Intel Lunar Lake “Core Ultra 200” CPUs To Offer Over 100 AI TOPs & 3x NPU Performance, 40 Million AI CPUs Shipped By 2024 End

https://wccftech.com/intel-lunar-lake-core-ultra-200-cpus-over-100-ai-tops-3x-npu-performance/

Honestly all this Ai cpu nonsense is boring af when Nvidia GPUs going back to Turing is still significantly faster at computing AI.

AMD Ryzen 9000 “Zen 5” CPUs Listed In Latest Chipset Drivers

https://wccftech.com/amd-ryzen-9000-zen-5-cpus-latest-chipset-drivers/

AMD APUs rumored to use RDNA3+ GPU architecture until at least 2027

https://videocardz.com/newz/amd-apus-rumored-to-use-rdna3-gpu-architecture-until-at-least-2027

Intel announces Gaudi3 AI accelerator with 128GB HBM2e memory, up to 900W TDP on air

https://videocardz.com/newz/intel-announces-gaudi3-ai-accelerator-with-128gb-hbm2e-memory-up-to-900w-tdp-on-air

Like haxxiy said, the 4090 is very power hungry, but the performance is such that makes for quite an efficient card. Meanwhile, the Radeon VII used almost 100W more than the 2080 and fell short of it. That's why its power consumption was a problem. For reference, the 5700XT used roughly 50W more then the 2070, but at least it managed to trade blows with it, so it was less of a problem. Also times change and comparing the power consumption of the cards of today to the consumption of cards from two gens ago is misleading.

I won't get into the naming scheme because that's a very slippery rope. AMD's 7800XT xhould have been a better recieved card had it been called 7800, and the 7900GRE should have been the 7800XT. The other two 7900 cards are ok... but that has nothing to do with what we were discussing.

In any case, I don't think we'll reach an agreement.

Since all AMD CPUs are basically APUs now with the addition of a GPU to every CPU, I think this will mostly affect the CPUs rather than the APUs with a higher CU count. Another option could be the Athlon CPUs, which are generally 1-2 generations behind on COU tech anyway and don't need a very powerful GPU

And your chart is only rasterizing efficiency. They are especially efficient in raytracing games:

Here with percentages. Almost twice as efficient than a RTX 3080, more than twice as efficient than a RX 6800 XT:

Here is another PCGH efficiency chart for raytracing games:

Even the least efficient Ada GPU (RTX 4060) in raytracing is almost twice as efficient as a RX 6700 (the GPU most similar to a PS5).

Thursday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

One of the most strange and cruel survival sandboxes I've played has sold 2.3 million copies
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/one-of-the-most-strange-and-cruel-survival-sandboxes-ive-played-has-sold-23-million-copies/
Kenshi is one of the most utterly strange games I've ever had the pleasure of playing, and it holds a special place in my heart. It was the impetus behind one of my first-ever published pieces of games writing, which means you can probably blame it—at least in part—for the fact you have to keep reading my yammering on this very website. Thank you, Kenshi, we'll never forgive you.
But Kenshi is strange because it is hostile. Its world does not want you in it, and its systems have many, many layers that can be difficult to get a firm grasp on. It's not the kind of thing I'd put down as a surefire hit. Shows what I know: The devs just announced it's sold 2.3 million copies on Steam alone since it hit in 2018, over double the million copies it had sold back in 2020 (I know, I'm a maths whizz).

EA's surprise megadump of classic Command & Conquer games means Europe's March game sales were dominated by 25-year-old RTSes, beating WWE 2K24 and Nintendo
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rts/eas-surprise-megadump-of-classic-command-and-conquer-games-means-europes-march-game-sales-were-dominated-by-25-year-old-rtses-beating-wwe-2k24-and-nintendo/
Last month's surprise drop of a bunch of EA classics on Steam was—for those of us who still live in 2005—the hottest release of the year. I don't know about you, but I picked up The Saboteur, Populous, and all the old Command & Conquer games immediately. Having them in my main Steam library, shorn of the EA App, was too tempting a prospect to turn down.
Apparently, a lot of you shared that feeling. GI.biz reports that the European game charts for March were absolutely dominated by a bunch of RTSes from over 20 years ago: 11 of the 20 top-selling games in Europe were good old Command & Conquers, and that's across digital and physical sales, too.
In fact, five of March's top 10 were Command & Conquer games. C&C: Generals was the most popular, occupying position #4 behind EA Sports FC 24, Helldivers 2, and Dragon's Dogma 2. Meanwhile, Red Alert 2, Tiberian Sun, Renegade, and Red Alert 1 took up positions #7 through #10. For perspective: The most recent game on that list—Renegade—came out 22 years ago.

The Epic Store gives away Ghostrunner: https://store.epicgames.com/en-US/p/ghostrunner
Next week, the free games will be The Big Con and Town of Salem 2.

GOG has three new sales:

• Publisher Plaion has brought more games to the store (learn more here), and they celebrate it with a sale featuring up to up to 90% discounts until April, 19th: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20240411_plaion_publisher_sale
• The Triple-i Showcase lands at GOG with up to 85% deals. No mention of how long it will last (maybe April 15th): https://www.gog.com/partner/The_Triple_i_Showcase
• And there’s also a 2D Sale with lots of games up to 90% off. Again. No mention of when it will last: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20240411_2d_sale

Steam has three new sales:

• The Triple-i Initiative also comes to Steam, with new demos and up to 85% discounts until the 15th of April: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/triple-i-initiative
• Journey will be 85% off until the 17th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/638230/Journey/
• And RollerCoaster celebrates its 25th anniversary with up to 81% deals until April, the 22nd: https://store.steampowered.com/publisher/Atari/sale/RollerCoasterTycoonAnniversarySale

There are two new deals at Humble:

• At Humble Bundle there’s the new Catch My Drift Offroad & Rally Racing Bundle, with up to 9 items to get during 20 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/catch-my-drift-offroad-rally
• At the Humble Store, we find again the Triple-i Initiative Showcase, with up to 80% discounts during 4 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/iii-initiative-showcase-sale/

Fanatical has, in theory, a new Star Deal and a new bundle, but it’s debatable:

• The new Star Deal is the Star Wars Collection bundle, 81% off during 24 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/star-wars-collection
• And the BYO Fanatical Favorites Bundle is here with 20 games to shoose from for your bundle of 2, 3 or 5: https://www.fanatical.com/en/pick-and-mix/fanatical-favorites-build-your-own-bundle

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Empty-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Fallout Cascadia, DLC-Sized Expansion Mod for Fallout 4, Gets New Showcase Trailer
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/fallout-cascadia-dlc-sized-expansion-mod-for-fallout-4-gets-new-showcase-trailer/
Remember Fallout Cascadia? Well, I don’t blame you if you don’t. After all, it’s been almost six years since our last look at it. Thankfully, this mod has not been canceled, and below you can find a new showcase trailer for it.
Fallout: Cascadia is a DLC-sized expansion mod for Fallout 4 that aims to bring the Fallout experience to the Pacific Northwest. The mod will let you explore the massive ruins of Seattle, and meet the NCR once again. Naturally, the mod will have new enemies, thrilling factions, colorful characters and more.
This latest trailer focuses on the new environments that players will find in it. Sadly, though, there is still no ETA on when it will come out. Not only that, but the modding team is still recruiting new modders for it. So yeah, I don’t really expect this mod to come out in 2024 or 2025. That’s a bummer but hey, at least the mod is still alive.

New Dragon’s Dogma 2 Mod adds teleport waypoints to all key locations
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/new-dragons-dogma-2-mod-adds-teleport-waypoints-to-key-locations/
One of my biggest issues with Dragon’s Dogma 2 was its awful fast-travel/teleport system. And no, I don’t mind the limited amount of Ferrystones you have. What I mean is that it made no sense to not have teleport waypoints in all the big cities and villages. Why do I have to use a Portcrystal to create one inside a town? It makes no sense. And, thankfully, there is a mod that finally fixes this.
Created by modder ‘rthomasv3’, this mod adds teleport waypoints in all key locations. As such, you will be able to instantly teleport your party to them. And no, you will no longer need Ferrystones or Portcrystals to teleport.
>> There are no screenshots nor videos in the article.

GAMING NEWS

Gestalt: Steam & Cinder is a new 16/32bit Castlevania-inspired game, coming to PC this May
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/gestalt-steam-cinder-is-a-new-16-32bit-castlevania-inspired-game-coming-to-pc-this-may/
Castlevania fans, here is something for you today. Fireshine Games has announced a new 2D action game with RPG elements that is inspired by 16/32-bit classics like Castlevania and Metroid. This new game is called Gestalt: Steam & Cinder and is coming to PC this May.

RKGK / Rakugaki is a new single-player 3D platformer, coming to PC in Summer 2024
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/rkgk-rakugaki-is-a-new-single-player-3d-platformer-coming-to-pc-in-summer-2024/
Gearbox Publishing has just announced a new single-player 3D platformer that will be coming to PC in Summer 2024, called RKGK / Rakugaki. To celebrate this announcement, the publisher shared the game’s debut trailer which you can find below.

Here’s the first gameplay trailer for The Rogue Prince of Persia
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/heres-the-first-gameplay-trailer-for-the-rogue-prince-of-persia/
Ubisoft has just announced a new 2D action roguelite installment in the Prince of Persia series, The Rogue Prince of Persia. Developed by Evil Empire, this new Prince of Persia game will be released on May 14th, and it will be available at launch on Steam.

Take a Look at Star Citizen’s New Character Creator Tool
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/take-a-look-at-star-citizens-new-character-creator-tool/
YouTube’s ‘CarbonPixel’ has shared a video that gives us a first look at the Bioticorp Character Creator for Star Citizen. This new character creator tool will be added in beta 3.23, and it will let you create your own custom character.

New teaser trailer for the Micky Mouse-inspired Noir FPS gives us a glimpse at its Grappling Hook, Helicopter and PowerUp Spinach
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/new-teaser-trailer-for-the-micky-mouse-inspired-noir-fps-gives-us-a-glimpse-at-its-grappling-hook-helicopter-and-powerup-spinach/
PlaySide Publishing has released a new gameplay teaser trailer for its upcoming Micky Mouse-inspired noir FPS, Mouse. This new trailer gives us a first look at the game’s Grappling Hook, Helicopter and PowerUp Spinach.

Horizon Forbidden West PC Patch 1.2.48.0 brings additional stability and optimization improvements, reduces stutters
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/horizon-forbidden-west-pc-patch-1-2-48-0-brings-additional-stability-and-optimization-improvements-reduces-stutters/
Nixxes has just launched Title Update 1.2.48.0 for the PC version of Horizon: Forbidden West. This new patch is designed to make the game more stable and run smoother on the PC. It also targets and fixes some stutters that could occur in certain parts of the game.

The second part of the Thursday news:

Star Wars Outlaws' $110 and $130 editions prompt a collective sigh from potential players tired of season passes and ill-advised early access periods
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/star-wars-outlaws-dollar110-and-dollar130-editions-prompt-a-collective-sigh-from-potential-players-tired-of-season-passes-and-ill-advised-early-access-periods/
I'm genuinely excited for Star Wars Outlaws, especially since the trailer debuted earlier this week. It might not set the world on fire, or anything, but I like my blasters, I like my freaky aliens, and I like making ticks in an open-world checklist. I am not above the 'Ubisoft Game Loop™'. 
I am, however, exhausted by collector's editions that toss a few skins and items into the game for another batch of credits—and I'm not exactly alone. "Anytime I see charts like these it just makes me think: 'I can’t wait to buy the full game for $20 years later,'" writes an understandably-tired observer on Twitter. 

Slay the Spire 2 releases in 2025: 'The Spire isn't what it used to be'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/card-games/slay-the-spire-2-announced/
Slay the Spire, the brilliant roguelike deckbuilder that first released in early access in 2017, is getting a sequel next year.
Slay the Spire 2 was announced with a teaser video, embedded above, at the Triple-I Initiative showcase today. It's quite a glow up: A brief but sweet animated reintroduction to the Spire.

I respect a bloody arcade shooter with the courage to have a name as blunt as 'Kill Knight'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/i-respect-a-bloody-arcade-shooter-with-the-courage-to-have-a-name-as-blunt-as-kill-knight/
I have to hand it to the developers of Kill Knight for their choice of title: How can I not want to know more about an arcade shooter called Kill Knight?
It is, as you'd hope and expect, about a knight who kills. It's fast, violent, and coated in red, not unlike Doom Eternal. Developer PlaySide Studios—who, it should be noted, is still holding onto an NFT MMO project in development—describes the game as an "ultra-responsive arcade-inspired isometric action shooter," which is a mouthful, but makes it sound like it's somewhere between Supergiant's roguelike Hades and the original Helldivers.

Hunt down a crazed sniper in a major new content update for our favorite voxel-based Deus Ex-like detective sim
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/hunt-down-a-crazed-sniper-in-a-major-new-content-update-for-our-favorite-voxel-based-deus-ex-like-detective-sim/
We had a lot of positive things to say about the immersive sim Shadows of Doubt since its (sadly no-longer-available) demo arrived in early 2023, much of it comparing the game to Deus Ex—which, in case it's not clear, is very high praise indeed. Its voxel-based world grows bigger today with the release of the big new Sharpshooter Assassin content update, unveiled during today's Triple-I showcase, which adds a new type of killer for aspiring detectives to investigate and pursue.

Darkest Dungeon 2 is getting a free new game mode later this year that will feature 'some of the permanence and roster management' of the original game
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/strategy/darkest-dungeon-2-is-getting-a-free-new-game-mode-later-this-year-that-will-feature-some-of-the-permanence-and-roster-management-of-the-original-game/
Darkest Dungeon 2 is getting an all-new campaign game mode called Kingdoms that's set to roll out as a free content update later this year. Revealed during today's Triple-I Initiative showcase, the new mode challenges players to find and defeat a grave threat to the Kingdom, a realm made up of a network of safe haven inns.

Vertical city builder Laysara: Summit Kingdom just surprise launched on Steam
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/city-builder/vertical-city-builder-laysara-summit-kingdom-has-just-surprise-dropped-on-steam/
I'm not much of a city-builder girl—too many moving parts for my brain to handle—but I have been rather excited for the release of Laysara: Summit Kingdom. Trying to build an entire city up craggy cliffs and steep mountains all while trying to prevent your settlements being crushed by a giant ice ball sounds deliciously menacing to me. I've been wondering how much longer I'll have to wait—turns out the answer is "zero minutes" as the game has just surprise-dropped in early access on Steam.

Dinolords is basically Age of Empires with dinosaurs, and honestly what more could you want from a strategy game than that?
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rts/dinolords-is-basically-age-of-empires-with-dinosaurs-and-honestly-what-more-could-you-want-from-a-strategy-game-than-that/
When we first saw Dinolords back in October last year, it was hard not to be seduced by the premise: as a medieval English lord, you must defend your lands from Viking invasion, and also there are tameable dinosaurs. Now there's a new trailer offering a much more substantial look at the prehistoric action, thanks to the Triple-I Initiative showcase, and from the moment an armoured T-Rex crashes through a castle wall, you know you're in for a good time.

Palword's PvP arena is coming this year with 3v3 action Pal battles
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/palwords-pvp-arena-is-coming-this-year-with-3v3-action-pal-battles/
Creature collecting and survival crafting game Palworld took the internet, and my own nightly gaming time, totally hostage at the beginning of this year. People like the Pals, and not least because it was a Pokémon-inspired open world game. Now officially on the list of other Pokémon-derived features is a Pal Arena that Pocketpair revealed exactly 10 seconds of footage for during today's Triple I Initiative showcase.

Another Stardew Valley patch is on the way, with 'a new fishing thing, and some new mining-related stuff'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/life-sim/another-stardew-valley-patch-is-on-the-way-with-a-new-fishing-thing-and-some-new-mining-related-stuff/
Will Eric Barone ever stop working on Stardew Valley? Someday, perhaps, but as Viggo Mortensen famously said, it is not this day: Because this day, Barone announced that another new patch is in the works that's expected to be out this week.

The coziest MMO feature is coming to Sky: Children of the Light next week: player housing
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/mmo/the-coziest-mmo-feature-is-coming-to-sky-children-of-the-light-next-week-player-housing/
The cozy MMO from Journey's developers that I've been waiting years to play on PC finally launched on Steam today. Thatgamecompany also announced the details of Sky: Children of the Light's next in-game season, which starts next week, and it's adding one of the best features for creative players that any MMO can have: customizable player homes.

This time I couldn’t avoid it. Here’s the third part of the news:

The mystery leaker who predicted Destiny 2's new Prismatic subclass a month ago also says Destiny 3 is in development
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/rumour-the-mystery-leaker-who-predicted-destiny-2s-new-prismatic-subclass-a-month-ago-also-says-destiny-3-is-in-development/
The surprising news that came out of Bungie yesterday is that The Final Shape, the decade-long saga's climactic expansion, is adding an entirely new subclass that will enable guardian's to mix and match powers from all of the existing subclasses. (My emphasis there is to reflect how excited this made our resident Guardian (aka PC Gamer brand director Tim Clark). 
However, once the shock had died down a little, things got weird. You see, it turns out that a month ago someone on Reddit not only predicted that we would be getting a new subclass—an unlikely but not unreasonable guess—but also pretty much the exact details of how Prismatic works, which nobody would reasonably have guessed at that time. 
Which of course now has the community very interested in what else the apparent leaker's account has had to say, the juiciest rumor being the claim that the studio is currently working on Destiny 3. Redditor 32638272187, for that is their chosen handle, went on to say that Destiny 3 is being developed under the codename Payback, and that the current class structure of Titan, Hunter, and Warlock, each with their own unique subclasses and abilities, will be scrapped: Instead, any character will be able to spec into any ability, enabling a freeform mix-and-match that's currently just a happy daydream among Destiny fans. 

EA denies rumor that it canceled an in-progress Dead Space 2 remake
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/horror/ea-denies-rumor-that-it-canceled-an-in-progress-dead-space-2-remake/
After last year's well-received Dead Space remake, one might've expected EA to put a team at developer Motive on a remake of Dead Space 2. It doesn't look like that's happening, though, because EA announced this week that the Dead Space remake's leads are now gathering a team to work on the Battlefield series. 

Gigantic: Rampage Edition launches to 'mostly positive' reviews on Steam, but server problems are once again causing headaches
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/moba/gigantic-rampage-edition-launches-to-mostly-positive-reviews-on-steam-but-server-problems-are-once-again-causing-headaches/
The developers of the newly-launched Gigantic: Rampage Edition have apologized for persistent server issues that are preventing players from joining the game, and say they're putting together a "compensation package" to make up for all the headaches.

WoW made a big boi ludicrously hard to get then, after 0.24% of the playerbase managed it, made it smaller—'Blizzard literally stole half my dog'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/mmo/wow-made-a-big-boi-ludicrously-hard-to-get-then-after-024-of-the-playerbase-managed-it-made-it-smallerblizzard-literally-stole-half-my-dog/
In recent expansions, Blizzard has given World of Warcraft players a meta-goal to pursue after running through all the usual stuff. It's basically an achievement that needs a boatload of other achievements to pop, a badge that says you've done everything, and it comes complete with a prize.
In the case of Dragonflight, this achievement is called A World Awoken, and at the time of writing a mere 0.241% have managed it, per Data for Azeroth. (...)
But that's not today's development. While this achievement is obviously a reward unto itself, etcetera, it does have an actual reward: a Bakar mount called Taivan, (...)
And after having surprised and delighted players by letting them ride a ginormous dog, Blizzard then decided to piss everyone off. A hotfix deployed yesterday significantly reduces the size of Taivan, by about a third, and he is now a pale shadow of the mighty mutt he once was.

Helldivers 2 gets its new explosive Warbond full of high-yield treats, plus 4 new bank-breaking ship upgrades to help dispense liberty
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/helldivers-2-gets-its-new-explosive-warbond-full-of-high-yield-treats-plus-4-new-bank-breaking-ship-upgrades-to-help-dispense-liberty/
Helldivers 2's new warbond, Democratic Detonation, has just landed—and it's brought a whole host of fresh goodies for you to get your freedom-loving mitts on, as announced on the game's official Twitter.

ASUS announces cashback up to €150/£130 for GeForce RTX 40 ProArt and TUF GPUs

https://videocardz.com/newz/asus-announces-cashback-up-to-e150-130-for-geforce-rtx-40-proart-and-tuf-gpus

Analyst firm expects AMD to launch Instinct MI350 featuring 4nm TSMC node

https://videocardz.com/newz/analyst-firm-expects-amd-to-launch-instinct-mi350-featuring-4nm-tsmc-node

AMD officially introduces Ryzen 7 8700F and Ryzen 5 8400F CPUs

https://videocardz.com/newz/amd-officially-introduces-ryzen-7-8700f-and-ryzen-5-8400f-cpus#disqus_thread

Hi people, am I the only one having this problem of not being able to take screenshots on certain games on Steam (and not being able to display the overlay). Everything works fine on Tekken 8 and Horizon Forbidden West but on The Witcher 3 and Gears 5, I can't display the overlay and therefore can't take screenshots. I've checked whether the overlay is enabled in the Steam options and it is...

I never asked for this... (I did this screenshot through Reshade)