restore data from.

It wasn't until Nintendo released a specific transfer application 8 months after its release, in November 2020, that users could transfer their save files to a new system if they still had the old system. If your old system breaks, to this day, you still need to contact Nintendo to restore your Animal Crossing island backup. It's almost worse than Pokémon's anti-cheating system of not allowing save-file backups at all.

If this is sounding complicated, it's because it is. And this isn't to mention the strangest constraint of all: Nintendo only allows you to have one island per Nintendo Switch console. While every other game on Switch allows you to start a new save from a separate system-level profile, Animal Crossing saves island data as a shared file. The primary player has all sorts of exclusive features that secondary profiles can't access too, meaning a family playing Animal Crossing would only get the full experience of the game by buying multiple Nintendo Switch consoles.

At the time I assumed things would get better in the coming years. Surely Nintendo would hear the outcry around the strange nature of save file management for a game with over 48 million sales. There are countless posts on social media sites about people losing their islands because they assume Animal Crossing saves data like every other game. There are also endless threads online about people unsure if it's worth deleting their original island to start again. It's just unnecessary. For almost every other game on Nintendo Switch, you can just backup data to the cloud. If this was a game on PC you'd just be able to move a save file to another folder and not lose your data.

Imagine managing 48 million potential customer support calls instead of just allowing an automated save file restoration. Previous games were also far more flexible. On the 3DS you could have two islands by owning a second copy of the game. On GameCube save data was only defined by which memory card you were using.

So in 2026, when Animal Crossing: New Horizon's new 3.0 patch introduced a bunch of nice features, I hoped there'd be some kind of acknowledgement around the inflexibility of island management.

But there isn't. If you want to start a new island without losing your old island and progress, there is no option other than deleting your original save file entirely. If you own a second Nintendo Switch you can technically transfer your island to that console, which will then free your first console to start a new island, but again this just feels so restrictive for no reason. To start a second island you still need an entire second console. In a funny way, The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild also had a similar one-save limitation on Nintendo Switch 1, but on the Nintendo Switch 2 version of the game they added a second save file that you can use without losing your first one.

But when it comes to New Horizons no changes have been made around backups either. Maybe it would put me at ease to just be able to delete my save file locally if I could keep the online backup to restore at a later point. But I'm not even sure if that's possible, and if it is, you'd still need to convince a Nintendo representative over a support phone call to let you restore the save file to your system. Technically you're only allowed to restore your save file to a brand new system too, with the system being built with broken and stolen consoles in mind. You're technically only meant to restore your island to a brand new console.

It's not like there are professional Animal Crossing players cheating in the game at a competitive level. And even if there are people selling rare in-game items online, does it really matter? Is the in-game economy of Animal Crossing really that sacred? There are still to this day Twitch channels that advertise hacked islands with money that users can take to break the in-game economy. So why prevent genuine users from just creating a second save for fun?

I hope if Nintendo is working on a follow-up to Animal Crossing: New Horizons that they rethink the clearly complicated system of island data management. For a game about escapism, it's bizarre that save management is so restrictive and technical.

I feel bad because I received a review code, but haven't finished it yet. As an apology I'll be picking it up on Nintendo Switch today, but I am enjoying it a lot so far.

Elsewhere the game is getting rave reviews:

Rock Paper Shotgun says:

Demonschool has a very clear intent in its design, and it succeeds in that intent with perfect marks.

GamesRadar+ says:

Together with its chorus of upbeat synth and kaleidoscopic colour palette, Demonschool secures itself as one of the most exciting and stylish turn-based RPGs of the year. It's an absolute riot.

The Escapist says:

If you’re a fan of b-horror movies, demon-slaying, and goofy one-liners, this is a title worth keeping an eye out for.

Noclip also has some great videos on the behind the scenes of it all:

Check it out today on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch:

Demonschool on Steam

Demonschool is a new-style tactics RPG where motion equals action. Defeat big weirdos in between the human and demon worlds as Faye and her misfit companions, while navigating university life on a mysterious island.

STEAM

former bosses Chris Deering and Jim Ryan, developers Martin Alltimes and Juan Montes, PR and marketing veterans Glen O’Connell, Alan Welsman and Geoff Glendenning, and Namco’s Jackie Plumeridge.

I especially love the anecdote from Chris Deering about advertising the PlayStation brand at Football games, which you can see in this stock photo here. And how important it was being on the ground to market the console.

Update 26/08/2025: Demonschool has been delayed.

The hype around Hollow Knight: Silksong is unquestionable. Releasing September 4, the follow-up to Hollow Knight is coming 7 years after it was originally announced.

I genuinely can't wait - and it might be my most anticipated game of the year full stop. Which is saying a lot when you consider we had a new Mario Kart and full 3D Donkey Kong game.

So spare a thought for any games releasing around the same time. One game I feel the most for is Demonschool - a "new-style tactics RPG" that shows inspiration from Persona, while also sporting a really unique look and feel.

At least Demonschool will get a mini head start. Also Team Cherry aren't giving out review codes prior to release either, which might give Demonschool a bit more attention in the gaming press.

September will also see Everybody's Golf: Hot Shots on September 5th, Baby Steps from Gabe Cuzzillo, Maxi Boch and Bennett Foddy on September 8th, and Borderlands 4 on September 12th.

In a post on Twitter the company said:

"The Epic Games Store and Fortnite will come to iOS in Australia! An Australian court just found that Apple and Google abuse their control over app distribution and in-app payments to limit competition. There are 2,000+ pages of findings that we’ll need to dig into to fully understand the details. This is a WIN for developers and consumers in Australia!"

“We consider Stephen Colbert irreplaceable and will retire ‘The Late Show’ franchise” in May of 2026,” CBS executives said in a statement. “We are proud that Stephen called CBS home. He and the broadcast will be remembered in the pantheon of greats that graced late night television.  This is purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night.  It is not related in any way to the show’s performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount.”

It is interesting timing considering a merger between Paramount Global and Skydance Media will require approval from the Trump administration FCC. Paramount settled a US$16m lawsuit with Trump earlier this month. At the start of this week, after a few weeks off-air, Colbert called the settlement with Trump a "big fat bribe".

Colbert's Late Show has been the top-rating Late Night talk show for most of its run. In its 11:35pm timeslot it recently beat 'The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon' and 'Jimmy Kimmel Live'. In Q2 2025 Fallon had an average audience of 1.1 million, Kimmel 1.7 million and Colbert almost double at 2.4 million viewers.

CBS show 60 Minutes also saw major departures before and after the settlement, which Paramount-owned Comedy Central show 'The Daily Show' covered last week.

Jon Stewart on Potential ‘Daily Show’ Cancellation After Skydance Merger: ‘Been Kicked Out of S--ttier Establishments’

Jon Stewart says he is not worried about Skydance potentially canceling “The Daily Show,” saying “we’ll land on our feet.”

TheWrapSean Burch

These shows are institutions of traditional TV and are still huge operations to run each night, offering valuable entry points into the entertainment industry. It is interesting to think about whether CBS could have cut costs for the show in other ways before deciding to cancel it entirely.

From Apple's support document:

If over a 30-day period you receive more frequent elevated breathing disturbances, you receive a notification of possible sleep apnea.

Following on from Bitchat - which uses Bluetooth to allow for close-proximity chatrooms, Dorsey has now invented a "Sun Day Tracker" app.

From The Verge:

Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey has released a new app that tracks your sun exposure and vitamin D levels.

[...]

You can detail your skin type and clothing level, then manually toggle when you’re in and out of the sun and the app will track your rough vitamin D levels for the day, along with how long you can be in direct sunlight without burning.

In the same way that I don't understand AI music (we already have so much real music that it's impossible to listen to it all), now we have vibe-coded apps that...are just apps with extremely limited utility. If you have to manually toggle it every time you go outside, and then trust that the calculations are correct, how accurate could this possibly be?

Maybe it's just the Southern Hemisphere Winter getting to me.

With most Australian TV forming into a beige, harmless soup, where most shows are afraid to say anything of substance, this show feels different.

In 'Back Side,' McTaggart isn't afraid to pull punches or lose any friends in the industry. It's a show that feels refreshingly progressive, honest, and blunt about the local TV industry, its quirks and failings. One that commercial networks wouldn't dare air.

And Season 3 houses another stellar set of insights. Yesterday Binge released two back-to-back episodes that center around the portrayal of police on Australian television, covering the past and the present. It's shocking that of all places News Corporation commissioned this kind of show (even if Binge is now owned by DAZN, and the first season aired on SBS). But I guess the modern ABC would be too scared to have this level of opinion on its platform, particularly from a host under the age of 50.

I don't want to just summarise the entire two-episodes exhaustively, like the average news story you'd see covering John Oliver 'skewering' some recent event. But the show really does have a similar vibe to Oliver's HBO show 'Last Week Tonight' and takes a forensic, researched, and still funny, look at the portrayal of police on Australian TV.

McTaggart starts with 1964 drama 'Homicide,' and goes all the way through to recent shows like 'RBT' and 'Border Security'. And as he explains, from the start these shows, even fictional dramas, have given Australian police, and more recently the Australian Government, the final say on what airs and what doesn't. He goes through the ways in which Australian dramas have misrepresented or totally ignored police corruption, and when TV has acted as pure PR for our police force. He covers the way some dramas would even take a 'ripped-from-the-headlines' story around police malpractice, one example being around police killing unarmed civilians, and alter it into a fictional story that deceptively sweeps any real debate under the rug.

While in recent years police corruption has become a mainstay in TV shows, going so far as to be so normal that it can fit right into a comedy like 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine', it wasn't always as easy to get this on the air. The show covers a 1983 ABC series, 'Scales Of Justice,' which dared to show potential corruption in the force, and was hugely controversial among police at the time. It also looks at 1991 ABC observational documentary 'Cop It Sweet,' which followed police from the Redfern Police Station police who openly displayed clear racism and prejudice in their handling of the general public, and the fallout of the show airing on the ABC.

As McTaggart explains, this degree of final-edit and storyline control is given to police in exchange for access to resources and information that at one point was crucial to accurately portray the force. Covering more recent 'Cop Propaganda', McTaggart later shows the way police-approved 'RBT' and government-approved 'Border Force' both edit participants in ways that portrays guilt for people who have done nothing wrong, and how they 'convince' participants to appear in these shows, unblurred, in perpetuity.

I won't ruin anymore of it, except to say that I really recommend giving it a watch. It's biting in a way that I haven't seen in a long time, and again surprising to see when you consider how gun-shy Australian TV is, and how intent it is on being palatable to the biggest audience possible. This is the kind of TV that makes subscription streaming services worthwhile.

At the time Apple Music specifically leaned on human curation as a point of difference against competing services like Spotify and Rdio (RIP). And while the radio station lives on, there are signs that Apple may also be reconsidering its human approach, with new leadership poached from TikTok and auto-mixing features that "[use] AI to analyze audio features".

Still, 10 years on the Beats 1 tagline of "Worldwide. Always on." has proven true. The station, now known as Apple Music 1, is today broadcasting anniversary specials and later this week will broadcast a Top 500 countdown of the most-streamed songs on the service.

From Apple:

“When we first launched Beats 1 it was a leap of faith, the first live global radio station for a digital world,” said Zane Lowe. “We knew we wanted to build something special where artists could come and tell their stories and fans could feel connected. Ten years on, Apple Music Radio is everything we hoped it would be. It’s a place where we can eventize music, a place where music comes first, always. I’m just as excited for what’s to come as I was on day one.”

To celebrate the 10-year milestone, Apple Music Radio will feature a week of specials and live programming, kicking off with “Don’t Be Boring: The Birth of Apple Music Radio with Zane Lowe and Ebro Darden” on June 30, from 6 to 8 a.m. PST. From the early days of launching radio on streaming, to the epic artist-led shows that defined a new era, Zane, Ebro, and special guests will reminisce about the last 10 years of Apple Music Radio. Then, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. PST, listeners can tune in to the “10 Years of Apple Music” special. This eight-hour broadcast event on Apple Music 1 will tell the stories of the greatest artist moments, exclusive releases, live events, and cultural milestones that only Apple could deliver. The day will culminate with “Live: 10 Years Of Apple Music” from 4 to 7 p.m. PST. The live broadcast, hosted by Zane and Ebro, celebrates a decade of Apple Music with a lineup of artists who have shaped the trajectory of the service. Listeners can tune in at apple.co/_Radio.

Additionally, Apple Music Radio will unveil the service’s top 500 most-streamed songs from the last 10 years in a special countdown beginning on Tuesday, July 1. Tune in to count down 100 songs a day, culminating with Apple Music’s top 100 most-streamed songs of all time on July 5, when the full 10 Years of Apple Music: Top Songs playlist will be available to stream.

That's the message from 10's rebrand today, which pushes away Play, Peach and Bold and instead leans into 10 as its core identity.

On-air promos won't direct users to 10 Play anymore, instead telling viewers that 10 is the place to 'watch + stream free'. The 10play.com.au domain name is now simply 10.com.au and the 10 Play app is now just the 10 app.

Neither the 10 website or app have been improved from a technical standpoint, with the 10 website still serving up a pretty low-resolution livestream of the channel and shows and the 10 mobile app still feeling quite cross-platform (pejorative).

The key change visually is also 10 breaking out of the iconic circle logo. Now 10's watermark features just the numbers:

Secondary channel 10 Peach is now 10 Comedy and 10 Bold is now 10 Drama. 10 News First will now be referred to on-air as just 10 News.

TV Tonight talked to Claudio Amati, Head of Network Creative at Paramount Australia, about the changes:

“We’re taking Channel Five’s lead with the ‘watch and stream free’ messaging. They actually used ‘watch and stream’. But we did research to make sure that we were hitting all the touch points. And what came out of the research five or six months ago was that there was confusion in the market as to what services were free and what services you paid for,” he explains.

“We decided to add the word ‘free’ on the end of that tagline… it also differentiates us from Paramount+, which is obviously our SVOD.”

Yeah I’m thinking this one’s gonna be real good, but I only played 15 minutes worth. Really has that Mario Odyssey feel of precision and momentum. Were some dropped frames, but who knows how much punishment that demo Switch 2 console has been through.

Has this improved with iPadOS 26? No. It works exactly the same. Poorly.

Multitasking on iPad has changed seemingly every year. With iPadOS 26 Apple has finally come to terms with the fact that people understand window paradigms from computers. And while I honestly like the differentiation when it comes to using the iPad as a touch-only device, with a mouse and keyboard iPadOS 26 still disappoints, even thought they’ve tried to merge some UI concepts between macOS and iPadOS. The new traffic-light window controls are tiny and only appear when hovered over, apps don’t have title bars that would be easier to move around, the corner resize lines still fade into the app interface. Is the new window system of where different windows exist when closed less confusing? No. Is it as good as macOS? No. Windows randomly disappear and I genuinely sometimes just don’t understand what’s happening. Is this browser window still open? Maybe?

My final check with the first beta was Notes. With Apple’s AI “improvements” last year the company introduced Smart Script, which painfully tries to correct your handwritten Notes. It works terribly, often totally inserting the “improved” handwritten text in a different place. Has that improved? No.

I think my issue with iPadOS is that it’s still trapped by Apple. On macOS if Figma didn’t work I could just install Chrome. But Apple demands developers use WebKit-based browsers only. And it also feels like Apple is needlessly building everything twice, or sometimes even three times. Maybe with a more unified platform they could just build Final Cut Pro or Files once and make it work on macOS and iPadOS.

Instead it still feels like a blend of old and new, macOS and iPadOS, and multiple ways of learning the same tasks. You simply can’t hand someone an iPad Pro and expect them to use it in the same way they would a MacBook Air. Maybe that’s the point, but it’s increasingly a frustrating experience. I don’t want to learn a new multitasking paradigm.

But hey, they sure did add a lot of glass! (Except also not really yet on iPadOS? Maybe that’s coming in later betas.)

Spain is a bit of a late-starting country compared to Australia. McDonald’s in Madrid doesn’t open until 10am for example, coffee shops only slightly earlier around 9am. 10am was the norm for many other shops. Barcelona appears to be slightly happier to wake up early, with some shops opening at 9 or 9:30. Only Madrid had a midnight launch at the GAME store, which used to have an Australian presence.

It’s 25 minutes before the MediaMarkt opens, which is like a Spanish JB Hi-Fi (I believe it’s German-owned). Around 30 people are lined up.

A GAME store around the corner opens at 10am and had a similar line. It’s not huge but growing as I type.

Without a Spanish tax number I wasn’t able to pre-order online. There is a smaller line of people trying to order in store, but they may be trying to see how much stock they have for pre-orders.

The new game, inspired by the world of Pokémon X & Y, is coming to Switch and Switch 2 this October 16 2025.

For players who purchase the game on Nintendo Switch, a Switch 2 "upgrade pack" will be available to purchase, which presumably means the game will cost more for Switch 2 users. From The Pokémon Company:

The cover art has also been unveiled, featuring the game’s main characters and their partner Pokémon battling a Mega-Evolved Pokémon at night in Lumiose City.

Pokémon Legends: Z-A is a new frontier for the Pokémon video game series, blending an RPG story unfolding in a single city with action elements and a real-time battle system unlike anything seen before in the franchise. Trainers can look forward to the beginning of a new adventure in Lumiose City—one woven by people and Pokémon together!​

I've been following indie 3D platformer Big Hops development on Twitter, and now Bluesky, for years now. The game features all the bells, whistles and twists that you would expect from a modern take on the genre. And now for the first time I've been able to play it via a demo on Steam.

With elements of The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild and Mario Odyssey, as well as its own unique and clearly fine-tuned art-style, the game feels amazing. In a way that other indie platformers sometimes miss. There's clearly a level of polish that Big Hops is going for. But the team at Luckshot Games might need some help.

Developer Chris Wade at Luckshot Games announced the demo over on Bluesky today, alongside news of a Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 release at the end of the year. He also announced that the games publisher had dropped the game, and they're instead turning to Kickstarter for more support.

Definitely give the demo a go and let us know what you think!

Big Hops on Steam

Tongue-swing, free climb, and build your own path forward in a new kind of 3D platformer! Plant veggie bounce pads, tightropes, hookshots, and much more. Find a way home through huge Desert, Ocean, and Mountain worlds and collect bugs, upgrade your backpack, and meet animal friends along the way.

STEAM

With a US iTunes account you can download the app, and then sign back in to your Australian account to continue to use your phone as you did previously.

Here's how:

1. Create a new Apple account on Apple's website here. When creating the account set your Country/Region to United States.

2. On your iPhone or iPad, open the App Store and tap your profile picture on the top right.
3. On the modal that appears, scroll all the way to the bottom of the screen. This means scrolling past every App Store update that is available. At the bottom of the screen tap Sign Out.
4. Back at the top sign in to your new US App Store account.
5. Download Fortnite here:

‎Fortnite

‎Fortnite is back! Be the last player standing in Battle Royale, OG and Zero Build, carry your squad to victory in fast-paced Reload, build your own adventures in LEGO® Fortnite, or headline a concert in Fortnite Festival — it’s all here. Play thousands of free creator-made islands with your friends…

App StoreEpic Games Inc.

6. Repeat steps 2-3 but sign back into your previous Apple account. You will still be able to update Fortnite without repeating these steps.

New sound effects!

There's an interesting report this morning from Mark Gurman and Drake Bennett at Bloomberg on Apple Intelligence.

The story leads with a description of John Giannandrea being "poached" from Google in 2018. That shake-up didn't result in much, with a lack of substantial output so far. Over the past year or so Apple has had a marketing blitz for its answer to AI, Apple Intelligence. But it was premature.

Some writing features were added to Apple platforms and Siri can kinda phone-home to ChatGPT in other areas. But the initiative has so far fallen behind rivals, and even relied on them.

Yet the article makes me wonder if that's a bad thing. The more I read of Bloomberg's story, the more I feel like the very core of Apple's positioning over the past few years is at stake. And a lot of it stems from Apple growing into the everything-company. Take this quote for example:

The company’s base of 2.35 billion active devices gives it access to more data—web searches, personal interests, communications and more—than many of its competitors. But Apple is much stricter than Google, Meta and OpenAI about allowing its AI researchers access to customer data. Its commitment to privacy also extends to the personal data of noncustomers: Applebot, the web crawler that scrapes data for Siri, Spotlight and other Apple search features, allows websites to easily opt out of letting their data be used to improve Apple Intelligence. Many have done just that.

The article almost plays this off as being a bad thing. Apple's App Tracking Transparency privacy move reportedly stripped Meta of US$10 billion in revenue as of 2022. And it viciously competes with Google in other key areas. But the article continues:

All this has left Apple’s researchers more heavily reliant on datasets it licenses from third parties and on so-called synthetic data—artificial data created expressly to train AI. “There are a thousand noes for everything in this area, and you have to fight through the privacy police to get anything done,” says a person familiar with Apple’s AI and software development work. An executive who takes a similar view says, “Look at Grok from X—they’re going to keep getting better because they have all the X data. What’s Apple going to train on?”

There's an expectation that publicly listed businesses must do everything possible to grow, and this is an interesting example. Apple is a hardware and software company. It makes a big mobile OS and a pretty big desktop OS.

So it should sound alarm-bells that an executive is pointing to Elon Musk's "White-Genocide"-believing AI Grok as a baseline for LLMs. It should also be sounding alarm bells that Apple, the company that shipped iPods with a "Don't Steal Music" sticker, has employees that want to train AI on user data and not just rely on licensed datasets.

Privacy initiatives have undoubtedly helped Apple maintain a huge marketshare worldwide. Yet Apple Privacy as a department probably doesn't even have a line on Apple's balance sheet. And as the practice of scraping all value possible out of Apple's users and partners continues, it's almost as if growth is the goal at all costs, even if it hurts Apple's brand and bottom-line in other areas.

Apple has prided itself on its privacy and ethics, with billboards and commercials, for a decade at least. In 2015 the company famously went up against law enforcement in an attempt to maintain privacy for its users:

New Court Filing Reveals Apple Faces 12 Other Requests to Break Into Locked iPhones

Apple attorney Marc Zwillinger listed the requests in a newly unsealed response to an order from a magistrate judge in a Brooklyn federal court.

The InterceptJenna McLaughlin

The other requests are listed in a newly unsealed court brief filed by Apple attorney Marc Zwillinger in response to an order from a magistrate judge in a Brooklyn federal court. That case involves a government request to search an Apple iPhone 5s for evidence about a suspect’s possession or sale of methamphetamine.

Apple has refused to extract data from the phone, even though it could (because the phone was running on an older operating system), arguing in court that it was “being forced to become an agent of law enforcement.”

Since then Apple has become the privacy company, though this is still a bit of marketing of course. While Apple shouts from the rooftops about its privacy initiatives - some of which are great - it still isn't perfect. One of the key insights from Google's landmark monopoly ruling is around the fact that Apple talks big game about privacy, while taking Google money to sell out its users.

Back in 2023, when the antitrust case went to trial, it was revealed in court that in 2021 Google paid companies more than $26 billion for the search placement deals. In 2022, Google paid Apple a whopping $20 billion to secure itself as the default search engine on the company's Safari browser, the DOJ said.

Which leads me back to this Bloomberg report. The question for Apple going forward will seemingly revolve around the apparent urgency of LLMs and "AI".

But is Apple Intelligence enough to risk the billion-dollar iPhone business? Is Apple willing to risk everything it currently apparently stands for just because of AI hype? Is it worth it to sink to the lows of xAI and Meta when Apple famously doesn't compete in the search space?

Apparently yes, and Tim Cook - the business mind at Apple who has no product sense - has been moving fast to shake things up. Despite a more reserved approach from Giannandrea, the kind you would expect from Apple, the company has moved him to a new product.

Giannandrea retains oversight of AI research, the development and improvement of large language models, the AI analysts, and some infrastructure teams. Insiders say that some Apple executives have discussed the idea of shrinking Giannandrea’s role still further or of him being put on a path to retirement (he’s 60), but that Federighi and others have concerns that if he leaves, the prized researchers and engineers he brought in would follow him out the door.

Is there any reason why Apple couldn't just be a great platform for other AI apps? It makes the hardware and software for the iPhone, and it could just introduce better APIs for offloading some tasks to LLMs that a user chooses to install. Offer up the useless Apple Intelligence-infused Siri for integrations with whatever AI app a user chooses to use?

Part of the Google trial has been around the fact that Apple simply doesn't compete in Search, even though that is a lucrative industry. Apple also doesn't compete in the cloud-computing space, which keeps Microsoft afloat. So why must it compete in AI?

Or is it more important to ignore these privacy introusions and move further away from the company that previously stood, as Steve Jobs would always say, at the intersection of liberal arts and technology?

So why did business augury become one of the primary ways in which people talk about games online? Look around and you’ll see it everywhere, from people with no obvious reason to pocket-watch. (Surely they’re not investors in these companies!) Handwringing over sales; Upcoming games discussed in terms of whether they’ll find and retain an audience; Barely disguised glee over shrinking concurrent user counts. When did getting an MBA become a prerequisite to talking about games?

[...]

This instinct to zoom out, to guess the direction of the market, is a bad habit, I think. It is a defensive crouch, a crutch, and it calls to mind some of the worst tendencies of the political press: Well, I thought the politician’s speech was thoughtful and detail-oriented, but how will it play with voters in Terre Haute? These framing devices say very little but attempt to imply quite a bit, foisting the creator’s opinion — or sometimes a totally orthogonal opinion — on some imagined future consumer.

I'm definitely guilty of this, but this is a great perspective. The "MBA" approach really has destroyed the way we talk about all forms of "content".

Headlines focus on ratings, views, sales, revenue more than they do the criticism of the actual media in simple terms. Is Game Pass profitable? Is the concurrent player count for a game enough? Is this price too high, too low?

And in a way we've always known about this side of the entertainment business, but it wasn't always as much of a focus as it is now. I feel like the fragmented nature of content now means that the most salacious content wins, and people undoubtedly love hearing about huge business wins and failures from companies they either love or hate.

With news of Giant Bomb closing, I had noticed in recent years the content had gone from very simple Lets Plays of new games and more into the "news" of games. Kinda Funny has a daily podcast that focuses almost entirely on the drama of gaming, and less about the enjoyment of games. Will the Switch 2 sell? Are consoles dead? Are live service games killing the industry?

(Gamers online will always say the Switch 2 price is too high for example, even when the item then sells out immediately.)

Sometimes I feel like it'd be nice to have some enthusiast media that just focuses on those main points:

Is the game good? Do you enjoy it? Why did you enjoy it? But it feels like a weird blend here of engagement and just the nature of a growing industry. As gaming continues to grow into live service ventures that can't fail, maybe it's just natural that the enthusiast press sees games through that lens.

Multiple staffers leave Giant Bomb as Fandom ruins more of the internet

Fandom Blows Up Giant BombA cornerstone of gaming is in shambles following interference from the wiki farmKotakuHome Giant Bomb’s future is uncertain following a showdown with parent company Fandom, which also owns GameSpot, over editorial interference. Creative director Dan Ryckert announced on a recent livestream that he would no

Gloss AustraliaGloss Staff

“Polygon Acquired by Porn Mogul Who Co-Founded Brazzers” - sold by Vox Media

It is a brutal day for institutional games media, and independent media cannot fill the void. Polygon Acquired by Porn Mogul Who Co-Founded BrazzersBefore he founded Valnet, Hassan Youssef started one of the biggest porn sites on the internet.404 MediaSamantha Cole

Gloss AustraliaGloss Staff

Fandom Blows Up Giant Bomb

A cornerstone of gaming is in shambles following interference from the wiki farm

KotakuHome

Giant Bomb’s future is uncertain following a showdown with parent company Fandom, which also owns GameSpot, over editorial interference. Creative director Dan Ryckert announced on a recent livestream that he would no longer be appearing on the Giant Bombcast and co-host Jeff Grubb confirmed on social media on Thursday that he’s no longer with the company. Giant Bomb content is currently on hold while Fandom engages in a “strategic reset and realignment of our media brands,” it confirmed to Kotaku.

We understand your frustration and appreciate your patience — we're actively exploring creative directions for the future of GB and look forward to sharing more with you soon.

— Giant Bomb (@giantbomb.bsky.social) May 2, 2025 at 6:31 AM

Giant Bomb for a long time famously seemed somewhat invincible to the normal pressures of games media. With a personality-focus and paid subscriber-base that helped fund more longform video and podcast content, the website was able to avoid some of the more grimy influencer and small-media obligations. The website almost invented the Lets Play format at a time when most publications were just producing small video reviews and has one of the biggest podcasts in gaming, the Giant Bombcast. It also used to publish genuine reporting news reporting from the likes of Patrick Klepek alongside its extensive longform video content and livesteams.

However it has also survived a lot of changes. Originally owned by Whiskey Media in 2008, the website sold to CBS Interactive in 2012. Co-founder Ryan Davis tragically passed away in 2013.

In 2020 the studio-based video content that Giant Bomb produced was forced to go remote, which shaved away some of difference between it and modern Twitch streamers, while CBS Interactive sold the website to Red Ventures, a SEO-loving company. The New York Times described the company with a headline "You’ve Never Heard of the Biggest Digital Media Company in America."

Shortly after this sale, in 2021, three staffers at Giant Bomb left the company to start an independent Patreon called Nextlander, posting very similar content.

In 2022 co-founder Jeff Gerstmann "got fired three weeks before [he] was going to quit" and created an independent podcast, YouTube channel and Patreon.

Multiple changes of ownership have left it in a very difficult place, with new owners that almost always don't understand the business - and don't want to.

It is a brutal day for institutional games media, and independent media cannot fill the void.

Polygon Acquired by Porn Mogul Who Co-Founded Brazzers

Before he founded Valnet, Hassan Youssef started one of the biggest porn sites on the internet.

404 MediaSamantha Cole

Microsoft has shadow-dropped what is essentially a full remake of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.

The most shocking part appears to be the mix of Creation Engine with Unreal Engine 5. Under the hood, it looks like there's a very similar game running the game logic as it originally did. But everything else about the release looks brand new, in a way that other recent remakes haven't.

It's a relatively demanding game too on console, with the game not always hitting 60fps. From my time briefly trying it, the game performs better on consoles when Screen Space Reflection is turned off in the games Settings.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion™ Remastered modernizes the 2006 Game of the Year with all new stunning visuals and refined gameplay. Explore the vast landscape of Cyrodiil like never before and stop the forces of Oblivion from overtaking the land in one of the greatest RPGs ever from the award-winning Bethesda Game Studios.

The game is available on Game Pass or starting from AU$84.95 on Xbox, PC, Steam and PS5 for the standard edition. It's also Steam Deck verified and looks like it runs okay, but doesn't have the most consistent performance there in the open world, depending on where you are.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered

The Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion™ Remastered modernizes the 2006 Game of the Year with all new stunning visuals and refined gameplay. Explore the vast landscape of Cyrodiil like never before and stop the forces of Oblivion from overtaking the land in one of the greatest RPGs ever from the award-winning Bethesda Game Studios. Rediscover Cyrodiil Journey through the rich world of Tamriel and battle across the planes of Oblivion where handcrafted details have been meticulously recreated to ensure each moment of exploration is awe-inspiring. Navigate Your Own Story From the noble warrior to the sinister assassin, wizened sorcerer, or scrappy blacksmith, forge your path and play the way you want. Experience an Epic Adventure Step inside a universe bursting with captivating stories and encounter an unforgettable cast of characters. Master swordcraft and wield powerful magic as you fight to save Tamriel from the Daedric invasion. The Complete Story Experience everything Oblivion has to offer with previously released story expansions Shivering Isles, Knights of the Nine, and additional downloadable content included in The Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion Remastered. The Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion Remastered Standard Edition includes • Digital base game • Shivering Isles and Knights of the Nine story expansions • Additional downloadable content Fighter’s Stronghold, Spell Tomes, Vile Lair, Mehrune’s Razor, The Thieves Den, Wizard’s Tower, The Orrery, and Horse Armor Pack

Buy The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered | Xbox

Explore Cyrodiil like never before with stunning new visuals and refined gameplay in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion™ Remastered.

GO TO GAME

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered on Steam

Explore Cyrodiil like never before with stunning new visuals and refined gameplay in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion™ Remastered.

STEAM

BBC World Service and BBC Radio 4 will remain available due to a lack of music programming.

The broadcaster described the decision as one based on music "rights," and it's likely a form of cost-cutting. Citizens in the United Kingdom and the British Islands pay a "television licence" for access to BBC TV, and it sounds like part of the rationale behind removing international access stems from a lack of international revenue from the stations.

From BBC Northern Ireland's article on the change at the BBC:

Speaking to BBC Radio Ulster's Talkback programme, the Guardian's former media editor, Jim Waterson, said the BBC's licence fee income was falling and it needed to make more money through its commercial arms.

"If you said to most people (in the UK): 'Is it fair enough to charge people who are listening in the south of France to BBC Sounds?', you'd probably get quite a good response - contribute for the stuff you've previously been getting for free.

"The problem is a lot of people in London forget about the small matter of the border on the island of Ireland."

At the moment, it is based on BBC Studios carrying advertising which would generate revenue.

It's not clear yet if the BBC plans to offer any kind of way for people to pay for access, or if it would affect other platforms such as BBC Radio content on YouTube. BBC Radio 1 publishes some live music and interviews on its channel, for example, but it's unlikely this would change.

I've long thought the BBC Sounds app could be a model that the ABC would benefit from replicating. The app focuses less on linear broadcasting and more on individual shows, which act like podcasts but with music included.

The ABC currently does publish a lot of radio recordings on its ABC Listen app, but it's far less organised in a way that would compare to something like Spotify or YouTube. Triple J could, for example, publish more new music shows to an ABC Listen app and program less for a linear schedule and introduce more shows that feel like podcasts.

BBC Radio 1 is also much more of a competitor with commerical hit music stations in the UK, while Australia's Triple J has only flirted with including more pop-music in its on-air rotation and doesn't compare with commerical stations in terms of identity and on-air imaging.

As reported recently by The Music, Triple J is reducing the amount of music it plays on air, moving to a higher-rotation model that it spins as a way to give artists more "cut-through". For listeners though, it means hearing less variety and the same artists more often.

EXCLUSIVE: triple j Doubles Down On High Rotation

Will double the airplay mean more Aussie hits?

The Music | Australian music news, gig guide, music reviewsStephen Green

China has suspended exports of a wide range of critical minerals and magnets, threatening to choke off supplies of components central to automakers, aerospace manufacturers, semiconductor companies and military contractors around the world.

[...]

The official crackdown is part of China’s retaliation for President Trump’s sharp increase in tariffs that started on April 2.

The regular PS5 which includes a disc drive now costs $30 more, starting at AU$829.95.

The PS5 Digital Edition now costs $70 more, starting at AU$749.95. A disc drive upgrade is now AU$124.95, which is actually a drop of around AU$35.

PS5 price to rise in Europe, Australia and New Zealand

Disc Drive for PS5 price will also be reduced in these regions.

PlayStation.BlogIsabelle Tomatis

This blog is a "side gig" of sorts for me, so sometimes it's hard to balance finding time to play the latest games before they come out with my real life.

When a review code for Blue Prince arrived around a week ago I assumed I'd get sidetracked and let it slide by. Instead I played 10+ hours of the surprise gem over one weekend. Just one more run, I'd say, before genuinely looking outside and seeing that several hours had passed by and it was suddenly pitch black. I normally hate run-based games where progression can feel just out of reach and luck-based, but Blue Prince almost had a Tetris-effect on me. I'd stop playing and still have the twists and turns of this house running through my brain. At one point I had the room-selection UI pop into my head as I left my real house.

I haven't uncovered every secret the game has to offer, or even rolled credits. I think I'm very close, but also from the sound of things I'm far from done.

But 16+ hours in I'm obsessed and can't stop wondering what's next in this deceptively simple-seeming puzzle game, one that's built around perfect bite-sized runs and strategic play.

Blue Prince has a bit of a board game vibe to it. As the player you explore an inherited house. At the start of each day the house isn't sketched out at all. Every room could be the key to victory, if you can manage to find a path through the house.

Like a board game, each room of the house is generated from a selection of 3 rooms, kinda like picking up 3 cards from a deck at the start of a turn. You're trying to get to a certain room on the board, but this can be limited by your inventory and which randomly selected rooms are offered to you. You might hit a road-block and have to end the day.

Different rooms contain different tools, perks and paths. The currency of the game includes steps, which count down with each room you enter and exit, as well as gems, coins and keys. They're all essential to progression and incredibly difficult to balance. Sometimes finding just one bit of food will save an entire run. Sometimes a key is the difference between today and tomorrow.

Some rooms will punish you, by taking away steps, while others will give you more time to explore the house. You'll find yourself locked out of progressing, or lacking the gems required to open a new type of room that you haven't seen before.

I've felt so many types of emotions playing this game. It has environmental storytelling that just trails along in the background, and everything may or may not be a clue to progression. Simple things that you might walk past a hundred times can eventually become a puzzle to solve. It's best to have a physical notebook by your side as you play, and my own is filled with the scribbles of a mad-man. Everything is a clue, every note, every item.

But runs can also end very quickly. Sometimes you'll get blocked off by a bad set of 3 rooms that equate to a dead end. Sometimes you'll need to collect a key or gem to unlock a door. Some doors are hidden behind specific items. Some specific items uncover powerful specific rooms. Or sometimes you'll have a great run where you're wealthy and able to get extremely far into the house.

When I'd get a great run going, it almost felt like I was winning a lottery. But there's also a need for tactics too, it isn't just luck-based. There are even permanent perks that you'll need to work hard to uncover.

Overall it's best to go in blind though. The best part of this whole review period was simply the fact that barely any discussion around this game existed online, apart from some discussions around a demo released last year.

I think the key tip from me is to explore. Don't worry about how many days have passed, but instead look around. Always pick new rooms if you're offered them, even if it leads to a dead end.

And avoid spoilers at all costs. I've already told you too much (but not really).

(Also yes, the name is kinda a pun for Blueprints, don't let that scare you off)

While the Nintendo Switch 2 is backwards compatible with most Nintendo Switch games, old games won't necessarily run or look any better on the new console.

Instead Nintendo today announced "Nintendo Switch 2 Edition" versions of games, which will be sold at full price, but also with upgrade paths for existing customers. Upgrade pricing was not yet announced.

For The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild and The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom, a Switch 2 Edition upgrade will bump up resolutions and framerates. A 60FPS target wasn't specified, so the games might still wobble around that level.

Both titles previously targeted 30FPS, but on the original Switch console the games could definitely struggle, especially Tears Of The Kingdom.

To sweeten the deal additional content and features were also announced for a few of these upgraded editions. But it still would have been nice to see Nintendo give this to customers for free. Hopefully the upgrade pricing is a reasonable $10-$15 and not anything ridiculous.

Nintendo put the highly anticipated follow up to Hollow Knight in a sizzle reel during its Nintendo Switch 2 Direct.

The Australian game from Team Cherry was expected to come out in 2022/2023. A the time, as a title launching on Xbox Game Pass, the game was shown at an Xbox Showcase in June 2022. Since then it's been almost radio silence from Team Cherry, apart from a few hints here and there.

So it was funny to see a new 2025 release window hidden in a sizzle reel for the Switch 2 announcement livestream. The game was always expected to come to Nintendo platforms, but it's been a very long time since we've seen the game.

Fingers crossed it doesn't slip into 2026...

The moontears will flow for one and one alone in The Duskbloods, a brand-new multiplayer title from the creators of DARK SOULS and ELDEN RING, FromSoftware. Available exclusively for Nintendo Switch 2, The Duskbloods launches next year. Read more in our upcoming developer diary series, Creator's Voice, with the game’s director Hidetaka Miyazaki, coming on April 4th.

Nintendo is bringing GameCube games to Nintendo Switch 2 on launch day. Starting June 5 2025 subscribers who have the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscription will be able to play a few GameCube games.

At launch you can play The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, F-ZERO GX, and SOULCALIBUR II. More games will be added in the same inconsistent way as with previous Switch Online offerings. And a wireless GameCube replica controller will also be available for subscribers to buy separately.

Currently available for pre-order at JB Hi-Fi and EB Games.

Nintendo also has a very detailed backward compatibility breakdown with the Nintendo Switch 1 here:

Nintendo Switch games compatibility

Learn which Nintendo Switch games may not be supported on or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2.

Sure, we didn't get a 3D Mario just yet for Nintendo Switch 2, but I'd argue this is even better.

A Donkey Kong 3D platformer game that looks like it could rival Mario Odyssey. The game steps away from the 2.5D world of Donkey Kong Country and instead opts for large worlds and destructible environments.

Coming July 17 2025, exclusively to Nintendo Switch 2.

I want to set expectations accordingly. We will build a good app for iOS, but be prepared - there is no way for us to support all the functionality that Apple Watch has access to. It’s impossible for a 3rd party smartwatch to send text messages, or perform actions on notifications (like dismissing, muting, replying) and many, many other things.

In the same way AirPods are artificially "better" on iOS, through features like OS-level device switching and fancy pop-ups, other non-Apple hardware continues to be put at a disadvantage. Apple is the largest technology company by market cap and uses its duopoly with Google to limit competiton in many spaces, even when it offers an inferior product.

rePebble announced the Core 2 Duo and Core Time 2 today which will run the newly open sourced PebbleOS:

Get your new PebbleOS watch

Pre-order your new PebbleOS smartwatch today

The PlayStation 2 is now 25 years old, and Channel 7 has the footage to prove it.

In a time before smartphone video, it's a cool little time capsule of Australian retail and the hype around the launch of the Sony console.

It's gotten so bad that Triple J, a previously 'alternative' station, now plays a way more diverse, pop-music sound, with no other competition in the 'new music' space.

Other stations have headed towards an existential dead-end of targeting older and older audiences, often choosing remixes of old songs over new music. Maybe it could even lead to 2Day FM playing the music that Australian Spotify charts show people do actually listen to, instead of letting music programmers and labels dictate playlists:

“Sydney is craving something fresh and relevant and that’s exactly what we’re delivering,” SCA chief content officer, Dave Cameron, said. “In a city saturated by old shows with old voices, all doing the same old dirty gear, and playing the same old songs day after day — without supporting new music and new artists — 1041 2Day FM is stepping up with a format that’s forward-thinking, energetic, and focussed on bringing exciting new music to listeners, alongside exciting new voices at breakfast.

“Younger music lovers and creators have been left behind, but that changes today with our guarantee to play more new music than our competitors,” Cameron added. “Take a listen to 1041 2Day FM from today, and you’ll hear something unlike any other Sydney station.”

Let's see if they give it a chance.

Not only is Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3+4 now official, there's also a pretty wild physical Collector's Edition that comes with a real skateboard deck.

If we do the math, the physical Collector's Edition is $124 more expensive than the digital version, meaning you're paying a pretty penny for the included deck.

But if that's not enough to dissuade, JB Hi-Fi has it for $229 and EB Games has it for $229.95.

The normal game is available for $84 physically or around $75 on digital storefronts and launches July 11 on PlayStation 4 + 5, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Steam and Nintendo Switch.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 Collector’s Edition

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 Collector’s Edition

JB Hi-Fi

Perth

Thursday 10:00pm

Brisbane

Friday 12:00am

Adelaide

Friday 12:30am

Darwin

Friday 12:30am

Sydney

Friday 01:00am

Or feel free to double-check our conversion here:

Time Zone Converter – Time Difference Calculator

Find the exact time difference with the Time Zone Converter – Time Difference Calculator which converts the time difference between places and time zones all over the world.

timeanddate.com

There's a a big shake up coming for Foxtel, specifically Foxtel's Binge. Another streaming platform is launching in Australia, with Warner Bros. Discovery today announcing the local launch date for Max. The service will start March 31, but other details are still a little unclear. Previously known as HBO Max, but also confusingly hosting both HBO Originals and Max Originals, the service has been available in the US since 2020.

It looks like the service will launch with exclusive access to HBO programming, as well as other Warner Bros. Discovery properties. Which does might put Binge in a bit of limbo, if we're reading this literally.

Via Whistleout:

A spokesperson for WBD confirmed to WhistleOut that new Warner Bros. and HBO content won't premiere on Binge. Hubbl has started bringing some live and on-demand Kayo Sports over to Binge to add value to the service. 

WhistleOut has reached out to Foxtel for comment on what will happen to the existing catalogue of HBO content on Binge. 

And from the press release:

As the home of HBO Originals and Max Originals, Max will offer fans culture-defining series including returning seasons of The Last of Us, And Just Like That..., House of the Dragon, Euphoria and Peacemaker as well as highly anticipated new shows such as It: Welcome to Derry and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, from the world of Game of Thrones.  
 
Subscribers will also be able to enjoy recently released theatrical hits from Warner Bros. Pictures, including blockbusters from the last few years such as Barbie, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice and Twisters, alongside treasured franchises including Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings and the DC Universe. Coupled with all-time fan-favourites including Friends, The Big Bang Theory and Rick and Morty, best-in-class real-life stories across food, home, lifestyle and factual like 90 Day Fiancé and Outback Opal Hunters, as well as family viewing such as Ben 10 and We Bare Bears, Max promises to set the bar for consistently captivating, craveable entertainment.

In addition, WBD also announced a launch partnership with Foxtel, providing Foxtel subscribers with access to the Max app at no additional cost.*

*Requires a compatible Foxtel IQ box. Some customers will need to upgrade their box. Included Max plan is Basic with Ads.

Developing...

The Late Show, The Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live and others still grace US screens with timeslots as late as 11:35pm, and even later for Late Night with Seth Meyers, which starts at 12:35am. The US has more of a tradition of late news, which helps the shows attract audiences, a late-night culture Australia really doesn't have.

In 2020 the ABC said it wouldn't commission a show after 9:30pm.

In a modern context, day-after YouTube reheats also garner a lot of attention for late-night talk shows. A recent clip from Jon Stewart's Monday stint at The Daily Show reached 7.2 million people on YouTube alone, with the clip basically consisting of an entire 22 minute segment, the first half of the show. The second half, an interview, was also posted in full.

Gone are the days of fans posting clips taped off cable TV, replaced instead with networks basically giving the shows away for free.

Hopefully Channel 10 can see the importance of posting full clips to YouTube in terms of getting exposure, and more importantly, good guests.

The latter will be Pang's biggest challenge. A weekly monologue is fun and all, but US talk shows situated in Hollywood and New York City have a lot of access to big talent. With Australian celebs, it'll probably be more important to try and get access to interesting guests, or "celebs" who haven't already done the rounds on I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!

Still, it feels like a gap in the market, and especially as terrestrial TV aims to cut TV budgets, maybe the talk show format could fill a gap in the schedule quite well.

Via TV Blackbox:

Premiering in mid March, the 8-episode initial season will reportedly be filmed at 10’s Melbourne studios in South Yarra under Pang’s own One World Productions. It’s understood the network has handed Pang significant creative freedom, with very few details available when the project was first announced.

“I’m thrilled to bring a tonight show to Australian screens in 2025. Especially since Channel 10 passed on my pitch to reboot The Golden Girls.”

Can Sam Pang get the early-night talk show genre going? I guess we'll see, Monday, 17 March at 8:40pm.

A gorgeous story from Marcin Wichary about the 150-year-old font that can still be seen everywhere. Even Australia, as the author notes.

But there was one font I didn’t even notice, even though it was everywhere around me. Last year in New York, I walked over 100 miles and took thousands of photos of one and one font only. The font’s name is Gorton.

[...]

Gorton made its way to peace- and wartime nuclear facilities, it was there on the elevator at the Kennedy Space Center with labels marked EARTH and SPACE… and it went to actual space, and then the Moon, as key legends on Apollo’s onboard computer.

The hardest working font in Manhattan

A story of a 150-year-old font you have never heard of – and one you probably saw earlier today.

Marcin Wichary

The only way I can make this post relevant is to mention that ESPN is coming to Disney+. Not sure yet if that will include All Elite Wrestling content.

How can an address be a TV channel? Who knows.

But watching it back, it is weird to see this and immediately know what era it's from. 1990's and early 2000's CGI and graphic design has such a specific look that I don't fully understand. And this video from YouTube has a smooth look that I don't fully understand either, even though it's only uploaded in 30fps.

Is it interlacing or something? Did early CGI have a specific easing animation quality? And what did they put in that creepy yellow goop that Steve Urkel jumps into? Could we still do this kind of work, or is it a lost art form? The gradients, the swirling effects. It's almost like minimalism has left this in the past as a lost art.

Either way, ignore the YouTube thumbnail jumpscare, he's only in it for a few seconds.

If you wanted to, you could theoretically create a feed filled with just friends and see all their photos shared there.

I really recommend giving it a try and providing feedback here, especially as Instagram continues to enshittify with a racist algorithm that pushes horrible content onto its users.

Join the Flashes for Bluesky beta

Available on iOS

Apple

Both OpenAI and President Donald Trump's AI expert and VC sicko David Sacks agree that it looks like the model is copying OpenAI, which is very wrong because stealing IP is bad!

And the worst part? It's not stealing IP in the very pure American ethical way 😡. But instead in an evil Copyright-appropriating way that only China could! China is unique in that it doesn't value Copyright laws, unlike American AI companies which very ethically steal content from pirated eBooks and the Copyright-free internet.

From the Financial Times:

Distillation is a common practice in the industry but the concern was that DeepSeek may be doing it to build its own rival model, which is a breach of OpenAI’s terms of service.

“The issue is when you [take it out of the platform and] are doing it to create your own model for your own purposes,” said one person close to OpenAI.

OpenAI declined to comment further or provide details of its evidence. Its terms of service state users cannot “copy” any of its services or “use output to develop models that compete with OpenAI”.

[...]

Earlier, President Donald Trump’s AI and crypto tsar David Sacks said “it is possible” that IP theft had occurred.

“There’s a technique in AI called distillation . . . when one model learns from another model [and] kind of sucks the knowledge out of the parent model,” Sacks told Fox News on Tuesday.“And there’s substantial evidence that what DeepSeek did here is they distilled the knowledge out of OpenAI models, and I don’t think OpenAI is very happy about this,” Sacks added, although he did not provide evidence.

I look forward to seeing evidence from OpenAI and David Sacks. But until then, please don't give your valuable data, like "How do I write an email," to DeepSeek. Throw out your Huawei phone! And please return to the American ethical principles of stealing Copyrighted materials and secretly spying on people through their smart devices.

If you don't remember, in 2012 the Pebble was a Kickstarter smartwatch darling that received US $10.3 million in funding. I wanted one very badly, particularly because of the music control features the device touted.

Using a low-power transflective LCD screen, similar to the technology used by the recent Daylight Computer tablet, the Pebble was the first big smartwatch of the modern era. But it was hit hard by big-tech competitors that had closer access to proprietary mobile phone operating systems and encouraged hardware lock-in. The Apple Watch and Google Wear OS projects both began a few years after the original Pebble and had more support because of how ubiquitous and closed Android and iOS were (and still are).

In 2016 Pebble filed for insolvency and was bought by Fitbit, which was later bought by Google. Fitbit has been left in the usual Google purgatory of hardware, existing but only just.

And now, after remaining dormant for years, Pebble is coming back via Repebble. Founder Eric Migicovsky is part of the new project and is promising new hardware and a reinvigorated Pebble OS - or maybe it'll be Repebble OS. Though we probably won't see anything for a little while. Here's how the official announcement describes it:

We're making new Pebble watches

I've tried pretty much every other smartwatch on Earth, yet I still wear my Pebble every day—nothing else matches its features and long battery life. I really, really, really hoped someone else would create a proper replacement, but no one has stepped up, and my stash of old Pebbles is dwindling!

It's time to take matters into my own hands. A small team and I are working on a new Pebble-like smartwatch that runs open source PebbleOS, has the same beloved features (plus some fun new stuff), and stays true to the core Pebble vision. If enough people are interested, we'll build it. Sign up to get one!

[...]

Anyone can use PebbleOS in any way they want. You can get it working on existing Pebble watches, emulate it, run it on other embedded devices, or create new hardware specifically for it.

We're setting out to bring Pebble back, we'd love for you to join the fun!

Why We’re Bringing Pebble Back

Eight years later, you still can’t beat a Pebble

I feel like we're genuinely entering a time of renewed big tech reistance, especially as tech broligarchs further their hostile control of global media under a Trump White House.

The Pebble was part of a more simple, gadget-friendly time of technology that faded into the background. It was a utility built by a new, small company, designed to do just a few things. The device wasn't that powerful and its key features were more focused on fitting into that Kindle-like space of just being a basic device that does one thing well. Calendar, music control, basic notifications and fitness. There wasn't a subscription fitness service or AI voice assistant.

Deepseek R1 is AI's Sputnik moment.

— Marc Andreessen 🇺🇸 (@pmarca) January 26, 2025

Now the real fight in the broligarchy, of course, is around a bad chat bot that can write really long emails and lie confidently. The true technology of our time.

Nintendo will reportedly reveal Switch 2 this week | VGC

Insider claims Nintendo’s next console reveal is set for January 16…

Video Games ChronicleAndy Robinson

in case it wasn't obvious from my tease in Notepad last week, I've heard it should be the Switch 2 reveal this week 👍

[image or embed]

— Tom Warren (@tomwarren.co.uk) Jan 14, 2025 at 2:34

From The New York Times:

Meta on Thursday appointed Joel Kaplan, a longtime executive who was a former senior adviser to George W. Bush and is known for his Republican ties, to be its new head of global policy, as the social media giant seeks to strengthen its links to the incoming Trump administration.

Mr. Kaplan, 55, replaces Nick Clegg, a former deputy prime minister of Britain who had handled policy and regulatory issues globally for Meta since 2018. In a post to his personal Facebook page, Mr. Clegg, 57, said Mr. Kaplan was “quite clearly the right person for the right job at the right time, ideally placed to shape the company’s strategy as societal and political expectations around technology continue to evolve.”

From Deadline:

In 2020, The Washington Post reported that Kaplan argued against some content moderation measures, arguing that they would disproportionately harm conservative voices.

We're going to have to ease back in to posting, but what an insane way to start the year.

Tesla Cybertruck explodes at entrance of Trump Hotel in Las Vegas | CNN

Las Vegas authorities are investigating a Tesla Cybertruck fire and explosion that occurred at the entrance of the Trump International Hotel Wednesday morning.

CNNChelsea Bailey, Brynn Gingras

An official blog post, shared by the company after the marketing blitz, plays victim - despite claiming the ads are intentionally meant to be provocative.

We knew that if we made the billboards as vanilla as everybody else’s, nobody would care. We’d spend $100s of thousands and get nothing in return.

We spent days brainstorming the campaign messaging. We wanted to draw eyes and spark interest, we wanted to cause intrigue with our target market while driving a bit of rage with the wider public. The messaging we came up with was simple but provocative: "Stop hiring humans." 

We complimented our core tagline with phrases like "Artisans Won't Complain About Work-Life Balance", “Humans Are So 2023”, “Artisans Won’t Come Into Work Hungover”, “Hire Artisans, Not Humans” and "The era of AI employees is here”, paired with the human appearance of our AI SDR, Ava.

The victomhood comes when the company claims "we didn’t expect people to get so mad" and that "the goal of the campaign was always to rage bait, but we never expected the level of backlash we ended up seeing." No shit.

The company also claims "the timing was unideal - to say the least" referencing the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson - and the general class-conscious backlash towards the most vicious American capitalists and companies.

According to a January story from the ABC's 7:30:

"A recent study by Deloitte's Global Economist Network found that in just two years, between 2019 and 2021, the net worth of America's top 1 per cent of earners went up by a staggering 23 per cent.

According to analysis of pay scales by the Economic Policy institute, in 1965 the ratio of pay between a typical CEO and a worker was 20-1. By 2018, the ratio was 278-1.

The gap has continued to rise.

But don't worry - the company is now wasting human time by reporting threats of violence surrounding an intentionally provocative, dehumanising advertising campaign. It claims "While all of them will be reported to the FBI, some of them were actually pretty funny."

If 2024 will be remembered for anything, it'll be remembered for the mask-off moment we're experienceing, particularly in America but spreading around the world and definitely here in Australia.

Big tech hates humanity. It steals from it, it regurgitates the best of it in the worst ways, and then it turns around and intentionally prods its users, with billboards surrounded by homeless people, promising to give the world even more income inequality.

While it is somewhat unrelated, the rage-bait this startup describes is a byproduct of social media. What was once seen as a simple place to share photos and thoughts, social media is filled with rage-bait, designed to upset you and not improve your life at all. Algorithms on Reddit, X, Instagram, Facebook and countless other apps are designed to show you things that upset you, including deceptive AI-generated images and text.

And enough is never enough. Not only is every Meta feed on Threads, Facebook and Instagram now designed to show you provocative content, it's going to get worse. In October Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that more AI slop was coming.

“I think were going to add a whole new category of content which is AI generated or AI summarized content, or existing content pulled together by AI in some way,” the Meta CEO said. “And I think that that’s gonna be very exciting for Facebook and Instagram and maybe Threads, or other kinds of feed experiences over time.”

In an Australian context, a better approach to social media reform would be some kind of legislation around 'For You' feeds and algorithms, controlled by the most wealthy, anger-anticipating social media brands in the world. But instead VPNs will get around intentionally substance-devoid legislation. The best way to spread cyber-bullying content online is through an algorithm that feeds off controversy and engagement. Maybe we should force companies to let us see content that we want to see by default, instead of having feeds shoved down our throats. But I know already that this is a naive take and that the social-media legislation in Australia doesn't intent to fix any real problems.

There's nothing anyone can individually do about this kind of tech-bro moment. I've hidden the name of the startup that launched these provocative billboards, but I know that it honestly doesn't matter. Our phones, computers and feeds are now home to the desires of billionares abroad. And we're only going to see more desperate, goading attempts from AI companies to stay relevant as the entire bubble flames out.

SIFTER has put together a great list of Australian-made games, plus has a few lists from years past of Australian-made gems:

2024 The definitive list of Australian made video games | SIFTER

SIFTER’s sixth annual list collecting every single game released in 2024 that has been made in Australia, from PC, Xbox, PlayStation Switch and more.

SIFTERGianni Di Giovanni

A California district court judge has granted a preliminary injunction to WP Engine. The order asks WordPress co-creator Matt Mullenweg and WordPress.com owner Automattic to restore WP Engine’s access to WordPress.org, a WordPress theme and plug-in repository site owned by Mullenweg.

This ban also resulted in WP Engine not being able to access and update its popular Advanced custom field (ACF) plug-in. Automattic took control of the plug-in, forked it, and named it Secure Custom Fields (SCF). The court has also ordered Automattic to restore WP Engine’s access and control of ACF on WordPress.org.

Court orders Mullenweg and Automattic to restore WP Engine’s access to WordPress.org | TechCrunch

A California district court judge has granted a preliminary injunction to WP Engine. The order asks WordPress co-creator Matt Mullenweg and WordPress.com

TechCrunchIvan Mehta

The three new stations, launched today, bring new options for listeners looking for Apple's brand of human-curated radio. The stations are:

• Apple Música Uno: Latin music from around the world, focusing on new and current releases, including Música Mexicana and reggaetón, tropical, Latin pop, and more. The station is hosted by Becky G, followed by Evelyn Sicairos and Lechero. Rauw Alejandro and Grupo Frontera have special shows of their own. On-air talent will speak Spanish and English.
• Apple Music Club: Dance and electronic music with a focus on global club culture, hosted by Tim Sweeney and NAINA.
• Apple Music Chill: Mood-focused music for respite, wellbeing, and ease, interspersed with "mindful moments" to remind listeners to find center and remain calm, hosted by Sabi with shows from Brian Eno, Stephan Moccio, and Zane Lowe.

The fact that Apple is launching more live radio is a promising sign, with new shows and hosts. This includes Apple Música Uno, which will focus on Latin music with Spanish and Portuguese language music and hosts.

But Apple Music Radio in general has become more stretched and the original human-curation mission statement has faded a little over time.

While there are still core shows, such as The Zane Lowe Show or The Matt Wilkinson Show, which feature voice-tracking and sometimes live music and interviews, more and more shows on Apple Music radio are just playlists shuffled live. Some playlist programming blocks don't even feature a host at all.

Maybe in Australia we are just unlucky to have mostly automated programming blocks, due to live shows taking primetime slots in American timezones.

Apple describes the new stations in more detail in its press release:

Apple Música Uno speaks directly to the wealth of stylistic diversity in Latin music around the world. The focus will always be on music, specifically what’s new, current, and moving culture — from Música Mexicana and reggaetón, to tropical, Latin pop, and more. Latin superstar Becky G is the station’s official launch host, and fellow luminaries Rauw Alejandro and Grupo Frontera will host special shows of their own. On a daily basis, listeners will be welcomed by Evelyn Sicairos and Lechero, two prominent radio personalities whose passion for music and drawing cross-cultural connections will set the tone and energy for the station as a whole. They will each host their own flagship playlist show five days a week, with Sicairos helming La Oficial Radio, and Lechero taking over ¡Dale Play! Radio. Additional programming will include Puro Pop Radio, informed by the beloved playlist of the same name, while weekend programming will take cues from Cumbia Pa’ La Fiesta, Canciones Caras, and Por Siempre Hits.The first song to air on Apple Música Uno will be Bad Bunny’s new release, “EL CLúB.” Artists will frequently provide track-by-track breakdowns of their own albums, as well as a look into the songs that have most recently inspired them. On-air talent will speak Spanish and English.

Apple Music Club is home to anyone who loves dance and electronic music, as well as club culture. But it’s also more ambitious than that. Whether in Berlin or Brooklyn, London or Tokyo, every party or club night must end at some point. It won’t on Apple Music Club, where mixes from the globe’s most important and forward-thinking DJs and dance floors will be thoughtfully curated into a set that is fully alive, and happening around the clock, every day of the year. Tim Sweeney and NAINA will act as guides, providing context around each mix, which will cover a full spectrum of sounds, from the festival circuit to the underground — all of them also available at any time as DJ Mixes on Apple Music.

Apple Music Chill is an escape, a refuge, a sanctuary in sound — a place listeners can turn to throughout their day. It’s a radio station committed to a mood. Programming will be a continuous flow of chill highlights across genres, interspersed with mindful moments meant to remind listeners to make the time to find center and calm. The aim is to offer respite through expert curation, a place where listeners can feel at ease at any time.Apple Music Chill will kick off with the exclusive premiere of Beck’s new recording of George Harrison’s “Be Here Now,” the first song to air on the station. Listeners will also find the velvety tones of discerning tastemakers like Brian Eno, Stephan Moccio, and Zane Lowe expertly taking them through stories of calm and wellbeing in their own hosted shows, while Apple Music’s Sabi will act as station guide throughout the week.

Apple Music expands live global radio offering with three brand-new stations

Apple today launched three new live global radio stations on Apple Music.

Apple Newsroom

In a world of autopilot content, it is nice to see Apple Music still seeing value in human hosts and shows. I love Time Crisis, hosted by Vampire Weekend's Ezra Koenig. But I would also love to see more human influence in shows and maybe even more listener interaction, which is generally absent from "live" Apple Music radio shows, especially pre-recorded ones.

itch.io is back after being "taken down" by Brand Shield, which was being used by Funko for "AI" brand protection.

Brand Shield's website says the software "delivers cutting-edge online brand protection using AI-powered technology to proactively monitor digital landscapes for trademark infringements, phishing attempts, brand abuse, and counterfeit activity. Our dedicated team responds swiftly to mitigate these threats, safeguarding your brand’s reputation, revenue, and customer trust."

I kid you not, @itch.io has been taken down by Funko of "Funko Pop" because they use some trash "AI Powered" Brand Protection Software called Brand Shield that created some bogus Phishing report to our registrar, iwantmyname, who ignored our response and just disabled the domain

— itch.io (@itch.io) December 9, 2024 at 6:13 PM

Funko pops... never again 🥴We're back if you haven't noticed!

[image or embed]

— itch.io (@itch.io) December 10, 2024 at 7:06 AM

This is not a joke, Funko just called my mom pic.twitter.com/P1ST7DDD2i

— itch.io (@itchio) December 9, 2024

I won't totally spoil his 5 classic game picks for a desert-island console, but he did put obscure PlayStation 1 classic Vib-Ribbon on his list. The episode will be released to non-Patreon subscribers later today:

A rhythm-game pioneer, Vib-Ribbon could run entirely from the PlayStation 1's 2MB of RAM. You could remove the games disc from your console and replace it with any audio CD. The game would then dynamically create custom levels that would sync up with any audio CD, meaning you could pop in a Limp Bizkit CD and play along.

Or just play along with the included soundtrack, which I still play on Spotify from time to time.

Back when Sony genuinely cared about legacy, the company re-released Vib-Ribbon on the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita in 2014. At the time it promised to look into releasing the game for PlayStation 4, though that never eventuated, likely due to the lack of CD support on modern PlayStation consoles. This didn't stop the game coming to the PlayStation Vita though, or my Steam Deck.

(I promise I own multiple copies of Vib-Ribbon, physically and digitally.)

Here's what I've learnt after 2 years with a 64GB LCD Steam Deck and things you should know when choosing between the LCD model and the OLED model.

Buy the OLED model. On my LCD Steam Deck I had some issues with Bluetooth audio and controllers when docked to a TV. Sometimes, even when close to the console, I'd have input issues with just one Bluetooth controller connected. Describing the improvements of the Steam Deck OLED, Valve confirms "we’ve also added a dedicated Bluetooth antenna, improving connection for multiple controllers". Having two controllers connected for multiplayer was a non-starter on my LCD model, and one was often unreliable. Battery life, improved Bluetooth and the beautiful OLED screen should make you seriously consider the extra AU$250 the OLED model costs. Also you can now wake the OLED model with a Bluetooth controller when it's docked.

Internal storage is way more important than you think. I'm putting this point at the top of this review because it was a huge factor in my original 64GB LCD Steam Deck. While a Nintendo Switch can be expanded really easily with a microSD card, which is a seamless upgrade, the Steam Deck is a Linux computer at heart. PC games often require shader compilation, due to varying hardware configurations, and the Steam Deck caches shader information on the internal drive by default. Without advanced workarounds, the 64GB base model (which luckily isn't available in Australia) is largely inadequate for anything other than indie games and maybe old emulated games. Storing just one or two big AAA games on a 64GB model, even on an external microSD card, will still require large internal caches that are hard to move to the external drive. The games themselves can run from an external drive, but caches in the background fill up that 64GB drive very quickly. Even if you uninstall games, sometimes that cache doesn't clear by itself. I also had one experience where my storage filled up and I had to enter the Steam Deck BIOS and mess around with commands to get the device to boot again. Buy a model with a big enough internal drive upfront. I'd honestly recommend 512GB at a minimum, especially considering how big some normal PC games can be now, but 256GB is a nice base-model change from Valve.

Valve provided me with a Steam Deck OLED with 1TB of storage and the "premium anti-glare etched glass" display. Honestly, it's made me realise how incredible the Steam Deck, as a concept, is. Not only is the OLED display a night-and-day upgrade from the smaller LCD screen, with vibrant colours and deeper blacks, the storage plays a huge role in making it seem like a real portable PC. I don't have to worry about storage almost at all, including huge games like the Halo: The Master Chief Collection and Grand Theft Auto V. Which made me realise how much further the Steam Deck takes the hybrid concept from the Nintendo Switch. Seeing Red Dead Redemption 1, a 2010 game, running at 30FPS on a Nintendo Switch when I can run it at 60FPS on a Steam Deck is a huge step forward. Plus I can run GTA IV, GTA V and Red Dead Redemption 2 too, which likely won't be ported to Switch anytime soon, if ever. Honestly it all makes me frustrated about Nintendo's highly anticipated, long overdue Nintendo Switch 2 still not being announced.

Valve's official dock, which isn't available in Australia yet and is a bit expensive, has some neat bonus features. The main one is support for HDMI-CEC. This means on the OLED model you can wake the device with any Bluetooth controller and it'll also hopefully turn on your TV and change the input to the Steam Deck automatically. I'm not entirely sure if HDMI-CEC is available on third-party USB-C dongles.

It's also just a bit nicer than a third party USB-C dongle, which the Steam Deck also still supports quite well. The official dock holds the Steam Deck in place and has a generous selection of ports, including support for an additional monitor with DisplayPort.

Linux can be a double-edged sword, but it's also eye-opening. It took me a while to start really using my Steam Deck. People underestimate the cost of switching ecosystems, and as someone who mainly games on Nintendo Switch and Sony PlayStation, it was a little challenging to justify PC game purchases. I had to wait for new games to come out. And they did.

One of the first times I really started using the Steam Deck daily was when I sideloaded a PlayStation Remote Play app. While Sony now sells a PlayStation Portal for AU$330, which can't even run games without a network connection to a PS5, the Steam Deck can run PC games and, through open source software, PlayStation and Xbox Remote Play on the one device.

Chiaki, the open-source PlayStation remote play software I use, was the the first of many interesting side-loaded experiences. Not only did it allow connection to the PS5 from a non-Sony device, with easy configuration of controls and connection, but I could also run other Linux applications on the side. I have a habit of listening to podcasts while gaming, something the Nintendo Switch can't do and where the PS5 is limited by third-party native apps (Spotify, Apple Music but no Apple Podcasts). But on the Steam Deck I can run Chrome alongside other programs and just stream from Apple Podcasts or Spotify. I can even have a YouTube video playing in the background and listen to the audio.

Decky Loader - an unofficial but fully functional homebrew manager for the Steam Deck - also let me install other cool third-party software and tweaks to Steam OS. This includes options to change the sound effects of the Steam Deck, which I have setup to use the nostalgic sound effects of an Xbox 360. One tool also lets me mix the individual volume levels of different applications, meaning I can lower the sound of Stardew Valley while pumping up the volume of my podcasts. Even the PlayStation 5, which should theoretically be a more polished experience than a Linux comptuer, makes audio mixing difficult. And I haven't figured out a way on my PS5 to have Spotify play loud enough to hear over an average PS5 games audio.

Emulation is also eye-opening with the Steam Deck's power. Not only is Retroarch available on the Steam Store, but a community tool to configure emulators called Emudeck makes setting up additional emulators on the Steam Deck a walk in the park.

You do kinda need some basic knowledge of using a Terminal on a computer, but it's easy to walk through the steps. But you might want to also have access to a keyboard or mouse to set this up - which the Steam Deck, as a full-flavour PC, supports easily out of the box.

This is another important part of the Steam Deck as a Linux comptuer. Via Desktop Mode, you basically are just running a full Linux desktop OS. You can access the filesystem, download Linux software, add third-party programs to Steam and much more.

Emudeck even includes Steam ROM Manager, which makes your emulated games look and feel like native Steam games, with options for RetroAchievements, easy controller setup and beautiful custome cover art. From your Steam library, emulated games have cover art and look like native games that you've purchased.

This kind of open emulation, and the community support of the Steam Deck and Linux, thanks to the Steam Deck being a computer, was a bit of an eye-opener for me. Especially when it comes to preservation attempts from the big three console makers.

On Nintendo Switch, Nintendo locks NES, SNES and Nintendo 64 games behind monthly subscriptions. If you forget to open the SNES Switch Online app before a big flight, sometimes you'll just be locked out until it can check your subscription status using Wi-Fi. And you also can't buy major Nintendo games as a one-time purchase. If you want to play Super Mario Bros 3 for the NES on your Nintendo Switch, you need to pay for Nintendo Switch Online theoretically forever. Some huge games are missing too. You can't play any old Pokémon games on a Nintendo Switch. Why? Who knows. It doesn't make business sense I guess to even offer them as purchases. On a Steam Deck, you can run any older Pokémon game.

On PlayStation 5 the situation isn't much better, and is often worse, with some games requiring a PlayStation Plus Deluxe subscription. Some games on PlayStation and Xbox can be purchased separately, but the business of re-releasing games factors into every decision on big consoles. Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft drip-feed releases of old games and some publishers refuse to make their games available on consoles emulation platforms. Square Enix, for example, insists on creating separate collections of old games, with inconsistent care and quality depending on the title. Vib-Ribbon, the weird first-party PS1 vector music game, can't be purchased on PS5. Maybe it'll come out some day, maybe not. Despite owning a device that is powerful enough to run almost any software, you can't run a PS1 game that you own until Sony deems it possible.

Nintendo is, in my opinion, the worst, because of the lack of individual purchases and the drip-feed of its own titles. And Sony has only just implemented a working PlayStation 2 emulator on the PlayStation 5, with the same license and software limitations and drip-feed. Microsoft has stopped introducing new Xbox 360 releases on its store, admitting that some older games are just too difficult to license, such as sports games or games with big music libraries.

But on the Steam Deck, you can play almost anything up to the PlayStation 3 generation, and emulation is improving all the time. Even some Nintendo Switch games can run, though I haven't tried many due to Nintendo quite fairly cracking down on Switch emulation. Dolphin emulates Wii and Gamecube games excellently, and I've also had a great time playing PS2 games with PCSX2. And technically, if you have a big collection of physical games that Sony and other publishers either refuse to re-release or offer for purchase, it's legal to emulate these games if you own them.

Because emulators on PC are open too, you can mess with settings and either improve internal resolutions of some games, or as I like to do, enable shaders to make PS1 games look like they're running on an old CRT TV.

This is all a bit of a revelation and I sometimes honestly forget that I can just run old Tony Hawk games that Microsoft refuses to remaster, or Crash Bandicoot games that are in a state of Activision-Microsoft licensing limbo. I can play almost any classic Nintendo game, even if they want to hide them behind a limited release like the insulting Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection on Switch, which you can't buy anymore. Pokémon Black looks beautiful on the OLED display, and yes I do own the real cartridge (just in case). And just because Nintendo refuses to release The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker on the Nintendo Switch, doesn't mean you can't emulate it perfectly on a Steam Deck. I own that game too, by the way. Ape Escape 2, which for some reason is broken when emulated on the PlayStation 5 via Sony's official PlayStation Store, runs perfectly on the Steam Deck.

The big business aspect of modern gaming evaporates when you have access to a console-like PC handheld, and it's amazing as someone who just loves older games. No more monthly fees to play older games you already own, and no more license-hell, no more drip-feeding releases.

Steam itself is also an incredible service, one that makes console makers seem lazy and stingy. Game Mode on the Steam Deck (Big Picture Mode) is the main controller-friendly interface of the Steam Deck (also known as Game Mode). It manages game controls, non-Steam applications, the Steam Store, social features and your library. And even though it resembles proprietary console interfaces, it can be expanded and is super flexible.

In a way it is still more difficult figuring out which games are compatible when compared to a console store. If I buy a PlayStation 5 game I know I'm going to have a good experience, most of the time. But on the Steam Deck I have to judge which games I can play on a more graphically limited portable console and which games were deemed to be compatible with Linux too. There are some badges that Valve shows on store pages, describing compatibility with the Steam Deck, but sometimes they're not too reliable. Some games will say they're not Verified and run perfectly, for example. While others might still have issues. I couldn't get Metaphor: ReFantazio to boot at all without tinkering, despite being Verified on the Steam Store. I feel like this was just a case of Linux sometimes randomly deciding to not work, and I don't even remember how I ended up getting the game to boot.

Other games are just not available on Linux, particularly online games. Fortnite, for example, isn't supported due to fears of anti-cheat technology not being effective on the open Linux platform. This is the same reason why Grand Theft Auto Online no longer works on Steam Deck. And Rockstar Games just decided to kill support for GTA Online, despite it previously working on the handheld.

Even with these caveats, the Steam Deck is a still huge gateway into the PC ecosystem and its benefits (and downsides), and when you download an indie game that is designed for PC onto a handheld for the first time, and it just works right away, it's magical. Especially if the game isn't coming to console anytime soon. Port-begging is almost a thing of the past thanks to the Steam Deck.

Indie developers also don't have to do as much work to support the Steam Deck than they do a console. Stardew Valley 1.6 was available on Steam over 6 months earlier than it was on consoles, due to the small team working on that game and its ports. And a number of games that don't come to console, due to small developers not being able to buy expensive dedicated console development kits, just work on the Steam Deck out of the box.

UFO 50, release from Spelunky creator Derek Yu, launched with day-one support for Steam Deck and I absolutely love it. I've been playing more experimental indie games than ever before, including the excellent Australian game Frog Detective, which took years to come to consoles. Mouthwashing, a psychological horror game with no console-release in sight, also runs perfectly on Steam Deck. Unfortunately, I have had some horrific dreams as a result.

Many PC games, even Windows-only games, just work out of the box on the Steam Deck, via Valve's excellent Proton compatibility layer. And Valve has done a lot of work behind the scenes to make this a reality, much more work than any other company in the PC ecosystem.

And once you own a game on Steam you can technically play it in a number of other ways thanks to free Steam features. You can also share your library with a household via Steam Family Sharing and the more limited new Steam Family features. Some games that I've purchased years ago for a computer that is long-gone still work on my Mac laptop and Steam Deck, and some even sync saves between Linux, Windows and Mac. But because PC gaming isn't as standardised as a console, some games also don't sync saves between platforms.

The Steam Deck is still just a PC, for better or worse. Unlike the Nintendo Switch, which has a sleep mode that supports downloading games in the background, the Steam Deck requires the device to be awake with the screen on to download games. Have a 100GB Grand Theft Auto V install to suffer through? You'll have to make sure the Steam Deck is awake and ideally connected to power the entire time.

You also need to enable Offline Mode to play most Steam games when a network connection isn't available, even offline singleplayer games. And you can't enable Offline Mode without an internet connection. It's not a huge deal, but something to remember before boarding a flight.

Other benefits of the Nintendo Switch mobile architecture are also obvious when you compare it to the Steam Deck. Sometimes the Steam Deck is a bit hard to wake from sleep, or just has a slower interface, and sometimes the Steam OS itself is a bit more janky than the seamless PlayStation or Switch interfaces. The device is also a bit warmer and the fan a bit louder than my Nintendo Switch, though theoretically because the PC is an open platform there is more competition and incentive for manufacturers to improve the hardware. I expect the next Steam Deck, which is probably years away, to take another big step forward.

Or even better, a handheld PC manufactured by another company may be released in the future, with better hardware, and would still support your existing Steam games. A number of Steam Deck competitiors already exist, but Valve definitely has the best value handheld PC at the moment.

Great Steam games are amazing. But the open PC ecosystem does have downsides. The best Steam games have achievements, cloud saves, online social features, an activity feed to share with friends, remote play support and more. But some lack certain features due to the same corporate battles and enshittification we see everywhere. Red Dead Redemption, a 2010 game that finally release on Steam a few weeks ago, doesn't support some of the best Steam features. Instead a Rockstar Games launcher is forced on players, with a separate login and cloud save system. The game does support Steam achievements, but the Rockstar Games launcher requires an additional few minutes sometimes to even launch the game and doesn't always work well with the Steam Deck's offline mode. Sometimes you'll be randomly logged out from your Rockstar account, and will awkwardly have to type out your full email and password on the Steam Deck's touchscreen or your controller. In a way, while the Rockstar Games launcher could provide players with more competitive pricing for games, via its own store, it is a great example of the downsides of the open PC ecosystem. And a number of other PC games have these limitations and weird launchers too.

But PC gaming in general is liberating. There were times where I'd see an indie game on Twitter, download it via Itch.io or GOG and then just technically own it, with no DRM. In the future, I'll be able to plug a USB-stick with the game executable into a computer, and with some tinkering, run it. Meanwhile you still can't run any PlayStation 3 games on a modern PlayStation.

While Valve definitely wants people to buy games via its store, where it gets a cut and has varying levels of DRM, with a little bit of work you can quite easily sideload any game you want and run it, including indie Windows games and games from third-party stores and launchers. You can even install Windows on the Steam Deck, but I didn't really want to mess around the Deck in that way.

Valve provides so many additional features for free, such as cloud saves and online features, that it makes console subscription fees seem diabolically stingy. With the competitive nature of an open platform like Linux, it's unlikely that Valve would dare take this away either. If Steam started charging a monthly fee for these online features, such as voice chat or online multiplayer, there's a good chance people would just start buying games on a different storefront. On PlayStation, Xbox or Nintendo platforms, this competition doesn't exist. You can't just start buying games from a third-party marketplace on a Playstation, and this means Sony has a bit of a monopoly on its own device.

On the Steam Deck, if a game is cheaper on GOG or Itch.io you can technically just sideload it via Desktop Mode and run it on the device.

That's a lot of words, but I wanted to provide a different kind of review considering how long the Steam Deck has been available in other countries. Honestly my main takeaways are these:

The way the Steam Deck is an open, full computer OS means you can do so much more with the Steam Deck's power than you can in closed console ecosystem. But it is not always as polished or as seamless as a console, with sleep mode, offline features and general consistency sometimes suffering.

The Steam Deck is pretty big compared to a Nintendo Switch, and handheld size inflation is real. The Nintendo Switch 2 is rumoured to be bigger than the Nintendo Switch too, and it does make me long for the pocket-friendly size of a PSP at times. But it's also a huge deal that you can play many full-size games on the Steam Deck, including a number of brand new games.

But overall I'm in love with my Steam Deck. I use it every day to play indie games, big-budget AAA games, stream PlayStation 5 games to it, and run classic games via emulation. It's truly my daily-carry portable console, and has even made me question my use of a big, heavy home console altogether. The open-platform has its quirks, but the charms outweigh the negatives if you're willing to waste a few hours setting everything up.

Just make sure to buy an OLED model and aim for more internal storage. It really makes such a big difference.

Ubisoft's Call Of Duty-competitor XDefiant, which hoped to throwback the online FPS genre to its Xbox 360 days, is shutting down. The game has been pulled from online stores today and new players won't be able to join the game. Multiplayer servers will be available until June 3, 2025.

Ubisoft also says it will coincide with "the closing of our San Francisco and Osaka production studios and to the ramp down of our Sydney production site, with 143 people departing in San Francisco and 134 people likely to depart in Osaka and Sydney."

XDefiant's key difference was a rejection of skill-based matchmaking, where players would be paired with other players of comparable skill. Ubisoft instead opted to put all players together, leading to more match variety but possibly less player engagement.

The game also lacked its own identity, introducing skins from other Ubisoft franchises and having a general free-to-play bright, vibrant but simple visual style.

Around its launch, Activision published a research paper basically rejecting the perceived downsides of skill-based matchmaking. "When skill is utilized in matchmaking, 80-90% of players experience better end-of-match placement, stick with the game longer and quit matches less frequently," the paper claimed. It's hard to argue with that.

Update: The paywall has launched. Via Semafor:

Editor-in-chief Nilay Patel told Semafor that the move was intended to drive additional revenue and insulate The Verge from changes made by social media platforms[...]

“I think it’s a tragedy that garbage is free and news is behind paywalls. I don’t want to make that worse,” Patel said. “I think that The Verge homepage and our news coverage serves a central utility function in our ecosystem.”

The website also hints at future integrations with ActivityPub and Bluesky in an effort to take the focus away from SEO and social-media traffic and make The Verge homepage a platform of its own.

Early benefits include unlimited access to posts, such as paywalled newsletters and metered product reviews and features, limited ads on all Verge content and a physical limited edition magazine. Also the original decentralised solution, RSS, is available to subscribers, with unabridged posts available through RSS readers.

Original post:

According to Semafor, Vox Media's technology website The Verge is going behind a paywall. Some content will remain free:

Beginning this week, the Verge will charge $7/month or $50/year for comprehensive access to the site as well as the already-paywalled newsletters Command Line and Notepad.

Some content and the publication’s homepage, which was redesigned in 2022 to resemble a social feed, will remain free. The Verge is Vox Media’s third major subscription push behind New York and Vox, which launched a membership program earlier this year.

Everything old is new again at Vox Media, which will also be introducing an app for its publication New York Magazine, focused on digital NY Mag subscribers:

It will be the magazine’s second crack at a mobile app; New York first launched an iPhone app in 2016. 

As expected, Albanese gained Coalition support for the social media package, given Dutton called for the age limit in June, but the debate was marked by warnings from the Greens and crossbenchers, as well as some Coalition MPs, about the lack of detail in how the scheme would work.

With no details on implementation, the world-first angle becomes a lot less impressive. Either the law becomes easy to work around, or Australia becomes one of the first countries with a government internet identification system.

The government will take up to a year to run trials and finalise the regulations to support the law. Tech tycoons, such as X owner Elon Musk, have warned that it will not work.

And with no details on implementation, it’s still yet to be seen whether the same free DNS changes will circumvent the ban, in the same way they make torrent website blocks useless.

With critics worried that the regime would require customers to hand over personal information to social media companies to confirm their age, Labor put an amendment to the package at about 10pm on Thursday to accept calls from the Coalition for tougher privacy protections.

Will Instagram require a myGov login? I guess we’ll find out next year, regardless of who wins the next election.

At its 2025 Upfronts, where a new year of programming is unveiled, the ABC returned to the well of established shows. Instead of any Hungry Beast-style show that featured new talent, the organisation renewed its existing shows with existing talent.

Spicks & Specks is back, still hosted by Adam Hills (54), Alan Brough (57) and Myf Warhurst (51). Hard Quiz is returning, hosted by Tom Gleeson (50). Gruen is also returning, hosted by Wil Anderson (50), Russel Howcroft (59) and Todd Sampson (53). The Weekly with Charlie Pickering comes in with one of the youngest hosts at the ABC, Charlie Pickering (47), returning to skewer politicians with friendly, milquetoast comedy.

Shaun Micallef’s (62) Eve of Destruction is also returning, with the host joking in its first season that "two years ago I resigned from television to make way for bright new young talent here at the ABC. As it turned out there wasn't any, so I'm back doing a new show."

36-year old Guy Montgomery, host of Guy Montgomery’s Spelling Bee, was first seen on New Zealand TV. The host had to prove his abilities and format before being allowed on ABC's airwaves with co-host Aaron Chen (29).

There was no word on whether breakout hit Fisk, featuring Kitty Flanagan (56), Marty Sheargold (53) and Julia Zemiro (57) would be back. Question Everything, another show fronted by the ABC's safe-bet Wil Anderson (50), rather than just giving the gig to Jan Fran (38), wasn't confirmed either.

As TV Tonight reported, ABC Chair Kim Williams spoke at the National Press Club this week on the ABC's age-preferences:

“As Tom Gleeson’s scriptwriters at Hard Quiz forever remind us, the ABC’s audience tends to be older than average. Some of us with less hair even than he has,” he said.

“This has been the case for so long now that people think it is inevitable and irreversible.

“But it is only inevitable if we don’t do anything to reverse it.

“Now I admit I am given to saying there is a new fifty-year-old and sixty-year-old born every minute. However, I want the ABC to go after younger viewers, listeners and readers on every platform as a vital part of our civic duty.

“Not because I don’t appreciate the audiences we already have ¬– we love our audiences — but as a matter of intergenerational equity. The ABC is for all our citizens, no matter what their age. And because reconnecting with the young is now an urgent democratic and cultural imperative. It is a core aspect of our being owned by all Australians.

But the still ABC doesn't trust its younger talent, and it doesn't highlight almost any untested talent either. The days of the ABC fronting a brand new show with relatively young hosts in hosts in their 20s, like The Election Chaser (2001), The Glass House (2001) or Good Game (2006), are over.

The ABC also still fails younger talent. Youth broadcaster Triple J doesn't even produce podcasts for its flagship breakfast, lunch or drive shows anymore, leaving the content as an ephemeral terrestrial-exclusive.

Meanwhile commercial podcast networks are huge in Australia, with Listnr and Nova Podcasts giving much younger talent space on the airwaves and on podcast apps. Triple J hosts that are likely paid less than commercial counterparts aren't even given the digital exposure that a public broadcaster could provide.

Criticism of Fran Kelly’s new talk show gig reeks of ageism — a stubborn form of discrimination we need to call out

Recent criticism of Fran Kelly’s new ABC TV hosting gig seemed to suggest the veteran journalist was past her use-by date and a “safe choice”. But we must call out and denounce ageism wherever it emerges, writes Patricia Karvelas.

ABC NewsPBy Patricia Karvelas

In 2022 when the ABC gave Fran Kelly (64 at the time) a variety talk show, similar to Micallef's, it complained that criticism over the host was ageism. Ita Buttrose, ABC Chair at the time, pointed to the “ignorance of youth” when asked about the criticism. The show was axed that year due to poor performance, even on terrestrial TV and presumably on ABC iView. As Osman Faruqi pointed out:

Buttrose went on to say that “a lot of our comedy shows are hosted by wonderfully young people”, but didn’t name a single one. That’s because there aren’t any. There is not a single ABC TV comedy or panel show hosted by anyone under the age of 35. Of course, it’s not the ABC chair’s job to know the entire programming slate off by heart, but claiming “a lot of shows” are hosted by young people, when that isn’t true, is a problem.

Ita Buttrose has revealed she doesn’t understand the ABC’s biggest problem

With a simple statement on Friday morning, Buttrose showed how little she understands about the broadcaster’s programming slate, its trajectory and its growing disconnect from younger Australians.

The Sydney Morning HeraldOsman Faruqi

While the ABC should still obviously give older talent hosting positions and would criticise a post like this as being ageist, it seems that it only airs on the safe side with these decisions. And giving hosting positions to mainly established, older talent is itself ageism.

What's also strange is the lack of commercial pressure the broadcaster faces while still playing things so safe. And just how much better some commercial shows, like 10's The Cheap Seats, have been at giving new talent the time and space to grow as presenters, while having to ensure they can fund shows with audience numbers and advertising.

In 2023 the former AUNZ Director of Production at Netflix, Chris Oliver-Taylor, joined the ABC as its first Chief Content Officer. Around the time he joined he described a similar need for the ABC to consider itself digital-first:

“A fundamental challenge we must recognise are that our audiences are declining on our broadcast platforms and the initial growth of our digital products has now slowed on both ABC iview and ABC listen. Today’s re-organisation of our content teams puts us firmly on a digital-first footing,” he said.

Yet at ABC 2025 Upfronts the organisation showed that everything old was apparently new again. Which is fine. But the ABC should stop pretending it is actively considering younger audiences when commissioning shows, and not be surprised when a younger audience grows up with no fondness or care for the ABC at all. Which could be difficult the next time a political party threatens ABC funding.

My only real complaint would be the decision to go with two shades of grey, the dark and light grey. I love the way the Astro Bot Limited Edition went with the white face-plate:

PlayStation's 20th Anniversary feels like just yesterday:

I’ve been poolside testing the Steam Deck OLED this week for Gloss. Definitely going to be tempted by some of these games going on sale starting November 27 (November 28 in Australia). The sale will end December 4 (December 5 in Australia).

The study from iSeeCars analyses data from the U.S. Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS). Via Road & Track:

The study was conducted on model year 2018–2022 vehicles, and focused on crashes between 2017 and 2022 that resulted in occupant fatalities. Tesla vehicles have a fatal crash rate of 5.6 per billion miles driven, according to the study; Kia is second with a rate of 5.5, and Buick rounds out the top three with a 4.8 rate. The average fatal crash rate for all cars in the United States is 2.8 per billion vehicle miles driven.

It’ll be exciting to see how Elon Musk brings this kind of efficiency to the US government. He should probably get cracking on improving FSD if he’s still worried about birth rates declining.

Traditional media, as well as the promise of a decentralised online media ecosystem, is being replaced by centralised social media apps, run by global tech conglomerates and egotistical billionaires.

And as a Trump election win may show, with endorsements from comedy podcasts, tech CEOs, and social media influencers, social media is the new media.

A proposed social media age-gate from Labor seemingly intends to completely ban a genuine source of news for Australians under the age of 16, potentially targeting apps and websites like YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. But when young Australians turn 16 they will suddenly be faced with an immediate access to right-wing social media content designed to target and radicalise young men. And they might lose the kind of media literacy that can come from growing up with social media.

A key service possibly affected by the ban is YouTube, which has genuine educational value in a number of areas. It's also unclear whether the ban will mean YouTube is forced to require user logins, as YouTube can still currently be used by any user without creating an account. If YouTube continues in its current form and with this legislation enacted, people under 16 would theoretically be able to still access all videos by just not logging in, including videos that promote harmful things. But also including educational content.

In another example of this concept and its difficult path to implementation, there's a question around general social media access, such as post embeds that appear on this website for example. If Donald Trump or an Australian politician posts political content to X, Threads or Instagram, will young users not be able to access it at all without logging in?

And how far will the ban go to ensure people under the age of 16 don't have access to social media content? Will it only ban the creation of content, and not at all tackle access to inflammatory, US and China-defined algorithmic feeds? Or will it change the way Australians access the internet altogether.

In the US election Donald Trump and his team didn't appear on The Tonight Show or The Daily Show. He went directly to Logan Paul, Joe Rogan, and increasingly political comedy podcasts like Andrew Schulz's Flagrant and This Past Weekend with Theo Von. Trump and Harris also regularly post to TikTok, X and Trump at least posts to Truth Social.

The new late-night talk show of our time doesn't air on Channel 10 at 12:30pm. It's hosted by Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, with clips posted to other social platforms, uncensored and with no FCC or ACMA regulations. These platforms compete and crush Australian media through sheer scale alone, with some like YouTube Premium demanding payment for ad-free access, while not creating any local content of its own like Australian TV networks are forced to do.

Elon Musk's X, which is becoming irreparably unrecognisable in tone compared to Twitter, famously hosted Republican hopeful Ron DeSantis's campaign launch on the platform. Musk also interviewed Trump in August 2024. Both events crashed the platform, with the Elon-Trump interview crumbling under the weight of a small 8-million user audience. Would users under the age of 16 not be able to hear key interviews from political leaders under this proposed legislation, or will they just have to wait for free-to-air TV to republish social media content?

Threat to democracy?

Nope, threat to BUREAUCRACY!!!

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 13, 2024

I can't stand Twitter or Elon Musk, but I still think it's important to be able to see what politicans and terrible people in power might be communicating to people.

Another factor I have to wonder about is how this kind of verification will take place?

There are already existing age-limits on most big platforms. At age 6 I had to create a second Yahoo! account to create a Geocities website. Even at the time I could understand that a simple fake date of birth was all I needed to access what I guess was a form of early social media. When my PlayStation Network account wouldn't allow me to play online because I was under the age of 18, I simply made another account too.

Which means in terms of implementation, will the Australian Government implement a system for storing peoples ID information for verification? Will it be a centralised single-sign-on style system, where social media platforms palm off age verification to a government or third-party system? Or will each platform independently have to store and verify users ages? Will it be possible to have an anonymous account not tied to a Government ID, or will even users over the age of 18 need to send TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance a copy of their government IDs?

There are some hints around how social media content will continue to be made available to younger users. I've been learning to develop games in Godot primarily from YouTube. As a kid I would have loved a resource that was so easy to follow, compared to the 'For Idiots' books of that era. Reading articles and books about game development and animation, at the time in Adobe Flash, was a lot more difficult than the free university-level digital lectures that people have access to now on platforms like YouTube.

The government's proposal seems to imply that this kind of educational content will not be affected, but it'll really be up to tech companies apparently to figure out how to allow access to certain categories of content, while complying with the regulations. As a press release from the government says:

The Government will ensure young Australians retain access to services that primarily provide education and health services, and work constructively with stakeholders to ensure that only services which meet the strict criteria under eSafety's powers are able to be accessed by children under 16.

And while a social media ban for under-16s sounds very reasonable from a distance, with the dangers and harm caused by social media becoming more clear by the day, it does also make you wonder how it's possible to enforce such a limit on what is currently a pretty open platform. Also it does make me worry about a system for identifying users and enforcing age-limits. If a future political party has access to such infrastructure will they go even further with age-based bans? Will a more conservative government ban even more online content for younger users, or use a centralised system of identity validation for more nefarious censorship.

This is an issue in every instance of government age validation. In theory it sounds great, but the implementation is either useless and easy to circumvent with VPN or a fake age, or requires a horrifying collection and centralisation of user data.

I do risk the slippery-slope argument here, but with the proposal being so light on any details, going so far as to not even specifically name which platforms will be affected, these are genuine questions for the Albanese Labor government.

Mark Zuckerberg doesn't even believe that his social media platforms cause any mental-health issues, with Zuckerberg at the same time throwing his support around Donald Trump. The CEO called Trump's assassination attempt and comeback "badass", while throwing support behind the second-term President-elect on his Threads platform, congratulating Trump "on a decisive victory".

View on Threads

But if the ban encompasses Zuckerberg's platforms, we could see similar pushback from social media companies in the same way we did from Australia's similarly bandaid-like news media bargaining code. In 2021 Meta briefly banned all Australian news from its platform in protest of the new code, meaning any posts with links to Australian news websites were hidden in users News Feeds and Facebook Pages from local news outlets were gutted, many appearing to be totally empty.

In June 2024 Meta threatened to implement a similar ban again after refusing to comply with the code and pulling out from renewal negotiations. So far the Australian Government has done nothing to force Meta to comply. In September Elon Musk commented that similar misinformation regulation on Australian social media, which would cause fines of up to 5% of revenue, was fascist. It's almost impossible to imagine a world where Musk implements an Australian identity passport system.

In a sad way, while I disagree with Australia's reliance on international social media platforms for news, it's hard to see a world where this isn't just a reality in Australia's social media landscape. We have moved on, and Australian news organisations just don't have the size or sway that they used to. Social media is media, and a ban is a lot more complicated than it seems.

Australia really is finally part of Valve's hardware plan. The company's not only launching a normal lineup of Steam Deck models on November 19, but also a Limited Edition White model with 1TB of storage. Via Valve:

Steam Deck OLED: Limited Edition White has all the same specs as the Steam Deck OLED 1TB model, but in white and grey (and it comes with an exclusive white carrying case).

In a move that'll surely put Valve's servers to the test, the model will be launching at the same time as the Steam Deck's general Australian availability, Tuesday November 19 at 10am AEDT (Sydney time). And it's apparently a one-time option, so when models sell out for the extra $50 compared to the normal Black model, they're gone for good.

Steam Deck™

Steam Deck™ is the most powerful, full-featured gaming handheld in the world.

STEAM

Sadly, it looks like a similar hardware lottery is happening for PS5 Pro buyers. While my PlayStation 5 Slim runs in silence, my new PlayStation 5 Pro has a pulsing high-pitched whine and a much louder fan. It looks like I'm not alone either.

This is the closest example of how my PS5 Pro sounds, from @satf01 on YouTube:

I feel like if the sound was consistent it wouldn't be as noticable, but it would still be something to get used to.

Soundcloud user Iwens Fortis has a more consistent high-pitch hum when using their PS5 Pro:

The noises depend on the content being played. On the PS5 Pro homescreen the fans and coil whine doesn't sound too loud, but as soon as games are launched the sound begins. At first I wasn't sure if it was genuinely a ringing noise happening outside my home or if it was the console itself, it was that distracting.

On Reddit, Resetera and GameFAQs a number of users have posted about the Pro's louder sound profile. Some replies claim to have quiet PS5 Pro's, while others agree that their console is louder. Some also have a pulsing sound like my unit. A user in this Reddit thread claims to have exchanged their console for a new one 3 times and every new unit had the same issue:

Another user also identified different fan parts being used in different consoles.

Regardless of the scale of the issue, I'll be returning or exchanging my console. I find the noise to be too distracting even when using Sony's PULSE 3D wireless headset or having my soundbar turned up to a decent volume. Even in Rest Mode I noticed an unusually loud pulsating sound.

Gloss Australia has reached out to PlayStation for more comment and to see if there is any acknowledgement of the issue or potential firmware fixes. We have not heard back yet

The company will start selling the handheld console-like PC on November 19 at 10am AEDT (Sydney time).

Pricing starts at AU$649 for the 256GB LCD model, with the 512GB OLED model priced at AU$899. 1TB of OLED goodness will set you back AU$1049.

If you’d like an email reminder on release the device can be wishlisted here:

Steam Deck™

Steam Deck™ is the most powerful, full-featured gaming handheld in the world.

STEAM

But I for one will be refreshing my tab the second 10am strikes. While the Steam Deck is pretty easy to buy in the US, it’s not yet clear just how much stock Valve has ready for Australian customers and how quickly they’ll sell out.

Mozilla Foundation lays off 30% staff, drops advocacy division | TechCrunch

This is the second layoff at Mozilla this year, the first affecting dozens of staff on the side of the organization that builds the popular Firefox browser.

TechCrunchZack Whittaker

“The Mozilla Foundation is reorganizing teams to increase agility and impact as we accelerate our work to ensure a more open and equitable technical future for us all. That unfortunately means ending some of the work we have historically pursued and eliminating associated roles to bring more focus going forward,” read the statement shared with TechCrunch.

Announcing the layoffs in an email to all employees on October 30, the Mozilla Foundation’s executive director Nabiha Syed confirmed that two of the foundation’s major divisions — advocacy and global programs — are “no longer a part of our structure.”

After publication, Borrman told TechCrunch that “advocacy is still a central tenet of Mozilla Foundation’s work and will be embedded in all the other functional areas,” without providing specifics.

election.omg.lol

Bonus points if you turn the volume for every channel all the way up.

A little over a month ago, ABC youth brand triple j relaunched at its One Night Stand music festival. And it was a pretty big rebrand, touching the logo, typeface and general audio style of the station. A pretty big change is the new "J" audio sting that plays often on the station.

Gloss Australia reached out to the ABC for more details on the sonic rebrand, but didn't hear back. On the visual side of things, Howatson+Company, partnering with the ABC, has more info on the visual changes:

Since 1975, national broadcaster triple j has served as a lighthouse for young Australians, actively pushing culture forward and challenging norms through its disruptive programming, shows and events. Yet for the last 15 years, the brand and logo have remained static. To address this, triple j has partnered with Howatson+Company to reinvigorate the brand for today’s listeners.

To make it, a custom variable typeface was designed that changes based on audio and musical inputs. The type was taught to respond to music and sound using algorithmic machine learning, creating a reactive design.

The brand’s most iconic element, the drum, was also updated to reflect the tastes of the station’s youth audience today, featuring a simplified base designed to reference digital soundbars and incorporate a hidden ‘j’.

The rebrand successfully refreshes triple j’s visual world while preserving its core identity as a champion of youth culture and new Australian music.

The Kindle Colorsoft features "a new light-guide with nitride LEDs that, when combined with our custom algorithms, enhances colour and increases brightness, all without washing details". The colour e-ink screen displays at 150ppi, while black-and-white elements show at 300ppi.

You can zoom in on images without worrying about pixelating and you can choose between standard or vibrant colour styles. Kindle Colorsoft comes with wireless charging, up to 8 weeks of battery life, and is waterproof so you can bring it with you in the bath or take it to the beach without having to worry.

Australian pricing and a specific release date hasn't been announced either, but a direct conversion puts the device at a hefty AU$418.83 (US$279.99).

In other news, a new Kindle Paperwhite is available now and priced at AU$299 with 16GB of storage. A 32GB Kindle paperwhite Signature Edition is AU$329 and comes with wireless charging and an auto-adjusting front light. Both can get up to 12 weeks of battery. From Amazon:

Scrolling through your Kindle Library or Store is snappy and responsive, with 25% faster page turns. The display uses an oxide thin film transistor which gives it the highest contrast ratio of any Kindle Paperwhite, so text and images pop off the screen. A larger, seven-inch display is a first for Kindle Paperwhite — and yet it is also the thinnest Paperwhite ever with up to three months of battery life.

The new regular Kindle is available now for AU$199 and has 16GB of storage. Amazon highlights the device's weight in its description of the refreshed model, which is also now also substantially smaller (6") than the Kindle Paperwhite (7"). Though battery life is cut in half when compared to the Kindle Paperwhite, with just 6 weeks of expected use (depending on how much it gets used each day - Amazon is a little tricky when it comes to exact Kindle battery life):

Weighing in at just 158g, the new entry-level Kindle is small enough to fit in your hand or carry in your back pocket —and it’s packed with premium Kindle features. It has a 300ppi, glare-free display, now with faster page turns, higher contrast ratio, and a front light that is 25% brighter at max setting—as bright as Kindle Paperwhite.

An updated Kindle Scribe is available December 5 and comes in Tungsten and Metallic Jade. The device will start at AU$649.

The 10.2 inch display has new uniform white borders and the screen has a smooth, paper-like texture that makes it look and feel like you’re writing on a sheet of paper. Plus, at 300ppi text looks crisp and clear when you’re writing or reading. The Premium Pen is finely crafted to deliver just the right heft and balance, so it feels like holding an actual pen, and the new soft-tipped eraser feels like a pencil—you’ll think will you have to brush the screen clean after erasing.

The new Kindle Scribe offers a first-of-its-kind in-book writing experience. With Active Canvas, you can write your thoughts directly in the book when inspiration strikes. Your note becomes part of the page and the book text dynamically flows around it—if you increase the font size, change the font style, or the book layout changes, the note remains visible exactly where you want it so you never lose any meaning or context.

Today in New Zealand WBD announced that Max will be launching as a hub within local Pay TV and streaming services Sky and Neon, not necessarily as a separate service.

From Mediaweek:

From October 30, there will be a new Max hub and dedicated HBO linear channel on the new Sky Box, Sky Pod and Sky Go. The Max hub will also feature on Sky’s Neon streaming service.

In addition, Max on Sky and Neon will offer WBD’s classic franchises such as Friends, The Big Bang Theory and Rick and Morty, while also featuring a library from brands including the DC universe, Warner Bros, Discovery, TLC, Animal Planet, Cartoon Network and Harry Potter.

Sky’s Soho channel will be rebranded HBO as part of the deal.

In Australia the company is also expected to be partnering with Foxtel, though a formal announcement or deal wasn't made in time for Foxtel's 2025 Upfronts last week.

As Mediaweek also reports, president APAC for Warner Bros. Discovery, James Gibbons, has confirmed that the Australian launch of the service would involve Foxtel in some way, though details haven't been clear yet:

“We can confirm we’ll be launching our direct service in Australia in the first half of next year…that’s definitely happening. We have had a longstanding and really important relationship with Foxtel and I think the time has come for us to expand that into the DTC [direct to consumer] space.”

As Gibbons explained, Foxtel will be the Max partner in Australia. With New Zealand Max now on the runway for take-off next week, expect Max Australia to be earlier in the first half of 2025 than perhaps anticipated.

Foxtel's Binge has a lot of great licensed content from WBD - including blockbuster shows from HBO - but it's a pretty terrible app. There's still no offline download option for shows and the service was slow to introduce any 4K content. It still can be spotty in the quality department, with a number of shows being delivered in older formats than other sources, such as Curb Your Enthusiasm - which looks like it was sourced from an old broadcast copy rather than the enhanced versions iTunes provides.

Foxtel is also in a tough situation. Many of its former content providers, such as Disney and Paramount, have launched direct-to-consumer products that compete with and replace its core offering, while not renewing licensing deals. WWE is going to Netflix in 2025 and a number of BBC channels and shows have also been withdrawn from Binge and Foxtel.

The company launched its own streaming device, Hubbl, which leans into its legacy and attempts to bring streaming content together. Bundles are a key part of the strategy, with minor discounts on offer when Binge is bundled with Netflix and other Foxtel and non-Foxtel services.

If Warner Bros. Discovery can find a way to parnter with the company though, it could help Foxtel recover. As AFR described in April 2024:

[Foxtel]'s earnings are set to shrink by a further $150 million over the next three years to $390 million in the 2026 financial year, analysts forecast. A company once feted for a $2 billion valuation and a public listing now faces an uncertain future.

If Max is launched as part of Binge, or in some way partners with Foxtel's Hubbl service, it could give Foxtel renewed relevance in a time of, as AFR says, "streaming apocalypse".

The handheld gaming PC will be available starting November, though no specific date was mentioned. You can wishlist the device on Steam, with the device set to ship as soon as orders open.

Pricing is as follows:

• 256GB LCD for AU$649.00
• 512GB OLED for AU$899.00
• 1TB OLED for AU$1,049.00

Steam Deck™

Steam Deck™ is the most powerful, full-featured gaming handheld in the world.

STEAM

Press Start spoke with Valve on the release timeline, specifically asking about how long it's taken for the console to land in Australia.

We Spoke To Valve About The Steam Deck’s Aussie Arrival And What It Means For Future Hardware

We Spoke To Valve About The Steam Deck’s Aussie Arrival And What It Means For Future Hardware

Press Start AustraliaShannon Grixti

“Australia was always on our list and had to make sure from a certification standpoint and the answer is really boring. It just took until now to get everything lined up, so we needed to have logistics and shipping and a third-party logistics partner and all of that lined up before we could ship officially here. and now we can. If it could have been sooner, it would have been sooner” said Yang. 

“Now that Australia is part of our hardware shipping regions, now that we’re all set up, it’ll be for all of our future hardware as well.” continued Yang. 

As part of the effort, the Jim Bankoff-led digital media conglomerate — which houses widely recognizable brands such as New York magazine, Eater, Vox, SBNation, NowThis, Thrillist, and more — has started exploring the introduction of a pay wall on its popular technology website, The Verge, people familiar with the matter told me.

As Darcy also writes, The Verge has already experimented with some paid newsletters, which are published to The Verge as articles that require a subscription. This new offering could be a bundle and include additional bonus content.

This would fit with previous efforts to bring the focus of The Verge back to its homepage as a central way of accessing its content, as opposed to relying on social media links and SEO for traffic. From 2023:

Post by @reckless1280

View on Threads

The PlayStation Network appears to have been down for most of today, with users reporting an issue starting at 10am, and it still being down at 1:30pm AEST.

The PSN Is Currently Down For All Users

The PSN Is Currently Down For All Users

Press Start AustraliaShannon Grixti

The best bet going forward is JB Hi-Fi, which are offering a ballot approach to pre-orders.

PlayStation 30th Anniversary Collection Pre-Order Ballot

JB Hi-Fi is Australia’s largest home entertainment retailer with top products, great quality + value. Learn more about our product range online.

JB Hi-Fi

Otherwise Ebay has scalpers re-selling preorders with huge markups already.

Celebrating 30 years of PlayStation with a nostalgic look

Limited Edition console design takes PS5 back to the early days of PlayStation.

PlayStation.BlogHideaki Nishino

Because I'm a normal person, I have been using the iPhone 16 Pro with a case. Right now I'm rocking the official 'Clear Case with MagSafe', as a lot of 3rd party cases don't really support the new button yet. And the button might be better without a case at all, but also the case's alternative plastic button doesn't seem to have much of an impact.

Apple's official case features a proper capactive button that allows you to almost feel the 'Camera Control' as you would without a case. And the button is certainly a real button! It's not purely a haptic response like you might have seen with the iPhone 7 home button.

A firm press of the button opens the camera app. From here there are a number of slightly unintuitive other actions that the button can handle.

A firm press inside the Camera app (or the photo app you choose) takes a photo. But it's a really firm press.

At 1x zoom this is fine, and might only require a slight readjustment of your grip of the phone. But if you're using the 5x zoom of the new iPhone 16 Pro, for example, a press of the button almost always shakes the phone with one hand. Maybe I just need to do some more strength training on the 'ol digits, but it's honestly a bit of a step back from just tapping on the screen.

But it's a really firm press.

Then there are more controls that are even more finnicky and hard to discover if you haven't watched the iPhone event or a review. As Apple describes it:

Lightly press the Camera Control twice to open an overlay that shows the available settings for that camera mode (see below).

This is all about really finely touching the button and is more of a haptic response. As far as I can tell there is no second level of actual click like you might find with a real camera where the button physically presses down quite easily to focus and then a firmer second suppressed click takes the actual photo.

It's honestly a bit of a step back from just tapping on the screen.

By default sliding left and right zooms the camera in and out. I do feel like it's a bit inverted in terms of direction, with a left flick zooming in, but maybe that's just me.

I actually find this haptic press interaction to be my preference when managing controls and hope that at some point Apple lets you just take a photo by pressing down on the button slightly when inside the Camera app. But that might interfere with the gesture system they've implemented.

A double half-press, for example, lets you change the zoom gesture into one that can control exposure, depth, zoom, camera (0.5x, 1x, 5x), style and tone. Setting your changes as default is a bit strange though, and I'm not sure if the interaction between these secondary button settings syncs that well with other configuration changes. In Settings you can lock some settings and defaults into place, but I might need to mess with that a little more.

Overall I feel like the button will improve in future generations, but right now it's just...fine? It's okay. I really love the fact that there is a dedicated button to open the Camera app, but at that point I've found myself just tapping the screen for other controls and zooming.

And I'd love to be able to just tap the button to take a photo, and turn off all other gestures. But maybe the iPhone 17 Pro will have a better case-button firmness balance.

Still not going to replace a dedicated camera in terms of clarity when you zoom in on images. But it's a great camera to have in your pocket.

Will be posting more soon.

Now, four years on, my guest is about to release UFO 50, a collection of games that combine an 8-bit aesthetic with pioneering design. 

This was prior to the general release of the handheld PC. In February 25, 2022 the Steam Deck was released in the US and some parts of the European Union. A few months later, in December 2022, Valve started shipping Steam Deck's to Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

It's now September 2024 and the Steam Deck is still not available officially in Australia. Interestingly, the company excludes Norway in its European availability.

There are countless threads and articles online asking why the Steam Deck isn't available in Australia. And it feels like there's a pretty clear reason, something that Australia and Norway have in common. Strong consumer laws.

We reached out to Valve at the time of publication and will update this story if it responds.

In 2014 the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) took action against Valve over its refund policy, which violated Australian law. At the time Valve didn't offer refunds for games under any circumstances, even when a game was faulty, had false advertising, or didn't work on a users computer. The company was fined AU$3 million in 2016 because of the illegal policy.

In 2018 Norway's consumer rights body, the Norwegian Consumer Council (NCC), came to a similar conclusion:

Specifically, these companies are in Norway's bad books due to being in "breach of the right of withdrawal". Translating from legalese to English, this refers to a consumer's ability to back out of a purchase, i.e. refund a game after buying, or cancel a pre-order.

The NCC finds that user agreements on Steam, Origin and PlayStation Store refer to consumers losing their right of withdrawal once a game is downloaded, but the body reckons there is no explicit consent here. Steam apparently does not mention right of withdrawal anywhere when making a purchase.

Nowadays, thanks to consumer protections in Australia and Norway, the company has a generous self-service refund policy worldwide. A user can request a refund "within 14 days of purchase and has been played for less than 2 hours".

Valve would likely not have implemented such a policy without consumer law. And it seems like it's partially to blame for the lack of Steam Deck availability in either Australia or Norway.

In 2018 an internal study at Valve found that the company makes more money per employee than Facebook, Apple, and Microsoft - "over $780,000 per head a year". The company takes a 30% cut from all transactions on its platform. As of 2021 the company had just 336 staffers.

This data came from an antitrust case against the company by Wolfire Games. Via The Verge, in its lawsuit the indie developer argued that:

“Valve abuses its market power to ensure game publishers have no choice but to sell most of their games through the Steam Store, where they are subject to Valve’s 30% toll”

Wolfire claims that Valve now controls “approximately 75 percent” of the entire PC gaming market, reaping an estimated $6 billion in annual revenue as a result from that 30 percent fee alone — over $15 million per year per Valve employee, assuming the company still has somewhere in the vicinity of the 360 employees it confirmed having five years ago.

Also from The Verge are the arguments from Wolfire Games, which they summarise as:

Every other company’s attempt to compete with Steam has failed to make a dent, even though many of them offered developers a bigger cut of the profits, such as the Epic Game Store’s 88-percent revenue share

Steam doesn’t allow publishers to sell PC games and game keys for less money elsewhere

That in turn means rival game platforms can’t compete on price, which keeps them from getting a foothold

Most of those rival game stores have largely given up, like how EA and Microsoft have each brought their games back to Steam

That ensures Steam stays the dominant platform, because companies that could have become competitors are reduced to simply feeding the Steam engine with their games or selling Steam keys

As well:

Valve once worked with Humble Bundle on a keyless direct integration, the lawsuit claims that Valve abruptly pulled the plug on that partnership with no explanation.

Valve has a very strong and positive perception from PC gamers. The company contributes a lot back to the platform, in the form of its Linux compatibility layer Proton (based on Wine), flexible controller support and a number of features that competitors like the Epic Games Store have struggled to implement, like even a wishlist function that took Epic Games years to implement. The Steam Deck has also been a huge hit, with its console-like design and OS mixed with a PC-like open platform that users can make changes to.

Yet Steam still attaches DRM to games. It takes a 30% from the first $10 million in sales from every developer, which benefits bigger publishers. It also still allows publishers to ship launchers and additional DRM with games, including DRM that limits titles to online-only play and other account requirements. The company is still a company too, despite its online fanbase. And it still has acted in a legally anti-consumer way and arguably anti-competitively in the past, hiring fewer employees than many other companies with similar revenue.

The Steam Deck works in Australia. I own one and you really wouldn't know that it's not technically supported in the country when using it. It's available online via the unofficial "grey market" from huge retailers like Kogan and Big W, imported with a huge premium attached. While Valve is celebrating its birthday with a AU$441.31 pricetag on the 64GB LCD Steam Deck, Kogan is selling the model for double the price at AU$885.

I guess the question is: will Valve ever actually bring the Steam Deck to Australia? Or is Valve too worried it will have to actually support the product and help customers that receive faulty devices.