Apple : How to watch Frozen 2: stream the movie online anywhere |
- How to watch Frozen 2: stream the movie online anywhere
- The top 10 best pandemic movies you can stream right now
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- Google I/O is officially cancelled - which other tech shows are affected by Covid-19?
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| How to watch Frozen 2: stream the movie online anywhere Posted: 21 Mar 2020 02:08 PM PDT Frozen was an instant Disney classic when it hit the screen seven years ago and has had kids the world over breaking into song and dance dressed as the princesses Elsa and Anna ever since. It was inevitable that a sequel would follow to give those little hearts another filling with joy - and now you and your little ones can watch Frozen 2 online at home. Yep, you can watch it all right now – perfect timing for those getting in lots of family time at home right now. Just remember mum and dad, there's no excuse not to sing along, too! Options for viewing Frozen II vary by country with the main platform being Disney Plus. Since this hasn't launched everywhere yet, we've also given you more viewing options for where you are, below. Everybody can catch up with the new adventures of Olaf - the sun-loving snowman - and the gang. So how do you watch Frozen 2 online? Keep reading and we'll explain all you need to know about getting a stream. Watch Frozen 2 with Disney Plus (and for FREE)You're in luck folks! Frozen 2 is all yours and you can even watch it for free. How? Let us explain. Those of you in North America, Australia, New Zealand and the Netherlands can now enjoy the riches of Disney Plus, meaning you can head to the site to sign up now and start watching straight away. But even better news is that you can get a 7-day FREE TRIAL to Disney Plus, meaning you can enjoy Frozen 2 and all of the service's other content without paying anything. Disney Plus has apps for iOS and Android (of course), and is available to watch online via the likes of Amazon Fire TV Stick, PS4, Xbox One and Roku streaming devices.
How to watch Frozen II without Disney PlusNot got a Disney Plus subscription and don't want one? Fret not, you've got other options to rent or buy the movie. Here they are by country: UK: Buy from £9.99 Sky Go, Amazon, YouTube, Google Play, iTunes, Chili, Rakuten TV US: Rent from $4.99, buy from $19.99 Amazon, YouTube, Google Play, iTunes, Fandango Now, Vudu, Microsoft Australia: Rent from $5.99, buy from $19.99 YouTube, Google Play, iTunes, Microsoft Canada: Rent from $4.99, buy from $24.99 iTunes, Google Play, YouTube, Microsoft Can I watch Frozen 2 while overseas?For now, Disney Plus has only been launched in the US, Canada, the Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand. You'll have to sit tight if you're reading this from the UK and Europe as the Disney Plus go-live date is set as for March 24 - and there's a special discount you can take advantage of if you strike now. If you're out of the country where you'd normally access Disney Plus you'll find that you're geo blocked – as it's restricted to that country only by spotting where you connect to the internet from. That's where downloading a VPN can really help you out. A VPN, or virtual private network, cleverly changes your IP address and location to make you appear somewhere you're not, anonymously. Our #1 rated service is ExpressVPN thanks to its sheer simplicity to use, fast connections speeds and watertight security. It comes with a 30-day money back guarantee if you just want to give it a try, or you can save 49% and get three months extra free with an annual sub. Read more:
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| The top 10 best pandemic movies you can stream right now Posted: 21 Mar 2020 01:11 PM PDT Who would have thought, when we clocked in for 2020, that we’d be warmly encouraged to work from home, covetously stockpiling pasta and jarred pickles, and getting snippy with strangers over the last roll of toilet tissue? Or indeed that watching pandemic movies would suddenly become the vogue? But we hadn’t anticipated the global spread of coronavirus, resulting in nationwide lockdowns, self-isolation for the sick and at-risk, and entertainment venues being shut indefinitely. As a result, there’s been a resurgence in pandemic-themed films, with people finding cathartic release in seeing their anxieties play out onscreen. But don’t take these depictions of social collapse, martial law, and apocalypse too seriously – they’re enjoyably exaggerated entertainments, mostly skimping on scientific facts. So, whether stuck indoors or just trying to find some relevant escapism, we’ve compiled a list of the best films about pandemics available to stream right now.
Contagion (2011)Every cloud has a silver lining it seems. Steven Soderbergh’s medical thriller Contagion, released in 2011, raced back up the iTunes charts to take a Top Ten position this month, helped no doubt by the film’s parallels with the current outbreak of coronavirus. This fast-paced thriller charts the rapid transmission of a virus across the globe as scientists hurry to find a vaccine and social order disintegrates. Despite being a Hollywood thriller, this breathless multi-perspective narrative has been described as ultra-realistic - informed by the World Health Organisation and praised for its accurate depiction of a pandemic by scientists. It’s also got a Hollywood cast to make you weak at the knees – Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Marion Cotillard, Matt Damon – but seeing Paltrow catch the flu on film couldn’t have inspired confidence in her wellness brand, Goop. Available to stream in the US at: MaxGo and Amazon Cinemax The Crazies (1973)Five years after George A. Romero’s seminal Night of the Living Dead, he gave us another film about human contagion - The Crazies. When a military plane carrying an untested bio-weapon crashes in the hills of a nearby American town, their water supply becomes contaminated causing local residents to die or become homicidal. The government draft in the military to quash the spread of the disease, given instructions to shoot on sight. The film’s low-budget quality heightens the grisly shocks as families retaliate against the hazmat-clad military while additionally fending off the violence-prone citizens. Starring Will McMillan and Jane Carroll, it’s a believable scenario executed with extreme flourishes. Failing to make an impact on its initial release, it’s now a cult classic with a 2010 remake starring Timothy Olyphant. Available to stream in the US: Amazon Prime Video and VUDU Outbreak (1995)Outbreak gave monkeys a bad name way before the rage-plagued primate in 28 Days Later. Opening in Zaire, Africa, a fictional disease called Motaba spreads to California after an infected capuchin monkey is smuggled into the country. The disease develops into a strain of influenza, and the small town of Cedar Creeks is placed under martial law as the infection rapidly spreads. Although based on Richard Preston’s nonfiction book The Hot Zone, the film takes plenty of grand liberties in the name of cinematic heroics – this is a Hollywood pandemic through and through. But it entertains with a talented cast, including Dustin Hoffman, Cuba Gooding Jr., and Rene Russo. There’s also an iconic scene in a movie theatre that, where they not already closed, would make you think twice before visiting the multiplex. Available to stream in the US: Netflix Twelve Monkeys (1995)Did someone know something we didn’t? There were two monkey-related pandemic flicks in 1995, this one from Terry Gilliam. Twelve Monkeys is a dystopian sci-fi fantasy set in post-apocalyptic Philadelphia in 2035. As most of humanity was wiped out by a virus in 1996, Earth’s remaining inhabitants live underground. Bruce Willis is Cole, a convict who volunteers to go back in time in the hope of reducing his sentence and finding the cause of the virus. But the past proves more bewildering than the future. Gilliam-esque camera angles and stunning production design are impressive, particularly a desolate Philly overrun by animals. Meanwhile, Brad Pitt bagged his first Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination as Jeffrey Goines: inmate and leader of the Army of the Twelve Monkeys. It’s an atypical performance that’s thoroughly engrossing, all nervous tics and a crazed glint in his eyes. Available to stream in the US: FuboTV and Amazon Showtime Last Man on Earth (1964)Richard Matheson’s 1954 novel I Am Legend has spawned three adaptations. Last Man on Earth was the first in 1964 – starring horror legend Vincent Price – followed by The Omega Man in 1971 and the titular Will Smith blockbuster in 2007. The 1964 version is arguably the best. It revolves around the monotonous routine of Doctor Robert Morgan that, in the wake of a virulent plague, has left him the last human alive. Although rather dated and low-budget, it’s an evocative portrayal of crushing loneliness, with Morgan patrolling the streets during the day to kill the infected undead, only to return home alone at night to barricade himself against the vengeful hordes. Available to stream in the US: Amazon Prime Video and Hoopla It Comes at Night (2017)Another gem from production company A24 (Hereditary, The Witch) this horror-thriller is full of slow-burn dread. In the aftermath of a planetary contagion, a lone family exist deep in the woods until a handful of survivors cross their paths – father Will, mother Kim, and their son Andrew. Although initially distrustful, they agree to share resources and begin to bond. But, following a series of strange incidents, suspicions start to emerge that maybe one of them isn’t well after all. Starring Joel Edgerton, Carmen Ejogo and Kelvin Harrison Jr., it’s a grim vision of life after a major pandemic. The families’ fears of infection come to life in nightmarish visions – of the diseased dead returning to life – while the film has an atmosphere of clammy claustrophobia. Don’t anticipate a happy ending! Available to stream in the US: Netflix and Kanopy The Host (2006)Before Bong Joon-ho made history in 2020 – becoming the first South Korean to win an Academy Award with Parasite (2019) – he made this monster-movie with a little socio-political bite. Like The Crazies, the film shows mankind sow its own destruction when an American pathologist instructs his Korean colleague to dump formaldehyde in the Han River. A few years and lots of dead fish later, a gigantic amphibious creature emerges, attacking the local residents and kidnapping a young girl called Hyun-seo. As the military arrive to quarantine the area, they declare that not only is the mutant dangerous, but that it carries an unknown virus too. Starring Parasite’s main man Song Kang-ho, The Host is a blast – full of humour, thrills, and jaw-dropping action. Available to stream in the US: Roku Channel and Hoopla 28 Weeks Later (2007)Those infamous scenes of Cillian Murphy walking through an abandoned London in 28 Days Later (2002) seem eerily prophetic in the wake of coronavirus. The 2007 sequel however begins after the outbreak of the rage virus, with the infected dying of hunger and NATO instigating a safe zone in the capital. A degree of normalcy has returned to daily life and we’re introduced to a new set of characters: Don (Robert Carlyle), his children Tammy and Andy, and US Army Medical Officer Scarlet (Rose Byrne). But, after the children’s ill-advised trip to seek out their mother – presumed dead – those bloody, fleet-footed zombies are causing carnage once again. It’s a brisk, brutal film that the New York Times described as “exhaustingly terrifying”, with a sombre ending that implies the infected have reached European shores. The film’s savvy. Pre-launch hype saw a biohazard sign projected on the white cliffs of Dover, declaring: “contaminated, keep out.” Available to stream in the US: Paid rental - including Amazon and DirecTV Day of the Dead (1985)Although less well regarded than Romero’s first two entries in The Dead series, Day of the Dead aptly captures the sense that, in a world where zombies outnumber humans 400,000 to 1, there’s nowhere left to run. The encroaching zombie horde largely takes a backseat to the strained dynamics of the remaining survivors, who reside in an underground facility. These include Dr Sarah Bowman; a scientist dubbed “Frankenstein”, and a group of soldiers led by the increasingly unhinged Captain Rhodes. Scientific logic comes to blows with military force and soon the greatest threat to their existence seems to be each other. Originally dubbed 'the Gone with the Wind of zombie films' (before its budget was split in two), it’s a zombie flick with brains (and lots and lots of guts) and a worthy follow up to Romero’s ongoing exploration of societal collapse. Available to stream in the US: Max Go and Flix Fling Zombieland (2009)Ending on a lighter note, and proving pandemics aren’t all doom and gloom, we have Zombieland, a Zom-Com in the same vein as Shaun of the Dead. Starring Jesse Eisenberg as Columbus and Woody Harrelson as Tallahassee, they’re two mismatched survivors: one has an extensive set of rules to keep alive (“Rule 22: When in doubt know your way out”), while the other is happiest eating Twinkies and kicking ass. On their separate ways across the country, their trajectory changes when they fall in with two streetwise sisters, played by Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin, and end up at Pacific Playland. It’s a refreshingly fun, irreverent take on the genre, with a surprise cameo to please all 80s comedy fans. And, as well as the gore and guffaws, it manages to accommodate romantic and heartfelt moments too. Available to stream in the US: Paid rental - including Amazon and DirecTV How to stream these pandemic movies when abroadWe've listed out where to watch this selection of films in the US, UK, Australia and Canada. But if you're away from home and you discover that there's no way to watch them (your usual stream is likely to be geo-blocked when overseas and even Netflix doesn't have every film in every region) then you'll need to download a VPN to change your IP address to a server in the country where it is being streamed - it's much more straight forward than it sounds! Firstly, grab the best service out there - we think that's ExpressVPN, thanks to its speed, security, simplicity of use an d superb customer service. ExpressVPN also has a 30-day money back guarantee and you can purchase an annual plan for a 49% discount and 3 months extra FREE. Once installed, select the location of your home country and simply click connect. You’ll then be able to easily watch your chosen film from pretty much anywhere in the world. Discover more:
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| Tomb Raider is free to keep on Steam for a limited time Posted: 21 Mar 2020 11:02 AM PDT Square Enix has announced that the 2013 Tomb Raider game, the first in the reboot trilogy, is available for free to keep on Steam for a limited time. The offer is part of Square Enix’s Stay Home and Play campaign, started in the midst of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Warmed by the global efforts being made to keep people in their homes to reduce transmissions and contractions of the virus, Square Enix has said this is "a gift" to the community. In a blog post, Square Enix confirmed that both the 2013 Tomb Raider and Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris are free on Steam now and will remain so until Monday, March 23, 23:59 PDT/ 6.59 am GMT on Tuesday, March 24. Once you’ve got the games, they’re yours to keep forever. A virtual adventure“We’re warmed by stories of communities banding together to support those in need during uncertain times, and by honoring directives intended to protect the most vulnerable among us,” Square Enix writes. “Gamers are part of a global community. We regularly rally together online to return balance to fantasy kingdoms, recruit crew to save the universe from sci-fi threats, and indulge in healthy competition through high-octane action games. For others, shifting to both online work and play is unfamiliar territory.” Neither of these games is exactly brand spanking new but between them they pretty much hit the mark of what anyone could need at the moment; while the 2013 reboot is a great way to go on a thrilling solo adventure, Temple of Osiris is a chance to play with up to three others if the isolation is just becoming too much. It’s offers like these that are probably helping Steam break its concurrent user records—recently the platform hit 20 million for the first time ever. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Google IO 2020 isn't going ahead at all because of coronavirus Posted: 21 Mar 2020 09:30 AM PDT The coronavirus outbreak means Google IO 2020 won't be happening at all now – Google had previously announced that there would be no physical event, but it has now confirmed that there won't be a livestream or any digital event either. "Out of concern for the health and safety of our developers, employees, and local communities – and in line with recent 'shelter in place' orders by the local Bay Area counties – we sadly will not be holding I/O in any capacity this year," reads the message on the Google IO site. "Right now, the most important thing all of us can do is focus our attention on helping people with the new challenges we all face."
The event had been due to take place on May 12-14 this year, but the global battle against COVID-19 has claimed numerous tech events over the last few months. Google has also just launched an official online coronavirus hub to provide a trustworthy source of information about the pandemic. Android 11 and the Pixel 4aGoogle IO is traditionally the event that Google uses to announce all the changes coming in the next version of Android – Android 11 this year – and it's not yet clear exactly what the cancelation of the event means in that regard. It doesn't seem that the coronavirus situation is going to seriously delay the rollout of Android 11 in the coming months, even with Google engineers working at home. The developer preview is already available. At Google IO 2019 we had news of Android 10 as well as the launch of the Pixel 3a phones, and this year we were expecting to see the Pixel 4a arrive. That mid-range phone may well now be unveiled with a blog post and a press release. We will of course bring you all the Android 11 and Pixel 4a news as Google announces it, even if Google IO isn't going ahead. It looks as though it's going to be several months before we get another major tech event that we can actually attend in person. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Google I/O is officially cancelled - which other tech shows are affected by Covid-19? Posted: 21 Mar 2020 08:50 AM PDT As the spread of Covid-19 spreads across the globe, the tech world is having to rethink how it launches new products and services - and nearly all tech events between now and July have either moved online or been cancelled. Apple's WWDC 2020 is now an online-only event, the brand also launched a new iPad Pro and MacBook Air in a virtual conference... and now Google I/O has been formally moved. Back in February, Mobile World Conference’s cancellation tipped the first domino in many that have since fallen, and it’s likely to continue until the spread of the coronavirus outbreak is contained. With E3 and Build also falling and finding other ways to display their messages to developers and fans, it's clear that 2020 is going to be a year of disruption in the tech world, and that's going to have an impact on the new devices we'll be able to buy and when. We've rounded up all the cancellations that have already occurred, and what we're expecting to happen later in the year as we navigate 2020. MWCThe biggest annual smartphone show was the first to go; on 12 February the GSMA (Global System for Mobile Communication) announced it had canceled Mobile World Congress 2020. The confirmation came after Nokia, LG, Facebook, Sony, and other major names had already pulled out. The impact: MWC has been a mixed bag of late when it comes to truly groundbreakling phone launches, but this year was set to be a big moment for 5G. As CCS Insight put it, “the focus would have evolved from far-reaching demonstrations such as flying taxis and remote airships, to more realistic and pragmatic scenarios”. Without that futuristic vision being passed around the industry, it could slow down the impact of new and innovative ways of using 5G we've not yet thought of. The phone launches themselves haven't been cancelled, as some brands who were lined up for the show still made announcements, just with less fanfare. For example, Sony revealed its new Xperia 1 II flagship with a YouTube presentation and others are lined up to launch later in the year. Then there’s the economic impact on Barcelona itself. “We’re looking for solidarity and everybody bearing their own costs,” Mats Granryd, director general of the GSMA, told Bloomberg in an interview. “We’re an NGO and we don’t make a profit. We don’t have huge amounts of funds, and all our proceeds are funneled back into the industry.” Facebook F8Facebook’s big developer conference was set to kick off May 5 this year. Mark Zuckerberg usually opens F8 with a keynote in which he’ll make some vague, non-commitment to privacy, which will be followed by several announcements about the company’s different products and services. The impact: Probably not huge for users, but developers won’t get the benefit of face time with the company. In a statement, Facebook said, “We plan to replace the in-person F8 event with locally hosted events, video and live-streamed content.” And as for Oculus, the company usually holds its own Connect conference in the fall – and right now we assume that’s still on track. GDCIf you’re an independent game dev, the Game Developers Conference, held in February/March each year in San Francisco, is as big as it gets. E3 might have the spectacle, but it’s GDC where smaller games find a home and hardworking developers get their first big break. It's indefinite cancellation is a big blow for multiple people working in the industry, and will have ramifications later on in development cycles. “I think the cancellations of both GDC and E3 will have a major impact on the video game industry, but not a lot of it will be public-facing,” Jason Schrier, News Editor at Kotaku, tells TechRadar. “The companies that planned to announce their games at those shows will still find ways to make announcements. "What people don't realize is how much happens behind the scenes at both of these events - how many games get signed, how many negotiations get started, how many networking events lead to game deals down the road. I think the repercussions will be severe.” The impact: Self-publishing is tough, and these smaller developers often have to spend beyond their budget to come to GDC. So there will be an economic hit on many developers who aren’t able to recuperate their costs. But more important than that, GDC is a place where developers come to meet publishers and demo their games. Not having the opportunity to make those relationships and, in many cases, find a way to publish their game, has obvious ramifications. SXSWSouth by Southwest (known to its friends as SXSW or South By) is Austin’s biggest annual event; a huge melting pot of tech, music and film consuming the city for two weeks each March. After weeks of pressure to cancel the conference, the decision was made by Austin’s mayor Steve Adler who declared a local state of emergency. It came after companies including Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, Netflix and Apple had already pulled out of the conference. Even Trent Reznor and Ozzy Osbourne had dropped out, and if Osbourne won’t risk it, you should probably pull the plug. The impact: For larger tech companies like Facebook and Twitter, the ramifications probably won’t be huge; but it’s a different story for smaller companies and artists. For many indie filmmakers, having a movie premiere at SXSW can launch their career. The cancellation will surely be a setback to many artists who had been given a shot. There will also be wider implications on Austin itself. SXSW is a major economic driver that attracts hundreds of thousands of attendees each year. Even the local press, who rely on the events of SXSW, will be harmed by the cancellation. Google I/OGoogle’s developer conference, held at its Mountain View headquarters in California, is the company’s biggest public-facing event of the year. It’s essentially what WWDC is to Apple, but still bigger than the company’s Made by Google hardware event held in the fall. Google I/O 2020 was due to take place May 12-14, but desoite saying on March 3 that it was going to make it an online-only event, on March 21 it was formally announced to have been postponed. The impact: I/O is where Google announces some of its biggest news to entice both developers and product users. Previous I/O shows have been live streamed, and we were expecting Google to still make some major announcements around that time – it’s where we thought we'd learn more about Android 11 – but that's now no longer happening. Like GDC, the biggest impact will be felt by developers who use GDC to network and learn about the nuts and bolts of Google’s plans and products. There are usually heaps of talks held throughout the days and attended by developers – that’s where the impact will be felt hardest. However, we're still expecting the launch of the Google Pixel 4a and the new Airpods-rivalling Pixel Buds, at some point providing they're not delayed by production issues (which we've not heard any rumor of just yet). Google Cloud NextGoogle Cloud Next has now been postponed indefinitely. The event was set to go ahead in a digital-only format from April 6-8, but Google has now pulled the plug entirely. The company says it still intends to hold the event, but has not yet settled on a new date. "Google Cloud has decided to postpone Google Cloud Next '20: Digital Connect out of concern for the health and safety of our customers, partners, employees and local communities, and based on recent decisions made by the federal and local governments regarding the coronavirus," said Alison Wagonfeld, Google Cloud CMO, in a blog post. The impact: Cloud Next is Google's largest enterprise-focused event - it usually consumes the entirety of the Moscone Center in San Francisco. The conference provides a stage for significant announcements relating to G Suite, Google Cloud and the company's other enterprise offerings. Adobe Summit EMEAAdobe Summit, the company's premier digital experience conference, is usually a space for marketers to share best tools and best practices for enhancing customer experience. The show was set to take place between May 13-14 at London's ExCel, but has now joined the growing list of shows disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic. The impact: Having closely monitored the developing situation around COVID-19, Adobe took the decision to pull the plug on the event, where it was set to announce its latest product and platform innovations. Unlike other shows, Adobe Summit EMEA has not been cancelled outright. The company has said the event will take place later this year, although precise dates and details are still to be confirmed. E3 2020The world’s biggest gaming convention is now officially canceled. Scheduled to take place June 9-11 in Los Angeles, E3 2020 was set for another explosive year, despite dwindling support from major companies. In a statement, the ESA said it is “exploring options” with its members to coordinate an online experience in June - and that's going to be important for the future of the event. The impact: The LA convention has been slowly fading in significance. In 2013 Nintendo replaced its press conference with an online presentation, and has continued to do so each year since. In 2019, Sony pulled its presence completely, and had already committed to doing the same in 2020 before E3 was canceled. Nonetheless, all eyes were on E3 2020 as it would be the last show before the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X launch in time for the holidays. Granted, Sony wasn’t set to attend anyway, but we’ve been expecting third-party developers and publishers to announce at the event. Microsoft will be hit hardest here. It wanted to use E3 to drum up hype and will now host a digital event instead. So will next year be business as usual? Possibly not. The ESA’s statement closed with an interesting choice of words: “We thank everyone who shared their views on reimagining E3 this year. We look forward to bringing you E3 2021 as a reimagined event that brings fans, media, and the industry together in a showcase that celebrates the global video game industry.” A “reimagined event” sounds like this year’s cancellation could have been the last straw, and that next year’s show could look quite different. Our own Gerald Lynch even believes that this delay could actually be better for developers: "Recent E3 shows have called the event’s relevancy into doubt. Increasingly, large gaming announcements are made independent of E3, with some companies choosing not to exhibit at the show entirely. "On the eve of its reveal of the PlayStation 5, Sony stated that it would not be attending E3 2020 (prior to the current health scare), while Nintendo has for years preferred to host its own web stream rather than an E3 conference (though it always has a substantial presence on the show floor). And so, it seems, will everyone else this year." However, Kotaku’s Jason Schrier believes the impact will be felt hardest among developers who rely on E3 for forming vital connections. “The networking opportunities will be sorely missed and it's hard to measure just how significant the consequences will be,” he says. Microsoft BuildWhen: 19-21 May Microsoft Build was set to kick off on May 19 in Seattle, but with the number of coronavirus cases in Washington rising, it’s now gone online only. In a statement to The Verge, Microsoft wrote: "The safety of our community is a top priority. In light of the health safety recommendations for Washington State, we will deliver our annual Microsoft Build event for developers as a digital event, in lieu of an in-person event. "We look forward to bringing together our ecosystem of developers in this new virtual format to learn, connect and code together. Stay tuned for more details to come." The impact: Not devastating to users as there's little hardware announced at this conference, but it will definitely suck for developers. We were expecting to hear more about platforms that would power things like dual-screen (or even flexible) devices - that will still be given out on the virtual conference but developers will have to wait longer to get direct information and testing with it. Microsoft Build has become more of a spectacle in recent years, but with around 6,000 developers in attendance it’s a great way to get vital facetime with the company -and other key developers - as they assess how they can interact with the company's new announcements on platform and software. WWDC 2020Will we see WWDC 2020? When: Unconfirmed, but it’s usually the first week of June. Apple’s developer conference, typically held at the San Jose Convention Center in June, has now moved to an 'online only' show. Apple announces its shows quite late in the day, which gave the company a little more time to see how the COVID-19 situation plays out. But with May conferences currently canceling and June creeping up, Apple decided to make sure that flights weren't booked and developers wouldn't be disappointed. And in true Apple style, it decided to barely not to any virus and focus on how positive it was that this 2020 is no longer a physical event: “We are delivering WWDC 2020 this June in an innovative way to millions of developers around the world, bringing the entire developer community together with a new experience,” said Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “The current health situation has required that we create a new WWDC 2020 format that delivers a full program with an online keynote and sessions, offering a great learning experience for our entire developer community, all around the world. We will be sharing all of the details in the weeks ahead.” The impact: WWDC is, obviously, a big show for developers who get the opportunity to speak with engineers at Apple and gain important insights. But it’s also when Apple unveils the next big updates to its software across its products; this year we’ll get our first look at iOS 14 and watchOS 7. Although these software updates won’t roll out until the new products launch in September, Apple needs to get developers excited and prepared to build the next wave of software, and that requires teaching and communication. After all, you want your new iPhone to have working apps, right? While Apple is talking up the online-only platform as 'innovative', not having the opportunity to connect with info directly could still stifle third-party app innovation. “For me, it’s almost the only opportunity in the year where I dedicate full time to learn and test the new frameworks and tools,” Joaquin Durand, a developer from Houston, Texas, who has attended several past WWDC events. ”Lots of people go there just for networking or go to the labs to speak directly to Apple’s engineers about their projects. For them, not talking about their issues in the labs could be a problem”. What’s currently still happeningWe’re only three months into the year and already a large handful of conferences have been cancelled, while others hang in the balance. Here are the upcoming tech and gaming events that could feasibly be cut, and what each could mean. Computex 2020When: 2-6 June Computex is the biggest show in the computing world every year, with everything from big name manufacturers like Dell and AMD to super niche products and wacky custom PC builds on display. But beyond the sheer scope of different computing products on display, Computex is historically a show where we see the biggest computing launches of the year. This year we're expecting AMD Ryzen 4000 processors for mobile along with a load of the best Ultrabooks we'll see over the next year or so. Now, though, we're starting to see a lot of conferences being cancelled, even E3, which is all the way in June, the week after Computex is scheduled to go through. Especially considering that Computex is traditionally held in Taipei, which is just a short plane flight from Wuhan, we could see the show being delayed or cancelled. However, according to a statement from Walter M.S. Yeh, CEO of TAITRA – the organization behind Computex – Taiwan is perfectly safe, and measures have been put in place across the entire country to make sure both visitors and residents are completely safe. The impact: Computex is without a doubt the most important show in the computing world, as there are so many smaller manufacturers that are both trying to get their name out there and looking for industry buyers. If Computex does get pushed back or cancelled, huge manufacturers like AMD, Nvidia, Dell and HP will be fine – they have the resources to make huge launches on their own. But, on the lower end of the industry, it could have a larger impact. IFA 2020When: 4-9 September IFA is still arguably Europe’s biggest tech show, and although it’s a few months away, the sheer scale of the Berlin conference means attendees and vendors will need plenty of warning if it’s not going ahead. As of writing, IFA is still full steam ahead, and with a hugely unclear future in terms of the spread of the virus, it's impossible to say whether events in the summer will still be vulnerable. The impact: Cancellation of this show could be pretty heavy. Like MWC, IFA is a bit of a mixed bag in terms of importance to the industry. It’s become less relevant over the years as major companies have chosen to make their big announcements outside of the show. Even Samsung, the usual headline act in Berlin, makes less of a splash at its annual IFA press conference. That is, unless you’re mad about connected fridges, in which case you could be in for a bad September. The iPhone launchWhen: (likely) 8 September Looking even further ahead, the failure to contain COVID-19 could spell a move for Apple’s hardware event – its biggest of the year. It’s here where the iPhone 12 and Apple Watch 6 will certainly be unveiled, among other things. Again, 5G could play a major role if Apple finally embraces it on the iPhone 12. The impact: This is a big one, and for reasons different to WWDC. Apple’s fall hardware event has become a product itself, and without an audience of baying fans and tech journalists poised to dry-run its products, it won’t generate the same amount of buzz. If it is canceled, we expect the company to still livestream the big reveals, while Apple might seed products directly with journalists straight after the event in order to generate those important hands-on previews which drive momentum to the on-sale date. However, an Apple event is no good without products. Foxconn, Apple’s primary iPhone assembler, had to reduce its output in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, although at the time of writing has ramped its efforts back up as China slows the spread of COVID-19. But even if production is running smoothly by the fall, Digitimes reports that Apple’s self-imposed travel restrictions are delaying testing of the new iPhone, which could cause the announcement to be pushed back. So, what now?Right now, it’s impossible to calculate the impact these canceled conferences will have; in some cases the ramifications could ripple through the industry for years to come, but others will matter less. Carolina Milanesi, Principal Analyst at Creative Strategies, attends many of the conferences mentioned above. For developer conferences, she believes the cancellations won’t be a huge issue for companies. “Because the number of developers attending is usually a fraction of the overall base, these events always have digital sessions available,” she tells TechRadar. “Of course developers who were supposed to attend will miss the hands on and the social side of getting together to learn from each other.” It is, however, the response of the markets as a result of this year’s events that could have the most harmful long-term effects. “Overall I think the ramifications of the coronavirus will go beyond supply chain and events,” says Milanesi. “We will see an impact on demand coming from a weaker consumer confidence as well as a repurposing disposable income.” This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Xbox Series X: 5 things you need to know Posted: 21 Mar 2020 08:25 AM PDT Let battle commence! With both Microsoft’s Xbox Series X and Sony’s PlayStation 5 next-gen consoles having bared their innards, we’re now much closer to knowing the full strengths and weaknesses of each console. And Microsoft is off to a flying start. With fan-friendly features, a dramatic commitment to cross gen play and the most powerful internal hardware of any console we’ve ever seen, the Xbox Series X is already looking worthy of your gaming time. So what’s the key stuff to know about the fourth generation of Xbox hardware? What will you be bragging about after pre-ordering the console in the coming months? Read on for the most exciting features of the Xbox Series X we’ve seen so far.
Full Backwards CompatibilityIt was one of the best good-will moves Microsoft has made in years. After a rocky launch, the Xbox One got back on track with a renewed focus on games – and that included keeping your favorite, older classics available on the newer machine. That’s a trend that’s going to continue with the Xbox Series X – and Microsoft won’t be scrimping on the range on offer. Not only will the entire Xbox One back catalogue work on the new Xbox Series X, but so will select games from all previous Xbox console generations. So whether you’re looking to play the OG Xbox’s Fusion Frenzy or go for another trek around Albion in the Xbox 360’s Fable II, you’ll be able to do it on your brand-spanking new console. And Microsoft has some extra treats in store, too... Retrofitting HDR to Older GamesYep, you read that correctly. Not only will you be able to play your favorite older games on the Xbox Series X, but they’ll also look better than ever before too. Going a step beyond the Xbox One X’s “enhanced” 4K upscaling tech, the Xbox Series X will be able to add HDR effects to older games that never previously had them. Machine learning will be used to intelligently, retroactively apply HDR visual via the raw-power of the Xbox Series X – with no developer intervention necessarily needed. And that goes right the way back to first-gen Xbox games, too. So far, Microsoft has demoed Fusion Frenzy showing off the trick, as well as Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, which runs at 1080p on Xbox One, and now runs at full 2160p (4K) with HDR on Xbox Series X. Pause and Resume Multiple Games in an InstantFor months now we’ve known that the Xbox Series X will make use of a custom SSD storage system to boost what developers are capable of building in their games. While we expected this to result in faster loading speeds and improved texture loading, Microsoft has also used it to implement a sweet new feature ‘Quick Resume’. While we’re still figuring out the exact details of this is going to work, it’ll essentially let you leave multiple games in a stasis-like state, letting you jump instantaneously between a few different titles stored on your machines – and at the exact point you left them at. Think of how you can swipe between apps on your phone and come immediately back to where they were left, but for console games, and you’ll be on the right track. We believe that this will be possible immediately after booting a console from sleep, too. Smart Delivery will Upgrade Older Games You OwnAs the ‘Series’ part of the name suggests, Microsoft sees the new Xbox Series X machines as part of a continuum of the Xbox family heritage. As such, it’s no longer thinking of generational console exclusives, and has committed that first party Xbox games going forward will work on both the new machines (complete with the bells and whistles more powerful hardware affords) and the outgoing Xbox One hardware. Does that mean you’ll have to buy a game twice? Absolutely not. Microsoft will be introducing a new ‘Smart Delivery’ system which will identify which console you’re playing a game on, and deploy the right version, with all the appropriate graphical bonuses, for your system. And it’ll do this without requiring an additional purchase – buy a game on the Xbox One that supports Smart Delivery, and you’ll get the Xbox Series X version for free. So far, Microsoft has committed to all its incoming first party games supporting the technology, while CD Projekt Red has said it’s Cyberpunk 2077 game will make use of Smart Delivery, too. So don’t scrimp on buying Cyberpunk in this generation for fear of missing out on the next. It’s Insanely PowerfulAs if the above hadn’t already suggested so, the Xbox Series X is going to be a ridiculously powerful console. The Xbox Series X is using a custom-designed processor from AMD (an 8-core, 16-thread processor with a maximum clock of 3.8 GHz, making use of Zen 2 and Navi architecture), a a 12TFLOP GPU (with 3,328 Stream Processors spread across 52 compute units) and 16GB of 14Gbps GDDR6(shared between the CPU and GPU). What is interesting is Microsoft seems at pains to point out that the machine will have twice the graphical grunt as the Xbox One X – you're looking at 12TFLOPs vs Xbox One X's 6TFLOPS – but this shouldn't be confused with compute power. Still, combined with the HDMI 2.1 standard, there's enough raw power here to get games running at frame rates as high as 120fps, or potential 8K resolutions for less-demanding content.
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| Best meditation apps: practice mindfulness with Headspace, Calm and more Posted: 21 Mar 2020 08:00 AM PDT The best meditation apps could help you to sleep better, reduce your stress levels and find some much-needed inner peace. But given the situation right now with Covid-19, even if meditation apps just give you a break from the news and a chance to chill out for ten minutes, they’re more than worth it. Headspace, one of the most popular meditation apps around, first launched 10 years ago. Since then, hundreds of other meditation apps have been created and that means finding the best meditation app for you can be overwhelming. But when it comes to meditation, choice is a good thing. There are now meditation apps to cater to all kinds of people and preferences. From apps for beginners that walk you through the basics of meditation (like Headspace and Buddhify), through to those that just provide you with a timer and sound cues so you can ‘freestyle’ your meditation practice instead (like Samsara Timer and Pocket Meditation Timer). Not only are there different styles of apps, but different variations of meditative practice. You’ve likely heard celebs shout about the benefits of transcendental meditation, but most of the meditation apps you can download, and the ones on this list, allow you to practice a form of mindfulness meditation – less focus on chanting and mantras and more focus on, well, focus. What is mindfulness meditation?It’s easy to roll your eyes at the word ‘mindfulness’. We’ve all been inundated with books, articles and apps about becoming more mindful, from mindful swimming and shopping to mindfultidying and travelling, and everything else in-between. But, put simply, mindfulness is about being present and noticing what’s happening. Contrary to popular belief, that doesn’t mean emptying your mind. Instead, it means paying more attention. Whether that’s to your thoughts, your breath or sounds around you. The benefit of mindfulness meditation is that you can start to take some of the presence and awareness you feel when you’re meditating into everything else you do throughout the day. And, giving you the tools to be a bit more present throughout the day is just one of the many benefits of meditation. It’s still early days for scientific studies (so we can’t say for definite that meditation works well for everyone and brings about the same benefits for everyone), but results are promising. So far, studies have shown meditation can lower blood pressure, improve sleep, alleviate some of the symptoms of depression, reduce stress and increase self-compassion, improve your memory and even bolster your immune system. With all of that in mind, here’s our top pick of the best meditation apps at the moment. All of which we’ve used and tested (in some cases for years) to bring you the best chance of cultivating a bit more calm and a little less stress in your life. 1. Waking UpBest for those who want a simple practice steeped in insight Waking up was created by Sam Harris, a neuroscientist, philosopher, podcaster and author who teaches and discusses meditation in a modern, scientific context. What we like about the Waking Up app above all others is it’s no-nonsense. There’s no chanting, twinkling rain sounds or spiritual references. Even the app itself has a very easy-to-use and minimal design. The goal here is to be present and aware. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t also soothing and transformative. We’ve been using Waking Up for more than a year and have found it’s made a huge difference – particularly to stress levels and reactiveness. There are two sections of Waking Up. The Practice section is where you can access simple daily meditations narrated by Sam Harris himself. When you first sign-up to the app, these daily practices will serve as an introduction to meditation, easing you into the basics of sitting still and becoming more aware. But there’s also a section called Theory, which is about learning what’s going on behind the practice. Sam Harris interviews a number of prominent figures in the meditation, self-development and neuroscience spaces to discuss topics like death and awareness and also posts smaller lessons, which are like chunks of wisdom we sometimes listen to when we’ve already meditated that day. This wealth of lessons, interviews and additional insights about meditation is what makes Waking Up stand apart from the competition. This is why we recommend Waking Up for those who want to get to grips with meditation, as well as the science and thinking behind it. Pricing: Free. But with in-app purchases to unlock more content. You can also get in touch with Sam Harris and the creators if you really want to try more of the app but can’t afford it. 2. HeadspaceBest for beginners Headspace is one of the most popular meditations apps – and for good reason. We first started meditating with Headspace more than six years ago and credit it with getting our heads around the obstacles that can come up when you first choose to meditate. How do we sit still? What if we get caught up in thinking? How do we stop beating ourselves up when we get distracted? It managed to ease us into a daily practice through an easy-to-use app full of color, simple instructions, fantastic visuals to illustrate what’s going on when you meditate and the soothing voice of Headspace’s founder, Andy Puddicombe. This is a great first port of call for beginners looking to get to grips with meditating. One of the best bits is there are so many different types of meditation to try for all kinds of situations. Whether it’s a simple mindfulness practice, meditation for kids, for sleep or for when you’re busy, including mindful cooking. We particularly love the SOS meditations, specially designed for mini meltdowns. There’s one for feeling overwhelmed and another for panicking, which we’ve used on many, many occasions to get us back to neutral. Pricing: Free. But with in-app purchases to unlock more content. 3. CalmBest for those who can’t get enough of meditation When you first open the Calm app it tells you to take a deep breath and that’s what the whole experience with the app feels like. A breath of fresh air and a chance to switch off and slow down, just for a few minutes. One of our favorite things about Calm is you’re asked what your focus is before you begin. Whether that’s developing gratitude, increasing happiness or, our favorite, reducing stress. Calm has a wide selection of different meditations to choose from. There’s a series about confidence, one about saying yes to life, and even a Sigur Ros sound bath experience for when you don’t want guidance but just want some soothing sounds to chill out to. There’s also a Sleep Stories section of the app all about helping you to sleep soundly. With bedtime stories read by soothing voices or famous soothing voices, including Matthew McConaughey. He tells a story about the universe called Wonder and it’s a very, very dreamy experience. If you don’t fancy following a guided meditation, Calm also has a timer and a huge catalog of calming music, sounds and ambient noises to choose from, many are geared up for sleep but others are just lovely to listen to while you’re working or doing chores. We think there are better apps for teaching you the basics of meditation, but Calm has the widest range of meditations, sounds, sleep features and stories to choose from. For us, it really delivers on its name – it’s a destination for calm. Pricing: You can sign up for a 7-day free trial of Calm. It’s then £42.99/$42.99 for a year. 4, BuddhifyBest for those who want to practical tools to help them through the day Even though we’re creatures of habit, many of us don’t always want to meditate in the same way each and every day. That’s where Buddhify comes in. Sometimes you might want something slow and soothing to guide you through a difficult experience, other times you need a simple body scan when you’re waiting at the doctor’s office or in line at the post office. That’s why instead of asking you what you want to focus on (because oftentimes we don’t know, especially if we’re stressed-out) Buddhify will show you a number of scenarios on a colorful wheel and your job is just to choose which situation best describes what you’re going through right now. The app serves up a recommendation focused on what you might need in the moment – and it always tends to perfectly match your situation with a meditation. Whether that’s going to sleep, walking or travelling. Our recommendation would be to kick off your meditation journey with Headspace or Waking Up and then supplement your practice with Buddhify, as it makes meditation less of a sacred practice that requires a quiet room, a comfy cushion and incense and more of a practical and helpful tool. Pricing: £4.99 / $4.99 5. Insight TimerBest for a pick 'n’ mix of meditation Like Calm, Insight Timer is an app with many guided meditation practices, lessons and features to choose from. That means it’s not just an app for meditating, but a one-stop-shop for feeling good, calming down and reading up about the wider thinking and history behind meditation practice and self-development too. There are a range of guided meditations on offer in Insight Timer. You can choose from a beginner kit, which includes learning to meditate or coping with anxiety. Or select how you’d like to meditate based on a particular focus, like sleep, stress and anxiety. Or you can pick the type of practice you’re in the mood for, like paying attention to sound, movement or sitting back and taking part in a guided visualization. There’s a useful 7-day course we’d recommend if you’re new to meditation, which teaches you the basics. But like Calm, we think Insight Timer is a great option once you’ve started to meditate and then want access to a huge range of practices at your fingertips – it’s a pick n’ mix of meditation. Pricing: Free. But with in-app purchases to unlock more content. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| PS5 vs Xbox Series X: what have we learned about the key differences? Posted: 21 Mar 2020 07:24 AM PDT There's a lot of information to digest when it comes to the PS5 vs Xbox Series X competition. And, with both next-gen consoles releasing at the tail-end of this year, there's going to be plenty more on the way in the coming months – but there's also a lot being dropped right now. Sony gave us a good look at the PS5 specs (though sadly not the console's design) in a live stream held by PS5 system architect Mark Cerny on March 18 – who had lots to say about the console's SSD drive and backwards compatibility, even if it seems like the Sony console won't have quite the power of the next-gen Xbox console. Microsoft has been very forthright with Xbox Series X information, revealing the next Xbox's design, name and some upcoming Series X games. We've also got the lowdown on a number of features such as Smart Delivery, which will let you play the "best possible version" of a game you've bought on the Xbox One, without having to purchase it again. Despite any differences in internal capabilities, their release dates are likely to be at the same time – in the same week, that is – so they'll be going directly head-to-head, most likely splitting gamers once again into camp 'Xbox' or 'PlayStation'. The upcoming console launches represent big stakes for both manufacturers, with Sony's lead in the current console war up for grabs as new high-powered hardware hits the market. But can the Xbox Series X take the crown, and what will the new consoles actually do differently from the older Xbox One and PS4? We've put together this Xbox Series X vs PS5 guide to put both next-gen consoles under the microscope, and gauge whether what we know about their pricing (definitely expensive), release date (late 2020), and hardware capabilities (lots) can tell us about the future of console gaming. Xbox Series X vs PS5: key factsImage credit: Sony
Xbox Series X vs PS5: specs so farThough it was Sony to make the first move, giving the first concrete details about its PS5 back in April 2019, Microsoft’s E3 2019 showcase showed that both companies appear to be singing from the same hymn sheet with their new machines’ internal specs. The PlayStation 5 will run off a custom-built version of the third generation AMD Ryzen chipset, packing in 8 cores with the company's new Zen 2 architecture and Navi graphics. The CPU will run at 3.5GHz. The GPU offers 36 compute units running at 2.23GHz and offering 10.28TFLOPs. Those parts are paired with 16GB of GDDR6 with a bandwidth of 448GB/s. It’s a system that will be able to support ray tracing – a performance-intensive lighting technique that has previously been the reserve of expensive high-end PC GPUs, and which we now know will be "built into the GPU hardware" for the PS5. Sony has also talked of the console setting a new “gold standard” in immersive, 3D audio, particularly for those using a headset whilst playing. (Some leaked patents, too, show off some intense ventilation design for handling all that processing power.) We've learned that Sony is delivering this audio through the Tempest Engine, which can handle hundreds of sound sources, for a more realistic audio environment. The PS5 will also support screen resolutions of up to 8K – far higher than the standard 1080p HD of most people’s televisions, let alone that of the increasingly popular 4K. It’ll also work at 120Hz refresh rates, allowing for super-smooth movement in games. These are incredibly performance-intensive specs, so we wouldn’t expect a game to hit these standards regularly (not to mention requiring an expensive TV that will support them), but it’s good to see what Sony is aiming at. Perhaps the most interesting element of the Sony build is its commitment to using SSD storage. The solid state drive in the PlayStation 5 will again be a custom-built piece of hardware, offering up 825GB of storage with a raw 5.5GB/s throughput (and up to 9GB/s worth of compressed data). Sony has already been showing off its technical prowess with a demo of its existing Spider-Man PS4 game. On PS5 hardware, the game is able to race around an incredibly-detailed New York City at incredibly high speeds without any delay in geometry loading or texture streaming, something that would never be possible on PS4. We've got some new tidbits on the next DualShock controller too – though there's currently no official 'DualShock 5' branding. A blog post by PlayStation said that haptic feedback technology would replace last-gen "rumble" features, while "adaptive triggers" will be able to recreate different levels of resistance for different weapon loadouts or types of terrain you might be navigating in-game. The Xbox Series X, meanwhile, is looking incredibly impressive on paper. It too will use custom AMD internals using the same Zen 2 and RDNA 2 architecture of the PS5, making it 4x more powerful than the Xbox One X – this generation’s most technically-impressive gaming hardware. We now know that the Xbox Series X GPU boasts 12 teraflops of compute performance, with 3328 shaders allocated to 52 compute units. It will run at a locked 1,825MHz, and unlike most GPUs, won't fluctuate between speeds. Instead, it will deliver the same clock speed regardless of the temperature of the unit or the game you're playing. The processor is a customized AMD Zen 2 CPU, with eight cores and 16 threads. Interestingly, developers can choose to disable simultaneous multithreading (SMT) to reach a peak speed of 3.8GHz, or hit a base speed of 3.6Ghz when it's enabled. It will be able to run content (if not games) at an 8K resolution, and it will also support 120Hz refresh rates at 4K. The Xbox Series X will match the PS5 by offering DirectX ray-tracing capabilities, and it’ll have a super-fast internal NVMe SSD (which can be expanded with a propriety NVMe card), and can be utilised as virtual RAM to lift load times by up to 40x. Standard RAM will be of the GDDR6 variety, with the Xbox Series X including 16GB - a pleasing upgrade over the Xbox One X's 12GB GDDR5. These specs show a slight lead for the Xbox Series X over the PS5 in terms of raw performance, but we'll have to see how that translates to real-world performance in games. Microsoft hopes to make latency a thing of the past on Xbox Series X, with forward-thinking features such as Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM), communication improvements to the Xbox controller, and Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) support taking advantage of TVs with HDMI 2.1 support. The next Xbox will also be backwards compatible with the Xbox One’s supporting hardware accessories, meaning that you won’t have to rush out and buy new pads and headsets to accompany the console at launch. The Xbox Series X controller will include a few new features, though, such as a dedicated share button and textured bumpers and triggers. Microsoft has also teased that existing Xbox One games like Gears 5 could be enhanced for the Xbox Series X to take advantage of the console's new power. And, if you’re a sucker for buying boxed games over making digital purchases, it’s already confirmed to have a physical disc drive included. Just like the PS5, that will be a 4K UHD Blu-ray drive. Microsoft did pull back the curtain on a few features in February 2020 too. Those features included Smart Delivery, which allows current-gen gamers to play the "best possible version" of purchased games on future consoles. So you can buy a game like the Cyberpunk 2077 for Xbox One, safe in the knowledge you'll get to play the souped-up version on the Xbox Series X at no additional cost. Microsoft also announced a Quick Resume feature that will let you have multiple games paused on the console at once, and pick up where you left off "from a suspended state almost instantly, returning you to where you were and what you were doing, without waiting through long loading screens." We'll be getting Variable Rate Shading (VRS) to "prioritize individual effects on specific game characters or important environmental objects" too. It’s worth mentioning that rumors surrounding Xbox Series X have also involved the possibilities of there being another disc-less console on the horizon codenamed Project Lockhart. The theory here is that the Xbox Series X will be a high-end machine, while Lockhart would be a budget option focusing on streaming (possibly in the vein of the Xbox One S All Digital Edition). At this stage however, they remain merely rumors, as Microsoft is yet to confirm or deny the existence of a duo. If you're concerned about being eco-friendly then the Xbox Series X may not be the best choice. While Sony has claimed the PS5 will be much more energy efficient than its predecessor, the PS4, analysis by Digital Foundry suggests Series X will be pulling twice the power of the Xbox One X – and putting out more heat as a result. Xbox Series X vs PS5: games we expect to seeIt’s early doors for the new next-gen consoles, but already we’re getting a picture of the sort of experiences you can expect to see on the Xbox Series X and the PS5. Let’s kick off with the Xbox, as Microsoft has been a little more open with its line up upfront. First off, Microsoft has confirmed that Halo Infinite, aka Halo 6, will be a launch title for Xbox Series X. The Halo franchise is a unit shifter for Microsoft, a big-budget FPS series that will have been left on a bit of a cliff hanger for five years come the ‘Holiday 2020’ release of Halo Infinite. This is a very big deal. In addition, we also know Senua's Saga: Hellblade II will be releasing for Xbox Series X. Perhaps just as much of a big deal as Halo is the fact that Xbox Series X will be backwards compatible with all existing Xbox platforms from launch. If you have games for the original Xbox, the Xbox 360 and the Xbox One, there’s a good chance they’ll work on Xbox Series X – especially your Xbox One library. How deep Microsoft goes on the libraries of the other generations remains to be seen, but it’s been relatively generous in their support during the Xbox One’s lifetime. We currently don't know any of the PS5's launch titles but we do know the likes of Watch Dogs: Legion and Godfall will be making their way to Sony's next-gen platform. Sony has also confirmed that its PS5 will be backwards compatible, at least with your PS4 game library. How far back it will support the PlayStation family’s game history remains to be seen, but it’s been a little less supportive in this regard during the current generation, aside from within its paid-for PlayStation Now streaming service. Which brings us onto the conversation surrounding game streaming. With Google entering the gaming fray with its Google Stadia game streaming platform, Microsoft and Sony have actually entered a partnership to share and collaborate on game streaming technologies for the next generation. Exactly how this will play out remains to be seen. But with Sony already hosting PlayStation Now, and Microsoft pumping cash into its Project xCloud, don’t be surprised if a good chunk of your game playing time is streamed in over the web during the next generation. As for other titles? We can make some educated guesses that some of the more ambitious games that are currently slated as swansongs for this present generation of consoles will make their way over to the newer machines in "remastered" or "definitive" editions. We're expecting a lot of games that are currently in development, and due for release next year, will be cross-generation titles. That means we're expecting to see the likes of Cyberpunk 2077, Ghost of Tsushima and The Last of Us: Part 2 on both current and next-gen consoles.
Xbox Series X vs PS5: price expectationsAt this point, talking about the Xbox Series X price or the PS5 price is an exercise in speculation. It’s simply too early to tell, and there are too many missing factors in their make up for us to make an informed decision on the specifics of their final price. But what we can say for certain is that the specs teased above don’t come cheaply. These are going to be high-end machines at launch, and will have significant price tags attached to the Xbox Series X pre-order as well as the PS5 pre-order bundles as a result. What we can do, however, is look back at the comparative pricing of the Xbox One and PS4 at launch. One of the reasons the PS4 proved the more popular console during this generation was the fact that it launched at the more attractive price point of $399.99 / £349.99. That was a relative steal compared to the $499 / £429 Xbox One, which at launch had to factor in the cost of its ill-fated (and relatively short lived) Kinect motion tracker. The Kinect was initially hailed as one of the key differentiators between the consoles, but proved unpopular with both developers and gamers, leading to Microsoft slowly phasing it out in an effort to drive the price of the overall package down with later console revisions. Microsoft will not want to make similar mistakes again – its launch pricing (along with its strange initial focus on entertainment capabilities over gaming software), were key factors to its initial struggles, which it’s spent this entire generation fighting against. One company will inevitably undercut the other, but with specs at this stage looking similar enough, don’t expect it to be so dramatic a difference this time around. Gut feelingImage credit: Sony There’s so much yet to learn about the PS5 and Xbox Series X. But at this early stage, the similarities between the two consoles are striking. Sony and Microsoft's joint commitment to SSD tech suggests a parity across both consoles for third party developers to work with. Both consoles will be the result of great efforts to offer deep backwards compatibility across their archives. And the astonishing fact that they’ll be sharing streaming technologies is the sort of collaboration that would once have been unheard of. Microsoft and Sony have clearly been listening to their fanbases – people don’t care about inter-company politics, they just want the best gaming experience possible. But there’s still a tribalism among the fans, and so, as ever, first party gaming content is going to be perhaps more important than it’s ever been. With so many ways to play, from remote access to streaming, the hardware becomes far less important than the experiences they offer – especially when the two platforms are looking increasingly similar. Microsoft is the first out of the gate to announce a platform exclusive title with Halo, but Sony absolutely destroyed the competition in the PS4 generation with its exclusives. Hope for, and expect, nothing less in the console wars to come.
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| Google launches a coronavirus info hub to keep you up to date Posted: 21 Mar 2020 05:30 AM PDT We hope you're staying safe and healthy out there in these strange times, and if you're looking for one more place to get information on the new coronavirus then Google has just provided one. Head to google.com/covid19 to access a host of information about the COVID-19 disease, including symptoms, treatments, and how to avoid getting it in the first place. There are also links to other reliable resources on the web. If you live in the US, you can look up local resources by state as well: Tell Google which region you live in to get information tailored to your specific area.
"Since the beginning of the year, search interest in COVID-19 has continued to climb around the world," says Google's Emily Moxley. "Right now the disease is the largest topic people are looking for globally, surpassing even some of the most common and consistent queries we see in Search." More to comeYou can also use the site to check out the latest search trends for the coronavirus, and to see the number of cases reported worldwide on a global map. There are even links to resources to help you work from home. At the same time, Google is pushing out more information to go alongside coronavirus search results, so whenever you run a query related to the virus or the COVID-19 disease, you'll see some of the same official resources too. Google says the site will be tweaked for international visitors in the near future – though anyone is able to access the US version – and that more information and more resources will be added over time. It's an unprecedented situation that we find ourselves in and it's not clear yet exactly how everything is going to play out – but if you need the facts about the new coronavirus and COVID-19, Google now has you covered. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Need lightning fast internet? These are the best faster fibre broadband deals Posted: 21 Mar 2020 05:00 AM PDT Gamers, streamers, creators and big families gather round. While regular fibre internet plans can suffice for most households, for some it just can't quite keep up with the strain they put on their router. So what do you do to combat painfully slow buffering and weak uploads? Get a speed boost. Look past fibre plans and you find the creatively named 'faster fibre' and the clearly even speedier 'ultrafast' broadband. These kind of plans pump fibre up to some seriously fast speeds. While the lower end offers around the 70Mb average speed mark, it can go up well into the 300/400Mb mark and even higher with select packages. If you're finding yourself exceeding what fibre broadband deals can offer on a regular basis, then we're here to help. We've picked out the top faster fibre plans available and listed them below.
1. Ultrafast broadband and TV rolled into one:2. The best faster fibre broadband deal from BT3. Low prices get even lower with cashback4. Ultrafast fibre at a bargain price tag
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| The Last of Us 2 developer is excited by the possibilities of the PS5 SSD Posted: 21 Mar 2020 04:26 AM PDT Naughty Dog’s Kurt Margenau is still working as co-director on The Last of Us Part 2 for PS4 but he’s looking ahead to the possibilities offered by the PS5’s SSD. Posting on Twitter, Margenau focused on the console’s fast, custom 825 GB SSD and the leaps “in terms of game design that can be made”, particularly for first parties. Looking aheadThis comes after Sony’s lead system architect, Mark Cerny, gave a rather technical presentation in which he laid out the PS5’s specifications, highlighting the faster loading times that will be possible with the SSD, compared to the PS4. Margenau isn’t the only one that’s been tweeting about the console, either. Fellow The Last of Us 2 team members Anthony Newman and Michael Barclay also tweeted their excitement about the SSD. Outside of the first-parties, Gearbox’s Randy Pitchford said he was “very excited about that I/O”, while the Founder and CTO of The Order 1886 developer, Ready at Dawn, offered significant praise, calling the PS5 “one of the most revolutionary, inspired home consoles ever designed”. Andrea Pessino also said he didn’t want to encourage or participate in “silly console wars” and that he loves “all gaming platforms” generally. He felt it important to point out that “A console is more than a sum of specs” and that “incremental hardware improvements are important, but abstractions, APIs, integration, and most of all *architecture* are even more so. That’s where the biggest innovations are to come in this age of diminishing returns.” For this reason, he says “focusing on metrics is missing the big picture. I am excited about the PS5 because I think many smart decisions were made that will enable devs to design in new ways, *especially* for expansive games. I was not making a comparison, just sharing my optimism.” Despite praise, following Cerny’s presentation it has been pointed out by our own Bill Thomas that on paper the PS5 hardware is looking less powerful than Microsoft’s own next-gen console, the Xbox Series X, and faces an uphill battle. Of course we don’t know absolutely everything yet, especially in terms of cost and the games that will be on offer, and, really, the proof is likely to be in the pudding—we’ll truly get to appreciate what the next generation of consoles can do when we get the chance to see and play the games for ourselves. The Xbox Series X and PS5 are scheduled to release in the Holiday period at the end of 2020 which is closer than ever. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| PS5 vs Xbox Series X: does the most powerful console always win? Posted: 21 Mar 2020 04:00 AM PDT This week, we finally learned what the PS5 specs and Xbox Series X specs are. These are early days for both consoles, but our expert's opinion is that "the PS5, at least on paper, is much less powerful than the Xbox Series X." There's a lot more to dig into than that, though, and we recommend reading both of our in-depth specs analysis articles, linked above, for some informed opinions on the new consoles. Historically, it's hard to tell how important hardware specs end up being to a console's success. Usually, there are other factors to consider, most obviously the range of games, but also the price of the console, or its appeal beyond traditional players. Timing, too, can play a key part, and additional features may also inform their success. Why did each console actually win its respective generation, then? Below, we've gone back through the last four generations of consoles, to remember how they came out on top, which might give you some idea of what'll determine the victor this time around.
Why the PS4 beat the Xbox OneDid the most powerful console win the generation? In terms of the base consoles, yes. The PS4 had an edge in performance over the Xbox One from the start, with many games achieving higher resolutions on PS4 than Xbox One (there's a long list of comparisons on this front in IGN's database). But the later-released Xbox Series X is more powerful than the PS4 Pro, and Xbox is still ending the generation well behind overall, with PS4 sales topping 100 million. What actually won the generation? Other factors determined the PS4's victory lap. The Xbox One was more expensive at launch, and experienced a PR disaster around its stance on pre-owned games (which it was forced to retract). Its Kinect peripheral was also removed entirely after release, which seemingly showed a lack of confidence in the offering, though it enabled Microsoft to bring the price down. The Xbox One has also never had the quality of software that the 360 did, despite highlights like the Forza series and Sea of Thieves. The PS4, meanwhile, has thrived with big, story-driven narrative exclusive titles like God of War and Horizon Zero Dawn. Why the Wii beat the PS3 and the Xbox 360Did the most powerful console win the generation? No. The Nintendo Wii won with over 100 million units sold, and it couldn't even output in HD. But there was no clear loser in this generation, really. The PS3 and 360 both ended in similar positions sales-wise (80 million+ units), and despite the PS3 being tricky to develop for (to the point where PlayStation's Mark Cerny referenced it this week), games ended up performing similarly across both after a rocky first few years for PS3 ports. There were some notable exceptions, though, like Bayonetta's notoriously bad PS3 version. The Wii U, which launched in 2012, had a better GPU than its competitors did (and a reportedly less capable CPU), but otherwise ran games to a comparable quality. Its real problem, though, was that its USP of a second screen simply didn't catch on. The Wii U didn't look like a serious upgrade to PlayStation or Xbox players, either, and proper next-gen consoles would follow a year later. What actually won the generation? Casual gaming. The Wii's promise was all about gaming as part of your family's lifestyle, with Wii Sports promoting local multiplayer, and Wii Fit expanding Nintendo's remit beyond Mario, Zelda and company. Motion control had a serious novelty factor that sold the Wii to many people outside of the traditional gaming audience. But the PS3 and 360 both had solid generations, ultimately, and Microsoft in particular made huge strides over its preceding console in sales thanks to the quality of its software and industry-leading online offering. Why the PS2 beat the Xbox, Dreamcast and GameCubeDid the most powerful console win the generation? No. The PS2 was considered less powerful than the GameCube and original Xbox (here's a good old Popular Mechanics article on that), but that didn't matter one bit. The PS2 is the best-selling home console of all time at over 140 million units, while neither of its competitors broke 30 million. The consoles had so much overlap in their software offerings, too, that you'd be hard-pushed to notice the difference between the consoles unless you paid attention to subtle visual details or load times, where the Xbox was particularly strong. What actually won the generation? The PS2's DVD player combined with its massive third-party library of software won out, eliminating the Dreamcast early on. The PS2 was also first to market after the Dreamcast, beating the GameCube and Xbox by over a year and a half, giving it a serious advantage. By that point, the PS2 already had mega-selling games like Gran Turismo 3 and GTA 3, ensuring its dominance. Why the PlayStation beat the N64 and Sega SaturnDid the most powerful console win? No, but this case is complicated by more factors than the N64 having a more powerful CPU and more RAM than the PlayStation. Sony's decision to use CD-ROMs gave it a serious advantage in terms of capacity and audio, while Nintendo stuck with 4-64MB capacity cartridges. Games like Metal Gear Solid wouldn't have been the same on N64 because of the amount of audio (dialogue, in Metal Gear's case) stored on the CDs. That's why it's a miracle that Resident Evil 2, say, released on N64 at all (here's a great feature on Eurogamer about that). What actually won the generation? This one was all about software: the range of it, the quality of it, and the price of it. And Sony won on all counts, while the N64 struggled with third-party support after dominating with the SNES. The PlayStation killed the Sega Saturn, too, by costing $100 less in North America, and it didn't help that Sega's console never had a proper Sonic game to help it sell. The N64, too, released over a year later than the PlayStation, and was extremely slow to build up its software library. The conclusion?Games tend to matter more than the hardware itself in each console generation. When people see what a Horizon sequel looks like on PS5, they won't be thinking about how the specs line up next to the Xbox Series X. They'll just be wishlisting the console to themselves. That's why it's so important that Xbox gets the right balance of games during this generation. And while you can tell Microsoft has an immense amount of pride in its new hardware, its spate of developer acquisitions like Obsidian and Ninja Theory underline that it knows great exclusives are fundamental to the success of each system. This feels like a generation where both manufacturers should avoid their past mistakes, and really provide each other with some effective competition. Still, we don't know how much these consoles will cost yet, and so much depends on that.
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| Microsoft wants to banish jerky scrolling from Edge browser – and Google Chrome Posted: 21 Mar 2020 03:03 AM PDT Microsoft is continuing to work hard on its revamped Edge browser, and has just implemented a change that will make for smoother scrolling when viewing websites and using the scrollbar. And the further good news is that while this change is still in testing, it has also arrived in preview for the Chrome browser (as Edge is based on Chromium, the same engine as Chrome, Google’s browser will benefit from some of the changes Microsoft is making – like this one, with any luck).
As spotted by Windows Latest, Microsoft has deployed the tweak to the earliest preview builds of Edge: Canary and Dev. The move shifts composited scrollbar scrolling to the ‘impl’ thread, meaning that “even when the main thread is busy, users can continue to interact with and scroll using scrollbars.” (The compositor is split into two halves – the main thread, and the impl thread). It’s not necessary to know the exact technical ins-and-outs, of course, but the new way of facilitating scrolling should be generally more responsive, and will be particularly helpful when it comes to busy websites with lots of stuff going on, ushering in a more fluid scrolling experience. The change has been implemented in the Chromium project, which means other Chromium-powered browsers should be able to take advantage of it. Chrome polishIndeed, one of Microsoft’s software engineers said that these scrolling benefits have recently been implemented with Chrome Canary (to be precise, version 82.0.4072.0 of the early test version of Google’s browser adopted this new scheme of things). The engineer notes: “This will be a perf [performance] win for scrolling on Chromium based browsers and takes us all one step closer towards scrolling unification.” Another recent useful change in the pipeline for Microsoft Edge is the ability to switch away from Bing being the default search engine when you open a new tab, so you can use Google (or your other preferred search site) instead.
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| Want Disney Plus UK? Last chance to grab this pre-order deal before Monday Posted: 21 Mar 2020 03:02 AM PDT This week, we learned a few new things about Disney Plus ahead of its UK launch on Tuesday, March 24. The brand new Disney-themed streaming service will launch with two episodes of The Mandalorian instead of one as expected, and two new episodes of The Clone Wars will release each week until the series catches up with the US, at which point episodes will be released simultaneously. New episodes of all originals will roll out at 8am each Friday, too, which is the same time they appear in the US. This is your last chance to pre-order a year of Disney Plus at a £10 discount before the offer ends on Monday. For the US version of the service, discounts have been extremely rare, with one similar price drop on Cyber Monday 2019. So if you think you want the service, pre-ordering for £49.99 means you get the service at about £4.17 per month, a big saving on the monthly price of £5.99. Here's the deal, which expires on March 23: Not sure you want it yet? That's okay. You could wait until launch and hedge your bets by getting it monthly for £5.99, only paying for it when you feel like you need it. If you're on the fence, we've picked out 5 highlights from the Disney Plus UK line-up. You can also find the full launch line-up of movies and shows here, which is impressively comprehensive, especially with 30 seasons of The Simpsons in tow. You can read our Disney Plus review for thoughts on the app, too. We'll update our review in the coming days as we dig into the service. Disney Plus arrives in the UK on March 24. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Overwatch 2 release news, rumors, modes and trailers Posted: 21 Mar 2020 02:51 AM PDT After months of speculation, Overwatch 2 made its official debut at BlizzCon 2019. The sequel to Blizzard's team-based shooter was revealed by creative director Jeff Kaplan at the annual event, accompanied by an emotional cinematic trailer (which you can find below). Overwatch 2 is a bit of a deviation from the series' usual format. The sequel will feature new PvP modes, with Push being the staple of competitive play, as well as new maps, cosmetic items and characters – including Sojourn, who was unveiled during the event. While these new PvP modes are expected, new for the series is the addition of story and hero missions that allow for cooperative play – a first for the Overwatch series. In these "highly-replayable" missions, you and five friends will attempt to complete objectives together against the AI, which should serve as a welcome reprieve from the intense online PvP modes the series is known for. There's quite a lot to wrap your head around – but don't worry, as we've gathered together everything we know about Overwatch 2 so far below for your perusal. [Update: Overwatch has announced what is "very likely" its last hero before Overwatch 2. Read on to find out more.] Cut to the chase
Overwatch 2 release dateBlizzard officially unveiled Overwatch 2 at BlizzCon 2019. Apparently the sequel is still in early development and Blizzard doesn't know when it will release. "I don't know. I have no idea," creative director Jeff Kaplan said during the Overwatch 2 reveal panel. "Like, just let us make it great, that's what we care about more than anything. We don't have a date in mind." In January 2020, the official PlayStation Brazil Twitter account caused some excitement when it tweeted that "2020 will be the year Overwatch 2 comes to PS4" before deleting the tweet (naturally now preserved in screenshot form by Voxel). This was then followed up a matter of days later by a tweet from the official account of the Overwatch League team Vancouver Titans (via Dexerto) which also mentioned a 2020 release date before being deleted. But with no official comment from Blizzard this should be taken with a pinch of salt. It might be a simple mistake rather than a leak. Overwatch 2 trailersOverwatch 2 was officially revealed by Jeff Kaplan at BlizzCon 2019, alongside an eight-minute cinematic trailer titled "Zero Hour". Check it out below (but have some tissues at the ready): During BlizzCon 2019, Blizzard also dropped a three-minute gameplay trailer for Overwatch 2 which showcases the sequel's new look. Watch it below: Overwatch 2 news, rumors and confirmed featuresWe've gathered together all the news and rumors surrounding Overwatch 2 below, alongside the confirmed features so far: Echo comes to Overwatch Blizzard has announced a brand new Overwatch hero called Echo and has said that it's "very likely" going to be the last hero added to the base game before Overwatch 2. Talking to Polygon, Jeff Kaplan said that the development team has “a number of new heroes in development. We have multiple tanks, and we have multiple supports in development. But after Echo, the team is going to be heavily focused on Overwatch 2 development.” At the moment, though Kaplan doesn't have any release date details to give, adding that “development is going great. The team’s having tons of fun making the game, I feel like we’re starting to understand it even more.” It seems that Overwatch 2 is still a way off yet. Michael Chu leaves Blizzard Overwatch's lead writer Michael Chu has announced his departure from Blizzard after 20 years of working there. Chu, responsible for much of the game's lore and character back stories, posted the news to his blog and on Twitter. Chu hasn't revealed what his next steps are but has said he hopes "to continue to tell these stories and build worlds that unite people through games." Overwatch fans, naturally, will want to know how this departure might impact the development of Overwatch 2, especially since it seems to be putting an emphasis on Story and Hero missions. According to Blizzard in a statement (via PCGamer), the game shouldn't be affected. "We’re incredibly grateful to Michael for his contributions, and his presence at Blizzard will be missed. We’re not anticipating an impact to our plans for Overwatch 2. The game’s development is a massive collaborative effort involving talented people across multiple teams, all with a shared commitment to the values of Overwatch and the vision for Overwatch 2. We’re working hard to create an epic, story-driven experience for players, and we can’t wait to share more." Another release date tweet Not long after the official Twitter account for PlayStation Brazil tweeted about a 2020 release date for Overwatch 2, the official Twitter of the Overwatch League team, the Vancouver Titans, has done the same thing. Like the tweet made by PlayStation, this latest tweet has since been deleted but it's been captured by Dexerto. The tweet says "Overwatch 2 is coming out this year" before going on to express excitement about "all the new game modes". As before, Blizzard hasn't made any official comment so it remains possible that this is just another mistake from an official Twitter account. Though it's now a touch more suspicious that two groups who potentially have close ties to Overwatch 2 have made this error. Regardless, we won't know the truth of the matter until we hear from the developer itself. Release date leak? The official Twitter account for PlayStation Brazil has caused some excitement amongst Overwatch fans after tweeting out that "2020 will be the year Overwatch 2 comes to PS4". The tweet has since been deleted but a screenshot has been captured by Voxel. There's been no official comment from Blizzard on the matter but it's quite possible this was a simple mistake on the part of the PlayStation Brazil Twitter team. We won't know for sure until we get an official comment; previously Jeff Kaplan has flat out said he doesn't know when the game will launch as it's still in its early stages. Teasing another hero? Blizzard has been fairly tight-lipped when it comes to the hero roster for Overwatch 2 but fans who tuned into Jeff Kaplan's Yule Log livestream have been left wondering if the director was teasing a new hero for the next release (via ComicBook). During the course of Kaplan's livestream, while building an Overwatch Lego set at around the 6 hour and 11 minute mark, he mentions established Overwatch character Junker Queen and threw out some questions on whether or not she's "ever going to be a hero" and what role she might take if she was one. It was far from a confirmation of anything but it's been enough in an otherwise quiet livestream to grab the attention of Overwatch fans. We imagine if Junker Queen is going to be a hero in Overwatch 2 we'll get a confirmation closer to the game's release whenever that may be. Larger maps and more heroes In a recent interview, Overwatch 2's assistant director, Aaron Keller, and lead writer, Michael Chu have expanded a little on the team's ambitions for PvE play. According to Keller, there are "lots of heroes" in the work for the game and that its PvE maps are "2x larger than regular Overwatch maps." This increased scale is all in the service of telling more story in the Overwatch world and that the new co-op story missions will allow for “a more traditional way to tell a story in the Overwatch universe.”. A story which, Chu said, will have a "beginning, middle, and end". Naturally, as stated before, PvP is still a focus for the team and progression in PvP will be "entirely separate" from PvE. According to Keller, “we don’t want gameplay changing talents and abilities to give an unfair advantage in PvP. We’re still exploring what players can earn in PvE and building out the progression system for that. Our goal is to make a robust meaningful progression system that feeds into our Hero Missions where players can play and replay for many hours or as their main mode of play after they complete the Overwatch 2 story.” Narrative focus PvP is still a focus In fact, according to Kaplan, a huge focus for the Overwatch 2 team is making PvP as good as it possibly can be – which includes new maps, new modes and new characters further down the line. Cosmetic items will cross over Hero missions Overwatch and Overwatch 2 are compatible Co-op missions Overwatch 2 Play Story missions New engine upgrades BlizzCon 2019 Overwatch 2 will feature new PvP modes, with tug-of-war Push being the staple of competitive play, as well as new maps, cosmetic items and characters, including Sojourn. While the new PVP modes are expected, new for the series is the addition of story and hero missions that allow for cooperative play – a first for the series.
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| Cyberpunk 2077 release date, price, trailers, gameplay and news Posted: 21 Mar 2020 02:32 AM PDT The Cyberpunk 2077 release date was delayed to September 17, meaning it won't be hacking into our digital lives this April after all. The game is complete, says developer CD Projekt Red, but the extra time allows for more polish, and you can expect new teasers, trailers and gameplay footage in the coming months thanks to the delay. Cyberpunk 2077 is a massive dystopian RPG launching on Xbox One, PC, and PS4 – and it could be the current-gen swan song before PS5 and Xbox Series X come out, or even after, with a confirmed Xbox Series X release and a PS5 one highly likely to follow. This vast open-world game is draped in dizzying neon colors and futuristic gadgetry, and packed with more branching storylines than you could shake a high-tech drone at. In both an extended Cyberpunk 2077 trailer and in our hands-off demo at E3 2019, we saw a bit more of the metropolis of the future, where body modification has become an obsession, and you play a mysterious outlaw in the sleazy underbelly of Night City. (Will we see more at E3 2020? It's likely.) Here's all the news, trailers, and announcements we've had on Cyberpunk 2077 so far. Or, if you can't take the anticipation ahead of the game's 2020 release, check out our thoughts on the Cyberpunk RED tabletop role-playing game instead. [UPDATE: CD Projekt Red has said it's taking steps in the face of the Coronavirus pandemic to keep Cyberpunk 2077's development on track. Read on to find out more.] Cut to the chase
What is Cyberpunk 2077?Cyberpunk 2077 is a neon cyberpunk game that has The Witcher 3 developer CD Projekt Red moving from a gritty, high fantasy world to an equally gritty, science fiction world metropolis. It's based off the pen-and-paper RPG of the same name, but plays a hell of a lot like The Matrix game we've always wanted. We caught our first peek at the game behind closed doors at E3 2018 – you can check out what we saw in the 48-minute walkthrough video below (in the trailers section). Cyberpunk 2077 is a game that looks vastly different from its developer's The Witcher series, with towering neon skyscrapers, bionic enhancements and a focus on vertical movement rather than wide open plains. It's also all in first-person. At E3 2019 we learned a lot more about the plot of the game, which features the one and only Keanu Reeves. Reeves plays a character named Johnny Silverhand who's embedded in a biochip that's placed in the main character's brain. In order to unlock the secrets to the biochip, what basically becomes the main thread of the game, Silverhand will guide you to Alt Cunningham, the most legendary net runner of all-time. The only problem? She’s dead. But her consciousness lives on the web and you’ll need to do whatever it takes to track her down – including, but not limited to, befriending or eliminating leaders of the biggest gangs in Night City. Cyberpunk 2077 release dateThe Cyberpunk 2077 release date is September 17, 2020. It wasn't always that way, as the game's first official teaser trailer stated it would come out “when it’s ready.” It didn't have a solid date attached to it until the E3 2019 trailer, which gave it an April 16, 2020 launch date. That was the constantly touted Cyberpunk 2077 release date for six months until the latest (and hopefully last) delay. The reason for the Cyberpunk 2077 delay to September isn't because the game isn't done. CD Projekt Red says it's finished, but more time to fine-tune the expansive game is necessary. It is, after all, a massive RPG. Cyberpunk 2077 trailersThe latest Cyberpunk 2077 trailer is a 15-minute deep dive into the game's lore, world, and gameplay. If you don't mind spoiling some of the visual treats in store – including what it's like to actually step into cyberspace – check out the video here. E3 2019 gave us an incredibly slick trailer, with a look at some new characters, weapon-play – including Keanu Reeves, who will be playing the rock star Johnny Silverhand. Get your fix in the trailer below. In March 2019, we got yet another video, this time of the development team gearing up for the E3 2019 showcase event. Those hoping for a 2019 release may want to start to brace themselves however – though the game remains without a release date, the suggestion of the video below is that development is still in full swing, and a release date may be some time away yet: After a veritable truckload of hype, CD Projekt Red released 48 minutes of gameplay footage, based on the demo journalists saw at E3 2018. In it, you'll see what gunplay looks like, character creation and backstory assignment, plus how you'll upgrade yourself via cybernetic enhancements. You'll meet some of the characters in Cyberpunk's seedy crime circuit and explore the city on foot and in vehicles. (Quick warning: the trailer contains nudity, violence and swearing.) We were treated to a Cyberpunk 2077 trailer during E3 2018 which you can watch below:
Cyberpunk 2077 news and featuresCommitted to no further delays CD Projekt Red has it is aiming to avoid another delay to the game's release despite the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. In a message posted to Twitter, the developer has said it's upgraded its equipment and infrastructure so that its staff can work from home "for as long as it is needed" adding that "while this all is a bit new to everyone, we are rising to the challenge and showing no signs of stopping in our effort to bring you some kick-ass role-playing action in September." Hopefully the studio's efforts will be as successful as it hopes and will avoid any delays but, of course, the health and safety of the studio's employees is far more important than that. Submitted for age rating Cyberpunk 2077 has reached an important stage: it's been submitted to age ratings agencies around the world. The news comes from CD Projekt Red Head of Studio Adam Badowski who tweeted that the game has now been sent out to PEGI, ESRB and others, adding that while the team awaits the rating it is "polishing technical aspects and playtesting it". This is an exciting reveal to fans after the game's five month delay and Badowski notes teasingly that the game is "looking better and better with each passing day". Based on ratings for The Witcher 3 and what we know already about Cyberpunk 2077, it seems likely that the game will receive a high age rating. Who are the Tyger Claws? As we're approaching the release of Cyberpunk 2077 new information on the game has been a little limited and CD Projekt Red has been keeping quiet. But a recent video posted to YouTube by Madqueen Show (via VG247) is purporting to reveal one of the gangs that will roam Night City when the game is released: Tyger Claws. The gang, which also exists in the tabletop RPG of the game, is described in the video as being “a Japanese booster gang" which "settled in the district of Westbrook, also known as ‘Japantown,’ the part of the city where people go when they’re looking for thrills. As they are the protectors of the Japanese community at large, it is thought they are backed up by one of the most powerful megacorporations of Cyberpunk 2077: Arasaka.” The contents of the video haven't been confirmed by CD Projekt Red but adding some credence to it is a Tyger Claws poster over on the official Projekt Red store which describes Tyger Claws as a Night City gang hailing from Japantown. Another gang poster features a group called the Valentinos from the barrio. Grimes tells all in apparent gameplay leak Grimes appeared on a live stream in late February, and spoke about her involvement in Cyberpunk 2077 as the singer / performer Lizzy Wizzy, possibly revealing more than she was meant to, with mention of how her in-game character appears and the rather sci-fi situation she finds herself in. Spoilers below, obviously. The YouTube video was quickly pulled, but this thread on Reddit features a "summary" of what was mentioned (meaning this may not be perfectly verbatim): "I did my voice acting for Lizzy Wizzy, that game is going to be fucking good. I mean I haven’t played it, but I saw someone play an hour of the game. The game was fantastic, and I play a pop star who committed suicide on stage, and they had to quickly come and preform emergency surgery and replace her whole body with cybernetics while she was dead for an hour and then she finished the show as a cyborg. One of the greatest pieces of performance art ever made." Confirmed for Xbox Series X – as a Smart Delivery title The official Twitter account for the game responded to news of Microsoft's new Smart Delivery feature – which allows Xbox owners to access souped-up versions of previously-purchased games, even after switching to a next-gen console – stating that anyone buying Cyberpunk 2077 on Xbox One would get the game for free on Xbox Series X. It's a big incentive to buy early, rather than wait for the improved graphical power of the next-gen console. We doubt PS5 will have the same feature, though you can be sure we'll get official word on the game coming to the next-gen PlayStation console too. As to when the next-gen versions will land? The tweet only says "when available", though we expect it will happen some time in 2021. Nvidia GeForce Now support You'll have to buy Cyberpunk 2077 on Steam before playing it on GeForce Now but this is a big win for Nvidia after losing Activision Blizzard's games. VR not happening Mamais wasn't particularly forthcoming on the topic of a port for Nintendo Switch, either, saying it's unlikely but that similar things had been though of The Witcher 3. “I don’t know if Cyberpunk 2077 would work on the Nintendo Switch. It might be too heavy for it. But then, we did put Witcher 3 on it and we thought that would be too heavy too, but somehow we pulled it off.” Big names on the soundtrack Game map Reddit Q&A reveals more details According to the poster, the game's day and night cycle will have an impact on quests; at certain times of day, for example, a location may be more or less guarded which could impact your likelihood of success. Weather, though, won't have an impact quite so severe although in-game characters will react to it. The game's crime system has been revealed as being similarly dynamic— so police won't jump on you for a small crime like, say, assault on a particular individual. But they will "absolutely try to fry your ass" for more extreme things like causing harm to large groups of people with a gun or vehicle. Quests in the game will be wide-ranging, branching and evolving, even impacting one another. And the game won't necessarily end with the completion of the main story; you can opt to keep playing. Replayability is said to be higher with this game than The Witcher 3. As far as customization goes, the developer has acknowledged that players are interested in car customization but has asked for more patience before saying anything with regards to any plans, while, interestingly, there won't be an option to buy a new apartment. Instead V's apartment will evolve and change depending on the paths that players take when playing the game and it'll feature options within it for customization and expression though what they are has not been confirmed. Post-launch content In an interview with GameSpot at PAX Australia, the head of CDPR's Krakow office, John Mamais said “I think it’s a bad idea to do microtransactions after you release a game. It seems like it’s very profitable, though. It’s probably a hard decision for the guy that runs the business to decide if we should do it or not. But if everyone hates it, why would we do something like that and lose the goodwill of our customers?” As far as Mamais is concerned, the Witcher 3's model which saw free DLC launched with big paid expansions was "a good model" which "worked pretty well." As a result, Mamais added "I don’t see why we wouldn’t try to replicate that model with Cyberpunk 2077. We’re not talking about that yet, but it seems like that would be the smart way to go.” Photo mode? The video shows a scene of the Night City skyline while the symbol of a camera shows briefly. The hashtags on the tweet itself read Capture Cyberpunk and Photos From Night City. This makes a photo mode seem very likely and given it's a feature found in most big budget games these days that may not be entirely surprising. However, the game's first person perspective may present some challenges if CD Projekt Red wishes to allow players to take pictures which will include their fully-customised avatars. No Reeves romance for you What about multiplayer? Character creation will be gender fluid Jonkers said that "you don’t choose your gender anymore. You don’t choose, ‘I want to be a female or male character’ you now choose a body type. Because we want you to feel free to create any character you want." GTA-style radio Coming to Stadia Spin-off card game “The game thrusts players into the dark alleyways of Night City, where ruthless gangs clash with corporations in an endless war for money, power, and control. “In Cyberpunk 2077: Afterlife, players become Fixers, the data brokers and masterminds in Night City that recruit cyberpunks, equip them with gear, and send them out on missions. But nothing's free in Night City. Players need to balance between what they want and what they can actually afford. Using an innovative drafting mechanic and special dashboard, players must decide which cards they want to buy, and which to sacrifice for funds in order to purchase new ones. Each successful mission raises the player's Street Cred, with mission survivors becoming Veterans, imparting their knowledge and experience to newer recruits. In this chrome-infused world, Street Cred is the only currency that truly matters.” Hardcore mode that says goodbye to UI Of course, it’s not just the hardcore players that are being catered to in Cyberpunk 2077; Liu revealed that there will also be modes for those who are less experienced with first person games and shooters and wish to enjoy a more laidback experience. “If you want to play more casually for the story and maybe you’re not experienced with shooters, which was a real big concern for us. We want to tell a story and maybe you’re a big fan of The Witcher and you’re not comfortable playing a shooter, we have settings available for that.” Liu explains that as well as settings for less experienced players, there will also be weapons. The smart gun, for example, will help players to aim. Though it comes at the cost of the smart gun being a weaker and slower weapon. It will, however, be a good start for those looking to get to grips with the aiming system. For those unfamiliar with first person games, there’s also going to be a Field of View slider. Making more of the game world visible through the eyes of the avatar should alleviate that sense of tunnel vision that comes from trading third person view for first person and the potential for nausea this can cause some players. Environmental hazards Settings available for those uncomfortable with FPS Cyberpunk 2077 will look just as good on console as PC "Actually no, we have a very custom engine, the RED Engine," Liu responded. "And actually, we’re targeting consoles as first-class platforms and it looks amazing there. So obviously, if you spent, you know, $2,000 building your PC rig, it’s going to look better on that. But the graphics are quite amazing for what you’re going to get from Cyberpunk 2077 on consoles and low-end PCs." Could we see a movie adaptation in the future? "I can’t really say anything on that," Pondsmith told VGC in response to whether he is optioning the Cyberpunk movie rights. "But with Keanu Reeves being tied up in things, it’s become much more of a possibility." "At this point we are teaching people about this new kind of cyberpunk. My favorite film is Blade Runner, but I recognise inherently that it’s a cerebral film and 2049 was even more cerebral. A cerebral film is not necessarily going to allow other people to enter that space and understand it, but at the same time you don’t want to do it totally action." Keanu Reeves' band gets its first single There may or may not be three games in development Take your pick of protagonists There will be romance There will be no morality system There's more than Night City In an interview with VG247, the Lead Quest Designer, Pawel Sasko, revealed that players will be able to go beyond the walls of the metropolis and explore an area known as the "Badlands". Largely desolate and populated by Nomads, this area will have its own quests. You can even start the game as a Nomad and begin your story outside of the city. Multiple Endings New Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay shown at E3 2019, but not playable Inside Pacifica, two gangs – The Animals and The Voodoo Boys – are fighting for supremacy. In order to meet Bridgitte, the head of the Voodoo Boys, you'll have to first deal with her lieutenant Placide, who wants you to infiltrate The Animals' hideout. Your goal, at least you're told, is to find a high-tech van that's monitoring all the network traffic in Pacifica. To get to this van, you'll have to make your way past The Animals' crew. The reason they're called The Animals, it turns out, is because they take a drug that enhances their muscle mass. To get through them you'll either need to fight your way through – a risky proposition – or sneak your way into the hideout. Customization: perks, skills and attributes The choices are vast, and while they're not completely limitless, CD Projekt Red doesn’t want to confine you to a single play style or set path. The reasoning behind that, it seems, is to better mirror the game’s source material – a 30-year-old tabletop role playing game called Cyberpunk (however, there was also a later edition called Cyberpunk 2020). Behind all of the hacking and gunplay lies a fairly complex RPG – the perks screen we saw during our demo had more than 20 perks to choose from and level up. These perks impact how your character plays, but can also impact what choices you have in conversations with the world’s NPCs. Image Credit: CD Projekt Red Vampire Bloodlines and Deus Ex were inspirations for the game Tomaskiewicz said that games such as Deus Ex, Vampire Bloodlines and Elder Scrolls had influenced him in his work on Cyberpunk 2077's quests. He cites the original Deus Ex as a particular influence and praises the ways in which it gives players the freedom to complete missions in multiple ways. This suggests we can expect a great deal of freedom and complexity and non-linearity in Cyberpunk 2077’s missions as well as in the protagonist you'll be using to cause havoc in the game world which is something quite different from the tight gameplay-loop found in The Witcher. CD Projekt Red is working on two AAA titles – both to be released by 2021 This release window was reaffirmed on the official CD Projekt Red forums, with moderator Donata Popławska confirming the studio is sticking to its original roadmap. "As far as the strategy of the CD Projekt Capital Group for 2016-2021 is concerned, its plans to release the second AAA game by 2021 remain unchanged," the moderator wrote (translated via Resetera user Antiax). However, Popławska did not expand on what the second AAA title to be released in this time frame could be. "We are currently focusing on the production and promotion of Cyberpunk, so we do not want to comment on further projects," they continued. Lady Gaga could be making an appearance? In addition ActuGaming claimed the collaboration would be officially announced at E3 2019, with Gaga rumored to be making an appearance at the gaming convention however that didn't happen. In 2018 Gaga tweeted a strange mix of letters and numbers, which the official Cyberpunk 2077 Twitter account replied to with "Of course! Of course we will!", suggesting the A Star is Born actress would be involved with the game in some way or another. E3 2018 confirmed features It's a first person RPG set in a huge open world known as Night City – a metropolis split into six districts, each offering a different environment to explore. During the demo we only saw a small part of one of them. Players can create their own character called V and embark on their journey to crawl up from the criminal underbelly. This is a dark game and though The Witcher series is mature, this takes it to a new level. As you'd expect, the game lets you augment your body using various bits of tech – illegal or otherwise – and you can use drugs to enhance your combat, or a kind of digital brain-hack called 'Braindance'. We know weapons are wide ranging and seriously creative, with smart guns and bullets as well as terrifying Mantis Blades for melee. There are no loading screens in Cyberpunk 2077 and the story and side quests are branching and numerous, and your choices genuinely impact the outcome. You can read more about how impressed were were by what we saw. Image Credit: CD Projekt Red It will be on Steam It’s going to be bigger than The Witcher 3 In fact, he said that The Witcher 3 was being treated as a learning experience and that they could do better. To do better, the studio has doubled in size with studio head Adam Badowski saying that after The Witcher 3, Cyberpunk 2077 needs to be “even better, even bigger, even more revolutionary” than what had originally been planned. There may be multiplayer The company president said in March 2018 that these elements are not on the table right now, so it's possible that they'll be introduced after the game's release in a sort of online world like GTA Online. There will be online Whether or not the online elements will feed into the multiplayer is unclear. But there won't be microtransactions It appears that while many studios are feeling the need to move to a service model to ensure their titles make money, CD Projekt is staying committed to the story-driven single player experience with Cyberpunk 2077, one which served them very well with The Witcher. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Apex Legends Season 4: latest update news, tips, patch notes and more Posted: 21 Mar 2020 02:15 AM PDT EA surprised many with the sudden announcement of Apex Legends back in February 2019, a free-to-play battle royale shooter that sees the publisher going toe-to-toe with genre mammoths PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds and Fortnite Battle Royale. Developed by Respawn Entertainment and set in the Titanfall universe, Apex Legends is a squad-based battle royale shooter where teams of three go up against 57 other players to try to gather loot and be the last person (or squad) standing. However, unlike Fortnite and PUBG, Apex Legends sees players take on one of eight classes, each represented by a unique character (imagine Fortnite mixed with Overwatch and you’ll be on the right track.) Apex Legends has now celebrated one year of play and is into its fourth season, Assimilation, which began on February 4 2020. If you're new to Apex Legends and looking to see what you're missing or you've dropped off the map for a while and you'd like to catch up on the latest, we're here to keep you up to date on what's fresh in Apex Legends.
As we said in our full Apex Legends review: "Truth be told, the Battle Royale movement has never quite grabbed me. I dabbled in PUBG and spent a dozen hours or so with Fortnite, yet nothing ever quite stuck the landing. Apex though, has got me hook, line and sinker. Featuring intuitive controls, an outstanding comms system and remarkable rogue’s gallery, Respawn has created what feels like the AAA outing for the genre." Apex Legends update news
Kings Canyon returns Ahead of its replacing World's Edge in Apex Legends' competitive ranked split on March 24, Kings Canyon is coming back to casual play. The Season 2 version of the Kings Canyon map will be available to players alongside World's Edge from March 20 until March 23. This is a good opportunity for players to practice on this map with the newly added Evo Shields ahead of its arrival in ranked play where it will remain until the end of Season 4 at some point in May. First Global Series Major suspended EA has announced that it's suspending its live esports events, including Apex Legends' first Global Series Major, due to the recent coronavirus outbreak. Calling the outbreak "unprecedented" in its official announcement, EA said suspensions will be in place from March 13 until the global "situation improves" in order to protect all of those involved in the esport. EA has said the suspension "includes EA-operated events as well as third-party events run under license from EA. Additionally, this includes all competitive gaming content except for broadcasts that can be individually produced remotely. Online events, where participants and staff are remote and separated will continue." It's important to note, however, that the second Global Series Online Tournament will still go ahead on March 21 and 23. Evo Shields are sticking around Apex Legends' System Override event has now come to an end, taking its limited time mode Deja Loot with it. But, the new Evo Shield that was introduced during the event is sticking around. This shield, which isn't particularly powerful at first but comes stronger the more you inflict damage on other players, will now be found in Ranked, Play Apex and limited-time modes. Apex Legends AssimilationAs of February 4 2020, Apex Legends: Assimilation is underway. So what's new? Well, there's a new Legend, a new weapon, some map changes and an all new Battle Pass to get started on. Read on for a rundown of what to expect. New Legend As with previous seasons, Apex Legends Season 4 has introduced a brand new Legend. This time, things went a little differently. Originally, Forge, a robotically enhanced fighter was introduced as the legend for Season 4. However, he was then murdered and replaced by Revenant (the character fans long-suspected to be the Season 4 legend anyway). Revenant, also known somewhat more tellingly as the "synthetic nightmare" was once human and the "greatest hitman the Mercenary Syndicate ever had". But when his programming failed, he saw what his employers and Hammond Robotics had turned him into: "a walking nightmare of steel and vestigial flesh.” Revenant vowed to get revenge and killed everyone involved in ruining his life. Now, two centuries later Hammond Robotics has returned to the Outlands and he's renewed his vow to take out anyone involved with Hammond Robotics. Those familiar with the Titanfall universe will know Hammond Robotics as the creators of the Titans and it seems that they're going to be playing a bigger role in Apex Legends this season. As far as abilities are concerned, Revenant's tactical ability is "Silence" which allows his to throw a device that deals damage and disables enemy abilities for ten seconds. His passive ability is "Stalker", which makes it possible to crouch-walk faster and climb higher than the other Legends can. Finally, his ultimate ability is "Death Totem" which allows him to drop a totem that protects those who use it from death for a set amount of time. Instead of being killed or downed, a player will be returned to the totem instead. New Weapon The Sentinel has been confirmed as the new weapon in Season 4 of Apex Legends. It's described as a powerful bolt-action sniper rifle which stands apart from other weapons of its ilk as it comes with a charge mechanic. In the dev stream released before the season launch, it was hinted that this mechanic will give players a little more decision making to do when making a shot and could provide some interesting gameplay. Map Changes Season 4 has brought some map changes, the designs for which have been driven by a desire to "get players to make new decisions". The Planet Harvester is a key addition to the World's Edge skyline. Hammond Robotics are using the device to harvest materials from the core of the planet for unknown (but likely nefarious) reasons. The Planet Harvester offers a large, multi-level space in which to play and since there's not been anything like it before, it brings new gameplay options. According to Respawn, fights in this area tend to be "self-contained as squads will tend to enter the fights through the long hallways that lead to the center of the structure." The expectation is that this will make third parties more predictable. As well as being a change, Planet Harvester has wrought some changes of its own: it's split Capitol City in two. Now the city is made up of two zones, Fragment East and Fragment West, with a large fissure of dead space between them. This fissure can only be crossed in two locations by means of a zipline and a fallen skyscraper bridge. If you do happen to fall into the fissure between the zones because of a poorly timed jump or sheer curiosity, you'll find yourself carried slowly back up and allowed to land on the other side you were probably trying to get to. The downside is you'll take 25 damage for the fall and, as you float up, you run the risk of being a sitting target for enemies. A smaller addition is the Survey Camp. This area will have Weapon Racks which will have guaranteed weapons up for grabs, making it a tempting place to visit. Anniversary Event As Season 4 is launching on the one year anniversary of Apex Legends, there's going to be a special event. According to Respawn, those who log into the game in the first week of Season 4 (that's February 4 to February 11) will receive an Anniversary Gift. this includes a Year 1 Origami Flyer charm, a Year 1 loyalty badge and 10k XP for your first match of the day for every day the event is running. Battle Pass It wouldn't be a new season of Apex Legends without a brand new Battle Pass. For 950 Apex Coins you can pick up this pass which offers 110 levels to climb by completing daily and weekly challenges, with more than 100 exclusive items including Legendary Skins, Apex Packs, Loading Screens and Music Packs to earn. Players who pick up the battle pass immediately unlock the Legendary R99: Zero Point skin and three new Epic Legends skins. Getting through the rest of the levels could see you earn Rare and Legendary rewards like the Health Drain Lifeline, Blue Steel Crypto, Cyber Punked Wattson and Heat Sink Flatline. Ranked League Series 3Alongside Season 4, Ranked League Series 3 has also launched. Ranked League Series 3 brings a few changes, including Splits and a new tier: Master Tier. As Respawn is seeing more players move into the upper echelons of the rankings to become Apex Predators, it's finding that it's getting harder to "showcase the skill between any two Apex Predators this season." As a result, a new tier, Master Tier, has been added between Diamond and Apex Predator. Players will need to reach 10,000 RP to make it to Master Tier as was the case with Apex Predator. The Apex Predator Tier will now be exclusive to the top 500 players per platform, so players who reach Apex Predator Tier could find that they drop down to Master Tier if other players earn more RP than them. Respawn has said "We feel this should give more prestige to making and keeping your Apex Predator rank, while still keeping the tiers above Diamond very exclusive." As far as Splits are concerned, after looking at the lengths of previous Ranked Series, Respawn has decided that Series 3 will be three months long, like Series 1, but that it will be divided into two Splits. This means that Ranked Series 3 essentially comes in two parts, with Split 1 taking place on World’s Edge, while Split 2 will freshen things up by taking place back at King’s Canyon. Split 1 is to take place between February 3 and March 23, and Split 2 will follow on from March 24 to May 5. Soft resets will take place between each Split and Respawn has confirmed that "ranked rewards will be granted for the highest tier achieved in either split of the series, but exclusive animated badges will be granted if you can make it to the same tier both splits." There are also some new party restrictions as the game moves into the new Ranked Series. Players will find that once they get to Platinum Tier or higher, they'll only be able to party with players who have 1 Tier of difference from them. It's hoped this will keep matches more tight when it comes to higher skill levels. As far as what's staying the same, players will still see soft resets take place going into the new series. So, "at the start of Series 3 everyone will be soft reset on their ranked position by 1.5 Tiers down. That means if you ended Season 3 in Gold II, you’ll be reset to Silver IV. Players in Platinum IV will be reset to Silver II, and Apex Predators will be reset to Platinum II." As previously said, the soft reset will also now take place at the beginning of each Split. Entry RP cost to Ranked Series is also the same and there won't be any further changes to the scoring system. Apex Legends tips and tricksApex Legends can be difficult to get to grips with. There are a lot of different characters each with their own abilities and skills, plus this battle royale arguably leans more heavily on strategy and teamwork than some of its competitors. Get ahead of the pack with our selection of Apex Legends guides, designed to help you become a champion.
How to download Apex LegendsApex Legends can be downloaded for free from the PlayStation Store, Xbox Store, Origin Store or Apex Legends website. Simply search for the title, download the game and enjoy! But do keep in mind that a good internet connect and subscription to either PS Plus, Xbox Live or Origin Access is required to play. The good news is that Apex Legends is also coming to mobile in the future, following in the footsteps of Fortnite and PUBG. Apex Legends roadmap - what's next?Respawn Entertainment has shared the season roadmap for Apex Legends. Apex Legends Battle Pass seasons run for approximately three months. Currently four seasons have officially been announced:
Now that Season 4's launch date has been confirmed for February 2020, we're reaching the end of the known world for Apex Legends. No doubt, in the coming months, Respawn will establish and reveal its new goals for the game's second year. Is Apex Legends coming to mobile?Yes. In EA’s quarterly earnings report, the publisher announced that it’s looking at bringing the Respawn Entertainment-developed game to mobile platforms and to both South Korea and China. “We’re in advanced negotiations to China and mobile”, EA’s CFO Blake Jorgenson stated, before later mentioning South Korea as another expansion point. We shouldn't expect to see Apex Legends on mobile for at least a year, though. According to EA Chief Executive, Andrew Wilson, the game won't launch until the fiscal year 2021.
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| iD Mobile has matched Smarty's spectacular flexible unlimited data SIM only deal Posted: 21 Mar 2020 02:00 AM PDT For anyone with a fear of committing to a long term subscription, Smarty was the obvious go-to SIM provider, blending its 1-month rolling plans with some of the best value packages around. But now, iD Mobile is catching up. Just like Smarty, iD Mobile offers flexibility in the form of 1-month rolling contracts so you can leave at any time. However, iD has always focused on low data plans at low prices but now it has taken the competition to the big data market. Offering unlimited data, calls and texts all for £20 a month, iD has matched one of Smarty's best offers. But the thing is now both of these offers are almost indistinguishable. Both offer the same data, calls and texts at the same price, both allow for tethering, both piggy-back on the Three network and both supply the same roaming options. What we're saying really is you have two identical choices for one of the best SIM only deals on the market. Of course, there are other unlimited plans out there, GiffGaff offers a 1-month rolling unlimited plan but at an inflated cost and with imposed speed limits and Vodafone, EE and O2 will charge you a blindly high price. That leaves Three as the only other option worth considering as the UK's cheapest plan. Check out more about this below.
Smarty's unlimited data SIM only deal:iD Mobile unlimited data SIM only deal:Can I go even cheaper on unlimited data?One provider has gone even cheaper than this - Three Mobile. Three has dropped its costs an extra £2 a month, landing you with the UK's cheapest unlimited plan of £18. However, unlike the two options above, Three operates on a 12-month contract meaning you will end up tied in for the entire year. Want cheap bills? Choose Three. Want a shorter, flexible contract? Choose one of the above plans. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Free broadband calls resisted by UK internet providers Posted: 21 Mar 2020 01:01 AM PDT The UK's leading internet service providers (ISPs) have rejected calls to provide free connections as the country deals wit the coronavirus outbreak. ISPs have been under pressure to help out those in need by cutting the cost of vital internet connections, or offering more speed and bandwidth to those in need. However this could also affect internet speeds around the country, as millions more connections come online to put pressure of the UK's already creaky infrastructure.
UK free broadbandIt had been suggested that providng free broadband could help those hit hardest by the coronavirus outbreak, such as the over-70s, who could use video calls to communicate with their families. Teachers have also claimed that free connections would help deal with the shutdown affecting the UK's schools and universities. However Internet Service Providers' Association (Ispa), the trade body monitoring the UK's internet, said it was in "very early" talks with the government to help customers who become unable to continue paying their bills. "Things are naturally developing extremely quickly at the moment, and Ispa plans to seek further guidance from government on these issues so that customers can remain connected to the internet during these unprecedented times," an Ispa spokesman noted. Free basic broadband was part of the Labour Party manifesto at the last UK general election, however the victorious Conservatives instead opted to pledge funds towards improving the nation's fibre networks. BT does provide a basic-level broadband service, the suitably named BT Basic and Broadband, which is only available to some people claiming a certain type of benefits. However this is limited to just 15GB of data a month, far below the typical usage amount of many Britons today.
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| AMD and Intel have a formidable new foe but you’ll never guess who it is Posted: 20 Mar 2020 10:00 PM PDT An unexpected rival has emerged that could give Intel and AMD a run for their money, at least in the very lucrative server and cloud computing market. Amazon’s new Graviton2 CPU has been tested extensively by Andrei Frumusanu from our sister website Anandtech, and the results show this new kid on the block outstrips the incumbents when it comes to performance per dollar. Graviton2 was tested against two other cloud computing resources offered by Amazon Web Services: the m5a (AMD EPYC 7571) and m5n (Intel Xeon Platinum 8259CL Cascade Lake). Andrei found it could offer savings of up to 54%, which he says represents "a massive shakeup for the AWS and EC2 ecosystem.”
Fine-tuned for AWS workloadsSo, how did Amazon achieve these results? The chip comes from Annapurna Labs and packs 64 A76 ARM cores - similar to what you can find in a smartphone - with 33MB cache and a high clock speed. Amazon is Annapurna Labs' only customer, which means the processor is extremely fine-tuned for AWS workloads. According to Andrei, unless you're tied to the x86 platform, you'd be “stupid not to switch over to Graviton2 instances” once they become more widely available for everything from VPN (AWS VPN) to web hosting (AWS Light Sail). For now, expect AMD’s EPYC2 processors to put up a bit of a fight - at least until Graviton3 lands.
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