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Apple has reportedly delayed the release of the Apple Watch 2
It looks like Apple will not be unveiling the successor to its first wearable in a few months, with the Apple Watch 2 to arrive later in the year.
It looks like the original 18-month refresh cycle for Watch is true, and there won't be much changed from the original wearable. According to TechCrunch's Matthew Panzarino, Apple Watch 2 will include newer casings and improved battery life, but it won't arrive in the March-April timeframe that has been previously rumored.
Panzarino still says that Apple might unveil new "design partnerships" for Watch 2 in March, and new accessories to keep the momentum of Apple Watch chugging along. He also added that we might see a minor update to Apple Watch with a FaceTime camera early this year, but it will not be a "full Watch 2.0". Panzarino added that he talked with Creative Strategies analyst Ben Bajarin, who said that there's no evidence that Apple would be releasing a full-fledged Apple Watch 2 anytime soon.
Continue reading: Apple has reportedly delayed the release of the Apple Watch 2 (full post)
Our first taste of the score from Batman v Superman is here!
Warner Bros. is definitely not shy when it comes to revealing details about the most expensive movie ever made: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
The studio has just released a tease of one of the tracks from the score of Batman v Superman, called "Their War Here". Personally, I think this will be the music we'll hear during the flashback scene where Bruce Wayne is running through Metropolis when Superman and Zod were fighting in Man of Steel.
The official soundtrack for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice drops on March 18, one week before the movie hits theaters. It'll arrive digitally, on CD, a 2-disc deluxe CD, and on a Limited Edition 3-disc deluxe vinyl. As for the full track listing, check it out:
Continue reading: Our first taste of the score from Batman v Superman is here! (full post)
AMD's high-end Polaris 'most revolutionary jump in performance so far'
We are beginning to find out more and more about AMD's enthusiast-powered Polaris GPUs, thanks to a chat between RTG boss Raja Koduri, and VentureBeat.
During the chat, Koduri said: "We have two versions of these FinFET GPUs. Both are extremely power efficient. This is Polaris 10 and that's Polaris 11. In terms of what we've done at the high level, it's our most revolutionary jump in performance so far. We've redesigned many blocks in our cores. We've redesigned the main processor, a new geometry processor, a completely new fourth-generation Graphics Core Next with a very high increase in performance. We have new multimedia cores, a new display engine".
He added: "In summary, it's fourth generation Graphics Core Next. HDMI 2.0. It supports all the new 4K displays and TVs coming out with just plug and play. It supports display core 4.3, the latest specification. It's very exciting 4K support. We can do HAVC encode and decode at 4K on this chip. It'll be great for game streaming at high resolution, which gamers absolutely love. It takes no cycles away from games. You can record gameplay and still have an awesome frame rate. It'll be available in mid-2016".
Continue reading: AMD's high-end Polaris 'most revolutionary jump in performance so far' (full post)
'X-Files' creator Chris Carter reveals third film could be on the way
As Fox gears up for the release of six new 'X-Files' episodes which start airing next week, creator Chris Carter has revealed that he has further plans for the long running franchise.
Talking at the Television Critics Association press tour via The Hollywood Reporter, Carter reveals he's already written the script for a third X-Files movie. "I actually wrote a third movie, just because I was interested in the idea of where that might go. I let my wife read the third movie, and she said 'I think not for television." So when could we see even more 'X-Files' adventures? I guess that comes down to the ratings and reactions. Carter says "I'm waiting for Fox to come back and ask for more. Then we'll talk about it."
Meanwhile, the Fox Network have released an exciting new teaser that makes the wait for new episodes all the more harder.
Continue reading: 'X-Files' creator Chris Carter reveals third film could be on the way (full post)
Surprise 'Cloverfield' spin-off trailer released, hits cinemas soon
In a surprise drop from Paramount Pictures, the first trailer for the spin-off sequel to Matt Reeves 2008 found film sci-fi hit 'Cloverfield' is here and what's more, the film will hit cinemas in a matter of weeks.
Starring John Goodman and Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and produced by 'Force Awakens' director J.J. Abrams, the film looks to be set in a post apocalyptic environment, following the devestatation caused by the nuclear attack launched to destroy the Cloverfield monster. Asked if the film is a direct sequel to the 2008 film, Abrams confirmed to Collider "the idea came up a long time ago during production. We wanted to make it a blood relative of Cloverfield. The idea was developed over time. We wanted to hold back the title for as long as possible."
'10 Cloverfield Lane' hits cinemas in the U.S. on March 11th.
Continue reading: Surprise 'Cloverfield' spin-off trailer released, hits cinemas soon (full post)
Space Engineers gets a huge roadmap, might add NVIDIA GameWorks
The 2016 roadmap for Space Engineers and Medieval Engineers has been released by the developer, and they plan on adding a lot of cool stuff by the end of the year. Mostly, though, they want to concentrate on making it as playable and awesome an experience as possible.
What's on the roadmap? Improving the underlying netcode, decreasing lag, putting in a new animation system, speeding up rendering, create a new and better soundscape, put in better physics, and FPS element and a whole lot more. There's a long laundry list of what they want to do. Just keep in mind that this is a roadmap, and not everything is magically going to be implemented at the snap of a finger. Game development, especially in such a fantastic environment, takes time to do correctly.
My favorite feature they're adding is physically based rendering into the engine. That means more realistic looking lighting that shouldn't take too big of a GPU hit. The worst feature? Perhaps that they're considering using NVIDIA's GameWorks. Well, it's only a bad idea if it's implemented poorly. If they take the code and customize and execute it properly, then it could potentially be a good thing. Potentially.
Continue reading: Space Engineers gets a huge roadmap, might add NVIDIA GameWorks (full post)
The Division graphical downgrade, just how bad is it?
When the first trailer for The Division came out at E3 in 2014 it was a spectacular example of the future of graphics. But just like Watch Dogs before it, the graphical fidelity slowly declined in quality as more trailers and gameplay snippets were released.
But now we're closer to release than ever, with the closed beta happening at the end of the month, which means a lot of hands-on time for various publications out there. Thankfully some astute gamers have taken the time to compare, as best as possible, the graphics between the original trailer and what's playable now.
The original showed us some very fantastic dynamic scenery with snow that melted over time and particle and weather effects that were just stunning. Models were full of polygons and textures were extremely sharp. Supposedly Ubisoft did downgrade the graphics slightly in order to make sure it ran at smoother framerates. But just how bad is the downgrade? Not terrible, actually.
Continue reading: The Division graphical downgrade, just how bad is it? (full post)
Fan-made Half-Life expansion 'Prospekt' approved by Valve, coming soon
We might not be getting Half-Life 3 at any point in the near or far future, but at least Valve has officially sanctioned a new expansion pack that's going to tell the story of what happened after the events in Half-Life: Opposing Force.
The story goes that the creators of Propekt took a huge risk and actually sent a copy of their concept to Valve, specifically to Gabe Newell himself. And once the included demo and the artistic direction and majesty was actually seen, then it was only natural to give the go-ahead. And now Valve is letting Richard Seabrook sell the expansion pack on Steam for $9.99.
The expansion is more than just the typical modification, and adds a significant amount of story, and back-story, to the universe. Gordon Freeman is being overwhelmed in Nova Prospekt and likely won't last long, until at the last minute you, Adrian Shepherd, get transported by the mighty Vortigaunt to save the future savior of mankind.
Continue reading: Fan-made Half-Life expansion 'Prospekt' approved by Valve, coming soon (full post)
Diablo III console patch 2.4.0 causing some weird slow-downs
The latest patch for Diablo III on consoles was released four days ago that included a lot of new content and enhancements. What also seemed to tag along were issues of micro-stutter and menu-lag that have been simply incorrigible.
But Blizzard is aware of the issue and is asking everyone who experiences the problem to head on over to their forum to fill out a bit of information to help them track down the particular issue. At the moment the folks from Blizzard can't quite replicate the problems, and that's why they need your help.
So head on over to the forum and answer the following questions to help them. Diablo III is still one of the better ARPG's to grace consoles in a long time, despite its relative age.
Continue reading: Diablo III console patch 2.4.0 causing some weird slow-downs (full post)
EA's Vault access free next week for Xbox One Gold members
The EA Vault is being opened to everyone with an Xbox Live Gold membership on the Xbox One starting next week. That means that anyone that meets those requirements will get access to the 14 games that have made their way into the vault recently.
That free access is for a limited amount of time, however, and will last from January 14th through the 24th. But that still gets you access to all the games that have been placed in the vault, and some of them are actually still quite enjoyable. You'll find Battlefield Hardline, Dragon Age: Inquisiition, Titanfall, FIFA 15, Madden 15, Battlefield 4 and more.
If you want regular access to the EA Vailt, and to the other features of EA Access, it's around $5 a month or $30 per year. There're other benefits as well, like being able to play games a few days before the actual release and giving you 10% off of EA games should you decide to make the purchase. This is one program that the PlayStation 4 doesn't have, as Sony has said it didn't see value in the EA Access program.
Continue reading: EA's Vault access free next week for Xbox One Gold members (full post)
Codemasters builds DX12 support into its EGO Engine 4.0
Codemasters will be hosting a session at GDC 2016, where they will be talking about their EGO Engine 4.0, which has support for DirectX 12.
The description of the GDC 2016 session teases: "Codemasters present a post-mortem on their new rendering engine used for F1 2015 detailing how they balanced the apparently opposing goals optimizing for mainstream processor graphics, high-end multi-core and DX12. The F1 2015 engine is Codemasters' first to target the eighth generation of consoles and PC's with a new engine architecture designed from scratch to distribute the games workload across many cores making it a great candidate for DX12 and utilise the processing power of high-end PC's".
It continues: "This session will show the enhanced the visuals created using a threaded CPU based particle system without increased the GPU demands and also cover the changes made to the engine while moving from DX11 to DX12. We will also discuss the graphics effects added using the new DX12 features Raster Ordered Views (AVSM and Decal Blending) and Conservative Rasterization (Voxel based ray tracing) adding even greater realism to the F1 world".
Continue reading: Codemasters builds DX12 support into its EGO Engine 4.0 (full post)
Mr. Robot returns later this year, will have few 'reveal' moments
The first season of Mr. Robot was incredible, with the second season of USA's show arriving in the summer. Series creator Sam Esmail has started teasing what we'll see with S2 with Entertainment Weekly. Esmail wouldn't talk details of the second season, but he did tease where Elliot's relationship with Mr. Robot was headed - so if you haven't watched the first season - SPOILERS AHEAD.
Esmail said that after revealing Mr. Robot as a figment of Elliot's deranged mind, and not Elliot's father like most wanted, the show will push into the complexity of that imaginary relationship, instead of typing up the loose ends on it. Esmail said: "There will be a lot more backstory that will be shown, the timeline will get a little clearer - not 100 percent clear, because where's the fun in that? But a little clearer. It really is about Elliot trying to reconcile what this means in seeing Mr. Robot".
During the first season, Elliot was dealing with trying to work out what was real, and what was a delusion of his own mind. In the second season, Elliot will be continuing this fight, working through his hyperactive imagination. Esmail said that S2 will have less "reveal" moments, adding that he said the biggest "gotcha" moments in S1 were part of the storyline before the director's yelled 'action', he wants to focus on the relationships of the characters, instead of surprising the audience constantly.
Continue reading: Mr. Robot returns later this year, will have few 'reveal' moments (full post)
The best-selling game of 2015? Call of Duty: Black Ops 3
This will come as a surprise to everyone... yeah, probably not. The best-selling game of 2015 was Call of Duty: Black Ops 3, according to the latest data from market research firm, NPD Group.
In the US, the Call of Duty franchise has been the top-selling franchise for the last seven years. But, each year, the COD franchise hasn't topped the list of best-selling game, especially against Grand Theft Auto V in 2013. Black Ops 3 didn't launch until November 6, taking just two months to secure the best-selling game of 2015 award. According to Activision Communications Manager, Scott Lowe, the Call of Duty franchise has sold over 250 million copies to date.
As for the games that were also in the charts with Black Ops 3, we have Madden NFL 16 with second place, Fallout 4 with third place, and Star Wars: Battlefront in fourth position. Also included in the list, were NBA 2K16, Minecraft, Mortal Kombat X, FIFA 16, and Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare.
Continue reading: The best-selling game of 2015? Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 (full post)
The Division beta starts on Jan 28 on Xbox One, PS4 and PC on Jan 29
Can you believe The Division is so close to release, that Ubisoft is launching the beta of The Division on Xbox One on January 28? PC and PS4 gamers get it 24 hours later on January 29, with the beta closing up shop on January 31.
Ubisoft's official Twitter account for The Division announced the news, tweeting "Your mission is about to start. The Division Closed Beta starts January 28th! Register on thedivisiongame.com/beta". The company also took to Facebook to announce the news, with a new "RPG Gameplay" trailer released recently, which we've got embedded above for your viewing pleasure.
Continue reading: The Division beta starts on Jan 28 on Xbox One, PS4 and PC on Jan 29 (full post)
AMD confirms it will use both HBM and GDDR5 for next-gen Polaris GPUs
Something I mused on about in September 2015 was that AMD and NVIDIA would use both HBM (and HBM2) as well as GDDR5, or GDDR5X on their next-gen cards throughout 2016. Well, AMD has confirmed this news.
Robert Hallock, the Technical Marketing Lead at AMD, explains: "We have the flexibility to use HBM or GDDR5 as costs require. Certain market segments are cost sensitive, GDDR5 can be used there. Higher-end market segments where more cost can be afforded, HBM is viable as well".
This will work out perfectly for AMD, as I think we'll see cards under $350 or so using GDDR5/GDDR5X while the HBM2-powered cards will arrive as enthusiast video cards, priced at $400 and above.
Continue reading: AMD confirms it will use both HBM and GDDR5 for next-gen Polaris GPUs (full post)
f.lux responds to Apple's Night Shift feature announcement
Back in November, screen dimming, sleep-friendly software f.lux was given the boot off iOS by Apple. The app developer claimed this was due to a misunderstanding over direct install privileges; some speculated because it isn't a true open source download, it contains major security vulnerabilities.
Then this week, we learned Apple had built its own take on f.lux. Named "Night Shift", it will debut in iOS 9.3 this quarter. In response, f.lux has expressed it's happy Apple is joining the cause, but it still has interest in getting back on the operating system.
"Our mission is to enable f.lux to advance the science, while providing customized solutions for each person. We intend to make f.lux better in every way than the app we designed back in 2009.
Continue reading: f.lux responds to Apple's Night Shift feature announcement (full post)
$9 'CHIP' computer features 1GHz CPU, 512MB RAM, 4GB storage, HDMI
First there was the $5 Raspberry Pi Zero computer, then the $15 PINE A64, and now we have the $9 CHIP.
CHIP (Computer Hardware in Products), is open source and houses a 1 GHz R8 ARM processor, 512MB RAM, and 4GB storage. Features-wise, it includes Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, and supports composite, VGA, and HDMI outputs, so you can connect it to your desktop or laptop display or even TV. As for OS, it runs on Linux (Debian) and is capable of running apps and games (tons come pre-installed, including the Chromium browser). Peripherals work just fine, too.
So, while CHIP is more expensive than the popular Zero, it's not so bare bones. That said, if you want to expand it, the PocketCHIP peripheral effectively turns it into a Game Boy, but with a touchscreen and keyboard. It will launch in May at the $49 price point.
Continue reading: $9 'CHIP' computer features 1GHz CPU, 512MB RAM, 4GB storage, HDMI (full post)
AMD's graphics boss says VR needs 16K at 240Hz for 'true immersion'
There were some fears when AMD split its GPU division into Radeon Technologies Group, but ATI 2.0 is really hitting the ground running with Polaris, and its continued commitment into VR. I think we'll see 'Big Polaris' powering VR, something we exclusively reported on last week.
During CES 2016 last week, RTG boss and cricket fan (yeah!) Raja Koduri spoke with VentureBeat about wanting to put the GPU division of AMD back into center focus. He said that 2016 is going to be a huge year for the company, as it hits its stride with the excited FinFET process, which will provide more performance per watt, HBM2 (which will provide 1TB/sec memory bandwidth) and the new Polaris architecture.
But when it came to the future of GPUs, Koduri said that VR will drive a large portion of this and that he won't be happy until we get 3D graphics that support 16K screens, and at 240Hz - yeah, 16K @ 240FPS. Just as Neo said in The Matrix: "whoa". Koduri says that this is when we'll reach the point of "true immersion that you won't be able to tell apart from the real-world". Koduri makes me excited about the future of not just RTG, but GPUs and VR, especially with quotes like that.
Continue reading: AMD's graphics boss says VR needs 16K at 240Hz for 'true immersion' (full post)
Survey says... Windows 10 is highly regarded and very well liked
The research firm IDC conducted a survey about Windows 10 and has just now published the results of that survey. And the data they have seems to suggest that Windows 10 is quite the success. People actually enjoy it. And they're liking it far more than they did upgrading to previous releases.
Satisfaction is abnormally high for Windows 10. That is, 60% of those that said they have Windows 10 picked a "favorable" or "very favorable" rating when asked how they saw the OS. But not everyone enjoys the new OS, with 1 in 10 having chosen an "unfavorable" rating or lower. But the positive responses still outweighed the negative, indicating that it was at least generally a better and more smooth launch than 8 or 8.1.
The survey was given to 1,000 adults who owned PC's in the US and was carried out in September of last year. But with the survey being conducted so soon after the July 2015 launch of Windows 10, it might be that the responses were slightly colored with the relative "newness" of the new OS. If you weren't part of the preview program, it was different enough from 8.1 to feel better overall, despite issues that seemed to crop up later. Regardless, the Steam hardware survey shows that Windows 10 64 bit has a 31.25% share of all machines running Steam, which is up 2.44% over last November. That isn't insignificant.
Continue reading: Survey says... Windows 10 is highly regarded and very well liked (full post)
The Division gets an Xbox One bundle to make taking New York easier
The Division is getting its very own Xbox One bundle from Microsoft that gives you a 1TB Xbone combined with the game and a 14-day Xbox Live Gold trial so you can actually get online and enjoy the cooperative RPG to its fullest.
By pre-ordering the bundle (or the standalone game itself) you'll have guaranteed access to the beta that's going to kick off on January 28th, letting us all band-together (supposedly) to take back New York City in a format that, on the surface, looks very similar to Destiny. The gameplay should be different and hopefully is designed in the spirit of other Tom Clancy games, and of his literary works.
Playing The Division at E3 last year was a treat, though the frozen streets were surprisingly sparse. There's scuttlebut in the community about downgraded graphics from what was initially shown, but the examples that are coming out still do look good even if they aren't up to the pretty visuals of the first official gameplay trailer. This definitely isn't another Watch Dogs debacle, at the very least. If that's any consolation. So pick your poison and pre-order, or do the prudent thing and wait for it to release and be reviewed. Ubisoft has promised us that the PC version won't be just another port, but a game that they'll actually optimize so it runs well and looks spectacular, as it should on high-end PC's
Continue reading: The Division gets an Xbox One bundle to make taking New York easier (full post)




