Yea it is kinda weird but maybe they are just testing it out to see how it does on a smaller game before putting it in a bigger title.

Yeah, that's also my guess. But it's still odd, tho.

I wonder how the Steam Deck will perform in Japan. They like their handhelds and if it becomes popular maybe more Japanese companies will start giving a shit about their PC ports.

It will be interesting to see how it does. One thing I will say is after seeing the Steam Deck, it will be interesting to see if Nintendo goes AMD and x86 instead of going Nvidia and Arm at some point in the future.

The benefit would certainly be that it will be even easier to port games over to the switch and x86 is getting to the point where the power efficiency is good enough. And considering the Volumes Nintendo is able to sell their products vs someone like Valve, I am sure they would get a bigger discount than what Valve is getting with their Steam Deck.

Even if the Switch 2 has Zen 2 + RDNA 2 specs similar to the Steam Deck, it would be quite powerful as we have seen the Steam Deck being able to run Ghostrunner with Max settings + Ray Tracing at above 30fps. With the low level API and optimizations you can do on a console, they can get even more juice out of it while having decent battery life. Of course the problem would be that whatever Gimmick Nintendo would plan would sink into the cost. So that would probably be the biggest issue unless they want to sell the Switch 2 for $400.

Unless it was only talk with nothing behind it, Nintendo won't switch (ha, ha) back to AMD anytime soon.

This is from a 2016 article based on what Nvidia's Huang said during a conference call:

https://venturebeat.com/2016/11/16/nvidia-porting-ps4-xbox-one-and-pc-games-to-nintendo-switch-is-simple/

In a conference call with investors last week, Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang noted that this should enable developers to build games that can quickly shift from one platform to another — and that includes games that originate on PC, Xbox One, and PS4 to Switch. Nintendo plans to reveal more about the Switch during an event on January 12.

(...)

“We’ve worked with [Nintendo] now for almost two years,” said Huang. “Several hundred engineering years have gone into the development of this incredible game console. I really believe when everybody sees it and enjoys it, they’re going be amazed by it. It’s really like nothing they’ve ever played with before. And of course, the brand, their franchises and their game content is incredible.”

Huang finished up by noting that he believes Nintendo will stick with Nvidia architecture. He thinks that the relationship between the two companies “will likely last two decades.” That’s a big vision for the future of both companies, but it’s all going to have to start with the Switch.

Besides, while x86 may be improving its power consumption, I don't think it will be enough for Nintendo. After all, we're talking about a company that downclocked a Tegra X1 to use even less power. So yeah, I think they'll stay with ARM for the time being, and Nvidia has a clear advantage over AMD.

Yea but I think that's all PR speak. Both Nintendo and Nvidia are realistically out for themselves and it's not the first time a console company switched (har har) away from Nvidia.

And realistically back then, there was no good alternative and Nvidia was focusing on efficiency quite heavily. These days though, not only do we have x86 being very power efficient from AMD but Nvidia no longer focusing on efficiency. And it's not like Nintendo can't customize the SoC from AMD. The main downer would be the lack of DLSS but knowing Nintendo, going Nvidia isn't a guarantee either. Trading DLSS for x86 might be worth it the porting aspect pays off.

I hope I'm wrong but I think it will do the same as Steam Machines, who even remembers those lol

It's Thursday and these are all the news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

Metro Exodus has sold over 6 million copies worldwide
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/metro-exodus-has-sold-over-6-million-copies-worldwide/
Embracer Group has announced that Metro Exodus has sold over 6 million copies worldwide on all platforms. Metro Exodus came out in February 2019, meaning that it took three years in order to pass this six million milestone.

The Epic Store is giving away Brothers - A Tale of Two Sons: https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-US/p/brothers-a-tale-of-two-sons.
And next week, the free game will be Cris Tales.

Steam has two new daily deals:

• The first one is Deliver Us The Moon, 50% off: https://store.steampowered.com/app/428660/Deliver_Us_The_Moon/
• The second one if Prey (the newest one), 75% off: https://store.steampowered.com/app/480490/Prey/

Fanatical's new Star Deal is OUTRIDERS, 71% off during the next 48 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/outriders

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

Celebrate 20 years of regular AMD driver updates with this new driver update
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/celebrate-20-years-of-regular-amd-driver-updates-with-this-new-driver-update/
AMD’s Sr. Director of user experience engineering Terry Makedon tweeted in celebration about the new fabulously numbered Adrenalin 22.2.2 AMD update for 5000 and 6000 series cards like the Radeon RX 6600 and RX 5700. Makedon makes special note that this marks 20 years since regular updates started coming to AMD drivers. Makedon also specifically references AMD Catalyst, presumably the older version of the control centre offered to further tweak settings with AMD hardware.
(...)
Back in the present day, the new Adrenalin 22.2.2 release update has a list of upgrades for many popular PC games. The first is support for Total War: Warhammer III, while others include upgrades to performance for titles like Fortnite, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, and even Cyberpunk 2077 which also just received its own significant update. These games should look and run far better than before on AMD hardware, all receiving between a 10% and 24% increase in performance at their more demanding settings.

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Quake 4 in Quake 2 Demake is now available for download
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/quake-4-in-quake-2-demake-is-now-available-for-download/
Quake fans, here is something really cool for you today. Modder ‘TheMrBenpulido’ has just released a Quake 4 in Quake 2 Demake that looks retro-cool.
TheMrBenpulido has basically recreated all the levels of Quake 4 in Quake 2. In order to recreate these levels, the modder used assets from Quake 2. This is why I’ve decided to name it as a demake. Thankfully, though, the modder has imported some enemies from Quake 4.
Quake 4 in Quake 2 features remastered music from the official Quake 2 expansions, as well as Quake 3 music on some maps. It also packs a new graphical interface, as well as some weapons sounds from Quake 4.
In order to run this mod, you’ll need Kmquake2 or Vanilla QUAKE 2 with unofficial patch 3.24. Unfortunately, we don’t know whether this mod is compatible with Quake 2 RTX (my guess is that it’s not).
>> The article contains some screenshots, but there's no video.

GAMING NEWS

Daymare 1994 Sandcastle free demo comes out on February 21st, new trailer released
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/daymare-1994-sandcastle-free-demo-comes-out-on-february-21st-new-trailer-released/
Leonardo Interactive and Invader Studios have announced that a free demo for Daymare 1994 Sandcastle will release on February 21st. In order to celebrate this announcement, the teams released a brand new gameplay trailer that you can find below.

Cyberpunk 2077 quietly drops support for older graphics cards and Windows 7
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/cyberpunk-2077-quietly-drops-support-for-older-graphics-cards-and-windows-7/
CD Projekt dropped a major Cyberpunk 2077 update yesterday that tweaked almost everything about it, from AI behavior to new world elements, driving updates, rebalanced skills, more apartments to rent, better nail polish (yes, seriously), and a whole lot more. It's big, and hopefully it'll improve the experience in a commensurately meaningful way.
Something else that changed with the release of the 1.5 update are the Cyberpunk 2077 system requirements: Nvidia 700 series graphics cards, which were previously part of the minimum specification, are no longer supported. You're not necessarily out of luck if you've got one: Like many things in life, whether or not Cyberpunk 2077 will continue to "work" with 700 Series GPUs will depend largely on what you're willing to put up with.
>> And now it also has a benchmark.

The Sims 4: My Wedding Stories will be released in Russia after all, 'unaltered and unchanged'
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/the-sims-4-my-wedding-stories-will-be-released-in-russia-after-all-unaltered-and-unchanged/
Last week, Electronic Arts announced that it would not release the upcoming Sims 4 expansion My Wedding Stories in Russia because it would violate the country's laws forbidding materials that promote "non-traditional sexual relationships." Today, however, it reversed that decision, saying that the expansion will be made available, unedited, to Russian gamers.

Developer cancels crowdfunded MMO and disappears amid fraud allegations
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/developer-cancels-crowdfunded-mmo-and-disappears-amid-fraud-allegations/
Indie MMO project TitanReach has lurched from crisis to crisis since its initial Kickstarter launch back in 2020, and it now seems to have ended for good in confusion and failure, with a YouTuber close to the project alleging that the lead developer misappropriated investor funds to gamble on cryptocurrency and even purchase a Tesla for his personal use.

Sea of Thieves kicks off its new 'Adventures' live events tomorrow
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/sea-of-thieves-kicks-off-its-new-adventures-live-events-tomorrow/
Sea of Thieves is a blast, especially if you're playing with a good crew, but I've always wished that it had more to offer in the way of directed, narrative-focused adventures. In January, Rare unveiled plans to make that happen with the addition of new, time-limited events called Adventures, the first of which is set to kick off tomorrow.
>> I don't know if that tomorrow is indeed tomorrow or today. We'll see.

Nacon acquires Daedalic Entertainment for $60 million
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/nacon-acquires-daedalic-entertainment-for-dollar60-million/
Videogame industry acquisitions have dominated 2022, and here's another one, albeit less earthshaking than Microsoft's purchase of Activision Blizzard: French publisher Nacon has announced it will acquire Daedalic Entertainment. The German publisher and developer is perhaps best known for the Deponia series and the forthcoming Lord of the Rings: Gollum, but it has also published a range of decent games, such as Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun and Felix the Reaper.
>> Ryuu96 made a thread about this.

Activision Blizzard lawsuit inches closer to trial with judge's decision to include temp workers
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/activision-blizzard-lawsuit-inches-closer-to-trial-with-judges-decision-to-include-temp-workers/
The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing secured an early victory yesterday in its litigation against Activision Blizzard, with a judge's ruling that the suit can include temporary workers in addition to full-time employees.

Star Wars: The Old Republic's Legacy of the Sith expansion has gone down like the Holiday Special
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/star-wars-the-old-republics-legacy-of-the-sith-expansion-has-gone-down-like-the-holiday-special/
Star Wars: The Old Republic's Legacy of the Sith expansion has not quite been the crescendo of the MMO's 10-year anniversary celebrations BioWare was surely hoping for. While Steam has seen an upswing in positive reviews since the update arrived, reactions on the official forums, Reddit and Twitter paint a very different picture.

Various Halo Infinite Forge leaks show it sure looks like Forge mode
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/various-halo-infinite-forge-leaks-show-it-sure-looks-like-forge-mode/
A video showing Halo Infinite's upcoming Forge mode has leaked, been swiftly removed, and because this is the internet is now mirrored in multiple places. The embed above is working at the time of writing but, if it has suddenly disappeared, then Redmond's lawyers have done their thing: Luckily, there are plenty more.

Total War: Warhammer 3 is getting review bombed on Steam by Chinese players
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/total-war-warhammer-3-is-getting-review-bombed-on-steam-by-chinese-players/
Total War: Warhammer 3 is the final game in Creative Assembly's humie-bashing trilogy, and our own Fraser reckons it's a cracker. It's now launched and, unfortunately, has run into some issues in China. The game is currently being review-bombed by users in that territory, apparently for pretty petty reasons.

I don't think they'll sahre the same fate because there are some key differences that put both ideas apart.

The Steam Deck is build by Valve and every unit will feature the same hardware, while the Steam Machines only needed to ship with SteamOS and Steam installed to be called that, resulting in machines with a wide range of hardware and prices (most of them also overpriced).

Intel Confirms Arc Alchemist Desktop Graphics Cards In Q2 2022, Workstation by Q3 2022, Celestial Architecture For Ultra-Enthusiast Segment In The Works

https://wccftech.com/intel-confirms-arc-alchemist-desktop-graphics-cards-in-q2-2022-workstation-by-q3-2022-celestial-gpu-architecture-ultra-enthusiast-segment/

Delayed till Q2? Really Intel? Really?

AMD Ryzen 6000 “Rembrandt” Laptop Review Roundup

https://videocardz.com/124491/amd-ryzen-6000-rembrandt-laptop-review-roundup#disqus_thread

Slower than Intel when plugged in but much more power efficient so better for laptops in general. Especially as you get lower in the TDP range:

Steam Deck - AMD FidelityFX Super Resolution Upscaling In Any Game... With Gamescope!

You can use FSR to get an extra hour of battery life due to the lower rendering resolution. Because of the small screen, FSR isn't as bad as it would be traditionally on a 1440p monitor. The text can still get pretty yikes though, especially if you do system level FSR instead of in-game FSR.

Launch Price for 42-inch LG C2 OLED is Up! But It's Same Price as 48" C2?

So between these high end PC monitors/TVs coming out this year, the prices are looking like this:

Alienware QD-OLED £1,099
LG 42 Inch OLED £1,399
Sony 42 Inch OLED £1,399
LG 48 Inch OLED £1,399

Realistically, the Alienware should have the superior OLED technology and combined with it's size, 175hz refresh rate and G-sync Ultimate module, it will give you the best PC gaming experience. However because it is Ultrawide and also doesn't have HDMI 2.1, it won't give you a good console experience. So the better all arounder could be LG's 42 inch even if it is a bit more expensive. But there are issues with using TVs as a PC monitor. Not only do you not get the burn-in warranty for 3 years like you do with Alienware, but because of it's WOLED, you could see some issues with text. Windows clear type can generally help a lot but there have been reports of WOLED not being as good with text. Also the auto brightness and other quirks of TVs can result in not so good experience which monitors don't have.

The dream would have been 4k 32 inch QD-OLED with HDMI 2.1 but alas.