Month: August 2018

battlefield-5This evening before gamescom DICE announced that the Battlefield V Open Beta will begin on September 4 for early access and September 6 for all players on Origin for PC, Xbox One and PlayStation®4. The Open Beta will showcase the soon-to-be-iconic Rotterdam map on Conquest mode as well as the Arctic Fjord map on both Conquest and Grand Operations. Revealed just last week, the Rotterdam map will immerse players in a battle fought throughout the streets of Holland where the game’s dynamic physicality and destruction will be on full display. New to the Battlefield franchise, Grand Operations is a multiplayer experience across multiple maps and modes that that takes players through a powerful narrative journey inspired by historical events. All of this Open Beta content can be previewed by attendees of gamescom this week, where it will be playable in Hall 6 on the show floor on PC and Xbox One X.

Also, this evening, DICE showcased NVIDIA’s new RTX technology announced during NVIDIA’s press conference with a jaw-dropping live demo of Battlefield V on PC, one of the first games being developed on the NVIDIA RTX platform to feature real-time ray tracing as a rendering technique. Previously used to pre-render lifelike worlds in movies, ray tracing with the NVIDIA RTX platform brings real-time, cinematic-quality rendering to video games. In Battlefield V, NVIDIA RTX allows DICE to imitate the way light is reflected in the real world enhancing the fidelity of reflective surfaces in every level, map and locale in the game. This will ensure Battlefield V feels more lifelike and dynamic, leading to a more immersive experience that makes players feel like the battle is unfolding in a full 360-degrees around them. The use of real-time ray tracing in Battlefield V is made possible by NVIDIA’s new GeForce RTX 20 series GPUs.

It’s always been important to us as a studio to stay one step ahead as we look to increase the graphical fidelity in games,” said Christian Holmquist, Technical Director at DICE. “With this new NVIDIA RTX platform, more detail than ever before can now be seen on the battlefield, from recognizing the flash of a muzzle being reflected off a car to spotting the detailed reflection of a devastated facade in a splash of water on the ground. Things in the environment will feel more lifelike and real and all-out war will never look the same.

We’ve been close partners with DICE for many years and we’ve spent much of the last year deeply embedded with their team in Stockholm to bring this vision to life,” said Tony Tamasi, Senior Vice
President of Content and Technology at NVIDIA. “With the help of NVIDIA RTX, DICE is creating a revolutionary moment for computer graphics in Battlefield V, as ray tracing has been used in film for years and has long been considered the Holy Grail for real-time rendering in games.

Building upon this partnership with NVIDIA, both NVIDIA Ansel and Highlights will be also be integrated into Battlefield V for GeForce PC gamers. NVIDIA Highlights automatically captures a gamer’s greatest gaming achievements in video. Integrated directly with the game, it knows precisely when that magic moment will happen and automatically records it using NVIDIA ShadowPlay technology, making it easier to capture those Only in Battlefield moments.

NVIDIA Ansel, available in the single-player War Stories in Battlefield V, is a revolutionary way to capture in-game photography. Users can compose shots from any position, adjust with post-process filters, capture HDR images in high-fidelity formats, and share their screenshots with the world.

Watch the official Battlefield V: Official GeForce RTX Trailer  HERE.

Battlefield V will be available worldwide October 19th on Xbox One, PlayStation®4 and Origin for PC. Those that pre-order the Battlefield V Deluxe Edition on any platform will get access three days early on October 16, while Origin Access Premier members on PC will be able to play the full game on October 11th. Origin Access Basic members on PC and EA Access members on Xbox One will also be able to jump into the Play First Trial on October 11. Players that pre-order any edition of the game with the Battlefield V Enlister Offer will get early access to the Open Beta and other in-game benefits including soldier customization options, access to Special Assignments starting at launch week and immediate access to five weapons to use in Battlefield 1.

Full details on the Open Beta can be found on the Battlefield Blog.

Hardware | Donster | |

metro-exodusDeep Silver and 4A Games announced today that Metro Exodus is available to pre-order across all major physical and digital retailers in North America.

For those who prefer physical products, two versions are available:

The Aurora Limited Edition contains a copy of the game in an exclusive Steelbook®, a beautiful 32-page art book, and the Metro Exodus Expansion Pass, all contained within a bespoke metal outer case inspired by The Aurora, the steam locomotive that Artyom and his companions use to journey across post-apocalyptic Russia. The Aurora Limited Edition represents fantastic value and will be in limited supply at select retailers worldwide. Meanwhile, the Standard Edition contains the game disc in a standard box and will be widely available.

On digital storefronts, you can choose between the Standard and Gold Edition of Metro Exodus; both contain the game itself, while the latter also includes the Metro Exodus Expansion Pass.

All physical PC pre-orders and Steam pre-orders include a digital art book and the Metro Exodus OST.

No upcoming in-game content has been reserved for pre-order – gamers can order with the knowledge that no matter where, how, or when they buy Metro Exodus, they are getting the full experience as 4A Games intended it.

Metro Exodus will be released on Feb. 22, 2019 on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC. Pre-order now from www.metrothegame.com/preorder. Watch the Metro Exodus Pre Order Trailer HERE.

sniper-ghost-warrior-contractsExperience the ultimate sniper gameplay, set against the rough terrain of the Siberian wilderness and featuring a brand new contracts system that encourages strategic thinking across engaging, replayable missions

CI Games have announced the next game in its acclaimed tactical shooter series: Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts. The title takes its genre-defining sniping gameplay to the harsh climates of the Siberian wilderness and introduces a brand new way to play – the contracts system. The game features both single player and multiplayer modes, and is set to release on PC, PS4 and Xbox One in 2019.

Drawing upon community feedback, Contracts delivers tense, mission-based scenarios with CI Games’ best sniping ever. This is all thanks to the new contracts system, which takes a step back from Sniper Ghost Warrior 3’s open world. In the single player campaign, players dive headfirst into tailor-made contract missions that offer a clear main objective with a fixed monetary reward, and have the option to complete secondary objectives for bonus payouts. Feel like you can do better? Jump back in and tackle the mission from a different angle — players can repeat every contract to earn more money.

Contracts distills the core sniping gameplay that series fans have come to love, offering dense, more focused maps that reward tactical thinking. With a wealth of optional objectives to complete, the combination of open-ended missions and emergent gameplay ensure these scenarios are wildly replayable. Couple this with the intense environmental obstacles presented by the harsh, modern-day Siberian wilderness, as well as hundreds of ways to take down a wide range of targets, and Contracts offers sniping gameplay at its absolute best.

It is exciting to see the team really motivated and working hard on our next sniping game,” said CI Games Chief Executive Officer, Marek Tymiński. “They don’t have to start from scratch this time and can now – on top of developing new content – spend way more time on improving things they already have.” This highlights CI Games’ commitment to listening to their community and iterating on their feedback.

Tymiński continued, “We were too ambitious in terms of the scope of Sniper Ghost Warrior 3, but we’ve learned from our missteps. Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts will be more focused on emergent gameplay with an open-ended mission design that the team feels strong about, but it will not be set in an open world. It is going to be a more tactical, more condensed experience and the game will offer plenty of replayability, both on the single player campaign and on the multiplayer modes.

All of this is coupled with a more optimized game engine, minimizing load times and maintaining a stable FPS, keeping players grounded in the rich, moment-to-moment sniping gameplay. Between the introduction of its Siberian setting, a return-to-form with an intense mission-based system, and sniping at its best, Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts is locked and loaded to impress genre and first-person fans alike.

Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts will launch in 2019 on PS4, Xbox One and PC.

rainbowsix-siege-logoIf you’re looking for a tense, tactical game where skill and cunning are equally important, then look no further than Rainbow Six: Siege. Starting Thursday, August 16, PS4, Xbox One, and PC players can play the game for free until August 20.

If you find yourself hungering for some more Siege after the weekend, you can pick up the Standard, Advanced, Gold, and Complete Editions of the game for a discount of up to 60% off if you purchase before August 27. Players who participate in the free weekend will see all of their progress carry over.

The free weekend coincides with the Six Major Paris tournament, Europe’s largest Rainbow Six: Siege competition ever. Tune in to witness the best professional players from around the world compete at the highest level. The tournament will take place from August 13 to August 19 and be broadcast on twitch.tv/Rainbow6.

The Six Major Paris broadcast is also the place to see the full reveal of Siege’s next season, Operation Grim Sky. The new season will feature two new Operators – an American Attacker and a British Defender – as well as a completely reworked Hereford Base map.

The free weekend is the perfect time to join the more than 35 million Siege players around the world. Rainbow Six Siege is currently available on PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

Get into the Free Weekend August 16-20th.

newhardware-iconCheck out these latest hardware announcements for today from around the web. Also included are some hardware news bits, and on some days, a few rumors tossed in for good measure. Click on the links below to read the official press release, visit the products web page, or to an independent news source.

Hardware | Donster | |

supreme-ruler-ultimate-boxBattleGoat Studios has released a major update to its flagship strategy game title “Supreme Ruler Ultimate“, featuring new content, modern world updates, and a set of world-building and editing tools.

The original Trump Rising DLC brought the world a hypothetical future featuring President Donald Trump. Today’s Trump’s World update adds a new 2018 Sandbox featuring modern day tensions and relationships, plus new opportunities and threats. Commented Lead Programmer George Geczy, “Starting in the modern day, players can take on the provocations of Russia, Iran, North Korea, and much more. They can play as the US to Make America Great Again, or take on the challenge of other countries trying to make their way in a rapidly changing and unstable world.”

Existing Sandboxes and Campaigns have been updated with new leaders and relationships resulting from recent elections and geo-political changes. Gameplay has also been updated with a number of new features, AI improvements, and other additions, including regular tweets by President Trump to the rest of the world (some are real, some are not – will you be able to tell which are which?) Continue building a wall with Mexico if you desire, or else search for new ways to influence, or maybe alienate, the rest of the world!

The 2020 future scenarios have also been updated to reflect real world changes while presenting hypothetical situations including “Divided States” (the US has collapsed along political lines) and “Global Crisis”, a world where individual nations become increasingly isolationist and aggressive.

In addition, BattleGoat is pleased to release the Supreme Ruler Map Editor and Content Editor tools, for the first time allowing players to not only modify existing maps and sandboxes, but to create entirely new past, present and future scenarios, and even entirely new worlds.

Availability: The Supreme Ruler Trump’s World Update is available immediately as a FREE update to Supreme Ruler Ultimate. The Supreme Ruler Map Editor and Content Editor tools are also being released for free to all players.

You can purchase Supreme Ruler Ultimate via Steam.

Indian Themed Dharma Add-on Coming Next Month

europa-universalis-iv-dharmaThe riches and intrigue of Indian politics are the focus of Europa Universalis IV: Dharma, the newest expansion to Paradox Development Studio’s classic historical grand strategy game. Will you defend the subcontinent against foreign commercial empires? Can you set up a European trading empire in one of the richest lands on the globe?

You will get your chance to build a new world-spanning empire on 06 September, 2018, less than a month from today. You can watch the Europa Universalis IV: Dharma – Release Date/Story Trailer HERE.

Features in Europa Universalis IV: Dharma include:

  • Design Your Government: Unlock reforms that will define how you govern your kingdom or republic, earning free policies and boosting the power of some estates.
  • Reworked Policy System: Policies get a new look in the free update, but Dharma will include special bonuses that make this system even more attractive.
  • Trade Company Investments: Upgrade and improve the provinces tied to your trade companies, conferring bonuses both to the European master and neighboring Indian nations.
  • New Cossack Government: Exclusive for owners of The Cossacks expansion.
  • New Indian Mission Trees: Unique mission paths for the most important Indian sultanates and kingdoms.
  • New Indian Estates: Alongside a free update to the estate system, India gets five new castes. Raise the brahmins to reduce unrest in a province or install Jain governors for a boost to income while reducing manpower..
  • New Mughal Culture Bonus: The Mughal Empire can assimilate and accommodate newly conquered cultures with ease.
  • Charter Companies: Europeans can buy a foothold into trade charter zones in Africa and Asia, if they can find a prince that trusts them.
  • Upgraded Trade Centers: Invest in the development of your Centers of Trade

And more, including: new ways to suppress rebellion, the monsoon season, new uses for colonists in non-colonial development, scornful insults, multiplayer teams, new art, and a host of new achievements.

As usual with Paradox expansions, Dharma will be accompanied by a large update, free for all Europa Universalis players. The Mughals update will include a more detailed map of the Indian region, a renewed Estate system, and a new approach to Policies.

amd-2nd-gen-ryzen-threadripperAMD today announced the release of the 2nd Gen AMD Ryzen Threadripper processors, featuring the new 2990WX processor with 32 cores and 64 threads, along with the 16-core, 32-thread AMD Ryzen Threadripper 2950X processor. We have collected a number of reviews on AMD’s new 2nd Gen Ryzen Threadripper CPUs, and you can read them via the links provided below.

Hardware Processors | Donster | |
Hardware | Donster | |