Gaming - Page 245

Following Jim Ryan's retirement in March, Sony has now made a decision on who will lead PlayStation.

Sony has announced a new corporate structure for its games and entertainment division. Sony Interactive Entertainment has now been split into two parts: the Platform Business Group, led by existing Sony exec Hidaki Nishino, and the Studios Business Group, led by current PS Studious SVP and ex-Guerrilla Games head Hermen Hulst.

Sony Chief Financial Officer Hiroki Totoki took over as interim or temporary CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment in April. Totoki will retain some leadership over the new divisions as acting chairman of SIE, and both Nishino and Hulst will report directly to Totoki. The changes will go into effect on June 1, corresponding with with the last month of Sony's Q1 FY24 period.

Nintendo has published solid earnings results as the Switch enters its eighth year on the market.

Nintendo's Fiscal Year 2024 shows two clear trends: Switch sales are slowing down, but gamers are still voraciously consuming software and content for the aging system. A quick note before we delve into the financials - These values are based on yen to USD conversion rates listed in Nintendo's quarterly reports, which assumes the following rates: Q1 - 144.56, Q2 - 149.37, Q3 - 141.04, Q4 - 151.

Throughout FY24, which ran from April 2023 - March 2024, Nintendo generated a total of $11.6 billion in net sales revenue, down -2% year-over-year. This is due to a more pronounced drop in Switch hardware sales (15.7 million shipments, down -12.6%), and a smaller decrease in software purchases (down 6.7%).

Nintendo's Switch family of hardware breaks a new milestone in its eighth year on the market.

Switch sales are starting to slow down as Nintendo preps its new system. Total cumulative shipments for the 3-device Switch family have now reached 141.32 million, and by March 2025, Nintendo expects the Switch to dethrone the DS.

Nintendo shipped 15.7 million Switch consoles in Fiscal Year 2024, down -12.6% year-over-year, with Q4'24 delivering the lowest unit shipments for any Q4 period since the device's launch, or 1.96 million shipments.

Rumors about NVIDIA working with various partners to enter the PC gaming handheld market are heating up. NVIDIA and GeForce are synonymous with gaming, especially when it comes to PCs. However, everything from the Steam Deck to the ROG Ally, Lenovo Legion GO, and handhelds from AYANEO are powered by AMD Ryzen with Radeon hardware.

It's a growing market, and Intel recently entered it by partnering with MSI to launch the MSI Claw gaming handheld. And now, it seems, it's NVIDIA's turn, with insider XpeaGPU claiming that NVIDIA is working with MediaTek to develop an Arm-based handheld SoC with integrated NVIDIA graphics.

This follows the news that NVIDIA and MediaTek are reportedly working on an Arm-based AI processor for AI PCs that could be revealed in a few weeks at Computex 2024. A SoC for PC gaming, running Windows 11 or Linux, would be something else entirely - and something that could blow the Steam Deck out of the water, performance-wise.

Star Citizen, the perpetually in-development grandiose everything sci-fi game, just got a new Alpha 3.23 'Adventure Beckons' update. There's a long list of updates and revisions, from a new character customization system to improved AI ship combat and a reworked Starmap to make planning your space travel more comfortable. There are also new hoverbikes, vehicles, and massive industrial facilities to explore.

Tech-wise, the update makes some fundamental changes thanks to the arrival of a new Vulkan Renderer, currently listed as in Beta. GPU performance with the new renderer should be on par with the default DirectX 11 Graphics Renderer. According to the team, "the aim [is] to make Vulkan the default and more performant implementation in a following release."

Regarding performance, GeForce RTX and Radeon GPU owners will be pleased to learn that Star Citizen now has NVIDIA DLSS and AMD FSR support for upscaling and a third "in-house TSR solution."

Bethesda's big May 2024 update for Starfield is now live on PC, Xbox Series X|S, and available to all Xbox Game Pass players. It's not the game's first update with a long list of changes, but it's the first with some meaningful additions and quality-of-life improvements, namely in the form of detailed surface maps for exploration through cities and beyond. Also, Xbox players now have a 60 FPS Performance Mode and can play at 40 FPS on 120 Hz displays.

The new maps are particularly impressive. Not only do they overhaul the dedicated map screen with 3D renders of the game's city and planetary locations, but the scanner overlay now shows each notable location and how far it is, with the option to fast-travel to individual vendors or other prominent spots.

The other major change is giving players direct control over a range of gameplay settings that go beyond changing the difficulty of person-to-person or ship-to-ship combat and adding a new Extreme difficulty. These include the ability to access ship cargo from anywhere and new survival features relating to food, drink, and environmental hazards.

The Sony PSP, or PlayStation Portable, is one of the most beloved gaming handhelds ever. Released in 2005, it received a backward-compatible follow-up in 2011, the PlayStation Vita. It sports a similar look and great PlayStation games from franchises like Final Fantasy, Uncharted, Metal Gear Solid, WipEout, and more.

With rumors pointing to Sony working with AMD to create a proper PSP follow-up with PS4-like performance, AYN Technologies, a creator of Android and Windows-based handhelds, is teasing a new lightweight 320-gram machine that looks exactly like a modern PSP.

The handheld has yet to be fully revealed, but it is rumored to be Android-based, so it can essentially play every PSP and PS Vita game via emulation. The most exciting thing about the new handheld, though, outside of the PSP shape, has to be the display.

In 2010, Rockstar Games released the classic open-world action-adventure western Red Dead Redemption for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Following the adventures of John Marston, a former outlaw, it presented a sprawling, bloody, and gritty look at life in the old West with the same charm and atmosphere as the studio's iconic Grand Theft Auto games.

Without a PC release, it's been one of those titles that PC gamers have been waiting to see for over a decade. Red Dead Redemption II got a PC port following its release in 2018, but the original has been one of those games seemingly lost to time - or limited to the console space.

In 2023, Red Dead Redemption received a modern remaster; however, this release was only for the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch. Well, that looks to be changing, as the studio's PC Rockstar Games Launcher now includes hidden information stating that Red Dead Redemption and its Undead Nightmare expansion are "now playable on PC."

id Software's Doom (1994) and Doom II (1994) helped establish and define the first-person shooter genre as two of the most iconic PC games of all time. Those who grew up playing the original Doom might recall its cheat codes. IDKFA gave you all weapons, ammo, and keys while IDDQD unlocked 'God Mode.'

As spotted by Clawsomegamer, ZeniMax Media has trademarked IDKFA for 'computer game software' and 'downloadable computer game software.' It's an obscure reference for a company to trademark, but it could point to IDKFA being the title for some sort of DLC or add-on for an upcoming Doom game from id Software, Bethesda, and Xbox.

With the success of the recent DOOM and DOOM Eternal reboots, there are several rumors (and leaks) suggesting that id Software not only has another Doom game in the works, but we could be getting our first look at it during next month's Xbox Games Showcase event.

Bethesda's long-awaited 'next-gen' update for Fallout 4 arrived just in time to ride the wave of the smash hit Amazon Prime series, which saw the 2015 game once again become one of the most played titles on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation.

The update improved performance and visual fidelity for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S while adding ultrawide support for the PC version, several bug fixes, and some free add-on content that included new weapons, armor, and even quests.

However, the reception was not one of universal acclaim, as the 'next-gen' update for Fallout 4 broke many PC mods and added new glitches and crashes for gamers. Many players also reported problems with 4K or Quality Mode on Xbox Series X.

ASUS has teased its ROG Ally X handheld refresh, which will get a big reveal and debut at Computex 2024. The official reveal has confirmed that the ROG Ally X will arrive sporting a new black finish, an improved battery that will have 'way more' than 40% more capacity, and a new motherboard layout to support more memory storage (greater than 16GB) and storage, while improving and fixing the SD card reader.

Surprisingly, ASUS is even adding an M.2 2280 SSD slot. Yeah, the ROG Ally X is adding support for standard full-sized SSDs you'd find in a PC, laptop, or PlayStation 5. The handheld will also change the D-Pad, joysticks, and triggers and be slightly heavier.

But what about the processor, the Ryzen Z1 Extreme (a customized Ryzen 7 7840U), and the display? Well, according to a new leak, don't expect all that much on that front.

Ubisoft just stealth-announced the official name of the upcoming Assassin's Creed game set in Japan.

In 2022, Ubisoft made Assassin's Creed fans very happy with the reveal of Codename Red, a new project set in the wide 700-year period of Feudal Japan. Today, Ubisoft has confirmed the game will be called Assassin's Creed Shadows.

So what do we know about AC Shadows? Besides the setting, we know that the game will have an RPG focus, similar to Assassin's Creeds Odyssey and Valhalla.

CD Projekt Red's Cyberpunk 2077 has certainly come a long way from its release in December 2020, when at the time was met with extreme criticism from console players that nearly resulted in CD Projekt Red investors suing the developer.

If you remember the release of Cyberpunk 2077, you will likely remember absolute chaos, widespread criticism, performance issues across the board, and overall thousands of unhappy gamers - so many that Sony even gave refunds to those who wanted them before pulling the game from its marketplace altogether. Since its release, Cyberpunk 2077 has been slowly climbing its way back to where it should have been at launch, and now the game is stable, playable, enjoyable, and, most of all, gorgeous.

A testament to the Cyberpunk 2077 community turning around the game is CD Projekt Red's Phantom Liberty DLC, which has been well-received by gamers. 95% of the 7000+ reviews left in the last month are positive, and according to Cyberpunk's director, Paweł Sasko, he "always believed" it was possible, but "never thought [he] would actually see it".

Gamma is a new iOS app flying up the charts, and it's pretty easy to understand why. It's the next major emulator for Apple iOS devices, a free app that lets you play original PlayStation or PS1 games on iPhone and iPad. Developed by developer ZodTTD, it brings games from Sony's iconic console to iOS users without third-party software or jailbreaking.

With iPhone and iPad versions available to download, Gamma has customizable on-screen touch controls and support for Bluetooth controllers and even keyboards. The app connects to Google Drive and Dropbox for game saves and game files without the need to track down BIOS files or other proprietary data.

All you need to do is supply the ROMs or images of old-school PlayStation games. Gamma's UI and feel are similar to Delta, a popular Game Boy Advance emulator for iOS that is currently the top Entertainment app on iOS, beating out the likes of TikTok, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video.

The Nintendo 64, a 1996 console, has undoubtedly aged in the ensuing decades. However, as one of the first pieces of hardware to present full 3D worlds to explore, it's fondly remembered by many. A vibrant emulation and mod scene helped to keep the late '90s Nintendo gaming era alive. From Super Mario 64 to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, some of the most beloved 3D games of all time were for the N64.

In recent years, we've had some impressive N64 projects and endeavors, including full decompilation and native PC ports. This has led to games like Super Mario 64 getting ray-tracing support and other enhancements. But the manual decompilation and then recompilation process is long, often taking fans years - until now.

One of the N64 scene's most talented coders, Mr. Wiseguy, has created N64: Recompiled - 'a tool to statically recompile N64 binaries into C code that can be compiled for any platform.' Any N64 can now be ported to a PC and run as a native app, paving the way for mods and ray-tracing support.

Before it created Halo and before it created Destiny, veteran game development studio Bungie released the classic first-person shooter Marathon for the Apple Macintosh in 1994. Hailed as the Mac's answer to Doom, Marathon spawned a sequel several years later, leading to the studio's creation of the iconic Halo: Combat Evolved.

With Bungie now a first-party PlayStation studio owned by Sony, the team is developing a new entry in the series called Marathon. It takes place in the same futuristic sci-fi universe as the original but is shifting the gameplay and style to fit the mold of a PvP extraction shooter - ala Escape From Tarkov.

We've got some great news if you want to get a taste of where it all began. The community-driven team at Aleph One Developers has released a remastered version of the 1994 original - playable on modern PC gaming hardware and available for free on Steam.

Sony, not Valve, is behind the recent unpopular decisions regarding PlayStation PC games.

A bit ago, Sony learned a tough lesson about PC gamers: They're an austere and fickle audience. This was proven by the mass orbital review bombings that Helldivers 2 recently suffered. Sony has a policy to require PlayStation Network accounts in its games that include online multiplayer. This included Helldivers 2, and gamers had to make a PSN account in order to keep playing.

Predictably, everyone pushed back against this mandate and Sony eventually reversed course. But something else happened along the way: Helldivers 2 was delisted and removed from sale in countries that don't support PSN accounts, all 181 of them. This policy has led to a lot fewer players--and payers--for Sony.

On the heels of reports that Microsoft is unsure whether or not launching new Call of Duty titles on Game Pass is a good idea, Xbox president Sarah Bond reiterates the company's day-one policy for the subscription service.

In a recent interview with Bloomberg Tech, Xbox president Sarah Bond brought up the day-and-date Xbox Game Pass policy as one of the touchstones of Microsoft's core gaming business. Bond says that a plethora of high-profile games are coming to Game Pass later this year. Games like Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Starfield's Shattered Space expansion, and new Fallout 76/Elder Scrolls Online will be among the releases, but what about Call of Duty: Black Ops Gulf War?

New reports say that Xbox management is conflicted on launching new Call of Duty games on the service. After all, COD titles sell many millions of copies a year--offering new COD games day one would undoubtedly affect these sales. But that seems to be waived by the Xbox president, who hints that Call of Duty 2024 could be among the titles included on Game Pass this year.

Electronic Arts is currently working on new ways to integrate ads into its games, and it's possible the ads could extend outside of sports.

EA is no stranger to advertising. The company's EA Sports label makes multi-million deals with top brands like Nike, Pepsi, and even teamed up with Uber Eats to make an FC24 tournament. Advertising is a big part of sports sims.

But what about EA's other titles? Games like Battlefield, or even Dragon Age and Mass Effect? Could advertisements show up there in some way? In a recent Q4 earnings call, EA CEO Andrew Wilson says that there are teams currently looking at ways to place more ads into games, but the extent of this remains unclear.

Xbox president Sarah Bond says 'new options' are coming to Microsoft's game streaming offerings.

Microsoft's foray into cloud gaming is far from over. The company is still gung-ho on the nascent technology and hopes to use cloud to accelerate its multi-faceted games business. In a recent interview with Bloomberg Tech's Dina Bass, Xbox president Sarah Bond says that cloud gaming is seeing tremendous growth.

This growth is likely driven by a sharp uptick in Xbox game availability on services like GeForce Now. In an effort to assuage regulatory concerns, Microsoft signed a 10-year agreement to bring Xbox and Activision games to competing cloud services like GeForce Now and Boosteroid. In return, NVIDIA would get a lower Windows license fee. The partnership has born lots of fruit; in 2022, there were exactly 0 licenses for Xbox games that could be streamed on GFN, and as of today, there are 234 Xbox games that can be streamed over GFN.