Next-Gen Consoles To Double As Wireless Hub

By Ian Bell Updated December 5, 2004

“Electronic Arts chief financial officer has told a US investment conference that the next-generation home consoles will feature wireless hubs, effectively putting wireless network access into millions of homes.

Speaking to the Credit Suisse First Boston Technology Conference, Jenson said that thanks to the next-gen systems, “in every living room, we’ll have a wireless hub,” which will create new opportunities for online gaming.”

This comes to us as no surprise. Microsoft has slowly been trying to turn their Xbox into a media console by introducing their new Media Center 2005 extender pack for it. Rumor also has it that Microsoft will be introducing 3-4 variants of their new Xbox 2 sometime next year, including a Media Center version.

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Gaming

3 Resident Evil games are getting free next-gen upgrades

Jill Valentine shoots a zombie in the next-gen version of Resident Evil 3.

Capcom announced that Resident Evil 7: Biohazard and its remakes of Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3 are getting upgrades for PS5, Xbox Series S, and Xbox Series X later this year. Players who already own these games on PS4 or Xbox One can upgrade for free.
Capcom hasn't detailed the technical specifications for each of the ports yet, but it did tease some of the features that it is adding. Capcom will implement ray-tracing, higher frame rates, and 3D audio into all versions of the game. The PS5 versions of these games will also utilize the DualSense controller's haptic feedback and adaptive triggers. Gameplay footage hasn't been released yet, but Capcom shared a few screenshots showcasing the visual upgrade (click to enlarge).

Capcom also plans to bring these new visual features over the PC ports of Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil 3, and Resident Evil 7: Biohazard via a patch in the future. The patch will be free to all who own the games. We do not know what these ports will be priced at for new players on PS5 and Xbox Series X.
All three of these games already looked incredible thanks to Capcom's propriety RE Engine, which was used to develop them, but these upgrades should make them all look on par with 2021's Resident Evil Village. In particular, Resident Evil 7's potential glow-up is the most exciting as that game was released in 2017.
All three of these Resident Evil games are currently available on PC, PS4, and Xbox One and will come to PS5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S later this year.

Gaming

Grand Theft Auto V gets current-gen console boost in March

Trevor, Franklin, and Michael prepare to hunt someone in the forests outside of Los Santos.

Rockstar Games has confirmed that the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X versions of Grand Theft Auto V and GTA Online will launch on March 15.
While the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions of GTA V don't seem to add anything in the way of new story content, the blog post revealing the new date explains how they will utilize the power of the new systems. Rockstar Games promises 4K resolution and 60 frames-per-second (fps) support, better draw distance, more detailed textures, HDR, ray tracing, better loading times, haptic feedback, and 3D audio.
GTA Online will see the same improvements, and will also get a stand-alone release for those just interested in multiplayer. Rockstar Games will no longer require players to complete GTA V's prologue before accessing it, and it's getting a reworked tutorial as well. On PS5 and Xbox Series X, Hao's Special Works auto shop will be exclusively available, and will upgrade cars so they have "elite driving performance that takes full advantage of the upgraded power of new console hardware."
Grand Theft Auto V and Grand Theft Auto Online for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S – Coming March 2022
The stand-alone version of GTA Online will be free on PS5 for the first three months. Rockstar Games also confirmed that players will be able to carry over GTA V and GTA Online progression to these next-gen systems with a "one-time migration."
These next-gen remasters were announced in June 2020 as the first reveal during Sony's PS5 unveiling livestream. We have not seen much of the remasters since then, though. Last year, they were given a November 11 release date, but were eventually pushed to March 2022 because Rockstar thought the ports needed "a few additional months for polishing and fine-tuning."
In its place, we got GTA: The Trilogy -- The Definitive Edition, remasters of three classic GTA games. Sadly, that collection came out buggy and rushed, as it was clearly forced to launch on the date GTA V abandoned. Now, all eyes are on these next-gen ports of GTA V to see if they also have technical issues at release, or if this delay was beneficial. GTA V and GTA Online will be released for PS5 and Xbox Series X on March 15, 2022. Oh, and GTA 6 was finally announced, too.

Gaming

Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League isn’t coming to past-gen consoles

suicide squad gameplay trailer 1200

Warner Bros. and Rocksteady Studios presented their latest trailer for the Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League at The Game Awards on Thursday. The trailer featured a lengthy gameplay preview and a confirmed release date of sometime in 2022. Suicide Squad is coming to PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S. There was no mention of it coming to the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League Gameplay Trailer | Game Awards 2021