The Amazon Spring Sale is just around the corner, but you can already save on some of our favorite tech — in addition to tech that’s just been released. Apple announced new iPads and MacBooks earlier this month, and the newest, entry-level iPad has already received a discount on Amazon.
You can pick up the iPad (A16) for $329 right now, or $20 off its standard price. It comes with an A16 chip and a newly upgraded 128GB of storage — double the amount in the previous base iPad. It doesn’t support Apple Intelligence, but offers features such as a 12MP wide camera, 4K video and a Liquid Retina display.
If you’re not fussed about getting the newest model then check out Amazon’s sale on Apple’s 10th generation iPad. Right now, it’s down to $269 from $349 — a 23 percent discount. It’s screen is one-tenth of an inch smaller and it offers many of the same features, like 4K video recording and a 12MP wide camera. Plus, it still has a USB-C port rather than the old lightning port.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/amazon-spring-sale-deals-include-apples-new-base-ipad-for-20-off-143705989.html?src=rss
As was the case last year, Amazon will have another big sale to usher in spring for 2025. The Amazon Spring Sale is officially on the books, taking place from March 25 through March 31. The online retail giant is billing this as a good way for folks to stock up on end-of-season winter items, and save on all things fashion, beauty and household and outdoor gear.
If last year was any indication, the Amazon Spring Sale won’t be as much of a boon for tech deals as, say, Prime Day in July. However, there are always a number of decent deals that pop up on wireless earbuds, tablets and more. Considering the spring nature of the sale, we expect to see discounts on robot and cordless vacuums, household tech like air purifiers and even some smart home gear. With that in mind, here are the best early Amazon Spring Sale deals you can shop right now.
Best Amazon Spring Sale deals so far
Bose QuietComfort headphones for $249 ($100 off): These Bose over-ear headphones provide excellent noise cancellation, a comfortable fit and up to 24 hours of listening time on a single charge. A quick-charge feature will net you 2.5 hours of battery life in just 15 minutes of charging, so you’ll rarely have to go without them, too.
Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones for $349 ($80 off): These hold the top spot in our best wireless headphones guide for excellent noise cancellation. These cans will give you a step up in ANC, blocking out most noise and chatter of those around you. General audio quality has been improved as well, and they have a comfy fit.
Dyson AM09 heater and fan for $300 (36 percent off): The AM09 has been around for ages, and for good reason. It’s an excellent heater during cold months and fan during warm months, so you can use it all year round. Jet Focus control lets you choose from Focused or Diffused for personal or whole-room heating or cooling, and the handy sleep timer lets you set when the device turns off in intervals from 15 minutes up to nine hours.
Dyson V15s Detect Submarine for $798 ($152 off): This Dyson cordless stick vacuum and mop is a top pick in our best cordless vacuums guide thanks to its sleek design and included mop attachment that easily swap in so you can clean tile, hardwood and other flooring with liquid solution. Yes, it’s expensive, but you’re essentially getting two cleaning machines in one — plus, when used as a vacuum, it has excellent suction power and great battery life.
Apple AirTags (four-pack) for $70 ($29 off): These are the best Bluetooth trackers for iPhone users thanks to their vast finding network and accurate ultra wideband features for locating your things when they’re close by. Just attach them to your keys, wallet or bag with the right AirTag holder and keep track of everything in the Find My app.
AirPods Max (USB-C) for $480 ($70 off): If you’re looking for over-ear headphones with all of the conveniences of in-ear AirPods, the AirPods Max are one of your only options (with the others being Beats devices). The latest models have the same design as the originals, but now charge up via USB-C instead of Lightning.
Apple Watch Series 10 for $329 ($70 off): Apple’s flagship wearable is the best smartwatch you can buy, period. While the Series 10 was an iterative update, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It sports a slightly longer battery life, a slimmer design and wide-angle OLED screen for better viewing angles. It tracks workouts accurately and delivers alerts to your wrist efficiently.
Apple Watch SE for $199 ($50 off): Those on tighter budgets can opt for the Apple Watch SE and know they’re getting the core Apple wearable experience with few compromises. We consider it to be the best smartwatch for newbies.
Audible (three months) for $3 ($42 off): This deal gives you access to Audible Premium Plus, which includes one credit each month that you can spend on any book you’d like, along with listening access to thousands of other books, podcasts and Audible Originals. You also get to take part in Audible’s exclusive member sales.
Beats Fit Pro for $169 (15 percent off): These are the best wireless earbuds for working out thanks to their comfortable, secure fit, good sound quality with thumping bass and handful of convenient features provided by Apple’s H1 chipset. It provides quick-pairing and switching between Apple devices (and quick pairing with Android phones), Find My compatibility and hands-free Siri.
Levoit Core 400S air purifier for $187 ($33 off): Our top pick for the best air purifier for most people, the Core 400S has easy-to-use onboard controls, powerful filtering technology that isn’t too loud and relatively affordable replacement filters. It reliably improved air quality in our testing, and even though its mobile app is a little overstuffed, it gives you another way to control and monitor the device.
Shark AI Ultra robot vacuum for $300 (31 percent off): This is a version of one of our top picks in our best robot vacuums guide. Shark makes excellent robovacs with strong suction power and convenient bagless, self-emptying bases. This model in particular can hold up to 60 days worth of debris before its base needs to be emptied. If you want a machine that can mop in addition to vacuum, consider Shark’s Matrix Plus robovac, which is 47 percent off and down to $400.
iRobot Roomba Combo Vac and Mop for $159 (42 percent off): This “essential” Roomba is relatively no-frills, but it has the added benefit of being a mopping robot in addition to a vacuum. It includes a washable mopping pad and a water reservoir so you can clean hard floors, and it will autonomously vacuum just like all of iRobot’s other basic robovacs.
Samsung T7 portable SSD (2TB) for $140 (48 percent off): We’re on the T9 series now, but if you’re looking to save a bit of cash, the T7 remains a great option for on-the-go storage. It supports read and write speeds up to 1,050/1,000 MB/s and sports a pocket-friendly design.
Amazon Spring Sale FAQs
When is the Amazon Spring Sale?
The Amazon Spring Sale 2025 runs from March 25 through March 31.
What is Amazon’s Spring Sale?
The Amazon Spring Sale is a multi-day sale event that has taken place at the end of March since 2024.
Do I have to be a Prime Member to shop the Amazon Spring Sale?
No, Amazon Spring Sale deals are available to all, including those who do not subscribe to Prime.
What types of deals can I expect to find during the Amazon Spring Sale?
In the past, we’ve seen a lot of spring cleaning and fashion items in sale during the Big Spring Sale. We expect this year to be no different. We at Engadget in particular will be on the lookout for discounts on our favorite spring cleaning tech, including robot vacuums, cordless vacuums and air purifiers, along with deals on kitchen and smart home gear.
Are there deals I can shop now ahead of the Amazon Spring Sale?
Yes, check out our list of the best Amazon Spring Sale deals you can get right now above.
How long does the Amazon Spring Sale last?
The Amazon Spring Sale lasts seven days this year, running from March 25 through March 31.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/amazon-spring-sale-2025-everything-to-know-and-early-tech-deals-from-apple-bose-sonos-and-others-130607264.html?src=rss
There’s a bidding war for the film adaptation of Split Fiction, according to the information Variety has gathered at this year’s Game Developers Conference. Split Fiction is a split-screen multiplayer co-op game by Swedish indie developer Hazelight, which was also the studio behind the genre-defining game It Takes Two. The publication says Story Kitchen, the same media company that pieced together the It Takes Two film adaptation package until it was picked up by Amazon, is already looking for actors, writers and a director for the project.
Variety didn’t mention specific companies bidding for the game’s rights, but offers are reportedly coming in from “multiple top Hollywood studios.” Split Fiction was specifically designed for split-screen gaming through local or online play. You can control either one of the two main characters, Zoe and Mio, as they navigate multiple worlds and overcome various obstacles. The game’s story revolves around the two authors who were invited by a company called Rader Publishing to test a new simulation technology that allows players to experience their own fictional stories as reality.
Due to an accident, Mio fel into Zoe’s story, which created a glitch that allowed them to travel to and from each other’s science fiction stories featuring dragons, cyberpunk motorcycles and other sci-fi and fantasy elements. The game was released on March 6, 2025 and is currently available on the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/a-split-fiction-movie-is-reportedly-in-the-works-121528148.html?src=rss
For all of the money and clout Meta has, it can’t stop the triennial emergence of a whistleblower revealing how awful its leadership is. Careless People, the tell-all memoir from former staffer Sarah Wynn-Williams is the latest, dishing plenty of dirt on the house of Zuckerberg. The book has shot to the top of The New York Times’ bestseller list despite Meta’s attempts to suppress it.
There’s plenty of scorn for Joel Kaplan, the former George W. Bush staffer and friend of Brett Kavanaugh, who has long been seen as the figure behind Facebook’s rightward pull. Kaplan is accused of blocking attempts to address the company’s role in the Myanmar genocide. The book suggests Kaplan didn’t know Taiwan was an island, and that he reportedly harassed Wynn-Williams.
What’s surprising, really, is how unsurprising many of the revelations are, from Zuckerberg’s venality to the company’s general indifference to the harms it creates. It’s not likely many of the claims here will make many people reconsider their relationship with the company and its products, either.
Fujifilm has been on a hot streak for a while, to the point it’s looking to flex its muscles with some absolutely wild specs. The company announced the GFX100RF medium format compact camera with, wait for it, a 102 megapixel sensor. It’s machined from a single block of aluminum, aping the aesthetic found on the company’s other X-series cameras. I can’t wait to see the hipsters who wanted something fancier than an X100 VI wasting this camera’s talents in the next few years.
Google has announced the already widely leaked Pixel 9a, its latest budget addition to the Pixel line. It ditches the Pixel’s famous camera bar in favor of a regular raised lens housing, but it has the same Tensor G4 chip as its pricier siblings. That will enable owners to harness some of the same AI smarts Google’s been selling on the flagship Pixels at a far lower price. Check out Sam Rutherford’s hands-on to see if your wallet might be tempted to crack open.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-a-closer-look-at-facebooks-leadership-114522686.html?src=rss
If you think about it, Severance‘s “innies” — the people trapped in an endless cycle of office work — should genuinely hate their “outies” — their other halves who exist everywhere else. While outies are free to live a seemingly carefree existence, unburdened by the labor, boredom and indignities of office life, innies have no escape. Every time they enter the elevator at the end of their shifts, which triggers the switch to their outie persona, innies just blink and return to the sterile hallways of nefarious biotechnology firm Lumon Industries. There are no weekends or holidays, there isn’t even time to sleep.
Spoilers ahead for Severance season 2. No spoilers for the finale, “Cold Harbor.”
Severance‘s first season arrived as we were all reeling from the initial onslaught of the COVID pandemic and many of us were dealing with our own work-life balance issues. It introduced the show’s core concept — that Lumon pioneered the ability to completely separate work and life experiences — and it made the terms “innie” and “outie” a new cultural shorthand. But the debut season also leaned heavily on the outie perspective, sometimes to a fault. In its second season, Severance became even stronger by focusing more on the innie perspective. Do they deserve whole lives, or just the labor their outies don’t want to deal with? Are they allowed to fall in love? Are they even real people?
Apple
These are all concepts the show previously touched on, but the innie experience became all the more tragic as season two went on. We watched as Adam Scott’s Mark S. wrestled with the dueling desires to rescue Lumon’s wellness counselor, Ms. Casey, who was revealed to be his outie’s supposedly dead wife, and also nurture a budding romance with fellow innie Hellie R. (Britt Lower). John Turturro’s Irving B. spent the entire season nursing a broken heart, after the innie he fell in love with disappeared. And Zach Cherry’s Dylan G. ended up falling in love with his outie’s wife (Merritt Wever), who saw the best aspects of her floundering husband through his innie.
Innies owe their lives to their outies, but lead a tortured existence that basically just makes everything easier for outies. Season two made it clear that the process of severance, which involves a brain injection that splits the innie and outie personas, essentially creates an adult child who only exists to work. Innies have no understanding of science, history or the greater world beyond what Lumon tells them. And naturally, the company’s messaging to innies is purely focused on efficiency, output and the cult-like adoration of its founder, Kier Eagan. (It’s as if Apple based its entire internal culture on worshipping Steve Jobs as a god, complete with archaic rituals and holy texts.)
Apple
While we spent less time with outies in this season, the show still had a sharper take on their side of the severed experience. There’s a funny nod to the “return to office” phenomenon, where Tramell Tillman’s Milchick practically had to beg the outies to come back to Lumon, following their innie revolt at the end of season one. In our world, RTO is mostly a phenomenon where executives are eager to witness their employees toiling away, rather than allowing them to potentially slack off while working at home.
We also get a sense of what outies lose by giving up their work life to their innies. When Dylan G.’s outie, Dylan George, is turned down for a basic job outside of Lumon, he learns he can’t count his innie’s work time, since he didn’t actually experience it. (In some ways it feels reminiscent of what we could lose by outsourcing work to AI tools.) Severance isn’t just a trap for the innies stuck in Lumon’s offices, their outies will also have a tough time landing a job anywhere else. The only choice is to stay loyal to Lumon, and its dear founder Kier, until you retire. Or die.
According to Dan Erickson, the creator and showrunner of Severance, this season was partially inspired by the recent Hollywood writer’s strike. “We were all talking to our guilds and having conversations about workers rights and what we owe our employers and what we should reasonably expect back in return… And how much of ourselves and our lives and our energy we should be willing to give up for the sake of a job,” he said in an interview on episode 252 of the Engadget Podcast.
Apple
While much of the second season was written before the strike, “consciously or unconsciously, I think that the tone of that, of those conversations made their way into the story,” Erickson said. “And certainly I think that they’ll be on people’s minds as they’re watching the show. Because at the end of the day… it is a show about the rights of workers and what they deserve as human beings.”
As I watched this season of Severance, and processed the events of its explosive finale, I couldn’t help but be reminded of Kazuo Ishiguro’s heartbreaking novel Never Let Me Go. It’s set in a strict boarding school where students are raised to serve one specific purpose, and their own lives are devalued in the process. But they still love, learn and dream. They have hopes and desires. Every innie should be so lucky.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/severance-season-two-review-innie-rights-and-humanity-made-for-a-stronger-show-100003400.html?src=rss
Console makers and game developers like Microsoft, Nintendo and Electronic Arts have created a new initiative, managed by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), that aims to make it easier to know what accessibility features games have.
The new Accessible Games Initiative has defined a set of 24 accessibility tags that will appear in participating game storefronts and product pages so players can know what features a game has before they buy it. The tags have easy to understand definitions and cover a range of accessibility features games offer, like subtitles, input remapping for controls, text-to-speech and speech-to-text in chat and narrated menus. All of the tags and definitions are available to view on the Accessible Games Initiative’s website. The ESA also says it will provide developers with criteria for the tags so they can develop accessibility features with them in mind.
The new tags are designed to co-exist with existing accessibility information on product pages, but some companies may choose to focus exclusively on the new “cross-industry” standard. For example, Microsoft plans to “replace existing Xbox Game Accessibility Feature tags with their equivalent Accessible Games Initiative tags” to avoid duplication, while keeping its own tags that aren’t in the initiative’s list.
The idea for the Accessible Games Initiative “was first developed by Electronic Arts, Google, Microsoft, Nintendo of America, Sony Interactive Entertainment and Ubisoft,” according to the ESA, and new companies have joined in time for launch, like “Amazon Games, Riot Games, Square Enix and Warner Bros. Games.”
Offering some kind of standardized way to know what accessibility features a game has is desperately needed. While developers have gotten better at offering accessibility features in their games by default, players interested in a specific feature have mostly had to rely on third-party resources like Can I Play That? to figure out how well they’ve been interpreted and implemented. These tags should start to fix that.
The only open question is when they’ll be adopted. The ESA told The Verge that “the timeline for implementation of the tags is company-dependent,” meaning there could be a wait ahead for players hoping to take advantage of the Accessible Games Initiative’s work.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/game-companies-will-standardize-accessibility-labels-on-storefronts-and-product-pages-211335539.html?src=rss
Console makers and game developers like Microsoft, Nintendo and Electronic Arts have created a new initiative, managed by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), that aims to make it easier to know what accessibility features games have.
The new Accessible Games Initiative has defined a set of 24 accessibility tags that will appear in participating game storefronts and product pages so players can know what features a game has before they buy it. The tags have easy to understand definitions and cover a range of accessibility features games offer, like subtitles, input remapping for controls, text-to-speech and speech-to-text in chat and narrated menus. All of the tags and definitions are available to view on the Accessible Games Initiative’s website. The ESA also says it will provide developers with criteria for the tags so they can develop accessibility features with them in mind.
The new tags are designed to co-exist with existing accessibility information on product pages, but some companies may choose to focus exclusively on the new “cross-industry” standard. For example, Microsoft plans to “replace existing Xbox Game Accessibility Feature tags with their equivalent Accessible Games Initiative tags” to avoid duplication, while keeping its own tags that aren’t in the initiative’s list.
The idea for the Accessible Games Initiative “was first developed by Electronic Arts, Google, Microsoft, Nintendo of America, Sony Interactive Entertainment and Ubisoft,” according to the ESA, and new companies have joined in time for launch, like “Amazon Games, Riot Games, Square Enix and Warner Bros. Games.”
Offering some kind of standardized way to know what accessibility features a game has is desperately needed. While developers have gotten better at offering accessibility features in their games by default, players interested in a specific feature have mostly had to rely on third-party resources like Can I Play That? to figure out how well they’ve been interpreted and implemented. These tags should start to fix that.
The only open question is when they’ll be adopted. The ESA told The Verge that “the timeline for implementation of the tags is company-dependent,” meaning there could be a wait ahead for players hoping to take advantage of the Accessible Games Initiative’s work.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/game-companies-will-standardize-accessibility-labels-on-storefronts-and-product-pages-211335539.html?src=rss
Samsung has officially announced the release schedule for its One UI 7 update, which will be available for the Galaxy S24 series, Galaxy Z Flip 6, and Galaxy Z Fold 6. The stable version of One UI 7 will begin rolling out on April 7 in multiple regions, including the United States, Europe, Indonesia, India, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Mexico, New Zealand, Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and the UAE. Other regions will receive the update on later dates, with Canada scheduled for April 10 and Malaysia and Singapore for April 14.
The rollout process will likely occur in phases, meaning that while some users in a given region may receive the update immediately, others might have to wait a little longer. Samsung device users can check for the update manually by navigating to Settings > Software update > Download and install. This method may allow users to access the update sooner rather than waiting for the automatic rollout.
One UI 7 is one of Samsung’s most significant firmware updates in recent years, introducing substantial improvements to both the user interface and overall device performance. Among the most noticeable changes is a redesigned notification panel and quick settings menu, making it easier for users to access key features. The app drawer has also been refreshed, offering a more streamlined navigation experience.
Additionally, One UI 7 introduces new features such as Now Bar and Now Brief, enhancing usability and efficiency. The Galaxy AI suite receives an upgrade, improving the intelligence of Samsung’s ecosystem with enhanced capabilities. Samsung has also refined visual elements, incorporating smoother animations for opening and closing apps. The inclusion of a new blur engine adds to the overall aesthetic appeal, creating a more fluid and visually pleasing experience.
Following the initial rollout for the Galaxy S24 series, Galaxy Z Flip 6, and Galaxy Z Fold 6, Samsung will shift focus to updating additional eligible Galaxy devices—other phones and tablets include the following:
Galaxy S23
Galaxy S23+
Galaxy S23 Ultra
Galaxy S24 FE
Galaxy Z Flip 5
Galaxy Z Fold 5
Galaxy Tab S9
Galaxy Tab S9+
Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra
Galaxy Tab S10+
Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra
While specific timelines for these devices have not yet been announced, Samsung is expected to gradually expand the availability of One UI 7 across its product lineup.
Users eager to receive the update should stay informed by following Samsung’s official announcements and checking their devices regularly for new software updates. As Samsung continues to refine and enhance its software experience, One UI 7 represents a major step forward in providing users with a smoother, more intuitive, and visually appealing mobile experience.
Console makers and game developers like Microsoft, Nintendo and Electronic Arts have created a new initiative, managed by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), that aims to make it easier to know what accessibility features games have.
The new Accessible Games Initiative has defined a set of 24 accessibility tags that will appear in participating game storefronts and product pages so players can know what features a game has before they buy it. The tags have easy to understand definitions and cover a range of accessibility features games offer, like subtitles, input remapping for controls, text-to-speech and speech-to-text in chat and narrated menus. All of the tags and definitions are available to view on the Accessible Games Initiative’s website. The ESA also says it will provide developers with criteria for the tags so they can develop accessibility features with them in mind.
The new tags are designed to co-exist with existing accessibility information on product pages, but some companies may choose to focus exclusively on the new “cross-industry” standard. For example, Microsoft plans to “replace existing Xbox Game Accessibility Feature tags with their equivalent Accessible Games Initiative tags” to avoid duplication, while keeping its own tags that aren’t in the initiative’s list.
The idea for the Accessible Games Initiative “was first developed by Electronic Arts, Google, Microsoft, Nintendo of America, Sony Interactive Entertainment and Ubisoft,” according to the ESA, and new companies have joined in time for launch, like “Amazon Games, Riot Games, Square Enix and Warner Bros. Games.”
Offering some kind of standardized way to know what accessibility features a game has is desperately needed. While developers have gotten better at offering accessibility features in their games by default, players interested in a specific feature have mostly had to rely on third-party resources like Can I Play That? to figure out how well they’ve been interpreted and implemented. These tags should start to fix that.
The only open question is when they’ll be adopted. The ESA told The Verge that “the timeline for implementation of the tags is company-dependent,” meaning there could be a wait ahead for players hoping to take advantage of the Accessible Games Initiative’s work.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/game-companies-will-standardize-accessibility-labels-on-storefronts-and-product-pages-211335539.html?src=rss
There’s something really exciting about FBC: Firebreak, Remedy’s take on cooperative, online first-person shooters. I’ve been trying to pinpoint a specific wow factor since attending the game’s developer-led demonstration last week, but I’ve concluded it’s a combination of multiple cool features blended perfectly together. FBC: Firebreak is set in the sterile headquarters of the Federal Bureau of Control and it features Remedy’s trademark dark surrealism, but it’s also infused with a healthy dose of silliness and mechanical depth. The result feels like a modern Left 4 Dead in the best possible way, just with Hiss instead of zombies and three players instead of four.
Left 3 Dead, anyone?
FBC: Firebreak takes place six years after the end of Control. The Oldest House, which used to be the seat of power for the FBC, has been sealed with the Hiss inside, and it’s now time to eradicate the invasion and lift the lockdown. The agency is sending in the Firebreak team, a unit composed of government volunteers with no extra combat training and little hope of making it out alive. As a member of Firebreak, you’re handed some special equipment, patted on the back and locked inside the headquarters with the Hiss and every unfortunate employee it’s infested. Good luck.
The game is broken down by Jobs, which are essentially custom-built missions in specific regions of The Oldest House. All Jobs have three zones, but otherwise each one has a unique objective, crisis, and environment. After selecting a Job, you get to customize your run by setting the Threat Level and Clearance Level — Threat Level determines combat difficulty and the number of rewards up for grabs, while Clearance Level sets the number of zones you have to clear and the type of rewards.
“I will say we do have more than three clearance levels, and you get into some pretty interesting stuff later, such as corrupted items that appear during the job,” game director Mike Kayatta said.
Remedy Entertainment
Before the match begins, each player gets to select one of three Crisis Kits, loadouts designed with specific playstyles in mind. Crisis Kits come with a tool and an item each. The Jump Kit is based around electricity and it has the Electro-Kinectic Charge Impactor, a portable jackhammer kind of device with a conductive metal plate on the end, capable of slamming into enemies or propelling yourself into the air. It also has the BOOMbox, which plays music to attract enemies before exploding. The Fix Kit gives you a big wrench that’s able to repair machinery and stagger Hiss, and it also includes a turret that you have to smack with the wrench to assemble. The Splash Kit is for all the water signs out there — it features the Crank-Operated Fluidic Injector, an industrial water cannon that can extinguish fires and soak enemies so they’re primed for extra damage, plus a Humidifier, which sprays healing water in a wide area.
“A good way to look at all of this is that you’re going to kind of combine the threat level and the clearance level and the type of job you want to play to sort of create your own load, your own experience, exactly the session that you’re looking for with whatever group you’re playing with that night,” Kayatta said.
Members of the Firebreak squad have their own Research Perks, or upgrade slots. You purchase Perks with currency earned during Jobs, and stacking upgrades of the same type strengthens their effect. Equipping three Perks of the same type lends that ability to nearby teammates as well.
Remedy Entertainment
“For example, one perk might give you the feature that each missed bullet has a chance to return to your clip, or the ability to extinguish yourself by jumping up and down, which is how that of course works,” community manager Julius Fondem said. “If you equip just one perk, you get its effect. Simple, straightforward. If you equip two of the same type, you get a stronger version of that perk. And if you equip three of the same perk type, you can actually share its effect with your nearby crewmates. As you increase your kit proficiency, you’ll increase the slots you have to play with, giving you the opportunity to play with a lot of different builds and strategies.”
Killing Hiss is all fine and dandy, but collecting currency is a major goal of each run in FBC: Firebreak, too. Currency is used to purchase new gear and cosmetics as well as Perks. Regardless of whether you actually escape a Job alive, you’re rewarded with XP and proficiencies for the gear you used. You can only earn currency by finding it in the environment and successfully escaping with it (and your life).
“Ultimately, Firebreak is about efficiency,” Fondem said. “You can’t fail objectives, but the longer you spend doing them, the more and more Hiss will show up to stop you, increasing the chance that your crew dies on the job. That means the longer you spend exploring for currency, the more risk you’re inviting and the harder it will eventually become to make it back to headquarters in one piece.”
Speaking of currency — Remedy promises it won’t charge for critical content post-launch.
“We want to keep all of our players united, which means that all playable post-launch content, such as Jobs, will be free for everyone who has the game,” Fondem said. “We’ll support the game by offering paid cosmetic content as well.”
The Job that Remedy showed off in the media briefing (and featured in today’s Future Games Show Spring Showcase) was Paper Chase, a mission filled with flying yellow sticky notes, sticky-note monsters, and one hulking sticky-note titan as the final boss. It’s set in a classic FBC office space, concrete walls and blood-orange carpet, and players have to eradicate the rogue, multiplying sticky notes as well as the rushing Hiss. Little squares of paper swirl through the air and cling to the player’s face, covering the screen at times, amid explosions, flickering lights and showers of bullets. At one point, a player places a piggy bank in their melee weapon and smashes it on the Hiss, screaming, “Stand back, piggy’s coming out!” It activates an AOE wind effect on nearby enemies. There are environmental factors to mess with and a range of weapons to deploy — shotguns, machine guns, rifles, pistols, water cannons, turrets, grenades, electrified impact devices, boomboxes — and overall, Paper Chase seems like a damn good time.
Remedy Entertainment
It’s taken plenty of iteration to get to this point. And as it turns out, FBC: Firebreak isn’t limited to three players just to differentiate itself from a slightly similar 16-year-old game with a four in its title.
“The reason why we did three-player squads, really, it was like an organic quirk of the development,” Kayatta said. “We actually started testing with four players. I think it just didn’t feel quite as good. It was a little harder to understand where people were. That’s something that’s, like, not required but definitely helpful in this game. And it just felt like, with all of the chaos and all of the fun systems going off, three just felt right over time. So that’s it. And yeah, you can play solo or duo.”
FBC: Firebreak is due out this summer, and it’s heading to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store, plus it’ll be available day-one on Game Pass and PlayStation Plus. It’ll support cross-play. Remedy is aiming for a “lower-minimum” PC spec requirement and optimizing the game for Steam Deck. Still, FBC: Firebreak will ship with full ray-tracing support, DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation and NVIDIA Reflex capabilities.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/fbc-firebreak-first-look-left-4-dead-but-with-remedys-silly-surreal-touch-214657219.html?src=rss
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