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

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Monday news, part two:

Valheim teases Mistlands biome and new caverns in the mountains
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/valheim-teases-mistlands-biome-and-new-caverns-in-the-mountains/
With the Hearth and Home update out, Valheim developer Iron Gate Studios is now focusing on another upcoming addition to the co-op Viking survival game. The Mistlands is the next biome that will be added to the world—Valheim currently has five biomes, and this would be the sixth of a planned nine in total—and there's been the slightest of teases today in the form of a single screenshot.

The Flame in the Flood studio joins CD Projekt to work on an 'ambitious' new game
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/the-flame-in-the-flood-studio-joins-cd-projekt-to-work-on-an-ambitious-new-game/
The Molasses Flood, the US-based studio behind The Flame in the Flood and Drake Hollow, is now a part of the CD Projekt Group. The studio will work "in close cooperation" with developer CD Projekt Red on an "ambitious project" based on one of CDPR's existing properties.

Darkest Dungeon 2's launch trailer is here to get you hyped about dying miserably
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/darkest-dungeon-2s-launch-trailer-is-here-to-get-you-hyped-about-dying-miserably/
Darkest Dungeon 2—one part Oregon Trail, one part Hell simulator—hits Early Access on October 26. We knew Darkest Dungeon 2 was almost ready when Red Hook announced the release date last month, but now we can feel it, thanks to the trailer above. Or feel something, anyway. Is this... dread?

Meet holo-ghouls, galactic Yeti, and a psychic octopus in surreal adventure Growbot
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/meet-holo-ghouls-galactic-yeti-and-a-psychic-octopus-in-surreal-adventure-growbot/
There's a fine line between adorable and creepy, as anyone who's played an adventure game by Amanita Design such as Machinarium or Samorost can attest. Channeling that same surreal and beautiful vibe is Growbot, a new point-and-click puzzle adventure from developer Wabisabi Play and Application Systems Heidelberg.

Activision Blizzard employees skeptical that executive who denied sexism problems can solve them
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/activision-blizzard-employees-respond-townsend/
Back in July, Activision Blizzard executive Fran Townsend told employees that California's sexism and harassment lawsuit presented a "distorted and untrue" picture of the company, a denial that didn't go over well: Her comments were part of the reason for an organized employee walkout on July 28. This week, Townsend took a more conciliatory approach in an email that one Activision Blizzard employee described to PC Gamer as "the first email from her that hasn't been overtly offensive."

Payday 3 goes to New York and the plots are going digital
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/payday-3-goes-to-new-york-and-the-plots-are-going-digital/
On a 10th anniversary stream, Payday 3 developers Overkill have given the latest look at Payday 3. The brief overview shows off some concept art and talks about the inspiration and frame for the upcoming co-op heist shooter.

Resident Evil's Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine join Fortnite in latest crossover
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/chris-redfield-jill-valentine-fortnite-resident-evil/
Much like the zombie horde in Resident Evil, Fortnite continues to swallow up characters across different franchises. The Boulder-punching Chris Redfield and Nemesis-squashing Jill Valentine, both stars of the original Resident Evil and several sequels, are officially joining the Fortnite battle royale universe alongside new cosmetic items ripped right from the survival horror series.

PSA: You can grab a free Overwatch battletag change until November 5th
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/psa-you-can-grab-a-free-overwatch-battletag-change-until-november-5th/
Through November 5, 2021 players on Battlenet can change the battletag associated with their Overwatch account for free. It's only available for the limited time through the 5th of November, and you can only grab it if you don't already have a free name change on your account.

Call of Duty marketing finds a new level of tastelessness
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/call-of-duty-marketing-finds-a-new-level-of-tastelessness/
The latest marketing push for Call of Duty: Vanguard wants you to believe its graphics are so realistic that conflict photographers can't tell the difference between the videogame and reality. "Call of Duty: Vanguard captures the epic intimacy of World War II in an incredibly immersive manner," said chief marketing officer Fernando Machado, presumably keeping a straight face.

Caves of Qud update has relaxed story mode and a coral-encrusted arcology
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/caves-of-qud-update-has-relaxed-story-mode-and-a-coral-encrusted-arcology/
Impressively large and strange roguelike Caves of Qud has a new update out on October 25, a big one adding two new regions, a new village, and a bunch of improvements for those looking to get into what can be an intimidating genre.

Indie dev finds that Linux users generate more, better bug reports
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/indie-dev-finds-that-linux-users-generate-more-better-bug-reports/
An indie developer has found an interesting observation: Though only 5.8% of his game's buyers were playing on Linux, they generated over 38% of the bug reports. Not because the Linux platform was buggier, either. Only 3 of the roughly 400 bug reports submitted by Linux users were platform specific, that is, would only happen on Linux.

One early idea for Mass Effect 3's ending involved a reaper god instead of the Star Child
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/one-early-idea-for-mass-effect-3s-ending-involved-a-reaper-god-instead-of-the-star-child/
YouTube's People Make Games asked several ex-BioWare developers who worked on Mass Effect 3 how they felt about the endings, and in particular about putting together the Extended Cut—an update that expanded on the endings and addressed some of the many complaints players had. It's a great video and worth a watch, especially for the section where it highlights the additional crunch developers had to go through to pull the Extended Cut together, after already crunching to complete Mass Effect 3.

Jagex to publish Runescape-inspired idle game Melvor Idle
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/jagex-to-publish-runescape-inspired-idle-game-melvor-idle/
Runescape developer Jagex's publishing wing has picked up a promising indie release for its Jagex Partners label, making Melvor Idle an indie no longer. The idler game, similar to games like Clicker Heroes or Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms, released on Steam last year and wears its influences from Jagex's flagship Runescape very proudly.

Rumored Smash-style crossover game to star WB characters like Shaggy, Batman, and Gandalf
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/rumored-smash-style-crossover-game-to-star-wb-characters-like-shaggy-batman-and-gandalf/
On the one hand, I'll believe it when I see it. On the other hand, something as cynical as a "Smash Warner Bros." game inspired by the Powerful Shaggy meme is exactly what I'd expect from the company responsible for Space Jam 2.

Konami delays eFootball patch to 'ensure the experience is improved' for everyone
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/konami-delays-efootball-patch-to-ensure-the-experience-is-improved-for-everyone/
Konami has delayed its upcoming patch for eFootball to "ensure the experience is improved for all of our users."
Patch 0.9.1 was originally due to arrive on October 28, following a disastrous Steam launch which led to it being the worst-reviewed game of all time on the platform. It's currently sitting at an 11% positive rating from 22,000 reviews, faring slightly better than its initial 9% positive rating in the first 24 hours.