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Mario Kart World received a free update today that brings a team option to its Knockout Tour mode. Initially, the Knockout races in this Nintendo Switch 2 launch title were only for solo drivers, challenging players to finish ahead of enough other competitors or get eliminated from the series. It was one of the highlights of the game in our review, and this new wrinkle should bring plenty more fun chaos to the racetrack.In the team mode, players compete either in two teams of twelve, three teams of eight or four teams of six. If you don't have enough people to fill out a team CPU drivers will complete the roster. Youll still progress or be knocked out based on individual performance, but your score will be pooled with your teammates results. More points are awarded for placing highly in a race, with 50 going to the top finisher while drivers who dont advance to the next course only get one. Eliminated drivers can continue to spectate the game and cheer on their teammates. Team play can be hosted via local wireless or online play. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/mario-kart-world-adds-a-team-option-in-knockout-tour-190348248.html?src=rss
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Forza Horizon 6 is taking the racing series to Japan for the first time, and now we know exactly when youll be able to hit the virtual streets of Tokyo. The game will arrive on Xbox Series X/S, PC and Xbox Cloud on May 19, with an early access period commencing on May 15. That lines up with earlier reports about the release date(s) after an in-game ad supposedly appeared in Forza Horizon 5. The upcoming title will hit PS5 later this year.The standard edition of Forza Horizon 6 is expected to cost $70, though it will be on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass. To jump in a few days early, youll need the premium edition (a deluxe edition will be available too).Playground Games and co-developer Turn 10 Studios offered a first look at gameplay during Thursdays Xbox Developer Direct showcase. Youll start out by working through Horizon qualifiers in order to join the Horizon Festival racing circuit, then youll unlock faster cars and other goodies as you rise up through the ranks. In a few feature called Horizon Rush, youll take on obstacle courses. Playground says this is the largest Forza Horizon game to date. This version of Tokyo, for instance, is said to be five times larger than any urban area the studio has built before and it has multiple districts. There are lots of rural areas in the game as well, and the environments are affected by seasonal changes. As has been the case in previous games, youll be able to explore the world as you wish, either solo or with your friends.There will be more than 550 cars available at the jump, and youll be able to apply liveries to their windows. Each player house has a customizable garage. You can build up a part of the world called The Estate as you see fit and your friends can visit to see what youve made (building will be available in multiplayer for the first time in the series too). There are also new open-world car meets where you can show off your whips, buy copies of other players rides and download more songs.Playground is including all of the accessibility features from previous games. Its adding new ones as well, such as a customizable high-contrast mode and an autodrive option.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/forza-horizon-6-will-hit-xbox-series-xs-and-pc-on-may-19-183242726.html?src=rss
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So it's come to this: Apple is reportedly working on a wearable AI pin. According to The Information, it is going to be a small device with "multiple cameras, a speaker, microphones and wireless charging." It sounds like the perfect gadget to pair with the long-awaited AI-powered Siri update, which will also reportedly work as a chatbot. But while many Apple rumors conjure up an air of excitement, the notion of an Apple AI pin sounds downright baffling. Worse, it just seems desperate. Apple, the company known for taking its time to jump into new categories with more thoughtful solutions than its competitors, is reportedly chasing the specter of OpenAI's unreleased AI pin. Never mind that OpenAI has never actually produced any hardware, and that it arguably stumbled into its position as a leading AI player. And never mind that Humane's AI pin was a notorious failure that barely worked, and seemed pointless from the start. Sure, Apple doesn't want more AI eggs on its face, after the delay of its Siri revamp and the underwhelming (and error-prone) debut of Apple Intelligence. Beyond OpenAI, there's also competition from Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses, which lean heavily on the companys AI. Theres also the looming threat of whatever AI hardware Meta is cooking up next, following the layoffs from its virtual reality division. And while Google doesnt have much to show from its Android XR platform, which aims to bring its Gemini AI to your face, Samsungs Galaxy XR is a start. Weve also recently seen compelling demos of Googles AR glasses prototypes and Xreals Project Aura glasses.If Apple's AI pin serves as a conduit to Siri, is it really that much more convenient than using an iPhone, AirPods or even an Apple Watch to do the same? The company has reportedly nixed plans to put cameras in the Apple Watch, and Bloomberg suggests its opting instead to focus on delivering its own smart glasses this year. But its not hard to imagine that faster hardware could let the Apple Watch handle more Siri and AI-related tasks on its own. Its already a fairly self-sufficient device, allowing you to ask basic Siri queries, run apps and listen to music without an iPhone the cellular models are even more capable since they can take calls and send messages.Rumors also point to infrared cameras coming to the next AirPods and AirPod Pros. Instead of taking photos, they could enable hand gestures and environmental awareness, which might be useful for Apple Intelligence down the line. The addition of heart rate tracking in the AirPods Pro 3 shows that there are still new features Apple can bring to its buds, beyond listening to music.At best, an Apple AI pin could just be a simple way for someone to access Siri if they dont want to wear an Apple Watch, plug in AirPods or have their iPhone within shouting distance. But at least those devices do other things beyond talking to Siri. The same is true for Metas Ray-Bans and future smart glasses. Even without accessing AI, theyll still let you listen to music, take calls and, well, be glasses for those who need prescription frames.Given the vocal pushback against Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses, which are also being banned on cruises, clubs and other venues, I'm also not convinced many people would be eager to prominently display a surveillance device throughout the day. Wireds Julian Chokkattu was questioned about wearing a camera while he was testing the Humane AI Pin, and Ive also had to explain to curious people why I was wearing Xreals smart glasses, which feature a prominent camera accessory.Sure, we're already living in a panopticon of smartphone cameras, but it's also obvious when someone is using their phone to capture photos and video. An AI pin just dangling off of your clothes is a constant threat, an unblinking eye. Even if Apple implements some sort of capture notification, someone will always try to circumvent it.While The Information notes Apple's AI pin may never actually see the light of day, I wouldn't be surprised if it does. This is the company that partnered with OpenAI just to make Siri appear slightly smarter with the debut of Apple Intelligence. And instead of building its own home-brewed AI models, it's banking on Google's Gemini to power Siri's big AI upgrade, as well as its future foundation models. When it comes to AI, Apple will do almost anything to avoid being seen as a straggler (and to avoid even more stock declines). Its genuinely strange that Apple, the company that let Samsung and Google get a multi-year head start on foldable smartphones and hasn't yet jumped into the world of smart rings, could fast-track an AI pin for 2027. Its yet another example of how the AI hype cycle has warped priorities throughout the tech industry. But at least Apples fortunes dont depend on standalone AI hardware as much as OpenAI. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/an-ai-pin-is-beneath-apple-182744647.html?src=rss
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