TechPowerUP NEWS

[NextPowerUP]

Marathon is slated to launch on March 6, 2026, but a handful of influencers in China have apparently already been testing the game out ahead of the official launch, according to a post on Reddit and UCG on YouTube. The post and YouTube review detail some of the reports from the hands-on testing, revealing both in-game content and some first impressions about gameplay. First off, it's notable that the game has received a massive visual overhaul in terms of assets and UI, which is something the Marathon dev team has already shown off in previews and gameplay teasers, but the game world is overall much darker and more mysterious. The first-hand experiences in the post claim that there is deep world-building with a focus on the narrative and personalities in the game. The PvE is reportedly "extremely challenging," with enemy AI proactively calling in reinforcements to keep up the pressure, offering players little rest between combat encounters.

That's not to say players should expect to be getting buddy-buddy with other players, since the loot game pushes players to see each other as an easy way to grab loot. The reviewer also suggests that Marathon will seemingly emphasize the late game experience rather than encouraging early PvP and combat. Players are instead encouraged by the game systems to focus on completing missions, levelling up base stats, and upgrading gear before heading into combat situations. According to the reviewer, there will be decent variety when it comes to weapons and skills, and the skill balance is well tuned between the seven different character classes we know of so far. There are apparently 28 guns in the game, each with at least two skins, and the ability to change the gun model in some cases. Some additional information posted in the comments from the Chinese game event claim that there will be "more verticality than players expect," and that completing faction quests can unlock permanent map shortcuts between zones. There is also apparently an in-game creature called the Anomaly, which will be able to reshape the map mid-game. One source also claims that, in one game, there were three teams of six players each, bringing it up to 18 players per match.
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[NextPowerUP]

Trust announces the launch of the new Seron Slim Multi-Wireless Hyperscroll Mouse - combining a portable design with ultimate productivity, this wireless mouse is the ideal companion for professionals who work across multiple devices and locations.

At just 31 mm in height, the Seron's ultra-thin design easily slips into any bag, whilst its premium metal hyperscroll wheel with tilt function makes navigating through lengthy documents and spreadsheets effortless. Whether scrolling vertically through reports and webpages or horizontally across data tables, users can work more efficiently throughout the day.
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[NextPowerUP]

SilverStone has quietly expanded its comprehensive range of CPU cooling solutions with a myriad of brand-new designs, across both air and liquid cooling lines. A pair of 2U small form factor server/workstation CPU cooling solutions have gained the most media attention. As expected, the Taiwanese manufacturer has not issued any press material for this pair of freshly introduced AMD-oriented products. The SST-XE02-AM5B cooler's naming scheme clearly states that it is intended for deployment on Team Red's AM5 socket, although SilverStone's specification sheet mentions compatibility with the older AM4 platform. The SST-XE02-TR5B SKU's credentials list support of AMD's sTR5, SP6, TR4, and SP3 socket types.

The newest AM5B and TR5B models share similar traits; mainly a provision of five 6 mm heat-pipes combined with aluminium fins—marketed as offering "excellent heat conducting efficiency"—and a centrally-positioned 60 mm PWM dual ball bearing fan. This fan model's specification sheet lists an RPM range of 2000 to 14,000, a 72.8 CFM maximum airflow rating, and max. air pressure of 47.18 mmH2O. Mean Time To Failure (MTTF) is estimated at 70,000 operational hours. Despite featuring the same fan, the two low-profile SST-XE02 models deviate in terms of CPU TDP ratings—the AM5/AM4 compatible cooler is rated up to 170 W, while the ever so slightly larger/heavier sibling (sTR5/SP6/TR4/SP3) is capable of tempering up to 350 W. Naturally, the more capable unit is tasked with handling (for example) EPYC 8004 and Ryzen Threadripper 7000 processors.

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[NextPowerUP]

On February 28, Monster Hunter Wilds will celebrate its first anniversary, and Capcom will be marking the occasion with a sizeable new content update that will introduce performance improvements and a slew of in-game events throughout February and March. Update 1.041, which lands on February 18, delivers the new missions, monsters, weapons, and rewards, alongside the aforementioned anniversary events. Monster Hunter Wilds producer, Ryozo Tsujimoto, announced the new update in a video posted on the official Monster Hunter YouTube channel. Tsujimoto also announced that Capcom is working on a new expansion for Monster Hunter Wilds that is on the same level as Iceborne and Sunbreak for Monster Hunter Worlds and Rise. Given the direct comparison, it's likely that this will also be a premium paid expansion coming in at around the same $39.99 price point as the aforementioned Worlds expansions. Aside from sharing that more details will arrive "this summer," meaning between June and August, no details have been shared about the contents of the new update, but the comparison also suggests we will see it launch with a new locale with a new hub, missions, and enemies.

The February 2026 update will add a new boss, the Arch-tempered Arkveld, a monster available to hunters above rank 100, in its own 10-star event quest alongside special 10-star quests featuring all four previous Arch-tempered monsters and rare rewards. Completing the Arch-tempered Arkveld quest will unlock a special optional hunt-a-thon quest pitting players against all four Arch-tempered monsters in a single quest. The update also makes the winning sword and pendant from the weapon design contest available to everyone as a special event quest reward. There will also be a collaboration with Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection, and the anniversary events will make all previous time-specific event rewards available again through a weekly rotation of previous seasonal events. The anniversary events and collaboration will feature new and fun twists on existing quests to match the Festival of Accord vibes, with matching Stories rewards. The event festivities will last for a month, from February 18 to March 19, and there will be special one-time event rewards. The development team has also analyzed game data and prepared a special limited-time event featuring a buffed version of the least-hunted monster in the game, with the quest again delivering special cosmetics and rewards. Tsujimoto says that Capcom still has more in-store for Monster Hunter fans that it will reveal closer to the anniversary event start date.
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[NextPowerUP]

Hello everyone! The twenty-something devs at Vermila Studios would like to thank you very much for your interest in Crisol: Theater of Idols. Today is an incredible day because, after more than five years under development, we can see everyone experiencing the game. Do not hesitate to leave a review, they are very encouraging and help us improve the game within our abilities. We hope Tormentosa surprises and terrifies you equally, and that your blood will protect you from all evil. Go for it, good luck!

Crisol: Theater of Idols is a first-person horror/action game set in Hispania, a twisted version of Spain. Play as Gabriel, a soldier who uses blood as both weapon and lifeline. Explore the cursed island of Tormentosa, uncover dark secrets, and battle horrifying enemies. Will you survive? Crisol is developed by Vermila Studios, and published by Blumhouse Games.
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[NextPowerUP]

According to fresh news reports ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) has just announced the initiation of HBM3 module mass manufacturing activities. The Chinese computer memory maker is slowly catching up with more mainstream international rivals—most notably, South Korean companies started full production of fourth-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM3) products back in 2023. Over the past year, CXMT has demonstrated improved capabilities across a promising range of (mostly) commercial lines—for example, their proprietary DDR5 and LPDDR5X designs were showcased in preview form, last November. By early February (2026), the likes of ASUS, Acer, Dell, and HP were reportedly weighing up the sourcing of CXMT consumer-grade memory products.

The first signs of CXMT's diversification into the development of "homegrown" HBM3 modules were divulged by industry insiders, last May. By early autumn, a joint venture—involving YMTC—seemed to pave the way for an acceleration of the Chinese industry's overall HBM manufacturing footprint. Huawei's newest/futuristic Ascend AI accelerator relies on "in-house" HBM tech, due to global sanctions preventing the supply of cutting-edge Micron, Samsung, SK Hynix components to Chinese firms. An MK South Korea reports cites recent information disclosed by an anonymous source, regarding a secret partnership: "Huawei, which is leading the development of AI semiconductors in China, is developing HBM together with CXMT. It is expected to enter mass production despite (talk of) low yield(s)." Further inside track info posits that CXMT is planning a per month output of 60,000 wafers for "HBM3 production." This impressive guesstimate allegedly accounts for about 20% of the memory maker's total manufacturing capacity of 300,000 wafers per month, at least for 2026.

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[NextPowerUP]

Intel and Google published the results of a significant joint security review of Intel Trust Domain Extensions (Intel TDX). The five-month engagement between Intel's INT31 research team and Google Cloud Security focused on hardening Intel TDX Module 1.5, the core software responsible for managing confidential virtual machines. The review identified five vulnerabilities and 35 other weaknesses or areas for improvement. According to Intel, all five vulnerabilities were patched in the latest code version released to partners.

Intel TDX represents a shift in data center security. Unlike traditional virtualization, where the hypervisor has full access to guest data, TDX creates "Trust Domains" (TDs), or hardware-isolated virtual machines. These are cryptographically isolated from the hosting infrastructure using Intel's Secure Arbitration Mode (SEAM). The system relies on the Intel TDX Module, a digitally signed software shim running in SEAM. It enforces security policies that hardware alone cannot handle. Because a compromise of this module could theoretically bypass the system's isolation guarantees, it is a critical verification target.
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[NextPowerUP]

Each week, new games and apps integrating NVIDIA DLSS, NVIDIA Reflex, and advanced ray-traced effects are released or announced, delivering the definitive PC experience for GeForce RTX players.

This week, both High On Life 2 and Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties are launching with support for DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation. And Reniamal launches February 13th with DLSS Super Resolution. And our Resident Evil Requiem GeForce RTX 50 Series Bundle is available now.
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[NextPowerUP]

Intel's upcoming Core Ultra Series 4 "Nova Lake-S" could be the company's first desktop processor series to offer Microsoft Copilot+ native acceleration capability. The NPU of "Nova Lake" offers throughput of 74 TOPS, far exceeding the 40 TOPS required by Copilot+. Intel already met this with its "Lunar Lake" mobile processors, but its current "Arrow Lake-S" and upcoming "Arrow Lake-S Refresh" processors only do 13 TOPS as they implement an older generation NPU carried over from "Meteor Lake."

This is not to say that all desktop processor models of "Nova Lake-S" offer 74 TOPS, some could offer lower throughput, but there's plenty of product segmentation room for Intel to ensure that even its cheapest retail model offers at least 40 TOPS to meet Copilot+ requirements. AMD might end up beating Intel to the title of first socketed desktop processor with a Copilot+ capable NPU. The company could launch its Ryzen AI 400 series "Gorgon Point" Socket AM5 APUs sooner than Intel's rumored late-2026 debut of the Core Ultra Series 4 desktop processors.

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