I'd love to be able to defend Ubisoft, but no, I don't think it was a mistake. They were really going to shot down those games until the backlash (and maybe the pressure from some platform holders) "convinced" to fix the mess.

Given that we know that Intel has a special setting in their cards for 3D Mark and such, those results are completely meaningless.

So now there's also a B650E chipset, that supposedly also gives both PCIe 5.0 support for both graphics and storage, making it better than X670? AMD really wants to complicate things, don't they?

Sadly GMG will be revoking the keys.

[Sponsored] Nvidia Reflex - PC vs PlayStation 5 Input Lag - Lowering Latency For Better Gaming

One of the biggest advantages of going Nvidia and the best part is, you don't need RTX as Reflex supports all the way back to Maxwell. The comparison is very interesting however. By default at the same framerate, the PS5 actually has lower latency than PC when V-sync enabled due to developers having low level access. But once you enable Reflex, that is when PC takes the lead.

The crazy thing is that the 3060 Ti at 60fps can can have a lower latency than a PS5 running at 120fps once you enable Reflex depending on the game. This can apply against Radeon as well since AMD does not have an alternative to Nvidia Reflex. Radeon does have an alternative to LLM at a driver level but Reflex is optimized at the engine level. Crazy results though.

Good call. Saved me an extra $60.

Both 2TB drives are on sale for under $200 if anyone else is interested. I remember when my current 2TB SATA cost me $500, lol.

Noice.

If my motherboard had more Nvme slots, I probably would commit loll but alas the two I got are already filled up T_T

MS:

Isn't Reflex Dev implemented though?, because I'm only seeing the option for "low latency mode" on my nvidia control panel, and that's been there before Reflex became a thing and I'm on the latest driver and there isn't any option for Reflex that I can see. 

Yea it needs to be implemented by the game devs.

The Wednesday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

GOG has three new sales:

• The Deal of the Day is Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, 88% off during 46 hours: https://www.gog.com/en/game/prince_of_persia_the_sands_of_time
• The new Midweek Sale is full of adventures with up to 90% discounts during 4 days: https://www.gog.com/promo/20220713_midweek_sale
• And the French Week Sale comes with up to 90% discounts until July 20: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/2022_french_week

Steam has two new deals:

• Hellpoint is going to be 75% off until July 19: https://store.steampowered.com/app/628670/Hellpoint/
• And Wargame: Red Dragon gets a 75% discount until July 19 as well: https://store.steampowered.com/app/251060/Wargame_Red_Dragon/

And Fanatical has two new deals:

• The new Star Deal is Eldest Souls, 62% off during 24 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/eldest-souls
• And publisher Versus Evil puts its games up to 92% off during 7 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/publishers/versus-evil

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

Valve trials a new take on Steam's Discovery Queue
https://www.pcgamer.com/valve-trials-a-new-take-on-steams-discovery-queue/
Valve's latest Steam Labs experiment is an attempt to streamline the cumbersome process of navigating its personalised Discovery Queue system. The new experience makes the Queue accessible without leaving the page you're on and cuts out extraneous info, presenting players with an easily-digestible summary of their recommendations.

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

-Empty-

GAMING NEWS

Skate 4 pre-alpha dev build has been leaked online on torrent sites
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/skate-4-pre-alpha-dev-build-has-been-leaked-online-on-torrent-sites/
It appears that a pre-alpha dev build of EA’s upcoming skateboard game, skate., has been leaked online. This dev build is from September 2021, has major bugs and glitches, and was never meant for external use.

New Destroy All Humans! 2 – Reprobed gameplay trailer showcases its arsenal
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/new-destroy-all-humans-2-reprobed-gameplay-trailer-showcases-its-arsenal/
THQ Nordic has released a new gameplay trailer for Destroy All Humans! 2 – Reprobed. According to the press release, this new trailer reveals a devastating arsenal of extraterrestrial weapons, including exotic blasters like the Burrow Beast, the Dislocator, and of course the crowd-pleaser: Anal Probe.

New tactical strategy RPG, The DioField Chronicle, coming to PC on September 22nd
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/new-tactical-strategy-rpg-the-diofield-chronicle-coming-to-pc-on-september-22nd/
Square Enix has announced that The DioField Chronicle, an all-new strategy RPG that immerses players in an epic tale of war and honor with intense real-time tactical battles, will release on September 22nd. In order to celebrate this announcement, the publisher also released a new trailer that you can find below.

Company of Heroes 3 releases on November 17th, gets new gameplay footage
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/company-of-heroes-3-releases-on-november-17th-gets-new-gameplay-footage/
SEGA and Relic have revealed that Company of Heroes 3 will release on November 17th. In order to celebrate this, the companies released a new cinematic trailer for it. Additionally, PC Gamer shared a new video, featuring gameplay footage from the North African operation.

First gameplay trailer for SBK 22 + Graphics Comparison with MotoGP 22
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/first-gameplay-trailer-for-sbk-22-graphics-comparison-with-motogp-22/
Milestone has released the first gameplay trailer for its upcoming superbike game, SBK 22. In addition, YouTube’s ‘Cycu1’ has shared an early graphics comparison video between it and MotoGP 22.

Wednesday news, part two:

Bandai Namco reportedly hacked by ransomware group
https://www.pcgamer.com/bandai-namco-reportedly-hacked-by-ransomware-group/
The Japanese videogame giant Bandai Namco has reportedly become the victim of a ransomware attack by a group that style themselves ALPHV, but is also known by the name BlackCat. The news has been reported by two malware-watching groups, and was first announced by Vx-underground alongside an image from ALPHV's darkweb blog claiming the attack (thanks, Kotaku).

Square Enix's new 'real-time' RPG out in September
https://www.pcgamer.com/square-enixs-new-real-time-rpg-out-in-september/
Square Enix has announced its new strategy RPG game, The Diofield Chronicle, is arriving on Steam on September 22. The game's Steam page is here and a demo will be released August 10, the save data from which can be carried-over to the full game.

Starfield fans think they've figured out the launch date
https://www.pcgamer.com/starfield-fans-think-theyve-figured-out-the-launch-date/
We don't know exactly when Bethesda's upcoming sci-fi RPG Starfield will launch, only that it will be sometime in the first half of 2023. But some fans think they've got it figured out, and while I'm not fully convinced by their argument, I have to admit it's impressive.

Former Mass Effect lead writer was 'blindsided' by the deep thirst for Garrus
https://www.pcgamer.com/former-mass-effect-lead-writer-was-blindsided-by-the-deep-thirst-for-garrus/
Everyone has their favorite Mass Effect companions. Personally, I liked to roll with Wrex and Zaeed; others prefer Jack, Legion, or Thane. There are probably even a few who have fond memories of poor Jacob. There's only one companion who seems to have universal appeal: Brave, tragic former lawman Garrus Vakarian.
It all seems obvious now—Garrus took an easy first place in our Mass Effect companions ranking, Garrus body pillows are not just real but really hard to keep in stock, and the page URL for our deep-dive into why he's so great is literally, uhh, "garrus-vakarian-smooches." But that wasn't always the case. In fact, Drew Karpyshyn, the lead writer on the first two Mass Effect games, said during an AMA on Reddit that nobody saw the deep Garrus thirst coming.

Citizen Sleeper's free DLC Flux gets a release date
https://www.pcgamer.com/citizen-sleepers-free-dlc-flux-gets-a-release-date/
Citizen Sleeper, the cyberpunk life-sim RPG where you roll dice to simulate the twin struggles of a corporate-owned synthetic being on the run and also surviving under capitalism, is getting its first DLC. Called Flux, it'll be out for free on July 28.

Hunt: Showdown is getting rid of its leaderboard
https://www.pcgamer.com/hunt-showdown-is-getting-rid-of-its-leaderboard/
Crytek is ditching its current leaderboard system in Hunt: Showdown, with the developer saying it's "not in line with the original vision" for the feature.
The leaderboard will vanish in update 1.9, with Crytek working on a new iteration that can be implemented at a later date. "Leaderboards are an important feature of Hunt: Showdown," a developer update read. "However, we feel that the current version is not in line with the original vision we have for recognising the best of the best Hunters. This is in part due to past issues with exploits and the focus on KD over quality solo and team play."

Bandai Namco confirms ransomware hack of internal servers
https://www.pcgamer.com/bandai-namco-confirms-ransomware-hack-of-internal-servers/
Yesterday it was reported, though unconfirmed at the time, that Japanese videogame giant Bandai Namco had been the victim of a ransomware attack. The corporate playbook in these circumstances is to keep quiet until the damage has been assessed: unless, that is, customer data has been affected, in which case it's a whole other ballgame.
Such seems to be the case here. Bandai Namco has now issued an official statement acknowledging the breach, which is titled 'Regarding Unauthorized Access to Bandai Namco Group Companies in Asian Regions (Excluding Japan)' (...)

Dead or Alive creator announces his new studio's first game and, oh no, it's an NFT thing
https://www.pcgamer.com/dead-or-alive-creator-announces-his-new-studios-first-game-and-oh-no-its-an-nft-thing/
The creator of Dead or Alive Tomonobu Itagaki has announced the name of his new company—Apex Game Studios—along with its first project. And… well, it's NFTs.
>> Has he done something good since he left Tecmo?