There's a write-up on Steam News recapping last month's Steam Next Fest. Word is the February installment attracted 8.7 million users to check out the various livestreams and demos the fest had to offer. There's word that the number of week-long demos the fest offered totaled 675, giving everyone 11 minutes for each, as long as no time was wasted on sleeping or eating. In an acknowledgement of that crunch, this recap includes listings of the demos that received the most play and the games that were wishlisted the most during the event. Last, but not least, is the note that the Steam Next Fest: June 2023 Edition will begin on June 19th. Here's part of the recap:

The February 2023 edition of Steam Next Fest is in the books, and it was another fun week of free demos and livestreams. We host Steam Next Fest three times a year, and each one is an opportunity for players to explore hundreds of demos of games before they launch on Steam.

Cool numbers from February 2023 Steam Next Fest:

• 8.7 million unique visitors, the highest number yet for this event.
• 675 playable demos, which is right in line with most Next Fests.

With so many demos to explore during just a week’s time, we thought we’d show the ones that a good number of Steam users seemed to enjoy (across all genres!) as a way to share some you may have missed. So we broke out a couple of smaller lists from the games that participated with demos in Steam Next Fest: February 2023 edition.

Outlanders is now available on Steam, offering PC gamers a Windows version of this settlement building game that debuted on Apple Arcade. Here's a previously released trailer celebrating the Steam port with a look at gameplay. But there's also the chance to experience this firsthand, as there's a playable demo. Here are some outlandish, if scant, details:

Outlanders is a town-building strategy game, populated by hard-working, charming folk in search of a simpler life. Some just want to survive off the land, others want to create amazing things.

It’s up to you to use the extensive catalog of tools and buildings at your disposal to guide them towards their goals.

Outlanders are individuals. Simple folk with hopes, dreams, and desires.

Continue here to read the full story.

• Konami Acknowledges 'Excitement and Enthusiasm' for More Castlevania Amid Dead Cells DLC Launch.

• Save 50% on the Halo Infinite Campaign on Steam.

• MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries - March 9th Patch Notes.
• Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord Patch Notes v1.1.1.
• Star Citizen Alpha 3.18: Lasting Legacies. Here's a trailer.
• Steam Beta Client Update- March 10th.
• Steam Deck Beta Client Update- March 10th.
• World of Warcraft Hotfixes- March 10, 2023.

↑ Official patches. ↓ Unofficial games, patches, and mods.

• Half-Life: A Full RT/Path-Traced Upgrade For The OG PC Classic Tested.

• Stadia’s pivot to a cloud service has also been shut down.

Content creator videos.

• Crafting your first item in a survival game - Viva La Dirt League.
• Act On Instinct - Frank Klepacki & The Tiberian Sons (Playthrough). Thanks Reddit via Ant.
• Firearms Expert Reacts To Destiny 2- Lightfall Guns.

• Destiny 2- Lightfall's World First Raid Completion Claimed by Shocking Underdog.

• Death From Above by Hendrik Lesser — Kickstarter. "An easy-to-pick-up arcade drone warfare game where you play as a Ukrainian military drone operator fighting against Russian invaders." Here's the Steam Listing and a Teaser Trailer.

• The Finals Preview: This Hunger Games Shooter-Style FPS Shows Promise But Has Major Issues - IGN.

• Gaming Console on a Stick to Feature Dual Raspberry Pi Chips.

• ChatGPT touches down on smartwatches – and it looks like a sci-fi dream.
• How to keep yourself safe from e-bike and scooter battery fires. Thanks RedEye9.

• Starbucks sold 2,000 NFTs in 20 minutes — coffee not included. Thanks Slashdot via Ant.
• Stablecoin USDC breaks dollar peg after firm reveals it has $3.3 billion in SVB exposure.

• AMD Shares First Official Ryzen 7 7800X3D Gaming Benchmarks vs Core i9-13900K, Up To 24% Faster.
• Intel's 56-core monster just crushed AMD's best processor to claim a world record.
• AMD motherboards are about to get a massive memory upgrade.
• NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 reportedly launches on April 13th.
• Google ditches Chrome Cleanup Tool for Windows systems.
• Get Ready to Meet the ChatGPT Clones (may require registration or subscription).
• GM wants to replace your car manuals with ChatGPT.
• Roku Had 26% Cash In Collapsed SVB. Thanks Ant.
• Why Do Some Modern Computers Still Have Serial Ports?

• ‘Pig Butchering’ Scams Are Now a $3 Billion Threat (may require registration or subscription).

Thanks Neutronbeam.

• Case: Chieftec BX-10B-OP Review - TechPowerUp.
• Case: InWin A5 Mid-Tower Chassis - TweakTown.
• Gaming Chair: Boulies Master Chair Review- Double Duty - Tom's Hardware.
• Headset/Earbuds: Best Headphones Compete at 2023 Headphone Shootout. Here are the Winners. - ecoustics.com. Thanks Neutronbeam.
• Keyboard: Corsair K70 Pro Mini Wireless review - PCGamesN.
• Laptop: Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 Review- A Surface-like Slate for Less - CNET.
• Mini PC: Ayaneo 2 Review - IGN.
• Mouse: Mad Catz B.A.T. 6+ Performance Ambidextrous Gaming Mouse Review - Hardware Asylum.

It's been a while, so I was overdue for a coffee making problem. My electric kettle has gone tango uniform this week. So I've been heating water on the stove like it's the 20th century while trying to decide if I'll get a new one, or just get an old-fashioned teakettle and call it a day. There are so many of these for sale, and so many of them seem like junk. But worse, they share characteristics that make it hard to find one that suits me. I want one with no plastic, a water capacity of at least 1.5 liters, multiple temperature options, and a gooseneck. It's like the old saying about being able to pick two choices between fast, cheap, and good. I can find plenty of larger units with no goosenecks and plenty of gooseneck units with no plastic, even larger ones. But finding the goldilocks model that combine all four of those features has proven difficult in the past (the one that just died has a regular pour spout). If I'm getting a unit that's just going to go straight to 212° and let it cool off, I may as well just get a teakettle and do the same thing. This is the kind of situation that leads to Kickstarters. Remember this moment when I appear on Shark Tank.

Boiling Round-up
Thanks Ant and Neutronbeam.

Stories

• The Daylight Saving Time Mess Just Won't Go Away (may require registration or subscription).
• Are we ethically ready to set up shop in space? We're not ethically ready for self-serve soda fountains.
• Mikaela Shiffrin breaks all-time skiing record with 87th World Cup win.

Science

• Astrobiologists train an AI to find life on Mars. It's a god-awful small affair. Thanks Reddit via A.M.
• NASA demos futuristic Space Cup for coffee that works without gravity. It's like the space pen/pencil joke. The Russians use a straw.

Media

• Making an Infinite LEGO Domino Ring.
• The 1st Amendment Doesn't Say that.
• Cocaine Bear Pitch Meeting.

Creature Features

• The Kiffness x Oh Long Johnson 2.0 - Hold Onto My Fur (Talking Cat Song). Thanks VideoSift.

Follow-up

• SodaStream is a bad deal, and modding your own is better. Makes me feel better about deciding against getting one.