Skip to main content
All Stories By:

Sean Hollister

Sean Hollister

Senior Editor

Sean is a senior editor at The Verge, a very good website he helped found in 2011. He thrives at the intersection of gaming, technology, and toys, with a side of consumer advocacy because companies just can't help themselves, can they? Sean previously led breaking news teams at The Verge and CNET and the reviews program at Gizmodo. He also has that voice.

Ethics statement, June 2023: Sean's wife is employed by Apple as a video producer. He therefore does not currently report or edit stories about Apple products or Apple as a company.

On Friday, we’ll hear whether Google can delay cracking open Android.

Last week, Judge Donato ruled that Google would have to open up Android to third-party app stores starting November 1st — but Google immediately filed an appeal and asked for an emergency stay.

Now, the judge will hear Google’s motion on October 18th. If he grants it, it could be years until Google makes changes, even if higher courts agree with his ruling.


“A hearing... is set for October 18, 2024.”
The judge’s latest order in Epic v. Google.
Image: CourtListener
S
External Link
Will Valve really sell a Steam Deck plugin that helps bring Epic Games to the handheld?

“Junk Store has been approved for sale on the Steam Store!” its developers write — before pointing out Valve hasn’t technically approved the Epic Games Store and GOG game installer tool quite yet.

But why shouldn’t they? You can already add Junk Store to a Steam Deck with the Decky Loader sideloading system. I asked Valve; we’ll see!


S
Youtube
Tomb Raider IV-VI and Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles are getting remasters.

I don’t know who needs to hear this, because that era of 3D platformers haven’t necessarily aged well — but I’m feeling some nostalgia well up anyhow! The three-game Tomb Raider collection is coming February (trailer below), while Jedi Power Battles (trailer here) is coming January.


AMD’s AI chips are coming for Nvidia — but how quickly?

AMD says the MI325X, shipping Q4, will beat Nvidia’s H200. But Nvidia seems a step ahead; it’ll ship “several billion dollars” of its next-gen Blackwell B200 GPU in Q4, too. AMD says its Blackwell competitor, the MI355X, won’t arrive till 2H 2025.

AMD isn’t talking price, but told us it’ll undercut Nvidia when it comes to total cost of ownership.


A slide showing the MI325X may beat the Nvidia H200.

1/19

Tap through our gallery for info about the upcoming MI355X, too.
Images: AMD
S
Instagram
Why I’m returning Meta’s limited-edition translucent Ray-Bans.

I’m in a love-hate relationship with these smart shades. This’ll be the second time I’ve returned a pair! I gave them another chance because the see-through model looks fantastic... I’d use them almost every day if I could ditch these dealbreakers.


I totally forgot we wrote about Nintendo’s sleep tracking alarm clock 10 years ago.

Nintendo’s been dreaming of Alarmo for a decade — CEO Satoru Iwata revealed the idea in an investor briefing back in 2014! It’s possible the project went on pause between then and now, though. Today, Nintendo said that its development took place during the covid-19 pandemic.

Here’s our hands-on with the cute-as-a-button Alarmo.


God of War Ragnarok is getting a PS5 Pro Enhanced patch, according to the PlayStation Store.

As Reddit, Push Square, and others are pointing out, the very good 2022 game is suddenly sporting a “PS5 Pro Enhanced” badge. Sony hasn’t yet confirmed a patch, nor do we have details on how the game might get enhanced.

Here’s our running list of PS5 Pro Enhanced games, and our hands-on with 11 of them.