Overwatch 2 Beta impressions

Sometimes it feels like I have stockholm syndrome where I know Blizzard is a shit company that does shitty things but I keep coming back cause some of their games I still enjoy playing. So for the past week, I have been playing Overwatch 2 beta and here are my impressions.

Overwatch 2 so far feels like a different game than Overwatch 1 which in some ways is a bad thing because Overwatch 2 will be replacing Overwatch 1 completely in a few months. Because of this, if you like the way Overwatch 1 plays... Well too bad, now you are forced to play Overwatch 2 instead. The main difference is that Overwatch 2 feels less like a Team battle and more so individual battles.

See with Overwatch 1, you basically had fairly distinct roles. You had the tanks that were built to tank damage and ults and protect your teammates. You had DPS that will go after the enemy dps and support and you had support which mainly heals your team.

In Overwatch 2, the tanks feel like DPS with more HP. The reason is that there's a lot less reliance on shields and more reliance on damage output and here's what I mean. In Overwatch 1, the team could pick two tanks where in Overwatch 2, the team can only pick one tank. Then in Overwatch 2, the main tanks that use shields got the shield nerfed or reworked completely. For example, Orisa in Overwatch 1 could summon shields very often where as in Overwatch 2, she has no shield but instead, is more of a DPS. Rein in OW1 had a shield with 1600 HP, now it's nerfed to 1200. Hell the fact that they put Doomfist as a tank now in OW2 who was a DPS in OW1 and the only difference is he can block himself from getting damage and no one else should tell you everything. The new tank who is the junker queen also has no shields and she's more of dps as well. She does have the ability to give a temp boost to hp to nearby allies however.

Then comes the maps. Unlike Overwatch 1 where the maps were mainly in confined areas and sections, the new maps in Overwatch 2 feels a lot more open. Because of this and the rework of tanks, people are a lot more spread out which means it's harder for support to actually heal. More often than not, they need to fend for themselves or hope that the tank is around to help as your DPS is going after the enemy support.

The graphics, UI and such feels all over the place. In OW1, there was a pretty big emphasis on not showing your teammates your stats like how much kills you got, how much you healed and such because they wanted to control the Toxicity. In OW2, they show everything to everyone. The game is also mainly a reskin of Overwatch 1 so that means the performance and such hasn't changed much. So the frame rate will largely be the same. Least the music is still good.

So overall, there's a lot less emphasis on teamwork and a lot more emphasis on individual plays. On one hand, the changes to tanks allows them to be more dynamic than to only push the payload. But on the other hand, the changes feels like the teamwork element is not as strong. Feels more like an arena brawler at times than what Overwatch 1 was. But the biggest issue is because Overwatch 2 will be replacing Overwatch 1 with a free update and if you don't like it, well... You are on a timer... Hopefully they will make some changes by the time it launches though.

Question here: Have any of you played Dragon Ball: Kakarot?

I've tried the demo and now I'm more confused than before, mostly about the controls. Does the full game start like that, going to fight Raditz or does it have some kind of tutorial or training to properly explain to you the controls and what does each button do?

Since both AMD (CPUs) and NVidia (GPUs) are apparently reducing the number of wafers they're ordering, this might become beneficial for the consoles and other consumer products which are still very supply constrained by the chip crunch. Would be nice if this would end the chip crunch as a whole...

It's time, for the Monday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

Steam's Top 10

Sunbreak expansion nearly doubles Monster Hunter Rise's Steam player record
https://www.pcgamer.com/sunbreak-expansion-nearly-doubles-monster-hunter-rises-steam-player-record/
Monster Hunter Rise is probably 2022's sleeper title on PC. It racked up pretty big numbers, but releasing in mid-January and sharing its early-year release window with Elden Ring in February did it no favors. Well, it's asleep no more, as the release of the Sunbreak expansion has led Capcom's latest monster hunting title to nearly double its record concurrent player count on Steam, by SteamDB's reckoning.
Peaking at about 134,000 concurrents a few days after launch in January, Monster Hunter Rise has now, uh, risen to a high of 231,360 this weekend as Sunbreak launches. On their respective launch days, Rise had a mere 90,000, while Rise had more than 194,000 on Sunbreak's launch day.

GOG has two new flash deals and a new weekly sale:

• The first Flash Deal is Anstoss 1-3 Bundle, with a 10% discount during 46 hours: https://www.gog.com/en/game/anstoss_13_bundle
• The second Flash Deal is Colony Ship: A Post-Earth Role Playing Game, still in development, with a 20% discount until Wednesday: https://www.gog.com/en/game/colony_ship_a_postearth_role_playing_game
• The new Weekly Sale features surreal and psychological games up to 90% off: https://www.gog.com/promo/20220704_weekly_sale

Steam's Summer Sale will end this Thursday. If you're still debating whether get a certain game or not, hurry up, because time is running out.

The Humble Store has the new Lost In Space Sale, with up to 90% discounts during 4 days. There are keys for Steam, GOG, EGS and Uplay: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/space-sale/

And Fanatical's Red Hot Sale enters its Encore mode, meaning that it's close to end. Because of that, there are several new flash deals and bundles:

• There are 15 new flash deals, and all of them will end in 48 hours. Check them out.
• And there are 4 new bundles: BYO Indie-pendence Bundle, Rimworld with all expansions, The Jackbox Quintpack and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Complete Bundle. Except for the first one, the rest will end in less than 3 days.

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Empty-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Skyrim Together Reborn, multiplayer mod for Bethesda’s RPG, will release on July 8th
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/skyrim-together-reborn-multiplayer-mod-for-bethesda-rpg-will-release-on-july-8th/
The team behind Skyrim Together, has announced that its sequel, Skyrim Together Reborn, will release on July 8th. This is a must-have mod that allows you to play The Elder Scroll: Skyrim Special Edition in co-op with multiple players.
Going into more details, Skyrim Together Reborn allows multiple players to connect to a single instance through a server browser. The team claimed that it has rewritten the code from the ground up, since the old codebase was too messy to work with. As such, Skyrim Together Reborn is significantly better than old Skyrim Together.

Silent Hill 2 Enhanced Edition Update #8 available for download
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/silent-hill-2-enhanced-edition-update-8-available-for-download/
The team behind the amazing Enhanced Edition project for Silent Hill 2 has released a brand new update for it. This update introduces a Setup Tool (Installer) and a Configuration Tool (Launcher).
In case you weren’t aware, Silent Hill 2: Enhanced Edition is a collection of mods that enhances the game and makes it playable on all modern systems. This is a must-have mod for all Silent Hill 2 fans, and we highly recommend downloading it.
This new version of Silent Hill 2 Enhanced Edition introduces a custom streaming audio engine. It also packs some FMV enhancements, fixes some specific sound looping issues, makes some cut-scene camera adjustments, and refines some upscaled images.

The Witcher 3 gets a cool combat resource overhaul mod
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/the-witcher-3-gets-a-combat-resource-overhaul-mod/
Modder ‘KiroKobra’ has released a combat resource overhaul mod for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. As the title suggests, this mod will overhaul the game’s combat mechanics. Thus, we only recommend using this mod if you’ve already played the game.
Going into more details, this mod unlocks the game’s special abilities and signs. Moreover, Signs now use Focus points to cast up-to 3 times, and Melee attacks cost stamina. Additionally, the mod rebalances focus regeneration, as well as numerous skills and effects.
The mod also enhances the game’s Battle Trance system. Players can now restore additional Focus Points by successfully landing melee attacks, holding guard, and using evasive maneuvers.

AMD FSR 2.0 Mod released for Red Dead Redemption 2
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/amd-fsr-2-0-mod-released-for-red-dead-redemption-2/
RealIndica has shared a new mod that adds support for AMD’s FSR 2.0 in Red Dead Redemption 2. As you may have guessed, this AMD FSR 2.0 is based on the Cyberpunk 2077 FSR 2.0 Mod we shared a while back.
Similarly to the Dying Light 2 FSR 2.0 Mod, this mod replaces DLSS with FSR 2.0. As such, those that do not own an RTX GPU can now take advantage of AMD’s latest upscaling tech.

GAMING NEWS

New Halo Infinite Forge gameplay footage leaked online
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/new-halo-infinite-forge-gameplay-footage-leaked-online/
It appears that a new video for Halo Infinite’s Forge Mode has been leaked online, giving us a glimpse at it. This latest gameplay video reveals object scaling, which enables you to increase or decrease an object’s size.

Here are 18 minutes of gameplay footage from One Piece Odyssey
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/here-are-18-minutes-of-gameplay-footage-from-one-piece-odyssey/
At Anime Expo 2022, Bandai Namco presented a demo for its latest One Piece game, One Piece Odyssey. As such, you can find below a video, showcasing 18 minutes of gameplay footage from it.

Monday news, part two:

Rhythm roguelike Crypt of the Necrodancer gets massive update after 5-year hiatus
https://www.pcgamer.com/rhythm-roguelike-crypt-of-the-necrodancer-gets-massive-update-after-5-year-hiatus/
Rhythm-based indie roguelike Crypt of the Necrodancer just got its first update in five years, with version 3.0 making a whole host of changes and additions including bug and quality of life fixes, as well as Steam Deck support and a level editor.

And now, an adventure game about, uh, getting a divorce
https://www.pcgamer.com/and-now-an-adventure-game-about-uh-getting-a-divorce/
I've gotten married in a few games over the years—The Sims 4, Skyrim, My Time at Portia, stuff like that—but I don't have a lot of experience with virtual divorce. That'll change next month when I play adventure game My Divorce Story, which is being developed by a South Korean divorce lawyer and is based on actual divorce cases.

No one likes EA's joke about singleplayer games, even EA
https://www.pcgamer.com/no-one-likes-eas-joke-about-singleplayer-games-even-ea/
Brands are now social media influencers who say things like "vibe check" and "I was today years old when," behavior which backfired for EA this week. The publisher's careless meme format Mad Libs led to a tweet that was taken as an attack on fans of singleplayer games and the developers who make them. Current and ex-employees of the company, including Respawn head Vince Zampella, responded publicly.
>> Looks like someone will get fired.

Here's the big preview of Genshin Impact 2.8
https://www.pcgamer.com/heres-the-big-preview-of-genshin-impact-28/
The folks at HoYoverse have run a 30-minute special detailing everything they've got coming for Genshin Impact 2.8 when it launches on July 13, 2022. The Summer Fantasia update, trailer above and on YouTube, will include previously-leaked character Shikanoin Heizou, a prodigy detective whose "senses are sharp and his thoughts are clear."

Square Enix puts their spin on the farm and fantasy life sim with Harvestella
https://www.pcgamer.com/square-enix-puts-their-spin-on-the-farm-and-fantasy-life-sim-with-harvestella/
Square Enix is putting their distinctive spin and visual style on the perennially popular life sim and farming game genre this year with Harvestella. With a combination of farming, exploration, and action-roleplaying combat, Harvestella looks like Square Enix's answer to Rune Factory—a similar game in the genre that blends the traditional friendship and farming with action RPG elements.

Guardians of the Galaxy/Deus Ex prequel writer is BioWare's new senior narrative director
https://www.pcgamer.com/guardians-of-the-galaxydeus-ex-prequel-writer-is-biowares-new-senior-narrative-director/
As spotted on the Resetera forums, Eidos-Montréal's executive narrative director Mary DeMarle has joined BioWare as a senior narrative director. DeMarle was most recently responsible for creating the story and leading the writing team on Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, which had such excellent back-and-forth patter between its cast we declared it the new king of party banter. Before that, DeMarle oversaw all things Deus Ex, having been lead writer and narrative designer on Deus Ex: Human Revolution before becoming narrative director for the entire franchise.

Final Fantasy 14 is getting an ultra-difficult dungeon for those endgame masochists
https://www.pcgamer.com/final-fantasy-14-is-getting-an-ultra-difficult-dungeon-for-those-endgame-masochists/
Final Fantasy 14 is getting a tough-as-nails dungeon later this year and I'm already preparing myself to cry and rage over it.
It's part of a new mode called criterion dungeons, which will be introduced later this year with Patch 6.25. Criterion dungeons are level 90 high-difficulty challenges for parties of four players in the standard one tank, one healer and two DPS composition. They're a tougher form of the casual-friendly variant dungeons, another new mode that was revealed in the most recent Letter from the Producer.

Final Fantasy 14 will give you a personal island garden in the next patch
https://www.pcgamer.com/final-fantasy-14-will-give-you-a-personal-island-garden-in-the-next-patch/
Final Fantasy 14's most recent Letter from the Producer has unveiled some details coming in the next update, including a wonderful little surprise that some casual solo content is coming alongside the usual slew of new story quests.

Official pricing for GPD Win Max 2 gaming laptop with Ryzen 7 6800U or Core i5-1260P starts at 899 USD

https://videocardz.com/newz/official-pricing-for-gpd-win-max-2-gaming-laptop-with-ryzen-7-6800u-or-core-i5-1260p-starts-at-899-usd

• Ryzen 7 6800U / 16GB RAM / 128GB SSD: 899 USD (50 units, Indiegogo)
• Ryzen 7 6800U / 16GB RAM / 1TB SSD: 999 USD (Indiegogo), 1159 USD (Retail)
• Ryzen 7 6800U / 32GB RAM / 1TB SSD: 1199 USD (Indiegogo), 1359 USD (Retail)
• Ryzen 7 6800U / 32GB RAM / 2TB SSD: 1299 USD (Indiegogo), 1459 USD (Retail)
• Core i5-1260P / 16GB / 1TB SSD: 999 USD (Indiegogo), 1159 USD (Retail)
• 4G LTE modem: 79 USD (Indiegogo), 89 USD (Retail)
• Customized M.2 2230 1TB SSD: 139 USD (Indiegogo), 145 USD (Retail)

Huh, the pricing actually isn't too bad considering what you are getting. Like yes, it is twice as expensive as the Steam Deck but you are getting double the core count, double the tdp, LP DDR5 6400mhz, a ton of IO, 10 inch screen, 1440p display, Windows, PCi-E 4.0 SSD, 67 WHr battery, 12 CU GPU and etc. Even 32GB is fairly priced. Maybe boys maybe. Obviously no one should be touching the Intel version.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 to feature 2520 MHz boost clock, almost 50% higher than RTX 3090

https://videocardz.com/newz/nvidia-geforce-rtx-4090-to-feature-2520-mhz-boost-clock-almost-50-higher-than-rtx-3090

Pretty insane if true having 16384 cores being able to reach 2520 Mhz. I will say that I am not liking the 4070 memory bus. I think it's very likely that if you can get a 3080 Ti for around $600, it will age better than a 4070 at $500. But obviously, we need to wait for performance numbers.

AMD allegedly preparing new Zen3D and low-end AM4 processors

https://videocardz.com/newz/amd-allegedly-preparing-new-zen3d-and-low-end-am4-processors

As always, take it with a grain of salt but jebus if true. First 100TF card... Fap Fap Fap

I sure hope AMD is ready cause they have woken the Lion. Nvidia is no Intel. That's for sure.

Well, with that many cores, memory (not 4080 also gets GDDR6X?) and frequencies, it's no wonder that those cards need so much juice to run.

If you think you're done with the Steam Summe rSale, PCGamer has put an article with "Hidden gems you shouldn't miss before the Steam Summer Sale ends"

https://www.pcgamer.com/hidden-gems-you-shouldnt-miss-before-the-steam-summer-sale-ends/

Maybe you'll find something interesting.

Windows 11 curse you!! need to click 4 times now to not get the upgrade