Month: July 2024

The disastrous 2024 Xbox is experiencing in numbers: an unparalleled drop in console sales

It is true that in the gaming world, hardware is the least important, as the king is the software. Everyone knows that you don’t make money from consoles but from video games, where the profit margin is higher, and it is easy to monetize a single development in the long term.

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Microsoft has just released the financial results for the fourth and final quarter of its fiscal year 2024. The software manufacturer reported revenues of $64.7 billion and net profits of $22 billion during the fourth quarter. Revenues have increased by 15% and net income by 10%.

Microsoft’s intelligent cloud revenue, which includes the company’s server products and cloud services, totaled $28.5 billion and increased 19% year-over-year. Revenue from this part of Microsoft’s business now represents nearly 45% of all revenue.

While cloud revenues remain strong, Microsoft’s consumer device momentum continues to decline. Xbox hardware revenues have fallen again, and the numbers are concerning.

Xbox division survives thanks to Activision Blizzard King

Xbox’s revenues from content and services, including Xbox Game Pass, increased by 61% this quarter. Activision Blizzard’s revenues have once again contributed to the majority of the revenues here, with a net impact of 58 points. Without Activision Blizzard’s revenues, Xbox’s revenues from content and services would have increased by 3% year-on-year.

Microsoft revealed in February that Xbox Game Pass has already reached 34 million subscribers, including Xbox Game Pass Core members (formerly Xbox Live Gold). Microsoft plans to launch a new Xbox Game Pass Standard plan soon, aimed at replacing the Xbox Game Pass console offer for new subscribers.

The price increase for Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass will not take effect until September. Game Pass Ultimate will cost $19.99 per month, which is an increase of $3 compared to the current price of $16.99 per month. PC Game Pass will also increase to $11.99 per month in September.

Xbox Series are not being sold, and it’s a problem

Although there is a lot of anticipation of seeing the new Xbox Game Pass games, console sales continue to suffer. Xbox hardware revenue has dropped 42% this quarter. Microsoft plans to release a white Xbox Series X console later this year, along with a new special edition Xbox Series X in Galaxy Black color.

Microsoft has also recently focused on the message of “no need for Xbox” for its cloud streaming efforts. Microsoft’s Xbox TV app has recently arrived on some Amazon Fire TV devices, shifting Microsoft’s attention away from solely marketing console hardware.

Despite the low hardware revenue from Xbox, Microsoft’s game revenue has increased by 44% overall, once again aided by the additional revenue from Activision Blizzard. In fact, that revenue accounted for 48 points, so Microsoft’s total game revenue would have decreased by 4% if the company had not acquired Activision Blizzard.

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Microsoft is not updating its Xbox Game Pass subscriber numbers this quarter, but the company did share a metric around active game users. “We now have over 500 million monthly active users across all platforms and devices,” said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella on an earnings call. “Our content portfolio has never been stronger.”

James Gunn announces the end of filming for Superman and gives more clues about its story

The DC universe will soon have its long-awaited reboot in cinema after the failure that was everything created by Zack Snyder, and with James Gunn on board, everything seems to have a much brighter and more creative trajectory. To make the foundations of their universe clear, Gunn decided to start from scratch with a Superman movie. And now, finally, filming has finished.

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As announced through social media, his Superman movie is now completely filmed and will be released on July 11, 2025. While we wait for this to happen, the director has also left a beautiful message about the reason behind the movie, which also gives us new clues about its story.

The Superman movie is on wheels

The message shared by James Gunn along with the photograph is as follows:

“And that’s it. God bless our cast and crew, whose commitment, creativity, and hard work have brought this project to life. I set out to make a film about a good man in a world that isn’t always so. And the kindness, the goodness, and the love that I have found daily on set have inspired me and propelled me forward when I felt too exhausted to go on my own. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart. It has been an honor. The destiny has been Superman, but the journey has been the effort, the laughter, the emotions, the ideas, and the magic that we have shared together on set, and for that, I will be eternally grateful.”

In addition, he clarified that the photograph is from the first week of filming the movie. They filmed in Svalbard, Norway, before going to the studios in the United States, where, in some way, they built Metropolis.

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The first Spanish Apple TV+ series has officially been announced: plot and release date

Apple TV+ has officially presented its first Spanish-language production series, Midnight Family. The series consists of 10 episodes and will premiere on September 25, 2024, offering two episodes on its debut, followed by a weekly episode until November 20 of the same year.

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Midnight Family, from the documentary of the same title

Midnight Family is based on the acclaimed documentary of the same name and tells the story of Marigaby Tamayo, played by Renata Vaca. Marigaby is an ambitious and talented medical student who, during the day, dedicates herself to her academic training and, at night, transforms into an urban hero by saving lives aboard her family’s private ambulance in the vibrant contrast of Mexico City. Accompanied by her father Ramón (Joaquín Cosío) and her brothers Marcus (Diego Calva) and Julito (Sergio Bautista), the Tamayo family provides emergency medical services to a population of millions, facing extreme situations to survive.

The production of the series is led by Fabula, under the direction of Juan de Dios Larraín and Pablo Larraín, renowned for their work on the Oscar-winning film A Fantastic Woman. In addition, it has a team of executive producers of great renown, including Ángela Poblete, Mariane Hartard, and Natalia Beristáin, the latter with previous work for Apple TV+ in her direction of the series The Mosquito Coast.

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This new project stands out not only for its intriguing plot and its focus on Hispanic talent, but also aligns with Apple TV+’s commitment to offer original and quality content, keeping diversity and cultural representation at the center of its productions. With Midnight Family, Apple TV+ delves into the heart of Spanish-speaking culture.

In iOS 18, Safari resumes any webpage: this is how the tool works that can change how we read on the internet

The latest available beta of iOS, version 18.1, brings Apple Intelligence and with it, a feature that can change the way we interact with content on the internet. This novelty is none other than the ability to automatically summarize web pages thanks to the integration of artificial intelligence from Apple in Safari.

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A preview before starting to read

Safari’s Reader Mode, already known for its ability to provide a cleaner and distraction-free reading experience, has been enhanced with the page summary feature made possible by Apple Intelligence. When activating reader view in Safari on iOS 18.1, we find a new button called “Summarize,” located at the top of the screen and below the title of the page we are viewing.

By pressing the button, an animation is displayed that simulates a scan of the page with the characteristic purple glow of Apple Intelligence. This scan takes only one or two seconds, and immediately after, the summary of the page is available. On the iPhone, this summary appears at the top of the page, while on the iPad and Mac, it is displayed in a sidebar.

Without replacing the reading of the original article in the vast majority of cases, summaries are indeed tremendously useful, providing a quick understanding of the content without the need to read the entire text. Aware that a single paragraph cannot replace an article, it is important to note that Safari’s summaries are not automatic or available in the normal view of the website. It is necessary to first activate Reader mode to access the summary option, and in addition, it must be requested manually each time we want it.

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In addition to being able to generate content, Apple Intelligence must greatly support us in information management. And in this field, text summarization is something to take into account. Summaries of a phone call recording, a long email, or an article on the internet greatly change how we interact with texts of a certain length. For now, we will have to wait for Apple Intelligence to incorporate other languages into its repertoire, but it is clear that being able to know what an article is about before diving into its reading is something to consider.

The CEO of Epic Games does not understand Apple’s “Find My”: “a super creepy surveillance technology”

Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, has been criticizing Apple’s Find My service on his X account, describing it as a “super creepy surveillance technology” that, in his opinion, “should not exist”. An attack that has surprised his own followers on the social network and that directly ignores the intentions and fundamental benefits of this function, designed precisely to protect users and devices.

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A service that acts as a deterrent by its mere existence

Find My, a service that allows you to locate lost or stolen Apple devices, has been a cornerstone in the company’s security strategy since its introduction. The ability to track a device is not only a deterrent against theft, but it is also a crucial resource for recovering stolen property. Sweeney’s criticism arises from a personal incident in which, years after “some guy” stole his laptop, the service showed him the location of the stolen device.

After several people explained to Sweeney how Find My works, the head of Epic Games defended his curious point of view by arguing that this technology should not allow the tracking of people, “neither second-hand product buyers nor thieves”.

Regarding the first point, disabling Find My iPhone on a device that is going to be sold or given away is as easy as pressing a button and entering the Apple ID password. As for protecting the privacy of thieves, Find My iPhone does not involve tracking people without their consent, but rather tracks devices linked to a specific Apple ID account.

En este contexto, el argumento de Sweeney de que la localización de los dispositivos debería ser “mediada por el proceso legal” parece impráctico y desconectado de la realidad. Especialmente en casos donde no ha habido un robo, sino más bien olvido. Localizar el taxi donde se ha dejado un dispositivo, o recibir una notificación si se deja un Mac en Starbucks, no debería requerir un procedimiento legal. Sin mencionar que es precisamente con la localización del dispositivo robado que una persona puede recurrir a las autoridades para recuperarlo.

The truth is that cases like these give publicity to a feature that, by its mere existence, discourages theft. Other features, such as activation lock, which prevents anyone except the legitimate owner of a device from using it, are aimed in the same direction.

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In this sense, it is surprising that the CEO of a technology company does not understand what a location service is for your own devices. Not to mention that Google offers the same functionality for Android devices. Since its arrival, the Find My service has proven to be a valuable tool that fully respects privacy. Its effectiveness as a deterrent against theft is undeniable and has been praised by both users and security experts.

Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero receives 15 new characters: many classics among them

The saga of the Saiyans and Planet Namek, the main protagonists.

Bandai Namco continues to announce characters that will be coming to the highly anticipated Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero. On this occasion, the Japanese company has revealed a total of 15 new fighters through a fun trailer, where they gradually appear.

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The study has focused on two very specific moments of Dragon Ball: the Saiyan saga and the Namek planet. For this reason, the announced fighters are related to this period of time within the Dragon Ball chronology.

The list is as follows:

  • Chaos
  • Saibaman
  • Cui
  • Dodoria
  • Zarbon
  • Super Zarbon
  • Nail
  • Freeza Form 1
  • Freeza Form 2
  • Freeza Form 3
  • Freeza Form 4
  • Freeza Form 4 FINAL 100%
  • Guldo
  • Recoome
  • Ginyu

Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero is scheduled for October 10, 2024. The game will be available only for next-generation consoles, that is, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X | S. It will also be released on PC.

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The decision that Activision made in Call Of Duty that absolutely nobody liked

It has been widely accepted in online video games for a long time that you have to compete against people of the same level. It doesn’t make much sense to be beaten by a master or feel that victory has been too easy: it’s called SBMM (Skill-based matchmaking), where each match will always be a challenge, but one that players feel they can overcome without much trouble.

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Call of frustration

Now, Activision has revealed all its tricks to match players by skill and, above all, what happened when they secretly decided to deactivate the option and have everyone face each other: “Everyone hated it, more people left the games, there was less play and more anger and negative reactions.“ You didn’t need an investigation for that, really.

The truth is, it is always fun to face a challenge to push players to be more efficient, but if they are overcome time and time again, they simply decide that multiplayer is not their thing, and they don’t try to participate again. Considering that the vast majority of Call of Duty is based on multiplayer, it was a noteworthy finding.

That doesn’t mean they don’t play with the idea of ​​creating confrontations that don’t use personal skill as a factor to unite rivals, knowing full well that the worst players would never get into that mode, leaving it only for those who have skills far superior to the normal ones. Who knows. The future is unwritten.

Perhaps some find it fun to feel crushed (or crush) another team and have them withdraw out of sheer exhaustion. Activision has promised to study it. Because, hey, you never know where the future of video games may be.

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Twitch Can Become a ‘Zombie Brand,’ According to its Employees

Employees believe there will be more layoffs given the platform’s losses.

Twitch continues to accumulate bad news. After the dismissal of more than 400 people during the past year of 2023, and more than 500 employees at the beginning of this 2024, the streaming platform may be on the verge of another wave of layoffs by the end of this same year.

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A recent report, published by The Wall Street Journal, has made it very clear that Twitch employees see the platform as a ‘zombie brand.’ In other words, Twitch would be in a similar boat as Goodreads, a website where there are hardly any workers due to its low economic performance. After all, the latter is the ultimate problem.

According to Dan Clancy, Twitch CEO, the streaming platform continues being non-profitable to date. This means that after a decade of being acquired by Amazon, Twitch is not generating profits, but rather constant losses within the annual accounts of the infamous digital store.

In addition to this, Twitch’s business volume is very small compared to what Amazon represents today. According to this report, Twitch generated $667 million in advertising revenue during this past 2023, while commercial revenues reached $1.3 billion. Despite these figures, they only represent 0.5% of Amazon’s total revenue.

Although Twitch was expected to continue growing steadily after the boom during the COVID-19 pandemic, the reality is that the audiovisual service is experiencing fewer subscriptions, fewer viewers, and less advertising revenue. In summary, all indicators are worsening on a platform that is no longer profitable. Unfortunately, a new round of layoffs seems feasible…

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Why aren’t Mario and Sonic in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games? NFTs are partly to blame

The International Olympic Committee did not want to renew the license with Nintendo and SEGA because they wanted “more money.”

Last Friday, the Paris 2024 Olympic Games kicked off. It’s three weeks where the best athletes from all over the world come together in different sports disciplines, in addition to days where there is a lot of material related to the event. And yes, video games are included here, such as Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, but why don’t we have anything about them?

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Since 2007, the characters from Nintendo and SEGA have joined forces to share the screen, an anniversary that in the 90s would have been unthinkable, but had already become something common after almost fifteen years together. However, now we have not had the relevant edition related to Paris, and the blame lies with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) itself.

According to Eurogamer, Lee Cocker, one of the most authoritative voices in the franchise as a license manager, explained that the IOC decided not to renew the licensing agreement with Nintendo and SEGA because they wanted to make more money in multiple ways. “They wanted to seek other partners, NFTs, and esports. Basically, the IOC wanted to refocus on themselves and aimed to obtain more money,” says Cocker.

In the face of this movement, the Committee decided it was time to let go of Mario and Sonic, despite having released a total of six installments. The first of them was the original Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games in 2007, while the latest was Mario & Sonic at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Currently, the Paris 2024 Olympic Games have an official championship title. It is available for smartphones and is called Olympics Go! Paris 2024. It is completely free, but through its website you can also purchase NFTs in the form of commemorative pins.

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Do you want to try the rival of EA Sports FC? There is a new open beta for UFL

The second beta will start on August 2 and end on the 4th

Anticipation was high when the UFL soccer video game launched its first open beta last June, and since then, more than 1.3 million players have joined. If you’re hungry for more, we have good news: another open beta is on the way.

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To be exact, the next beta will start August 2nd and will end August 4th. It is expected to be available on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X | S, with the possibility of downloading the beta now to save some time, which is a great idea.

It should be noted that the players’ original criticisms were harsh, but that is precisely what the development team was seeking so that they could obtain maximum feedback possible from a game that we still knew nothing about. In this regard, the studio has gathered all the relevant criticisms and implemented solutions and corrections as much as possible.

Many aspects have been fixed in the second beta, including more detailed animations, smoother gameplay, new game mechanics introduced, and a revamped reputation system, among other features.

The beta in question will feature an online mode so that players can compete against each other. In fact, it will also include crossplay between PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X | S, so we will be able to play against users on the other console. This helps to find a match more quickly and efficiently.

Currently, there is no official launch date for UFL. We do know that it will be completely free to play the day it is released on the market, but will have its microtransactions, of course.

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