Latest News - Page 282

There have been some interesting additions for the latest version of AIDA64 in terms of AMD hardware, hinting at the prospect of a cheaper RDNA 4 GPU that could be inbound.

VideoCardz flagged up that the notes for the latest stable release of AIDA64 include not just the AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT, but also the vanilla RX 9060.

That is, of course, a GPU which AMD is yet to confirm, but its appearance here is a strong suggestion that it might be due before too long (with any luck). It's worth noting that NVIDIA's RTX 5050 and 5060 are included with the new GPUs supported here. Oh, and there's Intel's BMG-G31 Battlemage graphics card, too.

Naughty Dog has just released a surprise update for The Last of Us Part II Remastered, which introduces a new mode to allow players to experience the game in a brand new way.

In a new post on the PlayStation Blog, Naughty Dog has explained that the new mode enables players to experience the game's story in linear order for the first time. The update adds "Chronological Mode" and is currently available on PS5 and PC via Steam/Epic Games Store in Patch 2.10 and Patch 1.5, respectively. The update includes a fresh perspective on Ellie and Abby's interwoven narratives that lets players observe cause-and-effect moments as they unfold naturally.

The idea behind this mode is to add a bit more value to The Last of Us Part II Remastered for players who have already completed the game, as Naughty Dog still recommends first-time players to experience the game in its non-linear fashion.

PlayStation has announced via a new blog post that it will be hosting a dedicated State of Play event for the upcoming release of Ghost of Yotei, the spiritual successor to the Ghost of Tsushima.

The State of Play event is only around the corner, with PlayStation writing that it is scheduled to take place on July 10, 2025, at 2 pm PT / 5 pm ET / 10 pm BST / 11 pm CEST. The event won't be a full-length State of Play and will only run for 20 minutes, but it will include a deep dive into Ghost of Yotei's gameplay and will feature the minds behind the title, such as the creative directors Nate Fox and Jason Connell.

The blog post also confirmed the presentation will include a showcase of important aspects of Ghost of Yotei, such as weapons, ways players can personalize their journey, and new modes. For those who don't know, Ghost of Yotei is scheduled to launch on October 2, 2025, and will be carrying the burden of performing extremely well for Sony's first-party fall line-up, as currently PlayStation hasn't got anything else releasing in the second half of the year.

Artificial intelligence-powered tools are causing a growing problem of impersonation, and one example can be added to the seemingly growing pile of cases where AI is used to assume the identity of an individual. That example is US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

A new report from The Washington Post has revealed an imposter pretending to be Rubio contacted several foreign ministers, a US governor, members of Congress, and other officials by sending them voice and text messages that mimicked the voice of Rubio, and somewhat more impressively, his writing style. Currently, authorities don't know who is behind the impersonation attempt, or what the end goal was of the attempts at contacting the government officials.

However, authorities do believe the goal of the impersonation was for the person behind it to gain access to government information or accounts. The Washington Post cites an unknown senior US official and a State Department cable for the source of news, with the source saying the imposter "contacted at least five non-Department individuals, including three foreign ministers, a U.S. governor, and a U.S. member of Congress."

Amazon Prime Day deals are here, and if you are in need of some new PC components at great prices, now might be the time to check out the listing. In the spotlight today, we have be quiet!, a juggernaut in the PC space.

be quiet! has reduced the prices on several of its product listings across Amazon and Newegg, with heavy discounts applied to the company's cases, CPU coolers, fans, and power supplies. Below are some of the best deals we could find on Amazon and Newegg, with the standout deals listed at the top and less discounted products listed at the bottom.

During massive sales such as this one, it's always good to have a look and snag a great price on that component you know you are in need of upgrading, whether it's for your current PC setup, or a PC you are planning on building in the future. With PC components generally getting more expensive, purchasing components at heavily discounted prices is healthy for the wallet.

Microsoft recently laid off 9,000 employees across its business, with many of them being part of its gaming division, Xbox. Following these firings, rumors have begun swirling about what put pressure on the company to let go of as many employees as it did. Fingers are being pointed at Xbox Game Pass, the seemingly too-good-to-be-true subscription model.

The rumors about Game Pass not being a profitable business model kicked into high gear when Arkane, the founder of Prey and Dishonored, Raphael Colantonio, said that "Xbox Game Pass is an unsustainable model damaging the industry for a decade," and the only way it exists is that its subsidized by Microsoft's "infinite money." Notably, the chief of Microsoft's gaming division, Phil Spencer, has previously stated in interviews that Game Pass remains a profitable part of the Xbox business.

However, that profitability was thrown into question following the comments from Colantonio, comments from Christopher Dring, the Editor-in-Chief of The Game Business, which were later rectified, and the general suspicion of how Microsoft is making any profit with titles such as Starfield releasing day-one on Game Pass, but having an approximate $400 million development budget. Dring previously stated that Game Pass is considered profitable because Microsoft doesn't account for the cost of developing first-party games, such as Starfield.

Sonic Adventure, developed by Sega and Sonic Team, made its debut in 1998 for the Dreamcast console. It was the first game in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise to feature full 3D gameplay, similar to Super Mario 64 and other 3D platformers from the 1990s, and is widely regarded as one of the best games in the series by fans.

Sonic Adventure RTX Legacy Version is a little different from the usual RTX remix projects we've seen, as it adds real-time Path Tracing to the original Dreamcast version of the game, alongside AI-enhanced textures. This means it requires SADXModLoader and Dreamcast Conversion to run, which can be found on the ModDB page.

Created by a single modder, reV, the mod encompasses the entire Sonic Adventure game for Dreamcast, with only a handful of areas including the game's original textures. In addition to full ray tracing, the mod also utilizes RTX Remix's PBR system, or physically based rendering, to update materials and surfaces for enhanced realism.

Since Xbox decided to ax thousands of jobs under its Xbox Game Studios umbrella, a debate has emerged online regarding the profitability of Xbox Game Pass and whether or not it's beneficial to companies and studios that support it.

In the past, Xbox has claimed that Game Pass has remained a profitable aspect of the Xbox business, but that would depend on how that profitability was measured. According to Chris Dring, The Game Business Editor-in-Chief, who responded to our own Derek Strickland on X, Xbox considers Game Pass profitable because it doesn't take into account the costs associated with developing first-party games, such as Starfield.

Dring suggests that if those development costs were taken into account, the profitability of Game Pass could be very different. In the social media post, Dring writes, "Costs associated with the Game Pass business is fees paid to third-parties, marketing, service costs... and by that measure, it's profitable." Adding, "What they don't count is the lost revenue that Xbox's first-party studios are seeing as a result of the service. I have to imagine if first-party studios received similar compensation, that profitability might not be correct."

NVIDIA is currently holding an RTX Remix Mod Contest, where it's giving away $50,000 in cash prizes to some of the most impressive PC gaming mods. RTX Remix is NVIDIA's groundbreaking modding and remastering tool, allowing modders to add real-time Path Tracing or Full Ray Tracing to a game, with new assets and a suite of AI tools at their disposal.

Black Mesa, a fan-made remake of the original Half-Life, is widely regarded as the best way to experience Valve's iconic shooter, and its Steam release has received Gabe's blessing. With Half-Life 2 RTX being one of the most impressive RTX Remix projects currently in development, we can now add Black Mesa Remixed to the list, as it adds some truly stunning Path Traced or Fully Ray Traced lighting to the opening sections of the game.

Uploaded to ModDB by modders xoxor4d and Beylerbey, it features remastered textures, high-quality meshes, and jaw-dropping RTX lighting. As this was released specifically for the RTX Remix Mod Contest, it's a demo that encompasses the iconic inbound tram ride and a few laboratory sections of the game.

Over the weekend, the Call of Duty team at Activision Blizzard announced that the PC version of Call of Duty: WWII on the Xbox App (recently made available as part of Xbox Game Pass) was taken offline so it could "investigate reports of an issue." The issue? A remote code execution (RCE) vulnerability has been discovered in the game.

A serious issue allows hackers to gain remote access to a PC running Call of Duty: WWII on PC, specifically the version available via the Xbox App or Microsoft Store, and take control. As seen in the social media post above and other reports of the vulnerability, hackers have primarily been exploiting the flaw as a means to harass or troll gamers and streamers.

From opening the command prompt to sending messages in Notepad, changing desktop wallpapers, and shutting down PCs, this exploit has led to numerous cases of PCs being hijacked by hackers. In some extreme cases of trolling, hackers have also been changing the desktop wallpaper of Call of Duty gamers to display gay porn.

The Sigma PRO from Ocypus is a new high-performance AIO liquid cooling solution featuring a minimalist design that includes a floating 3.5-inch display. The display graphics align with the minimalist design of the cooler, presenting a stylish view of CPU and GPU temperatures and usage as part of its real-time monitoring capabilities, thanks to its 640 x 480 resolution and ultra-thin bezel.

In addition to customizable system information and monitoring tools, the display can be configured to showcase videos, images, and GIFs. The floating pump structure, which includes a screen, also features a silver frame for an added touch of style. An ARGB light ring is wrapped around the base, with magnetic mounting for flexible display arrangements.

Of course, style will only get you so far, as the Sigma PRO's internal pump construction features a high-performance ceramic pump bearing, a 0.1mm microchannel layout, and a large 3700mm² copper base for efficient heat transfer. This is 33% larger than the standard, which should lead to lower temperatures and a more efficient cooling solution.

EA has yet to officially reveal the new Battlefield game, presumably called Battlefield 6, but as the title continues to go through its public testing phase, details are emerging online.

It was only last week that details about the upcoming Battlefield 6 battle royale map surfaced, with a short video (since removed) of the start of the battle royale map, presumably what players will see right before they start plummeting to the ground with their teammates. Now, details about the Battlefield 6 campaign have leaked online, with reports pointing to the BF1 Telegram group as the source, as well as datamining efforts.

While no specific details have been revealed, information such as objectives, locations, team name, nationalities, weapons, and vehicles has been leaked. The details below were published by mp1st.com, which also stated the development team behind the single-player campaign was headed by a newly formed EA first-party studio, Ridgeline Games, which also had Halo co-creator Marcus Lehto as the studio chief. However, in early 2024, Lehto left EA, and Ridgeline Games was shut down by EA without even releasing a single product.

The "attention economy" has reached new heights in China, and as pointed out by YouTuber Louis Zhao in a recent video, a phenomenon has emerged where hundreds of streamers are taking to the streets at night to create content.

Some streets and even the underpasses of bridges in China are being swarmed with livestreamers, as hundreds of content creators compete for viewers' attention. Zhao explains that this phenomenon is occurring for a multitude of reasons, with the primary one being the low barrier to entry for livestreaming and macroeconomic problems in China, such as the rising cost of living.

Zhao discusses why this is happening at night, the Chinese monetization model, and the role influencer agencies are playing in the influx of creators taking to the streets. Why the streets, or public places in general? In a nutshell, the content is more interesting when filmed in a public place, as there is chaos or a random element at play.

AOOSTAR has launched its new XG76XT external graphics card enclosure, which features a built-in RDNA 3-based AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT.

AOOSTAR's new XG76XT external GPU enclosure is listed on Chinese retailer JD for 3399 yuan (which converts to around $470 USD) with a regular retail price of 3499 yuan. The new external GPU solution is perfect for laptop or compact PC owners that want more graphics performance, without the bulk of a desktop PC.

The new XG76XT external GPU uses a full desktop-class Radeon RX 7600 XT, packing 32 CUs of RDNA 3 GPU power, and 16GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit memory interface. The Radeon RX 7600 XT graphics card supports 190W TGP in desktop configurations, while AOOSTAR's new XG76XT external GPU is limited to 150W. The AOOSTAR XG76XT at 150W will beat mobile versions like the RX 7600M XT, which is in other external GPUs, which is usually limited to 120W.

TSMC's new advanced packaging plant in Chiayi, Taiwan, has been hit with multiple setbacks, but another setback has just happened as the plant was damaged by a typhoon.

Typhoon Danas is the fourth typhoon to hit Taiwan in 2025. It has impacted the western regions of the country, with two people killed and over 500 people injured from the impact of the typhoon on western Taiwan. Typhoon Danas is the first typhoon to hit Chiayi, Taiwan, in 120 years, with TSMC's new under-construction facilities in Chiayi being impacted.

The impact from the typhoon was limited to impacting scaffolding collapsing at the site, according to the Southern Science Park Administration, reports the Taiwan Economic Daily. The scaffolding that collapsed is now the second setback at TSMC's new advanced packaging site, with TED reporting that the site's contractor has increased the speed of construction to account for the delay caused by Typhoon Danas.

Samsung Electronics is struggling with its foundry division, but it is now pushing towards a special directive that sees Samsung Foundry staking its survival on its new 2nm process node.

In a new post by Chosun picked up by insider @Jukanrosleve on X, we're hearing that Samsung Foundry is set to lead the advanced semiconductor market later this year and into 2026, with the South Korean firm setting a goal to secure large tech companies by raising the 2nm process yields to 70% within the year.

Samsung Foundry has been recording trillions of won in operating losses quarter after quarter, while its new Taylor, Texas plant is set to spin up into operations in 2026. The company has been struggling with low utilization rates, with concerns that it continues to struggle getting orders from larger customers after its US-based foundry is established, the scale of its losses could get out of control and start eroding the company's entire operating profit.

The Switch 2's GPU power is similar to the Xbox Series S, and this closeness means that developers can theoretically better scale games between the two platforms, one game developer says.

The Switch 2's new Ampere-based GPU brings 4K gaming to the handheld-console hybrid for the first time, offering a significant performance jump over the aging Tegra X1 used in the original Switch. In terms of raw performance, the Switch 2's GPU is likened to that of the Xbox Series S' GPU, which is good news for developers as games can more easily be scaled between the two platforms despite different SDK environments.

We've heard developers talk about the Switch 2's capabilities and overall versatility, with Koei Tecmo saying that the Switch 2's GPU is closer to a Series S than a PlayStation 4.

With only three months left on the clock for Windows 10 support, it seems Google's Chrome browser is now peeking at whether PCs running the older Microsoft operating system are eligible to upgrade to Windows 11.

Yes, Windows Latest picked up on Google's Chromium commit outlining this capability, which reads: "Adding a metric for determining Win11 upgrade eligibility. This metric is recorded at startup for Chrome running on Win10. Records a boolean histogram that represents if the hardware is capable of being upgraded to Win11."

According to Windows Latest's detective work, this change is already live in the web browser.

Windows 11 already does a fair bit of recommending apps and the like (or indeed promoting Microsoft's services), and we're apparently going to see a bit more of that behavior - this time with the lock screen.

As leaker PhantomOfEarth on X noticed (see the above post), there's a new 'discover widgets' ability inbound for Windows 11, although not officially at this stage (it is hidden in testing right now).

This will add suggested widgets to the lock screen presumably based on your past usage, and that'll happen 'periodically' according to the blurb describing the feature.

Intel will reportedly be releasing its "Arrow Lake Refresh" CPUs later this year, with some slight CPU clock speed increases and the reinforcement of the NPU for AI workloads.

In a new report from ZDNet Korea, we're hearing that the new Arrow Lake-S Refresh processors will have slightly more performance over the current Core Ultra 200S "Arrow Lake" chips, with a release in the second half of the year. As it stands, there are 22 models of Arrow Lake CPUs on the market, with 5 x Core Ultra 200S chips for the desktop with overclocking released in October 2024, with another 17 models without OC abilities earlier this year.

ZDNet reports: "Arrow Lake Refresh, which will be released in the second half of this year, is expected to target AI demand with a slight increase in operating clock and replacement of NPU".