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Following feedback from 007 First Light's latest path-tracing update, the game's developers have published two hotfixes that improve the game's performance with path tracing enabled. The latest hotfix, version 1.2.2, fixes a plethora of graphical issues in the game relating to path tracing and improves path tracing performance in two levels.

Arguably the biggest improvements surround the path-tracing performance updates the developers added to Chapter 6 and Chapter 8. Both levels have received a performance fix where performance could drop 5 to 10 FPS on an RTX 5070 GPU. Chapter 6's update fixes a performance drop when entering the Gala area and looking towards the crowd, and Chapter 8's update fixes an issue where performance can drop during camera zoom in the "Smoking Gun" scene.

All of the other fixes surround graphical glitches, including fixes to overly bright reflections, shadow flickering, textures, and areas where ambient lighting should or should not be visible to the player.

TSMC's next-generation 1.4nm process, known as A14, is reportedly moving closer to trial production, according to Taiwanese media citing industry sources.

The reports say A14 is on track to enter trial production in 2027, with pilot production already starting at TSMC's Fab 20 in Hsinchu's Baoshan science park before shifting to Fab 25 in Taichung. Mass production remains targeted for 2028, in line with what TSMC has said publicly for a while now.

According to the same reports, TSMC's yield progress on A14 is apparently running ahead of schedule. Test vehicles are said to be hitting close to 90% of the target device performance, and 256Mb SRAM yields are reportedly nearing 90% as well. That's a solid position for a node still a couple of years from mass production, though yield figures this early can still shift.

Microsoft's latest Windows 11 release preview update KB5124010 has received user complaints that the update is causing certain games to crash. Reported by Neowin, multiple user reports claim that Windows 11's latest preview update is causing Battlefield 6, WARDOGS, and some other games with anti-cheat support to crash.

Neowin pointed to several Reddit posts and Steam posts showing users complaining about Battlefield 6, WARDOGS, and EAC games crashing. Some users report just Battlefield 6 crashing on their PCs; others report WARDOGS crashing on their PCs, and some others also reported Battlefield 2042 and Fallout New Vegas crashing with the update.

The workaround is to completely uninstall KB5124010, which reportedly helped several gamers fix their game-crashing issues. There's still no full confirmation that anti-cheat issues are causing these games to crash, but it appears all of the games that are proving problematic with the Windows update do have some form of anti-cheat, whether that be Easy Anti-Cheat or another anti-cheat system.

Meta is introducing generative AI tools that let users quickly and easily create, share, and play customized 2D and 3D games.

Meta has introduced new disruptive technology that could have long-reaching effects on the entertainment industry. The company has revealed specifics on its new Horizon Create and Studio tech, a suite of software tools that use generative AI to instantly create playable games. The interactive slices can then be shared on Facebook and Instagram.

"Horizon Create and Horizon Studio put all your workflows in one place. No exporting, no importing, no switching apps, no separate pipelines. It's a place where you can play what others have built and start creating in the moment,"said Horizon VP Saxs Persson.

NVIDIA's new and impressive DLSS 5 3D-Guided Neural Rendering is now available in a single title, NBA 2K27, and unofficially in every PC game thanks to modders. As discussed in our deep dive into DLSS 5, beyond a hefty FPS cost, enabling the technology also pushes GPUs to their power limit. And on high-end cards like the GeForce RTX 5090, a sustained 100% power draw at 575W with spikes for gaming is a genuine cause for concern after multiple ongoing reports of overheating and cables and connectors melting that date back to the GeForce RTX 40 Series.

Korean outlet QuasarZone has decided to test this side of DLSS 5 on Founders Edition models of the GeForce RTX 5080 and GeForce RTX 5090. The outlet tested it by playing a modded Cyberpunk 2077 with DLSS 5 on both GPUs. For the GeForce RTX 5080 Founders Edition, average power draw rose from 298W to 350W, while the GeForce RTX 5090's average power draw rose from 509W to 575W.

This reinforces our analysis from testing the official DLSS 5 release in NBA 2K27, but with a thermal camera, QuasarZone found that with DLSS 5 on the GeForce RTX 5090, the hottest temperatures don't come from the GPU or memory, but from the 16-pin connector. Capturing temperatures on both sides of the connector, the outlet reaches a maximum of 91.7 degrees Celsius, up from 80.9 degrees with DLSS 5 turned off.

Poorly optimized PC games are not uncommon, and they're a real concern when they lead to a sub-optimal gaming experience that leaves performance on the table or outright blocks certain rigs and hardware from achieving playable performance. Poor optimization can also cause stuttering, frame-pacing issues, and sudden frame-rate dips and spikes, even on the most high-end rigs running cards like the GeForce RTX 5080 or RTX 5090.

As Respawn First spotted, NVIDIA has filed a new patent that uses AI to analyze GPU performance and identify the root cause of issues. What makes it stand out is that it follows a standard "LLM-based chat interface" that connects directly to GPU performance tools, letting users interact in plain language.

For a game developer, it could ask a general question about frame-time issues in a particular scene, and the AI tool could then create a custom script to run code and extract detailed hardware and diagnostic information to help find the root cause. It's a general-purpose solution that would apply to all GPU-related workloads, not just PC gaming, and looks more like a tool than something that would automatically try to fix the issue.

The new Razer Kiyo V2 Pro is a "professional 4K webcam" for gamers, streamers, and creators, with its standout feature being the ability to capture and stream 4K video at 60 FPS. It joins the company's existing Razer Kiyo lineup as the flagship pro-level offering, priced at $299.99 USD, on par with the impressive Elgato Facecam 4K, which also offers 4K60 capture.

The Razer Kiyo V2 Pro is powered by the Sony STARVIS 2 sensor. This back-illuminated image sensor captures more detail in dimly lit or low-light environments with advanced noise reduction and "One-Click Image Enhancement." This pairs with AI-powered auto-framing, pan, tilt, and zoom controls that can track movement and keep you in the frame during calls, streams, and recording sessions.

Razer also notes that users have access to professional webcam settings on the Razer Kiyo V2 Pro, including customizable ISO, shutter speed, exposure, gain, Ultra-High Dynamic Range (UHDR), and more to create a DSLR-like experience. These features are available in the Camo Studio app, with each Razer Kiyo V2 Pro shipping with a complimentary Camo Pro subscription for users to unlock these advanced controls.

Two prominent developers are using an unusual mix of technologies to hit a 60 FPS performance target in their Nintendo Switch 2 ports. Basically, the teams are combining NVIDIA's custom version of DLSS Super Resolution to hit 30 FPS, and then AMD's FSR 3.1 Frame Generation to run their games in an interpolated 60 FPS mode. The two games in question are Stellar Blade from Shift Up and Dragon's Dogma 2 from Capcom.

In Stellar Blade and Dragon's Dogma 2, Shift Up and Capcom both offer 30 FPS and 60 FPS modes. Digital Foundry discussed this in the latest Q+A episode of its DF Direct podcast, noting that the Nintendo Switch 2's Stellar Blade demo features this 60 FPS mode that blends DLSS with FSR Frame Generation, and the results are mixed at best.

They note that, naturally, the combination doesn't deliver an experience that feels like playing the game at 60 FPS, and it introduces issues with particles and animations rendered at 30 FPS that are then put through Frame Generation. Also, because the game is still technically rendered at 30 FPS, the controls and input latency still feel like you're playing at 30 FPS, and performance stutters and issues are more noticeable with Frame Generation than without.

Microsoft introduced the Copilot+ PC branding back in 2024 alongside the arrival of the first Windows on Arm devices powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon processors. The branding refers to hardware that meets a minimum AI performance threshold to run local Copilot+ AI tools.

At the time, Microsoft touted its flagship tool, Recall, as a game-changer for Windows users. However, because Recall reportedly took screenshots of your PC environment with little regard for privacy and minimal security for AI-powered historical search, it drew its fair share of criticism. One could argue that the Recall feature, delayed and then quietly released months later, harmed the Copilot+ PC brand before it had a chance to take off.

Cut to 2026, and a new report at Windows Central highlights that Microsoft's Surface PC for 2026 has ditched the Copilot+ PC branding. Speaking with a Microsoft Surface executive at this year's Snapdragon Summit, where the latest Qualcomm-powered Surface PCs were shown, they said that even though these new devices "meet all the requirements of our previous bar for what Copilot+ devices are," "these are not called Copilot+ PCs."

Xbox has stepped in to clarify that it's actually quite happy about GTA 6's pre-orders on Xbox Series consoles, which may be healthily aligned with Microsoft's overall share of the console market.

A recent report from The Verge's Tom Warren, who has been quite accurate about Xbox's behind-the-scenes plans with past reports, mentioned that GTA 6 pre-orders were heavily skewed towards PS and that this was ringing alarm bells about the console ecosystem. Xbox CSO Matt Ball has responded, clarifying that Xbox is actually quite elated about GTA 6's pre-order performance on Xbox.

"We are very happy with GTA VI pre-orders. The title is breaking records for XBOX, we expect even more records will be broken throughout the fall, and our internal analysis shows our share of pre-orders to be matching our share of the console market,"Ball said on Twitter.

A fork of the KytyPS5 emulator called KytyPlus has rendered the Silent Hill 2 Remake boot screen on an integrated GPU, specifically an AMD Radeon 840M paired with a Ryzen AI 5 340 and around 15GB of shared RAM.

The game reached its content warning screen at around 4 FPS, held there for several minutes without crashing or producing visible corruption, and then the session was ended manually. No gameplay was tested. Audio and controller input were not evaluated.

This is a boot screen, not a playability claim, and the developer's own GitHub documentation frames it as experimental accordingly. FSR 1.0 support is present in KytyPlus, but the internal resolution reduction isn't connected yet, so that is another piece still being wired up.

After taking heavy flak for reintroducing global age verification to Discord, the team behind the popular communication platform is listening to community feedback and is adopting a new age verification system that users don't have to touch. According to a blog post by Discord, the app now has an automated age estimation model that reportedly has a 90% success rate of guessing what your age is.

Discord's new age estimation model does this by checking how long a Discord user's account has existed, what types of servers a user has joined, what games they play, activity levels, and more, while not looking at messages or calls to preserve the user's privacy. The model Discord is using specifically is the XGBoost architecture, a tree-based ensemble method that learns from previous mistakes. Discord claims that the signals its verification model uses deliver accuracy on par with biometrics. Additionally, Discord has also implemented more ways for manual age verification, including methods that don't require an ID or a selfie, when the estimation model does get someone's age wrong.

Discord claims this model is part of its plan to get ahead of future policies that might force Discord to implement identification systems that are less focused on privacy. The Discord team initially revealed its plan to reintroduce age verification a few weeks ago, codenamed 'Tiny Bronco,' where it also laid out plans to introduce teen restrictions, including no access to adult-only servers/channels, blurring sensitive media, including in DMs, a speaking ban in stage channels, and requiring message requests for teenagers.

The mobile gaming community has long relied on unofficial tools to run PC games on Android phones, making it a gamble where some titles perform great while others refuse to launch. That struggle may be nearing an end, according to new details shared in a hands-on preview video from Chinese tech channel Geekerwan on Qualcomm's newly announced Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 chip.

According to Geekerwan, a Qualcomm contact told the channel the company has shifted its focus to PC game emulation and is developing its own official GPU drivers to support it. So far, Android users translating Windows games to Qualcomm-powered phones have mostly relied on Turnip, a community-built driver project for Adreno GPUs that's produced strong results without any official backing from Qualcomm.

Geekerwan also claimed that Qualcomm is examining bringing DirectX 12 support more directly to Android. As part of the demonstration, the channel says it ran Cyberpunk 2077 and Black Myth: Wukong through DirectX 12 translation on a Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 reference device, with both titles reportedly running. No frame-rate or performance figures were declared for either test. Qualcomm's Windows-based Snapdragon PC platforms already support DirectX 12 natively, but this would be a new attempt to bring that support to Android.

Intel is apparently not done with Raptor Lake yet. More than three years after the 13th Gen family launched, two new embedded processors have surfaced in distributor listings: the Core i7-13799HRE and Core i5-13599HRE, spotted by @momomo_us on Mouser.

So far, the confirmed specifications are minimal. The Core i7-13799HRE carries 24MB of cache and a 5.0GHz maximum clock. The Core i5-13599HRE has 18MB of cache and reaches 4.8GHz. Both are listed as FC-BGA16F tray processors, meaning they are soldered directly onto dedicated motherboards rather than installed in a user-accessible socket. Intel has not published core count, base frequencies, power figures, or graphics configuration, and neither chip appears in ARK, Intel's public specifications database.

The existing Core i7-13800HRE, launched in Q1 2023, also carries 24MB of cache and a 5.0GHz boost clock, with 14 cores, 20 threads, and a 45W base power. The Core i5-13600HRE matches the new i5's 18MB cache and 4.8GHz ceiling, with 12 cores and 16 threads at the same 45W base. Without full spec sheets, it cannot be confirmed whether the new models are straightforward rebadges or carry any internal changes, but the surface-level match is about as close as it gets.

Intel's Nova Lake platform is still a few months from launch, but its socket is already showing up for sale online. A Foxconn-branded LGA1954 component has appeared on AliExpress, spotted by @momomo_us, listed at around $16.55 under the description "LGA1954 CPU Socket Holder with Tin Balls."

Before anyone gets too excited, this is not a retail socket assembly. The part in question is a solder-ready component, the socket base itself without any locking or retention mechanism, designed to be soldered directly onto a motherboard PCB during assembly or used as a repair part. It is far more relevant to motherboard manufacturers and repair technicians than to anyone building a PC. Still, the appearance of these components in the supply chain confirms that Intel's partners are moving toward production readiness for LGA1954 boards.

Intel's LGA1954 socket will debut with Nova Lake-S desktop processors, replacing the current LGA1851 platform used by Arrow Lake. The accompanying 900-series chipset lineup includes Z990 and Z970 for enthusiasts and overclockers, B960 for the mainstream, and Q970 and W980 for business and workstation deployments.

Sony may be quietly reconsidering how firm its stance on ending physical PlayStation discs really is. According to leaker Tom of Moore's Law Is Dead, speaking on the Broken Silicon podcast, Sony recently sent developers what he describes as one of the largest surveys the company has ever distributed, and hidden inside it was a question hinting at whether studios see "an issue with how we sell games physically."

Tom argues the survey's existence and unusual scale suggest Sony may be checking whether enough resistance exists to justify some form of walk-back, even if only to some extent. He also hypothesised that the company could be weighing a "mea culpa" if developer feedback comes back strongly enough. However, he was careful to frame that as his own guess rather than anything official.

Marvel's Wolverine makes the theory even more interesting. The game reportedly moved around 1.9 million copies in its first three days, with roughly 23% of its $130 million launch revenue generated directly from disc sales. That's a significant chunk of revenue for a format Sony is already dead set on retiring, and it's not just limited to the company's latest exclusive. Data shows six of seven major first-party Sony titles sold between 32% and 47% of copies through physical retail.

Current GPU prices have pushed gamers to a point where they will pay just about anything cheaper than the highest listing. If you have been following our coverage, NVIDIA's flagship RTX 5090 has become something close to an unimaginable purchase for most people, with prices on secondary markets soaring past $10,000.

Against that backdrop, $4,299 starts to look almost reasonable, and apparently many shoppers agreed. During Walmart's GeForce Week promotion, MSI's GeForce RTX 5090 32GB Gaming Trio OC appeared on the retailer's site at $4,299.99, offering a rare chance to buy NVIDIA's flagship GPU from a major storefront rather than a third-party marketplace seller with an even steeper markup. The listing has since gone out of stock.

That $4,299 price puts the card $2,300.99 above NVIDIA's reference price, a premium of approximately 115%. And it was not just a handful of shoppers willing to pay it either. Walmart's page showed the card sitting in 10,000 carts before stock ran out. However, with RTX 5090 prices skyrocketing, Walmart's price was genuinely one of the better deals available.

Lisuan Tech's LX 7G100, one of China's latest attempts to develop a competitive gaming GPU, has now undergone broader real-world testing. PC Games Hardware tested the card across a 14-game 1080p rasterization suite, where it delivered roughly one-third the performance of NVIDIA's RTX 5060 despite offering theoretical compute throughput comparable to the RTX 5060 Ti.

The LX 7G100 is rated at 24.6 TFLOPS of theoretical FP32 throughput, along with 12GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus and 432GB/s of bandwidth.

In PCGH's 14-game 1080p rasterization index, the LX 7G100 finished 23% ahead of the GeForce GTX 1060 6GB. However, the RTX 2060 was 55% faster, while the Radeon RX 6600 held an advantage of around 80%. In the same test suite, the 7G100 delivered just 34% of the RTX 5060's performance.

Rockstar today revealed a $400 collector's edition-style merch box for GTA 6 that comes with some...interesting items including a replica coke spoon and a razorblade, but no actual copy of the game.

GTA 6's new unofficial collector's edition is up for pre-order now, and the $400 price tag positions it as a high-end and limited premium product. The merch box is called The Goodtime State Vice City Collection and comes with a ton of real-world goodies that are inspired by GTA 6's in-universe TV show, Macca the Gator.

Buyers will get their very own replica coke spoon--technically referred to as a swizzle stick--razorblade, and mirror combo, alongside wearable merch like sunglasses, a trucker hat, and a fanny pack. There's even a double-sided post with a map of Leonida on the back, so this might be Rockstar's way of continuing its tradition of releasing physical maps with every GTA disc release (unfortunately, GTA 6 will be the first game that ships disc-less).

Qualcomm has renewed its global patent license agreement with Apple, with the new deal taking effect April 1, 2027, right after the current agreement runs out.

The company confirmed the renewal in a brief announcement, without disclosing financial terms or how long the new agreement will run. "We are pleased to extend the Apple license agreement," said John Han, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Qualcomm Technology Licensing.

This licensing relationship goes back to 2019, when Apple and Qualcomm settled years of patent litigation and signed a six-year deal with a two-year extension option. Apple exercised that option in 2024, pushing the agreement's end date to March 2027. It looks like this new renewal simply picks up where that one leaves off.