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The Game Awards 2022: Winners Revealed

Recently Game Awards 2022 took place in Los Angeles, California.

Game Awards 2022, the largest gaming event of the year, left behind a trove of discussion and fresh previews for gaming enthusiasts to watch and rewatch over the holidays.

Elden Ring beat out God of War Ragnarök for the top honor at The Game Awards 2022, even though the latter PlayStation-exclusive won more awards overall than the former FromSoftware game (six vs four). Elden Ring won the best game and art direction awards, but God of War Ragnarök swept the narrative, audio, and performance categories.

Hidetaka Miyazaki, the director of the game, showed up on stage to receive the honor. Through a translation, Miyazaki expressed appreciation to From Software, the creators of Elden Ring, as well as the writer George R.R. Martin. Along with thanking the audience for their support, Miyazaki hinted that there might be more Elden Ring content and other ideas from From Software in the future.

Elden Ring and Horizon Forbidden West each received seven nominations, while God of War Ragnarok received ten total nominations, leading all other nominees.

At The Game Awards 2022, other winners included Stray, which won the best independent game, Marvel Snap, which won the best mobile game, Bayonetta 3, which won best action game, Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, which won best simulation and strategy game, and Gran Turismo 7, which won best sports and racing game.

Here’s a full list of winners:

GAME OF THE YEAR: Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)

BEST GAME DIRECTION: Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)

BEST NARRATIVE: God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)

BEST ART DIRECTION: Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)

BEST SCORE AND MUSIC: Bear McCreary, God of War Ragnarök

BEST AUDIO DESIGN: God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)

BEST PERFORMANCE: Christopher Judge, God of War Ragnarök

GAMES FOR IMPACT: As Dusk Falls (Interior Night/Xbox Game Studios)

BEST ONGOING GAME: FINAL FANTASY XIV (Square Enix)

BEST DEBUT INDIE: Stray (BlueTwelve Studio/Annapurna)

BEST INDIE: Stray (BlueTwelve Studio/Annapurna)

BEST COMMUNITY SUPPORT: FINAL FANTASY XIV (Square Enix)

BEST ACTION: Bayonetta 3 (Platinum Games/Nintendo)

BEST VR/AR: Moss: Book II (Polyarc)

BEST ESPORTS EVENT: 2022 League of Legends World Championship

BEST ESPORTS COACH: Matheus “bzkA” Tarasconi (LOUD, VALORANT)

BEST ESPORTS TEAM: LOUD (Valorant)

BEST ADAPTATION Arcane: League of Legends (Fortiche/Riot Games/Netflix)

INNOVATION IN ACCESSIBILITY: God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)

BEST ESPORTS GAME: VALORANT (Riot Games)

BEST ESPORTS ATHLETE: Jacob “Yay” Whiteaker (Cloud9, Valorant)

BEST MULTIPLAYER: Splatoon 3 (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)

CONTENT CREATOR OF THE YEAR: Ludwig

MOST ANTICIPATED: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)

BEST MOBILE: MARVEL SNAP (Second Dinner Studios/Nuverse)

BEST SPORTS/RACING: Gran Turismo 7 (Polyphony Digital/SIE)

BEST ACTION/ADVENTURE: God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)

BEST ACTION: Bayonetta 3 (Platinum Games/Nintendo)

BEST SIM/STRATEGY: Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope (Ubisoft Milan/Paris/Ubisoft)

BEST FAMILY: Kirby and the Forgotten Land (HAL Laboratory / Nintendo)

BEST FIGHTING: MultiVersus (Player First Games/WB Games)

BEST ROLE PLAYING: Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)

Sandhya Gupta

I am a law graduate from NLU Lucknow. I have a flair for creative writing and hence in my free time work as a freelance content writer.

Google Chrome rolls out memory and power-saving modes

Google Chrome browser has long been wracked by memory system-sucking problems, particularly when numerous tabs are open, however, the second most visited browser received an upgrade today to optimize device battery power and storage using both.

Google Chrome’s latest desktop release will include two additional new performance settings which are Memory Saver and Energy Saver. Google has confirmed that when they’re used, Chrome will take up to 30 percent less memory and eventually expand a device’s battery life when it’s running low.

“We’ll be rolling out both Memory Saver and Energy Saver modes over the next several weeks globally for Windows, macOS and ChromeOS,” Mark Chang, group product manager for Chrome, wrote in a company blog.
Source: computerworld.com

When the latest features are released, they would then run in the background until users turn them off physically or mark important websites to exclude them from Memory Saver.

The Memory Savor control is hidden beneath the burger menu in the top right corner of the Chrome browser window.

Chrome’s excessive use of system memory has previously limited the amount of memory available to other programs that run on a computer or a mobile device. The issues even caused Chrome to struggle to cache information for fast access, effectively negating the use of RAM in the first place.

“From the beginning, we designed Chrome for speed. But performance is more than just delivering a fast browsing experience,” Chang wrote.
Source: computerworld.com

Because Google Chrome sandboxes browser processes, a viewer who starts Chrome with the Google search box then ends up with two Chrome processes running, each requiring its memory.

“Add another tab and you get three,” Jerry Hildenbrand, a senior editor at AndroidCentral wrote in a post last year. “Add the 50 or so tabs you end up the opening by the end of the night and you have 51, each running semi-independently from the other and each taking up system resources. That’s only the beginning. Each extension starts another process. Chrome does some aggressive preloading of web pages so your internet browsing feels nice and snappy.”
Source: computerworld.com

Chrome consumes megabytes of memory as a result of the issue.

Furthermore, Chrome’s new Energy Saver mode is intended to conserve battery power by restricting background activity and visual effects on websites that contain animations and videos. According to Google, the Energy Saver mode starts when a device’s battery reaches 20 percent capacity.

Suhani Jain

I am a student pursuing my bachelor’s in information technology. I have a interest in writing so, I am working a freelance content writer because I enjoy writing. I also write poetries. I believe in the quote by anne frank “paper has more patience than person

Apple to Start Encrypting iCloud Backups

Leave a Comment / News, Tech News / By Suhani Jain

On Wednesday, Apple introduced its plans to enable users to encrypt additional types of iCloud info on its servers, such as full backups, photos, and notes.

The Advanced Data Protection feature will inhibit Apple from viewing the material of a portion of the most confidential or sensitive data stored on its web server and will prevent Apple from providing the information of an encoded backup to law enforcement.

According to Apple, encoded backups would be opt-in and available in the United States even before the end of this year.

Although Apple initially encrypted much of the data it contains on servers, the whole device backups containing text messages, contacts, as well as other necessary details were not end-to-end encoded, and Apple originally had access to the information of the backups.

The move will impress security advocates, who have originally defined unencrypted iCloud backups as a weak link in Apple’s privacy policy. It also implies that if Apple’s servers were ever hacked, user data would not be revealed.

It could offend law enforcement, which has relied on Apple’s policy of not encrypting backups to get contents in investigations even though Apple’s iMessage and devices are encrypted.

The FBI criticized Apple’s new feature in a statement on Wednesday, saying that it would “hinder” the bureau’s ability to “protect the American people from criminal acts,” according to the Wall Street Journal.
Source: cnbc.com

Apple notably battled the FBI’s endeavor to persuade it to unlock an encrypted iPhone utilized by a terrorist in San Bernardino, California, through the courts. Apple stated at the time that an iCloud backup on its servers was an alternative for obtaining the same data.

Encryption is generally opposed by law enforcement officials around the world since it enables suspects to go dark and refuses to acknowledge law enforcement access to potential evidence that they might have earlier access to under lower levels of security.

In an interview in 2018, Apple CEO Tim Cook stated that one major consideration in Apple’s decision-making regarding end-to-end encrypted iCloud backups is the fact that customer expects Apple to be able to assist them to recover their data. If users forget their passwords and have Advanced Data Protection enabled, Apple will be unable to reinstate the account since it lacks the required encryption key.

On Wednesday, Apple further introduced two additional security features. Users will have the option to use a physical key as second-factor authentication for Apple ID logins soon. Another update enables users who are vulnerable to major security risks to verify that their text messages are not being intercepted.

Last year, Apple introduced a system to inspect for inappropriate content including child sexual abuse content that used a complex system that would still enable

Apple encrypts user photos on its servers during an evident attempt to appease law enforcement. Privacy advocates argued that the system would mainly enable Apple to scan people’s hard drives. According to The Wall Street Journal, the system’s development has been halted.

Suhani Jain

Microsoft to Offer Call of Duty on Nintendo Devices if Activision Deal Closes

Leave a Comment / News, Tech News / By Sandhya Gupta

Microsoft has entered a 10-year deal with Nintendo to release “Call of Duty” (CoD) on Nintendo devices if the Activision Blizzard merger goes through.

Microsoft announced on Tuesday that if its $69 billion takeover of the game’s developer, Activision Blizzard, is completed, it would bring the popular video game brand Call of Duty to Nintendo systems.

Call of Duty, an enduring brand in which players engage in combat in the past, present, and future, is Activision’s flagship product. It has brought in more than $30 billion in revenue for the company.

Antitrust authorities from all around the world are currently investigating Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision, the biggest consumer technology transaction since AOL acquired Time Warner in 2000. Microsoft and Nintendo’s agreement may help allay concerns about the deal’s antitrust implications.

According to Bloomberg, Microsoft officials are meeting with USFTC chair Lina Khan as well as other members this week to present their final justification for the deal’s approval.

Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer noted, “Microsoft has entered into a 10-year commitment to bring Call of Duty to @Nintendo following the merger of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard King.

Microsoft is committed to helping bring more games to more people, however, they choose to play. Microsoft has committed to continue to offer Call of Duty on @Steam simultaneously to Xbox.”

The action is being taken as Microsoft awaits the FTC’s regulatory review of its proposed merger, which has been vigorously contested by Sony, the rival manufacturer of the PlayStation console, who thinks that the possibility of Call of Duty becoming exclusively available on Microsoft platforms would provide the company an unfair competitive advantage in the video game industry.

Regulators in the European Union and the United Kingdom have launched antitrust investigations into the transaction to determine whether it will harm competition. The EU is worried that Microsoft would deny competitors access to titles like Call of Duty. Microsoft has made assurances related to Call of Duty in an effort to allay concerns this week.

The company claims that the Activision acquisition will benefit players and boost industry competition. According to reports, the FTC is likely to approve the acquisition. Previously, Microsoft and Activision stated that they anticipated the agreement to be signed before the mid of 2023.

International regulators assessing the deal have frequently questioned if Call of Duty, one of Blizzard’s most popular titles, will be made inaccessible to PlayStation fans.

Microsoft has consistently assured authorities that the series would remain available on all current platforms, which at the moment include Xbox, PlayStation, and PC, and claimed that stopping PlayStation publication would be fiscally irresponsible.

Microsoft president Brad Smith had earlier this week announced that Microsoft had made a 10-year deal with Sony to make future Call of Duty games available on the PlayStation.

Sony has protested Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision, claiming that doing so would limit the options available to players. Microsoft’s initial proposal to keep Call of Duty on the PlayStation for “several more years” was rejected by Sony as “inadequate on many levels.”

Sandhya Gupta

I am a law graduate from NLU Lucknow. I have a flair for creative writing and hence in my free time work as a freelance content writer.

Microsoft eyes “super app” to challenge Apple and Google’s dominance of mobile search

Leave a Comment / News, Tech News / By Suhani Jain

Microsoft wants to boost its mobile efforts with a new “super app” for the iPhone that combines a variety of features into a single app. According to The Information, Microsoft hopes that such an app will assist it in breaking into the mobile search market, which itself is dominated by Apple and Google as of now.

This one “super app” would integrate purchasing, texting, internet research, newsfeeds, and other features into a single iPhone and Android app.

According to the report, this would resemble a mobile strategy that has worked for Tencent, referring to the hugely popular WeChat app. WeChat, on the other hand, combines messaging, buying stuff, news articles, and various games into a single app.

The report goes on to say that it’s not clear “whether Microsoft will ultimately launch such an app,” but it’s something that’s been internally considered. Microsoft’s push to better integrate into mobile products is being led by CEO Satya Nadella, who is particularly focused on “pushing the Bing search engine to work better with other Microsoft mobile products.”
Source: 9to5mac.com

Due to a major multibillion-dollar agreement between Apple and Google, Microsoft’s Bing is at an obvious disadvantage on Apple platforms. Apple has made Google’s search engine the default on its every platform as a result of this agreement.

The Information reports that Microsoft has previously bid on this deal but has always been beaten out by Google. “The negotiations have typically taken place directly between Nadella and top Apple executives behind closed doors,” the report says. This leaves “many top Microsoft executives in the dark about the process.”
Source: 9to5mac.com

The Google-Apple deal, on the other hand, is coming under increasing antitrust scrutiny. According to the report, an agreement between Microsoft and Apple may not garner as much regulatory attention because Bing’s contribution to the web search market is tiny in comparison to Google’s.

However, there is currently no evidence that Microsoft intends to aggressively pursue a deal with Apple to make Bing the default search engine on the iPhone. Instead, the company’s efforts are focused on enhancing Bing’s compatibility with current Microsoft services and considering the possibility of a super app.

Suhani Jain

Apple lets developers charge up to $10,000 per app

Leave a Comment / News, Tech News / By Sandhya Gupta

Apple is making another move to provide greater flexibility and quell criticism of the service by altering the price strategy for the Apple App Store to allow developers to charge a wider array of amounts.

Apple updated the App Store pricing structure on Tuesday, making it possible for developers to charge anywhere between 29 cents and $10,000 for their apps. Additionally, new options for pricing across numerous countries and currencies will be available to developers.

Apple noted, “These newly announced tools, which will begin rolling out today and continue throughout 2023, will create even more flexibility for developers to price their products while staying approachable to the hundreds of millions of users Apple serves worldwide. And, in turn, help developers continue to thrive on the App Store.”

The company noted, “Under the updated App Store pricing system, all developers will have the ability to select from 900 price points, which is nearly 10 times the number of price points previously available for most apps. his includes 600 new price points to choose from, with an additional 100 higher price points available upon request.”

The departure from Apple’s long-standing 99-cent price limit occurs as the Silicon Valley giant defends itself against claims that it has a monopolistic hold on the App Store, which serves as the only entry point for iPhones.

The change significantly alters the App Store, which Apple introduced in 2008 with a focus on simplicity. In recent years, the platform has come under further fire from regulators and developers who claim that the company’s standards are excessively onerous.

Apple is under fire for the limitations and costs it imposes on developers, notably the 30% commission it charges for some of the apps available on the App Store.

Apple and small devs in the USA reached a settlement in a $100 million class-action suit last year, and one of the terms of the deal included raising prices. Apple also simplified the process for developers to challenge app rejections at the time, as well as adjustments to App Store search.

Political pressure is also being applied on Apple in the US and Europe to loosen its grip on the App Store, which has been criticized by companies like Spotify, Epic Games, and Twitter. A California judge dismissed Epic’s complaint that Apple was operating like a monopoly through the App Store in 2021.

The judge, however, disallowed Apple from forbidding developers from incorporating “external links or other calls to action that direct customers to purchasing mechanisms” in their apps.

New EU regulations that go into effect in May 2023 will compel Apple to allow third-party app stores and other payment methods on its iOS operating system. The Digital Markets Act will also forbid the iPhone from giving Apple’s own services, such as Apple Music or the Safari browser, a competitive advantage.

Apple’s new pricing flexibility does not solve the central issues of sideloading and third-party apps brought up in the last couple of antitrust lawsuits against the corporation. In response to requests for greater transparency, Apple has been adamant that sideloading iOS applications will lead to security issues, while conveniently omitting the fact that macOS supports user-loaded apps.

Unless compelled to do so by the courts or legislators, Apple is unlikely to abandon its App Store gatekeeping, as it did with its price tier adjustments.

Sandhya Gupta

I am a law graduate from NLU Lucknow. I have a flair for creative writing and hence in my free time work as a freelance content writer.

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