Ars Technica Gaming

1. Re-releases of Wing Commander, Ultima titles hit Steam and GOG

   It's mostly bad news from EA lately, but preservation efforts are nice to see.

2. Could potential AI clones of GTA VI force a quicker official port?

   A former Rockstar tech director thinks the developer is facing new time pressures.

3. Gamers go to ridiculous lengths to "improve" GTA VI with Nvidia's DLSS 5

   Using a capture card and open source software to run PS5 video through a PC GPU.

4. Nintendo's biggest ROM chip supplier is bowing out of the business

   And what that could mean for physical Switch game costs.

5. Googling "Zelda" today offers a glimpse of how search worked in 1998

   "The flow of time is always cruel."

6. Claude’s new rules against game cloning won’t stop the AI copying boom

   The tsunami of imitators is way bigger than any one model maker can stem.

7. Everybody panic: A Valve developer said "HLX" in public

   Sound designer lets Half Life-related codename slip at a conference.

8. Switch 2 security takes a hit as hackers unlock homebrew access

   "Userland" exploit relies on integer overflow found in "SmileBasic" interpreter.

9. Leaked Mass Effect: Universe trailer gives a taste of what we're all missing

   We can't have nice things, but at least we can get trailers for them.

10. This emulator reimagines Nintendo’s Virtual Boy with a full color display

    Tile-based color palettes go way beyond the four shades of red on original hardware.

11. Xbox wants you to pay 24 to 40 cents per hour to stream games you already bought

    Time-based a la carte charges come on top of the purchase price for the games themselves.

12. RIP BioWare: EA shuts down storied RPG studio after over three decades

    Next Mass Effect project canceled as parent company lays off 400.

13. The past, present, and future share a show floor at Pinball Expo 2026

    Flipping through the highlights in and around Pinball Expo 2026.

14. Microsoft reportedly projects $1,200 to $1,800 price for 2028 Project Helix

    Xbox maker is also apparently planning its own gaming handheld for next year.

15. AI game clones are making indie developers afraid to show their work

    Delayed Steam Next Fest demo is a sign of a growing problem for indie devs.

16. Why BioWare's Neverwinter Nights still has thousands of active players

    The single-player is just OK, but according to the players, that doesn't matter.

17. US Rep proposes bill to give video game buyers "ownership," not "a license"

    There are still significant hurdles ahead, both technical and legislative.

18. Epic says its new vibe-coded Epic Games Launcher is faster than Steam

    But the new "Preview" app "will have some bugs," Epic warns.

19. Legendary FPS level designer Richard "Levelord" Gray dies at 68

    Tributes pour in for the man behind iconic Duke Nukem 3D levels and much more.

20. ESA targets Anbernic emulation handhelds as "superfake" piracy enablers

    But third-party sellers, not Anbernic, are the ones routinely selling ROM-filled SD cards.