atom631

my OLED is a C1, so only 60hz panel. Although a 77” C3 might be on the menu. The couch gaming will probably be Single Player games so if Im getting over 60 with max/ultra settings w/ RT, that would be fine. Any competitive /mp games like BF or COD will probably only be done on the 1440 IPS panel

So I got the itch and Im building a new PC. My last build was 8+ years ago with a 980ti and i7-4770k. this rig is still going strong. Even fired up Bg3 and it runs surprisingly well once it loads in. the loading times are abysmal but I guess thats the CPU. So im going mini-itx build so I can move the PC from my desk where for now Im gaming in 1440 to my 65” OLED for some couch gaming. I have all my parts picked out but GPU. Going with a 7800x3D and 32gb DDR5 6000 CL30 ram. Stuffing this all in a Formd T1 case. Im down to whether to get a 4080 super or a 4090. Its such a huuuuuuge jump in price. I had a 4090 FE in my cart twice today and backed out. I know if money is no object just go big or go home. But 650 more?? is it really worth it? will it be that significant of a difference? or do I go 4080super and than maybe sell it down the road and get a 50xx?

ive been playing since launch (but havent been gaming much at all these last few months). Im about 95hrs, deep in to act 3. game is so good, but its such a time commitment to progress, which is why i havent been able to finish it yet. hopefully in the next month, ill finally have it complete. lol

if you start from the beginning, how much of the campaign do you have to play before you get to play the DLC? are we talking like 1/2 way through (20hrs or so)?

when is the best time to cast haste? should you cast it right before a fight begins or should it be the very first action of the character casting it?

im not saying this isnt true. I guess when there literally isnt anything else to complain about (except maybe the path finding for your companions at times), that I am just nitpicking at this point. in act 3 i had to help the mail courier find his lost mail. that is the type of quest you mention above. two other quests in mind are finding dribbles the clown and solving the murder in the church. unless somehow they will tie into the main quest that i cant comprehend yet, they felt like filler in a game that absolutely didnt need, nor has it had any up this point.

Im going to jump back into Cyberpunk when Im done with BG3. I had already completed the main story at launch. I have Phantom Liberty on deck. I havent really been keeping up with reviews/talk about it, but I read that they recommend starting fresh to play the DLC? Is that really necessary? I dont have time to start a new game just to get to the DLC. Too much other stuff to play (havent even fired up Starfield yet). Im assuming there is still a way to jump in to Phantom Liberty from my completed save file? Am I doing myself a disservice by doing this? How do I access the DLC from my existing completed save?

Act III is such crazy contrast to the rest of the game (at least so far). In typical storytelling as you progress, the world tends to get bleaker and darker...but in this game, you go from the gloom, creepiness and desperation of act II into this brightly lit city full of life and people going about their business. but you can still feel the heaviness of what's coming. it's really amazing world building. I'm not very far in yet. I'm heading to I've stayed mostly in the starting area trying to complete whatever side quests have popped up and basically talked to everyone that was clickable. I would say my only complaint in act 3 so far is it suffers the same gaming cliche many RPGs have. Here you are in an urgent mission, but they throw these silly side quests at you that really have nothing to do with the main story. I know they are skippable, but I want to see everything in this playthrough bc there's no way I can do a 2nd...just too many games to play (although wouldn't mind trying some multiplayer). I never felt that way about act 1 and 2. the side quests felt like they had meaning and tied into the larger story being told. Either way, the game is amazing. it's one of those games I can't stop thinking about even when I'm not playing or haven't even played in a few days.

just got to Act 3. this game just keeps getting better and better. ive been keeping track of my playtime act 1 - steam 40 - save file 27:30 act 2 - steam 70 - save file 48:45 not sure why its such a huge discrepancy. I know ive walked away a few times, but not 22hrs worth.

Im getting closer to the end of Act II. Havent been to moonrise yet but have done just about all the other side missions and cleared almost all of the map up to moonrise. I will say that if Act III is as good as Act 1 and 2, not only is this GOTY; this is easily in my top 5 of all time (and im not really a fan of turn-based combat).

yup. sneak in and get the surprise and its over.

@Air_Delivery @Paperclyp - I gave up and looked it up and its so ridiculously obvious. lol. I feel like an idiot. anyway I completed that whole area…but im about to do a massive save scum and do the last part all over. I love this game!

so im completely stuck in act 2. im doing the is there a trick to this?

Just picked this back up after being on vacation and then catching on up on work and life after coming back from vacation. I just completed Act 1. Steam is saying Ive been playing for about 40hrs but my save file is at 27.5. Its massive and was never dull or boring for a minute. Im pretty sure I did just about everything there was to do. I had to look up a few things here and there. One quest in particular: Was so cool and felt very Elden Ring like in its obscurity. The reward for completing it is absolutely awesome. I have a feeling it will be very useful in act 2 based on my 5 minutes there. For those of you who completed the game, are the other acts as long and meaty as act 1?

I think youre right about power throttling. My Alienware Control Center (AWCC) only has one power option - “balanced”. From what I read, there should be a few options such as power save and performance.

laptop works great. running BG3 in ultra/1440 basically. most other games too.

yup. i run afterburner. rarely does my CPU or GPU ever get above 70-72

I was just in the bios and i didnt see any where XMP being listed. but it did tell me my memory is running at 4800. i downloaded CPU-Z and under the SPD tab: SPD Ext. is greyed out. which i think this means XMP Is not enabled.

how could i confirm that?

i7-1200H and Crucial 64Gb DDR5 4800MT/s CL40

Does everyone keep all the game launchers running and starting with windows? Or do you only open them when you are playing a game through that launcher and then close it when done? So many damn launchers these days. Also - a few questions about my performance on my Alienware M15 R7 w/ I7, 3070ti, 64Gb Ram, 1TB boot drive and 2Tb Western Digital BLack SN850X 2TB drive for gaming. Here is my 3D Mark Score. I think my GPU score is within range for that model, but my CPU seems to be scoring really low. From what I read, I should be in the 11K range. It doesnt appear to be thermal throttling. Any idea why its so low? On my WD Black drive, I tried both with game mode on and off. In game mode off, I seem to be getting better read/write speeds and it runs cooler. But in both modes, the drive was running hot, reaching over 70 degrees (78 in game mode off). Are these good speeds for this drive? I know its up to 7300 read 6600 write. Game mode off game mode on

368 people beat it in 3 days!!!! Holy shit. They literally must have not taken more than 1-2 hrs/day break over the 3 days. thats insane.

hallelujah!

speaking of mods, I was watching FightingCowboy stream and he had a mod that allowed him to have up to 8 party members! somehow it wasnt game-breaking and seemed to function totally fine. and speaking of Gale. Im getting fucking sick of sacrificing gear to him, but its great having a wizard in the party. I have him cast grease and then use Shadowheart to throw a fireball. Works amazing for crowd control.

how do i get my bonus to attack up higher? is that just through levelling? or is there specific gear i should look out for?