AWS has launched new features for DynamoDB, Aurora and MemoryDB cloud databases to help scale distributed workloads and lower costs.Read More

Google's Genie 2 AI tool can generate a playable 3D world from a "single prompt image"It can also create different perspectives and interactive objects like doors and explosive barrelsImage credit: Google News by Vikki Blake Contributor Published on Dec. 5, 2024 Google's AI tool Genie 2 is a "large-scale foundation world model" capable of generating "an endless variety of action-controllable, playable 3D environments" from a single image prompt.Genie 2 can create different perspectives, such as first-person view, isometric views, or third person driving videos, as well as "complex 3D visual scenes," with interactive objects like doors and explosive barrels.Physics effects include smoke, gravity, lighting, and reflections can also be "rapidly" prototyped and played by human or "AI agent" using keyboard and mouse. According to a report detailing the advanced tech, this enables artists and designers to prototype quickly, "which can bootstrap the creative process for environment design, further accelerating research.""Thanks to Genie 2's out-of-distribution generalisation capabilities, concept art and drawings can be turned into fully interactive environments," the report explained. "This enables artists and designers to prototype quickly, which can bootstrap the creative process for environment design, further accelerating research."While this research is still in its early stage with substantial room for improvement on both agent and environment generation capabilities, we believe Genie 2 is the path to solving a structural problem of training embodied agents safely while achieving the breadth and generality required to progress towards AGI."The full report, including examples, is available on Google's Deepmind sub-site.Earlier today, UK specialist media publisher Future signed a strategic partnership with OpenAI to use its ChatGPT tool across its sales, marketing, and editorial businesses.

UK specialist media publisher Future signs strategic partnership with OpenAIFuture will be using OpenAI's tools across sales, marketing, and editorialImage credit: OpenAI News by Vikki Blake Contributor Published on Dec. 5, 2024 Specialist media distributor and publisher Future has announced a strategic partnership with OpenAI and its ChatGPT tool.Future publishes a range of specialist lifestyle magazines and websites, most notably for the games industry, Edge magazine, PC Gamer, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, and GamesRadar+.The firm - headquartered in the UK - said the initiative "brings Futures journalism to new audiences while also enhancing the ChatGPT experience," with ChatGPT users "able to access content from across Futures portfolio, with attribution and links to the full original articles for transparency and further information."The publisher has also developed chatbots "so users can engage more deeply with content from Toms Hardware and Who What Wear."Future also revealed it would be using OpenAI's tools across multiple functions across its business, including sales, marketing, and editorial, "to boost productivity.""Across Future's brands, we are focused on growing our engaged audience and building global communities. Our partnership with OpenAI helps us achieve this goal by expanding the range of platforms where our content is distributed," said Future CEO Jon Steinberg."ChatGPT provides a whole new avenue for people to discover our incredible specialist content. Future is proud to be at the forefront of deploying AI, both in building new ways for users to engage with our content but also to support our staff and enhance their productivity."Future's Official PlayStation Magazine (OPM) was retired after 25 years in May 2021 and replaced with Play, a new publication with the same editorial team but without the official Sony branding. However, in October 2024, Play too was shuttered.

Justin Carter, Contributing EditorDecember 5, 20242 Min ReadXXX Nightshift, the first project of Dark Math GamesImage via Dark Math GamesAt a GlanceDark Math Games is one of several game studios that emerged from Disco Elysium alum after ZA/UM's recent turbulence.The investment reportedly sits in the seven-figure range, however an exact figure has yet to be disclosed. Dark Math Games, one of the several new studios founded by talent from Disco Elysium creator ZA/UM, has netted a sizable investment from Estonian firm MM Grupp just months after announcing its frist game.While an exact amount or other terms of the deal have not been shared, the studio confirmed with GamesIndustry that the deal represents a seven-figure investment. MM Grupp was also a majority investor for Disco Elysium, with Dark Math founder Kaur Kender calling the firm "an experienced investor that understands and appreciates art, as well as the video game industry specifically"."Grupp's backing will bring stability and long-term vision. We have done something great together in the past, and are positive that we'll do it again," he continued.In October, the freshly founded studio announced its first project, XXX Nightshift. Dark Math will put that new money towards its game, which has been previously described as a "true detective RPG" in the vein of Disco.Disco Elysium's Legacy Branches OutDark Math Games is one of several studios set up by ZA/UM alumni that is hoping to continue the momentum that Disco Elysium built up. The very same day Dark Math was revealed, Longdue Games revealed itself to the world. That fellow fledgling studio is currently making a "psychogeographicRPG...set in a world where choices ripple between the characters psyche and environment."Hours after those announcements, Disco writer Argo Tuulik announced Summer Eternal, an "art collective/RPG studio" that features fellow ZA/UM alums Olga Moskvina, Dora Klindi, and Lenval Brown. Tuulik's aim for his company is to bring on old coworkers and new hires to "create a liberating space for us and other veteran RPG developers to finally, collectively start innovating again in this game space."Not to be left behind, the studio Red Info was also announced around that same time, though without as much info to share as the other three. That studio was notably founded by Aleksander Rostov and Robert Kurvitz, the art designer and lead writer on Disco Elysium, respectively, who were allegedly ousted alongside writer Helen Hindpere from the company in 2022.That tumultuous set of exits set off a chain reaction: since 2022, ZA/UM itself has laid off staff, cancelled projects, and has been levvied with allegations of mistreating employees.Read more about:FundingAbout the AuthorJustin CarterContributing Editor, GameDeveloper.comA Kansas City, MO native, Justin Carter has written for numerous sites including IGN, Polygon, and SyFy Wire. In addition to Game Developer, his writing can be found at io9 over on Gizmodo. Don't ask him about how much gum he's had, because the answer will be more than he's willing to admit.See more from Justin CarterDaily news, dev blogs, and stories from Game Developer straight to your inboxStay UpdatedYou May Also Like

Justin Carter, Contributing EditorDecember 5, 20242 Min ReadImage via NetherRealm/WB Games.At a GlancePTW Charleston is the developer's fifth office in America, and its newest expansion after acquiring Ghostpunch in August.The office is PTW's newest expansion since acquiring Ghostpunch in AugustPTW, a support studio with credits on Exoprimal and Mortal Kombat 1, has founded its fifth American office over in Charleston, South Carolina.The opening of the new studio, which makes PTW the first game development services company in the city, is expected to be a "pivotal moment" for the city's game dev community. In its announcement, PTW explained how it hopes to create hundreds of local jobs over the next several years as it "leverages Charlestons vibrant tech ecosystem and the wealth of local talent it harbors."PTW Charleston will be headed up by Bernhard Rieder, who will report to American operations VP Sebastien Bisch. In the announcement, Bisch underlined the importance of having "having a domestic QA solution to better serve our US-based partners. [...] We're excited to create a center of excellence for the industry within the vibrant Charleston community, and we look forward to building a new flagship studio in the US."PTW's year of tech and geographic expansionLike other studios throughout 2024, PTW has seen its fair share of ups and downs. At the top of the year, it laid off 45 developers across its global teams. Those have been the company's only reductions in a year otherwise filled with expansions and acquisitions.Back in May, PTW opened a mocap studio in London, which built on its previous relationship with Imaginarium Studios. The studio was set up to offer simultaneous full-body capture and voice recording, a service that PTW says isn't standard for a mocap building. More recently, its $13 million acquisition of co-development studio Ghostpunch in August. That deal, which finalized earlier this week, will allow PTW to provide AI-powered services to its clients relating to art technology and integration, and QA automation.Read more about:Studio announcementAbout the AuthorJustin CarterContributing Editor, GameDeveloper.comA Kansas City, MO native, Justin Carter has written for numerous sites including IGN, Polygon, and SyFy Wire. In addition to Game Developer, his writing can be found at io9 over on Gizmodo. Don't ask him about how much gum he's had, because the answer will be more than he's willing to admit.See more from Justin CarterDaily news, dev blogs, and stories from Game Developer straight to your inboxStay UpdatedYou May Also Like

The League of Legends universe is expanding once again this time with a physical card game. Riot Games announced today that its developing a physical trading card game set in the League universe. The game is currently known as Project K, and Riot says its working with an unnamed partner in China to release the game there in early 2025. As for a global release, Riot says, We are taking our time to find the right publishing partners.There arent a lot of details available about Project K. According to Riot, the game has unique gameplay and is best when played with friends and in person, and development is being led by director Dave Guskin and producer Chengran Chai. You can get a sense of the game in the images below:1/9 Image: Riot Games1/9 Image: Riot GamesOf course, this is far from the first spinoff from League. So far, that has included mobile games like Teamfight TacticsandWild Rift, the Netflix series Arcane, and the competitive fighting game 2XKO, which is expected to launch next year. Not all of these bets have paid off. In January, Riot announced that it was cutting more than 500 jobs, which included shutting down Riot Forge Games, a publishing label for indie games set inside of League. Also impacted was Legends of Runeterra, a mobile card game that launched in 2020, which Riot said hasnt performed as well as we need it to.The Project K news comes as card games are having another moment, led largely by the new smartphone version of the Pokmon Trading Card Game.

I am Indiana Jones. I am trying to investigate the Great Pyramid of Giza but its currently swarmed by Nazis looking for the same artifacts I am. Some of the lower ranking soldiers dont pay me any mind as Im dressed like one of the local workers. However, the higher ups see right through my disguise which causes problems: Im forced to either run away before they sound the alarm, or fight them and risk bringing a horde of Nazis down on my head.But! Through intrepid exploration and stealth Ive managed to find a newer, better outfit, one that disguises me as a Wehrmacht soldier. Surely those pesky commandants will recognize me as one of their own and Ill be able to stride through Giza, plundering pharaohs tombs unmolested. But within five minutes of donning out my new outfit, I got shot by one of those pesky commandants.My time with Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was filled with similar disappointments. Taken together, those moments coalesced into one prevailing sentiment this game would be better as a movie.Indiana Jones and the Great Circle takes place within the Indiana Jones canon between Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade. In it, Dr. Jones (who I always forget has the given name of Henry not Indiana) is investigating the theft of one of the artifacts he liberated from an Egyptian tomb. His search leads him on a merry, globe-trotting chase thwarting the ambitions of Nazis and the designs of an ancient cult of giants.The Great Circle is filled with all kinds of references and flourishes that scream, This is an Indiana Jones movie.The Great Circle is filled with all kinds of references and flourishes that scream, This is an Indiana Jones movie! Theres the fun, John Williams-esque orchestral sting that plays when Indy discovers a secret. The dialogue is chock full of witty repartee and one-liners that sound exactly like something Harrison Ford would say to his co-stars. Even the punching sound effect is ripped straight from the movies. Those elements are fun, comforting even, since Crystal Skull and Dial of Destiny failed to capture audiences the way the original trilogy did. But the developers at Machinegames, the studio best-known for Wolfenstein, took their mandate too seriously, making what is essentially a spiritual successor to Raiders and Temple of Doom, instead of a video game that is fun to play. Image: BethesdaThe game is played in the first-person perspective. Dont expect to flip and dip a la Lara Croft or Nathan Drake, though, as platforming is a bunch of ladder climbing and wall-shimmying broken up by occasional bouts of whip swinging. I do appreciate that the developers took the yellow paint discourse seriously, choosing white as the color to denote a climbable surface. Its still there as a visual marker in case you get stuck, but because the faded white paint blends in a bit more naturally, you dont feel condescended to when you notice it.Dont expect to flip and dip a la Lara Croft or Nathan Drake.Like the platforming, puzzles leave a lot to be desired. The puzzles Ive encountered after roughly 25 hours with the game are wildly inconsistent. Some come pre-solved, requiring you to just press buttons to input the solution, or are the kinds of puzzles youve seen in just about every adventure game (use beams of light to unlock doors, for example). Conversely, others are so esoterically constructed that they are simply unsolvable.I got so excited when I ran into a locked safe right next to a cryptogram consisting of a poem with certain letters circled, and a key with letters and numbers arranged on a grid. I figured the way it worked was to treat the circled letters as coordinates that would point to the right number on the grid. I tried every permutation of letters and numbers to get to the right combination. Nothing worked. I even Googled the type of puzzle it was, found a website that solved them, and input the letters and the key and still couldnt get the right answer. With no in-game hints or a way to look up a solution, I was forced to abandon the only puzzle that I felt good about trying to solve.With banal platforming and puzzle solving a bit too simplistic, the last gameplay element left is combat and, well, that wasnt all that enjoyable either. The Great Circle put a lot of emphasis on giving me options. When I encountered an enemy, I could choose to engage them directly, covertly, or not at all. I often chose not at all, sneaking around locations and hiding behind objects until my enemies walked by none the wiser. When forced to confront an enemy, guns were useless if not outright hostile to me as the user.The most action you get in combat is in cutscenes like this. Image: BethesdaI get that for stealthy games like The Great Circle, guns are meant to be used sparingly as a weapon of last resort. I did that. I spent every encounter killing enemies with the various blunt objects littered throughout the game. I only started using firearms in one of the games later levels where gunplay was all but mandatory because there werent very many melee weapons for me to find on my own. I would shoot a Nazi point blank in the face no fewer than three times before they went down, or, as was usually the case, before they shot me once, killing me almost instantly. It felt like I had played the game the way it asked me to, but I was still punished for it.That said, The Great Circle isnt totally joyless. The levels incorporate multiple ways to reach an objective and it is legitimately fun to wheedle around to find the solution off the beaten path. I first found that Wehrmacht uniform behind a locked door requiring a key, and I walked away dismayed because I didnt have the patience to go rooting around for the Nazi who had it. But I just happened to look up and see this locked room was connected to a tower with an open door; all I had to do was shimmy up there, beat up the lone guard, and the uniform was mine. That was fun. When I noticed the two enemies I had beaten up were standing in a pool of water investigating a broken electrical device, I reloaded the checkpoint just to see if I could electrocute them instead. I could. Well done.But those little thrills were so few and far between because it felt like Machinegames went topsy turvy with its game design.But those little thrills were so few and far between because it felt like Machinegames went topsy turvy with its game design. Its most interesting moments, like a knockdown, drag out fight with the main villain that happens midgame, were rendered as cutscenes. Meanwhile the less interesting bits are actions you have to perform. This certainly matches beat-for-beat the kind of stuff Indy gets up to in the movies. But those already exist, and I can watch them any time. The Great Circle is missing something more important: a reason this adventure needed to be a game.Indiana Jones and the Great Circle launches December 9th on Xbox and PC, with a PS5 version due out in 2025.

SDL 3 Hits Stable ABI Release / News / December 5, 2024 / SDL, or the Simple DirectMedia Layer is one of the most popular game development frameworks, used to make hundreds of successful games (such as Angry Birds) as well as powering dozens of Valve/Source games. SDL 3 is on the horizon with a major milestone being recently hit, a stable ABI with the SDL 3.1.3 preview release.Features of SDL 3 over SDL 2:Extremely good documentation: Weve spent a ton of effort writing and revising the API reference.Example programsto get you started,running in your web browser!More consistent API naming conventions. Everything is named consistently across the API now, instead of different subsystems taking different approaches. Also, weve tended toward more descriptive names for things in SDL3.GPU API: access to modern 3D rendering and GPU compute in a cross-platform way.Dialog API: access to system file dialogs (file and folder selection UI for opening/saving).Filesystem API: simple directory management and globbing, access to topic-specific user folders.Storage API: Abstract interface to platform-specific storage.Camera API: access to webcams.Main Callbacks: optionally run your program from callbacks instead of main().Pen API: access to pens (like Wacom tablets and Apple Pencil, etc).Logical audio devices: different parts of an app can get their own unique audio device to use.Audio streams: handle buffering, converting, resampling, mixing, channel mapping, pitch, and gain. Bind to an audio device and go!Default audio devices: SDL3 will automatically manage migrating to new physical hardware as devices are plugged in, ripped out, or changed.Properties API: fast, flexible dictionaries of name/value pairs.Process API: Spawn child processes and communicate with them in various ways.Colorspace support: Surfaces and the renderer, etc, can manage multiple colorspaces.The Clipboard APIcan support any data type(SDL2 only handled text), and apps can provide data in multiple formats upon request ina provided callback.Better keyboard input, for all your keypress needs.Customizable virtual keyboardson iOS and Android.High DPI support is dramatically improved over SDL2.App metadata APIfor letting SDL report things about your app correctly (like in the About dialog on macOS, etc).Read/write thread locks, to let multiple threads access rarely-changing data in parallel.Init Stateto help with multiple threads that might need to initialize something on-demand without racing.Key LinksSDL HomepageSDL 3 Preview Release NotesGames Made Using SDL on SteamYou can learn more about the Simple DirectMedia Layer and specifically about SDL 3 in the video below. This video was sponsored by TechSmith the makers of Camtasia (which is what I use to create all of my videos). You canlearn more about Camtasia hereand use code GAMEFROMSCRATCH at checkout for 15% off.

Large Language Models (LLMs) have grown in complexity and demand, creating significant challenges for companies aiming to provide scalable and cost-effective Model-as-a-Service (MaaS). The rapid adoption of LLMs in various applications has led to highly variable workloads in terms of input/output lengths, arrival frequencies, and service requirements. Balancing resource utilization to meet these diverse needs has become a critical challenge. Achieving this balance requires sophisticated strategies to meet different Service Level Objectives (SLOs) for latency and throughput. Additionally, conventional LLM serving architectures often assume sufficient resources are available to handle all requests, which is increasingly difficult with rising demand, especially during peak usage times.The primary challenge is to maximize throughput without compromising latencyparticularly as operational costs rise and GPU resources remain limited. To address these issues, Moonshot AI developed a new architecture.Moonshot AI Open-Sources its Core Reasoning Architecture: MooncakeChina-based AI company Moonshot AI has officially open-sourced its core reasoning architecture, named Mooncake. Mooncake aims to address key scalability and efficiency challenges in LLM serving. Moonshot AI employs a KVCache-centric disaggregated architecture, which sets Mooncake apart from traditional LLM serving platforms. The first open-source component of Mooncake, called the Transfer Engine, is now available on GitHub, with more components planned for future release GitHub link.The core of Mooncake is its KVCache-centric approach to handling computational workloads. By separating the prefill and decoding clusters, Mooncake can dynamically optimize resources, making use of underutilized CPU, DRAM, and SSD resources for efficient caching. This separation is crucial for addressing the diverse computational characteristics of LLM serving stages. The decision to open source Mooncake reflects a commitment to transparency and community-driven improvements in LLM scalability.Technical DetailsMooncake leverages a KVCache-centric Prefill-Decoding (PD) separation technique and a storage-computation disaggregated architecture, which have significantly improved the inference throughput of Moonshot AIs LLM service, Kimi. The KVCache mechanism is central to optimizing both throughput and latency. Instead of keeping GPU resources engaged with all aspects of model serving, Mooncake isolates KVCache usage from computational tasks, allowing it to be managed by underutilized hardware like CPUs and SSDs.Mooncakes architecture divides LLM serving into two stagesPrefill and Decoding. During the prefill stage, reusable cache is transferred to prefill instances, which optimizes the first token generation while reducing redundant computations. Then, during the decoding stage, the KVCache is aggregated, allowing for efficient batching. This separation has led to substantial performance improvements.By implementing a prediction-based early rejection policy, Mooncake also helps prevent system overload during peak request periods. This approach has been instrumental in maintaining Service Level Objectives (SLOs) for time to first token (TTFT) and time between tokens (TBT), even under high workloads. Experimental results have shown that compared to the baseline, Mooncake achieved up to a fivefold increase in throughput in simulated scenarios and enabled 75% more request handling under real-world workloads.The significance of Mooncakes open-source release is multi-layered. It represents progress in the decentralization of LLM inference workloads, ensuring that no single hardware component becomes a bottleneck. The KVCache-centric scheduling model balances resource loads effectively, enabling service providers to maximize throughput without violating latency requirements. This efficiency is essential given the growing demand for LLM capabilities across industries.Experimental results demonstrate that Mooncake achieved a fivefold increase in throughput in some simulated long-context scenarios while maintaining the required SLOs. In real-world settings, Mooncake enabled Kimi to handle 75% more requests compared to previous architectures. These improvements highlight Mooncakes ability to scale efficiently and reduce costs. The disaggregation approach also provides greater flexibility in adding computational resources on-the-fly, which addresses variability in LLM workloads more efficiently than traditional coupled systems.The phased open-source rollout also encourages collaborative development. By starting with the Transfer Engine, Moonshot AI aims to gather community insights before releasing additional components. This phased approach is intended to lead to further optimizations and broader adoption across various sectors that need efficient LLM serving solutions.ConclusionMoonshot AIs decision to open source Mooncake reflects a broader industry trend towards transparent and scalable AI development practices. By focusing on KVCache-centric separation, Mooncake addresses the key challenges of LLM servinglatency, efficiency, and scalability. It has already shown significant performance gains, making it a promising framework for LLM serving. Mooncakes architecture balances computational and caching demands effectively, improving resource utilization, reducing latency, and enhancing overall throughput. The phased open-source approach underscores Moonshot AIs commitment to continuous improvement and community collaboration.Check out the Paper and GitHub Page. All credit for this research goes to the researchers of this project. Also,dont forget to follow us onTwitter and join ourTelegram Channel andLinkedIn Group. If you like our work, you will love ournewsletter.. Dont Forget to join our60k+ ML SubReddit. Asif RazzaqAsif Razzaq is the CEO of Marktechpost Media Inc.. As a visionary entrepreneur and engineer, Asif is committed to harnessing the potential of Artificial Intelligence for social good. His most recent endeavor is the launch of an Artificial Intelligence Media Platform, Marktechpost, which stands out for its in-depth coverage of machine learning and deep learning news that is both technically sound and easily understandable by a wide audience. The platform boasts of over 2 million monthly views, illustrating its popularity among audiences. FREE AI WEBINAR: 'Fast-Track Your LLM Apps with deepset & Haystack'(Promoted)

We're past Cyber Monday, but Walmart is still pushing out brand new gaming deals for December. Right now, you can pick up the professional-grade Xbox Series X Elite Series 2 Wireless Controller for only $124.00 after a 30% off instant discount. That's a great deal for the original Elite Series 2 controller that includes the component pack. The newer Elite Series 2 Core controllers in White, Blue, and Red do not include the component pack and they normally retail for $140. The component pack itself retails for $59.99.Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 for $124Includes component packIncludes Component PackXbox Elite Series 2 Wireless ControllerThe Xbox Elite Series 2 Core controller features better build quality and lots more customizability than the stock controller that comes with the Xbox Series X console. Some of the more significant pro gaming features include adjustable-tension thumbsticks, wrap-around rubberized grip, and shorter hair trigger locks. The component pack, which is bundled with this controller, includes an extra sets of paddles, thumbsticks, D-pad, and case.I rarely see this version of the Elite Series controller for sale. The versions without the component packs are commonly sold for a lesser price, but one of the biggest advantages of getting this controller over the standard controller is the customizability. Without those extra accessories to modify the controller to your liking, there's less of a reason to spend so much more when a regular Xbox controller can be often be found for under $50.Why Should You Trust IGN's Deals Team?IGN's deals team has a combined 30+ years of experience finding the best discounts in gaming, tech, and just about every other category. We don't try to trick our readers into buying things they don't need at prices that aren't worth buying something at. Our ultimate goal is to surface the best possible deals from brands we trust and our editorial team has personal experience with. You can check out our deals standards here for more information on our process, or keep up with the latest deals we find on IGN's Deals account on Twitter.Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn't hunting for deals for other people at work, he's hunting for deals for himself during his free time.