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This new AI-upscaled texture pack for Resident Evil 7 is 24GB

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Jun 26, 2022 9:13 PM CDT

Resident Evil 7 is loved by many, but now there's a new 4K texture pack that improves 1497 textures in the game, upscaling them to 4K using the magic of AI, of course.

This new AI-upscaled texture pack for Resident Evil 7 is 24GB

Modder Ashok explains: "This mod retextures 1,497 vanilla 1K and 2K textures with AI upscaled 4K textures. Vanilla 4K textures are untouched. Wood, metal, and stone textures were AI upscaled and select paintings were replaced with high resolution imagery. Textures with very fine detail i.e. cloth, photographs, text, etc. remain untouched to prevent the game from having a "muddy" look. Some of these upscaled textures may look nearly identical to the originals with only subtle differences, but wood in particular should look much nicer up close. Highly recommended for VR".

"I have included a FULL and LITE version of the mod. The FULL version upscales most 1K & 2K textures to 4K. The LITE version upscales only 1K textures to 4K. This still gives a noticeable upgrade to the vanilla textures and may perform better for systems with limited VRAM. Supports both the Non-Ray Tracing and Ray Tracing releases of Resident Evil 7".

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AMD: NVIDIA is pushing next-gen GPU power usage 'higher than we will'

Anthony Garreffa | Graphics Cards | Jun 26, 2022 8:44 PM CDT

AMD isn't too far away now from launching its next-gen RDNA 3-based Radeon RX 7000 series GPUs, and now we're hearing about higher power consumption on the RDNA 3 chips... because NVIDIA is using more power.

AMD: NVIDIA is pushing next-gen GPU power usage 'higher than we will'

The news is coming from Tom's Hardware, which spoke with AMD Senior VP Sam Naffziger, who was one of the minds behind AMD's revolutionary chiplet architecture. AMD has recently said that it would have a 50% projected performance-per-watt uplift with its new RDNA 3 GPUs over RDNA 2, but now those numbers are getting clearer.

Naffziger said that since NVIDIA is cranking up the power consumption on its next-gen Ada Lovelace-powered GeForce RTX 40 series GPUs, that it would be boosting the power consumption on its RDNA 3-based Radeon RX 7000 series GPUs.

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Continue reading: AMD: NVIDIA is pushing next-gen GPU power usage 'higher than we will' (full post)

AMD pushes FSR 2.0 out to Xbox developers, PS5 devs are in the dark

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Jun 26, 2022 7:54 PM CDT

AMD only yesterday posted the official source code to FidelityFX Super Resolution 2.0 (FSR 2.0) which means it'll spread out far and wide to game developers across the world.

AMD pushes FSR 2.0 out to Xbox developers, PS5 devs are in the dark

But in further news, FSR 2.0 is available now for Xbox developers, with the official GPUOpen Twitter account tweeting: "We are very excited to provide FidelityFX Super Resolution 2 to Xbox developers! FSR 2 can be found in the most recent. FSR 2 can be found in the most recent GDKX samples - building cross-platform for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and Windows Desktop. Many thanks to Microsoft for this continued collaboration".

We don't know if Sony has FSR 2.0 coming to PlayStation 5 development kits, but with FSR 2.0 being open source, it doesn't stop game developers from adding FSR 2.0 support on the PS5. Sony should clarify whether this will happen, considering how closely they worked with AMD on the semi-custom APU inside of the PlayStation 5. Come on, Sony.

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Continue reading: AMD pushes FSR 2.0 out to Xbox developers, PS5 devs are in the dark (full post)

Bernie Stolar, who helped launch PlayStation and Dreamcast, has passed

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jun 26, 2022 4:36 PM CDT

Bernie Stolar, who helped shape the modern console gaming world, has passed away at 75 years of age.

Bernie Stolar, who helped launch PlayStation and Dreamcast, has passed

Bernie Stolar was a games business legend. He helped create Sony Computer Entertainment of America, then jumped over to SEGA following a massive departmental shake-up at Sony's games division. As president of SEGA of America, Stolar did the same thing, cleaning up shop and eliminating 300 jobs to streamline the ailing overseas branch. According to Polygon, Stolar got his start as a coin-op arcade operator, then joined PlayStation to lead the third-party division, and then moved on to SEGA where he built the Dreamcast brand.

"I had a friend once tell me 'go big or go home.' I'm here to tell you that SEGA is going big. With Dreamcast we're aiming high, and I'm here to challenge you to dream big and tell you that everything you know about video gaming is about to change thanks to Dreamcast," Stolar said in a 1999 GDC keynote speech.

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Continue reading: Bernie Stolar, who helped launch PlayStation and Dreamcast, has passed (full post)

July's PlayStation Plus freebies leaked, and they're pretty good

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jun 26, 2022 3:41 PM CDT

Sony's PlayStation Plus games for July 2022 have leaked out, including some pretty decent titles for PS4 and PS5.

July's PlayStation Plus freebies leaked, and they're pretty good

Dealabs' billibil-kun has leaked out the new PlayStation Plus games for July 2022 that will be coming to the PlayStation Plus Essentials tier. There are three titles coming, and all of them are available on PS4.

Next months' headliner is Crash Bandicoot It's About Time on both PS4 and PS5, as well as third-person multiplayer shooterArcadegeddon on both platforms.

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Continue reading: July's PlayStation Plus freebies leaked, and they're pretty good (full post)

Valve designer warns Steam Deck owners not to add new 2242 M.2 SSDs

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jun 26, 2022 3:03 PM CDT

Valve designer Lawrence Yang has some advice for Steam Deck owners wanting to swap in 2242 M.2 drives: "Please don't do this."

Valve designer warns Steam Deck owners not to add new 2242 M.2 SSDs

Valve's Steam Deck is technically a PC, and can be taken apart and modded...to a degree. Some mods are dangerous, though, and can significantly shorten the lifespan of the system. Valve has designed the handheld-console PC hybrid in such a way where everything fits perfectly (or as perfectly as can be), with placement affecting overall heat dissipation and component health.

A recent mod showed Steam Deck owners how to use a bracket to swap out the system's built-in M.2 2230 SSDs to a larger 2242 form factor. According to the modder, the "heat spreader bowed a tiny bit," but the system appeared to work fine. Valve's Lawrence Yang chimed in and warned users not go do this because internal component thermals could change as a result of the mods.

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Continue reading: Valve designer warns Steam Deck owners not to add new 2242 M.2 SSDs (full post)

Fall Guys players nearly double after going free-to-play

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jun 26, 2022 2:20 PM CDT

Fall Guys has amassed even more popularity after going free-to-play on all platforms.

Fall Guys players nearly double after going free-to-play

Mediatonic recently confirmed that Fall Guys now has 20 million active players on consoles and PC, which is a meteoric jump from its previous figures. Back in December, Mediatonic confirmed its battle royale party game Fall Guys had sold about 11 million copies. The jump from 11 million to 20 million is a 81% rise in players, which corresponds with the game's new free-99 price tag.

Extras like full cross-play and cross-progression on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch, and PC makes Fall Guys an even more attractive proposition. Billion-dollar titan Epic Games is responsible for making Fall Guys a F2P sensation, which follows in the footsteps of Fortnite, one of the most popular games of all time, as well as sports racer Rocket League. It also significantly helps the game is available across practically every gaming system besides mobiles (which is probably happening at some point).

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Continue reading: Fall Guys players nearly double after going free-to-play (full post)

SEGA is going all out with its new Mega Drive Mini 2 microconsole

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jun 26, 2022 1:42 PM CDT

SEGA is supporting its new Mega Drive Mini 2 micro-console with a ton of nifty nostalgic additions...including a pretty beefy flight stick.

SEGA is going all out with its new Mega Drive Mini 2 microconsole

SEGA's new Mega Drive Mini 2 console is one of the coolest things the company has ever done. We haven't seen a new SEGA console since the Dreamcast from the 90s, but that hasn't stopped them from bringing back classic hardware using emulators and cheaper micro-console hardware.

First there was the SEGA Genesis Mini, and now the Mega Drive Mini 2 is coming this October in Japan (no word on a Western release, but it's not likely given chip shortages). This new system, which can be imported from Japan via Amazon, features a ton of awesome add-ons. It has 50 built-in games, and can be attached to replicas of the SEGA CD, 32X, and Mega Drive CD-ROM, complete with little mock discs and cartridges (add-ons sold separately).

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Continue reading: SEGA is going all out with its new Mega Drive Mini 2 microconsole (full post)

Elon Musk says his Tesla factories are 'losing insane money'

Adam Hunt | Business, Financial & Legal | Jun 25, 2022 11:30 AM CDT

The Tesla Owners of Silicon Valley club has released the third installment of its interview with Elon Musk.

Elon Musk says his Tesla factories are 'losing insane money'

Recorded on May 30th, Musk, the CEO of Tesla, sat down with the heads of the club and others, talking about Gigafactories, the development of Full Self-Driving (FSD), and more over four hours of recording. Describing the Gigafactory located in Austin, Texas, Musk remarked it the "factory is losing insane money right now, we should be outputting a lot more cars from this factory versus a puny amount of cars."

Musk cited a few issues for the subpar production numbers, such as lacking the specific tooling necessary to create the 2170 battery cells used in Tesla's vehicles. Supply chain issues meant the tools were stuck in China, creating a bottleneck in production which has compounded with other factors to put the Gigafactory in a situation where reaching the desired production levels will take more effort than building the factory initially.

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Continue reading: Elon Musk says his Tesla factories are 'losing insane money' (full post)

Chickens are being fed marijuana by scientists, instead of antibiotics

Adam Hunt | Science, Space, & Robotics | Jun 25, 2022 10:48 AM CDT

A farm in Lampang, Thailand, is experimenting with feeding its free-range chickens cannabis as an alternative to antibiotics.

Chickens are being fed marijuana by scientists, instead of antibiotics

Researchers from the Department of Animal and Aquatic Sciences at Chiang Mai University have been studying the experiment's results, which has been running since January 2021. Less than ten percent of the 1,000 chickens on the farm have died since the dietary change, matching the mortality rate of prior seasons where no severe outbreaks of disease threatened the flock.

Crushed cannabis is added to the chickens' feed and water while medicines and antibiotics have been taken out of their diet, allowing the farm to sell their meat as organic poultry for higher prices. Consumers looking for chickens that weren't fed antibiotics are paying about $1.50 per pound for the organic alternative, about double the usual cost. The product has been called "GanjaChicken," and is allegedly more tender and better tasting.

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Continue reading: Chickens are being fed marijuana by scientists, instead of antibiotics (full post)

New NASA video tracks the 'atmospheric fingerprint' of COVID-19

Adam Hunt | Science, Space, & Robotics | Jun 25, 2022 10:27 AM CDT

Worldwide lockdowns due to the Covid-19 pandemic provided NASA and other institutions new insight into how everyday human activity impacts the atmosphere.

New NASA video tracks the 'atmospheric fingerprint' of COVID-19

One study led by researchers from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) tracked drops in nitrogen oxide emissions during global lockdowns. Nitrogen oxide is commonly produced in car exhaust and from power plants, where it goes on to react in the air to produce ozone. They found about a 2% drop globally in ozone concentrations in the lower atmosphere, a decrease that would be otherwise achievable in about 15 years with even highly aggressive emission restrictions.

A second study focused on carbon dioxide emissions, where they were able to identify local drops and upticks in carbon dioxide emissions, tied with lockdowns and some easing of restrictions months later, respectively. They could also separate local, human-related emissions from those originating from natural sources, such as the 2019-2020 Australian bushfires.

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Continue reading: New NASA video tracks the 'atmospheric fingerprint' of COVID-19 (full post)

Site where rocket crash landed on the Moon spotted by NASA satellite

Adam Hunt | Science, Space, & Robotics | Jun 25, 2022 5:38 AM CDT

An object, designated WE0913A, crashed into the Moon's surface on March 4th, 2022, after much debate over its origin.

Site where rocket crash landed on the Moon spotted by NASA satellite

The object is a rocket body and was identified to be on a collision course with the Moon in late 2021. Following the crash, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has spotted the collision site. Rather than one isolated impact crater, the rocket body created a double crater near the Hertzsprung crater, creating an eastern 18-meter (~19.5 yards) diameter crater overlapping a western crater with a 16-meter diameter (~17.5 yards).

The double crater suggests that the rocket body had large masses concentrated at either end. A typical spent rocket with most of its mass concentrated at the motor end and an empty fuel tank comprises most of the remaining rocket body. However, the identity of the rocket is still unknown, so the double crater may help narrow down its origin. No other rocket body that has impacted the Moon has created a double crater.

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Continue reading: Site where rocket crash landed on the Moon spotted by NASA satellite (full post)

SpaceX uses its giant robotic 'chopsticks' to lift a rocket booster

Adam Hunt | Science, Space, & Robotics | Jun 25, 2022 5:17 AM CDT

The Mechazilla tower at SpaceX's Starbase facility in Texas has finally been used for its intended purpose.

SpaceX uses its giant robotic 'chopsticks' to lift a rocket booster

SpaceX's Super Heavy Booster 7, equipped with 33 Raptor engines, was transported across Starbase to the orbital launch pad where the 440-foot (134 meters) tall Mechazilla launch tower is located. This clip from NASASpaceFlight shows the moment when Mechazilla's two large robotic arms, dubbed" Chopsticks," were used to grab and lift SpaceX's Booster 7. The tower then rotated the booster around slowly, before placing it onto the launch pad.

Elon Musk has said that SpaceX's Starship will be ready to fly in July, now that Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) assessment of Starbase and Starship is complete. With Booster 7 in place, a full Starship stack assembly by placing the Starship spacecraft atop the booster won't be far off, creating an almost 400-foot (121.9 meters) tall stack, bringing SpaceX one step closer to its first and long-awaited orbital flight test.

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Continue reading: SpaceX uses its giant robotic 'chopsticks' to lift a rocket booster (full post)

No Man's Sky players have spent half a billion hours in the game

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jun 24, 2022 5:04 PM CDT

Hello Games has teamed up with Bandai Namco to distribute and publish No Man's Sky on Nintendo Switch, and also confirmed some surprising metrics for the space sim.

No Man's Sky players have spent half a billion hours in the game

No Man's Sky is one of the biggest comeback stories in all of gaming. Since 2016, gamers have spent over half a billion hours in Hello Games' constantly-evolving sci-fi exploration indie. This includes all platforms and updates from release to present--all 25 free expansions, tweaks, and content drops that have significantly evolved and changed the game over time.

"The No Man's Sky community is one of the largest and most welcoming in all of gaming. For many it is their 'forever game', with over half a billion hours played, across millions of players,"reads a press release from Bandai Namco.

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Continue reading: No Man's Sky players have spent half a billion hours in the game (full post)

$5 games you NEED to buy on the Steam Summer Sale

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jun 24, 2022 3:06 PM CDT

Steam's Summer Sale is here to bulk up your backlog.

$5 games you NEED to buy on the Steam Summer Sale

If you're gaming on a budget, you can get some serious deals on Steam's annual summer sale event. The sales are legendary for their massive savings, and you can make out like a bandit on some amazing yesteryear classics. Sure there's a bunch of newer AAA games on sale, but the real savings are in the $5 or less bargain bin.

Make no mistake, though. There's some real bangers in the clearance aisle, especially if you have yet to play older games. You can grab just a handful of titles and be set for a month or two--especially if you get Castlevania Collection, Grim Dawn, or even the mega-moddable Fallout New Vegas. All of Valve's PC games are also $1.99 a piece. Below we've collected a list of noteworthy favorites that you should pick up in the $5 section.

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Continue reading: $5 games you NEED to buy on the Steam Summer Sale (full post)

Bungie directly responds to Roe v Wade overturning with employee aid

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jun 24, 2022 2:15 PM CDT

Today Bungie lamented the United States' Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v Wade and promises to assist employees who are seeking healthcare options that are not available in their states.

Bungie directly responds to Roe v Wade overturning with employee aid

Today the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade, a landmark case that made abortion a constitutional right in the United States. Now states have individual discretion on whether or not to ban or allow abortions. Missouri was the first state to ban abortions, and many others are expected to follow. Bungie, among other game developers, are speaking out against this decision and plan to support their employees.

Bungie has announced a new healthcare benefit that will reimburse employees (and/or their dependents) for any interstate travel costs associated with healthcare. If an employee lives in a state where abortion or gender reconstruction surgery is not allowed, Bungie will pay for all travel costs for trips to states where these procedures are offered.

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Continue reading: Bungie directly responds to Roe v Wade overturning with employee aid (full post)

FromSoftware's next game is almost finished, it's likely Armored Core

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jun 24, 2022 11:28 AM CDT

FromSoftware's next game is almost complete, and it's likely to be the new Armored Core game that was teased in 2016.

FromSoftware's next game is almost finished, it's likely Armored Core

In a recent interview with 4Gamer, Hidetaka Miyazaki talks about the future of FromSoftware. The studio is currently laying finishing touches on its next game; Miyazaki says "development is in the final stages," but offers no exact clarity on what's next.

Back in 2016, Miyzaki said that FromSoftware was working on 3 new projects. One of them is Elden Ring, another is an Armored Core game, and the third is a mysterious "weird" game that, well, could be anything. Miyazaki also tells 4Gamer that he won't be directing all games, hinting that he might not have led the new Armored Core's development.

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Continue reading: FromSoftware's next game is almost finished, it's likely Armored Core (full post)

Putin vows to deploy Satan II nuclear missiles, ready by year's end

Adam Hunt | Business, Financial & Legal | Jun 24, 2022 7:12 AM CDT

Russia test launched its RS-28 Sarmat missile, known as the Satan II, in late April 2022.

Putin vows to deploy Satan II nuclear missiles, ready by year's end

The Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) was designed to replace the nation's Voyevoda ICBMs, known by NATO as the SS-18 Satan. The Satan II can carry up to 15 MIRV (Multiple Independently-targetable Reentry Vehicles) nuclear warheads while traveling at hypersonic speeds exceeding five times the speed of sound. At Mach 5, a roughly 7,800 mile (12553 kilometers) flight from Moscow to the White House in the United States would take about two hours.

Aleksy Zhuravlyov, the deputy chairman of Russia's defense committee, claimed that the Sarmat could strike the United Kingdom in only 200 seconds if launched from Kaliningrad and noted they could strike Finland from Siberia. He also claimed that "there is no existing air defence for the Sarmat missile systems, and it will probably not exist in the coming decades."

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Continue reading: Putin vows to deploy Satan II nuclear missiles, ready by year's end (full post)

International Space Station flies across the moon in stunning photo

Adam Hunt | Science, Space, & Robotics | Jun 24, 2022 6:09 AM CDT

Andrew McCarthy has captured an image of the International Space Station (ISS) as it transits across the Moon.

International Space Station flies across the moon in stunning photo

Using a camera capturing at a rate of 155 frames per second, McCarthy created a video of the space station transiting across the lunar surface, with the Eratosthenes, Copernicus, Kepler, and Aristarchus craters all visible beneath it. The video is slowed down by about 12 times, as the ISS was only in frame for roughly a quarter of a second. McCarthy woke up at 1:30 am to capture the image, with both the Moon and ISS lit by the Sun.

The full-size image showing the majority of the Moon with the ISS transiting between the camera and the Moon is a mosaic compiled from smaller images making up the rest of the scene. A secondary camera captured the color data, and the image itself is available for purchase as a print on McCarthy's website.

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Continue reading: International Space Station flies across the moon in stunning photo (full post)

Humans can learn to echolocate like bats in just ten weeks

Adam Hunt | Science, Space, & Robotics | Jun 24, 2022 5:21 AM CDT

A study on the ability titled "Human Echolocators Have Better Localization Off Axis" has been published in the journal Psychological Science.

Humans can learn to echolocate like bats in just ten weeks

A 2021 study by researchers from Durham University showed that humans could learn to navigate using echolocation in only ten weeks. Echolocation is used notably by bats, which create sounds and listen to how the sound waves echo around in the environment and use that information to determine the layout of their immediate surroundings.

Researchers demonstrated echolocating abilities in individuals with their sight intact and sight-challenged individuals, all of whom could navigate through mazes more easily and roughly ascertain an object's size and shape by making clicking noises with their tongues. New research shows that echolocation is most precise when objects are presented at a 45-degree angle to an observer rather than directly in front of them.

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Continue reading: Humans can learn to echolocate like bats in just ten weeks (full post)

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