Latest News - Page 203

We're getting to the point where advancing graphics in games isn't a meaningful pursuit, or that's a fresh assertion from an ex-PlayStation executive.

Shuhei Yoshida, who was President of Sony Interactive Worldwide Studios (and later Head of PlayStation Indies, before retiring earlier this year), expressed this point of view in an interview with Skill Up on YouTube (see above) as flagged by GamesRadar.

Yoshida observed: "Graphics (have) almost hit the level that even I cannot tell the difference between some of the (graphical capabilities) like ray traced or not ray traced, unless it's side by side, or higher frame rate."

It was last week when reports surfaced about a mysterious object potentially from space colliding with the windscreen of a United Airlines plane while it was traveling over Utah, with theories pointing to space debris possibly from a defunct satellite re-entering Earth's atmosphere, or even birds.

However, it was neither of those theories, and the object that struck the windshield of flight UA1093, which caused enough damage to shatter the windshield and injure one of the pilots in the cockpit, was a weather balloon from the company WindBorne. Speaking to Ars Technica, WindBorne agreed that it was likely one of its balloons after calculating the position of the balloon and cross-referencing it with the flight path of the plane.

The theory of a mysterious space-based object colliding with the 737 MAX aircraft came after one of the pilots described the object that impacted the aircraft as "space debris". Notably, the collision didn't cause any fatalities, only injuries, as images shared to social media show one of the pilot's arms being cut up by seemingly small shards of glass that sprayed into the cockpit following the impact.

LG's MAGNIT Active Micro LED TVs represent the company's premium and "luxury" home cinema displays that include Active Matrix technology for self-emissive Micro LEDs that ensure each pixel is individually lit. The company's new premium 136-inch screen MAGNIT Active Micro LED display is not only larger than most home theatre projector setups, but it also offers a crisp 4K resolution with an impressive 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio, similar to what you'd find on an OLED.

And with a custom surface finish and treatment that enhances black levels, color accuracy, and minimizes external light sources or reflections, the MAGNIT Active Micro LED displays sound like the ultimate solution for watching movies and playing games on a big screen. However, these luxury displays are precisely that - luxury items. With 2023's 118-inch model launching with an eye-watering $237,000 USD tag, we can only imagine what this new and improved 136-inch MAGNIT Active Micro LED will retail for when it launches in the U.S.

This is the sort of display for those out there with first yacht, second Ferrari, and third holiday house money. Basically, someone who wouldn't blink when it comes to spending around a quarter of a million dollars on what's ultimately a big-screen TV.

The MSI MPG CORELIQUID P13 360 all-in-one liquid cooler for CPUs includes a 2.1-inch LCD screen with a 480 x 480 resolution IPS panel on the pump. It's not the first AIO liquid cooler to put a display on the pump. Still, in addition to being the sort of screen that can display images, video, and real-time system information like CPU and GPU temperatures, it can also be configured within MSI's Dragon Center software to act as a secondary or extended Windows 11 display.

This means that, technically, it can be used like any other dedicated monitor or display - albeit one that is limited to a 480 x 480 resolution with a circular shape. And with that, there's a PC gamer out there who decided to use MSI MPG CORELIQUID P13's display to play some Battlefield 6. Is this the ideal way to play EA and Battlefield Studios' popular multiplayer shooter? Of course not, but it works.

Granted, the low resolution, shape, and size would make it pretty hard to aim, read the environment, and even spot enemies, not to mention the additional latency that comes from a USB display not designed for gaming. So, as fun as this is, as one of those "can it run" experiments that PC gamers love, you do have to feel a little sorry for this gamer's squad, wondering why their teammate is behaving like this is their first time playing a Battlefield game.

Reddit user 'RunRepulsive9867' found quite the find when they recently purchased a second-hand $500 gaming PC on Facebook Marketplace. With the listing stating that the PC included NVIDIA's Turing-era flagship GeForce RTX 2080 Ti GPU from 2018, they were worried that it might have been a scam, as the card itself had the 'GTX' label and not 'RTX.'

NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 20 Series, led by the flagship GeForce RTX 2080 Ti, saw a shift from GeForce GTX to GeForce RTX due to it being the first generation of desktop gaming graphics cards from the company to include dedicated Ray Tracing cores and AI hardware in the form of Tensor Cores. Both paved the way for the modern era of cinematic RT-heavy PC gaming with AI-powered upscaling courtesy of technology like NVIDIA DLSS.

In fact, the RTX 2080 Ti is still a viable gaming GPU in 2025, thanks to its ability to use NVIDIA's DLSS 4 Super Resolution to boost performance, alongside featuring 11GB of fast GDDR6 memory. As for this $500 PC? Well, it turns out that the GPU inside is a rare prototype GeForce GTX 2080 Ti 12GB GPU in the style of NVIDIA's Founders Edition design for the RTX 20 Series.

When the price was finally revealed for the new flagship ROG Xbox Ally X gaming handheld collaboration, $1,000 USD, there was understandably some controversy for what was being marketed as the first Xbox gaming handheld. Naturally, for those who are familiar with the device, it's PC-first, with a custom Xbox-optimized version of Windows 11 designed to improve both performance and usability with access to a deep library of games on a variety of services and platforms.

One of the reasons for the handheld's high price, which is notably more expensive than an Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5 Pro console, is its use of the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme, which includes 16 RDNA 3.5 Compute Units alongside custom AI hardware. With Microsoft and the Xbox team seemingly spearheading the announcement and marketing for the ROG Xbox Ally X (and the more affordable and less powerful baseline ROG Xbox Ally model), the assumption is that Microsoft set the price point for the handheld.

And with that, the high $999.99 price tag, much like the recent price hikes for dedicated Xbox console hardware, was the direct result of current market and economic conditions. Well, turns out that was not the case, with Xbox president Sarah Bond (via Variety) saying that when it came to setting the price, "it really was ASUS, because this is their hardware."

We got our first look at ZOTAC's new ZBOX MAGNUS EN75060TC back at Computex 2025, a new compact mini PC that packs a powerful desktop-class GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16GB GPU inside its 2.65-liter chassis. Marketed as a console-sized solution for gamers, alongside being a capable AI PC, it's considerably smaller than a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X|S.

To fit all of this GPU power inside a mini PC that could comfortably be placed underneath a TV or on a desk next to a display, it also features a mobile processor in the form of the Arrow Lake-powered Intel Core Ultra 7 255HX, which features 8 Performance-cores and 12 Efficient-cores with a maximum frequency of 5.2 GHz. A powerful CPU in its own right that also includes integrated Arc graphics.

What makes ZOTAC's new ZBOX MAGNUS so impressive and viable as a compact gaming PC or Steam-box-like machine is the fact that it includes the full 16GB variant of the GeForce RTX 5060 Ti and not the 8GB model, unlocking fast 1440p resolution gaming with crisp visuals thanks to DLSS 4.

Hearthstone and Warcraft Rumble devs have voted to organize under the Communication Workers of America (CWA) labor union, joining five other sister groups in Microsoft's growing unionized workforce.

Two years after the $68 billion merger with Microsoft, and subsequent layoffs of thousands of workers, nearly 2,000 Blizzard employees have voted to unionize for better worker protections and bargaining rights.

Today, the CWA announced that more of Blizzard's dev teams are joining, this time with the Hearthstone and Warcraft Rumble groups voting for representation. Both of these games are on the back burner for Blizzard, and Warcraft Rumble's development is currently on hiatus, prompting layoff anxieties.

Helldivers developer Arrowhead Game Studios is hiring for their next game, and it might not be Helldivers 3.

Arrowhead could be moving on from the Helldivers universe. A new job listing for a Senior System Designer says that Arrowhead is working on a new project, which is par for the course for game dev. What's interesting is that this new game is apparently set in a new IP and may not be related to Helldivers at all. Luckily, it'll still be a co-op game.

"Join our quest in making the world's best co-op action games! We're looking for a talented Senior Systems Designer to join our growing design department and help shape the foundation of a brand-new, unannounced project. This is your chance to be part of a co-op action game from the start. You'll be at the heart of building and tuning the core systems, progression loops, and combat feel like an Arrowhead Game," the listing reads.

The new DualSense V3 revision doesn't make any real major changes to the controller, and it doesn't have removable batteries like previous reports said that it might.

Sony has released yet another PS5 revision, this time an updated PS5 Pro model that also comes with a slightly tweaked DualSense controller. According to a new teardown from YouTuber Austin Evans, the adjustments are minor and oriented towards weight reduction and profit control--two very important parameters for Sony's games console business--and don't make dramatic changes.

The DualSense V3 CFI-ZCT2W, the new controller shipping with the refreshed PS5 Pro model, hasn't been upgraded when it comes to what's under the hood. The battery is the same capacity, but a different part, and features various tweaks like a different connector and extra fasteners to hold the battery in place. The biggest change is actually an omission and not an addition--Sony removed the second microphone that used to be on the back of the DualSense controllers.

Right as a new console generation looms, Microsoft will reportedly start to pull production of Xbox consoles out of China.

Microsoft has plans to pull most of its product manufacturing out of China throughout 2026, sources tell Nikkei Asia. This new strategy is said to include Xbox console hardware, although some parts of console production may remain in the region.

The news comes after Microsoft raised the price of its Xbox consoles two separate times throughout the year, increasing MSRP once in May and then again this month in October. The price hike was a move to counter international tariffs that hit Microsoft particularly hard, seeing as the company does not sell its systems at a profit and takes a calculated loss of each sale. As a result, Microsoft's flagship Xbox Series X console now retails for $650, more than a +30% increase in price since release.

Arc Raiders, the new extraction shooter that recently blew up over the weekend when developer Embark Studios dropped a free-to-play "server slam," is heading to launch on October 30, and now the design director for the title has revealed that the response to Bungie's Marathon gave the studio some guidance.

In a recent interview with PC Gamer, Arc Raiders design director Virgil Watkins said the Bungie's playtest of Marathon, which is also an extraction shooter, gave the studio information regarding how gamers felt about extraction shooters at the time, with the director saying it was a "very great A/B test for us, because obviously they made decisions that we didn't, and vice versa. So we could kind of compare and contrast how some of those things shook out."

Watkins said that it was "very coincidental that they had their test around the time we did," and to his knowledge, "I don't think any of us knew that was going to happen." For those who don't know what Watkins is referring to, Bungie held a closed alpha test in late April that generated a not-so-good response from participants, which led into stolen art allegations, and then finally, an indefinite delay from its September 23 release date.

In celebration of the launch of Ninja Gaiden 4, Xbox, Koei Tecmo, and Team Ninja have teamed up for a record-breaking stunt that involves two helicopters, one 200+ square-foot screen, and one player.

The stunt has been posted to the official Xbox YouTube channel and showcases two helicopters carrying a 26-foot wide screen above the city of Miami while Ninja Gaiden 4 plays. The stunt has set a new Guinness World Record for the largest video game display flown by a helicopter. What can be seen is Yakumo of the Raven ninja clan battling enemies on a screen suspended in the night sky, while the record "Flammable" by Swae Lee plays.

Xbox explains in its press release that the stunt was inspired by Ninja Gaiden 4's in-game lore, "The denizens of Tokyo have escaped the toxic floodwaters by building skyward. The skyscraper district towers above the ruined city below, a breathtaking vertical landscape that mirrors the high-flying action we brought to life."

Grand Theft Auto fans are getting desperate for news on Grand Theft Auto 6, and are now looking toward when Rockstar will release Trailer 3 for the title.

However, the spot they are looking seems to be in the same lane as a conspiracy theory, as the clue is the numbers located on Jason's watch as seen in the second trailer for the game. Yes, that is correct. The watch Jason is wearing is what this theory hinges on. Fans are saying the time on the watch, "11:08" is referencing November 8, which they have also combined with Rockstar's announcement about the studio releasing the first trailer for the game on November 8, 2023.

Trailer 2 for GTA 6 is now 5 months away, and while fans got quite a lot of information from that trailer along with a bunch of screenshots revealing environments, characters, and some story hints, it appears that well of information has dried up among the community, and now they are turning toward more desperate clues and hints for what Rockstar is planning on revealing.

Legendary game director Hideo Kojima has recently shared his thoughts on artificial intelligence and how it will play a role in the future of game development.

In a short Instagram reel posted by Wired Japan following the publication getting a tour of Kojima Productions in Tokyo, Hideo Kojima shared his thoughts on artificial intelligence and whether it will be used as a tool throughout the development of future projects at the studio. According to Kojima, AI is a "friend" that he will be using to maintain ahead of the pack of game development through efficiency.

Halo fans have been up in arms since the report surfaced about the developers behind the two new Halo games scheduled to release next year, "heavily" using generative AI throughout to create the games. However, that seems not to be the case, or at least for now.

The latest development in the story comes from Windows Central executive editor Jez Corden, who previously revealed the now-released Xbox Ally and Ally X ahead of launch, and is a known Microsoft insider. According to Corden, Halo development doesn't involve generative AI in its game development, which includes art assets. Moreover, Corden writes that Microsoft doesn't have a mandate in place that forces studios under its expansive umbrella to use generative AI throughout their game development.

However, Corden says that he is "sure" it's being used for emails and other menial stuff like that, but "they're not making a gen AI game here." Rebs Gaming, the original source that initially claimed gen AI was being used in the next Halo game responded to these comments by Corden with screenshots of a job listing for a Halo Studios senior AI engineer, which states in its description, "Design and implement scalable and efficient solutions that leverage generative AI and ML (Machine Learning) to augment in-game experiences and to improve how we make games."

Recent reports set the Halo fanbase ablaze when it was passed around that Microsoft will be using generative AI technology to make the two new games being developed.

The two new Halo games are a remake of the original Halo Combat Evolved, with an overhaul of mechanics that should bring it up to the expectations of games released in 2025, and a new multiplayer-focused title that is reportedly "like Fortnite" in terms of its approach to live-service. Both of these games are set to release sometime in 2026.

While that is exciting news for Halo fans, things took a turn when new reports sourced from YouTuber RebsGaming claimed the leaker heard from sources that Microsoft's generative AI was being used to develop both of the games. Automatically, that came with a negative connotation, given the general sentiment on AI-generated artwork. The source told RebsGaming that "Generative AI is apparently woven into every aspect of development, such as enemy AI and terrain generation."

Capcom is reportedly currently in development of a new Resident Evil remake, with a credible leaker saying no original actors will be reprising their roles.

The information comes from mp1st, which reports the new remake is under the codename Chamber, and that claims from leaker DuskGolem, a known Resident Evil leaker who claimed Resident Evil Code Veronica was getting a remake, are true. However, there is another remake in the works, and that is Resident Evil Zero, which is expected to be released in 2028. As for Code Veronica, that is expected to release in Q1 2027.

Mp1st shares some details on the casting for Zero, writing that Billy Coen, the game's second protagonist, will be played by Jon McLaren, who played Star Lord in the 2021 Guardians of the Galaxy game. McLaren currently has a title called Project Chamber in his resume, which is presumably the Resident Evil Zero remake.

Foxconn has already started preparing for NVIDIA's next-gen Vera Rubin AI platform, just as NVIDIA is pumping out its new Blackwell Ultra GB300 AI servers.

NVIDIA's next-gen Vera Rubin AI family of chips will be a huge release, as the entire tech stack is being upgraded, including next-gen HBM4 memory. NVIDIA will continue using the same rack configuration, but there will be huge increases in power, performance, and everything in between.

In a new report from Taiwan Economic Daily, we're hearing that one of NVIDIA's largest partners -- Foxconn -- has already started development on the next-generation Vera Rubin NVL144 MGX servers, with mass production aiming for the second half of 2026.

Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan has headed to the Middle East to sit down with Saudi officials to reportedly ink a new partnership deal.

Reports from Arab News indicate that Lip-Bu Tan has met with the Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Abdullah Al-Swaha, to discuss new areas of which Intel and Saudi Arabia can benefit from developing Intel's semiconductor business, along with advanced computing technology. Additionally, the discussion involved developing Intel's artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Lip-Bu Tan has been on a tear when it comes to deals as the new Intel CEO recently inked a partnership with NVIDIA, SoftBank, and the Trump Administration, and now it seems a new deal is in the works with Saudi Arabia.