Games

Hideaki Nishino, head of Sony Interactive Entertainment, recently shared how PlayStation is using artificial intelligence (AI). They’re focusing on using AI to speed up tasks that are done repeatedly, like quality assurance, creating 3D models, and making animations. Specifically, a tool called Mockingbird is being used to create realistic facial animations from performance capture data. Both Naughty Dog, the studio behind games like The Last of Us and Uncharted, and San Diego Studio, known for MLB: The Show, are already using this technology.

As a fan, it’s really great to see this company focusing on using AI to help creators, not replace them. It feels like they genuinely want to make things easier and more efficient for artists and other professionals, and that’s a really positive approach. They see AI as a tool, and that’s exactly what I want to see!

Clarke explained the movie was cancelled because he needed more time to work on Paranormal Activity: Threshold, but Paramount, the studio that owns the Paranormal Activity franchise, wouldn’t grant him that time. He decided it was better to end the project than release a poorly made film.

Released in 2013 for all consoles, including the Wii U, Fast & Furious: Showdown is a video game set between the fifth and sixth Fast & Furious movies. Unfortunately, the game was a commercial and critical failure on every platform. While the Nintendo 3DS version received the best reviews, they were still quite poor. The Wii U version, in particular, was considered unfun and disappointing. IGN reviewer Marty Silva famously said the game felt like it was trying to make him quit, a sentiment that reflects the overwhelmingly negative reception.

James Hoyle, known for his contributions to games like Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and the Mass Effect trilogy, is joined by Lindsay Livingstone, a veteran with an extensive history at BioWare. Livingstone has worked on multiple BioWare RPGs, including Neverwinter Nights and Dragon Age, as well as the Mass Effect series. Melanie Faulknor, previously involved with Mass Effect 3, Dragon Age 2, and Dragon Age: Inquisition, joins as director of external developments. Rounding out the team is Den Fessenden, a senior technical designer and industry veteran who also worked on the original Knights of the Old Republic, as reported by Eurogamer.

Sony is predicting a 30% increase in revenue for the next year. They expect this growth, in part, because they won’t have to account for losses on their investment in Bungie.

I was listening to the recent earnings call, and Sony’s CEO, Hiroki Totoki, addressed a question I’ve been wondering about – whether rising component costs will affect the price of the PlayStation. He shared some news during the Q&A, so we’ll have to see what that means for us gamers!

Sony’s CEO, Hiroki Totoki, recently stated that the cost of making the next PlayStation will likely go up, including the price of the parts needed. They’ve secured the necessary materials for the remainder of the year, but haven’t finalized the console’s price, though they’ve made some progress. A release date is still unknown.

For a while, Vampire Crawlers: The Turbo Wildcard from Vampire Survivors was the highest-rated game added to Xbox Game Pass on day one. It took that spot from MIO: Memories in Orbit, which held the title from January to April. Now, Mixtape from Annapurna Interactive and Beethoven and Dinosaur is currently the top-rated, boasting an 85 on Metacritic. It just came out yesterday, so the score could change as more reviews come in, but it’s currently ahead of Vampire Crawlers.

Starting September 1st, the Switch 2 will be priced at $499.99 in the US, $679.99 in Canada, and €499.99 in Europe – an increase from its previous price of $449.99, $629.99 CAD, and €469.99. In Japan, the Japanese-language version of the Switch 2 will cost ¥59,980 starting May 25th, up from ¥49,980, while the multi-language model will remain at the same price.