TT Show Episode 14 - Grand Theft Auto 6 deep dive, Fallout TV show, Windows 12, and more!
The TT Show Episode 14 is here, and of course, this week's big story is the Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer, which dropped moments before Jak and Kosta started recording - so strap in for some genuine immediate impressions. The GTA 6 discussion covers quite a bit, from the visuals to the game potentially skipping PC at launch to why Rockstar released the trailer ahead of schedule.
The Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer isn't the only trailer the duo dig into as they talk about the new Fallout TV show from Amazon for Prime Video and how it captures the series' look, feel, and tone. As a Fallout player, Kosta is more impressed than Jak, but hey. In the world of GPUs, the ongoing GeForce RTX 4090 China ban saga continues, with the recent news that NVIDIA is designing a cutdown RTX 4090D for the region.
This week's episode also covers the early arrival of Windows 12 in June 2024 alongside dedicated "AI PCs," Tesla's Cybertruck's launch, and some sad news about NASA's planned Moon mission in 2025. It turns out progress at Elon Musk's SpaceX isn't where it should be,
Scientists unveil the world's first Harry Potter invisibility 'cloak'
The iconic Harry Potter invisibility cloak has been brought to life by a group of scientists who have unlocked a ground-breaking new level of optical technology.
According to several reports and the South China Morning Post, the new technology is called an InvisDefense Coat and is capable of hiding the human body day or night, specifically from security cameras that are being monitored by artificial intelligence. At a recent scientific event in Shanghai, China, Chu Junhao, a renowned physicist from Donghua University, took to the stage to demonstrate how certain materials can be invisible to the human eye, which generates an effect that is out of science fiction or fantasy.
The scientist explained that the new technology uses what are called convex cylindrical lenses, which are placed in a row across the sheet of paper seen in the above video. "Each vertical lens can shrink and thin objects parallel to it so that light can refract," Chu explained. Technology such as this has widespread application, and specifically in the military sector, as vehicles such as fighter jets could have the material placed on their belly, entire structures built out of it, and general stealth applications.
Continue reading: Scientists unveil the world's first Harry Potter invisibility 'cloak' (full post)
Call of Duty devs triggered over God of War voice actor comments at Game Awards 2023
A group of Call of Duty developers have taken to social media to voice their concerns about the recent comments from God of War voice actor Christopher Judge at The Game Awards 2023.
The controversy started when God of War voice actor (Kratos), Christopher Judge took to the stage and said that his speech wasn't going to be long and that he wasn't going to be taking up too much of their time. Judge went on to say that his speech wasn't going to be eight minutes long "like last year," when the actor won Best Performance for his role as Kratos in God of War Ragnarok. No one, including the Call of Duty developers, didn't have a problem with any of those words from Judge.
What they did have a problem with is the following line, "But fun fact, my speech was actually longer than this year's Call of Duty campaign," he added. That cheeky comment from Judge, which was clearly done in jest, triggered a bunch of past and present Call of Duty developers that took to X to rebut Judge's comment. While Judge's comment was clearly a joke, many individuals working on Call of Duty didn't see it that way.
Jurassic Park: Survival is the Jurassic Park game fans have always wanted
Jurassic Parks fans are rejoicing at the recent reveal at this year's Game Awards, as Jurassic Park: Survival hit the big screen for the first time.
The new horror-action title takes Jurassic Park fans back to Isla Nublar, and it appears that things will kick off right after the events of the first movie. So, what is Jurassic World: Survival? It's likely the style of the game Jurassic Park fans have been asking for, as it features horror elements, gore, iconic dinosaurs, and a fully-fledged single-player action-adventure.
The trailer showcases the main character, Dr. Maya Joshi, an InGen scientist who's been left behind on Isla Nublar, and players will be taken on a journey of escape as Dr. Joshi attempts to make her way off the island while avoiding the most iconic dinosaurs in the movies, as well as some from the original book. At the moment, there isn't a release date for Jurassic Park: Survival, but what we do know is that it will be coming to Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC.
Nintendo Switch 2 leaks point to big upgrades and early release date
Rumors about the Nintendo Switch 2 continue to swirl around, as fans of the company are excited to see what the next console could entail.
There are a couple of rumors, and the first comes from a Korean News site, Chosun Biz, which has claimed that Nintendo is currently engaging in conversations about implementing "next-generation OLED panels" for the company's new devices. Unless Nintendo releases an entirely new device, it appears that the display upgrade is for the Nintendo Switch 2. The report claims that Nintendo is in talks with Samsung Display about supplying OLED panels on December 1, 2023.
An additional rumor comes from the known Samsung leaker @Tech_Reve (Revegnus) on X, which reports indicate has had a pretty good track record with accurate Samsung leaks. Revegnus took to his X account on December 4 and posted that the Nintendo Switch 2 will be coming out "early next year". Further rumors regarding Nintendo's new device include the adoption of an NVIDIA chip that enables DLSS support, 4K support, the company releasing a digital-only model that features an LCD screen, and a physical cartridge model with an OLED screen.
Continue reading: Nintendo Switch 2 leaks point to big upgrades and early release date (full post)
Elon Musk's SpaceX is now worth more than Disney or Comcast
It appears that Elon Musk's rocket company, SpaceX, is worth more than Disney or Comcast, according to recent reports from Bloomberg.
The new report from the publication indicates that SpaceX is considering selling shares at a valuation of $175 billion, which would make Musk's company worth more than Disney or Comcast. Notably, SpaceX officially denied reports that insinuated the company was having an internal consideration about an IPO for its Starlink division next year while also upping its valuation by $25 billion more than it was last summer.
According to unnamed sources in the report, SpaceX is considering a share price of $95, which would generate $500 to $750 million if initiated. For reference, Comcast and Disney are worth about $167 billion, and Musk's rocket company hasn't even released put into place its best product - Starship. The company's newest generation rocket that's designed to land on the moon and Mars.
Continue reading: Elon Musk's SpaceX is now worth more than Disney or Comcast (full post)
Matthew McConaughey reveals trailer for 'Interstellar sequel' video game
Matthew McConaughey has revealed he is joining the world of gaming by voicing a character within Archetype Entertainment's new title called Exodus.
The trailer for the new game debuted at The Game Awards 2023, and the title was introduced by Matthew McConaughey, who took to the stage to explain how he became a part of the project. McConaughey explains that he will be voicing a character in the game, and this character will have a unique relationship with each player.
Additionally, McConaughey reveals that time will play a big factor in the game as it "moves differently. Days for you are decades for your loved ones back home. The choices that you make not only affect the people that you love, they will also affect your entire civilization for generations to come."
New Hellblade 2 trailer is movie-level sets the gold standard for video game trailers
Ninja Theory has released what I'm now considering the gold standard of video game trailers for the developer's upcoming Senua's Saga: Hellblade II.
The developers behind the award-winning Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice have released a new trailer for the sequel at The Game Awards 2023. The new trailer showcases intense gameplay and cinematic sequences that display an incredible level of motion capture technology, sound design, combat, the game's setting, and much more.
Ninja Theory explains in the YouTube video description that Hellblade 2 will be set in "Viking Iceland," and Senua will journey throughout, saving those who have fallen victim to tyranny while attempting to overcome the darkness within and without. Furthermore, the trailer showcases the impressive capabilities of the Xbox Series X, as it is detailed at the beginning of the trailer - the in-game shots were captured on Microsoft's flagship console.
Intel keeps up the good work with Arc GPU driver: up to 34% boosts, Battlefield V is 23% faster
Intel's Arc GPUs just got a new graphics driver which again brings in some impressive performance uplifts.
Driver version 31.0.101.5074 offers a rather tasty boost of up to 34% for Train Sim World 3 (at Full HD resolution, Ultra settings) and Arc graphics card owners are getting 23% more FPS in Battlefield V at those same 1080p settings.
Here's a full roundup of the frame rate uplifts provided by the new Arc graphics driver:
Final Fantasy XVI on PC: there's possible good news on DLC, and bad news on the spec (for some)
Final Fantasy XVI is coming to the PC next year, and we just got some more details on the port, bringing some good news regarding bundling the DLC, and some not so great news as to the potential minimum hardware requirements.
The info was spilled in an interview conducted by Famitsu (a Japanese magazine) with producer of the game Naoki "Yoshi-P" Yoshida.
In the interview, Yoshi-P suggested that the PC release would come complete with both expansions, and as that second DLC for Final Fantasy XVI is due in the spring of 2024, we can perhaps hope that the port will arrive on PC then, or shortly thereafter (fingers crossed - though from previous hints, it may well take longer).
Here's why you shouldn't cheap out on a PSU - a Redditor found a lump of iron inside theirs
If anyone is building a PC and asks our advice, we always point out that while it might seem tempting to get a cheap PSU, this isn't a good approach - and if we ever needed an incident to effectively illustrate why, well, here it is.
As Tom's Hardware spotted, a Redditor bought a cheap (claimed) 500W power supply - an Equites T500 (no, we've never heard of the brand either) - and then opened it up.
To their surprise, they found at one side of the power supply, a block was attached, filled with iron filings. It had no functional purpose, and wasn't connected to anything, the block was just sat to one side of the PSU, doing nothing.