With a 9070XT you can still afford a better power supply. If you buy Nvidia at this point you won't be able to afford to eat. But I guess if you love fake frames you can feed yourself on fake imaginary food too.

Thanks, I noticed this one and saw it recommended somewhere else as well, so if I manage I'll certainly have to check it.

I've downloaded Khazan demo as well, since it seems to be highly praised, and it's Soulslike, but haven't got around it yet.

I've watched my kid play Half Sword a bit, it's physics based medieval combat sim with combat that really reminds of Exanima (which I love), so that's something I really have to try as well.

Just so many games, and so little time...

So, according to overall benchmarks on PCGAMESHARDWARE, 9070XT:
@1440p:
- raster: 100% of 5070Ti and 124% of 5070
- RT: 89% of 5070Ti and 111% of 5070
- PT: 64% of 5070Ti and 91% of 5070

@4K
- raster: 99% of 5070Ti and 127% of 5070
- RT: 86% of 5070Ti and 123% of 5070
- PT: 61% of 5070Ti and 97% of 5070

Nice improvements with RT, but I guess, they still have quite a bit to go with improving RT cores.

#RIPNvidia

AMD Radeon RX 9070 (XT) “RDNA4” Graphics Cards Review Roundup

https://videocardz.com/198465/amd-radeon-rx-9070-xt-rdna4-graphics-cards-review-roundup

Raster is very impressive. The leaks of it beating 4080 Super were nonsense as always but my god, being so close to 5070 Ti is fantastic for $600.

Ray Tracing is also impressive. Techpowerups RT benchmark for 9070XT might actually have some issues on a few games when comparing to others so take it with a bit of salt as other reviewers have RT quite a bit worse such as HUB.

Power consumption is pretty toasty though, almost as much as a 4090. But outside of that, it is nuts.

https://www.techpowerup.com/review/sapphire-radeon-rx-9070-xt-nitro/34.html

FSR 4 seems to sit between DLSS 3 and DLSS 4 which is insane! This is the gigantic leap that Radeon needed. They are effectively at feature parity. Well done Red team. No one should be buying 5070/5070Ti if Radeon can hit their undercut prices. Hell I'd buy 9070 XT even if it's $100 less than 5070 Ti. Very impressive showing and it's about time too!

The improvements to RT are nice. The improvements to FSR were almost a necessity. Up to this point it was honestly kind of garbage.

This is a great improvement, the gap isn't closed but now NVidia has AMD in the rear mirror and coming closer...

YouTube reviews:

Here come the gaming news:

SALES/PLAYER COUNTS & DEALS

Monster Hunter Wilds sells 8 million copies in 3 days, 'the fastest any game has done so in Capcom’s history'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/monster-hunter-wilds-sells-8-million-copies-in-3-days-the-fastest-any-game-has-done-so-in-capcoms-history/
Capcom says Monster Hunter Wilds sold more than eight million copies in its first three days of release, making it the fastest game in Capcom history to reach that oddly specific milestone.
Credit for the big number, according to Capcom, goes to Capcom's "continuous global initiatives" to promote the game, including online showcases and an open beta, which "promoted the appeal of Monster Hunter Wilds to a broad audience worldwide." And sure, a PR campaign—which, corporate hype aside, is exactly what Capcom is describing here—can certainly help draw eyes to a game, but I think it's also only reasonable to acknowledge that Monster Hunter is a very big, mainstream game series these days. Monster Hunter: World, after all, made a big splash in its own right—five million copies in three days—when it debuted in 2018.

It launched upside down and on fire, but busted and brilliant Stalker 2 has attracted 6 million players to the Zone in the last 3 months
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/it-launched-upside-down-and-on-fire-but-busted-and-brilliant-stalker-2-has-attracted-6-million-players-to-the-zone-in-the-last-3-months/
The process of reviewing Stalker 2 will live forever in my memory—spending a solid week doing almost nothing but play it in order to get through it in time for release, battling through innumerable pre-day-one-patch bugs (weapon audio cutting out, dead enemies becoming beautiful distended masses of flesh) before finally hitting the end and summing the whole experience up as an 83% in our Stalker 2 review. The game was kind of on fire, sure, but it was also bold, brilliant, and beautiful.
But I gotta be honest, I wasn't certain the gaming public would necessarily share my enthusiasm for GSC's fireworks display of a game. More fool me. In a post to Instagram yesterday, the studio celebrated the milestone of 6 million players visiting the Zone. Enough people to fill Prypiat 120 times over.
>> Being the sharp lads you are, you’ve also noticed it says players, not sales.

Grand Theft Auto 5 Enhanced launch is going poorly or well depending on how you look at it: It's got a 'mixed' rating on Steam and is one of the most-played games
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/grand-theft-auto/grand-theft-auto-5-enhanced-launch-is-going-poorly-or-well-depending-on-how-you-look-at-it-its-got-a-mixed-rating-on-steam-and-is-one-of-the-most-played-games/
Grand Theft Auto 5 Enhanced is out on Steam today, and so far it seems to be going either really well or not great, depending on how you want to look at it. In terms of players, things are rosy: Nearly 115,000 people are playing at the moment, and it hit a 24-hour peak of more than 187,000. That's driven in large part by the fact that the Enhanced edition is free for existing owners of Grand Theft Auto 5, which is why the sharp-eyed among you will notice that it's not among the top-selling games on Steam, but even so that's not bad at all for a fresh coat of paint on a decade-old game. But user reviews? That's a different story.
The current Steam rating for GTA 5 Enhanced is "mixed," with just 56% of user reviews currently coming in positive. Steam user reviews aren't the most precise and on-point expression of useful videogame criticism, but they do often reflect the mood of the moment in a very broad sense—at least when that mood is "anger."
In the case of GTA 5 Enhanced, there doesn't appear to be any singular issue setting people off: Expressions of discontent range from technical and performance problems to difficulties transferring existing accounts and a general sense of disappointment in the extent of the enhancements—quite a few people just aren't as blown away by the upgrade as they expected to be, and one relatively common complaint is that the Enhanced edition is capped at 120 fps, while the frame rate of the original is uncapped. There's also a bit of grumbling about Grand Theft Auto 6 here and there, which in case you were wondering still hasn't been announced for PC.

Steam has three new game deals and a sale:

• Nova Drift, that has a demo, will be 45% off until the 11th of March: https://store.steampowered.com/app/858210/Nova_Drift/
• Internet Cafe & Supermarket Simulator 2024 (what will come next, the taxi and surgeon simulator, so you can deliver babies in your cab?) will have a 39% discount until the 13th of March: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2738380/Internet_Cafe__Supermarket_Simulator_2024/
• Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure also has a demo and it’s going to be 50% off until the 13th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2596420/Arranger_A_RolePuzzling_Adventure/
• And the sale features Publisher Mango Party, that celebrates its 200k followers puttings its games on sale with up to 70% discounts. The sale should last until the March 20, but some deals will end on the 13th, so you should be careful with that: https://store.steampowered.com/curator/41075428/sale/Thanksfor200KFollowers

Fanatical has three new Flash Deals and a bundle:

• These are the 24 hour Flash Deals:
  • IXION is a nice 69% off: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/ixion
  • DRAGON BALL Z: KAKAROT Legendary Edition ha a 79% discount: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/dragon-ball-z-kakarot-legendary-edition
  • And Control Ultimate Edition can be yours with an 85% deal: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/control-ultimate-edition
• The new bundle is the Mystery Fire Bundle, with 20 unknown games available in groups of 1, 10 or 20 during the next 26 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/mystery-fire-bundle

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

NVIDIA GeForce Game Ready 572.70 driver
https://videocardz.com/driver/nvidia-geforce-game-ready-572-70

Highlights
Game Ready for GeForce RTX 5070 and FragPunk
This new Game Ready Driver supports the new GeForce RTX 5070 GPU and provides the best gaming experience for the latest new games supporting DLSS 4 technology including FragPunk. Further support for new titles leveraging DLSS technology includes the free upgrade for Grand Theft Auto V.

Gaming Technology
Adds support for the GeForce RTX 5070

Fixed Issues

• PC may boot to a black screen when connected via DisplayPort with certain monitors [5131002]

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

-Empty-

GAMING NEWS

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 is coming to PC on July 11th
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/tony-hawks-pro-skater-3-4-is-coming-to-pc-on-july-11th/
Activision has just announced the official remakes for Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 and 4. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 is coming to PC on July 11th, and below you can find its debut PC trailer.

The news, the only sequel:

The creators of Disco Elysium unofficially consulted on fascinating upcoming RPG Rue Valley during a brutalist architectural tour of Belgrade: 'It was completely unexpected'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/the-creators-of-disco-elysium-unofficially-consulted-on-fascinating-upcoming-rpg-rue-valley-during-a-brutalist-architectural-tour-of-belgrade-it-was-completely-unexpected/
There are a lot of studios taking a crack at developing 'the next Disco Elysium', but the one that's intrigued me the most so far is Rue Valley. Emotion Spark's narrative RPG is set during a 47-minute window in an out-of-the-way motel, featuring an enigmatic protagonist trying to forget about some unexplained trauma. At the end of the 47-minute run, time resets.
(...)
In a new episode of the Human Can Opener podcast, creative director Marko Smiljanic shared a story about a trio of meetings the team had with members of the Disco team: lead writer and designer Robert Kurvitz, art director Aleksander Rostov and writer Helen Hindpere, which proved to be serendipitous.

Will another Avengers game be assembled? 'We would definitely be open to it' says Joe Russo, co-director of Avengers: Doomsday
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/will-another-avengers-game-be-assembled-we-would-definitely-be-open-to-it-says-joe-russo-co-director-of-avengers-doomsday/
Marvel's Avengers assembled in 2020, but unfortunately the live service action game from Crystal Dynamics was essentially snapped out of existence by Square Enix a mere two years later—you can still play it if you own it, but it's no longer being supported and has been delisted from stores.
But like every dead superhero, there's still a chance for rebirth. Joe and Anthony Russo, co-directors of Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, and the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, say another Avengers game isn't out of the question.

Legendary 1990s publisher Acclaim is back from the dead, and a pro wrestler famous for clobbering people with a guitar is on its advisory board
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/legendary-1990s-publisher-acclaim-is-back-from-the-dead-and-a-pro-wrestler-famous-for-clobbering-people-with-a-guitar-is-on-its-advisory-board/
If you're a gamer of a certain age, the name Acclaim will ring some pretty loud bells. It was a big-time videogame publisher through the late 1980s and '90s, with a number of major sports and entertainment partnerships to its name. Flagging sales forced the company to declare bankruptcy in 2004 but now it's back, in name at least, and aiming to "support indie developers and reignite classic franchises."

Civilization 7's 'first major update' tweaks balance and fixes some UI issues, but don't expect an overhaul
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/strategy/civilization-7s-first-major-update-tweaks-balance-and-fixes-some-ui-issues-but-dont-expect-an-overhaul/
Civilization 7's "first major update" dropped for PC and consoles today, and for one thing it brings those two versions back into alignment, which has allowed Firaxis to re-enable crossplay.
The biggest feature change in the 1.1.0 update is a rebalancing of the Geographic Society legacy path that makes it "harder for players to breeze through" if they're the only ones pursuing it. AI leaders will also be generally better at pursuing a cultural victory.

'He came. And now he must go,' and that's why Pinhead is leaving Dead by Daylight in April
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/horror/he-came-and-now-he-must-go-and-thats-why-pinhead-is-leaving-dead-by-daylight-in-april/
A little over three years after being added to the game, Pinhead is leaving Dead by Daylight. Developer Behaviour Interactive announced today that the game's Hellraiser chapter, which includes the infamous Cenobite, will be unavailable for purchase on April 4.

Finding a new and inventive way to annoy everybody, Activision has company use AI to generate fake advertisements for games that don't exist
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/finding-a-new-and-inventive-way-to-annoy-everybody-activision-has-company-use-ai-to-generate-fake-advertisements-for-games-that-dont-exist/
Activision, which has recently fully doubled-down on using AI slop art assets in its games, has also coincidentally invented a new and bespoke way to annoy you for seemingly precious little gain.
Picture this: You see an advertisement for a new game from a trusted developer. You think hey, that looks interesting, let me give it an install. Then, like the world's most irritating and harmless bear trap, a market research firm pulls back the rug and says haha, you fool, you absolute moron, that wasn't a real game.
That is, in essence, what is happening—including with the purported Guitar Hero Mobile advertisement that made the rounds on Instagram for its shoddy AI-generated artwork. Turns out no, there isn't a Guitar Hero Mobile game, it's just a devious scheme to get you to do a survey.
>> Microsoft, WTF are you doing?!

Marvel Rivals announces a new limited-time game mode, Clone Rumble, and manages to pull off a comic caper that players only thought was possible in theory
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/marvel-rivals-announces-a-new-limited-time-game-mode-clone-rumble-and-manages-to-pull-off-a-comic-caper-that-players-only-thought-was-possible-in-theory/
Marvel Rivals has an impressively large hero roster, but the upcoming limited-time game mode, Clone Rumble, throws all of that to the wind as it gives players the difficult task of picking between just a couple of characters.
Clone Rumble is a PvP mode that pits two teams against each other, much like standard quick play or competitive modes. But instead of getting to choose from the entire roster of 37 heroes, each team will only be able to pick one hero. Players will then decide who they want to play between the two chosen characters.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2's March patch brings zoomer haircuts for Henry and the return of the hardcore mode that can kill you before the game even starts
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/kingdom-come-deliverance-2s-march-patch-brings-zoomer-haircuts-for-henry-and-the-return-of-the-hardcore-mode-that-can-kill-you-before-the-game-even-starts/
You know, I thought I liked Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2. I was so suckered in that I even gave it a 90% in our Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 review before theorising a new iron law of game design based off of it. But I was wrong. The game was actually unplayable, and it's entirely down to the fact that I couldn't give Henry a mullet.
Fortunately, Warhorse has realised its world-historic blunder and promised to introduce a hairstyle system to the game in an upcoming March patch. In a recent Twitch stream, KCD2 lead designer Prokop Jirsa and Warhorse PR manager Tobias Stolz-Zwilling showed off some of the features that would be hitting Bohemia in a patch planned for the middle of this month. Most important: the ability to give Henry a zoomer haircut.

Upgraded my internet from 1 GB fiber to 5 GB Fiber...sadly not many devices that are multi gig....I think my gaming desktop is, it SHOULD - need to look into it when I get the chance, havent had the chance to play anything at home after coming back from my trip to India and UAE.

I know the PS5 is multi gig and my cameras are all multi gig.

Either ways, my cameras resolution and streaming resolution is max and not low at start like on my old ISP. Also streaming 4K on multiple devices no longer lags or slow down.

Ping has improved as well and my data speeds are consistently over 850-900+ instead of 500 to 600 like in my previous ISP.

Helps that I'm using a eero 7 Max (WiFi 7) instead of my old Netgear router which was WiFi 5.

Got myself a second unit (rental through the ISP) for hardwire and as a extender because my house is a little over 3,500 sqft while these devices only support to 2,500 sqft.

Was gonna buy the unit but found out that each unit is $700...thankfully my ISP provides it.

My speed on my single gigabit ethernet general computer.

Watched the Linus video, and when it comes to price/performance for gaming, 9070 XT seems to win pretty comfortably.

I hope they get the marketshare they deserve with this one, but we know how people buy Nvidia no matter what.