Xbox Design Lab brings back rubberized grips and metallic finishes for controllers

 

Microsoft

After being on hold while Microsoft launched the Xbox Series X and S consoles, Xbox Design Lab returned this summer. Unfortunately, rubberized grips and other options that were available before were nowhere to be found. Now, Xbox Design Lab has announced that rubberized grips and metallic color finishes are back, along with some all new additions.  

Black rubberized grips are now available for the side grips and back case, and you can choose from 19 metallic finish colors. Those include three types of silver (sterling, pewter and gunmetal) along with more exotic shades like Deep Pink, Oxide Red, Zest Orange, Gold, Electric Volt, Velocity Green and Glacier Blue.

Xbox Design Lab also introduced three new regular colors on top of the 18 already available: Dragonfly Blue, Nocturnal Green and Velocity Green. The latter two were updated from Nocturnal Green and Velocity Green, which are no longer on option. It also launched "inspired by" controller designers from Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Battlefield 2042, Forza Horizon 5, and Riders Republic.

The new options bring Design Lab back to where it was before, with literally millions of combinations possible. As before, you'll see a nice 3D rendering of the product each time you add an option, to help make sure your final product doesn't look like hot garbage. The controllers start at $70 and up, though "pricing may vary for additional options" like the rubberized grips, Microsoft points out. You can custom design your controller here. 

'Battlefield 2042' won't have voice chat when it debuts on November 19th

 

DICE / EA

When Battlefield 2024 comes out in about a week on November 19th, it won’t ship with built-in voice chat. Series developer DICE told Polygon the feature won’t be available until sometime after launch. The studio didn’t provide a reason for the decision. Whatever the case, the absence of voice chat will likely be keenly felt by Battlefield fans, especially on PC, Xbox Series X and S, and PlayStation 5 where matches will include as many as 128 players.

For what it’s worth, you can still use Discord or the party chat feature on your console to communicate with friends, but that won’t help you when you’re trying to play with strangers. In those instances, you’ll need to rely on the ping system, which is apparently on the cumbersome side. According to Polygon, you have to navigate through multiple menus before you can get to the right ping. All told, it sounds like Battlefield’s already chaotic matches will be a tad more unpredictable in the first few weeks that 2042 is available.

Boba Fett arrives in 'Fortnite' on December 24th

 

Epic Games / Disney

Move over, Mando. It's Boba Fett's time to run amok in Fortnite. Epic Games will add the bounty hunter on December 24th at 7PM ET. That's the weekend before The Book of Boba Fett makes its Disney+ debut on December 29th. Epic hasn't said much more about the crossover, but judging by the teaser art the studio shared, Fett's partner Fennec Shand will also make an appearance. Whether it will offer skins of both characters for players to purchase, Epic hasn't said yet, but that's probably a safe bet.

Boba Fett will be making his arrival on the Island December 24, 2021 at 7pm ET! #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/cj9iC6WRBZ

— Fortnite (@FortniteGame) November 12, 2021

The announcement comes on the same day Disney shared all of its Disney+ Day news. That includes first looks at Obi-Wan Kenobi and Baymax!, and early details on a dozen new Marvel shows coming to the streaming service in 2022 and beyond. Ahead of the premiere of The Book of Boba Fett, Star Wars fans can watch Under the Helmet: The Legacy of Boba Fett. The documentary details the history of the character and is available to watch on Disney+ now.

The remastered GTA trilogy is available to buy on PC again

 

Rockstar Games

Three days after it pulled Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition from sale on PC, Rockstar Games says players can once again buy the bundle on that platform. The publisher yanked the remastered collection from the Rockstar Games Launcher's store "to remove some data files that were unintentionally included in the new versions of these games."

The publisher apologized for the inconvenience and said it would "improve and update overall performance as we move forward." Many players have criticized the latest versions of GTA III, GTA: Vice City and GTA: San Andreas, and some have shared screenshots and videos of various glitches and bugs. They've also voiced their displeasure on Metacritic, where they've been review bombing the collection — the aggregate user score is currently below one out of 10 on every platform.

Soon after the trilogy was released last week, the Rockstar Games Launcher was taken offline for what the publisher says was maintenance reasons. That meant those who did buy the collection were unable to play its three games for over a day, while Grand Theft Auto Online and Red Dead Online were also out of commission until Rockstar restored service on Friday evening.