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Latest Comments by sonic2kk
The EasySMX X05 Pro wireless controller is cheap, feature-filled and comfortable with a big flaw
2 Dec 2025 at 10:22 pm UTC Likes: 1

As a follow-up to my earlier comment, I haven't played any game that heavily rely on triggers as-such but Euro Truck Simulator 2 has been a blast with it, it feels like it has a lot more granularity than my 8BitDo Ultimate and is easier to drive with. Any games I've played with it on Dolphin have also been fine. I haven't noticed any problems, and I really like the buttons and comfort. It's become my primary controller now! :grin:

The EasySMX X05 Pro wireless controller is cheap, feature-filled and comfortable with a big flaw
10 Nov 2025 at 6:49 pm UTC Likes: 6

Took a chance and decided to buy this despite the flaw noted in the review. I have an 8BitDo Ultimate 2.4G and it works well but I like the look of the D-Pad on this with it being 8 directions. I'm also hoping it could be firmware but also wondering if it's a per-unit issue perhaps? And for the price, I don't mind giving it a try and sending it back if I have that issue.

Thanks for spotlighting this! I'm always interested in checking out new controllers.

Talking point - what have you been playing lately?
10 Nov 2025 at 5:13 pm UTC Likes: 2

I dumped almost 80 hours into Megabonk somehow (a great Native Linux title), but mainly I've been achievement hunting retro games on RetroAchievements; some via RetroArch (regrettably) on Steam, but mostly going after GameCube titles and preparing to play some Wii titles. I even got a DolphinBar, and an official Wii Remote and Nunchuck in preparation for going after Super Mario Galaxy achievements with my partner (Wii Remote needed a tweak to work, but I even played some Sonic Racing CrossWorlds with my Wii Remote and it worked flawlessly).

I haven't been playing ARC Raiders because I avoid games with invasive Client-Side Anti-Cheat (afaik it's userspace on Linux, but I don't want to support developers who use kernel anti-cheat).

D7VK brings Direct3D 7 to Linux using Vulkan based on DXVK
10 Nov 2025 at 5:05 pm UTC Likes: 3

Looks like it's by the author of D8VK? I could be remembering incorrectly though. Either way, pretty neat to see! I wonder if it'll stay standalone long-term or if it'll get merged in. I guess that would depend on interest upstream and how cleanly it could be merged in.

AMDVLK has been discontinued as AMD are throwing their "full support" behind RADV
15 Sep 2025 at 9:39 pm UTC Likes: 1

Never had any problem with RADV in the... Gosh, 9 years since? From all the way back with my beloved RX480. I still remember the "RADV is not a conformant Vulkan implementation: Here be dragons!" warning. How far we've come.

Great news in my opinion. I haven't noticed any ray tracing performance gap, but I'm also using a 7900XTX and avoid using raytracing on principle when I'm not checking "max settings" performance with a game.

New Valve trademark for 'Steam Frame', looks like we're getting new hardware
4 Sep 2025 at 4:34 pm UTC

You really don't need all that much space. When I play, I put down a really small floor mat (really small, just a square), and don't move from it. Helps stop you bumping into things too, as long as you feel the mat, you're good.
Sadly, I have extremely limited space. I don't really have room for lighthouses anywhere (I believe they go on stands in the corners, and three of my corners are inaccessible), my chair takes up all of the floorspace in my room so I don't have anywhere to place a mat. I suppose my bed could count :grin: But if I'm gonna drop all that money on a VR kit, I'd want to get the "full" experience.

Mind you, the only thing I think is worth experiencing in VR is Half-Life: Alyx. I've tried some of the other games and experiences, and I do not enjoy them. Half-Life: Alyx, for the story, and experiencing it in VR, is my primary motivation.

My other motivation is to own more Valve hardware! :tongue: I have a Steam Controller, Steam Link, Steam Deck LCD, and Steam Deck OLED.

New Valve trademark for 'Steam Frame', looks like we're getting new hardware
4 Sep 2025 at 11:06 am UTC Likes: 3

If I had enough playing space anywhere in my household, I would buy VR hardware from (and only from) Valve.

Blue Protocol: Star Resonance to be playable on Steam Deck but probably not Desktop Linux
3 Sep 2025 at 6:18 pm UTC

Another disgusting piece of malware that no doubt people are going to play. Gaming these days is depressing...

Steam UK users will now need a credit card to access mature content due to the Online Safety Act
29 Aug 2025 at 3:04 pm UTC Likes: 5

Heads up that a debit card also works fine, if you don't have a credit card. Although it bills you £1, rather than presumably £0 for a Credit Card. :grin:

The new Framework Laptop 16 brings AMD Ryzen AI 300 Series and modular GPU upgrades
27 Aug 2025 at 4:34 pm UTC Likes: 3

The lack of support for an Nvidia GPU was a big reason I was driven to Framework. This has been disappointing. Having these "AI" series chips is definitely disappointing too but I think that is more around naming on AMD's part.

I'm very happy with my original Framework 16 without a GPU module. It works very well, although I do wish they'd make a model with a bigger screen as 16-17" is too small for a laptop. Investment in this, smaller bezels, and a bigger trackpad would've been a much better investment than an Nvidia GPU and as others have pointed out a measly 8GB VRAM.