October 2024 PCG Article Discussion Thread

[BeardyHat]

I think Valve should give developers and publishers an option to download a DRM free version of their game if they choose to do so. If that were to be the case, I’m sure ~95% of games in Steam won’t have that option, but it would be nice as the customer to have the option. Of course though, that’s just not how Steam operates, so it’s just wishful thinking.

If it's DRM free on Steam, then as soon as you download it, you've got it DRM free. There are quite a few games you can launch directly from the .exe in the game directory, Dwarf Fortress being one of them.

You could technically buy DF, download it, refund it and have it free and clear. Of course, you won't get updates and it's ethically dubious, at best, but it can be done. I know I own several games like this, but I couldn't tell you exactly which titles.

 

[Pifanjr]

If it's DRM free on Steam, then as soon as you download it, you've got it DRM free. There are quite a few games you can launch directly from the .exe in the game directory, Dwarf Fortress being one of them.

You could technically buy DF, download it, refund it and have it free and clear. Of course, you won't get updates and it's ethically dubious, at best, but it can be done. I know I own several games like this, but I couldn't tell you exactly which titles.

I got Baldur's Gate 3 through family sharing with a friend of ours, which doesn't have DRM either. So I usually close Steam before I start the game just so I don't risk getting booted out when my friend decides to play something.

 

[Kaamos_Llama]

The true cost of game piracy: 20 percent of revenue, according to a new study

Analysis of Denuvo DRM cracking shows significant impacts on publishers’ bottom lines.

arstechnica.com

Kind of releated, interesting article from Ars here on anti piracy.

I'm not usually bothered by DRM in games in a technical level (stuttering etc), mostly because I rarely buy anything at release. But its not hard to see why the big publishers like to use it when you look at those numbers.

 

[Pifanjr]

10 years on, the most infamous gaming Kickstarter of them all is still trying to reach the finish line: 'I want to explicitly state that this project is not dead'

Somehow, Unsung Story returned.

www.pcgamer.com

I thought this would be about Star Citizen, which I would think is much more infamous than this game I had never heard of before.

 

[neogunhero]

Stalker's hardcore reputation didn't prepare me for how surprisingly basic Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl is

Stalker 2 is tense, gorgeous, and a bit janky.

www.pcgamer.com

I don’t think it was a good idea to have PCG assign the Stalker 2 preview to a person who has never played the older games. On one hand I get that Stalker 2 is more appealing to a larger audience than its predecessors so perhaps that was the reason for this decision, but I still think that hardcore Stalker fans are wanting to hear what the new game is like from someone who is already a fan.

My issue with the article is that the whole time the author is talking about how everything he has heard of previous Stalker games makes it seem like an extremely brutal and unforgiving survival game with action elements, but the reality of what he played wasn’t as hardcore as he imagined. Stalker players know that that is the way the game presents itself but actually playing it can be very easy, so it seems more of the same which is what a large portion of the player base wants. The author was upset his expectations were not met, but to me the way he describes Stalker 2 sounds exactly how all the other games are.

 

[Brian Boru]

more of the same which is what a large portion of the player base wants

Good to hear—down with innovation!

ETA: Aw, there isn't a demo for us plebs
On the upside, my PC just scrapes the minimum requirements—hope they're real.

 

[neogunhero]

Good to hear—down with innovation!

It may sound antithetical to what players would generally want in a sequel, and this is all purely my own speculation, but I think a large portion of STALKER players want anew game that feels just like the old ones but in a modern engine with QOL improvements. That series is held very closely to its hardcore fans, and changing it too much may lead to more problems and complaints than if they just made the same kind of game with nicer graphics.

Surely there will be new systems to engage with that weren’t present in the older games, but my takeaway from that article is that it is more of the same, just bigger. I am completely happy with that, especially with all the hardships the dev team had to put up with.

 

[Colif]

On the upside, my PC just scrapes the minimum requirements—hope they're real.

looks

Minimum:
OS Windows 10, Windows 11
Processor:[/B] AMD Ryzen 5 1600X / Intel Core i5-7600K
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: AMD Radeon RX 580 8GB / NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 6GB
Storage: 150 GB available space
Additional Notes: SSD

You really need to upgrade Brian... ARM or X86? Fun time to be alive heh...

 

[Pifanjr]

looks

You really need to upgrade Brian... ARM or X86? Fun time to be alive heh...

I'm still working with a i5-4690 CPU and a GTX 1050 ti and so far it has managed to run pretty much every game I've tried, though mostly with (nearly) all graphics on their lowest settings.

 

[Brian Boru]

need to upgrade Brian... ARM or X86?

ARM or leg, more like—'need to' is unfortunately not matched by 'can do'

i5-4690 CPU and a GTX 1050 ti and so far it has managed to run pretty much every game

* Looks down nose * Thank you for making me feel superior!

We'll consider upgrading whenever recent games are fixed, so ca 2027—yeah, the 50th anniversary of Cyberpunk 2077 sounds right

 

[Johnway]

All this talk of upograding and building pcs has got me looking and honestly, whilst i'm in no rush (my pc can run everything in my gaming collection) i'm looking at a complete replacement of machine. Whilst window shopping in various stores, i think i'll go with AMD this time as Intel isn't as upgrade friendly. Looking at prices of parts etc, its becoming eye wateringly expensive and i can see why people are going the steam deck route these days. Will review when something in my PC dies. i would like to keep the case, but i suspect i'll need to replace that as well.

 

[Colif]

recent games are fixed, so ca 2027

I thought you said Decent and realised there aren't any of those, and re read post

I don't want to upgrade PC for a few more years now. It will almost be all new, might use storage out of this. But good chance everything else will be new. Currently looking at new fans only as I have to. PC wasn't meant to have any problems this year, I spent too much on it last year.

 

[Brian Boru]

Looking at prices

You probably know that Black Friday & Cyber Monday are good times to get deals on PCs and parts. PCG usually does article(s) on the best deals they spot, so keep an eye on those in a month or so.

Will review when something in my PC dies

Would suck if you had to pay 50% more in a few months.

 

[BeardyHat]

Microcenter usually has some pretty good deals; I get their ads in my email frequently and they have quite a few packages with processors, mobos and RAM. I actually bought a package back in 2019 and I'm still using the motherboard and RAM, having recently (last year) upgraded to a faster processor.

That said, my upgrade was pretty unnecessary in hindsight. Sure I got to play Starfield and Cyberpunk, but my Deck can run Cyberpunk just fine and everything else I play would have run perfectly great on my old setup of a 2600 and 1070.

 

[Zloth]

Squadron 42, which was 'feature-complete' and just needed 'polish' in 2023, is now targeting a 2026 launch

Star Citizen itself lacks a release window though.

www.pcgamer.com

Star Citizen gets a release da... well, a release year!

Those aliens made me giggle a bit. I don't think they could make some of the sounds in their language given all those sharp teeth. Do they even have lips?? I had the same issue with the Turians in Mass Effect. How do those bone faces make so many sounds!? Why that breaks immersion for me, I've got no idea, but there it is.

 

[Colif]

gets told that updating to windows 11 24H2 can take 1 to 2 hours...
starts update using Update Assistant
It took about 40 minutes to count to 100 before it was ready to run update.
Took 10 minutes max between restart and being back on desktop.

I guess it depends how you update.
Clean installs would take a while too.

Only difference I can see is they changed Icon for task Manager
It feels faster but that always happens after a version update replaces windows.
AI over view of features shows its got nothing of interest to me... more laptop crap.
Why does Microsoft want us to use E waste? Laptops need replacing too often... pass.

 

[Colif]

Best PC fans in 2024: I've put these case fans through their paces to find the coolest and quietest

The best PC fans will keep your gaming PC cool and quiet.

www.pcgamer.com

lol.
Noctua 12x25? Classic... but not the best anymore.
Corsair fans look pretty but cooling isn't the best. Charge people a premium for RGB.

I am looking for new fans for my AIO but as I want RGB, I have to ignore Noctua. Be nice if they bent a little more... at least there are black swap versions now.

Goes back to looking
Lian Li Tl120 look the best options so far, every other one I have looked at has reasons not to pick it. (and after looking at more, its even more so the case. Most have things that you have to work around)