catalogue Archives

AppWizard

June 16, 2025

Sony Lifts Region Locks on Its PC Games, Including Helldivers 2, The Last of Us, More

Sony has lifted restrictions on its PC game catalogue on Steam, allowing a wider audience to access titles like God of War Ragnarok, Marvel's Spider-Man 2, and The Last of Us Part II Remastered without needing a PlayStation Network (PSN) account. However, some games, including Helldivers 2, Ghost of Tsushima, and Until Dawn, still require a PSN link for gameplay.

Tech Optimizer

June 12, 2025

‘Postgres Has Won’

Databricks has launched Lakebase, a fully managed Postgres database, during the Data + AI Summit 2025. Lakebase is currently in public preview and integrates with Databricks' Data Intelligence Platform, targeting AI-driven application development. It introduces an operational layer to the lakehouse ecosystem, allowing developers to build AI applications on a multi-cloud platform. The database architecture, powered by Neon, separates compute from storage for independent scaling, ensuring low latency and high concurrency. Lakebase supports rapid deployment and a usage-based pricing model, and features include copy-on-write clones for development and testing. Databricks aims to create a new category in the database market with Lakebase, which is built on open-source Postgres and compatible with existing tools. The operational database market is valued at over 0 billion, and recent surveys indicate PostgreSQL's rising popularity among developers. The launch follows Snowflake's acquisition of Crunchy Data to enhance its Postgres offerings, indicating a trend towards PostgreSQL in the industry.

AppWizard

June 5, 2025

MVRDV’s ‘Out of the Box’ Project Looks Like a Building Pulled Straight from Minecraft

A new residential tower named Out of the Box, designed by Dutch architecture firm MVRDV, is being built in Taipei’s Tianmu neighborhood. The 25-story structure reaches a height of 250 feet and features a dynamic facade with box-like protrusions that create additional living spaces such as balconies and terraces. MVRDV utilized digital scripting to navigate Taiwan’s building regulations, allowing for a balance of sunlight and privacy. The design includes a small number of repeating apartment types with variations due to the protruding boxes. The tower aims to foster community by providing private outdoor spaces in a humid subtropical climate. It is clad in marble, enhancing its sophisticated appearance while integrating with planned greenery to create a vertical garden.

AppWizard

May 15, 2025

Ubisoft reports massive dips in revenue and bookings for 2024/25

Ubisoft reported a revenue of €1.9 billion for the fiscal year ending March 2025, a 17.5% decrease from the previous year. Net bookings fell by 20.5% to €1.84 billion, while net bookings from the back catalogue dropped 13.5% to €1.3 billion. Despite these declines, the company generated positive free cash flow and completed its initial cost savings program ahead of schedule, with plans for an additional €100 million in savings over the next two years. The launch of Assassin’s Creed Shadows was highlighted as a significant event for the company.

AppWizard

May 10, 2025

Celebrate Star Wars being good again with up to 85% off EA’s Jedi and Battlefront games until May 15

This year's Star Wars Day has generated excitement among fans and gamers, partly due to the success of the Andor TV series and the announcement of Star Wars Zero Company from Bit Reactor. EA is offering discounts of up to 85% on its Star Wars games on Steam, including Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order for .99 (£5.24) and Jedi Survivor for .99 (£11.99). The 2015 reboot of Star Wars: Battlefront is available for .99, while Battlefront 2 is priced at .99 (£6.99). Star Wars: Squadrons is also on sale for .99 (£5.24). These offers will be available until May 15. Future Star Wars gaming projects include Zero Company, a third Jedi game from Respawn, and ongoing developments for Star Wars Eclipse and the KOTOR Remake.

Winsage

March 26, 2025

The latest Windows 10 update causes headaches for some users

On March 11, the Windows 10 22H2 Patch Tuesday security update, KB5053606, was released to address 15 vulnerabilities, including two critical remote code execution flaws. Users have reported significant issues, with many experiencing installation difficulties and receiving the error code 0x80070020. Those who managed to install the update faced problems such as blue and black screens, random crashes, disappearing app icons, and reverted desktop customizations. Professional users reported issues with program crashes, Citrix functionality, and slow Print Spooler operations. The update includes support for DST changes in Paraguay, updates to Country and Operator Settings profiles, fixes for Desktop Window Manager not responding, resolves issues with the Open Secure Shell service, and addresses various Chinese IME-related issues. Systems post-installation will reflect Build 19045.5608. Windows 10 is scheduled to reach its end of life on October 14, 2025.

BetaBeacon

March 14, 2025

Crunchyroll Game Vault expands with two cult classic releases now available

Crunchyroll has been expanding their Game Vault with a variety of obscure cult classic releases, including Destiny's Princess and Ys I Chronicles for mobile.

AppWizard

February 21, 2025

‘A massive, massive moment of wow.’ Microsoft CEO predicts AI-generated games are a ‘CGI moment’ for the industry

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella discussed the company's plans for artificial intelligence and quantum computing, particularly focusing on their AI-powered game generation platform, Muse. He compared Muse's potential impact on gaming to the influence of CGI in the film industry, despite its current limitations of generating games at a resolution of 300 by 180 pixels. Nadella envisions a future where users can request unique gaming experiences, indicating that the integration of AI into gaming is imminent. He also highlighted the broader implications of AI on economic growth, cautioning against the hype surrounding artificial general intelligence (AGI) and emphasizing the importance of AI's impact on GDP growth. Nadella believes in a collaborative future for AI development, suggesting that the market can support multiple successful players. The timeline for when gamers can fully engage with Muse remains uncertain, with some experts cautioning that its capabilities may be overstated.

AppWizard

February 19, 2025

Game Pass: What time does Avowed go live?

Avowed launches on February 18, 2024, at synchronized global times: 10am PT, 1pm ET, 6pm GMT, 7pm CET, 3am KST (Feb 19), 3am JST (Feb 19), 5am AEDT (Feb 19), and 7am NZDT (Feb 19). Early access for the Premium Edition started on February 13. The game will be available on Xbox Game Pass, but only for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers at launch; it will not be accessible to Game Pass Core or Standard subscribers. Avowed can also be pre-ordered on platforms like Xbox Store, Steam, and Battle.net.

AppWizard

February 14, 2025

Ubisoft revenue halved year-on-year for Q3

Ubisoft reported a 47.5% decline in revenue for the three months ending in December, totaling €318.1 million, down from €606.4 million the previous year. Net bookings fell by 51.8% to €301.8 million. The back catalogue generated €268 million, making up 88% of total net bookings, but also saw a year-on-year decline. CEO Yves Guillemot expressed optimism about the upcoming launch of Assassin’s Creed Shadows on March 20, highlighting early positive previews. Ubisoft is implementing cost reduction initiatives and expects to exceed its cost reduction objectives by the end of FY25, with plans to continue into FY26. A formal review of Ubisoft's strategic options is underway to maximize asset value for stakeholders.