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Posts tagged with "gaming"

Razer Launches PC Remote Play for Streaming PC Games to the iPhone, iPad, and Other Devices

Source: Razer.

Source: Razer.

Yesterday, Brendon and I wandered into a ballroom where Razer was showing off its latest hardware. We weren’t expecting much beyond super-powerful gaming laptops (✅) and lots of RGB lights (also ✅). However, just as our guided booth tour was ending, we asked about an iPhone, iPad mini, and Windows PC setup on a nearby table, which it turns out was a demo of Razer’s new PC Remote Play app.

There are a lot of ways to stream games from a Windows PC to iPhones, iPads, and other devices, but Razer PC Remote Play looks like it could be one of the easiest and nicest of the bunch. What was impressive about the demo was that Razer’s app automatically adjusts to the device to which you’re streaming, matching its screen’s refresh rate and aspect ratio. That ensures you’ll get the most out of the device to which you’re streaming, and you won’t see letterboxing or pillarboxing, which is caused by a mismatch between the aspect ratio of your PC remote device. According to a Reddit user who says they are a Product Developer for Razer PC Remote Play, the app is built on the open source Moonlight/Sunshine projects, with the goal of simplifying setup and configuration.

Razer PC Remote Play is currently in beta and requires that you run Razer Cortex on your Windows PC and install the Razer PC Remote Play and Razer Nexus apps on your iPhone, iPad, or other devices. I haven’t had a chance to set this up yet because I don’t have a PC with me at CES, but judging from the iOS app I set up it looks as simple as opening Razer PC Remote Play, which detects if there is a PC on your network running Razer Cortex. Once paired, Razer says your PC games will show up in its Nexus game launcher app alongside your other games.

I’m excited to try Razer PC Remote Play myself. The Moonlight/Sunshine project is a great way to stream PC games, but it can take some fiddling to work well with any given setup. What Razer is promising is a simplified version that just works out of the box. We’ll see how well it works in practice, but the demo I saw was promising.

A Tiny But Exciting CES Smartphone Controller Discovery→

One of my favorite surprises during CES 2025 so far was when Brendon pointed to a small device sitting on a table at the GameSir booth and asked ‘What’s that?’ It turns out it was a prototype Game Boy-style smartphone controller that doubles as a battery pack. As Brendon explained on Wavelengths yesterday:

GameSir’s concept is brilliant in that it’s a completely new form-factor for a mobile controllers, but also (though I didn’t confirm this) appears to be the kind of design that could work across both iPhone and Android devices. Even in my brief time messing around with it, the buttons and d-pad felt great, the shoulder buttons allowed for a pretty natural shelf for resting your hand on top of (similar to the Trim-UI Brick), and overall I left the booth blown away by it.

From our conversations with GameSir, it looks like a Kickstarter campaign is in the works and the device could be shipped in the first half of 2025. With emulators available on the iPhone since last summer, we’ve begun seeing more innovative controller solutions on smartphones, which I love. Be sure to check out Brendon’s story on Wavelengths for more photos of the GameSir prototype and his thoughts on it.

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NPC @ CES: Exploring the Future of Handheld Gaming at CES 2025→

Yesterday, Brendon Bigley and I walked over 8 miles on the CES show floor in search of ‘the next big thing’ in handheld gaming. We ended a long day against the backdrop of the Las Vegas Sphere to talk about what we’d seen and our initial impressions of what it all means to the future of handheld gaming.

Yesterday was a long, fun day of interesting and surprising discoveries that we’ll unpack further on next week’s episode of NPC: Next Portable Console.

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The M-Con PSP Go-Style iPhone Game Controller Moves One Step Closer to Reality→

About six months ago, Josh King posted on the SBCGaming subreddit about a 3D printed iPhone game controller he’d created called the M-Con. The post was accompanied by a YouTube video walkthrough that lent credibility to the Sony PSP Go-like design, that connected to an iPhone using MagSafe-compatible magnets. Then a couple of months ago, the M-Con showed up again on the Retro Game Corps YouTube channel where Russ Crandall put the device through its paces and was impressed with the results

Now, King is back with an even more refined design and an established corporate backer to build and sell the M-Con. As Sean Hollister explains on The Verge, the backer is OhSnap, the maker of PopSocket alternatives. As Hollister explains, the M-Con:

[is] no taller or wider than an iPhone, so it should slide into a pocket. It’s got a MagSafe pattern of magnets to attach it to your magnetic ring device. You don’t have to remove it to use your phone like a phone, because the whole gamepad retracts underneath, a little like the slide-out keyboard phones (or PlayStation Phones) of old — and now, it’s mounted on a spring-loaded arm that pops out at the push of a button and also slightly angles your device towards your face.

Notably, the M-Con has gained Hall-effect thumbsticks and a pair of fold-out grips, too.

I’ve been keeping a close eye on this project for months. I’m surprised I’ve never seen another iPhone game controller like it, which is why I’ve been a little skeptical of its viability from the start. But with OhSnap onboard, the M-Con is looking more real than ever. According to Sean Hollister, the M-Con will be at CES in January. You can bet it will be one of the first booths I visit.

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Celebrate the MacStories Selects App of the Year with the MacStories DS Skins for Delta→

This year’s MacStories Selects App of the Year was never in question. No app has had a bigger political, cultural, and competitive impact on the App Store this year than Delta. On top of that, Delta is a beautifully designed, native app that takes advantage of Apple’s latest technologies, putting it head and shoulders above other iOS emulators. Of course, Delta is also a delightfully fun way to relive classic videogames on the iPhone’s outstanding hardware.

Delta’s impact on the app world this year transcended retro gaming. However, for most people, being able to dip into the world of Pokémon or battle their way through the dungeons of Hyrule on the device they carry with them is all the payoff they need.

That’s why, to celebrate Delta’s many accomplishments in 2024, we commissioned three Delta skins for Nintendo DS games from Sean Fletcher, a Seattle-based designer who has created dozens of Delta skins that pay homage to classic Nintendo hardware. The MacStories DS Skins, which incorporate MacStories’ signature colors and a subtle logo, work in portrait and landscape orientations and are available for $3 on our Gumroad store. As Nintendo’s first touchscreen device, we couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate Delta’s emergence as an emulation powerhouse on the iPhone than with skins for the DS.

The MacStories DS Skins for Delta.

The MacStories DS Skins for Delta.

With the rise of generative AI and the decline of search engines, we’ve made a point of working with as many writers, artists, musicians, developers, and now, designers as possible this year. The fact that Delta enables anyone to make skins for its app allowed us to work with Sean, another talented creative professional, whose work we’ve supported personally and linked to in the past. If you like the MacStories DS Skins, be sure to check out Sean’s other skins, too.

We’re delighted with how the MacStories DS Skins turned out and hope you love them, too. We can’t wait to see screenshots of what you’re playing with them.

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Developers Demonstrate AAA Windows Gaming on M1 and M2 Macs Using Linux→

Yesterday, developer Alyssa Rosenzweig gave a talk at the XDC conference in Montréal, Canada about gaming on Asahi Linux installed on M1 and M2 Apple silicon-based Macs. According to GamingOnLinux:

They announced their “Asahi game playing toolkit” which brings together their Vulkan 1.3 graphics driver with, and x86 emulation with Windows game compatibility. It’s all still “Alpha” level quality, but good enough to run some AAA games now. Unlike Apple’s own macOS, Asahi Linux has the only conformant OpenGL®, OpenCL™, and Vulkan® drivers for this hardware (as Apple focus on their own API - Metal).

With Asahi Linux installed on your Mac and at least 16GB of memory to handle emulation overhead, Rosenzweig explained that demanding games like Control, Fallout 4, and Cyberpunk 2077 are all playable. That said, it’s still early days for the Ashahi game-playing toolkit, with more work to be done to support more modern AAA Windows games running at 60fps.

Still, what Rosenzweig and other contributors to the project have achieved is impressive, with more details available on Rosenzweig’s website. It’s also heartening to see developers coming up with solutions that work with commonly-used Windows graphics APIs instead of waiting for game developers to adopt Apple’s Metal framework.

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A Single Apple EarPod Has Become My Favorite Wired Earbud for Gaming

Nintendo Switch with [Hori's Split Pad Compact](https://amzn.to/3zlDpZD) controllers, Steam Deck OLED, and Ayn Odin 2. Also, [you should play UFO 50](https://wavelengths.online/posts/ufo-50-a-review).

Nintendo Switch with Hori’s Split Pad Compact controllers, Steam Deck OLED, and Ayn Odin 2. Also, you should play UFO 50.

Picture this problem:

Because of my podcast about portable gaming NPC with John and Brendon, I test a lot of gaming handhelds. And when I say a lot, I mean I currently have a Steam Deck, modded Legion Go, PlayStation Portal, Switch, and Ayn Odin 2 in my nightstand’s drawer. I love checking out different form factors (especially since I’m currently trying to find the most ergonomic one while dealing with some pesky RSI issues), but you know what I don’t love? Having to deal with multi-point Bluetooth earbuds that can only connect to a couple of devices at the same time, which often leads to unpairing and re-pairing those earbuds over and over and over.

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Bitmo Lab Opens Pre-Orders for a Delta Emulator-Friendly iPhone Case→

Source: Bitmo Lab.

Source: Bitmo Lab.

Bitmo Lab, an affiliate of JSAUX, a videogame accessory maker, has announced pre-orders for an intriguing new iPhone case. The GAMEBABY case, which I came across on Overkill.wtf, is a two-part iPhone case that allows users to remove the bottom half, moving it from the rear of an iPhone to the front. The switch transforms your iPhone into a Game Boy lookalike with A and B buttons, a D-pad, Start and Select buttons, and more.

According to Bitmo Lab, the GAMEBABY’s buttons are capacitive, meaning they don’t require power, a Bluetooth connection, or other technology to work. It’s a simple solution that, when paired with the Delta iOS game emulator, should be able to play classic emulated games on the go with the added benefit of physical buttons.

How well the GAMEBABY works remains a mystery. Bitmo Lab’s website says the case is still under development, but you can pre-order one for the iPhone 15 Pro Max or iPhone 16 Pro Max with expected shipping in October for $19.99, which is 50% off the launch price.

I’ve pre-ordered a GAMEBABY and will report back after I’ve had a chance to use it for a while.

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Delta 1.6 Released in the EU and for Patreon Members with a Worldwide App Store Release in the Works

Delta, the retro gaming emulator that took the App Store by storm when it was released earlier this spring and now has over 10 million users, has been updated in the EU via AltStore PAL and for Patreon members, who can sideload the app. An update to the App Store version has been submitted to the App Store for the rest of the world but has not been approved yet.

Playing the SNES version of Donkey Kong Country.

Playing the SNES version of Donkey Kong Country.

The update brings official iPadOS support to Delta for the first time. That means support for native iPad features like Split View, Stage Manager, multiwindowing, and even Handoff, which can be used to move a game from one device to another. The update also introduces a refinement of Delta’s new icon, which was changed because Adobe thought it looked too much like its own logo and demanded that Delta make changes to the icon. Delta’s built-in skins have been updated too to work with the iPad’s larger screen:

Multiwindow gaming.

Multiwindow gaming.

I’ve had a chance to try the new Delta 1.6 iPad features and they’re great, so it was disappointing to see that the app has been rejected by App Review. According to the AltStore Mastodon account, the reason was that the app included a link to the developers’ Patreon page, even though that link appeared in prior versions of the app. The Patreon link has been removed and the app resubmitted, so hopefully the update will be available worldwide soon.

It’s a shame that Delta 1.6 is being held up in App Review, but barring any further objections from Apple, I expect we’ll see the update on the App Store soon.