Blizzard has finally shared how hero bans will work in competitive Overwatch 2. The new step will let teams ban heroes they think are overpowered or annoying to play against, without letting them game out who their opposing team might want to play. The feature is a common part of other competitive games like League of Legends, and is a meta-game in its own right.
For Overwatch 2, Blizzard hopes to use the "Ban Phase" mostly to let players remove heroes they find frustrating, and gather data to use when the game is rebalanced. When you first launch into a competitive match, you'll get the option to select your "Preferred Hero," which signals to your team who you don't want to ban. Then you'll rank three heroes you want to remove from the match, with your first choice given the most weight, and your last choice, the least. Blizzard says all teams and players vote simultaneously, but chat will be blocked off between opposing teams until voting ends.
Blizzard
Once all the votes are in, they get tallied using the following guidelines:
The team with the most votes for a specific hero will be considered the first team, and will guarantee that their chosen hero is banned. In the case of a tie, the first team is decided randomly.
Then, the other team becomes the second" team. If the heroes they voted to ban were not the first team's banned hero, then their most and second most voted heroes are banned.
If the second team's most or second most voted pick was also the first team's, then the second team's third most voted hero is removed instead.
And finally, the second most voted hero on the first team is banned, with the same caveat the second team had.
When the number of votes for a hero is tied, the game picks the hero voted by the most players in the lobby (and not the total amount of votes). Ties beyond that are broken randomly, and regardless of how the votes shake out, there's a limit of two bans per role. If you don't want to ban any heroes or don't know who to ban, you can also skip voting and let your teammates decide for you.
Blizzard first announced it would add hero bans to Overwatch 2 with its Season 15 announcement, which introduced a perks system to the game. Hero bans are set to arrive with Season 16 on April 22, which will also include the new Stadium mode, five-on-five matches where players earn currency to spend on upgrades between rounds, and have the option to play in third-person.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/blizzard-explains-hero-bans-ahead-of-their-introduction-in-competitive-overwatch-210319297.html?src=rss
Under no circumstances should you let AI do your schoolwork for you, but Google has decided to make that option a little bit easier for the next year. The company is offering a free year of it's Google One AI Premium plan, which includes Gemini Advanced, access to the AI assistant in the Google Workspace and things like Gemini Live, to any college student willing to sign up.
The offer gives you a sample platter of Google's latest AI features, which normally costs $20 per month, and is primarily focused on things you can do with Gemini. That includes experimental products like NotebookLM for analyzing documents, and Whisk for remixing images and videos. Because this is a Google One plan, you'll also get 2TB of Google Drive storage for the parade of PDFs that make up college life.
You can sign-up for the free offer on Google's website. You need to be 18 years or older, have a ".edu" email address and join before June 30, 2025, but once you do, you'll have the Google One AI Premium plan through July 2026. Google says you'll need to verify you're still a student in 2026, but otherwise, the whole thing is a light lift. Even if you don't care about AI, signing up is worth it for the free extra storage.
Google's intentions here obviously aren't pure. Free storage is nice, but If the company can normalize using AI for a generation of young minds, it can change what's an occasionally useful novelty into an essential. That's not likely to be good for critical thinking or test scores, even if it justifies the money the company is spending on AI research and development.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-is-trying-to-get-college-students-hooked-on-ai-with-a-free-year-of-gemini-advanced-195706467.html?src=rss
In the latest evidence that indie games are often where you find the boldest creative choices, look no further than Unbeatable. The handdrawn rhythm adventure title announced in 2020 and crowdfunded the following year oozes style and attitude. For example, look no further than its tagline: "a game where music is illegal and you do crimes." (Nice.) Developer DCell Games launched a new trailer and a much more robust demo on Thursday, letting you sample a slice of the full game.
One part of the "animejuiced" Unbeatable follows the protagonist, Beat, and her "band on the run." (Nice to see that a Wings reference can still fly in 2025.) The game's narrativedriven segment includes dialogue around town with various people, baseball (played "the wrong way" with sledgehammers and katanas), graffiti tagging and bareknuckle brawls with the cops who enforce the draconian antimusic laws. (Dicks!) And don't forget some alone time to "think and write new songs."
D-Cell
Another part of Unbeatable's gameplay involves rhythm minigames that only require two buttons: up and down. Although that mode is woven into the story, oldschool rhythm game fans can enjoy a separate arcade mode that stands as a "complete game experience," including challenges and modifiers. (PaRappa the Rapper fans, rejoice.)
There's no release date yet, but the trailer below shows that DCell has put those five years of development time to good use. If it looks like your jam, you can take the demo for a spin on Steam and PS5. (The final version will also be available on Xbox.)
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/the-rhythm-infused-adventure-unbeatable-has-a-new-demo-for-pc-and-ps5-185618354.html?src=rss
As part of their ongoing celebration of the Hubble Space Telescope's 35th anniversary, NASA and ESA have shared a new image of the Eagle Nebula, specifically a "spire of cosmic gas and dust" that's in a region last captured by the telescope two decades ago.
The tower in the image is 9.5 light years tall, according to NASA and ESA, and only a portion of the larger Eagle Nebula, which is considered a "nursery" for young stars. The tower's unique mix of oranges and dark blues is thanks to a combination of swirling hydrogen gas and space dust. The nebula's "Eagle" name comes from how it looks when you pan across it, where edge clouds like the one in the image look like the wings of a giant bird of prey.
ESA/Hubble & NASA, K. Noll
As of late, the James Webb Space Telescope has become the designated source for spectacular images of space, but clearly Hubble still has some juice in it, too. Some of that is thanks to "new data processing techniques" that are being applied to the images captured by the telescope.
The Eagle Nebula is just one of several celestial targets Hubble is revisiting for its 35th anniversary. By capturing different angles and using data differently, the telescope is able to produce more spectacularly colored images. There's no major discoveries made with these "reruns," but they are, without a doubt, even cooler than before. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/celebrate-the-35th-anniversary-of-the-hubble-space-telescope-with-a-gigantic-tower-of-gas-and-dust-184340147.html?src=rss
The Apple Sports app just introduced a new feature called Game Card Sharing. This lets users generate digital game cards that carry information about a specific match. The cards can be generated for upcoming, live and completed games. In the latter two cases, the score will be displayed.
The cool part about these cards is that they are shareable across iMessage or via social media platforms. I could see this being useful in a group chat with friends, as a handy way to keep track of an ongoing match. Just look for the share button on the upper-right side of each card.
There is one caveat. It requires the latest version of iOS, so it might be time to finally strap in for an update. These cards work with a whole bunch of sports leagues, including the NBA, MLB, NHL and even stuff like the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
For the uninitiated, Apple Sports is a free iPhone app that delivers real-time scores and various stats. It also displays useful stuff like broadcast information. It even lets users pin real-time scores to the lock screen.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/the-apple-sports-app-now-lets-users-create-and-share-game-cards-184235076.html?src=rss
Tesla is facing a proposed class action suit over allegations that it has been speeding up odometers so its vehicles will fall out of warranty faster, according to a report by Reuters. This would make it easier for the company to get out of paying for repairs.
Nyree Hinton, the plaintiff in the case, alleges that Tesla odometer readers are designed to change with energy consumption, driver behavior and mysterious predictive algorithms, and not actual mileage driven. He said that the odometer on the 2020 Model Y he bought in December 2022 had 36,772 miles on the clock at the time of purchase.
Hinton alleges that the odometer went up by 72 miles each day, when he only drove around 20. He made comparisons to his other vehicles and concluded that the odometer ran, at the minimum, 15 percent fast. This caused his 50,000-mile basic warranty to expire ahead of schedule, which forced him to pay a $10,000 suspension repair bill out of pocket.
"By tying warranty limits and lease mileage caps to inflated 'odometer' readings, Tesla increases repair revenue, reduces warranty obligations, and compels consumers to purchase extended warranties prematurely," the complaint said.
Hinton is seeking compensatory damage for himself, but also punitive damages for all Tesla drivers in California. This encompasses over one million vehicles, according to court papers. Tesla has denied all allegations in the lawsuit. EV forums and related subreddits, however, are filled with odometer complaints involving the company.
Tesla owners are seeing inflated odometer readings 20-30% higher than driving the same route with a different vehicle or compared to Google Maps trip distance.Hey @NHTSAgov you up? pic.twitter.com/Gb2LiBfZge Mike Rundle (@flyosity) April 22, 2024
Of course, this isnt the first time Tesla has been charged with fibbing about mileage data. The automaker has faced litigation that accused it of inflating vehicle driving ranges. It has also been accused of forming a secret Diversion Team that would cancel range-related service appointments.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/tesla-accused-of-messing-with-odometers-to-get-out-of-repair-bills-165625372.html?src=rss
The European Commission (EC) reportedly delayed regulatory penalty announcements against Apple and Meta this week as it accelerates its push for a trade deal with the US. On Friday, the Wall Street Journal said the move led to concern from European Parliament lawmakers that political factors are influencing the body's regulatory decisions.
The EU is said to have initially planned to announce cease-and-desist orders against Apple and Meta on Tuesday and reportedly told at least one of the companies about the timing in advance. The WSJ says the decision to postpone the announcement came shortly before EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič met with US officials in Washington on Monday, the official's first in-person talks with the US since President Donald Trump's 90-day tariff pause.
On Tuesday, an EC spokesperson said technical work had been completed on the cases, but no dates had been announced. "We're currently working on the adoption of final decisions in the short term," the spokesman reportedly said.
Kevin Dietsch via Getty Images
The European Commission's penalties stem from the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which aims to level the playing field for smaller companies competing with Big Tech behemoths. The EC probed Meta for its scheme that lets users opt out of personalized ads, for a price. Meanwhile, Apple's case relates to the company's rules that limit developers' ability to steer consumers to transactions outside the App Store. The EC opened the probes in March 2024.
Under the DMA, companies could be fined up to 10 percent of their global annual revenue. However, the WSJ reports that the financial penalties would be much lower than that, and the cease-and-desist orders would be much more impactful.
Earlier this month, EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera told lawmakers that the EC wouldn't meet her March deadline to issue a decision on Apple and Meta. That statement was on April 8, a day before Trump officials announced a pause on the "Liberation Day" tariffs.
The WSJ reports that the regulatory decisions are still expected to advance, but it isn't clear how long their announcement will be delayed. The European Commission has previously claimed it would fight to defend its "regulatory autonomy" despite pressure from Trump and his Big Tech backers to neuter the bloc's restrictions on American businesses.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/eu-regulators-reportedly-delayed-apple-and-meta-penalty-announcements-ahead-of-us-trade-talks-164644661.html?src=rss
Blue Prince is an incredible puzzle game. Set in a lonely mansion with impossible architecture, its layered in mysteries, conspiracies and family drama. The mansion, Mt. Holly, officially has 45 rooms, but in order to collect your inheritance, you have to find the 46th. Every day youre given a set number of steps, and you have to literally build the manor (and the game) as you go, drawing from a pool of floorplans to create a new layout with each run.
This is the foundation, but it goes so much deeper: When I previewed Blue Prince in December 2024, I couldnt have imagined its complexity. Its not a game you can fully understand in a few runs; it takes 10 hours to realize what its core puzzles even are, and even longer to then piece their solutions together, room by room, step by step. Its a slow, supremely satisfying burn. The puzzles in Blue Prince are cavernous and surprising, and its thrilling to interact with the games mechanics and items. Not to mention, its all absolutely gorgeous.
Dogubomb
Though Blue Prince isnt marketed as a cooperative experience and it doesnt have any kind of multiplayer input, it naturally lends itself to co-op play. Mechanics matter less than the concepts on-screen, and its useful to have one person on controls and another on a notepad, jotting down clues and tracking progress. Plus, one of the best ways to get unstuck in a game like this is to talk things through, and this naturally happens when youre playing together. Blue Prince is just a really intricate puzzle, after all, and weve been doing those things in group settings for ages.
This is a true of many single-player puzzle games their common theme being that theyre secretly couch co-op experiences. You could say all games are local co-op if you try hard enough, but only in puzzle games can a bystander play along without ever touching a controller, directing the action and providing critical breakthroughs simply by paying attention. Youre not going to have the same level of impact watching your friend play Assassins Creed, you know?
Dogubomb
Blue Prince is only the latest example of an undercover couch co-op puzzle game. My partner and I have happily played a handful of similar games together in recent years, and its gotten to the point that I now breeze right past the single-player descriptor on most puzzle titles. Heres a shortlist of my households favorites:
Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
The Talos Principle 2
The Sexy Brutale
The Rise of the Golden Idol
Return of the Obra Dinn
The Witness
Viewfinder
Storyteller
All of these games are officially single-player, but theyre as good, if not even better, when played with a loved one. On my couch, weve also enjoyed actual local co-op puzzlers like Escape Academy, so if your relationship can survive those games, it should be able to handle Lorelei, Talos or Blue Prince with ease.
While were waxing poetic about the intricacies of video game sub-genres (OK fine, just one of us is), Blue Prince falls into another one of my favorite categories, which I affectionately call anti-GameFAQs puzzle games. These are designed to be impossible to capture in a traditional walkthrough guide, and while the category isnt large, it includes some of the best titles of this generation, like Tunic and Lorelei and the Laser Eyes. These lean so heavily on the thing that makes video games unique as a media product player autonomy that they feel like a hostile attack on step-by-step explainers, and I absolutely love that. (These games also tend to remind me of House of Leaves, which could be another sub-genre on its own, but Ill stop here. For now.)
Playing Blue Prince with my partner in 2025 reminds me of the specific lazy afternoon in the summer of 2008 when some friends and I discovered Braid on Xbox Live Arcade. We spent hours playing from my buddys dingy couch, passing the controller around, pointing at the screen and yelling out strategies, and just marveling at that little time-shifting toxic dude. Shared experiences like this generate a specific kind of warmth, and a great puzzle game can produce these moments over and over again.
Even if its technically single-player.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/every-puzzle-game-is-a-couch-co-op-game-actually-163024595.html?src=rss
If you've been hanging onto an older Apple Watch for a few years or you're an iPhone user who perhaps wants to pick one up for the first time to better track your activity, here's a deal for you. The Apple Watch Series 10 is once again on sale. It has dropped back down to $299, which matches a record low price. The smartwatch usually retails for $399.
This deal is for the 42mm GPS version of the Apple Watch Series 10 with a Sport Loop strap in various colorways (there's no LTE connectivity in this one). Other configurations are available for less than usual too the 46mm Series 10 with a Sport Loop is also $100 off at $329.
The Apple Watch Series 10 is our pick for the best smartwatch overall, though note that you'll need a compatible iPhone to use it. We gave the wearable a score of 90 in our review.
Admittedly, this is a relatively iterative upgrade. If you have an Apple Watch Series 8 or 9, the upgrade might not be worth it. But if you're an Apple Watch newcomer or you're upgrading from an older model, this is probably the one to go for.
The Series 10 has a larger screen than its predecessor, which makes it easier to see notifications and such. The thinner frame looks nicer too. However, while the Apple Watch Series 10 is great for fitness and wellness tracking, it's a bit disappointing that the device lacks the blood oxygen feature seen in earlier models (though Apple had little choice but to nix that here).
Check out our coverage of the best Apple deals for more discounts, and follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-apple-watch-series-10-is-back-on-sale-for-299-155611025.html?src=rss
This week, we're diving into Engadget's coverage from the 2025 New York Auto Show. There are tons of EVs, as we expected, as well as some surprising disappointments (what the heck did Subaru do to the Outback?!). Also, we once again try to make sense of the Trump administration's tariff mess. Stay tuned to the end of this episode for a chat with Isaiah Saxon, the director of A24s The Legend of Ochi, about his puppet-filled kids adventure.
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Topics
Whats hot in EVs from New York Auto Show 2025 1:56
Federal Judge rules that Google has a monopoly on U.S. digital ads 17:42
Facebook antitrust trial begins after several attempts to scuttle the case 22:18
Tariff Watch: tariffs on semiconductors and electronics to be announced later 31:16
PS5 prices are rising around the world 34:22
NPR: Whistleblower shows evidence DOGE took sensitive data from federal labor board 42:35
Sidewalk alerts in Seattle and Palo Alto hacked to play AI-generated messages 47:18
New details for Mario Kart World 48:43
Around Engadget / Working On 51:42
Picks 54:31
Interview with Legend of Ochi director Isaiah Saxon 59:59
Credits
Hosts: Devindra Hardawar and Nathan IngrahamProducer: Ben EllmanMusic: Dale North and Terrence O'Brien
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/engadget-podcast-ny-auto-show-2025-and-a-chat-with-the-director-of-the-legend-of-ochi-140014709.html?src=rss
