Starbreeze Offices Raided, Employee Arrested on Suspicion of Insider Trading

Just days after announcing that it had filed for reconstruction and would be parting ways with its CEO, game publisher Starbreeze has had its Stockholm headquarters raided by authorities on suspicion of insider trading.

According to Dagens Industri (via Variety), Starbreeze’s offices were raided by authorities, equipment was seized, and one anonymous person was arrested as a result.

Executives at the company reportedly sold back large shares of the company just a few weeks ago. Since the announcement of Starbreeze’s financial troubles, stock prices for the studio have fallen by as much as 80 percent.

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PUBG Celebrates the Holidays With Festive Gifts

PC players can log into PUBG during December’s seasonal event to get kitted out like Rudolph.

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds’ PC players can nab themselves the Festive Beanie with Pom Pom along with a Red Nose by logging into the game during the seasonal event this month. You’ll be given the items to wear for the rest of December, but if you’d like to carry them over and give them a permanent home in your inventory, you can.

“Place in the top 10 of any map or non-custom game mode ten times during the event and you’ll get permanent versions to wear all year round,” reads the update.

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Nintendo Teasing Game Awards Appearance In Smash Bros. Ultimate Tweet

Nintendo has plugged the upcoming Game Awards, with the implication that we could see something related to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate at the event. The tweet doesn’t explicitly promise any reveals, though, so it could just be tying the two together for promotional purposes.

The Game Awards will air on Thursday evening, just hours before the launch of Smash Ultimate. This wasn’t lost on Nintendo, which told its fans to tune in live before the game launch. It’s possible, though far from definite, that the company has a reveal planned for the event. It could be presenting info regarding the upcoming Smash DLC, for example, or another project altogether. The Game Awards itself has teased ten new announcements along with updates on released games.

Of course, tying the two together could be completely innocuous, as Nintendo is up for some awards itself. The company may just be promoting a big industry event, with plans to attend.

The Game Awards will kick off on Thursday at 8:30 PM ET / 5:30 PM PT / 1:30 AM GMT (Friday) / 12:30 PM AET (Friday). You can watch it right here at GameSpot. In the meantime check out the full list of nominees.

PlayStation Classic Datamine Seems to Reveal 36 Rejected Games

The PlayStation Classic could have had a very different line-up, if a purported datamine of the console is to be believed.

Posted on GitHub, the code dump shows differences between the core PCSX PlayStation emulator and a custom version of that emulator, seemingly the one being used in the micro-console (the PlayStation Classic uses a port of the PCSX emulator to run its games).

If legitimate, those differences include a list of 36 games not included on the release version of the PlayStation Classic, which appear to have been tested for the micro-console, but not included.

Here’s that list in full:

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Best Cheap Gaming Chairs

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I’ve already written a list of the best gaming chairs available, but let’s be honest—there’s only so much money in anyone’s budget for a gaming throne. While there’s certainly something to be said for ergonomic racing chairs made of the finest Italian leather, or a swanky Herman Miller chair that’s adjustable in 27 different ways, you shouldn’t have to sell family heirlooms just to afford a decent gaming chair. In fact, there’s all kinds of excellent gaming chairs out there for about $100 or less, and that’s what this handy list is all about. Spend the extra dough on what really matters: games, or hardware.

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Tom Cruise Takes Time Out From Shooting Top Gun 2 for PSA on Motion Smoothing

Tom Cruise has tweeted a PSA about how best to watch Mission: Impossible Fallout, from the set of Top Gun: Maverick.

Motion smoothing is a plague on home entertainment and Tom Cruise is doing his part to wage war against it with the DVD and Blu-ray release of Mission: Impossible Fallout, alongside the film’s director, Chris McQuarrie. In a short PSA the pair explain more about motion smoothing and – more importantly – how to turn the thing off.

Rainbow Six Siege’s Operation Wind Bastion Update Is Live; Here’s What It Does

Rainbow Six Siege‘s latest update has gone live for PS4, Xbox One, and PC, meaning Operation Wind Bastion’s new Operators, Nomad and Kaid, are now available. The update also includes a new map, named Fortress.

Operation Wind Bastion is themed around Morocco, with Fortress being set in the north African country and the two new Operators hailing from the GIGR special forces. Kaid, a Defender, comes equipped with three deployable electroclaws, which electrify any metallic object within a small radius. That means, if placed correctly, one electroclaw could electrify multiple reinforcements, deployable shields, or razor wires.

Nomad, meanwhile, is an Attacker. Her primary weapons come attached with a device that launches wind-powered proximity mines. When an opponent approaches, the mines blast all enemies back and off their feet. Opposing players are rendered unable to use their weapon for a short duration, and must get back on their feet. The mines can be used defensively to protect your flanks or offensively to flush enemies out.

Operation Wind Bastion also includes additional weapon skins and a headgear bundle. In addition, five existing Operators are receiving balancing changes: Mute, Clash, and Smoke are being buffed, while Lesion and Zofia are being nerfed. The full list of changes can be read in Operation Wind Bastion’s patch notes.

In the Operation’s preview stage, we thought Kaid felt overpowered, so it will be interesting to see how the new Operators feel now the game is live for all. Operation Wind Bastion is the fourth and final Season of DLC from Siege’s third year, though Ubisoft has stated its plans to continue supporting the game for years to come.

The Best Smart Watches

Whether you’re looking to rely less on your phone, or just want a fun and flexible time instrument, Smart Watches are here to stay. Here’s our picks for the very best in every category.