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

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Thursday news, the second part:

Open-world city builder-exploration game Bulwark: Falconeer Chronicles shows off 30 minutes of all new gameplay
https://www.pcgamer.com/open-world-city-builder-exploration-game-bulwark-falconeer-chronicles-shows-off-30-minutes-of-all-new-gameplay/
Bulwark: Falconeer Chronicles, an open-world city-builder and exploration game being made by solo developer Tomas Sala, is set to arrive on March 26, and now that the release date is nailed down we can get a proper look at what's coming in an exclusive new 30-minute gameplay video showcasing a range of new features and content.

Blizzard puts Diablo 3 out to pasture as it starts to recycle old seasons
https://www.pcgamer.com/blizzard-puts-diablo-3-out-to-pasture-as-it-starts-to-recycle-old-seasons/
Diablo 4 may still have some fans on the fence but, next to Diablo 3, its launch can only be seen as a rip-roaring success. (...)
What happened next is, of course, the redemption arc of Blizzard slowly peeling-away the bad (including those auction houses), amping up the good, and eventually with the Reaper of Souls expansion crafting the experience into what it always should have been: a joyously gory ARPG where you could melt crowds of enemies in seconds.
Blizzard announced last year that Season 29 would be Diablo 3's last tranche of new content and in the event delivered big with a solo mode players have wanted for years, But now with the arrival of Season 30, the true endgame has begun, and Diablo 3 will from here on out rotate existing themed seasonal content for as long as it remains live.

Diablo 4 season 3 has 2 new Uber Uniques for your companion that will give you 'bragging rights' if you can find them
https://www.pcgamer.com/diablo-4-season-3-has-2-new-uber-uniques-for-your-companion-that-will-give-you-bragging-rights-if-you-can-find-them/
Everyone in Diablo 4 season 3 will get their very own robot companion that you can equip with all sorts of powerful skills and then modify with "tuning stones". You can read through a list of these new seasonal items in Blizzard's blog post, but two of them are left blank and said to be talked about "in hushed whispers" by Sanctuary's scholars.
In an interview with PC Gamer last week, Blizzard said these two companion tuning stones will mirror the power and rarity of Diablo 4's Uber Uniques and will give you "bragging rights" if you find them.

Baldur's Gate 3's latest hotfix makes Gale less cranky when he doesn't get his way
https://www.pcgamer.com/baldurs-gate-3s-latest-hotfix-makes-gale-less-cranky-when-he-doesnt-get-his-way/
Baldur's Gate 3 companion Gale may be "the Sword Coast's biggest wife guy," but he's also apparently a bit of a touchy sort who will permanently leave your party if you don't cough up magic items when he asks for one. Not cool! Also not intentional, as it turns out, as the latest Baldur's Gate 3 hotfix prevents him from doing so—unless you want him to.

The Wordle of 2014 is coming to Steam in February
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-wordle-of-2014-is-coming-to-steam-in-february/
Before there was Wordle, there was Threes!: A simple, logic-based puzzle game that blew up into a huge, often-copied hit. Mobile gaming site TouchArcade called it "about as close as it gets to a perfect mobile game" when it debuted on iOS devices on February 6, 2014, and with the tenth anniversary of that big day coming up, developer Asher Vollmer has announced that it's finally coming to Steam.

EverQuest is kicking off a year-long anniversary celebration with a packed calendar of new events, quests, and giveaways, culminating in 2 new expansions
https://www.pcgamer.com/everquest-2024-roadmap-25th-anniversary-expansions-events-calendar/
They say every dog has its day, but for EverQuest's Fippy Darkpaw it turns out it's a whole year. The Year of Darkpaw celebration kicked off this month with promotional events, collectibles, and bonus dungeons for tenacious adventurers still playing EverQuest to sink their gnoll fangs into. The fun will continue with new time-locked servers midyear and an expansion for both games this winter.

If The Finals wants a good solo mode, it'll have to try a lot harder than this
https://www.pcgamer.com/if-the-finals-wants-a-good-solo-mode-itll-have-to-try-a-lot-harder-than-this/
The Finals got its first ever limited-time mode today in patch 1.5.0, continuing developer Embark's uncommon strategy of surprise content drops untethered from a public roadmap. The mode is Solo Bank It, a new take on normal Bank It that trades four teams of three for one big 12-player free-for-all.

Vampire Therapist is a game about helping the living dead come to terms with their centuries-old emotional hangups
https://www.pcgamer.com/vampire-therapist-is-a-game-about-helping-the-living-dead-come-to-terms-with-their-centuries-old-emotional-hangups/
Some game announcements just immediately grab my attention, and Vampire Therapist is definitely one of them. Honestly, it had me at the title—I mean, Vampire Therapist, there's no way you don't want to know more about that—but the underlying concept looks genuinely interesting too: It's a dark comedy narrative adventure about a cowboy who was turned into a vampire in the 1800s and is now seeking help coming to terms with immortality and finding meaning in his unlife.
>> Sounds like the plot of a TV show.

Palworld climbs the Twitch charts as streamers discover it contains bird butt grenade launchers, human trafficking, and other bizarro acts of Pal cruelty
https://www.pcgamer.com/palworld-climbs-the-twitch-charts-as-streamers-discover-it-contains-bird-butt-grenade-launchers-human-trafficking-and-other-bizarro-acts-of-pal-cruelty/
Palworld, aka that game everyone has spent the last two years referring to as "Pokémon with guns," is out on Friday, but streamers are already broadcasting it ahead of launch—and going off early Twitch numbers, it's a hit. Wednesday morning (Pacific time) Palworld had around 60,000 viewers on Twitch, and that figure has climbed steadily throughout the day. At the time of writing it's neck-and-neck with Fortnite, each with around 85,000 viewers.
>> Despite the first paragraphs, the article has videos of some of features of the game.

How to watch the Xbox Direct livestream for January 2024
https://www.pcgamer.com/how-to-watch-xbox-direct-january-2024/
As 2024 begins, it's time to find out what Xbox has in store for us this year. Now with even more studio acquisitions than before, the Xbox Developer Direct is getting pretty packed. Xbox has confirmed that we'll be hearing from Obsidian, Machine Games, Oxide Studios, and Ninja Theory. Blizzard isn't getting into the mix during this show, but there will be a Diablo 4 developer update happening a few hours beforehand.
Here's exactly where and when to watch the January 2024 Xbox Direct and what we're expecting to see from its studios.

4 years after it was announced, Warhammer: Vermintide 2 is finally making its versus mode a reality with a closed alpha: 'We put it on the shelf to marinate for a bit'
https://www.pcgamer.com/4-years-after-it-was-announced-warhammer-vermintide-2-is-finally-making-its-versus-mode-a-reality-with-a-closed-alpha-we-put-it-on-the-shelf-to-marinate-for-a-bit/
Warhammer: Vermintide 2 is getting a versus mode, as announced four years ago at our very own PC Gaming show, no less. Except it's for real this time. A steam post by Fatshark outlines their mission statements for the mode's closed beta test on Steam.

Tekken 8 promises to change accessibility options after potentially dangerous filters that 'may hospitalise players' were discovered
https://www.pcgamer.com/tekken-8-promises-to-change-accessibility-options-after-potentially-dangerous-filters-that-may-hospitalise-players-were-discovered/
Tekken 8 director Katushiro Harada has revealed that changes to the game's accessibility features are coming for the full game after concerns began circulating in early January around potentially life-threatening seizures relating to its colour and mask filters.