Digital Foundry Direct Weekly

In a rather jovial DF Direct, John returns from Japan having played PS5 Pro and visited a big bunch of developers, there's curiosity around Nintendo Alarmo and mysterious online tests it has in the offing, there's much anticipation for Alien Isolation 2 and some degree of confusion surrounding Intel's Arrow Lake-S CPU line-up. 0:00:00 Introduction 0:00:56 News 1: Red Dead Redemption announced for PC 0:13:56 News 2: Nintendo announces alarm clock, mysterious online playtest 0:26:17 News 3: Alien Isolation 2 announced 0:35:32 News 4: John’s PS5 Pro impressions 0:47:34 News 5: Diablo 4 is getting PS5 Pro enhancements 0:53:37 News 6: Intel Arrow Lake processors revealed 1:12:43 News 7: John Japan trip recap! 1:26:44 Supporter Q1: How powerful will the rumoured PS6 be? 1:34:03 Supporter Q2: What should we make of the rumoured God of War collection? 1:39:39 Supporter Q3: Will the RTX 5080 be priced at $1200 USD or above? 1:44:58 Supporter Q4: Thoughts on the new version of Lollipop Chainsaw? 1:52:53 Supporter Q5: What wishes would you have for a remaster of Assassin’s Creed Unity? 1:57:46 Supporter Q6: Is John building a CRT museum? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another packed Direct sees Oliver, Rich and Alex tackling Nintendo's various takedowns - on the Ryujinx emulator and YouTube emulation content. Oliver spends some time with Until Dawn on PlayStation 5 offering up impressions that range from the good, the bad and indeed the ugly. Alex talks us through the UE5 MegaLights technology and the new God of War Ragnarök PC patch, while the new STALKER 2 documentary basically demands to be watched. 0:00:00 Introduction 0:00:53 News 1: Nintendo takes down Ryujinx 0:17:28 News 2: Until Dawn remake tested! 0:33:20 News 3: Unreal MegaLights tech demoed 0:48:26 News 4: Square Enix wants FF16 on Xbox 0:57:39 News 5: Next Guerrilla game reportedly Horizon online 1:06:04 News 6: God of War Ragnarök gets PC patch boosts 1:14:02 News 7: STALKER 2 documentary shows war torn game development 1:22:20 Supporter Q1: Was Strix Halo designed for a new Steam Machine? Could Steam Machines match the performance of a PS5 Pro at the same price? 1:28:56 Supporter Q2: What is Naughty Dog working on? 1:35:04 Supporter Q3: Will Switch 2 support the newest UE5 features? 1:38:43 Supporter Q4: Can the Switch 2 compete performance wise with the Steam Deck? Does it need to? 1:42:34 Supporter Q5: The PS5 Pro hasn’t sold out, so is this a sign of underperforming sales? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new State of Play quote-unquote drops, giving Rich, Alex and Oliver much to discuss in this latest edition of DF Direct Weekly. Ghost of Yotei, Horizon Zero Dawn Remaster and the new Dragon Age dominate discussion, before the team move on to talk about the latest PS5 Pro title reveals. RTX 50-series specs come into focus - with leaks revealing a huge gap between 5080 and 5090. And there's much concern and bafflement around Monster Hunter Wilds' recommended PC specs. 0:00:00 Introduction 0:01:16 News 1: Sony reveals new games in State of Play 0:14:04 News 2: Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered analyzed 0:33:17 News 3: New PS5 Pro Enhanced titles announced 0:44:48 News 4: Assassin’s Creed Shadows delayed 0:55:07 News 5: Dragon’s Dogma 2: how is patch 9 on PS5? 1:00:44 News 6: Monster Hunter PC specs spark concern 1:14:01 News 7: RTX 5080, 5090 specs reportedly leaked 1:35:52 Supporter Q1: Should console generations be extended further? 1:42:44 Supporter Q2: Will the upcoming Microsoft handheld rely on FSR 4? 1:45:57 Supporter Q3: Would the Series S/X divide be fine if the S came with more memory? 1:53:47 Supporter Q4: Is there a difference between analyzing provided footage and footage you captured yourself? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another massive Direct sees Rich, John and Alex convene to discuss the huge Switch 2 prototype leak, the revelation that Intel and AMD battled it out for the PS6 contract, while the team shares notes on the quality of Capcom's Dead Rising remaster. Meanwhile, the actual nature of AMD's FSR 4 AI upscaling is discussed - along with continuing bafflement around the Horizon Zero Dawn remaster... and what's this about a Days Gone remaster too? 0:00:00 Introduction 0:01:08 News 1: Switch 2 hardware revealed in apparent leak 0:23:07 News 2: Dragon’s Dogma 2 patch boosts PC performance 0:33:04 News 3: Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster tested  0:44:34 News 4: RDNA 4 skips high-end GPUs, FSR 4 to be AI-based 1:00:40 News 5: Intel, AMD battled over PS6 contract 1:07:32 News 6: Horizon, Days Gone remasters rumoured 1:17:50 News 7: John gets a Virtual Boy!  1:27:12 Supporter Q1: How does Sony deliver consistently good PC ports? 1:32:51 Supporter Q2: What do you make of Nintendo suing for Palworld’s alleged patent violations? 1:38:25 Supporter Q3: Would you expect to see a big difference between FSR 2 and PSSR on Pro titles? Is ML-based upscaling powerful enough to keep console prices low? 1:43:59 Supporter Q4: What benefits will PS5 Pro bring to the PlayStation Portal? 1:46:24 Supporter Q5: Will PS5 Pro titles bring back-compat boosts for PS6?  1:49:28 Supporter Q6: How likely is a 40fps PS5 Pro mode for GTA 6? 1:53:57 Supporter Q7: Why have Respawn failed to fix fundamental issues in Jedi: Survivor on PC? 1:59:44 Supporter Q8: Why isn’t there an Ernest-based game? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In our DF Direct Special in the wake of the PlayStation 5 Pro reveal, we had much to say about the hardware, the pitch and the price - but not much to say about the games, owing to the poor media quality. Now, armed with a 65GB ProRes file of the Mark Cerny presentation, we can go deeper - much deeper - into the software that was shown and how good PSSR AI upscaling actually is. Strap in for another two hour show - and there's much to share in this one. 0:00:00 Introduction 0:02:47 The Last of Us Part 2 0:11:49 Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart 0:23:44 Alan Wake 2 0:33:27 Horizon Forbidden West 0:39:09 Hogwarts Legacy 0:45:48 Gran Turismo 7 0:54:35 Dragon’s Dogma 2 and Assassin’s Creed Shadows 0:57:43 Supporter Q1: Could PS5 Pro run Elden Ring at 60fps? 1:03:36 Supporter Q2: Is PS5 Pro a good deal relative to PC? 1:16:48 Supporter Q3: With the Pro reaching $700, what will the PS6 look like? 1:26:42 Supporter Q4: Could PSSR run on the base PS5? 1:33:04 Supporter Q5: Why hasn’t Sony developed machine learning based frame gen tech for PS5 Pro? 1:37:11 Supporter Q6: Will the high price of PS5 Pro drive people to PC? 1:44:13 Supporter Q7: Will low PS5 Pro sales cause development problems? 1:51:46 Supporter Q8: What game reveals would have excited you about PS5 Pro? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The inevitability of Sony's PlayStation 5 Pro increases still further as the firm 'leaks' the new design in a 30th anniversary artwork. Meanwhile, there are highs and lows for PlayStation: Concord crashes and burns, resulting in its withdrawal from sale - and yet spirits are raised by the frankly incredible Astro Bot. Elsewhere, RTX 5080 performance leaks suggest a 10 percent improvement over RTX 4090 - but where does that leave the RTX 5090 then? And then there's Anandtech: the team commiserate over the site's decline and closure. 0:00:00 Introduction 0:00:41 News 1: Sony leaks PS5 Pro design 0:13:42 News 2: Concord pulled from sale, servers close 0:37:11 News 3: Astro Bot review reaction! 0:53:23 News 4: RTX 5000 series performance and power rumoured 1:05:51 News 5: Bloodborne PC progresses 1:14:53 News 6: John’s Windows handheld impressions! 1:27:04 Supporter Q1: What should we make of the closure of AnandTech? 1:39:09 Supporter Q2: Where will Microsoft be in 15 years? 1:46:14 Supporter Q3: Could an RTX 6090 equipped Xbox explain Microsoft’s largest generational leap claims? 1:52:44 Supporter Q4: Could Ridge Racer make a return in the near future? 1:57:58 Supporter Q5: If Alan Wake 2 isn’t profitable, what hope do other original single player games have? 2:03:28 Supporter Q6: Will we really see ray tracing on Switch 2? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another week of exciting news as reputable sources reveal that PlayStation 5 Pro is incoming - and we've even got a sketch of the (possible!) design. Meanwhile, the Black Myth: Wukong Xbox no-show continues to command attention - as does the decision to release Avowed on Xbox consoles at 30fps. John, Rich and Oliver are on the mics this week - but Tom ducks out of his short vacation for a quick chat about the recent Metal Gear Solid: Delta and Silent Hill 2 press event he attended. 0:00:00 Introduction 0:01:07 News 1: PS5 Pro name, design possibly leaked 0:27:16 News 2: Why isn’t Black Myth: Wukong on Xbox? 0:41:24 News 3: Astro Bot VR ruled out - but PC could be coming 0:49:53 News 4: MGS Delta: Snake Eater preview! 1:06:53 News 5: Silent Hill 2 hands-on! 1:26:24 News 6: Avowed vows to target 30fps on Xbox Series consoles 1:34:48 Supporter Q1: What games do you most want to see updated for PS5 Pro? 1:41:36 Supporter Q2: How will Microsoft deal with the PS5 Pro? 1:52:24 Supporter Q3: Could Intel GPUs be in the next-gen consoles? 1:56:35 Supporter Q4: Given that the 4090 can no longer sustain native 4K at max settings in a lot of games, are we about to hit a performance wall? 2:04:28 Supporter Q5: Did Sony and Microsoft underestimate the needed console specs this generation? 2:12:19 Supporter Q6: Would DF consider adding a quantitative rating system to their reviews? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rich returns from Gamescom 2024, bringing with him hands-on impressions of STALKER 2 on Xbox and the incredible Black State on PC. Alex and Oliver share notes on the Final Fantasy 16 PC demo, while the team discuss the highlights - such as they are - of Geoff Keighley's Opening Night Live. But the big story is the news that Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is coming to PlayStation 5 - and the extent of Microsoft's multi-platform strategy is finally revealed. 0:00:00 Introduction 0:00:58 News 01: Indiana Jones headed to PS5 0:19:53 News 02: Hands-on with S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 0:31:31 News 03: FF16 demo tested on PC! 0:47:13 News 04: Black State impresses 0:57:50 News 05: Gamescom Opening Night Live recap 1:06:45 News 06: Nvidia’s Gamescom announcements 1:19:14 Supporter Q1: Is disabling RT depending on the scene a good idea? 1:27:47 Supporter Q2: Is Series S preventing a Black Myth: Wukong release on Xbox? 1:34:33 Supporter Q3: Why did Wukong on PS5 use FSR and not TSR? 1:38:35 Supporter Q4: Could improved Wukong performance be a good selling point for PS5 Pro? 1:45:06 Supporter Q5: How will Microsoft differentiate the next Xbox? 1:52:21 Supporter Q6: Did Microsoft and Sony focus on the wrong features with PS5 and Xbox Series? 2:01:18 Supporter Q7: Is 12GB enough VRAM for graphics cards this generation? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the eve of release, the team ponder the dearth of Black Myth: Wukong PS5 reviews - and then some last-minute footage emerges. Will Judd joins the team to discuss the latest AMD Zen 5 problems, more rumours of Xbox exclusives coming to PlayStation 5, while The Verge bravely talk about the game nobody's supposed to be talking about but everyone's playing. Meanwhile, we don't actually have a Switch 2 release date, but apparently it's been delayed - what's going on? 0:00:00 Introduction 0:01:48 News 01: Black Myth: Wukong benchmark drops 0:22:35 News 02: Zen 5 launch unravels 0:44:24 News 03: Switch 2 possibly “delayed” further into 2025 0:54:49 News 04: Unannounced game Deadlock hits 18,000 concurrent players 1:06:33 News 05: FF7 Remake trilogy third title to switch to UE5? 1:12:32 News 06: Man connects 444 consoles to one TV 1:20:39 News 07: Tango Gameworks acquired by Krafton 1:24:26 News 08: Forza Horizon 5 potentially headed to PS5 1:34:40 News 09: Valve plans to offer SteamOS to other handhelds 1:44:58 Supporter Q1: As Microsoft increasingly goes multiplatform, what’s the point of Xbox? 1:49:45 Supporter Q2: Should Microsoft be putting older exclusives on Switch? 1:52:10 Supporter Q3: What does the DF audience have to look forward to in 2025? 1:56:12 Supporter Q4: Which graphically intense ports should come to Switch 2? 2:00:10 Supporter Q5: What are some technical annoyances you have with modern gaming? 2:04:34 Supporter Q6: What is the best way to achieve good frame-rates for PS3 titles? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another packed edition of DF Direct Weekly sees Rich, Alex and Oliver discussing a range of topics. Why is it so difficult to get PSVR 2 working on PC? Why are the AMD Ryzen 9000/Zen 5 reviews to contentious? As Star Wars Jedi: Survivor breaks cover on last-gen consoles, what exactly is the point - and will the PC version get fixed? Meanwhile, the team rave about Space Marine 2's visuals, Doom/Doom 2 get a brand-new Nightdive release, Final Fantasy 16 may be imminent on PC and Oliver brings together all of the latest Half-Life 3 conspiracy theories... Could it actually be happening? 0:00:00 Introduction 0:00:54 News 01: PS VR2 tested on PC - without an adapter! 0:12:49 News 02: Zen 5 launches to mixed reviews 0:29:57 News 03: Space Marine 2 previewed 0:40:50 News 04: Half-Life 3 confirmed???!!!! 0:50:24 News 05: Jedi: Survivor last-gen screenshots revealed 1:06:32 News 06: Classic Doom games get revised port 1:11:07 News 07: Final Fantasy 16 PC release may be imminent 1:18:51 News 08: Ready at Dawn shut down 1:25:56 Supporter Q1: Why isn’t every new game using DirectStorage? 1:30:56 Supporter Q2: How could a “Stop Killing Games” directive work for online-only titles? 1:39:13 Supporter Q3: Should we be less judgmental about generative AI use? 1:48:18 Supporter Q4: Is the Ryzen 5800X3D one of the greatest ever CPUs? 1:55:35 Supporter Q5: Why does the PS4 refuse to die? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With John and Alex either on holiday or otherwise unavailable, Rich is joined by Tom and Oliver for our weekly show discussing the latest gaming and technology news. The team take a look at the recent Star Wars Outlaws previews, Tom gets to grips with Nobody Wants To Die and Visions of Mana, while also taking a look at the RT upgrades to EA Sports titles using the Frostbite engine. Meanwhile, Rich shares the ROG Ally X benchmarks we couldn't share in the preview, and shares his thoughts on AMD's Fluid Motion Frames 2 upgrade. 0:00:00 Introduction 0:02:01 News 01: Star Wars Outlaws gameplay preview! 0:14:31 News 02: Nobody Wants To Die impresses 0:23:05 News 03: EA Sports titles getting RTGI 0:38:55 News 04: PS VR2 dramatically discounted 0:47:47 News 05: Visions of Mana demo released 0:55:47 News 06: ROG Ally X benchmarked! 1:03:40 News 07: AMD Fluid Motion Frames 2 previewed 1:17:45 News 08: Destiny 3 not in development 1:25:51 Supporter Q1: Could you compare in-home streaming services like Steam Link? 1:33:01 Supporter Q2: Where is the console Minecraft ray tracing update? 1:38:56 Supporter Q3: Could upcoming consoles feature more bespoke kinds of hardware? 1:46:42 Supporter Q4: Do developers deserve flack for not optimizing their games, or are more demanding titles just a consequence of graphics advancement? 1:54:37 Supporter Q5: Why wasn’t x86 adopted for earlier consoles? 1:58:27 Supporter Q6: Could Microsoft release their backwards compatible Xbox titles on PC? 2:03:29 Supporter Q7: Is the M4 iPad Pro’s display bright enough for Oliver? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Once again, the PS5 Pro (which doesn't exist apparently) dominates the news, with RDNA 4 ray tracing features revealed - said to be integrated into the upcoming Sony console... but what do these features actually do? Meanwhile, PS5 Pro (which isn't real) has a settings profile in the new No Man's Sky update, so how is Hello Games utilising the enhanced console's hardware? Beyond that, John's enthused about a CRT 'overclocked' to run at 700Hz, Rich and Alex are wondering just what on Earth is happening in the PC CPU space - and the epic Fallout London mod is finally released. 0:00:00 Introduction 0:01:05 News 01: Potential PS5 Pro RT enhancements leaked 0:11:52 News 02: PS5 Pro settings leaked for No Man’s Sky 0:20:06 News 03: Modder reaches 700Hz on CRT monitor 0:33:49 News 04: Old Xbox Ones suffer from update issues 0:45:22 News 05: Intel seeking to address CPU failures 0:54:46 News 06: Super Monkey Ball 50Hz physics tickrate fixed 0:58:20 News 07: Fallout London launched! 1:05:50 News 08: Castlevania: Rondo of Blood headed to Mega Drive 1:12:48 Supporter Q1: Should Valve provide community settings templates for games on Steam Deck? 1:20:30 Supporter Q2: Will Nintendo launch multiple discrete Switch 2 variants at launch? 1:25:06 Supporter Q3: How can Microsoft deliver a capable Xbox handheld while keeping price in check? 1:30:58 Supporter Q4: Could Microsoft offer generic Xbox emulators to sidestep licensing issues? 1:36:05 Supporter Q5: How would the PS4 have fared if it only shipped with 4GB of RAM? 1:41:54 Supporter Q6: What do you think of stereoscopic 3D on PS3? 1:49:24 Supporter Q7: Have PC ports improved since Alex’s “13 Ways to End Lousy PC Ports”? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another big DF Direct Weekly sees John, Rich and Alex discussing PS5 Pro release date uncertainties, the unprecedented support from Hello Games on No Man's Sky and the alarming stories surrounding stability issues on Intel's 13th and 14th Generation Core processors. Alex has much to share in terms of Unreal Engine and GPUOpen presentations, while John gets to play some Death Game Hotel with none other than Swery. 0:00:00 Introduction 0:01:24 News 01: Will PS5 Pro release in 2024? 0:11:59 News 02: No Man’s Sky updated with new visual features 0:20:12 News 03: Intel CPU stability issues may run deep 0:34:54 News 04: GPUOpen tech presentations with Alex! 0:48:58 News 05: John’s next project: PlayStation vs. Saturn 0:57:48 News 06: Can #StutterStruggle be overcome in Unreal Engine? 1:09:56 News 07: Gears of War Ultimate Edition suffers poor performance on PC 1:17:58 News 08: Playing Death Game Hotel with SWERY! 1:25:05 Supporter Q1: What would you like to see in a hypothetical DirectX 13? 1:30:20 Supporter Q2: Could a new Nvidia Shield device enhance game streaming with local processing? 1:36:58 Supporter Q3: Are large decreases in frame-rates still impactful when targeting high FPS? 1:45:54 Supporter Q4: What should we expect from the mooted handheld Xbox? 1:53:15 Supporter Q5: Is releasing a game as an early access title a good idea? 1:58:01 Supporter Q6: Will Switch 2 devs make use of the console’s hardware decompression functionality? 2:01:47 Supporter Q7: Have any pivotal decisions altered your gaming destinies? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this week's Direct, Microsoft says you don't need an Xbox to play Xbox - but if they're talking about streaming on a Fire Stick 4K, we'd beg to differ. Meanwhile, Alex talks about a 1.4GHz CPU overclock for the OG Xbox and shares his thoughts on the new Black Myth: Wukong full RT assets and benchmarks. Oliver tests out Ace Combat 7 on Switch, while Rich checks out frame generation on the First Descendant - in 30fps fidelity mode, 40fps balanced mode and 60fps performance mode. How high does frame-rate get - and are the lower fps modes a write-off? 0:00:00 Introduction 0:00:54 News 01: Microsoft says you don’t need an Xbox to play Xbox 0:24:31 News 02: Game Pass prices increased 0:38:36 News 03: New Black Myth: Wukong PC details revealed 0:53:26 News 04: Original Xbox gets 1.4 GHz CPU upgrade 1:01:34 News 05: The First Descendant frame gen tested! 1:13:21 News 06: Ace Combat 7 tested on Switch 1:19:41 Supporter Q1: Which Windows-based PC handheld would you recommend most? 1:25:36 Supporter Q2: Will you be doing more 3 person game playing videos? 1:29:44 Supporter Q3: What old unused Nintendo IP would you like to see again? 1:34:45 Supporter Q4: If Microsoft got Windows working seamlessly on ARM, what would that mean for their products? 1:43:27 Supporter Q5: Do you think Valve will give Steam Machines another shot? 1:49:21 Supporter Q6: Why is Intel’s XeSS so much better than AMD’s FSR? 1:59:01 Supporter Q7: Will Unreal Engine traversal stutter be fixed for the new Witcher game? 2:02:08 Supporter Q8: Could the PS Portal be updated or hacked to be a substantially more useful device? 2:06:25 Supporter Q9: John asks: how is the recording session going? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the new DF Direct, the team discuss the growing importance of VRR in console gaming - but are we reaching the point where it's becoming essential for good performance? Meanwhile, Rich has some positive things to say about Microsoft's Auto SR upscaling technology, John has much to share on the new Crazy Taxi, and there are some interesting discussion points raised in a recent Mark Cerny interview. Meanwhile, what on Earth is going on with the latest Elden Ring patch notes? 0:00:00 Introduction 0:01:04 News 01: Has VRR become a crutch for good performance? 0:20:00 News 02: Auto SR impressions! 0:37:26 News 03: New Crazy Taxi is open world, massively multiplayer 0:47:43 News 04: Mark Cerny dishes on PS5 architecture, games 1:03:22 News 05: Sony killing off recordable disc production 1:11:19 News 06: Elden Ring patch notes suggest odd performance fix 1:19:43 News 07: OutRun steeply discounted on Nintendo eShop 1:29:16 Supporter Q1: When do you think we’ll hear more about the PS5 Pro? 1:36:55 Supporter Q2: Could DF provide technical context to Eurogamer or IGN game reviews? 1:47:42 Supporter Q3: Why does the PS5 only support VRR over HDMI 2.1? 1:54:15 Supporter Q4: Why do many developers only offer software Lumen in their UE5 games? 1:56:40 Supporter Q5: Whatever happened to SLI and CrossFire? 2:02:23 Supporter Q6: How should console versions of games expose graphical options? 2:06:17 Supporter Q7: Is there a place for cinematic trailers? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices