Since December, or more accurately, since the release of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, there’s been a feeling that Xbox has turned a corner for the better. Following up MachineGames' excellent Indiana Jones adventure was Obsidian, with a more than solid outing in Avowed. Which, in a few days from the time of publishing, will be followed up by Compulsion Games’ latest, South of Midnight, which hopes to keep that momentum going. South of Midnight is the third game in the studio’s history since its founding in 2009 and the first full game the team has made primarily under […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/review/south-of-midnight-boring-combat-drags-down-a-beautiful-and-emotional-story/

The release timeline for Intel's upcoming Panther Lake CPUs has been a subject of much discussion, with conflicting information from the company. While Intel previously aimed for mass production and market availability this year, a new roadmap unveiled at Intel Vision paints a different picture.

According to the latest roadmap (via Wccftech), Panther Lake is now listed as a client product for 2026. Notably, the slide displaying this information only shows a mobile chip, meaning Intel will initially focus on the mobile market for this architecture. Alternatively, it could also be interpreted as Intel skipping the desktop variants altogether.

Intel positions Panther Lake as a blend of Lunar Lake's power efficiency and Arrow Lake's performance, built on the company's advanced 18A process technology. The company reiterates that it remains on track to begin volume manufacturing of Panther Lake later this year.

Intel's presentation featured client markets using current-generation architectures but lacked any significant updates regarding the Arc GPU family. This absence of a dedicated graphics roadmap or even mention of the rumoured Arrow Lake refresh raises questions about Intel's immediate priorities.

KitGuru says: There's a chance that Panther Lake may still debut in 2025, similar to how Lunar Lake first launched on some devices from specific partners. However, they'll be rare to find until the volume rollout in 2026.

While Nintendo has not revealed the detailed specifications of the chip powering the Switch 2 console, the company has revealed two crucial bits of information – the GPU has ray-tracing capabilities and DLSS is supported. 

At a press event held in New York this week, IGN asked Nintendo for more details about the hardware behind the Switch 2. Nintendo is still being cagey when it comes to the nitty-gritty, technical details, but we did get two key pieces of information out of Nintendo Planning & Development director, Takuhiro Dohta.

For starters, Dohta confirmed that Nintendo does use DLSS upscaling technology, and it will be available to all developers looking to improve their game's performance on Switch 2. On top of that, Nintendo also confirmed that “the GPU does support ray tracing”, so we'll see certain titles making use of things like RT Shadows and RT Reflections.

Unfortunately, without the technical specifications of the CPU and GPU, we can't make any guesses as to how well the Switch 2 should perform with ray tracing enabled. A few titles for the Switch 2 have already been announced as supporting up to 120FPS and 4K/HDR. Chances are, DLSS will be in use to help games achieve those high resolutions and frame rates.

KitGuru Says: While Nintendo is unlikely to reveal the full technical specifications itself, we'll no doubt hear from Nvidia on how it designed the Switch 2 chip eventually. 

When we thought the race to the DDR5 speed world record would calm down, someone set the bar even higher. XPG, Adata's gaming brand, has announced a successful collaboration with Gigabyte, resulting in a new DDR5 memory overclocking world record at an impressive 12,762 MT/s.

Gigabyte's expert overclocker HiCookie spearheaded this record-breaking overclocking effort. Just two weeks ago, we had the same overclocker setting a new world record at DDR5-12752, but it seems he wasn't happy with that. Using the same motherboard and a different memory stick, HiCookie pushed an extra 10 MT/s, setting the new record at DDR5-12762.

The system configuration included the Z890 Aorus Tachyon Ice motherboard, specifically designed for overclocking, a 24 GB XPG Lancer RGB DDR5 RAM stick (68-127-127-127 timings), and an Intel Core Ultra 9 285K CPU clocked at 3.15 GHz with just two P-cores running. The memory and CPU were cooled using liquid nitrogen, as usual in these cases.

KitGuru says: Do you think we'll break the DDR5-13000 mark this year or will things start to calm down now?

MSI has announced an enhanced iteration of its acclaimed OLED Care 2.0 technology. In response to user feedback, this update will increase the refresh interval of OLED Care 2.0, aiming to provide a more refined experience for owners of MSI QD-OLED monitors.

This update focuses on adjusting the activation timing of the Panel Protect feature, which is used to enhance the longevity of QD-OLED displays. The initial implementation activated Panel Protect every 16 hours, which some users found disruptive based on their usage. To address this, MSI has extended the refresh period to 24 hours, offering greater flexibility and minimising potential interruptions while preserving the panel's impressive lifespan.

MSI plans to roll out this firmware update across its entire range of QD-OLED displays and make it available to download starting in May 2025. MSI also assures customers that this update will not affect existing warranty benefits, including the three-year burn-in warranty (specific conditions may vary by region).

Note that MSI OLED Care 2.0 is only available for QD-OLED-based monitors.

KitGuru says: Do you have an MSI QD-OLED monitor? Has the OLED Care 2.0 feature ever interrupted something you were doing?

Another major first-party game is joining Xbox Game Pass this month. Compulsion Games has been quiet since releasing We Happy Few in 2016, but the studio is now back with its latest game, South of Midnight. 

South of Midnight is the first new game developed by Compulsion Games since being acquired by Microsoft over five years ago. In this game, players will confront mysterious creatures in the Deep South, blending supernatural, horror and action elements. The game releases on April 8th and will be a day-one game for Game Pass Ultimate & PC Game Pass.

Here is the full list of games joining Game Pass, including platforms and dates:

• All You Need is Help (Console) – April 3rd
• Still Wakes the Deep (Xbox Series X/S) – April 3rd
• Wargroove 2 (Console) – April 3rd
• Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls Ultimate Evil Edition (Console and PC) – April 8th
• South of Midnight (Cloud, PC, Xbox Series X/S) – April 8th
• Commandos: Origins (Cloud, PC, Xbox Series X/S) – April 9th
• Blue Prince (Cloud, PC, Xbox Series X/S) – April 10th
• Hunt Showdown 1896 (PC) – April 15th

There will be a few games leaving Game Pass this month. Starting on the 15th of April, the following games will no longer be available; Botany Manor, Coral Island, Harold Halibut, Homestead Arcana, Kona, Orcs Must Die! 3 & Turbo Golf Racing.

KitGuru Says: Will you be installing any of this month's new Game Pass titles? 

The recent Nintendo Switch 2 Direct featured a ton of cool new games alongside ports of popular titles. Unfortunately, those wanting to beef up their Switch 2 library at launch will have to splash quite a bit of cash, as it seems Nintendo is leapfrogging over the current $70 price tag for AAA games – and going straight to $80 for physical copies of Mario Kart World.

Though not specified during the Switch 2 Direct, the publication VGC confirmed that new-gen Nintendo titles will cost upwards of $80 (£75). While not every first-party Switch 2 game will be as costly, the highly anticipated Mario Kart World will be one of the first to implement this new pricing.

One slight silver lining is the fact that these enhanced prices are reserved for physical versions of these games, with the digital version of Mario Kart World coming in at £67.

Nintendo’s other major Switch 2 game – Donkey Kong Bananza – will be listed more closely to other contemporary AAA titles at ‘just’ £67 physically (and £59 digitally).

While there are arguments both for and against increasing the price of games, Nintendo titles in particular rarely depreciate in value, and so this means that 7 years from now Mario Kart World will likely still retail for £75. Hopefully other publishers don’t get any wise ideas from Nintendo.

KitGuru says: What do you think of this new pricing? Does it seem fair? Will this push all other AAA games to raise prices further? Let us know down below.

Amongst the dozens of games shown off by Nintendo during the Switch 2 Direct Showcase, one of the more surprising ports was for Yakuza 0: Directors’ Cut. While in and of itself not a massive shock (given the success of Kiwami on Switch 1), this Director's’Cut includes a ton of new and unexpected features – including a full English dub.

Announced during the Switch 2 showcases (and expanded upon via Twitter), Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio [RGG] confirmed that the Director’s Cut is much more than a basic port, writing:

“Yakuza 0 Director's Cut, the definitive edition of the critically acclaimed origin story is coming to Nintendo Switch 2 on June 5.

• Never-before-scene cutscenes
• Red Light Raid online 4-player online mode with up to 60 unlockable characters
• French, Italian, German, Spanish Text
• English Voiceover”

Of course, easily the biggest feature here is the addition of an English dub. Unlike modern ‘Like a Dragon’ titles, Yakuza Kiwami 1, 2 and Yakuza 0 were released only with Japanese VO.

While there is nothing wrong with needing to read subtitles, having a more accessible English version of the game should make for a much wider appeal.

Hopefully all these enhancements come to the other consoles/PC in the future.

KitGuru says: What did you think of the Switch 2 Direct? What was your favourite 3rd-party announcement? Will this Director’s Cut be exclusive to Switch 2? Let us know down below.

Following a tease earlier this year, Nintendo finally hosted their big Switch 2 Direct showcase. Alongside the announcement of new games, services and more, we’ve now gotten comprehensive tech specs on many of the Switch 2’s hardware capabilities – including some notable display output limitations.

During the latest Direct, Nintendo officially announced and confirmed a ton of details, including the fact that the Switch 2 will support a 4K output, HDR and more. Interestingly, in going to the console’s official site, further details can be found, including the exact limitations of the system’s output.

According to Nintendo, the sequel system not only supports 4K, HDR and up to 120fps, but also utilises VRR (variable refresh rate) in order to ensure a more smooth and consistent gameplay experience.

While a welcome surprise, the Switch 2 does have some limitations. While the dock does support 4K output and up to 120fps, the two can’t be used simultaneously. Seemingly due to its use of a lower-specced HDMI slot (with less bandwidth than the 2.1 version), 120hz support is unfortunately limited to just a 1080p output.

Despite this, the Switch 2 looks set to be a massive upgrade over the OG Switch in almost all aspects. Hopefully the inevitable OLED Version comes with a slightly updated HDMI port.

KitGuru says: What do you think of this limitation? Are you bothered by it? Would you rather play at 4K60fps or 1080p120fps? Let us know down below.

During the company’s most recent Direct, Nintendo offered a more comprehensive look at exactly how the system’s Switch 1 game upgrades will work. Interestingly, depending on the game (and whether you are subscribed to Nintendo Switch Online), Switch 2 Enhanced titles could cost upwards of $20 to upgrade – while others are entirely free.

Following the conclusion of the Switch 2 Direct, Nintendo has offered some clarity on their ‘Switch 2 Edition’ program. Firstly, some games will receive entirely free upgrades, with Switch 2 owners needing only to download a patch in order to benefit from enhancements. So far, the list of games getting free enhancements are the following:

• ARMS
• Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
• Super Mario Odyssey
• Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury
• Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics
• The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
• The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
• Game Builder Garage
• New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
• Pokémon Scarlet & Violet
• Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain

On the paid front, some select titles will cost around $10 to upgrade to the Switch 2 version, with others being double that at $20 (converted from the Japanese Yen). According to Nintendo, the more costly of the two will be kept for upgrades featuring new content alongside visual/performance improvements.

Interestingly however, it seems as though certain games will be upgraded for free as long as you are subscribed to the company’s NSO program. So far, just The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild alongside Tears of the Kingdom will be included – though expect more titles to be added over time.

The Switch 2 Direct offered a ton of cool and interesting games. It’s just somewhat unfortunate to see that the company is stretching the wallets of its fans with all these extra costs.

KitGuru says: What do you think of this new upgrade system? Does it seem fair? Is Nintendo inflating its pricing across the board? Let us know your thoughts down below.

Today we are back another RTX 5070 Ti review, as we check out Palit's GamingPro OC model. Sticking with a triple-fan design and a full-length metal backplate, this card also brings dual-BIOS functionality and ARGB lighting to the table, all while keeping pricing in check – compared to some other models, at least!. We put it through its paces today to see how it stacks up against the competition.

A lot has changed since we first got hands on with the RTX 5070 Ti back in February – primarily, AMD has since unleashed RDNA 4, with the RX 9070 XT proving to be a capable competitor in this market segment. However, the RTX 5070 Ti still has plenty of merit, primarily due to its superior ray tracing performance alongside its support for DLSS. Let's see what Palit's RTX 5070 Ti GamingPro OC partner card adds to the mix.

First, a quick spec recap. Whereas the RTX 5080 is a full implementation of the GB203 die (378mm²), RTX 5070 Ti is cut down across the board. Comprised of six Graphics Processing Clusters (GPCs), each holds up to eight Texture Processing Clusters (TPCs), with a total of 35. Each TPC is home to two Streaming Multiprocessors (SMs), giving us 84, and each SM still holds 128 CUDA Cores, meaning the RTX 5070 Ti has a total of 8960 shaders. We also find 70 RT cores, 280 Tensor cores, 280 Texture Units, and 96 ROPs.

This time around, however, there's no node-shrink, and GB203 remains fabricated on TSMC's N4 node, as per the RTX 40 series. As such, rated clock speed has not stepped forwards this generation, with the RTX 5070 Ti rated at 2452MHz, though Palit has increased this to 2482MHz.

The memory configuration is almost identical to the RTX 5080. That means we find 16GB of GDDR7 memory, but it's clocked slightly slower, at 28Gbps, and that puts total memory bandwidth at 896 GB/s, a 33% increase over the RTX 4070 Ti Super. L2 cache still comes in at 49MB.

Lastly, the RTX 5070 Ti features a 300W TGP, which Palit has not increased out of the box with the GamingPro OC.

Yesterday was Nintendo’s big day in which the console manufacturer finally gave us our first proper look at the Switch 2, its games, pricing and much more. In the immediacy following the event, we’ve gotten a ton more details, including exactly how much each of the new accessories will cost.

Though not detailed during the actual Nintendo Direct livestream, pricing for the Switch 2’s many accessories has now been published online – at least in the US.

While we may have to wait a bit longer to get the full suite of regional pricing, the USD value for each of the accessories does give an indication as to how it will be priced in the rest of the world. With that, the MSRP for Switch 2’s accessories is as follows:

• Pro Controller: $80
• Joy-Cons: $90
• Dock Set (includes AC Adapter and USB-C cable): $110
• Charging Grip: $35
• Camera: $50
• AC Adapter: $30

Unsurprisingly, many of these accessories have seen a bump in price compared to their last-gen counterparts, with the OG Switch’s Pro Controller coming in at $70 and the Joy-Cons at $80.

The Switch 2’s Dock meanwhile has seen an even bigger leap in price, with the OG Dock costing just $60 (with the OLED model slightly higher at $70). That said, these docks did not include an AC Adapter or cable, and so perhaps the price can be justified slightly.

Regardless, with the Switch 2 Nintendo has made it clear that they’re coming for your wallets. It will be interesting to see how well the system performs at launch given the current state of the economy.

KitGuru says: What do you think of the prices? Are they fair? What was your least favourite part of the reveal? Let us know down below.

Prior to its official unveiling earlier this year, many fans theorised on what Nintendo would decide to call the successor to their highly popular Switch console. While we now know it to be simply called the Switch 2, the console maker revealed that they had considered naming it the Super Nintendo Switch.

Following the conclusion of the official Switch 2 Direct, Nintendo released an ‘Ask the Developer’ Q&A onto their site, offering some interesting discussions.

When asked about the decision to go with the moniker Switch 2, the producer for entertainment planning and development at Nintendo (Kouichi Kawamoto) explained: “There were a lot of ideas for the name, and we really struggled to find the right one.”

Kawamoto continued, “We even considered ideas like ‘Super Nintendo Switch.’ However, Super NES, which came out after the NES, couldn’t play NES games. Since Switch 2 can play Switch games, it didn't feel right to use the same naming convention as Super NES. Switch 2 is a new system with improved performance, but we'd like players who get their hands on it not to focus on the specs, but rather to think of it as the latest system developed by Nintendo. So, in the hope that it becomes the new standard for Nintendo Switch, we named it Nintendo Switch 2.”

Given the overwhelming success of the Switch, it made sense for Nintendo to stick with what has worked and ensure that all those with an OG Switch knows with absolute clarity that a sequel console is on its way. After all, we wouldn’t want another Wii U situation.

KitGuru says: What do you think of the name? Should they have gone with Super Switch? What would you have named the Switch 2? Let us know down below.

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