It's time for another round of Digital Foundry Direct Weekly, on this occasion featuring the technical stylings of Sam Machkovech, John Linneman and Alex Battaglia. On the docket this week: layoffs at Halo developer 343 Industries amid a rumoured switch to Unreal Engine 5, a new PS5 beta firmware and is it 'safe' to move to Windows 11 on a gaming rig?
00:00:00 Introduction
00:01:53 News 01: Halo developer suffers layoffs, switching to UE5
00:17:37 News 02: Major live service games canceled
00:27:11 News 03: DLSS 3 added to Cyberpunk 2077, Dying Light 2
00:36:21 News 04: The Witcher 3 gets RT performance boosts
00:43:11 News 05: Goldeneye launches on Xbox, Switch
00:53:56 News 06: PS5 beta firmware adds 1440p VRR support
01:05:04 DF Supporter Q1: Sam, you called the RTX 4090 a bargain. What other bargains do you recommend?
01:09:04 DF Supporter Q2: Have you tested copying the shader cache from one PC to another to eliminate shader stutter?
01:10:08 DF Supporter Q3: Could Square Enix be in financial trouble after Forspoken’s poor reception?
01:13:51 DF Supporter Q4: With PS VR2 pre-orders reportedly lower than expected, could the VR2 go the way of the Vita?
01:18:58 DF Supporter Q5: Do you think that it is safe to move to Windows 11 on a gaming rig?
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DF Direct Weekly #97: New PS5 Beta Firmware, Halo Switches to Unreal Engine 5 + More!

Digital Foundry is a leading authority on gaming technology and performance, and in this regular podcast, the team sits down to discuss the latest news and take questions from the audience.

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Technology

Video Games

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FSR3 frame generation comes to consoles and Rich and John have tested it! That's the lead story in a new Direct that covers the controversy surrounding Hellblade 2, the upcoming launch of Snapdragon X Elite laptops and much, much more. Tom Morgan also joins the panel this week to discuss the arrival of TopSpin 2K25, the latest in the Paper Mario Switch story and his astonishing attempts to get Ark: Survival Ascended to run at 60fps on PlayStation 5.

0:00:00 Introduction
0:01:15 News 01: Immortals of Aveum FSR3 frame-gen tested!
0:18:16 News 02: Hellblade 2 review reaction
0:45:34 News 03: IGN buys Gamer Network... but what about DF?
0:57:44 News 04: TopSpin 2K25 impressions
1:08:14 News 05: Snapdragon X Elite processors launch
1:21:37 News 06: New Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door details
1:30:23 News 07: Ark: Survival Ascended features console menu on consoles
1:41:12 Supporter Q1: Should ‘artistic’ effects always be optional in games?
1:47:21 Supporter Q2: Should a frame-rate cap option be added to Ghost of Tsushima?
1:52:55 Supporter Q3: Future compatibility enhancements are very helpful - so should they be a standard feature in console games?
2:01:32 Supporter Q4: Is VRR becoming a crutch for console games?
2:09:00 Supporter Q5: Are full UE5 titles finally becoming common?
2:12:35 Supporter Q6: Which game should get an RTX Remix treatment?
2:17:15 Supporter Q7: By 2030, will 8K gaming be ‘a thing’?
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DF Direct Weekly #164: FSR3 Console Frame-Gen Tested! Hellblade 2 Reaction, IGN Buys Gamer Network

Another massive episode kicks off with the team sharing initial hands-on impressions of Ghost of Tsushima's impressive PC ports, while big changes are PlayStation are discussed - along with the revelation that half of Sony's monthly active users are still on PS4. Grand Theft Auto 6 is pushed back to later in 2025, and there's the enticing possibility that the original Red Dead Redemption will FINALLY come to PC. Finally, John and Oliver have bought new TVs - and it's looking like a full-on OLED vs LCD shoot-out.

0:00:00 Introduction
0:00:56 News 01: Ghost of Tsushima PC impressions!
0:16:05 News 02: Assassin’s Creed Shadows announced
0:25:33 News 03: PlayStation news roundup!
0:49:10 News 04: GTA 6 to arrive in fall 2025
0:55:22 News 05: Red Dead Redemption possibly coming to PC
1:02:30 News 06: PO’ed remaster released
1:12:13 News 07: John and Oliver’s new TVs!
1:28:42 Supporter Q1: Will the changes to Xbox strategy reduce console competition?
1:36:49 Supporter Q2: Does an Xbox-PC hybrid really make sense?
1:43:49 Supporter Q3: Could Nvidia’s rumoured ARM handheld SoC wipe the floor with Nintendo and Valve?
1:48:50 Supporter Q4: Are there gaming applications for OpenAI’s recently revealed AI tech?
1:52:40 Supporter Q5: What are your most highly anticipated games for the rest of the year in terms of tech?
1:56:21 Supporter Q6: How do you prefer to set up your PC displays when gaming?
1:58:54 Supporter Q7: What are your thoughts on producing repeated videos on games that are delivered in a subpar state?
2:04:25 Supporter Q8: What’s the latest gaming and tech news you’ve enjoyed?
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DF Direct Weekly #163: Ghost of Tsushima PC Tested, Big Changes At Sony, GTA 6 'Delay', Red Dead PC!

There's anger, bafflement and frustration this week as John, Rich and Alex discuss Microsoft's decision to close one studio that created one of the greatest immersive games ever made and another studio that's just delivered a BAFTA-winning, critically acclaimed rhythm action game... so what is going on at Xbox right now? Beyond that, the team discuss the latest Switch 2 revelations, the new Asus ROG - or R.O.G. - Ally, Hellblade 2 PC specs and Sony's massive Helldivers 2 own-goal.

0:00:00 Introduction
0:01:38 News 01: Microsoft shutters Tango Gameworks, Arkane Austin
0:44:37 News 02: Nintendo confirms Switch sequel, potential components uncovered
1:03:42 News 03: Asus announces new ROG Ally
1:16:13 News 04: Sony backtracks on Helldivers 2 PC PSN requirements
1:25:25 News 05: Ninja Theory reveal Hellblade 2 PC specs
1:36:15 News 06: Sand Land released!
1:44:17 Supporter Q1: Could the Switch 2 connect to a TV wirelessly?
1:46:52 Supporter Q2: How much longevity will video cards with 8-10 GB of VRAM have?
1:53:41 Supporter Q3: Should next gen consoles have much larger RAM allotments?
1:57:40 Supporter Q4: Do you think mouse and keyboard support will become more common on consoles?
2:00:49 Supporter Q5: How feasible is it to update an older UE5 game to UE 5.4?
2:03:50 Supporter Q6: Could Intel beat AMD in discrete GPU sales by 2029?
2:06:40 Supporter Q7: What’s your favourite immersive sim, and why is it Prey (2017)?
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DF Direct Weekly #162: Xbox Studio Shutdown Crisis, Switch 2 Confirmed, ROG Ally X Specs Reaction

The latest DF Direct Weekly sees Rich, Oliver and Alex at the mics (John returns in the next episode!) discussing  Bethesda's unique approach to Starfield's upcoming display mode upgrades, while there's concern about the health of console gaming in the wake of poor AMD gaming revenue. Rich talks PS5 Pro GPU details - including caches, clock speeds and features - while the latest Switch 2 rumours and reports are assessed for their plausibility. There's genuine excitement over AMD's new Strix Point and Strix Halo APUs, while Alex goes into depth about all the path-tracing features now unearthed in Capcom RE Engine games. 

0:00:00 Introduction
0:01:41 News 01: Bethesda announces big Starfield update
0:23:05 News 02: AMD sees massive gaming revenue decline
0:40:14 News 03: New PS5 Pro GPU details!
0:58:27 News 04: Switch 2 rumour roundup
1:07:40 News 05: RTX Remix getting DLSS 3.5 Ray Reconstruction
1:16:02 News 06: Resident Evil titles get path tracing!
1:27:14 News 07: AMD Strix APUs pack great integrated GPU performance
1:35:06 Supporter Q1: Could Nintendo games use DLSS 2 to reach 4K output on Switch 2?
1:40:23 Supporter Q2: What features would you add to Switch 2, if you could pick anything?
1:45:25 Supporter Q3: Could the potential merging of Xbox and PC development hurt Xbox?
1:50:13 Supporter Q4: Could developers run a game’s logic at high rates to improve responsiveness, while keeping frame-rate untouched? 
1:54:19 Supporter Q5: Gaming handhelds theoretically seem as fast as a Series S. Why are they slower in practice? 
1:57:40 Supporter Q6: Could Valve build a viable console platform to compete with Sony?
2:03:16 Supporter Q7: If you had to pick between #StutterStruggle and FSR 2 artifacts, which would you pick?
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DF Direct Weekly #161: Starfield Performance Upgrade, PS5 Pro GPU Info, New Switch 2 Reports

In this 160th edition, it's Tom Morgan joining Rich and Alex to discuss the latest gaming and technology news. There's good news and bad news with Fallout 4's new 'next-gen' upgrade, Rich is impressed with Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora's new 40fps mode for PS5 and Series X, while Alex talks us through the latest path-tracing innovations revealed at GDC and GTC. Tom shares his impressions on Paper Mario for Nintendo Switch, Rich tests frame-gen on ROG Ally - and are Lords of the Fallen's tech issues resolved in the newly released patch 1.5?

0:00:00 Introduction
0:01:57 News 01: Fallout 4 gets mixed current-gen upgrade
0:22:14 News 02: Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora gets 40fps mode
0:38:07 News 03: Lords of the Fallen receives performance boost
0:49:12 News 04: Alex dives deep into game tech
1:11:56 News 05: ROG Ally updated with AFMF tech
1:22:08 News 06: Paper Mario preview!
1:29:31 Supporter Q1: Could frame gen be used to scale a game from 40fps to 120fps, and then decimate it to 60fps?
1:34:07 Supporter Q2: Why are some Microsoft games exhibiting different settings on PS5 relative to Series X?
1:42:49 Supporter Q3: Do you prefer Doom 1993 or Doom 2016?
1:47:11 Supporter Q4: Is sampler feedback the Series S savior? And is the PS5 API better than Microsoft’s?
1:53:07 Supporter Q5: Is the PS4’s continued developer support a problem for Sony?
2:00:13 Supporter Q6: Could the Switch 2 have an image quality advantage over PC gaming handhelds?
2:05:35 Supporter Q7: Are 13900K and 14900K processors really unstable?
2:10:54 Supporter Q8: What would a Republic of Gamers look like?
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DF Direct Weekly #97: New PS5 Beta Firmware, Halo Switches to Unreal Engine 5 + More!

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