Latest News - Page 1391

Intel is working on its 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake" CPU family for later this year, ushering in next-gneeration technologies like DDR5 and PCIe 5.0 standards... right at the same time as Microsoft is hyping its next-gen Windows 11 operating system.

In the middle of these is Tom from Moore's Law is Dead, who has tweeted that Microsoft and Intel will be launching their new OS and CPUs "around a spooky time of the year" hinting at Halloween... which is October 31. The two companies are working closely together as they always do, with optimizations for Alder Lake built into the next-gen Windows 11.

Windows 11 will have huge scheduling upgrades, as well as many more tricks under its revised hood, that will be perfect for Intel's new Alder Lake CPUs. Intel's 12th Gen CPUs see the company moving into a new hybrid design, which will have two different architectures on the same package.

Dell has shipped out batches of its new Alienware m15 R5 gaming laptop, which has a fully gimped GeForce RTX 3070 Laptop GPU inside.

Yeah, the gimped gaming laptop was busted by fellow Aussie in Jarrod's Tech, who noticed that as much as 10% of the CUDA cores of the GeForce RTX 3070 Laptop GPU were disabled inside of Dell's new Alienware m15 R5 gaming laptop.

NVIDIA is pretty liberal with the changes you can make to their GPU for a laptop, where companies can tweak the maximum power (TGP) and other features like Dynamic Boost, Optimus, etc -- but disabling CUDA cores? I don't think I've seen that one before.

Microsoft has teased that the next generation of Windows is nearly upon us, where the official Windows Twitter account has said for the world to join them on June 24 at 11AM ET for "what's next" with Windows.

We knew it was coming, as Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella teased the "next generation of Windows" just last week and that the company would be sharing "one of the most significant updates to Windows of the past decade". The last we heard about the next-gen Windows was this time last year, with rumors of big changes to the Windows UI that were coming.

Now we know that is just one part of many changes coming to the next-gen Windows 11, which is codenamed Sun Valley and will have a "sweeping visual rejuvenation of Windows". We should expect influence from Windows 10X, which isn't around anymore -- but the visual feel of Windows 10X will be felt throughout Windows 11, and so much more.

We've heard all about Starfield, Battlefield 2042, Elder Scrolls VI, Halo Infinite--the list of AAA hits goes on and on. But what about the smaller, more innovative and unique indie games? Sometimes those get brushed over. Here are some really interesting indies that I recently discovered.

Indie games are an essential part to the burgeoning video games industry. They're the lighter fare served up in between the massive three-course meals of AAA games, and Nintendo in particular owes quite a lot to indies for the Switch's success. I actually got my start writing about indie games (those old-school Xbox LIVE Indie games from the bygone 2011 era on Xbox 360) so when I see neat indies, I feel compelled to write about them.

This list is rather small. It only includes five games and doesn't highlight all the awesome indies out there--especially those announced in the recent Guerrilla Collective stream. The industry is absolutely filled with talented developers and there's no way I could keep track of everything, so if you're reading this and you've made something, feel free to send me an email.

Respawn is currently hiring for three teams: Star Wars, Apex Legends, and an incubation team for a new project. It's possible this new project is another Star Wars game.

While scouting Respawn Entertainment's careers page I noticed something quite interesting. Two of the job listings for the New Game Incubation Team mention the Star Wars team. Does this mean Respawn is working on two Star Wars games at once--Jedi Fallen Order 2 and some other project?

Both the Development Director and Senior Development Director job listings mention the Star Wars team. Before we get too excited, it's highly likely this is a typographical error. None of the other job listings for the incubation team refer to the Star Wars team.

Rumor has it that Microsoft may add a 23rd studio to its Xbox Game Studios banner with an announcement at E3 2021.

Windows Central's Jez Corden has heard "very good" rumors that Microsoft plans to secure more IP to power its Game Pass ambitions. It's possible a new studio could be included in this franchise buyout, and a new studio acquisition will be announced at E3 2021. Corden was careful to say it won't be a huge AAA purchase like ZeniMax Media, which Microsoft paid $7.5 billion to acquire.

Sometimes the easiest way to acquire an IP is to acquire a studio. Most studios don't want to sell their IPs or franchises unless they're going under, like, say, THQ. Companies like Capcom, SEGA, Square Enix, and Nintendo protect their intellectual properties at all costs and continually mine them with sequels, re-releases/remasters, and spin-offs.

Here's the current E3 2021 schedule including times and showcases from the industry's top publishers.

With multiple events going on at the same time and many publishers doing their own thing, E3 2021 is quite convoluted and confusing. We've attempted to organize the chaos with a handy list of the major events and streams currently known to date.

Note that the information isn't 100% complete as many publishers and developers have yet to lock in official stream times for their shows. We'll update this post if and when new announcements are made.

Ubisoft's new Far Cry 6 takes us to the tropical isle of Yara that's riven by a harsh guerrilla revolution. Here's what you need to know about the new FPS.

Far Cry 6 looks like an absolute blast and Ubisoft is clearly putting strong emphasis on fun gameplay this time around. While the game's themes are quite political and interesting, the mechanics combine smooth gunplay with innovative new enhancement systems to give players all kinds of different playstyle opportunities.

Below we've compiled everything that Ubisoft has announced about Far Cry 6 so far, including the new crazy Supremo backpacks, chaotic vehicles, stealth combat, and wide arsenal of hilarious-yet-effective makeshift weapons.

Anonymous have a warning for SpaceX and Tesla boss Elon Musk, after his wild west tweets about cryptocurrency and especially Bitcoin and Dogecoin. Check it out:

Anonymous isn't happy with the amount of power Musk has amassed over the years, especially with a silver spoon out of his mouth. He has the power to swing cryptocurrency markets by hundreds of billions of dollars at a time, or so it seems from the outside

In the video, Anonymous takes shots at Musk saying "people are beginning to see you as nothing more than another narcissistic rich dude who is desperate for attention. It appears that your quest to save the world is more rooted in a superiority and savior complex than it is in actual concern for humanity".

As the console wars rage on with exceedingly high demand for PS5 and Xbox Series X consoles, Atari is releasing its first new games console in 28 years. The steep-ish $399 price tag may ensure the product stays relatively niche in a market dominated by Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft.

Right from the get go the Atari VCS seemed like an iffy bet. Who is the system for? I asked. Over time Atari has answered this question, and to its credit, the VCS does put robust multimedia functionality back into the gaming console environment.

The Atari VCS, which releases on June 15 for $399, puts more emphasis on versatility than power. The VCS has multiple selling points: reliving old-school retro days where arcade gaming was king, offering exclusive content--like remastered versions of old Atari games, and offering a unique PC-console hybrid. The VCS sets itself apart from other hardware because it can transform into a PC. Gamers can boot it into PC Mode and run Windows or Linux, complete with tons of apps and programs--even Steam.

A bunch of details may have leaked on DICE's new Battlefield game including the name, multiplayer game mechanics, weapon features, and more.

According to new 4Chan leaks, which have been unverified and can't be taken as 100% fact, Battlefield 6 is reportedly called Battlefield 2042 and will have the biggest maps in franchise history. The huge 128-player multiplayer mode that allows 64v64 carnage has been tested and is ready to play, but there won't be cross-gen play between PS4 and Xbox One and PS5/Series X due to hardware power constraints.

The leaks also say an open beta test will come in June, not in July during/around the EA Play Live event. Influencers, content creators, and media will be invited to try Battlefield 2042 multiplayer on June 15.

Take-Two makes a big splash in the sports mobile business with the buyout of Nordeus, the developer behind popular soccer management sim Top Eleven.

Take-Two is on a roll lately. The company just reported record earnings in FY2021, and while FY22 will drop somewhat, it's still the second year with a $3 billion net bookings forecast. The company expects to make record-breaking earnings in FY23 and FY24, and will release a whopping 62 games in the next 3 years.

20 of these new games will be mobile titles, and now Take-Two has made a big strategic acquisition that ticks multiple boxes. The company has bought Nordeus, the dev behind Top Eleven, the world's most popular mobile soccer management sim.

The Medium, the only next-gen Xbox Series X/S exclusive game currently on the market, is coming to the PlayStation 5.

The ESRB has rated Bloober Team's bizarre thriller The Medium for PS5. The developer signed a timed-exclusivity deal with Microsoft and sometime soon the only next-gen Xbox game will be a cross-platform release.

Remember that Microsoft has avoided pushing first-party next-gen exclusives so far in an effort to allow cross-compatibility between generations--a strategy that Sony is now following after it said it "believed in generations." That's a big reason why there aren't many Xbox Series X/S exclusives out in the wild.

European Union lawmakers have asked top technology companies to increase the efforts being made to stop COVID-19 misinformation.

Currently, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, TikTok, and Twitter are all participants in the (non-legally binding) Code of Practice on Disinformation, which is an agreement that compels the tech giants to provide monthly reports in how they are stopping COVID-19 misinformation. The European Commission has said the companies have shown the inability to police "dangerous lies" on their own, and that the quality of the data being given to them is not at satisfactory standards.

Vera Jourova, the EU's VP for values and transparency, said, "We decided to extend this programme, because the amount of dangerous lies continues to flood our information space and because it will inform the creation of the new generation Code against disinformation. We need a robust monitoring programme, and clearer indicators to measure impact of actions taken by platforms. They simply cannot police themselves alone."

NASA has partnered with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and other organizations to track the coming hurricane season.

Currently, NASA astronauts are able to take photos and observe the planet from an altitude of 250 miles. Researchers on the ground then take these images and observations and georeference them, adding to other research, advancing the accuracy of weather prediction.

According to NASA Earth, June 1 is the very start of the Atlantic hurricane season, and a forecast from NOAA along with information from NASA's Earth-orbiting satellites found that the coming hurricane season will have an "above average number of named storms." NASA states on its blog that it's currently developing new technology and missions to generate a deeper understanding of the impact of these storms and their formation.

A new subscription service is coming to Twitter, and reports are indicating that Australia and Canada will be the first countries to get it.

Twitter is releasing a new optional subscription service called "Twitter Blue", which gives users some extra features. Users that choose to enroll in the subscription service will receive "exclusive" features such as folders to organize bookmarks, the option to "undo tweet", customization options for color/themes, and a "reader mode".

At the moment, Twitter Blue features aren't available on desktop and are currently locked to mobile, but I believe Twitter will change this in the future to accommodate Twitter desktop users. Twitter Blue will first roll out to Australia for $4.49/month and Canada and for $3.49/month. Twitter hasn't said when the new service would be rolling out in the US and other countries. But, Twitter has said that this is just the "first iteration" of Twitter Blue, suggesting that there is much more to come with the service, which no doubt includes expanding it to more regions.

A new study has found evidence that suggests Apple's MagSafe wireless technology could be dangerous to some users.

The new study was published in the American Heart Association Journal explored the dangers of magnet wireless charging interacting with someone who has cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIED).

The researchers wrote, "Magnet wireless charging is being utilized increasingly in current-generation smartphones. Apple's MagSafe is a proprietary wireless charging technology with an array of magnets that has the capacity to generate magnet field strength >50 gauss (G). We hypothesize that there is clinically significant magnet interference caused by Apple's MagSafe technology on cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIED)."

NVIDIA has uploaded a new FFA creative map to Fortnite, with a gigantic building-sized GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Founders Edition for you to ogle at in all its ray-traced glory. Check it out:

The company kicked off the 59-second video reminding us that Fortnite with RTX is available now, and then as the camera is pulling back it reveals a skyscraper-sized NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Founders Edition graphics card. It's absolutely mammoth, with NVIDIA welcoming us to "TiTANIUM CITY"... note the lowercase 'i' there.

There's nothing else going on here apart from a gigantic GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Founders Edition graphics card being placed into a FFA creative map made by NVIDIA (with Map Code: 1866-3511-4211) into Fortnite -- there's no giveaway, nothing. Kinda random, with NVIDIA celebrating the launch of the RTX 3080 Ti with this Fortnite FFA creative map.

GIGABYTE unveiled its new AORUS FO48U gaming monitor in April, but now the company has detailed its huge new 48-inch 4K 120Hz OLED gaming monitor.

The new flagship 48-inch OLED gaming monitor will compete against LG's flagship 48-inch 4K 120Hz OLED TV, but the new GIGABYTE offering in the AORUS FO48U is cheaper. We have a 10-bit panel with a native 4K resolution and 98% DCI-P3 color gamut coverage.

We have a super-smooth 120Hz refresh rate and AMD FreeSync Premium support, but GIGABYTE is hush-hush about VESA DisplayHDR certification -- although the official VESA page lists it with DisplayHDR 1000 support meaning it should have a peak brightness of 1000 nits.

NVIDIA's new GeForce Game Ready 466.63 WHQL drivers are here, ready for Hello Games and its new Update 3.5 adding NVIDIA DLSS support into No Man's Sky for huge performance boosts.

The new GeForce Game Ready 466.63 WHQL drivers add support for NVIDIA's recently-released GeForce RTX 3080 Ti graphics card, in case you were able to find one of those on the market. NVIDIA's new drivers also provide improved support for Chivalry 2, Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2, and the new NVIDIA Reflex additions into War Thunder and Escape from Tarkov.

There are also the usual bug fixes and issues fixed, where if you were using a 4K 120Hz monitor it wasn't available in display settings on a GeForce RTX 20 series or GeForce GTX 16/10 series GPU. VR systems, if connected to a 4K TV, would freeze when launching a VR game -- now fixed.