High prices for Intel's upcoming chips, but they're very similar as the 11th gen ones, so not much of a surprise. We'll see if they are worth those prices or not.

Far Cry 6 PC requirements revealed

https://www.pcgamesn.com/far-cry-6/system-requirements

Now it's an AMD sponsored title so Nvidia GPUs will probably get gimped and no DLSS of course.

Raster:

Now Ray Tracing is a bit weird:

So at 1440p, a 3070 is able to match a 6900XT with RT on but at 4k, we need a minimum of a 6800 and 3080? I am assuming it's due to the usual AMD sponsored Vram nonsense.

I had to stop watching that Ubisoft "PC version" trailer halfway through, because the narrator sounded entirely cringe, as well as half the writing that went into the trailer itself.

Trying to market standard PC (what should be the damn standard to AAA's) options as "brand new, never done before" features, like some extra goodie present, just comes off as both cringe and the feeling of being treated like an idiot.

Also no DLSS, likely only found on their shitty client and EGS, so it's yet another no-go for me.

I do wish they'd knock off the PC gimmick marketing though. They still slap DRM on their games, they limit where their games are sold and their PC versions feature console parity/demand far more for very little output gains. They don't ultimately care about PC gaming, but they want to pretend like they do. 

With these prices, it will be tough for Intel. AMD dropped the prices for several of their chips, making intel look pretty expensive by comparison with these prices.

The i9 is more akin to the 5900X (both have 24 threads) but priced against the 5950X

The i7 is supposed to go against the 5800X but priced similarly to the 5900X

The i5 12600K is not much cheaper than the 5800X anymore, while the KF is more expensive than the 5600X

The 4K setting is just at 30 FPS, something that's much more manageable for AMD GPUs with RT, so there a 6800 could suffice while for 60FPS with RT a 6900XT would be needed.

As for the increase to a 3080, it might simply be that the Raytracing combined with the 4K textures needs more VRAM than the 8GB that those NVidia GPUs can offer. But that's something we'll see after it's release.

The Friday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

This week, the Epic Store is giving away the game Yoku's Island Express
Next week, the free game will be "Sheltered".

Fanatical has two new deals:

• The new Star Deal is Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire - Obsidian Edition, 75% off during the next 48 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/pillars-of-eternity-ii-deadfire-obsidian-edition
• And the September edition of the Platinum Collection BYOB has launched with 20 games to choose your 3, 5 or 7 games bundle: https://www.fanatical.com/en/pick-and-mix/platinum-collection-build-your-own-bundle

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

DLSS Swapper means you don't have to wait for developers to update their games
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/this-tool-lets-you-easily-upgrade-a-games-dlss-version/
This story has been updated since the creator of the app has made it easier to install. Click here to find out how to get the binary of DLSS Swapper on your machine.
(...)
TechPowerUp has produced a DLSS database that contains a selection of the latest DLSS versions. These are actually just the nvngx_dlss.dll files that ship with the various games. To change to a different version, you simply need to copy the new nvngx_dlss.dll file over your original one (after backing it up first, of course) and boot the game to see if it makes a difference.
(...)
There's a problem here of course, and that is that there are loads of different DLSS versions to sort through. Managing all these different versions is a bit of a chore, at least it was until Brad Moore developed DLSS Swapper, a tool that makes trying different DLSS versions that little bit easier. It presents your installed games that support DLSS and lets you switch DLSS versions using the TechPowerUp DLSS database.

Check out these astoundingly beautiful game worlds produced in Unreal Engine 5
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/unreal-engine-5-game-demo-reel/
Unreal Engine put out this incredible video yesterday, showcasing what the community's most proficient Unreal Engine 5 devs have been able to achieve over just a few months of the software's early access period. And, my God, is it impressive.

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

-Empty-

GAMING NEWS

Crysis Remastered Trilogy officially releases on October 15th, exclusively on Epic Games Store
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/crysis-remastered-trilogy-officially-releases-on-october-15th-exclusively-on-epic-games-store/
Crytek has just announced that Crysis Remastered Trilogy will officially release on October 15th. However, and similarly to Crysis Remastered, this trilogy will be timed-exclusive on Epic Games Store.

Tales of Arise won’t have Denuvo, will support framerates up to 144fps
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/tales-of-arise-wont-have-denuvo-will-support-framerates-up-to-144fps/
Tales of Arise releases in a few days and some new PC details have emerged online. According to “Jay RPG “, the game won’t be using the Denuvo anti-tamper tech or any anti-cheat system. Additionally, players can decline the Data Usage/Data Collection agreement.

Take-Two has filed a lawsuit against the team that reverse-engineered GTA3 & GTA Vice City
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/take-two-has-filled-a-lawsuit-against-the-team-that-reverse-engineered-gta3-gta-vice-city/
As we’ve already reported, Take-Two has been taking down numerous popular mods for Grand Theft Auto 3, Vice City and San Andreas. Not only that, but Take-Two attempted to take down RE3; a project that reverse-engineered GTA III and Vice City.
Now while Take-Two was initially successful with this, GitHub has restored its page and the project is once again available for download. And, in a shocking turn of events, Take-Two has filed a lawsuit against the team behind it.

Warner Bros released the official key art for Gotham Knights
https://www.dsogaming.com/screenshot-news/warner-bros-released-the-official-key-art-for-gotham-knights/
Warner Bros and DC today revealed the official key art for Gotham Knights, their upcoming open-world, third-person action RPG. In addition, the publisher revealed that it will showcase Gotham Knights at DC FanDome 2021.

Friday news, part two:

Kojima wanted to make a game with Mads Mikkelsen called MADS MAX
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/kojima-wanted-to-make-a-game-with-mads-mikkelsen-called-mads-max/
Let's take another trip into the mind of Hideo Kojima, a man who values an instagrammable sausage and a Criterion collector's edition with the same wide-eyed lust. The director of Death Stranding and the Metal Gear Solid series has been thinking out loud a little recently, and sharing some unexplored concepts for games.

Sir, You are Being Hunted once more in next year's 'Reinvented Edition'
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/sir-you-are-being-hunted-once-more-in-next-years-reinvented-edition/
Originally launched in 2013, Big Robot's steam-powered survival sim Sir, You Are Being Hunted is getting a polished-up new "Reinvented Edition" next year, following a massive 1.5 update that fixed up the knackered original version earlier this week.

Valve pays tribute to Dota 2 caster who died of Covid-19
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/valve-pays-tribute-to-dota-2-caster-who-died-of-covid-19/
Dota 2's fall 2021 update includes a tribute to Filipino caster Aldrin Paulo "Dunoo" Pangan, who died last week of Covid-19: A seasonal guild reward featuring a trio of his his most famous voice lines for the in-game chat wheel.

Apex Legends developer explains why a fan-favourite movement trick has to die
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/apex-legends-developer-explains-why-a-fan-favourite-movement-trick-has-to-die/
Earlier this week, Respawn announced it would be removing "tap-strafing" (a trick that let you pull off ridiculously fast aerial turns) from Apex Legends. Suffice to say, that hasn't gone down well with the community, who have accused the developer of neutering a game that thrives on weird, arcane movement techniques.
In an attempt to calm fan fears, Apex associate live balance designer John "JayBiebs" Larson took to Twitter to explain the team's thinking in removing the fan-favourite trick.

PlayerUnknown's Prologue will launch as a pay-what-you-want tech demo
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/playerunknowns-prologue-will-launch-as-a-pay-what-you-want-tech-demo/
Having recently left PUBG studio Krafton, Brendan "PlayerUnknown" Greene is ready to tease a little more of what he's up to with his new studio PlayerUnknown Productions.
In a video posted earlier today, Greene gave us a little more insight on Prologue. A project that first debuted in 2019, Prologue is the first step towards Greene's vision of massive open worlds full of thousands of players, providing a test-bed for the technologies he wants to explore with his new studio.

The Good Life's new trailer shows off sheep riding and sleuthing
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/well-soon-find-out-whether-the-good-life-was-worth-the-wait/
The Good Life has been a long time coming. Originally crowdfunded in 2018 for release the following year, it has since suffered 'regular' delays, while complications relating to the pandemic further pushed the Hidetaka 'Swery65' Suehiro-directed life sim from a planned launch this summer to a new release date this fall. It seems it's finally coming for real this time, however, with a new trailer showcasing some of the inhabitants and activities in Rainy Falls.

Let's go check the weekend deals at GOG and Steam:

+GOG

• 505 Games puts its titles up to 80% off during the next 6 days: https://www.gog.com/promo/505_games_15th_anniversary
• The Special Fantasy RPG Sale, featuring up to 90% discounts during the next 7 days: https://www.gog.com/promo/rpg_month_fantasy
• The Weekend Sale brings up to 90% discounts on Strategy Games: https://www.gog.com/promo/20210903_weekend_sale
• Publisher SNEG puts its titles up to 50% off during the weekend: https://www.gog.com/promo/sneg_weekend
• Ziggurat adds another 3 games to its classic lineup: "Grandmaster Chess", "King's Table - The Legend of Ragnarok" and "Theatre of War". And all feature a 33% discount until September 10: https://www.gog.com/news/enjoy_3_classic_games_for_strategic_thinkers_from_ziggurat_interactive
• And there are also two new releases:
  • The Magister launches with a 15% discount until September 9: https://www.gog.com/game/the_magister
  • And Aron's Adventure arrives with a 25% discount until September 10: https://www.gog.com/game/arons_adventure

+Steam

• The new daily deal is the Early Access title SuchArt: Genius Artist Simulator, 20% off: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1293180/SuchArt_Genius_Artist_Simulator/
• Spiritfarer, that has a demo, will be 50% off until September 6: https://store.steampowered.com/app/972660/Spiritfarer/
• Animal Revolt Battle Simulator, still in Early Access, will be 70% off until Monday: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1215390/Animal_Revolt_Battle_Simulator/
• 505 Games celebrates its 15th anniversary with up to 90& discounts until the 6th: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/505GamesPublisherSale2021
• Hood: Outlaws & Legends will be free to try until Sunday, and 40% off until Wednesday: https://store.steampowered.com/app/927350/Hood_Outlaws__Legends/
• Kalypso also celebrates its 15th anniversary with up to 81% discounts until Wednesday 8: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/KalypsoAnniversary2021
• No Man's Sky will be 50% off until September 13: https://store.steampowered.com/app/275850/No_Mans_Sky/
• Devil May Cry celebrates its 20th anniversary with a sale of up to 75% discounts until the 15th of September: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/devil-may-cry
• And of course, there's also the weeklong deals.

Nothing else to add. I wish you all have a happy and gaming weekend.

GIGABYTE to Replace or Refund Exploding Power Supplies

https://wccftech.com/gigabyte-to-replace-or-refund-exploding-power-supplies/

Finally


VESA announces DisplayHDR True Black 600 standard optimized for OLED displays

https://videocardz.com/press-release/vesa-announces-displayhdr-true-black-600-standard-optimized-for-oled-displays


Intel unveils the Alchemist, a character promoting first gen Arc GPUs

https://videocardz.com/newz/intel-unveils-the-alchemist-a-character-promoting-first-gen-arc-gpus

Hopefully they don't goof it up

To add to that:

https://steamcommunity.com/app/740130/discussions/0/3042732979948089765/

" - Just like Scarlet Nexus (and every other Bandai Namco game for the past ~2 years), Tales of Arise does not feature Denuvo DRM or anti-cheat

- A dozen or so graphics parameters can be configured including Shadows, Screen Space Reflections, Bloom, Motion Blur, AA, Resolution Scale, etc

- Native Ultra-Wide support unlikely

- Keybindings are fully configurable for both M/KB and controllers "

Hopefully it will be well optimized as we don't have a PC demo but I am liking what I am hearing. Kinda lame we don't have Ultra-wide but this is pretty fap worthy for Japanese developer game.

Yea Ubisoft and really even Crytek has been very yawn worthy for a while. I haven't been interested in any of their games for a long time. I did get Far Cry 6 code thanks to the Ryzen promo but I gave that to my friend cause it really doesn't look all that interesting.

Yea we will have to see how it all plays out and performs. It it ends up performing closely or beating Ryzen 5000 in games while giving you DDR5/PCI-E 5, it may be worth getting even if as a platform, it will probably be more expensive than X570 as I am sure DDR4 and gen 4 mobos on AMD side will be cheaper. If it doesn't perform all too well and it's more expensive than Ryzen, then yea, it will be a flop. Not to mention whatever quirks we are about to see with big.LITTLE design.

I'll be interested to see if they still keep their budget offerings or they sack them. If they do, it will be urghh. But we will see.