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

[JEMC]

Wednesday news, part two:

World of Warcraft's latest The War Within trailer has players simping hard for big baddie Xal'atath—and I'm not exactly surprised
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/world-of-warcraft/world-of-warcraft-s-latest-the-war-within-trailer-has-players-simping-hard-for-big-baddie-xal-atath-and-i-m-not-exactly-surprised/
World of Warcraft: The War Within is shaping up to be, well, pretty dang good—as pointed out by recent MMO-enjoyment-whirlpool victim and fellow PC Gamer staff Fraser Brown, the game's experiencing a bit of a golden age.
This is for a few reasons: Dragonflight rolled up its sleeves and tended to some much-needed housekeeping, there are a ton of different ways to play now, and Mists of Pandaria: Remix is both massively complained about and also really busy which, you know, isn't ideal, but a love-hate relationship is better than a hate-hate one.
Speaking of hate-hate relationships, the upcoming expansion's central antagonist, Xal'atath, appears to be everyone's new parasocial goth girl crush.

Guild Wars 2's next expansion will add its first new raid in five years, as well as 'the most player-friendly housing system in an MMORPG'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/mmo/guild-wars-2s-next-expansion-will-add-its-first-new-raid-in-five-years-as-well-as-the-most-player-friendly-housing-system-in-an-mmorpg/
We're just two weeks removed from the conclusion of Guild Wars 2's fourth expansion, Secrets of the Obscure. But thanks to the MMO's recent switch to an annual expansion cycle, that means we're only a couple of months away from the launch of the fifth expansion. 

Less than 6 months after laying off 40 employees, Dead by Daylight studio Behaviour Interactive drops another 95
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/less-than-6-months-after-laying-off-40-employees-dead-by-daylight-studio-behaviour-interactive-drops-another-95/
Dead by Daylight studio Behaviour Interactive is making "strategic changes for future growth" that will "draw upon the company’s historical strengths to craft an ambitious vision for its future success." And in case there's any doubt, yes, that means layoffs are happening.

Team Fortress 2 plummets to 'Mostly Negative' on Steam as its biggest fans stoke the righteous flames of anti-bot outrage
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/team-fortress-2-plummets-to-mostly-negative-on-steam-as-its-biggest-fans-stoke-the-righteous-flames-of-anti-bot-outrage/
I wrote yesterday about the #SaveTF2 movement's latest campaign, mobilizing once again to pressure Valve into action against Team Fortress 2's rampant bot problem. (...)
TF2's recent review rating has plummeted to Mostly Negative thanks to a review-bombing surge that, judging from the graph, started hitting just as the #FixTF2 campaign spun up on June 3. The influx of negative reviews is so huge—more than 14,000 have hit in the last 24 hours—that it's warped the scale of the chart, rendering any positive sentiment for the game into barely noticeable blue nubs.

After two years of silence, Metal Slug Tactics returns with a new trailer and a promise that it's coming this fall
https://www.pcgamer.com/movies-tv/after-two-years-of-silence-metal-slug-tactics-returns-with-a-new-trailer-and-a-promise-that-its-coming-this-fall/
Remember Metal Slug Tactics? Don't feel bad if the answer is no: It was announced out of nowhere in June 2021, showed off a spot of gameplay a couple months later, and then—aside from a "coming in 2023" announcement in August 2022 that didn't pan out—completely fell off the radar. But now it's back, with a new trailer and word that, for real this time, it will be out in the fall.
>> I’ll believe it when I see it.

Ultrakill dev says it's fine to pirate his game if you don't have money to spare: 'Culture shouldn't exist only for those who can afford it'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/ultrakill-dev-says-its-fine-to-pirate-his-game-if-you-dont-have-money-to-spare-culture-shouldnt-exist-only-for-those-who-can-afford-it/
I think we can all agree that piracy is basically an inevitability for any piece of software. For years now, we've been living in an era where Denuvo gets cracked so quickly for new games that it's not even worth running a headline about it. But while piracy might be inevitable, the question remains: is it morally acceptable? I mean, sure—according to Ultrakill dev Arsi "Hakita" Patala. Just make sure you tell people if you like it.

Hades 2's latest patch drops the nerf hammer on everyone's favorite overpowered build, but players are surprisingly cool with it
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/roguelike/hades-2s-latest-patch-drops-the-nerf-hammer-on-everyones-favorite-overpowered-build-but-players-are-surprisingly-cool-with-it/
We said in May that Hades 2 "is absolutely worth playing in early access," and now it's even more worth playing in early access thanks to a major new patch that went live today.
The patch replaces "dozens" of placeholder icons in the interface, and makes numerous balance changes "aimed at enhancing core combat and related choices." It's now possible to encounter up to one additional Olympian each night, as it was in the original Hades, and the odds of finding a Boon or other major reward while in Erebus have also been increased.

Elden Ring's lovable living pots are pure body horror in Shadow of the Erdtree
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/elden-rings-lovable-living-pots-are-pure-body-horror-in-shadow-of-the-erdtree/
Pot Boys, Pot Friends, Clay Bros, Cauldron Cuzs, Living Jars… it doesn't matter what you call them: they seem nice. They were among the first memes to spawn from Elden Ring and it's little wonder, because they're a species of sentient and occasionally violent pot. It's like Hayao Miyazaki and Lewis Carroll collaborated, and then, I dunno, Eli Roth barged in. Or, to put laboured references aside, it's like Hayataka Miyazaki having a normal one.

Destiny 2: The Final Shape has had a rough start with some disgruntled reviews, but things are already beginning to even out
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/destiny-2-the-final-shape-has-had-a-rough-start-with-some-disgruntled-reviews-but-things-are-already-beginning-to-even-out/
Destiny 2: The Final Shape was feeling the wrath of some pretty disgruntled players on Steam as people flooded the reviews with negative comments after many experienced server issues yesterday during the DLC's launch. 
(...)
Although, we're already starting to see a change. As of writing this, the reviews jumped up to a mixed rating and will likely keep increasing as there are fewer server issues and more players actually get to experience The Final Shape for themselves. 
>> They went into some of those troubles in this other article.