Black Ops 6 release times start rolling out later today, beginning at 9AM PDT, allowing players to jump into the all-new campaign, multiplayer and other modes. It's all happening as a kind of rolling release, with the game going live at different times depending on your time zone. There's no Black Ops 6 early access this time around, either.

Depending on where you are in the world, you'll be able to get your hands on Black Ops 6 very soon indeed. From what we played of the beta, Black Ops 6 absolutely has a chance at ending up on our best FPS games list by the end of the year. The new Omnimovement mechanics are the star of the show, allowing you to dive in basically any direction while shooting. We'll have to see how the first season of content goes, but hopefully, this new Call of Duty game will be an impressive entry into the series.

To make sure you can jump into Black Ops 6 as early as possible, we've gathered together the Black Ops 6 release times for your timezone. We'll detail the Black Ops 6 release time for the US west coast, east coast, the UK, Europe, and Australia.

Black Ops 6 release times for PC

Black Ops 6 will launch on October 24 at 9PM PDT for PC players. Here's the Black Ops 6 release time in your time zone:

• Los Angeles: October 24 at 9PM (PDT)
• Mexico City: October 24 at 10PM (CST)
• New York: October 25 at 12AM (EDT)
• São Paulo: October 25 at 1AM (BRT)
• London: October 25 at 5AM (BST)
• Paris: October 25 at 6AM (CEST)
• Johannesburg: October 25 at 6AM (SAST)
• Dubai: October 25 at 8AM (GST)
• Seoul: October 25 at 1PM (KST)
• Tokyo: October 25 at 1PM (JST)
• Sydney: October 25 at 3PM (AEDT)

Black Ops 6 release times for PlayStation and Xbox

The Black Ops 6 release time for PlayStation and Xbox is midnight local time (October 25). This means that you'll be able to jump in as soon as October 25 hits. Make sure to have the game preloaded if you can, as it's if a hefty file size.

Black Ops 6 Game Pass launch time

Black Ops 6 will launch on Xbox Game Pass at midnight local time. You'll need to have an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Console, or PC Game Pass subscription to be able to download the game. You can also preload it now if you're a Game Pass subscriber.

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Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered will feature a ton of enhancements including three performance options at launch.

Ahead of the game's October 31 release, Digital Foundry was able to take the remastered version of the 2017 PS4 game for a spin on PS5, highlighting the many upgrades the game has to offer.

While visuals have been enhanced in almost every aspect, whether it be the highly detailed character designs, lush environments, lighting, and effects, it's Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered's three frame rate options that are able to make those features shine.

Players will be able to choose between 30fps, 40fps, and 60fps, each of which offers their own trade-offs between performance and image quality, just like Horizon Forbidden West.

According to Digital Foundry, the game uses the same dynamic resolution scaling as the 2022 sequel with quality mode aiming for native 4K output, while performance modes slightly drop below targeting 1800p "on average".

"Thankfully, the anti-aliasing matches the current version of Forbidden West so it's very clean compared to the initial launch version of that game," Digital Foundry said.

The three frame rate options are "roughly the same" but image quality in performance mode is "strong enough" to be recommended over the others.

Developer Nixxes is working on Horizon Remasted and was able to confirm to the tech experts that it already includes PS5 Pro support which will be automatically activated when played on the new mid-generation consoles.

Performance is also "by and large, perfect", Digital Foundry added, explaining that each mode delivers on their performance targets, as well as for the 40fps unlocked frame-rate mode for VRR-capable displays.

For those who already own Horizon Zero Dawn, you'll be able to purchase the remastered upgrade for just $10 / £10 when it launches next week on PS5 and PC.

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Capcom and Sony have revealed new Monster Hunter WIlds-themed PS5 accessories and they are easily some of the nicest for the current-gen console yet.

Announced alongside the open beta for the game happening towards the end of October, the Monster Hunter Wilds DualSense Wireless Controller and PS5 Slim faceplates will be available exclusively in Japan and Asian territories. Pricing (thanks, Push Square) will be 12,480 yen (around $80 / £64) for the controller and 9,980 yen (around $65 / £50) for the faceplates.

The limited edition DualSense Wireless Controller is absolutely gorgeous, sporting a glossy crimson finish and emblazoned with various bits of Monster Hunter Wilds iconography. I'd say it definitely gives the 30th Anniversary DualSense a run for its money in terms of pure aesthetics. In any case it's a fine addition to the lineup of one of the best PS5 controllers.

The faceplates are much more subdued, offering a clean matte black look with a logo at the bottom right. If you're desperate to own either, or both, despite being available exclusively in Japan and Asia you'll likely be able to shop for them on import websites. Though you should expect to pay a bit of a premium here thanks to shipping and potentially customs costs.

Monster Hunter Wilds launches on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC on February 5, 2025. An open beta is also on the way, taking place from October 31 to November 3. PS Plus members will be able to squeeze out a few extra days too, with an early access period beginning on October 28; that's almost a full week of monster hunting. The beta will include a handful of hunts to undertake as well as feature full character creation, so it's absolutely worth checking out if you're pining for the full release next year.

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Arrowhead Game Studios has confirmed that Helldivers 2 will receive a PS5 Pro upgrade in the future.

That's according to Arrowhead community manager 'Twinbeard' who revealed on the Helldivers 2 Discord channel that the popular third-person online shooter will eventually get some form of PS5 Pro upgrade at a later date, but stopped short of sharing what those enhancements will be (via PSU).

"There will be differences between the current PS5 and Pro versions," Twinbeard commented. "But what those are is yet to be confirmed.”

Now that Sony has officially announced the mid-generation console, more studios have since revealed their plans for their PS5 Pro-enhanced games.

Earlier this week, Remedy Entertainment confirmed that it will take "full advantage" of the console to enhance its critically acclaimed 2023 horror title, Alan Wake 2, revealing that the game will receive Quality and Performance mode upgrades that will utilize Sony's new upscaling method, PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR).

Naughty Dog also released the PS5 Pro patch for The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered which will allow players to access a new rendering mode that uses PSSR, a new "Pro" graphics settings option that will render at a resolution of 1440p, upscaled to 4K via PSSR, as well as target 60 frames per second.

Other games that are PS5 Pro-approved include a collection of titles ranging from Marvel's Spider-Man 2, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, as well as upcoming games like Dragon Age: The Veilguard and Assassin's Creed: Shadows.

The PS5 Pro is set to launch globally on November 7. Pre-orders are now open.

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The brand new PSSR AI upscaling method built for the PS5 Pro appears to defeat AMD’s FSR 3.1, taking a leap closer to Nvidia’s DLSS - perhaps giving gamers another reason to purchase Sony’s enhanced console.

After its reveal during a presentation by PlayStation Lead Designer Mark Cerny, reception towards the PS5 Pro was somewhat negative - largely due to its pricing, which positioned it as comparable to a pre-built gaming PC. The main differences between the upcoming console and its base model are PSSR, 28% faster RAM, and a claim of 67% more compute units for better performance (while using ray-tracing), but all while still using the same internal CPU.

Scrutiny aside, the PSSR AI upscaling method may easily become the main talking point - a hands-on experience from Digital Foundry proves that PSSR at ‘Performance Mode’ is much clearer and detailed in comparison to FSR 3.1 in ‘Performance Mode’ while playing Insomniac Games’ Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart.

What does this mean for AMD?

While the PS5 Pro’s PSSR may be convincing and a drastic step in the right direction for Sony - especially if many games run at a smooth 60 frames per second - it still won't justify the $699.99 price tag (£699 / AU$1,199.95) for many users. Other than the recent reveal of Sucker Punch’s Ghost of Yotei, Bungie’s Marathon, Insomniac'sWolverine, and other timed exclusives, there aren’t many other exclusive first-party titles coming to the platform in 2025 that we know of at present, a key pull factor that could help sell the Pro.

A plethora of PlayStation exclusives are making their way to PC, some of which will launch simultaneously on the PS5 - such as the aforementioned Marathon - and it further supports the idea of opting for a pre-built system over Sony’s updated console. While GTA 6 won’t be coming to PC until some time after launch, there is currently no guarantee that the PS5 Pro will provide 60 frames per second, which will certainly leave many disappointed.

As for AMD, it's a defeat yet again as Team Red appears to be overtaken in three regions - their next-gen graphics cards will steer away from high-end, along with Nvidia continuing to dominate in the gaming laptop market, while also losing to both PlayStation’s PSSR and Nvidia’s DLSS.

We will have to wait and see just how impactful AMD’s newfound focus on AI for FSR 4 will be - it's claimed that battery life and performance for gaming handhelds will see big improvements using the Ryzen Z2 Extreme APU, which is hopefully a sign of bigger things to come in 2025.

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The 42nd Golden Joystick Awards will be streamed live next month, and it's set to be hosted by voice actor Ben Starr.

Starr, known for voicing Final Fantasy 16 protagonist Clive Rosfield and Prometheus in Hades 2, is set to be joined by a host of guest presenters. These include Neil Newbon (Astarion in Baldur's Gate 3), Patricia Summersett (Princess Zelda in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom), Alex McKenna (Sadie Adler in Red Dead Redemption 2), and Abubakar Salim (Bayek in Assassin's Creed Origins and director of Tales of Kenzera: Zau).

On the upcoming awards ceremony, taking place on November 21, Starr had this to say: "I’m thrilled to announce that I’ll be your guide to this year’s Golden Joystick Awards. We’ll be celebrating the greatest games of the past 12 months - but more importantly, the talented teams of people who made them possible. 

"Tune in for an evening of fashionable festivities, where you can expect special guests, showmanship, and plenty of silly jokes. See you soon, and if you haven’t already, get your votes in now!"

This year's Golden Joystick Awards will feature 19 separate categories including Best Storytelling, Best Indie Game, Best Soundtrack, Best Lead Performer, and Best Gaming Hardware. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and Astro Bot are leading the charge with five nominations apiece, whereas Helldivers 2 and Balatro put on a strong showing with four and three nominations respectively.

You'll be able to watch the 42nd Golden Joystick Awards live on November 21 via YouTube, Twitch, Facebook, X / Twitter, and Steam. TechRadar Gaming as well as GamesRadar and PC Gamer will also be livestreaming the event.

Be sure to get your own votes in over at GamesRadar's dedicated Golden Joystick Awards page, too! You can vote right now and voting closes on Friday, November 1 at 4pm PDT / 7pm EDT / 11pm GMT.

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The once-unknown developer behind Mario & Luigi: Brothership has been revealed.

That's according to 'Nintendeal' over on X / Twitter, who shared a screenshot showing the intellectual property information of the game, which was discovered after some players received their physical copy early, ahead of its November 7 launch.

The information provided seems to confirm that the developer of the upcoming Nintendo Switch game is Acquire, the studio behind the critically acclaimed Octopath Traveler and Octopath Traveler 2.

It's unclear why Nintendo has kept its co-developer of Brothership under wraps, but the reveal is certainly a surprise to some.

"Well that's a curveball. A good curveball though," said one user on Reddit. "Don't think Acquire was on anybody's radar as a possibility, but they sure know how to make an RPG [role-playing game]."

"A pleasant surprise, they definitely know how to make good RPGs," said another Redditor.

Mario & Luigi: Brothership was announced this summer and is the first new entry in the series in almost nine years. After the series' original developer Alpha Dream went bankrupt in 2019, there have been discussions about who the new developer could be.

Brothership will see the iconic, titular brothers return in an all-new platforming adventure featuring turn-based combat, and both side-scrolling and vertical challenges as they explore a number of islands.

During the game's unveiling, Nintendo executive Shinya Takahashi called the game a "seafaring adventure", which will include "evolved Bros moves" between Mario and Luigi.

TechRadar had the chance to preview Mario & Luigi: Brothership at an event hosted by Nintendo earlier this month. After playing just over an hour of the game, Managing Editor Josephine Watson called it "a glorious return to form for a beloved series", while combat "feels finessed".

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Microsoft has officially unveiled its new, enhanced Xbox Wireless Headset.

Earlier this month, the reliable data miner 'billbil-kun' reported that the company was gearing up to launch a more expensive headset in November that would be called the "Xbox Wireless Headset Refresh".

Though not exactly correct in name, we now have confirmation that the new Xbox Wireless Headset is a "refreshed version" of the original hardware and it's available now worldwide for $109.99 / £99.99 / AU$163.56.

This all-black headset costs $10 more than the original and features an entire array of new enhancements, including Dolby Atmos support. This delivers "immersive, spatial audio that brings games to life in vivid detail" and "transforms your audio experience by revealing depth, clarity, and details like never before".

"With built-in support for Dolby Atmos, Windows Sonic, and DTS Headphone:X, you can experience sound with stunning precision, allowing you to pinpoint every footstep, explosion, or whisper," Microsoft said in its announcement post.

While the headset has also received a new updated, sleek design, other functions have also been improved. This includes voice isolation for clearer communication while gaming, as well as the auto-mute.

With the headset's Bluetooth 5.3, users can now directly pair their device with Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PC, and mobile devices with seamless transitioning, while also boasting Qualcomm S5 Gen 2 technology, allowing ultra-low latency wireless connectivity for smoother, uninterrupted gameplay.

Battery life has also been upgraded, offering up to 20 hours of playtime on a single charge.

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Naughty's Dog's unannounced game will reportedly focus on "player freedom".

According to MinnMax founder Ben Hanson during the latest episode of The MinnMax Show, a source "very in the know, who worked on the game" said that fans "aren't ready" for the studio's next project" and that it will feature "a lot of player freedom" (via VGC).

"The tone was like, you are all not ready for how amazing this thing is going to be, and the tone was - I’m not going to say the game that they referenced to compare it to because I don’t want people to be like, MinnMax said it was going to be exactly like this - but they compared it to a game with a lot of player freedom," Hanson said.

When asked if the game in question was Hitman, which has an incredible amount of player freedom, Hanson said it wasn't.

At this time, Naughty Dog hasn't officially announced its next title. The studio, which is perhaps best known for the Uncharted and The Last of Us series, is famous for keeping its development plans under wraps until it's ready.

However, earlier this year Naughty Dog's co-president Neil Druckmann confirmed that "multiple single-player" projects are in development at the studio, saying "I promise you, we will not be The Last of Us studio forever".

Last year, Druckmann also said that he'd like the team to focus less on cutscenes and a "traditional narrative" in future projects.

"I’m more recently intrigued by stuff like Elden Ring and Inside, that don’t rely as much on traditional narrative to tell a story," Druckmann said in an interview with The Washington Post.

"I think some of the best storytelling in The Last of Us - yes, a lot of it is in the cinematics - but a lot of it is in the gameplay, and moving around a space, and understanding a history of a space by just looking at it and examining it. To me that, right now, is some of the best joy I get out of games - [those] that trust their audience to figure things out, that don’t hold their hand. That’s the stuff I’m really intrigued by going forward."

In December 2023, Naughty Dog canceled its The Last of Us Online game after concerns that it would impact the studio’s future single-player games, a project that was reportedly in development for four years.

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Remedy has revealed the PS5 Pro enhancements for Alan Wake 2.

In a new blog post, the developer confirmed that it will take "full advantage" of the recently announced PS5 Pro to enhance its 2023 horror game further.

For starters, Alan Wake 2's Quality and Performance modes will be upgraded for the mid-generation console and will utilize Sony's upscaling method, PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR).

The PS5 Pro Quality mode will be 30fps and feature ray tracing reflections, as well as have an output resolution of 4K.

Meanwhile, the Performance mode won't feature ray tracing but will allow 60fps and an output resolution of 4K, and will target approximately the same image quality (render) settings as the base PS5's Quality mode.

"The Performance Mode on the PS5 Pro features significantly higher output resolution and has more visual detail compared to the base PS5," Remedy said. "The overall image stability, fog, volumetric lighting, and shadow accuracy have been improved on the Pro."

Remedy shared its process in upgrading Alan Wake 2 for the PS5 Pro, explaining that increasing the rendering resolution was among the easiest routes to improve image quality. It also experimented by upgrading the 60fps Performance mode output from 1440p to 4k and adding PSSR, which "positively impacted image crispness and stability under motion."

"Increasing the internal rendering resolution consumes a lot of processing power, no matter how powerful your hardware is," the team explained. "However, in our experiments, even putting all the added power to increased rendering resolution provided a barely noticeable difference in the output image or its quality. Adding more pixels to gain visual quality is not straightforward with the new AI-based upscaling methods."

The studio said that since Alan Wake 2 is "visually incredibly detailed and rich", it was a "tough fit for ray tracing, especially compared to our previous game, Control".

Still, the studio welcomed the challenge of upgrading the game for PS5 Pro, saying, "With ray traced effects, the detail of the world in Alan Wake 2 can be observed even more accurately than before on the console, and the image is more stable in complex lighting situations."

"We've always wanted to bring cutting-edge visuals to our games, but everything is always a balancing act between the frame rate, visual quality, technical and hardware constraints, development resources and what we wish to artistically achieve with the game," Remedy added.

The team went on to talk about the benefits of ray tracing but said that it "comes with a cost" since "each ray must be traced, and its hit evaluated and shaded".

"In a game like Alan Wake 2, its complex light-material interactions and rich environments can make tracing, shading, and denoising even a single ray tracing effect too expensive to justify the cost depending on the hardware," it said.

"Geometrically Alan Wake 2 is a very dense game. The usage of a GPU-driven rendering pipeline and its fine-grained culling with the skinning ran on GPU made it possible to create densely populated forest scenes with layers and layers of foliage and trees encountered during Saga’s gameplay segments taking place in the lush environments of the Pacific North-West."

Alan Wake 2 is one of the best horror games you can play on PS5 right now, and its second expansion, titled The Lake House, launches today.

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Forget that official Xbox handheld that's phased in and out of the rumor mill over the past year; a modder has now beaten the company to it.

Over on X / Twitter, woodworker and hardware engineer Redherring32 has built a portable version of the original Xbox console - the one that was first released all the way back in 2001. Its creator says that it "isn't a PC handheld, it isn't emulation, this is a real motherboard from a real Xbox."

Redherring32 goes on to explains that the handheld features a 480p display and USB-C play and charge support. Wireless Xbox Live functionality is also planned via the addition of WiFi 6. That'd certainly give it some parity with the best handheld games consoles available today.

In followup posts, Redherring32 explains that this original Xbox handheld build "is a first of its kind." They attach screenshots of the trimmed-down motherboard and many more of the inner hardware workings that make the device tick. Said trimming was a process the modder claims to have had to learn from scratch, taking them a little over four months to complete just that one part of it.

And while this original Xbox handheld isn't going to be put into mass production - which is a crying shame given how awesome it looks - Redherring32 says "everything will be open source in the coming weeks," including URLs to GitHub and BitBuilt pages for the PCBs and an Xbox trimming guide so that folks at home can attempt to make an Xbox handheld of their own. 

The modder concludes by saying they're working on a showcase video for the handheld that should also include gameplay. Certainly keep an eye out for that if - like me - you're particularly nostalgic about the best retro games consoles like the original Xbox and are keen to see what its software would look like running on a bespoke handheld device.

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• Nintendo Switch Online Playtest Program participants leak contents early and it appears to be a collaborative MMO

The Nintendo Switch Online Playtest Program seems to be for a cooperative MMO where you work with others to develop a planet. It also doesn't seem to be related in any way to the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2, as we initially speculated.

Participants who were accepted during the application phase have now received access to a Nintendo Switch app containing information on the playtest, which officially begins on October 23.

X / Twitter user Ethan_ThisGuy appears to have been the first to post screenshots of the app, in a reply to a Wario64 update on the playtest. The user's screenshots have since been deleted, but user Nintendo Prime was able to salvage them.

We have three screenshots to peruse here, with each being accompanied by some text that goes some way to describing what kind of game this is going to be. The first screenshots details an area known as the Dev Core, where players can socialize with one another, as well as "level up your character, get items you will need for your journey" and more.

The main drive of the game - which is unnamed at the time of writing - seems to be a massive collaborative project between players. "In this game, the goal is to work with others to fully 'develop' a massive, expansive planet by utilizing creativity and farmed resources," another screenshot reveals. "As you progress across the planet, you'll discover new lands, enemies, and resources that will become essential to your journey."

To develop the planet together, players will individually work on their own Beacon Zones. Another screenshot demonstrates the higher a beacon is placed in a zone, the wider its reach becomes. Presumably, this will allow players to travel further out into the world and eventually connect with other Beacon Zones and thus, more players. It's all a bit Death Stranding, isn't it?

There's little else to go off right now, but if you were lucky enough to be selected for the playtest, you'll be able to start playing from October 23 until November 5. You'll also need 2.2GB of storage space on your Nintendo Switch console. Here's hoping the next Nintendo Direct - whenever that may be - sheds some more light on this very interesting project.

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