its simple really SE doesn't have faith in its products so chooses the safe route by getting paid by epic

I also shit you not, there are still a number of folks on PC that are unaware of KH HD collection/Chaos/TWEWY being released on PC (only via EGS mind you) and it's been like a year and a half. EGS/SE couldn't be fucked marketing those 3 games for the platform and EGS visibility is lower than Steam's as far as I can see. 

SE is just going to learn the hard way.

The Thursday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

The Epic Store gives away the game Unrailed!: https://store.epicgames.com/en-US/p/unrailed.
Next week... I don't know, they don't even post if there will be a free game or not. We'll have to wait and see..
*Edit* check out Conina's post to see the free game for next week.

Steam has a new daily deal: SILT gets a 25% discount: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1325890/SILT/.

Humble Bundle has the new Walking Dead 10th Anniversary Bundle, with up to 8 games and DLCs to get during the next 13 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/walking-dead-10th-anniversary-bundle.

And Fanatical has two new deals:

• The new Star Deal is Clue/Cluedo: The Classic Mystery Game, 70% off during 24 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/clue-cluedo-the-classic-mystery-game
• The new Platinum Collection BYOB for August is here, with 16 titles to choose for your 3, 5 or 7 games bundle: https://www.fanatical.com/en/pick-and-mix/platinum-collection-build-your-own-bundle

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Empty-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Nintendo Switch emulator Ryujinx now supports Vulkan, Playstation 3 emulator RPCS3 supports save states
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/nintendo-emulator-ryujinx-now-supports-vulkan-playstation-3-emulator-rpcs3-supports-save-states/
Some news surfaced yesterday regarding the best emulators for Nintendo Switch and Playstation 3. According to their teams, Ryujinx now supports the Vulkan API, whereas RPCS3 now supports save states.
According to the devs behind Ryujinx, the Vulkan API will benefit mostly AMD and Intel owners. Since their OpenGL drivers are not as good as NVIDIA’s, owners of these GPUs can either deal with graphical bugs and poor performance or use Linux. However, and by using Vulkan, Ryujinx can run faster on both AMD’s and Intel’s hardware. Furthermore, Vulkan can natively use a shading language called SPIR-V which is much faster at compiling shaders than the rather sluggish GLSL that OpenGL uses. This last one will also benefit NVIDIA owners.
On the other hand, Save States on RPCS3 are snapshots of whatever was happening on the emulator at the exact moment when they were performed.

Real Return To Castle Wolfenstein 4.0 Mod brings new enemies, AI reiforcements, new HUD & more
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/real-return-to-castle-wolfenstein-4-0-mod-brings-new-enemies-ai-reiforcements-new-hud-more/
WolfETPlayer has released a new version of the RealRTCW overhaul mod for Return To Castle Wolfenstein. According to the modder, Version 4.0 adds new enemies, improves animations, adds the Rewards System for finding Secrets, and introduces AI Reiforcements.
In case you weren’t aware, RealRTCW is an overhaul mod that features a new renderer, expands the game’s arsenal, rebalances gunplay, and packs HD graphics.
Going into more details, the new enemy types are Occult Priests, X-Shepherds, German Shepherd. The first two were exclusive to the console version of Return To Castle Wolfenstein. And, speaking of console-only features, the mod adds the Rewards System for finding Secrets.

This Zelda: Breath of the Wild mod for Minecraft totally Hyrules
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-zelda-breath-of-the-wild-mod-for-minecraft-totally-hyrules/
The vast and lovely landscapes of Breath of the Wild are such an obvious match for Minecraft that someone built the entire BOTW map last year, but that was just a starting point. Yet another pair of modders have added in some crucial Zelda gameplay with a functional Sheikah Slate and all its abilities, a boomerang, Sheikah towers, and quite a bit more. If you're sick to death of creepers exploding all your hard work, you can give them a taste of their own torture with Link's remote detonate bombs.

This Doom modder is sending Max Payne to Mars in 'Doom Payne'
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-doom-modder-is-sending-max-payne-to-mars-in-doom-payne/
If you've ever wished Max Payne would shut up about his metaphorical demons and start confronting some literal ones, a modder by the name of BulletTimeTails is working on the mod for you. "Doom Payne", which they've been tinkering with since at least June, takes everyone's favourite whiskey-soaked cop-slash-beat poet and drops him straight into the original Doom games, along with his guns, angst, and inexplicable ability to transcend the laws of time.

GAMING NEWS

Here is a new short in-engine cutscene video from Hogwarts Legacy
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/here-is-a-new-short-in-engine-cutscene-video-from-hogwarts-legacy/
A new in-engine cutscene video from Hogwarts Legacy was presented at the AutoDesk 2022 Day Presentation. And while this video is not even one-minute long, it’s certainly something that some Harry Potter fans will find interesting.

First in-engine trailer for Sherlock Holmes The Awakened Remake
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/first-in-engine-trailer-for-sherlock-holmes-the-awakened-remake/
Frogwares has released the first in-engine trailer for Sherlock Holmes The Awakened Remake. In addition, the team has launched a Kickstarter campaign in order to fund this new Sherlock Holmes game.

Stray PC Update #3 released, improves low FPS camera controls, fixes collision issues and crashes
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/stray-pc-update-3-released-improves-low-fps-camera-controls-fixes-collision-issues-and-crashes/
BlueTwelve Studio has released a brand new patch for Stray. According to the release notes, PC Update #3 packs additional fixes for GPU crash on boot issues. Moreover, it improves low FPS camera controls with keyboard and mouse.

Thursday news, the sequel:

A World of Warcraft bug caused big nerfs to some classes in Fated raids
https://www.pcgamer.com/a-world-of-warcraft-bug-has-caused-big-nerfs-to-some-classes-in-fated-raids/
Shadowlands Season 4 has finally arrived in World of Warcraft. It's not unexpected to see a few bugs that need ironing out once a major patch goes live but it seems some classes and specializations aren't functioning as they should while inside Fated raids. As one of the main features of the new season, this is clearly less than ideal.
Update: Blizzard has issued a fix for "abilities scaling improperly" in Castle Nathria, it wrote in a post on the WoW forums. It notes that "active" Castle Nathria instances, presumably meaning any raids that are still in-progress, will be reset as a result of the change.

One of BoardGameGeek's top games now has a Steam version
https://www.pcgamer.com/one-of-boardgamegeeks-top-games-now-has-a-steam-version/
Following the likes of Wingspan and Gloomhaven, a beloved board game has a new digital port in Everdell, which arrived on Steam last week. The low-key strategic game about woodland critters building towns was a huge hit with board gamers in the past few years, climbing into the top 30 games on BoardGameGeek. and winning widespread acclaim. Everdell's been praised for both accessibility and depth: it's easy to understand, but clever strategies still rule.

Court ruling reveals more details about death threats against Destiny 2 developers
https://www.pcgamer.com/court-ruling-reveals-more-details-about-death-threats-against-destiny-2-developers/
Bungie recently filed a multi-million-dollar lawsuit against Destiny 2 player Luca Leone for cheating, evading bans, and threatening studio employees: At one point, for instance, he told the studio to "keep your doors locked," and indirectly threatened to "commit arson" at Bungie's headquarters. But a ruling issued in June by the Superior Court of Justice in Ontario, Canada reveals just how serious those threats were, and how they went far beyond simple trash talk and "jokes."

The Sims 4 patch reminds Sims they don't want to have sex with family members
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-sims-4-patch-reminds-sims-they-dont-want-to-have-sex-with-family-members/
The Sims 4 High School Years expansion arrived at the end of July, but like the educational system itself the new pack was kind of a mess. (...)
EA quickly assured players it would look into the bugs, and a patch has now been deployed that will hopefully clear up all those icky problems. According to EA, the following bugs have been fixed in The Sims 4 base game:

Dead by Daylight studio's new game is a 'building-and-raiding' FPS
https://www.pcgamer.com/dead-by-daylight-studios-new-game-is-a-building-and-raiding-fps/
Dead by Daylight studio Behaviour Interactive unveiled a new "first-person building and raiding game" called Meet Your Maker that challenges players to build and raid sprawling, fortified outposts in the horrific wasteland of the future.

Dead by Daylight publisher reveals a new co-op puzzle game coming in 2023
https://www.pcgamer.com/dead-by-daylight-publisher-reveals-a-new-co-op-puzzle-game-coming-in-2023/
(...)
Currently known as Project S, which I suspect will not be a permanent title, the game is set in an open world filled with quests, secrets, and "a huge variety of puzzle types organically embedded throughout the landscape." It can be played solo or multiplayer—specifics on multiplayer modes haven't been shared yet—with new areas, quests, and abilities unlocking as your character progresses.

Someone finally beat the $20,000 Halo 2 challenge
https://www.pcgamer.com/someone-finally-beat-the-dollar20000-halo-2-challenge/
Earlier this year, Charlie 'Cr1TiKal' White issued a challenge. He offered $5,000 to anyone who could complete a full solo playthrough of Halo 2 on legendary difficulty with 13 of the difficulty-modifying skulls activated. (The 14th skull, called Envy, gives you active camouflage in place of your flashlight.) Three weeks later, with nobody claiming it, he bumped the reward up to $20,000.
In the 18 years since Halo 2's release, no recorded instance of anyone achieving this feat existed. Today, after dozens of attempts spread over the previous weeks, Twitch streamer JerValiN finally completed the challenge. (...)

MultiVersus season 1 has been delayed
https://www.pcgamer.com/multiversus-season-1-has-been-delayed/
The first season of the popular platform fighter MultiVersus has been delayed past its original August 9 release date, and there's no word yet on when it will actually launch. The official MultiVersus Twitter account made the announcement, offering no clear reason for the delay. Since a playable Morty was promised for the season premiere, that new playable character is also delayed.

After 27 years on console, Tactics Ogre is finally coming to PC
https://www.pcgamer.com/after-27-years-on-console-tactics-ogre-is-finally-coming-to-pc/
After a whole lot of leaks, Square Enix have finally come out and announced that, yes, they really are remaking 2010's Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together, and it hits Steam on November 11.

Blizzard probably isn't going to charge you $45 for an Overwatch 2 skin
https://www.pcgamer.com/blizzard-probably-isnt-going-to-charge-you-dollar45-for-an-overwatch-2-skin/
Blizzard has clarified it probably won't start charging you $45 for a premium skin after an Overwatch 2 survey caused a bit of a stir amongst players.
The survey, which went out at the end of July, had questions relating to purchasable cosmetics and how much players would be willing to pay. While the questions were the same across every survey, players were fed a variety of price points for Mythic skins—around $15 to $45.
>> "Probably"...

Tencent makes megabucks offer to buy majority stake in Ubisoft
https://www.pcgamer.com/tencent-makes-megabucks-offer-to-buy-majority-stake-in-ubisoft/
A Reuters report says Tencent, China's largest tech company and an absolute gaming behemoth, has its sights set on Ubisoft. Tencent already has a 5% stake in Ubisoft, acquired in 2018, and is apparently looking to gobble up some of the 16% stake held by the Guillemot family, who co-founded and still run the business. Tencent's goal is to become the single largest shareholder in the publisher.
>> Ryuu96 has made a thread about this.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Graphics Card Now Reportedly Features 7680 Cores, 12 GB GDDR6X Memory, 300W TBP, Matches RTX 3090 Ti in 3DMark

https://wccftech.com/nvidia-geforce-rtx-4070-graphics-card-now-7680-cores-12-gb-gddr6x-memory-300w-tdp-matches-rtx-3090-ti-rumor/

As I suspected, the 400 watts claim to beat a 3090 sounded nonsense. But as always, take it with a grain of salt. If these specs are legit though, 4070 just might be that sweet spot GPU.

AMD Ryzen 9 7950X, Ryzen 9 7900X, Ryzen 7 7700X, Ryzen 5 7600X CPU Specs Leaked: Up To 16 Zen 4 Cores, 5.7 GHz Boost, 170W TDP

https://wccftech.com/amd-ryzen-9-7950x-ryzen-9-7900x-ryzen-7-7700x-ryzen-5-7600x-cpu-specs-leaked-up-to-16-zen-4-cores-5-7-ghz-boost-170w-tdp/

Impressive but I am also interested to see what all core clocks are going to be.

Intel’s ARC graphics cards on the brink? About resigning board partners, annoyed system integrators and skeptical retailers. | igor'sLAB

https://www.igorslab.de/en/intels-arc-graphics-cards-on-the-tip-over-resigning-board-partners-system-integrators-and-dealers/

Sounds like Intel is in for a shitshow. The main problem Intel is facing imo isn't Arc but their CPU/Datacenter sales that have been largely affected. If you are going to pour Billions of dollars into a new product line, you better damn well make sure your other product lines are very profitable. It's like how MS is pouring a shit ton of money into buying out large studios. They know that in the long term, it will be worth it but most importantly, they have other sources of income such as Azure that will continue to exceed expectations.

Intel on the other hand isn't in that position. Their Datacenter and consumer CPU space has been largely affected by both AMD and the current climate as we are in a recession, people are buying less products. On top of that, all the not so good press that Arc has been receiving, I am beginning to think the main reason Intel released Arc in China is because no one wanted it in the west. (Especially after reading the article). And those that did order it are sitting on Inventory because... You can easily get Nvidia or AMD instead.

While I do hope Intel continues Arc, they really needed to hit a home run but instead, they missed so hard the bat is in a different field.

Another one from the massive Nvidia leak.

Is there a comprehensive list as to what games have not officially been announced yet but are still part of the Nvidia leak? That list has to be getting smaller and smaller! 

I mainly just follow the one from Gaf

https://www.neogaf.com/threads/update-on-geforce-leak.1634270/

So Alex from DF upgraded his 10900k to 12900k and he did a quick test for shader compilation stutter that has been plaguing a lot of modern PC games and he found what I suspected would be the case:

As the shader compilation is a CPU bound task, when you get a more powerful CPU that is able to compile the shaders faster, the stutter itself will be less noticeable. Now with the 12900k, it is still noticeable no doubt but compared to his 10900k, it is less noticeable as you can see from the dark blue rectangle being 10900k and cyan being 12900k.

I hate the idea of PCs needing to bruteforce through shitty optimization but I get the feeling a couple generations of CPUs from now will be powerful enough to just brute force through shader compilation stutters. Don't tell that to developers though...