Intel may be preparing a more affordable alternative to its powerful Arc G3 Extreme handheld processor. According to leaker Jaykihn, the company is working on a Panther Lake-based chip with eight CPU cores and four Xe3 GPU cores, potentially giving handheld manufacturers a way to build cheaper devices without abandoning Intel’s latest architecture.
The rumored configuration isn’t exactly mysterious. Intel already has Panther Lake chips with eight CPU cores and four Xe3 GPU cores, built around four performance cores and four low-power efficiency cores. What makes this interesting is the suggestion that this configuration could be specifically targeted at handheld gaming PCs as a cheaper alternative to the dedicated Arc G3 lineup.
The trade-off is obvious. Intel’s Arc G3 Extreme packs 14 CPU cores and a much larger 12-Xe3 Arc B390 GPU, while the standard Arc G3 has the same 14-core CPU arrangement with a 10-Xe3 GPU. The rumored Panther Lake option would therefore give up a significant amount of graphics horsepower in exchange for a simpler, potentially cheaper chip.
That could actually make a lot of sense. Not everyone buying a handheld needs to run every new AAA game at maximum settings. A lower-cost Intel machine aimed at indie games, older AAA titles and lighter gaming could give the company a much broader market than its current premium-focused approach.
We’ve tested Intel’s Arc G3 Extreme in the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+, and the performance genuinely impressed us. It gives Intel’s handheld platform some serious muscle, but there’s a fairly chunky catch: the Claw launched at $1,799, which makes it more of a luxury gaming gadget than an impulse handheld purchase. That’s why a lower-end Panther Lake chip is such an interesting prospect. Intel clearly has the performance chops; it just needs to make them easier to afford.
The catch is that a cheaper chip doesn’t automatically mean a cheap handheld. Memory and storage costs are still putting pressure on the overall bill of materials, and even current Intel G3-powered handhelds are expected to hover around the $1,000 mark, with the G3 Extreme models like the MSI Claw and Acer Predator Atlas sitting considerably higher. So Intel can trim the processor without necessarily turning the entire machine into a bargain.
That makes the rumored four-Xe3 Panther Lake chip a positive sign, but I’d keep the budget-handheld celebrations on ice for now. With component prices where they are, a genuinely cheap Intel handheld could still be a tough ask, and anything approaching Steam Deck territory would be a pleasant surprise. Still, splitting its strategy between ridiculously powerful premium handhelds and more sensible mainstream machines is exactly what Intel needs if it wants Arc to become more than an expensive curiosity.
The Call of Duty franchise has held a special place in my heart ever since I played my first Black Ops game back in 2010. That game's campaign was something else, with twists and turns that culminated in a mind-blowing finale. We can all admit that compared to those older campaigns, the recent CODs have been lackluster at best, and a complete and utter disappointment at worst. The reboot of Modern Warfare did give me some hope, as the first two installments were actually quite good, but the third game left such a bad taste in my mouth that I wasn’t exactly expecting much from Modern Warfare 4.
After recently finishing the campaign, I can say that this installment is nothing like the recent releases and instead feels closer to the franchise’s roots. For the first time in a long while, the campaign comes across as well-crafted rather than rushed to hit a release date. It arrives three years after MW3, and you can see exactly where all that time went. It seems the studio finally made listening to player feedback a priority.
Epic Games has just announced the 2026 Epic AI MegaJam, which is looking to see how much game development can be squeezed into a very short window. This is running from November 12 through November 15.
Participants can work alone or in teams of up to five people, build in Unreal Engine or Unreal Editor for Fortnite, and bring along “as many AI agents as you want.” Epic explicitly encourages coding agents, AI-generated assets, audio tools, writing tools, and other AI systems. The official event page literally says "Vibe your way to $50k.”
It’s turning into a pretty good time to be a Monster Hunter fan who plays on a phone. Capcom has confirmed that Monster Hunter Outlanders will launch on Android and iOS on October 29, giving the series a new mobile-first game just as Monster Hunter Rise is also preparing to make the jump to smartphones through Netflix.
Outlanders is being developed by Tencent subsidiary TiMi Studio Group under license and supervision from Capcom. Unlike Rise, which appears to be the full console and PC game adapted for mobile, Outlanders is a free-to-play survival hunting game made specifically for phones.