Apple gets away with it because most of their userbase are fanaticals about the brand and also because there's little room for third party accessories. On the PC side of the world, people don't give a f*ck about the MSoft brand more often than not and there's a ton of third party accessory makers ready to ship a similar if not sometimes better product for the same price or cheaper.

What amazes me is how MSoft doesn't seem to realize that the more they push the whole Copilot and AI sh*t in Windows, the more likely is that the EU will knock on their door with regulations and probably hefty fines given that it won't be the first time they have to put MSoft in its place.

The funny thing is all this MS Ai nonsense has been available to Nvidia users for 3+ years now lol

Aye, this is why MS is just pulling the gloves off and not giving much of a shit, I mean we recently saw the morale they just obliterated within their gaming sector, that it's even got the Hellblade 2 devs releasing a letter just before their game releases and it reads like a fucking obituary.

Blizz are recently testing ppls patience now, since their Pandaria Remix dropped last weekend, and they somehow royally fucked up their scaling between levels. What made it worse was that ppl found mobs to farm for the most bronze (the new currency for this experiment of theirs) and threads of fate (Permanent stat gains given upon mob death to your cloak), and instead of tweaking the drop rates and threads, they just let people farm said mobs for a day and a half before hotfixing it, which has now resulted in the biggest power gap I've ever seen in all of WoW (literally ppl with millions of HP and dmg, which is causing a load of infighting on the forums/threads on the net). 

I do hope the EU intervenes, because I don't want that AI taking control of the entire OS and just actively spying on you with no way of cutting it out or disabling it.

MS absolutely do not need an AI like co-pilot to handle their own upscaling tech, because it's not designed for it, it's primary purpose is to "assist" the user, not as an upscaling "assistant". This is likely just them using it as an excuse to possibly act as a barrier to anyone citing the AI as a privacy issue. 

Maybe that means FF16 will get a Steam release date soon.  I'm still trying to figure out what is going on there.

Its likely they will.

A japanese magazine had rumored prices of where each collection was yen equivalent to $48.

The bundle (which is all 3 collections) was priced at $110.

Either ways, waiting for a sale before buying it.

Supposedly the Steam version will have enhanced visuals compared to the EGS version.

Yeah, I can see that - I'm also hoping that Lost Remnant and FF Crystal Chronicles finally get a release on Steam too.

The news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

GOG has three new DotD and a new sale:

• These are the Deals of the Day, that will last until Friday:
  • Legacy of Kain: Blood Omen 2 is 83% off: https://www.gog.com/en/game/legacy_of_kain_blood_omen_2
  • Synthwave Burnout, still in Early Access, gets a 92% discount: https://www.gog.com/en/game/synthwave_burnout
  • And SPACE ACCIDENT will be 93% off: https://www.gog.com/en/game/space_accident
• The Managerial Sale, about management games, has up to 90% discounts during 7 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20240522_managerial_sale

Steam has two new deals:

• Solitairica will be 70% off until May 28: https://store.steampowered.com/app/463980/Solitairica/
• Cafe Owner Simulator gets a 60% discount until the 2nd of June: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1498140/Cafe_Owner_Simulator/

Fanatical has a new Star Deal and two bundles:

• The Star Deal is There Is No Light, 70% off during 48 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/there-is-no-light
• These are the bundles:
  • The BYO Strategy Bundle - BundleFest Edition, with 14 games to choose from: https://www.fanatical.com/en/pick-and-mix/build-your-own-strategy-bundle
  • The BYO Play on the Go Bundle BUNDLEFEST 2024, with 17 titles: https://www.fanatical.com/en/pick-and-mix/build-your-own-play-on-the-go-bundle

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Nope-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Unofficial PC Port V1.4.7 Released & Fully Detailed
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/marvels-spider-man-2-unofficial-pc-port-v1-4-7-released-fully-detailed/
The modding team behind the Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 PC Brazil project has released a brand new version of it. For those unaware, this is an unofficial PC port of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, and below you can find all the details about its latest V1.4.7 version.
Version 1.4.7 improves the screen-space reflections, and fixes some of the high contrast shaders. Moreover, it improves the Spider-Bot UI shaders, as well as the GMO Puzzle Shaders. Players can also expect to find less placeholders in this build. Plus, there are fixes for the Advanced MCU Suit, the Miles Morales Into The Spider-Verse Suit and Peter’s Spider-Man Noir ITSV Suit.
>> The article has two videos.

GAMING NEWS

Unreal Engine 5-powered first-person narrative horror game, Still Wakes the Deep, gets official PC system requirements
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/unreal-engine-5-powered-first-person-narrative-horror-game-still-wakes-the-deep-gets-official-pc-system-requirements/
The Chinese Room has revealed the official PC system requirements for its upcoming Unreal Engine 5-powered first-person narrative horror game, Still Wakes the Deep.

Hunt: Showdown will get a performance update with support for CRYENGINE 5.11 on August 15th
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/hunt-showdown-will-get-a-performance-update-with-support-for-cryengine-5-11-on-august-15th/
Crytek has announced that the long-awaited upgrade for Hunt: Showdown will be launching on August 15th, 2024. The update will bring with it a new map, CRYENGINE version 5.11, and performance improvements.

Delta Force: Hawk Ops looks glorious in its latest Summer Game Fest 2024 gameplay teaser trailer
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/delta-force-hawk-ops-looks-glorious-in-its-latest-summer-game-fest-2024-gameplay-teaser-trailer/
TiMi Studio and Level Infinite have released a new in-engine teaser trailer for Delta Force: Hawk Ops. This teaser trailer shows off some of the game’s environments. And, as you will see, the game looks actually great.

Here’s How You Can Remove the Black Bars, Chromatic Aberration, Film Grain and Depth of Field in Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/heres-how-you-can-remove-the-black-bars-chromatic-aberration-film-grain-and-depth-of-field-in-senuas-saga-hellblade-2/
Microsoft has just released Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 on PC. For cinematic purposes, this game has some black bars that you cannot disable via its in-game screenshots. However, there is a way to remove those annoying black bars and force the game into full-screen mode.

First gameplay footage leaked for Valve’s 6v6 third-person hero-based shooter, Deadlock
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/first-gameplay-footage-for-valves-6v6-third-person-hero-based-shooter-deadlock-has-been-leaked-online/
A few days ago, we informed you about Valve’s upcoming 6v6 third-person hero-based shooter, Deadlock. Then, one day later, we shared with you its first leaked screenshots. And today, we bring you the first gameplay footage from it.

Third-person co-op action RPG shooter, The First Descendant, gets a story deep dive trailer
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/third-person-co-op-action-rpg-shooter-the-first-descendant-gets-a-story-deep-dive-trailer/
NEXON has shared a story deep dive trailer for its upcoming action RPG shooter that will be powered by Unreal Engine 5, The First Descendant. This trailer will give you a glimpse at the game’s story, so make sure to watch it.

Wednesday news, part two:

FromSoftware drops another story trailer for Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC—giving us a glimpse at the fiery rampage that made Malenia's golden boy flee the Lands Between
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/dark-souls/fromsoftware-drops-another-story-trailer-for-elden-rings-shadow-of-the-erdtree-dlcgiving-us-a-glimpse-at-the-fiery-rampage-that-made-malenias-golden-boy-flee-the-lands-between/
Come, ye weary tarnished! FromSoftware has dropped another trailer for its long-awaited Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, which you can go ahead and set your hollowed eyes on right now. Maybe with a pair of shades handy, because everything's a little on fire and I don't want you to hurt your eyes.
>> Fans think the trailer shows the birth of a god.

Stellar Blade studio is now 'considering' a PC release, and a sequel too
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/stellar-blade-studio-is-now-considering-a-pc-release-and-a-sequel-too/
Stellar Blade was originally introduced in 2019 as Project Eve, after which it fell off our radar until 2021, when we said it looked like a cross between Nier and Bayonetta. A year later it got a new name—Stellar Blade—and became a PlayStation 5 exclusive, and that was pretty much that for us.
But it may not remain that way forever: Developer Shift Up said in its latest financial report, shared on Twitter by Okami13_ (via RPS) that it is now looking into a possible PC release.

Ewe wool love this: new Manor Lords patch means your farm 'no longer spawns sheep exponentially'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/city-builder/new-manor-lords-patch-means-your-farm-no-longer-spawns-sheep-exponentially/
If you were a medieval sheep farmer you'd probably be thrilled to discover new sheep magically appearing in your field every time you turned around. Wool for weeks, right? Your enthusiasm might begin to falter, though, right around the time you oversaturated the market to the point that wool was essentially worthless, not to mention you now had fields completely overstuffed with rapidly multiplying sheep.
That's one of the problems in early access city builder Manor Lords: exponential sheep spawning and no way to stop it, leading to a rather baaaaaad sheep-to-citizen ratio. A fix is here at last, capping the sheep spawning rate to 1 calf every 10 days, max, which should make your farms considerably more manageable and prevent the wool market from completely cratering.

Street Fighter 6 is launching Akuma by having thousands of Twitch viewers control him simultaneously, which I'm sure will go well
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fighting/street-fighter-6-is-going-to-launch-akuma-by-having-thousands-of-twitch-viewers-control-him-at-once-which-is-going-to-be-a-sight/
Capcom's Street Fighter 6 is coming to the end of its first year, and the publisher's planning a big blowout to go alongside the addition of fan-favourite Akuma and a host of balance changes. The showpiece is going to be chaos. Taking inspiration from the phenomenon that began in 2014 with Twitch Plays Pokémon, the CapcomUSA channel will from today at 4pm PT begin broadcasting Twitch Plays Akuma.

Helldivers 2 studio wants to slow down the pace of updates: 'We feel a slightly lower cadence overall will benefit both us, you, and the game'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/helldivers-2-studio-wants-to-slow-down-the-pace-of-updates-we-feel-a-slightly-lower-cadence-overall-will-benefit-both-us-you-and-the-game/
Helldiving hero Harvey Randall said last week that things need to change at Arrowhead, because the blistering pace of Helldivers 2 updates is starting to take a visible toll on developers and players alike. Apparently Arrowhead agrees: In response to an inquiry about the release of the next patch, community manager Twinbeard said it'll be out "when it's done."

Free-to-play Ubisoft shooter XDefiant launches with the expected matchmaking issues, but I'm having a good time
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/free-to-play-ubisoft-shooter-xdefiant-launches-with-the-expected-matchmaking-issues-but-im-having-a-good-time/
Ubisoft's new free-to-play competitive shooter, XDefiant, is out today, and it's unsurprisingly hit some matchmaking issues: It likes to let me sit in an empty lobby for a couple minutes before telling me "playlist doesn't exist." 
The developers have acknowledged the problem, and as of 1:30 pm Pacific, things seem to be getting better—I got into a couple matches just now. When I can play, it's running splendidly on my slightly aged RTX 2070 Super (which is what you'd hope for from a competitive FPS that isn't meant to look fancy), and I'm having fun with it.

Goats are serious business: World of Warcraft continues to play whack-a-frog with MoP: Remix farming spots, adds new ways to buff your cloak as penance
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/world-of-warcraft/goats-are-serious-business-world-of-warcraft-continues-to-play-whack-a-frog-with-mop-remix-farming-spots-adds-new-ways-to-buff-your-cloak-as-penance/
If you told me that WoW's Mists of Pandaria: Remix would suffer its largest controversies over frogs before it came out, I'd stare at you and ask if you needed some water and a sit-down. Turns out that's exactly what happened this week.
(...)
Aside from the fact that the whole thing is hilariously contrary to the event's vibe—I'm reminded of a certain South Park episode where the gang spends a lot of time killing boars—it was also hotfixed. But don't worry! There's a replacement, you can go to this spot and kill goats, it's not as fast but—ah, no, that's been fixed too.
(...)
Fortunately, Blizzard does appear to be responding to the community's clear thirst for more power. In a tuning adjustment that hit the servers yesterday, the MoP: Remix devs added a new item—spools—that allow players to get a whole bundle of threads (which power up your cloak) from content like LFR and the Dungeon Finder. (...)

Call of Duty's Gundam crossover has fans frothing at the mouth, but looks aren't everything
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/call-of-duty/call-of-dutys-gundam-crossover-has-fans-frothing-at-the-mouth-but-looks-arent-everything/
Apart from reviving a once-dead character, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and Warzone season 4, which is about to kick off next week, includes a new crossover—Gundams are coming to CoD. 

Helldivers 2 developer Arrowhead Games has a new CEO—with Johan Pilestedt taking on a different role to direct '100% of my focus [to] the game and community'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/helldivers-2-developer-arrowhead-games-has-a-new-ceowith-johan-pilstedt-taking-on-a-different-role-to-direct-100-of-my-focus-to-the-game-and-community/
Johan Pilestedt, soon-to-be-former CEO of Arrowhead Games, will be stepping down to take on new responsibilities at the company as revealed by the man himself on Twitter today. 

NVIDIA Further Boosts AI Performance By 3x For GeForce RTX GPUs, RTX PC & RTX Workstations With Latest Driver

https://wccftech.com/nvidia-boosts-ai-performance-3x-geforce-rtx-gpus-rtx-pc-rtx-workstations-latest-driver/

48 million tests later: 3DMark reveals 8-Year GPU performance trends in TimeSpy

https://videocardz.com/newz/48-million-tests-later-3dmark-reveals-8-year-gpu-performance-trends-in-timespy

https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/rumour-claims-microsoft-is-preparing-a-16b-offer-to-acquire-valve/

We may enter the worst possible timeline (though I know Gabe is likely to say no to the deal).

I know MS isn't doing so hot right now, but I also know Steam is still doing dandy, they now have a handheld and an OS, and well, one is a market MS has been ignoring for years, and another is a thorn in their side, so them buying out Valve would give them a total monopoly on PC gaming, allow them to replace Steam OS and gain a handheld market.

I hope to god Gabe just says no, and I hope the entirety of Valve say no for decades to come. MS is going back to their old ways as usual. The honeymoon for making up with PC gaming as a whole is over at this point.

The SteamOS is probably the biggest reason. MSoft knows that there's a lot of people that dislike Win11 and are annoyed by their big AI push but stay on Windows for the games. But after seeing how well the Deck handle the games, many will gladly switch to Linux or SteamOS in a heartbeat. And after failing to enter the mobile market to Apple and Google (Linux), losing some desktop marketshare is a thread that MSoft can't afford.