jdodson | Cheerful Ghost

2020's Best Monitors for PC Gaming: A Digital Foundry Guide

Recently I purchased a new Ultra Wide monitor as I am Software Engineer by trade and work from home. I've been doing that now for 8+ years and also provide myself all of my peripherals, monitor, desk, chair and office. About the same time ago I purchase a Dell Ultrasharp that has run like a champ from job to job and StarCraft II to Rage 2 over those 8 years. I recently started a new role at Salesforce and decided that after 8 years it was time for a new monitor. In the end I went with a fresh new Dell Ultrasharp Ultra Wide and it's a dream. It's not something i'd recommend for gaming but if you are looking for a new gaming display Digital Foundry has a great video guide you need to watch.

Digital Foundry makes a few recommendations starting at the best overall gaming 1080p monitor that has a great low price to some superb 4K displays. One thing I've noticed is that if you want to get a very high refresh rate at 140hz - 240hz it's easier to find 1080p displays. You can find a great refresh rate with higher resolution but your options begin to be more limited. That said, keeping the price of a great PC in mind and pushing as many frames as possible 1080p isn't a bad choice for an incredible display.

Let me know what kind of display you are using in the comments and any tech specs you can spare such as size, resolution and refresh rate/hz.

LGR Builds An Incredibly Powerful PC!

I'm not sure this is video game news in a general sense but I found this LGR video to be entertaining and awe inspiring. Awe inspiring because it's really incredible how powerful computers are now and I felt like it was worth talking about. Yeah, yeah, we have blazingly capable computing devices in our pocket, the Nintendo Switch and any smartphone being chief among them but it still feels special to me when we hit certain computing milestones and somehow when I watched this LGR video it felt like one.

What are the specs on his latest PC?

AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3970X Processor
MSI Creator TRX40 Motherboard
Corsair Vengeance LPX 128GB (4 x 32GB) DDR4-3600 RAM
EVGA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER FTW3
2TB+1TB+1TB Samsung 970 EVO Plus NVMe M.2
4TB Samsung 860 QVO SSD
Be Quiet! Dark Rock Pro TR4 CPU Cooler
LG Blu-Ray Burner WH16NS40
Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
EVGA SuperNOVA 1000W PSU
Fractal Design Define XL R2 Case
Asus ROG PG348Q 34" Monitor

I want to highlight the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3970X that starts out at $1,800 bells and contains a whopping 32 CPU cores. I remember when dual core machines were hot on the market but extremely expensive. For a time quad core machines were the fastest tech and most expensive tech around but now quad core CPU's are quite common place. To me, 32 core CPU's seem like some kind of incredible leap and noteworthy. What's also noteworthy is that most gaming doesn't use much beyond a few cores if any and we are quite a ways from them taking advantage of 4 cores much less 32. Still, video editing and CAD pipelines can take advantage of that kind of CPU tech and it might not be too far away from games to be able to as well.

So if you had a bunch of cash burning a hole in your pocket and wanted to flex on some kind of crazy future proof Desktop PC, LGR's latest video editing machine may be something to consider. Or just click play on the video and dream of a 32 CPU core future.

Elder Scrolls Blades is Now on the Switch!

Blades released on iOS and Android in March of 2019 and was a pretty good Elder Scrolls game considering the free price. The game looks stunning on my iPhone XS Max and when Bethesda mentioned it would eventually come to consoles and PC I was excited. I played it starting at the beta and stopped a month or so after I started. Blades is a good phone RPG but it didn't have a lot to do and I felt the missions were all very similar.

Since I left Bethesda has been continuing work on Blades and recently they released it on the Nintendo Switch. Since Blades is an online game it seamlessly loads your account from the phone version to the Switch. Your progress, inventory and anything you may have purchased is available to play on the Switch in handheld mode or docked to your TV. Blades was made for mobile but it feels like a great match on the Switch. Blades looks good on the Switch hardware in handheld mode and on the TV but it does feel a bit "last gen." It's a good balance between low download size and graphical fidelity and considering the Switch isn't as powerful as modern consoles or PC's it's fine.

The best part about Blades on Switch is the controls. The touch controls of Blades on mobile works well it's just not how I enjoy playing Elder Scrolls games. Now that the game is fully playable on the Switch joycons and Switch Pro controller Blades feels better. You still can only engage with one enemy at a time as with the mobile game but hitting buttons feels more at home with the other Scrolls games I've played.

Hopefully Blades comes to PS4, XBox One and PC because i'd love to see if Bethesda includes increased visuals to match. Even if it doesn't there is a lot of fun here to play even though Blades contains some annoying free to play trappings.

Behold The Wonder of Terraria 1.4!

ChippyGaming has a fun new Terraria 1.4 gameplay video out showing some of the new game features and they look superb. The biggest standout are the updated graphics and polished UI improvements.

Dare I say this looks to be the biggest Terraria update yet? Glad this game made a zillion bucks so they can give it this final send off.

This has been shared in some comment threads but wanted to give it more visibility.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 05/11/2020 at 03:09am

That makes me want to play, particularly so I can more easily notice the difference.

Travis Admin wrote on 05/11/2020 at 02:34pm

Yeah I think Journey mode alone would have made this the biggest update yet.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 05/12/2020 at 12:40am

Saturday!!! Whoooot!!!!!!!

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 05/13/2020 at 02:04am

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIb6AZdTr-A

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 05/13/2020 at 02:31am

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 05/15/2020 at 02:40am

https://forums.terraria.org/index.php?threads/there-back-again-a-summary-of-journeys-end.87997/

Travis Admin wrote on 05/15/2020 at 03:05am

As Thanos said, this does bring a smile to my face.

This is easily the biggest update. Before this, the core game was still the same, but this changes things in such fundamental ways that it feels almost like a sequel.

Like just the NPC hotels we always made... those are now a very bad idea. But the pylons let us visit them wherever they are, and it makes sense to put them where they want to be. And that changes the game in enormous ways on its own.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 05/17/2020 at 09:56pm

Try using the seed 05162020 and go find the Moon Lord's legs. This is a mysterious seed and is the date of the update's release. Check it out and watch Chippy's video: https://youtu.be/6pltnm1Ax7o

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 05/18/2020 at 02:44am

Moon Lord's legs are great. Seems like they aren't too hard to find either.

Wonder what else is hidden in that map and if there are any other maps like that?

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 05/19/2020 at 08:25pm

I started to wonder something and only did a little "Googling," but I'm not entirely sure I have my answer. What has my curiosity is why Re-Logic (and other devs) have (or continue to do) given us free content expansions/DLC. I read it could be kind of service to the community or fans. I think maybe new content would help increase sales, though I'm not sure by how much or for how long. I'm just not sure that it makes complete sense to me though. I'm certainly not complaining, but I'm sure devs want paid. Maybe they've made enough from sales to keep working on it. Perhaps each company (devs) has their own reason for this. What do you think? Again, I do think it's really nice and even great that devs continue to work on a game even after it's released and with such content. It certainly makes a game more playable (assuming the content is good).

Travis Admin wrote on 05/19/2020 at 08:42pm

They reached their highest concurrent player count on the release day of 1.4, so yeah I think the updates throughout the years have definitely helped their sales. I'm sure they would have made a fraction of their millions without the updates.

Travis Admin wrote on 05/25/2020 at 05:47pm

Jon, you wondered what other seeds might be available, there are two more. I think one is of particular interest to you ;)

https://terraria.gamepedia.com/Secret_world_seeds

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 05/25/2020 at 07:07pm

Hahahaha ❤️

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 05/25/2020 at 08:37pm

I like games w/ seeds, especially if I can find really good seeds. I haven't searched for one for Terraria, but I could describe what I want, but it might be difficult to get. Also, wow it's almost hard to fathom why people would want this game to be even harder.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 05/27/2020 at 03:22am

> Also, wow it's almost hard to fathom why people would want this game to be even harder.

Yeah. I don't get why furries but they are here and that's ok.

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The Evercade is a New Retro Handheld That Looks to Offer Something Special!

The Evercade is an upcoming retro handheld that improves on the sea of off brand handhelds in that it supports officially licensed retro collections you can purchase on collectable game carts. Evercade also worked with many prominent emulation developers to bring an extremely similar experience to the original hardware. DF Retro examines the system and gives it a solid review score comparing it to original and best of breed recreation hardware.

The Evercade price point seems solid at $80 for the main unit or $100 for the base unit and three pack in game collections and $20 for each game collection. For quite some time I've hoped we'd get a brand new retro system that you could make physical games for and this seems to be the answer. It makes sense that this would start out as a handheld and I appreciate it has an HDMI out to play on the television.

https://evercade.co.uk/

If you are looking for more on the Evercade check out Metal Jesus review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHOchWVYe-E

The Final Super Mario Maker 2 Update Gets A World Creator!

Looks like Super Mario Maker 2 is getting its last big free update and it’s incredible. Folks thought we’d get a new Super Mario 2 theme and they didn’t quite add that but we did get a SMB2 mushroom which looks to add those mechanics to the game.

“ A free update to Super Mario Maker 2 for the Nintendo Switch system adds a new World Maker mode, as well as a host of new content and features on April 22.

In World Maker mode, multiple courses created by a user can be tied together on a path from the starting point on a world map to the end castle. The look of the world map can also be customized. Up to eight worlds containing a total of up to 40 courses can be combined, creating a mini Super Mario game that can be shared* with others.

In addition to World Maker, guess who else is making an appearance in Super Mario Maker 2? The Koopalings! All seven of these troublemakers, each with his or her own movement pattern, can be added to user-created courses. Other enemies added to the game include the key-chasing Phanto and the wind-up Mechakoopas.

Additional power-ups and course parts are also coming to Super Mario Maker 2 as part of the free update. This includes the SMB2 Mushroom, which transforms Mario and friends into their look from the Super Mario Bros. 2 game and allows them to pick up and throw items and enemies – just like in that classic game! With the Frog Suit from the Super Mario Bros. 3 game, Mario can swim through water with ease, and even run across its surface! Other power-ups added to the game are the Power Balloon first introduced in the Super Mario World game, the Super Acorn from the New Super Mario Bros. U game and the Boomerang Flower from Super Mario 3D World. There are also five variations for wearables like the Cannon Box and Propeller Box from the Super Mario 3D World game.”

Update To Tale of the White Wyvern Fight Run Mechanics

We have been wanting to change the fight run mechanics for quite some time, and recently had time to simplify how it works. Before these changes, the fight run mechanic was needlessly complicated and allowed you to run away essentially every time. Iif the run attempt was unsuccessful, you could just try again without consequence, so with enough patience in spamming run, at some point you'd run away and suffer no ill consequence of hitting it a bunch of times.

We just pushed up a change to the fight run mechanic in that you have a random 1 in 4 chance to successfully run. If your run attempt fails, you take half the incoming damage or at least one damage from the enemy. This means that you can take damage from running away and could possibly die.

Before this change, the Mage Teleport spell was a spell few used; it would always take you out of battle, but running was free, would accomplish the same thing. We believe the update to run will give players more reason to choose Mage, and to buff Mage a bit further, Teleport now costs 3 MP (down from 4) and Healing now costs 7 MP (down from 8).

As always we look forward to your input and would love to hear what you think in the comments.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 04/19/2020 at 07:45pm

https://youtu.be/7FPELc1wEvk

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/19/2020 at 08:55pm

HA, thanks Greg!

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 04/19/2020 at 09:03pm

I think this is a great mechanic! I've recently been playing FF3, and I love the run away animation. That's how I'm going to imagine running away in Wyvern now!

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 04/20/2020 at 05:54am

Wow! I just realized you attached this video!

Also at you guys looking like gang members with your faces covered.

jaelte wrote on 04/21/2020 at 05:54am

Looks like Run had been working more-or-less how I thought it did *and* what I encountered was not a bug, but a change. Thanks for pointing me to this!
Also, folks weren't playing Mage? It's always felt like the strongest to me due the sheer number of battles I win due to being able to use a single Magic Missile. I almost always start Mage and switch to Rogue late so I can blast the Wyvern from the shadows. I never use Teleport or Healing, though, so it's nice that those may get to be decent options now.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 04/21/2020 at 06:56am

Yeah, sorry we kind of buried this update. Maybe it would help if we had something in the news section to let us know of changes like this.

Wow people play as a Mage? I always felt like the Rogue was the best, because a wyvern can't hit what it cannot see. As soon as I learned about Invisibility, I never went back to another class.

jaelte wrote on 04/21/2020 at 07:38pm

I like the Disappear ability specifically for Wyvern and now Fish fights, but I died so... many... times in the forest as a Rogue and that was when running away was essentially free. There aren't nearly enough uses of Disappear to use for every Angry Rich Boss or Xenomorph in a given day.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 04/21/2020 at 10:14pm

I haven't had much trouble in the forest, very rarely I have. https://youtu.be/nYSDC3cHoZs

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/22/2020 at 03:20am

One feature Travis and I are working on now is how to let people know in Wyvern about updates and changes to the game... in the game. Folks don't read Cheerful Ghost daily, but for folks that do play the game daily why not just alert you in game? So yeah, we're sorting that out now as something we'd like before we release 1.0 among a few other things.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 04/22/2020 at 04:29am

Yeah, I thought about that most recently. Perhaps if we had a town crier or some way a CG post about the game could find it's way into the daily news of the game. Perhaps it could stay there for a period of time to give players enough time to be aware of it.

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Nightdive Studios Brings An Incredible Port Of Doom 64!

Digital Foundry has another incredible review of Doom 64 up on YouTube and as with most of their coverage, you need to watch it. As the interview unfolds they bring in some really fun perspectives of the Nightdive developers working on this port. Nightdive studios doesn't just emulate these old games but ports them brining new features and enhancements to old games giving them a level of love and polish games like Doom 64 deserves.

"In a DF Retro exclusive, John Linneman talks with Nightdive Studios about the process of bringing the classic, totally original Nintendo 64 rendition of Doom over to the current-gen platforms. In this video, you'll see what made the original release so fascinating, while Nightdive staff tell all on how the game was reverse-engineered and delivered on current-gen platforms. Oh - and is this the first 1440p Xbox One S game?"

What Are You Playing During Quarantine?

Hope all of you are having a safe quarantine. With that I was curious what everyone was up to while we are all locked away in our houses. Since I have a 4 year old most of my weekend time is spent with him but I have been making time to play some Super Nintendo Classic and focusing on Earthbound and Star Fox. I nearly beat Star Fox yesterday but Andross shut me down on my last life.

"Dude Is Satan in this Game?" Jack Black Plays Doom Eternal

Jack Black: Dude it's getting biblical talk about the mark of the beast!
Sammy Black: It's about hell.
Jack Black: Dude is Satan in this game?
Sammy Black: Uh, not exactly Satan.
Jack: No spoilers.
Jack: Sumpin' tells me we gonna battle Satan!

It's a Jack Black playing Doom Eternal. Just click the button already.

jdodson1

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