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New CS2 Update Adds Nightmode 2 Music Kits, Cache Fixes, and More

Sonu Banerjee
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New CS2 Update Adds Nightmode 2 Music Kits, Cache Fixes, and More

Valve has rolled out a fresh update for Counter-Strike 2, and it’s a neat mix of new content and housekeeping.

The May 8th CS2 update introduces a fresh batch of six new music kits to the shooter. Featuring tracks from SHOCKONE, ALRT, and more, the Nightmode 2 music kits can be purchased via the in-game store right away in both standard and StatTrak versions.

Unlike most previous music kit releases, the Nightmode 2 kits can be purchased individually from the CS2 store, rather than having to buy a box and rely on luck to get the one you want. It’s certainly an interesting change that aligns with Valve’s broader move away from loot box-style mechanics, likely influenced by the wave of gambling-related lawsuits the company has faced recently.

To get your own Nightmode 2 music kit and switch up your CS2 tunes, head over to the ‘Store’ tab in-game and buy the one you like. You can also click on each individual music kit to listen to its main menu theme before making your decision.

Alongside the addition of new music kits, the latest CS2 update has also introduced a series of changes to Cache focused on further polishing the map before its addition to the Premier map pool.

CS2 May 8 Update Patch Notes

Below, we’ve listed the detailed patch notes for the CS2 May 8 update, as confirmed by Valve:

[ MAPS ]

Cache

  • Fixed various holes in map.
  • Simplified grenade clipping in various areas.
  • Fixed sounds and surfacetypes for various materials.
  • Orange wire spool at Sandbags has been exchanged for white wire.

[ MUSIC KITS ]

  • NIGHTMODE II Music Kits are now available for purchase in standard and StatTrak versions through the STORE tab.

[ WORKSHOP ]

  • Fixed progressive refinement rendering Source Film Maker.

[ MISC ]

  • User Viewmodel FOV now correctly networks to remote clients.
  • Adjusted player model occlusion bounds.
  • Fixed ragdolls missing death velocity when shot in specific body locations.
  • Minor adjustments to ground smoothing transitions when leaving the ground and when landing.
  • Fixed a case where post-processing transitions weren’t smooth (e.g. at the end of freeze time).
  • Fixed a case where map guides for Ancient wouldn’t load in the nighttime version
  • Adjusted score values for various weapons in Deathmatch.
  • Adjusted XP limits in Deathmatch and Arms Race.

Windows 11’s “Low Latency Profile” Could Make App Launches Up to 70% Faster

Aritra Patra
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0
Windows 11’s “Low Latency Profile” Could Make App Launches Up to 70% Faster

Microsoft is testing a new Windows 11 feature that spikes CPU frequency for short bursts when you open an app or click a system menu. The goal is simple: make the OS feel snappier without the user doing anything at all.

The feature is called the Low Latency Profile. According to sources familiar with Microsoft’s plans, it is already in testing inside the Windows Insider Program.

What the Low Latency Profile Actually Does

When a user opens an app, a system flyout, or a context menu, the Low Latency Profile automatically ramps the CPU up to its maximum frequency for a burst lasting between 1 and 3 seconds. After that window closes, the CPU settles back to normal.

The performance numbers reported are notable. In-box apps like Edge and Outlook could launch up to 40% faster. System UI elements like the Start menu and context menus could open up to 70% faster. Third-party apps are also expected to benefit.

This is not a manual tweak. The feature triggers automatically in the background when needed and stays invisible to the user. There is no toggle to flip, at least not in the current build being tested.

Battery and Heat

A common concern with anything that pushes a CPU to max frequency is power draw and heat. Sources say the impact on battery life and thermals is minimal because the burst itself is very short.

That said, the feature is still in its early stages. Adjustments are still being made to the duration and frequency of the boost, and the feature is likely to change before any official announcement.

The Low Latency Profile is part of Microsoft’s Windows K2 initiative, which targets overall performance and responsiveness improvements for Windows 11. Other work under that effort includes optimizing legacy code and moving more parts of the OS to WinUI 3.

Microsoft has been publicly prioritizing performance in 2026. Among the improvements already in the pipeline are faster startup app launches after boot, refined memory management, and File Explorer speed improvements. The Low Latency Profile sits alongside these changes as part of a wider attempt to make the OS feel as fast as its hardware allows.

The latest Windows 11 release preview builds have already shown optimization in File Explorer launch speed, enabling faster access to files and folders.

Microsoft has not announced when the Low Latency Profile will roll out to general users. The feature remains in internal testing, and details could change. Users on the Windows Insider Program may see it before anyone else, though no specific build has been confirmed publicly.

Wuthering Waves x Cyberpunk Edgerunners Collab: Release Date, New Characters, and Free 5-Star Resonator

Sonu Banerjee
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0
Wuthering Waves x Cyberpunk Edgerunners Collab: Release Date, New Characters, and Free 5-Star Resonator

Wuthering Waves has officially confirmed a collaboration with Cyberpunk Edgerunners, and it’s all set to bring some of the beloved characters from the sci-fi anime to the gacha action RPG.

The collab trailer for Wuthering Waves x Cyberpunk Edgerunners has already been revealed by the devs, showing the featured characters that are likely to be a part of the upcoming crossover.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Wuthering Waves x Cyberpunk Edgerunners collaboration before it goes live.

Wuthering Waves x Cyberpunk Edgerunners Release Date

The highly anticipated  Wuthering Waves x Cyberpunk Edgerunners collab will take place in the WuWa 3.4 version, and it’s expected to hit the live servers on June 8, 2026.

New Characters & Free 5-Star Resonator

As shown in the trailer, Wuthering Waves players will be able to collect Lucy and Rebecca from Edgerunners as part of the collab.

Furthermore, as confirmed by Kuro Games in an X post earlier today, players will be getting the 5-Star Resonator Rebecca for free as part of the crossover event.

Lucy will likely be available to obtain via a banner, the details surrounding which still remain shrouded in mystery.

That’s everything you need to know about the Wuthering Waves x Cyberpunk Edgerunners collaboration before it officially goes live next month.

Neon Removed From Valorant Till Patch 12.09 After Fast Lane Exploit

Sonu Banerjee
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0
Neon Removed From Valorant Till Patch 12.09 After Fast Lane Exploit

Valorant players, your prayers may have finally been answered – unless you’re a Neon main, that is.

While players have been calling for Neon nerfs for several weeks, Riot Games has instead officially removed Neon from Valorant as a result of a critical bug involving one of her abilities.

This removal of Neon is temporary, but the devs have confirmed that she won’t be returning to the roster until the Valorant 12.09 patch.

Additionally, Riot has also reassured players that the Valorant 12.09 update will also introduce some nerfs to the Filipino Duelist to address the community’s concerns regarding her kit.

Neon Disabled From Valorant Queues

As confirmed by Riot, Neon has been temporarily removed from Valorant due to a graphics exploit involving her Fast Lane ability.

Here’s the official statement from the dev team:

“We recently discovered a graphics exploit with Neon’s Fast Lane ability that affects competitive integrity, so we’re disabling her on PC from now until Patch 12.09 to fix the bug.

We’ve also been working on some Neon changes for a while to address parts of her kit that are over-tuned, which will go live when she returns in 12.09.”

Lastly, the devs also announced that they’ll shed further light on the upcoming Neon changes tomorrow.

While the majority of the Valorant community has celebrated Neon’s temporary removal from the game, not everyone is happy with Riot’s decision. Some players, and especially Neon one-tricks, have raised concerns over Riot completely disabling the Agent instead of simply fixing the exploit first and addressing balance changes later.

Note that this isn’t the first time an Agent has been completely removed from Valorant as a result of game-breaking exploits. Previously, we’ve seen Agents like Tejo, Reyna, and Omen getting temporarily disabled from the Valorant queues for similar bugs.

When Will Neon Return to Valorant?

Neon will return to Valorant with the game’s 12.09 update, which is scheduled to hit the live servers on May 13, 2026.

Nintendo Officially Announces Switch 2 Star Fox Pricing

Sarjyo Mukherjee
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Nintendo Officially Announces Switch 2 Star Fox Pricing

Nintendo has confirmed the pricing of the highly anticipated Star Fox remake on the Nintendo Switch 2, ending months of speculation and rewarding the fans waiting for the return of the franchise. Star Fox, set to launch on June 25 this year, will be a rework of the original Star Fox with better graphics and a plethora of new game elements.

The rework will include the complete experience of the old version of the game, but will bring redesigned character models, cutscenes, and overall quality of life improvements, which will set the stage to bring a burst of nostalgia for old players. It goes without saying that the whole game will be optimised for the latest hardware, which is expected to drastically improve the performance.

Star Fox (2026) will have a digital/physical cost difference of $50/$60
byu/Keaten88 inNintendoSwitch2

Switch 2 Star Fox Pricing

Nintendo has confirmed the digital edition of Star Fox for Switch to be $49.99, while the physical version will retail for $59.99. Goes without saying that many have disagreed with the pricing by stating it to be too high for a game that is essentially a rework, but die-hard fans of the game would pay it anyway.

Only time can tell if Nintendo will be able to recreate the magic of the original game in this version, especially with the modern hardware enabling them to get a lot out of it. With the pricing dividing the community, Star Fox needs to be a smashing success to silence the doubters.

Take-Two Cancels NFL 2K Game After 6 Years

Aritra Patra
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0
Take-Two Cancels NFL 2K Game After 6 Years

The NFL 2K game that Take-Two promised fans back in 2020 is not happening. Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick confirmed the cancellation in an interview with Game File’s Stephen Totilo, saying the project failed to come together on a creative level.

“What we hoped would come to fruition creatively did not,” Zelnick told Totilo. “Some of the stuff we tried to do didn’t work out creatively.”

Six Years, No Game

Six years ago, Take-Two announced a multi-game partnership with the NFL, exciting fans of its classic NFL 2K series, which ended in 2004, over a potential revival for the Madden rival.

The deal covered non-simulation games, meaning EA’s own NFL license used for the Madden series was unaffected. Any new 2K title would have needed to be designed in an arcade style.

That constraint became a problem. With the game unable to be a simulation title due to the exclusive deal between the NFL and Electronic Arts, 2K struggled to find an experience that could properly toe the line for players.

Development had been restarted at least twice since work began, according to a 2023 report by Insider Gaming. It was a case of multiple direction shifts, requiring going back to square one.

NFL 2K Playmakers Failed First

Before the console project collapsed, Take-Two’s first NFL title under the partnership was the mobile game NFL 2K Playmakers. It disappointed and was eventually shut down. NFL 2K Playmakers was a card-collecting title similar to the MyTEAM modes in NBA 2K games. The game struggled to find an audience and shut down after just a year in June 2025.

Take-Two also stopped mentioning the partnership in its financial filings around this time, raising suspicion that no further games would be released.

EA Sports Madden remains the only major NFL simulation game on consoles. The NFL 2K cancellation removes what many hoped would become a competitor. For now, there is no NFL 2K game in development anywhere at Take-Two.

Ukraine Wants Counter-Strike Players in Its Army

Sonu Banerjee
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0
Ukraine Wants Counter-Strike Players in Its Army

The line between the virtual battlefields of Counter-Strike 2 and the real ones has never been thinner.

A Ukrainian People’s Deputy has sparked widespread discussion among gamers after suggesting that CS2 players could potentially be valuable assets in the army, the reasoning for which is rooted in Ukraine’s rapidly evolving approach to modern warfare.

“We need specialists who know how to play Counter-Strike, participate in all these cool tournaments,” the deputy said. “The ability to work on a laptop is now valued in the army on a par with a lieutenant colonel.”

He also went on to address the concerns of parents worried about sending their children to war.

“We understand that young people have parents, especially mothers, who are very concerned about the safety of their children,” he continued. “Modern warfare can provide this, allowing guys in basements to control drones from a distance of 500–1,000 kilometers [from the front lines].”

While it may sound unusual at first glance, the logic holds up pretty well on the battlefield. Ukraine’s drone commanders have openly acknowledged that gaming experience is a genuine asset, with one unit commander even claiming that soldiers with PlayStation experience already know how to use the controllers, while describing ideal pilots simply as “gamers, basically.”

In the present day, drones account for nearly two-thirds of battlefield deaths in the conflict. Additionally, as most Ukrainian drone operators are FPV pilots who often receive only weeks of training before deployment, this makes prior simulation and gaming experience all the more relevant.

When Will Fortnite Star Wars Droid Tycoon BB-8 Event Start

Aritra Patra
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0
When Will Fortnite Star Wars Droid Tycoon BB-8 Event Start

The BB-8 event in Fortnite’s Star Wars Droid Tycoon is set to kick off on Sunday, March 10, at 7 AM PT. This is the first major in-game event for the mode, and it will bring BB-8 into Droid Tycoon for the first time.

When Does the BB-8 Event Start?

The Star Wars Droid Tycoon BB-8 event begins at 7 AM PT on Sunday, March 10. The exact end time has not been confirmed.

If you want to track it live, a precise countdown showing days, hours, and minutes until BB-8’s arrival can be found outside the Cantina in Droid Tycoon, on the right-hand side.

Here are the start times converted for key regions:

Time ZoneStart Time
PT (Pacific)7:00 AM
ET (Eastern)10:00 AM
BST (UK)3:00 PM
IST (India)7:30 PM
AEST (Australia)12:00 AM (Mon)

What Is BB-8’s Role in Droid Tycoon?

BB-8 has been absent from Droid Tycoon since the mode launched in Fortnite. While the mode already includes a host of recognizable droids, BB-8, a fan favorite from the sequel trilogy, has not been available until now.

BB-8 only appears during the BB-8 Event and is considered one of the rarest droids in the game. Players looking to unlock it will need to be ready when the event goes live.

A preview of what the Gold, Diamond, and Rainbow versions of BB-8 will look like in the game has already been teased. These are the upgraded rarity tiers players can work toward once BB-8 is in the mode.

Latest Arc Raiders Leaks Reveal Player Trading, Clans, New Map Conditions, and More

Sonu Banerjee
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0
Latest Arc Raiders Leaks Reveal Player Trading, Clans, New Map Conditions, and More

Recently, a series of new Arc Raiders leaks have surfaced on social media forums, shedding light on a bunch of exciting new content that is expected to be introduced to the extraction shooter in the near future.

Alongside revealing the names of the next Arc Raiders map and map conditions, the latest batch of leaks also suggests some major improvements coming to the Embark Studios title over the next few updates, including a trading hub for players, a new clan system, and more.

Here’s everything you need to know about all the new Arc Raiders leaks and what to expect from future updates.

New Arc Raiders Leaks Reveal Player Trading, Clans, and More

The leaks in question were shared by Reddit user ‘Pylicrye’ on the Arc Raiders subreddit.

According to the Reddit post, fans can expect a ton of new content to be added to Arc Raiders over the next few updates.

The highlights of the latest Arc Raiders leaks include:

  • New Map
  • New ARC
  • New Clan System
  • New Player Trading Hub
  • New Major Map Condition
  • Various Minor Map Conditions

Let’s take a look at everything we know so far about the aforementioned leaks.

Player Trading and Clan System Leaks

The leaked Arc Raiders player trading hub is reportedly named Speranza Piazza and has been described as follows:

“At the shady Speranza Piazza you will be able to trade with other Raiders.”

While not much else is known about this mysterious trading hub at the time of writing, this might be the closest thing to a walkable Speranza that players have been demanding ever since the game’s launch.

That said, it’s unclear whether the Speranza Piazza will be physically walkable by Raiders or will simply serve as a menu for players to trade, but we’ll be keeping our fingers crossed that it’s the former.

As per the leaks, a new Clan system will enable players to form groups with other players. These groups can have various tags, like Clan ID tags such as “Quests”, “PvP”, “PvE” or “Any.”

New Map and Map Conditions

The next Arc Raiders map is reportedly named Frozen Trail. Details regarding this new map still remain shrouded in mystery, but based on its name, it seems to be a winter-themed map.

The map will have the following locations based on the leaks:

  • Supermarket
  • Factory
  • Village
  • Railyard
  • Radiotower
  • Observatory

Apart from the new map, a bunch of upcoming major and minor map conditions have also been leaked. These include:

  • Toxic Swamp
  • Acid Rain
  • Heat Wave
  • The Queens
  • Repair Extractions
  • Dead Reckoning (Major Map Condition)

Note that none of the aforementioned leaks have been confirmed by Embark Studios as of yet. Fans should keep an eye out for the company’s social media handles for the first looks at future Arc Raiders updates.

Valve Releases Steam Controller CAD Files Under Creative Commons License

Sarjyo Mukherjee
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0
Valve Releases Steam Controller CAD Files Under Creative Commons License

Valve has officially dropped the CAD files for the upcoming next generation of the Steam Controller under a Creative Commons license, enabling modders and accessory manufacturers to open the field to customize the hardware design.

Once again, Valve has reaffirmed its mission to open-hardware, community-driven innovations, allowing others to explore ways to make the most out of their design. Developers have also confirmed that Valve has included the geometry of the controller, allowing the manufacturing of custom shells, skins, grips, and other accessories.

Valve releases Steam Controller CAD files under Creative Commons license
byu/silentdragoon inpcgaming

The community has responded in a highly positive fashion as the geeks and enthusiasts have praised Valve’s approach to developing hardware of this nature. The Reddit threads are flooded with custom controller variants, replacement shells, and adaptive layout ideas.

By making the official CAD files public, Valve has opened the doors for open development and at the same time has positioned their product as a highly moddable platform by enabling easy accessory development for third-party creators and manufacturers that will push them ahead.

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