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

[JEMC]

Monday news, the slightly longer than usual part two:

'I dunno what the negativity is for, people had fun': Palworld dev comes to Helldivers 2's defence after stats-tracker decrees both games burnt out
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/i-dunno-what-the-negativity-is-for-people-had-fun-palworld-dev-comes-to-helldivers-2-s-defence-after-stats-tracker-decrees-both-games-burnt-out/
There's been an increased desire, it seems, to highlight the concurrent users of formerly mega-popular games like Palworld and Helldivers 2, see a line going down on a graph, and decree them dead and buried.
Both games, in fact, have a pretty similar story. Palworld had an all-time peak of 2 million players, while Helldivers 2 enjoyed a booming 450,000 players at its all-time high. While that's no longer the case, neither game is dead in the water by any stretch of the imagination.

Monster Hunter fans are so hungry for Wilds gameplay that Capcom's new 60-second weapon clips are racking up millions of views
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/monster-hunter-fans-are-so-hungry-for-wilds-gameplay-that-capcom-s-new-60-second-weapon-clips-are-racking-up-millions-of-views/
It was almost 2 am last night when I saw something that gave me the biggest grin: A 66-second video showcasing the hunting horn in Monster Hunter Wilds. I watched it once, then again, then turned the phone to my partner to show her. "Oh that's sick," she muttered half-asleep as the horn user played a melody that created an area-of-effect buff on the battlefield.
The Hunting Horn video, part of a series of videos showcasing what's new with each weapon type in Wilds, is so short that Capcom really could've published it as a YouTube Short or TikTok, but I think the company bet on Monster Hunter fans being ravenous for any Wilds gameplay, and it was right. Since Capcom started publishing them on YouTube four days ago, these overview videos have racked up millions of views. If you had any doubt left that Wilds is gonna be the biggest Monster Hunter to date, I assume it's squashed now.
>> I couldn’t care less about the views, but I thought that some of you may be interested to hear about those videos.

Scientist survival in Abiotic Factor gets the obligatory water area next week, complete with fishing
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/scientist-survival-in-abiotic-factor-gets-the-obligatory-water-area-next-week-complete-with-fishing/
One of the year's best survival adventure games is getting a nice update next week as the stranded scientists of Abiotic Factor take on the Crush Depth update, which will take them into the depths of the Hydroplant Sector and also finally give them something all true videogames must have: A fishing minigame.

Bungie promises to address the 'uncertainty' surrounding the future of Destiny 2 following massive layoffs last week
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/bungie-promises-to-address-the-uncertainty-about-the-future-of-destiny-2-following-massive-layoffs-last-week/
It hasn't been a good couple weeks for Bungie. At the end of July, the Destiny 2 studio laid off 220 employees, representing roughly 17% of its total workforce; shortly after that, a report surfaced alleging that Bungie CEO Pete Parsons had spent more than $2.4 million on vintage cars over the past two years; and shortly after that it came to light that hopes of avoiding layoffs by really nailing The Final Shape expansion were completely misplaced, because the cuts were reportedly planned regardless of the expansion's outcome.
(...)
In a recent post on Reddit, the Destiny 2 team acknowledged those concerns and promised to address them in the near future.

Be a cute platypus, solve some Zelda-style puzzles, in Ogu and the Secret Forest
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/be-a-cute-platypus-solve-some-zelda-style-puzzles-in-ogu-and-the-secret-forest/
The ever-growing genre of games that mimic the old top-down Zelda titles has another entry with Ogu and the Secret Forest. Releasing on Steam at the end of last month, Ogu has gotten a fairly positive reception from early players. The hand-drawn 2D art and characters are certainly pretty charming, as is little hat-wearing net-swinging platypus protagonist Ogu.

Plop tiles to make flourishing ecosystems in placement puzzler Preserve
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/puzzle/plop-tiles-to-make-flourishing-ecosystems-in-placement-puzzler-preserve/
New tile placement game Preserve has a cool theme: Build up flourishing ecosystems by dropping down water, plants, and animals to form environments within your larger biome to sustain ever-more-complex ecosystems. It's set up as a puzzle because everything  you place has a symbiotic effect on everything else. Bees and flowers need each other, as a very simple example.

Geralt's voice actor confirms he'll be in the next Witcher, but not as the main character: 'Geralt will be part of the game'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/geralts-voice-actor-confirms-hell-be-in-the-next-witcher-game-but-not-as-the-main-character-geralt-will-be-part-of-the-game/
File this under "things we already knew but which are nice to have confirmed." In a recent video for Fall Damage, Doug Cockle, the voice of Geralt in all of CD Projekt Red's games, explained our favorite gruff monster-slaying dad guy will be back for the next game in the series.

Arkane founder says Skyrim is an immersive sim, and Baldur's Gate 3 is 'immersive sim-adjacent'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/arkane-founder-says-skyrim-is-an-immersive-sim-and-baldurs-gate-3-is-immersive-sim-adjacent/
WolfEye, the studio founded by Dishonored co-creator Raphael Colantonio, has a new game coming out. It's apparently a first-person immersive sim with a structure between Prey and Fallout: New Vegas, and that's exactly the kind of thing we at PC Gamer HQ need to hear to rev up the hype engines.
Speaking to PC Gamer's Joshua Wolens recently, Colantonio agreed to get into the weeds about what exactly counts as an immersive sim. His definition of the term is unusually broad, it turns out. Asked about why there hasn't been a Call of Duty-scale hit in the genre, he replied that there has: Skyrim. 

The original Doom-inspired roguelike will return this year as Jupiter Hell Classic
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/roguelike/the-original-doom-inspired-roguelike-will-return-this-year-as-jupiter-hell-classic/
Looks like space marines versus demons roguelike Jupiter Hell will see its original form available on Steam, with pixelated Jupiter Hell Classic set to release before the end of this year. The release will bring the 20-some year development legacy of the Doom-inspired roguelike to a commercial release with new graphics and mechanics, as well as a setting update to match the world of the more modern Jupiter Hell.

Despite imminent delisting, Sega says Sonic Generations will still be available via a bundle
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/despite-imminent-deslisting-sega-says-sonic-generations-will-still-be-available-via-a-bundle/
2011 3D platformer Sonic Generations is getting an updated version later this year, with Sonic x Shadow Generations, and before that release comes the original is going to get delisted... which a lot of people don't like the idea of, as you might imagine. In response to fan feedback, however, Sega has announced that the currently-available Sonic Generations Collection will remain available as part of a bundle with other older Sonic games.

Phew: Blizzard clarifies you'll get every transmog from WoW's quests like in The War Within beta—and retroactively, no less
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/world-of-warcraft/bummer-quests-in-wow-aren-t-giving-you-all-their-transmog-appearances-like-in-the-war-within-beta-and-it-s-apparently-on-purpose/
World of Warcraft: The War Within is ramping up to be massive for the MMO's quality of life. Warbands, as a feature, make the game incredibly alt-friendly, letting players trade key currencies, "warbound" items, and giving them account-wide storage accessible from anywhere for a pretty nominal fee.
Transmog—that is, the game's outfit system that lets you swap out the models of your equipped gear—also had a massive boost. Previously, you'd only unlock appearances for items your character could equip themselves. Now almost anything you pick up will drop into your collection.
Update:
Community manager Kaivax cleaned up confusion regarding the transmog system, posting to the forums late last weekend

Arrowhead CEO says 'we need to do better' after incendiary response to flamethrower nerfs in Helldivers 2: 'Me just talking about it isn't enough, actions matter'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/arrowhead-ceo-says-we-need-to-do-better-after-incendiary-response-to-flamethrower-nerfs-in-helldivers-2-me-just-talking-about-it-isn-t-enough-actions-matter/
Helldivers 2, it would seem, is having balance problems. As fellow PC Gamer writer Morgan Park noted last week, the major update Escalation of Freedom, while bringing plenty of cool new features to the game, has also set everything on fire. Again.
(...)
The studio's new CEO, Shams Jorjani, has been taking to both Twitter and the game's Discord to share his two super credits on the situation and—for the most part—has maintained an admirably cool head about it all, remarking that he prefers to hear people impassioned rather than "not giving a sh*t".
His replies on Discord, however, paint an interesting picture: One of a studio racing to keep up with the demands of that loud and impassioned playerbase. Jorjani writes: "I haven't spoken to everyone of course—but many of us are disappointed on a few levels … I think a lot of you, fairly point out 'wtf—we went through this earlier this year. Why are we here again'".

'Let Super Earth burn': Helldivers 2 players are committing treason to protest its latest patch—allowing a tide of bots to creep worryingly close to home
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/let-super-earth-burn-helldivers-2-players-are-committing-treason-to-protest-its-latest-patch-allowing-a-tide-of-bots-to-creep-worryingly-close-to-home/
The latest Helldivers 2 patch has gone down about as smoothly as a glass full of napalm—chiefly due to some nerfs to the flamethrower, which has sparked a full-on wildfire of criticism so bad the CEO of the studio felt inclined to give a response.
One fascinating form of protest, however, appears to be happening in the game itself (thanks, GamesRadar). "Let the bots advance, let Super Earth burn," writes one player on the game's subreddit, showing a map of the galactic war with an Automaton front that's… coming a little close to Super Earth there, chief.