The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced its shortlists for various categories ahead of the 94th Academy Awards, including Best Visual Effects.

The Visual Effects category is populated with blockbuster films such as Dune, Spider-Man: No Way Home, and No Time to Die. The MCU dominates the list with all four of its feature films from the past year making appearances in the shortlisted line-up, including the first movie of Phase 4, Black Widow, starring Scarlett Johansson in the titular role.

Here are the ten films that remain in the running for the Oscars 2022 Visual Effects category:

• Black Widow
• Dune
• Eternals
• Free Guy
• Ghostbusters: Afterlife
• Godzilla vs. Kong
• The Matrix Resurrections
• No Time to Die
• Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
• Spider-Man: No Way Home

Warner Bros. Tenet took home the Oscar for Best Visual Effects at the 93rd Academy Awards, and the studio has a few contenders in the mix again this time, with Dune, Godzilla vs. Kong, and The Matrix Resurrections all making it onto the shortlist to potentially take a spot as a nominee in the Best Visual Effects category at the Oscars 2022.

In addition to No Way Home, Sony Pictures features on the list with Ghostbusters: Afterlife, which earned $44 million at the US box office during its opening weekend. Films from other studios also appear, with 20th Century Studios' Free Guy named as a contender alongside MGM/United Artists Releasing's latest James Bond movie, No Time to Die.

All members of the Visual Effects Branch will be invited to view 10-minute excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on January 29, 2022. Branch members will then vote to nominate five films for Oscar consideration, with the final Academy Awards nominees being announced on February 8, 2022. Stay tuned to IGN for more!

Adele Ankers is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

The biggest cliffhanger in Hawkeye's finale appears to be a direct reference to a Marvel comic storyline – and could hint at the future of some of its characters in the MCU.

Warning: This story contains full spoilers for Hawkeye Episode 6, and speculation about the upcoming Echo series. Proceed at your own risk!

Hawkeye's finale could suggest to some that the reintroduction of Vincent D'Onofrio's Kingpin is a literally short-lived affair, with Alaqua Cox's Maya Lopez delivering a gunshot to the crime boss from close range. Of course, with the event shown off-screen, many have suggested that things aren't what they seem, and that Wilson Fisk will make a return, potentially in the upcoming Echo series starring Cox.

That's an idea borne out by the comics, in which a very similar event takes place. In Daredevil #15 (written by David Mack and drawn by David Ross in 1998), Maya comes face-to-face with Fisk, having realised his involvement in her father's murder. Just as in the show, she points a gun at his face from point-blank range, and we 'hear' a gunshot:

However, the issue ends with a reveal that the show doesn't reach – that rather than killing Fisk, Echo instead blinded him. In the comics, this led to Kingpin losing control of his criminal empire for a time and almost being assassinated – although he eventually regained his sight (because... comic books).

While the show offers no indication either way, it feels a little unlikely that Fisk would appear for a single episode within the MCU before being summarily dispatched – especially now that we know that Charlie Cox will return as Daredevil. It feels more likely that the writers will be offering a similar fake-out, although how that's resolved will remain unknown for the time being.

Whatever the outcome, Fisk's return is just one part of an excellent MCU series, which has also seen Clint Barton redeemed along the way. Our review of Episode 6 says that it "concludes the most consistent Marvel TV show with a fittingly fantastic finale."

Joe Skrebels is IGN's Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

The biggest cliffhanger in Hawkeye's finale appears to be a direct reference to a Marvel comic storyline – and could hint at the future of some of its characters in the MCU.

Warning: This story contains full spoilers for Hawkeye Episode 6, and speculation about the upcoming Echo series. Proceed at your own risk!

Hawkeye's finale could suggest to some that the reintroduction of Vincent D'Onofrio's Kingpin is a literally short-lived affair, with Alaqua Cox's Maya Lopez delivering a gunshot to the crime boss from close range. Of course, with the event shown off-screen, many have suggested that things aren't what they seem, and that Wilson Fisk will make a return, potentially in the upcoming Echo series starring Cox.

That's an idea borne out by the comics, in which a very similar event takes place. In Daredevil #15 (written by David Mack and drawn by David Ross in 1998), Maya comes face-to-face with Fisk, having realised his involvement in her father's murder. Just as in the show, she points a gun at his face from point-blank range, and we 'hear' a gunshot:

However, the issue ends with a reveal that the show doesn't reach – that rather than killing Fisk, Echo instead blinded him. In the comics, this led to Kingpin losing control of his criminal empire for a time and almost being assassinated – although he eventually regained his sight (because... comic books).

While the show offers no indication either way, it feels a little unlikely that Fisk would appear for a single episode within the MCU before being summarily dispatched – especially now that we know that Charlie Cox will return as Daredevil. It feels more likely that the writers will be offering a similar fake-out, although how that's resolved will remain unknown for the time being.

Whatever the outcome, Fisk's return is just one part of an excellent MCU series, which has also seen Clint Barton redeemed along the way. Our review of Episode 6 says that it "concludes the most consistent Marvel TV show with a fittingly fantastic finale."

Joe Skrebels is IGN's Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

2021 has spotlighted harassment on Twitch, particularly for women. Now a new clip from streamer Grenade Queen is drawing industry attention, with Xbox co-creator Seamus Blackley saying the harassment it depicts "wasn't the future for [Xbox Live] we envisioned."

The video shows Grenade Queen being harassed as she is playing Halo Infinite, on which she comments, "No woman should have to deal with this if they're having 1 rough game against decent people... this was only part of it."

Her comments drew numerous responses women who say they've suffered the same behavior. "My Xbox name is my irl name," one user wrote. "They see it and they immediately attack me. Just bc I'm a girl. I can never enjoy pvp. Even bot matches. My team mates would kill me, run me over, punch me. Like what the hell??? It's so bad that I am willing to pay money to change my name on Xbox."

This wasn’t the future for @xbox live we envisioned. As a community and with the help of @Microsoft this needs to be highlighted and stopped. It will take teamwork between players, devs, and console manufacturers to change this and it’s time. It’s past time. https://t.co/hVPHDvESVP

— Seamus Blackley (@SeamusBlackley) December 20, 2021

Blackley was among those take notice, writing in response, "This wasn't the future for [Xbox Live] we envisioned. As a community and with the help of [Microsoft] this needs to be highlighted and stopped. It will take teamwork between players, devs, and console manufacturers to change this and it’s time. It's past time."

Grenade Queen later shared a screencap of an apology from the players who harassed her, but harassment remains a major issue, with hate raids becoming more and more prevalent throughout 2021. In September, numerous streamers organized a boycott to draw attention to the harassment suffered by marginalized creators.

In a separate interview with Axios, Blackley said "not enough attention was paid to the problem" of harassment while the team was working on Xbox Live.

"It's gone from bad to pure evil over the last two decade," Blackey said.

Blackley urged Microsoft and Steam to "simply pop the bubble" and "clearly state that there is a problem." He said it hasn't happened yet because publishers are afraid that it "alienates the 'core' audience," which he called "ludicrous." He also argued that marginalized people need to be in positions of power at studios.

"It's clear that people behave a lot better when their online reputation is tied to their real lives, and it’s also clear that the consequences of enforcement are far more effective if players can't simply scamper to a new random account," Blackley said.

Twitch has responded by cracking down on toxic streamers and introducing new guidelines, but there is a little sign of harassment abating as 2022 approaches.

Blogroll image credit: Getty Images / David McNew

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN

2021 has spotlighted harassment on Twitch, particularly for women. Now a new clip from streamer Grenade Queen is drawing industry attention, with Xbox co-creator Seamus Blackley saying the harassment it depicts "wasn't the future for [Xbox Live] we envisioned."

The video shows Grenade Queen being harassed as she is playing Halo Infinite, on which she comments, "No woman should have to deal with this if they're having 1 rough game against decent people... this was only part of it."

Her comments drew numerous responses women who say they've suffered the same behavior. "My Xbox name is my irl name," one user wrote. "They see it and they immediately attack me. Just bc I'm a girl. I can never enjoy pvp. Even bot matches. My team mates would kill me, run me over, punch me. Like what the hell??? It's so bad that I am willing to pay money to change my name on Xbox."

This wasn’t the future for @xbox live we envisioned. As a community and with the help of @Microsoft this needs to be highlighted and stopped. It will take teamwork between players, devs, and console manufacturers to change this and it’s time. It’s past time. https://t.co/hVPHDvESVP

— Seamus Blackley (@SeamusBlackley) December 20, 2021

Blackley was among those take notice, writing in response, "This wasn't the future for [Xbox Live] we envisioned. As a community and with the help of [Microsoft] this needs to be highlighted and stopped. It will take teamwork between players, devs, and console manufacturers to change this and it’s time. It's past time."

Grenade Queen later shared a screencap of an apology from the players who harassed her, but harassment remains a major issue, with hate raids becoming more and more prevalent throughout 2021. In September, numerous streamers organized a boycott to draw attention to the harassment suffered by marginalized creators.

In a separate interview with Axios, Blackley said "not enough attention was paid to the problem" of harassment while the team was working on Xbox Live.

"It's gone from bad to pure evil over the last two decade," Blackey said.

Blackley urged Microsoft and Steam to "simply pop the bubble" and "clearly state that there is a problem." He said it hasn't happened yet because publishers are afraid that it "alienates the 'core' audience," which he called "ludicrous." He also argued that marginalized people need to be in positions of power at studios.

"It's clear that people behave a lot better when their online reputation is tied to their real lives, and it’s also clear that the consequences of enforcement are far more effective if players can't simply scamper to a new random account," Blackley said.

Twitch has responded by cracking down on toxic streamers and introducing new guidelines, but there is a little sign of harassment abating as 2022 approaches.

Blogroll image credit: Getty Images / David McNew

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN

As we've all come to learn by now, Henry Cavill is a huge geek. A huge geek who reloads his immense biceps like a shotgun, but a geek nonetheless. His most recent role puts him back in the boots of Geralt of Rivia, the legendary monster slayer in The Witcher Season 2 on Netflix. Over the past couple years, as Cavill has been interviewed endlessly about his work and home life, he's made it known that he loves fantasy worlds, both in video game and tabletop form.

So we thought we'd round up every franchise that Henry Cavill has said he'd like to be a part of, if only to satiate our own curiosity of what Cavill might look like dressed as a Warhammer elf or a Mass Effect Turian.

Mass Effect

No surprise, Henry Cavill loves sci-fi games, too. In early December 2021, Cavill told GamesRadar that he would "love to have a conversation" about the potential Mass Effect series coming from Amazon.

"Very much so, yeah, all depending on how they’re executing it," Cavill said when asked about his interest in the series. "The world of adaptation can be heavy or light. When I like a product, I prefer the adaptation to be less changed from the source, so it all depends."

Of course, an obvious role for Cavill might be Mass Effect's very own Commander Shepard, but he could also be more than suitable for the Turian assassin/drinking buddy/best boy Garrus Vakarian.

The good news is that Cavill might have already teased something related to Mass Effect, sharing an image on Instagram that was later determined to show text from a Mass Effect wiki page.

Red Dead Redemption

Cowboys wouldn't be too far a stretch for Cavill either. Speaking to GameReactor, Cavill mentioned that he thought Red Dead Redemption would make for a solid adaptation.

"Well, that's a tricky one, 'cause you're tying both an IP and a company together, which is a tricky thing to do, so I certainly don't want to put myself in any corners with that, but there are plenty of games out there... I've actually started playing Red Dead Redemption 2—I know I'm a little bit late to that party—but I started playing it and I'm really enjoying it. And so, something like that I think would be fun to turn into a movie."

We certainly know that the normally fresh faced Cavill can pull off a grizzled, world-weary look thanks to his work as Geralt, so an equally grizzled cowboy seems possible.

Warhammer

Out of all of Henry Cavill's nerdy interests, Warhammer 40,000 might be his most passionate. The tabletop wargaming franchise has consumed many a hobby shop (when Friday Night Magic isn't busy taking tables) thanks to an iconic cast of Space Marines, Chaos daemon gods, or screaming orks.

Cavill has previously professed his love for Games Workshop, the company behind Warhammer and its countless licensed video games and books, as well as the Warhammer: Age of Sigmar game. He even paints Warhammer miniatures (including the helmeted Adeptus Custodes faction), having gotten back into the hobby during the 2020 lockdown after some time away from it.

While promoting The Witcher season 2, Cavill told IGN, "There are a lot of characters from the Warhammer universe that I want to be. But I can only really be one, because once I'm one, then I can't be others. So if it were to ever happen, if there were to be anything live action, I would have to be very aware of that.

"[Warhammer] is obviously character rich, and especially the 40K universe,” he continued. “I suppose I could play a different character from the Warhammer Fantasy universe versus the 40K universe, but I'm now just dreaming. I'd have to speak to the guys at Games Workshop and see what happens."

When suggested that he might make a good Gregor Eisenhorn, a character from Dan Abnett's popular series of Warhammer 40,000 novels who serves as an Inquisitor for the Imperium of Man, Cavill's interest seemed cautiously piqued.

"That would be exciting, yes, but then I burn Primarchs, and the Captain-Generals, so I don't really know," he said.

Other characters that Cavill could theoretically play include Horus Lupercal, the traitorous Primarch whose campaign against the Emperor of Mankind triggered the current state of the 40K universe. He could also play any number of Space Marines, or similarly author Dan Abnett's Imbram Gaunt of "Gaunt's Ghosts," a popular series of novels following the Astra Militarum regiment, which works to free human settlements of Chaos.

Working in his favor, Cavill has already been turned into an easter egg in Total War: Warhammer 3, which includes a sly reference to his portrayal of Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher.

What do you think Henry Cavill should star in? Any geek culture franchises the actor deserves a shot at that we missed? Let us know in the comments, and check out our review of The Witcher Season 2.

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/Tau Empire player for IGN. He misses Sly Marbo.

As we've all come to learn by now, Henry Cavill is a huge geek. A huge geek who reloads his immense biceps like a shotgun, but a geek nonetheless. His most recent role puts him back in the boots of Geralt of Rivia, the legendary monster slayer in The Witcher Season 2 on Netflix. Over the past couple years, as Cavill has been interviewed endlessly about his work and home life, he's made it known that he loves fantasy worlds, both in video game and tabletop form.

So we thought we'd round up every franchise that Henry Cavill has said he'd like to be a part of, if only to satiate our own curiosity of what Cavill might look like dressed as a Warhammer elf or a Mass Effect Turian.

Mass Effect

No surprise, Henry Cavill loves sci-fi games, too. In early December 2021, Cavill told GamesRadar that he would "love to have a conversation" about the potential Mass Effect series coming from Amazon.

"Very much so, yeah, all depending on how they’re executing it," Cavill said when asked about his interest in the series. "The world of adaptation can be heavy or light. When I like a product, I prefer the adaptation to be less changed from the source, so it all depends."

Of course, an obvious role for Cavill might be Mass Effect's very own Commander Shepard, but he could also be more than suitable for the Turian assassin/drinking buddy/best boy Garrus Vakarian.

The good news is that Cavill might have already teased something related to Mass Effect, sharing an image on Instagram that was later determined to show text from a Mass Effect wiki page.

Red Dead Redemption

Cowboys wouldn't be too far a stretch for Cavill either. Speaking to GameReactor, Cavill mentioned that he thought Red Dead Redemption would make for a solid adaptation.

"Well, that's a tricky one, 'cause you're tying both an IP and a company together, which is a tricky thing to do, so I certainly don't want to put myself in any corners with that, but there are plenty of games out there... I've actually started playing Red Dead Redemption 2—I know I'm a little bit late to that party—but I started playing it and I'm really enjoying it. And so, something like that I think would be fun to turn into a movie."

We certainly know that the normally fresh faced Cavill can pull off a grizzled, world-weary look thanks to his work as Geralt, so an equally grizzled cowboy seems possible.

Warhammer

Out of all of Henry Cavill's nerdy interests, Warhammer 40,000 might be his most passionate. The tabletop wargaming franchise has consumed many a hobby shop (when Friday Night Magic isn't busy taking tables) thanks to an iconic cast of Space Marines, Chaos daemon gods, or screaming orks.

Cavill has previously professed his love for Games Workshop, the company behind Warhammer and its countless licensed video games and books, as well as the Warhammer: Age of Sigmar game. He even paints Warhammer miniatures (including the helmeted Adeptus Custodes faction), having gotten back into the hobby during the 2020 lockdown after some time away from it.

While promoting The Witcher season 2, Cavill told IGN, "There are a lot of characters from the Warhammer universe that I want to be. But I can only really be one, because once I'm one, then I can't be others. So if it were to ever happen, if there were to be anything live action, I would have to be very aware of that.

"[Warhammer] is obviously character rich, and especially the 40K universe,” he continued. “I suppose I could play a different character from the Warhammer Fantasy universe versus the 40K universe, but I'm now just dreaming. I'd have to speak to the guys at Games Workshop and see what happens."

When suggested that he might make a good Gregor Eisenhorn, a character from Dan Abnett's popular series of Warhammer 40,000 novels who serves as an Inquisitor for the Imperium of Man, Cavill's interest seemed cautiously piqued.

"That would be exciting, yes, but then I burn Primarchs, and the Captain-Generals, so I don't really know," he said.

Other characters that Cavill could theoretically play include Horus Lupercal, the traitorous Primarch whose campaign against the Emperor of Mankind triggered the current state of the 40K universe. He could also play any number of Space Marines, or similarly author Dan Abnett's Imbram Gaunt of "Gaunt's Ghosts," a popular series of novels following the Astra Militarum regiment, which works to free human settlements of Chaos.

Working in his favor, Cavill has already been turned into an easter egg in Total War: Warhammer 3, which includes a sly reference to his portrayal of Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher.

What do you think Henry Cavill should star in? Any geek culture franchises the actor deserves a shot at that we missed? Let us know in the comments, and check out our review of The Witcher Season 2.

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/Tau Empire player for IGN. He misses Sly Marbo.

Is Die Hard a Christmas movie? Ever since 1988, action flick aficionados have been arguing about the true holiday spirit of John McClane's first big adventure. Despite releasing in the summer of '88, Die Hard features a surprising amount of Christmas cheer, tunes, and a bit of blood-soaked "ho, ho, hos."

It's no marketing mistake, either. According to DISH, 2.4 million people watched Die Hard during the Christmas season in 2016, and 1.3 million of those are on Christmas Eve. On TV, Die Hard is watched more than Christmas classics like Home Alone, Miracle on 34th Street, or The Santa Clause.

Still, the debate rages on! So we asked you, the holly jolly IGN audience, to vote on whether or not Die Hard is a Christmas movie. 23,133 of you voted, and the final verdict is in. Check out the result below.

Is Die Hard a Christmas Movie?

Yes, Definitely - 18,011 votes (77.9%)

No, stop with this madness - 5,122 votes (22.1%)

Winner: Die Hard is a Christmas movie

All told, 18,011 people voted that Die Hard is a Christmas movie, making for a whopping 77.9% of the total voter base. A less impressive, but by no means insignificant, 5,122 people voted that Die Hard is not a Christmas movie, totaling 22.1%.

Clearly, film lovers and Christmas fanatics are in favor of Die Hard's holiday status. To be fair, there's some precedent in their favor. Besides the fact that Die Hard takes place during a Christmas company party, the score includes Run D.M.C.'s "Christmas in Hollis," and even the final line (from McClane's sidekick limo driver Argyle) references Christmas.

It's also not unusual for certain films to become Christmas classics simply because audiences love to watch them during the holidays, despite not actually being terribly focused on December 25.

It's a Wonderful Life, the 1947 feel-good classic that helped inspire the "what would life be like if I didn't exist" trope, was a huge commercial failure until it accidentally entered public domain and became an easy pick for television rotation. The movie doesn't even switch gears to the Christmas season until about an hour and forty minutes into its 2 hour 10 minute runtime. Then there's movies like Batman Returns, a "Christmas" movie about a homicidal Danny DeVito who exacts vengeance on Gotham during the holidays, as well as Gremlins, Iron Man 3, and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

The only thing working against the vote is that Bruce Willis said in 2018 that Die Hard isn't a Christmas movie. Let's be honest, though, that opinion is probably just a defense against countless press junkets and Die Hard diehards asking him the same question over and over again.

Point being, there's no scientific formula to what makes Die Hard a Christmas movie, but having 18,011 people agreeing with you is definitely a good start. It's all about what vibes you want to feel while the snow falls, the cocoa cools, and the machine guns rattle.

Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/Die Hard diehard for IGN

Jurassic Park director Steven Spielberg wasn’t prepared for the emotional reunion of his original characters in Jurassic World: Dominion. During an interview with Empire Magazine, director Colin Trevorrow revealed that a scene in the upcoming Jurassic World: Dominion proved to be quite poignant.

“The moment everybody shows up for the first time together, they’re all packed into a Jeep,” he said. “And I took a picture of it and I sent it to Steven [Spielberg]. He got very emotional. I don’t think even he was prepared for how moving it would be to see all of those characters that he loves, and people that he loves, looking incredible and on an adventure together.”

Jurassic World: Dominion sees Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum back together on the big screen for the first time since Jurassic Park was originally released in 1993. But they won’t be going it alone – this time, teaming up with the likes of Jurassic World newbies, Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard.

“A movie like this, with our legacy characters playing as large a role as our modern characters, it’s challenging to bring it all together in a way that has momentum, and also isn’t a five-hour-long movie,” said Trevorrow. "It was nice to have the time to make sure that every character is honoured in the way that they need to be.”

Jurassic World: Dominion will apparently conclude both Jurassic Park and Jurassic World trilogies, with a story that takes place four years after the events of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. This time around, the world is forced to deal with invasive dinosaur species after the park’s genetically altered inhabitants were sold off to companies around the world.

Seems a bit far-fetched but we’re gonna stick with it.

Still, with a variety of new dinosaurs on the rampage, it sounds as though our heroes are going to have their hands full. 65 million years in the making, Jurassic World: Dominion may well be the epic conclusion we’ve been waiting for.

Jurassic World: Dominion will debut in theatres on June 10, 2022.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

When it comes to tech, the major trends of 2021 were as much about what didn’t happen than what did. A year into the ninth generation of gaming consoles, the top story of the year is a chip shortage that’s continued to cause headaches and supply strains (with no sign of relief for at least another year). Even so, we’ve seen some exciting announcements and advancements that lay the groundwork for next year and beyond. Here are the biggest tech stories of 2021.

The Chip Shortage

If you have been trying to purchase any of the most popular gaming gadgets this year, you’re probably familiar with these two words: “semiconductor shortage.” Global supply chain problems stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic have limited the supply of the components needed for high-end electronics worldwide, causing manufacturing delays and production shortages on consumer products across the board. The ripples of the shortage can be felt in everything from rising inflation to Final Fantasy XIV server queues, but PC graphics cards and the PS5 and Xbox Series X have been hit especially hard, making it nearly impossible to find these high-ticket items at their advertised prices.

Unfortunately, there’s no end in sight, as many industry leaders have said that the chip shortage will extend through 2022 and likely into 2023.

Ninth-Generation Consoles: One Year Later

It’s been more than a year since Microsoft and Sony kicked off a new generation of gaming consoles with the release of the Xbox Series X and PS5, but they remain some of the most desirable and difficult-to-find gadgets on the market today. The ongoing chip shortage has kept stock in short supply, and when they do hit digital store shelves, they’re quickly snatched up by bots to be resold with a huge markup. Nevertheless, both consoles have sold big numbers in their first year, and their futures look promising.

For folks who have managed to snag a console, we’ve seen a steady trickle of hardware and software improvements throughout the year. One of the biggest issues both consoles were criticized for at launch was the minimal internal storage sizes, particularly for the PS5, which has just 667GB of usable space and launched without a means of expanding it. This past summer, Sony finally rolled out a firmware update that allows PS5 owners to open up their console and install their own M.2 SSD to expand the storage. While it seems intimidating for some, the process is fairly straightforward, and a slew of SSD options are available. Meanwhile, on the Microsoft side, additional configurations for the proprietary storage expansion card have hit the market, giving Xbox Series X users more options for contending with a growing library of game installs.

Peripheral support continues to grow as well. The Xbox Design Lab returned, letting folks build customized Xbox controllers with personalized color schemes, rubber grips, and metallic finishes on the triggers and d-pad. The PS5 got some personality this year too, as Sony rolled out a handful of new DualSense and console faceplate colorways.

Also on the Sony front, the PS5 finally has an answer to the Xbox Elite, thanks to third-party controller-maker Scuf, which announced the Reflex Pro, a PS5 controller with remappable back paddles, interchangeable thumbsticks, and customizable colors. It’s a welcome addition to the controller landscape, and something we hope more companies will follow suit with in 2022.

The Revival of Gaming Handhelds

The mega-hit Nintendo Switch made sure that handheld gaming never truly died, but recently a handful of newcomers have come into the fold, each with its own distinct approach to gaming off the big screen.

Most notable is the Valve Steam Deck, a handheld gaming PC that will run SteamOS. When it arrives, it promises to finally give PC gamers a way to take their game libraries on the go (or to the couch). Steam Deck was announced with a launch date for this holiday season, but that same chip shortage caused that date to slip into early 2022.

Steam Deck wasn’t the year’s only exciting handheld, though. The long-awaited Analogue Pocket is a sleek handheld that plays Game Boy cartridges without emulation, and it finally launched its first wave of units in December. More are on the way, but – yup, because of the chip shortage again – they’re now $20 more expensive and will be shipping in waves on a first-come, first-served basis: first in early 2022, followed by late 2022.

Finally, we have the Playdate, a quirky little handheld you can recharge with a mechanical crank on the side. It plays a selection of experimental or otherwise non-traditional games from notable indie developers. It was supposed to come out this year, but it too has been pushed into 2022.

Regardless of the launch dates or their particular approaches, these new devices, alongside the continued success of the Switch and its brand-new OLED model, shows a real renaissance in the handheld gaming space.

Cloud Gaming Makes Major Strides

Cloud gaming is nothing new, but 2021 saw this emerging tech make major strides.

In October, Nvidia announced a new subscription tier for its GeForce Now platform that effectively lets you rent a PC with an RTX 3080. While cloud gaming still comes with its own share of hiccups, access to that level of power is welcome considering how difficult it’s been to buy an RTX 30-series graphics card in real life.

As for Microsoft, it’s been building a lot of momentum with Xbox Cloud Gaming. The service launched on Android devices last year, but in 2021 it rolled out to Apple devices, the Xbox PC app, and Xbox consoles. That increasing device support means more and more folks have a pain-free way to try the service out and experience a game without the need for local gaming hardware that’s hard to buy right now. It also means that new-gen exclusives like Starfield will be playable on Xbox One, or your phone.

Again, cloud gaming is not without its quirks – namely, it’s completely dependent on the quality of your internet connection. The medium has a long way to go before it could fully supplant traditional console or PC hardware in most gamers’ living rooms – if we ever even get to that point at all – but the support and growth on both the device and platform level show that cloud gaming will continue to be an important piece of the gaming landscape in the years to come.