Xbox Game Bar gets built-in FPS and optimization counter on PC
Microsoft adds a built-in FPS counter into the Xbox Game Bar on PC, making it easier to check performance on-the-fly.
Microsoft's native PC gaming tools have evolved tremendously over the years. I still remember playing Quantum Break in 2016 when third-party overlays weren't supported with UWP games. But now Microsoft's first-party games on PC have a nifty Xbox Game Bar that natively tracks CPU, GPU, and RAM usage via an on-screen toolbar. It's pretty helpful and lets you see performance while not having to Alt+Tab.
But now Microsoft is adding an FPS counter to the mix which is arguably the most important at-a-glance indicator for specific games (especially first-party PC games from Microsoft). The new October 2019 Windows update adds the new FPS counter to the Game Bar app, and also brings some customization options too. You can change the transparency and color scheme of the tabs, and even customize which perf indicators show up.
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How to get 44 days of Xbox Game Pass for $5
Taco Bell is giving 14 days of Game Pass with the purchase of a chalupa box, but you can easily turn that into 44 days.
Right now Microsoft has a big promo with Taco Bell. Every $5 double chalupa box you buy gets you a code that could win a special Xbox One X, but everyone who buys gets two weeks of Game Pass for free.
To get 44 days of Game Pass for free, just opt-in to recurring billing when redeeming the 14 day code. This adds 30 days to your subscription. Of course you have to plonk down some sort of payment method to grab the offer, but just be sure to cancel the subscription within the timeframe and you should be fine.
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Fallout 76 private servers: Everything you need to know
Fallout 76's new paid subscription plan is eye-opening to say the least, but let's delve into how private worlds will actually work.
Fallout 76 is getting private servers. And like most games you'll have to pay for them, but not separately. Bethesda chose to wrap private worlds into a new subscription called Fallout 1st, which costs a whopping $12.99 a month or $100 a year. You can't just buy private worlds access and instead have to buy into the subscription, which also includes some exclusive pay-to-win items.
So how do private worlds actually work? Here's a quick breakdown:
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Fallout 76 gets $100 a year subscription plan with pay-to-win content
It's finally happened. Fallout 76 is getting a paid subscription model to help pay for private worlds and make extra cash.
Fallout 76's new subscription plan, Fallout 1st, is an attempt to not only re-monetize a game that may be failing to generate cash from in-game purchases, but a means of paying for private server access. Fallout 1st subscription memberships come in two expensive flavors: a $12.99 a month pay-as-you-go plan, and an incredible $99.99 a year option. Yes, really.
Fallout 1st includes access to private worlds hosting, but it also gives exclusive access to some serious pay-to-win content. Subscribers get access to a Survival Tent, which is basically a home away from home that includes a stash, a cooking station, a sleeping bag, and a scrapbox. It's basically a second campsite. The scrapbox is also new and gives you a serious advantage. It has unlimited storage for scrap and separates it from your stash--considering scrap is a huge part of whatever you're carrying in Fallout 76's massively tedious grindy gameplay, this is absolutely massive.
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Nintendo to keep games fresh with new experimental focus
Nintendo has made a tremendous transformation since the Wii U days. Not only is it generating billions of revenue every year from hardware and software, but the company is shedding the shackles that tethered it to the old ways of games development. The Switch isn't just new hardware: It's the start of a new Nintendo, one that's going to experiment and take some risks. One of those risks is playing around with new ideas for its massively popular first-party franchises.
Nintendo has made lots of changes under the leadership of current Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa. First off, the company is now much more forthright with its earnings, its upcoming plans, and its overall trajectory. Furukawa regularly goes into express detail with sales figures and is refreshingly open about the company's business. Secondly, Furukawa is taking Nintendo's changing of the guard even further; the Switch's marketing, presentation, and overall feel is the result of a renewed vigor sparked from original plans set forth all the way during Iwata's presidency. As a natural evolution of the Wii U and the 3DS, the Nintendo Switch was always meant to embrace Nintendo's youth and pass development down to a new generation.
In a recent interview with TIME, Nintendo's acting president says he's giving first-party development teams lots of room to explore diverse new ideas and paths for Switch games. Things could get pretty weird, original, and quite different than what we're used to, similar to Zelda: Breath of the Wild's radical departure from the series original formula.
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The Sims 4 'Discover University' DLC pack throws it all back to school
EA has announced a new DLC pack for Sims 4, this time round players will be able to take their Sims back to school. More accurately, university and all the fun that surrounds it.
This new DLC pack will open up a new chapter for Sims as they can enroll in different classes in different schools such as engineering, education or law. Sims also have the ability of being able to decorate their dorm room, join extracurricular activities and make friends with all different types of other sims.
According to Michael Duke, Senior Producer of The Sims 4, "Easily the most requested piece of content by our players, we're excited to reveal The Sims 4 Discover University and can't wait for everyone to make the world of Britechester their classroom. Players can have their Sims live out whatever college experience they choose and create unique memories during an opportunistic chapter of their lives."
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Darksiders Genesis adds a touch of refreshing comedy, December 5 debut
THQ Nordic have revealed the release date for the next Darksiders game, Darksiders Genesis. The release date was showcased through a new cinematic trailer that has gone live.
Above we have the official Darksiders Genesis cinematic trailer, which is centered around the the last of the four horseman 'Stife'. Strifes primary weapon of choice is two guns Mercy and Redemption, and with these weapons players will carve their way through hordes of demons, monsters angels and everything else that stands in their way.
It should also be noted that Stife is portrayed as quite humorous, which is really refreshing since the previous Darksiders games have had characters that are much more on the serious side of things. I think that if Darksiders Genesis mixes a certain element of comedic value into its hack n' slash combat, players could easily develop a great bond between them and Strife. Darksiders Genesis will release on PC first on December 5th. Console gamers on Xbox and PS4 will have to wait until February 14th.
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Spotify is giving out Google Home Minis to any Premium US subscriber
Spotify is back at it again with another giveaway, this time round they will be handing out free Google Home Minis to all new and old Spotify Premium subscribers.
Spotify has said that these giveaways will only be occuring to Premium subscribers in the United States and will only happen "while supplies last". It seems that as Google is gearing up for the release of the Nest Mini, they have selected Spotify to clear out the 'old stock' of the previous generation. But who doesn't like free stuff right?
The partnership between Google and Spotify to get more smart home devices out into the public is certainly a beneficiary idea, as both companies are working towards accessibility in the fashion of getting users the music they want when they want it. As Assistants progress in technology and become even better, more users will be more inclined to purchase a smart home system. Especially if Spotify and other music streaming applications are abundantly producing reliably good music. All Spotify and Google are doing is getting out ahead of the curve.
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NASA Administrator doubles down on humans landing on Mars by '2035'
NASA has reaffirmed its stance on wanting to get humans across the stars and walking on the red neighboring planet, Mars.
According to Jim Bridenstine, NASA's Administrator, NASA plans on first achieving a successful Moon landing in 2024 and then moving onto Mars in 2035. Bridenstine sat down at a planel discussion at the International Astronautical Congress and said "If we are accelerating the moon landing, we are accelerating the Mars landing. I suggest we can do it by 2035."
The reason for Bridenstine to push up the Mars landing to 2035 from 2033 is because "We need to learn how to live and work in another world. The moon is the best place to prove those capabilities and technologies. The sooner we can achieve that objective, the sooner we can move on to Mars." Vice President, Mike Pence also spoke out at the panel and said that the United States' vision is to be a leader when it comes to space travel into the unknown, and that they are always willing to work with and help like-minded, freedom-loving nations.
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80% of men and 69% of women use their phones while on the toilet
A new study has come out and measured the amount of people that are using their mobile phone while doing this business on the toilet, the numbers pulled in are quite surprising to say the least.
According to a survey that was conducted by Bank My Cell with a sample size of 2,114 people, 80% of men and 69% of women use their phone on the toilet. It was also found that 90% of Millennial's use their phone in the bathroom while Generation X clocked in at 82%, and 57% for Baby Boomers.
The study also found that this behavior was more common in Android users than iPhone users with it being 12% more common in Android owners. The study was measured between June 1st and August 31st of 2018, and since it was a very limited sample size those numbers could of definitely increased as more and more people are picking up handsets. Interested in another cool study about phone use? Check out how smartphone typing speed is actually catching up to keyboard typing speed here.
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