Articles

Image: Spice DAO The cryptocurrency collective built around a copy of Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Dune script bible will no longer be a collective and is trying to sell its Dune bible. Spice DAO (short for decentralized autonomous organization) recently began “Redemption Phase One,” a fundamental shift in its direction. After a series of setbacks in an ambitious plan for a crypto-powered media studio, the group is letting people who hold its $SPICE token cash out by withdrawing their money from...

Animal Crossing: New Horizons won’t hurt or help your mental health Video games aren’t hurting people’s mental health, and they’re not helping it. In fact, they don’t do much to move the needle at all, according to a new study of tens of thousands of gamers. For years, policymakers and public health bodies have expressed concern about the potential for video games to be addictive or harm mental health. This study, published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, offers one of the more...

Image: PlatinumGames A 45-second clip has sent the Nier: Automata community into a collective state of euphoria, confusion, conspiracy, and good-ass memery. Gsmarthub user sadfutago uploaded a clip to the Nier: Automata subreddit containing a never-before-seen section of the Copied City. In the clip, sadfutago opens a hidden door and descends a long ladder into a trippy new area. He passes through another... Continue reading… Continue reading...

Apple’s redesigned Home app makes it easier to control your lights, locks, and other smart home devices. | Image: Apple A new Home View and a bit of ‘jiggle mode’ make the HomeKit app more usable, but there’s still a long way to go Continue reading… Continue reading...

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Google’s improving Gmail’s search results, which should make it easier to find a specific contact. In a blog post, Google explains it’s rolling out “intent matching for names and email addresses,” as well as new “personalized suggestions” in Gmail. With intent matching, a machine learning tool Google uses to help you find topics related to your search, Gmail should narrow down your search results and help you find exactly what you’re looking for a...

Photo by Derek Davis/Portland Portland Press Herald via Getty Images The Biden administration has new plans to get lower-income households hooked up to solar energy. The White House announced two new programs today aimed at expanding access to “community solar” projects among subsidized housing residents and households that receive federal assistance to pay their utility bills. It also launched a new rewards program for existing community solar projects. “Community solar” essentially lets...

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge On the heels of Spotify’s blockbuster audio drama Batman Unburied, the company is promoting Gimlet executive Mimi O’Donnell to head of scripted fiction at the streamer, according to an internal memo obtained by The Verge. Batman Unburied notably unseated The Joe Rogan Experience when it debuted in May and appears to be a turning point for the streamer. While Spotify has already bulked up on licensing deals with hosts like Rogan and Call Her Daddy’s...

Pictured: Sony summoning the Yakuza games to PlayStation Plus. Sony has announced that it’s bringing eight games from the (mostly) beloved Yakuza series to PlayStation Plus throughout the rest of the year, with the first hitting the service in August. Be warned, though — if you’re subscribed to the base PlayStation Plus Essential tier, you’ll only get one of the games. The whole thing is kicking off with Yakuza: Like a Dragon (a great place to start for those new to the series), which will...

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed a complaint to block Meta from acquiring Within, the company behind the virtual reality fitness app Supernatural. The FTC claims Meta bought Within to absorb competition in the fitness market, where it already owned the similar app Beat Saber. The complaint follows months of speculation that regulators might intervene in Meta’s growing dominance of the consumer VR market, as well as an FTC probe reportedly...