AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D/7900X3D reviews go live on February 27th

https://videocardz.com/newz/amd-ryzen-9-7950x3d-7900x3d-reviews-go-live-on-february-27th

GPU Shipments Declined By 42% In China, Colorful Leads As The Top AIB Supplier

https://wccftech.com/gpu-shipments-declined-by-42-in-china-colorful-leads-as-the-top-aib-supplier/

LG 27GR95QE vs Alienware AW3423DW vs AW3423DWF

Very disappointing from LG that their monitor can't match the QD-OLED Alienware ones from last year. While it is better in some areas, the brightness levels are insanely low comparatively which is the ultimate weakness of OLEDs that QD-OLED largely fixed. Add the fact that Alienware gives a 3 year burn-in warranty while LGs warranty doesn't specify burn it + Non G-sync version of Alienware costing almost the same makes this a pretty easy choice. Especially now that PS5 supports 1440p resolutions.

The Monday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

Steam's Top 10

Apex Legends hits all-time player count peak on PC following team deathmatch update, free hero giveaway
https://www.pcgamer.com/apex-legends-hits-all-time-player-count-peak-on-pc-following-team-deathmatch-update-free-hero-giveaway/
As spotted by Kotaku, Apex Legends surpassed its all-time peak Steam player count on February 15, logging 610,433 concurrent gamers and blowing away its previous high of 510,000 last August. This milestone comes in the midst of a beefy four-year anniversary update to the game that added a new class system to organize its heroes, a team deathmatch mode, and free hero giveaways.
The new class system is probably the biggest long-term change to Apex. The preexisting heroes have been organized into team roles in a similar fashion to Overwatch, and the new archetypes confer additional bonuses to their respective heroes. (...)

Steam celebrates Carnival with its first-ever Made in Brazil Sale
https://www.pcgamer.com/steam-celebrates-carnival-with-its-first-ever-made-in-brazil-sale/
Brazil's gaming scene doesn't get enough attention, Wes said in his feature on Brazilian gamers and developers last year, but it will get a big publicity bump soon thanks to Steam's first-ever Made in Brazil Sale, which will kick off tomorrow with more than 500 games made by Brazilian teams.
The sale was the brainchild of BitCake Studio founder Eduardo Lamhut, who tweeted about his plan for the sale back in September 2022. From there, BitCake coordinated the development and approval of the sale, which has attracted more than 250 game companies and a range of genres "from action and adventure to strategy and simulation."
>> The sale started Saturday 18 and will last until Thursday 23. But that's not the only deals at Steam:

• Hard West II will be 50% off until February 26: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1282410/Hard_West_2/
• And Edge Of Eternity gets a 60% off until Sunday, 26th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/269190/Edge_Of_Eternity/

By the way, a new "Mystery Fest" event will start with today's refresh.

GOG has decided that it hates me and have launched three new sales and, once again, 9 Deals of the Day:

• These are the Deals of the Day, that will last until Wednesday:
  • Harvest Days: My Dream Farm, still in development, will be 40% off: https://www.gog.com/en/game/harvest_days_my_dream_farm
  • Hard West 2 gets a 45% discount: https://www.gog.com/en/game/hard_west_2
  • The Necromunda: Hired Gun – Bundle (game+ OST + artbook) is 47% off: https://www.gog.com/en/game/necromunda_hired_gun_bundle
  • Stardew Valley sports a 50% discount: https://www.gog.com/en/game/stardew_valley
  • Train Valley is also 50% off: https://www.gog.com/en/game/train_valley
  • Alternate DiMansion Diary is getting a 60% discount: https://www.gog.com/en/game/alternate_dimansion_diary
  • Dreamfall: The Longest Journey is also going to be 60% off: https://www.gog.com/en/game/dreamfall_the_longest_journey
  • Trine 4: Melody of Mystery gets a 75% discount: https://www.gog.com/en/game/trine_4_melody_of_mystery
  • The last one is Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire, 76% off: https://www.gog.com/en/game/pillars_of_eternity_2_game
• The first sale is the Weekly Sale, with up to 90% discounts until next Monday: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20230220_weekly_sale
• The Tate Multimedia Publisher Sale features up to 90% discounts during the next 7 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/tate_multimedia_week
• And the Special Craft & Create Sale brings up to 90% discounts until February 27: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20230220_craft_create

There are three new deals at Humble:

• At Humble Bundle we find the Fishing Season: Bassmaster & More Bundle, with up to 24 items to get (mostly DLCs) during the next 18 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/fishing-season-bassmaster-more
• And at the Humble Store there are two sales:
  • The Far Cry Franchise Sale comes with up to 80% discounts during 4 days. Most keys are for UConnect, but the keys for the first two games are for GOG: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/far-cry-franchise-sale/
  • The Strategy & Tactics Sale comes with up to 90% discounts during 4 days. There are keys for Steam, GOG, EGS (2) and UConnect https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/strategy-tactics-sale/

And Fanatical has four new deals:

• The new Star Deal is Neon White, 39% off during 48 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/neon-white
• Assassin's Creed Valhalla - Complete Edition will be 68% off during 6 days. The key is for UConnect: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/assassin-s-creed-valhalla-complete-edition
• Bandai Namco puts its games on sale with up to 91% discounts during 6 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/publishers/bandai-namco-entertainment
• The Star Deal is part of the Annapurna Interactive Sale, with up to 75% discounts during 11 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/publishers/annapurna-interactive

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

New Steam feature lets you copy games to the Steam Deck (or between PCs) without redownloading
https://www.pcgamer.com/new-steam-feature-will-let-you-copy-game-installs-to-the-steam-deck-or-between-pcs-without-redownloading/
PC gamers with slow internet connections or bandwidth caps rejoice: Valve has just launched a feature in the latest Steam beta allowing users to transfer game installations from a PC to the Steam Deck or another PC on the same local network. Instead of downloading all 50 gigabytes of Elden Ring on your desktop and laptop, for example, you can now download the game once and copy it to your second device.
The feature is live now in the latest Steam Deck beta and the latest beta client on desktop.

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Metroid Prime Remastered is playable on PC via Nintendo Switch emulators
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/metroid-prime-remastered-is-playable-on-pc-via-nintendo-switch-emulators/
Nintendo released a remastered version of Metroid Prime for Nintendo Switch on February 8th. And, unsurprisingly, the game is already playable on PC at 4K/60fps via the yuzu Nintendo Switch emulator.
YouTube’s ‘reznoire’ shared the following video, showcasing the game running on the yuzu Early Access 3401 build. In order to capture this gameplay footage, reznoire used an Intel Core i9-12900K with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080. And, as we can see, the game runs smoothly at 1440p with locked 60fps.
>> Damn it! Now I want to play Prime again . The video is a bit less than 7 minutes long.

Take a look at The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim with over 1800 mods
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/take-a-look-at-the-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim-with-over-1800-mods/
YouTube’s ‘Digital Dreams’ has shared a video, showcasing The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim with over 1800 mods. Additionally, Digital Dreams used Reshade Ray Tracing in order to further enhance the game’s graphics.
Do note that these 1800 mods cover pretty much everything; from gameplay tweaks to graphical enhancements. And although Digital Dreams did not share a link, you can download the Elysium Remastered modlist from here.
>> As far as I can see, there's no list with the mods used, but you can still enjoy the over 10 minutes video.

Skyrim mod adds Doctor Who's weeping angels in case you feel like wetting yourself
https://www.pcgamer.com/skyrim-mod-adds-doctor-whos-weeping-angels-in-case-you-feel-like-wetting-yourself/
If you're not familiar with Blink, it's the best episode of Doctor Who and maybe one of the best things ever broadcast on television. I guess the moon landing is probably up there too. Anyway, it's the episode with the weeping angels, which look like the kind of sad lady statues you see in graveyards only whenever you're not looking, they move. Hence the advice when dealing with the weeping angels: "Don't blink." They're terrifying.
Which is why I was hesitant to try Baba Yaga and the Labyrinth, a quest mod for Skyrim Special Edition by modders Kreiste and wSkeever. At least the angels are limited to a location this mod adds to Skyrim's worldspace, rather than roaming the countryside at random. I mean, I hope they are.
>> Weeping Angels? Oh, hell no!

Fallout 4 Mod adds support for NVIDIA DLSS 2, AMD FSR 2 & Intel XeSS
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/fallout-4-mod-adds-support-for-nvidia-dlss-2-amd-fsr-2-intel-xess/
Now here is something that passed under our radar. Earlier this month, modder “PureDark” released a new mod for Fallout 4 that added support for NVIDIA DLSS 2, AMD FSR 2.0 and Intel XeSS.
According to the modder, this DLSS/FSR2/XeSS Mod doesn’t currently work with ENB. However, you can still use DLAA with ENB since there’s no upscaling. The modder has implemented upscaling via the dynamic resolution scaling feature which is incomplete and hidden in the game, thus there might be issues related to DRS. Furthermore, the mod is not compatible with FO4VR.
Now as we all know, Fallout 4 can easily become CPU-bound, especially in cities. As such, you may not see a huge performance uplift in such CPU-heavy scenarios. After all, this isn’t DLSS 3. Nevertheless, the modder claims that both DLSS 2 and FSR 2.0 can provide better AA than the game’s default TAA.
>> The article has 2 videos.

The Witcher 3 Characters Reworked Project now improves over 100 characters
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/the-witcher-3-characters-reworked-project-now-improves-over-100-characters/
Earlier this month, we informed you about a mod for The Witcher 3 that attempted to improve the quality of numerous characters. And today, we are happy to report that a brand new version of it is available, overhauling over 100 characters.
The Witcher 3 Characters Reworked Project comes in three parts. The first part covers all Male Main and Secondary, whereas the second part covers all Main and Secondary Female Characters (Excluding Yen, Triss, Ciri, Shani). And then the third part, covers all Male background NPCs, Dwarfs, Elves and Halflings.

The first 2023 version of Morrowind Rebirth is available for download
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/the-first-2023-version-of-morrowind-rebirth-is-available-for-download/
Modder ‘trancemaster_1988’ has released the first 2023 version of Morrowind Rebirth. According to the modder, this new release packs a number of fixes, new additions, and various improvements.
In case you weren’t aware, Morrowind Rebirth is a complete overhaul of Bethesda’s classic RPG. This mod adds countless new details, weapons, armors and much more for you to see and do. Basically, this is a must-have mod for those that want to replay this classic TES game.
>> There's a 3 minutes video of it.

Early Access Multiplayer Mod released for Hogwarts Legacy
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/early-access-multiplayer-mod-released-for-hogwars-legacy/
The modding team behind Skyrim Together has released an early access version of their upcoming multiplayer mod for Hogwarts Legacy. Moreover, the team has shared two gameplay videos that can give you a glimpse at what is currently possible with this mod.
The first video shows 10 players exploring the game’s world. The second video shows off the outfit synchronization, which now also includes Transmog.
Now as with all Early Access mods, this one is behind a Patreon wall. Yeap, it sucks but at least the final version will be free to everyone.

This randomizer mod reshuffles classic shooters like Duke 3D, Blood, and Shadow Warrior
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-randomizer-mod-reshuffles-classic-shooters-like-duke-3d-blood-and-shadow-warrior/
Modder Die4Ever has brought a selection of classic PC FPSes to the chaos realm with a new project, the Build Engine Randomizer. The mod lets players remix the enemy and item placements for games on Ken Silverman's legendary Build Engine⁠—most famous for Duke Nukem 3D, it also served as a middleware platform for developers like Monolith and Lobotomy.
Die4Ever's Build Randomizer works on Duke 3D, Shadow Warrior, Blood, Powerslave, and Voidpoint's 2019 Build FPS, Ion Fury. The mod creates new seeds of the game with reshuffled item and enemy placements, with added parameters for how difficult and how out there the new configurations might be, with Die4Ever warning that "putting every setting to maximum will make the game nearly impossible."

GAMING NEWS

First PC Update for Returnal released, is 1.3GB in size, full patch notes
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/first-pc-update-for-returnal-released-is-1-3gb-in-size-full-patch-notes/
Climax Studios and Housemarque have released the first PC update for Returnal. The February 17th Patch, which weighs around 1.3GB in size, fixes a number of issues that plagued the game. The developers have also confirmed that they are working on a performance patch that will come out in the future.

Diablo 4 Open Beta begins on March 24th, Early Access on March 17th
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/diablo-4-open-beta-begins-on-march-24th-early-access-on-march-17th/
Blizzard has just announced the dates for the Open Beta phase of Diablo 4. Furthermore, IGN has shared the opening cinematic that you’ll be experiencing when you get your hands on the Open Beta.

Here are 5 hours of leaked gameplay footage from Atomic Heart
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/here-are-5-hours-of-leaked-gameplay-footage-from-atomic-heart/
Atomic Heart releases next week and it appears that someone has broken its review embargo, live-streaming five hours of gameplay footage from it. Now I’m certain that Focus Entertainment will soon take this video down, so be sure to watch it while you still can.

Atomic Heart Dev Build, that doesn’t have Denuvo, leaked online
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/atomic-heart-dev-build-that-doesnt-have-denuvo-leaked-online/
Following yesterday’s leaked gameplay footage, it appears that someone has leaked a dev build for Atomic Heart that’s one month old, and does not feature the Denuvo anti-tamper tech.

Dead Space Remake got a new patch & here are all of its changes
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/dead-space-remake-got-a-new-patch-here-are-all-of-its-changes/
EA Motive has released a brand new update for Dead Space Remake. This Update packs a number of Steam Deck improvements, and fixes some bugs that plagued the game. However, it does not bring any performance optimizations.

Layers of Fear and Lies of P to be released in June and August 2023
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/layers-of-fear-and-lies-of-p-to-be-released-in-june-and-august-2023/
Bloober Team and NEOWIZ have revealed the release date windows for Layers of Fear and Lies of P, respectively. According to the Bloober Team, Layers of Fear targets a June 2023 release. On the other hand, NEOWIZ claims that Lies of P will release in August 2023.
>> They've also launched new trailers for both games.

Monday news, part two:

Indie dev files DMCA takedown against his own game as dispute with publisher continues
https://www.pcgamer.com/indie-dev-files-dmca-takedown-against-his-own-game-as-dispute-with-publisher-continues/
In December, Conrad Grindheim of Conradical Games defaced the Steam page for his latest release, The Outbound Ghost, and asked people not to buy it on other platforms. The unusual move came as a result of a dispute between the studio and publisher Digerati. Conradical accused Digerati of mishandling the console ports of the game and putting the Steam version on sale without approval, and demanded that it relinquish the rights to the game; Digerati filed a lawsuit against Conradical, accusing it of attempting to violate its contract.
The Steam page was restored in relatively short order, but now it's gone again, this time due to a DMCA takedown request filed by Conradical. In a new video, Grindheim said he took the step after efforts to resolve the dispute amicably failed.

Beamdog is giving fans a chance to put themselves in Baldur's Gate
https://www.pcgamer.com/beamdog-is-giving-fans-a-chance-to-put-themselves-in-baldurs-gate/
Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition(s) creator Beamdog is celebrating the original game's 25th anniversary by holding a contest to turn two fans of the series into in-game character portraits drawn by O.G. BioWare artist, Mike Sass. Prospective Sword Coast inhabitants are encouraged to provide reference photos, character notes, and any other supplementary material to social@beamdog.com.

Indie city builder removed from Steam after angry fan claims ownership of a game mode
https://www.pcgamer.com/indie-city-builder-removed-from-steam-after-angry-fan-claims-ownership-of-a-game-mode/
Workers and Resources: Soviet Republic is a niche, hardcore city-builder that's actually really good if you're into that sort of thing—"that sort of thing" being management games and workers' states. Unfortunately for anyone curious but uncommitted, it's no longer available for purchase on Steam because of a very strange DMCA takedown request filed by an angry fan.

This early access survival game just climbed over Starfield to become the most-wishlisted game on Steam
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-early-access-survival-game-just-climbed-over-starfield-to-become-the-most-wishlisted-game-on-steam/
We're always keeping our eye on the ever-shifting fortunes of Steam's most-wishlisted games, and there have been some interesting developments lately. A few weeks ago there was the whole The Day Before debacle, where one of the most-wishlisted games on Steam abruptly vanished due to a trademark dispute, a story that managed to only get weirder from there.
And this week horror survival sandbox Sons of the Forest took over the top wishlist spot from Starfield, Bethesda's intensely-anticipated RPG. It looks like more Steam users are now interested in exploring a single creepy island than they are in visiting 1,000 planets in outer space.

See anime spaceship sim Jumplight Odyssey's gameplay reveal
https://www.pcgamer.com/see-anime-spaceship-sim-jumplight-odysseys-gameplay-reveal/
We saw a story trailer for Jumplight Odyssey when it was announced last year, highlighting its sweet 1970s anime vibe inspired by Star Blazers/Space Battleship Yamato. Now, developer League of Geeks is giving us a closer look at the space-based roguelite's gameplay.

Fighter management sim Punch Club gets a sequel
https://www.pcgamer.com/fighter-management-sim-punch-club-gets-a-sequel/
In 2016, Lazy Bear Games released a fighter management sim called Punch Club, which is kind of like a Princess Maker game if the princess was actually Rocky, and sometimes had to fight crocodiles. Now the studio has announced it's working on a sequel. Punch Club 2: Fast Forward will be out in 2023.

Rainbow Six Siege is going to start doing evil things to mouse and keyboard players on console
https://www.pcgamer.com/rainbow-six-siege-is-going-to-start-doing-evil-things-to-mouse-and-keyboard-players-on-console/
(...)
Rainbow Six Siege, with its slow movement and fast time to kill, seems to favor the precision offered by M&K, leading underhanded players to "input spoof" with latter-day Tactical Assault Commander-style setups. They lorded over their gamepad-bound victims with the godly aiming potential we've come to know and love on PC.
That ends soon though with Rainbow Six Siege's upcoming "Mousetrap" anticheat. Ubisoft has revealed that it can fairly reliably catch "spoofers" in the act, and that they are also endemic to high-level R6 Siege play on console. Rather than opting for instant bans, Ubisoft will start hitting detected "spoofers" with deliberate input latency that builds up into an intolerable delay between your mouse movements and in-game actions, hopefully removing the unfair M&K advantage on console.

Rainbow Six Siege is revamping riot shields and overhauling the new player experience in 2023
https://www.pcgamer.com/rainbow-six-siege-is-revamping-riot-shields-and-overhauling-the-new-player-experience-in-2023/
As part of its 2023 Rainbow Six Siege Invitational livestream, Ubisoft outlined its plans for the tactical shooter's eighth year, including the new operators, tools, and balance changes coming down the pike.

Redfall production designer: 'Making a large, open world game, that was breaking the mold for us'
https://www.pcgamer.com/redfall-production-designer-making-a-large-open-world-game-that-was-breaking-the-mold-for-us/
(...)
Production designer Ben Horne spoke to IGN, re-emphasizing what Arkane's been saying for a while now: Redfall is not like Left 4 Dead. "Left 4 Dead is an awesome game," Horne said, "but we wanted to make something different. We wanted to make something that we feel like has the Arkane DNA that we've made in games from the past, games like Dishonored, Dishonored 2, Prey, most recently Deathloop. You can think of all of those games almost like a Venn diagram, where they overlap in really key areas or critical areas—that we like to tell stories in games and we like to make games that have a rich, coherent story, systems that players can exploit and use to their advantage, maybe in some surprising ways. For Dishonored we went a little bit stealth, and for Prey we really focused on physics. For Redfall we wanted to focus on world-building, we wanted to focus on that narrative story."

It's better to reign in Hell, so check the trailer for a strategy game about conquering it
https://www.pcgamer.com/its-better-to-reign-in-hell-so-check-the-trailer-for-a-strategy-game-about-conquering-it/
Hell-set strategy game Solium Infernum has a new trailer out, showing off the first look at gameplay in the upcoming strategy game remake about conquering your demonic rivals to become lord of hell. It's a world where the Great Dark Majesty has disappeared, so controlling an Archfiend you'll have to politick, fight, and cast magic until your rivals are defeated and you're the new lord of the bad place.

A demon rat and a duck star in this buddy cop RPG
https://www.pcgamer.com/a-demon-rat-and-a-duck-star-in-this-buddy-cop-rpg/
A JRPG oddity has made its way onto Steam, an comedic fantasy buddy cop RPG that's about some weird, extremely asocial demons battling in a city falling down around their ears. You're a trashy rat creature, you have no idea what's going on, and your job is to climb a tower—but you'll need to make some friends (and enemies) to get there.

This Lemmings-like platformer drove me to the brink (in a good way) trying to rescue its hapless astronauts
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-lemmings-like-platformer-drove-me-to-the-brink-in-a-good-way-trying-to-rescue-its-hapless-astronauts/
Moons of Darsalon is that rare sort of game that makes an escort mission fun. Instead of trying to just get your guy to the end of a level, this '50s raygun sci-fi platformer sees you rescuing fellow spacemen and herding them through gauntlets of escalating difficulty and complexity.

Sega arrives late to Japan's pay-hike party, bumping employee salaries by 30%
https://www.pcgamer.com/sega-arrives-late-to-japans-pay-hike-party-bumping-employee-salaries-by-30/
Sega has announced that its current Japan-based staff are set to get a monthly pay bump, in a move likely spurred by surging inflation and similar pay increases at Sega's Japanese competitors. In a press release last Friday, Sega said that, starting July 1, it "plans to increase the average monthly salary of existing employees by approximately 30%".

The world's biggest charity speedrunning event just banned Hogwarts Legacy
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-worlds-biggest-charity-speedrunning-event-just-banned-hogwarts-legacy/
The world's biggest charity speedrunning event, Games Done Quick (GDQ), has banned speedruns of Hogwarts Legacy and other Harry Potter games in the most recent iteration of its speedrun submission guide. A new section of the guide listing "Disallowed games" (via The Gamer)—which didn't exist on the page as recently as January 6, https://gamesdonequick.com/submission-guide">per the Wayback Machine—explicitly forbids runners from submitting Harry Potter game speedruns to the bi-annual charity event.

Well, looks like you'll be able to look at some reviews before you leave.

Oh, no! Did the crypto crash affect GPU sales in China? What a tragedy...

I own a QN90 (sustained 1500 nits at 25%, 750 at 100%) that blows me the fuck away in the dark from a distance, so can't imagine wanting the eye hurt of gaming on something this bright from like three feet :D

I think the results for these monitors  at 10-25% are decent enough, so I imagine they would all be satisfactory in a real-world scenario.

Yea but I do think that not being able to hold above 200 nits is crazy low for $1000 monitor. Even horrid laptops can do 200+ nits consistently and while OLED is obviously miles better than those trash tier screens, I do think that on a day to day basis, $1000 monitors should be able to hold the typical 200+ nits for day to day use and if it's too bright, it can always be adjusted down.

Interesting...

Displays are a shit-show right now. Been looking around for about a year, 4K screens only. Either they're too small (I'm not buying a smaller display than the one I've had for almost 8 years), have poor HDR, or some crazy-ass aspect ratio. Alternately; they simply cost insane amounts (1700-1800$ and up). And then there's burn-in issues with certain panels. It feels like the whole display market is neither here nor there right now. The rest of the build is easier, just waiting for some prices to drop a bit more, but there is actually good hardware to be bought without too many compomises.

The Tuesday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

Steam has three new deals and a new range of weeklong deals:

• Shadow Warrior 3: Definitive Edition will be 50% off until February 23rd: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1036890/Shadow_Warrior_3_Definitive_Edition/
• Larian Studios puts its games (Divinity) on sale with up to 90% discounts until the 27th: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/larianstudios
• And, as expected, the Mystery Fest is now live with demos and up to 80% discounts until Monday, 27th: https://store.steampowered.com/category/mystery_detective
• And here's a small sample of the weeklong deals:
  • A Memoir Blue is 25% off: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1497450/A_Memoir_Blue/
  • Rush Rally 3, that has a demo, gets a 34% discount: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2020860/Rush_Rally_3/
  • The Pathless is half its usual price: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1492680/The_Pathless/
  • Tricky Towers gets a 60% discount: https://store.steampowered.com/app/437920/Tricky_Towers/
  • And Zombie Night Terror will be 90% off: https://store.steampowered.com/app/416680/Zombie_Night_Terror/

The Humble Store has three new sales:

• The Castlevania franchise sale features up to 85% discounts during 5 days. All the keys are for Steam: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/castlevania-franchise-sale/
• Publisher Hooded Horse puts its games up to 25% off during 6 days. There are keys for Steam and EGS: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/hooded-horse-publisher-sale/
• And the Hack'n'Slash Sale comes with up to 90% discounts during 6 days. There are keys for Steam, GOG, EGS(1) and UConnect: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/hack-n-slash-sale/

Fanatical has two new deals:

• Plug In Digital puts its games on sale with up to 92% discounts during 7 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/publishers/plug-in-digital
• And the new Mystery Zodiac Bundle gives you the chance to get 10 unknown games: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/mystery-zodiac-bundle

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Empty-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Randomizer mod for RollerCoaster Tycoon breathes life into a bonafide classic
https://www.pcgamer.com/randomizer-mod-for-rollercoaster-tycoon-breathes-life-into-a-bonafide-classic/
To my profound horror, there are probably people reading this article who haven't been around as long as RollerCoaster Tycoon, the classic theme park management sim from 1999. In the decades it's been around, every square inch of RollerCoaster Tycoon has been picked apart and mastered. There's nothing left to discover and no surprises in store. RollerCoaster Tycoon is a solved game. Or it was, anyway.
Enter the RollerCoaster Tycoon randomizer mod from Die4Ever, the same creator who's brought us such bangers as the randomizer mods for Duke Nukem 3D, Blood, and Shadow Warrior. Using it, you too can enjoy being buffeted by the uncaring winds of fate as the mod mucks around with your scenario goals, length, starting money, and ride stats. You could, for example, be tasked with attracting 10,000 guests on a budget of $1000, or you might find that all your coasters have been altered to possess an OSHA-violating level of intensity.

GAMING NEWS

New gameplay trailers for Redfall, Witchfire, Tchia, The Invincible & Solium Infernum
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/new-gameplay-trailers-for-redfall-witchfire-tchia-the-invincible-solium-infernum/
A number of gameplay trailers surfaced during the IGN Fan Fest 2023 event. As such, we’ve decided to share the most interesting ones in one big article. So, without further ado, here are the gameplay trailers for Redfall, Witchfire, Tchia, The Invincible and Solium Infernum.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Title Update 1.7.0 releases tomorrow, is 6.3GB, and here is its full list of changes
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/assassins-creed-valhalla-title-update-1-7-0-releases-tomorrow-is-6-3gb-and-here-is-its-full-list-of-changes/
Ubisoft has announced that Title Update 1.7.0 for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla will release tomorrow, February 21st. Furthermore, the team revealed its complete changelog, which you can find below.
Going into more details, Title Update 1.7.0 is 6.3GB in size on PC. According to the release notes, this patch resolves a number of issues that plagued the game.
>> Do note that this could be the last update the game will receive.

Forspoken gets a brand new update and here are all of its changes
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/forspoken-gets-a-brand-new-update-and-here-are-all-of-its-changes/
Square Enix has just released a brand new patch for Forspoken. According to the release notes, the February 21st Update packs some bug fixes, and brings minor optimizations for certain features. However, this isn’t the big performance patch that Square Enix promised a while ago.

Tuesday news, part two:

One year later, Chrono Cross' busted PC port is finally getting a patch
https://www.pcgamer.com/one-year-later-chrono-cross-busted-pc-port-is-finally-getting-a-patch/
PC players have been getting a lot of shitty ports recently. We're talking frame-dropping, glitch-swollen monstrosities that feel like they've warped here from the dark days of the late 2000s. But at least one of them might be getting a fix. The remaster of Chrono Cross, which hit PC last year riddled with stuttering and framerate issues, is slated for a patch "this month," per an announcement on the Chrono Cross Twitter account (via RPS).

Spiderweb Software is remastering another classic RPG
https://www.pcgamer.com/spiderweb-software-is-remastering-another-classic-rpg/
Spiderweb Software's latest foray onto Kickstarter is another runaway success, which means that a remastered version of the "epic cult classic" RPG Geneforge 2 will soon be on the way.

The Expanse extended gameplay trailer showcases zero-G exploration and tough decisions
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-expanse-extended-gameplay-trailer-showcases-zero-g-exploration-and-tough-decisions/
Executive editor Tyler Wilde said last year that Telltale's upcoming game based on The Expanse looks pretty good, "especially the zero-G bits." Today Telltale and developer Deck Nine shared a more in-depth look at the game's weightless exploration in an extended gameplay video showcasing a journey into the remains of a destroyed ship.

Play a radio host guiding callers to safety in horror adventure Killer Frequency
https://www.pcgamer.com/play-a-radio-host-guiding-callers-to-safety-in-horror-adventure-killer-frequency/
You are Forrest Nash, late-night radio host in the 1980s, and somebody is murdering the people who call your station. That's the setup for Team17's Killer Frequency, a first-person horror adventure that that has you give instructions from guidebooks and maps to people over the phone in order to save their lives as they're stalked by a merciless murder-movie-style slasher.

Layers of Fears studio decides the extra 's' is too scary, so now it's called Layers of Fear again
https://www.pcgamer.com/layers-of-fears-studio-decides-the-extra-s-is-too-scary-so-now-its-called-layers-of-fear-again/
Layers of Fears was announced in 2022 as "a psychological horror chronicle built upon the foundations of the original Layers of Fear." The title was kind of a play on words: The 'new' game is actually an updated and expanded compilation of Layers of Fear, the Inheritance DLC, Layers of Fear 2, and a new Final Note DLC—four Layers of Fear, thus Layers of Fears.
That was my assumption, anyway, but it doesn't matter now because Bloober Team announced over the weekend that it has changed the name back to Layers of Fear, and that it will be out in June.

Here's a demo for a collectathon platformer that fell right out of 1999
https://www.pcgamer.com/heres-a-demo-for-a-collectathon-platformer-that-fell-right-out-of-1999/
An adorably baby dragon has many siblings—all yet unhatched—who have fallen into the Cavern of Dreams. Now the dragon must go down into the cave and find them, though the nature of the cave and its many strange environments means you'll need to look high and low for them all.
That's the pitch for Cavern of Dreams, an indie platformer with a demo that just hit Steam and looks like it could have fallen right out of the late '90s era of collectathon platformers like Banjo-Kazooie: Games more focused on exploring and puzzle-solving using special powers than on fighting baddies.

Tabletop-ish RPG For the King 2 is looking good in a new trailer
https://www.pcgamer.com/tabletop-ish-rpg-for-the-king-2-is-looking-good-in-a-new-trailer/
A new look at upcoming cooperative RPG For the King 2 has revealed some nice new inventions, from party-carrying landboats to magical pets and hired mercenaries. The "Resistance" trailer tells the new plot, which has characters forced to fight against the queen—possibly even the one the adventurers served in the first game.

The union organising Activision told the EU that life would be much better under Microsoft
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-union-organising-activision-told-the-eu-that-life-would-be-much-better-under-microsoft/
Microsoft is at a closed hearing with European Union regulators today, where it's once again trying to convince Brussels that its purchase of Activision Blizzard is an excellent idea that will only help gamers and the games industry. But it's not just Microsoft's pleas that the EU will have to hear out: The Communication Workers of America (CWA) has written to EU regulators (via GI.biz), asking them to please, please let Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition go ahead.