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

[JEMC]

The second, but not last, part of the Monday news:

The Game Awards 2024 results: All the winners
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/the-game-awards-2024-results-all-the-winners/
As you would expect for its tenth anniversary, The Game Awards was absolutely packed. We got a new Witcher reveal, an Elden Ring spinoff, the Illuminate in Helldivers 2, a first look at Borderlands 4, new stuff from gen Design and Naughty Dog, Swen Vincke telling it like it is, and a whole bunch more—if you missed it, here's our rundown of the 11 biggest announcements at the show.
And yes, there were awards, too. The big winner of the night was the PlayStation 5 exclusive Astro Bot, which claimed four wins including Game of the Year, followed by Metaphor: Refantazio, which took home three trophies. The much-loved card game Balatro also scored three times, and it pleases me greatly to say that after dominating the 2023 Game Awards, Baldur's Gate 3 came back to snipe another one, taking home the title for Best Community Support.
The full list of winners, and all the nominees, is below.
>> I know, I know, it’s a bit late for this.

Helldivers 2's new Warbond lets you kit out as Spartan super-soldier
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/helldivers-2s-new-warbond-lets-you-kit-out-as-spartan-super-soldier/
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Following on from yesterday's massive Omens of Tyranny update that reintroduced the Illuminates faction from the original game among many many other things, Arrowhead Game Studios have now released a new Warbond package for Super Earth's finest.
The Urban Legends Warbond debuts the game's first ever melee secondary weapon, the SQC-19 Stun Lance, which lets you poke at invaders from a decent range and stop them in their tracks with electrical zaps. While there's been a throwing knife and a crappy bayonet rifle in the game for a while now, this marks the first instance of a proper, dedicated lance provided to the soldiers of super earth. This pairs particularly well with the new SH-51 Direction Shield stratagem, which offers you a solid range of protection while you prod aliens with the Stun Lance.
>> And the update also brought a change, you can now buy weapons from the game’s Superstore.

The Witcher 4 might be getting some of that Cyberpunk 2077 freedom in making your own builds
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/the-witcher-4-might-be-getting-some-of-that-cyberpunk-2077-freedom-in-making-your-own-builds/
Ahhh that's more like it. Watching that Witcher 4 trailer reminded me of what matters to me in an RPG: the NPCs have pockmarked faces and broccoli noses, and the whole thing looks like it smells of manure, burned wood, and fermented cabbage. Its grimy world is a breath of fresh, briney air after the spate of squeaky-clean RPGs like Dragon Age: The Veilguard and (sorry, I love it, but still…) Baldur's Gate 3.
Beyond the fact of it starring Geralt's protege Ciri as a now fully-fledged witcher, we don't know that much about The Witcher 4, so are foraging every quote and comment from CDPR to get a better picture. In an interview with IGN, Witcher 4 Game Director Sebastian Kalemba drew some interesting parallels between The Witcher 4 and Cyberpunk 2077, suggesting that CDPR might be looking to offer more diverse build options for Ciri than Geralt ever had.
>> Regarding Ciri, she now has a new voice actor.

Elden Ring: Nightreign will include a character built around Shadow of the Erdtree's parry mechanic
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/roguelike/elden-ring-nightreign-will-include-a-character-built-around-shadow-of-the-erdtrees-parry-mechanic/
When I played Shadow of the Erdtree ahead of release, there was one thing I kicked myself for missing early on in the giant expansion—a crystal tear that essentially gave you Sekiro-style parrying in the Elden Ring combat system. A certain subset of FromSoft devotees were very excited to discover that feature, as it makes blocking and parrying way more viable on a dual-weapon build (or really any build not using a shield). If you're one of those folks, good news: there's going to be a character just for you in Elden Ring's new co-op roguelike spinoff Nightreign.
>> Sadly, the Network Test from February will be exclusive to consoles.

My favorite little Elden Ring: Nightreign feature is the first evolution of FromSoftware's iconic 'bloodstains' since 2009's Demon's Souls, and has roots in a roguelike from way back in 1987
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/roguelike/my-favorite-little-elden-ring-nightreign-feature-is-the-first-evolution-of-fromsoftwares-iconic-bloodstains-since-2009s-demons-souls-and-has-roots-in-a-roguelike-from-way-back-in-1987/
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I love the bloodstains in Souls games. They're one of FromSoft's subtle-but-brilliant online features, even if you're not engaging with the multiplayer systems directly. They've also been essentially the same for 15 years now, from Demon's Souls up through Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree. That's fine, but I'm psyched to see the new Elden Ring spin-off Nightreign doing something new with them. Or, rather, something very, very old.
Nightreign is a fully co-op roguelike, with none of the usual online features that define From's RPGs: no PvP multiplayer, no invasions, no temporarily summoning other players for a single boss encounter. You're in a three-person squad for each roguelike session, and as I wrote about in my hands-on feature, you're moving fast, without the time to linger and appreciate the ghostly deaths of other players. But you know what you can appreciate about other players in a fast-paced roguelike? Their loot.

Borderlands 4's new vault hunters get a mixed reaction from fans: some say they're 'bland,' others defend their excitement
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/borderlands-4s-new-vault-hunters-get-a-mixed-reaction-from-fans-some-say-theyre-bland-others-push-back-and-defend-their-excitement/
What struck me about the Borderlands 4 trailer shown at The Game Awards is that the graphical fidelity has advanced so far that the comic book art style that defined the first game is fading away. It looks like the characters are doing Borderlands cosplay, with black Sharpie lines on foam props, and in the daytime scene at the start of the trailer, the signature Borderlands style is almost entirely absent from the rocky terrain.
I still think it looks great, even if the style that once set the series apart—one of the most successful pivots in videogame history—is becoming vestigial. Borderlands fans, however, had their eyes fixed on more substantial matters: the new vault hunters, whose reveal has divided opinions. The Borderlands subreddit is currently awash with both posts that call the new protagonists "bland" and counter-posts declaring that everyone is being too negative.

Larian brings back the Baldur's Gate 3 advent calendar to tease its next game
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/larian-brings-back-the-baldurs-gate-3-advent-calendar-to-tease-its-next-game/
Larian Studios has brought back its Baldur's Gate 3 advent calendar, promising 12 days of "wonders, music, and cheer" that kicks off with a tease—a not very informative tease, I'll tell you up front, but a tease nonetheless—of its next game.

In what will surely come as no surprise at all, the end of Suicide Squad means layoffs at Warner Bros.
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/in-what-will-surely-come-as-no-surprise-at-all-the-end-of-suicide-squad-means-layoffs-at-warner-bros/
As predictably as night following day, the last gasps of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League has seemingly resulted in lost jobs. A CBC Radio Canada report says WB Games Montreal has eliminated 99 jobs, primarily among Keywords subcontractors working on its QA team.

Dustgrave: A Sandbox RPG splices Baldur's Gate 3 with Mount & Blade, and you can grab it in early access for less than $20
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/dustgrave-a-sandbox-rpg-splices-baldurs-gate-3-with-mount-and-blade-and-you-can-grab-it-in-early-access-for-less-than-usd20/
Most RPGs have you out to save the world, or at least resolve some personal stakes, claim a macguffin or complete a prophecy. Dustgrave: A Sandbox RPG (just launched into early access) seems happy to let you pick your own goals in a procedurally generated world, as morally questionable as those goals may be.

Tower of Mask amps up Legend of Grimrock-style dungeons with soulslike aggression
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/tower-of-mask-amps-up-legend-of-grimrock-style-dungeons-with-soulslike-aggression/
There was once a dark time when truly retro dungeon crawlers—especially those descended from the more action-oriented Dungeon master—seemed practically extinct. But ever since Legend of Grimrock, they've had a resurgence and we've been spoiled with choice. The latest indie challenger to the real-time looting and levelling crown is Tower of Mask, from Japanese solo developer Papertip Studio, and despite being a lower-budget production, it might just have The Juice, plus a bit of FromSoftware inspiration going on.