The Wednesday news, all in one post:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

GOG has three new deals:

• The first flash deal is Slime Rancher, 70% off during 46 hours: https://www.gog.com/en/game/slime_rancher
• The second flash deal is Uru: Complete Chronicles, 70% off until Friday: https://www.gog.com/en/game/uru_complete_chronicles
• And the new Midweek Sale features up to 80% discounts for 4 days: https://www.gog.com/promo/20220413_midweek_sale

Steam has two new deals:

• Empyrion - Galactic Survival will be 50% off until April 18: https://store.steampowered.com/app/383120/Empyrion__Galactic_Survival/
• And Wobbledogs gets a 20% discount until the 19th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1424330/Wobbledogs/

And Fanatical's new Star Deal is DEATHLOOP, 58% off during 24 https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/deathloop"> https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/deathloop

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Empty-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Skyrim mod adds Red Dead Redemption 2's sketchbook journal
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/skyrim-mod-adds-red-dead-redemption-2s-sketchbook-journal/
One of the rather charming things about Red Dead Redemption 2's Arthur Morgan is his habit of sketching some of the places he's been in his journal. Rather than just keeping a dry questlog, Arthur writes down his own story and adds drawings of some of the places he's been and the things he's seen.
Now your character in Skyrim can do the same—at least when it comes to the sketches. The Adventurers Sketchbook mod for Skyrim Special Edition adds a nice new journal to the RPG. If you carry it with you, when you visit certain notable or picturesque locations in Skyrim, a sketch of that place will be added to your journal. Ah, memories.

GAMING NEWS

Final Fantasy 14 is becoming more approachable as a solo experience
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/final-fantasy-14-is-becoming-more-approachable-as-a-solo-experience/
Patch 6.1 has just been released for Final Fantasy 14. It's the first major update for the game since the Endwalker expansion launched in December and has added a new 24-man raid, a new dungeon and its story is set to begin an entirely new story arc.

Vicarious Visions is now officially merged into Blizzard
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/vicarious-visions-is-now-officially-merged-into-blizzard/
Vicarious Visions, whose most recent games include Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2, is no more. The studio announced today that it has now merged with Blizzard, and will work exclusively on Blizzard games.
>> A shame.

Deus Ex art director reveals new game about the horrors of humanity
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/deus-ex-art-director-reveals-new-game-about-the-horrors-of-humanity/
Jonathan Jacques-Belletête, known for his work as art director on Eidos Montreal's Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, is heading up a new game called Hell Is Us at Rogue Factor, the developer of Mordheim: City of the Damned and Necromunda: Underhive Wars.

American Truck Simulator returns to its roots in the upcoming Montana expansion
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/american-truck-simulator-returns-to-its-roots-in-the-upcoming-montana-expansion/
You won't find many more prosaically-named videogames than Euro Truck Simulator and its transatlantic cousin American Truck Simulator. They are exactly what it says on the box: Trucking sims set in the Europe and the US. (They are also exceptionally good.) But before SCS Software decided to take a more serious approach with its games, it released a bunch with somewhat more dramatic titles, like Big Rig Europe and Hard Truck: 18 Wheels of Steel.
This is relevant now because those games, much like their newer cousins, benefitted from multiple expansions and sequels with equally exciting titles: Pedal to the Metal, Convoy, Haulin', and American Long Haul, to name a few. One of those sequels—Extreme Trucker 2—contained a map of the US state of Montana, which SCS is now reworking for American Truck Simulator.

Bugsnax is finally releasing on Steam, also coming to Game Pass
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/bugsnax-is-finally-releasing-on-steam-also-coming-to-game-pass/
Bugsnax is about catching snack food-themed bugs—sandopedes, grapeskeetos, weenyworms—and feeding them to grumpuses, furry explorers who crave bugsnax and whose body parts become the bugsnax they consume. It's a cute, sweet, charming body horror game that released on PlayStation and the Epic Games Store back in 2020, and now it's finally about to hit other storefronts.

Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising lands on PC in early May
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/eiyuden-chronicle-rising-lands-on-pc-in-early-may/
For fans of the old Suikoden series, last year's reveal of Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes was big news indeed. That 2023 JRPG will be a spiritual successor to the classic PS1-era series, and it brings a vibrant mix of 2D and 3D JRPG tropes to modern platforms. But if JRPGs aren't to your taste, and Metroidvanias are, Hundred Heroes' spin-off Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising is probably more enticing. That smaller game now has a release date: May 10.
>> The article includes a 28 minutes long video of gameplay with developers commentaries.

Bungie will offer fully-remote options for 'most current and future roles'
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/bungie-will-offer-fully-remote-options-for-most-current-and-future-roles/
The Covid-19 pandemic might not be over, but 3 years in, it sure feels like society is ready to pretend that it is. But with Riot recently courting criticism by dropping vaccine and mask requirements as it asked developers to return to the office (and Activision quickly rolling back its own plans to end vaccine requirements), Bungie has decided that there's actually no good reason videogames can't be made remotely.

Become a cargo-smuggling space pirate in the No Man's Sky Outlaws update
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/become-a-cargo-smuggling-space-pirate-in-the-no-mans-sky-outlaws-update/
Twitter got all excited the other day when No Man's Sky creator Sean Murray posted a tiny pirate flag emoji. That's all it took for the hype to get dialed up as fans speculated this must be the dawn of some new space pirate update on the brink of release, with cargo smuggling, pirate missions, and black market features.
Turns out, a lot of that was correct. The new No Man's Sky update is called Outlaws and you'll finally be able to live the life of a space pirate in the infinite cosmos. No Man's Sky's seedy underworld will be explored in the update, including pirating missions, black-market technology, contraband smuggling, and pirate-run spaceports in outlaw star systems.

Scrabble, the original Wordle progenitor, launches a new web-based game
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/scrabble-the-original-wordle-progenitor-launches-a-new-web-based-game/
April 13 is National Scrabble Day, and with word games all the rage right now thanks to the runaway success of Wordle, Hasbro and Mattel have teamed up with game developer Scopely to launch a new web-based version of the game at scrabble.com.

Weird West gets a zombie apocalypse mode and reveals update roadmap
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/weird-west-gets-a-zombie-apocalypse-mode-and-reveals-update-roadmap/
The dead are rising from their graves in Weird West, so of course that means cowboys have to get involved. The top-down immersive sim already thrives in its mix of supernatural and wild west influences, so adding a zombie apocalypse mode is right up its street.

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D Overclock-Lock Already Bypassed? 3D V-Cache Chip Spotted Running at 4.8 GHz

https://wccftech.com/amd-ryzen-7-5800x3d-overclock-lock-already-bypassed-3d-v-cache-chip-spotted-running-at-4-8-ghz/

12900k buyers after spending $589 on CPU and $500 on DDR5 right now:

Gigabyte Radeon RX 6950XT Gaming card is priced almost as high as RTX 3090Ti in first retailer listing

https://videocardz.com/newz/gigabyte-radeon-rx-6950xt-gaming-card-is-priced-almost-as-high-as-rtx-3090ti-in-first-retailer-listing

Of course, this is a duality of AMD. Their CPU division continues to be fap worthy in the mid-top range while their GPU division continues to be cringe. Least Nvidia gives you more cores and such. AMD just gives you slightly higher memory bandwidth and slightly higher frequency.

AMD to make “a big splash” with Zen4 Raphael memory overclocking

https://videocardz.com/newz/amd-to-make-a-big-splash-with-zen4-raphael-memory-overclocking

Combining AMD's Worst GPU & CPU: 6500 XT & i3 vs. R5

And this is where AMD's CPU division and GPU division both took a dump this gen. Both of their budget options are an absolute joke.

Hopefully it keeps going down. I wouldn't mind buying some Nvidia stock before Lovelace comes out loll.

Yea with Zen 4 around the corner, I would imagine this one getting discounted reasonably quickly. And with a simple in place upgrade while being on par with Intel's greatest, it would be pretty crazy upgrade. I'll keep my 5950x however since even Lovelace will be a bottleneck at 4k but 5800X3D is insane.

I'd they'll drop to MSRP in a couple of months. Funny thing is, I was so close to caving in for a 3070Ti (FE) last week at MRSP but resisted. Need to hold out for that RTX 4000 goodness lol. And true if you're into stocks might be a good time to invest in Nvidia

Nice. Yeah, won't be that long considering AM5 is out soon. Will wait for this to drop considerably before considering or pick up a heavily discounted 5900X when everyone dumps their old CPU's. If I can't I won't be fussed and will hold until AM6. Yeah your 5950X is crazy fast with a lot of cache and cores and pretty much handle any game, media and work for the next few years and more. And if you're planning to game at 2K UW or 4K there's probably less incentive to upgrade considering how strong current CPU's perform in 3D applications.

Hilarious that he says in the article about GPU consumer demand going down, well  no fucking shit sherlock, hardly anyone can get them and even then the inflated prices drive away said demand, leaving only scalpers/miners at the ones with said demand, and those two just got fucked over lmao.

Who's gonna want 2 yr old cards now that we're seeing prices fall for current gen cards and the new gen is around the corner?. 

nvidia getting that kick to the shin is funny, but I find the one in the article, that little bit more funnier, because he acts like it's an us issue, not a scalper/miner/nvidia issue.

Looks like Intel's ARC GPUs are more powerful than the first tests have let on.

https://videocardz.com/newz/intel-arc-a350m-gets-significant-performance-boost-in-games-with-dynamic-tuning-technology-disabled

The culprit is Intel's DTT technology, which is meant to save battery life. However, it basically underclocks the GPU and CPU to achieve this, as well as lowering GPU usage, resulting in much lost performance. In a test with and without DTT, the result was about twice as much performance without DTT; while originally the 350M had only about 30% more performance than the MX 450, but with DTT disabled it handily beat the 1650.

The stuttering is still there, but this should be fixed with driver updates. Now Intel has to finetune DTT to turn off by itself in games and some applications and they could have a great mobile GPU at their hands after they fixed the other driver-related problems.

Its actually nice to see consumers have not stand up to this crap anymore and leaving them dry. They've been screwing us over over the last two years and taken advantage of the situation and going for short term gain. PC gamers have accepted that GPU prices are overpriced as the market has been totally screwed by mining. And they kinda bought it upon themselves.

That and restrictions have largely levied for several countries so people are spending less time and money on electronics and PC stuff and more on other things - particularly people who bought stuff on fomo during the peak of the pandemic. Whats left are the people who have been waiting for GPU prices to come back to normality which hasn't happened yet and like you said next gen is coming real soon.

And yeah that's what they get for going for short term gain from a volatile business's. Its also a good sign because Nvidia and AMD won't dare rise prices (for RTX/RX cards) that high because the demand just isn't there for GPU's at current price points.

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D Review Roundup

https://videocardz.com/127562/amd-ryzen-7-5800x3d-review-roundup

Basically what we saw in the techpowerup review

NVIDIA Ampere-based GeForce MX570 tested in OpenCL API is (again) almost as fast as RTX 2050

https://videocardz.com/newz/nvidia-ampere-based-geforce-mx570-tested-in-opencl-api-is-again-almost-as-fast-as-rtx-2050

Renesas announces industry’s first PCIe Gen6 timing solution

https://videocardz.com/press-release/renesas-announces-industrys-first-pcie-gen6-timing-solution

Steam Deck vs Next-Gen Gaming: Ray Tracing/Flight Simulator/Unreal Engine 5 + More Tested!

Pretty impressive results for a 15 watt SoC

Here are the Thursday news, and also the last ones for the week:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

The Epic Store gives away two games:

• Insurmountable: https://store.epicgames.com/es-ES/p/insurmountable-b02c31
• XCOM 2: https://store.epicgames.com/es-ES/p/xcom-2

And next week, the free game will be Riverbond.

Here are all the deals at GOG:

• The Weekly Sale features games with great soundtracks up to 90% off: https://www.gog.com/promo/20220411_weekly_sale
• To celebrate its 10th anniversary, Legends if Grimrock is 80% off during 3 days: https://www.gog.com/promo/20220411_legend_of_grimrock_anniversary
• And there's a Special Sale with Square Enix featuring up to 89% discounts during another 4 days: https://www.gog.com/promo/2022_square_enix_sale
• And the new Midweek Sale features up to 80% discounts until Sunday: https://www.gog.com/promo/20220413_midweek_sale
• And the Indie Spring Sale, that will last until April 18, features up to 90% discounts on more than 300 games: https://www.gog.com/promo/2022_indie_spring_sale

Steam has two new deals:

• GTFO will be 20% off until April 18: https://store.steampowered.com/app/493520/GTFO/
• And to celebrate its anniversary, publisher Kitfox puts its games up to 90% off until the 20th of April: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/kitfoxfestival

There's a new Humble Bundle: the Must-Play VR Bundle, featuring up to 9 games during the next 20 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/must-play-vr-bundle

And Fanatical has a new Star Deal: Outer Wilds will be 53% off during the next 24 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/outer-wilds.

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Empty-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

This mod adds 9 new arenas & unique weapons to Skyrim Special Edition
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/this-mod-adds-9-new-arenas-unique-weapons-to-skyrim-special-edition/
SkubaSteez has released a new cool mod for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition that adds 9 new arenas. Moreover, this mod packs unique weapons, spells, and more (which players can attain through completing the various arena trials).

GAMING NEWS

The Witcher 3 Next-Gen has been indefinitely delayed
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/the-witcher-3-next-gen-has-been-indefinitely-delayed/
I’m pretty sure that a lot of players were looking forward to The Witcher 3 Next-Gen (which was meant to come out in Q2 2022). However, CD Projekt RED has just announced that this next-gen version has been indefinitely delayed.
>> It's because they've decided to do it themselves, instead of Saber.

Fallout 76 Update 1.6.4.31 released, is 2GB in size, full patch notes
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/fallout-76-update-1-6-4-31-released-is-2gb-in-size-full-patch-notes/
Bethesda has released a brand new update for Fallout 76. According to the devs, the April 12th Patch will update your game’s version to 1.6.4.31, is around 2GB in size on PC, and below you can find its complete changelog.

Shadow Warrior 3 Patch 1.03 adds Hardcore Mode, packs numerous balance tweaks
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/shadow-warrior-3-patch-1-03-adds-hardcore-mode-packs-numerous-balance-tweaks/
Flying Wild Hog has released patch 1.03 for Shadow Warrior 3 that adds a Hardcore Difficulty Mode. Moreover, this patch brings a number of balance tweaks, and fixes numerous bugs and issues.

Here are 6 minutes of gameplay footage from the upcoming action RPG, SteelRising
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/here-are-6-minutes-of-gameplay-footage-from-the-upcoming-action-rpg-steelrising/
GameInformer has shared a video, showcasing six minutes of gameplay footage from the upcoming action RPG, SteelRising. SteelRising is the next game from SPIDERS, the team behind games like Bound by Flame, The Technomancer and Greedfall.

Unreal Engine 5-powered Hell is Us gives Death Stranding vibes
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/unreal-engine-5-powered-hell-is-us-gives-death-stranding-vibes/
NACON has announced Hell is Us, a new and major project using Epic’s Unreal Engine 5 from developer Rogue Factor. In order to celebrate this announcement, the publisher also released a trailer that you can find below.

Thursday news, part two:

QuakeCon will remain online-only for one more year
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/quakecon-will-remain-online-only-for-one-more-year/
After a couple of years of online events because of the Covid-19 pandemic, some big industry showcases, like GDC and PAX, have been returning to in-person gatherings in 2022. QuakeCon will not be one of them, however. Bethesda announced today that QuakeCon 2022 will be digital-exclusive when it rolls around in August.

Galactic Civilizations 4 launches on April 26
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/galactic-civilizations-4-launches-on-april-26/
A year after unveiling the latest addition to its long-running 4X sci-fi strategy series, Stardock has announced that Galactic Civilizations 4 is set to leave early access on April 26.

Overwatch 2 trailer reveals the origin of Sojourn
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/overwatch-2-trailer-reveals-the-origin-of-sojourn/
With Overwatch 2 growing ever closer, Blizzard has released a new trailer revealing more about the origin of Sojourn, one of the new characters joining the game in the sequel.

Hello Games' next project isn't a No Man's Sky sequel, but it's just as ambitious
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/hello-games-next-project-isnt-a-no-mans-sky-sequel-but-its-just-as-ambitious/
No Man's Sky got its latest major expansion today in the form of Outlaws, but that's by no means the last: Hello Games has repeatedly promised ongoing additions to the procgen space adventure. In an interview with IGN, founder Sean Murray promised that work on No Man's Sky won't slow, despite Hello Games' next project being a big one.

Baldur's Gate, MythForce studio to be acquired by Aspyr
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/baldurs-gate-mythforce-studio-to-be-acquired-by-aspyr/
Beamdog, the Canadian studio and publisher responsible for modern ports of the Baldur's Gate games, will be acquired by Aspyr Media, the latter has announced. Aspyr is a Texas-based developer and publisher focused mostly on ports, but it's part of the rapidly growing Embracer Group. The latter has made a bonkers 62 acquisitions since the start of 2020, worth around $8.1 billion, according to the Financial Times.
>> Ryuu96 made a thread about this a couple years ago.

Hardspace: Shipbreaker breaks out of early access next month
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/hardspace-shipbreaker-breaks-out-of-early-access-next-month/
Zero-gravity salvage sim Hardspace: Shipbreaker's two-year orbit through Steam Early Access is coming to a close next month, as developer Blackbird Interactive opens the workshop for a full release on Steam and the Windows Store and Xbox Game Pass on May 24.

And that's it for this week. Tomorrow, festive, I'll be too busy trying to make a cake and won't be able to make the news, but that's another story. Until next time, I wish you a happy and gaming long weekend.