Carzy Zarx’s PC Gaming Emporium - Catch Up on All the Latest PC Gaming Related News

[JEMC]

Monday news, part two:

A new Telling Lies trailer tells the true release date
https://www.pcgamer.com/a-new-telling-lies-trailer-tells-the-true-release-date/
Annapurna Interactive announced today that Telling Lies, the new FMV investigative thriller from Her Story creator Sam Barlow, will go live on Steam on August 23.
>> And that's why their previous game, Her Story , is on sale.

Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey shows off its evolution system
https://www.pcgamer.com/ancestors-the-humankind-odyssey-shows-off-its-evolution-system/
Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey is a generational survival sim, so while you're making sure your chimps are learning new skills that will help them fend off predators and find food, you'll also be ensuring that the next generation starts off with more advantages.

This free game only has one tiny enemy, and you've got to grow it into a boss
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-free-game-only-has-one-tiny-enemy-and-youve-got-to-grow-it-into-a-boss/
Despite the name, One Monster RPG isn't really an RPG. It's set at the very end of an adventure where you've killed every single monster apart from one. There are no more quests or mystical artefacts or bosses—there's just one baby slime.

Evo 2019 attendees may have been exposed to measles
https://www.pcgamer.com/evo-2019-attendees-may-have-been-exposed-to-measles/
Fans and competitors at Evo 2019, where we enjoyed watching the rise of Pakistani Tekken player Arslan Ash earlier this month, may have been exposed to measles. The good news is that there are currently no cases of infection reported.
>> *evil laugh*

Halo: Infinite creative director Tim Longo has left 343 Industries
https://www.pcgamer.com/halo-infinite-creative-director-tim-longo-has-left-343-industries/
Halo Infinite creative director Tim Longo has left 343 Industries in what Kotaku described as a "leadership shakeup" at the studio that also includes a change in roles for executive producer Mary Olson. Longo himself had reportedly moved to a new position at 343 a few weeks ago.

System Shock 2 Enhanced Edition devs are focused on multiplayer and mods
https://www.pcgamer.com/system-shock-2-enhanced-edition-devs-are-focused-on-multiplayer-and-mods/
Nightdive Studios announced last week that it's working on an enhanced version of System Shock 2, which came as a shock to me because I thought it had been announced months ago. Apparently I confused it with one of the other System Shocks currently in the works—either the remake of the original, which Nightdive is also working on, or System Shock 3, being developed by Otherside Entertainment. There's a whole lot of Shocking going on.

Apex Legends producer says Iron Crown Collection Event 'missed the mark'
https://www.pcgamer.com/apex-legends-producer-says-iron-crown-collection-event-missed-the-mark/
The Apex Legends Iron Crown Collection Event, running until August 27, is "bigger, much more expensive, and more complicated" than we expected, and that hasn't gone over particularly well with some parts of the community. The biggest complaint, as articulated in this Reddit thread, seems to be that the event offers some really gorgeous Legendary skins, but they can't be crafted like other Legendaries—they're only available through event-specific crates.
>> Sadly, the Reddit thread has taken a wrong turn, with the producer calling players 'ass-hats' and 'dicks'.

Bungie admits Destiny 2's Trials of the Nine 'wasn't the hero we wanted it to be'
https://www.pcgamer.com/bungie-admits-destiny-2s-trials-of-the-nine-wasnt-the-hero-we-wanted-it-to-be/
The third part of Destiny 2 game director Luke Smith's week-long update-o-rama takes a long, hard look at the state of PvP, and includes some very frank admissions about where Bungie went wrong—including that the Trials of the Nine PvP mode was a botch.

Blizzard urges fans to switch WoW Classic servers, Herod 'massively overpopulated'
https://www.pcgamer.com/blizzard-urges-fans-to-switch-wow-classic-servers-herod-massively-overpopulated/
World of Warcraft players planning to jump into WoW Classic can now reserve slots on servers ahead of the official launch later this month, and one server is proving so popular that Blizzard expects login queues of more than 10,000 players for it.

Epic Games opens streaming-focused studio led by Star Wars: Rogue Squadron creators
https://www.pcgamer.com/epic-games-opens-streaming-focused-studio-led-by-star-wars-rogue-squadron-creators/
Epic Games has opened a new streaming-focused studio in Cologne, Germany, to be led by the founders of developer Factor 5, which made the excellent Star Wars: Rogue Squadron games.
Update: Epic Games has said its new studio will work on "existing streaming technologies", such as those that let players watch the Fortnite World Cup while in-game. Don't expect the studio to pump out new games or streaming platforms, then.

Eliza is a visual novel about AI therapy from Zachtronics, out now
https://www.pcgamer.com/eliza-is-a-visual-novel-about-ai-therapy-from-zachtronics-out-now/
Zachtronics is famous for creating tricky, brilliant machine-based puzzlers like Opus Magnum and SpaceChem, but its new game is something completely different. Eliza is a intriguing visual novel about an AI counseling program, and it's out now.

DayZ ban makes Australia 'laughing stock of the world', says politician
https://www.pcgamer.com/dayz-ban-makes-australia-laughing-stock-of-the-world-says-politician/
An Australian politician has said the country's decision to ban DayZ over in-game drug use has made it look like "the wet blanket and laughing stock of the whole world".

Lead producer of next Dragon Age game leaves BioWare
https://www.pcgamer.com/lead-producer-of-next-dragon-age-game-leaves-bioware/
Fernando Melo, lead producer on BioWare's upcoming Dragon Age game, has left the studio, following Anthem lead producer Ben Irving out of the exit door.
Melo worked as a senior producer on Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age 2 before becoming director of online development in 2011. In 2015, he left the role to work on the online portion of Mass Effect: Andromeda, and was later made lead producer on the next Dragon Age game, codenamed Morrison.

Coffee Talk lets you make coffee for orcs and elves in an alternative Seattle
https://www.pcgamer.com/coffee-talk-lets-you-make-coffee-for-orcs-and-elves-in-an-alternative-seattle/
Indonesian indie studio Toge Productions are working on Coffee Talk, a game about being a barista in a version of Seattle where fantasy folk live alongside humans. It's a bit like Shadowrun and a bit like Va-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action only the drink mixing is less boring, and you can draw some coffee art in the foam.

Diablo 3's next season will add buffs for players from level 1
https://www.pcgamer.com/diablo-3s-next-season-will-add-buffs-for-players-from-level-1/
Season 18 is coming to Diablo 3 on August 23, and while some of the previous seasons have been more about the endgame, this one will add buffs players have access to right from the beginning.

Fallout 76's raid in Vault 94 detailed
https://www.pcgamer.com/fallout-76s-raid-in-vault-94-detailed/
Bethesda's latest Fallout 76 blog is a deep dive into Vault 94, the location of its first four-player raid. While the blog notes this raid can be attempted solo, " a full team of level 50+ characters" is recommended.

Everything coming in Rainbow Six Siege: Operation Ember Rise, and what it means for the meta
https://www.pcgamer.com/everything-coming-in-rainbow-six-siege-operation-ember-rise-and-what-it-means-for-the-meta/
After weeks of leaks and rumors surrounding Rainbow Six Siege’s Operation Ember Rise, Ubisoft has fully unveiled two new operators and a dramatic rework of its strangest map. New attacker Amaru and defender Goyo aren’t upending Siege’s meta, but they bring along two gadgets that play against established expectations in fun ways: a window-bursting grapple hook and a deceptively deadly deployable shield.

Rainbow Six Siege is getting a battle pass
https://www.pcgamer.com/rainbow-six-siege-is-getting-a-battle-pass/
In a move that seemed almost inevitable in 2019, Rainbow Six Siege is finally jumping on the battle pass train. The battle pass will give players a new progression track to unlock cosmetics, renown boosters, and new operator lore.

Suda51's Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes gets October PC release date
https://www.pcgamer.com/suda51s-travis-strikes-again-no-more-heroes-gets-october-pc-release-date/
Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes, the latest game from Killer7 creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, is coming to Steam on October 17. It's the first time Suda's No More Heroes series will arrive on PC—the previous two games were Nintendo Wii exclusives, while Travis Strikes again first released on the Nintendo Switch earlier this year.

Cliff Bleszinski might make another game after all (and it won't be a battle royale)
https://www.pcgamer.com/cliff-bleszinski-might-make-another-game-after-all-but-it-wont-be-a-battle-royale/
Cliff Bleszinski surprised us in November when, following the failure of his battle royale Radical Heights, he swore off making games forever. But the LawBreakers creator and former design director at Epic Games has now changed his tune, saying he has "a game idea and it won't get out of my head".

Grandia HD Remaster is coming to Steam
https://www.pcgamer.com/grandia-hd-remaster-is-coming-to-steam/
Dreamcast JRPG Grandia 2 made it to PC back in 2015, but the original in Game Arts' classic series remained unavailable. That's about to change as a Steam page for Grandia HD Remaster has appeared with a release date set for September this year.

Microsoft will be announcing something 'exciting' about Age of Empires at Gamescom
https://www.pcgamer.com/microsoft-will-be-announcing-something-exciting-about-age-of-empires-at-gamescom/
Microsoft are presenting an Inside Xbox showcase as part of Gamescom on Monday, and they're teasing some "exciting" news related to Age of Empires as part of it. There's a couple of things in the works this could relate to. Most excitingly, there's Age of Empires 4, currently in development by Relic (of Dawn of War and Company of Heroes fame), which we don't know much about though Phil Spencer told us it's "making good progress".
>> It better be proper gameplay, or else...

This new Control trailer shows off its ray traced lighting effects
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-new-control-trailer-shows-off-its-ray-traced-lighting-effects/
Remedy has released another new trailer for Control with ray traced global illumination enabled throughout the footage.
The trailer looks great, and a lot of that is down to Control's striking art design—which to my mind is reminiscent of Christopher Nolan's visual style. But Nvidia's ray tracing effects are easy to see in several shots, adding extra visual depth to reflections and real-time shadows.

Ghostrunner is a cyberpunk-style mix of Dishonored and Mirror's Edge
https://www.pcgamer.com/ghostrunner-is-a-cyberpunk-style-mix-of-dishonored-and-mirrors-edge/
The wall-running parkour revolution has kind of fizzled out in video games, and that's a sad thing. Fortunately, an upcoming game called Ghostrunner seems to remember the heady days of Titanfall 2 and Mirror's Edge as fondly as I do, and developer One More Level seems keen to pack as much of that stuff into one trailer as they can fit.

Journey to the Savage Planet will have online co-op, launches in January
https://www.pcgamer.com/journey-to-the-savage-planet-will-have-online-co-op-launches-in-january-embargoed/
I got a bit of hands-on time with Journey to the Savage Planet, the first-person exploration adventure game from Typhoon Studios, back in June. It proved to be a colorful, humorous, and sometimes gross experience filled with bizarre landscapes, shrieking aliens, and oddball weapons and tools.
And even though I played it solo during my demo, you won't have to go it alone when it's released. 505 Games and developer Typhoon Studios have announced that Journey to the Savage Planet will be playable in two-player online co-op.

Gory Metroidvania Blasphemous launches next month
https://www.pcgamer.com/gory-metroidvania-blasphemous-launches-next-month/
After a wildly-successful Kickstarter campaign in 2017, Blasphemous is just about ready to launch, bringing its heavy metal version of gore-soaked religious iconography to PCs and consoles September 10.