Articles by Nicholas Sutrich

It’s got a Lightsaber Dojo. What else do you need to know?

What you need to know

Vader Immortal Episodes 1-3 are coming to PSVR on August 25.
Each episode features an original story everyone’s favorite Sith, Darth Vader.
The Lightsaber Dojo in each episode provides hours of replayability so you can hone your Force skills.

The Vader Immortal trilogy is making its way to the PSVR on August 25, complete with the full original story and all three Lightsaber Dojos. Once an Oculus-exclusive title, Vader Immortal puts players in the shoes of an unknown Force-wielder who finds themselves at the mercy of Darth Vader on the insidious planet of Mustafar. Throughout these three original episodes, you’ll be exploring Vader’s Castle and uncovering secrets of the Sith, honing your Force skills and, of course, taking part in lots of Lightsaber combat.

PS5 VR (PSVR 2): Release date, price, and everything we know so far

Sony’s announcement at today’s State of Play showcase didn’t include a pric…

Sony looks to be stepping it up in a big way for a new generation.

Jump to:

Will the original PSVR work on the PS5?
What is the PSVR 2?
What will the PSVR 2 cost?
When will the PSVR 2 be released?
What will the PSVR 2 controllers look like?
Will the PSVR 2 have an improved display and lenses?
Will the PSVR 2 have eye-tracking?
Will the PSVR 2 have face-tracking?
Will the PSVR 2 be wireless?

PlayStation VR on the PS4 has been a success story in some very real ways. With over 5 million units sold and a steady library of games, Sony proved that VR gaming can be successful as an add-on to an already successful console. With the PS5, Sony looks to be upping the ante significantly, and the next-generation of PlayStation VR, likely called the PSVR 2, could significantly push boundaries for the industry as a whole.

If you’ve ever played or own an original PSVR, you’ll know that while it’s a great overall experience, there are certainly some improvements that can be made. Sony looks…

Fast Travel Games is taking a stab at the VR horror genre in a terrifying popular universe.

What you need to know

Wraith: The Oblivion – Afterlife is a VR horror game that takes place in the World of Darkness universe.
The game is a narrative-driven, exploration-focused game that will utilize specific characters and settings from the Wraith: The Oblivion role-playing game.
Wraith: The Oblivion – Afterlife will be launching on all major VR platforms, with a gameplay debut in late August at Gamescom Now.

Fast Travel Games, the developers behind popular VR titles like Budget Cuts 2 and Apex Construct, is switching up its formula a bit this time around and is taking a stab at creating a VR horror game in an established universe. Known as Wraith: The Oblivion – Afterlife, Fast Travel Games’ first VR horror game pits players in the proverbial shoes of a wraith; a character that has recently died and found themselves in the midst of a grim and terrifying afterlife.

Best Accessories fo…

All of Roborock’s most recent robot vacuums, including the Roborock S4, S5 Max, S6 Pure, and S6 MaxV all use the amazing Roborock app to give you full control of your robot vacuum. If you’re using an older Roborock vacuum, the Mi Home app experience remains unchanged but, if you’ve picked up one of Roborock’s 2019 or 2020 vacuums, here’s what you can expect to find in Roborock’s powerful app.

What’s in a map?

If you happen to have more than one Roborock robot that supports the Roborock app, a listing of all connected bots will appear first and foremost when it’s opened. Once you’ve decided which robot vacuum will be doing the cleaning today, you’ll be greeted with a map of your home, assuming that the robot vacuum has already made its way around your home once and mapped the whole thing first.

Just about everything can be done from this main screen, including zone cleaning, per-room cleaning, or a whole-home cleaning. At the bottom, you’ll find two large buttons: “Clean” for perfo…

Red and blue is coming at you from every direction.

What you need to know

A new Memorial Day update for Beat Saber includes 46 new beatmaps for existing songs.
In addition to 360-degree and 90-degree levels, Beat Games has created a new normal and expert+ difficulties for some single saber songs.
This update is free and available on all platforms including Oculus Quest, PlayStation VR (PSVR), and PC VR platforms.

While Beat Saber gamers have grown accustomed to getting new songs whenever an update comes out, this Memorial Day update brings something a little bit different. In what could easily be considered the biggest Beat Saber update ever, Beat Games has included a whopping 46 new beatmaps for gamers to play through. In total, 18 songs have been updated with new maps.

New 360-degree and 90-degree levels include Rum ‘N Bass, LUV U NEED U, Reason For Living, The Greatest Show, Rattlesnake, Has a Meaning, Digital, Fire Ready Aim, Escape, and POP/STARS. Single Saber additions in…

The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets debuted near the end of 2019 on the Oculus Quest and PC VR platforms. The diorama-scale virtual worlds found in the game present a perfect way for players of all ages to appreciate the magic that VR brings. It truly feels like these miniature worlds are floating right in front of you, and their designs compel players to look around every corner and in every nook and cranny to find all the stolen pets and hidden secrets.

Developer Fast Travel Games is among the first elite group of developers to release a hand tracking update for the Oculus Quest version of their existing game, bringing an entirely new dimension of magic to the experience. Hand tracking is particularly impressive and important for a game like The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets because the world already begs for you to reach out and touch it. It’s also one of the most accessible VR experiences on the market, as it’ll scale the worlds according to player height automatically, featur…

Maybe now you’ll avoid jumping into your TV.

What you need to know

Oculus Software version 17 for Quest brings automatic Playspace Scanning to detects objects that get in the way of your VR experience.
Your Guardian playspace will warn you of objects by switching to a mixed-reality mode and highlighting the object in red.
The guardian boundary color can now also be customized with a blue, purple, or yellow color.

The Oculus Quest is an amazing headset, and one of the reasons it’s so great is that it can recognize your play space and help you stay within a safe boundary. But, until now, the Quest could only tell you when you approach the edge of that boundary. Countless numbers of people have likely tripped over furniture, people, or an errant object that got in their playspace, and the new update to the Oculus Quest boundary system can now recognize those obstacles and help players clear them out before disaster occurs.

Once you’ve mapped your playspace out, Oculus Guardian wil…

Now your actual hands will appear in the game!

What you need to know

The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets is now the first commercial game on the Oculus Store with hand-tracking support.
You’ll no longer need controllers to play the game on the Oculus Quest once the update launches later this month.
Curious Tale is already one of the most accessible VR games on the market since it includes automatic height adjustment and content tailored for all ages.

The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets was designed to be an immersive and accessible experience for all ages, and both of these factors are getting a big upgrade in the brand new hand-tracking update for the Oculus Quest. As the first commercial game to receive hand-tracking support, The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets boldly goes where no full-fledged VR game has gone just yet. Once the update goes live later this month, all you’ll need is an Oculus Quest on your head and your hands to explore the vibrant worlds that Fast Travel Game…

When you think of protecting your home from disaster, what crosses your mind? Fire? Burglary? Natural disasters? Water damage often gets forgotten until the day you walk home, and your basement is flooded. Smart water monitors were created to prevent these very situations. leakSMART is our pick for best smart water monitoring solution, as it can detect leaks throughout your home and automatically shut off your water in the event of a leak, all for a lot less than the competition.

Best Overall: leakSMART leak detection starter kit

The leakSMART leak detection starter kit includes a valve, sensor, and the hub that controls all of them. leakSMART utilizes an included Zigbee hub to communicate with all of its components, meaning it’s not reliant on Wi-Fi being available to work fully. It’ll also work with existing Zigbee sensors, so if you already have one, you can save money by just buying the leakSMART valve.

That main leakSMART valve gets installed directly on your main water lin…

It’s still got the $99 price tag but with a slew of new tricks up its proverbial sleeve

What you need to know

Ring is launching a new version of its original Video Doorbell, this time with the features of the Ring Video Doorbell 3.
The new 2nd-gen Ring Video Doorbell retains the $99 price-point of the original and can be used wirelessly or hardwired.
Ring is also launching a new solar charger for this new 2nd-gen Video Doorbell for $50.

Ring has been on a roll lately with product announcements, and the latest Ring Video Doorbell is going back to the basics. Simple titled Ring Video Doorbell, this second-generation version of the original Ring Video Doorbell keeps the same aesthetics of the original product while adding plenty of features from the Ring Video Doorbell 3 that just launched. Despite the addition of important features, the new second-generation Ring Video Doorbell will still retail for $99.99 — the same price the original Ring Video Doorbell has been selling for.

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