Hands on with the new Apple and Blackmagic Thunderbolt 3 eGPU
Along with Thursday’s 2018 Macbook Pro refresh, Apple also announced a partnership with Blackmagic Design which resulted in a new external GPU with an 8GB AMD Radeon Pro 580 GPU —and AppleInsider has it on the test bench.
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Blackmagic says that the $699 unit should boost speeds by as much as 2.8 times on the 15-inch MacBook Pro, and up to eight times on 13-inch systems.
As with the rest of the external GPU units we’ve examined, it connects through Thunderbolt 3, and is designed to connect to an external display for maximum performance boost. However, the Blackmagic one is the first that will accelerate a Thunderbolt 3 display without relying on hacks or other hardware workarounds —more on that in a bit.
High quality design, space grey aluminum shell
The Blackmagic’s eGPU is dense, as compared to othersAppleInsider has tested. The weight is about the same, but the unit is condensed, taking less desk real estate than the Mantiz or assorted Sonnet units.
The top and bottom vents look to be plastic but are also well made, The body’s space grey anodizing matches the MacBook Pro pro quite closely.
The design is reminiscent of the 2013 Mac Pro with an intake vent at the bottom and an single large fan at the top. Unfortunately, also just like it, the eGPU lacks the ability to take an upgrade in the future.
The first eGPU to support Thunderbolt 3 displays
Monitor connectivity is provided by HDMI 2.0 for the most part. While other units have incorporated a pass-through Thunderbolt 3 port, the Blackmagic eGPU is the first to use the port to accelerate a downstream monitor, which we can happily confirm. Neither Apple nor Blackmagic mention native USB-C monitor support so that’s something we will be looking into.
Along with the Thunderbolt 3 ports we have 4 USB 3.1 ports which run at Generation 1 speeds. As such, they are limited to 5Gbps.
One omission is a DisplayPort output, meaning those that have an older display that doesn’t have an HDMI port may be out of luck. Active HDMI to DisplayPort adapters can be expensive, and problematic, and the about $90 it costs to get one probably isn’t worth the effort.
This is where the differences between USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 come in to play. Thunderbolt 3 is USB-C, but not all USB-C devices are Thunderbolt 3 —so we’re not sure yet how USB-C alternate modes which allow for easy monitor connectivity will work with the eGPU.
This all said, We do have a USB-C to DisplayPort cable and adapter on order. If the eGPU will connect to a monitor with a USB-C alternate mode, it will be the saving grace for those that need to connect with anything else than HDMI or Thunderbolt 3.
This thing is quiet!
One of the biggest complaints we’ve had with the many external graphics enclosures we’ve reviewed is the noise. Typically, you have a fan for the power supply, one to three fans on the graphics card, and another fan or two for the enclosure which results in a constant drone that doesn’t go away, and gets worse when the system is under load.
After plugging the eGPU into our 2018 Macbook Pro and our LG 5K display, we started trying to figure out how to turn it until we realized it was on, and just super quiet. Apple quoted a sound level of only 18dB and they weren’t kidding.
Foregoing upgradability and designing the GPU and other components as a coherent whole allowed Blackmagic to use larger heatsinks and a single large fan which keeps everything very quiet, even under load.
As for connectivity, our LG UltraFine 5K display worked flawlessly connected to the Blackmagic Design eGPU. Now a single Thunderbolt 3 cable will allow users to connect to an external display, external graphics, have a mix of USB 3.1 and USB-C ports, and charge a laptop with 85 watts of power coming from the eGPU.
Performance
Launching Geekbench 4, our 2018 13-inch Macbook Pro with Touch Bar with Iris Plus 655 scored 32,991 in the OpenCL compute score. After plugging in the eGPU, and selecting the Radeon Pro 580 inside the device from the menu resulted in a score of 110,507, practically the same score as our top-of-the-line 2017 5K iMac with an internal Radeon RX 580 GPU.
We’ll do more testing for the full review.
Having access to a graphics card with this much performance along with the new quad-core CPUs in the 2018 Macbook Pro could mean that some 15-inch Macbook pro users could now downsize to a the smaller model. It would be more convenient when on the go, and there would be a performance gain when at the desk versus using a 15-inch with no eGPU.
This comes at a cost, though. The Blackmagic eGPU is $699. This is $200 more than the current retail price on the Gigabyte eGPU we looked at not all that long ago, for the same performance. The former is quieter, but the latter is yet smaller —but has a power brick, and is much louder.
AppleInsider has been living with eGPUs for some time, and have lived with the noise and size. So, we have a lot more testing to do to see how a setup like this works in the real world, and stacks up against other GPUs, and how it fully lines up against a 5K iMac.
Where to buy
The Blackmagic eGPU, which is available only at Apple, sells for $699 with free shipping or in-store pickup.
Tropico on iPad will live or die by its interface design
By Joe Robinson12 Jul 2018
You may remember back in mid-June that Feral Interactive are not only still working on their Rome: Total War iPhone version, but have also partnered with Kalypso Media to bring us the wonderful Tropico to iPad.
Tropico is a series of PC strategy games that put in charge of an island in the Caribbean as ‘El Presidente’ – a dictator. It’s a humorous and very charming take on the city management genre, where you must exploit your island’s natural resources as much as possible and play foreign powers against each other. You can use your profits to either improve the welfare of your citizens, or the welfare of your swiss bank account – but beware, rebels could strike at any moment.
As with a lot of management-style games, it’s how you model the interface which will be key to a game’s success on tablets. Feral have recently shared an insight into how they’ve adapted their UI for the game.
Named the ‘Dictator’s Desk’, Feral have created a bar of quick-access items that run along the bottom of the screen. In order, these are:
Intel – where notifications will be stored that demand your attention. Pretty standard.
Avatar – El Presidente exists in the game world, and you can send him places to get short-term boosts and benefits. We imagine this will be a quick-use button to deploy yourself to the map.
Edicts – A core part of Tropico is the ability to change and mould various aspects of your Government and general way of life through Edicts. Some of these will only help yourself, some will help your citizens but will come with a one-off or regular cost. Deciding what kind of nation you want to be and choosing the right Edicts is a key gameplay loop, and quite rewarding.
Overlays – Like any city-building game, being able to look at different types of information is important in knowing where to build. Knowing where the best resource deposits are, or which ground is the most fertile will help you with the placement of your economic buildings. This area will probably have several different filters you can use to help with these decisions.
Construction – Pretty much what is says on the tin. Not all buildings will be available to build – some will be gated behind Edicts, or milestones, or even minimum relationships with foreign powers. Whatever is available to build though will be found here.
Almanac – Tropico was great in the sense that it provided a lot of granular information on induvial citizens. Their name, relationship, political leanings, education level… it all feeds into the mechanics elsewhere, so keeping tabs on your populace is important. Other stats like your diplomatic relationships and the book-keeping will also be found here.
The only thing we imagine a decent UI can’t solve is the finnicky-ness of building and placement itself. Being a tropical island, the terrain doesn’t always lend itself to block or grid based building (apart from maybe residential areas) – being able to finely manipulate and place buildings to optimise resource output etc… was a key part of the game, so it’ll be interesting to see how Feral handle this particular challenge.
At the moment, there’s no concrete release date, but Tropico for iPad should be out by the end of the year.
New Code Vein Trailers Reveal Both Team Revenant's Bad Boy And Leader
Bandai Namco released two more character trailers for the company's upcoming action-RPG Code Vein. Whereas the first trailer focuses on Mia Karnstein, a young woman who fights to protect her younger brother, these two new ones offer backstory on the former mercenary Yakumo Shinonome and researcher Louis.
All three of these characters are Revenants, vampiric humans who gain power in exchange for lost memories and a bloodlust. Each acts as a possible "buddy" that travel with the player and assist with combat, while also offering their own quest line that influences Code Vein's overall story.
As the player slashes their war across the world of Vein, a cursed landscape that's collapsed beneath the Thorns of Judgment and been overrun by The Lost, they'll begin to unlock the secrets as to what happened to the Revenants' home and why it's been infested by monsters. To survive, players will need to rely on their buddies and master Code Vein's challenging stamina-based combat.
At first glance, Yakumo Shinonome seems to be a much more relaxed companion in comparison to Mia. However, his trailer quickly reveals that the man also has a troubling past. He can't remember the specifics, but he knows he had good friends and can't understand why he would have left them behind. His Hounds-type Blood Veil doesn't give him the same precision as Mia's Stinger-type, but when combined with his massive broadsword it seems to do more damage and have a wider area of effect.
Unlike the other two, Louis has no last name. His trailer also offers the least amount of backstory on his character. Despite his youth, Louis is the leader of the Revenants and he's searching for a cure to his and his fellow Revenants' growing bloodlust. Louis fights with the Ogre-style Blood Veil, which morphs his arm into a giant claw that looks straight out of Prototype.
Code Vein is scheduled to release on September 27 in Japan and worldwide on September 28. The game is launching on Xbox One, PS4, and PC.
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 07-15-2018, 05:21 AM - Forum: Lounge
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Switch's Octopath Traveler Gets Eight Alternate Box Art Options On My Nintendo
Octopath Traveler's box art celebrates the eight-person traveling troupe in its entirety, but if you find yourself especially fond of one character, Nintendo has provided additional box art you can use instead. The box art is limited to North America.
There are eight designs in total, one for each main character. All eight box arts can be downloaded from My Nintendo for 50 Platinum Points. You can buy them right now. They'll remain on My Nintendo through the rest of 2018 if you'd rather wait until after you've beaten the game though.
Don't worry, Platinum Points aren't related to Nintendo's Gold premium currency. You won't have to purchase more games to get the points you need. Platinum Points are typically unlocked by performing small tasks after you've logged into the My Nintendo home page, such as entering the eshop or linking your account across multiple Nintendo platforms.
My Nintendo has a new Octopath Traveler wallpaper as well. You can download it on and use it for PC, smartphones, and tablets. It also costs 50 Platinum Points and is available through 2018.
If you've already managed to beat all eight stories in Octopath Traveler, be sure to read up on how to unlock the optional post-game Ruins of Hornburg dungeon. It's a challenge to beat, but it may hide the secrets behind the lore that connects the eight main stories.
We gave Octopath Traveler an 8/10. In our Octopath Traveler review, Peter Brown wrote, "Despite the lackluster stories that pull you through the world, Octopath thrives on its character progression and the temptations of high-level challenges and rewards. The promise of new jobs, exciting boss fights, and powerful gear will inspire you to poke around every corner, and there are no shortage of discoveries to strive for. And all the while, you're treated to one of the most interesting and effective re-imaginings of a retro aesthetic around. Octopath will likely be a divisive game due to its fractured storytelling, but it's one worth playing despite its lesser qualities. Its high points are simply too good to ignore."
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Posted by: xSicKxBot - 07-15-2018, 02:37 AM - Forum: Lounge
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A note from the developers of Octopath Traveler
A note from the developers of Octopath Traveler
Yasunori Nishiki, Composer
I’m Yasunori Nishiki, the composer for Octopath Traveler. Octopath Traveler is a labor of love developed by a team that grew up in the golden age of RPGs, and was determined to update the classic RPG for the modern age. To that end, my goal was to create a soundtrack with memorable melodies and lavish soundscapes that incorporated live orchestral performances. From the main theme to battle and cutscene music, I strove for clear melodies and powerful yet not overly complex songs that would rise to the level of the evolved HD-2D graphics.
Also central to the game is the concept of a journey. With the various overworld and town themes, I wanted players to be able to feel the many living, breathing locales that they reach in their travels. If you could stop along the way from time to time and take in the sounds of the world along with its nostalgic sights, nothing would make me happier.
Keisuke Miyauchi, Director, ACQUIRE Octopath Traveler is an RPG centered around the idea of a journey. To make sure that all players could enjoy their own journey, we focused on three points in particular:
The first is the glorious visuals rendered in “HD-2D.” We took inspiration from the pixel art of the RPGs we ourselves used to play, updating them with modern technology to create rich and varied landscapes that we believe players will find to be both nostalgic and freshly beautiful.
The second is the interactivity, with each character able to interact with the residents of Orsterra through their Path Actions. We hope you’ll enjoy getting to know the people, with their sometimes tragic, sometimes heartwarming stories and pasts.
The last point we paid special attention to was freedom. From your starting character to the course you chart across the realm, the choices are in your hands. We encourage you to spin a tale of adventure all your own.
Masashi Takahashi, Producer, SQUARE ENIX At long last, the release date is here! Whether you’ve been following this project from the start, discovered it with the demo versions, or heard of it only recently, we’re truly happy to finally be able to bring you this tale of eight brave souls.
We hope that with Octopath Traveler you’ll enjoy talking to each other about how far along you’ve gotten, how you picked up certain powerful items along the way, and the like—just like the good old days of classic pixel art RPGs.
Releasing the game simultaneously around the world was a significant challenge for us, but the tremendous reception we’ve received has made all the struggles along the way worth it. Just thinking that fans in all corners of the world will be enjoying Octopath Traveler at the same time truly blows me away. I hope you all enjoy the journey!
Banner illustration by Naoki Ikushima, Character Design, SQUARE ENIX. Thanks to one and all! Happy travels!
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 07-15-2018, 02:37 AM - Forum: Lounge
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Don’t Miss: Fight or flight – Exploring the neuroscience of survival horror
[How exactly do horror games work on the brains of players? In this new feature, neuroscientist Maral Tajerian, of Thwacke! Consulting, unpacks the mechanism behind the scares in Amnesia, Dead Space and Silent Hill, among others.]
Fear is one of the most primitive instincts in humans. Although it has been particularly useful in keeping us alive in dangerous situations, it has also helped the entertainment industry capitalize on our sheer joy of being scared. The video game industry has done a good amount of scaring by taking advantage of these emotions and employing them in gameplay narrative and design.
This practice is best exemplified by putting the player in a vulnerable situation with limited resources to confront enemies. With proper execution, the genre can make your heart race, palms sweat and make you go to sleep with nightmares. However, when executed poorly, players feel as if they’re simply “going through the motions”.
Over the last two decades, several games (ranging from the early Resident Evil series to the more recent Amnesia: The Dark Descent) have defined the survival horror genre by successfully engaging fear and anxiety in players.
Although successful iterations of these games offer different enemies, gameplay mechanics and plot, they all share similar ways of handling the human psyche. This article will discuss how fear as an emotion has been employed in the gaming industry and discuss how the balance between scares and gameplay can lead to success or failure.
Anxiety. Next to fear, anxiety is perhaps the most prominent feeling experienced in video games. Unlike fear, which is a response to an imminent threat, anxiety is a response to a future potential threat.
When perceptual systems are taxed, research has shown that a looming threat results in anxiety that heightens attention and increases sensitivity to potential dangers. This implies that solving a puzzle the character is presented with in the game does not take away from the experience of fear and danger. In fact, according to many gamers, solving the puzzles under dangerous circumstances only increases the feelings of fear. Consider how riddles and puzzles in Silent Hill excel in this respect.
An example of a puzzle from Silent Hill 2 that needs to be solved in a dark and dilapidated room.
While games like first person shooters are notorious for desensitizing players to violence, games that raise the player’s anxiety actually sensitize them to danger. This is simply how animals behave, and it’s a highly adaptive behavior, since it keeps individuals on their toes in anxiety-causing environments. Raising the levels of anxiety in a video game will therefore ensure that the player is sensitized to the danger in the game. In a game like Amnesia, the entire experience teeters on anxiety created up to confrontation with an enemy since the player has absolutely no means to defend himself.
Helplessness. As mentioned earlier, players in the survival horror genre are often faced with terrifying and inescapable circumstances, with little means of self-defense. In other words, they are truly and utterly helpless.
In Amnesia, some may remember locking themselves in a closet, or hiding in a corner staring at a blank wall for several minutes, because you’re convinced that if you move, even an inch, a certain and horrible death will soon ensue. Furthermore, elements like rigid camera angles, awkward control schemes (Silent Hill, and Early Resident Evil titles), lighting (Alan Wake, Dead Space), etc. all serve to obliterate what little control the player might have thought she possessed.
Helplessness is truly a powerful feeling. Studies have shown that animals that are faced with situations where they’re helpless develop strong feelings of fear and anxiety. This is also true in the case of humans. You may remember this feeling from your last visit to the dentist. Whenever you experience feelings of helpless and loss of control, you are bound to feel more anxious and fearful. The same stays true in video games.
New Preview Alpha Skip Ahead 1810 System Update – 7/5/18
Starting at 2:00 p.m. PDT today, members of the Xbox One Preview Alpha Skip Ahead Ring will begin receiving the latest Xbox One system update (1810.180702-1938). Read on for more about the fixes and known issues in the latest 1810 system update. This build has the same features as 1806 plus more to be announced over the coming weeks!
Fixes:
Groups
Fixed an issue where some users may have lost their created Groups.
Settings
Fixed an issue with the Blu-ray and disc option in Settings wasn’t appearing.
Known Issues:
Game Pass Tab
Preview Alpha – Skip Ahead users will notice that the Entertainment tab has been replaced on the dashboard with Game Pass content. This new tab allows for easy access to the Game Pass catalog and is only available in the US region at this time, so Preview Alpha Skip Ahead Insiders in regions outside of the US will continue to see the Entertainment tab.
Groups
You may see issues with Groups if you frequently switch between your non-Preview console and your Preview console. Workaround: Reset your Groups locally on the Preview console through “My games & apps” > Groups, then using the “Delete all groups” button at the bottom of the page to resync from the service.
My Games and Apps
We are investigating an issue were certain apps are not launching correctly.
Microsoft Edge
The cursor may disappear when exiting and re-entering the app
Workaround: Press Y when re-entering the app to make the cursor re-appear
Profile Color
Sometimes users may encounter an incorrect Profile color when powering on the console.
Networking
When the console wakes from Instant on/connected standby with a wired connection, the console may not recognize that the Ethernet cable is plugged in. Workaround: Please reboot the console via Guide -> reboot.
Virtual Keyboard
With the Light Theme enabled, the keyboard may appear unreadable.
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Pokemon Go August 2018 Community Day Details Announced
With July's Community Day now behind us, Pokemon Go developer Niantic has shared the first details about next month's event. August's Community Day will kick off on Saturday, August 11, but unlike previous events, it will return for an encore the follow day, August 12, giving players two chances to participate next month.
Despite being available for an extra day, August's Community Days will still each only run for three hours, as was the case with previous events. During the designated times, players will find increased spawns of a particular Pokemon and earn bonus rewards for playing.
Niantic will host August's Community Day during the same window of time each day, although the time the events begin will vary depending upon where you live. You can find the scheduled Community Day hours for each region below.
The featured Pokemon during August's events is Eevee. In addition to appearing in much greater numbers than usual, players will presumably also have a chance to find a Shiny Eevee during the event hours. As with previous Community Days, Eevee will also be able to learn a special move during the event, although Niantic has not yet revealed what that will be.
On top of increased Eevee spawns, players who participate in August's Community Days will earn other in-game bonuses. This time, players will receive triple the normal amount of Stardust for capturing Pokemon. Additionally, any Lure Modules that are activated during the event will last for three hours, rather than their usual 30 minutes.
While August's Community Days are still a few weeks away, the next real-world Pokemon Go event is right around the corner. The second annual Pokemon Go Fest takes place in Chicago this weekend, from July 14-15. Even if you can't attend in person, players can participate in Global Challenges; if each region is able to meet its Global Challenge goal, Niantic will host a special Zapdos Day event on July 21.
Moreover, the Alolan forms of Diglett and Geodude will begin appearing in the wild around the world beginning July 14. Niantic has also announced that the Legendary Pokemon Lugia will return to Raid Battles this weekend only, temporarily replacing Regice. The latter will return as a Raid Boss following Pokemon Go Fest and will remain in the game until July 19.
