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Here Are The Top Games Of 2025, Ranked By Gamers

Here Are The Top Games Of 2025, Ranked By Gamers 2025 was an eventful year for indie and AAA gaming alike—but what were the actual most-played new releases of 2025? Sales and Steam charts can only tell so much of the story by themselves, but Alinea Analytics have published a report with a strong estimate on the top games by players in 2025 across Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox platforms including
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GameMax introduces NEX C56 series with ‘inclined’ airflow design

GameMax has expanded its chassis portfolio today with the announcement of the Nex C56 and Nex C56 VC. Targeting the budget-conscious end of the dual-chamber market, these new mid-towers attempt to differentiate themselves from the sea of “fish tank” cases with an internal layout that angles the bottom intake fans.

Both chassis feature a “12° inclined airflow layout”, as described by GameMax. In practice, this means the fan mounts on the bottom and the sides of the motherboard tray are slightly angled towards the centre of the case, rather than sitting straight. The manufacturer claims this creates a more direct path for fresh air to reach hot components, specifically the graphics card, which is a common pain point in dual-chamber designs that often struggle with restrictive intake paths.

Two distinct variations are available at launch to cover different aesthetic preferences. The standard Nex C56 prioritises thermal performance, shipping with a fully mesh top panel to allow for heat exhaust and seven 120 mm ARGB PWM fans (space for up to 10x). This model is the more capable of the two in terms of raw cooling potential, supporting a “stack-effect” configuration. Alternatively, the Nex C56 VC (Vision Compact) goes all-in on the showroom aesthetic, replacing the mesh roof with a third tempered-glass panel and packing 4x 120 mm ARGB PWM fans (space for up to 7x). This creates a seamless “triple-glass” panoramic view, though builders will likely have to rely heavily on the side and bottom intakes to keep temperatures in check.

Despite being entry-level options, the specification sheet is surprisingly generous. Both cases support ATX motherboards and offer clearance for graphics cards up to 425 mm in length. Liquid cooling support is good, with space for dual 360 mm radiators, and the chassis includes a height-adjustable GPU anti-sag bracket, a feature often missing in this price bracket. Connectivity is handled via a front I/O panel featuring one USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port and two USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports. Storage options support up to 2x 3.5-inch HDDs and 2x 2.5-inch SSDs, hidden in the rear chamber.

GameMax is positioning these cases firmly in the entry-level segment, undercutting many competitors. The standard NEX C56 starts at just $69.99 for the black model, while the glass-topped NEX C56 VC is even cheaper at $59.99. Both versions are available in white for a $5 premium.

KitGuru says: These cases certainly look the part and the price tag is decent too.

The post GameMax introduces NEX C56 series with ‘inclined’ airflow design first appeared on KitGuru.
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Asus challenges the performance fan market with new ProArt PF120

Asus has been expanding its ProArt sub-brand from monitors and motherboards into a whole ecosystem for creators, and recently, that expansion has reached the cooling sector. The company has officially announced the ProArt PF120, a high-performance 120mm case fan designed to compete directly with the industry's heavyweights like the Phanteks T30 and Noctua NF-A12x25.

The ProArt PF120 removes the RGB lighting common in gaming builds, offering an industrial aesthetic in both black and white colourways. Asus has utilised Liquid Crystal Polymer (LCP) for the fan blades, a material choice prized for its rigidity and resistance to thermal expansion. This allows for extremely tight tolerances, with the PF120 boasting a blade-to-frame gap of just 0.5mm to minimise turbulence and maximise pressure efficiency.

The fan operates at a maximum speed of 3000 RPM, at which it delivers a rated static pressure of 7.3mmH2O and an airflow of 104.8 CFM. Unusually, the frame thickness is 28mm. For the motor, the fan uses a three-phase, six-pole design within a brass bearing shield to reduce vibration. To keep cable clutter to a minimum, the units feature a patented daisy-chain interconnect system that allows users to link adjacent fans, passing power and PWM signals through a single cable.

For users who don't need the 3000 RPM jet-engine experience, the three-pack includes an inline cable controller. This allows builders to cap the maximum speed at three distinct presets: 1400 RPM for silent builds, 2200 RPM for balanced use, or the full 3000 RPM for maximum thermal dissipation. Pricing and regional availability have not yet been confirmed, but given the LCP construction and performance claims, we expect these to sit at the premium end of the market.

KitGuru says: Asus isn't the first name that springs to mind for case fans, but that could change if these perform as well as their spec sheet suggests. 

The post Asus challenges the performance fan market with new ProArt PF120 first appeared on KitGuru.
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LG Display teases new Tandem WOLED panels ahead of CES 2026

LG Display has released teasers showcasing its latest advancements in OLED technology. While the video focuses on highlighting the benefits of its “Primary RGB Tandem” tech, it has also confirmed that several long-rumoured panel specifications are now ready for mass production. With CES 2026 just around the corner, it appears the manufacturer is preparing to flood the market with new high-performance options for PC enthusiasts.

The most immediate takeaway from the new footage (via FlatPanelsHD) is a subtle rebranding. LG Display appears to be streamlining the nomenclature for its fourth-generation technology, dropping the clunky “Primary RGB Tandem” moniker in favour of the cleaner “Tandem WOLED”. This helps differentiate the stack from “Tandem OLED” solutions currently used in the automotive sector, which have a different structural composition. Interestingly, the video also makes a fleeting reference to “Primary RGB Tandem 2.0”, suggesting that an iterative update to the underlying tech is already in the pipeline for the coming year.

The other teaser explicitly references a 39-inch ultrawide panel sporting a “5K” resolution. Based on previous roadmap leaks, this is almost certainly the anticipated 5K2K (5120 x 2160) unit. At 39 inches, this resolution delivers a pixel density of approximately 142 PPI, bringing it in line with the text clarity of 32-inch 4K displays. Visuals from the clip also suggest a shift in display curvature. While LG's previous 34-inch and 39-inch gaming panels featured an aggressive 800R curve, this new flagship model appears to adopt a significantly gentler radius.

The manufacturer also nodded to the 27-inch 1440p panel with a native 540 Hz refresh rate (up to 720 Hz in Performance mode), a unit we have already seen deployed in the Asus ROG Swift PG27AQWP-W. Another confirmation taken from the teaser is the 27-inch 4K WOLED panel. This form factor has been dominated by Samsung Display's QD-OLED technology for some time, and LG's arrival in the WOLED stable marks a crucial catch-up move, offering consumers more choice in the 27-inch segment.

KitGuru says: Have you been waiting on new-generation panels before making the jump to an OLED display?

The post LG Display teases new Tandem WOLED panels ahead of CES 2026 first appeared on KitGuru.
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Bandai Namco confirms PC system requirements for Code Vein 2

Bandai Namco has released the PC system requirements for the upcoming anime-styled action RPG, Code Vein 2. The specifications confirm that aspiring Revenants will need significantly more robust hardware than the 2019 original to play the new game when it launches on January 30th, 2026.

First teased during Summer Game Fest 2025, Code Vein 2 expands on the “anime Dark Souls” formula with a new narrative centred on time manipulation, larger environments, and a deepened partner system. While the first game was known for being relatively lightweight, the sequel demands a modern rig to hit 60 FPS, even at 1080p. Bandai Namco has set 16 GB of RAM and Windows 11 as the absolute floor for entry. This effectively leaves Windows 10 users behind, a trend we are seeing more frequently in 2025-2026 releases. Storage requirements have also ballooned to 70 GB, with the publisher strongly recommending an SSD.

For a 1080p experience at 30 FPS on Low settings, users will need at least an Intel Core i5-9600K or AMD Ryzen 5 3600 paired with a GTX 1660 Super or Radeon RX 5700. Those looking to push the visual fidelity to High at 60 FPS will need to step up to an RTX 3080 or Radeon RX 6800, alongside a beefier CPU like the Ryzen 7 7800X3D or the Intel Core i7-12700KF. The detailed system requirements can be found below:

MINIMUM

  • Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
  • OS: Windows 11
  • Processor: Intel Core i5-9600K /AMD Ryzen 5 3600
  • Memory: 16 GB RAM
  • Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Super / AMD Radeon RX 5700 / Intel Arc B570
  • DirectX: Version 12
  • Storage: 70 GB available space
  • Additional Notes: Estimated performance: 1080p/30fps with graphics settings at “Low”.

RECOMMENDED

  • Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
  • OS: Windows 11
  • Processor: Intel Core i7-12700KF / AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
  • Memory: 16 GB RAM
  • Graphics: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 / AMD Radeon RX 6800
  • DirectX: Version 12
  • Storage: 70 GB available space
  • Additional Notes: Estimated performance: SSD is recommended. 1080p/60fps with graphics settings at “High”.

Pre-orders are currently live on Steam, with Standard, Deluxe, Ultimate, and Collector's Editions available. All pre-orders include a face paint and a weapon. The deluxe edition includes the base game with a 3-day early access, a custom outfit pack (3 costume sets and a weapon), and the upcoming DLC Mask of Idris. The Ultimate Edition adds to the Deluxe Edition with a digital mini artbook, a soundtrack, and a character costume set (6 costumes). Lastly, the Collector's Edition has everything included in the Ultimate Edition, plus an 18 cm figure, a 60-page artbook, and a metal case.

KitGuru says: Did you play the original Code Vein? Are you planning on getting the sequel? Is your PC ready for it?

The post Bandai Namco confirms PC system requirements for Code Vein 2 first appeared on KitGuru.
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KitGuru Advent Calendar Day 21: Win an Adata 32GB DDR5 RAM kit and 1TB M.2 SSD!

For Day 21 of the KitGuru Advent Calendar, we have teamed up with ADATA to give one lucky winner a memory and SSD upgrade. Our prizes today include the ADATA XPG Lancer Neon RGB DDR5 32GB CL30 memory and XPG Mars 980 Blade 1TB SSD!

The ADATA Lancer Neon RGB DDR5 32GB CL30 kit contains high‑performance dual‑channel memory, offering fast DDR5 speeds, low‑latency CL30 operation, on‑die ECC, a power‑stabilising PMIC, and a distinctive RGB‑lit eco‑friendly heatsink. The Mars 980 Blade 1TB SSD is a PCIe 5.0 NVMe drive that delivers up to 14,000MB/s read and 13,000MB/s write speeds.

How to Enter:

To enter this giveaway, all you have to do is head over to our competition announcement post on Facebook, HERE. In the comments, leave an answer to the following question – How much RAM is in your current system? 

This competition is open worldwide.

The winner will be picked randomly shortly after 11AM GMT December 22nd, and a new competition will be announced for Day 22. The chosen winner has 48 hours to respond, if we do not hear from them, a new winner will be picked.

Terms and ConditionsThis competition is open worldwide, starting at 11AM GMT on December 21st and ending at 10:59AM GMT on December 22nd. Due to the busy Christmas season, prize deliveries could take longer than usual, and some prizes may not ship until January. In compliance with GDPR, we will not collect or store any personal information as part of this competition. Once the winner has been contacted and their prize received, personal details will be deleted from our email servers. Your details will not be shared, we respect your privacy.

KitGuru Says: Good luck to all who enter, we'll be back tomorrow morning to announce a winner and turn the calendar over to Day 22!

The post KitGuru Advent Calendar Day 21: Win an Adata 32GB DDR5 RAM kit and 1TB M.2 SSD! first appeared on KitGuru.
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Intel AI Playground Outs 32GB Arc GPU That Could Be Big Battlemage

Intel AI Playground Outs 32GB Arc GPU That Could Be Big Battlemage Intel has released version 3.0 of its AI Playground tool, which brings new multimodal upgrades to the app's functionality thanks to modern vision models like Qwen3 VL as well as agentic tool calling support, that allows users to orchestrate actions across different tools and features from within a single chat flow. Instead of completely separate
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Worried Your Home Network Could Be Hacked? This Tool Can Help

Worried Your Home Network Could Be Hacked? This Tool Can Help Compromised home networks are an increasing concern. Most recently we've written about the SantaStealer malware, budget Android TV boxes doubling as botnets, and compromised routers. Fully securing your home network requires an assortment of proper cybersecurity practices, but a great place to start is GreyNoise's recently released IP Check
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Gift Yourself Great Samsung Tech With These Top PC, TV And Mobile Deals

Gift Yourself Great Samsung Tech With These Top PC, TV And Mobile Deals We're in the midst of the season of giving, but that doesn't mean you can't also treat yourself. There are plenty of deals to take advantage of too—be sure to check out our ho-ho-hot tech gift roundup with a curated selection of items from each us here at HotHardware, and if you own a Switch or Switch 2, have a gander at some deeply discounted
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Switch And Switch 2 Games Are Up To 60% Off In Huge Holiday Sale

Switch And Switch 2 Games Are Up To 60% Off In Huge Holiday Sale The countdown to Christmas is quickly winding down with now just a handful of days to get your holiday shopping finished for the big day. After you've perused our ho-ho-hot tech gifts selections compiled by all of us here at HotHardware, turn your attention to a big sale going on for Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 consoles, with some discounts
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KitGuru Advent Calendar Day 20: Win a Thermaltake hardware bundle! (Closed)

Update: This competition is now CLOSED. Our winner today is Sean Tugman. If you missed out this time then keep an eye out as we have a new giveaway each day through to the end of the month. Today's giveaway can be found HERE.

For Day 20 of the KitGuru Advent Calendar, we have teamed up with Thermaltake to give one lucky reader a big prize bundle. The winner today will receive a Thermaltake View 290 TG case, along with a set of ARGB Sync fans, a ToughLiquid 360 EX AIO liquid cooler and a Toughpower GF A3 power supply, creating a perfect starting point for a new build.

The Thermaltake View 290 TG ARGB is a mid‑tower chassis built around a curved tempered‑glass front panel and a full glass side panel. Thermaltake’s Toughpower GF A3 PSU is an ATX 3.0–ready power supply designed for modern GPUs, while the Toughliquid 360 EX AIO fits neatly into the case’s top‑mount radiator support, offering ample thermal headroom for high‑performance CPUs. The ARGB‑sync fans will allow you to add some extra colour to your rig.

How to Enter:

To enter this giveaway, all you have to do is head over to our competition announcement post on Facebook, HERE. In the comments, leave an answer to the following question – What was your most played game this year? 

This competition is open worldwide.

The winner will be picked randomly shortly after 11AM GMT December 21st, and a new competition will be announced for Day 21. The chosen winner has 48 hours to respond, if we do not hear from them, a new winner will be picked.

Terms and ConditionsThis competition is open worldwide, starting at 11AM GMT on December 20th and ending at 10:59AM GMT on December 21st. Due to the busy Christmas season, prize deliveries could take longer than usual, and some prizes may not ship until January. In compliance with GDPR, we will not collect or store any personal information as part of this competition. Once the winner has been contacted and their prize received, personal details will be deleted from our email servers. Your details will not be shared, we respect your privacy.

KitGuru Says: Good luck to all who enter, we'll be back tomorrow morning to announce a winner and turn the calendar over to Day 21!

The post KitGuru Advent Calendar Day 20: Win a Thermaltake hardware bundle! (Closed) first appeared on KitGuru.
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The Last Ninja Collection From The C64 Era Hits Steam With Bonus Games

The Last Ninja Collection From The C64 Era Hits Steam With Bonus Games Game preservation is a tricky thing, especially without resorting to emulation or dubiously-obtained ROM files. System 3 Software, however, put in the effort for fans of ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64-era games by bringing its Last Ninja trilogy and a number of its other games to Steam. The games have full support for modern controllers, and
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Major UEFI Flaw Enables Game Cheats On ASUS, ASRock, Gigabyte & MSI Motherboards

Major UEFI Flaw Enables Game Cheats On ASUS, ASRock, Gigabyte & MSI Motherboards Players of Riot Games on the PC are familiar with the Vanguard kernel-level anti-cheat software by now. However, even with it installed and updated, gamers may have received a notice that their system is restricted from launching the popular game Valorant. This isn't an accident—per a blog post from Riot Games, a key vulnerability in modern
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Lenovo LOQ 17IRX10 Review - Premium Features Trapped in a Budget Body

The Lenovo LOQ 17IRX10 definitely impresses with its wide range of features, including NVIDIA Advanced Optimus, G-SYNC, a color-accurate panel, and a capable RGB keyboard. It’s a fairly future-proof machine thanks to the two SODIMMs and the pair of Gen 4 SSD slots. The LegionSpace app also allows you to play with the CPU and GPU power limits and thermal targets, which is a rare find in the budget segment.

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AMD Reveals New Zen 6 Details In First Official Document

AMD Reveals New Zen 6 Details In First Official Document This past Wednesday, AMD quietly published what appears to be the first official technical documentation for its upcoming Zen 6 CPU architecture, codenamed Morpheus. This document offers early insight into several notable architectural changes. While the company has not formally announced Zen 6 products yet, the document provides strong hints
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LG Responds To Backlash Over Unremovable Copilot Icon On Smart TVs

LG Responds To Backlash Over Unremovable Copilot Icon On Smart TVs Earlier this week there was an uproar among LG TV owners over the inclusion of what most thought was a Microsoft Copilot app that couldn’t be removed, which was bundled with the latest WebOS platform update. WebOS is the operating system that runs on LG's current range of televisions. The company has responded to the backlash to clarify the
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Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster surpasses 6 million sales

Square Enix has confirmed that its Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster series has officially surpassed six million units sold worldwide. The collection, which revitalises the first six entries in the long-running RPG franchise, has proven a commercial success since its initial rollout in 2021, validating the publisher's strategy of preserving its back catalogue with uniform standards for modern platforms.

While Square Enix has often faced criticism for its handling of legacy ports, the Pixel Remaster initiative appears to have struck the right chord with gamers. The project involved a complete overhaul of Final Fantasy I through VI, unifying the visual style across the NES and SNES eras. The original pixel artist, Kazuko Shibuya, returned to redraw the 2D character sprites, ensuring the new assets remained faithful to the source material. On the audio front, legendary composer Nobuo Uematsu supervised and orchestrated arrangements of the soundtracks, replacing the synthesized tunes of the 8-bit and 16-bit hardware.

The sales figures shared by Square Enix reflect performance across a staggered release schedule spanning multiple years and ecosystems. The first wave hit Steam, iOS, and Android between July 2021 and February 2022. Following sustained demand from console players, the collection was released on PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch in April 2023. Most recently, the series landed on Xbox Series X|S and the Microsoft Store in 2024, making the collection playable natively on all major current-gen hardware.

Beyond the audiovisual facelift, the commercial longevity of the bundle is likely aided by the inclusion of modern convenience features that respect player time. Square Enix implemented toggle-based boosters, allowing users to adjust experience gain, automate combat, or disable random encounters entirely. These optional tools have made the notoriously grind-heavy 8-bit entries significantly more palatable for a contemporary audience accustomed to faster pacing.

KitGuru says: It took Square Enix a few tries to get these ports right, but the sales numbers don't lie. With six million copies sold, the Pixel Remaster series stands as one of the publisher's most successful attempts at leveraging its heritage.

The post Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster surpasses 6 million sales first appeared on KitGuru.
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The Game Awards 2025 breaks records again with 171 million live views

This year's Game Awards has once again proven its dominance in the gaming calendar, setting a new viewership record for its 2025 broadcast. According to data reported by the organization, The Game Awards secured an estimated 171 million global live views, marking an 11% increase over the 154 million figure recorded in 2024.

Note that this figure represents strictly live tune-ins for the main show. It excludes the long tail of trailer views, social media clips, and viewership from premium partners like Prime Video. The data is aggregated across major open platforms, including YouTube, Twitch, TikTok Live, Steam, X, and Facebook, as well as major regional players such as JioHotstar in India and various Chinese streaming services.

Platform-specific metrics paint a picture of steady growth rather than explosive spikes. On YouTube, the official 4K stream saw an 8% rise in concurrent viewers, contributing to a total platform peak of over 2.4 million when co-streams are factored in. Twitch performance remained good as well, with peak concurrents climbing 5% to settle just above 1.8 million.

This trajectory continues a decade-long trend for the event, which has grown from a modest 1.9 million viewers in 2014 to the juggernaut it is today. The most significant historical leaps occurred in 2018, when it jumped to 26.2 million, and in 2020, when it hit 83 million. The 2025 numbers suggest that while the growth curve is flattening, the ceiling has not yet been reached.

KitGuru says: Did you watch the show? What platform were you watching it on?

The post The Game Awards 2025 breaks records again with 171 million live views first appeared on KitGuru.
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Iron Rebellion Prepares For The Future With Foundations Update

Iron Rebellion prepares for the future with today's update, giving the multiplayer VR mech game overhauled AI units, new modes, and more.

Now available on Quest and Steam, developer Black Beach Studio describes today's 'Foundations Update' as a “meaningful step toward the next phase of the game’s development.” This introduces Abandoned Sector 9, an official new map originally created by a community Discord member, Kforce, that's since been revamped by the studio's lead artist.

Stating Abandoned Sector 9 represents the team’s updated visual direction, Black Beach Studio calls it the “highest-fidelity environment ever produced” for Iron Rebellion. This map features flooded alleyways, fractured overpasses, and broken megastructures across a dense battleground, which the studio advised offers a preview of this universe's future.

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This update also introduces a complete AI systems overhaul to help Iron Rebellion's expanding PvE direction. “With new behavior profiles, adaptive threat response, and moment-to-moment context awareness, AI units now support more reactive, varied, and engaging encounters across every existing mode and all future cooperative experiences,” states the team.

Two new gameplay modes are live: Death Match is a timed free-for-all mode, while Gun Game sees you advance your loadout by killing enemies using a randomly selected mech class.

Finally, Iron Rebellion also received a full networking rewrite that the developer states separates the backend from its previous team-dependent structure, allowing them to introduce new game types in upcoming updates.

“This update moves us one step closer to the types of experiences we want to build,” said Justin Spice, Founder of Black Beach Studio in a prepared statement. “The new AI opens up design space we didn’t have before, and Sector 9 shows where we’re taking the world visually. There’s a lot ahead, and this update is an important part of getting there.”

Iron Rebellion is out now on the Meta Quest platform and Steam.

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Titanic: Echoes From The Past Is A Memorable Free-Roam VR Experience In New York

A free-roam immersive VR installation in New York City explores the wreck of the RMS Titanic in 1912.

Titanic: Echoes From The Past is from Eclipso, a company focused on large-scale location-based experiences. The experience lasts over half an hour as it places guests in walk-around virtual reality aboard a modern ocean research vessel investigating what remains of the infamous sinking in the North Atlantic in April 1912.

The Titanic Experience

After a brief narrative setup establishing guests as explorers aboard a research vessel, the experience begins with a 3,800 meter descent to the Titanic wreck site alongside a deep-sea submersible. The mangled remains of the ship are scattered across the ocean floor, immediately setting a somber tone. From there, the experience transitions into a dramatized retelling of the ship’s ill-fated maiden voyage, following the fictionalized perspective of an actual passenger.

VR’s ability to convey scale is on full display inside the engine room. The ship’s massive steam-powered machinery towers overhead, with enormous rotating components working in unison to propel the vessel forward. Standing beneath them, it becomes easy to grasp the raw industrial power required to move a ship of this size across the Atlantic.

After leaving the engine room, guests step out onto the boat deck, with the ocean stretching out in every direction. This is one of the first moments where the size of the ship really lands. There is room to walk, pause, and look around, and the openness of the deck contrasts sharply with the enclosed spaces below.

Captain Edward Smith is introduced shortly thereafter, and guests are free to walk the deck alongside him. Nothing feels rushed. The experience allows time to explore at your own pace, as well as interact with certain items in each scene. A brief stop at the ship’s gymnasium offers a quieter moment, providing a glimpse into daily life aboard Titanic before everything changed.

The experience then moves to the Grand Staircase, one of the most recognizable locations on the ship. Standing beneath the glass and wrought iron dome, the scale is striking. Characters move through the space at full human scale, carrying on conversations you can listen in on as you pass. The scene lets the environment and its occupants do the storytelling.

The penultimate sequence takes place on the bridge during the moments leading up to the collision. Guests are close enough to watch the iceberg slide past the ship, its size hard to ignore as it looms nearby. After that, you're given one last look at the ship as it looked before setting to sea.

Eclipso's location on West 57th Street in Manhattan. Photo: Craig Storm

The Technology of the Experience

Eclipso’s New York City location occupies a 10,000 square foot space on the west side of Manhattan. Guests arrive and are staged in a hallway that provides background information on Titanic before entering the experience. When ready, they are fitted with a headset by an Eclipso staff member.

The facility uses HTC Vive Focus 3 standalone VR headsets. Each headset is paired with plastic ear coverings that help direct audio toward the ears while also reducing ambient noise from other guests. The result is a more focused audio experience without fully isolating participants from their surroundings.

What stands out immediately is how simple and friction-free the setup process is. Guests are not required to wear body trackers, attach external sensors, or strap on a PC backpack. Within roughly a minute of putting on the headset, participants are free to begin exploring. According to staff on site, the majority of guests at this location have never used a VR headset before, making ease of use a clear priority.

During a scene where guests are transported downward through an opening in the wreck, a holographic grid appears beneath them, grounding the visuals and helping reduce potential motion discomfort. It is a touch that reflects thoughtful design choices aimed at keeping the experience comfortable without breaking immersion.

The Shared Experience

The combination of simple, effective VR hardware and thoughtfully designed software creates a totally compelling experience. As I moved through the various scenes, I found myself deliberately pushing toward the edges of the physical space, trying to trigger the virtual boundary system. More often than not I was able to walk freely without interruption. I only encountered the boundary wall in a few cases and, had I not been actively testing the limits of the space, I likely would not have noticed the boundaries at all. The experience is so freeing many might try to test those limits.

Other participants appear as ghost-like outlined human forms. I was surprised by how much interaction naturally occurred between us. Because the space is so large, we were often spread out, focused on different details within the same scene. More than once, we called out to each other to come take a look at something nearby. The simple white outline made it easy to understand where others were positioned without introducing a complex avatar that might have pulled attention away from the environment itself.

Impact & Memories

There's an open seating area with a large window to look into most of the VR space for people who might not be interested in experiencing it themselves. There are no monitors, though, showing into VR, so it's possible some fear of missing out will set in for anybody seeing their group walk out into the space in their headsets.

After completing the experience, I spent some time watching other groups as they finished their sessions. I could tell one group had reached the staircase scene because they started dancing together. Watching that kind of immersion engaging with a historical event that occurred more than a century ago reinforced immersive VR's use as a powerful tool for learning, even as its entertainment value remains obvious. In a shared, guided setting like this, immersive technology can make history feel more immediate and memorable in ways traditional museum exhibits often struggle to match.

An Eclipso staff member told me they've had success with schools booking class trips to the facility, and the response has been positive from students and educators alike. Observing reactions firsthand, it's easy to understand why. The experience demonstrates how immersive VR can complement existing approaches to teaching history by creating moments that students can experience with a sense of scale and presence, and that they are likely to remember long after they leave.

Window covering outside the Eclipso facility. Photo: Craig Storm

Final Thoughts

Titanic: Echoes From The Past lets the environment lead. The experience is guided by narration leaving room to look around, walk around, and absorb the scale of each location. Standing beneath the engines or walking the deck works because VR used in this way gives you the time and perspective to take those moments in.

The experience is also exceedingly easy to get into and that really matters. Setup is quick, the headset never becomes a distraction, and nothing about the process feels intimidating. Watching first-time VR users move comfortably through the space makes it clear ease-of-use was a real priority here, and not an afterthought.

By the time it was over, I felt like I had actually spent time in a place rather than simply having observed a retelling. The immersion worked. Leaving the location in Manhattan, I realized I had visited a ship and taken in its scale and atmosphere without the romance of James Cameron's direction or the historical characterizations of people like the "Unsinkable" Molly Brown. VR's scale and the immense freedom to walk openly across the Titanic gave me a deep and lasting sense of having been aboard the ship in a place it never reached.

Eclipso operates a network of locations in other major cities with additional experiences planned for New York and elsewhere. Tickets to Titanic: Echoes From The Past start at $31 per person at writing time with quotes upon request for group outings.

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Apple AirPods Pro 3 Back To $199 — Don’t Miss This Holiday Sale

Apple AirPods Pro 3 Back To $199 — Don’t Miss This Holiday Sale For the second time this month, Apple's recently launched AirPods Pro 3 are down to an all-time low price with a 20% discount over MSRP on tap. If you're looking for a last-minute holiday gift idea, this is a fantastic option. It also underscores why we often recommend against paying full price for audio products, even ones that just launched,
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Malfunctioning SpaceX Satellite Is Hurtling To Earth After Apparent Explosion

Malfunctioning SpaceX Satellite Is Hurtling To Earth After Apparent Explosion SpaceX/Starlink has confirmed that one of its satellites suffered a major hardware failure in orbit, resulting in the release of debris and a total loss of communications with the vehicle. The errant craft is expected to re-enter Earth's atmosphere over the next few weeks. On December 17, Starlink experienced an anomaly on satellite 35956,
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HotHardware Staff Picks: Ho-Ho-Hot Tech Gifts Everyone Will Love

HotHardware Staff Picks: Ho-Ho-Hot Tech Gifts Everyone Will Love When it comes to technology, there's rarely a one-size-fits-all solution. Some people have a penchant for AMD chips, while others prefer Intel. The wider the net, the more diverse the options become, especially as you venture beyond the realm of core processing hardware and into the enormous field of consumer gadgets. So with that in mind,
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Ferry Crew Member Faces Charges In Malware Incident That Shakes Maritime Cybersecurity

Ferry Crew Member Faces Charges In Malware Incident That Shakes Maritime Cybersecurity  French authorities have launched a high-stakes investigation into possible foreign interference following the discovery of sophisticated malware aboard the Italian passenger ferry the Fantastic, which could have allowed remote users to take control of the ship systems and controls. When the ship was docked recently in the port of Sète,
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