I guess that I should circle as the most unrelated gaming news of CES 2025, but I guess is fair to include an announcement from Qualcomm regarding on its quest to grind in the AI and Microsoft’s Copilot without being an expensive investment from computer and power users.
With this, Qualcomm has unveiled its new Snapdragon X chip at CES 2025, aimed at bringing AI-powered computing to more affordable laptops and mini PCs.
The Snapdragon X chip features an 8-core Qualcomm Oryon CPU, 45 TOPS NPU performance, and an integrated GPU and also, it is expected to offer 167% faster performance and better power efficiency compared to its competitors.
In other words, Qualcomm sees an opportunity with entry-level computer powered up with Copilot.
A important aspect that many will take proper attention, is that according to Qualcomm, a Snapdragon X-equipped test PC lasted 106% longer while streaming Netflix than an Intel Core 5-powered notebook and it is a fair thing to say that this detail is important as battery life has been a persistent problem for Intel-based systems for years.
Qualcomm also announced it is bringing its Snapdragon chips to desktop PCs.
The chip will be available in budget-friendly Copilot+ PCs starting at $600, with manufacturers like Acer, ASUS, Dell Technologies, HP, and Lenovo on board.
In more CES 2025 gaming related news, Microsoft and LG have announced that they have entered into a partnership to bring Xbox Game Pass with the Game Pass Cloud Gaming capacities to LG Smart TVs later this year. This collaboration marks a significant step in making gaming more accessible to a broader audience.
Game Pass Ultimate members will be able to play games directly from the Xbox app on supported LG Smart TVs. This means no additional hardware is required—just the TV and a compatible controller and with this, players will have access to a diverse selection of games from the Game Pass Ultimate catalog. Popular titles like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and upcoming releases such as Avowed will be available for streaming.
We’re focused on bringing more games to more people around the world, on the devices you choose to play with. Millions of Game Pass Ultimate members are already using Xbox Cloud Gaming (Beta) to play great games from the Game Pass catalog on various devices.
Today, we’re excited to announce our collaboration with LG Electronics to bring the Xbox app to their new LG Smart TVs later this year. This means Game Pass Ultimate members will be able to play their games directly from the Xbox app on supported LG Smart TVs via Xbox Cloud Gaming. This gives players even more choice in how they enjoy their favorite games.
Soon, players with LG Smart TVs will be able to explore the Gaming Portal for direct access to hundreds of games in the Game Pass Ultimate catalog, including popular titles such as Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, and upcoming releases like Avowed (launching February 18, 2025).
In addition to Game Pass titles and previously announced, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members will also be able to stream select games they already own, including hits like NBA 2K25 and Hogwarts Legacy.
With this, Microsoft and Xbox will be diving in more details in the upcoming months.
As for the LG Smart TVs ready with Xbox Game Pass availability, LG said that the 2025 models will be release later this year. However, specific release dates and the exact models of LG Smart TVs that will support this feature have not yet been announced.
Shift Up, the developer behind the popular PS5 action game Stellar Blade, has gifted all of its employees a PlayStation 5 Pro and a $3,400 bonus. The studio, which has around 300 employees, held an event in Seoul to present these gifts.
This generous gesture is a way to thank and encourage their talented team, especially after the commercial success of Stellar Blade.
The studio’s representative mentioned that the bonuses were intended to motivate the existing talent at the company.
Stellar Blade has sold over 1 million units worldwide, and the studio is considering releasing a PC version of the game in 2025, along with the exploration on the possibility of developing a sequel, which of course, it doesn’t sound a bad idea if they can recreate the elements that led Stellar Blade being a success in 2024.
Shift Up is a South Korean video game developer and publisher, founded on December 2, 2013, by Kim Hyung Tae after his tenure at NCSoft was over. The company is known for creating popular games like Goddess of Victory: Nikke and Stellar Blade.
PlatinumGames has announced that they will be celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Bayonetta series with a year-long event starting from January 2025. The original game was released in Japan on October 29, 2009, and worldwide in January 2010.
In their announcement, PlatinumGames expressed their gratitude to fans for their support over the past 15 years. They mentioned that they have been able to bring joy to many people through the series and are excited to continue creating games that surprise and delight their fans.
It’s Bayonetta's 15th Anniversary Year!💋💄
Bayonetta released internationally in January 2010 so we’re making 2025 into a year of celebration🎉 We have a few things in store to celebrate this milestone so keep your eyes peeled👀https://t.co/MNkIPRKgxB#BAYONETTA15th
As part of the celebration, PlatinumGames has planned several surprises and will be sharing updates on their social media channels and official website. They have also released limited-edition items like a Bayonetta music box and monthly wallpapers for fans.
It’s an exciting time for Bayonetta fans, and many are speculating about possible new game announcements or ports of previous titles.
Imagine holding your PS5 DualSense and you are turning your console on to began playing, but instead of a Playstation 5 and seeing the PS logo on your screen, you are powering on your Xbox console and yet, you can play your favorite Xbox game.
Well, this is the concept that Hyperkin has previewed at CES 2025 with a new Competitor Xbox controller that has the physics of the Playstation 5’s DualSense.
Evidently, Hyperkin took some liberties at the design to match most of the aesthetic of Sony’s PS5 DualSense, which makes me wonder if Sony actually will just leave it as it is (with an eyebrow raise) or we might be seeing legal movements during the year.
Competitor appears to feature offset control sticks, a hybrid D-pad, and face buttons, along with the analog sticks located next to each other on the bottom part of the controller, while the D-pad has moved to the upper-left side of the controller, and each direction is an individual button.
Keep in mind if it is now under your radar, that the controller is expected to be a wired-only gamepad and will be available sometime in the second quarter of 2025 with no mentioning of price.
Hyperkin is an American video game peripheral manufacturer and distributor founded in 2006. The company is based in Los Angeles, California, and distributes accessories for major gaming consoles, in addition to creating clone consoles that play retro games with modern resolutions and on modern devices.
Hyperkin’s most notable products include the RetroN series of clone consoles, which allow users to play games from classic consoles such as the Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and Sega Genesis. The company has also released a number of other retro-themed products, such as the Supaboy series of handheld consoles and the Retron 5, an Android-based console that can play games from a variety of platforms.
In recent years, Hyperkin has also begun to produce its own original gaming peripherals, such as the Hyperkin Duke, a modern take on the classic Nintendo 64 controller. The company has also released a number of licensed controllers for popular games, such as the Hyperkin Cthulhu Controller for the Nintendo Switch.
The biggest announcement from Intel at their keyonote on CES 2025, was the second batch of the Intel Core Ultra 200 series processors, which are designed to be used on AI ready laptop computers and power high capacity mobile computers.
Of course, for our interest, this means that future laptops will benefit from enhanced gaming performance for this year 2025.
The 2025 Core Ultra 200 family incldes:
Core Ultra 200HX: Targeted at high-performance gaming laptops. It includes advanced features like overclocking capabilities and enhanced data lanes for maximum performance.
Core Ultra 200H: A middle ground option with integrated Intel Arc graphics, suitable for performance thin and light laptops.
Core Ultra 200U: Designed for budget-end systems and less demanding tasks, featuring Intel Graphics GPU.
Intel claims that the new processors offer double-digit performance improvements over previous generations in both single and multi-core workloads and specifically, the Core Ultra 200H series includes Intel Arc integrated graphics, providing more than 20% better GPU performance compared to previous models.
Also, these processors are designed to consume less power while maintaining high performance, making them ideal for gaming laptops and mainly, gaming on the go.
Talking about gaming, the combination of powerful CPU cores and advanced integrated graphics ensures a smooth and immersive gaming experience and again, taking for example the Core Ultra 200HX series, this specific CPI is designed to work seamlessly with discrete GPUs, providing maximum performance for gaming systems.
Intel says that it has addressed previous power management issues, ensuring that gaming laptops can deliver consistent performance without throttling and this take us to the other purpose of this family and it is housing an AI entity.
For Artificial Intelligence needs, Intel claims the processors feature a neural processing unit (NPU) with up to 99 TOPS (trillions of operations per second) for enhanced AI capabilities significant gen-over-gen performance advancements in key areas like media processing and AI analytics and mobile graphics benchmark improvement via AI graphical computing.
The processors are expected to be available starting early Q1 2025 for the Core Ultra 200H series, and late Q1 2025 for the Core Ultra 200HX series.
As for partners, Intel has not yet disclosed specific partners for the Core Ultra 200 series processors. However, given Intel’s extensive history of collaborations, it’s likely that major PC manufacturers such as Dell, HP, Lenovo, and Asus will be among the first to integrate these processors into their new laptops and desktops.
One of the early gaming related announcements of CES 2025 comes in the form of an impressive Pinball machine and it is a $7000 Dungeons & Dragons pinball machine. This pinball machine, called “Dungeons & Dragons: The Tyrant’s Eye,” is a tribute to the tabletop RPG’s 50th anniversary.
It features an all-star voice cast, including Michael Dorn from Star Trek: TNG, and takes players on an adventure through the Forgotten Realms.
Players take on the role of members of the Dragonshield Guild, aiming to defeat the dragon queen Tiamat, who is plotting to rise again and trigger the War of Dragons. The game features various iconic enemies such as Rath the Relentless (a red dragon), Xanathar the Beholder, Sammaster the Lich, and more.
Voice Cast
The game features a star-studded voice cast including Michael Dorn, Kevin Smith, Luke Gygax, Chris Prynoski, Brendon Small, Gerard Way, Matthew Mercer, Laura Bailey, Marisha Ray, Anthony Carboni, and Mica Burton.
Now the tech side of this Pinball machine include four important aspects starting with Rath the Relentless: An advanced animatronic mech that reacts to player actions and intelligently will follow your Pinball to avoid being hit using advanced sensors with multi-axis motion and features omnidirectional impact sensing technology.
Another aspect and related to Rath, is the Omnidirectional Impact Sensing and this technology allows the animatronic dragon to intelligently respond to impacts from any direction, adding a new level of realism and interactivity to the game.
Then we got a Interactive Playfield, which includes Hidden Passageways that players can navigate, adding an element of exploration to the game, Electromagnet-powered Gelatinous Cube and this feature freezes the pinball, creating a unique challenge for players and Dynamic Dungeon Levels, which are sccessed through a disappearing playfield trap door, these levels change the gameplay environment and add variety to the experience.
And finally, digital integrations with the Insider Connected Platform and this platform enables ongoing code updates and interaction with a global network of players. Players can share their progress, unlock new features, and stay connected with the pinball community, High-Resolution LCD Screens and LED Lighting.
Of course, this elements combine traditional pinball components with video game-style interactive screens, enhancing the visual experience.
Dungeons & Dragons: The Tyrant’s Eye pinball machine is set to be released in late 2025. It’s being produced by Stern Pinball Inc. under an official license from Wizards of the Coast1.
The game is available in three editions, each with different features and pricing:
Pro Edition: Priced at $6,999 USD
Premium Edition: Priced at $9,699 USD
Limited Edition (LE): Priced at $12,999 USD. This edition is limited to just 740 models in honor of D&D’s original release in 1974.
Each edition offers unique artwork, audio, and additional features, with the Limited Edition including upgraded audio and anti-reflection glass.
If I can name an early gaming surprise from 2025, I would say Markus “Notch” Persson, the original creator of Minecraft, because has recently announced his plans to develop a spiritual successor to the beloved game, which he’s dubbed “Minecraft 2.”
This announcement comes after a poll on social media where fans overwhelmingly voted in favor of a new Minecraft-style game over his other project, a traditional roguelike dungeon crawler.
Honest and legitimate request for feedback for once:
The new game I'm passionately working on is currently set to be a traditional roguelike (i.e. ADOM, nethack, etc) mixed with a tile based first person dungeon crawler (ie Legend of Grimrock (esp 2), Eye of the Beholder)
Notch shared his thoughts on social media, explaining that he’s considering creating a new game similar to Minecraft but under a different name to avoid legal issues.
He emphasized that he wants to avoid infringing on Mojang’s work and Microsoft’s success with Minecraft. The new game will be a spiritual successor, meaning it will capture the essence and gameplay style of Minecraft without directly using the same name or assets.
Notch sold his studio, Mojang, to Microsoft in 2014 for $2.5 billion, which made him a billionaire. Since then, he hasn’t been directly involved in Minecraft’s development. Over the past decade, he has raised eyebrows with several public comments on social media that were seen as homophobic, racist, and in some instances, supportive of conspiracies.
These events led to him becoming distanced from the gaming community and not being invited by either Microsoft or Mojang to the 10th-anniversary celebrations of Minecraft. However, his recent return to game development has sparked excitement among fans who consider the past controversies just that—a thing of the past.
In a recent post on X, Johan Pilestedt, the creative director of Helldivers 2, revealed that he’s already planning Arrowhead Game Studios’ next game. With just minutes to go before 2025, Pilestedt shared his excitement and curiosity about what fans would like to see in the studio’s next project.
With 10 minutes to 2025. What are your expectations and desires for what the next Arrowhead game will be?
I am working on the high concept, but I would love to hear your speculation. 🥳
Since its release in February 2024, Helldivers 2 has been a massive hit, becoming PlayStation’s fastest-selling game launch ever.
The game sold over 12 million copies across PC and PS5 in its first 12 weeks, surpassing even God of War Ragnarök. The success of Helldivers 2 has allowed Arrowhead to continue updating the game and even hinting at a potential “Helldivers 3” in the future.
Fan Input
Pilestedt is actively seeking fan feedback and speculation on what the next Arrowhead game should be. He mentioned that he is working on the high concept for the new game but is eager to hear what fans envision. Some fans have suggested ideas like a remake of Smash TV or an on-rails aircraft game similar to Star Fox.
While Helldivers 2 continues to receive updates and new content, Arrowhead is already looking ahead to their next big project. Pilestedt has shared that the studio has conceptualized several ideas, including some that never made it to the final stages. This openness about the studio’s creative process has excited fans and given them a glimpse into the potential future of Arrowhead’s games.
In a surprising revelation, it has come to light that Xbox turned down a pitch for a major franchise crossover in the new animated series Secret Level. The creators of the show had envisioned an episode featuring a crossover between Halo’s Master Chief and Doom’s Doomslayer, two of Microsoft’s biggest first-person shooter franchises. However, the pitch was rejected by the license holders.
According to Tim Miller in a inteview with Collider, one of the creators of Secret Level, the idea was to create an episode where Master Chief and Doom Slayer would team up in a unique narrative that isn’t available in the games. Miller and his team spent considerable time crafting an impassioned pitch, hoping to bring this exciting crossover to life.
Despite their efforts and the support from friends at id Software and Microsoft, the pitch was ultimately turned down. Miller expressed frustration over the rejection, especially when fans questioned why they chose smaller franchises over well-known ones like Halo
Needless to say that for fans of both Halo and Doom, this news is undoubtedly disappointing.
The idea of seeing these iconic characters team up in an animated format would have been a thrilling experience. However, there is still hope that Microsoft might reconsider for Season 2 of Secret Level, given the positive reception of the show.
While the Master Chief and Doom Slayer crossover didn’t come to fruition this time, the success of Secret Level and its upcoming second season means there could be more opportunities for exciting crossovers in the future. Fans will be eagerly watching to see what other surprises the show has in store.
