Cost of your actionsKingdom Come Deliverance 2's dedication to letting me be a drunk, boorish oaf is so committed, it honestly left me astounded - previewKingdom Come Deliverance 2 feels like a hobgoblin game; built for late nights, days off work, and to compliment your headiest rot days.Image credit: VG247 Article by Connor Makar Staff Writer Published on Jan. 10, 2025 I've not played an open world RPG as thoughtful, earnest, or funny as Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 since... well, The original Kingdom Come Deliverance. With the sequel, Warhorse Studios has managed to strike a fine balance between historical accuracy and deep-rooted seriousness, resulting in a tale packed to the gills with boozy, slapstick hijinks. Just like in real Medieval European history.To see this content please enable targeting cookies. For this preview, I was able to play up until a wedding set inside the first major region you get to explore. As of hitting this point,I have 25 hours on my save file, and I've completed all content on offer up to this point, save for one side-quest. Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 is a rich well, packed full of engaging side content, smaller activities that demand your attention, and side quests that actually weave into the main story so that you feel rewarded not just through material goods, but narrative pay-off, too. Eat your heart out, Witcher 3.But - best of all - it's the finest open world RPG I've played that not only respects your decision to be a wanker, but has deep systems built around allowing you to be the most competent wanker you can be. You like robbing people? Getting drunk and punching random people on the road? Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 promotes unique progression paths for brawlers, burglars, and drunks. All whilst the people of Bohemia take note, muttering amongst themselves, leading to lasting and impactful consequences. I am left astounded.Many other previews will likely note how different styles of clothing impact your charisma, how (if you don't wash yourself often) you'll stink like p**s, and if you don't take a bath your clothes will remain dirty as a kind of permanent scruffbag debuff. Countless, I'm sure, will note how your dog is adorable. All of these are great depictions of Kingdom Come Deliverance's strengths, but allow me to summarise more succinctly: Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 feels like a hobgoblin game. A game for late nights, sick days off work. A game you can obsess over. It's a wonderful historical romp for the average video game-enjoyer, if they have the constitution to munch on the occasional wave of tedium. Allow me to make a case for the game's merit by comparing it to the inevitable rival it'll have in the eyes of gamers: The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim for good measure. This might look similar to a lockpicking mini-game you know, but let me tell you, it's a lot harder. | Image credit: VG247Bethesda and Warhorse are on two polar opposites of the design philosophy spectrum when it comes to making open world RPGs. While Bethesda emphasises breaking down barriers between the player and a sense of joy and wunderlust, Warhorse embraces these barriers. In Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, this not only makes the experiences you encounter more special (without having to resort to ample bombast), but somehow manages to make mechanical roadblocks an integral part of the adventure, too. There is no better comparison point in my mind between the two approaches than thievery.In Skyrim, you're less a thief in the dark and more of a ghost haunting the chests and pockets of those around you. Lock-picking and pick-pocketing isn't hard. A stranger can walk into a town, everyone's gold and gems can vanish, and the townfolk will shrug and mourn their lost wealth as that same phantom stumbles out of town the next day, overencumbered and rich. The shop owner will stand stoic as a basket is placed on their head, as a voiceless rogue practically tears the floorboards from the ground. How on earth could this have happened, and who could possibly be to blame? If you are caught, you pay a fine. Not a huge fine, mind you, especially not if you've been selling off your stolen goods. The biggest problem for a thief in Skyrim is that the people of Skyrim often haven't got enough money to buy back their stolen wares.In Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, being a thief is a struggle. Lock-picking can be hard, and breaking a pick will make a loud noise that'll get you nabbed. If dogs see you snooping, they'll bark at you, chasing you off the premises. When you pickpocket someone, you've got to spend a few seconds digging through their pockets before you even get the chance to get loot, and most of that loot is hidden! On top of all of that, store owners can spot if goods you're selling are stolen, and refuse to buy them. You've often got to travel to another town to actually ditch your loot. Oh, and if you're over-encumbered, you can't mount up or fast travel. Get to walking, bud! Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 is also a gloriously vulgar game. | Image credit: VG247But it gets even deeper. The game has a reputation system, so if you're caught stealing stuff or lurking around houses at night, people will treat you as a thief and act accordingly, even when you aren't doing crimes. Even if you aren't caught, they will piece together that you were in town while stuff went missing, and you'll gain reputation as a thief - even without spending time in a jail cell! Losing this reputation is incredibly costly, requiring you to empty your wallet or go on a time-consuming good-will mission. Just like real life, I suppose.The reason why this matters, and why I'm picking it out, is because the whole game is like this. So many playstyles are not only possible, but clearly taken into account by the devs. You wanna be a soldier, then there's a rich combo system for a hard-to-master melee system, a layered armour system, and weapons that excel against different types of protection. You wanna be a woodland ranger? Aside from the thieving business I've already talked about, you can do so well for yourself lurking around the forest, poaching game and picking herbs for poisons and other reagents. Don't wanna fight at all? Put on a nice outfit and talk your way out of almost everything. Or, get drunk every day and play dice. To hell with it, right? The more you drink, the more levels in drinking you get, which might sound useless until you see you can almost half fall damage you take while drunk. More than once, I've seen a sketchy drop, downed eight bottles of schnapps, and come away okay. Just like real life. No other game lets you do this. You've got to understand, seeing "shaggin" in a video game is rare. | Image credit: VG247There are going to be a lot of people who won't like Kingdom Come Deliverance 2. An inevitable cost of its deep roots in historical accuracy, and the drudgery that comes with it, is that occasionally you've got to carry six heavy sacks to a basement, or sit on a cart slowly rolling across the map. It means that some who want that Skyrim-style quick payoff and power fantasy will be left kicking their heels. Three guys can box you up (and with saves not exactly generous for the alchemy-averse among you) a fight gone wrong can set you back by 20 minutes, easy. Folks will fall off one hill, break their ankles, and uninstall the game. This is the sacrifice required for a game like this, though. It is what it is.Hitting the preview point of Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 was, to me, like slamming the breaks on a moving train. I'm fiending to get back on it. If you're an open world RPG fan this looks to be an absolute banger, and well worth putting some money aside for when it releases on February 4, 2025.

Radahnmance Not DeadElden Ring Nightreign network test sign-ups open, as FromSoft makes safe bet its maidenless hardcores will battle through site outages to spaff away some of Valentine's DayHey, it's a perfectly romantic way to spend three hours, no doubt falling in love with some big bad bosses.Image credit: FromSoftware News by Mark Warren Senior Staff Writer Published on Jan. 10, 2025 You! The Elden Ring Nightreign network test is now open for you to register, as in putting your name down to be considered for a spot in it. Don't worry, you don't have to dive in right away to have a shot at being let in, and some of the folks who've tried to do just that have had to battle the Bandai Namco site momentarily crashing as people rush to put their names down.If you somehow missed Nightreign being announced, it's a co-op focussed title that will allow multiple players to take on bosses from the FromSofftverse in collaborative environments. So yup, Elden Ring with your mates in a form that's not just leaving each other cheeky notes and occasionally invading to help out with a particular fight or muck s**t up.To see this content please enable targeting cookies. This test was announced back in December, with sign-ups kicking off today, January 10, and staying open until January 20. To throw your name into the hat for the Elden Ring Nightreign network test, you'll want to head to this link.Only the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S are eligible as platforms for the test though, which means you're outta luck if you're on PC or last-gen consoles, though you will still be able to play the full game when it comes out. That said, this hasn't stopped demand from being huge early doors, with several would-be sign-ups having responded to the Bandai tweet below with screenshots of the site having momentarily fallen over and died - or struggling to load up/register applications, if you want to be less dramatic. To see this content please enable targeting cookies.For those who get in, the network test is currently penned in to take place over five three hour sessions running from Februrary 14 to February 17, with times as follows:Feb 14 12:00 - 15:00 CETFeb 15 04:00 - 07:00 CETFeb 16 20:00 - 23:00 CETFeb 16 12:00 - 15:00 CETFeb 17 04:00 - 07:00 CETYep, the chance to spend three hours of your February 14 - that's Valentine's Day - playing Nightreign. As Orson Welles once said: "We're born alone, we live alone, we die alone. Only through our love and friendship can we create the illusion for the moment that we're not alone." You go play that Elden Ring, here's hoping it fills your heart with love.And hey, if you don't get in, you can always just randomly decide you're going to go on a mission to kill FromSoft bosses every day until Nightreign comes out, as one fan already has.

Safety FirstSquare Enix enacts new anti-harassment policy to protect its staff from real world and online abuseIt offers protection against acts like trespassing, acts of violence, defamation and more. News by Connor Makar Staff Writer Published on Jan. 10, 2025 Square Enix has annoucned a new group customer harassment policy to protect its staff against harassment both online and in the real world. It announced this via a blog post in both Japanese and English, which you can read here.In this post, it acknowledges that while feedback from players is important, the acts of a certain subset of people far pass this line and venture into hostile action. It states these actions "not only prevent our employees and partners from engaging in their work with a sense of security but also causes disruptions to other customers" and that it'll not tolerate such actions.To see this content please enable targeting cookies. To combat such actions, Square Enix has stated it reserves the right to cease providing services to individuals found in breach of these guidelines, and in "egregious" cases, reserves the right to take legal action against those conducting such actions.Examples of harassment Square Enix provided in this policy include acts of violence or violent behavior, defamation, trespassing, unlawful restraint including via phone calls and online inquiries, discriminatory behavior, and more. Square Enix has also listed out examples of undue behavior, which includes unreasonable changes or exchange of product or request for monetary compensation, unreasonable response or request for apology, excessive requests for the provision of products and services, and the unreasonable and excessive demands for punishment of employees.This policy, original written and published in Japanese, applies to Square Enix staff across the world. It comes at a time where such actions seem particularly common, especially on social media. This has happened to Square Enix staff before, as last year FF14 director Naoki Yoshida asked fans to cease attacks against the voice actress of Wuk Lamat as well as the localization team.It's a important stance for Square Enix to take, and one that should provide some peace of mind to those working at hte company who fear such harassment coming their way. Let us know what you feel about this below, as well as your thoughts on the policy - does it go far enough?

Along with Flight Simulator.Known insider Nate the Hate has claimed in a new podcast that Microsoft will further its multiplatform ambitions in 2025 by bringing both Halo: The Master Chief Collection and Flight Simulator to the 'Switch 2' and the PS5.The insider who previously correctly claimed that Indiana Jones and the Great Circle would eventually come to PS5 in 2025 following its release on Xbox elaborated on his statement and said "any game that comes out this year will at some point find its way to PS5 and/or Switch 2, it's just a matter of when".Read the full article on nintendolife.com

Who got your vote?Monthly Splatfests are a thing of the past for Splatoon 3 these days, but Nintendo is still keeping the seasonal events coming. With Splatoween out the way, the next one to roll around is Frosty Fest, a festive celebration which will be heading to the Splatlands next month.As revealed in a tweet by @NintendoUK, the Frosty Fest Splatfest will get underway from 11th-12th January 2025 (depending on your region), with the theme this time asking 'What would make you happiest?' There are three gift-based teams to choose between, with Team Money, Experiences and Presents all vying for your support.Read the full article on nintendolife.com

Chinese hackers have reportedly breached a key office within the U.S. Treasury tasked with reviewing foreign investments and transactions that could threaten U.S. national security.CNN reports, citing U.S. officials familiar with the incident, that the Chinese hackers targeted the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, which can approve or deny deals that present national security risks, such as corporate mergers and takeovers or deals that involve sensitive U.S. information.Treasury officials confirmed to TechCrunch last week that it was investigating a major cybersecurity incident following a breach at one of its security vendors, BeyondTrust. The Treasury said the hackers broke in using a stolen BeyondTrust key to remotely access employee workstations and documents on the departments unclassified network. It was later revealed that the Chinese hackers had also breached the departments office for international financial sanctions, the Office of Foreign Assets Control, or OFAC.U.S. cybersecurity agency CISA said this week that there was no indication that the hackers had broken into any other U.S. government department as part of the campaign.Bloomberg reports that the hackers targeting the Treasury are known as Silk Typhoon (previously called Hafnium), an active China-backed hacking group known to carry out mass hacking operations aimed at stealing information.The cyberattack at the Treasury is the latest in a string of incidents identified in recent months and linked to the China-backed family of Typhoon hackers. These cyberattacks have included the targeting of private communications of U.S. government officials and prepositioning destructive malware in U.S. critical infrastructure to strike in the event of a future conflict between China and the United States.The Chinese government has repeatedly denied the accusations.

Explore the unique blend of humor and horror in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3. Redchillies VFX brings the story to life with their really cool visual effects, from eerie haunted settings to playful supernatural elements! Vincent Frei The Art of VFX 2025The post Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3: VFX Breakdown by Redchillies VFX appeared first on The Art of VFX.

Military drone manufacturer Firestorm Labs has filed a lawsuit against competitor RapidFlight in an intellectual property (IP) dispute. The San Diego-based company claims that RapidFlight falsely accused its 3D printed Tempest drone of infringing on two patents.Filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, the case sees Firestorm request a jury trial to confirm that it has not infringed on either of RapidFlights US patent numbers 11,597,490 or 11,840,323. These relate to drone airframe structures with multiple 3D printed sections.In the court filing, Firestorm argues that its drone-making adversary has failed to compete on technology capabilities, performance, and price. The company highlights one instance where, during a head-to-head demonstration, RapidFlight figuratively and literallycrashed and burned.The plaintiff asserts that these failings have led the defendant to use unsupported threats in an attempt to bully Firestorm out of the industry. This reportedly includes repeated patent infringement assertions made verbally and in writing for over a year. RapidFlight is also said to have made unsupported allegations to its competitors potential customers, giving them an unfair advantage in attaining government contracts.In addition to a declaration that Firestorm has not infringed the patents in question, the unmanned aerial system (UAS) manufacturer is seeking compensation for legal fees and additional relief deemed appropriate by the court. The anticipation that RapidFlight would file a patent infringement lawsuit prompted Firestorm to launch this pre-emptive declaratory judgment action.Firestorm Labs and RapidFlight have been contacted for comment.Firestorm Labs Tempest drone. Image via Firestorm Labs.Firestorm challenges RapidFlights 3D printing patent infringement claims The Complaint for Patent Infringement Lawsuit outlines a slew of allegations against RapidFlight, highlighting repeated legal threats and accusations.Firestorm stated that it responded to these in good faith, explaining why it believes them to be false. Despite this, RapidFlight is said to have persisted in unjustified accusations of infringement. The Virginia-based firm also reportedly refused to engage and reach an amicable resolution.In one letter from June 2023, RapidFlight is said to have demanded that the plaintiff stop selling its alleged infringing products, destroy all offending inventory, and pay royalties. The letter accuses Firestorm of infringing the 11,547,490 patent, demanding the firm acquiesce to these demands within two weeks.In response, multiple letters were sent to RapidFlight in July and August 2023 outlining why these allegations were false. In particular, Firestorm claims that a connector component was misidentified as a patented reinforcement element, voiding the infringement claim. 3D models of relevant drone sections were also sent to illustrate the companys innocence.Following this, RapidFlight reportedly requested access to its competitors confidential and sensitive technical manuals or other product design documents. Firestorm denied this request, categorizing it as a fishing expedition to find potential infringements.The defendant then allegedly communicated unsupported allegations to potential Firestorm clients, including government decision-makers. This reportedly included claims that a patent infringement lawsuit was imminent, in an attempt to gain an unfair advantage in securing competitive contracts. The San Diego-based drone maker hopes launching this suit will clear the cloud of litigation from its business and its customers.RapidFlight M2 drone. Image via RapidFlight.3D printing patent disputesFirestorm is one of the latest companies to face 3D printing patent infringement allegations. Last year, Stratasys sued Bambu Lab, accusing the leading Shenzhen-based market leader of infringing on ten patents. The plaintiff argued that Bambus X1C, X1E, P1S, P1P, A1, and A1 mini breached IP relating to processes and features like purge towers, heated build platforms, tool head force detection, and networking capabilities.Stratasys demanded a trial by jury to achieve a declaration that the patents had been infringed upon, in addition to damages and an injunction blocking the future sale of the offending machines.This case has drawn criticism from the open-source 3D printing community. RepRap founder Dr. Adrian Bowyer called the idea of patents nonsense upon stilts, arguing that they inhibit creativity and stifle innovation. He criticized Stratasys for engaging in patent parasite behavior.This sentiment was echoed by Dr. Joshua Pearce, who worries that the case could lead to the weaponization of IP. Andrew Spitzer, a patent litigator from Crowell & Moring, believes the case could cause a seismic shift in the 3D printing landscape, with Stratasys potentially becoming a gatekeeper to the 3D printing industry.Elsewhere, 2024 saw 3D printer manufacturer Markforged settle a patent infringement lawsuit filed by Continuous Composites, resolving a legal battle that began in 2021. The allegations related to Markforgeds infringement of several patents relating to continuous composite additive manufacturing.Earlier in the year, a jury ruled against Markforged on one patent claim, awarding $17.34 million in damages. In September, Markforged signed a Settlement and Patent License Agreement, in which it agreed to pay Continous Composites a further $18 million upfront, followed by $1 million in 2025, $2 million in 2026, and $4 million in 2027.Who won the 2024 3D Printing Industry Awards?All the news from Formnext 2024.Subscribe to the 3D Printing Industry newsletter to keep up with the latest 3D printing news.You can also follow us on X, like our Facebook page, and subscribe to the 3D Printing Industry Youtube channel to access more exclusive content.Featured image shows a RapidFlight M2 drone. Image via RapidFlight.

Hello, Im looking to put some text around this disk within the separated sections so I was wondering how I can unwrap them into straight strips with minimal distortion to allow for this process to be easier in texturing? 1 post - 1 participant Read full topic

Brought to you by:Architect: Pelli Clarke & PartnersLocation: ChicagoCompletion Date:2024Wolf Point, a four-acre site located at the intersection of the Chicago Rivers three forks masterplanned by Pelli Clarke & Partners, is finally complete after a 15-year development saga. The final component of the project wrapped up construction late last year; it is a 57-story office tower leased almost exclusively to Salesforce. Clad head-to-toe in glass curtain wall, the tower features an articulated crown at its peak, a decorative element that signals the new skyscrapers prominence in the Chicago skyline. The Salesforce tower joins two previously completed residential buildings on the site, Wolf Point East and West, designed by bKL Architecture and Pelli Clarke & Partners, respectively. Before this, the site was used for decades as a parking lot. In addition to the three towers, the masterplan adds 2.3 acres of public park space that is integrated with the citys riverwalk, fulfilling municipal waterfront zoning requirements.Pelli Clarke & Partners masterplan for Wolf Point includes two residential towers, an office tower, and a public park. (Courtesy Pelli Clarke & Partners)The development site has been owned by the Kennedy family since 1936and has sat vacant for over 80 years. Darin Cook, partner at Pelli Clarke, told AN,In the Daniel Burnham plan of Chicago from 1909, this is one of the most significant sites. Its this unusual peninsula that sticks out into the river, so you actually have 270 degree exposure around the site. Even in Burnhams plan, he had a major landmark at this point in the river. It only took around 114 years to realize that, he added.The Wolf Point site juts out into the Chicago River, creating wrap-around views of the Salesforce tower. (Jason ORear)When designing the new building, Pelli Clarke & Partners were constrained by an established view corridor from the river to a Holiday Inn located behind Wolf Point as well as setback zoning related to the Chicagos Riverwalk. For this reason, the tower is narrow and rectangular in plan. To create a more formally expressive massing, the architects articulated the top of the tower, implementing a series of tapered setbacks around the buildings uppermost floors. A setback was also incorporated at the towers podium, where the buildings glazed lobby and entrance step inward to maximize Wolf Points landscaped public space.A glass-encased lobby establishes views outward to the public park. (Jason ORear)Pelli Clarke & Partners specified low-e coated glazing for the project to improve energy efficiency. This product allows 53 percent visible light transmittance during the day, allowing office workers to cut down on the use of artificial lighting. In addition, the silvery blue color of the curtain walls vision glass was diligently matched to that of the opaque glazing that covers the buildings spandrel panels, creating a more monolithic exterior expression. The Salesforce tower is the first construction project in Chicago required to submit environmental product declarations (EPDs) to the city. Using this data, Pelli Clarke & Partners collaborated with the structural engineer to reduce the use of steel and concrete in the structure through efficient column placements.Because of its position at the confluence of the Chicago River, Pelli Clarkes tower is highly visible from multiple vantage points within Downtown Chicago. (Jason ORear)Construction logistics were complicated by the irregularities of the Wolf Point site. Because of a city mandate that construction materials could not be stored above ground, a temporary access road was constructed beneath the property, building upon Downtown Chicagos pre-existing network of below-ground streets. After the building was completed, this access road was filled in. The builders also had to contend with the towers proximity to the Chicago River, which is occasionally subject to flooding. Accordingly, a large cofferdam was constructed below grade. During excavation, an abandoned coal delivery tunnel was discovered beneath the site, a remnant from the early 20th century, when coal was delivered to the basements of downtown businesses. To ensure the foundations structural stability, this tunnel was also filled in with concrete.Chicagos Skyline continues to grow with the addition of Salesforce tower, and several recently-completed residential skyscrapers. (Jason ORear)Despite nationwide struggles to fill office space, Hines, the projects developer, has succeeded in leasing 97 percent of the tower, managing to attract one of the worlds largest technology firms. As skyscrapers transition from office use to primarily residential functions, Pelli Clarke & Partners Salesforce tower finds itself alone among recently-completed buildings of comparable size. For example, Jahns 1000M and Goettsch Partners One Chicagotwo of the largest towers completed in the past several yearsare both residential high rises. Additional condo towers are forthcoming as well, including SOMs 400 Lake Shore Drive, which broke ground this past summer.Regardless of this trend away from office towers, development is clearly still booming in Chicago, as new buildings are regularly added to the citys already architecturally distinguished skyline.Project SpecificationsDesign Architect: Pelli Clarke & PartnersArchitect of Record: HKSLandscape Architect: ConfluenceInterior Design: GenslerStructural Engineer: Magnusson Klemencic AssociatesElectrical Engineer: Alvine EngineeringCivil Engineer: EpsteinLighting Design: OneLux StudioAV/Acoustics: CeramiSecurity Consultant: Affiliated EngineersTelecommunications: EpsteinFacade Consultant: Curtain Wall Design & ConsultingGeneral Contractor: Walsh ConstructionOwner: Wolf Point SouthOwner Representative: RL Edwards PartnersDeveloper: HinesGlazing Contractor: HarmonFacade Installation: HarmonElevator/Vertical Transportation: Persohn/Hahn AssociatesFacade Access: OlympiqueBMCS: HMA ConsultingWind Engineer: RWDIGeotechnical Engineer: GEI ConsultantsTraffic Consultant: Kimley-HornParking Consultant: DesmanCurtain Wall: HarmonLobby Glazing: SentechStainless Steel Column Covers: Bell Pro ArchitecturalGlass: Viracon, Cricursa