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Indy 500 live stream: how to watch the 2021 IndyCar race, start time, line-up

(Image credit: Wikipedia / The359 – Own work)

The 105th Indy 500 date is set and the race underway this Sunday, live from the world famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The biggest oval race of the 2021 NTT IndyCar Series will see 135,000 fans (in face masks, of course) cheer on defending Indy 500 winner Takuma Sato and pole-sitter Scott Dixon as they compete for the Borg-Warner Trophy and a bottle of ice-cold milk.

Ready to lay down some rubber at the Brickyard? Carb day (final practice) starts at 4pm BST on Friday, followed by the epic, 200-lap Indy 500 race on Sunday for an Indy 500 start time of 5.45pm BST (12.45pm ET). Make sure you know how to watch an Indy 500 live stream wherever you are in the world.

Indy 500 live stream

Start time: 5.45pm BST / 12.45am ET / 2.45am AEST

Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indiana

US streams: NBC Sports | FuboTV (free trial)

Watch anywhere: Try ExpressVPN risk-free today

UK stream: Sky Sports F1 | Now

AUS stream: KayoSports

Buy tickets: Indianapolis Motor Speedway

This year’s 500-mile extravaganza will take about 3 hours to complete, depending on pitstops, crashes and safety cars. The 33-car field will be led away by six-time IndyCar champ – the greatest driver of his generation – Scott Dixon. The Iceman secured pole last weekend by just 0.03 seconds in a thrilling Fast Nine.

“It was pretty hairy, glad it’s over. It was definitely pretty tense,” Dixon told Fox News. “I could see the mechanics working on the car as we rolled through, adjusting the wings. I asked them not to tell me. It’s definitely a roller coaster of emotions for everybody and I’m actually really relieved that that’s all over.”

Colton Herta captured second place. The 21-year-old Andretti Autosport driver put in a monster lap to bump 20-year-old Dutchman Rinus VeeKay into third place. The aptly-named Will Power smacked the wall on the final lap but will still make the race. Simona de Silvestro will get her first start since 2015 (last year’s race lacked a female driver for the first time in 20 years).

Anything can happen in IndyCar, but with Dixon set for his sixth front row start in his 19th Indy 500, the No. 9 Dallara-Honda is now odds-on favourite to the take the honours once more.

The 2021 Indy 500 presented by Gainbridge starts at 5.45pm UK time on Sunday. You can even stream the action on your TV and a host of devices including Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, Xbox, PlayStation, iOS and Android devices.

Make sure you know how to watch an Indy 500 live stream from anywhere in the world.

Feast your eyes on the best TVs you can buy

Indy 500 live stream for only €9.99

(Image credit: Wikipedia / TPSDave – indianapolis-motor-speedway-1848561 archive copy)

Those in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Cyprus and Israel can watch an Indy 500 live stream using DAZN, the subscription-based sports streaming service. The price varies from region to region and there’s also a free trial which means you could watch the Indy 500 for free!

Those in the Czech Republic will be able to sign up for €9.99 per month to watch the Indy 500 live stream. There’s no lock-in contract, so you can cancel anytime.

Going to be outside the CR this weekend? Simply use a VPN to access your chosen Indy 500 live stream without being blocked. Try ExpressVPN risk-free with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Free trial available

Indy 500 live stream on DAZN for €9.99

DAZN has the rights to the Indy 500, UFC, Bundesliga, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, US Sports, Fightsports, and much more live and on demand in selected countries. Try for 1 month. Cancel at anytime.

The DAZN app is available on Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Sticks, as well as selected smart TVs including Android TV, LG, Panasonic, Samsung, Sony and Philips.

If you have a games console, look for the DAZN app on Xbox One, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. You can also download the DAZN app for Android and iOS mobile devices.

Watch an Indy 500 live stream using a VPN

Even if you have subscribed to the relevant Indy 500 rights holders, you won’t be able to access them when outside your own country. The service will know your location based on your IP address, and will automatically block your access.

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) helps you get around this obstacle. A VPN creates a private connection between your device and the internet, such that the servers and services you’re accessing aren’t aware of what you’re doing. All the information passing back and forth is entirely encrypted.

There are many VPN providers out there, with some more reliable and safe than others. As a rule, we’d suggest a paid-for service such as ExpressVPN which offers a 100 per cent risk-free money back guarantee. If you’re not happy with the service any time within the first 30-days, then you can cancel with no penalties at all.

Try ExpressVPN risk-free for 30 days

ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money back guarantee with its VPN service. You can use it to watch on your mobile, tablet, laptop, TV, games console and more. There’s 24/7 customer support and three months free when you sign-up. Try it – you’ll be surprised how simple it is.

How to watch the Indy 500 in the USA

(Image credit: Wikipedia / Greg Hildebrand from Plymouth, IN – 2011 Indy 500874)

The Indy 500 race will air on NBC. Pre-race coverage starts at 9am ET on NBCSN, moving to NBC at 11am and finishing at 4pm. It also will be available to stream via the NBC Sports App and NBCSports.com.

Not got cable? US fans also have to option to watch the Indy 500 via FuboTV, a streaming service that carries NBC and offers a free 7-day trial.

FuboTV supports Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, iPhone, iPad and Android phones/tablets. You can also use FuboTV to watch the Indy 500 on your TV using Google Chromecast or Apple Airplay.

After the FuboTV trial ends, you’ll be bumped onto the $65 a month plan, which includes access to a host of premium TV channels. There’s no lock-in contract, so you can cancel at any time – and before the free trial ends, if you so wish.

Can I watch the Indy 500 in 4K?

FuboTV is a great way to watch the the occasional sporting event in 4K Ultra HD, but, sadly, not the 2021 Indy 500.

How to watch the Indy 500 in the UK

(Image credit: Sky)

Sky has the rights to show the Indy 500 in the UK. You can watch live on Sky Sports F1, or via the SkyGo app. The build-up starts at 3.45pm with the race set to get underway at 5.45pm.

Not a Sky subscriber? Anyone can enjoy the Indy 500 using Sky’s pay-per-view platform, Now. Now is available on all good smart TVs and set-top-boxes. A one-day pass costs from £9.99 gets you live coverage of F1, football, golf and more.

Now Sports Pass Watch the Indy 500 from just £9.99

A day pass for sports on Now can cost as little as £9.99, with a monthly pass coming in at £33.99 for those wanting to see the Indy 500 plus a few F1 grand prix, as well as football, golf and tennis.

How to watch the Indy 500 in Australia

(Image credit: Kayo)

Fox Sports has the rights to screen the 2021 IndyCar Series down under. Aussies seeking an Indy 500 live stream should click onto Kayo Sports.

The streaming platform’s premium package costs AU$35 per month but you can grab a free 14-day trial here.

Indy 500 schedule

5am ET – Garage opens

6am ET – Gates open

6.30am ET – Tech inspection

8.15am ET – Cars pushed to pit lane

10.30am ET – Cars on the starting grid

11:47am ET – Driver introductions

12.38pm ET– Command to start engines

12.45pm ET – Green flag for the 105th Indy 500

Why does the Indy 500 winner drink milk?

The tradition dates to 1936, when Louis Meyer won his third Indy 500. It’s said that Meyer used to drink buttermilk to refresh himself on hot days, and when a photographer snapper a picture of him guzzling from a glass bottle in victory lane, the picture appeared in several newspapers.

It wasn’t long before a canny marketing executive representing the Milk Federation realised that ‘winners drink milk’ was a great way to sell the American public yet more milk. Ever since then, aside from a short hiatus between 1946-55, the winner of the Indy 500 has been presented with a bottle of ice-cold milk (actually it was a whole churn last year).

There was uproar in 1993 when contrary Brazilian driver Emerson Fittipaldi mugged off the milk in favour of a bottle of orange juice. Some sections of the audience booed but Fittipaldi had the last laugh when he was revealed as the owner of a 500,000-acre orange grove in Brazil. Fittipaldi was later forced to issue an apology.

Indy 500 starting line-up

ROW 1

1. (9) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 231.685 mph

2. (26) Colton Herta, Dallara-Honda, 231.655

3. (21) Rinus VeeKay, Dallara-Chevy, 231.511

ROW 2

4. (20) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Chevy, 231.504

5. (48) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 231.032)

6. (10) Alex Palou, Dallara-Honda, 230.616

ROW 3

7. (28) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 230.499

8. (06) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 230.355

9. (8) Marcus Ericsson, Dallara-Honda, 230.318

ROW 4

10. (27) Alexander Rossi, Honda, 231.046

11. (18) Ed Jones, Honda, 231.044

12. (5) Pato O’Ward, Chevrolet, 230.864

ROW 5

13. (51) Pietro Fittipaldi, Honda, 230.846

14. (7) Felix Rosenqvist, Chevrolet, 230.744

15. (30) Takuma Sato, Honda, 230.708

ROW 6

16. (29) James Hinchcliffe, Honda, 230.563

17. (3) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, 230.557

18. (15) Graham Rahal, Honda, 230.521

ROW 7

19. (47) Conor Daly, Chevrolet, 230.427

20. (60) Jack Harvey, Honda, 230.191

21. (2) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 230.071

ROW 8

22. (1) JR Hildebrand, Chevrolet, 229.980

23. (45) Santino Ferrucci, Honda, 229.949

24. (86) Juan Pablo Montoya, Chevrolet, 229.891

ROW 9

25. (98) Marco Andretti, Honda, 229.872

26. (22) Simon Pagenaud, Chevrolet, 229.778

27. (14) Sebastien Bourdais, Chevrolet, 229.744

ROW 10

28. (25) Stefan Wilson, Honda, 229.714

29. (59) Max Chilton, Chevrolet, 229.417

30. (4) Dalton Kellett, Chevrolet, 228.323

ROW 11

31. (24) Sage Karam, Chevrolet, 229.156

32. (12) Will Power, Chevrolet, 228.876

33. (16) Simona De Silvestro, Chevrolet, 228.353

Square Enix announces Dragon Quest XII: The Flames of Fate

Square Enix has announced the latest mainline entry in the Dragon Quest series. Dragon Quest XII: The Flames of Fate was revealed on a livestream to celebrate the series’ 35th anniversary. Not much beyond the game’s logo and title was revealed, but series creator Yuji Horii hinted at some changes to the traditional turn-based battle system, and said Square Enix was aiming for a simultaneous worldwide release.

Dragon Quest is the most popular RPG series in Japan. The last game, Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age, was released for the PlayStation 4 and 3DS in its home market in 2017, though the original Western release only came to the PS4 and PC. An updated version, Dragon Quest XI S, was released for the Nintendo Switch and later came to Xbox, PS4, PC, and Stadia. In total, Square Enix has shipped more than six million copies of Dragon Quest XI worldwide.

Square Enix also announced five more new Dragon Quest titles during the broadcast.

Dragon Quest Treasures, a treasure-hunting RPG starring characters from Dragon Quest XI
A remake of Dragon Quest III in a similar “HD-2D” visual style to Square Enix’s Octopath Traveler
The next major expansion to Dragon Quest X, the Japan-only MMO
Dragon Quest X Offline, a top-down version of X that doesn’t require an internet connection
Dragon Quest Keshikeshi, a mobile puzzle game

That’s a lot of Dragon Quest to be getting on with, although only III and Treasures are confirmed for a worldwide release at this stage.

The PS5 will be profitable next month — and Uncharted 4 is coming to PC

In February, Sony revealed it was selling the PlayStation 5 at a loss — but that’s imminently about to change. The PS5 should hit break-even in June, and become profitable the very same month, according to a presentation the company shared with investors (PDF) during its investor day today.

Needless to say, that’s fast — happening before the company has even managed to catch up with demand, in the midst of a global chip shortage. (We bemoaned the needless drama of buying a PS5 just days ago!)

Mind you, this is for the standard PS5, the one where Sony has to supply a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray drive and pay as much as $8 per console in licensing fees, and charges you an extra $100 at retail. It’s not clear if Sony’s driveless PS5 Digital Edition is more or less profitable.

Profitability isn’t the only intriguing disclosure in Sony’s presentation, though. Buried in the filing is the excellent news that an incredible game is coming to PC — the previously PS4/PS5 exclusive Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, a blockbuster action game that we loved enough to write both spoiler-free and multiple spoiler-iffic reviews.

Sony had previously promised more PlayStation exclusives would come to PC, and Sony’s presentation makes it clear why the company is interested. See that little “ROI 250%+” note? If I’m reading it correctly, that means the iffy PC port of Horizon: Zero Dawn nonetheless managed to make more than double the money that Sony invested in bringing it to gaming computers.

It makes me wonder, very strongly, about the mysterious circumstances that surrounded Sony’s announcements of Demon’s Souls and Final Fantasy XVI.

Oh, by the way: sure looks like Sony just confirmed that God of War: Ragnarok is the official name of that upcoming game! Could be a mistake or a juxtaposition of two vaguely related logos, though.

Also genuinely surprising to see them maybe just confirm God of War: Ragnarok as the next game’s official title?

After we’ve all spent so long calling it that, makes sense to lean in, I suppose! pic.twitter.com/7YYm6cngZ9

— Jonathon Dornbush (@jmdornbush) May 26, 2021

Correction: Sony’s presentation today came from its Investor Day, not its Corporate Strategy Meeting. The Corporate Strategy Meeting was yesterday.

Western Digital’s Latest WD_Black SSDs Target Consoles, Affordable PCIe 4.0

(Image credit: WD)

While in-person Computex has been canceled, companies still have new product to roll out, and today Western Digital adds a trio of new drives to its gaming-focused WD_Black line. There are a pair of D30 Game Drives targeting next-gen consoles, with one model aiming for the PlayStation 5 market, and a WD_Black D30 Game Drive SSD for Xbox targeting Sony’s console competition. But for PC builders and gamers, the internal WD_Black SN750 SE will be of most interest, as it brings PCIe Gen4 support at a starting price of just $49.99. But without DRAM, it will probably have a hard time making it to our best SSD list.

But first, let’s tackle the console-focused externals. Both models will come in 500GB, 1TB and 2TB capacities, with the Xbox model starting at $99.99 and the more generic WD_Black D30 Game Drive SSD starting at $10 less ($89.99). Both come in typical bulky-looking rugged housings with detachable stands, with the non-Xbox model delivering claimed speeds of up to 900 MBps. This drive will allow you to play and store PS4 games, but only allow for archiving of PS5 games. (The PS5 only plays the latest-gen games from the internal SSD).

The D30 Game Drive SSD for Xbox, meanwhile, will ship with a one-month membership of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate to help make up for the slight price difference. Similar to the other drive, you’ll be able to play and store Xbox One games on the drive, but only archive Xbox Series X/S titles. WD says the white-accented Xbox-branded drive should arrive in June, while the more generic black model should be available today at “select retailers” and the WD Store.

(Image credit: WD)

Shifting to the new internal M.2 drive, the WD_Black SN750 SE is an NVMe drive that supports PCIe 4.0 (and is also backwards compatible with Gen3). WD says it will deliver read speeds of up to 3,600 MBps. So it’s no barn-burner, but WD says it will consume up to 30% less power than the previous SN750, which may help its appeal for laptop gamers. Note, though, that this model will be a DRAM-less drive, which no-doubt helps keep costs (and power consumption) down.

The WD_Black SN750 SE will start at $49.99 for the 250GB model. Pricing on the 500GB and 1TB capacities has not been revealed, nor is there a mention of a 2TB model. But we’re sure to learn more (and hopefully have a full review for you) as we get closer to availability. WD says the WD_Black SN750 SE is available for preorder from WD now, and will land on store shelves this summer.

Sony’s AI subsidiary is developing smarter opponents and teammates for PlayStation games

In 2019, Sony quietly established a subsidiary dedicated to researching artificial intelligence. What exactly the company plans to do with this tech has always been a bit unclear, but a recent corporate strategy meeting offers a little more information.

“Sony AI […] has begun a collaboration with PlayStation that will make game experiences even richer and more enjoyable,” say notes from a recent strategy presentation given by Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida. “By leveraging reinforcement learning, we are developing Game AI Agents that can be a player’s in-game opponent or collaboration partner.”

This is pretty much what you’d expect from a partnership between PlayStation and Sony’s AI team, but it’s still good to have confirmation! Reinforcement learning, which relies on trial and error to teach AI agents how to carry out tasks, has proved to be a natural fit for video game environments, where agents can run at high speeds under close observation. It’s been the focus of heavy-hitting research, like DeepMind’s StarCraft II AI.

Other big tech companies with gaming interests such as Microsoft are also exploring this space. But while Microsoft’s efforts are tilted towards pure research, Sony’s sound like they’re more focused on getting this research out of the lab and into video games, pronto. The end result should be smarter teammates as well as opponents.

Tom Holland will be starring as Nathan Drake in the upcoming Uncharted movie adaptation — part of Sony’s ongoing ambitions to expand its franchises into TV and film.

Image: Tom Holland via Instagram

This tidbit was just one point in the presentation, though, in which Sony laid out numerous plans for its future growth. Here are some of the other ambitions mentioned:

Expand Sony’s first-party titles and franchises to mobile. “PlayStation has a huge catalog of diverse first-party IP that can transition to smartphone gaming and complement our AAA games or live service games,” say the notes. (Though it’s worth noting Sony established a subsidiary dedicated to making smartphone games in 2016, and it hasn’t had a huge impact yet.)
Make more Sony games into movies and TV shows. This will be done through the company’s PlayStation Productions subsidiary. Sony gives the example of the upcoming Uncharted film, starring Tom Holland as Nathan Drake.
Grow the PlayStation Network, PlayStation Now, and PS Plus networks. The company says it currently connects to about 160 million users but would like to grow that number to 1 billion (I mean, sure, who wouldn’t want more customers?). Getting there will mean growing the company’s various online services and subscriptions, including PlayStation Plus, which has seen steady, but not explosive, growth. It’s interesting to compare this to Microsoft’s huge push in subscription gaming through Xbox Game Pass.

Sony’s PS Plus network has seen steady but not explosive growth.

Image: Sony

For more details you can check out Sony’s presentation for yourself here. Though, be prepared to wade through some absolutely incredible corporation-speak. We particularly liked the opening declaration that the company has now “implemented structural reform that liberated us from a loss-making paradigm.” In other words: they changed things so that Sony makes money instead of losing it! Got to dress that up somehow, I guess.

Unreal Engine 5 to get updated showcase tomorrow

Many casual fans and tech enthusiasts alike were left surprised when Epic Games showed off Unreal Engine 5 for the first time last year. Just over a year after its blowout showcase, Epic Games is back with another look at the impressive technology of the next Unreal Engine, with a showcase set to go live tomorrow.

Making the announcement, Epic Games said “In May 2020, Epic Games provided a first look at Unreal Engine 5 through ‘Lumen in the Land of Nanite,’ a real-time demo running live on PlayStation 5. Prior to this, in January 2020, we went behind the scenes with the team at Epic to discover the inspiration for Nanite, a virtualized micropolygon geometry system that will enable you to create games with massive amounts of geometric detail.”

With that, they revealed that fans and developers alike can take a new look at the upcoming engine tomorrow, when the next Unreal Engine 5 showcase goes live on YouTube at 3pm UK time.

The initial reveal of Unreal Engine 5 universally impressed viewers last year with its showcase of incredibly detailed models, dynamic lighting and more. As we inch closer to the release of the first Unreal Engine 5-developed title, it is interesting to see what Epic Games has planned one year after the first look – and whether they can wow viewers a second time.

KitGuru says: What did you think of the first Unreal Engine 5 showcase? Were you impressed? How long do you think it will be before the first UE5 game launches? Let us know down below.

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Sonic Collection leaks via retailer

2021 marks the 30th anniversary of Sonic the Hedgehog. Despite being one of gaming’s most recognisable characters, SEGA have been rather quiet with regards to celebrating this milestone anniversary. Things seem to be ramping up behind the scenes however, as a Sonic Collection has now leaked online thanks to a retailer listing.

Recently we reported that Sonic Colours may be getting a remaster thanks to a German dubbing studio leaking its existence. Adding further evidence to this however was a retailer listing for Sonic Colours Ultimate. Now, the same retailer has listed a Sonic Collection for the PlayStation 4.

Currently, there is no information aside from the title, meaning that we do not yet know what games will be included in this collection, whether they are simple ports, remasters or more – as well as a number of other unknowns.

This Sonic Collection could be a compilation of Sonic’s original 2D outings, although it could just as easily be new ports of the Sonic Adventure series, Sonic Heroes, or any number of the hedgehog’s dozens of games across the 30 year history.

As mentioned, SEGA has been relatively silent with regards to Sonic’s anniversary, aside from a few promotional celebratory pieces of art. That being said, the publisher did confirm that they have big plans for the anniversary – we simply have yet to see them. Hopefully the official announcements will begin to roll out soon.

KitGuru says: Are you a fan of Sonic the Hedgehog? What collections of games do you want to come to modern systems? When do you think we will see the next Sonic game? Let us know down below.

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Next-gen version of Fallen Order release date leaked

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was one of the biggest games of 2019, selling well over 10 million copies. The 3rd person action-adventure game received PS5 and Series X|S support shortly after the consoles’ launch, but a bespoke next-gen version was also promised to be coming – with a new retailer listing suggesting that the team is aiming for an end-of-June release.

According to two separate Brazillian retailers, the PS5 (and series X|S) versions of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order are set to release on the 26th of June, just over a month away. Being two separate retailers, and the nature of their status within the country itself lends credence to this release date being legitimate.

EA previously announced that a native PS5 and Series X|S version of Fallen Order was in development, with a release set for some time in Summer – though no specific date was given at the time. Currently, little is known about this remaster, with the team only revealing that it will bring “a number of technical improvements to the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S console versions of the game,” and that “this will be a free cross-generation upgrade to current owners.”

With its release date seemingly so close, hopefully more specifics on the exact details will be revealed sooner rather than later. Furthermore, with the previous-gen version already receiving next-gen patches, it will be interesting to see what specific upgrades are coming to this native port.

KitGuru says: Did you play Fallen Order? What do you want to see from this upgrade? Are you excited for a sequel? Let us know down below.

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Days Gone tops the Steam best sellers list

Each week, the best selling games on Steam globally are collected and ranked. For the week ending on the 23rd of May, the previously PlayStation-exclusive Days Gone has topped the charts, dethroning Mass Effect: Legendary Edition and boding well for the future of PlayStation games on PC.

The top 10 best selling Steam games (as ranked by revenue) for the week ending 23rd of May are:

Days Gone
Mass Effect: Legendary Edition
BIOMUTANT (preorder)
Resident Evil Village
Subnautica: Below Zero
Red Dead Redemption 2
Valve Index VR Kit
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Game of the Year Edition
It Takes Two
Cyberpunk 2077

The biggest addition to the charts is Days Gone, which has managed to take the top spot. This is likely aided by the game’s PC port offering many robust graphical options, giving the game an overall higher critic and user score than that of its original console counterpart.

The early success of Days Gone on PC, and the previous success of Horizon Zero Dawn (despite a rocky start) bodes well for the future of PlayStation on PC. Days Gone marks the second first-party PS4 game to make its way to the PC platform. Other previously PlayStation exclusive games, such as Death Stranding and Detroit: Become Human also found their way to PC – though both of these titles were developed externally.

With Days Gone now on PC, it will be interesting to see what Sony’s long-term plan for the platform is, and if more PlayStation games will find their way onto PC.

KitGuru says: Have you purchased Days Gone on Steam? Do you think Sony will bring more games to the platform? What game would you like to be ported next? Let us know down below.

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Knockout City’s virtual dodgeball is even more chaotic than the real thing

Knockout City took me back to childhood games of dodgeball with a single sound: “whumphf!” That one noise, which you’ll hear a lot as dodgeballs bounce every which way, represents just how well the game’s virtual version of dodgeball mimics the real thing — including all of the chaos you might remember from games on the playground.

Knockout City is made by EA and Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit developer Velan Studios, and its primary mode involves three-on-three matches against online opponents. In each match, you’ll scoop up dodgeballs littered around the city-themed maps and launch them at your unsuspecting targets. When you charge up a throw, the game automatically locks onto a target, meaning you don’t have to worry about precise aim. Knockout City is more about timing your shots to try to catch your opponent off-guard, which the game encourages by letting you do things like curve or feint a shot to mix up your tactics.

Somebody catching a ball in Knockout City.

Image: EA

Like in real dodgeball, though, a key part of Knockout City isn’t just throwing the ball, but also catching it, which you can do with a well-timed press of a trigger. And if you do catch a thrown ball, it will fly a little faster when you next throw it. I love trying to time catches. It adds Paper Mario-like timing to battles (though at a much faster pace) and forces you to think more about your positioning not just for offense, but for defense as well.

Knockout City also offers some fantastical elements that you won’t find in real-life dodgeball. Each match has a special type of dodgeball with unique powers, like a bomb ball that explodes on impact. My favorite was the multiball, which gives you three dodgeballs right at your fingertips, kind of like the triple shell item in Mario Kart.

And at any time, you can turn yourself into a ball so your teammates can scoop you up and toss you at an opponent for a quick knockout. Balling up for a teammate is almost like handing them a present — one they can launch at an unsuspecting person at high velocity — and it’s a great tool to assist your teammates whenever you want, without any communication required. Be warned, though, your enemies can also pick you up when you’re in ball form, meaning they might just throw you off the map for an easy point.

Like real games of in-person dodgeball, there’s often a lot going on in Knockout City. That can make it easy to lose track of things and get knocked out by a shot you didn’t see coming. And occasionally, matches can have long lulls where you’re running around the map by yourself, dodgeball in hand, hunting for an opponent. Sometimes I wish the maps were just a bit smaller to force more confrontations. But at their best, Knockout City matches are fun and chaotic. Dodgeballs flying left and right will keep you, your teammates, and your opponents in a thrilling dance of dodging, catching, throwing.

Knockout City isn’t just about outsmarting your opponents in dodgeball, though; the game also gives you lots of ways to customize your character, including the clothes they’re wearing and even your victory pose. You can earn more cosmetics from completing in-game challenges, leveling up your “street rank” (which is like Fortnite’s Battle Pass), or by buying them from the Fortnite-like in-game store.

There’s all sorts of ways to customize your character.

Image: EA

If you want to check out Knockout City, EA is offering the full version of the game for free until May 30th on every platform where it’s available, which includes PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch. Knockout City supports both crossplay and cross-progression, so you can play with your friends no matter what platform they’re on and bring your progress over to other platforms. After the trial ends, the game will cost $19.99 — though if you have an EA Play or an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription, you’ll have access to the game with one of those, too.

While it’s free, I highly recommend giving Knockout City a chance. I think it really captures the feeling of playing dodgeball in video game form — and it feels so good when you nail a game-winning shot with a satisfying “whumphf.”

Knockout City is available now on the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch, and PC.

Chipmakers Are Finally Raising Prices Amid the Global Chip Shortage

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

Chipmakers might finally be cashing in on the global chip shortage. Times-Taipei News reported last week that since the second quarter of 2021, “more than 30 semiconductor companies have issued price adjustment letters, with product price increases ranging from 10% to 30%,” according to a translated version of the report.

Times-Taipei News said UMC, SMIC, and Power Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. are among the companies adjusting their prices. The reasons cited for those adjustments vary, but Rockchip reportedly said, “the cost of wafers, printed circuit boards, and packaging and testing have risen sharply to varying degrees.”

The price adjustments seem to vary by chip type. The report claimed that signal chain ICs saw price increases between 10% and 20%, for example, while the price of power management ICs was said to have risen between 10% and 30%. Some memory chips were also said to have risen in price by as much as 20%.

Those already steep increases might actually be tame compared to other adjustments. Times-Taipei News said that “the price of some IC products has soared dozens of times at present, which has caused difficulties in the production and operation of small and medium-sized enterprises,” per an “industry insider.”

There is at least one major exception to this trend: TSMC. According to the report, the company hasn’t issued any price increases, which means the world’s largest chipmaker is holding the line. Or at least it’s presenting that facade—its decision to end price discounts will have the same effect on the cost of its chips.

The effects of these price increases will probably still be felt throughout the industry, even without TSMC. Power management chips are nearly ubiquitous, for example, which means a wide variety of products could see their prices rise as well. That effect could also be compounded in products that rely on multiple types of chips.

DigiTimes also reported today that DRAM and NAND prices are expected to rise through the third quarter due to strong demand across various segments, panic buying spurred by the Chia cryptocurrency’s ascendancy, and limited supply of NAND flash device controllers leading to higher prices for those chips.

The report said that DRAM memory contract pricing rose “over 20%” in the second quarter, with “prices for PC DRAM chips hiking more than 25%,” per anonymous sources. DRAM contract prices are expected to rise an additional 10% to 20% in the third quarter, while NAND contract prices could rise by as much as 10%.

AMD CEO Lisa Su has made it clear she doesn’t think people should be too worried about the chip shortage. But at least in the short term, it’s going to be hard to find many products, from the PlayStation 5 to the latest graphics cards, and now it seems many of the devices that do manage to make it to consumers might cost more.

Gears of War 3 PlayStation 3 build released publicly

While Gears of War has always been published by Microsoft, the IP wasn’t always owned by the company. Back when Gears of War was still under Epic Games, the title was used for internal testing purposes, leading to a version of Gears of War 3 for the PlayStation 3. Now, this PS3 version of the game is publicly available for the first time.

Up until 2014, Epic Games owned the Gears of War IP. During development of Gears of War 3, the company prototyped a version of it for the PlayStation 3 as part of a technical test in May 2011, footage of which can be seen below:

To celebrate the 10 year anniversary of this unreleased version of the game, PixelButts, a QA developer and archivist, uploaded the PS3 build of Gears of War 3 to Archive.org. Epic Games previously confirmed that this build of the game was real but was never intended for a release – Unreal Tournament was also used for testing purposes.

Unfortunately, you can’t just burn a disc and boost this up on a PlayStation 3, to actually play this build of Gears of War 3, you would need a PS3 Dev Kit.

KitGuru Says: While this build won’t be playable for many, it is still nice to see this particular piece of gaming history preserved.

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Bungie will be beta testing Destiny 2 cross-play next week

Last week, Bungie accidentally switched on cross-play in Destiny 2, a feature that wasn’t expected to roll out until later this year. The feature was quickly disabled, but now the studio is ready for a proper beta test.

Between the 25th and 27th of May, Bungie will be officially testing cross-play in Destiny 2, allowing players from all supported platforms to team up and play a selection of Vanguard Strikes. Supported platforms of course include PlayStation and Xbox consoles, the PC version on Steam and the Google Stadia version.

Bungie will take on feedback from the beta test to further improve its cross-play implementation, which will then go live properly later this year, perhaps as part of a seasonal update to Destiny 2.

Players who completes three strikes during the cross-play beta will receive a unique emblem for participating.

KitGuru Says: Cross-play has always made perfect sense for Destiny 2, so its great to finally see some progress being made.

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Four lawsuits against CD Projekt over Cyberpunk 2077 launch combine

We’ve known for a while now that some investors were not pleased with how CD Projekt Red handled the launch of Cyberpunk 2077. This ended up spawning a few different lawsuits on behalf of shareholders, claiming that CD Projekt made misleading statements leading up to the game’s release. Now, these lawsuits are combining into one big case.

As reported by Eurogamer, four lawsuits filed against CD Projekt in December 2020 have now been combined into one and the court has appointed a lead plaintiff, paving the way for common court proceedings to start taking place.

CD Projekt has already responded to these lawsuits, publicly stating plans to ‘vigorously defend itself’ against these accusations. Specifically, CD Projekt will be arguing that it did not violate any US federal laws with its positive statements about Cyberpunk 2077 prior to its release.

The investors involved will argue that the company was misleading them as the game did not meet performance expectations on base consoles and was ultimately removed from the PlayStation Store.

KitGuru Says: Each of these lawsuits were similar, so consolidating it all into one case makes sense and saves time for everyone involved. Now we’ll have to wait and see how far this case goes.

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Days Gone PC Performance Benchmark – 30 GPUs tested!

Today we are back with another extensive performance analysis, as we check out the recently-released Days Gone. As the latest formerly PlayStation-exclusive title to come to the PC, we test thirty graphics cards in this game to find out exactly what sort of GPU you need to play at maximum image quality settings. Has this game launched in a better state than when Horizon Zero Dawn first came to PC? Let’s find out.

Watch via our Vimeo channel (below) or over on YouTube at 2160p HERE

The first thing to know about Days Gone is that it is developed by Sony’s Bend Studio, and is built on Unreal Engine 4. Interestingly though, it uses DirectX 11, and there’s no option for DX12. That means there’s no ray tracing or DLSS features in Days Gone, something which is becoming more unusual these days.

In terms of visual settings, there are a number of options in the display menu. Textures, lighting, shadows and more can all be adjusted, while it’s great to see a field of view (FOV) slider as well as a render scale setting. There’s also a selection of quick presets – Low, Medium, High and Very High – and for our benchmarking today we opted for the Very High preset, with V-Sync of course disabled.

Driver Notes

AMD GPUs were benchmarked with the 21.5.2 driver.
Nvidia GPUs were benchmarked with the 466.47 driver.

Test System

We test using the a custom built system from PCSpecialist, based on Intel’s Comet Lake-S platform. You can read more about it over HERE, and configure your own system from PCSpecialist HERE.

CPU	Intel Core i9-10900K Overclocked to 5.1GHz on all cores
Motherboard	ASUS ROG Maximus XII Hero Wi-Fi
Memory	Corsair Vengeance DDR4 3600MHz (4 X 8GB) CL 18-22-22-42
Graphics Card	Varies
System Drive	500GB Samsung 970 Evo Plus M.2
Games Drive	2TB Samsung 860 QVO 2.5″ SSD
Chassis	Fractal Meshify S2 Blackout Tempered Glass
CPU Cooler	Corsair H115i RGB Platinum Hydro Series
Power Supply	Corsair 1200W HX Series Modular 80 Plus Platinum
Operating System	Windows 10 2004

Our 1-minute benchmark pass came from quite early on in the game, as Deacon is riding on the back of Boozer’s motorbike, headed to Crazy Willie’s. This represents a reasonably demanding section of the game based on the first hour or so that I played through, and it is also highly repeatable which makes it great for benchmarking multiple GPUs.

1080p Benchmarks

1440p Benchmarks

2160p (4K) Benchmarks

Closing Thoughts

By and large, Days Gone is an impressive PC port that almost everyone will be happy with. I say almost everyone, as currently my main issue with the game is related to visible stuttering when using an RDNA 2 GPU. This didn’t happen for other AMD cards though, or Nvidia GPUs, so hopefully it is a quick fix for AMD’s driver team or the game’s developers.

As a DX11 title built on Unreal Engine 4, if we had to guess before testing the game, we would’ve thought Nvidia GPUs would perform the best, and that is certainly true. RTX 2070 Super is significantly faster than the RX 5700 XT, for example, while RTX 3070 also beats out the RX 6800 across the board, which isn’t something we usually see.

Even then, the game does run well across a wide variety of hardware. GTX 1060 and RX 580, for instance, aren’t far off from hitting 60FPS at 1080p with maximum image quality settings, with just a few small tweaks to the IQ needed to hit that figure. VRAM doesn’t appear to be in high demand either, with both the 4GB and 8GB versions of the RX 5500 XT performing almost identically.

If you do want to drop down some image quality settings, the game’s options scale well. We found that the High preset offered 35% more performance than Very High (which is more than enough to get a GTX 1060 averaging over 60FPS at 1080p), while you can almost double frame rates using the Low preset when compared to Very High.

The only other issue I noticed is what appears to be an animation hitching problem in the game, which is particularly noticeable when riding a motorbike – the game feels like it is slowing down but then correcting itself by speeding up again. This wasn’t a game breaker for me but it was most noticeable when frame rates were below 60FPS – the higher the frame rate, the less I noticed the issue.

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KitGuru says: Days Gone is definitely in a better state at launch than what we saw when Horizon Zero Dawn hit PCs in 2020. There’s a couple of issues to be fixed, but by and large this game performs well across a good range of graphics cards.

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