u/MythBuster2

>From developer 24 Entertainment comes a brand new single player adventure set during China's Dunhuang Uprising. Built on Unreal Engine 5, the story sees our rebellious hero battle his way through a town in an early slice of gameplay - where animations, physics and UE5 features like Lumen all combine to ground the experience. Tom runs through the demo, with insights from the studio itself.

>In the wake of Steam Machine pricing and sharp Xbox MSRP increases, are we looking at the prospect of a $1000 next-gen console? John, Rich and Oliver discuss. Meanwhile, in the current climate, how can you save money on gaming hardware? Is GTA 6 in danger of being the most over-hyped game ever? And if time travel were available, how could the current Xbox crisis have been averted?

>Oliver, Rich and Tom discuss GTA 6. Are the 63 new screenshots indicative of actual gameplay? What about the "code in a box" situation? Are the latest PS5 Pro rumours plausible? Meanwhile, the panel is shocked by the huge Xbox price rises, somewhat more positive about FSR 4 arriving on RDNA 3 GPUs, and there's a full breakdown of Sonic Frontiers for Switch 2. And finally, SteamOS can now power a range of desktop PC hardware - but wasn't Bazzite doing that already?

>James Bond is an English icon, from Ian Flemming novel origins, through to his iconic movie legacy and gaming history. His clandestine tales have always been shaken yet never stirred. With this latest, reboot the franchise can try to restore some of that past fire and roguish charisma, whilst creating something new. In a modern world powered by IO interactive Glacier engine with bespoke effects, stunning locales and more than a hint of adventure within. Has the IO team and Bond entered Uncharted territory?

>Audi Sorlie is back, with a deep dive into the brilliant Commodore 64, joined by guest ‪@bastichb64k‬ and legendary composer Chris Huelsbeck. The trio discuss the origins of the C64, the impact it had on the industry and its current revival. And of course, with Chris Huelsbeck on the panel, there's a special focus on the C64's amazing audio capabilities.

>In the wake of our Steam Machine review, Rich and Will tackle a range of Supporter questions on the price, value and design of the hardware, the ability of Valve to supply it - and the future of SteamOS in general.

>Devil May Cry 5 was the first cross-platform comparison we carried out between PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X so long ago - and now the game's on Switch 2. Perhaps unsurprisingly bearing in mind its vintage, performance is solid here - to the point where Capcom feels confident enough to unlock the frame-rate and offered 120Hz support... so how does it fare?

Article: https://www.digitalfoundry.net/reviews/devil-may-cry-5-on-switch-2-easily-outclasses-the-ps4-version-yet-further-improvements-could-be-made

>A familiar game from the past returned with completely revamped visuals and across-the-board game improvements. John talks about the legacy of Star Fox, the importance of the original Star Fox 64 and goes into depth on the graphics enhancements delivered for this beautiful remake.

Article: https://www.digitalfoundry.net/reviews/star-fox-on-switch-2-is-a-refined-return-to-an-iconic-game-and-the-rail-shooter-genre

>Armed with new footage of Star Wars Galactic Racer, - plus insights from the development team at Fuse games - we're able to take a sneak peak at how the base PS5 version's shaping up. Unreal Engine 5 is at the heart of the operation here, with lumen GI used on all consoles - with the exception of Series S. Tom runs over the details of how the new arcade racer is shaping up, and also the promise of PS5 Pro enhancements.

Article: https://www.digitalfoundry.net/previews/star-wars-galactic-racers-physics-based-destructive-tech-and-high-speed-dna-shows-promise

>Delayed owing to the hardware component crisis, Valve's Steam Machine is finally here - so how much does it cost, how does it perform and what about the quality of the hardware itself? Rich delivers PC performance comparisons, head-to-heads against PlayStation 5 and much more. Note: PC comparisons used the latest version of Bazzite.

Article: https://www.digitalfoundry.net/reviews/steam-machine-beautiful-hardware-console-performance-at-a-price

>Actual GTA 6 news - and a new clip - see John, Tom and Oliver "concerned" over missing RT reflections. Then it's onto Unreal Fest with discussion on the latest Unreal Engine 5 upgrades and the implications of AI in Unreal Engine 6 workflow. The Gears of War: E-Day tech demo demands attention, while John gets to grips with a staggeringly expensive VR headset. And would you believe it's been a whole five years since we published our massive PS1 launch episode of DF Retro? John's got some stories to share.

Housemarque on rebuilding its visual effects under one unified framework for the PS5 sci-fi shooter.

>This video was late, then delayed again as IO Interactive launched a DLSS fix, then unlaunched it owing to offline mode bugs, then launched it again - so where do we stand? We're looking at an impressive port overall, but there are issues: a lack of scalability in settings beyond console standards, highly taxing explosive effects and disappointing lack of FSR and XeSS features.

Article: https://www.digitalfoundry.net/reviews/007-first-light-pc-review-and-optimised-settings-guide

>The team is left reeling after reports emerge of studios on the brink within Microsoft - a far cry from the highs of the summer showcase and previous comments from management about preserving their studio structure. Meanwhile, we discuss ARM's new ML rendering suite, the potential return of the previously cancelled RTX 50-series Super cards and... is Sega working on a retro handheld and if so, what would we want from it?

You'll need a PS5 that hasn't had a system software upgrade since 2022.

>What started into an investigation into why PS5's back-compat isn't as strong as Xbox Series X's became something more. It's possible for mods to run on an exploited PlayStation 5 to open up improved back compat options: faster CPU and GPU performance, 120Hz, VRR. And what better game to put the theory to the test than the iconic Bloodborne? Many thanks to Christina for the hard work on the modding side.

Article: https://www.digitalfoundry.net/features/bloodborne-ps5-modded-big-resolution-boosts-120hz-vrr-and-its-superb

>Nintendo Direct rounds off the big summer gaming events and... well, it's a mixed bag for sure. What have we learned about the Ocarina of Time Remake? How well are the third party ports holding up? John, Rich and Oliver have some thoughts on that before moving on to reactions to the 30 minute Fable gameplay demo. Meanwhile, Nintendo is planning a new Switch 2 revision with a replaceable battery and... somehow, the RTX 3060 has returned.