Hot Wheels and game developer Psyonix have teamed up for a real-life version of their popular over-the-top mashup of soccer and car racing game Rocket League. No speed boosts are included, but two Battle Cars from the game can take to the pitch and try to ram an oversized soccer ball through their opponent’s goal.
The Hot Wheels Rocket League RC Rivals game was unveiled at the Toy Fair in New York, and it comes with authentic Dominus and Octane vehicles from the video game. The set also includes the game ball, a stadium, and a charging base.
Both Battle Cars are controlled via Bluetooth from your tablet or smartphone. The built-in scoreboard automatically scores any goals made via an infrared sensor in the ball. Sound effects to match the video game will also be added to the tabletop version.
The set also includes some codes that will unlock exclusive in-game items for use in Rocket League matches.
This isn’t the first time that Hot Wheels and Rocket League have joined forces. Last year, a DLC for the game added two of Mattel’s most popular models, Bone Shaker and Twin Mill III.
After a hands-on preview session at the Toy Fair, CNET compared it to a foosball game, and they noted that the cars can be set to ten different speed levels.
Although this is Rocket League’s first foray into remote-control models, it has introduced a variety of toy cars to capitalize on the popularity of the game. Along with a series of Pull-Back Racers from Zag Toys last year, the Light-Up Clip-on versions of eight racers are being released in March.
Not to mention that the developer been busy releasing Rocket League on virtually every platform possible, with a Nintendo Switch version debuting just a few months ago. It’s one of the few titles that fully supports cross-platform play, although PlayStation has famously declined multiple times to participate. It’s also been a big hit in the eSports community, with tournaments being broadcast on X Games and NBC.
The Hot Wheels Rocket League Rivals RC Set will be available later this year for $180.
Acer’s Predator Atlas 8 finally has a US release date and price, several months after the company first showed off the handheld in May. The highlight is the Intel Arc G3 Extreme chip inside, which has been adopted by only a couple of other consoles besides the Atlas 8. This version will go on sale exclusively at Best Buy on November 1 for $1,299.99.
Acer originally said the Atlas 8 would arrive in North America in October, but left pricing open at the time. The launch came amid the ongoing DRAM crunch, which has made memory more expensive across the PC industry and complicated pricing for hardware makers.
Gaming laptops and I have a complicated relationship. One of my first gaming rigs was an Acer Predator that was already outdated when I bought it. I was a broke college kid, and that was the best I could afford. So trying out high-end gaming laptops is always fun. But ASUS' ROG Zephyrus G14 is a lot more than a laptop that can run AAA games. It is portable, so you're not lugging around a 2.5kg machine everywhere you go. It is built well, none of that plastic chassis, and can even function as a normal laptop outside of just gaming.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.