I love how Mac manages to break down these comparisons and have clean side by side showings for each side he's comparing to and making it more apparent that AMD has indeed fucked up. 

It's Monday and Gamescom is very close, which means more news than usual:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

Baldur’s Gate 3 PC sales are reportedly over 5.2 millions
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/baldurs-gate-3-pc-sales-are-reportedly-over-5-2-millions/
It appears that Baldur’s Gate 3 is selling like hotcakes. According to the Belgian Embassy in China, the PC sales of Baldur’s Gate 3 are currently over 5.2 million.
(...)
Do note that this number also includes the game’s Early Access PC sales. From what we know, the game sold around 2.5 million copies in Early Access, meaning that Larian may have doubled the total PC sales of Baldur’s Gate 3.
>> I don't know how does the Embassy know that, but congrats to Larian nonetheless.

GOG brings us three new Deals of the Day and also three sales:

• These are the DotD, available until Wednesday:
  • BLACKTAIL gets a 50% discount: https://www.gog.com/en/game/blacktail
  • The Wheel of Time will also be 50% off: https://www.gog.com/en/game/the_wheel_of_time
  • And Knights and Merchants is going to be 70% off: https://www.gog.com/en/game/knights_and_merchants_the_peasants_rebellion
• The first sale is a publisher sale with Warner Bros games up to 85% off during 7 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/2023_warner_bros_sale
• The Weekly Sale features up to 90% discounts until the 28th: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20230821_weekly_sale
• And the Made in Ukraine 2023 Sale brings up to 93% discounts during 7 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/2023_made_in_ukraine

Steam has two new deals:

• Into The Flames will be 45% off until August, 27th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1222300/Into_The_Flames/
• Call of the Sea gets a 60% discount until the 27th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1042490/Call_of_the_Sea/

We'll find three new deals at Humble

• The Humble Bundle has launched the If You Build It - Cities & More Bundle, with up to 7 games to get during 18 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/if-you-build-it-cities-more https://www.humblebundle.com/games/if-you-build-it-cities-more
• The Humble Store has two new sales:
  • The End of Summer Sale 2023 features up to 90% discounts during 15 days. https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/end-of-summer-sale-2023/
  • The Stacking Savings Spectacular features 28 games and allows you to build an up to 3 games bundle with an extra discount that can go up to 15% during the next 15 days. The keys are for Steam or as a direct download: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/stacking-savings-spectacular/

And Fanatical has new Flash Deals, not available yet, and four "new" bundles:

• Rimworld with all expansions will be 20% off during 3 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/rimworld-with-all-expansions
• The Jackbox Quintpack gets a 40% discount during the same 3 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/the-jackbox-quintpack
• S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Complete Bundle is 79% off, during 3 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/stalker-complete-bundle
• And the Star Wars Collection, with its 84% discount, will last a bit more, 6 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/star-wars-collection

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Empty-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Nintendo Switch emulators Yuzu & Ryujinx can already run Red Dead Redemption on PC
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/nintendo-switch-emulators-yuzu-ryujinx-can-already-run-red-dead-redemption-on-pc/
A couple of days ago, Rockstar re-released Red Dead Redemption on PS4 and Nintendo Switch. And, as you may have guessed, the Nintendo Switch emulators Yuzu and Ryujinx can already run Red Dead Redemption on PC.
(...)
Now what’s really cool here is that by using both Yuzu and Ryujinx, you can unlock the framerate of the game. By default, the Nintendo Switch and PS4 versions are locked at 30fps. As such, PC gamers are the only ones that can currently enjoy the game with an unlocked framerate.
Unfortunately, emulation is not perfect yet. At first, Yuzu was more accurate than Ryujinx but the dev team behind Ryujinx has released a hotfix that addressed some visual glitches that could occur with it. Moreover, the emulators cannot run the game smoothly, at least for now. Even when using a top-of-the-line PC system, PC gamers will get frequent drops below 60fps.
So, for the time being, we suggest sticking with the Xbox 360 emulator, Xenia. Xenia right now can run Red Dead Redemption at native 4K with over 60fps, provided you have the appropriate PC hardware.
>> The article has a 6 minutes video comparing how Yuzu and Ryujinx handle the game.

Demon’s Souls Graphics Overhaul Mod adds dynamic shadows
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/demons-souls-graphics-overhaul-mod-adds-dynamic-shadows/
Modder ‘fromsoftserve’, the man behind the amazing graphics mods for Dark Souls 2 and Dark Souls 3, has released a new visual overhaul mod for Demon’s Souls. As the title suggests, the Demon’s Souls Graphics Overhaul Mod adds dynamic shadows to the game.
What’s really cool here is that this visual overhaul mod is only for PC. This basically means that you need the Playstation 3 emulator, RPCS3, and a copy of the actual game.
This first version of this mod adds dynamic shadows to all outside areas in Demon’s Souls. (...)
Beyond that, in future versions, the modder would like to alter the lighting, the tonemapping, water reflections, and more.
>> There's a roughly 8 minutes video of this mod.

First look at Quake 2 Remastered with Path Tracing
https://www.dsogaming.com/screenshot-news/first-look-at-quake-2-remastered-with-path-tracing/
A lot of RTX owners were disappointed when Quake 2 Remastered came out and did not support any Ray Tracing/Path Tracing effects. However, things are about to change as Reddit’s mStewart207 is currently working on an RTX Mod for it.
Quake 2 Remastered RTX will have full path tracing effects, and below you can find the first screenshots for it.
(...)
Once this mod is complete, the modder will release it on his Github page. Interestingly enough, the official Quake 2 RTX was also updated recently with basic support for loading the new PAK files. As such, Quake 2 RTX may soon support Quake 2 Remastered. Until that – and if – happens, though, you can go ahead and take a look at the following WIP screenshots!

Half-Life: Return to Stratigrad will take place after Half-Life 3 Epistle
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/half-life-return-to-stratigrad-will-take-place-after-half-life-3-epistle/
Modder ’12gauge’ has released a demo for Half-Life: Return to Stratigrad, a mod that takes place after the events of Half-Life 3 Epistle.
Half-Life: Return to Stratigrad sounds like a cool mod for Half Life Episode Two. And, this demo, will give you an idea of what you can expect from it.
The final version will have the Neutrino Gun; a modified gravity gun that can punt objects faster, further, and pick up stuff faster. It will also have new variants for Antlion and Combine, better AI and a post Half-Life 3 story.
>> The article has no screenshots nor videos of the mod.

Declutter your Baldur's Gate 3 inventory with either of these wonderful autosort bag mods
https://www.pcgamer.com/declutter-your-baldurs-gate-3-inventory-with-either-of-these-wonderful-autosort-bag-mods/
As I'm sure many of you can relate, my Baldur's Gate 3 inventory has become an absolute nightmare after 50 hours. Even after developing the willpower not to pick up every remotely valuable item I see, my pockets remain a chromatic cacophony of armor, scrolls, potions, and weapons I don't even remember picking up. Wouldn't it be nice if every type of item was neatly sorted into its own bag automatically, like the game already does with alchemy ingredients and camp supplies?
You can see where I'm going with this: there are already two mods that do exactly this, and which one you choose is mostly up to personal preference.
>> There's only 1 screenshot from one of the mods.

GAMING NEWS

Immortals of Aveum requires an NVIDIA RTX2080 Super WITH DLSS for Low-Medium Settings
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/immortals-of-aveum-requires-an-nvidia-rtx2080-super-with-dlss-for-low-medium-settings/
Ascendant Studios has revealed some additional tech details about the PC version of Immortals of Aveum. And it appears that this Unreal Engine 5 title will push the PC hardware as its team suggests using an NVIDIA RTX2080 Super WITH DLSS 2 for Low/Medium Settings for gaming at 1080p/60fps.

Lies of P gets a Gamescom 2023 in-engine trailer
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/lies-of-p-gets-a-gamescom-2023-in-engine-trailer/
NEOWIZ has released the Gamescom 2023 in-engine trailer for its upcoming Dark Souls-inspired game, Lies of P. This trailer features numerous cut-scenes from the game and it’s only one minute in length, so don’t expect much from it.

Armored Core 6 Showcase 2023 presents new gameplay and our first look at its PvP Mode
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/armored-core-6-showcase-2023-presents-new-gameplay-and-our-first-look-at-its-pvp-mode/
Bandai Namco and FromSoftware held their Showcase 2023 event for Armored Core 6, in which they showcased new gameplay from the game, as well as a first look at its PvP Online Mode.

First-person/third-person action RPG, Neo Berlin 2087, gets Gamescom 2023 trailer
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/first-person-third-person-action-rpg-neo-berlin-2087-gets-gamescom-2023-trailer/
Elysium Game Studio has released the Gamescom 2023 trailer for its Unreal Engine 5-powered action RPG, Neo Berlin 2087. Neo Berlin 2087 will release on PS5 and PC, and promises to be a deep, cinematic detective thriller.

Delta Force: Hawk Ops gets first gameplay teaser trailer
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/delta-force-hawk-ops-gets-first-gameplay-teaser-trailer/
Level Infinite and TiMi Studio Group have shared the first gameplay teaser trailer for Delta Force: Hawk Ops. Delta Force: Hawk Ops will be a free-to-play multiplayer game that will release on PC, consoles and smartphones. As such, we strongly suggest tempering your expectations, especially if you are a die-hard Delta Force fan.

Retchid is a new FPS that is heavily inspired by Doom 3
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/retchid-is-a-new-fps-that-is-heavily-inspired-by-doom-3/
From Beneath Software has released in Early Access its new FPS game, Retchid, which is heavily inspired by Doom 3. In a way, this is what a modern-day version of Doom 3 could look like on a modern engine. And yes, this is another game that uses Unreal Engine (in this case it’s UE4 and not UE5).

Here are 50 minutes of new gameplay from Black Myth: Wukong
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/here-are-50-minutes-of-gameplay-from-black-myth-wukong/
Yesterday, we shared some new screenshots and a leaked gameplay video for Black Myth: Wukong. So, here’s today a video that packs 50 minutes of brand new gameplay footage from this upcoming Unreal Engine 5-powered action RPG.
>> Here's the mentioned article.

Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2 release date potentially leaked
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/vampire-the-masquerade-bloodlines-2-release-date-potentially-leaked/
It appears that Plaion may have leaked the release date for the highly anticipated Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2. Plaion will distribute the game’s physical copy, so this appears to be a legit leak.

Ghostrunner 2 will officially release on October 26th
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/ghostrunner-2-will-officially-release-on-october-26th/
505 Games and One More Level have announced that their first-person cyberpunk-action thriller, Ghostrunner 2, will be released on October 26th. In order to celebrate this announcement, the teams shared a new trailer that you can find below.

Monday news, the shorter part two:

Star Wars Outlaws aims to recapture that Imperial Agent storyline magic by keeping the fate-of-the-galaxy stuff at arm's length
https://www.pcgamer.com/star-wars-outlaws-aims-to-recapture-that-imperial-agent-storyline-magic-by-keeping-the-fate-of-the-galaxy-stuff-at-arms-length/
I love the Sith and the Jedi—space magic and laser swords have always been a winning combo. But I've also always wanted a more ground-level look at the Star Wars universe, especially in gaming. For example, the Imperial Agent storyline from BioWare's Star Wars: The Old Republic works so well precisely because it's more concerned with intergalactic politics and spy thriller nonsense over mystical force mumbo-jumbo.
I had a similar yearning when I played through Star Wars Jedi: Survivor recently. I was enamoured by its colourful side characters, to the point where moody Jedi fugitive Cal Kestis felt bland in comparison. Star Wars Outlaws is shaping up to fill that average-joe shaped hole in my heart, as a recent GameInformer interview with narrative director Navid Khavari suggests the game'll be far more concerned with the setting's grimy underbelly.

Baldur's Gate 3's lead writer on romances: 'sex is not the goal, it's just sex'
https://www.pcgamer.com/baldurs-gate-3s-lead-writer-on-romances-sex-is-not-the-goal-its-just-sex/
"I know we made them too thirsty," Baldur's Gate 3's lead writer Adam Smith jokes about the RPG's companion characters. "We're aware of it. The internet has told us this." We spoke with Smith during yesterday's PC Gamer Chat log podcast, where he shared his thoughts on the nuances of party relationships in Baldur's Gate 3.

One of Call of Duty's best-known developers has left Treyarch after nearly 20 years
https://www.pcgamer.com/one-of-call-of-dutys-best-known-developers-has-left-treyarch-after-nearly-20-years/
David Vonderhaar, one of the most prominent and longest-tenured senior developers on Activision's long-running Call of Duty series, has announced that after nearly 20 years at Treyarch, he is moving on to other things.

Dave the Diver gets a major quality of life update and the players love it: 'Tears in my eyes,' one dedicated fan says
https://www.pcgamer.com/dave-the-diver-gets-a-major-quality-of-life-update-and-the-players-love-it-tears-in-my-eyes-one-dedicated-fan-says/
Dave the Diver is a game we didn't see coming. On the surface it's a cute indie management game about going fishing and running a restaurant, but underneath all of that lies a compelling narrative, varied and delightful gameplay, and one of the best games of 2023. And now it's even better, thanks to a major new quality-of-life update.

Overwatch 2 director opens up about having the worst-reviewed game on Steam: 'Being review-bombed isn't a fun experience'
https://www.pcgamer.com/overwatch-2-director-opens-up-about-having-the-worst-reviewed-game-on-steam-being-review-bombed-isnt-a-fun-experience/
Overwatch 2 debuted on Steam last week and was immediately hit with so many negative user reviews that it's now the lowest-scoring game on the platform.
(...)
In a blog post reflecting on the release of its newest season. Overwatch 2 game director Aaron Keller said, "although being review-bombed isn't a fun experience, it's been great to see lots of new players jump into Overwatch 2 for the first time."

Vampire Survivors has couch co-op now
https://www.pcgamer.com/vampire-survivors-has-couch-co-op-now/
Weird little hit Vampire Survivors has far and away kicked off an indie trend, but don't relegate it to the past quite yet. The roguelike bullet heaven's 1.6 update dropped this week, bringing an entirely new couch co-op mode to the game alongside the brand new and much improved game engine the developer has been working on since last year.

Another King of Dragon Pass successor, Six Ages 2, plunges its world into chaos
https://www.pcgamer.com/another-king-of-dragon-pass-successor-six-ages-2-plunges-its-world-into-chaos/
Everyone loves the part of mythical history where the gods are fighting each other and the firmament of the world is going to come crashing down. I can't imagine the people who lived during it liked it very much, though, which is what we're about to find out in Six Ages 2: Lights Going Out, a story-driven strategy and resource management game from the same storied legacy as King of Dragon Pass, when it releases on August 21st, 2023.
>> That's today.

Wayfinder devs apologize as server woes lead to a poor launch reception
https://www.pcgamer.com/wayfinder-devs-apologize-as-server-woes-lead-to-a-poor-launch-reception/
Colorful fantasy action MMO Wayfinder, the latest from Ruined King and Darksiders studio Airship Syndicate and Warframe publisher Digital Extremes, has hit a very harsh reception from early adopters as sheer volume has caused server troubles and extended wait times for those most interested in the game—this Early Access release costs $20, but the full game scheduled to launch in six months will be free to play.

Sling cards to save the planet in this free ecological strategy game
https://www.pcgamer.com/sling-cards-to-save-the-planet-in-this-free-ecological-strategy-game/
Beecarbonize is a free real-time card game that launched earlier this month with an interesting proposition: Manage industry, ecology, society, and science to take on your ultimate opponent: Climate change. Your ultimate goal is to find any of a number of hypothetical, practical, and fanciful solutions among the cards, and producing such a "golden card" will lead you to victory.

Astarion's voice actor directed Baldur's Gate 3's infamous bear scene: 'I did not know they were gonna use Astarion as the model'
https://www.pcgamer.com/astarions-voice-actor-directed-baldurs-gate-3s-infamous-bear-scene-i-did-not-know-they-were-gonna-use-astarion-as-the-model/
I was able to sit down with Neil Newbon earlier this month to talk about his role as Astarion in Baldur's Gate 3. During which, we talked about his love of tabletop, as well as the more sensitive aspects of playing the character. We also chatted a bit about what it was like to mocap a certain scene that's been making the rounds on the internet.

The next game from the Battle Brothers devs is a sci-fi tactical RPG that 'takes everything beloved' about their last game and 'improves it tenfold'
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-next-game-from-the-battle-brothers-devs-is-a-sci-fi-tactical-rpg-that-takes-everything-beloved-about-their-last-game-and-improves-it-tenfold/
Overhype, the studio behind the really rather good Battle Brothers, is beating its swords into plasma rifles for its next game. Called Menace, it's another turn-based "brutal tactical RPG" in the vein of its predecessor, but it's trading in grim low-fantasy for a "grounded sci-fi strategy experience". I think grounded might just be another way of saying grim, judging by the number of people howling and turning into clouds of vapour in the trailer.

Fresh off a fantastic Quake 2 remaster, Nightdive would once again like Tim Sweeney to know it's ready and eager to do the same to Unreal
https://www.pcgamer.com/fresh-off-a-fantastic-quake-2-remaster-nightdive-would-once-again-like-tim-sweeney-to-know-its-ready-and-eager-to-do-the-same-to-unreal/
Friends, I have a confession to make. You might have seen one or two stories on our website about Baldur's Gate 3, an overall pretty solid RPG that practically everyone on staff here has been pouring hours and days of their lives into. But not me. I've been distracted by another venerable series, a contemporary of the original Baldur's Gate games and the first game I ever remember laying my hands on. I've been playing Quake 2.
Nightdive's Quake 2 remaster, to be specific—an incredibly thorough and caring touch-up of the original id game from 1997, and the follow-up to the studio's equally excellent Quake 1 remaster from 2021. It's fantastic, and—unsurprisingly—Nightdive has no intention of stopping there. Over on Twitter (X, whatever), studio CEO Stephen Kick is (once again) angling for Epic to let him give Unreal the same treatment.

Konami ties itself up in knots trying to clarify whether the Metal Gear Solid collection will have mouse and keyboard support, but it seems like a yes
https://www.pcgamer.com/konami-ties-itself-up-in-knots-trying-to-clarify-whether-the-metal-gear-solid-collection-will-have-mouse-and-keyboard-support-but-it-seems-like-a-yes/
Konami's announcement of Metal Gear Solid: The Master Collection Vol. 1 was both long-awaited and arrived with a few eyebrow-raising details. It won't just include Metal Gear Solid 1 through 3, for example, but the earlier 2D games: including the non-canon game Kojima wasn't involved in and apparently dislikes. The PC version's Steam listing also popped up with the unwelcome news that the games would not include mouse and keyboard support, which seems rather bizarre (especially as there exists an old PC version of MGS which does have keyboard controls).
Now it looks like the publisher is slowly righting the ship, even if it's not yet ready to make a public commitment to the default PC control scheme. At a recent Konami press event to hype up the collection, we spoke to Konami brand marketing director Ben Kinney, who addressed the issue without giving the firmest commitment.

NVIDIA BIOS Signature Lock Broken, vBIOS Modding and Crossflash Enabled by Groundbreaking New Tools

https://www.techpowerup.com/312631/nvidia-bios-signature-lock-broken-vbios-modding-and-crossflash-enabled-by-groundbreaking-new-tools

Intel LGA-1851 platform rumored to continue through 2026, no DDR4 support

https://videocardz.com/newz/intel-lga-1851-platform-rumored-to-continue-through-2026-no-ddr4-support

Unsurprising

AMD to launch Radeon RX 6750 GRE graphics card in China, “RTX 4060 price with RTX 4060 Ti performance”

https://videocardz.com/newz/amd-to-launch-radeon-rx-6750-gre-graphics-card-in-china-rtx-4060-price-with-rtx-4060-ti-performance

Intel’s latest GPU drivers can overclock Arc A380 GPUs by 150 MHz through a BIOS update

https://videocardz.com/newz/intels-latest-gpu-drivers-can-overclock-arc-a380-gpus-by-150-mhz-through-a-bios-update

SK hynix Confirms Development of World’s Fastest HBM3e DRAM, Sampling To NVIDIA & Partners

https://wccftech.com/sk-hynix-confirms-development-worlds-fastest-hbm3e-dram-sampling-to-nvidia/

For datacenter that is

It's interesting how drastically the noise changes just by the design of the side panel. If they did small holes, the case would be very quiet but their current design, while it looks good, is noisy.

The overclocking community will be very happy with the new vBIOS unlocking tools. We should expect new records soon.

And AMD should stop messing around and f*cking launch the 7700 and 7800 series.

Well that's a bit of a random source lol.

So I read great things for some games :

- Armored Core 6 is 60 hours long.
- イースX -NORDICS- is also 60 hours long.
- Starfield seems to not have many bugs.

It's hard to say if sixty hours is a good lenght for those games or not. Not every game needs to be that long, and we've also seen games with a story that has been stretched so much to make the game longer that it ends up hurting the game. We'll have to see.

Bethesda launching a game without lots of bugs would be a first. Maybe the result of being owned by MSoft.

The Steam Spy estimate seems a bit optimistic:

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth better be a 9.5/10's game minimum... I said minimum !