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

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Monday news, part two:

Lord of the Rings and D&D Online's DLC is open to everyone through April 30
https://www.pcgamer.com/lord-of-the-rings-and-dandd-onlines-dlc-is-open-to-everyone-through-april-30/
Now is probably the right time to start playing a big MMO, and with a collective 27 years of updates and expansions between them, Lord of the Rings Online and Dungeons & Dragons Online should keep you plenty occupied. From today, all their expansions and DLC are open to everyone.

Gabe Newell says 'everybody benefits' from competition with Epic
https://www.pcgamer.com/gabe-newell-says-everybody-benefits-from-competition-with-epic/
Conversations about the Epic Games Store often pivot on one central point of contention: Is it fostering competition with Steam, or is its practice of landing exclusive game releases "anti-consumer" because it keeps them from being released on Steam, the platform of choice (or at least of habit) for the majority of PC gamers? Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney believes it's the former—and so does Valve boss Gabe Newell, it turns out.

Valorant sniper Sova shows off his drone and sonar in a new gameplay teaser
https://www.pcgamer.com/valorant-sniper-sova-shows-off-his-drone-and-sonar-in-a-new-gameplay-teaser/
The Valorant character reveal parade continued today with a new teaser for Sova, a Russian sniper with fantastic hair. He's got a high-powered rifle with a scope that enables him to pick off enemies from afar, backed up by a drone camera to get a look at what's around corners and a sonar arrow that reveals hidden characters.

A surprise message from Valve hints at the return of Artifact
https://www.pcgamer.com/a-surprise-message-from-valve-hints-at-the-return-of-artifact/
Valve's Artifact "is an intricate and rewarding card game," we said in our 80/100 review at the end of 2018. "Not only is Artifact's depth remarkable, it also doesn't come at any great loss of accessibility." Despite that, and the fact that it came from Valve, which has a pretty good track record making games, it flopped badly. (...)
Despite the total flameout, Valve boss Gabe Newell sounded almost sanguine about the experience in an interview with Edge Magazine (via GamesRadar.) "Artifact was an interesting failure in its first go-round. We were surprised. We thought that it was a really strong product," he said.

The new Stellaris expansion lets you do an Emperor Palpatine: 'I AM the Senate.'
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-new-stellaris-expansion-lets-you-do-an-emperor-palpatine-i-am-the-senate/
Sprawling space 4x Stellaris' new expansion, Federations, lets you form a galactic community. It's an organization that spans the galaxy, and everyone is effectively a member whether they like it or not. (Except if you're space North Korea, or an empire of machine exterminators or what have you.) Anyways, the end result is basically the galactic senate chamber from the Star Wars prequel movies mixed with the real-world United Nations - various measures are tabled and discussed, with various economic impacts around the galaxy.

Turn falling stock prices into a fun ski slope in Stock Jump
https://www.pcgamer.com/turn-falling-stock-prices-into-a-fun-ski-slope-in-stock-jump/
Sos Sosowski, designer of Mosh Pit Simulator, McPixel, and a piano that plays Doom, has a new browser game called Stock Jump. It takes real stock market data from the Finnhub Stock API, turns the graph of its plummeting value into a slope, then positions you at the top as a tiny red-and-yellow skier. You click and release to jump, huffing up the inclines before you reach the inevitable drop and leap to the bottom. The distance you travel off your last jump gives your final score in meters.

World of Warcraft hands out 100% bonus XP for the next month
https://www.pcgamer.com/world-of-warcraft-hands-out-100-bonus-xp-for-the-next-month/
There’s a lot of advice out there about what you should be doing while you're stuck at a distance from others during the pandemic, either due to healthy following of the social distancing ethos or because you're under actual lockdown. The World Health Organization says you shouldn't smoke or drink because you don't want to compromise your immune system. How about something equally addictive, then? How about a little... World of Warcraft. Yes, the game that once hosted a horrible pandemic of its own wants you to play a bit while on lockdown.

Here’s how spectator mode works for Half-Life: Alyx, plus hitting a headcrab with a chair
https://www.pcgamer.com/half-life-alyx-spectator-mode-how-to/
Valve has published a little guide to Half-Life: Alyx’s unique spectator mode, a way to turn the game’s VR output into something comprehensible for someone watching on a regular screen. There’s also a frankly stunning gameplay gif of Alyx battering a headcrab with a chair, which is the strongest answer for “Why is this game in VR?” I’ve ever seen. Spectator mode is useful for both streamers and in-person watching.

Speaking Simulator adds co-op multiplayer
https://www.pcgamer.com/speaking-simulator-adds-co-op-multiplayer/
Our own Christopher Livingston found himself empathizing greatly with the robotic character you play in Speaking Simulator. "As an extremely self-conscious, shy, anxiety-riddled person," he wrote, "I spend most of my face-to-face conversations struggling to get my thoughts out properly and imagining the other person's suspicion meter rising, too."

The Polish government has launched a Minecraft server for housebound kids
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-polish-government-has-launched-a-minecraft-server-for-housebound-kids/
In an effort to curb the spread of coronavirus, Poland has shut its schools until at least April 10. While online classes are widespread, there's still the problem of keeping housebound kids occupied. The Polish government thinks it has the answer: among other initiatives, it has just launched a Minecraft server.

Every Heroes of the Storm character is free to play until April 2
https://www.pcgamer.com/every-heroes-of-the-storm-character-is-free-to-play-until-april-2/
Blizzard has unshackled all of Heroes of the Storm's heroes from the in-game shop, unlocking every single one of them for all players until April 2.
The MOBA normally rotates its free pool of heroes, ensuring you've got a few to play with before dropping any currency, but Heroes of the Storm's roster has grown massive over the years—there are 88 of them!—so there's likely at least one or two you've had an itch to play.

Resident Evil 3 Remake brings back unbreakable knives
https://www.pcgamer.com/resident-evil-3-remake-brings-back-unbreakable-knives/
Resident Evil 2 Remake's zombies are tough customers, with their thick skulls able to soak up a clip and their skin able to break a knife. Thankfully, knife science has come a long way since 2019, and Resident Evil 3 Remake's knives are going to be made of hardier stuff.

Among Trees is an inviting survival sandbox hitting early access this summer
https://www.pcgamer.com/among-trees-is-an-inviting-survival-sandbox-hitting-early-access-this-summer/
Among Trees looks far too serene to be a survival game, but even the most welcoming wildernesses can be dangerous if you forget to fill your stomach or you saunter into a cave filled with peckish animals. That's a couple of the things you'll need to worry about when you move into your new cabin in the woods this summer.