Digital Foundry Direct Weekly
When it comes to video games and the hardware and tech we play them on, the team at Digital Foundry are unparalleled experts. Each week, DF Direct breaks down the latest breakthroughs in video game visuals, sound, and performance happening on PlayStation, Xbox, the most powerful PC setups, and more. If you’re a geek for graphics, GPUs, or just video games in general, DF Direct will help you get the most out of your gaming setup. DF Direct is a part of the Geek Media Podcast Network, an IGN Entertainment Brand. Visit Geek.com for more information.
126
DF Direct Weekly #106: New PlayStation Handheld...
Rumours of a new PlayStation portable streaming device dominated the news this week, supplanting the actual reveal of the ultra-powerful Asus ROG Ally, first revealed on - believe it or not - April Fools Day. Meanwhile, John is seriously unhappy about Microsoft blocking emulation on Xbox Series consoles, while the applications of AI tools and the concept of affordable GPUs prompts further debate. And finally... Tekken 8 is on UE5 but is it actually using Nanite and Lumen?
71 min
127
DF Direct Weekly #105: The Last of Us Part 1 PC...
We're not angry, we're just disappointed. And a touch baffled. Stupefied even. And actually, yeah, maybe a bit angry too. Just how did The Last of Us Part 1 launch on PC in the state it did? John, Rich and Alex discuss their impressions on the game, what went wrong with the port - and whether Sony should have launched it in this state at all. Meanwhile, it's a sad, sad day as E3 2023 is cancelled and the entire future of the Electronic Entertainment Expo looks bleak.
82 min
128
DF Direct Weekly #104: Elden Ring RT, Big Unrea...
It's GDC week, with Alex, Rich and John discussing the big news from the latest events, including some exciting new Unreal Engine 5 developments, plus Nvidia's latest innovations in real-time path-traced gaming. Meanwhile, the team isn't that impressed by Elden Ring's RT upgrade, while EA's decision to delete a bunch of excellent Battlefield games doesn't go down particularly well either.
89 min
129
DF Direct Weekly #103: Steam Deck OLED, PS5 Pro...
John, Alex and Will take to the mics this week to discuss the possibilities of some exciting iterations on gaming favourites. Do the recent reports of a PS5 Pro make sense? What about an OLED Steam Deck? And if Counter-Strike is so great, why isn't there a Counter-Strike 2?
77 min
130
DF Direct Weekly #102: Starfield/Suicide Squad ...
A big week of news to discuss, with Oliver, Rich and Alex talking about Starfield's latest announcement and 'delay', plus the story that Suicide Squad will be pushed back.
69 min
131
DF Direct Weekly #101: Baldur's Gate 3 Xbox Dif...
Baldur's Gate 3 isn't exclusive to any particular console but the Xbox versions are facing a unique problem that could impact the future of Series S.
76 min
132
DF Direct Weekly #100: State of Play Disappoint...
In a massive 100th Special Edition, DF Direct Weekly delivers the biggest show to date, with all current serving members of Digital Foundry at the mics. John, Alex, Rich and Audi take point on the main news stories of the week, joined by Tom, Will and Oliver for a gigantic supporter Q+A 'AMA' special. Thanks for watching and listening to the show over the last couple of years!
142 min
133
DF Direct Weekly #99: PSVR2 Post Mortem, DLSS O...
We join John, Rich and Alex in the immediate wake of the PSVR2 review period, further discussing the hardware, talking games and answering supporter questions. Rich and Alex investigate a tip-off that DLSS is accessible on select Nvidia non-RTX GPUs ...
85 min
134
DF Direct Weekly #98: PSVR2 Unboxed, Nintendo D...
A big week for news as the first phase of Sony's PlayStation VR2 embargo decloaks, meaning we can take the hardware out of its box and offer first impressions on the headset and controllers! Meanwhile. the latest Nintendo Direct turns out to be a bit...
73 min
135
DF Direct Weekly #97: New PS5 Beta Firmware, Ha...
It's time for another round of Digital Foundry Direct Weekly, on this occasion featuring the technical stylings of Sam Machkovech, John Linneman and Alex Battaglia. On the docket this week: layoffs at Halo developer 343 Industries amid a rumoured swi...
83 min
136
DF Direct Weekly #96: Xbox Developer_Direct Is ...
At Digital Foundry, we've been complaining about gaming events - and the way games are shown - for years... but you know what? Microsoft's Developer_Direct cracks it, with only one more aspect required to make the format almost perfect. But what's no...
84 min
137
DF Direct Weekly #95: Are PC Minimum Specs OUT ...
A packed week of news as John, Rich and Alex discuss the elevated min specs for the PC versions of Forspoken and Returnal, which beg the question: ARE MIN SPECS OUT OF CONTROL?!11 Meanwhile, Stadia finally dies, while GeForce Now 4080 arrives to demo...
89 min
138
DF Direct Weekly #94: Has Switch Run Out Of Ste...
The big topic of the moment - has Nintendo Switch hit its limits? Is performance not good enough anymore and do we need a next-gen successor? John, Rich and Alex share their thoughts on the current Switch and a prospective replacement model. The team...
85 min
139
DF Direct Weekly #93: CES 2023 - GT7 PSVR2, Nvi...
DF Direct Weekly is back for 2023, kicking off with the reactions of John, Rich and Alex to the big CES keynotes, discussing Nvidia's latest innovations and the RTX 4070 Ti backlash - plus the latest enhancements to OLED TV technology. And as always,...
78 min
140
DF Direct Weekly #92: End of 2022 Lookback + Su...
The end of the year draws closer and as the Digital Foundry crew prepare to take a well-earned vacation, John, Rich and Oliver have just enough time to cram in one more DF Direct Weekly, looking back over a challenging 2022, looking forward to the Ne...
77 min
141
DF Direct Weekly #91: Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Dat...
Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is slated for release in 'Fall' 2023, Kojima's helping to make a movie, Steam Deck is set to get a successor - and Returnal's recommendations include a mammoth 32GB of memory. All this, plus discussion of the RDNA 3 review after...
78 min
142
DF Direct Weekly #90: The Game Awards Reaction,...
The Game Awards - aka 'The Geoffs' - are back once again, bringing a deluge of new trailers and announcements for Rich, John and Alex to pore over in the latest DF Direct Weekly. Meanwhile, Stadia devkits are starting to emerge and Microsoft is raisi...
77 min
143
DF Direct Weekly #89: The Callisto Protocol Lau...
After a challenging week reviewing The Callisto Protocol and awaiting various performance patches, Alex, John and Rich unload about the triumphs and tragedies of the launch period, while reflecting on how good the game actually is. Meanwhile, Nintend...
73 min
144
DF Direct Weekly #88: New Consoles in 2028? Mic...
Will we have to wait until 2028 for new consoles from Microsoft and Sony? And how are the two companies at war over Call of Duty? Audi, John and Rich discuss, also covering news on The Witcher 3's upgrade plus the latest news about The Callisto Proto...
90 min
145
DF Direct Weekly #87: Witcher 3 ’Next-Gen’ Reve...
In the latest episode, John, Rich and Alex share observations, thoughts and hopes for The Witcher 3's forthcoming re-release and there's discussion on Epic's improvements to Unreal Engine 5, plus thoughts on RTX 4080/4070 Ti pricing. Meanwhile, what ...
87 min
146
DF Direct Weekly #86: Is Xbox Series S Holding ...
There's been a lot of debate recently about whether Xbox Series S's limited performance is 'holding back' the other consoles from being everything that they can be - so Rich, John and Alex weigh in with their opinions based on developer discussions a...
94 min
147
DF Direct Weekly #85: RDNA 3 - RX 7900 XTX, RX ...
A big, big week for PC and console gamers as AMD emerges to showcase its new RDNA 3-powered RX 7900 XTX and RX 7900 XT graphics cards with Rich, Will and Alex delivering their verdict on the reveal. Also, what to make of the PSVR2 launch line-up and ...
80 min
148
DF Direct Weekly #84: God of War Ragnarök - A N...
John, Rich and Alex re-convene to share first impressions on the new God of War and the extent to which it leverages PlayStation 5. Meanwhile, rumours start to gather pace on AMD's RDNA 3 offerings, Microsoft hints at price increases - and what shoul...
74 min
149
DF Direct Weekly #83: The Return of 30FPS Conso...
Will the end of the cross-gen console era also see the end of 60fps as the standard for gaming on Xbox Series and PlayStation 5? It's the big topic for this week in the wake of the arrival of Gotham Knights and A Plague Tale: Requiem. Also, the team ...
83 min
150
DF Direct Weekly #82: Nvidia ’Unlaunches’ RTX ...
Nvidia delivers a massive u-turn, 'unlauching' the RTX 4080 12GB. Rich, John and Alex discuss the reasons why and mull over the bizarre benchmarks revealed by the firm last week. In the meantime, with the RTX 4090 launched with coverage aplenty out t...
93 min