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

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Part two of the news:

Overwatch 2 director says canceled PvE mode was part of an ambitious plan to one day make an Overwatch MMO
https://www.pcgamer.com/overwatch-2-director-says-canceled-pve-mode-was-part-of-an-ambitious-plan-to-one-day-make-an-overwatch-mmo/
Aaron Keller's latest Director's Take blog doesn't have the jovial tone that they usually do. The Overwatch 2 game director used the space this week to expand on an announcement made Tuesday that Blizzard has cancelled Overwatch 2's long-awaited PvE "Hero mode." The news came in the last few minutes of a 30-minute livestream, along with the announcement that story missions were still happening as early as Season 6.

And now it's official: Nicolas Cage will play Nicolas Cage starring as Nicolas Cage in Dead by Daylight later this year
https://www.pcgamer.com/and-now-its-official-nicolas-cage-will-play-nicolas-cage-starring-as-nicolas-cage-in-dead-by-daylight-later-this-year/
The multiplayer survival horror game Dead by Daylight is getting a brand new survivor in Year 8, and his name is Nic. The big news actually leaked out earlier this week, but now it's official and real: Nicolas Cage, the man who brought us, well, Nicolas Cage, is coming to the game later this year in "the collaboration players didn't know they needed."

A singleplayer Dead by Daylight game is coming from the makers of The Dark Pictures Anthology
https://www.pcgamer.com/a-singleplayer-dead-by-daylight-game-is-coming-from-the-makers-of-the-dark-pictures-anthology/
The long-running multiplayer survival horror game Dead by Daylight is about to move into the singleplayer realm courtesy of a new project in development at Supermassive Games, the developer of Until Dawn, The Dark Pictures Anthology, and The Quarry.

This 1960s-style adventure about a fallen 'AI god' in humanity's distant future is exactly my kind of sci-fi
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-1960s-style-adventure-about-a-fallen-ai-god-in-humanitys-distant-future-is-exactly-my-kind-of-sci-fi/
There are a pile of new games announced every week—every day, really—and it's impossible to stay on top of them all. Picking which ones to pay attention to often comes down to a question of vibes: Does it move me in any way, or do anything to snap my eyes in its direction? It's not the most scientifically precise system, true, but it's worked out pretty well for me so far. And one newly announced game that's giving me some pretty good vibes is Return to Grace, a first-person narrative adventure set in a 1960s-style "retro sci-fi world."

Crypt of the Necrodancer studio confirms layoffs, as many as half its employees may be gone
https://www.pcgamer.com/crypt-of-the-necrodancer-studio-confirms-layoffs-as-many-as-half-its-employees-may-be-gone/
Crypt of the Necrodancer studio Brace Yourself Games has confirmed that it has laid off a portion of its employees, and has "shelved" some unannounced projects as a result.

Elden Ring wins the Nebula award for Game Writing
https://www.pcgamer.com/elden-ring-wins-the-nebula-award-for-game-writing/
Elden Ring has scored a win at the Nebula awards this week, netting the Best Game Writing award for George R.R. Martin, Hidetaka Miyazaki, and FromSoftware. The Nebulas are awarded by the Science Fictions & Fantasy Writers Association, known as the SFWA, and are one of the highest profile awards in English-language speculative fiction writing.

Check out the grim vibes on this monochrome dungeon crawler
https://www.pcgamer.com/check-out-the-grim-vibes-on-this-monochrome-dungeon-crawler/
Every once in a while you hit an art style that's just really working for you. That's why I'm right here right now looking at Demon Lord Reincarnation, an upcoming dungeon crawler that seems pretty determined to only use one or two colors on a black background for all of its art. Art that's really beautifully complimented in that monochromatic palette, with lots of stylish highlights done using the black negative space. I mean just look at this guy.

Aww: These dark fantasy warriors have the cutest widdle kitty faces
https://www.pcgamer.com/aww-these-dark-fantasy-warriors-have-the-cutest-widdle-kitty-faces/
I did not have dark fantasy soulslike action RPG starring humanoid cats on my 2023 bingo card, but if you did, congratulations! Indie developers Astral Clocktower Studios are granting your wish and filling in that space with Kristala, its in-development debut title where your absolutely adorable widdle warrior must master the magic of six sacred crystals to fight a terrible curse that has mutated the other creatures of the world into monsters.

Despite being dead for 10 years, Warhammer Online is hosting a live event on a private server
https://www.pcgamer.com/despite-being-dead-for-20-years-warhammer-online-is-hosting-a-live-event-on-a-private-server/
In the Empire, people celebrate the first day of summer with a holiday devoted to Sigmar, who is believed to have ascended to godhood on that day. Sigmartag is a day of resting, retelling stories based on Sigmar's heroic deeds, and eating "Sigmar's sausages", which every province has their own version of. In the fan-run private server Return of Reckoning, it's a time of war.

Mass Effect: Andromeda's creative director still wishes it had got a sequel
https://www.pcgamer.com/mass-effect-andromedas-creative-director-still-wishes-it-had-got-a-sequel/
Eurogamer's interview with Mac Walters, who was a writer on all three games in the Mass Effect trilogy before becoming creative director of Mass Effect: Andromeda and then Mass Effect Legendary Edition's project director, makes for a good read. Going all the way back to the series' origin as "Jack Bauer in space", it's a revealing history of BioWare's work on Mass Effect.

Here's the first trailer for System Shock 2: Enhanced Edition
https://www.pcgamer.com/heres-the-first-trailer-for-system-shock-2-enhanced-edition/
After a look at some screenshots earlier this week, Nightdive Studios has dropped a proper trailer for System Shock 2: Enhanced Edition. The upcoming re-release of the classic immersive sim shooter will overhaul it to look a lot better than it currently does—it currently looks bad, for the record—but it's not a full remake like Nightdive's upcoming System Shock. That game was delayed until the end of this month, and will come out on the 30th.

I could barely keep it together in this free game where you're the president trying to hide that he's an alien
https://www.pcgamer.com/i-could-barely-keep-it-together-in-this-free-game-where-youre-the-president-trying-to-hide-that-hes-an-alien/
Faking It is a game with a delightfully simple premise and absolutely devilish controls. First spotted by Alpha Beta Gamer, this free Ludum Dare game jam project from developers Alec Gamble and Hannah Payne casts you as president Hugh Mann, a politician whose numbers would absolutely tank if the public found out he's actually a tentacle horror from beyond the cosmos. Do you have what it takes to keep it together and placate the American public, or will you slip up and reveal your otherworldly nature to all and sundry?

Halo Infinite gets around to adding classic MP mode a mere 18 months after launch
https://www.pcgamer.com/halo-infinite-gets-around-to-adding-classic-mp-mode-a-mere-18-months-after-launch/
Halo Infinite trundles on, both a testament to the enduring appeal of the foundations laid down by Bungie and, in some ways, an indictment of how Microsoft has handled it since. This once felt like the most important FPS series in the world. Now Halo's just another free-to-play shooter in a sea full of them, kicking desperately against the straits that carry it off.
(...)
Which brings us to one of the best Halo custom gametypes, which 343 has just announced will arrive in Infinite this summer. Infection first appeared in Halo 3 and is basically a zombies mode, in which a small group of infected hunts un-infected players. Each kill from the infected turns the victim to their side, and the goal for the un-infected is simply to survive until the timer runs out.

CliffyB might not be done with making games after all, says 'my LA lawyer' is on the case for a LawBreakers revival
https://www.pcgamer.com/turns-out-cliffy-b-might-not-be-done-with-making-games-after-all-and-still-thinks-theres-a-future-for-lawbreakers/
Clifford Bleszinski occupies an odd space in the games industry at the moment. The artist formerly known as Cliffy B is a big-budget director of substantial talent who's worked on some best-in-class titles and is still relatively young, but breaking off from Epic Games and setting up on his own didn't go quite as planned: LawBreakers was great, but didn't sell, while Radical Heights was a hail Mary that didn't quite come off either. Since those two misfires Bleszinski has become something of a social media soapboxer and, judging by how he's been angling for a consultancy role on the next Gears, is looking for his way back into games.

Victoria 3's latest DLC adds a whole bunch of historical figures including Lenin, who'll agitate for a bit of revolution
https://www.pcgamer.com/victoria-3s-latest-dlc-adds-a-whole-bunch-of-historical-figures-including-lenin-wholl-agitate-for-a-bit-of-revolution/
Paradox has released a new "immersion pack" for the excellent Victoria 3, called Voice of the People and focusing on a slew of new (old?) historical characters and an 'Agitator' mechanic. The immersion pack name is something the company's hit upon to distinguish between the scale of the DLCs it releases for its titles: These are the smaller ones (though it'll still set you back $14.99/£12.99/€14.99) with Victoria 3's first major expansion yet to be detailed.