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

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Friday news, part two:

Team Fortress 2's latest bot-fighting update might actually work
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/team-fortress-2s-latest-bot-fighting-update-might-actually-work/
After enduring its longest stretch without an update to date, Team Fortress 2 has finally been given a patch to help fight the game's enduring bot epidemic.
Team Fortress 2 doesn't get many major updates these days. But while you can usually rely on a small update every month or so, it's been over three months since the game's last update (and that was simply a small map change and a few tournament medals). This week, however, Team Fortress 2 was quietly updated with a number of tools to help prevent a botting problem that's made matchmaking pretty much unbearable—rounds flooded with fake players that cheat, steal names, and are notoriously tough to remove from servers.

Microsoft's special Cyberpunk 2077 refund policy will end in July
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/microsofts-special-cyberpunk-2077-refund-policy-will-end-in-july/
Microsoft didn't react to the Cyberpunk 2077 console mess quite as strongly as Sony did, but it did take the unusual step of offering full refunds to anyone who purchased the game through its online store, no questions asked, "until further notice." (...)
Six months after adopting that policy, Microsoft has issued the promised "further notice" that the policy will soon end. As of July 6, Cyberpunk 2077 will be reverted to "our standard digital game refund policy" for all existing and new purchases.

You can now build your very own Maypole in Valheim
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/you-can-now-build-your-very-own-maypole-in-valheim/
There's a new Valheim patch out today that makes two big changes to the game, in a sort of "good news, bad news" package. First, the good news: Maypoles, which previously could only be found within abandoned villages in the Meadows biome, are now craftable.

CCP wants to make EVE Online's galaxy a little less grey
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/ccp-wants-to-make-eve-onlines-galaxy-a-little-less-grey/
EVE Online's test server is currently trialling a "significant update" to the interstellar MMO's visuals—though that may somewhat stretch the definition of the word according to these comparison screenshots.

Kerbal Space Program is getting one last big update for its 10th anniversary
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/kerbal-space-program-is-getting-one-last-big-update-for-its-10th-anniversary/
(...)
After years of development from a team scattered across the world, Kerbal developer Squad is finally sunsetting its space program and moving on to help develop the sequel—but not before releasing one last big update.

Xbox wants to do more with Killer Instinct, but not right now
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/xbox-wants-to-do-more-with-killer-instinct-but-not-right-now/
Phil Spencer said he wants Xbox to return to Killer Instinct at some point, when the time is right.
Rare's excellent fighting game series was revived in 2013, after being shelved for almost two decades. The reboot eventually made its way over to the Windows Store in 2016 and Steam in 2017, but there's been relatively little support for it since then. Despite it being one of the best fighting games of the last decade, with a tight roster of characters and rollback netcode, there's been no new content since its third season wrapped up in 2017.

Inkle reveals more about its next project, says it's more 'gamey'
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/inkle-reveals-more-about-its-next-project-says-its-more-gamey/
The next big game from Inkle, creator of 80 Days and this year's magnificent Overboard, doesn't have a name yet. Referred to by the studio simply as 'Highland game', it's a beautiful, painterly platformer with narrative elements set in, you guessed it, the Scottish Highlands.

Hardspace: Shipbreaker's derelicts now come with a radiation warning
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/hardspace-shipbreakers-derelicts-now-come-with-a-radiation-warning/
Crushed. Frozen. Suffocated. Exploded. Taking apart the hulking derelicts of Hardspace: Shipbreaker is already a tough gig. But now, the developer has slapped a radiation warning on the zero-gravity scrapyard sim with this week's new update.

I'm terrified of Teardown's unrelenting robots
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/im-terrified-of-teardowns-unrelenting-robots/
Teardown is a smashing good time, a shockingly smart heist game framed by some proper impressive voxel destruction tech. But for all the hours I've put into planning capers and tearing down its brittle maps, I've never once thought the experience could be improved via relentless pursuit from a tireless, fearless, unstoppable Terminator.

Apex Legends returns to the original King's Canyon next week
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/apex-legends-returns-to-the-original-kings-canyon-next-week/
Apex Legends is heading all the way back to the forgotten realm of 2019 with the Genesis Collection Event, a two-week throwback to Respawn's very first battle royale arena.

Overwatch crossplay is a confusing mess so far
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/overwatch-crossplay-is-a-confusing-mess-so-far/
Hey, did you know crossplay came to Overwatch this week? For the first time since its 2016 release, it's now possible to group up with console/PC buds and hop into any mode (as long as it's not Competitive). If you're a PC player, you've probably been playing with console players for days without knowing.
I don't blame you for not noticing. It's surprisingly hard to tell which players in your lobby are playing on a different platform, and the rules for when platforms can play together are way more complicated than virtually every other crossplay game out there. It's already causing a fair bit of confusion in the community. The most common misunderstanding so far happens when console players match up with PC players and are pleasantly surprised that the game still feels balanced against mouse-and-keyboard users. In reality, most of these players aren't actually playing against PC players at all, they just think they are because Overwatch's UI is obtuse.

Halo Infinite team 'feels good' about holiday release, Phil Spencer assures
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/halo-infinite-team-feels-good-about-holiday-release-phil-spencer-assures/
(...)
"We know kind of our range in the 3-4 week range,” Spencer said during an interview with Dropped Frames (via IGN). “We don't have the exact day. There's some other things with some other game timing that we're trying to look at. We'll have better clarity over the summer, but this isn't a months thing this is just down to a few weeks."

Halo Infinite's multiplayer will feature its own ongoing story
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/halo-infinites-multiplayer-will-feature-its-own-ongoing-story/
Halo Infinite's story won't just be confined to adventures of John Masterchief and his holographic girlfriend. Infinite's multiplayer will also tell an ongoing sci-fi tale, creative head Joseph Staten suggested in a blog post this week.

And now, the weekend deals at GOG and Steam. This will be quick:

+GOG

• Obviously, the main attraction is the Summer Sale. Be fast, tho, because it ends this weekend!.
• As a big finale push, GOG is giving away for free the Shadowrun Trilogy. From now until the end of the Summer Sale: https://www.gog.com/game/shadowrun_trilogy
• And, because there's always someone brave, there's a new release on the store. The game Trials of Fire arrives on the store with a 20% discount until the 2nd of July: https://www.gog.com/game/trials_of_fire

+Steam

• This one is also easy, with the Summer Sale that has just launched.
• If that's not enough... well, maybe you want to give the weeklong deals a second look.

And that's it. Until next time, have a happy and gaming weekend... and be careful with your purchases. Think of your backlog!