During Microsoft’s event at E3 2018, the company unveiled a new slate of games and features coming to its Xbox Game Pass service.
In June’s software update, Xbox Game Pass games will be receiving what Microsoft calls “Fast Start,” a method of using machine learning to figure out which parts of each game need to be downloaded first in order to get players into their games quicker than ever. How this will work in practice remains to be seen, but with the increased number of games hitting the Game Pass platform, narrowing the gap between download time and play would definitely be appreciated.
Two sets of games were announced at the Microsoft Event — first a few of games that are already hitting the Game Pass platform immediately, and a slate of upcoming titles Game Pass subscribers can look forward to in the coming year.
Those hitting Game Pass now include Fallout 4, Elder Scrolls Online, and The Division. All three will be available for Game Pass subscribers within hours, so keep an eye out if you picked up a subscription to enjoy some Sea of Thieves.
Microsoft unveiled a far longer list of games coming to the Game Pass platform, making it an even better deal for Windows and Xbox gamers. Subscribers will see Halo: The Master Chief Collection alongside Forza Horizon 4, Crackdown 3, Ashen, Warhammer: Vermintide 2, and Afterparty: XXX. And that’s in addition to Microsoft’s promise to include all first-party games on Xbox Game Pass on their respective release dates.
“In its first year, Xbox Game Pass has proven to be great for both gamers and game developers as an additive means to drive discovery and engagement of games,” said Xbox Game Pass engineering head Ashley Speicher. “The freedom to explore and play more great games is changing gaming habits in incredibly positive ways.”
The Xbox Game Pass service made a huge splash with the release of the highly anticipated Sea of Thieves. Microsoft offered access to the game on the same day as its release date for any new or current Xbox Game Pass subscribers, and has since grown alongside its list of current and upcoming games.
Acer’s Predator Atlas 8 finally has a US release date and price, several months after the company first showed off the handheld in May. The highlight is the Intel Arc G3 Extreme chip inside, which has been adopted by only a couple of other consoles besides the Atlas 8. This version will go on sale exclusively at Best Buy on November 1 for $1,299.99.
Acer originally said the Atlas 8 would arrive in North America in October, but left pricing open at the time. The launch came amid the ongoing DRAM crunch, which has made memory more expensive across the PC industry and complicated pricing for hardware makers.
Google DeepMind's AI world model Genie 4 can now build interactive worlds that you can explore and reshape as they run. It also generates ambient sounds, music, and dialogue that respond to your actions.
The new world model builds on Genie 3 with improved realism, more natural human movement, and better simulations of real-world physics. It could eventually help with everything from game development to training robots.
Apple has an incredible talent for making me admire its products while simultaneously questioning what on earth it's thinking with the pricing. This isn't even something as bizarre as a monitor stand, but the audacity for starting a new laptop lineup from $2,000 doesn't surprise me.
The newly announced 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 is just the latest to showcase this. The funny thing is, I already know that it's going to be a reliable workstation. You get a powerful new 2nm M6 processor, a gorgeous Liquid Retina XDR display, and up to 24 hours of battery life. We were impressed by the M5 MacBook Air, so the high-end M6 powered MacBook Pro definitely won't let us down.