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The quest to get humans on other planets is a slow but fruitful process that deserves celebration when a milestone is reached.

Recently, NASA's Ingenuity helicopter that arrived on Mars with the new Perseverance rover back at the end of February achieved something very special. Ingenuity launched from the Martian surface marking the first powered aircraft flight on another planet and thus marking a massive milestone in the story of human space exploration.

Ingenuity hovered for around 30 seconds, three meters above the Martian surface, before it safely returned back down. While a 30-second flight from a small helicopter may not seem like that big of a deal - it is, and here's why; Ingenuity taking flight in Mars' atmosphere, which is 100 times thinner than Earths, is the equivalent of a normal size helicopter taking flight on Earth to 100,000 feet. Commercial planes fly anywhere between 30,000/40,000 feet, and the highest a helicopter has been flown on Earth is 42,000 feet.

NASA's goal is eventually to have humans on other planets, but one of the main problems is the oxygen supply of those said planets.

Now, NASA has reached a new milestone in the steps to colonize a new planet, and in this instance, this planet is Mars. Back in February, the space agency landed its brand new rover Perseverance on the Red Planet, and now the rover has used one of its instruments to successfully generate oxygen from the carbon dioxide-dominated air.

Perseverance used its Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE) instrument, and according to the associate administrator of NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate, Jim Reuter, "This is a critical first step at converting carbon dioxide to oxygen on Mars. MOXIE has more work to do, but the results from this technology demonstration are full of promise as we move toward our goal of one day seeing humans on Mars."

Activision has taken things to a new level in Call of Duty: Warzone in a limited time named The Destruction of Verdansk Part One.

The limited-time event only lasted a few hours but replaced all other ways to play the battle royale. As you can probably imagine, the popularity of the new event caused the game servers to buckle under pressure, which caused several crashes for players. Players were also unable to "win" the game, as reported by EuroGamer, who survived until the end but was presented with a repeating cut-scene.

In quickfire modes, players would spawn into Verdansk with a Jak-12 shotgun and were given the objective of surviving. If the player died, they would turn into an endlessly respawning zombie to hunt down surviving players. Above is a video of the cut scene that shows the Verdansk being destroyed by a nuke that was deployed. For more information on this story, check out this link here.

Cerebras revealed its next-gen WSE-2 (Wafer Scale Engine) chip last year during the Hot Chips 2020 conference, but the company has now provided more details at the Linley Spring Processor Conference.

We already knew that the next-gen Cerebras WSE-2 packed an insane 850,000 cores ready for AI work, and an even-more-insane 2.6 trillion transistors (yeah that's trillion with a T). Cerebras' new details on the WSE-2 include the fact that it has 40GB of on-chip SRAM, 20 petabytes of memory bandwidth, and 220 petabits of aggregate fabric bandwidth.

The new WSE-2 is the largest chip ever made, packing 2.6 trillion transistors and 850,000 AI-optimized, fully programmable cores. Cerebras crams all of that into a single silicon wafer, all on TSMC's 7nm process. The entire chip is simply gigantic -- and while it's the same 46,225mm2 as its predecessor in the WSE-1, the new WSE-2 packs some gigantic upgrades.

We knew that the ASUS ROG Strix XG43UQ was coming soon, but now we have a proper release window: May 2021.

ASUS is heralding its new ROG Strix XG43UQ as the world's first HDMI 2.1 gaming monitor that hits the market, ready for next-gen AMD Radeon RX 6000 series and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 series GPUs equipped with HDMI 2.1 connectivity. Not only is the new ASUS ROG Strix XG43UQ perfect for high-end PC gamers, but also next-gen PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S console owners.

The new ASUS ROG Strix XG43UQ gaming monitor packs HDMI 2.1 connectivity which drives 4K 120Hz over a single cable, but it will ramp up to 4K 144Hz on the PC through its DisplayPort 1.4 connector and DSC (Display Stream Compression) technology.

AMD has just unleashed its impressive FidelityFX technologies toolkit on Microsoft's next-gen Xbox Series X/S consoles, with FidelityFX now in the hands of game developers through the latest Xbox Series X|S Game Development Kit (GDK).

This means that we'll get AMD FidelityFX technologies inside of the Xbox Series X/S consoles, with technologies like FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution, or FSR is AMD's upcoming NVIDIA DLSS competitor) as well as FidelityFX Denoiser, Variable Shading, and much more.

AMD explains on their official website: "For developers, this means that it will be even easier than before to create cross-platform games with AMD FidelityFX now available in the latest Xbox Series X|S Game Development Kit (GDK), and to start, we are making FidelityFX Contrast Adaptive Sharpening (CAS), Variable Shading, and our ray-traced shadow Denoiser available".

PowerColor's super-enthusiast Radeon RX 6900 XT Liquid Devil Ultimate graphics card has been pushed to its silicon edge by German overclocker Roman "der8auer" Hartung.

The custom PowerColor Radeon RX 6900 XT Liquid Devil Ultimate graphics card and its pre-binned Navi 21 XTXH GPU was pushed all the way through to an insane 3.2GHz GPU clock with the help of LN2 cooling. AMD has an artificial limit of 3GHz on its Radeon RX 6000 series but the newer Navi 21 XTXH versions of the GPU have that limit pushed up to 4GHz.

The pre-installed waterblock was used at first with der8auer hitting 2820MHz on the GPU, with temps at around 86C -- but then the LN2 container was attached and the temps instantly dropped to a super-super-chilly -87C. There were some graphical artifacts at first, but once the tweaking was finished the PowerColor Radeon RX 6900 XT Liquid Devil Ultimate graphics card had its GPU pushed to 3225MHz (3.2GHz).

It was only just a couple of weeks ago that we heard that the new Battlefield would have natural disasters, with the introduction of tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and more.

In some new tweets from Battlefield leaker Tom Henderson, the hype engines for Battlefield continue to get fueled. In a reply to a tweet, Henderson said that dynamic weather is a "big part of the game" and that he thinks the upcoming teaser trailer for Battlefield will show this off in a "spectacular way".

We already knew that destruction in the new Battlefield was being taken to the next level with glimpses of entire unscripted skyscraper destruction quickly turning the hype knobs to 11, with EA CEO Andrew Wilson saying at the time: "The game takes full advantage of the power of next-generation platforms to bring massive immersive battles to life with more players than ever before. Featuring maps with unprecedented scale, the next edition of Battlefield takes all the destruction, player agency, vehicle and weapon combat that the franchise is known for and elevate it to another level".

Eve Spectrum was the first-ever crowd-developed monitor, and if it came out of the oven properly and on time -- it would've been the very first HDMI 2.1 monitor and made history. We're now much closer to that point.

The team has delayed its monitors a few times now, but then the team reached out to me just now with some great updates. A new community update, detailing that the team members in China have been working on getting the Spectrum monitor ready for its hopefully-very-soon launch.

In a community update on its website, Eve Community Manager 'Helios' explained: "While I'm waiting for new prototypes to show up for further testing, the team members in China have already been hands-on to make sure Spectrum does what it is supposed to do. That involves a lot of testing with a lot of different devices, some of which may even lend themselves for some entertainment during down time. Hope you all like another peek behind the scenes!"

With all of the hype surrounding the new Battlefield, the question on most gamers' lips is 'when are we going to see it' and it appears that time is not too far away at all.

Battlefield leaker Tom Henderson tweeted out some talk about the Reddit "leak" of Battlefield, where he was replying to someone who asked if there will be any teasers for the game that will drop before the trailer... or if it was just going to be the trailer out of nowhere. Henderson said "we should get teasers" and that they're "probably a week or two away".

Henderson also talked about which sides you'll be able to play in EA's big new FPS. Henderson tweeted: "For example, if you were on the US team, you could choose a US, Australian, British, French, Japanese, or German soldier" to which Henderson said "this is not correct".

Infinity Ward is developing advanced AI frameworks for its next Call of Duty game, strongly indicating 2022's CoD will have next-gen AI.

Call of Duty 2022 may push the bar for in-game enemy AI and propel the franchise to new immersive heights on next-gen console and PC hardware. Infinity Ward is currently hiring a Senior AI Engineer to help build "best-in-class AI technology" that brings "new AI characters and behaviors to life."

"This is an opportunity to work on cutting edge AI in the world's premiere FPS franchise," the listing reads. "We're looking for someone who comes to the table with new ideas, but has the pragmatism required to ship a video game."

Did you buy Xbox LIVE Gold to play online F2P games like Warzone, Fortnite, and Destiny 2? Microsoft might give you a refund.

As part of today's big announcement that online multiplayer in F2P games no longer require premium Xbox LIVE Gold, Microsoft also confirmed a one-time refund option for gamers who no longer want the service.

To get a credit refund you have to apply here, but there's some stipulations. You have to have bought Xbox LIVE Gold on or before April 21, 2021, and the credit is based on remaining subscription time. The refund will be bigger if you have more time left, and smaller if you have less time left.

Microsoft makes good on its promise and today removed the Xbox LIVE Gold paid subscription requirement for online in free-to-play games.

Today free-to-play games on Xbox consoles are actually free. There's no red tape, no subscription fees attached to play online with friends--just fire up your Xbox, jump into Apex Legends, Destiny 2, Fortnite, or Warzone, and play. No gatekeeping or restrictions.

Read Also: Xbox LIVE name changed to distinguish the premium subscription from online network

A new page for PlayStation Plus Video Pass was accidentally posted on Sony's Polish website (now deleted), confirming the company's next move.

As Microsoft Game Pass continues to add value, Sony is pressured to also bolster its gaming services. Instead of challenging Xbox on its own turf, however, Sony is using something that Microsoft doesn't have: Movies.

Sony plans to add its existing library of Sony Pictures films into PlayStation Plus with its new PlayStation Plus Video Pass. Exact details are unclear, but it appears the Video Pass is another premium layer to PS Plus users. The website notes a one-year trial period for PS Plus Video Pass and warns gamers about renewal charges, hinting it'll be its own separate added subscription to PS Plus.

BioWare's legendary Knights of the Old Republic RPG is getting a remake at Aspyr Media.

According to Bloomberg's Jason Schreier, KOTOR is coming back in a big way. The game is being remade by the port masters at Aspyr Media who have worked on a multitude of re-releases, remasters, and ports of popular video games. Aspyr has been steadily going through the older Star Wars games backlog and has developed remasters of classics like Episode I - Racer, Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy, Jedi Outcast, and Republic Commando for modern platforms.

Apsyr also developed the MacOS, Android and iOS ports of Knights of the Old Republic, and the macOS port of KOTOR II. The team had a hand in other Star Wars games including The Force Unleashed and 2004's Battlefront.

Microsoft's new DirectStorage tech will unlock maximum SSD I/O throughput for dramatically faster data management, empowering developers to do impressive things.

Today Microsoft revealed more info on its new DirectStorage tech, which is part of its convergent DirectX 12 Ultimate platform. DirectStorage will use its own unique GPU-based compression/decompression algorithm to significantly optimize data pipeline flow, and Microsoft is working closely with chip-makers on this tech. The company is tweaking Windows to make the OS seamlessly optimize the API, too.

DirectStorage's main function is to use GPU power and its higher VRAM memory bandwidth to decompress data at a rate that matches the I/O speeds of an SSD. The idea is to remove CPU-bound constraints and improve data flow by eliminating decompression from the CPU. The result is virtually loading-free video game experiences thanks to a more efficient pipeline of data management and processing.

On April 10, a 12-year-old boy from Colorado sadly passed away after being on life-support for 19 days due to participating in a TikTok challenge.

The 12-year-old boy, Joshua Haileyesus, was found unconscious on March 22 after choking himself for a TikTok challenge called the "Blackout Challenge". Joshua's family created a GoFundMe page to help cover the hospital bills and funeral expenses, and according to the page, "We would like to update everyone that this evening, after fighting the good fight on life support for 19 days, Joshua has gone off to be with the Lord."

TikTok has since commented on the 12-year-olds passing, saying to Associated Press, "At TikTok, we have no higher priority than protecting the safety of our community, and content that promotes or glorifies dangerous behavior is strictly prohibited and promptly removed to prevent it from becoming a trend on our platform." For those that don't know, the "blackout challenge" has been around for some time, but due to the discoverability on TikTok the challenge recently has gained popularity. People are challenged to choke themselves until they pass out.

A new HTC Vive headset has won an award for its innovative design, but the company said it does not have plans to bring it to production.

HTC is gearing up for Vivecon 2021, where it will presumably announce a new VR headset. Rumour has it the product is meant for the enterprise market. If the design of this award-winning headset concept is any indication, we would bet on a consumer-level product from HTC this year.

The IF World Design Guide released its list of 2021 winners, and HTC won the award for best Product Design with a concept VR headset called the Vive Air. The award page describes the Vive Air as a VR headset inspired by the footwear industry. The Vive Air features breathable, quick-drying fabrics that help keep the headset cool and dry while during high-intensity activities such as using fitness apps.

Microsoft just made it easier for developers to get DX12 features and technologies into their games, for gamers to enjoy, much easier than ever before with the introduction of DirectX 12 Agility.

DirectX 12 Agility will allow new DX12 features to skip around Windows Update, and right to gamers -- normally there would be a required Windows Update that PC gamers would need to get new DirectX features. Microsoft points out that Variable Rate Shading (VRS) was a recent feature that couldn't be deployed quickly because of the way updates are pushed to PC gamers through Windows 10.

But now, DirectX 12 updates have been disconnected from Windows Updates with the new DirectX 12 Agility toolkit for developers. Game developers can control which features they use at an SDK level and then push them out to many more PC gamers at once, versus a select few that might have the very latest version of Windows installed -- as that very latest version would be required to use those new DX12 features.

Apple has finally announced its new 2021 iPad Pro which packs a next-gen mini-LED display, 5G connectivity, and up to 2TB of storage.

The new 2021 iPad Pro is available in two sizes with the 11-inch and 12.9-inch while being new 2021 iPad Pro models in the same family, are very different underneath. The 12.9-inch iPad Pro packs the new mini-LED display, while the smaller 11-inch iPad Pro does NOT have a mini-LED display -- that's a very big difference. If you want the best, you'll need the larger 12.9-inch iPad Pro and you'll pay a premium for it.

The 11-inch Liquid Retina display is an LED-backlit display with IPS technology, a native resolution of 2388 x 1668 with 264 PPI. The bigger and meaner 12.9-inch Liquid Retina XDR display is the star of the show here, with a mini-LED-backlit display with a native resolution of 2732 x 2048 with 264 PPI.