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The COVID-19 shutdown is making weather prediction more difficult
The COVID-19 quarantine is grounding airlines around the world and that's hindering our ability to predict the weather.
'Gran Turismo Sport' is a blast even if you're terrible at it
I've never been into Gran Turismo (or racing games in general), but when my colleague Timothy J. Seppala asked if I wanted to play the franchise's next title, GT Sport, I didn't think twice about saying yes. Especially after seeing how gorgeous the latest trailer looks. And I'm glad I checked it out, even if I did end up in second-to-last place in the two races I played. The graphics in Gran Turismo Sport are as gorgeous as they look on screenshots; it's seriously hard to differentiate cars in the game from real ones. Put simply, it's a perfect way to showcase gameplay at 4K 60fps (don't forget about HDR either), and even more fun if you're experiencing it the way I did: in a vibrating "sled" with a racing seat, steering wheels and pedals.
Catch this fancy bug in Pokemon X/Y
Fancy Pattern Vivillon is now available for Pokemon X and Y players to obtain for free, The Pokemon Company announced. The pretty bug can be downloaded through the Mystery Gift option in the game by connecting a 3DS to the Nintendo NT, then choosing to receive a gift via the Internet. While the Pokemon itself isn't all that uncommon in the game, its colorful pattern usually changes based on the real-life location of its owner. In the case of the Fancy Pattern Vivillon, which was announced in late May, the special version of the creature was created to commemorate the 100 millionth Pokemon trade via the Global Trade Station. Now that the milestone has been met, all players can pick up their new teammate today, though the developer says it "won't be available for long." [Image: Nintendo]
Pokemon X/Y trading milestone captures Fancy Pattern Vivillon
To reward the legions of Pokemaniacs around the world who've spent the past seven months swapping Houndooms and haggling over Chespins in Pokemon X and Y, Nintendo has revealed plans to distribute a unique Vivillon known for its particularly ostentatious coloration. Officially known as the "Fancy Pattern Vivillon," this one-off critter bears a unique aesthetic design on its wings. Normally, Vivillon are highly sought after for online trading as each one features a design that changes depending on a player's real-world location. The Fancy Pattern Vivillon, however, looks the same no matter where it's located (though it's likely to be even more in-demand than its more common brethren, given its exclusive availability via upcoming distribution event). The timing of this distribution event is currently up in the air, as the Fancy Pattern Vivillon will only be released once the Global Trade Station tallies over 100 million trades. According to Nintendo, the counter currently sits at about 90 million. Once the 100 million mark has been passed, the official Pokemon website will be updated with details on exactly how and when players can download their lavish new bug. [Image: Nintendo]
GAME FREAK amassing army of Ponyta
You now have the opportunity to get some virtual collectibles from Pokemon developers GAME FREAK, for the low, low cost of one Ponyta. Junichi Masuda, director of GAME FREAK, art director Ken Sugimori, and battle director Shigeki Morimoto have put 30 Psyducks each up for trade on Diamond and Pearl's Global Trade Station. From the 19th to the 23rd, and from the 26th to the 30th, any Ponyta offered in trade for a Psyduck with no preference for gender or level may net you one of the developers' Psyducks. If you're a jerk and you want a Ponyta, now would be a good time to put your Psyducks up for trade. Jerk.
Pokemon cheaters banned
A primary concern of Pokemon Diamond/Pearl (or, at least, that of this blogger) is the incredibly rampant cheating. In the past, use of an Action Replay wasn't a horrible offense ... your team would be uber, and a couple of your personal friends might be a bit ticked, but that was all.These days, in the era of Wi-Fi, ridiculously impossible trades litter the GTS. What, you don't have a Level 100 shiny Palkia? Well, hmph, you can't have my Level 7 Munchlax, then. For honest players, or those that don't have access to hacking tools, such Pokemon would take days to train up and impossible luck/determination for one with shiny status. That's why we're happy that Nintendo is cracking down on some Action Replay users, specifically ones using the "All 493 Pokemon," "All Shiny," and "National-Dex" cheats. They will henceforth be banned from online barter.Feel free to start a flamewar regarding the justification of cheating, by the way. We're pyros.
NVIDIA launches "low-end" 320MB GeForce 8800 GTS
If you find it rather appalling that a $300 graphics card is on the budget end of things these days -- back in our day that was the price of a next-gen console, now get off our lawn! -- you might be comforted to know that NVIDIA's 320MB 8800 GTS ain't no sloucher. Sure, the 500MHz G80 core is stepped down from the 575MHz in the GTX, with the 320MB of memory falling far short of the 768MB in the GTX or even the 640MB in the beefier version of the GTS, but you're still getting a whole lot of DirectX 10 juice for your dollar, relative to the $600+ GTX and $400+ 640MB GTS. If you're still having trouble justifying the price, just google yourself a few Crysis screenshots -- there won't be any turning back. Be sure to peep the uniformly awkward OEM box art after the break.[Via TrustedReviews]
NVIDIA "G80" specs revealed
We saw this bugger in all its liquid-cooling glory the other day, which was impressive enough, but now NVIDIA has released the official specs for their upcoming 8800 GTX and GTS graphics cards, and we're pretty much in awe. Without further ado, the specs are as follows: the GTX measures "just under 11-inches" long, and sports a 575MHz "G80" processing core, 768MB of 900MHz GDDR3 memory, a 384-bit memory bus, for 86GB/s memory bandwidth, 128 unified shaders at 1350MHz and a 38.4 billion pixels per second theoretical fill rate. The GTS version features a "mere" 500MHz G80 core, 640MB of memory, 320-bit memory bus, for 64GB/s memory bandwidth, and 96 unified shaders, clocked at 1200MHz. The GTS edition also shaves that card length down to a more realistic 9-inches. Both cards are HDCP compliant and SLI capable, and they require 450 and 400 watt power supply units, respectively. The cards are also, of course, DirectX 10 compatible, so we should be seeing some performance gains beyond the mere horsepower gains -- which are immense in themselves. No word yet on price or exact availability, but we'd be clearing off a nice chunk of room on the credit cards for a Windows Vista Ultimate / NVIDIA 8800 combo purchase come this January, at least if you have any Windows gamer cred to maintain and/or procure.[Via AeroXperience]
