Tag:

Worth

Decrypt logo
Crypto Trends

Trump Tariff Stimmy? Here’s How Much Covid Stimulus Checks Are Worth Now If Invested in Bitcoin

by admin



In brief

  • President Trump said his administration is considering $1,000-$2,000 checks for citizens based on tariff revenues.
  • Americans received up to $3,200 in 2020-2021, up to $40 billion of which was estimated to have been invested in Bitcoin and stocks.
  • That $3,200 could be worth more than $26,000 today if invested in Bitcoin upon receipt of each payment.

President Donald Trump said this week that his administration is exploring a “distribution” of as much as $2,000 apiece to the American people on account of the funds generated by his tariff policies.

“We also might make a distribution to the people, almost like a dividend to the people of America,” the president said in an interview with One America News. “We’re thinking maybe $1,000-$2,000.” 

The last time stimulus checks hit the bank accounts of American citizens, up to an estimated $40 billion was expected to be used to buy stocks and Bitcoin.



Stimulus checks were sent to American citizens as part of a $2.2 trillion stimulus package signed under the first Trump administration during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, leading to a surge in Bitcoin and stocks. 

In 2021, with President Joe Biden then in office, another round of stimulus was approved, once more providing Americans with annual incomes below $150,000 with additional checks of up to $1,400. 

If you had invested that first $1,200 into Bitcoin, which was changing hands at $6,878 at the close of April 11, 2020—the first day of direct deposit stimulus payments—then you would have around 0.1744 BTC, worth about $21,270 today. That represents a gain of 1,672%.

Injecting the other two checks into Bitcoin as soon as possible would have provided around another 0.0424 BTC or $5,170 based on the current price

In total, around $3,200 in stimulus checks could have netted you more than $26,000 in Bitcoin if invested in the leading cryptocurrency during those windows.

Though a strong gain, the number pales in comparison to the gains accumulated should you have jammed the funds immediately into Dogecoin. At the meme coin’s 2021 peak, which took place just after the final stimulus, the three stimulus checks would have netted you around 600,000 Dogecoin (DOGE)—about $438,000 worth at its peak.

If you held it all until today, you’d still have nearly $150,000—a gain of more than 4,576%. 

Formal details about the Trump administration’s teased tariff checks remain outstanding, but $2,000 would allow investors to snatch about 0.0165 BTC at present time—over 1.6% of a full coin. Who knows how much that’ll be worth in five years, but if Bitcoin’s history is any indication, then it could be a bet worth making.

Daily Debrief Newsletter

Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.



Source link

0 comments
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
henya the genius looking sad
Esports

YouTuber covers ‘mini G-Wagon’ replica in $100k worth of Louis Vuitton bags

by admin



YouTuber Mo Vibes has gone viral after using around $100,000 worth of Louis Vuitton bags to wrap his “mini G-Wagon” replica.

In his YouTube video, Mo revealed how dozens of brand-new Louis Vuitton bags, each costing around $3,000, were ripped apart and cut into patches to cover the boxy SUV. A typical professional wrap costs between $3,200 and $4,500, but this project pushed that figure into six-digit territory.

Instead of vinyl, Mo and his friends relied on superglue to attach the thick leather to the vehicle. Over three days, they covered the entire replica in brown Louis Vuitton leather, creating a unique — if imperfect — finish.

Article continues after ad

The choice of car played a major role in making the wrap possible. Leather is inflexible and difficult to mold around curves, but the smaller replica’s box-like design made the process easier. Its smaller size also meant fewer bags were required than a full-size Mercedes G-Wagon, which would have cost significantly more.

Article continues after ad

The final result

While some areas of the vehicle are already showing signs of the glue losing adhesion, the project still stands out as one of Mo’s boldest creations.

Article continues after ad

“There’s some glue coming apart, but it’s fine, it works,” he said. “Some of the leather is coming off, the glue has to be done again. We live in a hot country, of course, the glue is going to melt.”

The YouTuber didn’t reveal what type of car the “mini G-Wagon” really was, but it appears to be a Suzuki Jimny, a small SUV that is commonly converted to resemble a Mercedes.

Article continues after ad



Source link

0 comments
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
bitcoin
GameFi Guides

Tether Stacks More Bitcoin With Fresh 8,888 BTC Acquisition Worth $1 Billion

by admin


Trusted Editorial content, reviewed by leading industry experts and seasoned editors. Ad Disclosure

Leading stablecoin issuer Tether appears to have acquired another 8,888 Bitcoin (BTC), worth approximately $1 billion. On-chain analytics platform Onchain Lens confirmed the purchase in an X post earlier today.

Tether Continues To Stack Bitcoin

Tether, the issuer of the top USD-pegged stablecoin USDT, today purchased another 8,888 BTC, increasing its total Bitcoin reserves to new highs. Onchain Lens said that Tether acquired it on the last day of Q3, 2025.

Following the Bitcoin purchase, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino confirmed the acquisition in an X post, saying, “yeah.” With today’s purchase, Tether’s total holdings now stand at almost 10,940 BTC.

Tether’s total BTC holdings have propelled it to second position among private companies with the most BTC reserves. The list is currently led by Block One, which currently holds 164,000 BTC, worth roughly $18.5 billion.

In the overall list, including public companies, Tether is now ranked third, behind Strategy, which leads the list by far, holding 640,031 BTC on its balance sheet, according to data from Coingecko.

It should be noted that this is not the first time that Tether has acquired such a huge amount of BTC. The company purchased a similar amount of BTC and transferred it to its wallet at the end of Q1, 2025.

To recall, Tether started buying BTC as part of its reserves back in September 2022. Subsequently, in May 2023, the firm announced that it would allocate up to 15% of its net profits each quarter to purchase more BTC.

Since announcing its BTC buying strategy, Tether has consistently enhanced its BTC reserves as part of its long-term diversification strategy. It is worth noting that Tether-backed Bitcoin treasury firm Twenty One also holds around 43,514 BTC currently.

Tether’s Bitcoin reserve wallet address, starting with “bc1qj” is also among the top ten single address holders of BTC. The wallet trails several centralized exchange cold wallets, such as those of Binance.

The Rush For Accumulating BTC

Tether’s move to accumulate BTC is not an isolated incident. An increasing number of firms have been actively purchasing BTC over the last few years, seeing the digital asset’s extraordinary price appreciation in a relatively short period.

For instance, Strategy recently added to its already high amount of BTC holdings, purchasing 196 BTC. Similarly, Cyprus-based ship-owning firm Robin Energy recently made its first BTC acquisition, as it bought the flagship cryptocurrency worth $5 million.

The trend of companies buying BTC in large amounts is likely to dry up the asset’s active circulating supply, as confirmed in a recent report by Fidelity. This could put further upside price pressure on BTC. At press time, BTC trades at $113,219, down 0.4% in the past 24 hours.

Bitcoin trades at $113,219 on the daily chart | Source: BTCUSDT on TradingView.com

Featured image from Unsplash.com, chart from TradingView.com

Editorial Process for bitcoinist is centered on delivering thoroughly researched, accurate, and unbiased content. We uphold strict sourcing standards, and each page undergoes diligent review by our team of top technology experts and seasoned editors. This process ensures the integrity, relevance, and value of our content for our readers.



Source link

0 comments
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Ruark MR1 Mk3 powered speakers either side of a laptop, on a white surface
Product Reviews

Ruark MR1 Mk3 powered speaker review: an eight-year update that’s more than worth the wait

by admin



Why you can trust TechRadar


We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

Ruark MR1 Mk3: Two minute review

From February 2017 to September 2025 is a fair while for an audio product to stay on the market – so it just goes to show how right Ruark got the predecessor to its new Ruark MR1 Mk3 and what a tough act it has to follow.

Happily, it’s more than up to the task. Slightly larger than the product it replaces and significantly better specified (the MR1 Mk3 can handle everything from aptX HD Bluetooth and vinyl records to 24bit/192kHz hi-res digital audio), this new Ruark is the perfect desktop system. It’s also got great credentials when it comes to TV audio (it’s so much better looking than your average soundbar and can connect via digital optical), and will happily support a fairly extensive system in a small- to medium-sized room.

The Ruark MR1 Mk3 sounds far larger than it looks, and has impressive low-frequency presence that’s complemented by great detail retrieval and an undeniable facility for entertainment. The Ruark can do ‘analysis’ for you as well as any desktop system around, but it doesn’t lose sight of the fact that music is to be enjoyed every bit as much as it is to be admired. Soundstaging is good, dynamic headroom is appreciable, and the frequency response from top to bottom is smoothly even. The MR1 Mk3 sounds admirably consistent no matter which of its inputs you’re using, too.

In short, the Ruark MR1 Mk3 has been worth the wait, and sits firmly in the best stereo speakers on the market. Which is not the same as saying I’d be happy to wait until 2033 or something for the Mk4…

(Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)

Ruark MR1 Mk3 review: Price and release date

  • Released June 2025
  • $579 / £399 / AU$899

The Ruark MR1 Mk3 is on sale now, and in the United States it’s yours for $579. It goes for £399 in the United Kingdom and AU$899 in Australia.

To be fair to Ruark, that compares quite favourably to the $499 / £349 / AU$749 the MR1 Mk2 launched at back in early 2107, and it means the MR1 Mk3 is, all things considered, even more competitively priced than the model it replaces.

(Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)

Ruark MR1 Mk3 review: Features

  • 25 watts per channel of Class D power
  • Bluetooth 5.1 with aptX HD
  • Moving magnet phono stage

Ruark has ditched the Class A/B amplification of the MR1 Mk3’s predecessor in favour of a Class D alternative derived from its very well-received R410 integrated music system. Power is up from 20 watts per channel to 25, and the driver array (a 20mm silk dome tweeter and 85mm ‘NS+’ treated natural fibre mid/bass driver in each speaker, bolstered by downward-facing bass reflex ports) is good for a claimed frequency response of 50Hz to 22khz.

Input options have undergone an upgrade, too. The MR1 Mk3 uses Bluetooth 5.1 for wireless connectivity, and is compatible with the aptX HD codec. There’s a 3.5mm socket that’s a hybrid optical/analogue input – in digital mode it’s capable of dealing with file resolutions of up to 24bit/192kHz. A USB-C input can handle anything up to 24bit/96kHz. And there’s a moving magnet phono stage behind a pair of stereo RCA sockets, so a record player can easily be integrated into the Ruark system. A pre-out for a subwoofer completes a very agreeable line-up.

Features score: 5/5

(Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)

Ruark MR1 Mk3 review: Sound quality

  • Impressive low-frequency presence
  • Detailed and dynamic
  • Great sonic consistency across every input

There’s a definite sensation of ‘the Ruark sound’ to the MR1 Mk3, which is great but hardly unexpected. What’s equally impressive, and perhaps less predictable, is just how consistent the Mk3 sounds no matter which of its inputs you’re using.

Obviously there’s an appreciable difference between the sound of Sad and Lonely by Secret Machines being streamed as a 320kbps file via Bluetooth to the same song delivered via the integrated phono stage. But the fundamental Ruark character never wavers: in every circumstance, the sound is bold and punchy, spacious and properly defined, and is loaded with detail both broad and fine. Everyone hopes their tunes will sound ‘musical’ and ‘entertaining’, but the MR1 Mk3 understands and delivers on this better than any price-comparable alternative.

There’s a touch of warmth to the system’s tonality, but this just allows the weighty and nicely varied low frequencies to swing even more naturalistically. Bass sounds are properly controlled, which means rhythmic expression is sure footed – the Ruark is capable of quite startling extension and low-end attack. The midrange is open and revealing, with plenty of detail concerning tone and timbre, especially of voices, revealed. At the top end, the Ruark gives substance to treble sounds just as readily as it gives shine – and here, just as with the rest of the frequency range, detail levels are impressively high.

There’s more than enough dynamic headroom available for the MR1 Mk3 to make the fluctuations in volume and intensity during a listen to Music Has the Right to Children by Boards of Canada obvious. And there’s just as much attention paid to the dynamic variations apparent in a voice or solo instrument, too.

Thanks to the downward-facing reflex ports, the Mk3 always has a fixed boundary the perfect distance away – so it’s not quite as uptight about positioning as some alternative designs. And when you get the positioning just right, stereo focus is enjoyable and the soundstage the system creates is large and confidently defined. There’s plenty of space between individual elements of a recording, but at the same time the Ruark is able to make sure they all relate to each other and all contribute to the singularity of ‘performance’.

Sound quality score: 5/5

(Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)

Ruark MR1 Mk3 review: Design

  • 185 x 135 x 155mm (HxWxD)
  • Choice of two finishes
  • 2.2kg

Ruark is no stranger to a tidy and attractive bit of cabinet work, and for the MR1 Mk3 it’s done that thing it does, just on a slightly larger scale.

Each Mk3 cabinet is 185 x 135 x 155mm (HxWxD), which is up from the Mk2’s 175 x 130 x 140mm in every direction. It also means internal volume is increased to a useful two liters while the system is still a realistic desktop proposition.

The standard of build and finish is impeccable. Each cabinet is handcrafted, and is almost as appealing on a tactile level as it is on a visual. My review sample is in a real walnut veneer, but a charcoal lacquer alternative is available – both are supplied with fixed slate-grey cloth grilles.

Design score: 5/5

(Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)

Ruark MR1 Mk3 review: Usability and setup

  • Operation via remote control or RotoDial
  • 3m braided connecting cable
  • Independent gain control for some inputs

There’s not a lot to get your head around when it comes to setting up the MR1 Mk3. The primary speaker – the one with all the inputs and amplification on board – needs to be plugged into the mains. It then needs to be connected to the secondary speaker using the 3m length of braided cable supplied in the box. And that’s about your lot: make any physical connections you might require, and you’re in business.

Control is available via a small and unremarkable remote control – it covers power on/off, volume up/down, and input selection. These functions are duplicated by the classic Ruark RotoDial that’s integrated into the top of the primary speaker and is just as pleasant to use here as it is in any of the company’s other products. And it makes the primary speaker, in fact, 202mm high.

Usability and setup score: 5/5

(Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)

Ruark MR1 Mk3 review: Value

It’s difficult in the extreme to suggest the Ruark MR1 Mk3 doesn’t represent very decent value for money.

It’s compact enough to be a desktop system, it’s got sufficient sonic scale and presence to work as an alternative to a soundbar via its digital optical or Bluetooth inputs, and it’s ideal as a system for a smaller room. The standard of build and finish is hard to criticize. It looks, as well as sounds, good.

What more, really, are you expecting?

Value score: 5/5

Ruark MR1 Mk3 review: Should you buy it?

Buy it if…

Don’t buy it if…

Ruark MR1 Mk3 review: Also consider

Some Bluetooth speakers can form stereo pairs, so something like a couple of JBL Charge 6 could do a job on your desktop, and you’d have a pair of portable speakers for when you’re out and about. The battery-only power scenario might not work for you, though, and there’s only USB-C as an input beyond Bluetooth.

Maybe the Q Acoustics M20 would be a better bet? It’s certainly a great-sounding system, and has sufficient physical, as well as wireless, inputs to be a complete system. It’s large when compared to the Ruark, though – certainly too big for anything but the very largest desktop – and is a little less impressive when it comes to the standard of finish too.

Ruark MR1 Mk3 review: How I tested

  • Connected to various devices
  • Using every available input
  • Lots of music and TV over a fair amount of time

I mostly listened to the MR1 Mk3 on my desktop, where I used an iPhone 14 Pro and a FiiO M15S as wireless sources along with an Apple MacBook Pro connected via USB-C.

I also used it on the end of my main system, where I was able to test out its phono stage using my Clearaudio Concept turntable. And I connected it to my Philips OLED using the TV’s optical output, where it functioned as a replacement for my Bose Smart Ultra soundbar.

I listened to plenty of music and quite a bit of TV content, and made sure to check out the Ruark’s hi-res audio credentials as well as its ability to amplify a turntable and handle a wireless stream.

Ruark MR1 Mk3: Price Comparison



Source link

0 comments
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
$1.12B Worth Of Crypto Liquidated As Market Goes Red
Crypto Trends

$1.12B Worth of Crypto Liquidated as Market Goes Red

by admin



The cryptocurrency market witnessed one of its sharpest corrections today, with over $1.13 billion worth of liquidations occurring across all major exchanges in the last 24 hours. The sell-off was primarily driven by traders who were long, means the ones who had bet on price increases .

According to the data from Coinglass, about $252,502 traders were liquidated from their positions. Of the total amount, $1.04 billion came from long positions, while $83.88 million was liquidated from short positions.

Ethereum leads liquidations

The liquidation wave hit the Ethereum (ETH) recorded the heaviest losses with over $428.11 million liquidated in a single day. Bitcoin(BTC) followed behind with $273.60 million in liquidations, while Solana recorded $75.20 million. 

Other altcoins like Avalanche (AVAX), XRP, and Dogecoin(DOGE) also added to the sell-off. The single largest liquidation order, valued at $29.12 million, was recorded on Hyperliquid in the ETH-USD market.

Coinglass heatmap showed that Ethereum’s dominance in this wipeout was overwhelming as traders who had bet on the price going up face the majority of losses. An unlucky trader alone lost $45M during the dump. According to a previous report, the trader also took a bet on Ethereum surge but lost his position as the price dropped below $4000 and left the trader with less than half a million dollars in the account.

At the time of writing, the price of ETH is trading at $3,924, down from its daily high of $4,273. Bitcoin also dropped from its intra-day high of $113,660, and is currently trading for $108,823. The overall market valuation is down by 3.95% to $3.73 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.

Also Read: Hack Turns $GAIN Into Pain, Griffin AI Token Crashes 84%



Source link

0 comments
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
GoPro Max 2 360 camera
Product Reviews

GoPro Max 2 review: worth the wait

by admin



Why you can trust TechRadar


We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

GoPro Max 2: two-minute review

The GoPro Max 2 is GoPro’s long-awaited return to the 360 camera arena, and it arrives with the rugged build quality and intuitive design philosophy that has made the brand synonymous with action cameras for over a decade.

It’s a compact, square-bodied camera that takes clear design inspiration from its predecessor while incorporating lessons learned from rivals like the Insta360 X5 and DJI Osmo 360. The Max 2 is built tough – waterproof to 5m without additional housing and ready to handle the kind of punishment that extreme sports can dish out. What sets it apart from the competition is GoPro’s decision to make the lenses fully user-replaceable without tools, a smart move given how vulnerable 360 camera lenses are to damage.

At $499.99 / £449.99 / AU$849.95, the Max 2 is priced between the DJI Osmo 360 and the premium Insta360 X5, offering a middle-ground option that should appeal to GoPro loyalists and newcomers alike.

The standout feature here is what GoPro calls “true 8K” recording; the Max 2 delivers genuine 8K capture with at least 3840 active pixels on each axis, and the results are undeniably sharp and vibrant in good lighting conditions.

(Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

Design-wise, there’s plenty to appreciate too: a bright 1.82-inch touchscreen, GoPro’s famously simple two-button control scheme, built-in GPS, and compatibility with three separate mounting systems: the classic GoPro fingers, standard tripod threads, and the newer magnetic latch system. The camera feels reassuringly solid and well-balanced, whether in your hand or mounted on some other part of your body.

Video tops out at 8K 30fps in 360 mode, with 5.6K 60fps and 4K 100fps options for slow-motion work. The Max 2 also captures 29MP 360-degree stills and supports 10-bit color recording plus GP-Log flat profile for post-production color grading.

Performance is strong in daylight, delivering the punchy, colorful footage GoPro is known for, with minimal distortion, effective automatic stitching and selfie stick removal. However, the camera struggles more noticeably in low-light conditions compared to rivals that offer dedicated night modes, and thermal management can be an issue during extended recording sessions.

(Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

The Max 2 pairs with GoPro’s established Quik mobile app for quick editing and sharing, plus the updated GoPro Player desktop software for more comprehensive post-production work. Both offer solid 360 video editing tools, though at present neither quite matches the sophistication of Insta360’s software suite.

Ultimately, while the Max 2 doesn’t revolutionize the 360 camera market, it delivers exactly what I’d expect from GoPro. This is a well-built, user-friendly camera that produces excellent results in the right conditions, and it’s backed up by an ecosystem of accessories and editing tools that make the whole experience relatively painless. GoPro is well truly back in the 360 camera game.

  • Look out for my in-depth GoPro Max 2 vs Insta360 X5 comparison, based on real tests, coming soon

GoPro Max 2 specs

Swipe to scroll horizontallyDJI Osmo 360 specs

Type:

360 camera

Waterproof depth:

5m / 16ft

Screen:

1.82-inch touchscreen

Storage:

microSD

Connectivity:

USB-C, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth

Dimensions:

64 x 69.7 x 48.7mm / 2.4 x 1.4 x 3.2 inches

Weight:

195g / 6.88oz

The Max 2 mounted on GoPro’s selfie stick (Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

Today’s best GoPro Max 2 deals

GoPro Max 2: Price and availability

  • Launched worldwide on 23 September 2025
  • Pre-orders shipping 30 September 2025
  • Priced at $499.99 / £449.99 / AU$849.95

GoPro officially launched the Max 2 on September 23 2025, and it’s available to pre-order right away, with orders shipping from September 30.

It’s priced at $499.99 / £449.99 / AU$849.95 in a bundle that includes the camera and a single battery. At the time of writing I’ve not been informed of any bundles including accessories such as selfie sticks, microSD cards or extra batteries, but this section will be updated if that becomes the case.

This list price, which sits between the pricier Insta360 X5 and more affordable DJI Osmo 360, feels just about right to me. The Max 2 is a quality product and while being any cheaper would be a surprise, it’s clearly priced to compete with its closest rivals.

The GoPro Max 2 in the midst of its two main rivals, the DJI Osmo 360 and Insta360 X5 (Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

GoPro Max 2: Design

  • Waterproof to 5m / 16ft plus replaceable lenses
  • Mountable via tripod, magnetic latch or mounting fingers
  • 1.82-inch rear touchscreen

The GoPro Max 2 looks similar to the original Max, favoring a squat, square design over the narrower candybar shape used by some 360 cameras. Constructed from tough plastic, it’s pretty discreet and unassuming, with the bright blue flashes of the GoPro logo and “Max 2” the only deviation from all-business dark grey. It’s slightly smaller than its closest recent rivals, the Insta360 X5 and DJI Osmo 360, but not to what I’d consider a significant degree.

As you’d expect from a GoPro camera, the Max 2 feels rugged and ready for adventure. While there’s no specific IP rating, GoPro says it’s waterproof to a depth of 5m and able to operate in cold temperatures. While the waterproof depth isn’t quite as impressive as on some rival cameras, GoPro told me a dive housing accessory offering more robust underwater protection is currently in development.

(Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

Crucially, GoPro has also made its lenses fully user-replaceable – and without the need for a tool, either, in a move that beats even the Insta360 X5’s lens replacement system. With 360 cameras’ lenses protruding so far out of the body, they’re highly vulnerable to damage, so making them simple (and relatively cheap) to swap out if something goes wrong is a great move from GoPro.

That being said, I did notice some condensation inside the lens when I went from indoors to outdoors, and it affected image quality (you can see it in the cycling sections of the videos embedded below). This could be fixed by removing the lens and wiping it with a microfiber cloth, then replacing it, but I found it an annoying issue to deal with. It’s not something I’ve encountered on other 360 cameras, and I suspect it might be due to the removeable lens design.

The pop-out mounting fingers make attaching the Max 2 to hundreds of existing mounts very simple (Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

The Max 2 is small and lightweight enough for easy mounting on everything from helmets to bikes to selfie sticks, and GoPro has thoughtfully made it compatible with three mounting options. You have classic GoPro mounting fingers, a rock-solid way to fix the camera to a huge range of first- and third-party mounts, as well a standard tripod thread and the newer GoPro magnetic latch mount.

Controls are beautifully simple. There are two large rubber buttons – one for power and switching shooting modes, another for image capture – and a bright and sharp 1.82-inch touchscreen for everything else. The Max 2’s UI is extremely simple and easy to get to grips with, even for someone (like me) who doesn’t shoot on GoPro cameras particularly often, and I doubt anyone even slightly familiar with action camera menu screens will struggle to master it quickly.

GoPro Max 2: Performance and features

  • Editing via Quik and GoPro Player apps
  • Built-in GPS
  • 1,960mAh battery offers around an hour of 8K 30fps capture

With no built-in storage, footage and photos captured on the Max 2 are stored on microSD card, and can be quickly transferred wirelessly to a mobile device running the Quik app for editing and sharing.

I think Quik’s 360 video editor is pretty good, and I was able to swiftly reframe clips using manual keyframes or AI-assisted object tracking, plus tweak the image settings to achieve the look I wanted. Finished videos and photos can be saved to a phone’s camera roll, directly shared to social media or exported to other devices.

It’s also possible to edit on desktop, of course, and the updated GoPro Player app supports keyframe reframing but not, interestingly, AI-assisted tracking or image tweaking. GoPro says it’s getting a new denoise setting too, but this was greyed out and unavailable when I tested the app due to my M2-powered MacBook Air being not quite up to the task.

GoPro has informed me that both Adobe Premiere and DaVinci Resolve will be getting plug-ins allowing users to directly import the Max 2’s 360 files. Premiere support is due to be live by the end of 2025, with Resolve to follow later on.

One thing the Max 2 has that its DJI and Insta360 rivals don’t is built-in GPS, enabling users to embed location data in their footage and photos. Most other cameras either require an optional module or tethering to a smartphone for geotagging, so the Max 2, like the original Max, offers an edge there.

The battery, microSD slot and USB-C port are all located inside a single well-sealed compartment (Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

Despite the large vent on one side, the Max 2 does get warm during use. When I left it recording video, it turned itself off to avoid overheating with both 8K 30fps and 5.6K 30fps recording. With the 8K footage, it recorded just under 30 minutes of footage before shutting down; it lasted almost 58 minutes when recording 5.6K footage. This was indoors at room temperature, and I did find that setting it up outdoors on a chilly autumn day allowed it to record for longer, as would actual outdoor pursuits scenarios.

GoPro doesn’t specify battery life from the 1,960mAh battery, but I managed to get just over an hour of 8K 30fps footage recorded when leaving the camera running outdoors. I think this performance is quite good given the bit rate and resolution of the videos being recorded, but those planning a long day of 360 shooting might want to invest in one or two extra batteries.

The camera features six built-in microphones – more than either of its main rivals (Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

The Max 2, like the original Max, features six separate built-in mics, but here they offer directional audio capture. Neither the DJI Osmo 360 or Insta360 X5 offer six mics, but despite this I wouldn’t necessarily say the Max 2 outright beats its rivals here: audio sounds absolutely fine in good conditions, but when the wind picks up the built-in wind reduction tech can’t do much to suppress the noise.

GoPro says the Max 2 can be used with Apple AirPods and other Bluetooth earbuds for wireless mic input, and this may help avoid the wind issue, but bringing out a dedicated DJI Mic-style wireless mic may be the best solution the company could offer further down the line.

GoPro Max 2: Image quality

  • Captures 10-bit 8K 30fps / 5.6K 60fps / 4K 100fps video
  • 29MP 360 photos and 12MP single-lens photos
  • Up to 300Mbps video bit rate with GoPro Labs

GoPro has been keen to point out that the Max 2 is the only 360 camera that records what it calls “true 8K” resolution 360 video. The company claims rivals like Insta360 and DJI are essentially fudging the numbers in order to claim 8K capture – either by counting unused or overlapped pixels, or by upscaling output to 8K from lower resolution sources – whereas the Max 2’s 360 output is truly 8K with at least 3840 active pixels on each axis for both sensors.

Video can be shot at up to 10-bit quality and in either a standard color profile or the flat GP-Log mode for post-shoot grading, and the maximum video bit rate is 120Mbps, or 300Mbps for users of GoPro Labs. For the purposes of this review, I stuck with 120Mbps. I did try out GP-Log, but GoPro has yet to release a LUT at the time of writing and I found grading the footage more of a slog than I’d like. Once the LUT is out things should get a lot easier there.

Video quality is generally very strong, whether recording in 8K (which is capped at 30fps) or 5.6K (which can go up to 60fps, offering users the potential to use 2x slow-motion; a 4K 100fps option is also available for those who want even more slow-motion potential). GoPro has established itself as delivering colors that look good straight out of the camera, as well as minimal distortion and flare.

Mostly that’s the case here, although I found that some of my 360 videos looked a touch overexposed and washed out in bright skies – likely as a result of having to set exposure for a full 360º view rather than in a single direction. User intervention, by setting the exposure manually, could improve things here, but in general the results are strong.

Still photos are similarly good-looking, and while I tweaked the below example slightly using the Quik app, it’s basically fresh out of the camera.

(Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

At night, the Max 2 isn’t as impressive. Both the DJI Osmo 360 and Insta360 X5 have dedicated low light modes for 360 video, but with the Max 2 you’re left with the standard mode, and it’s noisy and smeary after dark. It’s possible that using GP-Log and some clever settings before editing in post could yield better results; I didn’t have time to delve into this, so I can’t say for sure – but what I can say is that both the Osmo 360 and X5 make capturing usable low light footage very easy, while the Max 2 doesn’t.

So, if low light footage is a priority for you, the Max 2 may not be the ideal 360 camera. If, however, you’re capturing footage in daylight and want the very cleanest, sharpest 8K around, I think it’s the best at doing it.

The camera includes a wide range of capture modes besides standard 360 videos and photos: time lapse modes, dedicated single-lens shooting modes and more. I’ve included a quick clip I captured using the Night Lapse mode in the sample video above.

GoPro Max 2: testing scorecard

Swipe to scroll horizontallyGoPro Max 2

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Price

Cheaper than the Insta360 X5, slightly pricier than the DJI Osmo 360.

4/5

Design

Great mounting options, rugged build and easily replaced lenses. Just watch for the condensation.

5/5

Performance

Good apps and battery life, but can overheat.

4/5

Image quality

Beats the X5 and Osmo 360 in broad daylight, but can’t match either in challenging after-dark conditions.

5/5

(Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

Should I buy the GoPro Max 2?

Buy it if…

You’re invested in the GoPro ecosystem
Got boxes of GoPro mounts and a subscription? The Max 2 slots right into the GoPro range, so if you’re already a fan you’ll be at home immediately.

You’re a risk-taker
The Max 2 is small and rugged, making it ideal for extreme sports. Its lenses are also very easy to replace in the field – no tool required.

You like things simple
The Max 2’s minimal controls, simple app and great out-of-the-camera image quality make it one of the easiest 360 cameras to use.

Don’t buy it if…

You shoot after dark or indoors
While it shines in broad daylight, the low light performance of the Max 2 just can’t match that of its DJI and Insta360 rivals.

You want built-in storage
A small thing, but the Osmo 360’s built-in storage means you don’t need to fumble for microSD cards – with the Max 2, you do.

Also consider

The X5’s rugged build, replaceable lenses, low-light performance, ease of use and battery life have made it our top pick ahead of the Max 2’s arrival. Its weight and profile aren’t as wearable as the Max 2, however, and I think the Max 2’s daylight image quality is slightly better.

Read our full Insta360 X5 review

A cheap and cheerful alternative to the GoPro Max 2, Akaso’s first 360 camera is surprisingly capable. Like the Max 2, it’s designed with outdoor daytime use in mind, but its overall image quality level is several notches below.

Read our full Akaso 360 review

How I tested the DJI Osmo 360

  • Tested camera running v01.09.71 firmware for four days
  • Camera mounted on invisible selfie stick, helmet, bike and chest harness
  • Recorded videos day and night on foot and cycling

GoPro sent me a review sample of the Max 2 a week ahead of the launch date, and it was updated to run v01.09.71 firmware. This meant full launch features, as far as I’m aware, enabling me to test all the shooting modes and image quality – which I did by taking the camera out in the field mounted to various things (bike, head, helmet, chest, selfie stick).

I tested it in various lighting and weather conditions, editing the resulting videos and photos using both GoPro apps: the Quik mobile app and the GoPro Player desktop app (the latter on my M2 MacBook Air, which sadly wasn’t powerful enough to make use of the app’s Denoise feature).

  • First reviewed September 2025

GoPro Max 2: Price Comparison



Source link

0 comments
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
A screenshot from OD showing a scared person
Product Reviews

Kojima’s OD just got 3 minutes worth of in-engine footage, and it’s definitely following in the footsteps of P.T.

by admin



OD – KNOCK Teaser Trailer – [ESRB] 4K – YouTube

Watch On

A new trailer for OD, embedded above, was shown today during a livestream celebrating the 10th anniversary of Kojima Productions. Xbox head Phil Spencer joined Hideo Kojima on stage to present the video, which shows in-engine footage from Unreal Engine 5.

The footage shows what could be the protagonist, played by Sophia Lillis, entering a morbid-looking room, and approaching a maudlin little table with an elaborate candle display. As they start to light the candles, weird, scary stuff starts to happen.

Kojima reiterated how the game will blur games and film, without going into any specifics on exactly how. Spencer’s comments were similarly unhelpful: he said that OD was innovating “in gameplay, story and player engagement”. Microsoft is offering technical support on the project.


Related articles

It certainly looks a lot like P.T. The sound design is deliciously oppressive, and the footage is mostly first-person. Kojima wouldn’t be drawn on how far into development the game is, so that’s completely up in the air for now.

OD will bear the subtitle Knock, which Kojima explained has everything to do with his fear of knocking (and I think P.T. bears that out). Despite the video’s focus on lighting candles, Kojima also insisted—via a translator—that it’s “not a game about lighting candles” and that “you’ll probably poo in your pants or whatever.”

Announced in 2023, OD will feature Sophia Lillis, Hunter Schafer and Udo Kier.



Source link

0 comments
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Silent Hill f review - a return to form worth sticking with
Game Updates

Silent Hill f review – a return to form worth sticking with

by admin


Silent Hill f’s frustrating first-half is outweighed by a brilliant, delirious second that’s well worth the initial slog.

If you take nothing else from me today, just take these three words: stick with it.

Silent Hill f review

  • Developer: NeoBards Entertainment
  • Publisher: Konami
  • Platform: Played on PS5
  • Availability: Out 25th September on PC (Steam), PS5, Xbox Series X/S

If you’d sidled up to me halfway through Silent Hill f, I probably would’ve dropped my voice and advised you to wait for a sale. All the whiny teenage angst is winding me up, and is also more than faintly reminiscent of Silent Hill’s free teaser, The Short Message. I don’t like the combat. For the last hour, I’ve been unsuccessfully playing Inventory Management Sim, spent an embarrassing amount of time lost in a field, and I still can’t really work out what the hell is going on. The (also embarrassing) time I’ve spent wandering through the misty streets of Silent Hill over the years is seemingly of no benefit here, either. In fact, if it wasn’t for Akira Yamaoka et al’s score – which is less recognisably Silent Hill than I’ve ever heard before – I wouldn’t have thought Silent Hill f was a Silent Hill game at all. Which is kind of weird. You know. For a Silent Hill game.

I don’t say that to be difficult. I’m not the fan who only ever wants Silent Hill 2 over and over again (although let’s face it, Remake was exquisite), I don’t automatically despise anything that’s been made by a western studio, but I also don’t blindly accept that everything with Silent Hill on the cover is any good, either (sorry, Ascension). So I came into Silent Hill f cautious, but optimistic.

Here’s a Silent Hill f trailer.Watch on YouTube

But first, some context! Silent Hill f places us in the neat school shoes of teenager Hinako. For reasons that may or may not be explained later, her provincial town, Ebisugaoka, is suddenly submerged into a mysterious fog. The pavements bubble and blister with strange crimson flora, and sinewy strings hang from rooftops like macabre bunting. Unidentifiable fleshy lumps sit about, all haphazard and bloody, as though discarded by a lazy butcher in the sky, but it’s the flowers you need to look out for. One wrong step, and something will curl around your ankle, and you’ll be trypophobia-triggering plant food before you know it.

But none of that is as upsetting as the bloated corpses and twisted marionettes and more – oh-so-much more – that lie in wait across the village. It’s hard to know what’s worse for our Hinako: the deadly denizens or the societal expectations of a teenage girl in 1960s Japan.

But man, those first few hours. People keep doing and saying dumb stuff. The dialogue – teenagery and cringey – is not convincing, and why on earth Hinako and her pals don’t link arms to ensure they stop losing each other in the fog is beyond me. I’d kept myself gloriously spoiler-free coming in, which perhaps means I was less prepared than some for the wild tangents developer NeoBards takes from expected Silent Hill norms, but even the Otherworld is Otherworld-y in a way I absolutely did not expect. Which is again, well, strange. Because if it doesn’t look like a Silent Hill game and doesn’t play like a Silent Hill game, and only sometimes sounds like a Silent Hill game, then is it really a Silent Hill game at all?

And then it just all clicked.

Image credit: Eurogamer / Konami

Not the combat, mind you. I still don’t like it. You’ll have heard some compare it to that of Soulslike games, which isn’t quite right. You’ll spend the game with a pipe or a bat or a sledgehammer in your hand that takes forever to swing, even if you commit to the ostensibly quicker light attacks. The more you attack, the faster you’ll deplete your sad little stamina bar. The more you draw on your focus – which is exactly what it says on the tin; a powered-up focused attack – the quicker you’ll lose your sanity. It’s all pretty standard fare, and I did acclimate to the recommended Story difficulty, but I never quite enjoyed it, I’m afraid. By the time I finished, though, I’m pretty sure that’s more a consequence of the degradable weapons than the combat system itself.

I’ve spent a good chunk of my life in horror games, and know there’s a constant tension between feeling fearful and carefree, which inevitably requires the need to ration health items and weapons as well as liberally deploying ‘Run away! Run away!’ strategies. And while this is fine when you’re, say, fighting enemies outside, when you’re indoors – or in a tight alleyway – it becomes much harder to do that. The more you fight, the faster you’ll exhaust your piddly collection of weapons (you’ll only ever be able to carry three, along with a handful of toolkits to sort-of repair them), which means there was a good fifteens minutes segment where I had no weapon at all, leaving me with absolutely no way to defend myself other than to dodge myself dizzy and hope I make it out alive. Hinako wouldn’t even raise a fist.

Your frustration levels may vary depending on how much time you spend with Soulslike games, but for me, SHf’s combat isn’t challenging as much as it’s clunky. I had attacks phase through targets without a dent, dodges not dodge, and never seemed to have enough bloody stamina, even by the endgame. And when she comes out of a dodge, Hinako stands there until you remind her that she’s supposed to be running for her life – it becomes a self-defeating move, often leaving you wide open for a deadly own goal.

Image credit: Konami

The most grievous crime, though: as a long-time Silent Hill fan, it’s extraordinarily difficult to do any real exploration of the world. The grim cocktail of clumsy combat, degradable weapons, and ferocious enemies makes it extraordinarily difficult to do so. That said, about halfway through, you’ll land yourself an Otherworldly, er, upgrade (of sorts). Even if I could tell you about it I wouldn’t, but I will admit that it brought a new twist to combat that I was not expecting, but was very happy to have. Let’s leave it at that.

As for the enemy you’ll find yourself fighting more than any other? The one you’ll never quite get under control? Your inventory.

There are three things you can do when you reach a shrine: save, enshrine, and pray. The latter two ostensibly allow you to upgrade your health, stamina, and sanity bars, although doing so requires you to sacrifice the meagre collection of goodies you’ve amassed as ‘offerings’ or locate one of the vanishingly few ’emas’ found secreted across the game. Initially, I felt as though I’d never have enough items to sacrifice to build up my Faith deposit (the closest the game has to a currency), and later, I’d amassed loads of Faith, but must’ve missed some emas, so I couldn’t upgrade anything. Ho hum.

Image credit: Eurogamer / Konami

You can also utilise a pool of passive skills in the form of Omanoris that you pick up along the way, although I have very little else to say on that given I barely touched them after finding one that helped boost Hinako’s stamina a bit.

I don’t think I’d care as much about Hinako’s tight inventory if we were able to pick and choose what we take and what we leave behind, but switch a bandage to make room for a first aid kit, for example, and that bandage will be gone forever. And sure, some stuff stacks, but many others do not, so it’s particularly galling that you have to make room in your minuscule inventory for those aforementioned offerings, too.

I can’t even tell you what they all do, either. You can recover health, sanity, and stamina in different amounts and ways. Some of it’s pretty self-explanatory – bandages, first aid kits, and so on – whereas the rest, such as Divine Water (fully restores Max Sanity and reduces Sanity drain for a bit), Ramune (greatly restores Max Sanity), Arare (slightly restores Health, but the effect increases when used continuously) are more difficult to keep track of at the best of times. At their worst – say, when you’re in the heat of battle and your pop-up inventory only shows you a tiny icon – they’re infuriating.

And yet there I was, teeth clenched, beating a bulbous…. something – I don’t even know how to describe it! – to death with a crowbar, absolutely hell-bent on seeing this through to the end. I had to see it through. Hinako’s story took a wild pivot the moment I realised what was happening in her Otherworld, and halfway through this bewildering adventure, I realised how stupid I’d been for chalking this up to nowt more than a teen drama with a Silent Hill logo slapped on top of it.

Image credit: Eurogamer / Konami

Yes, SHf deliberately side-steps much of what makes Silent Hill games Silent Hill – there’s no torch, no radio static, not even any rust – but that doesn’t mean it’s a misstep. Its world is still tense and atmospheric. The monsters delight and disgust in equal measure. The ambient sounds are genuinely terrifying. It’s not the same as Silent Hill 2 Remake, no, and I don’t think it’s as scary, but it’s every bit as unsettling, believe me.

It’s almost as though the second half of the game is your reward for getting through the first, pivoting in such devilishly dark ways I couldn’t have predicted it if there was a gun at my head.

Hinako’s Otherworld may not look like any Otherworld we’ve seen before, given the rusty fences and blood-smeared grates have been replaced by dark temples and shrines, but it feels every bit as foreboding. Slowly, methodically, you’ll piece together what, exactly, brought Hinako to this place, and over a number of Otherworldly visits (visits that do not include degradable weapons: huzzah!) you’ll learn things about her you may never have suspected, and even more about what more she’s prepared to sacrifice… both literally and figuratively. Whereas other Silent Hill games have essentially presented a Western idea of horror, SHf unapologetically embraces its roots in ways I couldn’t even imagine. And it’s here, in the unmentionable and often indescribable parts of Silent Hill f, that writer Ryukishi07’s profoundly unsettling story really shines.

So while no, this doesn’t negate the clumsy combat, per se, it makes that first-half slog more than worth it.

Plus, it’s a beautiful place when it’s not scaring the bejesus out of you, rich with detail and interest. There’s a fair bit of backtracking – which again, makes that tiny inventory that much more of an issue; a number of times I cleared a place out and discarded an item to make room for another, thinking I’d never be there again, only to return two hours later and could’ve desperately done with it – but you’ll get to poke about in all kinds of places across Ebisugaoka, even if you’re rarely rewarded for stepping off the beaten path. And in keeping with its predecessors, Silent Hill f is not overt with its messaging, which means you should make a point of scouring for discarded notes and checking in with Hinako’s journal as you meander across town.

Image credit: Eurogamer / Konami

Talking of Hinako’s journal: it’s a lifeline when it comes to SHf’s puzzles. I played on Hard – the recommended setting for those looking for a “traditional Silent Hill experience” – and found all but one early scary(crow – if you know, you know) puzzle and the final brain teaser a breeze, thanks to the copious notes Hinako jots down as she goes. The environmental puzzling was tougher – figure out how to get here, do that, now go there, etc. – but again, not overly taxing, making it probably one of the easiest Silent Hill games thus far in this respect.

Silent Hill f accessibility options

There’s a colourblind accessibility setting as well as colourblind “intensity”, and the ability to adjust sound by music, SFX, voice, system, or together. You can also toggle on/off running, invert cameras, and turn off vibration. Subtitles can be enlarged, given specific fonts/colours, a coloured background, and show who is speaking. There is no “easy” difficulty mode for either combat or puzzles. CW for trypophobia and torture.

It’s not the puzzles that are going to make or break Silent Hill f, though – it’ll be that combat. I stand here as someone with average-ish dexterity, poor impulse control, and a core-deep hatred of boss fights, so I like to think that if I can get through it, most of the series’s older fans should cope okay, too, despite the surprising decision to omit an easy mode. For different reasons, the story – and several of its gobsmacking cinematic sequences – similarly requires a strong stomach. Silent Hill has never shied away from mature and complex themes, so it may be prudent to note the content warning when you boot up. (To that end: it advises there’ll be depictions of gender discrimination, child abuse, bullying, drug-induced hallucinations, torture, and graphic violence – and boy howdy, do they deliver on that, as well as trypophobia, which is not listed in the content warning but will absolutely be a deal-breaker for some. Proceed with caution.)

There’s more I want to tell you, of course. Loads, actually, although I’m not convinced you’d believe half of what I witnessed in the twelve-ish hours it took to reach the end. I want to talk about the enemies, the Otherworld, and the multiple endings. But even if Konami’s barbed wire-laden embargo wasn’t preventing me from telling you more, I wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise, anyway. You really should experience Silent Hill f’s final act for yourself.

And given that, I’ll conclude as I started, and leave you three more words to take away: Don’t read anymore. If this has left you curious, close this tab, avoid social media and further reviews or streams, and let yourself experience Silent Hill f first hand. You’ll either thank me for it or hate me for it, but either way, you’ll have a hell of a time.

A copy of Silent Hill f was provided for this review by Konami.



Source link

0 comments
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Mega 312,233 SOL Deposit Worth $75 Million Crashes Into Coinbase
Crypto Trends

Mega 312,233 SOL Deposit Worth $75 Million Crashes Into Coinbase

by admin


A whale-sized move has just hit Solana (SOL), once again shifting attention back to order books. A total of 312,233 SOL, worth $75,156,559 at the spot price, was transferred to Coinbase Institutional, making it one of the largest individual Solana transactions of recent days and instantly triggering speculation across trading desks.

Whale Alert sounded the first alarm and Arkham confirmed the path: The funds were routed from a Coinbase Prime deposit to a Coinbase Prime hot wallet, with FalconX infrastructure visible in the transaction trail two days earlier, reinforcing the institutional footprint.

At $238 per SOL, this transaction cannot be ignored. This inflow is equivalent to weeks of typical retail flow compressed into a single transaction.

SOL/USDT by TradingView

Against this background, the significance of the transaction is even clearer: Solana has been on an aggressive climb in September, rising from $190 at the end of last month to reach $257.91 at the upper Bollinger Band, before settling in the $238 zone where buyers and sellers are now locked.

The chart is boxed in: $226 is the level that must hold, while $258 is the breakout number that could change market positioning in a matter of hours.

Bottom line

What this transfer means depends on its purpose. If it’s for distribution, then the $75 million held on Coinbase could quickly impact the order books.

However, if it is internal reshuffling or liquidity routing, the chart will remain in play, and the question will be whether bulls have the strength to force a clean push through the $258 ceiling and turn resistance into support.



Source link

0 comments
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Brilliant retro horror throwback Crow Country has landed on PlayStation Plus, and it's well worth your time
Game Updates

Brilliant retro horror throwback Crow Country has landed on PlayStation Plus, and it’s well worth your time

by admin


Even without the cloying darkness and lumbering monsters, you get the impression Crow Country would be a pretty awful day out, what with its cramped thoroughfares and tatty décor, its frazzled animatronics and the kind of browning water features you can practically smell through the screen. It’s certainly no Disneyland that’s for sure, but there’s no arguing this delightfully grim Atlanta theme park is a perfect horror setting.

Crow Country

The year is 1990, and you – Agent Mara Forest – are a young (conspicuously young, in fact) law enforcement officer sent to the titular tourist attraction to investigate the disappearance of its owner, one Edward Crow. Not that any of this pre-amble especially matters; the star here is that grotty setting, which makes this survival horror throwback feel refreshingly distinct, even as it leans firmly into nostalgia.

The most obvious affectation here comes with those deliciously chunky visuals; all awkwardly bulbous polygons and low-res filters intended to capture the spirit of yesteryear rather than replicate it fastidiously. It works, though, giving the whole thing the vibe of a long-lost survival horror classic, tumbled straight out of a wormhole for brand-new eyes. And vibes, really, is what Crow Country is all about. This certainly isn’t a scary game, but it still manages to elicit some deliciously spooky tension all the same, as its pudgy meat-creatures shamble awkwardly around corners and spindly legged oddities lurch menacingly into view.

Crow Country trailer.Watch on YouTube

Structurally, too, Crow Country borrows heavily from the earliest iterations of Resident Evil and its ilk. This is a world of locked doors and improbably elaborate security mechanisms, of save rooms and liberally scattered notes, where progress is one of puzzle-solving, backtracking, and the occasional jolts of combat. Combat, frankly, I don’t love; rather than modern-day run-and-gunning, it’s got the staccato rhythm of old, where unholstering your weapons roots you to the spot as you aim wildly and awkwardly in search of a headshot. And if an enemy gets too close, you’re forced to holster up, leg it somewhere out of reach, and try again.

It’s fussy in a way that’s just a bit too retro for my tastes (and I say this as someone who’s been playing games since 1983), but in most other aspects, thanks to its smartly selective design, Crow Country manages to tip a hat to a bygone era without tilting into frustration. The control scheme is mercifully modern away from combat – good riddance tank controls – clues are recorded and easily referenced in safe rooms, and there’s none of that limited save nonsense, where you’re forced to agonise over your last typewriter ribbon, here. Even the likes of ammo and health restoratives are relatively abundant. And puzzles, too, seem pitched just right.

Image credit: Eurogamer/SFB Games

Puzzles, in fact, might just be my favourite bit of Crow Country so far. Sure, its sense of cheerily macabre menace is a hoot, but developer SFB Games (of Snipperclips fame) has crafted a series of delightful conundrums – compass-point tomb stone swivelling, date-matching clock cranking, and hidden code piano tinkling – that manage to feel inventive despite invoking familiar forms. Better yet, they’re involved enough to feel satisfying without resorting to head-spinning abstraction. Yes, I still have battle scars from Silent Hill 3’s Hard puzzle mode.

Granted, I’m only a couple of hours in at this point, but Eurogamer contributor Vikki Blake liked Crow Country a lot when she reviewed it on PC last year, so it feels like we’re on pretty solid ground here. And of course, now that Crow Country has made its way to PlayStation Plus, it’s the perfect opportunity for even remotely curious subscribers to give it some time.



Source link

0 comments
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Close