Back in 2007 I built myself a gaming PC with two brand new GTX 8800 cards (SLI, baby!) and nearly cooked/choked them to death in first week of operation. What I learned back then was that nVidia drivers did not create a proper fan curve that would ramp up with rising temperatures and that I needed a piece of 3rd party software named Afterburner to keep my system cooled.

It's been nearly 20 years and probably a dozen different graphic card models since then. I have just finished installing a render box for my wife with a 3090 in it. Installed the drivers. Installed the Afterburner. Tuned it.

Then it dawned on me: Is this still a necessary step? What would happen if I did not install Afterburner? Don't nVidia drivers control the fans properly?

Logic dictates it would be crazy for the official drivers not to keep the card cool, but I've been doing it one way for so long that I am too afraid to experiment (risking hardware damage?).

When you're afraid to let evidence lead you, next best thing is surely asking strangers on the internet - so here it goes: Is MSI Afterburner necessary? What would happen if I don't install it? Do YOU have it installed?

Some of the reviews of this game mention a major story line...

would you say it makes sense to play Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth not having completed all the mainline Yakuza games?

For context - Yakuza: Like a Dragon was my first game in the series. Like many, I've fallen in love with the madness, the cheese, the comedy and the world of the series and started playing the Kiryu saga of Yakuza 0 - 6. I am currently on number 3, and wondering if it makes more sense to soldier on, play through all originals before picking the latest entry, or to just jump in and enjoy the new title.

In other words: How much do you recon would Infinite Wealth spoil the original series, or how much would not playing original series spoil my enjoyment of Infinite?

Really curious about people's thoughts.

A week ago or so I posted a tan colored cutie that popped up in my garden. Wasn't quite sure of what it was. I think now it's pretty clear - and also has 5 friends all within few feet of each other.

Hey everyone, It's this time of the year again. New fighting game came out and noobs like me are asking the questions you've heard a million times before. Humor me, would you?

I am new to fighting games, if you discount random button mashing for a while and then uninstalling - but for once I'd like to get better at them. Nearing 50 years of age, my reflexes aren't what they used to be when I was 20, but I still think I could have some fun, especially with the new MK1 just out.

I typically play games on a PS5 Dual Sense controller, but very quickly found out that its d-pad does not really work for me. While it was great for quarter and half-circle inputs, stuff like left-right was nearly impossible for me to pull off without hitting up (or down) on the way.

I tired an XBOX controller (I think it's the X1), but it was still not quite there. I hate the weight, the size and how clicky it is overall :(

A while back I bough (and almost never used) a cheap-o fightstick - Mayflash F300. Left-Right is still kinda tough, but generally I had the best experience with it. The problem is in how damn loud the thing is. Buttons feel a bit loose (rattling?) and the microswitches on the joystick click so loud my neighbors will come knocking if I play too much ;)

What I am getting at is - is there any recommended controller/stick you could suggest? I am hoping not to break the bank, but if it's worth it, I'd pay the premium for something that's responsive, comfortable, beginner friendly and not-too-loud.

I'd appreciate any help, suggestions, etc.

At the moment i am considering maybe playing on mechanical keyboard, but I feel like my fingers would slide off the right buttons in no time...

Aliens games have always been a mixed bag with really low lows, but then some pretty high highs. Aliens: Dark Descent definitely falls to the latter category.

Unfortunately for me I neither have the patience, nor the time to play the title, so I am looking for a good YouTube Let's Play / Walkthrough / Playthrough series. Any recommendations?

I tried watching the one by Christopher Odd - typically I love his videos, especially on strategy games, but he did not seem to "get" this game, making many of his decisions super-frustrating to watch.

If I may be so bold as to list some things I am looking for:

• Full playthrough. I've seen good half of the game already, I am interested in second half and ending
• Narration preferred, as long as it's not over the top. I'd love some level-headed commentary or strategy explanation. There is nothing that will get me to stop the video and blacklist a channel like exaggerated reactions, dumb jokes and/or bigotry.
• No caster picture-in-picture. Just gameplay - I don't need to see the person playing
• Most importantly: Good gameplay. Someone who understands the game systems, or learns them over the course of the series.

Hope my list of demands is not impossible to meet. Thanks in advance!

Many of names in various Diablo 4 regions are heavily inspired by existing cultures. The NW of the map is a Slavic land. NE is British Isles, Southern areas are Turkic/Persian, etc.

What I noticed a lot is many of the NPC names are borrowed from other cultures. They are, however mostly pronounced wrong. It's almost as if the names were picked at random from a text source without anyone verifying how the words are originally pronounced.

Early in the story we encounter the widow of man named Julek. It's a common name in Poland (where I am from), but it should be read as Yulek. Instead, the voiceovers feature the same J sound as in John or James.

Yonca is a common Turkish name, but once again the pronunciation is all wrong. Her name (meaning "clover") should read more like Yondja - but instead we are served with Yonka.

There are a whole bunch of these all over the place, and I am only touching on Polish/Slavic and Turkic/Persian influences that I am personally familiar with. No idea if Celtic and Nord words are butchered in equal measure.

The whole situation reminds me of that old Super Nintendo game Fighting Baseball where some Japanese developer was tasked with coming up with plausible-sounding US names. These are the ones on the attached image.

Rant over.

I really like Diablo 4. I just wish the multicultural influences received the same level of polish and attention as the graphics, mechanics and other areas.

It's a wonderful YouTube channel posting once a week, on Sundays.

I was wondering if anyone here could help me identify a typeface I quite like.

I see it in many Japanese games, often used for English subtitles. Two titles that come to mind are Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition, and more recently Street Fighter 6. Any idea what's the name of the font?

It's been a while since I last seen anyone posting graphs showing user base growth. Are we past the initial rush and bleeding numbers now?

I've always been bad at minmaxing, playing games mainly for stories and escapism. With Diablo though the whole fun is in progression, gearing up, etc.

After completing pre-season campagin on a Sorc and a Necro, I decided to go with a Barbarian for Season 1.

All was fine and dandy until around now. I am at level 51. Content in Tier 1 and Tier 2 is pretty much a cakewalk. Content in Tier 3 is frustratingly hard. I have no idea how to gear up, as most stuff that drops for me in T2 is pretty low compared to what I painstakingly grinded through many many death-per-dungeon runs trying Tier 3.

I leveled using Hammer of the Ancients, but got bored of it and switched to Whirlwind (which I have fond memories of). Problem is, naturally in Fury management. Unless the area is absolutely packed with mobs, I don't seem to be able to sustain the whirlwind for long enough. On T2 it's OK. I do some fury generation then get back to it. On T3 by the time I get the bar filled again I'm usually dead.

Any idea what should I be doing? Is there some harder T2 stuff that rewards better gear? Or maybe easier T3 stuff?

At the moment if not careful I can die to even roaming elites in T3, while in T2 I can sleepwalk through pretty much everything I've seen...

HALP, PLZ <3

Activision Blizzard is not a good company. They have an abysmal track record for how they treat their employees, history of misogyny and abuse. Since the departure of Blizzard's founding members, the quality of many of their games took a noise dive.

They got one thing very right though, and that's account-level, platform independent save system in Diablo 4.

Being able to seamlessly switch between my PC, PS5 and Steam Deck is probably the coolest thing I experienced in gaming in a very long time. While it would be awesome not to have to buy the titles individually on each platform, it's a huge step in the right direction.

I can only wish more games supported cross-platform saves, because now that I'm used to it, I can really feel the absence of this feature in other titles.

(It would also help a lot with games preservation, if you could easily use old save files on newer platforms and remasters - as long as it's not all server-bound)