Yeah the 7800X3D is so good for that use case. And a perfect chip for ITX builds as well with that power consumption.

Makes the 7950X3D, and especially the 7900X3D irrelevant for people who are just looking for the best gaming CPU. Maybe priced a bit high compared to other high end chips like the 13600/700K. But for people who uses their PC for a lot gaming and games that makes use of that cache this is the one to get.

LTT did a comparison with other X3D chips for perf/watt in the long term. And they show the cost saved if gaming for 2hrs a day+1 hr productivity and the thing saves money in itself. This would be even crazier when used in the EU and UK where in a lot of countries the energy prices have skyrocketed the past year.

Tbh LTTs comparison is a bit missleading when they added in that productivity aspect because they didn't take into account that because the 13600k has 8 additional E-Cores, the application that's hammering the CPU would have it's task done quicker on a 13600k than on a 7800X3D. Not to mention the 13600k is significantly cheaper than 7800X3D to begin with so the $110 that you save over 5 years is actually nonsense. Cause the MSRP of a 13600k is $329 vs $450 for 7800X3D to begin with.

LTT and their awful takes lul

I wouldn't give that comparison a lot of value besides the obvious one. No one games the same amount of time every day and, as we all know, the cost of electricity doesn't remain constant over time either.

Yeah he also chose California where energy price is ~26 cents per Kwh. I pay around ~10 cents per Kwh so big difference there.

Personally, I'm more concerned with heat buildup and cooling rather than energy costs when it comes to power consumption. It would be different, of course, if I was running a server or something.

Yeah arbitary numbers are lul-worthy and don't factor in overall performance and use cases.

These chips like the 5800X3D are clocked lower with 1CCD which works well for low(er) workloads and gaming. And vs big little approach on Intel who also has one big advantage that they consume way way less power at Idle vs AMD's MCM counterparts. Say my 5800X3D consumes around 50-60W while gaming and 117W full load. And 27-28W Idle and a 11, 12th or 13th gen Intel will considerably consume less at Idle and will easily outperform it in heavy work loads.

Single CCD just side-steps any bullshit in regards to scheduling.

I was always interested to see how the 7800X3D would pan out, and it's definitely the chip for gamers... The 7900X3D/7950X3D really needs cache on both CCD's... Otherwise I think you are better off saving some buckaroos and going with the non X3D chips if you just need the threads.

Prices on AM5 are dropping, the 7950X is almost at the price I want in order to upgrade from my old 5950X.

The Thursday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

The Epic Store gives away two games:

• Dying Light Enhanced Edition: https://store.epicgames.com/en-US/p/dying-light
• shapez: https://store.epicgames.com/en-US/p/shapez

Next week, they'll give away MORDHAU and Second Extinction™

Steam has a new deal and a new sale:

• Poly Bridge 2 will be 70% off until April 12th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1062160/Poly_Bridge_2/
• And the EA Awesome April Sale brings up to 75% discounts until the 13th: https://store.steampowered.com/developer/EA/sale/awesomeaprilsale

Fanatical has three new deals:

• The new Star Deal is The Forgotten City, 56% off during 24 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/the-forgotten-city
• The Batman: Arkham Collection bundle, with 3 games, will be 87% off during 7 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/batman-arkham-collection
• And the Platinum Collection BYOB for April has launched with 15 titles to choose from 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

Skyrim Special Edition gets 8K textures for landscapes
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/skyrim-special-edition-gets-8k-textures-for-landscapes/
Modder ‘XilaMonstrr’ has released a new 8K Texture Pack for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition. This 8K pack enhances the textures of the Majestic Landscapes Mod.
For those unaware, Majestic Landscapes is a landscape texture pack that aims to reduce transition visibility. Its original version featured a mix of 2K and 4K in old BC3 compression. However, thanks to XilaMonstrr, gamers can now use an 8K version of it.
>> The article contains three before and after gifs.

The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind gets a 32GB 4K Texture Pack
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/the-elder-scrolls-iii-morrowind-gets-a-32gb-4k-texture-pack/
Modder ‘protoBelisarius’ has released a 32GB AI-enhanced 4K Texture Pack for The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind. This pack aims to overhaul the game’s textures and retain their original art style.
Now what’s interesting here is how protoBelisarius tried to avoid the artifacts that the AI techniques introduce. The modder used GAN-based upscalers as a starting point and then used a second pass of img2img to guide the upscaled texture.
>> There are three comparison screenshots.

GAMING NEWS

Forspoken Patch 1.12 released and here is its complete changelog
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/forspoken-patch-1-12-released-and-here-is-its-complete-changelog/
Square Enis has released Patch 1.12 for Forspoken. This update brings a number of Quality of Life improvements, and you can find its complete changelog below.

Atomic Heart Patch 1.4.0.0 released and here are all its changes
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/atomic-heart-patch-1-4-0-0-released-and-here-are-all-its-changes/
Mundfish has released Patch 1.4.0.0 for Atomic Heart. This update comes with a number of QoL improvements, as well as some bug fixes.

Valheim Update 0.215.1 released and here are its full patch notes
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/valheim-update-0-215-1-released-and-here-are-its-full-patch-notes/
Iron Gate has released Update 0.215.1 for its online survival game, Valheim. According to the release notes, Patch 0.215.1 brings a few QoL improvements.

Six Days in Fallujah gets new pre-alpha gameplay footage
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/six-days-in-fallujah-gets-new-pre-alpha-gameplay-footage/
Now here is something that came out of nowhere. A few days ago, Victura and Highwire Games released two new pre-alpha gameplay videos for Six Days in Fallujah.

The Last of Us Part I – PC vs PS5 vs PS3 Comparison Videos
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/the-last-of-us-part-i-pc-vs-ps5-vs-ps3-comparison-videos/
While we wait for the next major PC update for The Last of Us Part I, we’ve decided to share two interesting comparison videos. The first video compares the PS5 version with the PC version. As for the second video, we get to see how the PS3 version, running on the RPCS3 emulator, stacks up against the PC version.

Square Enix has removed Denuvo from TRIANGLE STRATEGY
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/square-enix-has-removed-denuvo-from-triangle-strategy/
Following the removal of Denuvo from VALKYRIE ELYSIUM, Square Enix has also removed the anti-tamper tech from TRIANGLE STRATEGY.
>> S-E does a lot of things bad, but you have to give them some credit, they almost always remove Denuvo from their games after a few months. Others don't bother removing them.

Thursday news, part two:

Here's 16 minutes of gameplay from a new Pokemon-inspired 'monster collecting RPG' coming to Steam later this month
https://www.pcgamer.com/heres-16-minutes-of-gameplay-from-a-new-pokemon-inspired-monster-collecting-rpg-coming-to-steam-later-this-month/
Bytten Studio and Raw Fury have dropped a new video showcasing 16 minutes of Cassette Beasts, an open-world "monster collecting RPG" that's slated to come out later this month.

Diablo 4's endgame challenges are MMO dailies in disguise
https://www.pcgamer.com/diablo-4s-endgame-challenges-are-mmo-dailies-in-disguise/
Blizzard's latest Diablo 4 endgame preview makes the MMO comparisons even easier to make.
Diablo 4 begins as an action RPG where you click your way through dungeons collecting rare loot. But once you hit level 50 and finish the story, you'll have a list of MMO-like activities to complete as you climb through the remaining 50 levels. It's not unlike previous Diablo games, but the open world and repeatable quest systems push it closer to an MMO experience.

Blizzard president Mike Ybarra reveals Diablo 4 unlock times two months ahead of launch
https://www.pcgamer.com/blizzard-president-mike-ybarra-reveals-diablo-4-unlock-times-two-months-ahead-of-launch/
Blizzard president Mike Ybarra has fired off a tweet revealing the global release times for Diablo 4, which is set to go live on June 6—unless you spring for one of the fancier editions.

'There will be a Chirper, for sure' in Cities: Skylines 2, says Colossal Order CEO
https://www.pcgamer.com/there-will-be-a-chirper-for-sure-in-cities-skylines-2-says-colossal-order-ceo/
(...) We don't have all that many details about Cities: Skylines 2 yet, and Colossal Order has said it's not ready to reveal much more than we already know until closer to the sequel's launch later this year. But while speaking with Colossal Order CEO Mariina Hallikainen earlier today about the original Cities: Skylines, I couldn't resist trying to extract a little information about the sequel. Important, world-shaking information. I wanted a Chirper scoop.

Bungie responds to Lightfall complaints and details improvements to come: 'The initial experience we delivered didn't provide the clarity we planned for'
https://www.pcgamer.com/bungie-responds-to-lightfall-complaints-and-details-improvements-to-come-the-initial-experience-we-delivered-didnt-provide-the-clarity-we-planned-for/
Us Destiny 2 diehards are used to receiving a weekly missive from Bungie, which in times of major community crisis or pre-expansion hype building can run into multiple thousands of words. I can't speak for other live service games, but the amount of communication feels pretty peerless, even if we don't always like the answers. Still, I wasn't expecting an unscheduled treatise identifying pain points from the release of the recent Lightfall expansion, what the studio is doing to correct those issues, and a roadmap outlining some major changes coming in future seasons. But that's what we just got.

Bethesda added a 'newvegas2' branch to Fallout 4, fueling rumors of a New Vegas follow-up
https://www.pcgamer.com/bethesda-added-a-newvegas2-branch-to-fallout-4-fueling-rumors-of-a-new-vegas-follow-up/
Fallout fans are puzzling over changes made to Fallout 4's backend on Steam after an update on April 4, visible on SteamDB, added a branch labeled "newvegas2". It's the kind of change a developer might make in advance of new content being added, or a beta test beginning, but the way it was named has made players wonder if it could mean Bethesda is planning a sequel to Obsidian's Fallout: New Vegas, or a remastered version in Fallout 4's engine.

Sega's April Fool's joke has become its best-rated Sonic game on PC
https://www.pcgamer.com/segas-april-fools-joke-has-become-its-best-rated-sonic-game-on-pc/
In a shot heard around the world, Sonic the Hedgehog was murdered last week. The blue blur was found twisted and bloody in the dining car of the Mirage Express, his shocked expression mercifully masked by a jauntily placed sailor's hat. It all took place in The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog, a Sega-made visual novel that was—despite its tragic and unconscionable subject matter—something of an April Fool's gag.
Well the joke goes on, because The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog is now the highest-rated Sonic game on Steam. In fact, it's the 62nd highest-rated game on the entire platform (it was briefly 61st), and has netted itself over a million downloads since its release last week.
>> lol. Sega should stop doing platformers and focus on Visual Novels XD.

Bohemia has a new 'RTS/FPS crossover' coming, and it's giving me Battlezone vibes
https://www.pcgamer.com/bohemia-has-a-new-rtsfps-hybrid-coming-and-its-giving-me-battlezone-vibes/
Bohemia has a new RTS coming, but it's not just an RTS. Silica is a new "RTS/FPS crossover game" springing onto Steam early access from the Bohemia Incubator, the section of the company dedicated to indie titles and "experimental games".

By the way, thanks to Easter, both tomorrow and Monday are holidays. Therefore, don't expect news.

NVIDIA Compares GeForce RTX 4070 With RTX 3060 & GTX 1060 In Counter Strike 2 Reflex Latency Benchmark

https://wccftech.com/nvidia-compares-geforce-rtx-4070-with-rtx-3060-gtx-1060-in-counter-strike-2-reflex-latency-benchmark/

Pretty shit comparison from Nvidia. They should be comparing 4070 against 3070/2070/1070

Gigabyte RTX 4070 custom GPUs to feature either 16pin or 8pin power connectors

https://videocardz.com/newz/gigabyte-rtx-4070-custom-gpus-to-feature-either-16pin-or-8pin-power-connectors

AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D has been overclocked to 5.4 GHz

https://videocardz.com/newz/amd-ryzen-7-7800x3d-has-been-overclocked-to-5-4-ghz