This week, two new Echo Show devices have been announced by Amazon, Sennheiser’s Momentum True Wireless 2 earbuds deliver incomparable sound, and Resident Evil Village is a greatest hits of horror gaming. But first, computer chip shortages make it difficult to find a next-gen console.

Computer chip shortages keep gamers from getting hands on PS5, Xbox Series X consoles

Still looking to get a next-gen console from Microsoft or Sony? The news isn’t great:

• Sony warns tight Playstation 5 supply to extend into next year (Bloomberg)
• Xbox Series X supply issues expected to continue into the summer (Gamasutra)
• The microchip shortage explained (USA Today)

The shortage has prompted some of the major tech companies to form the Semiconductors in America Coalition which is lobbying the U.S. federal government to put up $50 billion to “fully fund investments in U.S. semiconductor manufacturing and research….”

Amazon updates cameras in new Echo Show devices

The second generation of Echo Show devices in the 5-inch and 8-inch screen sizes were announced today, and while they have the same prices as earlier models, they’ve got better specs.

The Echo Show 8 ($170) gets a massive camera improvement, from 1 megapixel to 13 megapixels, as well as the ability to automatically move to keep you in the frame during video calls. You can also use the camera to check in on your household remotely.

It’s got a 1280 × 800 resolution HD display for streaming video, and a dual speaker system for playing music from your preferred streaming music service. It’s also great as a digital photo frame.

The 5.5-inch screen on the Echo Show 5 ($100) has a 2 megapixel camera, double that of the previous model. It’s got the same functionality as the other models, able to play audio and video, conferencing, and smart home features.

With a smaller footprint, it’s best suited for those rooms where you’ve got less surface space available.

Both new Echo Show devices are also equipped with Amazon’s digital assistant, Alexa.

Sound quality from Sennheiser’s Momentum True Wireless 2 earbuds is incomparable

I’ve had a chance to try out lots of wireless earbuds in the past couple of years, and I finally got a chance to take the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 ($400) for a spin.

From the very first signal that came through I knew that the Momentum True Wireless 2 were going to deliver the best sound quality yet.

It was like being in a concert hall. The spoken word audio was clear as crystal, the music rich and full of rumbling bass and chirping highs.

They nestled nicely in my ear canals, too, and come with three different silicon tips to accommodate different sizes.

The active noise cancellation wasn’t as robust as I’d like, and I found that my audio tended to cut out when I was on a phone call, but for pure listening pleasure, I was purely satisfied.

Resident Evil Village provides a greatest hits of horror gaming

The latest game in the Resident Evil franchise of video games from Capcom is a solid entry in the series, but it buckles under the weight of its own mythology.

Now available on PS4, PS5, Stadia, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Resident Evil Village, or Resident Evil 8 if you’re keeping track of the games numerically, maintains many of the features of survival horror that the franchise is known for, but opens up the experience considerably.

You’ll still have to manage your resources, which means searching around to collect all the items scattered around. You’ll craft items to help you fight and survive. You’ll have to solve puzzles to open doors to new pathways.

And you’ll be surprised by an array of horrors that are determined to eat your face.

What’s different, though, is that Village feels more like an action adventure than a pure horror game. That’s totally fine with me, as I haven’t had the nerve to play some of the earlier RE games.

I’m especially okay with this being more action oriented because you’re playing in first person, not third. And from that perspective, scary things are, well, scarier.

That’s not to say that the situations aren’t freaky, because they are. And because of the way Village is structured, it’s almost like a greatest hits of horror games.

In Resident Evil Village, the small town in question is a hub of sorts, from which you visit distinct areas around the town: a castle, a factory, a reservoir. This is something that the modern reboot of the franchise, Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, introduced and Village takes it another step by having each of the areas have a different horror feel.

The castle is the vampire movie, the factory is a werewolf experience. There’s a psychological horror part featuring dolls that you should not play late at night with the lights out and headphones on.

But while the mechanics of playing Resident Evil Village are solid, the story is a mess.

Capcom is clearly trying to both appeal to fans and entice new audiences into the franchise, but by trying to maintain the narrative threads of the original games and introduce new storylines, we end up with a twisted, incomprehensible mishmash.

This is not helped by the fact that the protagonist you play, Ethan Winters, is so terribly realized. He was introduced in RE7 as a new character, and the developers have said they created him to be something of an empty vessel for players to embody, an everyman for us to connect with.

But with dialogue that is woefully bad and flat, emotionless reactions to what’s going on around him, Winters is more laughable than anything. And the poor characterization stands out even more because the other characters in the game are quite good.

Fans of Resident Evil games are likely to be okay with Village, and it should attract new players who are curious to learn what the fuss is all about. I’m keen for more like this, but only if you give me a protagonist I can care about.