Amazon
Hardware, storefront and ecosystem news for Amazon.
May 4 Celebrations Are Starting Early With a Star Wars Lego Sale at AmazonAmazon is offering discounts of up to 26% on various Lego Star Wars sets, including the Millennium Falcon, TIE Bomber, and R2-D2, in anticipation of May 4th celebrations. Some sets are at record low prices, featuring iconic ships and characters from the Star Wars universe.- New World doubles experience rates and lets remaining players buy five houses a popAmazon has implemented several updates for its MMORPG New World, including permanently doubling experience rates and increasing the number of purchasable houses to five per player. The update also raises the gold cap, removes a main story quest requirement for a specific zone, and increases the umbral crystal farming limit.
Mass Effect Showrunner Denies Claims The Show Was Rewritten For a "Non-Gaming Audience"Mass Effect TV series showrunner Daniel Casey has denied reports that the show was rewritten to appeal to a "non-gaming audience." Casey stated that the claim caught him off guard and that no such directive was ever given to him. The series, which is set after the video game trilogy and will not feature Commander Shepard, is still in development at Prime Video.- Amazon allegedly pressured companies to raise product prices with other retailersCalifornia's Attorney General Rob Bonta has released details of a lawsuit accusing Amazon of pressuring companies to raise product prices on competitor websites like Walmart and Target. The state alleges that brands comply due to Amazon's significant bargaining leverage, fearing penalties such as losing buy buttons. Amazon has denied the claims, calling the case weak and stating they offer the lowest prices to customers.
- Clarkson's Farm Season 5 Release DateAmazon has announced that the fifth season of the television series Clarkson's Farm will begin streaming in June. The exact release date within June has not yet been specified.
This is my favorite denial on the Citadel: Mass Effect showrunner says he was never told to rewrite the Amazon series…Mass Effect co-showrunner Daniel Casey has denied reports that the upcoming Amazon television series is being rewritten for non-gamers, stating he was never given such direction. Casey confirmed that the writers' room is active and the show will explore a new story set after the original trilogy, separate from Commander Shepard's narrative. Other successful Amazon adaptations like Fallout and The Legend of Vox Machina have remained faithful to their source material.
Amazon's Mass Effect TV team wasn't actually ordered to rewrite scripts and make them "more appealing to non-gamers"Writer and executive producer Daniel Casey has debunked reports that Amazon's upcoming Mass Effect TV series scripts were being rewritten to appeal to non-gamers. Casey stated that the quote attributed to Amazon's head of global TV, Peter Friedlander, was never said to him. The adaptation, confirmed in November 2024, is being written by Casey and involves talent from Amazon's Fallout series.- AI Yi-Yi!Amazon is investing up to $25 billion in AI company Anthropic as part of a broad deal. Meanwhile, Google is offering higher AI Studio limits to its AI Pro and Ultra subscribers, and Claude Desktop is undergoing software changes.
- Amazon will invest up to $25 billion in Anthropic in a broad dealAmazon is significantly deepening its partnership with AI company Anthropic by investing up to $25 billion. This includes an initial $5 billion investment and up to $20 billion in additional payments tied to milestones. Anthropic has committed to using Amazon's custom silicon and spending over $100 billion on AWS technologies over the next decade, while also making its Claude platform available to AWS customers.
Is Fortnite Toxic? An Honest Answer Backed by Data (2026) | TAGData suggests Fortnite's reputation for toxicity is more nuanced than commonly perceived, with lower rates of identity-based harassment compared to other competitive shooters. While age-driven trash talk and skill-gap frustration are prevalent, especially in modes like Ranked, Epic Games has implemented moderation tools and default communication settings to mitigate harm, particularly for younger players.- LinkedIn's new Crosscheck feature lets premium subscribers test competing AI models for freeLinkedIn has launched a new feature called Crosscheck, allowing Premium subscribers in the United States to test various AI models from companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google without token limits. Users are presented with two AI-generated answers to a prompt and choose their preferred one before seeing which model produced it. While currently text-based, the feature aims to help users compare AI models and will eventually expand to more countries and free users.
- Blue Origin landed its recycled New Glenn booster but failed to put payload in orbitBlue Origin successfully landed and reused its New Glenn rocket booster for the second time on its third mission. However, the mission failed to place the AST SpaceMobile communications satellite into orbit due to an "off-nominal orbit" at too low an altitude. Despite the payload failure, the successful booster reuse marks a significant step for the company's reusability program.
- MMO Week in Review: Gorgon’s drama, TurtleWoW’s demise, Ashes’ docsThis week in the MMORPG genre saw significant drama and updates across various titles. Ashes of Creation's former boss released legal documents, Project Gorgon faced community backlash over bans, and TurtleWoW announced its closure following a lawsuit. Additionally, Book of Travels is transitioning to a solo offline game, while new content and updates arrived for games like Guild Wars 2, Final Fantasy XIV, and Elder Scrolls Online.
Nintendo pre-order updates – April 19, 2026 – Rhythm Heaven Groove and moreThis article provides a comprehensive list of Nintendo products available for pre-order across various retailers in the United States, Canada, and the UK. It details release dates, editions, and participating stores for a wide range of upcoming games and amiibo.- Saturday Legal BriefsNewly unsealed records indicate that Amazon engaged in price-fixing tactics, according to claims made by the California Attorney General. The article details the legal proceedings and allegations against the e-commerce giant.
Amazon’s Counterfeit Game Problem Reaches Nintendo Switch Physical CopiesAmazon is facing a significant problem with counterfeit Nintendo Switch game cartridges being sold directly through its platform, even with the "shipped and sold by Amazon" label. This issue is particularly concerning for physical game collectors due to the sophistication of the fakes and the speed at which they are appearing in circulation, raising questions about Amazon's inventory management and the future of physical game collecting.
Something for the Weekend – 18/04/26This week's gaming news includes the reveal of Metro 2039 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and PC, and Masters of Albion launching into Early Access. Updates were announced for Battlefield 6, Hell Let Loose: Vietnam, Fortnite Save the World, and STALKER 2. Several games received reviews, including Pragmata with a 9/10 score, and new trailers were released for 007: First Light and Northgard: Battleground.- Evening MetaverseJapan's Foreign Minister made comments regarding White House tweets that referenced Nintendo intellectual property. Separately, Amazon will no longer release Fire TV Sticks that support sideloading applications.
Fallout 2 and New Vegas designer still hates the series' Amazon TV show: "I had to shut it off within a…Fallout 2 and Fallout: New Vegas designer Chris Avellone expressed strong dissatisfaction with Amazon's Fallout TV show, finding both seasons difficult to watch due to perceived flaws in storytelling and cinematography. Despite his criticisms, Avellone acknowledged the show's success and its positive impact on the Fallout franchise.
AneeMate Reveals Q2 2026 Playtest with Survival Mode and Proximity ChatQORPO Game Studio's AneeMate will feature a survival mode with proximity chat in its Q2 2026 playtest, focusing on resource gathering and co-op against robotic enemies. The game integrates creature-collecting with extraction shooter mechanics, player customization, and NFT-based ownership of in-game items facilitated by the TOY Chain blockchain.