Nvidia has announced the next wave of games receiving DLSS updates this week, including Halo: Campaign Evolved, Mistfall Hunter, Corsair Cove and several recently released titles gaining access to DLSS 4.5 through the NVIDIA app.

Halo: Campaign Evolved officially launches today following its Early Access period. GeForce RTX users can boost performance with DLSS Super Resolution and Frame Generation, reduce latency with NVIDIA Reflex and force-enable DLSS 4.5 through the Nvidia app.

Later this week, Bellring Games’ Mistfall Hunter arrives with support for DLSS Super Resolution, Multi Frame Generation, Dynamic Multi Frame Generation, Reflex, as well as ray‑traced reflections and shadows. Corsair Cove also arrives this week with DLSS 4.5 Super Resolution, up to 4x Multi Frame Generation, Reflex and DLAA. Like other titles on the list this week, this game also supports DLSS 4.5 through the Nvidia App.

Several recently released titles can also be upgraded to DLSS 4.5 starting this week, including The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu, Killing Floor 3 and Palworld.

KitGuru Says: Plenty of games are gaining DLSS updates this week, with several titles now able to upgrade to DLSS 4.5 through the NVIDIA app. Will you be trying any of the new releases?

MSI has one more AI mini PC for enthusiasts that can deliver high-performance computing and carry out AI workloads locally. MSI Debuts PRO MAX EDGE AI+ Mini PC, Supporting Multi-System Clustering for Handling LLMs With Up To 670 Billion Parameters Some vendors still deploy Ryzen AI 300 chips in their mini PCs due to their powerful computing capabilities and strong AI performance, making them perfect for small AI systems. MSI has already released a couple of AI mini PCs based on the latest AMD chips, and has now rolled out another one, featuring the Strix Halo chips. MSI says the […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/msi-launches-pro-max-edge-ai-featuring-up-to-ryzen-ai-max-395/

Halo Campaign Evolved is now out for those who pre-ordered the deluxe edition. As you may expect, some hardcore fans have already completed the game on Legendary difficulty, and in keeping with the series' usual tradition, finishing the game on Legendary does unlock a secret cutscene. 

The secret cutscene that players are rewarded with this time around is a bit of an odd one. As discovered by Sean Dubs, the legendary cutscene this time around features Seargent Johnson breaking the fourth wall, speaking directly to the player and saying “see you in the sequel”, so it would seem that we can expect a Halo 2 remake at some point in the future as well, assuming it doesn't get cancelled.

Microsoft has not openly confirmed plans for the Halo 2 remake yet, outside of the secret cutscene at the end of Halo Campaign Evolved. It seems highly likely though, as the Halo 1 Remake includes assets for weapons and enemy types that appear in the later games, so they should be able to get it made in a relatively short period of time.

Xbox is also now moving back to exclusive games, so if a Halo 2 Remake were to be made, they could speed up the release by dropping PS5 from the list of supported platforms.

KitGuru Says: While there might be plans for a Halo 2 remake right now, things at Halo Studios have been so up in the air in recent years that I wouldn't necessarily view the cutscene reveal as 100% confirmation. 

It's clear that the Intel Arc G3-based gaming handhelds won't be released for under $1,000 for sure. Acer UK Confirms Pricing for Arc G3 and G3 Extreme-Based Predator Atlas 8 Handheld; Up To $2,000 for the 32 GB - 1 TB Configuration Gaming handhelds are now costing an arm and a leg. With rapid improvements in hardware, newer gaming handhelds do not cost any less than a mid-range gaming PC. Since the release of the Intel Arc G3 series, many vendors have quickly transitioned from AMD chips to Panther Lake SoC variants. However, while we expected lower prices, vendors keep […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/acer-reveals-arc-g3-based-predator-atlas-8-will-cost-at-least-1340/

Microsoft has revealed the next wave of titles for Xbox Game Pass. For starters, Hell is Us is joining the service this week after a year on the market, offering a very non-linear post-apocalyptic adventure that will test your wits and combat skill. The big headliner though is of course Halo: Campaign Evolved, a complete remake of the original Halo campaign with some added content.

Halo: Campaign Evolved marks a major change for the series, being the first to run completely on Unreal Engine 5. Graphically, the game looks great, but we will have to play it for ourselves to see if the classic feel of the Halo shooters translates over well in the new engine.

Here is the full list of titles joining Game Pass over the next couple of weeks along with supported platforms and dates:

• Shift at Midnight (Cloud, XBOX Series X|S, PC) – July 22
• Hell is Us (Cloud, XBOX Series X|S, PC) – July 23
• Halo: Campaign Evolved (Cloud, Console, Handheld, PC) – July 28
• Mistfall Hunter (Cloud, XBOX Series X|S, PC) – July 30
• Corsair Cove (PC) – July 31
• Heretic + Hexen (Cloud, Console, Handheld, PC) – August 4
• Beast of Reincarnation (Cloud, XBOX Series X|S, Handheld, PC) – August 4

As usual, there will be a handful of games leaving the Game Pass library this month. Starting from July 31st, the following games will no longer be available:

• Back to the Dawn (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Celeste (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Crusader Kings 3 (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• My Friendly Neighborhood (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Rain World (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Sniper Elite Resistance (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Whiskerwood (PC)

KitGuru Says: Are you planning on installing any of the new Game Pass titles? Hell is Us has been on my radar for a while now so I'm looking forward to trying it. 

Team Red has laid the foundation for the upcoming Gorgon Halo Pro series before the chips arrive on the market officially. AMD Adds Ryzen AI Max PRO 400 Support to ROCm 7.14, Giving AI Developers a Head Start on the Gorgon Halo Platform AMD looks ready to release the Ryzen AI MAX PRO 400 series in the coming weeks, as it has already added support for the upcoming PRO series to its latest ROCm 7.14 ecosystem. The company has rolled out its latest ROCm 7.14 software stack, which has received support for Ryzen AI MAX PRO 400, aka Gorgon Halo […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/amd-prepares-for-ryzen-ai-max-pro-400-launch-with-rocm-7-14-support/

Over the past month or so, a couple of different sources have leaked that a Destiny-style Halo MMO may be quietly in development at Halo Studios. The original leak was posted by Reddit user HTD_Blog, who shared the following information based on a friend with knowledge of the project: For about 1-2 years, Microsoft have been tinkering with the idea of a Halo MMO in the vein of Destiny 2. It is very much in the idea stage, although a small amount of development has occurred to get a feel for gameplay. It has yet to be approved as a […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/destiny-like-halo-mmo-leaks-backed-by-pierre-hintze-interview/

Prior to the recent upheaval of Microsoft’s various Xbox Games Studios, we had been hearing leaks regarding the future of Halo and Master Chief, with one in-development project – known as Ekur – seemingly being on the chopping block. Though never officially announced, additional insiders have now spoken out on the project, corroborating claims that Ekur has been cancelled.

For a while now, we had been hearing leaks and rumours surrounding Project Tatanka – reportedly a “a new separate PVP game co-developed by 343 Industries and Certain Affinity in the SlipSpace Engine.”

Since then, a lot has happened, with the same source (Rebs Gaming) later claiming that Tatanka was transformed into an extraction shooter under the project name Ekur.

This too however ran into some issues, with Rebs then stating that it had evolved once again, this time turning into a “super big-team-battle” type of experience running on Unreal Engine 5 under the direct control of Halo Studios (no longer involving Certain Affinity).

Given all of the back-and-forth with Project Tatanka (later Ekur), it perhaps does not come as a surprise that the game has now reportedly been cancelled, with known Microsoft insider Jez Corden claiming: “Rebs reported that Halo Studios was working on a multiplayer title known as Project Ekur, which was cancelled. I've verified that as 100% true.”

As mentioned, Project Ekur had encountered plenty of issues and setbacks even before the latest suite of Microsoft lay-offs and so it isn’t too surprising to see it ultimately being cancelled. Given how long it had been in various stages of development however, it will be interesting to see how this impacts Halo Studios moving forward.

KitGuru says: Were you excited for Project Tatanka? What about Ekur? What do you think is next for Halo after Campaign Evolved releases? Let us know down below.

The Chinese mini PC maker has debuted one more powerful mini PC, featuring a powerful Ryzen AI 400 series processor. GMKtec Debuts EVO-X1 Pro Mini PC, Equipped With Up To 64 GB Memory and 1 TB Configuration at $1471 Popular Chinese hardware and mini PC maker, GMKtec, is back again with another powerful mini PC. This time, the company introduced one of the latest Gorgon Point chips, offering powerful computing and local AI capabilities for enthusiasts. A few days ago, the company released EVO-X3, which was based on the flagship Strix Halo chip, i.e., Ryzen AI Max+ 395. Unlike the […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/gmktec-powers-its-evo-x1-pro-mini-pc-with-ryzen-ai-9-hx-470-and-oculink-interface/

We test the AMD Ryzen AI Halo developer system and see how AMD is putting its spin on a 128GB local AI dev box

The post AMD Ryzen AI Halo Developer System Review AMD Goes for Local AI appeared first on ServeTheHome.

GMKtec has launched another powerful machine for local AI workloads, but it does more than that. GMKtec Debuts EVO-X3 Mini PC, Featuring Slim Design; Hosts 16-Core/32-Thread Zen 5-Based Ryzen AI Max+ 395 for Powerful Computing Popular mini PC and hardware maker, GMKtec, has been launching numerous mini PCs for a while. The company has a dedicated lineup for AMD and Intel-based mini PCs, and has already launched powerful mini PCs based on the latest AMD Zen 5 architecture. The latest addition is the EVO-X3 mini PC, which isn't the only one to boast the flagship Strix Halo CPU. Apart from […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/gmktec-launches-evo-x3-powered-by-amd-ryzen-ai-max-395-with-up-to-126-tops-of-ai-power-starting-at-3600/

Halo: Campaign Evolved marks the grand return of Master Chief and co. following the less-than-stellar release of Halo Infinite back in 2021. Of course, CE is set to be a campaign-only affair, with no PvP multiplayer in sight. That said, there have been plenty of rumours discussing Halo’s next mainline release. One such title is ‘Project Ekur’ – a Battle Royale which was later turned into an extraction shooter. Thanks to new reports, we have gotten a clearer picture on what to expect.

As shared by known Halo leaker Rebs Gaming (who accurately detailed Halo Campaign Evolved prior to its announcement), Project Ekur has undergone some pretty big changes since it was last reported. For the uninitiated, Project Ekur was initially known as Project Tatanka and was set to be a Battle Royale experience. Since then, the game evolved and shifted into an extraction shooter of sorts, being developed by Certain Affinity.

According to Rebs, the game has once again changed, with Ekur now switching out Infinite’s SlipSpace Engine for the much more ubiquitous Unreal Engine 5 – with this transfer being completed as of September 2023.

Beyond this, Ekur is now no longer an Extraction Shooter, with the project said to be taking the form of a “super big-team-battle idea” instead. Players will spawn in, “explore the map, find resources and battle other teams”. Though it does still feature some extraction elements, the game will feel more closer to that of Halo 5’s Warzone mode.

Perhaps the biggest piece of news however came in the revelation that Certain Affinity is no longer the team behind Project Ekur, with Halo Studios themselves now taking over responsibilities following the prototype shared by Certain Affinity.

All in all, it seems as though Project Ekur has gone through a ton of testing and prototyping. What the final product will wind up looking like, we will have to wait and see. Regardless, here’s to hoping that the team in charge have settled on a formula which works for both old-school Halo fans as well as new players.

KitGuru says: What do you think of Project Ekur so far? Which iteration of the game sounded the most fun to you? Will Ekur be released on PlayStation? Let us know your thoughts down below.

Halo Campaign Evolved looked much better than I was expecting, in part thanks to a fresh set of skulls that make some insanely fun changes to gameplay. Now, with the game just a few more weeks away, Microsoft has confirmed the game's PC system requirements, including recommended specs for 1080p, 1440p and 4K.

In the table below, you can see the full PC system requirements for Halo Campaign Evolved, the new Unreal Engine 5-based remake of the original Halo game:

Halo Campaign Evolved is a complete remake of the original Halo Combat Evolved campaign, but with a few extra missions and some other gameplay tweaks. Aside from being the first game in the series to run entirely on Unreal Engine 5, it is also the first game in the series to offer a third-person gameplay mode, so you can see more of the action on-screen, including Master Chief himself. Traditionally, all of the mainline Halo games have been first-person shooters.

Halo Campaign Evolved launches on July 28th for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.

KitGuru Says: I wasn't planning on picking this up when it was first announced but it honestly looks like they did a great job with it. The question is, will they eventually give the same treatment to Halo 2 and Halo 3? 

The company has launched its first Arc G3 Extreme-based handheld with various configurations. OneXPlayer 3 Hits the Shelves with Intel Arc G3 Extreme, Featuring 24/32 GB and 512 GB/1 TB Configurations, Starting at $1,399 Popular handheld and eGPU maker ONEXPLAYER has debuted its first Intel Arc G3 Extreme-powered gaming handheld called OneXplayer 3. The handheld maker has been continuously developing handhelds with the most powerful SoCs from AMD, including Strix Point and Strix Halo chips, but has now transitioned to Intel's Panther Lake variant for its most powerful Intel-based handheld till now. The OneXPlayer 3 offers the 14-core Intel Arc […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/arc-g3-extreme-powered-onexplayer-3-officially-launches-prices-start-at-1399-for-24-gb-512-gb-configuration/

AMD has officially launched its Ryzen AI Halo AI PC, which offers super-fast token throughput at a $3999 price point. AMD Challenges DGX Spark With Its Strix Halo-Equipped Ryzen AI Halo "AI PC" That Costs $679 US Lower The first AMD Ryzen AI Halo platforms are now available on retail, and are listed at the official MSRP of $3999. These systems pack the Ryzen AI MAX+ 395 SoC, 128 GB of memory, and lots of AI horsepower within a compact form factor that challenges NVIDIA's DGX Spark at a much lower price point. You can head over to the following […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/amd-tackles-nvidia-4679-usd-dgx-spark-ai-pc-with-its-3999-ryzen-ai-halo-now-available/

Bungie had initially developed Halo 1 with a fully working third-person camera, but it was never enabled for players except when driving vehicles. That will be changing in the remake, with a full third-person camera option for the entire campaign. 

The third-person campaign gameplay has been showcased in a new video uploaded today. It is a playthrough of The Silent Cartographer, one of the most popular missions from the original game.

The first thing that immediately stood out to me was the sense of scale. Some of this gets lost in first-person, but Master Chief is massive, and I can really appreciate more of the level / character design overall in this third-person mode.

We still don't know if the developers will be able to truly match the feel of a Halo game in Unreal Engine 5 but so far, it seems to have nailed the art direction, UI and even menus for this remake.

KitGuru Says: Will you be picking up Halo Campaign Evolved when it drops? Will you be playing it in third-person or sticking to classic first-person? 

One of the biggest talking points surrounding Microsoft’s Xbox Games Showcase was the fact that the publisher would be returning to console exclusives – sort of. While Gears of War E-Day and Clockwork Revolution are now set to be limited to the Xbox Series X/S (on consoles at least), the former was seemingly initially planned to also arrive on PlayStation 5. Additionally, insiders have claimed that Halo Campaign Evolved was initially going to be featured at Sony’s State of Play…until Microsoft changed their minds.

In the immediacy following Microsoft’s Xbox Games Showcase, it was discovered that Gears of War E-Day appeared to have been initially planned to be a multi-platform release, with a (now delisted) Xbox Podcast video featuring the PlayStation 5 logo at the end of the trailer.

Adding to this, according to known insider Chris Dring (and seeming partially corroborated by other known-insider Tom Warren) Microsoft had originally planned to show off Halo Campaign Evolved during PlayStation’s recent State of Play – though later “decided against it, which has angered Sony.”

As mentioned by Dring, the Halo reports are simply “gossip” and so should be taken with a pinch of salt. That said, there is no denying that there appears to be some weirdness going on at Xbox currently. Hopefully a clearer plan is made evident as time goes on.

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KitGuru says: What do you think of Xbox going back partially to exclusives? Is there any rhyme or reason for the titles selected? Let us know your thoughts down below.

Over the weekend, Xbox revealed more footage of Halo: Campaign Evolved, showing that the move to Unreal Engine has brought the biggest visual fidelity boost in the series' long history. Now, Halo Studios has announced the game's PC system requirements, showing a fairly accessible 1080p/60FPS experience. 

While we always expected Unreal Engine to be a great change for Halo visually, there was some concern on the impact the engine change could have on performance and optimisation. However, it does look like Halo Studios has got the PC system requirements as low as possible while still targeting 60FPS at all tiers.

The minimum PC system requirements for Halo: Campaign Evolved call for an AMD Ryzen 5 3600 or Intel Core i7-10700K CPU, 16GB of RAM and an RTX 2060, RX 6600 or Arc A580 graphics card. The medium requirements bump this up to a Ryzen 7 5700X or Core i5-12600K CPU and an RTX 3070 or RX 7600 GPU for 1440p/60FPS gameplay.

The High and Ultra tiers both target 4K/60FPS, presumably at the equivalent graphics preset setting. For High, you'll want at least a Ryzen 7 7700 or Core i7-12700K, 32GB of RAM, and an RTX 3080 Ti or RX 9070 graphics card. For Ultra, this is bumped up to a Ryzen 9 7900X or Core i9-13900K CPU and an RTX 4080.

As always, the system requirements are more of a guideline than a hard rule. For instance, if you have a Ryzen 5 5600X instead of a Ryzen 7 5700X, that isn't going to stop you from being able to get 1440p/60FPS if you have a strong enough graphics card.

However, it is worth noting that Nvidia no longer brings game-specific optimisations to its drivers for older GTX 10 series graphics cards, so you will want to be on an RTX 2060 or newer to avoid potential issues like crashes.

KitGuru Says: Are you planning on picking up Halo: Campaign Evolved?  

Frank Azor, CVP of Client and Graphics Marketing at AMD, took to X to dispel rumors surrounding FSR 4.1 being restricted from RDNA 3.5 iGPU solutions. Frank Azor Denies Rumors AMD Cancelled FSR 4.1 For RDNA 3.5 iGPUs The rumor that FSR 4.1 wouldn't be coming to RDNA 3.5 iGPUs started from a conversation Hardware Luxx had with David McAfee, CVP and GM of Client at AMD. Hardware Luxx reported that according to David, FSR 4.1 is not planned for RDNA 3.5 graphics for the time being. However, after the news was circulated over the internet, Frank Azor stepped in […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/amd-pushes-back-on-fsr-4-1-cancellation-rumor-for-rdna-3-5-igpus/