Gaming

8 PS4 multimedia features you must try out

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The PlayStation 4 is a sleek piece of gaming hardware. With its extensive library of blockbuster titles and indie darlings, it’s easy to overlook the console’s many cool features. Here’s what you can do with your PS4 that isn’t just playing a game.

Watch Netflix

Stream your favorite shows and movies through your Netflix subscription. Just hook up your PS4 online via cable or Wi-Fi, download the small Netflix app under the TV & Video tab, and sign in to your account. No need to get a smart TV or a digital media player! Your controller works just fine navigating Netflix’s simplified console menu.

View live broadcasts on YouTube and Twitch

Catch every second of fun that your beloved gaming streamers are broadcasting live on their Twitch or YouTube channel. Both apps are easily accessed on the PS4, and their interfaces are streamlined for navigation with your controller. You can watch the content in Full HD without choppy buffering, provided your internet connection is good!

Play Blu-rays and DVDs

Don’t have a Netflix subscription? Can’t connect to the internet for some reason but still want to watch something at home? Remember that your game discs are Blu-rays too, so the console has no problem playing Blu-ray shows and films. Your DVD collection also doesn’t have to gather dust, as the PS4 still supports this aged format smoothly.

Listen to music on Spotify

Enjoy the tunes you want to hear instead of being stuck with the same soundtracks of the games you’re playing through Spotify. Sony is in direct partnership with the music streaming service, so they made sure to integrate it with their gaming hardware for ease of use. The PS4 also picks up Bluetooth signals, so you can even control the app on the console through your smartphone or tablet if you have Spotify on your mobile device.

Capture in-game moments and share them through social media

Keep that SHARE button on your controller in mind when something beautiful or awesome happens on screen to take an HD picture so you always have something to remember that moment by. Show that screenshot off to your gamer friends on Facebook or Twitter. Go to the Capture Gallery where the images are saved, select the shots, and hold the SHARE button down to pull up the list of social media platforms you want to upload those images to.

Share your games with a friend or family member

Sometimes just sharing a screenshot of that game you love isn’t enough. For games you just downloaded on the PS Store and don’t have a disc to lend, you can get an interested friend or family member with their own PS4 to gain complete access to your game library. Just log on to your PlayStation Network account on their console, go to Settings, and select Activate as Your Primary PS4. This way any account on that unit can play all your games!

Swap out the default hard drive for a bigger one

The 500GB hard drive that the standard PS4 has might seem like enough, but with how huge games have become recently, commonly reaching 40 to 50GB in size with mandatory installation, it doesn’t take long to run out of space. Thankfully, you can easily switch the hard drive with a typical 2.5inch laptop drive of up to 4TB. You don’t need any expertise with hardware, just a Phillips screwdriver and a little time to spare to follow simple tutorials! Click this link for PlayStation’s official guide on upgrading the internal hard drive, or just watch the video above.

Use an external hard drive to store and run games

If replacing the internal hard drive is too much work, you can also just use an external hard drive for installing games. Any USB 3.0 storage device from 250GB to 8TB capacity will do. Just plug it in directly to one of the PS4’s USB ports and format it to work as the console’s extended storage. As long as you have it connected, you’ll be able to play the games installed on it. You can even move the games already installed on the internal hard drive to the external drive and vice versa. Click here for the official step-by-step instructions from Sony, or watch the video above.

SEE ALSO: 10 free-to-play mobile games for Android and iOS

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Gaming

Horizon Hunters Gathering is an upcoming co-op roguelite spinoff

If you liked Nightreign, you might like this.

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Like Valve, the PlayStation’s tentpole franchises are allergic to the number 3. The Last of Us, the ongoing God of War arc, Spider-Man, and Horizon all don’t have a third game yet. These franchises, however, have all gotten rumors of spinoffs. Now, Horizon is getting more than just a rumor; an official co-op spinoff is happening. Say hello to Horizon Hunters Gathering!

Today, Guerilla unveiled Horizon Hunters Gathering, an official co-op roguelite set in the Horizon universe. The game will feature multiple players working to take down difficult enemies, bosses, and dungeons.

The title shares similarities with Elden Ring Nightreign. For one, players can choose between six characters with different roles. The main mode, called Machine Incursion, takes players to a wide map with powerups and roaming monsters. The map then has a shrinking ring that… well, you know what a shrinking ring does.

Horizon Hunters Gathering also has a different game mode called Cauldron Descent. Compared to the Nightreign type of gameplay, Cauldron Descent is a more traditional roguelite mode. Players enter a dangerous dungeon and choose alternate paths that vary in challenges.

Both game modes will be available through an upcoming closed playtest through the PlayStation Beta Program.

Because this is from Guerilla themselves, this is an official game. But it’s far from the only spinoff for the universe. Previously, NCSoft, a South Korean gaming studio, announced Horizon Steel Frontiers, an MMO set in the Horizon universe. Like Horizon Hunters Gathering, Steel Frontiers has an unknown launch date.

SEE ALSO: Horizon Steel Frontiers is an MMO set in the Horizon universe

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Gaming

Valve is delaying the launch of the Steam Machine

But it’s still scheduled for the first half of 2026.

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Overshadowed only by the Nintendo Switch 2, the upcoming Steam Machine was one of the most exciting gaming devices announced last year. Unfortunately, especially if you were waiting intently for the console’s launch, Valve is delaying the device by an undisclosed amount of time.

Initially, Valve anticipated a launch for the Steam Machine sometime in the first half of 2026. However, as the calendar rolls on into the second month of the year, the company has yet to announce either a price or a launch date for the console. Valve says that both should be out by now.

In a recent update, the company confirms that ongoing chip shortages have forced a reevaluation of the Steam Machine’s price and shipping date. This also goes for the Steam Controller and the Steam Frame. Valve is going back to the drawing board to figure out what is feasible for the console market.

On the bright side, Valve is still aiming to launch all three devices in the first half of the year. It’s just a matter of determining when that is.

The Steam Machine is just the latest in a growing line of devices affected by the chip shortage. Today, chipmakers are funneling their supplies to the supposed demand for AI servers. Naturally, more infrastructure means less chips reserved for regular consumers.

Also recently, NVIDIA was rumored to skip this year for a new GPU launch because of the AI “boom”. It’s the first time that this has happened in thirty years.

SEE ALSO: Valve announces its own console called the Steam Machine

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Gaming

No new NVIDIA GPUs this year, report says

Once again, it’s because of AI.

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Yesterday, AMD made the bold claim that the next-generation Xbox is coming next year. In a world drowning in manufactured hype for AI, hearing about GPUs going back to gaming is refreshing. NVIDIA, however, still has its pipelines clogged with artificial intelligence. According to reports, the company will not release new graphics cards this year.

This is unprecedented. A new graphics card is often a highlight for gamers every year. Even in recent times when prices beggar belief, a newly launched chip still generates hype.

Now, for the first time in thirty years, NVIDIA will not launch a new card in a calendar year (via The Information). Like a lot of things happening this year, AI is the culprit.

Buoyed by the dreams of billionaires, GPU companies are busy dedicating their stock of chips for AI servers. Because these servers artificially blew up the demand for GPUs, everything else that needs such a chip is projected to see a price hike this year. This includes smartphones, gaming consoles, and cars. Regular consumers have been left to deal with the aftermath of the imaginary AI boom.

According to The Information, NVIDIA’s current lineup is only partially composed of chips meant for gaming. Only around 8 percent of its revenue came from that segment in the first nine months of last year. In its defense, AI chips are much more profitable right now, but it’s still a big blow against consumers who just want to play games.

SEE ALSO: NVIDIA is the world’s first $4 trillion company

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