AMD really needs all the help it can get to improve their situation... even if it looks like it has improved a bit with the latest report.

Also, with all three having dedicated cores for upscaling, we could be one step closer to unify the software and have only one solution and not four or five.

Luckily I've only got the one HDD, but I should really be offloading it's data onto a beefier SSD, while also slimming down my SSD's to at least 3-4, that way I can have 2-3 slotted in the small bay in that new case, and two attached to the rear panel, but I doubt I'll need more than 2, if I manage to get 2 NVME's attached to the mobo.

It is odd how most modern cases are being designed with only SSD's in mind, and even then it's space for 3-4 SSD's in total, which isn't much, meaning most going for newer cases are going to end up spending more on higher capacity SSD's instead.

I'll probably stick with two large fans at the front, but they'll have to be replaced with static pressure ones, and I'll use two regular ones for the top vents as well (I find the bigger the fan, the better the airflow, because the smaller fans I've been using don't seem to be able to do much). 

For fans, Hardware Busters has some reviews and a "best for" article they keep updated, but they limit themseles to 120 & 140mm products. They use proper testing equipment, like the machine GamersNexus got around two years ago but, unlike them, HBusters has actually done something with it.

Storage is a per case situation. Some people can be called data hoarders, like me, while others don't really have that much to store. And even then, they may use external hard drives, reducing the need for internal storage.

At least most modern motherboards have three or more M.2 slots so, we lose from one side, but we win from another.

I'm guessing Microsoft's DirectSR is step in that direction - we've seen this on numerous occasions, for a while there are vendor specific solutions, than MS consolidates them in DirectX.

That already started, DirectX now already comes with DirectX Raytracing (DXR) and DirectML, so things like Upscaling and frame generation will certainly also soon be part of DirectX.

It's also btw how DirectX started out: Everybody made their own thing with early 3D accelerator cards, but that all got soon consolidated into DirectX (still mostly called Direct3D at the time despite that only being a component of DirectX) - except for 3DFX, who continued to use Glide, a simplified version of OpenGL.

Thanks for the suggestions. Ended up going with a SteelSeries Apex keyboard that has cable routing and feels pretty good so far.

Near the end of my Borderlands GOTY Enhanced playthrough - at least with the base game.

I'm likely gonna finish the base game this weekend and will be starting the DLC afterwards.

My character is lv 35 and I'm at 37 hours.

The news!

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

GOG has several new deals. And also a contest to win a heavily modded PC!

• Let’s start with the contest, organized by GOG, 11-bit studios and AMD to promote the game The Thaumaturge. Learn more about the contest and the shape of the PC here: https://www.gog.com/en/news/amd_11_bit_studios_and_gog_join_forces_for_a_community_contest
• There are four new Deals of the Day, that will last 46 hours:
  • Frogun will be 40% off: https://www.gog.com/en/game/frogun
  • Clash: Artifacts of Chaos gets a 60% deal: https://www.gog.com/en/game/clash_artifacts_of_chaos
  • Enclave also gets a 60% discount: https://www.gog.com/en/game/enclave
  • Röki will be 75% off: https://www.gog.com/en/game/roki
• And the Female Protagonist Sale features up to 90% discounts during 7 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20240306_female_protagonist

Steam has three new deals:

• INFRA will be 82% off until the 12th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/251110/INFRA/
• Floodland gets a 70% discount until the 13th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1336180/Floodland/
• And the Wingspan franchise sale has up to 50% deals until March, the 14th: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/wingspanfranchise

And Fanatical has a new bundle: the BYO Spring Bundle, with 20 titles to choose from for your 1, 5 or 10 games bundle: https://www.fanatical.com/en/pick-and-mix/build-your-own-spring-bundle.

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Empty-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Experience Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain in First-Person Mode
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/experience-metal-gear-solid-5-the-phantom-pain-in-first-person-mode/
Modder ‘LilTOJustice’ has released an amazing mod that lets you experience Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain in first-person mode. This is a must-have for everyone who wants to revisit this latest main MGS game.
According to the modder, this is an enhanced version of the FPS Mod we shared back in 2018. This new version packs a lot of QoL improvements. It also makes adjustments so that all stances are properly implemented. So, let’s take a closer look at it.
The new FPS Mod adjusts the default focal offset to more sensible values. It also reverts the focal offset after when players stop aiming. Moreover, it fine-tunes the distance values for the horse to minimize the bug that could cause Snake to be visible while riding in FP. Oh, and the game will also revert to third-person once you take cover. As such, it will be easier now to sneak on enemies.
The modder has also added smoother animations for walking around without your weapon out. Crouch ADS looks way better now as it will look similar to standing, and proning height has been improved. Weapon collision detection with the environment is restored, and the ADS viewmodel won’t glitch anymore when looking high up or down. And finally, hiding on horse is more obvious now thanks to this new first-person camera viewpoint.
>> The article has a video… but it’s from another mod because the author of this one hasn’t shared one.

GAMING NEWS

Ghost of Tsushima rumored to be announced tomorrow for PC
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/ghost-of-tsushima-rumor-pc/
Ghost of Tsushima is a game that I really want to see on PC. This is one of the few PS5-exclusive games that deserve to be ported to PC. And, from the looks of it, we might get a PC announcement tomorrow.
>> That tomorrow is today so we’ll know soon if it’s true or not.

Diablo 4 Title Update 1.3.3 Released, Full Patch Notes Revealed
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/diablo-4-title-update-1-3-3-released-full-patch-notes-revealed/
Blizzard has just released Title Update 1.3.3 for its action hack n slash RPG, Diablo 4. According to the release notes, this latest patch adds six Vampiric Powers to the game. Moreover, it introduces a new competitive challenge, called Gauntlet.

MicroProse has announced a new tactical turn-based strategy game, Forgotten but Unbroken
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/microprose-has-announced-a-new-tactical-turn-based-strategy-game-forgotten-but-unbroken/
MicroProse has just announced a new tactical turn-based strategy game, called Forgotten but Unbroken. To celebrate this announcement, the publisher has also shared the game’s debut gameplay trailer which you can find below.

Confirmed, Dragon’s Dogma 2 will run with 60fps only on PC
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/confirmed-dragons-dogma-2-will-run-with-60fps-only-on-pc/
In February 2023, we informed you about the possibility of Dragon’s Dogma 2 running with 60fps only on PC. And it appears we were right. According to Capcom’s Hideaki Itsuno, the PC version is the only one that will be able to run at native 4K with 60fps.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails through Daybreak coming to PC on July 5th
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/the-legend-of-heroes-trails-through-daybreak-coming-to-pc-on-july-5th/
NIS America has announced that the English version of The Legend of Heroes: Trails through Daybreak will hit Steam on July 5th. To celebrate this announcement, the team shared a new trailer that you can find below.

Alan Wake 2 Patch 1.0.16.1 Released, Optimizing Rendering for Older GPUs
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/alan-wake-2-patch-1-0-16-1-released-optimizing-rendering-for-older-gpus/
Remedy has just released Title Update 1.0.16.1 for Alan Wake 2. According to the devs, this latest patch optimizes rendering for GPUs that don’t support mesh shaders. As a result, the game’s lowered minimum GPU requirements are now the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 and the AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT.

Gameplay Deep Dive Trailer for Outcast – A New Beginning
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/gameplay-deep-dive-trailer-for-outcast-a-new-beginning/
THQ Nordic has released a gameplay deep dive trailer for Outcast – A New Beginning. This new trailer highlights the key gameplay features of this upcoming third-person action adventure game.

The news, the second part:

The PC Gaming Show returns this June
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/events-conferences/the-pc-gaming-show-returns-this-june/
A 2024 edition of the PC Gaming Show will broadcast on Twitch and other video platforms this June. 
We're hard at work assembling this year's show, which is coming together nicely. Look for more details about the games that'll be featured in the show in the coming months on PC Gamer. A broadcast date and time for the PC Gaming Show will be shared at a later date.

Elden Ring players may well have found Miyazaki's secret 'small element' and turns out it's had a clue to the DLC since launch
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/elden-ring-players-may-well-have-found-miyazakis-secret-small-element-and-turns-out-its-had-a-clue-to-the-dlc-since-launch/
Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree expansion is due for release in June and, alongside the recent trailer for what the developer says will be its biggest expansion yet, FromSoftware CEO and creative director Hidetaka Miyazaki went on the interview circuit. By far the most intriguing thing he said (well to me at least) was that, despite players poring over every inch of the Lands Between since launch, there remained "a small element that I feel has not yet been discovered."
(...)
First spotted by redditor Cudakid210, an apparently unremarkable wooden shield is where this particular secret lies. The item is hidden behind an illusory wall in the Sage's Cave, and its description reads as follows:

This mashup of city builder and grand strategy will take you from building a capital city to achieving 'total global domination'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/city-builder/this-mashup-of-city-builder-and-grand-strategy-will-take-you-from-building-a-capital-city-to-achieving-total-global-domination/
City builders keep on getting bigger, not just by stretching into other genres like survival, puzzle, and strategy, but by expanding into broader game systems than just city planning, building, and management. Frostpunk's expeditions take you away from the city to explore the map for resources and narrative events, Cities: Skylines 2 lets you trade materials, products, and even water and electricity with other regions, and in The Wandering Village, your entire city literally walks across the world ('cuz it's built on a dinosaur's back). 
That kind of expansion beyond straightforward city management is great, but it's clearly not quite enough for Overseer Games. The studio's next game, Kaiserpunk, isn't just a city builder but a grand strategy game, and it will take you from building and managing a city all the way to "total global domination through tactics-ridden warfare and logistics mechanics spanning the entire globe."

Warner Bros aims to increase focus on free-to-play and live service games because 'disappointments' like Suicide Squad make the big-budget business 'very volatile'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/warner-bros-aims-to-increase-focus-on-free-to-play-and-live-service-games-because-disappointments-like-suicide-squad-make-the-big-budget-business-very-volatile/
Speaking at the recent Morgan Stanley Technology, Media, and Telecom Conference, Warner Bros Discovery executive JB Perrette said the company wants to expand more into free-to-play and live service games in order to avoid the "volatile" ups and downs of big-budget game releases.

After nine months of silence, the Multiversus Twitter account has come back to life with an ominous message: 'It's real'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fighting/after-nine-months-of-silence-the-multiversus-twitter-account-has-come-back-to-life-with-an-ominous-message-its-real/
Believe it or not, Warner's Smash Bros-style fighting game Multiversus may be on the verge of a comeback. More than eight months after it was taken offline to "prepare for full launch," the official Multiversus Twitter account has started making a little noise.

Chivalry 2 pauses new skill-based team balancing because it was doing the opposite of balancing for some reason
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/chivalry-2-duel-of-the-fetes-update-skill-based-team-balancing/
The biggest Chivalry 2 update since they added horses is out now. Like the previous updates, Duel of the Fetes adds some new maps (three deathmatch maps, in this case) to my favorite first-person medieval warfare game, but it most notably comes with two major new features: skill-based team balancing and support for unofficial servers.

Folks, I think I've worked out how Bungie plans to make up its 45% revenue shortfall
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/folks-i-think-ive-worked-out-how-bungie-plans-to-make-up-its-45-revenue-shortfall/
Last year's shock layoff of around 100 staff at Bungie was accompanied by a report that the studio expected to miss its internal revenue projections by as much as 45%. You don't need access to the books to know that is both a substantial chunk of change, and that the subsequent delay to The Final Shape expansion will only have made matters worse.
  With parent company Sony also itchy on the trigger finger, I can only imagine that Bungie has been scrambling to plug that chasm ever since. Which brings us to today and, inevitably, the 'surprise' arrival of some of the best cosmetic items the game's microtransaction store has ever seen. 
>> On another note, here’s the quickest way to get the hoverboard.

Crusader Kings 3 finally gets its most hotly demanded feature in years: an authentic male pattern baldness system
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/strategy/crusader-kings-3-finally-gets-its-most-hotly-demanded-feature-in-years-an-authentic-male-pattern-baldness-system/
Crusader Kings 3's latest DLC, Legends of the Dead, arrived last Monday, bringing with it new legend mechanics that let your characters live on after death. But whatever, frankly, because it was accompanied by a free patch that finally introduced the game's most long-sought-after feature: functional male pattern baldness.

After focusing on Devil May Cry and Dragon's Dogma for 20 years, Capcom's Hideaki Itsuno says 'it would be fun to create something new'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/after-focusing-on-devil-may-cry-and-dragons-dogma-for-20-years-capcoms-hideaki-itsuno-says-it-would-be-fun-to-create-something-new/
Going by Capcom veteran Hideaki Itsuno's resume as the director of multiple fighting games and steward of Devil May Cry since 2003, it's clear he loves action games, and is very good at making them. But Dragon's Dogma, an RPG, was his true passion project—a game he originally came up with the concept for in 2000, then had to wait eight years to make. "Every single open RPG that’s been released in Japan, I’ve played them all… or I own them, and I plan to play them!" he told Videogamer.com in an interview in 2012.
(...)
"Obviously we're not going to make an announcement right here, right now—it's a decision that would be made in consideration of all surrounding circumstances," Itsuno said. "But if I was to ignore all of that and go by my gut feeling, it would be fun to create something new."

In an unexpected twist, 'GTA 5 was quite a big inspiration' for Dragon's Dogma 2 and game director Hideaki Itsuno
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/in-an-unexpected-twist-gta-5-was-quite-a-big-inspiration-for-dragons-dogma-2-and-game-director-hideaki-itsuno/
In a twist of events that may seem a bit out of the ordinary, Dragon's Dogma 2's game director, Hideaki Itsuno, has spoken about one strong source of inspiration for the soon-to-arrive fantasy RPG, and it wouldn't be my first choice.

The news, the third (and last) part, with a lot of Helldivers 2 articles:

Buckle up—Helldivers 2 is getting mechs real soon, courtesy of the Tien Kwan Factories
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/buckle-uphelldivers-2-is-getting-mechs-real-soon-courtesy-of-the-tien-kwan-factories/
Helldivers 2's getting mechs—we've known that for a while, thanks to a launch trailer teasing them and some leaked mechs cropping up in suspect games. As announced on the official Helldivers 2 Twitter account, they'll be coming sooner rather than later.

Helldivers 2 sales curve is 'rare and amazing,' says gobsmacked industry analyst: 'I feel like Steve Irwin sighting a rare bird'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/helldivers-2-sales-curve-is-rare-and-amazing-says-gobsmacked-industry-analyst-i-feel-like-steve-irwin-sighting-a-rare-bird/
We all know by now that Helldivers 2 is really good and really popular, but Circana industry analyst Mat Piscatella says the game's sales success in its first few weeks of launch is almost unprecedented—and he's pretty excited about it.

Helldivers 2 just dropped a chunky balance patch that fixes heavy armour, adds meteor swarms, and deals a blow to eradication mission farmers
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/helldivers-2-just-dropped-a-chunky-balance-patch-that-fixes-heavy-armour-adds-meteor-swarms-and-deals-a-blow-to-eradication-mission-farmers/
Helldivers 2 just had its first balance update. While mechs are still en-route, this payload is certainly nothing to sniff at—especially since it's still adding one major feature to the game: True to the game's Starship Troopers inspiration, meteors are now a major concern for the hardworking patriots of Super Earth. I'm sure nothing bad will happen to Buenos Aires, though.

Helldivers 2 dev lays out Arrowhead's strategy for buffing and nerfing the game's guns: 'Powerful weapons can't be too versatile, versatile weapons can't be too powerful'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/helldivers-2-dev-lays-out-arrowheads-strategy-for-buffing-and-nerfing-the-games-guns-powerful-weapons-cant-be-too-versatile-versatile-weapons-cant-be-too-powerful/
Helldivers 2 just had its first proper balance patch, and a few fan favourites had their numbers tuned down. Namely the Breaker shotgun, the Railgun, and the Energy Shield Backpack—a holy trinity that most players rocked on higher difficulties, aside from missions where more specific tools were called for.
Arrowhead's mission objective here isn't to spoil people's fun—rather, it's to make sure that players actually use the game's other weapons. That's according to game designer Alex Kravchenko, who released a statement via the game's Discord shortly after the patch debuted. 

While players are the main motive, Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail's visual makeover is also meant help devs 'advance their careers', says director Yoshi-P
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/mmo/while-players-are-the-main-motive-final-fantasy-14-dawntrails-visual-makeover-is-also-meant-help-devs-advance-their-careers-says-director-yoshi-p/
Final Fantasy 14's due a new coat of paint, and if you've been following the ramp-up to Dawntrail, you know it's getting one. Better lighting, shinier models, and an overall tune-up to a game that's past its 10th anniversary by now. In a recent interview with Play magazine (thanks, GamesRadar) Naoki Yoshida—also known as Yoshi-P—let readers in on the team's reasoning for the upgrade.