To celebrate our presence here at Gamescom in Cologne, Germany, today we revealed that the local and world-famous Nürburgring GP circuit will be available in Forza Motorsport at launch on October 10. What's more, as part of our plan to regularly bring new content to the game after release, we are also happy to confirm the iconic 12.9-mile (20.83 km) Nordschleife will be coming in Spring 2024.

Both tracks have been completely rebuilt for the Xbox Series X|S and PC. Nürburgring GP is the latest addition to the 20 tracks featured in Forza Motorsport on day one - with more announcements remaining, check out the list of tracks we've announced to date. In addition to our track lineup, Forza Motorsport starts with over 500 cars, and this list will continue to expand beyond launch. Check out the cars we have announced so far and stay tuned for future car reveals as we get closer to release day.

NVIDIA in its Gamescom 2023 presentation began with announcing updates to the GeForce NOW game-streaming platform. Its Ultimate performance tier, which gives you performance and quality comparable to a gaming PC powered by an RTX 4080 graphics card, is now deployed throughout Europe and North America, with as many as 15 RTX 4080 SuperPod locations. Gamers in these locations will be able to opt for the company's highest tier of game streaming. An RTX 4080 SuperPod is a data-center of game streaming servers can provide each client (gamer) with performance rivaling an RTX 4080-powered machine.

GeForce NOW Ultimate lets you play and stream at 4K or Ultrawide resolution at 120 frames per second, or play at up to 240 FPS with DLSS 3 and reflex. NVIDIA has optimized over 40 AAA games for GeForce NOW Ultimate, and plans to add four new games titles to the mix, including Alan Wake 2, Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty, Payday 3, and Party Animals. Next up, NVIDIA introduced Xbox PC Game Pass support on GeForce NOW. If you have an Xbox PC Game Pass subscription, you can play any of the games available to you on the GeForce NOW platform from that subscription, without having to pay for the title on GeForce NOW. NVIDIA says that the first Xbox PC Game Pass titles should begin streaming from August 24, 2023.

Imagine you're in a vast RPG fill with hundreds, if not thousands, of interactive NPCs (non-playable characters). All current RPGs conduct your interactions with them over a bunch of pre-defined statement selections, where you choose among a bunch of text-based options on the screen, which elicits a certain response from the NPC. This feels very unnatural and railroaded, but NVIDIA plans to change this. With ACE (character engine) and NeMo SteerLM (a natural language model), NVIDIA wants to make voice based interactions with NPCs possible. This is a very necessary stepping stone toward the near-future, where NPCs will be backed by large GPTs letting you have lengthy conversations with them.

The way this works is, the player gives an NPC a natural language voice input. A speech-to-text engine and LLM process the voice input, and generate a natural language response. Omniverse Audio2Face is leveraged to create the NPC's response in real time. Announcing this Gamescom, NVIDIA's new NeMo SteerLLM adds life to the part of ACE that processes the natural voice input, and based on the kind of personality traits the game developer gives an NPC, generates responses with varying degree of creativity, humor, and toxicity among other attributes.

NVIDIA provided a quick update in its Gamescom 2023 presentation on several upcoming AAA games. Before that, NVIDIA provided a brief overview on how the RTX ecosystem is shaping up. There are now over 450 games and apps accelerated by RTX today. On games that support RTX ray tracing and DLSS, NVIDIA measured that 79% of the gamers turn DLSS on, and 83% of them turn RT on. DLSS is a sought-after feature in the PC gaming space, as it unlocks higher levels of performance than what a given tier of gaming hardware is capable of.

On to the specific announcements, and NVIDIA revealed that the upcoming Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III will come with support for DLSS 3 Frame Generation, and NVIDIA Reflex. Payday 3 is another hotly anticipated title, and it gets both DLSS 3 and Reflex support, when it launches this September. Another major announcement is that Fortnite gets DLSS 3 Frame Generation support. This should prove particularly useful for those on mid-range RTX 40-series GPUs such as the RTX 4060, as it would allow them upgrade headroom for higher resolution monitors, or room for more eye-candy as Epic Games adds them with future updates.

GIGABYTE, the world's leading computer brand, is excited to announce its gaming sub-brand AORUS' presence at Gamescom 2023 in Cologne, Germany. Under the exciting theme of AORUSVERSE, AORUS is set to showcase its latest cutting-edge technology, including state-of-the-art motherboards, powerful gaming and creator laptops, PC systems, and stunning 4K gaming monitors. Attendees can expect an immersive journey into the vast gaming world of AORUSVERSE.

As a true gaming heaven, the AORUS booth will be brimming with the latest gaming hardware for enthusiasts to explore. The centerpiece of the exhibit will be the highly-anticipated Z790 X series motherboards, with the enthusiast-grade Z790 MASTER X leading the way to power Intel's next-generation processor. Additionally, AORUS will proudly unveil the Red Dot Design Award 2023 award-winning M6 wireless gaming mouse, allowing attendees to get a hands-on experience with this exceptional peripheral.

Samsung Electronics, a global leader in the visual display industry, today announced the launch of the world's first gaming title featuring the High Dynamic Range (HDR) 10+ GAMING standard created by HDR10+ Technologies LLC. The new title, "The First Descendant" was developed by NEXON and will be unveiled at Gamescom 2023.

"We're thrilled to join forces with NEXON, a true pioneer in video games, to introduce the world's first HDR10+ GAMING title, The First Descendant," said Seokwoo Jason Yong, Executive Vice President of the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. "This is a gaming milestone that goes beyond mere technological advancement; it represents Samsung's continued commitment to enhance the gaming experience as technology evolves."

Following last October's partnership announcement with BMW Group, AirConsole will now be showcasing their casual gaming platform in a vehicle. AirConsole and the BMW Group have announced a joint appearance for the forthcoming Gamescom Event in Cologne, set for August 23-27.

Both companies invite participants to the AirConsole booth where the in-car gaming system can be experienced firsthand inside the new BMW i5. Attendees have the unique opportunity to sit in the i5 and test out the games, engaging in an innovative multiplayer gaming environment. "10 months after expressing our ambitions to become a standard for casual gaming in the automotive world, the AirConsole team is extremely proud to showcase our new in-car gaming product with the BMW Group." remarked Anthony Cliquot, CEO of AirConsole. "With the BMW Group we are looking forward to taking you for an in-car experience you won't forget."

Xbox is coming to Gamescom 2023 in full force, showing 30 titles in three blocks. Starfield, Forza Motorsport, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Ara: History Untold, PayDay 3, Mortal Kombat 1, are just some of the titles that will be at the Xbox Gamescom booth.

Running from August 23rd to August 27th, Gamescom 2023 will definitely have some pretty big names from the game industry, and its Opening Night Live will be live on August 22nd, hosted and produced by Geoff Keighley.

The host and producer, Geoff Keighley, has confirmed that Opening Night Live will be returning this August. Opening Night Live is the pre-show presentation or an opening show for Gamescom, held in Cologne, Germany.

The announcement comes as a welcomed news after E3 2023 cancellation and it appears that Gamescom 2023 will carry on the torch, as the last year show was the first in-person event since 2019. Opening Night Live last year was a big event, going for over two hours and featured more than 35 games. Geoff Keighley briefly tweeted that the show returns live on Tuesday, August 22nd and that he is "excited to be back in Cologne with the fans and industry, streaming video game news directly to you".

Following the game's reveal at Gamescom 2022, Funcom is now excited to show off the first pre-alpha footage of Dune: Awakening, their ambitious Open World Survival MMO. Inspired by the sci-fi masterpiece DUNE written by Frank Herbert and Legendary Entertainment's award-winning, blockbuster film from Denis Villeneuve, Dune: Awakening is built with both Dune and Survival fans in mind by the veteran developers at Funcom. Witness the vastness of Arrakis in today's brand-new teaser trailer.

ncom has innovated in the Massively Multiplayer and Survival genres for over two decades, most recently with Conan Exiles. Dune: Awakening builds upon this strong foundation, weaving together Open World Survival and MMO aspects into a Dune tapestry that brings Frank Herbert's epic universe to life in a completely unique way. With this gameplay teaser, Funcom has also updated the Dune: Awakening website, giving a panoramic view of the player experience.
In Dune: Awakening you strive to survive the countless dangers of Arrakis alongside thousands of other players. Explore your role and identity while experiencing an epic personal journey, from searching for water and building shelters against storms to controlling the flow of spice in the top echelons of the planet.

BenQ, a global consumer electronics brand, announces that, for the first time, visitors at Gamescom 2022 will be able to experience multiple new gaming monitors from MOBIUZ and the latest products from ZOWIE professional e-Sports brand. From 24th to 28th August in Cologne, Germany, visitors of the BenQ stand (stand A-031, Hall 08.1) will get the chance to explore an immersive gaming reality as they discover the next generation of top-performing displays, designed for gamers of all levels. This edition will be even more special because it will be held both in person and online.

'At BenQ, we are continuously striving to present gamers with ultimate audio-visual immersion and smart AI innovations to ensure an upgraded gaming experience. In this way, we can help players reach a next-level performance', says Steve Chu, President of BenQ Europe. 'Since our goal is to create premium experiences for gamers of all types, the natural next step for us was to bring our customers the latest display technology that will change the way they interact within their virtual worlds', continues the BenQ Europe president.

ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) today announced the latest gaming gear at Gamescom 2022, including the AMD X670E series motherboards, AIO coolers, PSU, displays, networking products, and peripherals. Along with these products, ROG released its first music single Reality, with vocals by renowned voice actor and musician Troy Baker, more commonly known for his roles in video games like The Last of Us and Uncharted series. An anime-inspired interactive 360° music video featuring the song is available on YouTube.

ROG Swift OLED PG42UQ / PG48UQ: The 42-inch ROG Swift OLED PG42UQ is designed for immersive desktop gaming and features 4K visuals at an overclocked 138 Hz refresh rate. The OLED panel ensures the deepest hues, as well as vibrant colors thanks to a 98% DCI-P3 color gamut and Delta E < 2 color difference. An ultrafast 0.1 ms (GTG) response time ensures great viewing and gaming experiences. The larger, 48-inch ROG Swift OLED PG48UQ is ideal for those looking to play their games on an even bigger scale. ROG OLED monitors include a custom heatsink that offers more surface area for heat exchange, resulting in up to 8% lower operating temperatures compared to ROG monitors without a heatsink to ensure better OLED performance and longevity.

LINE Games Corporation announced today that it will participate online in Europe's biggest game exhibition Gamescom 2022 to showcase its upcoming PC title Quantum Knights. On August 24, LINE Games will present Quantum Knights on the official website of Gamescom 2022 with a new gameplay trailer. Currently in development by Space Dive Games, Quantum Knights is an online third-person looter shooter for PC. Set in a medieval fantasy open world where magic and firearms coexist, Quantum Knights offers stylish action based on shooter game's dynamic combat and movement mechanisms.

Each firearm featured in Quantum Knights has its own unique design and can be enhanced by carving in magic circles, which allows for the player to tailor the character's specialty and combat style accordingly. LINE Games plans on releasing Quantum Knights in 2023, and has opened a dedicated teaser site and social media channel where intrigued players can take a first look at the game.

Raw Fury and Oskar Stålberg are happy to share the very fun news that Townscaper VR is coming this October 6th on Meta Quest VR and PICO. Townscaper was originally released in June 2020 and received rave reviews from players across the world.

This indie city builder allowed players of all experiences to build their own idyllic ocean-side towns with just a few clicks. Now fans and newcomers alike will be able to fully immerse themselves into the creative process and experience building their own quaint and colorful towns in a more immersive manner, through the power of VR. Players will be able to try this new way of building in Townscaper at Gamescom this year. You'll be able to locate the game and team over in HALL 9.1 Aisle B No: 049.

Today, Panasonic announced the SoundSlayer Wearable Immersive Gaming Speaker System (WIGSS)—SC-GN01—at Gamescom 2021. With a unique, ergonomic design that is worn on the shoulders, you can comfortably enjoy realistic surround sound while losing yourself in your favorite video games. Similar to its sister product, the HTB01 gaming speaker released in 2020, the SoundSlayer WIGSS has been specifically designed in collaboration with SQUARE ENIX with gamers in mind and offers a vast sound field and three different sound modes to enhance the gaming experience.

The SoundSlayer WIGSS's three sound modes, which were expertly created through joint development with the FINAL FANTASY XIV Online sound team, allows users to fully enjoy immersive gameplay. With a high-fidelity sound field, the SoundSlayer WIGSS enhances game audio and provides a truly realistic experience within the virtual world. It is optimized for use with FINAL FANTASY XIV Online, the critically acclaimed MMORPG from SQUARE ENIX Co., Ltd. and provides an unparalleled audio experience within the world of Hydaelyn.

Microsoft and 343 Industries, developers of the popular Halo franchise, recently announced at Gamescom 2021 both the release date for Halo Infinite and limited edition products to accompany the launch - and the anniversary for 20 years of Halo. The game drops on December 8th for the Xbox family of devices and PC, but users who want to play immersed in lore can attempt to get themselves the Limited Edition Xbox Series X console, which comes with a custom skin (representing both details of a Spartan's armor as well as the starry skies above Zeta Halo. The green LED behind the top fan has also been changed to Cortana blue, and there are golden details across both the console (the golden Xbox badge is a nice touch) and the custom, skinned controller that comes with the console. For the price of $549,99 including a digital download version of the game, the choice between this one or a regular Xbox Series X console is clear.

The German Games Industry Association have decided to hold gamescom 2021 as an all-digital event. This decision was made after extensive discussions with partners and exhibitors. Thus, the organizers take into account the current situation, in which too many companies are unable to participate in physical events this year due to the still difficult development. In this way, they also meet the partners' strong need for planning security. This means that gamescom 2021 will be held exclusively digitally and free of charge for all gamescom fans. In 2020, gamescom celebrated numerous successes: Over 100 million video views across all formats and channels, more than 50 million unique users from 180 countries, and 370 partners from 44 countries. Building on this success, the digital offering is now being expanded further.

The German Government today announced a nationwide ban on all major events until the end of August, effectively cancelling Gamescom 2020. Thankfully, this didn't come as too much of a surprise to the organizers and they had been preparing alternative options for some time. While the public in-person event won't be taking place a online digital alternative will be. Unlike E3 and GDC, Gamescom has time to prepare for proper a digital event and will announce more details shortly.

"Even though not all details are known at present, the nationwide ban on major events until the end of August will also affect the planning for #gamescom2020. Furthermore: gamescom 2020 will definitely take place digitally! We will provide further information shortly. "

HyperX, the gaming division of Kingston Technology, Inc., today announced new HyperX Aqua mechanical switches at Gamescom for the HyperX Alloy Origins mechanical gaming keyboard. At the show, HyperX also revealed Cloud Alpha S, the new addition to HyperX's gaming headset lineup, as well as a suite of Qi certified wireless charging products including the HyperX Cloud Flight S wireless gaming headset, HyperX Pulsefire Dart wireless gaming mouse and HyperX ChargePlay Base Qi wireless charger.

"The wireless charging ecosystem is maturing and HyperX is excited to be launching products with Qi certified wireless charging capabilities," said HyperX. "HyperX recognises the growing trend for wireless technology and wants to offer users the ultimate in gaming freedom, convenience and customization for immersive and engaging gaming experiences."

NVIDIA today released its GeForce 436.02 WHQL Gamescom Special graphics drivers. You can read all about them here. The installer of these drivers appears to have a major bug that forces the installation of GeForce Experience without obtaining GDPR-compliant consent from the user. With the ratification of GDPR, NVIDIA driver installers present a selection screen right at the start of the installation, which lets users opt to install GeForce Experience (and give their GDPR consent in doing so), but a second option lets users decline GDPR consent, forcing the installer to install GeForce drivers without GeForce Experience. A bug with the installer of GeForce 436.02 WHQL disregards the user's choice at this screen, and installs GeForce Experience without the GDPR-mandated user-consent.

Making matters far worse is the fact that you cannot deselect GeForce Experience from the list of components in the Custom Install screen. The Custom Install list lets you make the installer skip installation of optional components that are otherwise installed by default in Express Install (GeForce Experience features in this list only if a user gives GDPR consent in the previous screen). We're hoping that this is a simple installer bug by NVIDIA, because anything worse would put the company in violation of EU privacy laws. We at TechPowerUp are in the final stages of developing a free utility that lets users take complete control over their NVIDIA graphics driver installation, called NVCleanstall. Using this software you may skip lot more optional components than what the NVIDIA Installer allows, such as Telemetry. Grab a beta version of NVCleanstall from here.Update 16:27 UTC: NVIDIA has removed the 436.02 drivers from their website, and confirmed that this is a bug.

Update Aug 21st: The 436.02 drivers are available again, and the GeForce Experience install problem is fixed. Look for the suffix "-rp" in the file name to identify the fixed version.

ROCCAT, Turtle Beach's Hamburg, Germany-based PC team, today revealed its latest PC accessories debuting for European fans at Gamescom 2019. First is ROCCAT's Kain series of gaming mice featuring an all-new design with an innovative click-mechanism that registers the click signal up to 16 milliseconds faster than other mice, giving the Kain a speed advantage and letting players stay one click ahead of the competition. Additionally, ROCCAT introduces two new versions of its popular Vulcan mechanical keyboard. The Vulcan 121 AIMO is now available with a new switch alternative developed by ROCCAT, the Titan Switch Speed. The Vulcan 122 AIMO is the Arctic White color variant of the series. Rounding-out ROCCAT's latest PC products is the Sense AIMO Pad - a mousepad with built-in LED lighting that supports ROCCAT's unique AIMO light system.

René Korte, General Manager of PC Products at Turtle Beach said, "Germany is ROCCAT's home, making this year's Gamescom the perfect venue to show off our latest award-winning lineup of PC gaming mice, keyboards, and more - all of which are products of German design, engineering, and quality. This year, both the Kain and Vulcan product series introduce our latest Ash Black and Arctic White colors so fans can create the perfect ecosystem that suits their style, and the new Sense AIMO Pad is the perfect addition for a fully illuminated AIMO experience."

At Gamescom 2019, Hyperx has announced an update to their Cloud Alpha headset, in the form of the Cloud Alpha S. This headset builds upon the company's previous Cloud Alpha, which is often recommended as the best choice in the $100 price-point. The new Cloud Alpha S sports bass sliders, which offer users a three-level adjustment for bass, adjustable on-the-fly to suit the content you're currently experiencing. There's also virtual 7.1 surround sound, and it remains to be seen how well this feature works. Virtualized soundstages aren't usually the créme de la créme of audio quality, but they definitely have their use-cases. The HyperX Cloud Alpha S will be available at $129, a $30 premium over the Cloud Alpha, on Q4 2019.

Turtle Beach (Nasdaq: HEAR), a leading gaming accessory brand, today revealed new products the Company will be showing for the first time at Gamescom 2019, which takes place August 21-24, 2019 in Cologne, Germany. Turtle Beach will debut the latest additions to its lauded Atlas PC line, including the all-new Elite Atlas Aero Wireless High-Performance PC Headset featuring the Turtle Beach Control Studio with immersive Waves Nx audio technology that transforms stereo and surround sound into a panoramic 3D sound experience, a Waves PC-optimized version of Turtle Beach's exclusive Superhuman Hearing for a competitive advantage, plus the Waves Maxx suite of sound settings perfect for gamers and streamers alike.

Additionally, the Atlas Edge is Turtle Beach's new PC Audio Enhancer that plugs into an available USB port to give your wired PC headset an instant, customizable audio advantage, and also features Waves Nx and Maxx audio technologies, PC-optimized Superhuman Hearing, and more. Both the Elite Atlas Aero and Atlas Edge are available for pre-order today at www.turtlebeach.com for MSRPs of $149.95 and $29.95, respectively.

Straight off the heels of Gamescom 2018, where Dell announced their new gaming monitors and the refresh of their Alienware desktops, the excitement continues at IFA 2018. Dell is unveiling a new suite of innovative devices that elevate the computing experience for the everyday consumer, mobile professional and fast-paced small business owner. The enhanced Inspiron, XPS and Vostro portfolio is built with a combination of beautiful design, superior materials and top performance dedicated to deliver a device for every function and user. In addition, Dell is expanding its monitor leadership with a stunning new Dell 27 USB-C Ultrathin Monitor built with beauty and function.

Dell's commitment to thoughtful design and truly immersive cinematic experiences on the PC continues with this generation of new products. Launched at CES 2018, Dell Cinema is the combination of several cutting-edge technologies all working in concert to give the viewer an immersive, captivating experience on their PCs. Dell Cinema is available across the XPS portfolio and new Inspiron products starting this autumn.

Perhaps a lot of driver optimization and game patches are due, but early performance numbers for real-time ray-tracing on NVIDIA's thousand-dollar GeForce RTX 2080 Ti don't look encouraging. German tech publication PCGH tested the enthusiast-segment graphics card on "Shadow of the Tomb Raider," one of the poster-boys of NVIDIA's upcoming ray-tracing acceleration, and found that with all its eye-candy cranked up, the card barely manages 30 to 60 frames per second at Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels).

NVIDIA and Eidos (developers of "Shadow of the Tomb Raider") were quick to respond to the PCGH story. They stated that the build of the game demoed at Gamescom is pre-release, and the studio is still optimizing it for NVIDIA GeForce RTX series; and that the GeForce RTX hardware is running on pre-launch beta drivers that are yet to pack "Game Ready" optimization for SOTR. Catch PCGH's video presentation in the source link below.