That's the thing about Valve's timing: there's an Xbox-shaped hole in the market, and Microsoft wants to fill it... with something very like the Steam Machine! (But can Valve push it out broadly? Does it even want to? Does it prefer a slow trickle like Steam Deck?)

Scoop: Sony is making a Horizon MMO for your phone www.theverge.com/news/819657/...

Hey, that's me on The Full Nerd podcast talking Steam Machine with @adampatrickmurray.bsky.social @willsmith.fun and fellow special guest @gamersnexus.bsky.social! So fun, so nerdy. www.youtube.com/live/rvbj-XY...

It's time. Hopping in to answer your burning Valve and Steam Machine questions live right now! www.theverge.com/games/818113...

12 minutes till we start answering your burning Valve-Steam-Machine-Frame-Controller-2 questions!

The funniest thing about all of Valves hardware announcements today is that many of them are them going "you know what, fuck it, we were right the first time" and they were, in fact, right.

Bear with me as I take a victory lap, one that's actually mostly a victory lap for @sadlyitsbradley.bsky.social? I can't believe I can finally tell you everything I've been holding back the past couple weeks... after my trip to Valve.

Hey, so... you might want to check The Verge right now if you like Valve hardware.

I prefer @aliszewski.bsky.social's original suggested hed: "Lego's first Spot the cat minifigure comes with a $400 Galaxy class starship." I would buy the crap out of these mini-figs! www.theverge.com/news/815337/...

Epic already won its Google case... twice... and now... it's settling??? I've read through the document and... wow. You can read my TL;DR or the whole doc if you prefer. www.theverge.com/policy/81399...

Yes! Finally! I know people who've bought entire HDMI dummy plugs to trick the Steam Deck into turning off its screen while downloading. www.theverge.com/news/813864/...

After my Xbox Ally review, I never stopped testing. If Microsoft could get it to sleep without losing gobs of battery or crashing, it'd be a huge deal! But Microsoft wouldn't even admit anything was wrong. I switched to Bazzite, and it's like a whole new device. www.theverge.com/games/807711...

Eight years after the right coined "alternative facts," Elon Musk has given them an alternative encyclopedia, one that claims to purge bias while doing the opposite on topics like "climate change." Oh, and it's straight-up copying more vanilla Wikipedia entries. www.theverge.com/news/807686/...

Halo. Remake. It looks great, and it's coming to PS5 too. @tomwarren.co.uk has already played some! I can't wait. www.theverge.com/news/805174/...

Remember how @nataliethenerd.com made the Lego Game Boy play carts for real? She's going to sell a drop-in kit. It's called the Build a Boy. Everything I know right here: www.theverge.com/games/805673...

♫ It's beginning to look a lot like Xbox... ♫ Hallmark's Xbox 360 Christmas ornament. What do you think? I like the Sega Genesis better, but now I have an Xbox to keep it company under the tree!

Here are Amazon's smart delivery glasses. Definitely want to try these! Wouldn't want to be *required* to wear them... www.theverge.com/news/804962/...

Sharge does it again.

What a world we live in! www.theverge.com/news/804289/...

Samsung and Google's Vision Pro competitor is finally here. $1,800 and here's @vicmsong.bsky.social with the goods www.theverge.com/tech/802299/...

Mini-scoop: Here's how Google is picking the 15 "superfans" who'll test an unreleased Pixel phone — you can read the official rules! www.theverge.com/report/80370... (h/t my old colleague @welch.bsky.social for the original scoop)

Hey, that's me on The Vergecast with @davidpierce.xyz talking about the Xbox Ally! www.theverge.com/podcast/8031...

Remember how a GUMMY BEAR BATTERY BANK came along and ultralight backpacking nerds were like, no really, this beats the carbon-fiber-clad Nitecore stuff we've been using? You know I had to toy with it. The winner is...

Meanwhile

This week on Optimizer, I enlisted @seanhollister.bsky.social ‘s help in testing some prototype AI glasses that claim to help make you smarter. We ended up on a call where we spent half the time bobbing our heads like deranged seals. www.theverge.com/column/80155...

It's a good point. Maybe this handheld is not ready, but it points at a better future?

It's time! Come on in if you haven't already, I'm going to get started answering these Xbox Ally questions.

36 minutes till I dive into your subscriber questions on the Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X! And I'll have both handhelds on me (plus all their competitors!) so I can look up answers and do on-the-fly comparisons for you.

My Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X review. The top phrases running through my mind while testing it: "Someone's getting fired for greenlighting this launch" "This is not an Xbox" "If this is the future of Xbox, Xbox is screwed." Went with the middle. www.theverge.com/games/799698...

Today I've got something different for you! This is the "Xtra Muse" — and it seems to be DJI's first attempt to sneak its cameras past US tariffs and bans! See for yourself: this is a DJI Osmo Pocket 3, inside and out.

Seriously looking forward to an Intel Panther Lake handheld after this. www.theverge.com/report/79714...

Do you like benchmarks? I have benchmarks! Benchmarks of the most powerful handheld in the world. But I'll do you one better: my last table shows how other handhelds can still beat it — *depending* on how long you need your battery to last. www.theverge.com/games/791460...

Oooh yes! Join @davidpierce.xyz @andyjayhawk.bsky.social @seanokane.bsky.social for a whole hour chatting hoverboards! I have such fond memories of riding these magical feeling things, then quickly pivoting to stories about hoverboard fires and recalls.

In five minutes, my colleague @jp2e.bsky.social will do a subscriber-only AMA on Amazon and Google's new smart home gadgets. Ask her anything! www.theverge.com/tech/790817/...

scoop: Microsoft is getting ready to launch free Xbox Cloud Gaming with ads. This free game streaming is now in testing internally, and doesn't require a Game Pass subscription. A public test is coming soon. Full details here 👇 www.theverge.com/report/79121...

The most powerful gaming handheld is NOT an Xbox Ally X, Lenovo Legion Go 2, or MSI Claw. Today I'm toying with a prototype GPD Win 5 which utterly blows them out of the water... but, of course, at a huge cost.

It's so peaceful here.

Lego Game Boy, now *playable.* I want to try this so bad.

I’m running out of body parts to do my job. Anywho if you’ve got any burning questions for me while I test and review the Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses…

Xbox $360 a year. I wonder how many people will downgrade and how many will cancel. Seems like they're pushing for downgrades by bringing more to the lower tiers.

My Lego Game Boy review. Seriously, is there some kind of German word for what I'm feeling here? www.theverge.com/games/787849...

599 US dollars. But wireless hi-res!?

The Lego Game Boy is a brick masterpiece, and that's not based on a brief tradeshow hands-on. I bought it myself (early!), I built it, I compared it to a real vintage Game Boy. Minor quibbles, but it's so fun to build.

Microsoft and Asus' Xbox handhelds cost as much or more than an Xbox Series X. It kind of makes sense, since they're really PCs? But I was hoping for subsidies.

So wholesome!

Everything we thought we knew about game consoles is changing, and faster than ever before. My take: "The box will continue to be the tip of the spear, but it’s no longer the point." www.theverge.com/column/78130...

How to sell a video game console: 1) Make your console more expensive than the other consoles 2) Also put all of your games on the other consoles

An Xbox Series X is about to cost $150 more than it did last year. www.theverge.com/news/782079/...

I *know* it's too on the nose, but every time I have a tough Silksong fight, I think "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee" and it is exactly the right thing to do. I can't rushdown. I can't escape. I can't alpha strike. Hornet must sting, then GTFO. And it looks so graceful when you do.