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Verified Actual Gamer Program Information [See Best Answer / 2021-10-08 update]

Padblaze
By Padblaze
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Go to solution Solved by LogicalDrm,

*** IMPORTANT *** LATEST INFO ***


***

Latest drop was made 2021-09-28 17:11 UTC

The drop is over, we have no info about when, what or where the next will be. Follow LinusTechTips on Youtube for any new drops.

***

EXPECTED TO DROP NEXT:

  • Intel Arc GPUs (hinted at Dec 24th WAN Show)

***

About shipping and handling

  • Handling times seem to be 1 week from drop to shipping label created.
  • Shipping times depend on carrier. For outside of NA, the carrier is FedEx and shipping times seem to be regular 5-14 days. For US and Canada, the shipping times might be same, or even longer.
  • Any additional charges, like customs fees and local VAT are paid on entry to country. There has been variation between countries to whom payments are made (FedEx on delivery, FedEx to their office, custom directly), so contact your local FedEx or customs offices for more details on those.

***

Known drops:

1. Asus 3070, 3080 and 3090, 2021-03-20 17:40 UTC

Spoiler

 

2. MSI 3080 SeaHawk, 2021-03-30 16:59 UTC

Spoiler

3. AMD Ryzen 9 5900X, 2021-04-09 00:59 UTC

Spoiler

 

4. Asus TUF 6800XT, 2021-04-24 01:57 UTC / During WAN Show

Spoiler

 

5. Asus TUF 6800XT, 2021-04-26 17:05 UTC

Spoiler

vag2.thumb.PNG.ddd1ef7594273016c360771a196baf6a.PNGvag.PNG.6b7b0a1f9d7fc091e7b30720625e99f8.PNG

 

6. EVGA RTX 3060 XC Gaming / RTX 3070 FTW3 Ultra, 2021-05-06 20:29 UTC

Spoiler

 

7. MSI RTX 3080 Ti VENTUS 3X OC, 2021-09-28 17:11 UTC

Quote

$1589.99

***
 

Spoiler

 

PARTICIPATION ENDED! If you are local to LMG (Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada), you can participate to this https://gleam.io/nntHg/verified-actual-gamer-program-can-you-beat-linus

Announced in WAN Show https://youtu.be/-qj6hkLkdYg?t=2450

The even video (also 6th drop video)

 

***

FAQ

 

How do I enter? Can I enter? Where to signup?

You don't. All information about the drops are posted to Youtube and are hidden in videos. So far all drops have been on LinusTechTips main channel.

 

UPDATE: One of the drops was made live, during the WAN Show on Fridays. Until now there has been no drops on Friday or weekends.

 

UPDATE: For limited time, you can participate with local event https://gleam.io/nntHg/verified-actual-gamer-program-can-you-beat-linus

 

I watched the video, but there were no information. Where do I find this?

The information about the drop is removed from video after the drop is over.

 

When are videos posted?

At the moment LMG is using their regular timeslot which is 10-11AM PST (17-18 UTC).

UPDATE: LMG has posted in different timeslot to allow those in school or working chance.

 

How does this work?

So far the known information is following:

  • Video is posted on Youtube and Floatplane at the same time.
  • There's segment in video where Linus gives a hint about what link you need to use in order to enter. The hints are words and Linus uses his fingers to state what parts of the link they are. The links start with http://www.lttstore.com/. Link is temporary and will only show note about drop ending afterwards.
    • UPDATE: Previously there was actual cut-scene, latest drop had just voice-over during b-roll.
  • There will be challenge on store page.
    • The first two drops had 15 question quiz about video games. You have 3 lives and 3-4 options to choose from. Fastest to finish will get their chance to buy items.
      • Besides 3 lives, you can skip 2 questions.
      • The latest drop had questions in video format with some answers shown as "A/B/C/D" and some as written normally.
    • UPDATE: Latest drop had small flash game in style of Jump King / Icy Tower.
  • Item of the drop is shown on store page before taking the quiz. You will see the price and other details too.
  • UPDATE: After completing challenge, you are put onto queue with AFK meter to prevent idling. Forgetting to re-charge bar will drop you at the tail end of the line
  • Prices are before VAT, tariffs etc. and shown in USD. Price after tariffs (US only) are shown on page.
  • You are allowed to buy one CPU and one GPU from this event. (Source)

 

Can you tell me when the next drop is?

No, because we don't know.

 

I'm at school/sleeping/working/have other reasons and can't watch at current time slot.

Linus has said that they will at some point use different time slot. What it is, we don't know. UPDATE: The time slot for later time was 12PM-1AM UTC.

 

Why can't they have link or more information somewhere?

Because the whole point is make this as hard as possible for anyone but the absolute most dedicated fans.

 

Why they don't collect list of people? Why aren't forum members, Floatplane subscribers etc. prioritized?

List wouldn't do anything. There would still need to be draw of sort needed, and the list would consist more of non-gamers the longer it was left open. Prioritizing forum members would discriminate towards other parts of audience.

 

Having payment as requirement to join or as something making "winning" more likely is classified as lottery under laws. This would require permit, it would exclude several regions which require local permits or don't allow any lottery, and it would put age limit of 19 years in place.

 

Can I try quiz afterwards?

At the moment, no. But there might be site at some point after event ends.

 

***

Posts made by Luke and Linus.

Spoiler

 

***

WAN Show segments

Spoiler

WAN Show Jun 4, 2021

26:25 - 27:10 "We currently have no stock, but the program is still on"

1:23:00 - 1:23:30 One board partner with some 3080Ti's coming

 

WAN Show April 23, 2021

17:43 - 34:43 VAG Drop live on stream

43:15 - 44:50 VAG drop is over, hinted about 270 more cards

1:16:40 - 1:17:44 Some last minute info

***

WAN Show April 16, 2021

1:36:30 Super-chats

***

WAN Show April 9, 2021

13:20 - 13:40 The latest drop info
40:50 - 43:55 The local event info
1:15:35 - 1:17:34 Super-chats #1
1:24:25 - 1:24:47 Super-chats #2
1:25:47 - 1:26:07 Super-chats #3

***

WAN Show August 27, 2021

1:05:40 - Super-chats

***

WAN Show October 8, 2021

2:06:20 - Super-chats

Here Linus says that Verified Actual Gamer program would be suspended until further notice. Reason given was that retail prices are about same as so-called "scalper prices". Making the program pointless.

***

 WAN Show December 24, 2021

1:09:10 onward

***

 

To be updated

***

Misc:

Spoiler

https://linustechtips.com/topic/1312490-verified-actual-gamer-program-information/?do=findComment&comment=14584314

https://linustechtips.com/topic/1312490-verified-actual-gamer-program-information/?do=findComment&comment=14584685

https://linustechtips.com/topic/1312490-verified-actual-gamer-program-information/?do=findComment&comment=14584833

https://linustechtips.com/topic/1312490-verified-actual-gamer-program-information/?do=findComment&comment=14590605

https://linustechtips.com/topic/1312490-verified-actual-gamer-program-information/?do=findComment&comment=14599356

https://linustechtips.com/topic/1312490-verified-actual-gamer-program-information/?do=findComment&comment=14599549

https://linustechtips.com/topic/1312490-verified-actual-gamer-program-information/?do=findComment&comment=14629352

https://linustechtips.com/topic/1312490-verified-actual-gamer-program-information/?do=findComment&comment=14677960

https://linustechtips.com/topic/1312490-verified-actual-gamer-program-information/?do=findComment&comment=15015997

https://linustechtips.com/topic/1312490-verified-actual-gamer-program-information-see-best-answer-2021-10-08-update/?do=findComment&comment=15171174

 

 

Posted
29 minutes ago, LogicalDrm said:

Linus did say in the WAN Show that the price of MSRP for the Asus cards went up just recently because the manufacturing-side has issues with production materials and high demand overall.

Or they just want part of the profit for themselves (Asus, not Linus), we won't know ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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Posted
4 minutes ago, Amongalen said:

Or they just want part of the profit for themselves (Asus, not Linus), we won't know ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

MSRP of reference cards aka those coming from AMD directly is different from MSRP for AIB cards already. Asus and others have extra stuff added to reference design. Be it just beefier cooling, or factory overclocking. That alone means, and has always meant, that MSRP for AIBs is higher than for reference. And AIBs are making profit already. Why do you think they are even in business if all their revenue would go to AMD? Makes no sense.

 

Sure, they can have higher pricing to increase profits they are getting per card. But this would be more because their analytics can see that people are willing to pay premium. More people willing to pay more, higher the MSRP can be set. And retailers can set their prices even higher in order to guarantee their part of the profits.

^^^^ That's my post ^^^^
<-- This is me --- That's your scrollbar -->
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Posted
38 minutes ago, LogicalDrm said:

MSRP of reference cards aka those coming from AMD directly is different from MSRP for AIB cards already. Asus and others have extra stuff added to reference design. Be it just beefier cooling, or factory overclocking. That alone means, and has always meant, that MSRP for AIBs is higher than for reference. And AIBs are making profit already. Why do you think they are even in business if all their revenue would go to AMD? Makes no sense.

 

Sure, they can have higher pricing to increase profits they are getting per card. But this would be more because their analytics can see that people are willing to pay premium. More people willing to pay more, higher the MSRP can be set. And retailers can set their prices even higher in order to guarantee their part of the profits.

I was kinda hoping that the prices will be somewhat similar to reference MSRP. In this case it's an extra 40%. I guess I'm waiting till next year without any GPU as paying 1200-1400$ for a card is not an option for me. I was planning to build a whole pc in around 1500$. ;(

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Posted
  • Author

hey with the 909$ price of yesterday, did it include taxes?

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Posted
16 minutes ago, Padblaze said:

hey with the 909$ price of yesterday, did it include taxes?

AFAIK no. Its same with all product on store. So if you are US, there's the tarifs added. And in Canada/US, based on your state/province. That price is taken from the screenshot shown.

^^^^ That's my post ^^^^
<-- This is me --- That's your scrollbar -->
vvvv Who's there? vvvv

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Posted
20 minutes ago, WillOfTheLand said:

How many partners are in on the VAG program? Like what AIB's.

Aus, MSI, EVGA. For now.

^^^^ That's my post ^^^^
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vvvv Who's there? vvvv

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Posted

Can confirm, no VAG today, still have 270 cards out there as of Linus' report on WAN show yesterday

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Posted
10 minutes ago, BeeMan3 said:

No VAG today

How did you already finish a 25 minute video that came out 10 minutes ago? 😄

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Posted
46 minutes ago, LogicalDrm said:

Aus, MSI, EVGA. For now.

I'm curious, I wonder if users contacted other AIB's asking if they would join the VAG program (some might not just because the sheer stupidity of the acronym) or even consider it, if it would sway them into doing it. If they saw it as a high potential for good PR with lots of people they might jump on board and boost the amount of cards significantly. Even if each one only sent a handful each, if a lot join in that makes the difference. I can't see it taking many people asking, just enough for a handful of requests to make it up the chain.

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Posted

I think I'm kinda giving up on the program. I missed the notification and started watching at "6 minutes". There were 11k views already. Even scrubbing as fast as I can, 270 cards would be gone by then.

 

I'm not enjoying the videos as much, I think I'll resort to the GTX970 and open AMD's website and wait 🙂 

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Posted
21 minutes ago, mactipiak said:

I think I'm kinda giving up on the program. I missed the notification and started watching at "6 minutes". There were 11k views already. Even scrubbing as fast as I can, 270 cards would be gone by then.

 

I'm not enjoying the videos as much, I think I'll resort to the GTX970 and open AMD's website and wait 🙂 

But there was no drop today.

 

So you didn't miss out and there are still around 270 Asus Tuf radeons 6800xt to be dropped any time soon

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Posted
41 minutes ago, mactipiak said:

open AMD's website and wait

better use one of the Discord servers notifying about availability (or setup streetmerchant yourself) than just staring at the page all day. 🙂

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Posted

I got in on the drop yesterday. Very happy to finally be able to get a new GPU, even though I was not planning on spending this much. I figured I'd bite the bullet now since there's no chance I'd have another opportunity to get one.

 

My total cost was $986.99 USD after shipping and taxes. (I'm in Canada so no tariffs)

 

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Posted
2 minutes ago, mgw said:

I got in on the drop yesterday. Very happy to finally be able to get a new GPU, even though I was not planning on spending this much. I figured I'd bite the bullet now since there's no chance I'd have another opportunity to get one.

 

My total cost was $986.99 USD after shipping and taxes. (I'm in Canada so no tariffs)

 

Ouch, that is pricey.
Which one have you got?

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Posted
17 minutes ago, MaskedGandalf said:

Ouch, that is pricey.
Which one have you got?

He's talking about Asus TUF 6800XT - thats what was dropped yesterday.

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Posted
3 hours ago, MaskedGandalf said:

Ouch, that is pricey.
Which one have you got?

Asus TUF 6800XT. I was planning on getting a reference model from AMD's website, but the bots are faster than me.

 

So yeah. Expensive, but better than scalper prices. 

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Posted

Is there any chance of making the VAG available via a means other than racing to complete a pop quiz?  I only ask because my only GPU died several weeks ago and I'm not sure how I can compete using my phone, especially against the number of people trying for this, and I'm desperate to get my PC up and running again.  Thanks for any help and thanks again for running this program. 

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Posted
2 hours ago, Shogouki said:

Is there any chance of making the VAG available via a means other than racing to complete a pop quiz?  I only ask because my only GPU died several weeks ago and I'm not sure how I can compete using my phone, especially against the number of people trying for this, and I'm desperate to get my PC up and running again.  Thanks for any help and thanks again for running this program. 

unfortunately a lot of people are in the same boat as you and cards are insane to get right now at msrp. This is probably one of the most fair ways to give people a shot as you are guaranteed to not be racing against bots.

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Posted
On 4/23/2021 at 3:01 AM, MultiGamerClub said:

...RTX settings almost maxed out in Cyberpunk first person: 50fps~

 

Third person in cars? Oh hell naw 30 with 15 dips.

 

I guess going for a 750€ PNY 2080 Super tells the real tale of quality here then, because this card seems to be a bit weaker than a friends Zotac 2080 super 🙃

edit: This card was buyed when every other 2080super before the 3000-launch began.. Also every other card than this cost between 1000 to 1300 euros.. This just looked like a great deal so i went for it.. All tho i wish it had bigger cooling options, probably gonna have to change paste 😛

Ohhh I missed the bit where you mentioned you were playing with the third person mod. I'm guessing that has some kind of performance impact, though I've never tried it. ~50fps with RTX maxed in first person actually seems about right. I don't max mine out, but play on balanced and I get a little more than that.

 

I've never messed with PNY stuff other than a thumb drive and an SSD I got for cheap, so I can't vouch for their quality, but I wouldn't be surprised if it performed worse than some other more established GPUs. I'm an ASUS and EVGA stan from way back, but I really just rely on thorough reviews.

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Posted
2 hours ago, BeeMan3 said:

unfortunately a lot of people are in the same boat as you and cards are insane to get right now at msrp. This is probably one of the most fair ways to give people a shot as you are guaranteed to not be racing against bots.

This is true, I was just hoping for a way that would allow gamers who can't be ready and waiting for each new video to drop or who can't react fast enough (my predicament) for whatever reason.  I feel like there's got to be some way to even the chances while still keeping out the bots, though admittedly I don't know what that would be...

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Posted

Quick question - When doing the VAG domain name during WAN show on Friday.  What was the answer to "What format (4 letter word) are you watching this?"  I know it was way too late to get in.  I just want to know the answer for curiosity's sake.

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Posted
2 minutes ago, Worstcaster said:

Quick question - When doing the VAG domain name during WAN show on Friday.  What was the answer to "What format (4 letter word) are you watching this?"  I know it was way too late to get in.  I just want to know the answer for curiosity's sake.

I have added your question to the mega thread. Someone in here will be able to answer your question if its not already answered in previous posts. 

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Please make sure to Quote me or @ me to see your reply!

Just because I am a Moderator does not mean I am always right. Please fact check me and verify my answer. 

 

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Posted
11 minutes ago, Worstcaster said:

Quick question - When doing the VAG domain name during WAN show on Friday.  What was the answer to "What format (4 letter word) are you watching this?"  I know it was way too late to get in.  I just want to know the answer for curiosity's sake.

I did not participate and cannot confirm, but it was probably "live"? 

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