quirks Archives

AppWizard

May 27, 2025

F1 25 review

Sebastian Vettel's reminder about cherishing current moments resonates within the context of the F1 gaming franchise, particularly with the release of F1 25 on May 30, 2025, developed by Codemasters and published by Electronic Arts. The game is priced at £50 and is the 17th annual edition of the official F1 game. F1 25 features a nine-hour story in Braking Point 3, concluding the saga with character development for Aiden Jackson and introducing California Mayer as a rival. The game includes an email system for team management, allowing players to connect with staff achievements. However, it has faced criticism for its handling model, particularly for pad control, and contains bugs like incorrect radio messages. The game showcases modern advancements such as path-traced lighting but may struggle with performance on lower-end graphics cards. Overall, while F1 25 offers a high-quality racing experience, it lacks significant innovation compared to its predecessors.

AppWizard

May 20, 2025

Blades of Fire review

Blades of Fire is an action game featuring a hero named Aran, who possesses godlike powers and a tragic backstory. The game emphasizes exploration over combat and is set to be released on May 22, 2025. It is developed by MercurySteam and published by 505 Games, with a price point of £50. The game was reviewed on a system with an Intel i9-13900HX, RTX 4090, and 32GB RAM.

AppWizard

May 6, 2025

A personal goodbye to Skype; the app that connected worlds

Skype has officially ceased to exist as of today. It was introduced in 2011-2012 as a more robust alternative to MSN Messenger, allowing for group calls and video interactions. Skype served as a platform for social interactions, job interviews, and long-distance communication. Over time, users shifted to alternatives like WhatsApp, Messenger, and Zoom, especially during the pandemic, leading Microsoft to integrate Skype's features into its Teams platform. Despite its decline, Skype remains a symbol of a bygone era, representing significant moments and connections in users' lives.

Winsage

May 1, 2025

Turns out that the earliest versions of Windows 7 took longer to load depending on your choice of desktop wallpaper

The mauve desktop background in Windows 7 may have caused slow boot times, with users experiencing delays of up to 30 seconds at the welcome screen when using a solid color background. This issue was attributed to a programming error and was addressed by Microsoft in November 2009, five months after the launch of Windows 7.

Winsage

April 27, 2025

Legendary Voodoo4 GPU modded into laptop, benchmarks work with Windows XP

Daniel Simionescu, known as sdz, has been working on porting the Voodoo graphics from 3dfx to mobile platforms, resulting in a design that integrates a Voodoo4 GPU into a Dell Precision M4800 laptop via a custom MXM card. YouTuber Omores tested this setup with Windows 98 and XP, facing initial compatibility issues but ultimately achieving partial functionality. The Voodoo brand was significant in the late 90s for making 3D acceleration accessible. sdz created a PCB with the Voodoo4 GPU using the VSA-100 core and 64MB of SDR memory. During testing, various VBE drivers were explored, with Windows XP showing better compatibility for running 3DMark 2001 and Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed. Games using the Glide API may require wrappers, and the community plans to compile a list of supported titles. sdz intends to keep the design open-source for collaboration.

AppWizard

April 26, 2025

My favourite Elder Scrolls YouTuber returned after 2 years, and it’s made me fall in love with ridiculous challenge runs all over again

The author has numerous friends on Steam who have been absent for extended periods, with one missing for a year and another for 3,646 days. Micky D, a YouTuber known for his humorous takes on Bethesda games, disappeared for two years after uploading a video about Fallout but recently resurfaced to celebrate the remaster of Oblivion and released a new video titled "Can You Play Daggerfall Without Leaving Daggerfall?". In this video, he explores unconventional gaming challenges, such as navigating Morrowind without sight and defeating a god at level one, highlighting the adaptability and quirks of classic Elder Scrolls titles. The introduction of mods allows players to create unique challenges, showcasing the charm and creativity within the gaming community.

AppWizard

April 25, 2025

Despite CGI “A Minecraft Movie” is pretty good

“A Minecraft Movie” is directed by Jared Hess and is a fantasy adventure comedy inspired by the 2011 video game. The plot follows four misfits who are transported to the Overworld, guided by the character Steve, voiced by Jack Black. Key characters include Garret “The Garbage Man” Garrison, played by Jason Momoa, and Henry, portrayed by Sebastian Eugene Hansen, along with Natalie (Emma Myers) and Dawn (Danielle Brooks). The film features comedic chemistry between Black and Momoa, with humor stemming from their dynamic. The CGI production is polished, though some viewers may find the lifelike appearance of monsters unsettling. The movie has inspired memes and quotes among audiences, enhancing the communal viewing experience. It received a rating of 4 out of 5 mustangs.

AppWizard

April 22, 2025

Hot damn: The Oblivion Remaster is 125 GB, 2600% heavier than the original game from 2006

Bethesda has remastered The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion using Unreal Engine 5, available for £50, including horse armor but not the deluxe edition. The remaster requires 125 GB of storage, with a download size of 115 GB due to Steam's compression, marking a 2600% increase from the original game's 4.6 GB. The remaster combines Unreal Engine 5's graphics with Gamebryo's logic, maintaining Bethesda's signature quirks.

Winsage

April 21, 2025

5 amazing Linux distros that are better than Windows, but you should avoid them as a beginner

Linux distributions have evolved to be more accessible for users transitioning from Windows and macOS, with Debian-based distributions being relatively easy to navigate. DietPi is an ultra-lightweight OS that requires manual configuration of essential packages, making it more suitable for experienced users. Tails prioritizes user privacy by using the Tor network and operates from a USB drive, but is not ideal for casual users. Qubes OS enhances security through virtualization but has a steep learning curve and challenges with GPU passthrough. Talos Linux is optimized for Kubernetes projects but may be difficult for newcomers due to its lack of SSH support and immutable design. Bazzite, a gaming-focused distribution based on Fedora, offers a user-friendly setup but may not support multiplayer games with kernel-level anti-cheat technology, making it less suitable for competitive gamers.

AppWizard

April 20, 2025

Stop Watching and Start Memeing at ‘A Minecraft Movie’

A Minecraft Movie has been released, blending gaming and cinema, and appeals to both nostalgic fans of the game and new audiences. The film features a classic narrative with a villainous duo, Malgosha and Chungus, and includes humor and clever dialogue. Jennifer Coolidge plays Vice Principal Marlene, while Jack Black and Jason Momoa portray Steve and Garrett, respectively. The film includes comedic scenes, such as a product placement moment with Coolidge's character hitting a villager with her Jeep Cherokee. The audience, including fans and families, reacted positively, and the film is seen as a potential cultural touchstone for Gen Alpha.