Some hardware news:

AMD Ryzen 5 7640U “Phoenix-U” low-power APU spotted on Geekbench
https://videocardz.com/newz/amd-ryzen-5-7640u-phoenix-u-low-power-apu-spotted-on-geekbench
The Ryzen 5 7640U first appeared in AMD’s own marketing materials before any Zen4 part was even released. AMD had used this SKU to demonstrate its new naming schema for its next-generation Ryzen 7000 series. The “4” in the product name stands for Zen4 microarchitecture and “U” confirms this is a low-power part for laptops. (...) The specs revealed by the listing confirm Ryzen 5 7640U is a 6 core CPU with 12 threads, a base frequency of 3.5 GHz and boost up to 4.89 GHz. Furthermore, this mobile APU will be equipped with Radeon 760M graphics, so in this sense, we are looking at 7640H(S) with lower TDP and clocks.

AMD Radeon 780M integrated RDNA3 GPU is faster than GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q in new leak
https://videocardz.com/newz/amd-radeon-780m-integrated-rdna3-gpu-is-faster-than-geforce-gtx-1650-max-q-in-new-leak
(...)
Earlier evaluations showed that the Radeon 780M integrated RDNA3 GPU offers sub GeForce GTX 1650 Ti Laptop GPU performance. The new numbers featuring Geekbench OpenCL data appear to corroborate on this claim. In fact, it is now possible to say that R780M should occupy the territory between GTX 1650 Ti Max-Q and GTX 1650 Max-Q mobile graphics.

MSI preparing AMD B650 “DIY-APE” motherboards with connectors on the back
https://videocardz.com/newz/msi-preparing-amd-b650-diy-ape-motherboards-with-connectors-on-the-back

>> I get the idea behind it (pun intended), but why the f*ck do they put the power connectors like that?! Who has room between the motherboard and the case panel to plug the 24xpin power connector for the mobo or the ones for the CPU? They should be rotated 90º to the side to be functional.

NVIDIA lowers GeForce RTX 4090 Founders Edition price in Europe to €1819
https://videocardz.com/newz/nvidia-lowers-geforce-rtx-4090-founders-edition-price-in-europe-to-e1819
We have been notified by Cowcotland that they noticed a lower price on RTX 4090 Founders Edition (NVIDIA own model) on the official company website. Instead of the €1859 which was the price for this card for many weeks, this model is now listed at €1819. That’s indeed a small change, yet still going into a right direction.
What should be noted, however, is that he RTX 4090 FE was first listed at €1949 in the European Union. This means that we are already now looking at 7% or €140 lower price since launch.

Could also be Nvidia testing the market with these 'leaks' and see how people react to these prices. Gaslighting figures to AiB's and adjusting if nessessary. Or those sources/MLID just spouting nonsense. Maybe something lost in translation and its Nvidia's suggested MSRP for AiB is $750, not for Founder Edition. Though I wouldn't be at all surprised if Nvidia tried this. We did have that 4080 12GB > 4070Ti debacle and even that ended up overpriced for its tier.

Feels like Nvidia is happy selling 4090's and lesser quantities for the rest of the stack at higher margins and pushing 3000 series onto everyone else. I mean if they priced the 4070 too low, they'd eat into the 3000 series market. And they have a shit ton of ampere stock to shift.

But yeah, this generation is an easy skip if you have a good enough (last gen) GPU already. With AMD near enough MIA with the rest of RDNA3 stack and Nvidia running rampant, the GPU market has stagnated; offering nearly no price/performance value up from last gen. Which hasn't happened since the Turing days. But now, its worse than ever.

It could certainly be Nvidia trying to figure out how much people are willing to spend on their cards. So far they've learned that their consumers are "happy" to spend $1600 on a xx90 card and it also seems that $800 on a xx70 Ti card is also fine. The $1200 of the 4080 didn't pan out, tho, at least not with that performance drop. So yeah, Nvidia could be trying to find out if "we" would bite the trap on a $750 xx70 GPU.

But we'll see.

As for AMD, they're attitude it's quite strange. We know that they're better at keeping secrets that Nvidia, but the lack of news regarding any of the Navi 32 GPUs is starting to be worrisome. It's another sign that AMD wasn't ready to launch its cards and rushed to launch something, which brought lots of troubles.
It also makes you wonder if that rumor/leak about Navi 31 stating that it had a bug that prevented it from reaching the planned higher clocks (remember the 3GHz frequency rumors?), a bug that they would fix in Navi 32, had some truth in it. It could explain why AMD is so quiet about the rest of their lineup, because they still have to fix several problems.

Provided the rumors were accurate to begin with.

It's not the first time AMD has rushed GPU's to market to try and stay competitive with nVidia, Vega released earlier than it should and much coveted features such as primitive shaders were non-functional... And when they did get it working, the performance gain was irrelevant anyway, wasn't until RDNA that was truly fixed at the hardware level.

Building chips is hard, harder when you are the underdog with a lot less resources.

@JEMC Yep. Its Nvidia setting price points and seeing what they can get away with. Thankfully the 4080 has been largely a flop at that price point, but the 4070Ti's seem popular which kinda sucks. And that sets the stage for the 4070.

Not sure if thats true, or AMD/RTG just missing performance/power targets with RDNA 3. Maybe they couldn't get the final product to match performance targets on mass scale, hence the lower clock speeds and/or decoupled clocks.

And the situation with Navi 32 and 33 I feel like AMD is also sitting on the sidelines, yet again. Waiting for Nvidia to pull the first move. There was only one quarter time frame last gen from the Navi 21 to 22. For Ampere two months between GA102 to 104. AMD would be completely dropping the ball if they don't followup an annoucement of their 7800XT soon. Seeing as the 4070 release is only a month away. Massive opportunity for AMD to swoop in gain marketshare and mindshare if it launches soon and priced right (because lets face it, its beefed up X7XX tier card), after all this horrible pricing this generation, it might revive people's enthusiasm in PC hardware after a load of nothing-burger releases outside of TOTL $1000/1600 GPU's.

Nvidia could be using a little reverse psychology maybe, or something like that. They know they're charging too much, we know they're charging too much, and what consumers are most afraid of is prices increasing even more so. If Nvidia sets prices unreasonably high before launch, in which case they're very likely to leak, if they didn't end up leaking themselves, then after gamers get all wound up over how costly these new cards will be, Nvidia can then price them $50-$100 lower and it'll be seen as a relief and will make Nvidia seem like they're not quite so bad as they came to their senses, or so it will seem.
This would also let Nvidia know where people stand as to what price ranges they feel are suitable right now for this tier of card, as some of you have already pointed out. They would get to charge the maximum amount they could get away with, while also seeming not so bad.

I mean, we've heard in recent years that game studios, mostly publishers, have been hiring psych docs to help them trick and manipulate players into spending more money on their games (via lootboxes, battlepasses, MT's, etc). so it wouldn't surprise me to se the GPU hardware space also hiring them to trick their own market into spending or doing what they want at a certain time.

It's kinda sick and twisted when you really step back and think about how psych docs are being used in different industries, but I guess said docs have no soul of their own to sell their practices for money, even if it ends up tricking kids and other folks into easily parting with their money, for worse off value. 

My own mother was a psychiatric nurse, so I'm sorta numb to psychology gigs (recently went to see a therapist for my eating condition, and well... it didn't work, because I know how they try to trick your mind into thinking positive, without the use of meds, and I just don't believe in that, because that's what I grew up with via my mother's job).

It's also why I'm not fooled by the 599 or specifically the .99 price points, because I'm not dumb to see that 599 is basically 600, thus 599 isn't good value, but it being 400-500 is better than 600.

Time for the Thursday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

The Epic Store gives away Warhammer 40,000: Gladius - Relics of War: https://store.epicgames.com/en-US/p/warhammer-40000-gladius-relics-of-war
The site doesn't say which game they'll give away next week.

Steam has two new deals:

• Endling - Extinction is Forever will be 34% off until March 22: https://store.steampowered.com/app/898890/Endling__Extinction_is_Forever/
• Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom gets an 80% discount until the same March 22: https://store.steampowered.com/app/589360/Ni_no_Kuni_II_Revenant_Kingdom/

There's a new Humble Bundle: the Kart Racers Games Bundle, with up to 8 games to get during the next 20 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/kart-racers-games-bundle

Fanatical has two new 24-hours Flash Deals, a new sale and a new bundle:

• The first Flash Deal is God of War, 50% off: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/god-of-war
• The second Flash Deal is Chernobylite Enhanced Edition, 62% off: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/chernobylite-enhanced-edition
• The new sale involves the Playstation Games, with up to 78% discounts: https://www.fanatical.com/en/publishers/playstation-pc-llc
• And the new Spring Mystery Bundle 2023 features up to 10 unknown games to get during the next 17 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/spring-mystery-bundle-2023

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

Transferring game files between PCs or a Steam Deck just got a whole lot simpler
https://www.pcgamer.com/steam-game-transfer-over-local-network/
Valve has rolled out an update to the Steam client that'll allow you to copy game installations between PCs (or a Steam Deck) over a local network, saving you the hassle of redownloading games or messing about in directories.

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

First FOV Slider & VR Mod released for Resident Evil 4 Remake
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/first-fov-slider-vr-mod-released-for-resident-evil-4-remake/
Modder ‘praydog’ has released a new version of the REFramework that adds support for both the Chainsaw Demo and final versions of Resident Evil 4 Remake. For those unaware, REFramework adds (among other things) generic 6DOF VR support for all the games using the RE Engine.
REFramework also adds a first-person mode for a select number of RE games. Resident Evil 2 Remake and Resident Evil 3 Remake currently support this FPS mode. Not only that, but the mod introduces a FOV Slider to all RE games.
>> There's an almost 5 minutes video of the game in first person mode.

GAMING NEWS

First gameplay trailer for NCSoft’s strategy game looks stunning
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/first-gameplay-trailer-ncsoft-strategy-game/
NCSoft has released the first gameplay trailer for its upcoming real-time strategy game, codenamed Project G. The game will be using Unreal Engine and looks absolutely incredible (at least for a strategy game).

First free content update for Need for Speed Unbound releases on March 21st
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/first-free-content-update-for-need-for-speed-unbound-releases-on-march-21st/
Electronic Arts has just announced that the first free content update for Need for Speed: Unbound will release on March 21st. In order to celebrate this announcement, the publisher shared a new gameplay trailer that shows off the new content for its racing game.

Here are six minutes of leaked WIP footage from STALKER 2
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/here-are-six-minutes-of-leaked-wip-footage-from-stalker-2/
A couple of days ago, we informed you about hackers obtaining tens of gigabytes of game material from S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2. And, as you may have guessed, the hackers have leaked a number of WIP footage from this upcoming game.
>> There are also some leaked screenshots.

Stray Souls is another horror game using Unreal Engine 5
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/stray-souls-is-another-horror-game-using-unreal-engine-5/
Versus Evil announced a new psychological horror game that will be coming out on PC in 2023 and will be using Unreal Engine 5, Stray Souls. In order to celebrate this, the publisher has also shared the game’s official announcement trailer which you can find below.

Diablo 4 will officially support NVIDIA’s DLSS 3 tech
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/diablo-4-will-officially-support-nvidias-dlss-3-tech/
NVIDIA has just announced that Diablo 4 will officially support NVIDIA’s DLSS 3 tech. In order to celebrate this announcement, the green team released a new trailer that you can find below.
>> And it's already preloading for those that got into the Beta.

Unreal Editor coming to Fortnite on March 22nd
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/unreal-editor-coming-to-fortnite-on-march-22nd/
Epic Games has announced that the Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN) will be coming out on March 22nd. UEFN is a new PC application for designing, developing, and publishing games and experiences directly into Fortnite.

Thursday news, part two:

Microsoft's fight with Sony now has it signing Call of Duty deals with platforms we've never heard of
https://www.pcgamer.com/microsofts-fight-with-sony-now-has-it-signing-call-of-duty-deals-with-platforms-weve-never-heard-of/
As part of Microsoft's ongoing efforts to convince regulatory agencies that its planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard is a good idea, it has now announced 10-year partnerships with a couple of streaming platforms you might not have encountered before: Boosteroid and Ubitus.
>> I'm glad I'm not the only one that has never heard of those platforms before.

Sims 4 'infant stretching' bug terrorizes players with unusually long babies
https://www.pcgamer.com/sims-4-infant-stretching-bug-terrorizes-players-with-unusually-long-babies/
The Sims 4's new infants update for the base game launched yesterday and I was fully expecting the bug du jour to be some kind of AI tomfoolery—infants autonomously setting fires somehow or being unintentionally eligible to "have a science baby" with their own parents or something. Like that time everyone's Sims were assholes for no reason. But no, The Sims 4 is instead experiencing an "infant stretching" epidemic.

After 2 years of prototyping, a new studio from Diablo 3's director has settled on a project: 'Man, do we want to make this game'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gas-giant-games-announcement/
Jay Wilson, who worked at Blizzard for a decade and most notably served as Diablo 3 game director, has launched a new studio called Gas Giant Games. The studio's creative director, Julian Love, also has Diablo experience—Diablo 3 through Diablo: Immortal and Diablo 4—so it's not too surprising that the company is making an action RPG.

In Call of Duty's latest update, Modern Warfare 2 got all the love
https://www.pcgamer.com/in-call-of-dutys-latest-update-modern-warfare-2-got-all-the-love/
There's a prevailing narrative among Call of Duty fans that the standard, 6v6 Call of Duty doesn't get as much attention from Activision as its free-to-play battle royale cousin, Warzone 2. While Warzone players enjoy map updates, franchise crossover modes, and frequent balancing changes, those playing Call of Duty the old fashioned way (and pay $70 to do so) settle for the occasional new map, gun, and playlist update.
For once, it's traditional 6v6 Call of Duty getting more love on patch day. Modern Warfare 2's Season 2 Reloaded patch, out today, is packing a new "core" multiplayer map, the next episode of MW2's co-op raid, a new DMR based on the M4, and the second drop of party modes to lighten the mood after a night of ranked.

8 D&D classics including Spelljammer and a Silver Box bundle are headed to Steam and GOG
https://www.pcgamer.com/8-dandd-classics-including-spelljammer-and-a-silver-box-bundle-are-headed-to-steam-and-gog/
In 2022, the famed Gold Box D&D games finally came to Steam. They'd been on GOG for years, but the newer Steam releases featured updates including preinstalled versions of the Gold Box Companion and All-Seeing Eye apps that made the aged games more manageable on modern hardware. Now SNEG, the company behind those updates, is doing the same for eight more D&D classics from long ago, including Spelljammer, DragonStrike, and the Silver Box games.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is getting an expanded campaign, a roguelite mode, and a dodge button
https://www.pcgamer.com/ghostwire-tokyo-is-getting-an-expanded-campaign-a-roguelite-mode-and-a-dodge-button/
I liked Ghostwire: Tokyo, but cripes did it need a dodge button. Combat basically amounted to circle strafing enemies while firing fancy magic at them, and I'm not alone in feeling that its fighting was the worst thing about it. A little fluidity, a little flair, might have helped, and myself and many others (just google it) have sometimes asked: where art thou, dodge button? In a newly announced free update dubbed Spider's Thread, I'm getting my goddamn dodge, baby.

Halo Infinite's new update is good (now do it again)
https://www.pcgamer.com/halo-infinites-new-update-is-good-now-do-it-again/
It's a good time to return to the 2021 shooters that got a critical walloping at release. In case you haven't heard, Battlefield 2042 is really good now, and I'm starting to feel better about Halo Infinite's multiplayer after last week's Season 3: Echoes Within update.

32 years later, Toxic Crusaders is getting a new beat 'em up
https://www.pcgamer.com/32-years-later-toxic-crusaders-is-getting-a-new-beat-em-up/
Toxic Crusaders was a curious early '90s cartoon for kids, based on a schlocky, campy action film series that was emphatically not for kids. I never saw the cartoon, which possibly never aired outside of the United States, but I am familiar with The Toxic Avenger series it was based on. That series has spawned four films, and all are incredibly silly, varying levels of offensive, and often obscenely violent.
It's the Troma Entertainment house style, basically, and a newly announced Toxic Crusaders videogame appears to be just as much a celebration of Troma as the Crusaders themselves. In a similar vein to the early '90s Toxic Crusaders games, this new one is a sidescrolling beat 'em up a la Streets of Rage or, more recently, Shredder's Revenge. Playable characters include Toxie, No-Zone, Junkyard, Major Disaster, Headbanger, Yvonne and Mrs. Junko.

Dwarf Fortress just announced its 'cutest update ever' and baby, it's babies
https://www.pcgamer.com/dwarf-fortress-just-announced-its-cutest-update-ever-and-baby-its-babies/
Break out the swaddling blankets, fashion the tiny pickaxes, and roll back the child labour laws: Dwarf Fortress' next update has been announced and it's going to make everyone baby. The prosaically titled "Baby Update" doesn't have a firm release date just yet, but it'll give "every living thing" a distinct baby (and child, if applicable) sprite, from aardvarks to gorlaks. You can see a couple of the new sprites from the official Baby Update Preview (BUP) below.

Heinz brings baffling tomato and soil corporate synergy to Fortnite
https://www.pcgamer.com/heinz-brings-baffling-tomato-and-soil-corporate-synergy-to-fortnite/
The metaverse might, generally speaking, be a bit of a bullshit concept. But one shining proof-of-concept for a lot of the ideas that circulate around it is Fortnite because, honestly, what even is this thing anymore but a platform for anything and everything. Stuff like an Ariana Grande concert or a Marvel showdown make obvious sense as brand crossovers, but at the edges there's all sorts of weirder stuff like a Martin Luther King Jr. exhibition and, now, a map dedicated to informing players about the problems we're facing with soil degradation, sponsored by food giant Heinz.

Someone dropped over $150K on a CS:GO gun skin and I think it's time for the revolution
https://www.pcgamer.com/someone-dropped-over-dollar150k-on-a-csgo-gun-skin-and-i-think-its-time-for-the-revolution/
In an event that future historians will point to as evidence of our hubris and decadence, a spendthrift player has splashed a six-figure sum on a single AK-47 skin in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Spotted by Dexerto, a CS:GO player over on the Chinese version of Buff—a marketplace for players to trade digital doodads like skins and stickers—spent ¥1,095,000 (that's Chinese yuan) on a "factory new" Wild Lotus skin bedecked in four rare stickers. That's about $160,000/£131,500.
>> This proves that some people can stay alive with no brain activity.

....and I thought I did well selling some random TF2 skins I randomly had on my Steam account for £40 each a few years ago, I don't know where they came from since I haven't played TF2 before but it was a nice bonus.