TrendForce's latest investigations reveal that ongoing advancements in OLED displays are propelling the growth of QD-OLED monitor shipments. QD-OLED's share of OLED monitor shipments is expected to rise from 68% in 2024 to 73% in 2025, highlighting its strong competitiveness in the high-end monitor market. Driven by growing market demand, more brands and product lines are expected to adopt QD-OLED to deliver superior image quality and refresh rates for gamers and professional users.

The introduction of new 27-inch UHD products and high-refresh-rate QHD 500 Hz monitors is drawing attention. These models offer strong appeal for gaming and professional use, becoming key drivers of QD-OLED monitor adoption. The penetration rate of QD-OLED in 27-inch models is projected to grow from 32% in 2024 to 47% in 2025, driven by an expanding product lineup and ongoing technical improvements.

Qualcomm aims to boost the performance of its Windows‑on‑Arm PC chips by about 18-22% percent with the next‑generation Snapdragon X2 processors. That estimate comes from Focused Digital, a well‑known Chinese blogger often leaks supply‑chain details. He says these new Snapdragon X2 chips will hit boost clocks of around 4.40 GHz, which is up from the 4.0 to 4.30 GHz range we see on today's Snapdragon X Elite models. Currently, those Elite chips use Oryon cores built on the TSMC 4 nm‑class N4P process. They run between 3.0 and 3.80 GHz at base and can turbo up to 4.30 GHz. So, simply cranking the top speed up another 100 MHz could explain a chunk of that performance jump. Beyond clocks, Qualcomm is probably squeezing more efficiency out of its Oryon V3 microarchitecture too, though we don't have details yet.

We also don't know exactly which process node Qualcomm will pick. They could stick with a refined 4 nm variant or switch to 3 nm later on. Either way, a roughly 20 percent improvement aligns with what you'd expect from a new generation of chips due in 2025. Another rumor floating around is that the X2 Elite series will jump from 12 to 18 cores, giving the processors more parallel horsepower. Internal test rigs reportedly pair these chips with up to 48 GB of LPDDR5X RAM and 1 TB of NVMe storage. Qualcomm rolled out its first Snapdragon X Elite processors in mid‑2024 and began testing the SC8480XP prototype in September 2024. If these performance figures hold up, the new Snapdragon X2 lineup could close the gap on x86 competitors and set Qualcomm up nicely for competing in stronger with a push in the PC segment by 2026.

Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era is coming to Steam in Early Access this summer, and aspiring adventurers can wishlist it now to be alerted when it releases. The new installment in the turn-based strategy series takes place in the vibrant fantasy world of Enroth, where players will recruit heroes to explore the continent of Jadame and raise armies to battle in the struggle to determine its future. Olden Era features six unique factions, a single-player campaign, and several multiplayer modes allowing you to venture alongside or clash with other players, including Hotseat mode for local multiplayer fun. Furthermore, players can set out into the unknown on randomly generated maps, and take advantage of the map editor to create worlds of their own—or experience those created by other players.

Olden Era returns to the world of Enroth and the origins of the legendary saga, inviting both veterans and new players to go on a new strategic quest on Jadame, a mysterious continent in turmoil, mentioned but never explored in the previous games, with its unique factions, biomes and creatures. Traverse a vibrant and living fantasy world full of wonders and dangers, build magnificent castles, raise massive armies and clash in epic and highly tactical battles of heroes and mythical creatures. Play solo with a new campaign, explore single and limitless randomly generated maps, or engage in battle of wits and magic with other players in multiplayer mode. Or even build your own Heroes of Might & Magic stories with the in-game map and campaign editor.

Intel's "Bartlett Lake-S" architecture, previously only offered for edge and networking deployment, may spawn a 12 P-core variant for gamers that eliminates efficiency cores entirely. This hopeful configuration would specifically target applications that benefit from consistent single-threaded performance and deterministic core behavior, addressing a market segment underserved since Intel's transition to hybrid architectures. Recent software support developments strengthen this speculation, with diagnostic utility AIDA64 explicitly adding "improved support for Intel Bartlett Lake-S CPU" in its 7.65.7404 beta release notes from April 13, 2025. This update precedes any consumer launch announcement, suggesting possible platform expansion. MSI-affiliated overclocker Toppc amplified these rumors by highlighting the AIDA64 changelog while referencing undisclosed developments under NDA, a pattern historically preceding consumer product launches.

The rumored gaming-oriented CPU would leverage the LGA 1700 platform compatibility, enabling drop-in upgrades for existing 600-series and 700-series motherboard owners. Unlike the current flagship Core 7 251E with its 8P+16E configuration, a pure performance-core implementation would eliminate the Windows scheduler complications that sometimes impact frame timing in latency-sensitive games. Current hybrid designs force game engines to navigate complex thread scheduling across heterogeneous cores, with performance-critical threads occasionally migrating to efficiency cores during intensive scenes. A homogeneous 12 P-core architecture would eliminate this behavior, providing stable thread assignment and potentially reducing the 99th percentile frame time variances that affect perceived smoothness in CPU-bound titles.

High‑NA EUV lithography comes with a crazy $380 million price tag, but it can actually cut overall production costs in the right situations. At the SPIE Advanced Lithography and Patterning conference in February 2025, IBM researchers in Veldhoven revealed that one high‑NA exposure runs about 2.5x the cost of a standard low‑NA shot. That seems steep, yet High‑NA's real strength shows up when it replaces complicated multi‑patterning processes. SemiAnalysis had predicted last year that High‑NA would not become cost‑effective until around 2030, largely because higher dose requirements slow down throughput on the trickiest layers. However, after reviewing IBM's new data, the firm adjusted its outlook. Their model confirms that sticking with Low‑NA double patterning for two-mask sequences remains the cheapest path.

On the other hand, once you need three or more Low‑NA masks, switching to a single High‑NA pass starts to pay off. In fact, for a four‑mask self‑aligned litho‑etch flow, High‑NA can reduce total wafer cost by roughly 1.7-2.1x compared to using Low‑NA multi‑patterning. One big reason fabs are interested is that fewer exposures mean simpler process flows. You cut down cycle time and lower the chance of overlay mistakes. Still, SemiAnalysis warns that a simpler flow does not automatically mean lower expense in every case. Looking at Intel 14A, it turns out only a few critical metal layers at the 14A node hit the sweet spot where High‑NA's higher per‑shot cost is outweighed by ditching multiple masks.

Morbid Metal, the upcoming hack-and-slash action roguelite, debuted a new trailer during the Triple-I-Initiative showcase, and announced the game is coming to Steam in early access in Summer 2025. The one-minute gameplay trailer shows off some of the fast-paced, ever-changing action you can expect in Morbid Metal. In Morbid Metal, you can create a roster of up to three characters, each with their own unique move sets, and shapeshift into any of them at will. After each death, you'll have to start your run over, but you can unlock new characters and permanent upgrades along the way. The game takes place in a simulation created by humans to escape climate collapse, and you'll play as the latest AI, ordered to become mankind's next evolutionary step by eliminating other AI to prove you are the best and the strongest.

Ubisoft will be publishing Morbid Metal from independent developer Screen Juice. Starting in 2017, Felix Schade spent years developing the game solo before founding Screen Juice in 2023. A pivotal moment in the journey came when Schade shared early gameplay footage online seeking feedback. The gaming community quickly embraced it, sparking momentum that helped shape the game's evolution. Since then, Schade has expanded the company while continuing to lead as game director.

CD Projekt acquired The Molasses Flood—a Boston, Massachusetts-based video game developer—back in 2021. The New England studio was best known for making two indie titles: Drake Hollow (2020) and Flame in the Flood (2016). Under Polish ownership, the team embarked on a new "Project Sirius" adventure—several veteran members had spent time pumping out Bioshock, Halo, Guitar Hero and Rock Band franchise entries at previous workplaces. Earlier in the week, an official statement popped up on the company's official site: "dear all, we want to let you know that on April 1, 2025, The Molasses Flood LLC ("TMF") merged with CD PROJEKT RED Inc. ("CDPR Inc."), a company being a part of the CD PROJEKT Group. As a result of the merger TMF, in its former legal state (of a separate legal entity) ceased its operations, while CDPR Inc. assumed the rights and obligations of TMF. The merger will not affect the availability or distribution of 'The Flame in The Flood' and 'Drake Hollow' video games, which will continue to be published by CD PROJEKT Group."

In a LinkedIn post, Damian Isla provided an extra couple of tidbits and confirmed his exit from operations. The Molasses Flood (TMF) co-founder commented on recent reshuffles: "the studio I co-founded with some of my ex-Irrational friends, was to be absorbed into CDPR proper. To be ultra clear: this is a GOOD AND HEALTHY thing for the studio, and it was long-expected. It breaks down some organizational barriers, and better integrates the TMF team with the rest of the amazing CDPR org. Overall, it shows a very bright future for Project Sirius (aka "the multiplayer Witcher game," of which I was the Design Director for three years). It's going to be an amazing game, one for the books, and I cannot wait until the rest of the world learns about what we've been working on...On the sadder side—not to bury the lede—I've decided not to follow TMF on this transition. So last Monday—the last day of TMF's legal existence!—was also my last day at the studio."

Introducing My Team 2.0: as mentioned as part of our Reveal, My Team is having its biggest overhaul since it was introduced in F1 2020. If you've played My Team in one of our previous F1 games, you'll be familiar with taking on the role of driver/owner, a single character that not only runs the day-to-day activities behind the scenes, but also jumps into the cockpit for the on-track action. For F1 25 however, we're shaking things up, as My Team 2.0 sees you take on a more authentic, management-focused role in that of a team owner.

In addition to handling day-to-day running of the critical facilities that make an F1 team tick such as Engineering, Personnel and Corporate, you'll be responsible for recruiting and managing a pair of drivers to represent your team. Then, during race weekends, you'll be given the choice as to which driver you'd like to take to the track. By managing the competing concerns of two drivers instead of just a single teammate, you'll discover what kind of owner you'd like to be. We believe this refreshed approach allows you to craft a My Team story that's unique to you, unlocking new avenues of decision-making for you to explore.

Not too long after delivering its in-depth Switch 2 showcase, Nintendo of America and retail partners postponed pre-launch reservations for the forthcoming hybrid gaming console. An official announcement stated: "pre-orders for Nintendo Switch 2 in the U.S. will not start April 9, 2025 in order to assess the potential impact of tariffs and evolving market conditions. Nintendo will update timing at a later date. The launch date of June 5, 2025 is unchanged." The vast majority of industry watchdogs reckon that company will be assessing an adjustment of launch day product MSRPs. Last week's North American presentation outlined price points of $449.99 and $499.99; for a standard package and a Mario Kart World Pack (respectively). Theorized adjustments could extend to physical copies of games, as well as accessories; e.g. the Switch 2 Pro Controller.

Gamers further north—in the neighboring nation of Canada—were relieved about last week's alert being non-applicable to their market region. Up until yesterday, pre-orders were on track at CA$629.99 (base console) and CA$699.99 (with Mario Kart World). Unfortunately, the House of Mario's Canuck branch has confirmed that recent events have had a knock-on effect for local customers. As disclosed in a statement to MobileSyrup, Nintendo of Canada explained: "pre-orders for Nintendo Switch 2 in Canada will not start on April 9, 2025 in order to align with the timing of pre-orders to be determined in the U.S....Nintendo will provide updated information at a later date. The launch date of June 5, 2025 is unchanged." MobileSyrup's report was updated yesterday evening; with links to social media bulletins posted by the regional arms of Walmart and GameStop. Both retail outlets repeated Nintendo of Canada's disappointing message.

Days Gone Remastered comes to PlayStation 5 on April 25. Experience the definitive version of Days Gone with new modes, features, and technical enhancements to leverage the PS5 and PS5 Pro consoles. The new game modes including Horde Assault, Permadeath, and Speedrun—also arriving on PC; via the Broken Road DLC. Whether you're visiting Days Gone for the first time or jumping back on the Drifter bike, there's plenty of content to explore and new things to discover. If you haven't already, be sure to read our Days Gone Remastered announcement post for more details on all the new content and features. Introducing one of our most expansive new additions to Days Gone Remastered, Horde Assault—a survival arcade mode. Before we dive in, watch the gameplay trailer for the new mode below.

What is Horde Assault mode?
Horde Assault offers fresh and unexpected gameplay designed to challenge your skills as you try to achieve a high score, while surviving as long as possible against increased horde sizes and various other enemies, like Breakers, Reachers, and Rager bears, oh my! Fight your way through a brutal, ever-changing landscape where enemies escalate in difficulty the longer you survive. Horde Assault was built from the promise of "This World Comes For You," showcasing the core gameplay of the Days Gone open world in a unique way. Horde Assault is your playground for a truly endless game mode, go show them Freakers who's boss.

Make some space on your calendar—the Xbox Games Showcase 2025 will be livestreamed on Sunday, June 8, starting at 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern / 6pm UK time. Following in the footsteps of the 2023 Starfield Direct and 2024 Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Direct, this year we will again have a double feature, with the Xbox Games Showcase immediately followed by The Outer Worlds 2 Direct. It all begins with our annual Xbox Games Showcase, bringing you a look at upcoming titles from across our first-party studios, in addition to incredible new titles from our third-party partners across the globe.

This year, the show will be digital-only—our livestream will bring you everything you'll need to know about what's next for Xbox, no matter where in the world you're watching. Immediately following Showcase, The Outer Worlds 2 Direct will bring you inside the walls of Obsidian Entertainment, revealing new gameplay, details, and developer insights, straight from the people making the sequel to the award-winning, first-person sci-fi RPG.

Three months ago, AMD unveiled its Ryzen Z2 APU series at CES 2025—purpose made for deployment in next-gen handheld gaming PCs. The officially announced flagship—Ryzen Z2 Extreme "Strix Point," utilizing Zen 5 and RDNA 3.5 technologies—was previously alluded to by leakers in late 2024; albeit with some curious claims regarding an "odd 3+5 core configuration." Last week, Hoang Anh Phu (@AnhPhuH) presented an alleged expanded lineup of Ryzen Z2 processors—headlined by a mysterious "Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme" SKU.

PC hardware watchdogs believe that this speculative variant will eventually arrive with an enabled XDNA 2 NPU (a first for the series); likely readied to take on Intel's Core Ultra 200V "Lunar Lake" processor family. MSI's Core Ultra 7 258V-powered Claw 8 AI+ and Claw 7 AI+ handhelds launched not too long ago, boasting all sorts of Microsoft Copilot+ capabilities. Mid-way through March, an Xbox executive introduced "Copilot for Gaming." Team Red and manufacturing partners are likely jumping onto this "AI gaming" bandwagon with the aforementioned "AI Ryzen Z2 Extreme" chip, as well as Phu's fanciful "Ryzen Z2 A" model. The latter could be a spin-off of AMD's vanilla Ryzen Z2 "Hawk Point" design, with a "switched on" XDNA NPU.

Intel introduced its new brand to the world Tuesday at the Intel Vision 2025 event in Las Vegas. Leading with "That's the power of Intel Inside," Intel leans into the essential role the company—along with its partners and customers—plays in the world while giving a nod to the company's wildly popular "Intel Inside" campaign of the 1990s.

Brett Hannath, chief marketing officer for Intel, says the new brand platform anchors on the idea that "Intel ignites the greatness within"—in every employee, customer, consumer, community, partner. All the while, it allows Intel to reflect on its proud heritage. (The Intel Inside co-marketing campaign launched in 1991 helped Intel become a household name around the globe over the next decade.) More than a marketing initiative, "That's the power of Intel Inside" is an avenue for amplifying Intel's importance in today's world. Intel's leaders plan to leverage the new brand platform to drive differentiation, revenue growth, and equity with customers and partners.

CPU-Z's Q1 2025 validation data indicates a new trend in CPU core count preferences among PC users. Eight-core processors now account for 24.7% of all validations, a significant increase of 32.6% compared to previous data. In contrast, six-core processors have declined to 22.5% of validations, down by 6.9%. The higher core count of eight-core CPUs aligns with the increasing demand for multithreaded performance in various computing environments, from professional workstations to high-end gaming systems. Market share figures also reveal adjustments in consumer preferences regarding CPU manufacturers. Intel retains a majority of presence with 56.3% of the market. However, AMD's share has risen notably at 43.7%, representing a 16.6% increase from the previous year.

The shift in market shares suggests that users are increasingly drawn to AMD's offerings, which include competitive eight-core processors. A key contributor to the trend toward eight-core CPUs is the rising popularity of specific models. The Ryzen 7 9800X3D, for example, has significantly impacted this new statistic, becoming the most popular CPU according to the CPU-Z validations. This indicates that users are interested in eight-core offerings with 3D V-Cache technology for increased gaming performance. The shift away from six-core configurations, which now represent a smaller portion of the validation data, shows that eight cores are now a sweet spot for many gamers. For multitasking and gaming, it seems like a perfect choice.

Omdia forecasts show that Nintendo Switch 2 will sell nearly 15 million units globally in 2025, following its confirmed launch date of June 5.

This would put the Switch 2 ahead of its predecessor by around 10% during its first calendar year on the market. Historical Omdia data reveals 13.4 million Nintendo Switch systems were sold in 2017, despite its earlier March release. The key factors driving this momentum include a strong user base - Omdia estimates 105 million Switch consoles remained in active use at the end of 2024, providing Nintendo with a solid foundation for the next generation.

Mark Gurman—Bloomberg's resident soothsayer of Apple inside track info—has disclosed predictive outlooks for next-generation M5 chip-based MacBooks. Early last month, we experienced the launch of the Northern Californian company's M4 MacBook Air series—starting at $999; also available in a refreshing metallic blue finish. The latest iteration of Apple's signature "extra slim" notebook family arrived with decent performance figures. As per usual, press and community attention has turned to a potential successor. Gurman's (March 30) Power On newsletter posited that engineers are already working on M5-powered super slim sequels—he believes that these offerings will arrive early next year, potentially reusing the current generation's 15-inch and 13-inch fanless chassis designs.

In a mid-February predictive report, Gurman theorized that Apple was planning a major overhaul of the MacBook Pro design. A radical reimagining of the long-running notebook series—that reportedly utilizes M6 chipsets and OLED panels—is a distant prospect; perhaps later on in 2026. The Cupertino-headquartered megacorp is expected to stick with its traditional release cadence, so 2025's "M5" refresh of MacBook Pro models could trickle out by October. Insiders believe that Apple will reuse existing MacBook Pro shells—the last major redesign occurred back in 2021. According to early February reportage, mass production of the much-rumored M5 chip started at some point earlier in the year. Industry moles posit that a 3 nm (N3P) node process was on the order books, chez TSMC foundries.

NVIDIA and its laptop/notebook manufacturing partners have just about managed a very last minute launch of GeForce RTX 5090 Mobile, RTX 5080 Mobile, RTX 5070 Ti Mobile GPU-powered devices at retail. According to the latest reports, yesterday's—March 31—small trickle out of high-end portable "Blackwell" hardware qualified as a launch within the first quarter of 2025. Due to Team Green's GeForce RTX 50 series being affected by ROPs anomalies—across desktop and mobile platforms—involved firms anticipated deliveries being delayed into April. As stated early last month, unnamed industry sources divulged details about official instructions: "manufacturers (must) inspect already-produced notebooks with new mobile GeForce RTX 5000 graphics chips." Going further back in time, supply chain moles predicted that the entire product stack—starting at the top with GeForce RTX 5090 M, going down to RTX 5070 M—would be subject to postponements.

PC gaming hardware watchdogs noticed a very limited supply of GeForce RTX 5090 Mobile-based laptops on "day one," at least in North America. VideoCardz spent some time combing through Newegg listings, after hearing about the Q1 launch via official social media announcements. The likes of ASUS, GIGABYTE, HP, Lenovo, MSI and Razer opened up direct pre-orders on February 25, but yesterday's embargo lift seemed to extend to general retails outlets. VideoCardz noted that the cheapest—at $4299—GeForce RTX 5090 Laptop options were already sold out. MSI's North American store lists an "out of stock" Titan 18 HX Dragon Edition Norse Myth 18-inch model with an eye-watering price tag of $6199.99. Additionally, the publication pointed out the best GeForce RTX 5080 Laptop starting price: $2499.99. GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Laptops start at $1899.99 on Newegg, but RTX 5070 Mobile-based options seemed to be absent. The online retailer's stock notification system predicts late April or early May replenishments of higher-end stock.

Rapidus Corporation today announced that its plans and budget for fiscal year 2025 have been approved by Japan's New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). The approval covers two commissioned projects under NEDO's "Post-5G Information and Communication Systems Infrastructure Enhancement R&D Project / Development of Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology (Commissioned)." These projects are the "Research and Development of 2 nm-Generation Semiconductor Integration Technology and short TAT (turnaround time) Manufacturing Technology Based on Japan-U.S. Collaboration" and "Development of Chiplet, Package Design and Manufacturing Technology for 2 nm-Generation Semiconductors."

The first of these projects, focused on front-end processes, was launched in November 2022 as part of Japan's next-generation semiconductor R&D effort. Under this program, Rapidus has continued construction of the Innovative Integration for Manufacturing (IIM) facility in Chitose, Hokkaido, which will serve as its production base. It also sent engineers to IBM in the U.S. to jointly develop 2 nm logic semiconductor mass production technologies and continued to achieve target performance as planned. Furthermore, Rapidus has installed EUV lithography and other production equipment at the IIM facility, and started cleanroom operation. As a result of these efforts, the company achieved its performance targets for FY2024.

In a letter to customers, Micron has announced upcoming memory price increases extending through 2025 and 2026, citing persistent supply constraints coupled with accelerating demand across its product portfolio. The manufacturer points to significant demand growth in DRAM, NAND flash, and high-bandwidth memory (HBM) segments as key drivers behind the pricing strategy. The memory market is rebounding from a prolonged oversupply cycle that previously depressed revenues industry-wide. Strategic production capacity reductions implemented by major suppliers have contributed to price stabilization and subsequent increases over the past twelve months. This pricing trajectory is expected to continue as data center operators, AI deployments, and consumer electronics manufacturers compete for limited memory allocation.

In communications to channel partners, Micron emphasized AI and HPC requirements as critical factors necessitating the price adjustments. The company has requested detailed forecast submissions from partners to optimize production planning and supply chain stability during the constrained market period. With its pricing announcement, Micron disclosed a $7 billion investment in a Singapore-based HBM assembly facility. The plant will begin operations in 2026 and will focus on HBM3E, HBM4, and HBM4E production—advanced memory technologies essential for next-generation AI accelerators and high-performance computing applications from NVIDIA, AMD, Intel, and other companies. The price increases could have cascading effects across the AI and GPU sector, potentially raising costs for products ranging from consumer gaming systems to enterprise data infrastructure. We are monitoring how these adjustments will impact hardware refresh cycles and technology adoption rates as manufacturers pass incremental costs to end customers.

Successors to AMD's current-generation lineup of Ryzen 8000G desktop APUs are reportedly in the pipeline—according to the latest HXL/9550pro predictive declaration, finalized units could arrive at retail later this year. They propose that an "AMD AM5 New APU" family could arrive alongside an unannounced MSI Unify-X enthusiast-grade motherboard design, within the final quarter of 2025. Press interpretations of this inside track information point to possible upcoming "Ryzen 9000G" processors, utilizing Team Red's Zen 5 and RDNA 3.5 technologies. This potent combination already exists, albeit in mobile form—namely within Team Red's stable of Ryzen AI "Strix Halo, Strix Point," and "Krackan Point" APUs.

Industry experts opine that AMD will most likely deploy high-end "Strix Point" silicon to desktop, or more fancifully: "Gorgon Point." The latter codename turned up via leaks last week. Around early 2024, we witnessed Team Red's transfer of "Phoenix"—from original mobile formats—to their AM5 desktop platform. TechPowerUp's W1zzard evaluated the Ryzen 5 8500G "Phoenix 2" APU last summer; this plucky budget-friendly model sports Zen 4 and Zen 4c cores. Theoretically a flagship "Ryzen 9000G" SKU could emerge with twelve processor cores (4x "Zen 5" + 8x "Zen 5c"), a Radeon 890M iGPU, and an XDNA 2 NPU.

Konami Digital Entertainment, has announced the GRADIUS ORIGINS collection—this compilation will release on the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam on August 7 with digital pre-orders starting on March 27 (yesterday). GRADIUS ORIGINS is the definitive collection of the earliest games from the GRADIUS series—2D shoot 'em up classics that embody nostalgic gaming from the 1980s.

GRADIUS holds a special place in gaming history - not just for its side-scrolling spacecraft battles, but also for introducing a legendary cheat code. First appearing in the original 1986 Japanese FAMICOM version, the now-iconic code (activated once players pushed the ↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A buttons on their controllers) gave players a crucial power-up boost, and would later go on to become a staple in gaming culture. With this new collection, players can relive the challenge of GRADIUS while paying homage to the origins of one of gaming's most famous secrets.

MagStor, an industry leader in advanced data storage solutions, proudly announces the launch of the world's first Thunderbolt 5 LTO drive, marking a monumental step forward in data storage technology. This groundbreaking innovation continues MagStor's tradition of trailblazing advancements, following its historic introduction of the patented world's first Thunderbolt 3 LTO drive. Designed with cutting-edge Thunderbolt 5 technology, the new LTO drive offers unprecedented speed, reliability, and compatibility for professional data backup and archival needs.

"At MagStor, we are committed to pushing the boundaries of what's possible in data storage," said Tim Gerhard, VP of Product at MagStor. "After revolutionizing the market with the first-ever Thunderbolt 3 LTO drive, we're excited to raise the bar again with Thunderbolt 5, ensuring our customers have access to the most powerful and flexible storage solutions available."

Global fab equipment spending for front-end facilities in 2025 is anticipated to increase by 2% year-over-year (YoY) to $110 billion, marking the sixth consecutive year of growth since 2020, SEMI announced today in its latest quarterly World Fab Forecast report.

Fab equipment spending is projected to rise by 18% in the following year, reaching $130 billion. This growth in investment is driven not only by demand in the high-performance computing (HPC) and memory sectors to support data center expansions, but also by the increasing integration of artificial intelligence (AI), which is driving up the silicon content required for edge devices.

Last week, we heard rumors about NVIDIA delaying its launches of GeForce RTX 5060 Ti and RTX 5060 by a couple of weeks. Initially, PC hardware watchdogs anticipated a product unveiling before GTC 2025 kick-off time. Industry insiders did not fully disclose the reasons behind Team Green's revised release schedules for more "budget-friendly" GB206 GPU-based offerings, but supply chain moles posited that GeForce RTX 5060 Ti graphics cards would reach retail by mid-April. As noted by VideoCardz last Saturday, a specific date was leaked by a reliable source: wxnod.

The tenured PC hardware soothsayer reckons that NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 5060 Ti "will be released on April 16th at 9 pm" in 16 GB and 8 GB forms. According to VideoCardz's insider network, "briefings" regarding this alleged launch date were not yet distributed to key figures (i.e. board partners). An upcoming Wednesday rollout could be legitimate, given that Team Green and AIBs let loose GeForce RTX 5070 cards on March 5. A recent leak of GeForce RTX 5060 Ti "full specifications" indicates the laying of groundwork; leading to a potential launch in the coming weeks.

If Nightdive Studios were a home, it would be built upon the foundation of System Shock. As one of the studio's formative projects, the Kickstarter campaign for its acclaimed System Shock remake put Nightdive on the map. But it wasn't System Shock that inspired Nightdive's creation, rather its sequel, System Shock 2. With the recently announced June 26, 2025, release date for System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster fast approaching, some have wondered: why a remaster instead of a full remake? To answer this, let's look back at Nightdive's origins, remasters as a form of preservation, and the many enhancements that make System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster a worthy tribute to a beloved classic!

Where It All Began
"Like many others, my first experience with System Shock was the sequel," begins Nightdive Founder and CEO Stephen Kick, who recounts being introduced to the game while eating lunch with his friends at school. After sharing how much he loved Half-Life, his friend Marshall suggested giving System Shock 2 a try. "The next day, he came back to the table and handed me the Big Box. That night, I installed the game and was instantly captivated. Every aspect of it congealed into an unforgettably immersive experience that still gives me chills every time I think about it."