PC gaming continues to make more money than consoles

Anthony Garreffa | Business, Financial & Legal | Apr 29, 2016 11:27 PM CDT

While the entire gaming market has shifted to mobile and consoles in terms of AAA game development, the PC is still a powerhouse when it comes to profits.

According to Newzoo's latest Global Games Market Report, we have the latest sales numbers on mobile, PC and console gaming. PC gaming is more profitable than console gaming, but mobile gaming blows them both away. Newzoo's Global Games Market Forecast Model projects gamer numbers and revenues per segment, region and screen on a global, regional, and country level. The report also shows the share of paying gamers and average spend in the same granularity.

The company explains in the report: "These projections are analyzed in various ways, comparing year-on-year growth rates, market share, CAGRs and absolute amounts in USD between the regions and segments, as well as the development of specific regions or segments in time. These projections are compared to available third-party sources on a local or global level. Given the pace of the developments in the games industry, Newzoo reviews its conclusions and assumptions every quarter, taking into account newly available data and insights. Before publication of any data, Newzoo also performs validation checks in various ways including comparison against historic internal data, comparison against market figures from alternative sources and validation from several Newzoo clients".

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NVIDIA to unveil next-gen GeForce on the same day as Battlefield 5

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Apr 29, 2016 9:21 PM CDT

Can you believe how exciting the next month is going to be? First, we've heard that NVIDIA will be unveiling its next-gen GeForce video cards in the next week, and on the same day - EA will unveil the next generation Battlefield 5. Yes, it's happening on the same day. We only reported a few hours ago that NVIDIA will have partner cards on retail shelves in June, too.

EA will be unveiling Battlefield 5 at its world premiere event this week on May 6, while NVIDIA is reportedly inviting select press from around the world to unveil its new next-gen Pascal-based GeForce GTX 1080, and GTX 1070 video cards.

When it comes to the next-gen GPUs from NVIDIA, the GTX 1080 should be quite the beast - with it being much more powerful than the GTX 980 (think Titan X speeds), with it being built on the 16nm FinFET process, the new Pascal architecture and GDDR5X. The upcoming GeForce GTX 1070 will be slightly slower - think less CUDA cores, and the use of GDDR5, not GDDR5X.

Continue reading: NVIDIA to unveil next-gen GeForce on the same day as Battlefield 5 (full post)

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided trailer details augmentations, and more

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Apr 29, 2016 5:17 PM CDT

The latest trailer to Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is here, with Square Enix ushering in the new '101' trailer for its upcoming game, showcasing protagonist Adam Jensen as he "makes sure that the events of the past won't repeat themselves".

Because of the issues between humans and augmented people, the problems that arose in Deus Ex: Human Revolution reach a new tipping point. Jensen is then "forced to operate in a world that has grown to despise his kind". Jensen is investigating some issues in the new trailer, as well as a new look at Jensen's apartment.

Square Enix said in a press release for Mankind Divided: "Armed with a new arsenal of state-of-the-art weapons and augmentations, he must choose the right approach, along with who to trust, in order to unravel a vast worldwide conspiracy. You'll also discover both old and new acquaintances, all of which have their own agendas. Whether going rogue or by the book, choices never come without consequences. The truth is still yours to reveal".

Continue reading: Deus Ex: Mankind Divided trailer details augmentations, and more (full post)

Apple Music update brings videos, family plan to Android

Sean Ridgeley | Software & Apps | Apr 29, 2016 2:21 PM CDT

The features Apple Music has had for months are now finally on Android thanks to a new update.

First is video playback, allowing you to watch most music videos and soon, a Vice documentary called "The Score", a new Dr. Dre series named Vital Signs, and an Apple series about app developers.

Then there's family plans: if you're willing to drop $14.99 per month over the standard $9.99, you can share with up to five other people.

Continue reading: Apple Music update brings videos, family plan to Android (full post)

New Apple Music API means endless integration possibilities

Sean Ridgeley | Software & Apps | Apr 29, 2016 12:16 PM CDT

Apple has a new API for its Music service which offers a variety of exciting features for developers, allowing them to do all kinds of things they couldn't before.

Among them:

In turn, this added functionality opens up possibilities like Facebook creating playlists for you based on songs your friends have posted; fitness apps could create playlists based on tempo, and social music apps could pop up left and right. In short, every developer can now integrate Apple Music into their own apps and software in a ton of different ways without having to worry about things like licensing, since that's handled by Apple.

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Windows 10 now blocks Google searches from Cortana

Sean Ridgeley | Software & Apps | Apr 29, 2016 11:05 AM CDT

Some of you have been circumventing the default behaviour for Cortana searches in Windows 10, telling her to search the web with a browser other than Edge and/or an engine other than Bing. Microsoft is putting a stop to both as of today, in what it says is an effort to ensure the best possible experience.

"The result is a compromised experience that is less reliable and predictable," it explains in a blog post. "The continuity of these types of task completion scenarios is disrupted if Cortana can't depend on Bing as the search provider and Microsoft Edge as the browser. The only way we can confidently deliver this personalized, end-to-end search experience is through the integration of Cortana, Microsoft Edge and Bing - all designed to do more for you."

"Starting today, to ensure we can deliver the integrated search experience designed for Windows 10, Microsoft Edge will be the only browser that will launch when you search from the Cortana box."

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John Romero pauses Blackroom Kickstarter to finish gameplay demo

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 29, 2016 10:35 AM CDT

The fundraising campaign for Blackroom, the new FPS from Doom and Quake's John Romero and Adrian Carmack, has been paused until a new gameplay demo is ready.

John Romero pauses Blackroom Kickstarter to finish gameplay demo

"The team is at work on a demo which demonstrates the kind of gameplay, look and innovative, cool features that make BLACKROOM truly unique - the things we've waited years to put into an FPS and which make us incredibly excited about this game," reads the Kickstarter update.

"There's a hitch here, a hitch that's making us do something that's right for the game, the team, and the community: we're pressing "PAUSE" on the fundraising campaign for BLACKROOM to complete this gameplay demo. Simply put, this will take more time than the Kickstarter has left, so we've decided to suspend the campaign and launch a new one when the gameplay demo is ready. We believe, however, it is the right choice. We know you do, too. Thanks to your feedback, we know we should have included it at launch."

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BioWare sets up a goose cam, starts naming the geese Dragon Age names

Jeff Williams | Gaming | Apr 29, 2016 10:05 AM CDT

A pair of geese have taken up a nesting spot on top of BioWare Edmonton's studio's roof and so they have naturally set up a camera to lifestream the the Canadian geese that are raising their family, so you can share in the cuteness.

And they want you to name the goslings. The adult geese have already been given Dragon Age inspired names, though they've now created a Goose Cam Name Bracket to help permanently name the growing goslings. The female is Ganders and the male is Arishonk.

In the background they have the soundtracks to their various games playing while you watch the family enjoy the prime real-estate they've found on top of the roof. This is what life is about, isn't it? The simple things, and blending those so easily with gaming. Because why not. Enjoy the actual cam live-stream embedded after the break.

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Nintendo NX represents a 'new way of thinking' about console hardware

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 29, 2016 9:34 AM CDT

Nintendo CEO Tatsumi Kimishima affirms that the NX will be a brand new concept the likes of which gamers haven't seen before.

Nintendo NX represents a 'new way of thinking' about console hardware

Despite announcing the Nintendo NX will launch globally on March 2017, the Japanese gaming giant still hasn't formally unveiled the new system. In the past, Nintenod has said the NX will be "unique and different", and company president Tatsumi Kimishima recently clarified a few things about the NX and Nintendo's reasoning for delaying to 2017.

"The NX isn't merely the successor to the handheld 3DS or stationary console Wii U. This will be hardware that's been made with a new way of thinking. I'd like to announce more particulars regarding its specs and how it works another time this year," Kimishima told Japanese games publication Nikkei. This matches Kimishima's claim that the NX "won't simply replace the 3DS and Wii U."

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Battlefield 5's world premiere set for May 6

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 29, 2016 9:19 AM CDT

Battlefield 5, which is reportedly set in the World War II era, will see its world premiere on Friday, May 6.

Battlefield 5's world premiere set for May 6

Multiple German sites like Play3.de claim Battlefield 5 will be unveiled on Friday, May 6: "The future of Battlefield is coming up and you are invited to the world premiere. On May 6, we will reveal the next milestone in the Battlefield franchise. Come and meet our creative team at DICE. See the trailer before it's revealed online, get a peek at additional content that will not be released online and go behind the scenes aby attending a developer panel. After the presentation wraps, you're welcome to stay for cocktails and a group screening of the World Premiere on Twitch live from London."

reads the invite found on Battlefieldforum.net.

Continue reading: Battlefield 5's world premiere set for May 6 (full post)