Gaming
Riot Games to Bring “League of Legends” Festival to Saudi Arabia
Riot Games today announced the launch of ‘The Nexus’, their first official event in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The event, running from 5 – 7 December, will be part of the Riyadh Season, an initiative by the Saudi General Entertainment Authority (GEA) to transform Saudi Arabia into a global tourist and entertainment destination.
The Nexus, an immersive themed festival revolving around the iconic League of Legends, includes experiential zones, tournaments and concerts and is expected to attract a total audience of 30,000. Riot Games ensures to have the biggest prize distribution the region has seen in the gaming industry with $2,000,000 spread across six competitions.
The ‘five versus five’ summoners rift, the event’s primary competition, has a prize money of $850,000, while the ‘influencer tournament’ will see the top eight influencers of the region team up with micro-influencers to battle for a slice of the $750,000 prize.
The winners of the ‘one versus one’ battle, Team Fight Tactics, auto battler within the League of Legends universe and the Cosplay competition will share the remaining $400,000 in prize money. The competition will kick off in November with qualifying rounds spread across 13 countries in the MENA region. The top eight teams from the qualifiers will proceed to compete in the main event in Riyadh. The qualifiers will be broadcasted live and streamed online on League of Legends Arabia Twitch channel.
The theme of the festival will be inspired by the vast world of League of Legends called ‘Runeterra’. With 23 different activities, mini-games and players being able to mingle with their favourite champions in an enjoyable interactive way, Riot Games aims to create a fun family experience open to participants of all ages.
Keeping in line with League of Legends’ penchant for creating musical experiences over the last decade, The Nexus festival will have music at its core offering, featuring spectacular shows and immersive visual experience with established international artists.
Commenting on the announcement Onur Tamer, METAI General Manager at Riot Games said: “We opened our offices in the region over a year ago. Since then, we have been working on ways to deliver local experiences to our communities and players across the MENA region. The Nexus is our first step on solidifying our presence in the region to support and celebrate our players.”
“The launch of The Nexus festival is just one part of our plan to increase our presence in the MENA region. We are also looking at rolling out Arabic language support for all our products starting next year along with a localised version of League of Legends for all our players.”
Gaming
Video: Secretlab TITAN Evo Stealth 2024 Gaming Chair – Unboxing + Installation
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Gadgets
PS5 Anniversary Update Intros Retro Themes Celebrating Every PlayStation Generation
Sony has delighted gamers with a nostalgic surprise to celebrate PlayStation’s 30th anniversary. In addition to retro hardware that quickly sold out, Sony has released a software update that adds classic boot screens and themes for each generation of PlayStation console. Upon launching the update, users will be prompted to select their favourite generation, with options ranging from the PS1 to the PS4.
This update changes the PS5 dashboard’s menu colours and sounds to match the chosen console’s user interface. Additionally, players can explore other themes through the new “PlayStation 30th Anniversary” item in the settings menu.
However, these themes are available only for a limited time. Sony has not specified when they will be removed, but the decision to make them temporary has raised some eyebrows. While creating a perception of scarcity or avoiding clutter in the settings menu might be strategic, it could be seen as a missed opportunity to let users permanently enjoy the nostalgic themes.
This isn’t the first time Sony has indulged in retro charm. A decade ago, during PlayStation’s 20th anniversary, a free theme transformed the PS4, PS3, and Vita to reflect the PS1’s look and startup sound. As Sony celebrates three decades of gaming excellence, fans are once again treated to a trip down memory lane.
Components
Intel Unveils Budget-Friendly Arc B580 and B570 ‘Battlemage’ Graphics Cards
Intel is gearing up to launch its next — and potentially final — lineup of desktop graphics cards in just 10 days. Announcing the budget-friendly Arc B580 at $249 and Arc B570 at $219, Intel has positioned these cards as the “best-in-class performance per dollar” in the GPU market. The B580 is set to ship on December 13th, while the B570 will follow on January 16th.
The new cards are built on Intel’s Xe2 “Battlemage” GPU architecture, the same technology found in Intel’s Lunar Lake laptop chips, but significantly enhanced for desktop performance. With more than double the graphics cores, up to 12GB of dedicated video memory, and up to 190W of power, the B580 boasts the capability to outperform Nvidia’s $299 RTX 4060 and AMD’s $269 RX 7600 in certain benchmarks, though it still faces stiff competition.
Intel’s benchmarks show the B580 running 10 percent faster on average than the RTX 4060 across various games at 1440p and ultra settings when paired with Intel’s high-end Core i9-14900K CPU. Titles like Cyberpunk 2077, Hogwarts Legacy, Returnal, and The Witcher 3 achieve an average of over 60fps with this setup, surpassing the RTX 4060’s performance. However, Nvidia’s card still leads in games such as Starfield, Gears 5, and certain Assassin’s Creed titles, demonstrating the competitive landscape of GPU performance.
Compared to the previous generation A750, which originally retailed for $289 but is now available for $180, the new B580 runs 24 percent faster on average. This performance boost is more evident in scenarios where memory constraints are an issue, thanks to the B580’s 12GB of video memory compared to the 4060’s 8GB. For instance, in Forza Motorsport, the Nvidia card outperforms the Intel one, 86fps to 77fps, but with ray tracing enabled, Intel’s B580 takes the lead with 64fps to 57fps.
Intel’s own Arc B580 Limited Edition card will feature two fans, and a single 8-pin power connector, and promises “whisper quiet” performance. Additionally, manufacturers such as Acer, ASRock, Gunnir, Sparkle, Maxsun, and Onix will produce their versions of the card.
In addition to the new hardware, Intel is rolling out upgrades to its XeSS technology. The new XeSS 2 will offer frame generation, significantly boosting frame rates by creating new frames between existing ones, and an Xe Low Latency mode aimed at eliminating the latency penalty of frame generation. This new technology will be integrated into various upcoming games, including F1 24, Marvel Rivals, Assassin’s Creed Shadows, and more.
Intel’s budget-friendly approach with the Arc B580 and B570 is a refreshing addition to the GPU market, providing more memory and bandwidth at competitive prices. However, the future of Intel’s discrete graphics cards remains uncertain, following recent comments from former CEO Pat Gelsinger. For now, Intel’s latest offerings are set to make a significant impact in the market as they roll out in the coming weeks.
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