7 d. ago Why bloated budgets mean open world games are starting to think small – but mighty

After years of soaring costs and ever-expanding maps, open world games are getting smaller, and developers are creating richer landscapes in the processFor more than 20 years the action adventure genre has been dominated by open-world games. They started in quite a constrained way, with titles such as Shenmue and Driver offering miniature cities to wander about, but during the 21st century, they grew to encompass whole kingdoms. Now we have titles such as Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Elden Ring and Death Stranding that contain vast and highly varied environments; Minecraft worlds are reportedly 60,000km wide. And let’s not forget space sims such as Elite Dangerous and No Man’s Sky, which effectively contain whole galaxies.This whole design model, however, is starting to seem a teeny bit unsustainable. Not only is it astonishingly expensive to build giant worlds (it’s rumoured that the forthcoming Grand Theft Auto 6 will cost in the region of $2bn), but the market is also sat...

Politics

8 d. ago UK retail sales slump in March; Lower Thames Crossing approval welcomed (and criticised) – business live

UK retailers gloomy, while tunnel to connect A2 and M2 in Kent to the A13 and M25 in Essex has been approved.Lower Thames Crossing plan for Essex and Kent approved by governmentEuropean stock markets are higher this morning, as investors cling to hopes that Donald Trump’s plan to impose reciprocal tariffs on trading partners could be more targetted than feared.The pan-European Stoxx 600 index has gained 0.57% this morning, with gains on the German DAX (+0.5%), French CAC (+0.9%) and Italian FTSE MIB (+0.7%).US markets are beginning to show some belief that President Trump’s strong arm negotiating tactics on tariffs might not be quite as punitive for the US economy as feared.There are growing hopes that if they are more targeted, as rumoured, they might helpshore up domestic industry, while securing better terms for the US on the global trading stage.Tesla currently faces a number of challenges in Europe, ahead of the launch of its new Model Y mid-size SUV this month. The EV maker ha...

Economics

8 d. ago UK's largest ever road tunnel spanning 14 miles to be built as planning for mega project gets the go

Plans for a £9 billion road that would pass beneath the River Thames, linking Kent and Essex via a 2.6-mile tunnel, have been formally approved by the transport secretary Heidi Alexander.

Politics

8 d. ago Government gives green light to £9billion Lower Thames Crossing that would see Britain's largest ever road tunnel built between Kent and Essex

Plans for a £9 billion road that would pass beneath the River Thames, linking Kent and Essex via a 2.6-mile tunnel, have been formally approved by the transport secretary Heidi Alexander.

Economics

8 d. ago UK’s largest ever road tunnel set to be built after £8.3bn plan approved

Lower Thames Crossing will include 2.6-mile tunnel under River Thames linking Kent and Essex

Economics

8 d. ago Lower Thames Crossing: UK's largest road tunnel linking two counties to be built for £9bn

The proposed Lower Thames Crossing, which will run underneath the River Thames, between Kent and Essex has been given the go ahead by Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander

Economics

1 week ago Construction of £2.5million mosque on the edge of the Lake District starts

The South Lakes Islamic Centre says the facility will be used by more than 100 local Muslim families and 'the work must not stop'.

Economics

2 w. ago Silvertown shuttle offering free River Thames crossings for London cyclists for a year

The buses have been designed to store different types of bikes as it shuttles cyclists across the Thames

Sport

2 w. ago Free London buses announced for first year of Silvertown Tunnel opening

The number of buses able to cross the Thames per hour to more than triple

Politics

2 w. ago Teenage bricklayer paving way for women in Scottish construction

Kylie Watson, 18, started out on a construction course at Dumfries and Galloway College and is now a bricklaying apprentice.

Politics

2 w. ago Huge tunnel project happening now that will change travel in Europe

Construction of an 11-mile undersea tunnel has started, and will eventually connect two European countries, changing tourist travel across the continent forever

Politics

3 w. ago ‘Eiffel Tower of the north’? Manchester United unveil 100,000

Officials say plan will create 92,000 jobs and 17,000 homesArchitect Norman Foster puts ‘vast umbrella’ over groundA new 100,000-seat stadium that will be the largest in the UK. A venue covered in a “vast umbrella” that would exceed the scale of Christo’s wrapping of the Reichstag in 1995. A trident of masts, the tallest of which is higher any other building in Manchester. Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s vision for a new Old Trafford is taking shape, and the ambition extends beyond the “Wembley of the North”.On Tuesday designs were unveiled for Manchester United’s proposed new home, to be built on the site of the Old Trafford car park. The project was initiated by a call from Ratcliffe to Norman Foster and scoped out by a taskforce led by Sebastian Coe, and the cast list endorsing it is gold-plated. At a projected cost of £2bn, and to be assembled using prefabricated “modules” shipped down the Manchester ship canal, it could be delivered in five years, the architects suggest. Foster + Partners ...

Politics

3 w. ago London travel news LIVE: Major disruption to train services until end of day after 'incident' between Stevenage and Kings Cross

A man scaled Tower Bridge forcing police to shut the landmark Thames crossing to traffic.

Politics

3 w. ago London travel news LIVE: Tower Bridge reopens after man scales Thames landmark as Blackwall Tunnel reopens after crash

A man scaled Tower Bridge forcing police to shut the landmark Thames crossing to traffic.

Events

3 w. ago London travel news LIVE: Tower Bridge reopens after man scales Thames landmark as crash closes Blackwall Tunnel

A man scaled Tower Bridge forcing police to shut the landmark Thames crossing to traffic.

Events

3 w. ago London travel news LIVE: Tower Bridge shut after man scales Thames landmark as crash closes Blackwall Tunnel

A man has scaled Tower Bridge forcing police to shut the landmark Thames crossing to traffic.

Events

3 w. ago Lower Thames Crossing has cost £1.2bn even before construction starts

Outlay on items including consultants, planning and legal fees jumps from £800mn two years ago

Economics