The Starfield devs at Bethesda continue to stay true to their word of releasing regular, large patches for the game and it is already in much better shape than when it launched last Fall.

A huge amount of fixes to the base game have been made and if you want to read the full Patch Notes you can do so on the Starfield Blog, but we will be picking out some of the cool bits we like the look of most here.

The patch also includes additional features to things such as Photo mode, which now allows you to pose characters in your screenshots, opening the possibility for some seriously funny meme action.

Other quality-of-life tweaks such as simply being able to open doors while you have the Scanner open should really have been a thing from the off, but then, we guess you would not have appreciated it as much as you will now.

Digipicks have also been altered because, of how we love the way Digipicks worked. Thankfully now they allow you to Undo without the penalty cost of a digipick during the Security mini-game. Now, if we could just get rid of the mini-game altogether with a slider in the menu. Maybe next time.

Latest Starfield Patch major features

• PHOTOMODE: Added the ability to set Expressions and Poses on player and companions in Photomode.
• SCANNER: You can now open doors and harvest with the scanner opened.
• Setting course on an inactive quest will now make it the active quest.
• Added support for adjusting FOV when using 3rd Person Ship view.
• Added an Anisotropic filtering quality slider (PC).
• Removed the digipick cost for using Undo during the Security mini-game.
• Added an autosave when fast traveling from a planet’s surface to orbit.
• Updated the Ship UI to perform more smoothly at higher framerates.

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It seems as though complaints about wooden acting and poor NPC dialogue will become a thing of the past as gaming development continues to use more and more generative AI in its processes. We aren’t there yet, but by the end of the year, we will probably have our first game with NPC characters generating their own realistic dialogue depending on what you ask them.

For gaming realism, this could be a game changer, and while it is unclear where it may actually lead us, Unity and generative AI company Convai are keen to give us a sneak peek into the future with the release of Project Neural Nexus – a demo “game” which will feature smart NPCs and Unity’s MUSE behavior tool.

“Step into the world of Neo City, a cyberpunk theme city where danger lurks at every corner. You wake up at a hotel and are being chased by the police and killer robots. Your objective is to make out of the hotel filled with assassins – alive. But you are not alone. You have help from your AI companion, who can equip you with weapons, teach you how to shoot, guide you at every step and is helping you get out of the hotel. Your decisions change the storyline but be careful, one wrong step and it’s game over. The game is powered by Convai’s smart NPCs where you can have open-ended conversations, make decisions, perform actions, interact with various environmental objects, and are guided by an AI companion. Welcome to Neo City. Your survival story begins now.”

That’s how Convai is positioning PNN and is more of a tech demonstration of where gaming could be headed and headed quickly. The problem will be if an NPC can talk to you about anything, and you can ask it anything, how do you keep the story on track? The idea of an NPC answering questions more realistically is appealing. What we see in demonstrations like this is the “game” being played the way the developers intend. The general public will not necessarily play as nicely.

When you watch the video there is no doubt it is exciting and impressive in equal amounts. Text to Speech might not still be quite there yet when it comes to vocal emotion and some of the dialogue sounds a little stilted but the potential is there for all to see. Especially as we move along towards a world that has GPT5 in it.

You can sign up for early access now and it should be released later in the year. Interesting times ahead

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Dune is pretty big business at the moment with the second movie riding high at the Box Office and news of the new MMO from Funcom on the horizon.

Dune: Spice Wars, also from Funcom, however, is a Frank Herbert-based game you should not be overlooked if you are a fan of the story. It’s been out since around the time the first movie dropped and offers a great opportunity to get into the Dune universe (Duneiverse?), especially if you like your games with a more strategic flavor.

Today, the first major update for the game, as well as its first DLC drops and goes by the name of House Vernius of Ix.

The House Vernius of Ix DLC, priced at €12.99 / $12.99, introduces the technologically advanced Ixians as the game’s seventh faction. Hailing from the technologically advanced Ixian Confederation and led by the cybernetically enhanced Rhombur Vernius, they discreetly explore the self-learning tech forbidden by the Butlerian Jihad.

Meanwhile, the free Heroes of Dune update marks a major milestone for Dune: Spice Wars, allowing players to control legendary individuals from the Dune universe. With each faction offering a choice of two Heroes, players can recruit from a total of fourteen iconic characters, each with its own active skill, global effect, and localized effects. From Duncan Idaho and Gurney Halleck for the House Atreides to Chani Kynes and Otheym for the Fremen, players can now lead their chosen faction with legendary figures, reshaping the course of history on Arrakis.

The update also includes several improvements to combat, enriching its gaming experience and making it more accessible to players of all skill levels.

Dune: Spice Wars is a hardcore Dune 4x strategy game, and playing as iconic characters from the story will mainly appeal to fans of Herbert’s books but even if you are not invested in the Dune storyline it is still a really solid RTS game with lots of cool features that you should definitely check out.

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Steam has officially overhauled its family sharing system which faced difficulties when others on the plan were loading up games, in favor of the new ‘Steam Families.’

Introduced via a blog post on the Steam website yesterday (Mar. 18) the video game service said they were ‘excited’ to announce the update which is now available in the Steam Beta Client.

Steam Families is a collection of new and existing family-related features, replacing both Steam Family Sharing and Steam Family View.

It provides a single location to manage which games your family can access and when they can play. Up to six family members can be included in one plan, with management access available from Steam Client, a mobile device, or web browser.

Members of a family will be classified as either adult or child, with the adult having management access.

In the previous system, there were limits on how many people could play games from one library. This has now been removed, as has the need for two systems.

To give Steam’s family debut a try, you’ll need to be in the beta program. You can do this by visiting Settings > Interface > Client Beta Participants and selecting ‘Steam Family Beta.’

New features in Steam Families

For parents who are monitoring children’s online activity, this new update is set to make it a whole lot easier to manage as new features open up ease of access.

Family Sharing

The family sharing feature brings in the library which is accessible via the left column on the home screen once you’ve signed in.

Anyone in a ‘family’ gains automatic access to the shareable games library, meaning users can play a game from other family member’s collections – even if they are online playing another game.

When you are playing a game from your family library, you can create your own saved games and earn individual Steam achievements.

Parental Controls

New to Steam is the major upgrade on parental controls, with the tool focusing on this. 

Parents can set limits on what and when children play games on Steam and you can control what games your children have access to and monitor their activity. This is even possible via your mobile phone when you’re away from your at-home device.

Parental control features let adults:

• Allow access to appropriate games
• Restrict access to the Steam Store, Community or Friends Chat
• Set playtime limits (hourly/daily) 
• View playtime reports 
• Approve or deny requests from child accounts for additional playtime or feature access (temporary or permanent) 
• Recover a child’s account if they lost their password

Child Purchase Requests 

With this addition to the family service, adults no longer have to spend time manually purchasing games for their children. Instead, to streamline this process, Steam Families has a payment option where a child account can request an in-family adult to pay for their shopping cart.

The adult then has the choice to approve and pay for the purchase from their mobile device or email or to decline the request.

Featured Image: Via Steam News

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A US safety body for artificial intelligence (AI) experts has admitted a researcher from China-owned ByteDance was mistakenly added to an online discussion channel.

The worker, employed by the parent company of TikTok, was granted access to a Slack group chat used by members of the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

It is an embarrassing incident for the organization given that TikTok is currently embroiled in a high-profile national debate in the States on whether or not the popular video-hosting app is an asset for the Chinese government to spy on, or influence a significant number of American citizens.

TikTok is said to have almost 150 million users in the US, its most important market, with the company ready to strongly defend its status after the House of Representatives passed a bill that could result in the social media platform being banned in the US within six months unless the company divests from its Chinese ownership.

The proposed legislation will now proceed to the Senate, where the outcome is less predictable.

A spokesman for the Beijing government implored the US has “never found evidence that TikTok threatens national security,” and the prohibitive action “will inevitably come back to bite the United States itself.”

How has NIST responded to the news?

The researcher, supposedly based in California, was added to a Slack conversation between members of NIST’s US Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute Consortium, which is said to be made up of around 850 users.

An email from the safety body has set out how it has reacted to the mishap.

“Once NIST became aware that the individual was an employee of ByteDance, they were swiftly removed for violating the consortium’s code of conduct on misrepresentation,” it read.

The specific working group on AI safety developments is a multi-agency collaboration, set up to address concerns and measure risks of the evolving technology. The Institute comprises involvement from various American big tech firms, researchers, startups, NGOs, and others.

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Humanoid Robots could soon be building your next car, as Mercedes-Benz enters into a commercial agreement with Apptronik.

In a press release shared last Friday (Mar. 15) via the Apptronik website, the details of the partnership have been shared.

The German automaker will be trying out the robots at its factories and in the manufacturing process.

The duo is working on a pilot program, with Mercedes-Benz “exploring potential use cases for Apollo humanoid robots in logistics to bring parts to the production line for workers to assemble, the so-called delivery of assembly kits, while simultaneously inspecting the components.”

Apollo, the 5’8” and 160 lb general-purpose robot, is the brainchild of Texas-based company Apptronik.

They describe it as being the ‘first commercial humanoid robot that was designed for friendly interaction, mass manufacturability, high payloads, and safety.’

The co-founder and CEO of the company, Jeff Cardenas, says: “When we set out to build Apollo, an agreement like the one we’re announcing today with Mercedes-Benz was a dream scenario.

“Mercedes plans to use robotics and Apollo for automating some low-skill, physically challenging, manual labor – a model use case which we’ll see other organizations replicate in the months and years to come.”

Why Mercedes are turning to the robots

In the press release, Jörg Burzer who is in charge of the production, quality, and supply chain management division at the Mercedes-Benz Group refers to robotics being a new area to explore for the team.

“To build the most desirable cars we continually evolve the future of automotive production.”

“Advancements in robotics and AI open up new opportunities also for us. We are exploring new possibilities with the use of robotics to support our skilled workforce in manufacturing.

“This is a new frontier and we want to understand the potential both for robotics and automotive manufacturing to fill labor gaps in areas such as low skill, repetitive and physically demanding work and to free up our highly skilled team members on the line to build the world’s most desirable cars.”

Featured Image: AI-Generated by MidJourney

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In this new age of artificial intelligence, platforms worldwide have seen a rise in AI-generated content. To help viewers better understand if what they’ve watched has been created by a human or otherwise, YouTube has outlined some new disclosures.

Shared via a blog post published yesterday (Mar. 18) on the YouTube Official Blog, a new tool has been released.

In the Creator Studio, people should now disclose to viewers when realistic content is made with altered or synthetic media, including generative AI.

These disclosures will appear as labels that will be visible in the expanded description or on the front of the video player. YouTube says this applies to “content a viewer could easily mistake for a real person, place, or event…”

The labeling won’t apply to all AI videos though, as the platform says: “We’re not requiring creators to disclose content that is clearly unrealistic, animated, includes special effects, or has used Generative AI for production assistance.”

Some examples of videos that require disclosure include:

• Using the likeness of a realistic person: Digitally altering content to replace the face of one individual with another’s or synthetically generating a person’s voice to narrate a video.
• Altering footage of real events or places: Such as making it appear as if a real building caught fire, or altering a real cityscape to make it appear different than in reality.
• Generating realistic scenes: Showing a realistic depiction of fictional major events, like a tornado moving toward a real town.

They intend for this to ‘strengthen transparency with viewers and build trust between creators and their audience.’

When will the labels be rolled out

The labels are said to be rolled out across all YouTube surfaces and formats in the week ahead. This will begin with the YouTube app and then on desktop and TV.

While creators will be the ones responsible for correctly marking their videos, the online video-sharing platform says in the future “we’ll look at enforcement measures for creators who consistently choose not to disclose this information.

“In some cases, YouTube may add a label even when a creator hasn’t disclosed it, especially if the altered or synthetic content has the potential to confuse or mislead people.”

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Nearly there, so nearly there. One of the most eagerly anticipated games of the year is almost with us. It is so close we can smell it.

Many of you will have already created your characters ready to get going as quickly as you can as the free Character Creator was released ahead of the game last week. If you are unsure what role you want to play in the game we also have a handy breakdown of all the starting vocations you can choose from when you start off.

Dragon’s Dogma 2 worldwide release times

Capcom has handily provided a global map showing all the launch times across the planet for the game. The game unlocks at the same time for everybody but depending on where you are in the world, that will be a different time or even day for you. If you live in North or South America your game will unlock for you on the evening of the 21st whereas the further East you go the later it gets due to time differences.

Check out the map below to locate your time zone:

The key ones for ease are:

• PDT – 5pm 21st March
• EDT – 8pm 21st March
• GMT – Midnight 22nd March
• CET- 1am 22nd March
  
• JST- 9am 22nd March

Dragon’s Dogma 2 preload

As we are looking at a download size of around 70 GB and you will have already checked you hit the system requirements it is good news we bring that the game can be pre-loaded onto your systems from Wednesday 20th March. Pre-load is available for PC, Xbox, and PlayStation and will help you avoid any potential slow download times if the servers all get hammered at the same time of release, so we would strongly advise getting set up ahead of time if you possibly can.

The post Dragon’s Dogma 2 – Worldwide launch times and preload announced – when can you play it? appeared first on ReadWrite.

Nvidia today introduced its Earth-2 cloud platform at the GTC 2024 event in San Jose, California, aimed at advancing global climate change predictions through AI-powered simulations. According to VentureBeat, the platform, which was first mentioned in 2021, has now reached full operational status.

During a keynote address, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang highlighted Earth-2’s role in addressing the frequent occurrence of climate disasters such as droughts, hurricanes, and floods. The Earth-2 platform, according to Huang, offers APIs that enable large-scale simulation and visualization of weather and climate data, providing a tool to better prepare for and mitigate the effects of extreme weather events.

The technology behind Nvidia’s Earth-2

Earth-2 relies on a combination of Nvidia’s CUDA-X microservices software and AI models, including the CorrDiff generative AI model. This integration allows for simulations that are both faster and more energy-efficient than traditional numerical models. Rev Lebaredian, Nvidia’s vice president of simulation, underscored the economic impact of extreme weather, which results in $140 billion in losses annually, and the need for detailed, kilometer-scale simulations to effectively address this challenge.

One of the first organizations to utilize Earth-2 is Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration, which aims to use the platform’s models to improve typhoon forecasting and evacuation planning. Additionally, Earth-2’s capabilities are being extended through integration with Nvidia Omniverse, enabling users to develop 3D workflows that incorporate actual weather data into their digital twin environments.

The Weather Company, an entity focused on weather data forecasting and insights, announced plans to integrate Earth-2 APIs to enhance their weather modeling products and services. This collaboration is intended to provide more accurate weather intelligence for enterprise clients and improve the overall understanding and simulation of weather impacts.

At the GTC 2024 conference, Nvidia also showcased other innovations such as the NIM software platform for streamlined AI deployment, and advancements in humanoid robotics with Project GR00T.

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At its GTC conference today, Nvidia unveiled NIM, a revolutionary software platform designed to seamlessly integrate both custom and pre-trained AI models into production environments.

Alongside a number of announcements today at Nvidia’s GTC conference, NIM harnesses Nvidia’s expertise in AI model inferencing and optimization, offering a streamlined approach for developers. By merging AI models with an optimized inferencing engine and encapsulating them into containers accessible as microservices, NIM drastically reduces deployment time. According to TechCrunch reporting, what would traditionally take months can now be accomplished swiftly, bypassing the need for extensive in-house AI expertise.

This innovative platform supports models from notable entities such as NVIDIA, A121, and Getty Images, alongside open models from tech giants like Google and Meta. Nvidia’s collaboration with Amazon, Google, and Microsoft aims to integrate NIM microservices into major cloud services, enhancing accessibility for developers across the board.

NIM’s backbone: Nvidia’s inferencing engines

At the heart of NIM lies the Triton Inference Server, alongside TensorRT and TensorRT-LLM, underscoring Nvidia’s commitment to providing a robust foundation for AI applications. The platform also features specialized microservices, such as Riva for speech and translation adjustments, cuOpt for routing optimizations, and the Earth-2 model for simulations in weather and climate.

Manuvir Das, head of enterprise computing at Nvidia, emphasized the efficiency and enterprise-grade quality that NIM brings to the table, allowing developers to focus on building enterprise applications without the overhead of model management.

NIM stands as a testament to Nvidia’s vision of transforming enterprises into AI-driven entities, equipped with a suite of containerized AI microservices. With the backing of industry giants and an ecosystem of partners, Nvidia’s NIM is poised to revolutionize the way AI models are deployed and utilized across various sectors.

Jensen Huang, Nvidia’s CEO, highlighted the transformative potential of NIM, envisioning a future where every enterprise leverages AI to enhance their operations and innovation capacity.

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Nvidia’s ambition to lead in the realm of AI extends beyond its renowned chip technology, as CEO Jensen Huang expresses enthusiasm for developing foundation models for humanoid robots, according to a recent TechCrunch report. The technology giant is leveraging its influence in AI hardware to pioneer innovations in robotics, marked by the announcement of Project GR00T at its annual GTC developer conference. This initiative underscores Nvidia’s strategic move into the competitive sphere of humanoid robotics, hinting at its potential impact on future AI applications.

Project GR00T emerges as Nvidia’s response to the growing interest in humanoid robots, proposing a general-purpose foundation model aimed at supporting a wide array of companies in this sector, such as Agility Robotics, Boston Dynamics, and XPENG Robotics. This move signifies Nvidia’s commitment to facilitating advancements in robotics, offering a platform that promises to accelerate development across various applications, from industrial automation to daily human assistance.

According to TechCrunch, Jonathan Hurst of Agility Robotics and Geordie Rose of Sanctuary AI lauded the initiative, highlighting the transformative potential of human-centric robots like Digit in reshaping labor and addressing major societal challenges. Nvidia’s partnership approach, focusing on collaboration and shared innovation, sets a promising stage for the evolution of embodied AI.

Accompanying Project GR00T, Nvidia introduced Jetson Thor, a computing marvel designed for humanoid robotics applications. This new hardware, featuring Nvidia’s Blackwell architecture, emphasizes the company’s efforts to push the boundaries of AI and robotics performance, facilitating the development of more capable and versatile robots.

Nvidia also unveiled two additional programs: Isaac Manipulator and Isaac Perceptor, targeting advancements in robotic dexterity and vision processing. These initiatives reflect Nvidia’s comprehensive strategy to influence a broader range of robotic functionalities, from manufacturing automation to autonomous navigation.

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Irdeto has confirmed the launch of a new technology designed as a “watermarking solution” to act as a bulwark against gaming leaks.

TraceMark for Games comes from the same company responsible for the contentious Denuvo digital rights management system, with the new release able to add markers to video game content to act as invisible identifiers.

These tags allow content to be traced back to the source, as already utilized across media output such as sports broadcasts, TV shows, and movies.

Irdeto, the digital platform cybersecurity firm, has placed faith in the qualities of TraceMark, taking the view it will act as a deterrent to dissuade individuals from leaking game content when accessing early play tests, beta, or reviews.

Its features include flexible watermark generation to match specific requirements, with quick and easy deployment to the user’s consumer base and a wide range of devices and platforms.

Irdeto positions TraceMark for Gaming as the solution for clients to “enjoy peace of mind throughout the content lifecycle, from development to distribution.”

What’s the problem with hacks and leaking?

The video game industry has been beset with hacks and leaks in recent times, with even non-disclosure agreements being broken as was the case with Skate when early content surfaced. Grand Theft Auto VI is another prominent title to be impacted, with hacks resulting in leaks of the long-awaited release, undermining the official release more than a year later.

TraceMark isn’t being presented as a cure for all ills on leaks, nor does it claim to be. It most likely won’t have a significant impact on the unwanted, unauthorized flow of content from headline gaming titles but for the early stages and development of many new releases, it could prove to be a useful tool.

TraceMark for Gaming will be supported by Windows, Xbox, iOS, and Switch.

Image credit: Ideogram AI

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The Flight sim experts Aerosoft are going to be offering up something a little different in September this year. Today the German studio announced Highway Police Simulator – a new cop game it is working on alongside Z-Software.

Slated for a launch on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation 5 the game will see you as a lone Highway Patrol cop in America [performing a work shift that includes breakneck high-speed chases, shootouts, and routine traffic stops.

When it is released Highway Police Simulator will include:

• Varied open-world environments, each with its own challenges and missions
• A storyline with exciting cases, career progression, ranking system, and more
• Unique vehicles, including different police cars, helicopters, and more
• A wide array of missions with traffic stops, accidents, car chases, and more
• A morality system that challenges players to make difficult decisions with real consequences for the story and the environment

“Highway Police Simulator encapsulates the investigative, often stressful role of law enforcement in a detailed and realistic world,” said Dirk Ohler, Head of Product at Aerosoft. “We’re thrilled to announce the title and our partnership with the talented team at Z-Software, and we look forward to all our new recruits joining the force in September 2024!”

The short launch trailer isn’t giving too much away although it is giving us some Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit vibes, but as well as the car chases it looks as though Highway Police Simulator is going to also feature a little legwork for your cop.

It’s set in the fictional American state of Caminora and can be played casually or with the simulation aspects ramped up. You can wishlist Highway Police Simulator on Steam right now and start polishing your boots in anticipation of its release in a few months time.

Aerosoft is more known for its work on games such as Microsoft Flight Simulator, so it is interesting to see it diversifying into a different kind of sim.

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Playstack and LocalThunk have confirmed their highly popular roguelike deckbuilder Balatro has exceeded one million sales, less than a month after its release.

The poker-inspired title launched for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, Playstation 4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC on 20 February, proving to be an instant smash hit after it grossed $1 million in just eight hours.

A press release from Playstack, via its parent company Tru Fin, confirmed Balatro has been its “fastest selling game to date” with Harvey Elliott, company CEO stating, “We’re incredibly grateful for the support and enthusiasm from players worldwide.”

“The game’s success is a testament to the quality and creativity that the indie sector can deliver, proving that even in uncertain times, innovative games can thrive. We extend our deepest thanks to every player who has joined us on this adventure.”

Developer LocalThunk posted on Steam to express gratitude for the landmark achievement.

“I’m so grateful to all the players and people that have made this happen. I still can’t grasp the response to this game, and I am overjoyed that so many people have been able to have fun with my silly creation. I’m so fortunate that I can continue working on my passion as a career. Thank you!”

This morning Balatro hit a momentous milestone…

ONE MILLION COPIES SOLD!

We still have some fun things planned for the future, but for now… pic.twitter.com/S7PEb0qjeG

— Balatro (@BalatroGame) March 18, 2024

What recognition had Balatro received?

Balatro has gained a sought-after “Overwhelmingly Positive” rating on gaming marketplace Steam, achieved thanks to more than 17,000 positive reviews in addition to a commendable rating of 90 on Metacritic, the reputable critic aggregator.

The game also enjoys a rank of 10th in peak CCU (concurrent users) among all Steam games with the ‘roguelike’ tag, listed in between Warm Snow (44.7k CCU) and Hades (37.7k CCU).

On the ‘roguelike deckbuilder” tag, Balatro is second to the free-to-play roguelike battle royale title Gene Shift Auto, which is not necessarily considered to be a deck-building game, and listed above games such as Slay the Spire (33k CCU) and Backback Battles (36.5k CCU).

Image credit: Balatro/X

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We knew it was coming, we just didn’t know when, but now Square Enix has just announced that Final Fantasy XIV Online will arrive on Xbox on 21st March after completing its open beta which has been running since last month.

There are some great games coming to Game Pass already this week, you also do not want to miss out on Lightyear Frontier which arrives on the 19th.

The game will launch at 1 am (PDT) and will be available in the Microsoft Store in several different flavors.

Final Fantasy XIV Online Xbox versions

You are certainly not spoilt for choice when it comes to how many versions of FF XIV you can choose from. Here is what will be available. If you are a Game Pass Ultimate subscriber you can download the basic Online Starter Edition free of charge until April 19th.

FINAL FANTASY XIV Online Starter Edition

For newcomers, the Starter Edition includes three award-winning titles: the base game, A Realm Reborn, and the first and second expansions, Heavensward and Stormblood.
* Players with an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate plan may download the FINAL FANTASY XIV Online Starter Edition for free until Friday, April 19.

FINAL FANTASY XIV: Endwalker

Players can experience the main scenario quests and content available in the Shadowbringers and Endwalker expansions. Requires FINAL FANTASY XIV Starter Edition to play.

FINAL FANTASY XIV: Endwalker Collector’s Edition

The Endwalker Collector’s Edition includes several in-game bonus items. Requires FINAL FANTASY XIV Starter Edition to play.

FINAL FANTASY XIV Online Complete Edition

For newcomers, this is the most comprehensive edition and includes A Realm Reborn, Heavensward, Stormblood, Shadowbringers, and Endwalker expansions.

FINAL FANTASY XIV Online Complete Collector’s Edition

This version includes the in-game bonus items from the A Realm Reborn, Heavensward, Stormblood, Shadowbringers, and Endwalker Collector’s Editions.

FINAL FANTASY XIV Online Free Trial

Play for free up to level 70 and experience the main scenario quests and content from A Realm Reborn, and the Heavensward and Stormblood expansions with no restrictions on playtime.

Pre-purchasing will get you the rather underwhelming free in-game cosmetics:

• Wind-up Palom Minion
• Menphina earring (grants 30% EXP bonus up to level 80)

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Cities Skylines II has had a rocky start, part of which is down to just how good playing the original Cities Skylines, even today, with all its mods, patches, and tweaks, can be.

A ropy start, poor optimization, and a feeling that the devs Colossal Order were fire–fighting from the off have meant some poor publicity for the game, but things have been getting better slowly but surely.

The lack of official mod support has been a huge bugbear of the community for a while now but a post today on the official blog should now help put that to bed with the news that we are just a week away from getting mod support – albeit in a beta format initially.

The post reads: “With Mods (short for modifications), you can tailor your gaming experience to your unique preferences. Uploaded by creators all over the world, you can pick between anything to create the city of your dreams. Along with Beach Properties, the first wave of Cities: Skylines II Modding will be available. The Beta release of Modding will initially support Map and Code mods.

With the Map Editor, you can make maps with the Terraforming Tools you’re used to, import hightmaps to create highly accurate depictions of your hometown, and upload your creations to Paradox Mods.

With the Code Tools, you can show off your coding skills and create Code Mods to meet your heart’s desire!”

This will be news to warm the hearts of Skylines II players. The prospect of mods to improve quality of life quicker than the devs can push them out should now help propel the games towards where it should have been at launch.

The Mods beta will launch on March 25th alongside a beach Properties Asset Pack that will bring a new Waterfront Zone to the game.

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Researchers at Ben-Gurion University have discovered a vulnerability in cloud-based AI assistants like Chat GTP. The vulnerability, according to researchers, means that hackers are able to intercept and decrypt conversations between people and these AI assistants.

The researchers found that chatbots such as Chat-GPT send responses in small tokens broken into little parts in order to speed up the encryption process. But by doing this, the tokens can be intercepted by hackers. These hackers in turn can analyze the length, size, and sequence of these tokens in order to decrypt their responses.

“Currently, anybody can read private chats sent from ChatGPT and other services,” Yisroel Mirsky, head of the Offensive AI Research Lab, told ArsTechnica in an email

“This includes malicious actors on the same Wi-Fi or LAN as a client (e.g., same coffee shop), or even a malicious actor on the Internet—anyone who can observe the traffic. The attack is passive and can happen without OpenAI or the client’s knowledge. OpenAI encrypts their traffic to prevent these kinds of eavesdropping attacks, but our research shows that the way OpenAI is using encryption is flawed, and thus the content of the messages are exposed.”

“Our investigation into the network traffic of several prominent AI assistant services uncovered this vulnerability across multiple platforms, including Microsoft Bing AI (Copilot) and OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4. We conducted a thorough evaluation of our inference attack on GPT-4 and validated the attack by successfully deciphering responses from four different services from OpenAI and Microsoft.

According to these researchers, there are two main solutions: either stop sending tokens one by one or make tokens as large as possible by “padding” them to the length of the largest possible packet, which, reportedly, will make these tokens harder to analyze.

Featured image: Image generated by Ideogram

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Minecraft devs Mojang has urged players not to update their Minecraft games for fear of losing all their worlds in what is a pretty major big deal when you think some people have been creating their worlds, for like, oooh, ten years or so.

Mojang, who today also launched the Minecraft Marketplace monthly subscription, posted the following message on its official Mojang Status X account:

“Do not update Minecraft through the Xbox app on PC. If you do, your worlds may be lost. We recommend that you run the Gaming Services Repair Tool for PC before installing the Minecraft update.”

This is all well and good, as long as you actually see this post, which is on an ancillary account on X before pushing the update button in your Game Pass app and potentially crying yourself to sleep for the rest of your days.

A further post on the linked Microsoft support page states:

“Do not download the recent update for Minecraft through the Xbox app for PC.

Do not update Minecraft through the Xbox app on PC. If you do, your worlds may be lost. We recommend that you run the Gaming Services Repair Tool for PC before installing the Minecraft update. For more information, go here: https://t.co/9X1am8dzHG

— Mojang Status (@MojangStatus) March 15, 2024

If you do, your worlds may be lost. We recommend that you run the Gaming Services Repair Tool for PC in the Xbox app on PC before installing the Minecraft update. Using this tool updates the Gaming Services to version 19.87.13001.0, which will avoid the update error. Below are instructions on running the tool;

• Launch the Xbox app on PC.
• Click your Profile picture.
• Click on Support.
• Click on Gaming Services Repair Tool
• Click on Start Troubleshooting.

For more information about this tool, see our support article here: Gaming Services Repair Tool for PC.

A further issue is that the Xbox App will probably try to automatically update the game for you, regardless of whether you are even in the building so this could be a blocky disaster.

There is no indication as yet as to what the problem is, but Minecraft is not the first game to suffer save game issues this year, with Baldur’s Gate 3 players also losing hours of gameplay due to save game corruption.

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The team at Flexispot has been rolling out stylish furniture with an emphasis on mechanized sitting/standing desks that have found their way into many a gaming setup for a few years now. Popular with influencers and YouTubers, Flexispot’s desk has offered an easy and affordable way to get an adjustable height surface into your setup.

It’s not only perfect for day-to-day work with your PC or console but the ability to alter the desk height if you are playing fighting games with an arcade stick to make it more akin to the height you would find on an arcade cabinet, or even lower it to a driving height for racing games in VR has meant they have become popular choices, especially if you are redesigning your gaming space.

The new GT5 desk brings all that technology and models into a gaming desk that would fit into just about any scenario while looking less like an office desk and more like you are a pro influencer in the bargain.

Large enough to hold multiple monitors and covered in a carbon-fiber texture that looks stylish, the GT5 is powered by efficient duel motors, one on each of its sturdy legs, and controlled by a simple panel mounted at the front of the desk, which can be locked to make sure you don’t lean on it by accident.

The height can be adjusted between 58 and 123cm (the standard for sitting is generally around the 85ish cm) and it only takes seconds to switch between heights. You can also set favorite heights say for seating and standing and effortly switch between the two.

In an accessory pack that comes with it, you also get a cup holder, headphone hanger, and cable management system, and the control panel has a built-in charger for your phone.

Optional extras such as a keyboard tray or castors increase the cost but certainly aren’t necessary.

Another nice feature is the contoured cut-out at the front of the desk meaning you can improve your posture while sitting by getting that bit close, or better still, when you have finished playing you can get your gaming chair an inch or so further underneath it and create a little more space in your room if you need to.

The price is around the $499 mark but Flexispot has regular sales on which may mean you can pick it up cheaper. 

The GT5 probably is not an impulse buy at that price but it is very good value for what you do get. The desk surface comes in two different sizes 160x80cm or 180×80 if y ou need the extra length for more screens.

If you are in the market for a new gaming desk, especially if you are upgrading your gaming space then the Flexispot GT5 could be just what you are looking for.

The post Flexispot wants the GT5 to be your new perfect gaming station appeared first on ReadWrite.

Antstream Arcade, a massive library of retro games available to Xbox owners and PC gamers for an annual fee of $30/year, is adding 14 new titles to the service this month.

The app launched in July 2023 and provides subscribers with instant access to over 1,300 classic titles. The games range from the Atari, through the NES, to the Game Boy, all the way up to the PlayStation 1 (calling the PlayStation 1 retro makes me concerned I might be about to crumble into dust) and more. As well as games, the service has sweetened the pot by providing tons of extra features and continually expanding its game library.

With their subscriptions, players gain access to over 600 minigame challenges, a vast number of which Antstream Arcade is adding to every month. There are global weekly tournaments for the really competitive players, and couch co-op for people looking to recapture the feeling of a classic games night.

Although $30 for an annual subscription to such a vast library plus extra features may seem like a great deal, it gets better: you can get a lifetime subscription for just $80. One subscription allows you access across all of your devices.

That (game) belongs in a museum!
Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis has resurfaced from the depths of watery bugs & is back on Antstream! Have you played this classic Indy adventure? pic.twitter.com/4uuxloUZBg

— AntstreamGDC (@AntstreamArcade) March 12, 2024

What games are coming to Antstream Arcade in March?

• Bristles (Arcade)  – can you navigate Peter the Painter through the house and paint every wall?
• Demons of Asteborg (Arcade) – fight the demonic hoards and save your homeland in this action platformer.
• Firelord (Amstrad) – explore the cursed kingdom of Torot and recover the four charms of eternal youth.
• First Samurai (C64 and SNES) – a beat ’em up platformer that sees you defeating rival swordsmen to prevail as the first Samurai.
• Hobgoblin (Amstrad) – cross the swamps of the hobgoblin hoards and retrieve the stolen Golden Orb.
• Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (Amiga) – help Indie discover the fate of Atlantis in this classic point-and-click adventure.
• Mr. Tuff (SNES) – never originally released, now is your chance to check out this action platformer.
• Pitstop (Atari) – put your foot down in this semi-first-person racing game and see if you can win the championship.
• Pitstop 2 (Atari) – a more complex older brother to Pitstop which adds split-screen racing for two players.
• R-Type (Arcade) – dive into this side-scrolling shooter and destroy the alien threat before they wipe out humankind!
• Streak Hoverboard Racing (PS1) – famed for being extremely difficult, are you up to this racing challenge?
• Switchblade (Arcade) – a side-scrolling run-and-gun action platformer where you must defeat the enemies and collect the shards of the Fireblade.
• Xenon (Amstrad) – become a future space pilot in this vertical-scrolling shooter to help win the war against the aliens.

Antstream Arcade has also announced multiple future titles on their way to the platform, including the ultimate game night game, Worms Armageddon. Don’t forget to grab yourself an 8BitDo keyboard for maximum retro immersion.

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