All I've wanted from Rockstar for a decade now is a modern return to Vice City. Let me live out my Drive fantasy! The idea of it becoming more and more GTA Online-centric is certainly concerning, though...

If GTA V has lasted so long it's because of Online, that has made millions upon millions for both Rockstar and Take-Two. That's why they're not going back from that goldmine. A shame.

The multiple characters of GTA V is one of the reasons I didn't quite enjoy it, because I ended not caring about neither of the three.

@Yuri, I wish I could help, but I know next to nothing about laptops. But before getting the Alienware, maybe you should try to check if they have indeed released the VBios and if it does as advertised.

Yea I checked a few reviews post Vbios fix and they do seem to be reporting the correct cuda core count. While the performance isn't all that different, it still performs faster than 3060s. In Canada, it's nearly impossible to get a 3070 at this price range so it is very tempting.

If it was for me personally, I might be more critical but if I was a 17 year old getting a laptop with a 3070, I'd fap to it everyday.

Looks like you almost made the decision already.

And if your sister has problems with the heat, just tell her to buy one of those cooling pads to keep that under control.

Yea I think I might bite the bullet because of it's price. If it was a MSRP, it wouldn't be a good deal but thanks to it's sale price, it's a steal. Ironic as it's an Alienware but I suppose it's thanks to Ryzen. Especially that 8 hour battery that some reviews have been able to get while non gaming.

The Tuesday news, all in one post:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

The Humble Store has two new sales:

• The Dark Futures Sale brings up to 90% discounts during the next 6 days. All the keys are for Steam, plus two for GOG: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/dark-futures-sale/
• Publisher Nacon, formerly known as Bigben is the star of a new BYOB Sale, with 16 games to choose your bundle of up to 5 games. And remember, the more games, the bigger the discount, up to 85% off. All the keys are for Steam, and two are also for the EGS: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/nacon-build-your-own-bundle/

Fanatical has two new Flash Deals:

• Blood Bowl 2 is 86% off during the next 24 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/blood-bowl-2
• And WRC 9 FIA World Rally Championship - Deluxe Edition will be 50% off during the next 48 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/wrc-9-fia-world-rally-championship-deluxe-edition

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

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MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

-Also Empty-

GAMING NEWS

Bandai Namco shares some additional gameplay details about Elden Ring
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/bandai-namco-shares-some-additional-gameplay-details-about-elden-ring/
Bandai Namco has updated the official website for Elden Ring, revealing some additional details about it. According to the publisher, players can use the environment and weather to gain an advantage in battle.

Star Wars: The Old Republic is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a big expansion
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/star-wars-the-old-republic-is-celebrating-its-10th-anniversary-with-a-big-expansion/
Star Wars: The Old Republic will soon mark ten years since release: a period over which this excellent MMO has gone from strength to strength. Bioware Austin has announced that to mark the occasion the game will receive its next major expansion, named Legacy of the Sith. It will be free to subscribers and launch later this year. The game originally released on December 20, 2011, so expect it around the same time.

Fable will be very British, and you'll play it before Elder Scrolls 6
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/fable-will-be-very-british-and-youll-play-it-before-elder-scrolls-6/
Head of Xbox Phil Spencer went on the 500th episode of IGN's Unlocked podcast, and in the process left a trail of tasty breadcrumbs about some of the behemoth's most-anticipated titles. One of those is the reboot of the Fable series being developed by Playground Games, best-known for the Forza Horizon series, which he briefly addressed while talking about Obsidian's Avowed.

Nearly a decade after it was announced, Battle Cry of Freedom appears on Steam
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/nearly-a-decade-after-it-was-announced-battle-cry-of-freedom-appears-on-steam/
In 2012, Mount & Blade: Warband – Napoleonic Wars developer Flying Squirrel Entertainment announced that it was on a new project based on the US Civil War called Battle Cry of Freedom. It sounded like an extremely ambitious undertaking, with large 5x5 km maps, historically accurate weapons and uniforms, fully destructible environments, and support for 500-player (!) online battles—all of which may help explain why it took nearly a decade for it to finally appear on Steam.
>> It's only listed, you can't buy it.

Fortnite leakers say Lebron James is coming to the game as an Icon Series skin
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/fortnite-leakers-say-lebron-james-is-coming-to-the-game-as-an-icon-series-skin/
It looks very likely that NBA superstar Lebron James will soon be taking his place in Fortnite. Dataminers Hypex and Shiina both say that James will be added as an Icon Series skin in the game's next update.

Rimworld's Ideology expansion will let you play as 'tree-worshipping cannibals' (or whatever)
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/rimworlds-ideology-expansion-will-let-you-play-as-tree-worshipping-cannibals-or-whatever/
The indie colony management sim Rimworld officially launched in October 2018, after spending more than five years in an early access state, but developer Ludeon Studios is still working on it. The studio announced today that a big, free update, and a new expansion called Ideology, are coming soon.

Atari wants to make 'premium' PC games again
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/atari-wants-to-make-premium-pc-games-again/
Atari will move away from mobile and free-to-play games in favour of "a strong pipeline of premium games" for PC and consoles, the company announced today. A swathe of its current mobile offerings, including Atari Combat: Tank Fury and Ninja Fury, will be discontinued or sold, while "successful games with a loyal user base" will be allowed to stick around.

Project HP is a gorgeous medieval PvP brawler that will melt your rig
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/project-hp-is-a-gorgeous-medieval-pvp-brawler-that-will-melt-your-rig/
Korean gaming giant Nexon has announced its next major title, only it doesn't yet have a title. Project HP may make PC Gamer's UK readers think of delicious sauces, but it is in fact a loosely medieval-themed PvP combat extravaganza with gorgeous visuals (and system requirements to match). The announcement trailer above goes to some pains to emphasise it's showing in-game footage, and indeed the armour is very shiny.

Coming to gamepass



https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2021/07/06/coming-soon-xbox-game-pass-july-2021/


Intel 20 Core & 40 Thread Sapphire Rapids Xeon CPU Spotted & Tested, Dual Socket Config With Up To 70 MB Cache & Up To 4.7 GHz Clocks

https://wccftech.com/intel-20-core-40-thread-sapphire-rapids-xeon-cpu-spotted-tested/

Seems pretty good, especially at that price (~1300€ if I calculated correctly).

But as @JEMC pointed out, how's the situation on the Vbios?

Humble Choice July games:

Good value... but I can play Dirt 5 and Yakuza 3 already on GamePass.

Got rid of my 4 year old (and dying) ultrawide and officially joined the master refresh rate race, with the 32" Samsung G7. Please excuse the mess lol.

240hz goodness!