Ill never understand why you always need to own so many different copies of the same game . anyways i been playing it but still dont plan on picking it up till its dirt cheap. fuck anyone who trys charge me too much for an old game xD.

I see it as Long term investment/planning.

Besides I dont buy a game unless its $20 or less with the exception being Nintendo games at $40 or $45 at max.

The Friday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

We're giving away bundles of some of our favourite games from GOG
https://www.pcgamer.com/were-giving-away-bundles-of-some-of-our-favourite-games-from-gog/
We've been infected with festive cheer here at PC Gamer (that's what you get for buying cheap tinsel) and it looks like the only cure is a giveaway. With the help of GOG (which is currently in the middle of its big Winter Sale, ending on January 2) we've put together a bundle featuring an eclectic mix of crackers, including our current big fave and three-time Top 100 winner, Disco Elysium. Is there anything more Christmasy than a forgetful alcoholic detective trying to solve a brutal murder? Definitely not.
If that sounds too grisly for you, maybe you'd prefer some sedate exploration in a ginormous galaxy, in which case you might enjoy No Man's Sky. Or maybe flexing your psychic muscles is more your speed, which you can do to your heart's content in Psychonauts 2.
>> You'll need to have or create an account on their forums and post in a thread. The bundle has 7 games and they'll give away five bundles. Good luck.

Today's free games on the Epic Store is Horizon Chase Turbo: https://store.epicgames.com/en-US/p/horizon-chase-turbo
It will be up to you to find out tomorrow's free game, which apparently will unlock sooner than usual (in 19 hours). Scrap that. it was a glitch. It will be at the usual time.

There are two new deals at Humble:

• At Humble Bundle the new Holiday Encore is Best of Stealth, with 7 games during 27 hours: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/best-of-stealth-encore-bundle
• And the Humble Store has the Playstation Studios Holiday Sale, with up to 75% discounts during 20 days. All the keys are for Steam: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/playstation-studios-holiday-sale/

And Fanatical has two new deals:

• The new Star Deal is Sniper Elite 5 - Deluxe Edition, 43% off during 48 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/sniper-elite-5-deluxe-edition
• And there's a contest to win IXION. It started yesterday (my bad) and it will end the 19th: https://www.fanatical.com/en/blog/ixion-contest

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Empty-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Here is one hour of gameplay from Half-Life Source with Ray Tracing
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/here-is-one-hour-of-gameplay-from-half-life-source-with-ray-tracing/
In the past few days, modders have been experimenting by using the Ray Tracing effects of Portal RTX in other various games. And below you can find a video, showcasing Half-Life Source with some experimental Ray Tracing effects.
Now what’s really cool here is that you can already download this beta RTX Mod. However, we should note that this is a beta mod, and has numerous glitches and imperfections. Thus, it does not reflect the quality of what modders will be able to achieve once NVIDIA releases RTX Remix.
To be honest, I wasn’t really impressed with what I saw in the video. For starters, the textures have not been overhauled and look really low-res. And then we have the countless visual glitches/bugs.
>> I have to agree in the sense that it doesn't look impressive.

GAMING NEWS

Abyss World is a new third-person action RPG using Unreal Engine 5
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/abyss-world-is-a-new-third-person-action-rpg-using-unreal-engine-5/
Abyss Studio has announced a new third-person action RPG that will be using Unreal Engine 5, called Abyss World: Apocalypse. Abyss World: Apocalypse will release in 2023 on PC, and below you can find its debut in-engine trailer.
>> Seems to be another Souls-like game.

Here is the list of The Witcher 3 Next-Gen problems that CDPR is currently investigating
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/here-is-the-list-of-the-witcher-3-next-gen-problems-that-cdpr-is-currently-investigating/
CD Projekt RED has just shared the list of The Witcher 3 Next-Gen problems that it is currently investigating. And, things are not looking particularly well for everyone that has performance issues with it.
CDPR has not listed the CPU optimization issues or the ridiculously enormous Ray Tracing requirements. Not only that, but the team has not listed the game’s annoying stuttering issues, the RT pop-in issues, or its RT graphical glitches.

The Callisto Protocol December 15th Update released and is 11GB in size
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/the-callisto-protocol-december-15th-update-released-and-is-11gb-in-size/
Striking Distance Studios has released an 11GB Update for The Callisto Protocol. According to the team, the December 15th Patch packs combat improvements, performance and stability fixes, localization optimizations, and general quality of life changes.

Official PC requirements & 10 minutes of gameplay from BLUE PROTOCOL
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/official-pc-requirements-10-minutes-of-gameplay-for-blue-protocol/
Bandai Namco has revealed the official PC system requirements for BLUE PROTOCOL. In addition, Gematsu shared a video, showcasing 10 minutes of gameplay footage from it.

Friday news, part two:

Hacking game's ultimate Easter Egg decoded after eight years
https://www.pcgamer.com/double-fine-hacking-games-hacking-puzzle-solved-after-eight-years/
An optional puzzle included in Double Fine's 2014 hacking game Hack 'n' Slash has, eight years on, finally been solved. The problem has been known as the SecretRoom.lua puzzle, named after an encrypted file among the game's files that no-one could work out how to decrypt.

Darktide's new patch brings big bludgeons, necessary nerfs, and beefs up the crafting system
https://www.pcgamer.com/darktides-new-patch-brings-big-bludgeons-necessary-nerfs-and-beefs-up-the-crafting-system/
The grim dark of the future hits version 1.0.20 today. Warhammer 40K: Darktide has a new patch, and it's brought with it new weapons, updates to the crafting system, and a much-needed nerf that will no doubt still make someone very angry indeed.

PSA: Don't play Destiny 2's new Dawning event without equipping this item first [updated]
https://www.pcgamer.com/psa-dont-play-destiny-2s-new-dawning-event-without-equipping-this-item-first/
Update: Good news! It transpires that if you haven't previously unlocked the Starfarer 7M ship, the benefits of which are detailed in the original story, you can buy it from Evan Levante the event vendor in the tower. It can be found on the third page of her inventory. Note that you will also need to buy the accompanying mod in order to generate bonus Dawning Cheer whilst you're out and about shooting aliens.

Former Warcraft creative director Chris Metzen is returning to Blizzard
https://www.pcgamer.com/former-warcraft-creative-director-chris-metzen-is-returning-to-blizzard/
Original World of Warcraft creative director Chris Metzen, who left Blizzard in 2016 after a 23-year career, is coming back. Warcraft franchise general manager John Hight revealed the big news on Twitter, saying that Metzen has joined the "Warcraft Leadership Team" as creative advisor.

The new Tomb Raider game will be published by Amazon
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-new-tomb-raider-game-will-be-published-by-amazon/
Back in April, Crystal Dynamics announced that it was working on a new Tomb Raider game using Unreal Engine 5, which is said would enable it to "push the envelope of fidelity, and to deliver the high quality cinematic action-adventure experience that fans deserve." A new addition to a hugely successful game franchise wasn't exactly the most unexpected bit of news ever, but today's announcement caught me a little by surprise: It's going to be published by Amazon Games.

It looks like Call of Duty's anti-cheat is permabanning innocent players
https://www.pcgamer.com/it-looks-like-call-of-dutys-anti-cheat-is-permabanning-innocent-players/
Call of Duty players are saying they're getting banned from the game over false positives from Activision's proprietary Ricochet anti-cheat. Now, I know what you're thinking: oldest story in the book, that's just what John Q. Aimbot would say with his hand caught in the proverbial cookie jar.
However, the sheer number of these claims, as well as the common details shared between them, leads me to believe there's something amiss, and these paying customers have been left frustrated by Activision Blizzard's stony response so far. The company did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication, but we will update this story if we hear back.
>> Well, those players are experiencing another side from a war game: they're collateral damage.

Lap it up: Henry Cavill's dog is in The Witcher 3 now
https://www.pcgamer.com/lap-it-up-henry-cavills-dog-is-in-the-witcher-3-now/
(...)
Henry Cavill has a dog: and it's called Kal, as in Kal-El, as in Superman. No, I don't know why he plumped for that over Krypto. Kal is an American Akita breed and apparently something of a fixture around the actor, meaning there are lots of photographs of Kal, and now that the dog has found its way into The Witcher 3 there will probably be even more screenshots.

New World is running a free weekend to highlight its new edition and discount
https://www.pcgamer.com/new-world-is-running-a-free-weekend-to-highlight-its-new-edition-and-discount/
Nothing says Christmas quite like games with a disconcerting colonialist aesthetic. Amazon's New World MMO is getting a free weekend, with prospective players invited to get a "taste of the Eternal Isle" between now and the free period's conclusion next week.

Chinese players are being prepared for the end of World of Warcraft
https://www.pcgamer.com/chinese-players-are-being-prepared-for-the-end-of-world-of-warcraft/
Blizzard is preparing its Chinese players for the possibility that Alliance and Horde alike fear: no more World of Warcraft. While Blizzard mostly publishes its own games, its titles have been distributed in China by NetEase for 14 years, an arrangement that both companies announced would end this October. Blizzard's games are enormously popular in China, and the news immediately saw NetEase's share price take a dive, though the two will still work together on Diablo Immortal.

The 'world's smallest city builder' just had a teeny tiny launch on Steam
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-worlds-smallest-city-builder-just-launched-on-steam/
When it comes to city builders, bigger is usually better. Just look at Cities: Skylines, which lets you construct massive, sprawling, skyscraper-filled cities—which somehow still weren't big enough for players, who were thrilled to find a mod that allowed them unlock every last square of land on the map.
But sometimes you might be looking for something a bit smaller. In the case of The Block, a city builder that launched on Steam today, much smaller. In fact, developer Paul Schnepf calls it "the world's smaller city builder" and after checking out the trailer above, I have no reason to doubt that claim.

Let's move now to the GOG and Steam deals for the weekend (and no, I won't mention the GOG Winter Sale):

+GOG

• The first one is easy: there's a new GIVEAWAY: King of Seas is free to get during the next 70 hours: https://www.gog.com/game/king_of_seas
• The first of the three Deals of the Day is Star Trek: Armada, 28% off during 70 hours: https://www.gog.com/en/game/star_trek_armada
• The second is Dorfromantik, 30% off until Monday: https://www.gog.com/en/game/dorfromantik
• And the third DotD is Pillars of Eternity: Definitive Edition, with a 55% discount until the 19th: https://www.gog.com/en/game/pillars_of_eternity_definitive_edition
• Also, and only during the Winter Sale (damn it!), there's a special Roguelike 2-pack with Curse of the Dead Gods and Loop Hero with a 65% discount: https://www.gog.com/game/gog_collection_roguelike_2pack

+Steam

• The Sniper Ghost Warrior Franchise Sale brings up to 85% discounts until Monday: https://store.steampowered.com/publisher/SGW/sale/2022
• STAR WARS Jedi: Fallen Order will be 88% off until the 19th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1172380/STAR_WARS_Jedi_Fallen_Order/
• The Steam Football Celebration (I'll be damned if I call it soccer) brings up to 90% discounts until Monday, 19th (also Fifa 23 is free to try during the weekend): https://store.steampowered.com/tags/en/Soccer/
• The HeroCraft Publisher Sale features up to 85% discounts until December 21st: https://store.steampowered.com/developer/HeroCraft_PC/sale/herocraftpublishersale
• Bang-On Balls: Chronicles, still in Early Access, gets a 40% discount until the 22nd: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1227650/BangOn_Balls_Chronicles/
• God of War is also 40% off until the 22nd: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1593500/God_of_War/
• The Surge 2 will be 75% off until Thursday: https://store.steampowered.com/app/644830/The_Surge_2/
• The Assassin's Creed Franchise is up to 80% off until Thursday (and Valhalla is free to try during another 2 days): https://store.steampowered.com/sale/Assassins_Creed_Franchise
• And the House Flipper Franchise Sale is up to 85% off until Thursday, 22nd: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/houseflipper

And that's it. Until next time, I wish you a happy and gaming weekend (the last one before X-mas!).

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Becomes Newegg’s Best Seller, RTX 4090 Takes 3rd Spot

https://wccftech.com/nvidia-geforce-rtx-4080-becomes-neweggs-best-seller-rtx-4090-takes-3rd-spot/

The state of GPUs these days

Nvidia may be greedy but they are greedy because they know they can get away with it before the competition comes out with their GPUs. AMD needs to find a way to get rid of Nvidia's spies as this is pretty crazy how Nvidia knows how things will play out well before AMD launches the new gen GPUs. Many people hoped including myself that AMD would give them a run for their money but Nvidia knew exactly where to position the 4080 even if it is badly priced.

MSI to launch custom AMD Radeon RX 7900 graphics cards in Q1 2023

https://videocardz.com/newz/msi-to-launch-custom-amd-radeon-rx-7900-graphics-cards-in-q1-2023

Very odd. I haven't seen them launch so late before. Hell now that I think about it, Asus isn't launching their Strix for Radeon yet either even though we know it's in the works.

ASUS introduces ROG STRIX GeForce RTX4090/4080 graphics cards in white

https://videocardz.com/newz/asus-introduces-rog-strix-geforce-rtx4090-4080-graphics-cards-in-white

I think I like the black version better.

AMD accused of treating consumers as 'guinea pigs' by shipping unfinished RX 7900 GPUs

https://www.techradar.com/news/amd-accused-of-treating-consumers-as-guinea-pigs-by-shipping-unfinished-rx-7900-gpus

The frequency/voltage fluctuations is pretty nuts. Here is what a 4090 voltage looks like:

You can see that it's fairly stable. In gaming, its 1.05 volts and it gets lower depending on the task. Here is the voltage of a 7900XTX:

Here's a couple of things related to Valve, and you won't expect the second one:

Valve hints at revised Steam Deck with better battery life and screen
https://www.pcgamer.com/valve-hints-at-revised-steam-deck-with-better-battery-life-and-screen/
In an interview with the Verge (opens in new tab), Steam Deck designers Lawrence Yang and Pierre-Loup Griffais revealed that Valve has wide ranging plans to update the pocketable Steam Deck gaming PC, (opens in new tab) with both hardware and software upgrades in the mix.

When asked what improvements they'd most like to make to a revised Steam Deck, both Yang and Griffais pointed to the screen and battery life as prime candidates, though they don't provide any specific details. However, the machine's performance isn't likely to be increased any time soon.

Steam Controller 2. Oh no, Valve 'want to make it happen'
https://www.pcgamer.com/steam-controller-2-oh-no-valve-want-to-make-it-happen/
(...)

And so when I read the Verge interview (opens in new tab) asking Steam Deck (opens in new tab) designer, Lawrence Yang, about the prospect of making a new version of the old pad, my blood ran cold.

"Yeah, we want to make it happen," says Yang. "It's just a question of how and when."

"I think it's likely that we'll explore that because it's something we wanted as well," he continues. "Right now, we’re focusing on the Deck."

Be scared, it is coming...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-sbLEvINmk

If they do release a steam deck with better screen and battery (hopefully a better fan too out of the box), then I'll buy it asap.

Stop spending so much money! You're making the rest of us look bad

I would expect annual updates to the Steamdeck going forth to take advantage of the latest technologies, but also to fix hardware flaws.

I.E. They could upgrade the CPU cores to Zen 3, GPU to RDNA3 from their current Zen2/RDNA2 setup.