This week has been a big one for Microsoft news, but unfortunately much of it has been negative. The tech giant shocked many when it announced that several game studios would be closing, including the studio behind Hi-Fi Rush. A controversial controller launch followed that announcement as well, adding more bad news to the pile. We also saw Apple unveil a new processor that will compete with the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite and a Windows bug that blocks VPNs from working.
Microsoft is closing down game studios
Microsoft shocked the gaming world by announcing the end of Arkane Austin, Alpha Dog Games and Tango Gameworks. In addition to closing these three studios, Roundhouse Studios will be folded into ZeniMax Online Studios. The news surprised many, but the planned closure of Tango Gameworks was particularly surprising. Tango Gameworks released Hi-Fi Rush in 2023, a game that won critical acclaim and received accolades at the Game Awards and BAFTA.
Microsoft laid off 1,900 people at Activision Blizzard, Xbox Game Studios and ZeniMax Media earlier this year. At the time, it seemed like potentially the worst news of the year for people working in the industry. Unfortunately for the folks at Arkane Austin, Alpha Dog Games, and Tango Gameworks, more bad news came out this week.
Our own Samuel Tolbert said “there are no words to describe how idiotic, short-sighted and downright dark this move is,” and he was far from alone in feeling that way.
Tone deaf Xbox controller
The controversy arose when Microsoft announced a new Fire Vapor Special Edition Controller this week. On most other news days, the announcement of a new Xbox controller would be welcome news. Many people love to collect Xbox controllers and gamepads, which tops our collection of the best Xbox accessories. But the “Feel the burn” tagline originally used to market the controller proved controversial with the unveiling of the Fire Vapor Special Edition Controller.
Microsoft has since changed its marketing material to read “Introducing the Fire Vapor Special Edition Controller.” While that phrase is less billed, the fact that Microsoft announced a new controller on the same day it announced plans to close three studios was poorly received, regardless of the marketing language.
Apple introduces the M4
Apple had the biggest story in tech this week. The company unveiled its new iPad Pro, which is powered by the brand new M4 processor. The M4 promises 50% faster CPU performance than Apples M2 and is four times faster than the M2 on the GPU side.
The M2 comparison is interesting, but there is some logic behind it. The previous iPad Pro featured an M2 processor, so it makes sense to share numbers comparing the M4 to the latest chip in the iPad Pro. But Apple’s failure to include comparisons between the M4 and M3 has raised some questions about whether the tech giant is trying to frame the conversation for new Arm processors in 2024. Apple has been accused of rushing the M4 to market by some who claim the company has put the chip in the iPad Pro to ensure the M4 hits the market before the upcoming lower-end Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite or Snapdragon X Plus.
While it’s fun to compare technology and decide which side “won” the year, the bottom line is that consumers will have some excellent options when it comes to tablets in 2024. The new iPad Pro looks fantastic, and Microsoft there’s a new Surface Pro 10 on the way. Other OEMs are also set to ship devices powered by new Snapdragon processors.
GPT-5 news
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has an interesting habit of criticizing his company’s own products. Altman said GPT-4 is “slightly disconcerting at best” and promises “with a high degree of scientific certainty” that GPT-5 will be better. I guess it shouldn’t come as a shock that GPT-5 is likely to be better than GPT-4, but the way Altman frames the claim is interesting.
“GPT-4 is the dumbest model any of you will ever have to use again in many cases,” Altman said. This quote echoes previous comments when the CEO said GPT-4 was “kind of nasty”. The good news for users of GPT-based technology is that GPT-5 will be better. Altman said with “a high degree of scientific certainty that GPT-5 will be much smarter than GPT-4.”
Windows 11 VPN error
Some Windows 11 and Windows 10 users have recently encountered an error that prevents computers from connecting to VPNs. The bug, which was acknowledged by Microsoft, is included in the April 2024 update for both versions of Windows. “Windows devices may experience VPN connection failures after installing the April 2024 security update (KB5036893) or the April 2024 non-security preview update,” Microsoft said.
The tech giant is aware of the issue and is working on fixing it. For now, it’s probably best to pause Windows updates for a while. Microsoft will give people the green light to upgrade PCs again once the patch is addressed.
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