^To be fair, not many stores sell keys for Early Access titles because it can be a nightmare with the refunds.

Like was already said, Early Access can be somewhat problematic for refunds. Most non-Valve games tend to be available elsewhere as well, so I would assume it to actually be in the interests of publishers.

That said, it also helps when it's the publisher's own choice with no moneyhatting involved. What also helps is that if you're going to pick just one service, pick the one that most people like and has the most features. I'm not a fan of exclusives anyway, but if you're going to be on some services only, picking the best instead of the worst ones does help.

I wasn't aware the devs were bribed into selling only on Steam

Also wasn't aware that you could even get keys for ea games as well, that's the first time I've heard of that ever being a thing. I've always gotten keys for AAA games from those sites usually.

Coffee strain also published it, so I'm actually left wondering as to why they let Iron Gate release on Steam, when CS has previously worked and praised Epic over the past 2 and a half years.

Besides, you're on Steam right now aren't you?. Pretty sure I've got you added on both Steam/Origin, so I dunno why you haven't nabbed the game on there yet, it's £15.

I found this article from Techspot/video from Hardware Unboxed (they're basically the same guys) very interesting. It shows how the Ryzen 5 have evolved from the 1600X over the 2600X and 3600X to the 5600X, and how they hold up next to each other.

https://www.techspot.com/article/2201-four-years-of-ryzen-5-gpu-scaling/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlfwXqODqp4

What's very interesting is how the 1600X behaves. In short, the Radeon 5700X has on medium settings or 1080p, so at the CPU limit, in general measurably higher FPS than an RTX 3070 or even 3090. In some cases, even the Radeon 5600X gets close to the RTX 3090 in that scenario. The problem being supposedly the higher overhead for the RTX cards to fill their shaders, costing additional CPU performance when the processor is already at it's limits.

This is why HWU is one of my favourite Youtuber/reviewers around. Like they go super in depth with all hardware, even with older tech and puts it up against the latest and greatest.

Quite interesting that a 1600X actually holds up well in modern titles and even some for 4K gaming - CPU bound stuff. Even 1440P with mid-range GPUs - though sub-optimal in certain settings it fascinating seeing benchmarks when paired with different GPU's and scenarios.

If anyone needs a(nother) reason to hate Zotac, here you have it:

ZOTAC publically endorsing GPU mining farm, tags it #PcGaming
https://videocardz.com/newz/zotac-publically-endorsing-gpu-mining-farm-tags-it-pcgaming
ZOTAC appears to be switching its business to a mining supplier. On Twitter, the company has published a photo showing a mining rig featuring GeForce RTX 3070 Twin Edge graphics cards. The company even had the audacity to tag the photo #PcGaming, as if this setup had anything to do with gaming. This all happens at the same time as ZOTAC graphics cards are nowhere to be found at MSRP.

I hope Nvidia cuts their chips supply in half, f*cking b*stards.

Good guy Zotac finally admitting that their products are too bad for end consumers, so they're just chucking their garbage at miners who don't care about quality.

Wut? My last two cards have been theirs (960 and 1660ti) and I can't say anything bad about them, I mean temps are good and they are quiet and have metal backplates and everything.

The news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

GOG has a new sale and also a new release:

• The new Midweek Sale features games set in space up to 90% off during the next 3 days: https://www.gog.com/promo/20210217_midweek_sale
• And the game Pesterquest arrives on the store with a 40% discount until February 24: https://www.gog.com/game/pesterquest

Steam has two new daily deals, as well as two new Midweek Madness deals:

• The first daily deal is Pro Cycling Manager 2020, 50% off: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1178400/Pro_Cycling_Manager_2020/
• The other one is Imperator: Rome, 75% off: https://store.steampowered.com/app/859580/Imperator_Rome/
• The first Midweek Madness deal is Project Hospital, 50% off until Friday: https://store.steampowered.com/app/868360/Project_Hospital/
• And publisher Shiro Games has its games between 33 and 75% off until te 19th: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/shirogames

There are two new deals at Humble:

• There's a new Humble Bundle: the Humble Plug in (and play!) Digital Bundle, with up to 12 games to grab during the next 13 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/plug-in-and-play-digital
• And at the Humble Store we have the Imperator: Rome Sale, with up to 75% off during the next 5 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/imperator-rome-sale/

And Fanatical has a new Star Deal and two new bundles:

• The new StarDeal is Youtubers Life, 68% off for the next 24 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/youtubers-life
• The first of the new bundles added to Bundlefest is the All Stars 13 Bundle, with 7 games at a 99% discount: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/all-stars-13-bundle
• And the Anime BYOB comes with 18 games to choose your 2, 3 or 5 games bundle: https://www.fanatical.com/en/pick-and-mix/build-your-own-anime-bundle

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

Developer booted off Steam for putting its name as 'Very Positive'
https://www.pcgamer.com/developer-booted-off-steam-for-putting-its-name-as-very-positive/
When you open a game's Steam page, do you find yourself instinctively glancing at its review ratings? If so, you're just the kind of person one developer tried to fool by naming their studio 'Very Positive,' an impressively brazen ploy that's since seen them booted off the platform.
The deception was first spotted by the GameDiscoverCo newsletter. Banking on the fact that both the reviews summary and developer/publisher fields use the same blue font, the creator of Emoji Evolution came up with a shameless plan to trick prospective buyers into thinking they'd stumbled across a popular hit.
The anonymous creator emailed Vice reporter Patrick Klepek to explain: "I knew that reviews have a huge impact on the customer's decision. I noticed that the publisher/developer name is located really close to the reviews and has the same colour, and I decided to use it for my purposes."

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

This Mod for Skyrim Special Edition adds subtle face animations for your character
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/this-mod-for-skyrim-special-edition-adds-subtle-face-animations-for-your-character/
Conditional Expressions is a new mod for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition. The mod adds subtle face animations that will bring more life into you character.
Conditional Expressions features subtle facial animations based on the character’s conditions, or when the character is idle. These animations will add more personality and realism to the character. However, the animations are not exaggerated, and will probably fit all characters regardless their back-story, or moral alignment.
Conditional Expressions mod requires SKSE, MFG Fix, and Address Library for SKSE Plugins. It’s also configurable via MCM, and also compatible with all animation mods out of the box, since it only affects the character’s face.
>> Available from Nexus Mods.

GAMING NEWS

DayZ Update 1.11 brings major stability improvements
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/dayz-update-1-11-brings-major-stability-improvements/
Bohemia Interactive announced the release of update 1.11 for its multiplayer zombie survival game, DayZ. The new update stabilizes important features of the game, significantly improving the overall experience for players.

Amazon’s New World has been delayed again, now releasing in August 2021
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/amazons-new-world-has-been-delayed-again-now-releasing-in-august-2021/
Back in July 2020, Amazon announced a delay for its upcoming MMORPG, New World. And yesterday, the company announced yet another delay for this game. According to Amazon, New World will now release on August 31st, 2021.

Diablo 2 Remaster, called Diablo 2 Resurrected, to be announced at Blizzcon 2021
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/diablo-2-remaster-called-diablo-2-resurrected-to-be-announced-at-blizzcon-2021/
Blizzcon 2021 begins later this week and from the looks of it, Blizzard will officially announce the rumored Diablo 2 Remaster. According to a leak, Diablo 2 Remastered will be called Diablo 2 Resurrected.

Civilization VI February Update detailed, comes out on February 25th
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/civilization-vi-february-update-detailed-comes-out-on-february-25th/
Firaxis has announced that the February Update for Civilization VI will release on February 25th. In order to celebrate this announcement, the team released a new video that highlights all of its upcoming changes, adjustments and additions.

The news, part two:

Red Dead Online gets three new solo missions, Rockstar says more to come
https://www.pcgamer.com/red-dead-online-gets-three-new-solo-missions-rockstar-says-more-to-come/
Following its recent launch as a standalone title, Red Dead Online has been doing everything it can to attract players back. (...)
One regular call is for more substantial mission content playable with your posse and so, in Red Dead Online's latest update, Rockstar's added three new missions that are the first in a chain... of solo mission content. They look pretty good, to be fair, though you have to laugh. "We don't deserve this" RDO players plead like Little Bill Daggett in Unforgiven, as Rockstar North's Bill Munny takes cold aim. "Deserve's got nothin' to do with it."

Blaseball returns for a new season of absurdist internet sports next month
https://www.pcgamer.com/blaseball-returns-for-a-new-season-of-absurdist-internet-sports-next-month/
It's been some time since we last heard from Blaseball, the internet's favourite baseball simulation turned peanut religion. After going into hiatus at the end of October, The Game Band are ready to ring in Season 12 of Internet League Blaseball on March 1st.

Rainbow Six Siege's next season is called Crimson Heist
https://www.pcgamer.com/rainbow-six-sieges-next-season-is-called-crimson-heist/
Ubisoft has begun dropping teasers for Crimson Heist, the next season of Rainbow Six Siege and the official kickoff of Year 6. As announced at last year's Six Invitational, Crimson Heist will follow Siege's new direction of releasing only a single operator each season. This time around, it looks like we're getting a bespectacled thief of some sort.

This teaser for the next Hearthstone expansion looks very Horde flavored
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-teaser-for-the-next-hearthstone-expansion-looks-very-horde-flavored/
Blizzard is hinting, none too subtly, at a big Hearthstone reveal coming at this weekend's BlizzCon event: A brief teaser released today suggests the next expansion looks to be leaning heavily on the World of Warcraft source material (as opposed to stuff like League of Explorers, which does not.)

Britain gets a little greater in new Microsoft Flight Simulator update
https://www.pcgamer.com/britain-gets-a-little-greater-in-microsoft-flight-simulator/
Microsoft Flight Simulator's third major update has released, which introduces major changes to the terrain of the UK and Ireland, and it comes with the above trailer, which I find oddly stirring. Maybe it's because we've all been stuck indoors for a year, but a reminder of the scale and beauty of the UK and Ireland from the skies... it's just the ticket right now.

Is this Call of Duty: Warzone's next map?
https://www.pcgamer.com/cod-warzone-season-2-cold-war-announcement/
Our first peek at Call of Duty: Warzone's second season partnered with Black Ops - Cold War is here, and it sure looks like we're going to Laos. The new cinematic trailer depicts a handful of new operators (Wolf, Rivas, and Naga) as well as Black Ops mainstay Frank Woods infiltrating Laos to rescue Russell Adler after his capture by Stitch.

This new tower defense game is basically cryptocurrency Plants vs Zombies
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-new-tower-defense-game-is-basically-cryptocurrency-plants-vs-zombies/
I get a lot of emails about blockchains and cryptocurrencies, nearly all of which are entirely irrelevant to our coverage of PC gaming. I expected more of the same when the announcement for Crypto: Against All Odds popped up in my inbox. But I changed my mind quickly when I reached what is the undeniably intriguing central concept: Cryptocurrency Plants vs. Zombies.

Steelrising, the game about French Revolutionary robots, is looking for testers
https://www.pcgamer.com/steelrising-the-game-about-french-revolutionary-robots-is-looking-for-testers/
When Greedfall developer Spiders announced its next project at last year's Nacon Connect event, my attention was immediately grabbed. It's called Steelrising, and it's essentially a retelling of the French Revolution, except that this time around King Louis XVI has an army of murderous androids at his command and the only hope for the citizens of Paris is Marie Antoinette's bodyguard Aegis, also an android, who's been dispatched to find and kill its creator in order to stop the king's machines.

This Playstation-inspired dino-slaying FPS is straight outta 1998
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-playstation-inspired-dino-slaying-fps-is-straight-outta-1998/
Announced on Twitter by developer Austin Schaeffer, Compound Fracture is an upcoming FPS where you battle low-poly dinosaurs. It's part of a new wave of indie games inspired by the distinctive aesthetic and rendering techniques of the original PlayStation, even down to having a square 4:3 aspect ratio—although there will be an option to disable this.

Valheim patch solves the case of the missing tombstones
https://www.pcgamer.com/valheim-patch-stops-your-tombstone-from-disappearing/
Valheim is the year's first out-of-nowhere hit, with over 2 million copies sold on Steam and counting. Part of that is that it's an early access game that doesn't feel early access, for the most part, though there are of course various issues.
A patch released today addressed a few minor irritations. As Chris noted while explaining how to build a campfire indoors (hey, it's harder than it sounds), venting interiors of smoke from your various fire sources can be a right old pain, but a "Hearth smoke building fix" should hopefully make things less irritating. There are also some quality-of-life improvements: the game will now autosave every 20 minutes (it was previously 30), slight sync issues when picking up certain items like stones and carrots have been fixed, and there are improvements to the framerate problems some dedicated servers have been having.

Valorant's next patch will kill a popular Yoru strategy
https://www.pcgamer.com/valorant-patch-203-notes-reyna-nerf/
Valorant's latest 2.03 patch notes are here to mess with your mains. Under the balancing microscope this time around is teleporting newcomer Yoru and soul-sucking vampire Reyna, two duelists that excel in 1v1 scenarios. While Yoru's ultimate is gaining some extra utility that can help his entire team, it's also losing one of its most entertaining uses: body blocking.

No Man's Sky is getting pets
https://www.pcgamer.com/no-mans-sky-update-lets-you-adopt-creatures-and-take-them-with-you-everywhere/
The galaxy can be quite a lonely place, and there's no bigger galaxy in games than the one in No Man's Sky. But it's about to get considerably less lonely.
You can already tame most creatures by feeding them, and even sit on them and ride them around. But when it comes time to blast off again, you have to say goodbye. Until now! The No Man's Sky Companions update will let you adopt your favorite creature and bring it along with you on your adventures around the galaxy.