Gaming
ODIN by 4Players: Immersive, state-of-the-art in-game audio launches into the next generation of gaming
																								
												
												
											
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Compatible with a wide range of game engines and operating systems including Unreal Engine 5 and IOS, ODIN offers spatial audio features that developers can easily integrate into their games
 
Tech pioneer, 4Players, has unveiled its latest cutting-edge innovation, ODIN by 4Players, continuing its mission to revolutionise in-game experiences. ODIN offers crystal clear voice chat, 3D spatial real-time voice, and seamless integration into game development engines, including Unity, Unreal Engine 4 and Unreal Engine 5. Built with the metaverse and beyond in mind, ODIN supports immersive voice experiences for a new age.
Created by a team of developers who are truly passionate about improving user experience and understand the importance of total immersion in gaming, ODIN is 4Players’ newest product. Following the success of 4NetPlayers – the company’s high-end, low latency server hire service – ODIN is an audio SDK that can be easily integrated into the next generation of game engines. With immersive and interactive gaming being the focus, ODIN’s tech levels-up in-game multiplayer communications, with spatial audio that makes voice chat feel more real than ever before. Highly optimised, ODIN is crystal clear and lag-free, with incredibly low latency and is compatible when developing across all current platforms.
Dedicated to privacy and security, ODIN is encrypted end-to-end and fully GDPR compliant. With a generic API, ODIN is flexible in its integration and with its cutting edge SDK, the game engine does all the work. Maximising the potential of in-game environments, ODIN can be attached to any in-game object to create an audio experience unlike anything else. Truly developer-friendly and quick to integrate, the process takes under a day to complete, creating a smooth and efficient experience for developers.
Developers are beginning to take advantage of the new tech, including the team at Combat Waffle Studios, a veteran owned game studio. This studio is using ODIN for the use of voice chat in its VR Multiplayer Survival game Ghosts of Tabor.
Reinaldo Vieira, Lead Developer at Combat Waffle Studios said: “ODIN by 4Players voice chat is the best choice for cross-play voice communication, besides having features that competitors do not. The setup is extremely easy, and having a team that supports you every step of the way to ensure you are on the right track is a relief.”
Using the same brand-new technology for game developers, 4Players has announced its own open-source chat client that is powered by ODIN. A truly feature-rich suite, this service offers a self-hosted platform for conferencing, allowing audio, video and text chat. ODIN doesn’t just level up the gaming experience, but work life too. Supported by Swift and SwiftUI, an IOS test client for ODIN is now available on GitHub. With this new advancement developers can integrate ODIN’s SDK into their games across IOS, placing the true power of spatial audio into the most popular operating system on mobile devices.
Sven Paulsen, CTO at 4Players said: “By creating ODIN by 4Players, we are giving developers the resources they need to create the most immersive gaming experience for the next generation. For us, this is important because at 4Players we understand, play and love games, and strive to have this reflected in our products.”
ODIN is deeply integrated into Unity by leveraging the native Unity AudioSource API for playback, which means that voice is part of the game engines´ scene and encourages developers to use standard Unity tools like AudioMixer. ODIN comes with custom built audio occlusion APIs that allow it to simulate the effect of thick walls and direction. The ODIN plugin for Unreal Engine is also deeply integrated into the engine by building on Unreal Engine’s Synth component, meaning that standard Unreal Engine tools can be used for audio effects and ODIN automatically uses Unreal Engine’s built in audio occlusion. These unique features allow developers to integrate realistic, immersive, 3D spatial real-time voice and sound into any Unity or Unreal Engine game in no time and with ease.
ODIN was developed by 4Players, a company which has been shaping the games industry for over 20 years with a suite of cutting-edge products. 4Players is at the forefront of the next generation of game development and playing, with its server hire service 4NetPlayers, a favourite of developers and gamers alike. ODIN is 4Players’ latest offering, created by a team of industry experts behind the forerunning platform TeamSpeak.
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Africa
South Africa’s Top Gamers Crowned at 2025 MTN SHIFT Gaming Grand Finals at Canal Walk
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Massive wins, standout talent and a showdown wrapped up five months of fierce competition across the country.
After months of qualifiers and regional heats at eight Hyprop malls across South Africa, the MTN SHIFT Gaming Experience reached its electrifying conclusion at Canal Walk Shopping Centre. With hundreds of spectators and players packing the gaming arena, the national finals brought the heat and crowned South Africa’s best in EAFC 25
, Beat Saber, Call of Duty and more.
In the EAFC National Final, Hamza Moosa (17) from Sandton, proved why he’s one of the country’s most exciting young talents. A professional esports player for Goliath Gaming, Moosa outplayed the competition to take top honours. A familiar name on the international stage, he recently represented South Africa at the Esports World Cup qualifier in Saudi Arabia. Hamza left the MTN SHIFT Gaming national finals with prize money of R25000.
Beat Saber fans saw a fast-paced, high-score battle won by Michael Prange (17) from Pretoria and Garsfontein High School. Ranked #2 nationally, Prange is also a two-time Beat Saber World Cup competitor and has helped shape South Africa’s competitive VR rhythm community through coaching, mentorship, and global participation. As the 2025 MTN SHIFT Gaming Beat Saber national champion, Michael won a Gaming PC valued at R50000.
In the schools division, Ridhaa April, 15, from Cape Town’s Southern Suburbs, took the EAFC title. A prodigious talent who’s been competing since the age of 12, Ridhaa plays professionally for Goliath Gaming and already holds multiple top finishes, including 1st place at the 2025 ASL.
In the Rocket League school tournament, Curro took top spot, followed by Edgemead High in second place.
Meanwhile, Call of Duty Mobile closed out the finals with serious intensity as returning champions Nixuh held onto their title. The dominant team of Magicz (Raees Ismail), Adnaan (Adnaan Bhamjee), Raz (Rahil Bux) and Enigma (Jameen Essa) walked away with a R30 000 cash prize.
“The atmosphere at this year’s finals was absolutely electric,” said Vanessa Herbst, Marketing Manager at Canal Walk Shopping Centre. “The level of skill on display was unreal, and the crowd brought their energy every day. The bar has been set very high for the 2026 edition.”
The MTN SHIFT Gaming Experience is South Africa’s biggest mall-based gaming tournament, played over five months across Gauteng and the Western Cape. Regional heats were hosted at Rosebank Mall, Clearwater Mall, The Glen, Woodlands, Table Bay Mall, Somerset Mall and Capegate Shopping Centre, with the final week of competition culminating at Canal Walk. The tournament drew thousands of players across all skill levels, offering more than R250 000 in prizes and a platform to compete in front of live audiences.
“The SHIFT Gaming Experience is about bringing high-level competition into public spaces and giving players of all ages the opportunity to compete, connect and grow,” said Christie Stanbridge, Brand and Campaigns Marketing Manager at Hyprop. “From pros representing South Africa on global stages to young players discovering their potential, far more than being entertaining, this year highlighted gaming as a space for learning, discipline and community.”
With the 2025 tournament wrapped, planning is already underway for an even bigger return in 2026.
The post South Africa’s Top Gamers Crowned at 2025 MTN SHIFT Gaming Grand Finals at Canal Walk appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Bonus Bag feature
TaDa Gaming Delivers Highway Thrills in Chicken Dash
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Award-winning TaDa has taken a favourite joke and transformed it into an immersive and humorous crash release. Simple mechanics, personalised risk management controls and a max win of 20,659.1x are enhanced with slick graphics and a fearless chicken.
And with an expanding bonus bag that fell off the back of a lorry, it’s easy to see why this chicken is so determined to get to the other side.
Players begin by setting their preferred gameplay parameters. Three levels of Easy, Normal and Hard will dictate the level length or number of tiles the bird has to cross and the level max multiplier value.
Strong clear colours and polished visuals set the scene for the determined chicken to make it across the motorway. Beginning on the grass verge, players click to send the bird across the lanes one multiplier tile at a time against the oncoming traffic.
Each safe step will see a safety barrier land to protect the chicken but one false move and it’s game over and back to the grass verge.
Keeping players on high alert, the Chicken Dash feature can randomly trigger multiple times in a game. The appearance and squawking of the rooster starts the bonus feature which protects the chicken from traffic throughout and allows it to pass over two or three tiles in one go.
A Bonus Bag feature can also randomly trigger. Players must land the chicken on the tile where the bag dropped to collect the prize. And the higher the risk level, the higher the prize.
A clear UI and straightforward gameplay mean players can focus on getting the chicken across the road in one piece – and hopefully with the bonus prize – while enjoying Chicken Dash’s crisp graphics and sly details in this high volatility and amusing game.
Sean Liu, Director of Product Management at TaDa Gaming, said: “Chicken Dash is a hugely entertaining crash game that will have players laughing out loud. The cartoon graphics add to the experiential play and we promise no chickens were hurt in making of this game.”
The post TaDa Gaming Delivers Highway Thrills in Chicken Dash appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Cash Rain Event
TaDa Gaming Releases Cash Stack
														Reading Time: < 1 minute
TaDa Gaming, a leading provider of innovative casino content, is redefining fast-play entertainment with the release of Cash Stack, an adrenaline-pumping crash game that puts timing, control and strategy directly in the player’s hands. With a max multiplier of 100x, Cash Stack delivers rapid gameplay, instant decisions and nonstop engagement.
Built for players who love simplicity and control, Cash Stack starts at a 1.01x multiplier, with the tension rising as players manually tap DROP to increase their payout potential. Every decision carries risk — one mistimed move and the round ends instantly. For those who dare, the game can soar up to 100x before the stack collapses.
The twist comes with the Cash Rain Event, a random in-game boost that can multiply winnings by 0.1x to 10x. Players must hit CASH OUT before the round ends to claim the bonus value, adding a thrilling layer of timing and anticipation. The result is a fast, skill-driven experience that rewards quick reactions and nerve.
Cash Stack embodies TaDa Gaming’s next step in the evolution of crash games — sleek visuals, simple mechanics and an emphasis on player control over automatic outcomes.
Sean Liu, Director of Product Management at TaDa Gaming, said: “Cash Stack takes the essence of crash gameplay and turns it into a true test of timing and instinct. Every round is a balance between greed and precision — do you cash out early or chase the big win? We’ve designed it to be fast, flexible, and highly engaging for players who want to feel in control.”
The post TaDa Gaming Releases Cash Stack appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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