Gaming

E3 2013: Unu Interview

Paul Lilly — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:44:06 +0000

Not your ordinary tablet.

Devices makers are aggressively pushing Android as a viable platform for your living room entertainment needs, hence consoles like Ouya, Mojo, and more. The Unu tablet is a similar attempt at getting gamers to fire up Android titles in the living room, but in a different way. It's a 7-inch slate that plugs into your TV, which in and of itself isn't a fancy trick since many tablets already have HDMI output, but the difference here is it turns your television into a smart console of sorts.

We had a chance to see the Unu tablet at E3. It comes with an air mouse (remote control) so that you can dock the tablet and sit on the couch out of arm's reach. You then navigate the tiled interface, selecting from various categories like YouTube, Smart TV, Netflix, Hulu Plus, Games, and more.

It seemed to run smooth and fast -- almost too fast, on occasion -- during our short look at the prototype device. If you want to play games, you can use the air remote, or a dedicated controller that looks similar to the Xbox's controller.

There will be two SKUs of the quad-core 7-inch Unu tablet, including a Media Edition for $199 and a Gaming Edition for $249.

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E3 2013: Freddie Wong Videogame High School Interview

Paul Lilly — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 16:03:12 +0000

Behind the scenes with the cast of Video Game High School web series.

If you haven't already, spend some time getting caught up on Video Game High School, an action comedy web series by Rocket Jump. Through nine episodes in Season 1, VGHS has amassed around 36 million views on YouTube. Obviously the idea of professional gamers being elevated to star status is striking a chord with viewers. We had a chance to sit down with Freddie Wong, a gaming celebrity in his own right and one of the founders of Rocket Jump, along with the cast of VGHS.

Wong and crew explain the premise behind VGHS along with various inspirations. Having completed Season 1 of the web series, work has already begun on a second Season, Wong says.

Season 2 will see an expansion of the VGHS universe with the various characters having their own story lines. You can expect TV length (22 minutes) episodes in the upcoming season, a decision that was made in response to the overwhelmingly positive response to the series.

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E3 2013: Alienware 18-inch, 17-inch, and 14-inch Gaming Laptops

Paul Lilly — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 15:36:03 +0000

Alienware invades E3 in style.

There's no need to fear an alien invasion, not when they come from the planet Dell. Alienware comes in peace and is interested in one thing and one thing only: high-performance gaming. Maximum PC Online Managing Editor Jimmy Thang probed Alienware's booth at E3 to take a look at three new gaming laptops, including a 14-inch model, 17-inch model, and a giant 18-inch SKU.

Alienware claims its 14-inch model is the "most powerful 14-inch notebook in the universe." It's also uniquely designed and looks different from previous generation Alienware systems. There's an anodized aluminum cover, magnesium alloy body, and an overall industrial design. There's also a lot of metal on the inside to help keep components cool.

Lighting has been changed, too. There are now 10 customizable lighting zones, though if you're not into that sort of thing, you can turn them off. Alternately, game developers can tap into the lighting zones and, say, make them blink red if you get shot by an enemy. Cool stuff.

The 17-inch model kicks things up a notch and comes standard with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 765M GPU (you can upgrade to a 770M or 780M), and of course Haswell is inside.

Choosing the 17-inch SKU over the 14-inch model obviously sacrificies portability, though it also increases the level of immersion since you're working with a larger display. If you really want to go big, however, check out Alienware's 18-inch beast.

Described as the "big kahuna," Alienware says this is the most powerful gaming notebook in the world, period. Unlike past versions of Alienware's 18-inch model, you don't start off with a single graphics card anymore -- it now comes with two GPUs by default. It's essentially a portable gaming desktop.

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Dell Credits Stealth Bombers for Inspiring Redesigned Alienware Laptops

Paul Lilly — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 16:19:01 +0000

New looks, better performance.

Dell was on hand at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) to, among other things, introduce planet Earth to its line of redesigned Alienware laptops that it hopes will abduct gamers into the fold. The OEM unveiled three models, including the Alienware 14, Alienware 17, and Alienware 18, each one rocking Intel's Haswell architecture and Nvidia 700M Series discrete graphics.

Alienware has always been known for other-worldly designs, and this latest batch of laptops feature a new angular motif apparently inspired by "jet engines and stealth bombers," according to Dell. Each model is constructed with an anodized aluminum shell and magnesium alloy body, with over 60 percent of the main mechanical components made from various metals.

Let's talk specs. The Alienware 14 starts at $1,199 and includes a 14-inch LED display (1366x768), Intel Core i7 4700MQ processor, Nvidia GeForce GT 750M graphics, 8GB of DDR3L-1600 memory, 750GB hard drive, slot-loading DVD burner, Killer NIC, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.

The 17.3-inch Alienware 17 starts at $1,499 and features a 1600x900 resolution, GeForce GTX 765M GPU, and 5G Wi-Fi Broadcom 4352 802.11n/ac and Bluetooth 4.0 combo card. Other features are the same as the Alienware 14.

Finally, the massive Alienware 18 steps things up with an 18.4-inch IPS display with a Full HD 1080 resolution. It starts at $2,099 and has the same specs as the Alienware 17.

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E3 2013: Playstation 4 to Undercut Xbox One by $100

Pulkit Chandna — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 07:00:50 +0000

As many as 140 titles are in the works for the next-gen console

Two things that gamers around the world were most interested in prior to the start of Sony’s E3 press conference were the PS4’s design and the next-gen console’s price. The Japanese company did not disappoint, revealing both and much more at the nearly three-hour event.

The design of the Playstation 4 can be best described as resembling a parallelogram with sharp edges and a two-tone matte/glossy color scheme. Just like its x86 innards, the latter is something that the PS4 shares with the Xbox One.

One reason the Playstation 3 was slow out of the blocks was the fact that it was heavily weighed down by its price tag, with the cheapest SKU costing $499 in the U.S at the time of its launch. But thanks to the presence of much less exotic innards this time, the price of the PS4 was expected to be a lot more reasonable. And Sony didn't disappoint on that front either, announcing that the console will cost $399 in the U.S. when it makes its debut during the holiday season later this year.

While not tiny, the PS4 does seem slightly smaller than the Xbox One

Its more affordable price tag is not the only thing that the PS3 has going for it. Interestingly, the moment that drew the biggest cheer during the event was when Sony, taking a dig at the Xbox One, made it amply clear that it has no intention of restricting the sale of used games or of requiring gamers to connect their consoles to the Internet every 24 hours.

The company also showcased a wide variety of titles at the event, with everything from indie games to the Bungie- and Activision-developed MMO Destiny being featured. Here’s an excerpt from a Sony Japan press release:

“The upcoming software lineup for PS4 from software developers and publishers will include Destiny from Bungie, Inc., in partnership with Activision Publishers, Inc., Diablo III from Blizzard Entertainment, Inc., KINGDOM HEARTS III and FINAL FANTASY XV from SQUARE ENIX, Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag and Watch_Dogs from Ubisoft Entertainment, NBA 2K14 from 2K Sports, The Elder Scrolls Online from Bethesda Games Studios and Mad Max from Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment, totaling more than 110 titles.”

“Furthermore, from SCE Worldwide Studios, more than 30 titles, including 12 brand new IP, are under development, including Killzone: Shadow Fall, Knack, inFAMOUS: Second Son, #DRIVECLUB and The Order: 1886. Out of over the 30 titles under development, 20 titles will be available within a year from the PS4 launch.”

Until today, all Sony was willing to tell us about the upcoming console’s built-in hard drive was that it is “very large.” But we now know exactly how large. The 6-lb console packs a 500GB hard drive, according to the press release.

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Epic Announces Support for Oculus Rift in Unreal Engine 4 as Part of its Integrated Partners Program

Justin Kerr — Sun, 09 Jun 2013 16:27:44 +0000

This Kickstarter success story just keeps getting better.

Oculus Rift is still little more than a really promising virtual reality development kit, but that promise gets more real everyday as industry heavyweights throw in behind the scrappy little startup. Epic Games has always been an Oculus partner, but late last week the company finally announced native support for the VR headset in Unreal Engine 4.

The announcement was buried in a press release where Epic also unveiled its Integrated Partners Program, an initiative that adds support for several middleware companies as well. In theory this should make it easier for developers to add on to the game engine, and add technologies such as Oculus or PhysX without too much difficulty.

Native support for such a popular next generation game engine is a major achievement for the Oculus team, and it should be a huge help when it comes time to finally ship a consumer friendly product. Individual developers won’t be forced to support the Oculus, but removing barriers can only help.

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I Won the Devil 13 HD 7990 Dual-GPU Video Card

The Maximum PC Staff — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 18:36:24 +0000

Five questions with the winner of our $1K PowerColor Devil 13 HD 7990 giveaway

A few months ago we gave away a PowerColor Devil 13 HD 7990, a $1,000+ dual-GPU video card that features two 7970's in CrossFire. The lucky winner of the dual card was Preston Murrell from Marion, Indiana. We wanted to check in with Preston and see what he has done with the Devil 13, so we asked him five questions including what his rig was at the time of winning the video card and if he had ever heard of the Devil 13 video card before entering the constest.

Here is the Q&A with our winner.

1. Where do you live and how long have you read Maximum PC?

I live in Marion, Indiana where I also go to college. I got in to the computer scene in my freshman year of college and started reading the magazine about two years ago.

2. Before the contest, had you ever heard of the Devil 13?

I can't say that I've heard of it before the contest, I mostly used Nvidia cards like the custom EVGA Hydrocopper Editions. I did keep up with mainstream cards from AMD, however.

3. What were the system specs of your machine when you entered the contest?

CPU: Intel 2500K - Overclocked to 4.8ghz

Motherboard: ASRock Z68 Extreme 3 Gen 3

Video Card: EVGA 560 ti 1GB (short pcb)

Overclocked to 925mhz

Memory: 12GB 1333MHz CL 9 G.Skill Value RAM

Hard Drive: Seagate 500GB SATA III hard drive

Power Supply: Corsair AX 750

Case: Rosewill Challenger

Fan controller: Scythe 4 channel fan controller

Cooling:

Custom CPU water loop

XSPC Raystorm

XSPC XO2 750 res/pump

XSPC RS 360 Radiator

Black Primochill 1/2" tubing

4. When you found out you won, what upgrades did you think you would need to make?

Case and power supply were my biggest concerns! I had hoped that my Corsair AX 750 power supply would be enough to power my sytem, but it just wasn't stable enough to power my upgraded rig.

5. What upgrades have you made with the Devil 13 since, and how does it run?

Since receiving the Devil 13 I have gotten a Corsair 800D and a Corsair Neutron GTX SSD and swaped out to a Corsair TX 850 and the RAM for some Crucial Ballistix 1866 CL 9 RAM for 8GB's worth. I am still planning to go with an even bigger power supply, either a Corsair HX 1050 or a Corsair AX 1200, and I want to add 8GB more of RAM. In terms of the the GPU itself, I haven't done anything as of yet. I want to get the EKWB 7990 waterblock for it, but they are in limited supply and cost about $220 for just the block after shipping so I haven't been able to get one. Hopefully I will get HD 7990 water block and add another 360 mm radiator and a switch MCP35x pump and pumptop so that everything will be quiet.

Preston's rig after he received the PowerColor Devil 13 HD 7990

If you want to be notified about future contests, giveaways, and other generally cool stuff be sure to be a Fan of our Facebook page. The next giveaway is coming up soon, and without spoiling the surprise, well, we’ll just say that for the lucky winner it’ll be like a Dream come true.

SteelSeries to Showcase New H-Series Headset Line at E3 2013

Pulkit Chandna — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 03:28:06 +0000

Range starts at $39.99

The Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) is right around the corner and gaming peripheral maker SteelSeries is super excited about the new products that it has lined up for this year’s event. The company will be showcasing a trio of headsets at E3 2013, which gets underway on June 11, SteelSeries announced in a press release Thursday.

The three headsets together form the new H-Series line and, according to the press release, have been designed to deliver “tournament-grade” audio. Featuring 7.1 surround sound, new sound isolation tech, a USB soundcard and a robust-yet-lightweight design, the 9H is chief among the three H-Series headsets. In fact, the $159.99 (MSRP) headset is not only supposed to be the series flagship, but the company says it is also “our best competitive gaming headset yet.”

At $79.99, the 5Hv3 costs half as much as the 9H, but has the same sound isolating double enclosure earcup technology as the latter. Further, it also packs a retractable microphone. Completing the triad is the entry-level 3Hv2, which costs just $39.99 and features next-gen SteelSeries audio drivers, extra-padded leather cushions, a retractable microphone, and in-line audio controls on its soft-rubber cable.

The 5Hv3 and 3Hv3 headsets will be hitting the market this summer, with the 9H making its commercial debut “this fall in Q3.”

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AVADirect is First U.S. System Builder to Nab Clevo's P375SM Gaming Laptop

Paul Lilly — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 15:59:03 +0000

Hello again, Haswell.

The braggadocios system builders at AVADirect are hooting and hollering about being the first vendor in the U.S. of A. to offer Clevo's P375SM gaming laptop, a powerhouse machine built around Intel's new HM87 chipset for Haswell. Pricing starts at just shy of two grand for the 17.3-inch notebook equipped with an Intel Core i7 4700MQ processor, though there are plenty of upgrade options at your disposable if you have too much cash in your pockets weighing you down.

A baseline configuration comes with the above mentioned CPU along with 8GB of DDR3-1600 memory, AMD Radeon HD 8970M graphics, Seagate 750GB Momentus hard drive, DVD burner, 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, four USB 3.0 ports, HDMI output, Thunderbolt support, eSATA, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, and a few other odds and ends typical of a laptop system.

"Since the release of Clevo's P570WM, end-users have become accustomed to receiving desktop-grade performance in a mobile platform. A downside to a desktop replacement solution is mainly attributed to the power consumption and battery life," AVADirect explains. "AVADirect's Clevo P375SM Gaming Notebook is designed to not only alleviate the concerns of power consumption, but set an industry-wide standard for performance and comfort in a new mobile platform. The AVADirect P375SM Gaming Notebook is uniquely high-end for its exceptional capabilities and AVADirect is the first to unleash it within the U.S."

Indeed, one of the upsides to Haswell is better power management, though if you intend to mostly play games on this thing, you'll want to make sure there's a wall socket nearby, especially if you go with a dual-graphics option such as two Nvidia GeForce GTX 780M GPUs in SLI.

The Clevo P375SM laptop is available from AVADirect now.

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Wikipad 7 Gaming Tablet Coming to the U.S. on June 11 for $249

Pulkit Chandna — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 20:33:06 +0000

Global launch planned for this summer

A product first showcased at last year’s Consumer Electronics Show, the Wikipad gaming tablet is so woefully behind its original release schedule that all but the most optimistic people believed Wikipad, Inc., the Los Angeles-based company behind the tablet, when it promised a spring 2013 debut back in February this year. It now seems that the company is indeed pretty serious about avoiding the ignominy of perishing without bringing a single product to the market.

The Android Jelly Bean-powered Wikipad 7 will finally be available in the U.S. on June 11 at a retail price of $249, the company said in a press release Tuesday. Even though the tablet in question is, as the company promised in February, a 7-incher, the Wikipad was originally supposed to be an 8-inch device.

Best characterized by its “award winning and patented” snap-on gamepad accessory, the Wikipad 7 is a Tegra 3-powered tablet that sports a 7” multi-touch display (1280x800), 1GB DDR3 memory, 16GB internal storage, up to 32GB microSD storage, 2MP front camera, micro USB, micro-HDMI, GPS, accelerometer, gyroscope and a 4100mAh battery. Since the Wikipad 7 is a PlayStation Certified device, gamers will be able to enjoy both Android (including Tegra-optimized titles) and Sony PlayStation Mobile games on it.

“The Wikipad is the only tablet to possess both the unique combination of console quality experience with the functionality and portability of a tablet thanks to its award-winning and patented detachable dual-analog controller,” reads the press release.

“When the gamepad controller is detached, Wikipad’s sleek design and full Android 4.1 Jelly Bean functionality make it a powerfully versatile tablet whether you are surfing the web, reading emails or enjoying all the latest films, books, magazines music, Skype and apps at home or on the go.”

According to the company, the Wikipad 7 will be available in the UK and other parts of the world this summer.

Image Credit: Wikipad, Inc.

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Eurocom Scorpius Review

Jimmy Thang — Fri, 24 May 2013 18:52:27 +0000

3D notebook offers hefty power for a hefty cost

The Eurocom Scorpius lives a dual life. On one hand, it’s a dull-looking workstation; on the other, this highly configurable laptop can also be outfitted with a 3D monitor and killer gaming specs. We opted for the latter.

The Scorpius has a backlit keyboard that can change to seven different colors.

Along with a 120Hz refresh rate, the 17.3-inch monitor features a built-in 3D emitter that syncs up to a pair of bundled Nvidia 3D Vision 2 glasses. To test the 3D experience, we played the 3D Vision Ready–title Batman: Arkham City and sampled some 3D movie trailers from 3DVisionLive.com. Nvidia’s stereoscopic technology rivals the best that movie theaters have to offer in terms of depth, and never bothered our eyes, but the experience wasn’t perfect. Even though Nvidia purports to have solved the dimming issue with its Vision 2 glasses, you’re still essentially wearing sunglasses, so the experience is going to be darker than viewing content in 2D without glasses. We also feel that wearing glasses in and of itself is cumbersome.

The most vexing problem is that when 3D is enabled, performance suffers greatly. Our frame rate dropped by half, from 50s to mid-20s, when playing Batman in 3D as opposed to 2D. In our opinion, these various issues detract too much from the experience; we’d rather play in 2D mode. As for the TN panel in 2D mode, while some sing the praises of 120Hz’s ability to improve even 2D image quality, we didn’t see any noticeable improvement over 60Hz performance when surfing the web, watching videos, or playing games.

We had little complaint with our system’s internal specs, however, which included a 2.8GHz Intel Core i7-3840QM CPU, 16GB of RAM, and not one, but two GeForce GTX 680Ms in SLI. In our more CPU-intensive tests, the Scorpius scored modest wins of 6–13 percent. However, when it came to the more GPU-intensive applications, our zero-point’s comparatively humble Fermi-based GeForce GTX 670M GPU got severely stung by the Scorpius’s two Kepler beasts. In our STALKER: CoP benchmark, the Scorpius performed an amazing 112.5 percent better than the ZP; the performance gap only widened in our 3DMark 11 test, where it performed an astonishing 248.1 percent better. Because these benchmark stats were so amazing, we loaded up Far Cry 3 to give it a real workout. While the Scorpius wasn’t able to run the super-graphically intensive game on “Ultra” (the game’s highest settings), it ran at “Very High” with frame rates in the mid-40s to low-50s range, and often outperformed a 2.8GHz AMD quad-core gaming desktop armed with a GTX 590. It seems unfair to bring up the fact that the far less expensive ($1,500) GT60 zero-point laptop wasn’t even able to muster a solid 30fps on FC3’s “High” settings. The only performance test where the GT60 bested the Scorpius was in battery life, where Eurocom’s laptop lasted a poor 103 minutes. Something’s got to give when you’re powering two 680Ms.

In terms of storage, the laptop comes with two drives: a 128GB mSATA Micron and 512GB SSD. While the two speedy drives are appreciated, the lack of a hefty HDD really limits the overall package. Luckily, the laptop takes up to three 2.5-inch storage drives and installing an additional HDD requires the removal of just one screw from the bottom of the laptop. Users can also access the motherboard from underneath and swap out the RAM. Eurocom has made the main compartment easily removable, with only four screws holding it in place.

While the laptop certainly performs well, it still has issues. Its trackpad is unresponsive and can be an exercise in frustration to use. Perhaps a bigger problem is that this thing is heavy. With a carry weight of more than 13 pounds, the Scorpius is in backbreaker territory. Finally, at almost $4,000, it’s very expensive.

Fortunately, most of these issues can be mitigated. You can save money by skipping out on the 3D monitor and second SSD. And you can overlook its battery, weight, and trackpad issues by understanding that the Scorpius is best used as a desktop replacement. Its performance is simply off the charts, and complaining about its other problems is like complaining about how a Ferrari is expensive, bad with fuel economy, and doesn’t have enough cup holders. If those issues are enough to bother you, you’re looking at the wrong machine. This laptop is all about performance and here the Scorpius is a stinger.

$3,915, www.eurocom.com

Steam Trading Cards Reward Gamers with DLC and Game Coupons

Pulkit Chandna — Thu, 16 May 2013 14:47:28 +0000

The feature is currently limited to only six games

A mysterious database entry for something called the Steam Trading Card popped up in the Steam database late last week and all sorts of theories began doing the rounds on the Web. Some saw it as a harbinger of a trading game being developed by Valve, while others suspected it to be a new Steam service for facilitating the trade of in-game items.

Valve on Wednesday finally put all that speculation to rest when it officially announced Steam Trading Cards, a new service that rewards gamers for, well, gaming. In its press release, the company described the new service thus: “Released in beta today, Steam Trading Cards allows customers to earn Steam rewards for playing the games they love. Those who participate will receive game-specific trading cards that can be collected to earn rewards such as game badges, profile backgrounds, emoticons, coupons, and more.”

But how does one go about collecting these cards? To begin with, you will need to join the Steam Trading Cards beta, which is currently limited to Don't Starve, Dota 2, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Team Fortress 2, Portal 2 and Half-Life. You can then collect up to half the card set through the actual act of playing, while the other half has to be collected from other community member.

Once you complete a card set for one of the above participating games, you can craft them into a game badge. Just like current badges, game badges are associated with your game account. According to the official Steam Trading Cards page, these badges bring with them “marketable” rewards like emoticons, profile backgrounds, and DLC/game coupons, What’s more, they can be levelled up as many as five times, allowing you to earn more items.

“All badges now have XP which contributes to your Steam Level, a summary of your badge collection,” reads the Steam Trading Cards page. “You can view someone’s Steam Level by hovering over their avatar. Leveling up earns you non-tradable items like profile showcases, extra friends list slots, and more”

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Nvidia Announces Project Shield Release Date, Price

Pulkit Chandna — Wed, 15 May 2013 02:27:15 +0000

Company now accepting pre-orders for the handheld from the most eager "fans"

At a time when dedicated handheld gaming devices are struggling to remain relevant, Nvidia is pressing ahead with plans to launch a handheld of its own. The chipmaker on Monday made its Tegra 4-powered Project Shield (codename) handheld available for pre-order to those who took the trouble of signing up for Shield-related updates by clicking ‘Notify Me’ on the official Shield website.

The upcoming Android-running device, which it unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, will now be known simply as Shield and set consumers back $349, the company announced today. Nvidia will start taking pre-orders from the general public through Newegg, GameStop, Micro Center, Canada Computers and the Shield website on May 20, 2013, with the first units expected to reach customers in late June.

Shield runs what Nvidia says is “pure” Android (Jelly Bean). With Nvidia deciding against locking down the OS (à la Amazon Kindle Fire), gamers will have access to all the latest and greatest games and apps in the Play Store. In fact, a couple of games will come bundled with it.

However, it would be foolish to think that its console-esque controller is merely aimed at making the many touch-unfriendly Android games out there a touch (pardon the pun) more playable. Shield’s controller is sure to come in very handy when gamers choose to stream their favorite PC games from their GeForce GTX GPU-powered PCs to the handheld.

Here’s a quick rundown of its specs:

Processor: NVIDIA Tegra 4 Quad Core Mobile Processor with 2GB RAM
Controller: Console-grade controller with dual analog joysticks, a full-sized D-Pad, left and right analog triggers, full-sized bumpers and A/B/X/Y buttons
Display: 5-inch, 720p retinal multi-touch display
Audio: Integrated stereo speakers with built-in microphone
Games and Apps: Android titles in the Play Store and PC games via GeForce game streaming
Bundled Software: Google Play, TegraZone, Sonic 4 Episode II THD, Expendable: Rearmed, Hulu Plus, TwitchTV
Storage: 16GB Flash Memory
Wireless: 802.11n 2x2 Mimo Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 3.0 and GPS
Connectivity: Mini-HDMI output, Micro-USB 2.0, MicroSD storage slot, 3.5mm stereo headphone jack with microphone support
Motion Sensors: 3 Axis Gyro, 3 Axis Accelerometer
Battery: 28.8 Watt Hours

Has Nvidia put paid to Shield’s chances of success by pricing it in line with home consoles, or do you think that the handheld has enough juice to justify its hefty price tag? Do tell us what you think.

Sony Claims it Might Actually Make a Quick Profit off the PS4 Thanks to its PC Inspired Design

Justin Kerr — Mon, 13 May 2013 02:54:42 +0000

AMD picks up the R&D tab for this generation of consoles.

When the Xbox 360 and PS3 first faced off in the market, both companies took a bath on the hardware. The custom designs pitted two companies with two very different architectures against each other in the market, and consumers really had no way of knowing which was superior. Seven years later the general conscious seems to give Sony the slight nod when it comes to pure console performance potential, but ultimately Microsoft was much better at exposing functionality to developers. PS3 exclusives tended to feature tons of eye candy, but cross platform titles always seemed to work slightly better on the 360. Fast forward to 2013 and both companies appear to be targeting a super charged PC architecture powered by AMD, and as a result, they might actually make money this time.

Sony CFO Masaru Kato reassured investors on their most recent earnings call that, "Unlike PS3, we are not planning a major loss to be incurred with the launch of PS4. At the time we developed PS3, we made a lot of in-house investments to develop the chip, the Cell chip," he explained. "Development of the chip saw the silicon processing and all the facilities invested by us ourselves. But this time, yes we have a team working on chip development, but we already have existing technology to incorporate and also product investment and all the facilities will now be invested by our partners, other foundries, so we don't have to make all the investment in-house."

Making a profit off each console will make a huge difference for Sony who continues to struggle to maintain dominance, but not if it means the price tag comes in north of $400. Consumers have become conditioned to pay less for consoles, and those with a serious budget have turned to the PC. Comparing Sony and Microsoft hardware will probably be much easier this generation, so hopefully the competition will the keep pricing in line, and console games just need to pick an ecosystem.

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MOBAs Dominate Raptr’s List of Most Played Games of April 2013

Pulkit Chandna — Fri, 10 May 2013 20:51:47 +0000

Dota 2 trails League of Legends

Gaming social network Raptr, which has over the past few years published yearly lists of the most popular games based on its users’ gaming habits, last month began doing so on a monthly basis. Earlier this week, it published the second such monthly list of “most played games.”

With a total share of 8.73 percent, the top spot on Raptr’s list of most played Xbox 360 and PC games of April, 2013 belongs to Call of Duty Black Ops II , which had also topped the list last month. It is just one of six Xbox 360 games in the top 10.

Just like last month, League of Legends occupies the second spot with a 6.31 percent share, slightly up from the 5.97 percent it managed during the previous month. The next two are both PC titles as well.

Dota 2 climbed two places to snag the third spot from World of Warcraft, which is number four on the list. The fourth and final PC title in the top ten is Defiance, having debuted at number nine in April. Another PC title that merits a mention is SimCity, albeit for all the wrong reasons. The title, which somehow clung onto the twentieth and final spot last month, has now dropped out altogether.

It is clear from the site’s latest monthly data — for which it relies entirely on the willingness of its users to share their gamer ids — that multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) games are very popular among the PC-doting section of the five-year-old site’s constituency, and SimCity isn’t (for obvious reasons, of course).

But, as far as we are concerned, the biggest highlight of Raptr’s first two monthly lists is the fact that Dota 2, which was recently said to have become the most played game, finds itself behind — and by quite a sizable margin at that — the game it had supposedly overtaken: League of Legends (LoL). This lends credence to Riot Games’ contention that Dota 2 is not even close to LoL when it comes to popularity, with the latter attracting as many as “500,000 peak concurrent players every day on just the EU West shard” compared to Dota 2’s peak of 325,897 concurrent users worldwide.

Image Credit: Raptr

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