Meta hid a heck of a surprise up the sleeve of its boiler suit for the end of its Quest gaming showcase. A Ghostbusters VR game is in the works for Meta Quest 2. Sony Pictures Virtual Reality (SPVR) will publish the four-player co-op game, which is being developed by Far Cry VR: Dive Into Insanity studio nDreams.

Ghostbusters VR (as the game is called for the time being) shifts the action from the franchise's home base of New York City to San Francisco. No prizes for guessing that you'll hunt down and trap ghosts with the help of your proton pack and particle thrower. SPVR says the game will have an "extensive and engrossing campaign" that you can experience solo or with up to three friends. No release window was announced, but SPVR says more will be revealed in the coming months. 

It's not the only Ghostbusters title in the pipeline either. Friday the 13th: The Game developer Illfonic is making Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed, which will pit a team of four players against someone else who controls the ghost. That game is scheduled to arrive on PC, PlayStation and Xbox later this year.

Meta just held its latest Quest gaming showcase and it included some fresh looks at previously announced games as well as reveals of new titles. The stream offered a more in-depth look at Among Us VR gameplay for one thing, as well as a release window. It's coming to Meta Quest 2, Rift and S, Steam VR and PlayStation VR later this year.

This version looks like it'll completely shake up the dynamics of Among Us. It shifts the perspective to first-person rather than a top-down view. You'll still be running around the level to complete tasks, but you won't be able to see if there's a potential impostor right behind you. Hilariously, during the voting phase, you'll be able to literally point fingers at sus crewmates. Meanwhile, Schell Games, which worked on the VR version, has teamed up with Meta Quest to develop three unannounced projects.

Meta also showed off the initial gameplay trailer for the first officially licensed NFL VR game, NFL Pro Era. Developer StatusPro is using actual game data in a bid to make the experience feel authentic. You'll play as a quarterback and you can build up your skills in drills, read the defense and call audibles. If you can avoid getting sacked too many times, you can take your team to the Super Bowl. Alternatively, you can just play catch with friends in a virtual NFL stadium. NFL Pro Era, which features all 32 teams and will also be available on PS VR, will arrive this fall.

Speaking of PS VR, one game that platform initially had as an exclusive will land on Quest 2 this summer: Moss: Book II. Polyarc's sequel to Moss (which is already available on Quest) is well regarded, and more players will be able to check it out in the coming months. The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners - Chapter 2: Retribution will arrive this year too. 

In addition, a Mercenaries horde mode for the VR version of Resident Evil 4 just arrived as a surprise free update. You'll need to take out as many Ganados as possible before time runs out. There are online leaderboards and challenges. Completing challenges will earn you rewards like a black-and-white classic horror mode and golden skins for weapons. Unlocked features will be available in the main game too.

Elsewhere, an electronic mixtape pack is coming to Beat Saber, including songs by Deadmau5, Marshmello and Pendulum. A release date for Cities: VR (a virtual reality take on Cities: Skylines) was announced as well: it's coming to Quest on April 28th.

The event included trailers for some other titles, including an impressive-looking follow up to sci-fi puzzle game Red Matter, espionage sequel Espire 2, narrative-driven JRPG Ruinsmagus and action-adventure title Bonelab.

Glorious PC Gaming Race, the maker of the Model O gaming mouse, the GMMK Pro mechanical keyboard and other popular peripherals, is changing its name. In rebranding as Glorious, the company is hoping to leave behind a name tinged with racial overtones.

The company was formed in 2014. Its original name was a spin on the term "the Glorious PC Gaming Master Race." Game reviewer Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw of Zero Punctuation fame sarcastically coined the expression to poke fun at the elitist attitude held by some PC gamers that their platform of choice was superior to consoles. However, some gamers embraced the term despite the phrase "master race" having roots in Nazi ideology.

“While we remain committed to serving PC gamers and not taking ourselves too seriously, we have also grown and matured significantly as a brand.” Shazim Mohammad, the founder and CEO of Glorious said in a statement. “When I started this company I never could have imagined we’d be where we are today. This new brand identity is more inclusive, accessible and representative of who we’ve become and the direction we’re going long into the future.”

Glorious, which said its new name "inspires positivity," will start updating its branding in the coming weeks. It will introduce a fresh logo and relaunch its online store with a different, to-be-revealed URL. Its upcoming products will bear the new branding, as will the existing product lineup. However, Glorious said completing the transition with its current peripherals will be a multiyear process.

Just ahead of Earth Day on Friday, Amazon has announced investments in 37 more renewable energy projects around the world. The company says these will increase its renewable energy capacity by almost 30 percent, up from 12.2 gigawatts to 15.7 GW.

The company claims the new investments will help it to power its operations entirely with renewable energy by 2025, five years ahead of the original timeline. The latest projects are in the US, Spain, France, Australia, Canada, India, Japan and the United Arab Emirates. They include wind farms, solar farms and eight solar rooftop installations on Amazon buildings. A 500 MW solar farm in Texas will be Amazon's largest renewable energy project to date in terms of capacity.

Amazon has now invested in 310 projects in 19 countries. It says that when they're all up and running, they'll generate enough energy to power 3.9 million homes. The quantity of carbon-free energy they'll generate will help avoid 17.3 million metric tons of emissions each year — the equivalent of taking more than 3.7 million combustion engine cars off roads.

In 2019, Amazon co-founded The Climate Pledge, a vow to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. That's 10 years ahead of the Paris Agreement's deadline. Along the more than 300 signatories that have joined the pledge are Microsoft, IBM and Best Buy.

Amazon said it will invest $2 billion into decarbonization efforts through the Climate Pledge Fund. Along with the accelerated timeline for fully switching to renewable energy, Amazon aims to make its shipments net-zero carbon. It hopes to be halfway to that goal by 2030 and to help it get there, the company placed an order with Rivian for 100,000 electric delivery vehicles.

Real-time strategy game Crossfire: Legion will soon be available on Steam in early access. You'll be able to get your hands on Blackbird Interactive's latest Starcraft-esque title starting on May 24th.

It's based on the CrossFire tactical shooter series, which is immensely popular in Asia. The original game has more than a billion registered players, according to developer Smilegate. The most recent title, CrossfireX, was released on Xbox consoles earlier this year.

The early access build of Crossfire: Legion will include the entire first act of the campaign. You can also expect co-op as well as multiplayer modes with leaderboards. Players will take command of an army from one of three factions: Black List, Global Risk and New Horizon. You'll duke it out with rivals across a range of environments and terrains.

Blackbird has a strong track record, with the likes of Minecraft Earth and Hardspace: Shipbreaker under its belt. The studio is also working on Homeworld 3. Given both Blackbird's reputation and CrossFire's overall popularity, Crossfire: Legion has the potential to be a big hit.

Researchers at MIT created a 3D-printed device to develop a better understanding of the science behind what happens to the cream filling when you split the two sides of an Oreo cookie. Their device, the Oreometer, uses rubber bands and coins to control the torque applied to each side as a cookie is twisted apart. Adding pennies to one side rotates one of the two chambers and separates the Oreo.

After testing various types of Oreos, the researchers added scientific weight to something that nearly every American over the age of three already knows: the cream filling usually sticks to one side, even with Double and Mega Stuf varieties. Twisting speed mattered, according to the team — if you try to do it quickly, it may take more strain and stress to split a cookie. Curiously, the scientists found that the cream only separated more evenly when testing older boxes of cookies. 

The researchers suspect the Oreo manufacturing process is one reason for the phenomenon. “Videos of the manufacturing process show that they put the first wafer down, then dispense a ball of cream onto that wafer before putting the second wafer on top,” Crystal Owens, an MIT mechanical engineering PhD candidate, said. “Apparently that little time delay may make the cream stick better to the first wafer.”

The team published a paper on their research in the journal Physics of Fluids. As Gizmodo notes, they conducted the experiment as an exercise in rheology, which is the study of how matter flows. 

The researchers determined that, based on how the filling responded to stress, it should be classified as "mushy" instead of brittle, tough or rubbery. They also found that the cream's failure stress — the force per area needed to deform the filling or make it flow — is around the same as mozzarella cheese and double that of peanut butter and cream cheese.

There could be some other practical benefits of the research. “My 3D printing fluids are in the same class of materials as Oreo cream,” Owens said. “So, this new understanding can help me better design ink when I’m trying to print flexible electronics from a slurry of carbon nanotubes, because they deform in almost exactly the same way.”

In addition, Owens suggested that if the inside of each Oreo half had more texture, it might have a better grip on the cream and the filling would be more even when a cookie's twisted apart “As they are now, we found there’s no trick to twisting that would split the cream evenly,” Owens added.

If you'd like to try the experiment yourself, you can download the 3D printer files. Just be sure to eat some of the separated Oreos afterward. For science.

Instagram is rolling out the option to create and donate to fundraisers through Reels. Users in more than 30 countries can now add a link for people to donate to more than 1.5 million nonprofits. The fundraiser tool has been available in Stories and on livestreams for the past couple of years.

The feature was announced as part of Meta's Earth Day efforts. Meta says that more than 4 million people have donated over $150 million through Instagram and Facebook to support environmental protection and nonprofits fighting against climate change. The most popular environmental causes, based on the overall number of donors, are The Ocean Cleanup, World Wildlife Fund and (one that's close to my heart) Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.

Most donations made on Instagram last year were under $20. Meta covers the payment processing fees for charitable fundraisers, so every penny that users donate goes to nonprofits.

Elsewhere, Meta announced that it's adding more features to its Climate Science Center. It will highlight actions people can take in their day-to-day lives to combat climate change. The center will also shine a spotlight on data visualizations showing country-level emissions. The Climate Science Center is now available in 150 countries.

Across Instagram, Facebook and Messenger, Meta has released stickers and profile frames to help people show their support for environmental causes. In addition, the company revealed the nine organizations that will receive funding from a $1 million grant program to help them fight climate misinformation. Meta also announced the Sustainability Media Academy, a project to help Asia-based journalists build expertise and develop authority on sustainability issues.

Researchers in Japan have developed a set of electric chopsticks they claim can enhance the taste of salt. The device is attached to a wristband computer. It uses electrical stimulation to transmit sodium ions from food to the eater's mouth, according to Meiji University professor Homei Miyashita, who developed the chopsticks with food and drink maker Kirin.

Miyashita is also the person behind the lickable TV that was announced a few months ago. The idea behind that not-at-all gross device is that people would be able to taste whatever they see on screen.

The chopsticks seem far more practical, especially if they can help people reduce their salt intake. The researchers say the chopsticks can enhance the perceived saltiness of low-sodium foods by around 1.5 times.

Issei Kato / reuters

As Reuters notes, the traditional Japanese diet skews toward salty flavors. A typical Japanese adult consumes around 10 grams of salt per day, twice the level that the World Health Organization recommends. High sodium intake is linked to increased risk of stroke, high blood pressure and other conditions.

Artificially enhancing the saltiness of dishes could make it easier for people to opt for low-sodium options without having to skimp on flavor. Miyashita and Kirin have also discussed using the tech in spoons and tea bowls. They're refining the prototype of the chopsticks and aim to start selling the product as soon as 2023.

In a rare case when we're so used to major games getting delayed, Nintendo now plans to release Xenoblade Chronicles 3 on Switch on July 29th. It originally scheduled the game for September, but perhaps in part due to a Zelda-shaped hole in the 2022 calendar, the company is moving up the release date.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 will arrive nearly five years after the previous game. While the JRPG will follow on from the events of Xenoblade Chronicles and Xenoblade Chronicles 2, it'll have a new cast of characters. A new trailer offers a peek at them in action and reveals that you can team with up to seven characters at the same time. A special edition that will be available exclusively through the My Nintendo Store includes a steelbook cover and an art book.

Despite the sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wildslipping to next spring, Nintendo still has an exciting lineup of exclusives for the rest of 2022. Nintendo Switch Sports arrives this month and June brings both Mario Strikers: Battle League and Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes. The Live A Live remake will drop a week before Xenoblade Chronicles 3.Splatoon 3 is earmarked for sometime this summer, while Bayonetta 3 and Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are also expected to arrive later this year.

Starting today, all Instagram users in the US with public accounts can tag products in their feed posts. The option had until now been limited to brands and some creators.

Budding influencers, for instance, can help their audience buy things they show off in their posts. So, those just getting home from Coachella and posting their photos of their weekend exploits might be able to let their followers shop their festival looks.

Instagram previously said the idea behind the feature is to help people “support their favorite small businesses.” At least for now, you won't get a cut of sales if you tag products, though Instagram has tested affiliate shops and Meta wants to do more to help smaller creators earn a living through its apps. 

Instagram

If you're eager to give brands you love some free promotion, tagging products doesn't seem overly complicated. It works in a similar way to tagging other users. First, you'll need to tag an eligible brand, then you can look for products using descriptors. You may be able to specify a style and color before adding the tag. Anyone who taps on a product tag will be able to buy that item directly in Instagram or by going to the brand's product detail page.

Product tagging won't stop at feed posts. Instagram says it's working on bringing a similar feature for Stories.