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Showing posts with the label alex.whitelock@futurenet.com (Alex Whitelock)

I've shot over 1,000 images on the new Nikon Z5 II, and it redefines what an entry-level full-frame camera can do

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Nikon Z5 II: two-minute review The Nikon Z5 II may be the ‘entry-level’ model in the brand’s most recent lineup of mirrorless bodies, but it’s by no means the stripped-down back-to-basics affair that its predecessor was. Nikon has conspicuously taken the body up a notch in terms of performance and features – and, for that matter, price. It inherits the lion’s share of specs from the outstanding Nikon Zf , and subsequently it’s a fully-fledged hybrid shooter that excels in all but the most extreme of use cases. Notwithstanding its position in the Nikon range, don’t think of this as an entry-level camera – it’s anything but. The Nikon Z5 II with the Nikkor 24-50mm f/4-6.3 kit lens (Image credit: Future / Alex Whitelock) At the heart of the Nikon Z5 II is the same Expeed 7 processor that's in the recent higher-end Z-series bodies. Subject detection? Check. Super-sticky 3D tracking? Check. In terms of autofocus, video, and meaningful quality of life changes, this camera bl...

New World: Aeternum review: Amazon's ailing MMORPG gets a much-needed second wind

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Review info Platform reviewed: PC Available on: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S Release date: October 14, 2024 You've seen New World before, sure, but have you seen New World: Aeternum? This soft relaunch of Amazon Game Studio's flagging 2021 MMORPG is what the company is calling a 'spiritual sequel' to the original. In layman's terms, that means next-gen console support, new story campaign cinematics, and a refined controller-friendly combat system that doubles down on the game's action RPG setup. This is, spoiler alert, mostly the same game as before - but New World: Aeternum already had a solid foundation and the inclusion of console players could potentially breathe fresh life into this game. Some of the best MMORPGs have been years in the making and Amazon's stubborn dedication to improving its first big MMORPG title is commendable. With a vast game world and diverse array of player versus player (PvP) and player versus environment (PvE) cont...

Throne and Liberty review: an old-school, beautiful, and divisive MMORPG

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Review info Platform reviewed: PC Available on: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S Release date: October 1, 2024 Throne and Liberty is a new free-to-play massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) from Korean developer NCSoft, a dev team that’s been well-known previously for such classics as the Lineage series. To date, the game has already been out - and relatively well received - in the Korean domestic market but the developer has teamed up with Amazon Games Studio to bring the game to the West. Throne and Liberty is the publishers' third attempt to crack the Western MMO market after Lost Ark and New World - two games that have looked to refresh the genre’s stagnant popularity in recent years. Throne and Liberty is a decidedly classic take on the genre, however, with a massive focus on group player-versus-player (PvP) conflict, world content, and a relatively basic tab-target combat system. It’s the spiritual successor to the Lineage games of old and one th...