Yea the only reason you would need to add a secondary SSD anytime soon is if you are a call of duty player

I'd wait before getting excited for that ony NVMe. It's not that I don't believe they're capable, far from it, but I want to know how they fare in the real world before making any judgements.

As for the 6600XT... it's way, way too expensive. I mean, the 6900 competes with the 3090 and the 6800s go against the 3080/3070. Then we have the 6700XT, on par with the 3060Ti and the 6700 should be around 3060 level of performance. And you're telling me that the upcoming 6600XT will be as expensive as a higher-end model? Dead on arrival.

Unless, of course, there's no 6700, only the 670XT and the 6600XT, but even then it would be too expensive to make sense.

I saw that article and could only shake my head at the sloppiness of their research.

Just have a look at the OS and you'll see that Windows 7 jumped from 2% to 5% of all computers. That already should tell you that the reason is that again some old-ish cybercafé computers or the like are counted multiple times equipped with GTX 1060 and RTX 2060 (who both jumped up by almost 1% to record heights for this year).

It's not nearly as big as some jumps in the past, but the jump from the old OS shows clearly that the change is not organic.

The 6700 XT is already close to that price, so I really doubt it will cost $399. A 6700 non-XT might get that price point, but not a 6600 XT

The performance on the other hand sounds plausible, considering that the 6700XT is around 2080 Super and a non-XT version would probably sit around 2080 in terms of performance. So 1080Ti/5700 XT level for the 6600XT sounds like the logical next performance step to me.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Selling For 270 USD In Second Hand Markets In China Thanks To Crypto Crackdown

https://wccftech.com/nvidia-geforce-rtx-3060-selling-for-270-usd-in-second-hand-markets-in-china-thanks-to-crypto-crackdown/

I'd keep an eye out on ebay guys

And how many hours have those cards being used? The price may be good and tempting, but it also comes with some risks.

While that's very true, most miners should be undervolting their GPUs to lessen any wear on them. Also they should still come with a 3 year warranty from the manufacturer. There are risks certainly but if you have a choice between below MSRP vs current landscape, I would consider it.

The Friday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

Epic makes two oddball genre mashups free for the week
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/epic-makes-two-oddball-genre-mashups-free-for-the-week/
A pair of new games are now free for the week on the Epic Games Store: The oddball zombie construction game Bridge Constructor: The Walking Dead, and Ironcast, a turn-based tactical match-three game inspired by Victorian sci-fi.
>> And next week the free games will be "Obduction" and "Offworld Trading Company".

The Humble Store has a new Panzer Corps Franchise Sale, with up to 80% discounts during the next 6 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/panzer-corps-franchise-sale/

Fanatical ends the week with two new sales:

• Revolution puts its games (mostly Broken Sword) up to 72% off during the next 7 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/publishers/revolution-software-ltd
• And the Arc System Works Sale brings up to 80% discounts: https://www.fanatical.com/en/publishers/arc-system-works

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Nothing-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Star Wars Open Worlds Mod for Fallout New Vegas looks really impressive
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/star-wars-open-worlds-mod-for-fallout-new-vegas-looks-really-impressive/
Star Wars fans, here is something really special for you today. Tank Girl has released a new gameplay video for Star Wars Open Worlds; one of the most ambitious mods for Fallout New Vegas.
Star Wars Open Worlds promises to feature an engaging choice-driven story with 12 planets to explore. It will also have fully voice-acted characters, as well as a character customization system. Additionally, players can expect an RPG-style skill system and a new crafting system.

Resident Evil Village mod replaces Sturm with a 'copyright-free' floor fan
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/resident-evil-village-mod-replaces-sturm-with-a-copyright-free-floor-fan/
There was a spot of controversy in May when Richard Raaphorst, the director of the 2013 film Frankenstein's Army, claimed that the Resident Evil Village boss named Sturm—essentially a radial airplane engine with legs—ripped off a monster design from his film. Even the manners of their deaths were almost identical, he said.
"It's just the same scene as in my movie, except that in my movie you have to cut loose the fuel tubes. That's the only thing that is missing," he told Eurogamer. "But the whole thing is getting into flames, and then it explodes, and then the way it rotates through the camera—it's all the same, really. Even the environments, the whole colour palette. It looks like an animatic for my movie."
(...)
The original Sturm model remains in the game, which prompted a modder named Pumpkinhook to create a model replacement called Copyright Free Sturm. The mod takes a very simple yet effective approach to addressing Raaphorst's complaint by turning the character into the world's most dangerous pedestal fan.

GAMING NEWS

Cyberpunk 2077 will soon get its biggest update to date, with “more to come” [UPDATE]
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/cyberpunk-2077-will-soon-get-its-biggest-update-to-date-with-more-to-come/
It appears that a new marketing campaign video for Cyberpunk 2077 got leaked online. According to this video, Cyberpunk 2077 will soon receive its biggest update to date. Moreover, this video hints at “more things to come.”
UPDATE:
CD Projekt RED issued an official statement about this promotional video. As the team noted, this video was for Patch 1.2 (which came out in March 2021).
>> What a let down!

Here are nine minutes of new gameplay footage from Arkane’s Deathloop
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/here-are-nine-minutes-of-new-gameplay-footage-from-arkanes-deathloop/
Bethesda has released an extended gameplay video for Arkane’s Deathloop. This brand new gameplay video will give you an idea of how this new Arkane game plays.

New trailers for Sifu, F.I.S.T. Forged in Shadow Torch, Arcadegeddon & more
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/new-trailers-for-sifu-f-i-s-t-forged-in-shadow-torch-arcadegeddon-more/
Sony has shared some new trailers during its latest State of Play event. Therefore, we’ve decided to collect all of them and share them in one big story. So, below you can find the new trailers for Sifu, F.I.S.T. Forged in Shadow Torch, Arcadegeddon, JETT: The Far Shore and Moss: Book II.

Bright Memory: Infinite gets a Game Charging Night 2021 Trailer
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/bright-memory-infinite-gets-a-game-charging-night-2021-trailer/
Playism has released the Game Charging Night 2021 Trailer for Bright Memory: Infinite. This latest trailer for this upcoming first-person shooter showcases a few minutes of new gameplay footage.

Fallout 76 Steel Reign Update is now available for download
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/fallout-76-steel-reign-update-is-now-available-for-download/
Bethesda has announced that the Steel Reign Update for Fallout 76 is available for download. In order to celebrate this announcement, the publisher also released a new trailer that you can find below.

First Sonic Colors: Ultimate spotlight trailer showcases its HD updates
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/first-sonic-colors-ultimate-spotlight-trailer-showcases-its-hd-updates/
SEGA published the first of a series of spotlight trailers showcasing the high-definition updates heading to Sonic Colors: Ultimate; the adrenaline-pumping upgrade to the iconic 2010 platformer Sonic Colors.

Ray Tracing Trailer released for the dynamic role-playing game, Sword and Fairy 7
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/ray-tracing-trailer-released-for-the-dynamic-role-playing-game-sword-and-fairy-7/
NVIDIA has released an RTX trailer for the upcoming dynamic RPG, Sword and Fairy 7. According to the green team, this new RPG will feature Ray Tracing Reflections, Shadows and Global Illumination, as well as ray-guided water caustics.

Monster Hunter Stories 2 PC demo is now available on Steam
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/monster-hunter-stories-2-pc-demo-is-now-available-on-steam/
Capcom has announced that a free demo for the PC version of Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin is currently available on Steam.
>> You'll find it here.

Friday news, part two:

Omno releases July 29, has a magic staff that turns into a hoverboard
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/omno-releases-july-29-has-a-magic-staff-that-turns-into-a-hoverboard/
Omno has been in development for several years but, most remarkably of all given its lush visuals and seeming scale, it is the work of one man. Jonas Manke is the whole staff of StudioInkyfox, though he has a decade of industry experience on titles such as State of Decay, and began work on the project around five years ago, before a successful Kickstarter in 2018 allowed him to focus more fully on realising the game. Now it has a new trailer and release date, and Omno will be available on July 29.

Bethesda and Xbox donate $10,000 to the Humane Society in honor of Dogmeat
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/bethesda-and-xbox-donate-dollar10000-to-the-humane-society-in-honor-of-dogmeat/
There are very few videogame animals as famous as Dogmeat. (...) The most recent version of Dogmeat, in Fallout 4, was actually based on a real-life dog named River.
Sadly, River died in June (...)
To honor River's passing, Bethesda and Microsoft donated $10,000 to the Montgomery County Humane Society, and shared a link for others who would like to contribute as well. Montgomery County in Maryland includes the town of Rockville, the headquarters of Bethesda Softworks.

Splitgate's newest map is an homage to the Unreal Tournament classic Facing Worlds
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/splitgates-newest-map-is-an-homage-to-the-unreal-tournament-classic-facing-worlds/
Splitgate, the underrated arena FPS that's basically Halo if everyone carried around a portal gun, is in the middle of a total refresh. Not only is it coming to consoles with full crossplay support in July, but three new maps are on the way, one of which will look especially interesting to classic Unreal Tournament fans.

Death Stranding: Director's Cut adds cargo catapults and racing
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/death-stranding-directors-cut-adds-cargo-catapults-and-racing/
A new trailer for the Death Stranding Director's Cut aired during PlayStation's State of Play event today, showing that it'll be more than just a few new stealth missions and a PS5 performance boost. The most salient proof of this is racing. The Fragile Circuit racing mode only appears for a couple of seconds in the above trailer, but that's enough to see that you'll be able to pit roadsters against trikes and trucks in what's probably the creepiest racing circuit since Banshee Boardwalk.

Baldur's Gate 3 will release 'hopefully somewhere in 2022'
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/baldurs-gate-3-will-release-hopefully-somewhere-in-2022/
Larian's latest community update for Baldur's Gate 3 comes alongside the studio's third Panel from Hell livestream, but if you want the short version, here it is: Patch 5 will go live on July 13 and is focused on mechanical changes based on community feedback rather than new content, and studio head Swen Vincke says full release will be "hopefully somewhere in [20]22."

Demon Slayer manga gets a game adaption this October, and it's coming to PC
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/demon-slayer-manga-gets-a-game-adaption-this-october-and-its-coming-to-pc/
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba first appeared as a manga in February 2016, but has since received an anime adaptation and a film. Set in early 20th century Japan, it follows the adventures of brother and sister duo Tanjiro Kamado and Nezuko Kamado, who are drawn into a secret society called the Demon Slayer Corps which, as you can probably guess, is no friend of demons, no siree.
It's been a well-received adaptation of a well-received manga, and now it's becoming a game. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - The Hinokami Chronicles will release on October 15 via Steam, and in solo mode the game will closely follow the events of at least two episodes, namely 'Tanjiro Kamado, Unwavering Resolve Arc' and 'Mugen Train Arc', according to the PlayStation blog.

Here's how the Hot Wheels Unleashed track editor works
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/heres-how-the-hot-wheels-unleashed-track-editor-works/
Hot Wheels Unleashed will have a track editor, which is great news for anyone who wants to play it like a 21st century Stunts (me). It's the exact editor used by Milestone to make the game's out-of-the-box tracks. You'll choose an environment, lay down your track, sprinkle it with boost pads, obstacles and too many loop-de-loops, and then share it online to rapturous praise.

This Half-Life designer is sharing early prototypes on TikTok
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/this-half-life-developers-sharing-early-prototypes-on-tiktok/
You can find all sorts of weird stuff on TikTok these days—including, as it happens, an extremely early prototype of the original Half-Life courtesy of level designer Brett Johnson.

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War's next zombies map arrives next week
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/call-of-duty-black-ops-cold-wars-next-zombies-map-arrives-next-week/
I've heard Berlin is lovely this time of year, but it's looking a little hellish in the trailer for Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War's next zombies map, Mauer Der Toten.

Genshin Impact's massive 2.0 update introduces a new Ghibli-inspired island region
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/genshin-impacts-massive-20-update-introduces-a-new-ghibli-inspired-island-region/
Genshin Impact's next update is jumping straight from 1.6 to 2.0, reflecting that this will be possibly the game's largest expansion yet: adding the new region of Inazuma, which is made up of three islands filled with new NPCs, adventures, and of course lots of lovely loot (and with more islands to come in later updates). It looks absolutely gorgeous, and developer MiHoYo says the big influences on the style were Spirited Away, My Neighbour Totoro, and other Studio Ghibli movies.

Ranked Arenas are coming to Apex Legends next season
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/ranked-arenas-are-coming-to-apex-legends-next-season/
Apex Legends' new 3v3 Arenas mode has already established itself as a really bloody good alternative to battle royale. But now that we've all warmed up, Respawn is ready to put us to the test by introducing a ranked queue for Arenas.

And now, it's time to check the weekend deals at GOG and a post-Sale Steam:

+GOG

• The Weekly Sale, with short games, brings up to 90% discounts: https://www.gog.com/promo/20210705_weekly_sale
• The Midweek Sale, featuring games with low specs requirements up to 80% off, will last another 22 hours: https://www.gog.com/promo/20210707_midweek_sale
• The Weekend Sale, full of relaxing simulation games, ofers up to 85% deals: https://www.gog.com/promo/20210709_weekend_sale
• The The Witcher Sale brings up to 85% discounts until Monday: https://www.gog.com/promo/20210708_witchercon
• The Panzer Corps Sale comes with up to 80% discounts until July 15: https://www.gog.com/promo/20210708_panzer_corps_sale
• And the Ys Sale puts several games of the franchise up to 75% off until the 13th of July: https://www.gog.com/promo/20210706_ys_sale

+Steam

• The first daily deal is Parkasaurus, 40% off: https://store.steampowered.com/app/591460/Parkasaurus/
• The second daily deal is Lords Of The Fallen GOTY, 85% off: https://store.steampowered.com/app/265300/Lords_Of_The_Fallen/
• The first weekend deal is PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS, 50% off until Monday: https://store.steampowered.com/app/578080/PLAYERUNKNOWNS_BATTLEGROUNDS/
• Transport Fever 2 is also 50% off until Monday: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1066780/Transport_Fever_2/
• The Crew 2 not only has a demo, but it's also free to try during the next 3 days and also 80% off: https://store.steampowered.com/app/646910/The_Crew_2/
• The Resident Evil franchise is up to 87% off: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/resident-evil
• And Dead by Daylight is 40% off until July 14: https://store.steampowered.com/app/381210/Dead_by_Daylight/
• Also, and for some reason, there are also some weeklong deals.

That will do. Until next time, have a happy and gaming weekend.

Not much news today in the hardware front so instead, I'll post something that interests me.

The 4k monitor landscape in 2021 for PCs are kinda interesting. Where as in previous years, it was all effectively the same overpriced monitors that are just rebranded, this year, there are some different approaches. Now the problem is that most of these monitors are barely in stock or have yet to come out so it's hard to find reviews for them. But they should all be relatively similar in performance apart from the Asus which is just terrible.

First is the best all arounder... LG 27GP950-B

https://www.lg.com/us/monitors/lg-27gp950-b-gaming-monitor

At $900, it's a lot cheaper than getting an OLED and at 27 inches, it's a reasonable size. While 32 inches is the sweet spot for 4k, having a higher PPI for a 27 inch isn't a bad thing. It comes with 4k 144hz that can be overclocked to 165hz, DSC, HDMI 2.1, HDR 600, Wide Color Gamut, Gsync and Freesync, Nano IPS display and the list goes on. It has minimal ghosting and great response times. It's basically the monitor to get if you don't want to go OLED.

Next is the Gigabyte M28U

https://www.aorus.com/monitors/4k

This monitor is supposed to retail for $599! That's right! A 28 inch 4k 144hz monitor that you can plug into a PC for $599! It is slightly worse than LG in some respects such as being HDR 400 and not being G-sync compatible (yet) so you are limited to Freesync Premium. But still, the rest of the specs are very comparable to the LG as it comes with HDMI 2.1 and etc. It also comes with a KVM switch for your mouse and keyboard. Gigabyte also sells a version of this, just at 32 inch 4k 144hz for $1000.



Then comes the Acer XB323K

https://www.tftcentral.co.uk/blog/acer-predator-xb323k-listed-with-32-ips-panel-4k-144hz-refresh-rate-and-hdr-600/

At $1300, it's harder to justify this compared to the other two. The only reason to get this one is if you want that G-sync compatible seal of approval at 32 inch 4k 144hz. The price starts to get compared to a 4k OLED but at 32 inches, it is still pretty good. Especially as it has HDMI 2.1 and all the other goodies.

Finally is the Asus Swift PG32UQX 

https://store.asus.com/us/item/202103AM260000004/ASUS+ROG+SWIFT+PG32UQX+4K+HDR+Gaming+Monitor

At $3000, it's the most expensive of the bunch. The main reason is due to it's Mini-LED screen and HDR 1400. But because of it's ghosting issues, slow response times, no HDMI 2.1 and high price tag... SKIP.

As always, wait for reviews before final purchase but the era of getting reasonably good 4k 144hz monitors at reasonable prices are up on us!

Edit: Adjusted the Model for the LG