This is not an Xbox

The ROG Xbox Ally X released last week, and despite its name, it is not an Xbox. Also, a Twitch star is assaulted at TwitchCon. All this and more. Let’s go!

An unsettling event at TwitchCon

Streaming service Twitch faces backlash after popular streamer Emiru was assaulted at their annual event, TwitchCon.

Emily-Beth Schunk known as Emiru is a popular cosplayer and has over 2 million followers on Twitch. While getting ready for a meet-and-greet with fans, a man walked past TwitchCon security and forcefully attempted to give her a kiss before her own security pushed the assailant away.

Emiru is not the only female Twitch streamer to deal with harassment. Earlier this year, Rolling Stone published an article called Harassment, Stalkers, Death Threats: A Day in the Life of Women on Twitch. Emiru posted on Twitter that she was okay after the attack, but “to tell you honestly, I am a lot more hurt and upset by how Twitch handled it during and after the fact.” Twitch did release a statement saying the individual was banned from future events and called the event “completely unacceptable and deeply upsetting.”

This is not an Xbox

The ROG Xbox Ally X released last week, and confused people into thinking it is an Xbox. 

The new handheld system made by Asus has Xbox in the name, but that is as far as it goes. It is literally a computer running Windows. It has Teams and Copilot installed by default, just what everyone wants on their gaming platform. It does not play Xbox console games unless they are Xbox Play Anywhere games (related, most Xbox games are not). 

It is no surprise consumers might be confused.

The reviews for the new device are generally positive when it comes to power, but the $1,000 handheld PC might be a bit expensive for most players, especially when compared to a PC with a good graphics card that can do much more (including easily removing Teams). 

Check out a few reviews below. Are you planning to pick up the ROG Xbox Ally X? Let us know in the comments.

• Ars Technicia: The first portable “Xbox” fails to unify a messy world of competing PC gaming platforms.
• The Guardian: ROG Xbox Ally X review – like nothing handheld gaming has seen before, for better or worse.
• Kotaku: A peek at Microsoft's gaming future comes at a high price.
• Giant Bomb:

Side Quests (more stories worth reading)

🔫 We played Borderlands 4 and have a lot of thoughts about the game.

🎮 Quantic Dream, the studio behind Heavy Rain and Detroit: Become Human, unexpectedly announced a 3v3 multiplayer game called Spellcasters Chronicles.

✊🏼 A new report says that the studio behind Metroid Dread and Castlevania: Lords of Shadow has cancelled employee vacations and forced overtime for nearly a year. 

🕹️ The first great console war has cooled, as Atari is releasing an Intellivision console. 

🎴 The notorious Van Gogh Pokémon card has increased in value over 300%, and is now worth over $1,000. 

😢 Tomonobu Itagaki, the legendary developer of Dead or Alive and Ninja Gaiden 2004, passed away at the age of 58. 

📅 Multiple reports claim the PlayStation 6 and the next Xbox console are aiming for a 2027 release. 

💹 Meanwhile, Nintendo plans to produce up to 25 million Switch 2 units by March 2026.

🎲 German board game publisher AMIGO plans to exit the U.S. market at the end of 2025. 

👋🏻 A dozen classic Japanese arcade shoot ’em ups will delist permanently from Steam at the end of the month.

🇺🇸 Two US Senators voiced their concerns of “foreign influence and national security risks” in the acquisition of Electronic Arts by a group led by the Saudi government. 

🚘 A new mod for the 2003 game The Simpsons: Hit & Run turns it into a Futurama game. 

♿ The rising costs of games, systems and technology is forcing some disabled players to leave the hobby. 

💰 A former developer of the original Saints Row games says “not all games are created equal” and that Grand Theft Auto 6 “deserves” to be $100.

🛰️ GPS satellite navigation app Waze has added Sonic the Hedgehog as a sidekick character.

🎵 PlayStation: The Concert has cancelled some dates in 2025 and 2026. 

📈 Round numbers: the Silent Hill 2 remake sold over 2.5 million copies and Battlefield 6 sold over 7 million copies in three days.  

New Releases this week:

Check out our article on 13 New Games to Play in October.

10/21: Jurassic World Evolution 3 (PlayStation, Xbox and PC)
10/21: Ninja Gaiden 4 (PlayStation, Xbox and PC)
10/21: Painkiller (PlayStation, Xbox and PC)
10/21: Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 (PlayStation, Xbox and PC)
10/22: Dispatch (PlayStation 5 and PC)
10/23: Double Dragon Revive (PlayStation, Xbox, Switch and PC)
10/24: Once Upon a KATAMARI (PlayStation, Xbox, Switch and PC)

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