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Sony Secures Full Control Of PlayStation Operations In China To Strengthen Its Console Business

Story Highlight
  • Sony has secured full control of PlayStation operations after ending its joint home game console business venture with Oriental Pearl.
  • The PS5 maker has now bought the remaining 51% stake, renaming the company to Wanzhanpiwu Cultural Entertainment.
  • The conglomerate has likely made this move to strengthen its PlayStation console business and overall gaming presence in China.

Despite being a difficult market to crack, China has proven to be a major gaming force in the industry over the years. The influence of the region has increased because of recent stellar hits, and Sony has emerged as the most dominant contender in gaining control over it.

In a bold move, Sony has now secured full control of PlayStation operations in China by acquiring equity in the joint home game console venture with Oriental Pearl. It has bought the remaining 51% stake and renamed the firm to Wanzhanpiwu Cultural Entertainment.

Why it matters: Sony gaining full control of its PlayStation operations in China means that supplying consoles will be much easier in the region, which could lead to the company gaining even more control over Xbox soon.

Business registration details for Wanzhanpiwu Cultural Entertainment | Source: Qichacha

The Chinese business database Qichacha shows that the original shareholder of the former Oriental Pearl withdrew, and it is now fully owned by Sony. In other words, Sony will now directly control the distribution of consoles in China without any middlemen in between.

Many fans believe Sony took this initiative to strengthen its console business in the region by gaining full control, which will potentially lead to better supplies and availability. Direct management will also allow Sony to improve customer service in China.

For those not in the know, PlayStation dominated the Chinese market with 66% shares last year. Acquiring the joint home game console venture might help it completely dominate the region.

Here's To More Impressive Chinese Games (Image by Tech4Gamers)
The Chinese market has been producing a lot of high-quality games recently.

Sony has already been collaborating with local developers in the ‘China Hero Project’ to offer them funding and support. However, it remains unclear whether this move will streamline the process of launching games in China. 

Do you think Sony securing full control of PlayStation console operations in China will result in even more dominion over the local market in the future? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, or join the discussion on the Tech4Gamers forum.

Sony Patents To Expedite Development of Game Remasters Using AI

Story Highlight
  • A new patent published by Sony discusses remastering games by simply overlaying better visuals on top of existing gameplay. 
  • The games can be modified with overlay images instead of traditional techniques to make remastering more efficient. 
  • Sony wants to cut the extensive redevelopment needed to remaster titles, suggesting we might see plenty of new remasters soon.

Remasters and remakes have become a normal part of gaming over the years, as they’re needed to rake in profits and fund AAA titles. Sony is infamous for releasing a lot of remasters, but a new patent by the company suggests that even more are on the way.

We’ve dug up a new patent that suggests Sony is exploring a unique way to expedite game remaster development using AI and neural-trained networks. The patent wants to shorten the time to remaster games by removing the extensive redevelopment process.

The document describes using AI-powered image overlays and post-processing to enhance game visuals, offering an alternative to traditional remastering methods.

a traditional remastering process can be avoided, and the computational and memory cost for modifying the appearance of the output image can be reduced as a large set of textures need not be stored and applied as required in other approaches.

Why it matters: Sony’s patent to make remastering games easier using AI suggests that it might be working on renovating more of its classic games with better visuals to release them soon.

The figure illustrates a part of generating virtual environment images.

The patent ‘DATA PROCESSING METHOD AND SYSTEM’ allows for real-time visual changes. This can let less powerful devices display graphics as if rendered on high-end hardware, as the overlays can be generated remotely using cloud servers. 

Sony argues that remastering games using texture packs requires beefy rigs, while other methods also take much development time. So, image overlays can enhance resolution, textures, lighting, or completely transform a game’s art style using AI.

 a content remastering process is frequently complex and has a high associated computational cost; in many cases content may need to be remade entirely.

The system can improve cross-platform efficiency by reusing remastered content across different platforms with the same overlay methods. This may remove the need for separate remasters to be developed entirely.

We might see Sony remaster a motley of games quickly and cost-effectively to soon bring older titles to modern platforms. The system can allow developers to remaster a greater range of games, even for devices with low-end hardware. 

Sony has also published many unique patents over the decades, including one for creating AI ghost players for real-time player assistance and another for penalizing players in multiplayer games with outstanding skills or a platform advantage.

Do you think Sony will use the patent to release more remasters in the future? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, or join the discussion on the Tech4Gamers forum.

Most PlayStation Fans Bought $80 Edition of Ghost of Yotei, After Previously Voting Against The Idea

Story Highlight
  • The $80 Deluxe Edition of Ghost of Yotei is currently the top seller on the PlayStation Store.
  • This comes after PlayStation fans previously voted against the idea of $80 games. 
  • After Nintendo and Xbox, PlayStation is expected to hike game prices as well.

It seems the concept of $80 games will soon become the new normal. After Nintendo introduced Mario Kart World at an inflated price tag, other companies were expected to follow suit. And sure enough, Xbox is set to increase its game prices soon. 

In a poll held last month, PlayStation fans voted against the idea of higher-priced games, and while the company hasn’t announced a global price hike yet, based on how the $80 Edition of Ghost of Yotei is selling better than the normal one, it might change soon. 

Why it matters: While the standard version of Ghost of Yotei costs $70, the more expensive version is the one fans have spent their money on the most, based on statistics from multiple regions. 

Having checked the PS Store from multiple regions, including the US, UK, and Australia, Ghost of Yotei Deluxe Edition is being pre-ordered more than the standard edition. The trend is mostly similar for the upcoming Doom: The Dark Ages. 

Analysts have already predicted that PlayStation will follow the trend soon. Also, the company has already announced a game price increase in Brazil for October, and we wouldn’t be surprised if other regions get the same treatment. 

ghost of yotei female lead
Ghost of Yotei’s Deluxe version is outselling the Standard Edition

Fans have been furious at Xbox and Nintendo ever since the companies made this announcement, so buying the $80 version of a game which available cheaper as well seems like a move to invite others to increase the prices as well.

What are your thoughts on PlayStation fans buying the $80 edition of Ghost of Yotei over the standard one? Do you support the higher-priced games? Let us know your opinions in the comments or join the discussion at the official Tech4Gamers Forum.

 

PlayStation Announces Game Price Hike In Brazil For October

Story Highlight
  • Following Nintendo and Xbox, PlayStation has announced a price hike.
  • The gaming giant has announced that prices of its first-party games will increase in Brazil starting in October. 
  • Ghost of Yotei will release on October 2, 2025, so its pre-order will now cost more

Recently, Nintendo announced that the games for Switch 2 will cost $80. This caused a commotion among the fandom, which, of course, caused frustration and anger. However, following that, Xbox dropped a bomb by increasing the prices of its consoles, controllers, and games worldwide

Shortly after that, fans anticipated that the next to follow this trend is going to be PlayStation, and it has finally happened. PlayStation has announced a game price hike in Brazil from October. 

Why it matters: The economy is worsening worldwide, but that doesn’t mean only the businesses are being affected. These multi-billion-dollar corporations fail to realize that consumers are the ones who are being affected the most, and yet we are witnessing back-to-back price hikes. 

Xbox Games Lineup 2025
Xbox recently increased the prices of its consoles and games worldwide.

PlayStation Brazil recently sent a statement to Level Up revealing that there will be price adjustments to the prices of first-party games starting in October due to adverse currency conditions in Brazil. 

Due to adverse currency conditions in Brazil, the recommended retail price for Sony Interactive Entertainment first-party games (disc and digital) will increase to R$399.90 starting with the launch of Ghost of Yotei on October 2, 2025.

-PlayStation Brazil

The prices of the games will be increased in Brazil with the launch of Ghost of Yotie, which is targeting a release date of October 2, 2025. Many fans raised their voices when the game’s pre-order was costing R$ 399.90 on the Brazilian PlayStation store. 

PS5 Pro Featured
PS5 Pro criticism just died down, but Sony is yet again under fire.

So, the gaming giant has finally given an official statement to tone down the buzz. Many fans are pinning the blame entirely on Xbox and Nintendo, which makes total sense given these two were the first ones to increase the prices. 

This seems only a beginning as analysts have predicted more price hikes in the future, which may take a major toll on the gaming industry. 

What do you think about this price hike from PlayStation? Do you think the gaming giant will increase the prices in other countries as well? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or join the official Tech4Gamers forums for discussion

The Cancelled Spider-Man Game Could Have Been A Banger

Story Highlights
  • The cancelled multiplayer Spider-Man game had immense potential, as it would have brought something new to the table.
  • The spectacular web-swinging, amazing combat, and fun quests that we see in Marvel’s Spider-Man could have been brought into multiplayer.
  • They could have also introduced the concept of the multiverse, which would have given players something new related to Spider-Man.

Spider-Man games have been entertaining fans for decades. Throughout the years, dozens of Spider-Man games have been released for various consoles, each with its unique touch. Not every Spider-Man game has been successful, but most have amazed fans.

Spider-Man still shines bright in the modern-day era of the superhero genre in video games. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that the latest Spider-Man games developed by Insomniac are the best ones ever. These Spider-Man games have set the bar high, but a multiplayer Spider-Man game could have topped that.

Why The Possibility Of This Game Being Developed Now Is More Than Ever

Despite having dozens of Spider-Man games, we never saw a co-op multiplayer Spider-Man game. The reason may be the technical limitations, as making a good single-player Spider-Man game is challenging.

However, the possibility of a multiplayer Spider-Man game has increased as modern-day Spider-Man games have used the latest gaming technologies to overcome the previous limitations.

This may be one of the primary reasons why the development of a multiplayer Spider-Man game was initiated a few years ago, but it was cancelled mid-development for unknown reasons before it was even revealed to the public.

Why The Game Would Have Worked

The game could have set new standards in the world of co-op gaming. Imagine swinging around New York with your friends, taking on bad guys.

Considering how advanced web-swing mechanics in the latest Spider-Man games have become, free-roaming would have been one of the fondest things for players to do with their friends.

Web Swinging
Web Swinging (Image By Tech4Gamers)

They could have introduced multiplayer web-swinging races, trick and stunt challenges, and quests for players to complete together. They could have built missions requiring multiple players to co-operate to complete the mission, like A Way Out and the recently released Split Fiction.

These games could have been a valuable source of inspiration, as they are renowned among fans. They could have also introduced co-op combat missions, in which several players would take on a horde of thugs simultaneously.

Co-op Combat Would Have Been Mind-Blowing

The co-op combat system could have also worked out pretty well. There could have been tag team moves like we saw in Uncharted 4 in some encounters.

NPC characters like Sam Drake assist the player in taking down the bad guys by choking them from behind, enabling the player to execute attacking moves or escape an enemy’s grasp.

Tag Team Combo
Tag Team Combo (Image By Tech4Gamers)

There were also some special moves where the player and Sam Drake slam the enemy together. A similar approach, featuring spider webs, gadgets, and high-flying spidey action, could have been amazing.

INSOMNIAC! GIVE ME SPIDER-MAN THE GREAT WEB AND MY LIFE IS YOURS!!!!!
byu/thespectacularSpud inspiderman2

The Concept Of Multiverse

The concept of the Spider-verse in this cancelled Spider-Man game could have made things even better. As several players roam around in the same environment, the idea that these players are actually from different dimensions and have banded together in the same universe to take on bad guys would have fit perfectly.

This multiverse concept could have opened doors to many other possibilities, such as different maps in the game representing distinct universes, each with a unique theme and color scheme, as seen in the 2023 animated movie Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

Spiderman: Across The Spider-verse Official Poster
Spider-Man: Across The Spider-verse Official Poster (Image By Sony Pictures)

They could have also added several Spider-Men from different universes as skins for players. The skin options could have been endless since the comics contain many different Spider-Men.

Additionally, they could have offered the option to combine different parts from various Spider-Man skins, allowing players to create a unique Spider-Man. There is no news on whether this cancelled multiplayer Spider-Man will ever be developed and released to the public.

Still, considering this game’s high potential and the technological barriers being weakened, I believe one of the studios will surely be interested in making it.

How Close Are We to Full-Dive VR Like Sword Art Online?

Story Highlights

  • Full-dive VR like Sword Art Online requires direct brain to computer interaction which we are only just now beginning to explore.
  • The VR seen today still relies on external hardware such as headsets, controllers and haptic suits.
  • Companies such as Nueralink are already experimenting on brain interfaces that can directly control digital systems through thought.
  • Full-dive VR is likely decades away, but early versions may emerge in the next 10-15 years.
  • Work on Full-dive VR has already begun but it’s just not as far as how it was in SAO.

In 2022 the fans of Sword Art Online saw as reality took one small step towards fiction. NerveGear, holding the same name as the Full-dive headset from the anime was announced as a conceptual prototype by the founder of Oculus, Palmer Luckey.

It was more of a sentimental piece which made gamers and the tech community wonder: just how close we are too Full-dive VR? The dream on logging into a completely immersive digital world where your subconscious is a part of the ones and zeros is still pretty much science fiction. But it’s not as far as you may think it is.  

Where We Are Today

Today’s VR is light years away from where it was just over a decade ago. Headsets such as the Meta Quest 3 which is cheaper and better than the Vision Pro, offers features such as room-scale movement, finger tracking and realistic haptic feedback.

Meta Quest 3
Meta Quest 3 – Image Credits (Pinterest)

Games such as Half-Life: Alyx, Asgard’s Wrath 2 and Blade and sorcery are fully immersive experiences that are available on the Vision Pro, PSVR2 and other such VR headset consoles. Despite all, we are still tethered by current technology.

Current VR setups require physical space for movement, use external controllers or tracking and can only simulate visuals and sounds. Thats immersive, but not Full-dive VR, to put it bluntly we are just not there yet.

What Full-Dive VR Actually Means

In the anime Sword Art Online Full-dive VR is supported by a brain-computer interface (BCI) that allows the players consciousness to enter the digital world while their physical body remains motionless. For this to work in real life the system must be able to bypass the brains sensory input and replace it with digital signals.

Apple Vision Pro
Apple Vision Pro – Image Credits (Apple)

The system would also have to coordinate the brains signals with in game actions. If your brain thinks move forward your avatar in the digital realm must be capable of doing so instantaneously. Lastly, there will be a need for the system to send feedback directly to the brain to stimulate sensations such as the feel of the wind, force of a punch, etc. 

Technological Advancements Paving the Way

Companies like Neuralink, Open BCI and NextMind are exploring devices that can read brainwaves. Exploring such technologies will greatly help the struggle towards Full-dive VR. Neuralink for example has implanted chips in humans and animals that allow for basic thought-based control of digital systems.

As we all are aware haptic feedback greatly improves immersion in games. Startups such as bHaptics and Teslasuit are developing full boy suits that can stimulate physical feedback such as pressure, heat and vibrations etc. 

Experimental technology is also surfacing that can interpret basic emotional responses by interpreting brain activity. All of this combined will further enhance the immersion of current day VR.

Challenges to Overcome

Despite all the promising developments there are still many issues that need to be addressed before Full-dive VR becomes a reality. The progress on two-way brain interfaces is still in its infancy. We can send information to computers but are unable to write sensations on the brain.

The Oasis
Ready Player One – Image Credits (Vocal Media)

Technologies such as the neuralink chip are considered as invasive and raise ethical concerns and other issues that need to be addressed. Also, a setup to achieve this level of VR would require something that is compact, wireless and capable of rapid and precise processing without causing any harm to the user.

The Timeline to Full-Dive VR

If the goal is similar to entering a digital world such as the Oasis in Ready Player One, this reality is likely very far from where we are now. This technology will likely appear in the mid to late 21st century. However, we may see early iterations of this tech in the next 10 to 15 years.

Detroit: Become Human Is One Of The Best Telltale Games Ever

Story Highlights
  • Detroit: Become Human is one of the best Telltale games ever, as it effectively delivers engaging content. 
  • The story is straightforward, but acted and directed well, which keeps the players engaged to the end.
  • Players can choose between an easy and a difficult style of QTE gameplay, each offering a distinct and immersive experience.

Telltale is a unique genre in video games. It focuses on cutscenes and storytelling elements, offering a unique take on gameplay through Quick Time Events (QTEs). Detroit: Become Human is one of those games in this genre that utilizes these elements almost perfectly, delivering an unforgettable experience.

Detroit: Become Human, is one of the best story games of all time, if not one of the best games of all time. Thoughts?
byu/Intelligent-Age2786 ingaming

I claim Detroit: Become Human to be one of the best, if not the best, Telltale games because it does a great job in every department. It has the perfect blend of gameplay and cinematic sequences, keeping the player immersed from start to finish.

Well Written Story

The story of Detroit: Become Human undoubtedly gives tough competition to some of the other renowned Telltale games. The story’s theme, AI robots gaining consciousness and taking control over humans, is pretty generic. But what makes it good is the direction and how they revolve things around it.

From the start, the game immerses players in an intense scenario where they must make several critical decisions to save a girl from a hostage situation. After a strong start, they introduce the three playable characters in the game.

Opening Scene In Detroit: Become Human
Opening Scene In Detroit: Become Human (Image By Tech4Gamers)

Shortly after, challenging situations arise in the game, where the player must make difficult choices between good and evil to help the three characters survive. It’s one of those stories where good direction is essential to keep the players invested, and the game heavily relies on that, as it needs to.

Apart from direction, your individual choices with the three protagonists can also affect the story’s outcome, which is another reason why the story never feels stale. Additionally, the cast’s acting added life to the characters.

Bryan Dechart As Conor
Bryan Dechart As Conor In Detroit: Become Human (Image By Tech4Gamers)

The game would have never been emotionally moving if the cast had not done their job well. Although I liked everyone’s acting in the game, my favorite was Valorie Curie’s role as Kara.

Immersive Gameplay

The gameplay is done pretty well. The game gives you the option to choose between two styles of gameplay. One is the challenging style, which makes the Quick Time Events (QTEs) in the game more engaging by introducing different types of QTEs for various situations.

A Quick Time Event(QTE) Gameplay Sequence
A Quick Time Event(QTE) Gameplay Sequence In Detroit: Become Human (Image By Tech4Gamers)

The other is an effortless style of gameplay, which focuses on giving the player more control over the choices they want to make in the game, without the fear of accidentally making the wrong choice.

This is an excellent feature, as sometimes making the wrong choice in the game can change the entire complexion of the story, and you may not be able to turn things back. As your goal is to keep making the right choices and ensure all three protagonists survive until the end, the easy gameplay mode feature helps.

I enjoyed the challenging gameplay style more as it kept me constantly immersed in the game. The fact that all three protagonists can die at several points in the game also opens many other doors in the story, which can lead you to experience one of the 85 different endings in the game each time you make a different choice.

Some endings may not be exactly opposite, but a variation. Despite that, the path you face for every other ending comes with a different set of choices and consequences, so that you will have a different kind of experience with different endings most of the time.

Games Are Evolving But Backwards… (Physics & Mechanics)

Story Highlights
  • While modern games aim for graphics, older games had robust and realistic mechanics and physics, which made them more fun.  
  • The parkour system from the Assassin’s Creed series has seen a significant decline. The water physics of Ubisoft games has also declined.
  • Even Warner Bros Games progressed backwards, where the difference is night and day, despite the two games being 8 years apart. 

The current state of games is absolutely pathetic, where new releases are nothing short of disappointments. Most of these new titles are poorly optimised, aren’t properly functional, and are often reliant on upscaling.

Not only that, but these new releases are way worse than the games we used to get back in the day. The older games from the same developer, years apart, are more refined than even the latest releases.

We’ve Traded Mechanics For Graphics

If we take a look at the new titles, we see a clear pattern. All the focus is put on enhancing the graphics of the game. While we need modern graphics to some extent, most developers fail to realise that graphics don’t matter. 

What matters is a fully functional game with great modern mechanics and physics. As we progress towards technological advancements, we need realistic mechanics to be integrated into games, which are missing today.

Assassin’s Creed: A Franchise in Reverse

Take the Assassin’s Creed Series as an example, which appears to be moving backward not only with its narrative but also with its parkour. The first one had slow climbing mechanics, making it feel like you were putting in a lot of effort.

The First Three Were Good

It was realistic, but as the series progressed to Assassin’s Creed II, Ezio began to climb much faster, but was still not bad. Then, Assassin’s Creed Revelations introduced a hook blade to climb with higher agility, which was also good.

Then It Went Downhill

With AC: Unity, players had more control over the parkour, and it was still very realistic, and after this, the downfall of the mechanics began. With Syndicate, players could make higher leaps, skipping past the objects to climb.

As we progressed to Assassin’s Creed: Origins, players could climb anything without requiring ledges or cracks and could make leaps. This unrealistic feature was repeated in Odyssey and Valhalla. 

AC No Need For Cracks
No Need For Cracks In AC: Origins (Image Credits – YT/AKG29)

Mirage Brought Back Hope

Ubisoft finally decided to bring back the ledge mechanics with Mirage, which was like a sigh of fresh air for the OG players. Still, Basim made longer leaps, which felt unrealistic and rushed and weren’t as good as in Unity

Ubisoft’s Declining Water Physics

Assassin’s Creed isn’t the only game where Ubisoft was seen lacking; there are many more games where Ubisoft progressed backward, especially when it comes to water physics.

Star Wars Outlaw Vs Far Cry 2

Now, we’re gonna look at two games which are sixteen years apart, yet the older game’s physics are commendable. These are the water physics present in Star Wars: Outlaws and Far Cry 2.

First, let’s address the elephant in the room, which is that you can’t swim or dive in the water in Star Wars Outlaws. How can Ubisoft miss that? Even if it is intentional, there’s no point in talking away the ability to swim in a game.

Secondly, the animations and the water ripple effects with proper splashes were present in Far Cry 2 sixteen years ago, a feat that is missing in a 2024-released game. I can’t fathom this.

Skull And Bones Vs Assassin’s Creed Black Flag

The ripple effects of the water and the splashes in Skull and Bones are far from realistic when compared to those present in Black Flag. Instead, it looks like one of those choppy effects you see in older games, like GTA San Andreas.

Skull And Bones Water Physics
Skull And Bones Poor Water Physics (Image Credits – YT/NikTek)

Additionally, there is no slow movement when you walk in the water in Skull and Bones, despite being a $850M game. In contrast, you can feel the heaviness as your character struggles to walk in shallow water in Black Flag.

Warner Bros Games’ Backwards Progression

Ubisoft isn’t the only one to blame for this mishap. Even Warner Bros Games is a victim of this backward progression, and as a heads up, there’s even an evident visual downgrade as well.

I’m talking about the 2015 release of Batman: Arkham Knight, which still remains one of the best superhero games to this day. Compare this with 2022’s Gotham Knights, and the difference is night and day. 

While driving, you couldn’t even bump into other vehicles, nor destroy the objects in your surroundings. In comparison, you could wreak havoc in the Batman game, which remains timeless even after over eight years.


Will Blackspace Engine Replace Unreal Engine 5?

Story Highlights
  • Blackspace Engine features realistic water with foam formation, volumetric fog with fluid simulation, and incredible cloth & hair simulation.   
  • While Blackspace offers great clouds that form and fade away naturally, they aren’t as realistic and volumetric as Unreal Engine’s.
  • Unreal Engine has several performance issues, including stuttering. Blackspace could become the industry standard if it improves in that area.

We live in an era where Unreal Engine is the most widely used engine for AAA games. Not only the released games but also the upcoming games are to be made in Unreal Engine 5, which is the case for Titalfall 3 and the new Batman game

BlackSpace Engine
Blackspace Engine (Image Credits – Pearl Abyss)

With every game following the same route, it becomes challenging for games to stand out, as they often appear almost identical. To counter this issue, a new contender has quietly entered the arena, namely the Blackspace Engine.

Blackspace Engine: A New Contender

Developed by Pearl Abyss, the engine will be featured in Crimson Desert, an open-world fantasy RPG game. The game features a 50-80 hour campaign and offers spectacular visuals thanks to its new high-fidelity engine.  

Water Foam Effects

The game’s demo reveals the capabilities of this engine in many ways. One of its prominent features is its realistic water effect. While the water effects in Unreal Engine were already realistic, it lacked the foam that Blackspace Engine added. 

Blackspace Engine Water Foam Effects
Water Foam Effects (Image Credits – Pearl Abyss)

Here, water waves form the same foam we see in real life as the water crashes against the rocks. In a flowing river body, this foam looks even better as the water appears to be flowing with a heavy stream rather than appearing stagnant. 

Cloth & Hair Simulation

This engine also features a highly realistic simulation of cloth and hair. On a windy day, the clothes placed by the local villagers and the surrounding vegetation move along with the wind.

Blackspace Engine Cloth & Hair Simulation
Cloth & Hair Simulation (Image Credits – Pearl Abyss)

This is very impressive, as we can see them move in a way that doesn’t feel scripted, and their movements appear more natural. At one instance, you can see the trees sway left for a while, become stagnant as the heavy wind comes and goes. 

Blackspace Engine uses the GPU to simulate these movements. In Unreal Engine 5, you’re prone to experiencing a lot of stuttering in places where clothes move. Silent Hill Remake is the most common victim of this stuttering problem.   

Volumetric Fog With Fluid Simulation

Another notable feature is its volumetric fog with fluid simulation, where you can walk through the fog, and it’ll move accordingly. The fog moves gradually as if you’re walking on a still water surface.

Not to mention, the fog isn’t stationary when we don’t come close to it. If you pay attention, you can see it circling and filling up the entire ground, which appears very interesting, as if you’re seeing clouds forming. 

Clouds Aren’t As Good

Speaking of clouds, they add a dramatic beauty to video games, making their role very important. Here, they move and slowly fade away after covering a distance, but they aren’t very volumetric.

Blackspace Engine Clouds
Clouds (Image Credits – Pearl Abyss)

Some of them also form from nothing in the middle of the sky, following a trail so it isn’t haphazard. However, the clouds in Unreal Engine are highly realistic, dense, and fill the sky, creating dramatic beauty that adds to the games. 

Ray Tracing Is A Must

The ray tracing in this engine appears decent, although it is not as realistic as in Unreal Engine 5. However, from the before and after, it is evident that ray tracing is something that is not to be missed in this game.

Blackspace Engine Ray Tracing Before And After
Ray Tracing Before & After (Image Credits – Pearl Abyss)

What I mean is that in other engines, ray tracing is an add-on that you enable to enhance the appearance of the environment. However, here it seems necessary, as some places appear out of place compared to the ray-tracing one. 

To compare with other engines, I find ray tracing in Unreal Engine to be very common. It feels the same in every game, and it’s becoming boring to see identical ray tracing. I loved the ray tracing in AC: Shadows with their Anvil Engine

Should Other Engines Replace UE?

See, Unreal Engine has its own place, but it hasn’t been the very best recently. Despite the visual enhancements that Unreal Engine offers, it has numerous performance issues. It is better for games to switch to new engines instead.

Assassin's Creed Shadows Anvil Engine
Anvil Engine (Image Credits – Eurogamer)

This is why I love that Ubisoft skipped Unreal Engine for Assassin’s Creed: Shadow, and it worked in their favor, as the game has one of the best performances despite incorporating ray tracing. 

Verdict

The Blackspace Engine looks promising in the demo, and if its performance is better than Unreal Engine 5’s, it could dethrone it. Crimson Desert is scheduled to release later in 2025, which will allow us to test and compare with UE. 


Lossless Scaling: Is It Good Or Just Another Gimmick?

Story Highlights
  • Lossless Scaling differs from DLSS and FSR, and is best suited for older games that aren’t optimized for higher FPS.  
  • Despite boosting to 2x and even 3x frame rates, Lossless Scaling has errors as it distorts the screen’s edges and the HUD. 
  • Its new feature, Adaptive Frame Generation, boosts FPS even with low base frame rates, a capability that neither AMD nor Nvidia currently offers.

For years, high-performance gaming has been associated with expensive hardware. The tradeoff was simple: if you wanted to play games smoothly at higher frame rates, you needed to upgrade your PC’s specifications, especially its GPU.

However, in 2025, a $3.5 application (previously $7) called Lossless Scaling changed that tradition. Now, with one click of a button, you can gain FPS without changing any of your PC specs. But is it legit? Or is it just another gimmick?

What Is Lossless Scaling & How Does It Work?

Lossless Scaling is a third-party application that can be downloaded via Steam, allowing players to enable dynamic upscaling in games that do not support technologies like DLSS and FSR. 

Compared To DLSS & FSR

Modern upscaling techniques, such as DLSS and FSR, leverage the final colour frame of two rendered images before the HUD is drawn, and they combine the motion vectors of both frames to generate the in-between frame.

You can think of Motion Vectors as a form of cheat sheet, which tells frame generation tech where and how objects are moving. DLSS and FSR have access to motion vectors since developers integrate them.

It’s More Of A Mod

In comparison, Lossless scaling is more of a mod that doesn’t have access to the game’s internals. It is a post-processing effect that performs all the work after the game has been rendered.    

It only has access to two fully rendered, coloured images with the HUD displayed on them, and it also lacks access to motion vectors. Therefore, it has to guess where the image is moving and use machine learning to generate the next frame.

With the latest version, Lossless scaling can generate two in-between frames. To put it into perspective, it can generate up to three times more frames than DLSS and FSR. 

What’s The Catch?

If it is boosting FPS so significantly, even more than the most popular AI upscaling technologies, if you think that there would be some limitation, you’re correct. 

Artifacts & Choppy Quality

While Lossless Scaling generates more frames, it also generates more visible errors between the frames. FSR, which utilises motion vectors, appears significantly better, whereas DLSS 4 provides the best-looking frames.

When playing games, you’re eye will notice that something is wrong in the game rendering in front of you. In some instances, the game will have errors at the corner of the screen or in the environment, and your eye could catch them. 

Flickering

Another error you may sometimes see is the sudden flickering of transparent objects, such as shadows or particles. These objects don’t interpolate well, so they appear faded or at a lower frame rate than the rest of the game. 

Distorted HUD Elements

Since Lossless Scaling has no concept of what a HUD is and it can’t distinguish background from foreground, which distorts the HUD at times, if you scroll items in games, the HUD almost glitches, but it does return to normal at some point. 

Lossless Scaling Distorted HUD
Distorted HUD (Image Credits – YT/Digital Foundry)

Weird Edge Of The Screen

Generative frames often fake the screen’s edge when the game’s camera moves. When you look at the edge, you’ll see distorted bubbles of displacement if you pay attention to it. However, it can be easily avoided if you ignore it. 

So Where Does It Shine?

Lossless Scaling has its issues, which can easily be fixed. Since DLSS and FSR are modern solutions to boost game performance, Lossless Scaling works best to enhance framerates in older games that don’t support these features.  

Games Weren’t Coded For High FPS

Unlike modern games, some older games were coded in a way that prevented them from achieving higher FPS. Freedom Fighters, for instance, was designed to be capped at 62 FPS, but Lossless Scaling allows players to boost it to 120 FPS.

Lossless Scaling Resident Evil 4 Boosted To 120 FPS
Resident Evil 4 Boosted To 120 FPS (Image Credits – YT/Digital Foundry)

The Resident Evil 4 was also locked at 60 FPS in all versions, and you can bring it up to 120 FPS on 2x mode and even at 180 FPS on 3x mode with a higher refresh rate. This gives the game a new level of fluidity that was always missing.   

Heavy Boost In Modern Games

Even in modern games, you can use Lossless Scaling and get a huge FPS boost, where you could go from 40-50 FPS to around 120 FPS. Honestly, people who lack an eye for detail can overlook visual errors easily.  

Adaptive Frame Generation Is Better Than DLSS & FSR

Adaptive Frame Generation is its latest feature, which allows you to set your frame rate, such as 60 FPS. This will boost FPS despite having lower base frame rates, which is a feature that neither AMD nor Nvidia has implemented. 

 

Do You Still Want To Become A Gaming Streamer?

Story Highlights
  • Although you might think that playing games for a living would be great, streaming requires a lot of hours every day.
  • You must have a personality that keeps the audience engaged at all times, and many people can struggle with ‘being on’ all the time.
  • As you progress, you might get undeserved hate and could even become the face of controversies, even if you’re innocent. 

Many gamers dream of becoming a gaming streamer, and while it does seem like an appealing profession, there are some layers to it that most people don’t see. After seeing these layers, there’s a chance you’ll avoid choosing this as a career. 

Gaming Streamers
Gaming Streamers (Image Credits – HitPaw)

The Illusion Of Simplicity

From a distance, gaming streamers might look like they’re playing games and making money. Talk about a deal, right? In reality, you don’t just play games for an hour or two and head off; you play for almost an entire day.

Dedicate Hours Daily

It will become tiring and feel more like a job rather than a playful hobby. This might not be very pleasant, but like many things in life, you have to dedicate hours on end every day to become successful in streaming.

Ludwig Subathon
Ludwig Subathon (Image Credits – Stream Hatchet)

To become successful, people go on long streaks that even last for days. This is what Ludwig did in his subathon, where he streamed for 31 days on Twitch, which eventually paid off for him.

The Pressure to Be “Always On”

The entire time you’re streaming, you’re always greeted with the pressure of being ‘on’ all the time. This means you have to present your interesting side and not bore your audience, who are willing to watch you for hours.

While it is best if you naturally have the personality that could keep people hooked for hours without you burning out, which is the case for MoistCritikal’s success as a streamer.

Streamers Burning Out Starter pACK
Streamers Burning Out (Image Credits – r/starterpacks)

Unlike a 9-5 job, you don’t get weekends, holidays, or any other vacations where you can leave your streams for a lengthy period of time. People expect you to show up, and leaving them might feel like you’re abandoning your audience. 

You Become A Brand

The thing that most people fail to realise before starting to stream is that once you decide to put your face on the internet, you’re not just a streamer; you’re a brand. Your voice, your personality, and your values become part of the package.  

Internal Conflicts

It isn’t inherently bad, but it becomes problematic once you associate yourself with this brand, especially if it hinders your personal life. Most people act one way when they’re alone and another when streaming.

Streamer Being Sad
Streamer Being Sad (Image Credits – SVG)

This constant struggle to ‘put on a mask’ can be exhausting and can lead to an identity crisis for people who aren’t secure in themselves. This could become a constant battle in their heads, which can also affect their streaming performance. 

Victim Of Controversies

With your face being the brand, you could also become part of controversies even if you’re innocent. Since the internet is a huge platform, managing the public’s perception is practically out of control, especially if you have a massive following.

We’ve seen this time and time again with innocent creators, and recently, a Twitch streamer got banned after falsely being accused of breaking an Assassin’s Creed: Shadows embargo, even though he didn’t leak any actual content. 

Undeserved Hate

With an increasing following, you’re also bound to get hate raids even if you don’t deserve it. This is because miserable people often feel better ridiculing people whom they consider more successful than themselves.

While you might think it is natural, many streamers struggle with the hate comments even if they’re successful. Some of these comments linger in their heads and become a constant means of stress, which they try so hard to avoid.

Not so long ago, a Twitch streamer was harassed for playing the wrong game. Many people are demanding a boycott of Hogwarts Legacy and brought this streamer to tears by bashing her with hateful comments. 

Feeling Trapped

Once you’re a gaming streamer for quite some time, you might feel like you’re stuck doing the same thing and could even feel purposeless. Even if these streamers feel the need to do something else, they’re held back because of their following.

They feel this constant pressure that they’ll disappoint their fans who watch them for doing what they did before. This is only a limiting belief for most people since Tyler1 started streaming chess and even became the biggest chess streamer

Final Words

Most of the issues are internal battles and conflicts that people who want to stream could face. If you think you can push through them, you can still become a great streamer. 

I Finally Like The GTA Trilogy After The Latest Patch

Story Highlights
  • Despite the buggy launch, the latest 1.112 update features classic lighting that gives all three games the same PS2 feel.
  • Street lamps have been made warmer, neon lights are more vibrant, and the atmosphere now has distant fog, which gives a sense of vastness. 
  • Other bugs have been fixed, such as the delayed ripple effect while swimming, animations while eating and shooting while moving. 

GTA Trilogy 

When the GTA Trilogy Definitive Edition came out, it was nothing short of a disaster because it had unexplainable bugs, weird glitches, and graphical downgrades. It was just a complete mess.

Poor Start

Many players were disappointed by the Steam release because they didn’t get what they initially expected. Given that the trilogy is from Rockstar, many expected a successful release.

GTA Trilogy Glitches
Poorly Optimized GTA Trilogy (Image Credits – ScreenRant)

Repeated Patches

Rockstar admitted that this remaster didn’t meet their expectations and slowly started to turn things around. They started releasing patches, and there was also a time when more than 100 bugs were fixed in a single patch.

Fast-forward to November 2024, when Rockstar launched their v1.112 patch, which turned out to be a game-changer. With this latest patch, the game is far from what it was when it was released

Lighting & Effects

One of the most prominent features of this update is the lighting effect. Classic PS2 lighting is now available as an option in the game, bringing back the same nostalgic vibe while adding the modern touch of graphics. 

Classic Lighting

With this effect enabled, the GTA San Andreas retains that orange-teal hue at the time of the sunset that was present in the PS2 version. This invokes many memories for the OG players and is a great add-on. 

GTA Trilogy Vice City Before And After
Cinematic Lighting Added (Image Credit – YT/Betaz)

As for Vice City, the game now appears more cinematic, with toned-down brightness and amped-up effects that make it feel cosy and warm, complementing the Miami theme. 

Lights Within The City

Apart from the lighting feature, the lighting in the lamp post has also been fixed. Previously, Rockstar decided to integrate white bulbs in lamp posts, which looked modern for a game set in the 90s.

GTA Trilogy v1.112 Patch Warmer Lamp Posts
Warmer Street Lights (Image Credit – YT/Betaz)

This has been fixed by replacing the white hue with a warmer one. Now, the street light feels very warm and paired with the classic lighting, it feels extremely nostalgic.  

GTA Trilogy v1.112 Patch Neon Lights
Neon Lights Fixed (Image Credit – YT/Playzz)

In Vice City, the neon lights around places like the Malibu club have been amplified, and now they illuminate just like neon lights do in real life. Previously, these lights lacked vivid colors and brightness.

Clouds & Effects

Previously, if you flew high up, you could see the edge of the entire map. You could also not get that sense of altitude with the absence of clouds from the release, and flying felt like you were going out of bounds of the game.

Distant Fog

GTA Trilogy New Update Fog

Added Fog At A Distance (Image Credit – YT/Playzz)The game lacked this fog, which made the map feel extremely small and reachable. The element of distance was missing, which this fog filled. Paired with the lighting effect, now the games appear beautiful as well. 

Volumetric Clouds

GTA Trilogy New Update Clouds
Volumetric Clouds Similar To PS2 (Image Credit – YT/Betaz)

Initially, these clouds only appeared when you reached a certain point and felt fake. Now, more clouds have also been added along with the distance fog, and now the sky feels natural and full.

Dense Sandstorms

The weather system also improved greatly. Now, the sandstorms are denser and have a similar effect to those in PS2. Although they can’t be as good as in PS2, the effect still looks good. 

GTA Trilogy v1.112 Patch Sandstorms
Better Sandstorms (Image Credit – YT/Betaz)

Other Fixes

Besides these visual enhancements and fixes, many bugs have also been fixed. These include glitchy animations, improper placement of effects, and a lack of detail on objects.

Animations Glitch

Animations were previously plain bad. For instance, in a cutscene Ryder’s neck was weirdly placed. Moreover, CJ used to eat and drink using his forehead instead of his mouth. With the update, his animations have been improved. 

GTA Trilogy v1.112 Patch Animations Glitch Fixed
Animations Fixed (Image Credit – YT/Betaz)

There was also a swimming glitch, where it felt like you were flying instead of swimming. Swimming also felt out of place before, and the ripple effect only occurred after CJ came to the surface to take a breath. 

Fortunately, with the new patch, you can now normally swim while having proper particle and ripple effects, and the water looks better and more natural in this update. 

GTA Trilogy v1.112 Patch Swim Bug Fixed
Swimming Glitch Fixed (Image Credit – YT/Playzz)

Shooting Without Movement 

GTA III and GTA Vice City had a bug that prevented you from moving while shooting. This was thoroughly frustrating since shooting without moving takes away half of the fun. This fix was long overdue and should’ve been fixed before. 

GTA Trilogy v1.112 Patch Shooting Mechanics For GTA III AND Vice City
Shooting While Moving (Image Credit – YT/Betaz)

What Can We Expect In The Future?

With these fixes, it seems like GTA Trilogy might make a comeback, just like Cyberpunk 2077 did despite its worse launch. Both games share almost the same history and could share the same success. 

Now that Rockstar has acquired Video Games Deluxe, the company behind the GTA Trilogy remaster, we may see future remakes or even remasters of GTA or other franchises. At the very least, we can expect even better patches.