The iPhone Duo is Apple's upcoming foldable phone and is finally releasing this year with preorders going live on October 16. My biggest take-away though is its CA$2999 price. And that's the 256GB base model. The highest 2TB model is almost $5k. I'm shocked. Well, not really. But still!

I definitely needed a moment to think about all of that money.

The iPhone Duo has a 7.6 inch inner-screen and a 5.4 inch outer screen - similar to Samsung Fold8 only that it has a 5.5 inch outer display. The iPhone Duo will have a 256GB / 512GB / 1TB / 2TB models all accompanied by 12GB of RAM. It will be powered by an A20 Pro chip and an Apple 7-core GPU with 4700mAh battery on each side. It has a 48MP main camera, 12MP selfie camera. And an IP68 rating on dust and water resistance. And no headphone jack of course. All specs provided by gsmsarena. And I say this because people will see that spec-wise the rivals have similar specs. So pricing is the biggest factor.

Image by Apple

Personally, I don't want to focus on the hardware as the current foldable phones are on-par with each other. Namely these would be the Samsung Fold8 / Fold8 Ultra, Motorola's Razr Fold, and the Pixel 11 Pro Fold. I'm mostly after the value and its longevity as a folding phone. However Apple is a sought after brand because it feels like a brand of jewelry. And why not, it's a slab of $3000 in your pocket.

Perhaps consider these: will it fit inside my pocket with a case? Can it run multi-apps on one screen? How much mAh is good for me? Is it easy to carry it like a tablet? How will I use it in terms of durability? How vivid is the inner display? Is the outer display size pragmatic? Is the crease noticeable? How good are the speakers? How good is it against dust or liquids? Can I pair it with other brand earbuds or stylus? Will it game? Ask the practical questions.

Personally, I like Motorola's Razr Fold for this gen's competition. And they may have been worried a bit that's why they've been bundling the Razr Fold with other goodies. I already thought that phone was expensive at CA$2699 but it's the 512GB paired with a 16GB RAM. But I don't know about the Razr Fold's camera unlike my satisfaction with both Pixel and Samsung Folds. Yet still a little part of me is curious about the iPhone Duo though. To think that buying a $2k phone was ridiculous. Yet here we are with a $3k phone.

Nivalis Nights (formerly Nivalis) is a cyberpunk themed singleplayer game where players will manage their own businesses while uncovering a story in the city of Nivalis. Players will buy their apartment and decorate their home. Then run a small business until it thrives while interacting with interesting characters. Love may also blossom afterward.

I've taken an interest in the first person life-sim genre recently. Games like TCG Shop Simulator and Schedule 1 (although I did wish for a more wholesome experience). Nivalis Nights may be the next game for me. But I'm much more inclined with this news in addition to the release date announcement because it has been delayed for a long time now. The first time I wrote about it was back in June 2022. To the point of some people have started to be skeptic about it.

Nivalis Nights' Steam store page has been beefed up recently with new QnA content detailing more about the game. It looks like the game will have its official release on September 29.

Windows 10 Consumer Extended Security Updates will now continue for at least another year until October 2027. Windows 10 support has ended in 2025 but Microsoft offered the ESU until October 2026 so Windows users can prepare the migration to Windows 11. Now Microsoft is offering security updates through ESU until 2027 instead.

This was a pleasant surprise from Microsoft as I was planning to retire my 2019 computer (with i7-9700k, RTX 2080S). Which says it can't install Windows 11. At least not the "traditional" way of updating it to Windows 11. Then there's also the living room ASUS ROG desktop that doesn't restart properly installed with Windows 11 on it. The 2027 extended support will definitely give me more time to save and decide what to do until next year.

Microsoft states the prerequisites on their Windows 10 ESU webpage namely which Windows 10 versions are covered; the other prerequisites sums up to having a Microsoft account lets you enroll into the ESU for free, otherwise there's a $30 USD fee to enroll a local computer (no Microsoft account).

The Moto Razr Fold is now available in Canada. And it's not aggressively priced but is aggressive to my wallet (priced at CA$2699.99) with only the 512GB model being available. Frankly, I'm not worried about the hardware or the folding screen. The hardware looks great and they have the screen folding experience from the Moto Razr series. The Razr Fold hardware will perform well. So if all the foldable phones seemingly perform equally, the advantage lies somewhere else - namely the price.

The Moto Razr Fold's price is on par with current flagship book-style foldable phones like the Z-Fold and Pixel Pro Fold. And they're still expensive unlike the emergence of inexpensive foldable flip phones.

At current pricing model, if Motorola were to release a 256GB model, it would still be more or less the same with other foldable phones. Which could result to a stiffer competition against tested brands. However if Motorola bundles the CURRENT Moto Razr Fold price WITH a Moto Pen, Moto Watch, and Moto Buds then it's a significant offer to consider. It's even an attractive offer to Motorola new adopters if all specs are relatively equal.

Note that Samsung Fold8 plus its wide variant, and the Pixel 11 Pro Fold are also slated to release this year. Not to mention the rumored iPhone Fold. Besides the fact that Moto Razr Fold's current pricing is expensive, it's best to hold off for now as Motorola may be monitoring the competition and may create an enticing bundle after everyone else has made their move.

Paralives is an upcoming life-sim game developed by a small team which will have players taking care of their Parafolks, building homes with a flexible build mode, and settling on an open-world setting. The game will start out as early access with one town with the fundamental gameplay experience. But they have published their roadmap and an extensive list of available and upcoming features. Some upcoming features will be pets, weather, and season for example.

Interestingly based on their Steam page, the developers pledged that they will never release paid DLCs and that their updates will be free! Whether this translates to expansion packs being free we will see in the future. But that tells me that the game is developed in passion.

Developers think that the early access will take about two years. For now, players will be able to create Parafolks, explore the starter town, build a house, start a family, get a job, and age. I'm more keen on disabling aging as I'm testing the game but aging will work too.

Paralives will be available on May 25 on Steam PC and Mac.

Windrose has been on the top of my bucketlist as I've been looking to fill my gaming void for a pirate game! Lo and behold I wasn't expecting its Early Access this soon!

Windrose is a survival, crafting, and building game living the life of a pirate! Battle on land and seas with your crew as it's a PVE game that can be played solo or coop. It's developed by Kraken Express, which appears to be a new studio, but there's a pleasant surprise that Windrose is published by PocketPair Publishing (famous for Palworld).

Some might wonder why PVE but later on Palworld introduced server rules for PvP. I'm not worried either way.

Windrose is now available on Steam and Epic! I think game sessions will be similar to Palworld's solo, coop, or dedicated server arrangements. I'm getting it after work.

Motorola teased the Razr Fold back in the start of 2026 and will soon release on April 13. It will be Motorola's first book style foldable phone and tablet. The Razr Fold will be a good addition for the competition as to how it will stand out in terms of price, power, and camera quality.

Image by Motorola

What I like about the Razr Fold is its much needed 6000mAh battery, 8.1 inch inner display, and Corning Gorilla Glass Ceramic 3 outer screen. If it ships with the Moto Pen Ultra then that's a great bonus. I'm not worried about the processor with Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 nor the P-OLED foldable display at 120hz and 165hz outer display. Sound will be powered by Bose speakers too. However I am wary of the fragility to the inner display, skeptic of its camera, and of course doubtful on its 'aggressive' price point. There is still no inexpensive book-style foldable phone around $1000. Price will still be determined along with how Motorola will create promos.

Note that the Razr Fold will be entering the competition in Canada with an upcoming Pixel 11 Pro Fold, a Samsung Fold 8 / Fold 8 Wide, and a rumored iPhone Fold. Yet as mentioned, I am always in favour of competition. I confess that I am considering the Razr Fold.

I started a new venture this year to collect Charles Schultz's Peanuts comics and movies. It's a good thing that I randomly hopped over to Humble Bundle and saw a glimpse of The Peanuts Collection in digital format priced around CA$35. I was stunned and I immediately saved a reminder on my calendar.

For context, the hardcover of The Complete Peanuts Collection Vol. 1 and 2 is CA$66.50 at Indigo. And that's only Volume 1-2, or the Peanuts comic strips that ran from 1950-54. The Humble Bundle offer includes virtually all of the Peanut comic strips.

Peanuts is a timeless classic comics that mixes witty humour in the life of Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, and Lucy. There are numerous recurring characters in Charlie Brown's circle as they live everyday engaging in the ups and downs of life, philosophy, and games. Especially where Charlie Brown try to overcome the challenges of love and kite flying. Charles Schultz published about 50 years worth of comic strips. In addition, Peanuts also spawned seasonal special cartoons.

The offer won't last and will be gone after April 15; 7 days left at the moment. And I am not missing this offer. I joke that I'll buy the Humble Bundle collection, read the PDF version, and then keep my Peanuts collection in pristine shrink wrap.

GOG's Spring Sale for 2026 is live - and it will run until April 3! GOG (Good Old Games) is an online digital distribution platform where you buy your games DRM free. Which means you can download offline installers of your library and having a backup away from the Internet. GOG's spring sale also hosts big discounts during their seasonal sales.

Tomorrow is the start of spring! But Steam is already kicking it off with their Steam Spring Sale of 2026. It's a good time to get a few (or some) games before the spring break!

Highly anticipated open-world action RPG, Crimson Desert, will release on March 19 and I'm likely going to purchase it twice for the PC and my preferred console.

Crimson Desert will feature a vast game world of Pywel to explore, a story to unravel, factions to fight for, epic boss fights, and a city building on the side. But what interests me is its immense size: will it be similar to a singleplayer Black Desert Online? As BDO is its MMO counterpart. Players will fight, and 'live' with varied character customizations - including settlement building. I don't know what to expect yet and I have seen the earliest trailers, but I'm keeping away from the spoilers. But man, the game looks beautiful and I'm glad it's not under a murky muddy filter. I am a blue sky enjoyer.

I may likely get the Steam version first because my specs can push it. But playing Crimson Desert on the console is definitely not out of the question with its performance mode running at 60fps. Unfortunately, there are no announcements on Crimson Desert releasing on the Nintendo Switch 2. I'm just happy that it's finally getting released after watching its first trailer three years ago.

Update: (as of 2/20/26) Pokemon Home compatibility removed on its eShop description.

Two Pokemon mainline classic games have been re-released for the Nintendo Switch. Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen are now available on the Nintendo eShop and My Nintendo Store.

Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen are the 2004 remakes to the 1996 Pokemon Red and Blue.

Let's not forget Pokemon Let's Go series, the '2018 remake' to Pokemon Yellow, and the Let's Go serires were the first mainline Pokemon installemnts to the Nintendo Switch.

Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen can only be bought digitally with each priced at CA$29.99 (planned with Pokemon Home integration). There is no word yet whether there will be a physical copy. Although Japan has a special edition with codes in boxes.

I'm honestly on the fence if I'm buying or not because I grew up playing the 1996 versions. And I'm used to newer battle mechanics; old gen battles are kind of slow, clunky, and grindy for me - but it's not a bad thing back then. For nostalgia's sake perhaps I will buy but at CA$29.99? I have a lot of Pokemon games already.

In the end, if the sales are good for these re-release, that will be a good incentive for Nintendo to give us the old gen Pokemon into the new-gen.

New World servers will shut down on January 31, 2027 and the game will not become playable afterward.

Earlier in October 28, 2025, New World made an announcement that the Nighthaven expansion would be the last content and there would be no more holiday events. Yet the game will be playable throughout the 2026 year.

There was a huge Amazon lay-offs of about 14,000 to 30,000 employees which swept through its corporate landscape in October 2025, including Amazon Games Studios. New World players were stunned despite the live player count picking up after the Night Haven release.

The layoffs also cancelled the development of Amazon's Lord of the Rings MMO.

Players discuss and speculate whether private servers are possible. However, some doubt that AGS will keep the IP in the grave due to the gigantic investment during the development. For now, NightHaven boosts will persist until the server shutdown. And I stand by what I think that the New World is a good MMO game but it was poorly executed.

Image by Nintendo

Two years after Nintendo announced that Animal Crossing: New Horizons 2.0 will be the final update, ACNH will still get a new update after all. Version 3.0 will release on January 15, 2026! The ACNH Switch 2 edition will also release too. Some key features will be: