Welcome to the 133rd edition of DF Direct Weekly, where Alex, Rich and John discuss the big news stories of the week - including confirmation that the PS5 'Slim' is real but not slim and Redfall getting a 60fps upgrade - but is it too late? Meanwhile, John raves out Super Mario Bros Wonder and Robocop Rogue City, and the team gets to grips on whether Sony could ever roll out their own FPS Boost program. 0:00:00 Introduction 0:01:01 News 01: Sony announces updated PS5 0:23:29 News 02: Super Mario...
Oct 16, 2023•2 hr 51 min•Season 1Ep. 133
In another mammoth edition of DF Direct Weekly, Rich Leadbetter, Alex Battaglia and a returning John Linneman tackle the big topics head-on. Red Dead Redemption on PlayStation 5 gets a 60fps upgrade and Oliver provides us with a bunch of assets to look at. Meanwhile, the team discuss the initial marketing for Forza Motorsport vs the final game - and they've got some issues. Beyond that, could FSR 3 frame-gen work on current-gen consoles? Rich puts some tests together. Also: John spills the beans...
Oct 14, 2023•2 hr 45 min•Season 1Ep. 132
A big DF Direct Weekly hoves into view in the wake of another week of BIG news in the gaming/technology space. Rich, Alex and Oliver discuss Jim Ryan's upcoming retirement from Sony and the legacy he leaves behind, and there's a sombre tone as the scale of Epic Games' staff layoffs becomes clear. In happier news, Alex shares more of his thoughts and hopes for Alan Wake 2, while the possibilities of the PC port of Horizon Forbidden West are talked through. Meanwhile... are we reading too much int...
Oct 02, 2023•2 hr 58 min•Season 1Ep. 131
In a packed show, it's Rich, Alex and Oliver at mics, discussing their first reactions to the Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty expansion, the sorry state of Mortal Kombat 1 on Nintendo Switch, and what to expect from Switch 2 performance based on Bobby Kotick's comments. Meanwhile, downtime on The Matrix Awakens demo returns us to the topic of online DRM, while we ask our audience to weigh in with their thoughts on the process of reviewing graphics cards in the era of DLSS and reconstruction techn...
Sep 25, 2023•1 hr 29 min
In the wake of the biggest video games leak in recent memory, the Digital Foundry team come together to discuss the now infamous Xbox PDF leak. The refresh Xbox Series console specs are discussed and the team share their thoughts on Microsoft's direction for its next-gen machine. Is another AMD-based machine and 'the power of the cloud' ambitious enough for a new piece of 2028 hardware? 0:00:00 Introduction 0:02:48 The end of physical media? 0:14:55 Revised Series X, Series S consoles incoming 0...
Sep 22, 2023•1 hr 22 min
The onslaught of new gaming and technical stories continues, making for another BIG episode of DF Direct Weekly. John, Rich and Alex discuss the big games at the Sony State of Play and Nintendo Direct, before looking into the promised upgrades to Starfield - which look a lot like a direct response to John and Alex's review critiques. Meanwhile, Rich examines the new Immortals of Aveum patch, while there's a general sense of excitement about the line-up of triple-A games coming to the latest iPho...
Sep 18, 2023•2 hr 49 min•Season 1Ep. 129
A packed week of news as John, Rich and Oliver discuss the shock Switch 2 tech demo leaks - what should we expect from the system in the wake of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and The Matrix Awakens leaks? Meanwhile, John's excited about Daytona 2's upcoming arrival via emulation, while Oliver shares initial impressions on the new Star Wars Jedi: Survivor patch that improves the 60fps performance mode. Rich shares RX 7800 XT impressions, while it quickly emerges that corrective lenses are the unsung ...
Sep 11, 2023•2 hr 48 min•Season 1Ep. 128
In a DF Direct Starfield special, Rich, John and Oliver share their impressions of the game, answer a ton of supporter questions and offer up some impressions on the PC version. And we also attempt to tackle the biggest question of them all: is a 60fps performance mode possible on Xbox Series X? To answer that, we use the actual Xbox Series X CPU via the AMD 4800S Desktop Kit, paired with a GPU that's a close match for the PS5's. From there, we unlocked frame-rate and examine the characteristics...
Sep 08, 2023•1 hr 10 min
After last week's get-together, the DF Team are back in their boxes, talking Starfield reviews, how Larian and Microsoft resolved the Baldur's Gate 3 Xbox impasse and the unfortunate closure of Volition. John's excited about Sonic Superstars and Armored Core 6, while Rich and Alex decide that there needs to be an intervention and some level of expectation management when it comes to FSR 3 frame generation's deployment on the consoles. All this and more in this special 'go on lads!' edition of DF...
Sep 04, 2023•2 hr 43 min•Season 11Ep. 127
With Rich, John and Alex meeting up together at Gamescom for the first time since 2019, this one is a very different, very special DF Direct Weekly. The team discuss Starfield at Gamescom and their meeting with Phil Spencer and Todd Howard, before ploughing on into their reaction to the FSR and AMD Fluid Motion Frames demonstration they saw at the show. Meanwhile, Nvidia takes things to the next level with DLSS 3.5 ray reconstruction, there's reaction to the latest PlayStation Portal disclosures...
Aug 28, 2023•2 hr 37 min•Season 1Ep. 126
Another big DF Direct Weekly 'drops' as John, Rich and Alex look forward to visiting Gamescom 2023, a range of big Intel news is discussed and new information emerges on Immortals of Aveum in the wake of a extensive tech interview. Meanwhile, the mooted demise of the Xbox 360 store is lamented, while John raves about Bomb Rush Cyberfunk - a 'spiritual successor' to Jet Set Radio. 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:20 News 01: Gamescom: what to expect! 00:19:07 News 02: Intel update: Arc DX11 driver, Pr...
Aug 21, 2023•2 hr 51 min•Season 1Ep. 125
In the latest DF Direct Weekly, John, Rich and Alex discuss the controversy surrounding the Red Dead Redemption conversions, Mark Cerny gets in touch to reveal more about PlayStation 5's Dolby Atmos support, a brace of leaks look set to confirm a new PlayStation 5 model with detachable optical drive - but it's not looking particularly slim. Meanwhile, RDNA4 rumours are discussed, while John shares impressions on the Quake 2 Remaster and new 4K retro scaler, RetroTink 4K. 00:00:00 Introduction 00...
Aug 14, 2023•2 hr 23 min
In this week's DF Direct Weekly, the team discuss EA's announcement of a last-gen version of Star Wars Jedi Survivor, wondering how this new development fits in with the fact that the current-gen versions still need work. Meanwhile, an amazing-looking path-traced version of Skyrim is trailered - and the RT upgrade could work on all DX9+ games. John shares his thoughts on PS5's beta firmware Dolby Atmos support, while Rich reveals the results of a new PS5 exploit - showing Gravity Rush PS4 Pro ru...
Aug 07, 2023•2 hr 40 min•Season 1Ep. 123
A clean sweep of Sony news stories this week, as John, Oliver and Rich react to the alleged PlayStation 5 Pro specs and discuss the apparent debut of the Project Q handheld device in the flesh in the least flattering manner possible. At the same time, Sony is slashing the price on PS5 consoles... so could a new, replacement model be arriving soon? After that, there's more footage from Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart running off a launch PlayStation 4 hard drive. Plus: are GPU teraflop metrics now ...
Jul 31, 2023•1 hr 23 min•Season 1Ep. 122
In this week's DF Direct, John, Rich and Alex share their thoughts on the latest Spider-Man 2 trailer and its accompanying custom PS5, sort (likely) facts from the fiction surrounding the upcoming Switch 2, and lament the total lack of review coverage for the RTX 4060 Ti 16GB. Meanwhile, there's clarification on the Dolphin emulator's no-show on Steam and discussion on the lack of a Saturn mini retro console - and the end of the mini console phase in general. And did you know that Digital Foundr...
Jul 24, 2023•2 hr 30 min•Season 1Ep. 121
With the recent legal challenges to the deal failing or crumbling as we speak, it's time to discuss the realities of Microsoft's acquisition of Activision, Blizzard and King. Where does the deal stand right now? What are/were Microsoft's business objectives? Can Call of Duty actually run on Nintendo Switch? Does the recent Sony deal mean Microsoft gets early access to PS6? And to conclude, what final words does the panel have for Xbox boss Phil Spencer? 00:00 Introductions 01:50 Acquisition over...
Jul 19, 2023•1 hr 9 min
This week, the team take a look at the specs required to run Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart on PC and discuss how crucial DirectStorage is to the future of PC gaming. Meanwhile, the AMD Starfield partnership sees specs reveals turned into an awkward marketing exercise that confuses gamers. Classic cut content is coming to Halo: The Master Chief Collection, while Rich reveals initial results using the world's first full HDMI 2.1 capture card. 00:00:00 Introduction 00:00:48 Ratchet & Clank: Rift Ap...
Jul 17, 2023•2 hr 33 min•Season 1Ep. 120
In this week's DF Direct Weekly, the team discuss potential PS5 Slim and PS5 Pro hardware as revealed by... Microsoft? Meanwhile, Final Fantasy 16's motion blur is revised via a new patch, John tells us about a bunch of excellent PSVR2 games you may not have heard about - and the team chat tech concerning a potential Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag remake. Finally, CD Projekt RED's opinions about the Cyberpunk 2077 launch have caused some minor controversy... but why? 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:...
Jul 10, 2023•2 hr 30 min•Season 1Ep. 119
A packed 89-minute DF Direct Weekly for you this week, as the team discuss the controversy surrounding AMD's technology partnership with Starfield. Does the deal mean that AMD is paying to block competing DLSS and XeSS upscalers from appearing in the game? AMD says: no comment. Meanwhile, the team mull over the week's FTC vs Microsoft revelations, Rich is excited by huge Assassin's Creed Unity perf improvements on Intel Arc, Red Dead Redemption seems to be getting a remaster, while amazing new f...
Jul 03, 2023•2 hr 30 min•Season 1Ep. 118
This week, John discusses the reaction to the Final Fantasy 16 reviews, the focus on the 720p-1080p performance mode and whether the game was actually targeting 30fps all along. Meanwhile, the team are impressed by the latest Nintendo Direct, Xbox raises prices, while the lack of DLSS in AMD sponsored PC titles once again comes to the fore. Also: to celebrate our 117th edition, the team share their favourite Halo memories. 00:00:00 Introduction 00:00:49 News 01: Final Fantasy 16 review reaction!...
Jun 28, 2023•2 hr 30 min•Season 1Ep. 117
The latest DF Direct Weekly 'drops' with John, Rich and Alex reuniting at the mics after a massive week of not-E3 showcase news and fallout. Phil Spencer appears to be ruling out a mid-gen 'Pro' console update for the Xbox Series machines, Matt Booty says that Xbox One first-party game development is finally over, while Sony reveals that PS5 game streaming is coming to its subscription service. Meanwhile, the Starfield 'storm in a teacup' 30fps discourse continues, while Alex comes face-to-face ...
Jun 19, 2023•2 hr 31 min•Season 1Ep. 116
It's the impressions/reactions video you've been waiting for - and it took time because we wanted to investigate what was shown more deeply. John Linneman and Alex Battaglia share their notes on the Starfield Direct, discuss why the game is 30fps on consoles, what 4K on Series X actually means (and the implications for Series S) before moving onto the rendering tech on display and what they think about the actual game. 00:00 Overview 00:53 Why is Starfield 30fps on consoles? 12:31 Visual impress...
Jun 15, 2023•46 min
A company revitalised based on the latest Ubisoft Forward, we saw a big bunch of excellent games and a couple in particular that look set to deliver proper 'next-gen' rendering - Star Wars Outlaws and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora. Beyond those 'bangers', the likes of AC Mirage and Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown also caught the eye of John Linneman and Alex Battaglia. Plus: a quick look at the Capcom showcase, including new footage of Pragmata... 00:00 Overview 01:05 Avatar: Frontiers of Pandor...
Jun 14, 2023•53 min
In a special episode of DF Direct, John Linneman, Oliver Mackenzie and Alex Battaglia share their reactions and impressions to the excellent Xbox Showcase 2023, going through the event game by game with analysis and insights. Has Microsoft delivered the best event of the summer season so far? 00:00:00 Overview 00:02:32 Fable, South of Midnight 00:11:32 Star Wars Outlaws, 33 Immortals 00:17:30 Payday 3, Persona 3 Reload 00:25:35 Avowed, Sea of Thieves 00:31:31 Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, Sen...
Jun 13, 2023•1 hr 29 min
Geoffcon aka Keigh3 aka Summer Games Fest is back, kicking off with a mammoth show crammed with new games of varying quality, Nicolas Cage and a big bunch of obvious ads. In this DF Direct special, John, Rich and Alex mull over the various reveals and wurld prm'ears, debate the inclusion of the letter 'i' in 'mobile', dive deeply into Spider-Man's symbiote lore, get excited about the new Sonic game and ponder the big question - how many of the games in the show were running on Unreal Engine? 00:...
Jun 11, 2023•2 hr 46 min
The news of a PC port from Nixxes for Rachet and Clank raises the question: can PC handle the extreme storage demands of the Insomniac PS5 showcase? Alex weighs in with his thoughts on how the port will work. Meanwhile, Nvidia demos AI-driven conversations with NPCs, Redfall's development woes make the news again, while John's concerned about Nintendo's views towards emulation. 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:08 News 01: Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart coming to PC! 00:19:38 News 02: Nvidia demos AI-gen...
Jun 06, 2023•2 hr 32 min•Season 1Ep. 114
With the first of the summer games events done and dusted, it's down to Rich, Oliver and John to shift through the games of the Sony showcase, bemoan trailergeddon, regale Marvel's Spider-Man 2 with praise then to discuss the merits of the Project Q streaming handheld. Meanwhile, the lack of a physical release for Alan Wake 2 upsets John - and Rich makes him talk about Marathon. 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:15 News 01: Sony showcase recap! 00:40:02 News 02: Alan Wake 2 impresses, but why is it di...
May 29, 2023•2 hr 34 min•Season 1Ep. 113
This week on the show, Alex gets to grips with the latest patch for Jedi Survivor, testing to see whether the game's profound tech issues have been resolved. Meanwhile, the team discusses Nvidia's RTX 4060 and RTX 4060 Ti announcements, while John has much to say about the poor state of day one console launches. Meanwhile, the buzz surrounding mid-gen console refreshes continues - but do we actually need them? 00:00:00 Introduction 00:00:52 News 01: Jedi Survivor PC performance update! 00:17:04 ...
May 25, 2023•2 hr 36 min•Season 1Ep. 112
One of the biggest - if not the biggest - games of 2023 launched this week. Nintendo's Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has recently a massively positive reaction. John discusses his review and shares more thoughts on the game, while digging more deeply into the eternal question - is it too big for Switch? Meanwhile, Rich drops in from time off to share his impressions with the Asus ROG Ally and A Plague Tale: Requiem gets a 60fps patch... but what does it actually do? 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:04 ...
May 15, 2023•1 hr 25 min
DF Direct Weekly returns after a seismic week in gaming, with Oliver, John and Alex discussing the crisis state of PC gaming 'in the here and now', raking over the coals of the deeply disappointing Redfall release, while we had to take a look at Man of Medan on Switch, which targets a cinematic 24fps. Meanwhile, John clues us in on the latest Analogue Pocket firmware update. 00:00:00 Introduction 00:00:58 News 01: PC gaming in crisis 00:24:12 News 02: Redfall reaction and follow-up 00:54:38 News...
May 08, 2023•2 hr 33 min•Season 1Ep. 110
