Science and technology

Activision has addressed the players’ complaints that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 was hiding the levels of users who weren’t in their party in season 4. This sparked speculation over whether the change was intentional—possibly to prevent players from quitting lobbies when facing higher-ranked opponents—or simply a bug. Activision has responded to the concerns by making a statement on social media. “We’re investigating a bug where Player Levels and Level Icons may not appear for matchmade players in the Lobby list,” the post reads, alongside a link to the game’s Trello board. Call of Duty #BlackOps6 | Call of Duty #Warzone We’re investigating an bug where Player Levels and Level Icons may not appear for matchmade players in the Lobby list. Details: https://t.co/iuAAmbXIQx — Call of Duty Updates (@CODUpdates) May 30, 2025 On the Trello board, a follow-up message thanks the players for reporting the issue and confirms that the team is “actively investigating.” This level dis...

Right then, let’s have a proper chat about what’s been brewing in Pakistan. I’ve been keeping an ear to the ground, as they say, and the news coming out of South Asia lately is, frankly, a bit of a gobsmacker – in the best possible way, mind you! We’re talking about Pakistan, a nation I’ve always felt has this incredible, often untapped, potential, now making a rather bold leap onto the global digital stage. And it’s not just a tentative toe-dip; it’s a full-on swan dive. The chap at the centre of all this, Bilal Bin Saqib, their newly appointed Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Crypto and Blockchain, has just announced something quite extraordinary: Pakistan’s first government-led Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. Now, hold your horses if you’re thinking this is just another country hopping on the crypto bandwagon for a bit of a speculative punt. From what I gather, this is anything but. These aren’t assets bought on a whim; they’re held in state custody. That tells me this is a c...

Alex Garland, the writer and director of the upcoming ‘Elden Ring’ film, is reportedly considering rising star Kit Connor for the lead role. To Read Lifestyle Stories in Urdu – Click Here The report came days after it was confirmed that Garland is set to direct the film adaptation of the hit video game, which will be produced by A24 and Bandai Namco. According to a recent report in Variety , Alex Garland is looking to reunite with Kit Connor for the upcoming project, after directing him in ‘Warfare.’ Quoting sources close to the project, the publication reported that the filmmaker was considering Connor for a starring role, however, he has not made a formal offer to the actor. While Kit Connor has featured in several films and TV shows since he was eight years old, his breakout role was in Netflix’s ‘Heartstopper,’ in which he portrayed Nick Nelson. The British actor recently starred in A24’s ‘Warfare,’ a war film, co-directed by Alex Garland and former Navy SEAL Ray Mendoza. R...

Bandai Namco dropped the first patch update for Elden Ring Nightreign across gaming platforms on Thursday to improve gameplay and stability. While the game, developed by FromSoftware Studios, has been released in a few regions, it will be made available across all regions on May 30. Bandai Namco has now released the Patch Notes Version 1.01 to improve the gameplay and stability of the game. The patch code will be available for PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and Steam. Elden Ring Nightreign – Patch Notes Version 1.01 content includes: Improved handling of playable characters Soundtrack addition and adjustments Text adjustments Balance adjustments Added character scenarios Bug fixes The Elden Ring Nightreign – Patch Notes Version 1.01 came a day after FromSoftware Studios dropped the launch trailer for the game. Patch 1.01 is now available for #ELDENRING #NIGHTREIGN . This update brings gameplay and stability improvements to ensure an optimal experienc...

Electronic Arts (EA) has cancelled a game based on Disney and Marvel’s ‘Black Panther’ after shutting down its developer, Cliffhanger Games. According to a report in Variety , the gaming company has laid off multiple employees at the studio and across EA’s mobile and central teams. As per the publication, EA was working to send the Cliffhanger Games employees to other teams. The development was announced by EA Entertainment president Laura Miele, who said that the decision to shut down the studio and cancel the Black Panther game was made to “sharpen our focus and put our creative energy behind the most significant growth opportunities.” “These decisions are hard. They affect people we’ve worked with, learned from and shared real moments with. We’re doing everything we can to support them — including finding opportunities within EA, where we’ve had success helping people land in new roles,” Miele wrote in an email to the employees. Read more: Marvel Snap game banned in US alongsi...

Google on Thursday began direct online sales of its popular hardware devices in India, including Pixel phones, watches and earbuds, ahead of an anticipated launch of its first physical stores in the South Asian nation. The Alphabet-owned firm said it has for the first time enabled direct online purchases for Indian users on the official Google Store website. The company currently sells it products in India through authorised retailers and via Walmart-backed e-commerce platform Flipkart. Apple, its bigger rival in the premium smartphone category, already sells its phones directly to Indian users, and operates its own retail stores in Mumbai and in New Delhi, with more planned. Google is close to deciding on locations in India where it will open its first physical retail stores outside the United States, Reuters reported in February. In launching the physical stores, Google has sought to mirror a retail approach that helped Apple rake in billions of dollars in the last two decades b...

Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC) Chief Executive Officer Bilal Bin Saqib has announced Pakistan’s first government-led Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, ARY News reported. During a keynote address at the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Bilal Bin Saqib made the announcement. The event was attended by prominent figures, including U.S. Vice President JD Vance, Eric Trump, and Donald Trump Jr. Saqib expressed gratitude to U.S. President Donald Trump for his role in easing recent India-Pakistan tensions and supporting cryptocurrency adoption, crediting U.S. policies as inspiration for Pakistan’s move. Saqib emphasized that the Bitcoin reserves, to be held in a national Bitcoin wallet, are intended as a long-term sovereign asset, not for speculation or sale. He stated that Pakistan’s government will never use these reserves to capitalize on Bitcoin’s price fluctuations, ensuring their stability as a national asset. Als...

Bandai Namco and FromSoftware Studios have released the launch trailer for Elden Ring Nightreign, a co-operative game. The footage revealed part of the gameplay and cinematics, showing the characters fighting monsters to survive three nights and then defeat the final boss. The multiplayer game will allow gamers to play as Wylder, Revenant, Recluse, Raider, Ironeye, Guardian, Executor and Duchess, each coming with an individual set of skills and equipment, backstory and storyline. Elden Ring Nightreign will be made available on May 30 for users of PlayStation, Xbox and PC. Elden Ring Nightreign is a game designed for one to three players. Set in an alternate version of The Lands Between, it takes place in a small, distinct area where the locations differ slightly from those in the original Elden Ring. The game blends genres, including souls-like, roguelike, and elements of battle royale. Read more: Elden Ring film adaptation gets notable filmmaker as director Before each match,...

Ubisoft has announced its plans to release the much-anticipated Title Update 1.0.5 for Assassin’s Creed Shadows. The update, set to roll out on May 27, 2025, will introduce new quests for players while also bringing improvements to enhance the parkour mechanics. The Assassin’s Creed Shadows Title Update 1.0.5 will also introduce a crossover event with Dead by Daylight. “This event comes with a new free quest that you can access from the Hideout upon unlocking Yasuke as a playable character. Once the event is completed, you will obtain a free trinket and banner,” as per Ubisoft. Additionally, Ubisoft will unlock the “Thrown to the Dogs” quest in the title update. Read more: Assassin’s Creed Shadows coming to Nintendo Switch 2? The developer is adding a new trinket for Naoe, and an amulet for Yasuke called “Winning Hand” — directly inspired by Balatro. Improvements to the parkour mechanics include the addition of a new vertical jump and sprint toggle lock “The new parkour inter...

Nintendo is reportedly planning to hold a Direct live stream around the launch of the Switch 2 gaming console on June 5. Journalist Pedro Henrique Lutti Lippe, who has previously shared credible details about Nintendo’s plans, made the claim during a live stream with a foreign media outlet. According to Lippe, the company is likely to hold another Direct around the launch of the Switch 2 gaming console on June 5. The Kyoto-based company has held a Nintendo Direct every year since the format was started in 2012. The events are generally aimed at new announcements across multiple titles, while there have been Directs, which focused on single titles such as Smash Bros. Ultimate or Pokémon. There have not been any official statements from the company on the claim about its rumoured Direct. Read more: Red Dead Redemption 2 reportedly heading to Nintendo Switch 2 Nintendo has, however, held multiple Directs this year, the first of which announced details on the Switch 2 gaming consol...

Amid the wait for Grand Theft Auto (GTA) 6, a new rumour about the game’s story mode has triggered another debate among fans. The sixth title in the Rockstar Games franchise was initially scheduled for release in Fall 2025. However, the developer announced delaying it to mid-2026 to further improve the upcoming title. Days later, Rockstar Games released the second trailer for GTA 6 and confirmed that it featured actual gameplay footage and cutscenes. “Grand Theft Auto VI Trailer 2 was captured entirely in-game from a PlayStation 5, comprised of equal parts gameplay and cutscenes,” the studio wrote in its X post. While the developer has not disclosed details about the GTA 6 story mode, a rumour has emerged online, suggesting the longest story mode in franchise history. GTA 6 Media, an X handle which regularly posts on the game, stated that the main story was expected to span 45–50 hours. Read more: Take-Two CEO stuns fans with shocking admission about GTA 6 “It’s not official, ...

The National Cyber Emergency Response Team (PKCERT) has issued a high-priority alert, warning social media users about a major data breach involving platforms such as Google, Microsoft, and Facebook, ARY News reported. According to the alert, over 1.8 billion records from various social media applications have been leaked. Among these, 184 million passwords are confirmed to have been compromised. The team has strongly advised users to immediately change passwords of all sensitive apps and accounts. Furthermore, users are urged to enable two-factor authentication (2FA) as an additional layer of security. The alert also warns users to avoid clicking on suspicious links and to regularly monitor their accounts for any unusual activity. Authorities are actively monitoring the situation and have called on the public to stay vigilant and take necessary cyber safety precautions. Read More: PKCERT issues advisory on windows security vulnerability Earlier, in December 2024, The National C...

A mysterious metallic sphere found in Colombia has sparked fresh UFO speculation among scientists and the public. The object was spotted on 2 March flying over the town of Buga before landing, according to the social media page @Truthpolex . The moment has drawn global attention and led many to wonder if the sphere could be a real UFO. The strange sphere is being studied by researchers, including Jose Luis Velazquez. He noted that the object has three layers and shows no signs of welds or joints, details that are usually seen in human-made items. BREAKING – Radiologist Examines UFO Sphere That Crashed in Buga, Colombia #Ufotwitter pic.twitter.com/TFeJ8OPmhE — T R U T H P O L E (@Truthpolex) May 6, 2025 Because of this, Velazquez believes it might be of extraterrestrial origin, further fuelling the belief that it could be a UFO. However, not all experts agree. Julia Mossbridge, executive director of the Institute for Love and Time (TILT) and a physicist at the University o...

ISLAMABAD: The government of Pakistan has allocated two thousand Megawatts of electricity for Bitcoin Mining and Artificial Intelligence Data Centers. According to Finance Division, the ambitious initiative is part of a broader strategy to monetize surplus electricity, create high-tech jobs, attract billions of dollars in Foreign Direct Investment, and generate billions of dollars for the government. In a statement, Finance Minister Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb said the strategic allocation marks a pivotal moment in Pakistan’s digital transformation journey, unlocking economic potential by turning excess energy into innovation, investment, and international revenue. Highlighting the transformative nature of initiative, CEO of the Pakistan Crypto Council Bilal Bin Saqib said that with proper regulation, transparency, and international collaboration, Pakistan can become a global crypto and AI powerhouse. He said this energy-backed digital transformation not only unlocks high-value inv...

A new Instagram update has rolled out that brings more features to its Direct Messages (DMs), aiming to make chats more flexible and useful. This Instagram update reflects the way people now use the app, with more photos and videos being shared privately rather than publicly. Instagram chief Adam Mosseri recently said that DM sharing is now far more common than posting to the feed or Stories. Calling it a “paradigm shift,” Mosseri explained that this change in user behaviour is why the company is focusing more on messaging features. One of the key changes in this update is the ability to transcribe voice messages. When users receive a voice clip, they will see a “View transcription” button, which shows the text of the message either before, during, or after listening. This feature makes it easier to understand voice messages when you’re in a place where listening isn’t possible. Another feature introduced with this Instagram update is the extension of voice message length. Unt...

Alibaba, the Chinese-owned global business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce platform, has introduced tailored online logistics services to support Pakistani exporters. The initiative aims to streamline international trade processes by offering fast, reliable, and cost-effective shipping solutions to over 200 countries and regions. In partnership with leading international express delivery companies like CPEX, Alibaba’s new service integrates the entire logistics chain—from packaging and warehousing to delivery—helping Pakistani businesses optimize costs and reduce transit times. The platform also features enhanced order tracking, control capabilities, and a fully digitalized order fulfillment process to ensure efficiency. “Online logistics services are essential for small and medium-sized enterprises in global trade. They streamline operations, reduce costs, and empower businesses to reach global markets with ease,” said Ms Summer Gao, Head of Global Supply Chain at Alibaba.com. She em...

RAWALPINDI: Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir held a high-level meeting with Bilal Bin Saqib, CEO of the Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC), at General Headquarters (GHQ) to explore the future of Pakistan’s digital economy. The discussion centered on leveraging blockchain, cryptocurrency, and artificial intelligence to empower the country’s youth and bolster economic resilience, reflecting a national commitment to emerging technologies for global competitiveness. Bilal Bin Saqib emphasized the pivotal role of Pakistan’s youth in driving this transformation, stating, “The Pakistan Crypto Council exists because our youth demand a seat at the global tech table. We are building for a generation that sees digital finance, decentralization, and AI as opportunities to lead, innovate, and uplift the nation.” He updated the COAS on PCC’s initiatives, including a recent visit by a World Liberty Financial delegation and Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, ongoing regulatory cons...

Huawei has recently launched its first foldable MateBook Fold Ultimate Design, marking a breakthrough in laptop technology, ARY News reported. According to the reports, the Huawei MateBook Fold Ultimate Design combines elegance with groundbreaking innovation, presenting users with a foldable screen that helps the device transform into multi-function modes. The Huawei MateBook Fold Ultimate Design has an 18-inch OLED display that folds into a compact 13-inch laptop. Upon opening completely, the device works as a large tablet, ideal for multitasking and productivity. When placed at an angle, it transforms into a traditional laptop, making it versatile for different usage scenarios. Huawei MateBook Fold Ultimate Design Specifications: Operating System:       HarmonyOS 5 RAM:                            32GB Storage:   ...

Hollywood actor Ana de Armas is set to join Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 as Eve Macarro from ‘John Wick’ spinoff ‘Ballerina.’ To Read Lifestyle Stories in Urdu – Click Here The action film, set to hit theatres on June 6, is set for a crossover with Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 in season 4. Call of Duty confirmed the crossover with ‘Ballerina’ in a post on X, showing Ana de Armas as the titular character in a sparkling red dress she’s seen wearing in the film’s trailers. “New contract just dropped. Deploying from the World of Wick, Ana de Armas as @BallerinaMovie’s Eve Macarro joins the fight in Call of Duty for Season 04,” the post read. Read more: Ana de Armas breaks silence on dating Tom Cruise The upcoming season will launch on May 29, while the Ana de Armas skin will release in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 on June 5. It will be purchasable as part of the Tracer Pack: Ballerina bundle. As well as the two skins, players will also get the following Legendary Weapon Blueprints: Eve Ma...

U.S. President Donald Trump threatened once again on Friday to ramp up his trade war, recommending a 50% tariff on European Union goods starting June 1 and warning Apple he may impose a 25% tariff on any iPhones manufactured outside the U.S. The twin threats, delivered via social media, roiled global markets after weeks of de-escalation had provided some reprieve. The S&P 500 fell 0.9% in early trading, the Nasdaq fell 1.5%, and European shares fell 1.1%. Trump’s latest broadside against the EU stemmed from his frustration at the lack of progress in trade talks with the bloc. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News on Friday that the 50% threat will hopefully “light a fire under the EU,” adding that other countries have been negotiating with Washington in good faith. “The European Union, which was formed for the primary purpose of taking advantage of the United States on TRADE, has been very difficult to deal with,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social site. “Our discuss...

Notable Hollywood filmmaker Alex Garland is set to direct the film adaptation of the hit video game Elden Ring. To Read Lifestyle Stories in Urdu – Click Here The filmmaker will helm the live-action film produced by A24 and Bandai Namco. Alex Garland most recently served as writer and director on ‘Warfare’ and will also write the upcoming feature, besides directing it. The live-action film adaptation of the popular game will be based on a mythological story written by author George R. R. Martin, best known for ‘Game of Thrones’ and its spinoff series. Directed by FromSoftware’s Hidetaka Miyazaki, Elden Ring is a dark fantasy role-playing game set in an expansive, immersive world filled with dragons, mythical beasts, towering castles, and treacherous dungeons. Read more: Leak teases the return of Dark Soul bosses in Elden Ring Nightreign The story unfolds in a legendary land called the Lands Between, where the shattering of the powerful Elden Ring has thrown the realm into confl...

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission dropped a case that sought to block Microsoft’s (MSFT.O), $69 billion purchase of “Call of Duty” maker Activision Blizzard, saying on Thursday that pursuing the case against the long-closed deal was not in the public interest. FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson is seeking to use the agency’s resources for cases that fit with President Donald Trump’s agenda, such as a probe related to whether advertisers colluded to spend less on X first reported by Reuters on Thursday. Ferguson is beginning to shut down some efforts started by his predecessor Lina Khan, including dropping a case on Thursday that had accused PepsiCo (PEP.O), of price discrimination that favored Walmart (WMT.N). The FTC lost an appeal on May 7 seeking to reverse a judge’s decision declining to block the Microsoft-Activision deal, which closed in 2023. Microsoft President Brad Smith said on Thursday that the FTC’s decision to drop the case was “a victory for players across the country and ...

Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford faced backlash from fans and Baldur’s Gate 3 publisher after his comment about Borderlands 4’s potential price went viral. The incident happened when a fan asked him about the studio’s plans for the price tag of the upcoming title amid a hike by other developers in their upcoming games’ prices. Responding to the question, the Gearbox CEO said that gamers would pay $80 for Borderlands 4 if they were ‘real fans.’ “If you’re a real fan, you’ll find a way to make it happen. My local game store had Starflight for Sega Genesis for $80 in 1991 when I was just out of high school working minimum wage at an ice cream parlor in Pismo Beach and I found a way to make it happen,” he responded to the fans on X. A) Not my call. B) If you’re a real fan, you’ll find a way to make it happen. My local game store had Starflight for Sega Genesis for $80 in 1991 when I was just out of high school working minimum wage at an ice cream parlor in Pismo Beach and I found a way to...

The contest in Silicon Valley to dominate artificial intelligence is playing out on a new court: superstar researchers. While the scramble to attract top talent and keep them happy has always been a hallmark of the tech industry, since ChatGPT launched in late 2022, recruiting has escalated to professional athlete levels, a dozen people who have been involved in recruiting AI researchers told Reuters. “The AI labs approach hiring like a game of chess,” said Ariel Herbert-Voss, CEO of cybersecurity startup RunSybil and a former OpenAI researcher who entered the talent fight after launching his own company. “They want to move as fast as possible, so they are willing to pay a lot for candidates with specialized and complementary expertise, much like the game pieces. They are like, do I have enough rooks? Enough knights?” Companies including OpenAI and Google, eager to get or stay ahead in the race to create the best AI models, court these so-called “ICs” – the individual contributors...

Shopify on Wednesday rolled out AI Store Builder, a generative artificial intelligence feature that would allow merchants on its e-commerce platform to set up their online stores by entering descriptive keywords. The “AI Store Builder” generates three store layouts, complete with images and text, based on the keywords, helping sellers significantly reduce the time and resources required to design their store website. While Shopify has offered various AI-based tools and third-party applications to assist merchants in building their stores, the AI Store Builder is the first integrated feature that fully automates the website setup process. “Instead of just having a merchant click and drag and fill out text fields on how they want their site to look – which can be really daunting for some – we thought why not ask them more open-ended questions and set up their store in the best likeness we can imagine, using AI,” said Vanessa Lee, vice president of product at Shopify. Shopify has bet...

Stalker 2 has received a fresh update as developer GSC Game World rolls out Stalker 2 Update 1.4.1, addressing key problems faced by players. While this isn’t the biggest update for the game, Stalker 2 Update 1.4.1 brings some much-needed stability improvements after previous patches caused new issues. Stalker 2 Update 1.4.1 focuses mainly on fixing crashes that occurred when certain mods were installed. Specifically, the patch solves problems where the game would crash at launch if the Simple Mod Loader was in use. Another issue causing crashes when loading save files with mods like UETools has also been fixed. Read More: Infinity Nikki 1.6 update gets new date after player complaints These crash fixes may seem minor, but they’re important for fans who have faced trouble since the release of the previous major patch, Stalker 2 Update 1.4, which introduced hundreds of changes. Unsurprisingly, that large update also led to some unexpected problems, now being addressed in Stalke...

Dell Technologies on Monday unveiled new servers powered by Nvidia’s Blackwell Ultra chips, aiming to capitalize on the booming demand for artificial intelligence (AI) systems. The servers, available in both air-cooled and liquid-cooled variations, support up to 192 Nvidia Blackwell Ultra chips but can be customized to include as many as 256 chips. These servers can train AI models up to four times faster than previous models, Dell said. The pricing of these products will be “competitive,” Arthur Lewis, President of Dell’s Infrastructure Solutions Group, told Reuters, adding that “there’s a lot of interest on what’s next.” Dell and Super Micro Computer have benefited from the growing demand for servers designed to handle the computer-heavy AI tasks, but the high cost of producing the systems and tough competition have pressured their margins. Dell in February forecast a decline in adjusted gross margin rate for fiscal 2026, while Super Micro projected fourth-quarter revenue below...