January 2024 – Page 12 – Tech News Feed

Palworld isn’t slowing down, hits 19 million players across Steam and Xbox

Image: Pocketpair

Surprise viral gaming hit Palworld continues to reach new player milestones. Today, developer Pocketpair announced that the game has sold 12 million copies on Steam and reached 7 million players on Xbox. The Xbox number includes both sales and those who played via Game Pass, but the breakdown between the two isn’t clear.
According to Microsoft, though, these numbers make Palworld the biggest third-party (i.e. a game not made by an internal Microsoft studio) launch in Game Pass history. The company says it “recently” reached a “peak of nearly 3 million daily active users on Xbox, making it the most-played game on our platforms at that time.” (Which date that took place isn’t specified.)
Of course, we already knew Palworld was popular; the game sold 5 million copies in its first three days and has reached the second-highest all-time peak concurrent player count on Steam. But the news does show that the game may be more than just a flash in the pan viral sensation as sales continue to grow. All that success has garnered the attention of The Pokémon Company — which says that it will “investigate” the game after claims of plagiarism — as well as copycats releasing similar apps on iPhone and Android.
Palworld is still technically in early access, and the developers have outlined a road map for the future that includes raid bosses, PvP, and crossplay support.

Image: Pocketpair

Surprise viral gaming hit Palworld continues to reach new player milestones. Today, developer Pocketpair announced that the game has sold 12 million copies on Steam and reached 7 million players on Xbox. The Xbox number includes both sales and those who played via Game Pass, but the breakdown between the two isn’t clear.

According to Microsoft, though, these numbers make Palworld the biggest third-party (i.e. a game not made by an internal Microsoft studio) launch in Game Pass history. The company says it “recently” reached a “peak of nearly 3 million daily active users on Xbox, making it the most-played game on our platforms at that time.” (Which date that took place isn’t specified.)

Of course, we already knew Palworld was popular; the game sold 5 million copies in its first three days and has reached the second-highest all-time peak concurrent player count on Steam. But the news does show that the game may be more than just a flash in the pan viral sensation as sales continue to grow. All that success has garnered the attention of The Pokémon Company — which says that it will “investigate” the game after claims of plagiarism — as well as copycats releasing similar apps on iPhone and Android.

Palworld is still technically in early access, and the developers have outlined a road map for the future that includes raid bosses, PvP, and crossplay support.

Watch Sony’s latest State of Play here at 5PM ET

Sony is set to host its first PlayStation showcase of 2024 and it’s shaping up to be a big one. The State of Play stream will run for over 40 minutes and feature more than 15 games. The event starts at 5PM ET and you can watch it below.
We know for sure that we’ll get extended looks at two games in particular: Stellar Blade and Rise of the Ronin. Shift Up’s Stellar Blade is a Sony-published action-adventure game that’s coming to PS5 at some point this year. Perhaps we’ll get a release date during the showcase. Sony is also publishing Rise of the Ronin, an action RPG from Nioh developer Team Ninja that’s coming to PS5 on March 22. (Sidenote: it sure seems like time for Ghost of Tsushima to make the leap to PC.)
Beyond that, there have been all kinds of rumors about what the State of Play will include. Along with chatter about Death Stranding 2, there have been murmurings that a remake of Until Dawn is coming to PS5 and PC (perhaps ahead of the planned movie adaptation). Given that it’s only a month away, it’s a safe bet that we’ll get another peek at Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. We could also get more details on the long-awaited Silent Hill 2 remake, which is a PS5 console exclusive. In any case, we’ll find out new information about a bunch of games that are coming to PS5 and PS VR2 this year and further down the line.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/watch-sonys-latest-state-of-play-here-at-5pm-et-183713629.html?src=rss

Sony is set to host its first PlayStation showcase of 2024 and it’s shaping up to be a big one. The State of Play stream will run for over 40 minutes and feature more than 15 games. The event starts at 5PM ET and you can watch it below.

We know for sure that we’ll get extended looks at two games in particular: Stellar Blade and Rise of the Ronin. Shift Up’s Stellar Blade is a Sony-published action-adventure game that’s coming to PS5 at some point this year. Perhaps we’ll get a release date during the showcase. Sony is also publishing Rise of the Ronin, an action RPG from Nioh developer Team Ninja that’s coming to PS5 on March 22. (Sidenote: it sure seems like time for Ghost of Tsushima to make the leap to PC.)

Beyond that, there have been all kinds of rumors about what the State of Play will include. Along with chatter about Death Stranding 2, there have been murmurings that a remake of Until Dawn is coming to PS5 and PC (perhaps ahead of the planned movie adaptation). Given that it’s only a month away, it’s a safe bet that we’ll get another peek at Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. We could also get more details on the long-awaited Silent Hill 2 remake, which is a PS5 console exclusive. In any case, we’ll find out new information about a bunch of games that are coming to PS5 and PS VR2 this year and further down the line.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/watch-sonys-latest-state-of-play-here-at-5pm-et-183713629.html?src=rss

Apple Seeds First Public Beta of macOS 14.4

Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming macOS Sonoma 14.4 update to public beta testers, allowing non-developers to test the software ahead of its launch. The public beta comes a day after Apple released the developer beta.

Beta testers can opt-in through the Software Update section of the System Settings app. Under Beta updates, simply toggle on the Sonoma Public Beta. Note that you must sign up to participate on Apple’s beta testing website.

‌macOS Sonoma‌ 14.4 introduces some of the features in the iOS 17.4 beta, such as new emoji characters. We don’t know what Mac-specific features are included, but nothing new was found in the developer beta. Related Roundup: macOS SonomaRelated Forum: macOS SonomaThis article, “Apple Seeds First Public Beta of macOS 14.4” first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming macOS Sonoma 14.4 update to public beta testers, allowing non-developers to test the software ahead of its launch. The public beta comes a day after Apple released the developer beta.

Beta testers can opt-in through the Software Update section of the System Settings app. Under Beta updates, simply toggle on the Sonoma Public Beta. Note that you must sign up to participate on Apple’s beta testing website.

‌macOS Sonoma‌ 14.4 introduces some of the features in the iOS 17.4 beta, such as new emoji characters. We don’t know what Mac-specific features are included, but nothing new was found in the developer beta.

Related Roundup: macOS Sonoma

Related Forum: macOS Sonoma

This article, “Apple Seeds First Public Beta of macOS 14.4” first appeared on MacRumors.com

Discuss this article in our forums

Mark Zuckerberg Addresses Families at Senate Child Safety Hearing

The Meta chief executive addressed families during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on child online safety.

Andretti’s GM-backed entry wanted to enter F1 in 2025, but F1 says no

The sport’s governing body said yes, but the commercial rights holder says no.

Enlarge / Michael Andretti wants to take his racing empire to Formula 1, but he’s facing resistance. (credit: Daniel Kalisz/Getty Images)

The Formula 1 grid will stay at just 20 cars for the next few years. Earlier today, F1 revealed it has rejected a bid by Andretti Global to join the sport for 2025. The move was not unexpected; neither F1 nor most of the teams have shown any enthusiasm toward Andretti’s entry. The sport sent out a lengthy statement explaining its reasons for turning down the Andretti entry but said that “it would look differently on an application” in 2028.

It’s a blow to both Andretti and its fans, but the move also signals increasing disharmony between the FIA, the sport’s organizing body, and Liberty Media, which owns the commercial rights to the F1 world championship.

Andretti Global first announced its plan to enter F1 last January, seeing it as a natural expansion for an organization that already races in IndyCar, Formula E, Extreme E, and IMSA sportscar racing, among other series. A month later the FIA formally opened an application process for new teams to enter the sport, but of the four applicants only Andretti had the backing of a major automaker behind it—in this case General Motors’ Cadillac brand.

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Wondershare Filmora 13 releases update with a better video editing experience for users at all levels

Wondershare Filmora’s latest update enhances the user experience for video editing with AI enhancements.

Creating content and sharing our lives online has become the norm, but not everybody can just sit down at their computer and put together high-quality video footage. Editing can be complicated even for advanced users. With Wondershare Filmora, it doesn’t have to be. Filmora 13.1.0, the latest update to the video editing suite from Wondershare, was designed to make content creation accessible to all, regardless of skill level. Ease of use doesn’t mean lacking in functionality, though, and Filmora is packed with useful features to give your videos an extra kick.

AI Music Generator and Text-to-Speech

(Image credit: Wondershare)

Sometimes we just want to create and share videos about our day-to-day lives, but we want to make those videos more interesting with background music. If you’ve taken an incredible vacation and want to share video footage of your adventure, you’re going to need music to accompany that, even if you’re just planning to share the footage with family and friends. However, finding the right music for your videos can be time-consuming.

Filmora offers a solution with their AI Music Generator tools that can help you create soundtracks for your videos that fit your vibe and are safe to commercialize. With Filmora you can easily make those shareable moments in your life look and sound good without worry. Filmora’s latest slate of enhancements makes it even easier to use, as well, allowing you to utilize Text-to-Speech to add voice-overs to your vlogs with natural-sounding tones that are categorized by scene type.

Vlogs are not the only content that can benefit from these new features, either. Many of us have taken our educational endeavors online in recent years. Teachers and professors have had to find new ways to engage their students via video, becoming content creators in the process. Soundtracks created with Filmora’s AI Music Generator can help set the tone for your lectures. Text-To-Speech to translate your lesson, giving your students clear, natural-sounding audio that is easy for them to understand and easy for you to create.

Special effects for everybody

Some stories are too good not to be told, but not everybody has the backing of a major motion picture studio at their disposal. Filmora 13.1.0 features improved professional caliber tools that allow you to easily create short films and music videos with ease, regardless of skill level (or production teams.)

Special effects have traditionally been thought of as an extremely skill-dependent part of content creation and cinematography. Filmora demystifies special effects. With just a few clicks of your mouse, your video’s action sequences can be taken up a notch with realistic motion blur that can be customized to suit your specific needs. Want to draw extra attention to a particular element in a scene? Filmora features a Lens Zoom Effect to simulate camera zoom, giving you creative freedom to hone in on a part of a scene and further enhance your storytelling. Get ready for your close-up, a well-timed zoom-in can set the scene and change the tone of your video.

With the ability to digitally zoom also comes the option for digital magnification. The Magnifying Glass Tool in Filmora makes it easy for you, as an editor, to examine a scene in your video by getting up close and personal with it. Zoom in, make adjustments, correct your footage as necessary, and then return the frame to its proper size with the corrections intact. That’s professional-quality editing with no more effort than a few clicks of your mouse.

Create with the power of the cloud

Whether you’re creating with the power of a production team or you’re a personal creator looking to share your life, one thing remains true: video content is a resource hog. If you’re working on projects that involve others, you may find that harnessing the power of the creative cloud can streamline the process and make it more accessible for everybody involved.

Filmora 13 features improvements to Cloud Resource Management and Beautification tools, making it easier to enable migration of custom LUTs to cloud storage. Seamless synchronization allows you and your collaborators to color-grade assets across multiple devices, streamlining remote work and improving your workflow. Custom LUTs can even allow for the direct import of media files from cloud storage. If your video content features episodic content and color grading is important, the cloud-based custom LUT feature of Filmora 13 can streamline that process by allowing you to enhance and color grade your footage with the power of the cloud.

Every day editing at a professional scale

With Filmora from Wondershare, creators of all skill levels can create professional quality videos and content with ease. From the DIY homemaker creating short content for YouTube to full-scale production teams working on episodic content, Filmora’s suite of tools can help you put out the best content with less work. Wondershare continues to work and improve Filmora with each upgrade so that you can spend less time editing and more time creating.