Customers of Lloyds Bank are being given the ability to unsubscribe from services they signed up to during downtime caused by the coronavirus lockdown. The bank says that subscription services can be amended or cancelled from within its mobile banking app using just three clicks.
Lloyds, which also runs Halifax and Bank of Scotland, has been piloting the new service and plans to launch in the next few months. Customers of the three banks will be able to sign up for automatic notifications when subscriptions are due to be billed, or if price rises are planned.
Most banks let their customers manage core features online, including the ability to cancel direct debits and standing orders. Many offer this functionality through their mobile apps, but the ability to cancel subscription services, which have quadrupled during lockdown, is less common.
The bank has seen record numbers of sign-ups for digital services during the lockdown, with 1.3 million in March and a further 600,000 in April. Popular options have included TV streaming services and online food deliveries. The ability to cancel subscriptions via the app means that customers will no longer have to call their bank.
Simplified subscriptions
Nick Edwards, Digital Service Director, Lloyds Bank, said: “Customers have been able to manage direct debits and standing orders online for some time. With the growing popularity of subscription services we’ve launched this market leading service to respond to our customers’ desire for more control and flexibility in the ways they manage their money.
With over 16 million customers online and 12 million using our mobile app, this is one in a series of new and exciting features we are launching this year to continually improve customers online experience.”
The new service is being provided through partnerships with Minna Technologies, a Swedish FinTech, and Visa.
AMD plans to release its 3rd Generation EPYC processors, codenamed Milan, sometimes in late 2020, so it is not surprising that virtually all of its partners are busy testing early samples of the CPUs.
With thousands of samples in the wild, leaks become almost inevitable, as seen this past weekend where some preliminary information about the upcoming CPUs got published.
AMD’s 3rd Generation EPYC processors are based on the Zen 3 microarchitecture and feature EPYC Rome-like nine-die MCM design. Meanwhile, the new Zen 3 Core Complex Dies (CCDs) are made using an improved version of TSMC’s 7 nm process technology. In total, the CPUs are set to offer up to 64 cores with SMT, 128 PCIe 4.0 lanes, and an eight-channel DDR4-3200 memory subsystem. The new processors continue to use AMD’s SP3 socket and feature a TDP of up to 225 W – 240 W.
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AMD EPYC
As it turns out, AMD decided to alter internal arrangement of its CCDs with its Zen 3 cores. Previously, each CCD features two quad-core Core Complexes (CCXs) with 16 MB of L3 cache per CCX. With Zen 3, each CCX features eight cores and a unified ‘32+ MB’ L3 cache. Such a CCD design lowers internal latencies and promises to improve instructions per clock (IPC) performance.
(Image credit: AMD)
Reports have already emerged of one AMD partner currently testing three EPYC ‘Milan’ CPUs featuring 64 and 32 cores and marked as 100-000000114-07 (64 cores, 9-die MCM with 256 MB of L3), 100-000000114-09 (64 cores, 9-die MCM with 256 MB of L3), and 100-000000117-03 (32 cores, 5-die MCM with 128 MB of L3). All the processors are based on the early A0 stepping silicon.
AMD’s 64-core 100-000000114-09 processor features a 1.6 GHz base clock as well as a 3 GHz boost frequency, whereas the 32-core 100-000000117-03 CPU runs at 1.8 GHz base and 3 GHz boost clocks. By contrast, today’s EPYC 7002 ‘Rome’ chips operate at up to 2.6 GHz base and up to 3.4 GHz boost frequencies.
Typically, early versions of CPUs are not supposed to run at high clocks, so expect final AMD EPYC 7003 processors to feature higher frequencies. Meanwhile, 3 GHz for a 64-core MCM seems high enough for A0 silicon, so it is plausible to expect AMD’s 3rd Generation EPYC processors to feature rather high clocks.
Also check out our complete list of the best business laptops: top devices for working from home, SMB and more
Apple is preparing to sell a lot more MacBook Pro laptops in the near future, after having already flogged a lot of them – and other MacBooks – according to recent figures.
As MacRumors spotted, according to DigiTimes, Apple will ‘significantly increase’ the amount of MacBook Pros it will be ordering in the third quarter of 2020, and overall MacBook shipments are expected to rise 20% compared to Q2 (going by sources in the component supply chain).
The report claims that Apple shifted around 3.2 million to 3.5 million MacBooks in Q2, and that will increase to about 4 million in Q3.
As ever, any DigiTimes report needs to be treated with a fair helping of wariness, as it isn’t always the most accurate source, but it has certainly proved to be on the mark (or thereabouts) a number of times in the past.
Working from home
A lot of this increase in MacBook sales is driven by the folks who are now working at home due to the Covid-19 outbreak, an uptick which was originally thought to only have an impact for a limited time, but now the expectation is sales will be driven by this for a lot longer than anticipated.
In the case of the MacBook Pro, the sales are coming from creatives, unsurprisingly, with a lot more of these professionals working from home instead of the office.
So, prospects look good for the next quarter, after impressive sales in the second quarter already, as we’ve also seen from recent figures for Mac sales provided by Gartner which observed a sizable uptick in Q2 2020 compared to the previous year.
What’ll be really interesting, of course, is to see how sales change when Apple starts offering its new ARM-based MacBooks, the first two of which are expected to arrive late in 2020.
If that launch happens to coincide with a falloff in coronavirus-related demand for Apple’s portables, that could be rather unfortunate timing which could cancel out any potential gains – unless the ARM-powered MacBooks are really popular, of course, which is doubtless what Tim Cook is hoping for.
Or indeed this could exacerbate any failure, but of course all this is simply speculation based on a rumor, and as ever we’ll just have to wait and see how future MacBooks pan out.
Businesses are losing millions annually due to failed transactions, new research has found.
The report from GoCardless claims that the number is increasing year on year, with businesses that use manual, labour-intensive procedures to chase up and collect cash suffering the worst.
GoCardless survey data has found that enterprise businesses could be losing up to £1m annually and those in the mid-market circa £200k plus. Small businesses could be taking a hit of over £6k a year.
Payments collected via digital wallets were identified as having the highest failure rate at 12%. These were closely followed by credit and debit cards, at 8.2%, which is nearly three times as high as businesses using optimisation services like those offered by GoCardless.
Improving payments
Duncan Barrigan, Chief Product Officer, GoCardless, said: “Payment failures are widely accepted as an inevitability. We don’t believe this should be the case. They can seriously hurt a business - they are costly and can damage reputation and customer relationships.”
Without embracing new technology, business are spending thousands unnecessarily, with additional financial services costing £140,400, IT £138,800, health and wellbeing £86,400 and utilities £85,200 per annum according to survey data.
Charlie Francis, Founder and Director at Equation Training, an online fitness coaching and personal training business said: “When I was first starting out, I used to have to manually chase payments that failed. Now that I have Success+ in place, it means a process that used to take 2-3 hours a week now doesn’t take me any time at all.”
Traditional gaming consoles have come a long way from using proprietary components. Today, home entertainment essentials like the Xbox One, PS4 and Nintendo Switch all feature components derivative of mid-to-lower tier gaming PCs. Both the Playstation 4 and Xbox One even use similar chipsets provided by AMD.
Mid-console cycle releases through the Playstation 4 Pro and Xbox One X brought 4K gaming into the mix despite having issues matching higher tier gaming rig performance. With the Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X slated to hit shelves this upcoming holiday, expect these next-gen devices to follow suit as well. Take a look at the reported specs below:
Xbox Series X
CPU: 3.8ghz Custom Zen 2
RAM: 16GB GDDR6
GPU: 12 TFLOPs, 1.825ghz RDNA 2
Storage: 1tb Custom NVME SSD
(Image credit: Sony)
Playstation 5
CPU: 3.5ghz Custom Zen 2
RAM: 16GB GDDR6
GPU: 10.28 TFLOPs, 2.23GHz RDNA 2
Storage: 825GB SSD
Though highly touted buzzwords like Ray Tracing and SSDs may sound like relatively new technologies for next-gen consoles, PC gamers have been enjoying those features for a few years now. It’s similar to the streaming/sharing and multitasking capabilities of eighth-gen hardware that were familiar to PC users when they launched. Doesn’t hurt that a large majority of popular third-party games from AAA studios like Electronic Arts, Activision, Bethesda Studios and Rockstar Games are also available for PC.
Most of the time, PC ports simply run better with proper optimization. Purchasing a console is also significantly cheaper as the next-gen releases are reportedly slated to run around $500. Meanwhile, a top of the line graphics card alone can run as high as $2,499 (£2,452, AU$4,599) for the Nvidia Titan RTX. That doesn’t even consider additional costs like a case, power supply, sound output, motherboard, CPU and storage. However, PCs still offer everything from a fully functional operating system for non gaming tasks to modding.
At this very moment, individuals with expendable funds can build their own rigs capable of matching PS5 and Xbox Series X specs. So, we went ahead and picked out the components you’ll need to build a gaming PC that can outpower the PS5 and Xbox Series X – in theory, at least.
CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
(Image credit: AMD)
Both the PS4 and Xbox One featured versions of AMD’s eight-core x86-64 Jaguar chipset when they launched in 2013. The PS5 and Xbox Series X will stick to AMD processors through their Zen 2 line of CPUs. With clock speeds between 3.5GHz - 3.8GHz between eight-cores and 16 threads, this is a significant jump from its predecessors relatively weak CPUs hovering around 1.6GHz.
As of now, the comparable AMD Ryzen 7 3700X can churn out 3.6GHz - 3.9GHz through its eight cores and 16 threads. Cost for that chipset currently runs around $300 on average; more than half the estimated price of a next-gen console.
Graphics Card: Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super
(Image credit: Nvidia)
The most expensive component for those looking to have their gaming rig match-up with Microsoft and Sony’s next gen consoles is undoubtedly the graphics card. This is where things also get a bit tricky. Both next-gen consoles are set to include GPUs based on the upcoming AMD RDNA 2 graphics architecture, launching by the end of the year. These graphics cards will be the first from AMD to offer Ray Tracing capabilities. Ray Tracing will allow for more realistic shadows, reflections and just better visual fidelity.
Games including Control, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Battlefield V and Metro Exodus support the feature currently exclusive to Nvidia’s Turing series of graphics cards. Though it’s possible to purchase an Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 for $299 (£299, AU$599), next-gen games are probably going to require more than that card’s available 6GBs of video ram. For a graphics card that could compete with the PS5 and Series X’s 4K abilities at 60 frames-per-second, one is going to have to buy the more powerful Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super with 8GBs of video ram and 11.15 TFLOPs. That’ll start at $699 (about £560, AU$990).
Memory: 16GB DDR4
(Image credit: Corsair)
The PS5 and Series X will make a jump from 8GBs (GDDR5) system RAM to 16GBs (GDDR6) this time around. Be mindful that consoles share RAM between CPU and graphics cards as opposed to PCs utilizing separate video ram for rendering. Probably the cheapest component to acquire, one can find 16GB of RAM online for less than $100 (£100, AU$140).
SSD: Adata XPG SX8200 1TB
(Image credit: Adata)
Next-gen consoles are leaving Hard Disc Drives alone for Solid-State-Drives which promises notably faster load-times. Around the initial announcement of the PS5, Sony used PS4 exclusive Marvel’s Spidermanto showcase those improvements. Loading times using a “low-speed” version of the PS5 development kit reduced a fast-travel screen load time from 15 seconds to 0.8 seconds. For the impressive Unreal Engine 5 demo, Epic Games recommended using the faster NVMe SSD. SSDs are so commonplace now in PC gaming that the average 1TB hard drive can be purchased for a little under $200.
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 650 G5
(Image credit: EVGA)
In order to run the RTX 2080 Super, a power supply of at least 650W will be required. EVGA’s SuperNOVA 650 G5 costs $134 (£104, AU$191) and even comes with a ten year warranty as well.
Motherboard: MSI MPG X570 GAMING PRO CARBON WIFI Gaming Motherboard
(Image credit: MSI)
There are several things to consider when choosing a motherboard, including processor compatibility and audio capabilities alongside internal connectivity specs like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and the amount of USB ports. The MSI MPG X570 Gaming Pro Carbon WIFI, which comes in at $250 (£219, AU$354) is a perfect example of how the best motherboards can compete with the PS5 and Xbox Series X.
Case: Cooler Master Silencio S600
(Image credit: Cooler Master)
A slick case can be just as attractive as anything from Microsoft and Sony if one knows where to look. For this rig, the Cooler Master Silencio S600 is recommended for its all-black styling that matches the futuristic design of the Xbox Series X. To keep everything running at optimal efficiency, there’s plenty of ventilation available and two Silencio fans for quieter operation. The Cooler Master Silencio S600 also comes with an SD card reader, two USB slots and audio jack through it’s $100 (£100, AU$140) price tag.
Developers of the infamous TrickBot banking trojan have accidentally coded in a feature that alerts infected users to its presence on their device.
Traditionally, TrickBot malware is distributed via phishing campaigns and operates stealthily on an infected machine, scraping credentials, stealing from cryptocurrency wallets and opening the door to secondary attacks.
It was also recently found to contain a mechanism that checks the victim’s screen resolution to determine whether it is running in a virtual machine, allowing operators to hinder the attempts of researchers to analyze the malware.
However, according to security researcher Vitali Kremez of Advanced Intel, the TrickBot creators are accidentally circulating a version that serves a warning message to users whose credentials have been stolen, thereby alerting them to the infection.
TrickBot malware
Kremez believes TrickBot’s “grabber” module is responsible for the alert, designed to scrape saved passwords and cookies from popular web browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer and Edge.
When working as intended, the module allows TrickBot to stealthily lift login credentials and gain access to the victim’s online accounts - including social media, email, online retailers etc. - but in this instance accidentally reports the malicious activity to the victim.
“Warning - you see this message because the program named grabber gathered some information from your browser,” reads the pop-up alert.
“If you do not know what is happening it is the time to start be worrying (sic). Please, ask your system administrator for details.”
According to Kremez, the module is “coded in the same fashion” as the wider TrickBot malware, suggesting the same developers are responsible. The only explanation for this eccentricity, he claims, is that the creators forgot to remove the self-reporting functionality when a new test build went live.
Users served the error message are advised to disconnect from the internet and scan their machine using antivirus software. Once any malware has been removed, users should change all passwords for accounts logged into via the affected browser.
Check out our list of the best antivirus services available
When the design of the PS5 was finally unveiled, it’s fair to say it left fans split down the middle. Some people loved it, praising its futuristic look and sleek curved lines, while others hated it, comparing it to a Wi-Fi router or a poorly-made concept render.
One thing that is most divisive, however, is the console’s two-tone color scheme, which mirrors the DualSense controller’s white and black design. We’re used to seeing white special editions of Sony’s consoles, but the company has historically opted for black plastic, ever since the PlayStation 2 days. So will we see a black PS5?
Well, according to a leaked piece of marketing material from Sony, a black and red PS5 could be on the way. Shared by ResetEra user BarrBarr, the photo is apparently part of a Sony promotion for stores to try and incentivize staff to sell more Sony Xperia products.
(Image credit: BarrBarr via ResetEra)
While the picture clearly shows a black PS5 and DualSense controller with red led lighting instead of blue, there are a few tell tale signs that the image may have been manipulated in photoshop. For a start, a blue hue remains on the inside of the PS5’s distinctive ‘popped-collar’, and the rear side of the DualSense controller is clearly white.
Is a black and red PS5 likely, then? Honestly, the odds are unlikely, but we do know we’ll see different console designs in the future. PlayStation’s vice president of UX design Matt Maclauri said that players can “count on even more beautiful (and hopefully radical) special editions” in the future.
For now, though, if you don’t like the PS5 design, you’re out of luck until Sony reveals a new edition of its upcoming next-gen console.
Hyper Scape, Ubisoft’s new contender for the best battle royale game, is now available for PC gamers to download and play in open beta.
Following a new gameplay trailer which was showcased in the Ubisoft Forward event, the open beta of the futuristic shooter – which is kind of like a streamlined and stripped-down Apex Legends with even more emphasis on mobility, and some interesting extra touches – has been unleashed.
The Hyper Scape beta comes with four game modes. Crown Rush Squad is the main game, with the winner being the last team standing, except you can also take an alternative route to victory by keeping hold of a crown that appears in the late game. Crown Rush Solo is the same except players aren’t in squads, but are playing as lone wolves.
Ubisoft notes that two ‘limited time’ modes will be appearing soon – Hack Runner Squad and Turbo Mode Squad – but doesn’t give any info as to exactly what these will be yet. Furthermore, a new weapon and hack have been added to the game for the open beta.
Royale twists
Hyper Scape has some interesting different twists on battle royale, as mentioned, including a fresh mechanic for how the battlefield – a virtual city, an urban environment offering towering heights and jump pads – closes in, with sections of the map simply disappearing and buildings slowly phasing out of existence in the virtual world.
And there’s a whole additional social mechanic whereby viewers on Twitch can trigger different events in the game, like low gravity, or haste, which increases the speed at which the game plays.
All this happens via the CrownCast Twitch extension, with extra features like streamers having the ability to directly invite viewers to play in their squad, which is pretty nifty. Watching streamed games can also progress your battle pass, too, further rewarding spectators.
Of course, the best way to get an idea of what Hyper Scape is all about is to just give it a spin yourself, which you can now do. Download the open beta here, and meanwhile check out the latest gameplay trailer above.
Hyper Scape, Ubisoft’s new contender for the best battle royale game, is now available for PC gamers to download and play in open beta.
Following a new gameplay trailer which was showcased in the Ubisoft Forward event, the open beta of the futuristic shooter – which is kind of like a streamlined and stripped-down Apex Legends with even more emphasis on mobility, and some interesting extra touches – has been unleashed.
The Hyper Scape beta comes with four game modes. Crown Rush Squad is the main game, with the winner being the last team standing, except you can also take an alternative route to victory by keeping hold of a crown that appears in the late game. Crown Rush Solo is the same except players aren’t in squads, but are playing as lone wolves.
Ubisoft notes that two ‘limited time’ modes will be appearing soon – Hack Runner Squad and Turbo Mode Squad – but doesn’t give any info as to exactly what these will be yet. Furthermore, a new weapon and hack have been added to the game for the open beta.
Royale twists
Hyper Scape has some interesting different twists on battle royale, as mentioned, including a fresh mechanic for how the battlefield – a virtual city, an urban environment offering towering heights and jump pads – closes in, with sections of the map simply disappearing and buildings slowly phasing out of existence in the virtual world.
And there’s a whole additional social mechanic whereby viewers on Twitch can trigger different events in the game, like low gravity, or haste, which increases the speed at which the game plays.
All this happens via the CrownCast Twitch extension, with extra features like streamers having the ability to directly invite viewers to play in their squad, which is pretty nifty. Watching streamed games can also progress your battle pass, too, further rewarding spectators.
Of course, the best way to get an idea of what Hyper Scape is all about is to just give it a spin yourself, which you can now do. Download the open beta here, and meanwhile check out the latest gameplay trailer above.
The Xbox Series X may not have many confirmed exclusives but, according to Xbox boss Phil Spencer, that's because Xbox Series X-only games would be "completely counter to what gaming is about".
In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Spencer explained that Xbox Series X exclusives would stop many players from being able to experience those games – which is not something the company is looking to do.
"As a player you are the center of our strategy," Spencer said. "Our device is not the center of our strategy, our game is not the center of the strategy. We want to enable you to play the games you want to play, with the friends you want to play with, on any device.
"Gaming is about entertainment and community and diversion and learning new stories and new perspectives, and I find it completely counter to what gaming is about to say that part of that is to lock people away from being able to experience those games."
PS5 games: all the games confirmed for the PlayStation 5
Microsoft and Sony's approaches to next-gen exclusives have been polar opposites. While Sony is intent on moving PS4 players to the PS5 as quickly as possible, encouraging the upgrade with tantalizing PS5 exclusives such as Horizon Forbidden West and Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Microsoft has promised it won't have any Xbox Series X exclusives for the first few years, and that Xbox One players won't be left behind in the leap to next-gen.
So far the Xbox Series X looks like it could be the most accessible next-gen hardware, both in theory and practically. Microsoft is looking at Xbox as a family of consoles, with each member continuing to play a part, which is evident with the Xbox Series X's four generations of backwards compatibility and its innovative Smart Delivery feature, which will ensure that players only have to buy a game once to get the best possible version of it.
Not only that, but it looks like the Xbox Series X could be the more affordable of the two consoles, with Sony's Jim Ryan stating the PS5 won't necessarily be the lowest priced next-gen console. In addition, Microsoft has stated that its Xbox All Access program, a subscription service that allows players to pay off their Xbox Series X or Xbox One console in chunks rather than all at once, is "critical" to its next-gen strategy.
While Microsoft's lack of Xbox Series X exclusives may be somewhat frustrating to some, the company's strategy is certainly much more accessible than Sony's, aiming to ensure that Xbox players will not be priced out of the next-gen experience.
We might not have a price or a confirmed release date for the Xbox Series X yet, but the box art for Microsoft’s next-gen console games has been revealed – and it’s basically what we’ve already got now.
Microsoft has committed to supporting the Xbox One with all Xbox Series X releases, which means games like Far Cry 6 (shown below) and Halo Infinite will also run on Xbox One. For that reason, then, the Xbox Series X box art is basically what we already have now.
(Image credit: Microsoft)
Games that are optimized for Xbox Series X will display a rather unmissable badge that points out that the title will take advantage of the next-gen console’s additional graphical grunt. A black bar underneath the platform banner also points out which consoles the game supports.
Far Cry 6 was announced during the Ubisoft Forward event, which took place on Sunday, July 12. The game will star Breaking Bad’s Giancarlo Esposito (Gus Fring) as the game’s main antagonist, and is set to release on Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PS4, PS5, PC and Stadia on February 18, 2021.
Boxing match
We’ve seen that the PS5 box art is slightly different from its predecessor, and mirrors the consoles new two-tone styling. However, Microsoft’s goal to make Xbox one homogeneous place to play is clear with the Xbox Series X games box art, and hopefully is clear enough for consumers who are looking to buy their favorite titles in the future.
Fraudsters are using lapsed web domains to redirect visitors to dangerous URLs, designed to spread adware and other forms of malicious content.
According to security firm Kaspersky, around 1,000 inactive domains are rigged to redirect users to blacklisted pages, some of which are capable of triggering malware downloads.
Cybercriminals used these thousand domains to route users to over 2,500 unrelated URLs, 89% of which were designed to generate advertising profits (malvertising campaigns) and 11% either contained malicious code or prompted the visitor to download infected documents and executables.
If a company or individual decides not to renew their ownership of a web domain, the URL traditionally redirects visitors to an auction stub notifying them of its availability.
However, in some instances, hackers have found a way to replace the auction stub with a dangerous redirect mechanism. Kaspersky believes scams of this kind are likely made possible by flaws in ad filtering systems.
Researchers found one of the malicious pages identified received an average of 600 redirects every ten days, with hackers likely receiving payment based on the number of visitors funneled to the site.
“Unfortunately, there is little users can do to avoid being redirected to a malicious page. The domains that have these redirects were - at one point - legitimate resources...and there is no way of knowing whether or not they are now transferring visitors to pages that download malware,” explained Dmitry Kondratyev, Junior Malware Analyst at Kaspersky.
“In general, malvertising schemes like these are complex, making them difficult to fully uncover, so your best defense is to have a comprehensive security solution on your device.”
Beyond installing high-quality antivirus software, Kaspersky also noted users can minimize the risk of infection by installing applications and updates from trusted sources only.
Nvidia is pulling the plug on its higher-end graphics cards for the current Turing generation, and production of the GeForce RTX 2070 and 2070 Super, plus the RTX 2080 Super and 2080 Ti is being halted, according to a new rumor.
We’d be careful around this particular piece of speculation, as it doesn’t come from what we’d describe as a trusted source, but still, this is apparently the case according to a Chinese tech publication IThome (as spotted by Tom’s Hardware).
While this is good news on the face of it – production is stopping because Nvidia is about to launch its next-gen Ampere (likely RTX 3000) graphics cards, or that’s the theory, and one the rumor mill has been peddling lately – there is some bad news here too.
Namely that these current high-end RTX 2000 series cards are set to have their prices hiked imminently, so if you do wish to buy a speedy Nvidia graphics card in the very near future, you’re going to be paying through the nose for it.
Supply and demand
At least that’s the allegation, and we’d be particularly cautious about this. IThome argues that because stock of these Turing GPUs will be dwindling, obviously enough with things winding down, plus apparently TSMC, the foundry that makes the cards, is focusing elsewhere anyway, with supply issues therein too.
Couple this with a reported increase in demand for crypto-mining GPUs – yes, that’s a thing again apparently – and you’ve got supply and demand issues pulling in nasty directions, with graphics cards thinner on the ground as a result. Meaning one thing: rising prices for these RTX 2070 and 2080 models.
As we said, though, the price rise element of this rumor certainly needs a good deal of salt tossed around, but the state of play with production of these GPUs being wound down is obviously perfectly believable given that RTX 3000 graphics cards are expected to be launched soon anyway.
The most recent rumor we’ve heard is that Nvidia is targeting a September launch – and AMD may be as well – with mass production cranking up in August, and indeed IThome has floated a date of September 17 for the launch of Ampere GPUs.
If that date is about on the money, that gives us two more months of Turing products being on sale – but perhaps only a few weeks before the prices of these current-gen models start rising (perhaps being the key word here).
Right now, many governments around the world are pushing what are merely ‘exposure notification’ apps for smartphone users rather than full-blown contact tracing apps. Proper contact tracing includes the ability to track down and pinpoint where exposure and transmission has actually occurred through interviewing those infected about their patterns, recent movement and visits.
About the author
Chester Wisniewski, Principal Research Scientist, Sophos.
Exposure notification apps simply let users know if they were in close proximity to someone else using the app who’s exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms. They offer far less certainty in their notifications to individuals, and in balancing privacy concerns with public health considerations, they typically offer far less useful information to public health authorities.
How exposure notification apps fall short
Exposure notification apps rely on the Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) radio in a smart device to keep a log of all the other devices using the same app within range of the user’s phone. Don’t be fooled by the “Low Energy” designation. The radio has the same strength and range as traditional Bluetooth, so most user devices will likely keep a log of other phones within a range of 10 metres (33 feet) or more.
This will help in wide open public spaces, as the app can estimate the distance between a user’s phone and the vast majority of phones out there. When someone suspects they have symptoms or tests positive for COVID-19, public health authorities can set the app to only notify phones that were close enough for long enough. At the moment epidemiologists recommend this to be set at two metres (6 feet) for 15 minutes or more, but if our understanding changes, public health authorities can adjust the app settings.
Unfortunately, Bluetooth radio waves travel quite efficiently through drywall, glass and other barriers that prevent the transmission of COVID-19. This means there’s potentially a reasonably high level of false positive notifications for people in densely populated urban areas. They also are quite easily blocked by the human body, making distance measurements unreliable.
The tech also doesn’t know when or if the user wears personal protective equipment (PPE). It’s believed that the rate of transmission drops dramatically for those who are potentially infected yet wear a face mask or shield. Apps don’t know when the user takes responsible protective measures.
Privacy issues
The UK’s NHSX app as well the one developed in Australia tried to make a go of using a decentralized approach, but have found that neither app can deliver on what it promises without the help of Google and Apple. Apple has designed iOS to not allow applications to use Bluetooth for tracking purposes, both as a battery-saving technique and for privacy. For any app to work in countries where the iPhone has any market share, the app will need Apple’s blessing.
Google and Apple have decided that privacy remains paramount and aim to prevent apps from using their APIs if they collect location or other personal information. Unfortunately, this is precisely the information public health authorities need to battle this pandemic.
Oddly, this privacy-first approach only becomes mandatory when providers want to develop exposure notification apps. Every other app on our devices collects nearly unlimited amounts of personal information and tracks our every movement, online and off, with only a brief popup for permission.
Time to compromise?
Usually, I am the first in line to argue for privacy, but these are not ordinary times. Public health authorities need to balance efficacy, trust and privacy in the design of their apps to achieve the results they need to manage this pandemic.
Apps can help us track symptoms and can even help us voluntarily track our own movements to self-disclose to real human contact tracers. Apps could even help us with exposure notification and share small amounts of data about our location to help public health professionals plan for outbreak response.
Or we can just continue to only allow marketing and advertising companies to collect this data, while keeping the public health authorities in the dark.
It’s our choice and we need to have an open, informed and honest conversation about how we move forward. The decision does not belong to Google or Apple alone, but to all of us.
The final caveat is that even if we get the perfect app, for an app to meaningfully effect the spread of COVID-19 we would need a significant majority of smartphone users to install the app. This may turn out to be unrealistic if not impossible.
Researchers at Slovenian cybersecurity firm ACROS Security had revealed a previously unknown flaw in the popular videoconferencing software last week that could allow a hacker to remotely commandeer computers running old versions of the Microsoft Windows operating system.
Following this, an anonymous researcher contacted the team at security advice site 0patch rather than reporting it directly to Zoom. The 0patch then issued a "micropatch" free of charge until Zoom could release their own.
“According to our guidelines, we're providing these micropatches to everyone for free until Zoom has fixed the issue or made a decision not to fix it," 0patch explained in a blog post.
"To minimize the risk of exploitation on systems without 0patch, we're not publishing details on this vulnerability until Zoom has fixed the issue, or made a decision not to fix it, or until such details have become public knowledge in any way,”
Zoom Windows 7
Following this, Zoom also announced an updated Windows software version on July 10, a download which included a patch which the company says, “fixes a security issue affecting users running Windows 7 and older.”
ACROS Security had noted that anyone able to successfully exploit the vulnerability could access files on the vulnerable computer, and even take over the entire device.
Microsoft has been trying to convince Windows 7 users to upgrade to newer software versions in recent years, but with little success - despite offering free upgrades to Windows 10.
The company revealed it would be ending technical support out for Windows 7 on January 15 2020, meaning it would no longer offer patches and security updates for Windows 7.
That means that any bugs or problems still found in the software will never get fixed. Likewise, any security vulnerabilities could also remain in Windows 7, as Microsoft is unlikely to patch those unless they are very severe – more on that in a moment.
Many large organisations, including the NHS, still use Windows 7 on many devices, with Microsoft allowing customers to pay extra to receive specilaised support.
“Zoom takes all reports of potential security vulnerabilities seriously,” a Zoom spokesperson said in a statement. “This morning we received a report of an issue impacting users running Windows 7 and older. We have confirmed this issue and are currently working on a patch to quickly resolve it.”
The issue is the latest in a litany of security worries for Zoom, which has exploded in popularity in 2020 thanks to the remote working boom caused by the global pandemic.
The sudden and increased demand on the company's systems was unlike anything most companies have ever experienced, with criminals also attacking Zoom with gusto. Following a number of high-profile issues, company's CEO Eric S. Yuan promised more transparency and announce a 90-day freeze on all new features not related to privacy, safety or security back in April - however this deadline was missed earlier this month.
WireGuard has certainly made the VPN industry stand up and take notice in recent times. This high speed, secure and low footprint open-source protocol utilizes state-of-the-art cryptography and offers stiff competition for the likes of IPsec and OpenVPN. From the users point of view, what benefits can they expect from WireGuard and what are some of the myths surrounding its use that have been touted in the media and elsewhere?
About the author
Tomislav Čohar is the founder of hide.me VPN.
The use of more modern and efficient cryptographic techniques means that WireGuard is an extremely fast protocol that doesn’t sacrifice security. WireGuard works from within the Linux kernel meaning that it can process data faster - this eliminates much of the latency associated with other VPN protocols. With security in mind, WireGuard is a lot newer than the likes of OpenVPN, which means it was built from the ground up to support more modern encryption methods and hash functions such as ChaCha20, BLAKE2s, SipHash24, HKDF, and Curve25519.
WireGuard also offers a lower footprint - unlike OpenVPN and IPsec, it was made to be as lightweight as possible and can be implemented with just a few thousand lines of code. This has the added benefit of making for a smaller attack surface, which in turn makes auditing the code a much more simple and efficient process. And it also has built-in roaming capabilities allowing users to switch from something like Wi-Fi to 4G LTE, seamlessly whilst connected.
WireGuard uses your network more efficiently than other protocols. It’s overhead is just a mere 32 bytes while other protocols use much more space for their signaling. This means more space for your data and, in turn, higher throughput.
Debunking the myths
Taking all of these benefits into account, recent media coverage and some claims have certainly been a cause to raise eyebrows. Let’s take a look at just a few of the myths that have been circulating in recent weeks and months so that you can better understand exactly what WireGuard can deliver.
Myth 1 - WireGuard is an upgrade that will dramatically increase internet speeds. Are other protocols much slower?
Some are, but that heavily depends on the circumstances and is not really related to crypto. What good is a speedy crypto if you're connected through a dialup modem? Also, if you are a provider that supports much faster protocols (such as SoftEther on Windows or IKEv2 on anything else), then WireGuard isn't going to deliver dramatic speed promises.
Myth 2 - WireGuard demands that each device on the network get a static or fixed IP address
Actually, WireGuard doesn’t demand anything. It behaves just like any other protocol - it operates as a versatile cryptographic piece of a larger puzzle called a VPN tunnel. It's really more about how you manage it. Using a simple or rigid setup means static IPs on the servers. But it can be managed dynamically. Adding IPs when they're needed and getting rid of them as soon as the VPN session is done, means that WireGuard may behave just like any other VPN protocol.
Myth 3 - WireGuard significantly changes the way servers can communicate with each other
No it doesn’t - it’s the same ball game. Just like the other protocols. It really doesn’t get more simple than that.
Myth 4 - The highest possible performance comes from running in-kernel
Not true at all - IPSec is way faster on all platforms! IPSec is way faster because it runs in the kernel too, but is way more optimized for Intel CPUs. The thing is, running within the kernel is a major speedup, but WireGuard is not the only protocol to run that way. PPTP/L2TP do too. OpenVPN developers plan to release a kernel module for Linux soon. SoftEther, which is completely running in the userspace, outperforms WireGuard when the throughput is the primary concern.
Myth 5 - WireGuard sticks to strong but simple ways of exchanging and verifying data
Actually, it only supports one method of key exchange. Only one AEAD is supported. Other VPN protocols support a plethora of cryptography systems but tend to settle on AES. AES is not flawed, no exploit has been found yet. Also, AES cipher ( Rijndael is the actual cipher name ) is cryptographically stronger than ChaCha20 which is used by WireGuard. However, It is computationally expensive when compared to ChaCha20. ChaCha20 is a tradeoff, best bang for the buck. One could argue that Poly1305 MAC is stronger than GCM, but then again we come to the point of AES-GCM being supported in the hardware.
Moving forward with WireGuard
WireGuard certainly is an interesting VPN protocol with the ability to be a game changer for the VPN industry. In comparison to some existing VPN protocols, WireGuard may offer faster speeds and better reliability with new and improved encryption standards. As it increases in popularity and demand increases, it is inevitable that more VPN services will include WireGuard into their frameworks.
Coinbase could be the first major player in the cryptocurrency industry to go public in the US, reports have claimed.
The company is yet to announce its intentions to go public, but has apparently been in talks with investment banks and law firms in what would mark a milestone for the crypto market.
Cryptocurrency exchanges and related businesses have been in limbo in the US for the past several years, as banks have largely shunned the industry and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has not issued regulatory guidance on the majority of digital coins. A stock market listing for Coinbase would lend legitimacy to other companies built around cryptocurrency and potentially pave the way for future IPOs.
Nearly $10bn worth of cryptocurrency was stolen in the past three years
Coinbase listing
Before it can go public, Coinbase will need approval from the SEC. Coinbase has not yet filed an application with the agency and the SEC has been silent on the question of whether Coinbase will be allowed to proceed.
Notably, Coinbase isn’t planning to enter public markets through an initial public offering (IPO). Instead, it expects to use a direct listing in which it will not issue new shares.
A direct listing would reward existing shareholders, since there is no lock-up period in which they are barred from selling their Coinbase shares. In addition, this route avoids watering down the value of existing shares with a new issuance.
Coinbase was last valued at $8 billion during a private financing round in 2018, and the crypto market has only grown since then. Coinbase added more than eight million users from 2018 to 2019 and the marketplace recently surpassed 35 million total accounts. Coinbase currently operates in the US and more than 100 other countries around the world.
Cryptocurrency exchange platform BlockFi has announced the launch of its new mobile app for iOS and Android.
The company says its BlockFi app will bring together all its financial services on a single platform, enabling retail clients to trade several popular cryptocurrencies, manage interest-earning accounts, and take out crypto-backed loans.
Founded in 2017, BlockFi has found a niche in bridging the gap between digital currencies and traditional financial products.
The company offers cash loans in US dollars using cryptocurrencies as collateral and recently created the BlockFi Interest Account as a way for traders to earn interest on their currency holdings.
BlockFi currently offers trading between Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, USD Coin, Paxos Standard, and Gemini Dollar.
The app looks to increase BlockFi’s appeal for both current clients as well as investors looking to make the jump to crypto. “BlockFi is the perfect place for [investors] to make this leap,” says founder and CEO Zac Prince. “The app connects with these consumers on their level, providing a friendly and easy-to-use channel.”
BlockFi is promoting the launch of its app by offering interest rates of up to 8.6% APY for new and existing clients with a BlockFi Interest Account. That’s an increase of 2% relative to when the savings service first launched in May. Interest can be collected in any currency that BlockFi supports, giving investors the option to automatically diversify their portfolio.
Notably, BlockFi clients will also gain access to crypto-backed loans through the app. The company offers same-day loans in US dollars so that investors can access liquidity without selling crypto assets. Loans are available at up to 50% of the value of current holdings and at interest rates as low as 4.5%.
Honor Router 3 -$47.99 at Gearbest(roughly £38/AU$ 69) The Honor Router 3 delivers Wi-Fi 6 speeds at an exceptional price and this router also has a clean, minimalist look. At less than $50, this router will give you the fastest Wi-Fi speeds currently possible and then some as it is a Wi-Fi 6+ device.View Deal
Wi-Fi 6 (also known as 802.11ax) is a pretty recent wireless standard having been officially released as a protocol not so long ago, in 2019. It replaces 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5) as the fastest Wi-Fi protocol widely available in the market.
Less than a year later, Honor is selling the Router 3, a Wi-Fi 6 router for as little as $47.99. While you need to have a compatible device to get the most out of it, the improvements on offer thanks to the sheer presence of newer hardware and technology makes it a worthwhile investment if your current ISP-provided router is not delivering.
The Honor Router 3 - which is a rebadged WiFi AX3 - delivered combined wireless speeds of up to 2976 Mbps (2.4 GHz: 574 Mbps; 5 GHz: 2402 Mbps) allowing you to transfer data to up to 20 devices simultaneously.
Note that most users will almost certainly never reach this level, mainly because it is only a theoretical maximum speed. The router is sold as a Wi-Fi 6+, and we've reached out to Honor to find exactly out what the “plus” version brings to the table.
A maximum of 128 devices can be registered across both bands and its four separate antennae should improve coverage especially across several walls. Insider, the router is powered by a dual-core Gigahome CPU, running at 1.2GHz; it is paired with 128MB RAM and 128MB storage.
When it comes to connectivity options, there’s one WAN port and three LAN ones, all of which are Gigabit capable.
If this product comes from mainland China, it will take at least a month to reach either the UK or US (and potentially more). You may also be levied a tax either directly or through the courier.
If you've managed to get your hands on a cheaper product with equivalent specifications, in stock and brand new, let us know and we'll tip our hat to you.
After playing just under three hours of an early build of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, I came away suitably impressed. Not because the game dramatically differs from Assassin’s Creed Origins or Odyssey – Ubisoft hasn’t delivered the type of paradigm shift that we saw after the much-maligned Assassin’s Creed Unity – but because Valhalla has managed to deliver a thoroughly convincing world, set in a historical time period that I’m genuinely fascinated by.
After all, the Viking age is one that had far-reaching implications for many European countries, particularly Britain, and its effects can still be seen today. York, a scenic town no more than 45 minutes away from my home, was famously invaded by Ivar The Boneless and subsequently renamed Jorvik. Pretty cool, right?
Norse code
(Image credit: Ubisoft)
Now, various school trips aside, what really reignited my passion for burly bearded-men and inspirational shield-maidens was the aptly-named Amazon Prime show, Vikings. Watching the adventures of Ragnar Lothbrok, Lagertha and the heartless Ivar was truly gripping entertainment, particularly as many events took place in familiar locations. Sure, liberties were taken with timelines and historical accuracy, but it provides a bewitching insight into what life was like.
"There’s no denying that the personal appeal of each Assassin’s Creed entry ultimately boils down to its setting."
It turns out that the vikings were an incredibly complex and contrasting set of people. Their savagery is usually highlighted in dramatic fashion, and their surprising amount of sophistication and progressive ideals are often overlooked. But one thing that is always agreed upon was their ambition to expand.
From riding through perilous seas to raid unknown lands, to establishing the idea that death in combat was the greatest honor of all, the vikings make the perfect source material for a great video game (see: God of War). Throw in the pagan gods such as Thor, Odin and Loki into the mix, and you have yourself a well-woven story that is surely envied by even the finest of authors. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla has the perfect subject matter to succeed, then.
You might think that praising Valhalla based on its chosen era is rather faint praise – after all, Assassin’s Creed games are often revered for their incredibly detailed and fully-realized worlds. But there’s no denying that the personal appeal of each Assassin’s Creed entry ultimately boils down to its setting. It’s why I can’t wait for Ubisoft to finally deliver a game set in feudal Japan, although Ghost of Tsushima is likely to scratch that long-awaited itch when it releases on July 17.
A realistic setting and historical nods is one thing, though, but could Assassin’s Creed Valhalla make me feel like a viking? If the game couldn’t encapsulate what being a viking felt like, it would all be for naught. Thankfully, Valhalla delivers.
Siege warfare
(Image credit: Ubisoft)
Sailing towards an enemy stronghold, as the rain lashed down and thunder broke overhead, brought a sense of excitement I haven’t felt from a Ubisoft game in a long time. When the Nordic music kicked in and my band of warriors started to roar their battle cries, I felt a wide-grin begin to form on my face.
"I particularly enjoyed stomping fallen enemies into the mud, but that’s just me."
Once our longboat crashed onto the shore, Valhalla’s combat came to the fore. And while I wouldn’t call it perfect by any means, it was weighty, impactful and predictably gruesome.
You’ll plunge your axe into the chest of your opponent, then forcefully pull it back out in a shower of claret. Your shield will be swung with such force that it will break bones, and each special ability (which can be unlocked and improved from the various skill trees) were satisfying to perform. I particularly enjoyed stomping fallen enemies into the mud, but that’s just me.
It didn’t take long for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla to reward my prior optimism that this game would let me live out my viking dreams. The raids are sure to create some dramatic set pieces and memorable conquests, but the underlying story and characters that inhabit the world were equally as pleasing. I attended a viking wedding, out-drank a fellow mountain of a man, and even lay with a promiscuous fellow.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is shaping up nicely, then, although I have some reservations about how the game will keep the experience feeling fresh. I only savored what is sure to be a small slice of a game which will span 50+ hours. Make no mistake, however, the game has my attention as it stands, and my axe.
Far Cry 6 wasn't exactly a secret, but Ubisoft has now revealed the world premiere trailer for the game during its Ubisoft Forward event.
Far Cry 6 takes place in a "tropical paradise frozen in time" called Yara. Yara is controller by dictator Anton Castillo (played by Breaking Bad's Giancarlo Esposito), who aims to restore the paradise to glory with help from his son, Diego - through any means necessary. However, a revolution is taking place in Yara which aims to take down Castillo. Players take on the role of protagonist Danny, a revolutionist in the fight against Castillo.
In the trailer, we see Castillo giving his son Diego (suspected to be a young Vaas from Far Cry 6) a bit of tough love, as civilians riot in the streets outside their mansion.
Check out the Far Cry 6 trailer below:
Not exactly a secret
Thanks to a PlayStation Store listing leak, which resulted in Ubisoft releasing a teaser trailer for the game likely earlier than anticipated, we already knew a fair bit about Far Cry 6 - even if Ubisoft has only officially confirmed some of the details now.
The leak revealed Far Cry 6's release date as well as news that the game is coming to PS5 (with an Xbox Series X release expected). Players being able to upgrade their PS4 of the game to the PS5 version for free - and we're expecting a similar case for Series X. In addition, the leak confirmed Giancarlo Esposito will star as Far Cry 6's antagonist, Anton Castillo, and even gave details about the game's plot.
It may have already been spoiled for us, but it's still a pretty great trailer.
Far Cry 6 will release on February 18, 2021.
New games 2020: New games 2020: game release dates for console and PC
PS5 games: all the games confirmed for the PlayStation 5
Assassin's Creed Valhalla will launch on November 17, it's been revealed. Previous reports suggested the game was coming out in December, so this date is slightly earlier than we expected. The game will release on November 17 on Xbox One, PS4, PC and Stadia, with Xbox Series X and PS5 releases planned too.
Check out the newest trailer for Valhalla below:
Ubisoft showed off a few features in detail, like the settlement management aspect of the game, and specific Valhalla exploration and combat features. These include battering down enemy doors in conjunction with another character, or using a harpoon to snare and then behead an enemy. You can also dual wield any two weapons, according to the trailer.
You can also expect the biggest variety of enemies in any Assassin's Creed game to date. It still looks like it's built on the bones of Odyssey and Origins' combat systems, though, in case you were expecting a larger change to the hand-to-hand battles.
We expect the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions will release whenever those consoles actually launch.
Ubisoft has confirmed the next chapter in the Assassin's Creed series will be Assassin's Creed Valhalla, which will see players visiting the (long-rumored) Viking Age.
Assassin's Creed Valhalla sees players taking on the role of Viking raider Eivor, who leads a beardy clan from their native home of Norway to the shores of Dark Ages England - with a hope of settling down for good. But resistance from the Saxons won't exactly make it easy.
With less of an emphasis on stealth, Valhalla introduces new features such as raids, settlement management and customization. It looks like the bloodiest entry to date and we can't wait to get our hands on it when it releases for current and next-gen consoles on November 17, 2020.
After a sneak peek at a pre-rendered trailer, we got our first proper in-game look at Assassin's Creed: Valhalla during the Xbox Series X gameplay reveal live stream, followed by a deep-dive into the game during Ubisoft Forward on July 12.
We're more than ready for our latest fill of action-packed history and can't wait to see how the series' stunning locations look on next-gen consoles. So, without further ado, here's everything we know so far about Assassin's Creed Valhalla.
[UPDATE: Ubisoft has released a new deep-dive Assassin's Creed Valhalla trailer. Scroll down to check it out.]
Cut to the chase
What is it? The next chapter in the Assassin's Creed series
When can I play it? November 17, 2020
What can I play it on? Xbox Series X, PS5, Xbox One, PS4, Stadia and PC. It's also a Smart Delivery game, meaning if you buy it on Xbox One, you'll automatically get an Xbox Series X version, too.
Assassin's Creed Valhalla release date
(Image credit: Ubisoft)
Assassin's Creed Valhalla will release "Holiday 2020" (so sometime between October and December) to coincide with the release of the PS5 and Xbox Series X.
The game will release for Xbox Series X, PS5, Xbox One, PS4, Stadia and PC, and will be an Epic Games Store and Ubisoft Store exclusive on PC. In addition, Assassin's Creed Valhalla will be available on Ubisoft's subscription service UPLAY+, and will offer next-gen Xbox Series X upgrades to those playing on the Xbox One through Microsoft's Smart Delivery service.
Ubisoft revealed a deep-dive Assassin's Creed Valhalla trailer during Ubisoft Forward on July 12. The video gives us a closer look at Valhalla gameplay, including combat, stealth and exploration.
Check it out below:
Here's your first look at Assassin's Creed Valhalla gameplay, courtesy of a trailer showed during Microsoft's first Xbox Series X gameplay reveal event:
The vibe, we think it's fair to say, is Assassin's Creed meets Skyrim, with a bit of British coutnryside thrown in. There's very little of the series' once-signature stealth action on show, with the game instead focussing on large scale battles and raids.
There's still nautical action, in the shape of taking the helm of a Viking longship, as well as getting a birds eye view of the action through a feathered friend (here a raven as opposed to the Assassin's Creed's usual eagles).
Compared to the sun-kissed locales of Origins and Odyssey, the two previous Assassin's Creed titles, there's a moodier, darker feel to what's been shown of Valhalla, with plenty of burning villages, brutal axe attacks and snowy vistas. It's also a bit greener too, with Britain's once-lush countryside on full display, including a cameo by the Stonehenge historical site. We'd imagine this hints at some sort of pagan worship featuring in the game too – in keeping with the mix of history, religion, myth and mystery of the series.
Ubisoft debuted the Assassin's Creed Valhalla world premiere trailer on April 30. Check it out below:
Assassin's Creed Valhalla news and rumors
(Image credit: Ubisoft)
Below we've gathered all the biggest news and rumors about Assassin's Creed Valhalla for your perusal:
Voice actors revealed Creative Director Ashraf Ismail has revealed the voice actors for female and male Eivor: Danish actors Cecilie Stenspil and Magnus Buun. With Ubisoft leaning into the RPG elements of Assassin's Creed and making dialogue choices really matter, it's likely we'll be hearing a lot of them.
For #AssassinsCreedValhalla here are our phenomenal leads, Female and Male Eivor 🤩❤️Cecilie Stenspil - https://ift.tt/3df1nVx Bruun - @Magnus__Bruun pic.twitter.com/kfVfXSLqkIMay 1, 2020
Norway and England will feature In an interview with BBC Click, creative director Ashraf Ismail has confirmed that the game, set in the 9th century, will take players between Norway and England, with the majority of the action taking place in England's four different kingdoms.
“Norway is quite big on its own but if we talk about England specifically, that's where the majority of the game takes place. We have four kingdoms in England so it's Northumbria, East Anglia, Mercia, and Wessex. We have major cities like Winchester, London, York - or Jorvik at the time period.”
Present day playable In an interview with Eurogamer, lead producer Julien Laferrière confirmed the present day will be playable.
"We've found a way to blend the present day into a new type of experience for players," Laferrière said. "And present day is playable - I can confirm that."
No co-op
Ubisoft has confirmed Assassin's Creed Valhalla is a single-player game.
Raven animal companion In Assassin's Creed Odyssey, players had an eagle companion that could scout out areas from above. In Assassin's Creed Valhalla, you'll have a raven companion which will have new abilities.
Romance available Assassin's Creed Valhalla will have romance options, however it's not clear whether players will be able to romance everyone, regardless of gender.
Epic Games Store exclusive The PC version of Assassin's Creed Valhalla is only available on Epic Game Store and Uplay, which we expect will ruffle more than a few feathers.
(Image credit: Ubisoft)
Pre-orders and special editions Gold, Ultimate, and Collector’s Editions of Assassin's Creed Valhalla are available - with pre-orders open now.
The Gold Edition of the game includes the base game and the Season Pass. The Ultimate Edition includes the base game, the Season Pass and the Ultimate Pack giving access to players to exclusive customization content: the Berserker Gear Pack, the Berserker Settlement Pack, the Berserker Longship Pack, along with a Set of Runes to improve weapons or gears.
The Collector’s Edition includes the base game, the Season Pass, the Ultimate Pack, the high-end Ubicollectibles replica of Eivor and her Drakkar, a Collector’s Case, a Steelbook with a unique artwork, a numbered certificate of authenticity, a Viking Statuette of Eivor with his raven and Dane axe, exclusive lithographs as well as a Selected Soundtrack of the game. The Collector’s Edition is available exclusively on the Ubisoft Store.
In addition, fans who pre-order Assassin’s Creed Valhalla will receive at launch an additional mission 'The Way of the Berserker', in which players will join a legendary Norse Berserker on his quest for revenge.
Choices matter Elements such as political alliances, combat decisions, and dialogue choices will influence the world of Assassin's Creed Valhalla - so choose carefully.
Bloodier than ever Assassin's Creed Valhalla looks considerably more brutal than previous entries in the series, with the trailer depicting bloody massacres on English soil. It seems like stealth is no longer the priority in this game and instead we'll see more in the way of violent raids and destruction.
(Image credit: Ubisoft)
More RPG elements According to Ubisoft, Valhalla introduces new features such as raids, the ability to grow your settlement and build power, and the ability to increase your influence in this new brutal, dark world. These raids will allow you to collect resources needed to upgrade your settlement.
As your village grows, you'll be able to add new buildings such as a barracks, blacksmith and tattoo parlour - all available to customize and ugprade.
Customization Players will have the option to play as either a male or female Eivor, with new customization options being introduced that allow you to customize your Eivor's hair, tattoos, war paint and gear.
Story Here's Ubisoft's description of the story:
"Driven from Norway by endless wars and dwindling resources in the ninth century AD, players will lead Eivor’s clan of Norsemen across the icy North Sea to the rich lands of England’s broken kingdoms.
"Players must carve out a new future for their clan, reliving the ruthless fighting style of Viking warriors with a revamped combat system that includes the ability to dual-wield weapons against a greater variety of enemies than ever before.
"To secure resources players can lead raids to select locations using their longship to earn much-needed riches and resources. As the Vikings begin to settle in their new home, they encounter resistance from the Saxons including King Aelfred of Wessex, who denounces them as heathens and looks to be the sole ruler of a civilized England. Against all odds, Eivor must do what is necessary to keep Valhalla within reach."
(Image credit: Ubisoft)
Release window and platforms Assassin's Creed Valhalla is due to release"Holiday 2020" (so sometime between October and December this year) to coincide with the release of the PS5 and Xbox Series X. Ubisoft has confirmed Valhalla will release for Xbox Series X, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, PS4, Stadia, and for PC - it will also be available on Ubisoft's subscription service: UPLAY+.
15 studios working on Valhalla According to a tweet by Ubisoft Montreal, 15 studios around the world are working on Assassin's Creed Valhalla.
Viking Age As rumored, Assassin's Creed Kingdom will take place in the Viking Age. This became clear when BossLogic began drawing Viking-themed art on the Assassin's Creed reveal Twitch stream - but the name also gives it away.
New games 2020: the biggest games coming to console and PC
