Hear me out: LinkedIn actually has fun games on it. I’m not joking. There are games buried underneath all the posts from CEOs disrupting industries through the power of AI, and they’re actually kind of good.My favorite is Zip, a game about filling up a grid with a continuous line. It’s a daily puzzle, like Wordle, where each day you have to fill a grid by connecting a series of numbers in order. You can’t leave any gaps, so you need to plan out how many detours you need to make to cover the whole thing. It honestly is more complicated to describe than to actually play it, but trust me, it’s really satisfying.My second favorite is Queens because it’s like Sudoku without the numbers. For a number (and math) hater like me, it’s perfect. It’s played on a five-by-five grid with colored squares, and the goal is to fill it with queens that don’t share the same columns, rows, or colors. It goes pretty fast as you mark off all the squares that can’t be a queen with Xs. Playing it gives me the same rush as finishing a particularly long Sudoku puzzle in a fraction of the time. And the best part is that it’s designed so you don’t have to make any guesses.Image: LinkedInWord game lovers will probably like Pinpoint and Crossclimb. Pinpoint gives you a series of words and you have to guess what category they all fit in. For example: If it gives you “banana” and “apple”, the answer will probably be “fruit”. Crossclimb is a little harder. You have to type in words based on hints and then stack them so that each word is only off by one letter (e.g. pace and pack). After you’ve done that successfully, the last two words on the top and bottom open up. Guessing these is a little easier because you know they have to be one letter off of what’s already there.The last game, Tango, is the most complicated one of the bunch. It’s essentially about following a bunch of rules to deduce where to place sun and moon icons. I imagine the kind of people who love Sudoku puzzles that start out nearly empty will like making guesses and double-checking everything until it’s solved. Sadly, I am not that person.I never expected to willingly spend an hour on LinkedIn every day, but here I am. Does it give me the urge to start using it as a real social media site to connect with like-minded people? Absolutely not. I will continue to play my silly little games and then peace out. But you should know you’re missing out on the one good thing about LinkedIn if you’re not already playing these.See More: Gaming

Intel is expected to move to a newer socket with its Nova Lake-S Desktop CPU lineup, which will be called LGA 1954. Intel LGA 1851 Socket Only For Arrow Lake & Its Refresh, New LGA 1954 Socket For Nova Lake-S Desktop CPUs Intel's LGA 1851 socket was first introduced last year with the Arrow Lake-S "Core Ultra Series 2" CPU lineup. The new socket was featured on the latest 800-series motherboards, and despite big expectations from the CPU family, it turned out to be lackluster in the gaming department. However, it improved the multi-threading and efficiency of the desktop line. The Blue Team is also said to be working on a refresh of the Arrow Lake-S family, which will feature upgrades to the NPU and a few more capabilities, but it looks like after that, the company will be shifting to a new socket once again. Image Source: NBD.LTD As per the latest listings within shipping manifests at nbd.ltd, it looks like Intel is already preparing a new socket that will be used by its next-gen Desktop CPU family, codenamed Nova Lake-S. This is the family replacing Arrow Lake and is expected to arrive later next year, so 2H 2026 to be precise. For Nova Lake, we are hearing reports that Intel is planning to up the core counts, both P-Cores and E-Cores, by a huge margin. Current rumors suggest up to 16 P-Cores and up to 32 E-Cores & these chips will be coming to both desktops and laptops. It is revealed that the LGA 1954 socket is being used on the reference evaluation platforms running Nova Lake-S Desktop CPUs. Do note that it isn't official yet which socket the Nova Lake-S chips will use, but Intel moving to a new socket after 2 generations sounds a lot like Intel. In addition to Nova Lake, we can also expect the successor, Razer Lake, to utilize the newer LGA 1954 socket, though time will tell. The LGA 1954 socket might utilize the 900-series chipset motherboards, & Nova Lake-S should be branded under the Core Ultra Series 4 family since Core Ultra Series 3 is going to be used by Panther Lake, which is a mobile-only launch. Intel Desktop CPU Generations Comparison: Intel CPU FamilyProcessor ProcessProcessor ArchitectureGraphics ArchitectureProcessors Cores/Threads (Max)PlatformMemory SupportPCIe SupportLaunch Alder Lake (12th Gen)Intel 7Golden Cove (P-Core) Gracemont (E-Core)HD 700 Series16/24LGA 1700/1800DDR5 / DDR4PCIe Gen 5.02021 Raptor Lake (13th Gen)Intel 7Raptor Cove (P-Core) Gracemont (E-Core)HD 700 Series24/32LGA 1700/1800DDR5 / DDR4PCIe Gen 5.02022 Raptor Lake Refresh (14th Gen)Intel 7Raptor Cove (P-Core) Gracemont (E-Core)HD 700 Series24/32LGA 1700/1800DDR5 / DDR4PCIe Gen 5.02023 Arrow Lake (Core Ultra 200)TSMC N3BLion Cove (P-Core) Skymont (E-Core)Xe1 (Alchemist)24/24LGA 1851DDR5PCIe Gen 5.02024 Arrow Lake Refresh (TBD))TSMC N3B?Lion Cove (P-Core) Skymont (E-Core)Xe1 (Alchemist)TBDLGA 1851DDR5PCIe Gen 5.02025 Nova Lake (Core Ultra 400?)TBACoyote Cove (P-Core) Arctic Wolf (E-Core)TBA52/52?LGA 1954?DDR5?PCIe Gen 6.0?2026 Razer Lake (Core Ultra 500?)TBATBATBATBALGA 1954?TBATBA2027? News Source: @Olrak29_

Sunderfolk feels at its best when you're playing together with friends on the couch during what would have otherwise been an uneventful weekend afternoon. The game embodies two of my favorite aspects of tabletop RPGs: strategic teamwork and memorable anecdotes. It does struggle to be fun when you're playing solo, but that feels like it's clearly the wrong way to play the tabletop-inspired, turn-based tactical RPG, which really only comes together when different minds are working together to coordinate their respective perks and customized deck of card-based abilities to strategically accomplish the task at hand.In Sunderfolk, each player takes control of one of six anthropomorphic heroes: an arcanist crow, a pyromancer axolotl, a ranger goat, a bard bat, a berserker polar bear, or a rogue weasel. After proving themselves capable bouncers in a tavern, the heroes band together to protect their home village, Arden, from a series of escalating threats and try to find a way to prevent the growing corruption of the magical tree that keeps everyone safe from the coming darkness. It's your typical run-of-the-mill fantasy setup, with would-be heroes rising to heed the call of adventure when no one else will, and for the first few hours, Sunderfolk doesn't do much to differentiate itself from contemporary stories.You can play as the spellcasting arcanist, supportive bard, high-damaging ranger, bulky berserker, sneaky rogue, or explosive pyromancer.But then you get to really know the NPCs, and Sunderfolk's story starts to make its mark with its varied cast of characters, all of whom are voiced by actor Anjali Bhimani to replicate the experience of playing a tabletop adventure with a Game Master who is portraying all the non-hero characters. Bhimani does an incredible job adjusting the pitch, tone, accent, and speed of her voice to add a distinct flavor to every character, injecting a feeling of life into the narrative that makes it easy to love the heroes' allies and effortless to hate the villains. My friends and I were far more invested in saving the village and discovering what was going on upon meeting an adorable, one-armed penguin orphan named Amaia who was doing her best to keep Arden's mines running, especially once her cruel and lying uncle was introduced. We vowed to do everything to save the little bird (and desperately hoped her uncle would be revealed as the true big bad so that we'd have a chance to destroy him), and much of that emotional investment, as well as our feelings about the other characters, was derived from Bhimani's portrayal.Continue Reading at GameSpot

The crashed two-wheel cart in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 offers far more treasure than what players may initially realize. It marks a helpful landmark for players to search the area and come across a mysterious key. This key unlocks a Sunken Chest hidden near the crashed two-wheel cart.

Star Wars Outlaws, the open-world action game from Massive Entertainment, is coming to Nintendo Switch 2 on Sept. 4, publisher Ubisoft announced Friday. A Switch 2 port of this graphically intensive game — ray-traced lighting is a foundational element of its look on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and Windows PC — will be an important feather in the console’s cap. It’s another sign that Nintendo is determined to establish the Switch 2 as a home for ports of AAA third-party games, which took a while to come to the original Nintendo Switch because of its underpowered hardware. Of course, we’ll have to see how well titles like Star Wars Outlaws and Cyberpunk 2077 actually look and perform on the Switch 2. In a brief glimpse of gameplay footage released Friday, the game appears to be running at 30 frames per second, which is the frame rate of the quality mode on PS5 and Xbox Series X. Star Wars Outlaws will be available on Switch 2 starting September 4, 2025! pic.twitter.com/Rs1FcobSon— Star Wars Outlaws (@StarWarsOutlaws) April 18, 2025 The Switch 2 version of Star Wars Outlaws will arrive almost exactly one year after the game’s launch, which came at the end of August 2024. Alongside the announcement of the Switch 2 port on Friday, Ubisoft released a demo of the game on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X. Players can now try out a Tatooine-based chunk of Star Wars Outlaws that includes dogfighting in orbit above the planet, battles with factions such as the Hutt Cartel and Tusken Raiders, a visit to Mos Eisley, and the card game Kessel Sabacc — although it’s worth noting that the demo is limited to three hours of play, and progress in it will not carry over to the full game. It may seem curious for Ubisoft to release a demo of Star Wars Outlaws more than seven and a half months after launching the game, but there are likely a few different factors at play here. For one thing, Ubisoft said in mid-February, during the investor call for its third-quarter 2024-2025 fiscal year earnings report, that the game had continued to fall short of the publisher’s sales expectations. So it makes sense that the company would try new things, like a demo, in an attempt to bring in new players. Secondly, now seems like a good time to get people to try Star Wars Outlaws. At Star Wars Celebration Japan 2025 on Friday, Ubisoft showed a trailer for A Pirate’s Fortune, the second story expansion for the game. Scheduled to be released on May 15, the add-on features a storyline in which Kay Vess (and her adorable merqaal companion, Nix) works with the space pirate Hondo Ohnaka, who may be familiar to Star Wars fans from his appearances on the beloved animated series The Clone Wars. Here’s the synopsis from Ubisoft: Embark on a mysterious adventure with Kay and Nix to explore the Khepi system and learn what it takes to be a true leader. Team up with legendary pirate Hondo Ohnaka and face off against Stinger Tash and her Rokana Raiders as you infiltrate the Khepi Tomb to uncover the secrets and hidden treasures it holds. Along the way, you’ll discover the Miyuki Trade League who offer new rewards for the Trailblazer in exchange for smuggling dangerous goods across the galaxy. But perhaps the most notable reason to jump in now is that even for players who have already tried Star Wars Outlaws, it may be worth giving the game another shot. Following the lukewarm reception at launch, Massive Entertainment released a number of significant updates that made major changes to elements such as the stealth mechanics. In a reappraisal of Star Wars Outlaws in December, following the rollout of those patches, Luke Plunkett wrote at Aftermath that the game is now “markedly improved” and comes “pretty close” to achieving its goal of being “maybe the most Star Wars game ever made.”

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.If you’re in the middle of upgrading your home setup—or just trying to dodge monthly subscriptions—this $45.97 deal on StackSocial might catch your eye. It’s a bundle that gives you a lifetime license for Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2019 and Windows 11 Pro. And not some limited trial or stripped-down version either. You get full access to the classic Office suite—Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and even the lesser-used ones like Publisher and Access. These are the 2019 versions, so not the very latest, but still more than enough for most work or school needs. And it’s not Microsoft 365, so there's no cloud-based storage or collaboration features, but it is a one-time purchase you install directly on your PC.What you’re getting with Office 2019 is pretty straightforward. You install it on one Windows machine, and it stays there forever. Features like Excel’s new data analysis tools, PowerPoint’s improved animations, and Outlook’s updated contact handling are all included. Just keep in mind, this license isn’t tied to your Microsoft account but rather to your device, so transferring it to another PC later might not be possible. Also worth noting: it won’t work on older systems like Windows 7 or 8. You’ll need Windows 10 or 11 to run it smoothly.And that’s where the Windows 11 Pro part of the bundle comes in. If your machine can handle it (and yes, you should double-check that TPM 2.0 and UEFI are a go), this gives you the Pro version—ideal for work use or heavier productivity. It supports features like BitLocker for encryption and all the snap layouts and desktops you’d expect from Windows 11. It’s designed to work on up to two devices, which is helpful if you’re running both a laptop and desktop. Gamers might appreciate the DirectX 12 Ultimate compatibility too. But again, if your PC is too old to support the upgrade natively, this won’t work as a shortcut past that. Bottom line: this is a solid bundle for anyone who wants essential tools and OS access without monthly fees—as long as your hardware is ready.

The Apple Sports app just introduced a new feature called Game Card Sharing. This lets users generate digital game cards that carry information about a specific match. The cards can be generated for upcoming, live and completed games. In the latter two cases, the score will be displayed. The cool part about these cards is that they are shareable across iMessage or via social media platforms. I could see this being useful in a group chat with friends, as a handy way to keep track of an ongoing match. Just look for the share button on the upper-right side of each card. There is one caveat. It requires the latest version of iOS, so it might be time to finally strap in for an update. These cards work with a whole bunch of sports leagues, including the NBA, MLB, NHL and even stuff like the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. For the uninitiated, Apple Sports is a free iPhone app that delivers real-time scores and various stats. It also displays useful stuff like broadcast information. It even lets users pin real-time scores to the lock screen.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/the-apple-sports-app-now-lets-users-create-and-share-game-cards-184235076.html?src=rss

Huawei debuts an AI system in China that's significantly faster than Nvidia’s market leader, the GB200 NVL72.

Robbie Williams’ legendary 2003 Knebworth Festival performance isn’t just a milestone in British music history — it’s also a key moment in Better Man. To bring this iconic concert to life on screen, Wētā FX faced the challenge of blending archival footage from the real show with scenes filmed on a replica stage built in Serbia. The team used a combination of digital set extensions and precise VFX artistry to match every detail, ensuring the recreated environment felt authentic and seamless alongside the original footage. The result is a flawless visual tribute that captures the scale, energy, and emotion of one of the UK’s most unforgettable live performances. The post Recreating the Knebworth Festival for Better Man by Wētā FX appeared first on Vfxexpress.

As the cost of a college education has ballooned to nearly $100,000 a year, a new generation of workers may be opting out of a four-year degree—and seeking out trade jobs instead. Among Gen Z, blue-collar jobs in industries like plumbing and construction have grown more appealing, promising job security and decent pay. A survey conducted by the Harris Poll last year found that Gen Z expressed a marked interest in moving into the trades, and that they were more likely to view those jobs positively when compared to corporate roles. The trades are also desperately in need of younger workers, as they struggle to meet demand and find skilled workers. That’s especially true in the manufacturing industry: A new Deloitte report estimates that within the next decade, manufacturers may need to fill 3.8 million open roles, as people age out of the workforce and more jobs are created. President Trump’s far-reaching tariffs could also drive up the labor shortage in the manufacturing industry. A recent Goldman Sachs analysis concluded that the tariffs are likely to create 100,000 new manufacturing jobs, according to Axios. In fact, the manufacturing industry has seen significant growth since the pandemic—in part, driven by initiatives to create more semiconductor and clean-energy jobs. But unlike other trades, the manufacturing sector may not be able to rely on renewed interest from a new crop of young workers. It seems, manufacturing jobs don’t hold the same allure for Gen Z workers; in surveys, they have shown little desire to engage with industrial work due to concerns over wages and safety. A study by the workplace safety software company Soter Analytics found that one in five Gen Z respondents believed industrial work paid poorly, and a quarter of them also did not view industrial work as safe. Another sticking point for Gen Z is flexibility, something young workers repeatedly cite as a major priority. As the Deloitte survey notes, manufacturing executives are aware this presents a challenge in an industry that typically relies on in-person work with fixed schedules—but many of them also reported that offering flexible arrangements like splitting or swapping shifts had helped increase retention. (By contrast, other jobs in the trades can offer more flexibility or allow workers to set their own hours.) But perhaps the greatest hurdle to luring young workers to manufacturing jobs may be that Gen Z often wants to feel a sense of purpose at work. Job satisfaction tends to be especially low among blue-collar workers: According to a recent survey by the Pew Research Center, only 43% of those workers said they were very satisfied with their jobs, as compared to 53% of employees in other industries. Younger workers were even less likely to be satisfied than their older counterparts—and also less likely to view their job as a career. If manufacturing employers can’t find a way to address issues like job satisfaction and flexibility, they may continue struggling to appeal to Gen Z workers.