Every gamer needs a screen, and it seems like every component and peripheral manufacturer feels the need to make them. Thermaltake is the latest manufacturer to throw its lot into the crowded monitor market. The company has formally announced two gaming displays and the specs aren’t bad when compared to competing offerings.
The TGM-I27FQ is a 27-inch affair with a QHD (2560×1440) 165Hz fast IPS panel. It comes with DCI-P3 95% color gamut and a maximum brightness of 400 nits. The GTG response time is 1ms and it supports Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync Premium.
Its input support looks good, made up of dual HDMI 2.0 ports and a single DP 1.4 port. The video ports are joined by two Type-A USB ports and a Type-C port with 15W power delivery support. There’s a USB-B output and an audio port. It features a 75 x75mm VESA mount, KVM support and a height, swivel, tilt and pivot adjustable stand.
The larger 32-inch TGM-V32CQ comes with a 1000R curvature and the same 1440p resolution as its smaller sibling. It’s a VA panel with a 170Hz refresh rate and 90% DCI-P3 coverage. The brightness of 400 nits is carried over, as is G-Sync and FreeSync Premium, but the GTG response time rises to 4ms.
The TGM-V32CQ comes with dual HDMI 2.0 ports and a single DP 1.4 port, though it doesn’t have any USB ports. It has a single audio port, 75 x 75mm VESA mount support, and a height, swivel, pivot and tilt adjustable stand. Both options have some RGB backlighting too.
Both models aren’t going to upend the gaming monitor market, but more competition is always welcome. Thermaltake has delved into the pre-built PC market, so it makes sense for the company to provide its own monitors. Apart from the CPU, GPU and motherboard, you can now buy an almost entirely Thermaltake branded system.
The 27-inch TGM-I27FQ is available for $339.99, while the TGM-V32CQ is a little cheaper at $309.99.
https://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/1698309932_Thermaltake-steps-into-the-monitor-market-with-a-pair-of.jpg5951058Carlos Pachecohttps://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Website-Logo-300x74.pngCarlos Pacheco2023-10-26 04:33:592023-10-26 04:33:59Thermaltake steps into the monitor market with a pair of gaming focused monitors
Valve is making changes to Steam pricing in Argentina and Turkey that will see game sales in those countries switched from their local currencies—the Argentine peso and Turkish lira—to US dollars. The change is being made to address “exchange rate volatility” that Valve says has made it difficult for developers to set and maintain prices for their games.
Steam’s system of regional pricing has long been a contentious issue. We went deep on “the weird economics behind Steam prices around the world” all the way back in 2014, and while the world has changed since then, the underlying complexities have not. Price variations from region to region are based on numerous factors, but the broad goal is fairness: Ensuring that people outside of North America and Western Europe aren’t forced to pay disproportionate prices for their games.
Currency exchange rates are a big factor in determining regional prices, and that’s where this switch to US dollars in Turkey and Argentina comes into play.
“Exchange rate volatility in Argentina and Turkey in recent years has made it hard for game developers to choose appropriate prices for their games and keep them current,” Valve explained. “We have heard this loud and clear in our developer meet ups and round table chats. In addition, we have had a hard time keeping Steam payment methods up and running in these countries/territories due to the constant foreign exchange fluctuations, fees, taxes, and logistical issues.
“Pricing games in USD for Steam customers in Argentina and Turkey will help us provide greater stability and consistency for players and partners, while also enabling us to continue to offer a variety of payment methods to Steam users in those countries/territories.”
“Volatility” in this case appears to be a polite way of saying that the currencies in question have all but collapsed. The past few years have seen a dramatic devaluation of both the Argentine peso and the Turkish lira:
In practical terms, what this means for developers is that prices they set in, say, March 2023 are almost meaningless now: They have to continually increase the cost of their games to account for the reduced value of the local currency. (Or, I suppose, accept that they’re going to take a bath on it.)
Signs of trouble with both currencies first emerged in 2022, when Valve released a new recommended regional pricing guide for developers—essentially a tool to help them quickly determine regional prices for their games. The recommended pricing for most regions went up to some extent: In Canada, for instance, the recommended cost for a game that sells for $59.99 in the US increased from $68.99 Canadian to $77.99, a jump of 13%. But the Argentine peso and Turkish lira were wild outliers: Recommended pricing in lira went up 454%, while peso pricing jumped an astonishing 485%.
The switch to US currency in Argentina and Turkey will see them included in a new “regionalized USD pricing” bloc that includes 25 countries across two regions, Latin America and Middle East/North Africa. The other countries included in the new pricing regions did not previously have local currency support. Here’s how they break down:
LATAM
Central America:
Belize
El Salvador
Guatemala
Honduras
Nicaragua
Panama
South America:
Argentina
Bolivia
Ecuador
Guyana
Paraguay
Suriname
Venezuela
MENA
Middle East:
Bahrain
Egypt
Iraq
Jordan
Lebanon
Oman
Palestine
Turkey
Yemen
North Africa:
Algeria
Libya
Morocco
Tunisia
Sudan
Valve said prices in some countries being switched to US currency will go up, while others may see a reduction, “depending on how games were priced on Steam prior to this change.” It’s ultimately up to individual developers to set their prices on Steam.
The change to US currency will take place on November 20. Any Steam user in those countries with money in their Steam wallet will have it converted to US dollars at the current exchange rate; in-game transactions in those regions will also switch to US currency, and any existing subscription services on Steam will continue uninterrupted, but will have to be renewed in US dollars when the time comes.
https://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Valve-is-dropping-local-currency-support-for-Turkey-and-Argentina.jpg6751200Carlos Pachecohttps://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Website-Logo-300x74.pngCarlos Pacheco2023-10-25 23:10:432023-10-25 23:10:43Valve is dropping local currency support for Turkey and Argentina amid ‘exchange rate volatility,’ moving to ‘regionalized USD pricing’ for 25 countries
Dark Souls is an interconnected game—if you datamine out a full model of Lordran, you’re able to look at the entire breadth of it like it’s a model train set, from the swamps of Blighttown to the hallowed halls of Anor Londo.
Back when the game first came to PC, its port was pretty shocking—it took about six years before the remastered version sorted most complaints out. But we’re PC gamers. If a game isn’t modded to have rig-melting textures or Dewmer rocket boots, what are we even doing here?
Fromsoftserve and their DSR Graphics Overhaul mod (thanks, Gamesradar) is one such attempt to polish the classic to a mirror sheen. This thing’s really impressive. Far from just a bunch of texture packs, fromsoftserve has been laboriously giving the whole game a facelift: bringing dynamic shadows to Lordran, making Anor Londo’s windows see-through, and even adding new meshes to far-off locations.
This adds to the game’s feeling of interconnectedness, letting you see anything from anywhere, as long as you’d be able to draw a reasonable line of sight to it. Turns out that FromSoftware were kind of banking on the draw distance, though.
My graphics overhaul mod allows you to easily cheese Capra demon with firebombs, since he now realistically shows up from Undead Burg. pic.twitter.com/UJ0OaYrExuOctober 24, 2023
See more
“My graphics overhaul mod allows you to easily cheese Capra Demon with firebombs,” writes fromsoftserve, before demonstrating their character hucking bombs all the way from the Taurus Demon fight to the Capra Demon down below. The modder relishes the fact that this works, and their explanations are pretty in-keeping with the rest of the game’s design.
“This is one of my favourite changes in my mod,” fromsoftserve wrote in a reply. “Because it makes sense that he’d be visible from here, as that’s his actual boss room location. Plus, most new players still wouldn’t notice it, I’d think. but for skilled players, they can take advantage.”
Overall, there’s some great work being done here. Fromsoftserve is going over Lordran with a fine comb, fixing small details that only a long-time fan would notice. You can keep up to date with the devs logs on their YouTube channel. Also, considering how much trouble the Capra Demon gave me back in 2011, I relish the sight of him and his freaking dogs getting lit up.
https://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/1698237825_This-graphics-mod-for-Dark-Souls-is-so-comprehensive-it.png6751200Carlos Pachecohttps://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Website-Logo-300x74.pngCarlos Pacheco2023-10-25 13:03:172023-10-25 13:03:17This graphics mod for Dark Souls is so comprehensive it breaks a boss fight, letting you bomb the Capra Demon from on-high
In what may be a land speed record for highlighting the inadequacy of a PC port, modder Serge has published a small tool for the new Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection ports that enables them to run at 4K or other resolutions. Despite Konami’s confusing claims over the last few months, players learned today that the emulated HD remasters of Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3 both render at 720p on PC, which makes for a particularly blurry picture on higher resolution 1440p or 4K monitors. This mod, which was released approximately 10 hours after the games unlocked on Steam, fixes that. It is 64.5 kilobytes.
I tested the MGSResolutionPatch in the opening minutes of Metal Gear Solid 3, setting the game to render at 3840×2160 (4K). The difference in image quality is stark.
It’s possible that this resolution change breaks some of the game’s visual effects, which were designed very specifically around the PlayStation 2’s hardware. From the opening minutes, however, it looks flawless.
And as eagle-eyed players of the game have pointed out (on Resetera, for example), some of those effects were already changed in the porting process to the PlayStation 3 in the 2011 HD Collection, which this release is based on. Sticking to this resolution for 3D games in 2023 remains a baffling choice, especially because there are some parts of the games Konami has gone in to modify, to correct a few glitches that exist in the HD Collection. Surfacing a resolution option for players would’ve gone an incredibly long way in soothing anger at this remaster.
The MGSResolutionPath apparently causes some UI issues in Metal Gear Solid 2 (or rather, changing the resolution in general causes those issues)—but I have a suspicion modders will be quick to solve that problem in the coming days, before scrutinizing the two games for any other visual oddities caused by rendering at 4K.
To change the resolution in MGS2/3, just follow the simple instructions on the Github page linked above; you’ll need to download a D3D11 file and the resolution patch, then stick both in the game’s install folder. You can then open the MGSResolutionPatch.ini to configure the resolution (it defaults to 4K).
https://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/1698201740_It-took-a-modder-just-hours-to-add-4K-support.jpg6751200Carlos Pachecohttps://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Website-Logo-300x74.pngCarlos Pacheco2023-10-25 01:28:052023-10-25 01:28:05It took a modder just hours to add 4K support to the Metal Gear Solid collection
Rocksmith 2014 has rocked out for the last time: Almost 10 years to the day after the acclaimed learn-to-play-guitar game debuted, Ubisoft has removed it from sale on all digital storefronts.
“Nearly 10 years ago we launched Rocksmith 2014 and set out on a journey of learning and playing guitar together, practicing old favorites, and discovering new ones along the way,” Ubisoft announced on October 20, just three days ahead of the game’s 10th anniversary. “We thank you for an incredible decade and know a big part of that was being able to feature officially licensed music to learn and play in Rocksmith 2014.
“Now as we approach that decade mark, we must remove Rocksmith 2014 for purchase from all digital storefronts as of October 23, 2023. DLC packs and Singles for Rocksmith 2014 will be removed from those storefronts over time as well.”
Anyone who already owns Rocksmith 2014 will still have access to it, and any owned DLC, with “no change or interruption” in service. For those who want to rock but missed the opportunity, Ubisoft’s subscription-based Rocksmith+ remains available—in fact, Ubisoft said it’s “looking to introduce some of the biggest names in metal, rock, R&B, and more” to the game in the coming months.
Rocksmith 2014 really was quite good. It’s earned a “very positive” rating on Steam over the years, and we called it “not just a fun game for guitar players, but the best way to learn how to play guitar or improve your technique” in our 91% review (via Metacritic). A remastered version released a couple years later added features including better practice tools and stat tracking, and the need for a “Real Tone Cable” to connect your guitar to your PC was eventually patched out too, making the software more easily accessible to players. And it boasted a huge library of music: 1,570 songs were available for it when DLC sales were finally halted in 2020.
Some of that Rocksmith 2014 DLC has already been removed from sale, and others will follow in waves over the coming months. If you’re an owner and want to ensure you’ve got all the rock you can possibly handle, now’s the time to browse the remaining catalogue and grab what you can.
Ubisoft didn’t say why it was compelled to remove Rocksmith 2014 from sale. I would guess expiring licenses are the likely culprit (because that’s what it usually is) but it’s also possible that it wants to focus solely on Rocksmith+. Whatever the reason, to borrow a phrase from The Who, Rocksmith 2014 is dead—long live Rocksmith 2014.
https://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/1698165674_Ubisoft-celebrates-Rocksmith-2014s-10th-anniversary-by-removing-it-from.jpg6751200Carlos Pachecohttps://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Website-Logo-300x74.pngCarlos Pacheco2023-10-24 17:27:542023-10-24 17:27:54Ubisoft celebrates Rocksmith 2014’s 10th anniversary by removing it from sale on all storefronts
As a dedicated fan of all things Mini-ITX, I love it when manufacturers think outside the box, or perhaps more appropriately inside it, by shrinking a graphics card this way or that. That’s why I was very pleased to see Colorful is working on a single slot RTX 4060 Ti 16GB card. It’s the only performance gaming graphics card in a single slot form factor that I can remember from the last few years, giving SFF fans an interesting option.
The card was spotted by @Zed_Wang. It measures in at 267 mm x 107 mm x 20 mm. It includes four display outputs made up of three DisplayPorts and one HDMI port. That leaves it just enough area on the rear I/O plate for a cutout to expel hot air.
A single slot RTX 4060 Ti is the kind of card that will appeal to users with truly tiny cases, while delivering the performance of a proper gaming card. Having a 16GB card that can make use of DLSS 3 and frame generation in a NUC sized system is definitely appealing.
It’s interesting that Colorful opted for the RTX 4060 Ti—and the 16GB variant at that, instead of the 115W RTX 4060. The RTX 4060 Ti is built around the AD106 GPU, with 4,532 shader units, a 2,535Mhz boost clock and a 165W TDP. That TDP, while relatively low, is still a big ask for a single slot cooler, so such a card will surely become quite audible when under load. But hey, if you wear headphones, it’s not like you’d be bothered by it anyway.
There are already RTX 4060 and RTX 4060 Ti small form factor options, and they may be preferable depending on your wants and needs. Colorful itself makes them, including the lovely little iGame RTX 4060 Ti Mini. Gigabyte makes a low profile RTX 4060 if you prefer that option, but both cards still take up two slots which makes it harder to cram several into a single system.
As SLI is no longer a thing, the need for multiple GPUs for gaming is defunct, but there are several scenarios where this 20mm thick card will appeal. These include systems with multiple monitors or video wall setups. Eight video ports would otherwise require a case with four slot support. Another use could be something like a budget compute system or render farm. Imagine if Ethereum mining was still happening? Cramming seven of them into a single ATX case would have been perfect for that.
A Threadripper 7000-series system with six or seven PCIe slots filled up with these cards would provide a lot of space-saving grunt.
Despite being impressed with this single slot card, it’s still very much a niche product. You’ll get more capable and quieter cooling from a regular dual slot cooler. Still, it’s nice to have an exceedingly rare single slot option for those that want it.
There’s no word on price right now, but it’s almost certain to fall in at the bottom end of RTX 4060 Ti 16GB pricing, so around $449 to $499 would be a safe bet.
https://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/1698129617_Small-form-factor-fans-could-soon-have-an-intriguing-new.jpg6751200Carlos Pachecohttps://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Website-Logo-300x74.pngCarlos Pacheco2023-10-24 04:49:582023-10-24 04:49:58Small form factor fans could soon have an intriguing new option after pictures of a single slot RTX 4060 Ti emerge
We just can’t get enough punishing fantasy horror action RPGs. After Elden Ring last year and Lies of P in September, and despite some early performance complaints and proximity to RPG juggernauts Baldur’s Gate 3 and Starfied, Lords of the Fallen has already sold more than a million copies, according to its publisher.
Lies of P also sold a million, though it took it a little longer. We once called that game “literally Bloodborne” (except starring Pinocchio), and Lords of the Fallen studio Hexworks is likewise all in on the FromSoft inspiration, and isn’t shy about it. Studio head Saul Gascon said earlier this year that the developer wants to be “the second reference [after FromSoftware]” in the soulslike genre.
Whether Lords of the Fallen is really the best of the non-From soulslikes is up for debate, but it is quite good: Harvey praised its boss fights in his review, and later said that his second playthrough was even more fun than his first.
Granted, things only got more fun the second time through because of Harvey’s biggest complaint with Lords of the Fallen: Its affinity for surprise ambushes and tedious mob tactics. His second playthrough was better because he knew where to expect the cheesy stuff. “If only Hexworks had pumped the brakes even a little on the axe maniacs crashing out from behind boxes,” Lords of the Fallen would’ve been more fun on playthrough one, Harvey reckons.
So gird yourself for surprise attacks and difficulty spikes, but once properly girded, expect some excellent boss fights and a delightfully macabre world full of proper nouns to do with evil gods and the folk who oppose them.
Two worlds, actually: The novel headline feature of Lords of the Fallen is a lantern which lets you peer or step into the land of the dead, a blue-filtered reality that manages to be even more grotesque than the dark fantasy world it underlies. It may not have resulted in the most sophisticated puzzle design ever, but it’s neat.
Lords of the Fallen’s still got a “mixed” user review rating on Steam, though there are now more positive than negative reviews rolling in. Thanks to a quick flurry of post-launch patches, I’m seeing less performance-related complaints in the recent negative reviews. They’re now more likely to cite the ambushes Harvey commented on in his review, or express disappointment with the co-op support.
On the topic of co-op, publisher CI Games says that an “expansive patch” for Lords of the Fallen is scheduled to deploy this Thursday, and that it will reactivate PC/console crossplay, which Hexworks disabled shortly after launch while it worked on improvements.
https://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/1698093596_Lords-of-the-Fallen-has-already-sold-1-million-copies.png6751200Carlos Pachecohttps://gamingarmyunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Website-Logo-300x74.pngCarlos Pacheco2023-10-23 21:02:112023-10-23 21:02:11Lords of the Fallen has already sold 1 million copies
We may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website.
Click on the different category headings to find out more. You can also change some of your preferences. Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer.
Essential Website Cookies
These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features.
Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site.
We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain.
We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. You can check these in your browser security settings.
Google Analytics Cookies
These cookies collect information that is used either in aggregate form to help us understand how our website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are, or to help us customize our website and application for you in order to enhance your experience.
If you do not want that we track your visit to our site you can disable tracking in your browser here:
Other external services
We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Changes will take effect once you reload the page.
Google Webfont Settings:
Google Map Settings:
Google reCaptcha Settings:
Vimeo and Youtube video embeds:
Other cookies
The following cookies are also needed - You can choose if you want to allow them:
Privacy Policy
You can read about our cookies and privacy settings in detail on our Privacy Policy Page.
