The launch of Civilization 7 hasn't exactly gone to plan for Firaxis. Long-time fans of the series have taken issue with the latest entry, calling out the UI, missing features and other issues. In an effort to get the game back on track, Firaxis has now disabled console and PC crossplay, enabling them to push updates to PC platforms at a faster pace.
With crossplay titles, generally, developers have to make sure updates to the game go out to all platforms at once. When it comes to consoles, there is an approval process that developers need to go through before an update can be rolled out. On PC, developers have more freedom to update their games whenever they see fit. With that in mind, crossplay for Civ 7 is being disabled, allowing Firaxis to update the PC version of the game at a quicker pace.
This means that PC players will get access to patches and hotfixes before console users. However, eventually all platforms will be running the same version of the game again. When that happens, crossplay between the PC and console versions will be switched back on.
This news comes alongside the second patch for the game. Civilization 7 1.01 is now available for Windows, Mac and Linux. This patch fixes a number of gameplay bugs, issues with in-game AI, and some tweaks to the in-game UI. You can find the full patch notes on Steam.
This is just the beginning, with more updates already in the works. Hopefully in a few months time, the overall review score for Civ 7 will go from mixed to positive. A new version of the game for virtual reality headsets, like the Meta Quest 3, is also due to release later this year.
KitGuru Says: Have you picked up Civ 7 already? How are you finding the game so far?
The post Firaxis disables Civ 7 crossplay to enable faster patches for PC first appeared on KitGuru.Marvel Rivals has continued to be a huge success in the months since launch. At this point, players are well into the game's first season, but there is a major mid-season update on the way. Not only can we expect two more characters on the roster, but there will also be a rank reset.
When Marvel Rivals Season 1 first went live, the developers introduced two members of The Fantastic Four – Reed Richards and Invisible Woman. Now for the mid-season update, Human Torch and The Thing are also joining the line-up of playable characters. As you would expect, The Thing is a tank character (otherwise known as a Vanguard in Rivals) and Human Torch is a DPS character (known as a Duelist in Rivals).
This update will also usher in a rank reset, knocking the entire player base down by four divisions. That means if you are currently in Gold, you'll be bumped down to Silver. Future rank resets will knock players back down by six ranks.
We typically see rank resets taking place at the beginning of a brand new season. It is unclear if a mid-season reset will be scheduled for all seasons moving forward, as Net Ease has also said that it will slow down the cadence of new character launches after this first introductory season.
KitGuru Says: Have you been playing Marvel Rivals in recent weeks? Are you looking forward to the new characters? How do you feel about the mid-season rank reset?
The post Marvel Rivals gets new heroes and rank reset for major mid-season patch first appeared on KitGuru.Today we take a look at DeepCool's latest ITX cases. The CH160 and CH170 Digital share the same core chassis design but one is vertical and the other is a horizontal orientation. Both offer support for ITX motherboards, graphics cards up to 305mm long, the installation of ATX power supplies and up to six 120mm fans. In this review, we take a closer look at the newer CH170 Digital – but if you were looking for a new ITX case, which one would you choose?
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
00:43 Pricing and technical overview
02:20 Thoughts , Front I/O and size
03:14 Panels, filters and Hardware support
07:23 Bottom and right side
08:10 Accessories
08:38 Test System
09:39 Thermal and Noise testing
10:57 James' thoughts
DeepCool CH170 Digital Features:
Specifications:
Thermal Performance Testing
To simulate thermal demand we run the Cinebench R23 multi-thread benchmark and 3DMark Speed Way stress test simultaneously in a loop for 30 minutes to load the system fully. This gives the CPU and GPU enough time to reach constant steady-state temperature. With this data, we can compare how the system handles the thermal demand and measure peak noise levels.
Thermal performance is measured with the case in various configurations, such as the default, with the tempered glass left-hand side panel removed and with the front panel removed to see how these configurations affect the CPU and GPU temperature. During testing, only stock case fans are used unless otherwise specified. All water pumps are set to maximum RPM and fans are set to a custom RPM curve by the Motherboard software/BIOS.
All temperature measurements are presented as Deltas – meaning the ambient temperature has been deducted from the CPU temperature giving us a Delta. Data shown in the charts represent the average component temperature over the length of the test as measured by HWiNFO and then the last 15 minutes of the data are calculated to get the average. The ambient temperature during thermal tests is between 19-20⁰C.
Test System Specification:
Thermal Performance Overview
We tested the case thermals with a CPU Dual Tower Cooler cooler installed and with the case in several different configurations. The default configuration shown in the charts is with a CPU tower Cooler, a top 120mm exhaust fan and all case panels fitted.
CPU temperature is at its peak with the case in the default configuration at 67°C over ambient. While the GPU in this configuration averages 47°C over ambient. When changing the case configuration, the most noticeable effect on temperature is when the dust filters are removed. CPU temperature drops by 3°C and the GPU average temperature drops by the same amount.
Removing all side panels and running the case as an open frame has virtually the same effect on the component temperature as removing the dust filter so the filters are restricting airflow enough to cause an increase in temperature but it isn’t significant enough to be a problem. Overall the airflow and cooling seem fine in the CH170 Digital, GPU temperature is exactly as expected from a case with good airflow optimisation.
When changing the case configuration temperature remains reasonably consistent so noise output is virtually unaffected. Due to the optimal airflow and cooling, the CPU fan curve doesn’t need to be too aggressive, even under this intensive CPU and GPU load, maximum noise output in our test environment peaks at 45dBA which is noticeable but not too distracting.
The DeepCool CH170 Digital ITX case uses the same core chassis as the CH160, which itself utilises a horizontal orientation. DeepCool simply added the LCD base to the CH160, got rid of the floor feet and carrying handle to give the CH170 its upright orientation. This is fine by us as it means the development of the CH170 was likely relatively short, so potentially it allows DeepCool to bring it to market with a low price tag, great for the end user. However, this approach does have its pitfalls.
One annoying thing about the CH170 Digital is the side panel removal and accessing the interior. Because the base is simply an add-on to the CH160, it must be removed to gain access to the side/top panel fasteners and fixing points. This means it is quite time-consuming and awkward to get into the case. There’s no quick and easy access, the case must be flipped over, several screws removed and panels disconnected so maintenance and upgrading parts is a slow and painful process.
Also, the main dust filters in the side panels are very awkward to access and remove; none can be removed without disassembly of the case and even when the case is fully disassembled it's still difficult to unclip the filters from the side panels, which is again very annoying. So like the side panel removal, cleaning filters will be a time-consuming job. Another negative is the cable management and lack of features, there's nothing built into the case to help with cable management so you just bundle the cables up and hope for the best, or so it seems.
But those are the only real issues with the case – on the other hand it has good airflow and cooling, even a high-spec system such as the one we used in testing can run at a very acceptable temperature, which isn’t always the case in ITX systems, so DeepCool has done a decent job here. The case has some hardware limitations such as the graphics card size, especially with an ATX power supply installed, but overall it's fine with full-size dual tower air coolers and even 240mm radiators supported.
Even though the LCD screen is quite basic, setting up and controlling it using the DeepCool DeepCreative software is a simple process but the best thing about the DeepCool CH160 and CH170 is the price, both are very reasonable. The CH160 is currently available in the UK for around £55 in black or white and the CH170 Digital with its LCD screen is just £70 from Scan which is great value, can you buy a decent ITX case with an LCD screen for less? If you can, it's not easy to find.
The DeepCool CH170 Digital is available to purchase now from Scan priced at £69.98 HERE.
Pros:
Cons:
KitGuru says: The CH170 Digital vertical case can be frustrating to work with, but if you want a cheap ITX case with an LCD screen and you don't upgrade your builds often, it could be a good choice.
Sports Interactive and Sega have announced the cancellation of Football Manager 25, marking the first time in the series' 20-year history that a title has been skipped. Initially slated for a November 2024 release, the game had already been delayed to March 2025.
The developers cited their inability to meet quality standards as the primary reason for the cancellation. Releasing the game in its current state and relying on post-launch patches was deemed unacceptable, and further delays were ruled out due to their impact on the current football season. Instead, the studio has chosen to focus all its efforts on the next installment, which is expected to launch later this year.
FM25 was intended to be a significant overhaul for the franchise, with Sports Interactive promising the “biggest technical and visual advancement in the series for a generation”. Ambitious plans included improved animations, an enhanced UI, a revamped matchday experience, and the introduction of women's football. However, the scale of these changes appears to have presented significant challenges. The game's release had already been pushed back from its traditional autumn slot to March, and the developers had yet to showcase any gameplay footage, even missing a promised January development update.
The studio stated that this decision allows the team to concentrate on ensuring the next release meets their quality expectations. They apologised for the delayed communication regarding the cancellation, citing legal and financial restrictions imposed by Sega. Players who pre-ordered the game will receive full refunds. Sports Interactive also confirmed that there will be no data update for Football Manager 2024 to reflect the current football season, as this would be a considerable effort that would detract from the development of the next title.
KitGuru says: Were you expecting Football Manager 25, or were you already expecting the game would be cancelled?
The post Football Manager 25 has been cancelled first appeared on KitGuru.Valve is taking a firm stance against intrusive advertising on Steam. It has updated its terms of service to prohibit games that force players to watch ads to continue playing or progress. This move aims to preserve the Steam experience and prevent it from becoming a haven for mobile-style, ad-filled games.
As reported by GamingOnLinux, Valve's updated guidelines explicitly state that “developers should not utilize paid advertising as a business model in their game, such as requiring players to watch or otherwise engage with advertising in order to play, or gating gameplay behind advertising”. This means games monetised through mandatory advertisements, a standard in mobile gaming, will not be allowed on Steam. Valve has even specified that such elements must be “removed” before a game can be launched on the platform.
The guidelines further clarify that developers should not use advertising to provide value to players, such as rewarding players for watching or engaging with advertising in their game. This prevents developers from incentivising microtransactions through advertising, a common tactic in free-to-play mobile titles.
This news will likely be welcomed by many Steam users who are wary of the aggressive advertising practices prevalent in mobile gaming. Forced advertisements that interrupt gameplay to earn in-game currency or lives are pretty frustrating, and Valve's new policy aims to keep such tactics off Steam. While microtransactions remain permissible, developers must find alternative ways to monetise their games rather than relying on incentivised ads. Any game found to violate these rules will have to either remove the offending advertisements or find another distribution platform.
KitGuru says: Do you agree with Valve's decision to ban such games?
The post Steam no longer allows games that force players to watch ads first appeared on KitGuru.Dragon Quest fans can breathe a sigh of relief. Series creator Yuji Horii has reaffirmed that Dragon Quest XII is still in active development, dispelling any recent doubts about its fate. The game, initially announced back in 2021, has been largely absent from the public eye since its initial teaser, leading to some understandable concern.
During a recent livestream with the radio program KosoKoso Hōsō Kyoku (as reported by Automaton), Horii assured fans that the development team is “working hard on Dragon Quest XII”. While he didn't reveal any specific details about the game, this confirmation is welcome news for those wondering if it had been cancelled. Moreover, Horii stated that further information would be released gradually, though no timeline was shared.
This update follows a social media post from Horii last May, where he stated the team's intention to create a game “worthy of the final contributions of the two people who passed away”. He was referring to Dragon Quest character designer Akira Toriyama and composer Koichi Sugiyama, both integral to the series' success and whose loss has profoundly impacted the development process. Horii's comments also come after Dragon Quest series producer Yu Miyake stepped down to lead Square Enix's mobile game division, which raised some questions about the status of Dragon Quest XII.
While concrete details remain scarce, we know a few things about Dragon Quest XII. During the series' 35th-anniversary livestream, Horii revealed that the iconic turn-based combat system would be reimagined and that the overall tone of the game would be darker and more mature than your typical Dragon Quest game.
KitGuru says: Are you a fan of Dragon Quest? Did you think Dragon Quest XII had already been cancelled?
The post Dragon Quest 12 is still in development first appeared on KitGuru.Insomniac Games has had an interesting trajectory. After creating the highly-praised Spyro and Ratchet & Clank franchises, the team moved in a different direction for the PS3 with their gritty FPS trilogy ‘Resistance’. According to the studio’s founder, Insomniac pitched a potential 4th entry to Sony – though it was ultimately rejected.
Founder and CEO of Insomniac Games – Ted Price – recently announced his retirement from the studio. In the wake of this, Price has taken part in various interviews in which the ex-CEO has been rather candid with regards to his decades at the studio.
In a recent interview with Kinda Funny Games, Price revealed that following the conclusion of the Resistance trilogy back in 2011, the studio pitched Sony a potential 4th entry.
According to Price, while Resistance 3 marked the end of its storyline, the 4th game would have reportedly been “something different” – possibly the start of another trilogy? Unfortunately for fans of the franchise, Price claimed that he does not know whether the series will ever come back for a new game.
That said, in the years since Resistance 3, Insomniac Games have gone on to become a household name, with them releasing the underrated Sunset Overdrive, followed by a string of major hits with Marvel’s Spider-Man and its sequels.
While things ultimately seemed to have worked out well for Insomniac Games, it would be interesting to see what the timeline would look like had they ended up making Resistance 4.
KitGuru says: What did you think of the Resistance series? Would you have liked to see a 4th entry? Are you happy with where Insomniac is at nowadays? Let us know down below.
The post Insomniac Games pitched Resistance 4 to Sony but were turned down first appeared on KitGuru.Last month, we reported on a new listing published by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) for multiple Resident Evil games, including RE6 and the Origins Collection for the Xbox Series X|S. It seems Capcom might be planning to bring a flood of Resident Evil titles to the current gen as yet another ESRB listing has popped up – this time for RE5.
As reported by Wario64 via Bluesky, the ESRB’s website was recently updated to include a listing for Resident Evil 5 coming to the ‘Xbox Series’ of consoles.
While on its own it could be viewed as a possible error, this latest listing follows on from a bunch of other RE titles which leaked in the same manner a few weeks ago, with those ESRB ratings pertaining to Resident Evil 6; the Origins Collection and RE7 – suggesting that some sort of series-wide re-release could be in the works.
All of these games are of course playable on both the Xbox Series X|S and PS5, however – aside from RE7 – the games are all backwards compatible versions of their 8th-gen releases; and so it would perhaps be nice to have full 4K60fps upgrades for these titles.
We will have to wait and see what Capcom’s plans wind up being; though with the recent increase in activity we might not have to wait long.
KitGuru says: What do you think Capcom is planning? Would you want basic remasters for these games, or should they also get more comprehensive full-on remakes? Let us know your thoughts down below.
The post Resident Evil 5 gets mysterious ESRB rating for Xbox Series X|S first appeared on KitGuru.While Forza Motorsport released in a disappointing state for some, the team at Turn 10 studios has been slowly but surely fleshing the title out with each new update. As part of this continued effort, the team have now announced and released the 17th major update for Forza Motorsport.
Making the announcement on their blog, the team at Turn 10 studios officially announced and detailed title update 17, writing: “Forza Motorsport Update 17 celebrates the cars that are fun, compact, and performant, while remaining affordable.”
While perhaps not the biggest update in the game’s history, some of the most notable additions / improvements include:
The full list of changes, patch notes and additions can be found HERE. Forza Motorsport’s Update 17 is available right now, with the spotlight cars and in-game events going live tomorrow on the 12th of February.
KitGuru says: What are your thoughts on Forza Motorsport in 2025? What was your opinion at launch? What do you hope to see the team focus on over the course of this year? Let us know down below.
The post Forza Motorsport’s 17th major update is now live first appeared on KitGuru.As a publisher, Square Enix has rather high aspirations for its games’ sales performance, with pretty much every title released by them winding up selling below their expectations. It therefore comes as quite a surprise that the recent Dragon Quest III remake actually managed to exceed said expectations.
As part of the company’s latest fiscal earnings report, Square Enix specifically highlighted Dragon Quest III HD-2D’s success as a major factor for its higher-than-expected operating income, writing:
“Operating income up mainly due to stronger sales of ‘DRAGON QUEST III HD-2D Remake’ than initial assumptions.”
Given the publisher’s historically high expectations for its games, it is surprising to see Dragon Quest receive such a shoutout. That said, despite launching in November of last year, Dragon Quest III HD-2D actually managed to become the second-best selling game of 2024 on the Japanese PlayStation Store – with first place going to Square’s other major release ‘Final Fantasy VII Rebirth’.
The HD-2D style has been a great format to remake older pixel-art games and so it is encouraging to see Square Enix acknowledging their success.
KitGuru says: What do you think of HD-2D? Should more games take inspiration? What other classic would you like to see remade next? Let us know down below.
The post Dragon Quest III Remake sales exceeded Square Enix’s expectations first appeared on KitGuru.
Intel Arrow Lake-H Powered MSI Prestige 16 AI Evo: Starting At $1,299.00 An MSI Prestige 16 AI Evo 16-inch laptop with Intel's Arrow Lake-H Core Ultra 9 285H platform was our test vehicle for this performance review, and we came away impressed by its strong CPU performance, excellent GPU performance and respectable battery life. Excellent... Sony made the decision to drop PSN account requirements for its PC games at the right time, as over the weekend, the PlayStation Network suffered a major outage. Sony claimed an ‘operational error' was to blame for the network going down. As a result of the outage, the Monster Hunter Wilds beta is now being extended.
The Monster Hunter Wilds beta test was impacted over the weekend due to PSN going down, resulting in players not being able to load up the game. Due to this, Capcom has now confirmed that it will extend the beta test by an extra day, giving players some extra time to jump in and test things out before the game fully launches later this month.
Aside from the current open beta, Capcom has also confirmed plans to hold an additional open beta test later in the month, running from the 13th of February until the 16th. Capcom will then have just under two weeks to finish up development before release.
Monster Hunter Wilds is the next-generation Monster Hunter game, following on from 2018's Monster Hunter World. Monster Hunter Wilds is set to release on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S on the 28th of February.
KitGuru Says: Are you planning on picking up Monster Hunter Wilds later this month? Have you already tried out the beta?
The post Monster Hunter Wilds beta extended due to PSN outage first appeared on KitGuru.
Hot on the heels of Acer's laptop announcements at CES, the company is now launching its all-new Predator Helios Neo 16 and Neo 18 gaming laptops. Powered by Intel Core Ultra CPUs and RTX 50 graphics, these laptops aim to deliver high-end gaming on-the-go, as well as plenty of horsepower for AI tasks.
In addition to the powerful CPU and GPU combination, the Predator Helios Neo AI laptops showcase impressive display options. The 16-inch model offers up to an OLED panel option, while the 18-inch version features a Mini LED display. Both are equipped with 5th Gen AeroBlade 3D fans, ensuring smooth performance and advanced cooling under any task or challenge.
You can see the full specs for both laptops in the tables below:
| Name | Predator Helios Neo 16 AI |
| Model | PHN16-73 |
| Operating System | Windows 11 Home |
| Screen | 16-inch OLED + WQXGA (2560×1600), 240 Hz, 400 nits, DCI-P3 100%, 1 ms response time, NVIDIA Advanced Optimus
16-inch WQXGA (2560×1600), 240 Hz, 500 nits, DCI-P3 100%, 3 ms response time, NVIDIA Advanced Optimus 16-inch WQXGA (2560×1600), 180 Hz, 400 nits, sRGB 100%, 3 ms response time, NVIDIA Advanced Optimus 16-inch WQXGA (1920×1200), 180 Hz, 400 nits, sRGB 100%, 3 ms response time, NVIDIA Advanced Optimus |
| Processor | Intel® Core Ultra 9 processor 275HX
Intel® Core |
| Graphics | NVIDIA® GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Laptop GPU
NVIDIA® GeForce RTX |
| Memory | Up to 64 GB DDR5 system memory, 6400 Hz |
| Storage | Up to 2 TB, PCIe Gen 4 SSD, SSD slots: 2 |
| Cooling | 5th Gen AeroBlade 3D Fans, liquid metal thermal grease, vector heat pipes |
| Dimensions | 356.78 x 275.5 x 13.47/26.75 mm |
| Weight | 2.7 kg |
| Battery | 90 Whr |
| Wi-Fi and Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6E 1675i, Bluetooth 5.4 or above, Intel Killer Ethernet E3100G, Thunderbolt 4 Type-C, USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C, dual USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, HDMI 2.1, microSD Card reader, 3.5 mm combo audio jack |
| Features | Predator Sense 5.0/ Experience Zone 2.0, Acer PurifiedView 2.0, Acer PurifiedVoice 2.0, Acer ProCam, Copilot, PC Game Pass (3 months) |
| Audio | DTS® X:Ultra, 2 speakers |
| Camera | FHD (1920×1080) IR camera |
| Name | Predator Helios Neo 18 AI |
| Model | PHN18-72 |
| Operating System | Windows 11 Home |
| Screen | 18-inch Mini LED + WQXGA (2560×1600), 250 Hz, DCI-P3 100%, 3 ms response time, NVIDIA Advanced Optimus
18-inch LED, WQXGA (2560×1600), 240 Hz, 500 nits, DCI-P3 100%, 3 ms response time, NVIDIA Advanced Optimus 18-inch LED, WQXGA (2560×1600), 165 Hz, 300 nits, DCI-P3 100%, 3 ms response time, NVIDIA Advanced Optimus 18-inch LED, WUXGA (1920×1200), 165 Hz, 300 nits, sRGB 100%, 3 ms response time, NVIDIA Advanced Optimus |
| Processor | Intel® Core Ultra 9 processor 275HX
Intel® Core |
| Graphics | NVIDIA® GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Laptop GPU
NVIDIA® GeForce RTX |
| Memory | Up to 64 GB DDR5 system memory, 6400 Hz |
| Storage | Up to 2 TB, PCIe Gen 4 SSD, SSD slots: 2 |
| Cooling | 5th Gen AeroBlade 3D Fans, liquid metal thermal grease, vector heat pipes |
| Dimensions | 400.96 x 307.9 x 14.9/28 mm |
| Weight | 3.3 kg |
| Battery | 90 Whr |
| Wi-Fi and Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6E 1675i, Intel Killer E3100, Bluetooth 5.3 or above, Intel Killer Ethernet E3100G, Thunderbolt 4 Type-C, USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C, dual USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, dual USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, HDMI 2.1, microSD Card reader, 3.5 mm combo audio jack |
| Features | Predator Sense 5.0/ Experience Zone 2.0, Acer PurifiedView 2.0, Acer PurifiedVoice 2.0, Acer ProCam, Copilot, PC Game Pass (3 months) |
| Audio | DTS® X:Ultra, 2 speakers |
| Camera | FHD (1920×1080) IR camera |
The Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 AI will be available in the US in April and Europe in May, starting at €1699. The bigger Predator Helios Neo 18 AI will be available in the US in May and Europe in June, with prices starting at €1799. Those picking one up will get a complimentary three months of Xbox Game Pass for PC, which includes the full Game Pass library, as well as access to EA Play titles.
KitGuru Says: What do you all think of the latest laptops from Acer? Are you thinking of making the jump to a new-gen RTX 50 laptop this year?
The post Acer’s powerful Predator Helios AI laptops are launching soon first appeared on KitGuru.While Epic Games is technically an independent studio, it does have several huge investors. Disney is perhaps the biggest amongst them. After investing $1.5 billon in the company last year, Disney and Epic Games began work on a new collaborative project. Now, it seems that project might be closer to a full reveal than expected.
Last year, Disney acquired a minority stake in Epic Games for $1.5 billion. As you might expect, Disney is looking to leverage its new partnership with Epic to further advertise its own IP, including properties like Star Wars and Marvel, to more traditional Disney and Pixar IP. This won't just be a string of limited-time Fortnite events though, instead, Disney and Epic are building a new “persistent universe”.
We still know very little about this new game, but recently, the project reportedly moved into ‘Stable' status, meaning there is a stable, running build of the game behind the scenes and the developers have likely reached several key milestones for the project already. This news came exactly one year after Disney and Epic Games announced their new partnership.
Disney and Epic Games already have a good relationship, with many Disney IP appearing in Epic's flagship game, Fortnite, for limited periods of time. This new ‘persistent universe' will be separate from Fortnite and those limited-time events, although Disney's metaverse will likely have some limited time events all of its own, designed to draw players in regularly throughout the year.
KitGuru Says: Perhaps we'll be getting more official news on this later in the year. So far, it seems that Epic Games is making good progress.
The post Disney and Epic Games’ collaborative game hits major milestone first appeared on KitGuru.Civilization 7 hasn't got off to the greatest start on Steam, with mixed reviews flooding the store page due to poor UI design choices and other issues. Firaxis is already gathering feedback to get the game into shape for long-time fans of the series on PC. However, the team is also hard at work on something unexpected – a VR version of the game.
While table-top style strategy games are well suited to VR, we haven't seen many major RTS or strategy titles really embracing the technology. That changes this year with Civilization 7 VR. Firaxis is bringing the complete game as we know it on PC to the Meta Quest platform.
As we can see from the trailer, players will be hovering above the map, looking down on everything happening in the game. They will be able to get up close, position units, build out their cities and direct troops.
Civilization 7 VR will be exclusive to the Meta Quest 3 and Quest 3S headsets, with plans to launch ‘this Spring'. Whether or not the VR version eventually makes its way over to SteamVR still remains to be seen.
KitGuru Says: Do you think Civ will be a success in VR? The way I see it, Civ games are often quite slow and include a lot of downtime if you are in multiplayer, making it an ideal game for a dual-screen PC set-up, but not so ideal for VR.
The post Civilization 7 is heading to VR first appeared on KitGuru.Reputable leaker Jaykihn has revealed the full specifications for Intel's upcoming Panther Lake and Wildcat Lake series. Both are expected to launch as part of the Core Ultra 300 series later this year.
Jaykihn's leak corroborates previous indications from Linux patches that Panther Lake is destined exclusively for mobile platforms. Interestingly, only three Panther Lake variants are detailed in this leak, down from the four previously rumoured. Something worth pointing out is the core configuration: up to 16 cores, comprised of 4x P-cores, 8x E-Cores, and 4x LP-cores. The low-power core configuration seems consistent across all Panther Lake variants, including the mainstream series known as Wildcat Lake, which is also detailed in the leak.
For laptop gamers, the most interesting option should be the 4P+8E+4LP+4Xe3 configuration. While this variant features significantly fewer GPU cores (three times less) than the top-tier configuration, it compensates with three times the PCIe 5.0 lanes (12), likely catering to discrete GPUs and M.2 SSDs. The Panther Lake variant with 12 Xe3 GPU cores will reportedly have only four PCIe 5.0 lanes but should offer decent graphics performance even if the system doesn't include a discrete GPU.
Jaykihn also sheds light on a third H-series variant, which reportedly has no E-cores, mirroring Lunar Lake's configuration with half the GPU cores (but using the Xe3 architecture). Wildcat Lake, it seems, will be a 6-core part with 2P+4LP cores, 2 Xe3 GPU cores, and up to 6x PCIe 4.0 lanes.
Lastly, NPU performance figures suggest a total platform AI TOPS of 180 for the 12-core iGPU Panther Lake variant and 100 TOPS for the other two. Wildcat Lake, on the other hand, will offer the minimum 40 TOPS required to meet the Windows Copilot+ PC specifications.
KitGuru says: Contrary to what Intel is expected to bring to the desktop segment in 2025, the upcoming laptop products (namely Panther Lake) look much more promising. Besides the possibly better Cougar Cove CPU P-cores, we're reportedly getting better NPUs and 12-core iGPUs with a new architecture.
The post Intel Panther Lake leak claims new CPUs will offer 180 AI TOPS performance first appeared on KitGuru.Intel's upcoming Nova Lake-S architecture might be even more powerful than previously thought. Rumours suggest a core count of 52, not the initially reported 48. This news arrives alongside whispers of a potential rethink regarding an Arrow Lake Refresh, although details about this are still scarce.
More concrete information is emerging about Nova Lake, the successor to Arrow Lake. Last week's speculation pointed towards four Nova Lake variants targeting desktop, mainstream, and low-power laptop segments. Leaker Jaykihn has corroborated these claims and provided additional insights on the upcoming architecture.
A key feature of the Nova Lake series appears to be the inclusion of low-power (LP) efficient cores. While these LP-Cores are typical of mobile devices, boosting efficiency for background tasks, they haven't yet made their way into desktop designs. According to Jaykihn, the projected core configurations for Nova Lake desktop CPUs are as follows: Nova Lake-SK will pack 52 cores (16P + 32E + 4LP), Nova Lake-HX is expected to feature 28 cores (8P + 16E + 4LP), and Nova Lake-H/S will have 16 cores (4P + 8E + 4LP). Nova Lake-U isn't mentioned regarding having any LP E-cores, so we assume it won't have any for now.
The leaker also “confirmed” that Nova Lake will use Coyote Cove P-Cores and Arctic Wolf E/LP-Cores. Furthermore, Jaykihn corroborates previous rumours of a 144 MB Compute Tile. However, it's crucial to remember that these configurations are still preliminary, and Intel has yet to confirm a Nova Lake tape-out. Therefore, these figures remain theoretical for now.
KitGuru says: Do you think including LP E-cores in desktop platforms will bring any significant advantage over competing products?
The post Intel Nova Lake to include up to four low-power E-cores first appeared on KitGuru.
Intel's mobile platform roadmap for the next few years is becoming increasingly clear. Panther Lake is expected to debut this year, followed by Nova Lake in 2026, with the latter also likely making its way to desktops.
Interestingly, whispers of an Arrow Lake Refresh have been circulating for a while, suggesting a core count bump for desktop and mobile CPUs. The rumours pointed towards an increase in Skymont E-cores to 32, resulting in a total of 40 cores (8 Lion Cove P-cores and 32 E-cores). These plans were supposedly abandoned, but a new rumour from Golden Pig Upgrade (via HXL) suggests otherwise.
The latest information suggests a more modest approach for the Arrow Lake Refresh, focusing primarily on enhancing the chip's NPU capabilities. Rather than a core count refresh, Intel reportedly plans to integrate a new NPU similar to the one in the Lunar Lake series. This new NPU should offer a performance of up to 48 TOPS, a significant jump from the current NPU's 13 TOPS. This upgraded NPU would likely be the key differentiator for the Arrow Lake Refresh.
Unfortunately, the source of this information remains vague about other potential improvements. If these rumors prove accurate, we can likely expect Intel to launch the Core Ultra 300H series for Panther Lake and the 300S/300HX series for Arrow Lake before the end of the year.
KitGuru says: Adding a better NPU will hardly make Arrow Lake a better product for most users. However, it could allow Intel to remain relevant in the market, giving them time to bring a new generation of desktop processors in 2026 (most likely Nova Lake).
The post Intel Arrow Lake might get a refresh after all first appeared on KitGuru.
The mobility segment has seen some significant updates over the last couple of years. From hybrid architectures to chiplet designs and the inclusion of brand-new Core IPs, laptops today are some of the most versatile PC devices on the market. One of the expanding ecosystems is AI & all vendors are offering brand new hardware changes in the form of NPUs that are required for new AI services such as Microsoft's Copilot+ feature suite. Intel's first chapter of its AI-infused PC journey came in the form of Meteor Lake with the Core Ultra Series 1 chips. These chips were the […]
Read full article at https://wccftech.com/review/msi-prestige-ai-evo-16-b2hmg-intel-core-ultra-9-285h-laptop-review-arrow-lake-comes-to-mobile/
Fresh leaks suggest that AMD's next-generation mobile and desktop platforms, named Medusa (Ridge, Point, Halo, and Range), will all be based on the same 12-core Zen 6 CCD.
This new CCD Zen 6-based solution will encompass various packages for different platforms. According to Moore's Law Is Dead, Medusa Point is expected to feature a single CCD, while Medusa Ridge will incorporate two. Medusa Halo and Range should follow the same core configuration as Medusa Ridge, as the current Halo and Range products have up to 16 cores.
Moreover, as the YouTuber also mentioned and @TDevilish corroborated, the four platforms — Medusa Ridge, Medusa Point, Medusa Halo, and Medusa Range — will use the same CCD. These products will differentiate themselves through varying package sizes, socket compatibility, and I/O dies tailored to their specific applications.
It's important to note that this information doesn't encompass 3D V-Cache versions or EPYC models. While they might share similarities, they could employ different dies and packaging processes. The AMD Medusa series is currently anticipated for release in 2026.
KitGuru says: This shared CCD approach could signal a significant shift in AMD's design philosophy, potentially streamlining development and maximising efficiency across its product lines.
The post AMD ‘Medusa’ chips to use 12-core Zen 6 CCD first appeared on KitGuru.For more than a decade now, Grand Theft Auto V has continued to sell like hotcakes, with the now-two-generation-old title consistently selling around 5 million copies every single quarter. As part of the company’s latest fiscal earnings report, it's been revealed that GTA V has now surpassed 210 million copies.
For years now, GTA V has remained the second best-selling game of all time, pushing more than double the copies of ‘Wii Sports’ (3rd place with 82.9 million), but still falling behind the top spot – Minecraft with over 300 million copies sold.
As part of publisher Take-Two Interactive’s latest fiscal earnings report, CEO Strauss Zelnick revealed the latest sales figures for GTA V, saying “The Grand Theft Auto series remains our industry's standard bearer for excellence and, to date, Grand Theft Auto V has sold-in over 210 million units worldwide.”
While a far cry from GTA’s overwhelming popularity, Rockstar’s other major IP – Red Dead Redemption – continues to climb up the sales ranks, with RDR2 currently sitting as the 6th best-selling game of all time at 70 million copies sold.
Interestingly, Zelnick also noted the recent influx of players which flocked to RDR2 following its recent sale, stating “The title is currently enjoying its highest level of concurrent players on Steam.”
Whether Rockstar will actually take this as an opportunity to further build on RDR2 is unknown, but it is interesting to see Zelnick acknowledge its uptick in players.
The CEO also recently confirmed that they still plan to launch GTA VI some time in Fall of 2025, and so if the game does wind up meeting its intended release date, it will be interesting to see how GTA V sales will be impacted.
KitGuru says: How many times have you bought GTA V? Will the next Grand Theft Auto outsell it? How quickly do you think GTA VI will reach 100 million copies sold? Let us know down below.
The post GTA V has now sold over 210 million copies first appeared on KitGuru.Over a decade on from the last entry, Rockstar games is finally gearing up to release the highly-anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI. Announced to be coming some time in 2025, publisher Take-Two has now reaffirmed the fact that GTA VI will make its intended release year.
As part of the company’s latest fiscal earnings report, Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick offered an update on the slate of games planned to release throughout 2025, saying (via Business Wire):
“Looking ahead, this calendar year is shaping up to be one of the strongest ever for Take-Two, as we plan to launch Sid Meier's Civilization VII on February 11th, Mafia: The Old Country in the Summer, Grand Theft Auto VI in the Fall, and Borderlands 4.”
As mentioned, GTA VI was announced back in late 2023, with a tentative release year of 2025. Since then, we’ve neither seen nor heard any more from the game, leading many fans to fear that a delay to 2026 could be a reality.
For now at least, it seems GTA VI will indeed arrive later this year. Hopefully this means we’ll be getting a big blowout event at some point in the coming months.
KitGuru says: What do you think of Zelnick’s statement? Do you believe GTA VI will make its 2025 release? How many copies will it sell in its first 24 hours? Let us know down below.
The post Grand Theft Auto VI is still coming this year, Take-Two confirms first appeared on KitGuru.The Nintendo Switch was a surprise hit for many, including Nintendo, but especially 3rd-party publishers – with many studios being unprepared for its overwhelming success. It seems as though lessons have been learned, with Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick confirming that they “fully expect to support” Switch 2 when it releases.
As part of the company’s latest fiscal earning report – in which they confirmed that GTA V has sold over 210 million copies – Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick offered his thoughts on the upcoming Switch 2 and how the publisher plans to support the system, saying (as transcribed by NintendoEverything):
“We’ve had a longstanding relationship with Nintendo and we’ve supported the platform when it made sense for the individual release. There was a time when Nintendo platforms were really geared at younger audiences and that was reflected in our release schedule. Now with today Switch and potentially Switch 2, the Switch device can support any audience.”
Zelnick continued, “As you may have noticed, Civilization 7 is now available on Switch. While we have nothing specific to report, we actually would fully expect to support Switch.”
Of course, Take-Two is much more than just the publisher of GTA, with the company owning a ton of IPs including but not limited to XCOM; NBA 2K; Bioshock; Mafia and more – and so it’s entirely possible that Zelnick is referring to these franchises more so than Grand Theft Auto.
Regardless, hopefully the success of the first Switch means we will get more comprehensive ports for the system at a faster and more consistent pace. And who knows, we might eventually see GTA VI come to Switch 2 – as unlikely as that may be.
KitGuru says: What do you think of Zelnick’s comments? Could GTA VI eventually come to Switch? Will Take-Two re-release GTA V one final time instead? Let us know your thoughts down below.
The post Take-Two confirms plans to support the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 first appeared on KitGuru.WB Games Montreal is one of the more underrated studios operating under the Warner Bros. umbrella, with the Arkham Origins developers receiving the short end of the stick in many instances. Unfortunately not much seems to have changed in this regard, with a new report unveiling almost half a dozen different game pitches which were rejected since the release of Gotham Knights.
WB Games Montreal has had a rough couple years, with the studio’s latest release – 2022’s Gotham Knights – arriving in the wake of a ton of other cancelled and rejected projects including a Superman and Suicide Squad game.
Unfortunately, it seems as though not much has changed in the time since, with a new report from industry insider Jason Schreier revealing a ton of other more recent cancellations, writing via Bloomberg (paywalled):
“The Montreal studio leaders wanted to make another iteration of Gotham Knights — a ‘1.5’ version that would fix some of its predecessor's flaws. But their bosses nixed the idea.”
This wasn’t the only rejected pitch, with the team then reportedly pushing for a Constantine game; a Joker game and a Flash title – all of which were rejected (with the latter being due to the failure of the Flash movie).
Finally, it seems as though WB Montreal has settled on a project, with Schreier claiming that alongside their support for the Monolith Productions-developed Wonder Woman game, the team have pitched a Game of Thrones title.
Whether it too will be scrapped is unknown, but given the waning relevance of the franchise, it wouldn’t be too surprising to see.
KitGuru says: What do you think of WB Games Montreal as a studio? Are they underrated? Would you have liked to see a Gotham Knights successor? Let us know down below.
The post Insider reveals a bunch of cancelled WB Montreal games first appeared on KitGuru.Following the acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft, many PC players were left wondering whether the company’s redundant Battle net launcher would be retired. It seems this will not be the case, with Microsoft doubling down on Battle net – announcing that the upcoming Obsidian RPG Avowed will include full console cross-buy with the launcher.
First mentioned late last month, but clarified further in a recent Xbox Wire blog post, Microsoft confirmed that the upcoming Obsidian Entertainment RPG Avowed – which is set to launch in just over a week’s time – will only require a single purchase to then play anywhere, writing:
“Players who purchase the game for either Xbox or Battle.net or have a Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass membership can play on both Xbox and Battle.net by linking their Xbox and Battle.net accounts.”
Unfortunately, this cross-buy feature only applies to Battle net, meaning the Steam version won’t offer any similar benefits.
While the notion of cross-buy is an objective good, it is interesting to see Microsoft trying to push more players to its newly-acquired Battle net launcher in a time when PC players are getting increasingly frustrated at the number of different PC game launchers. It will be curious to see how many PC players opt for the Battle net version.
KitGuru says: What do you think of this kind of cross-buy? Is it a good thing, or is Microsoft trying to leverage the service solely for its own benefit? Let us know your thoughts down below.
The post Avowed will include cross-buy between Xbox and PC – but only on Battle net first appeared on KitGuru.The PlayStation Network recently suffered from its biggest down period in well over a decade – second only to the infamous 2011 PSN outage. While not nearly as severe (lasting less than 24 hours), Sony has offered an apology to players, giving all PS Plus subscribers 5 extra days of service for free.
On the 8th of February, all PSN services went down for just under 24 hours, with players unable to access the PlayStation Store, download games or even play certain titles in some instances (such as Black Ops 6 due to its always-online requirement).
While not quite as severe as the infamous 2011 outage (which saw PSN go down for 3 whole weeks), Sony has confirmed that many of those affected will be compensated, taking to Twitter to write:
“Network services have fully recovered from an operational issue. We apologize for the inconvenience and thank the community for their patience. All PlayStation Plus members will automatically receive an additional 5 days of service.”
While 5 days is next to nothing timewise, as mentioned the PSN servers were down for less than 24 hours, and so it is somewhat of a fair compensation. Hopefully such an outage won’t occur for at least another 10 years.
KitGuru says: What did you think of the outage? Did it impact you? Is 5 days of free PS Plus enough? Let us know down below.
The post All PS Plus members to get 5 extra days of service for free following PSN outage first appeared on KitGuru.Leo walks us through the Lian Li suite back from CES in January – some of these products were under NDA and we had to hold back on this one. The Vector V100 is a great place to start, as it offers incredible aesthetics for its target price. The RS1200 Power Supply and the O11D Evo Mini are standouts for impressive feature sets and other improvements.
Timestamps:
At CES 2025, Lian Li had an interesting showing. For starters, we have the Vector 100, a fantastic looking case for showing off RGB, and it will go for around $50. The Lancool 207 Digital is a new version of the case that comes with an additional screen on the front of the case. Lian Li also appears to be working on another accessory display, but while it was on show, it does not ship with the Lancool 207 Digital.
The Hydroshift AIO liquid cooler has been updated with a fully RGB-lit CPU block with a rotary dial to control the display in the centre. There are several presets by default, which you can switch through using the RGB dial. Lian Li is now also working on a GPU mount accessory that will allow you to sit your card at an angle, or fully vertical, depending on which is easier for space.
Lian Li's most surprising product was a power supply of all things. The new RS1200 PSU comes with support for an integrated USB hub, a rotary power socket, and a handy accessory bracket for installation.
We finish off with the new O11D Mini, which looks to be a great improvement. There is now an angled intake, allowing for much better airflow without sacrificing aesthetics. The motherboard tray is adjustable to be higher or lower, depending on how much space you need.
The case can be paired with the new UniFan SL Wireless, a set of daisy chain-able fans with an abundance of RGB LEDs.
KitGuru Says: We're looking forward to getting to spend more time with the O11D Mini. Will you be keeping an eye out for any of Lian Li's new products this year?
The post Lian Li’s 2025 Hardware Innovations: Unique PSU, Cases, and Fans first appeared on KitGuru.The Elgato 4K X external capture card is the only device from the Corsair sub-brand that is able to capture 4K 144Hz footage – even outperforming the more expensive 4K Pro in that regard. I've been using it to capture gameplay for system reviews here at KitGuru for the past few months now, so has the 4K X made a big difference in the day to day workflow of a tech reviewer?
Timestamps:
00:00 Start
00:43 Unboxing / Dimensions / Design
02:24 Technical specs and support
03:37 Compared to their other devices
04:12 Mat's use inside KitGuru content
05:13 The system setup we use
07:07 Recording the content – software options
10:21 Captured content
12:00 Closing thoughts
Specifications:
You can buy the Elgato 4K X Capture Card directly from Elgato for £229.99 HERE.
Pros:
Cons:
KitGuru says: The 4K X is one of the most feature complete capture cards on the market right now. It has enough versatility and reliability to be a powerful tool on any content creators desk.
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