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

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And the third part of the news:

In a sea of Game Awards announcements, you probably missed the debut trailer for Covenant, a gnarly 'FPS Soulslike' from veteran shooter devs looking to 'provide more than what seems possible for the price'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/in-a-sea-of-game-awards-announcements-you-probably-missed-the-debut-trailer-for-covenant-a-gnarly-fps-soulslike-from-veteran-shooter-devs-looking-to-provide-more-than-what-seems-possible-for-the-price/
You might be all trailered out after one of the most exciting Game Awards lineups in the show's 10-year history, but one of the coolest game announcements of the past week actually happened outside Geoff Keighley's gameapalooza: Covenant, a dark fantasy, first person FPS-RPG whose devs boast some impressive shooter bona fides, as well as an aggressive, ambitious vision of how extensive the game can be.

Rogue Trader gets a fat patch adding and reworking cutscenes, voiceover, and more
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/rogue-trader-gets-a-fat-patch-adding-and-reworking-cutscenes-voiceover-and-more/
Planet-hopping PRG Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader has received its third big update, this one focusing on a revamp of cutscenes across the game alongside multiple new cutscenes in various places—some that enhance the plot, and several others that help better introduce interesting major characters. The patch also includes voiceover reworks for companion banter, cutscenes, and more to fix pronunciations and balance levels on voiced lines.

Take your friends airship scavenging and moth fishing above a ruined earth with the co-op update to Forever Skies
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/take-your-friends-airship-scavenging-and-moth-fishing-above-a-ruined-earth-with-the-co-op-update-to-forever-skies/
Have you heard of Forever Skies, the game where you're trawling above a ruined earth swathed in poison fog in a tricked-out airship? Where you fish for giant moths and deconstruct the ruin-tops of skyscrapers for parts? Where "we salvage every scrap and make every drop of water count?"
Well, with its recent World Evolved & Co-op Update it truly is we doing the salvaging now, as you can take to the hazy beyond with up to four people on your very own futuristic skyship. In addition to the co-op, the update really revamps the world you're exploring and how you explore it by adding a built-in 3D printer to your suit for crafting on the go, alongside a much more powerful hand extractor to let you gather resources manually.

Ahead of its January launch, one of the best city builders around is getting a free demo that 'allows you to play endlessly' with some of the new features coming next year
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/sim/ahead-of-its-january-launch-one-of-the-best-city-builders-around-is-getting-a-free-demo-that-allows-you-to-play-endlessly-with-some-of-the-new-features-coming-next-year/
Medeival city builder Foundation will exit nearly five years of early access development when it releases on January 31, 2025. To celebrate, the developers have released a free demo that lets you check out the game's unique gridless playstyle that has you zone areas for your villagers to make their own choices in and forge their own roads across, while you focus more attention on customizing the town's biggest buildings like churches, castles, forts, and monasteries.

Pilot a submarine, clean up evidence, swim for your lives in this latest blend of horror comedy and chaos co-op
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/horror/pilot-a-submarine-clean-up-evidence-swim-for-your-lives-in-this-latest-blend-of-horror-comedy-and-chaos-co-op/
If you, like me, love to get together with your friends and scream, have I got a game for you. Murky Divers follows the vein of Lethal Company to deliver a bit of co-op horror that you'll enjoy very much (while doing some screaming). Murky Divers has been hanging around in early access for about six months now, but with its 1.0 launch this week has taken off to very positive reviews—93% of recent ones on Steam.

'I've spent my entire career trying to recreate the feeling I had when I played D&D for the first time,' says immersive sim godfather Warren Spector, with new game Thick as Thieves going multiplayer because 'you don't play D&D alone'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/ive-spent-my-entire-career-trying-to-recreate-the-feeling-i-had-when-i-played-d-and-d-for-the-first-time-says-immersive-sim-godfather-warren-spector-with-new-game-thick-as-thieves-going-multiplayer-because-you-dont-play-d-and-d-alone/
As part of a larger interview and preview of OtherSide Entertainment's upcoming multiplayer sneaker Thick as Thieves with PC Gamer strategic director Evan Lahti, company co-founder and immersive sim OG Warren Spector explained some of the studio's reasoning for splicing the classically single-player genre into a live service PvPvE multiplayer game.

Balatro dev swings at PEGI for rating it 18+ because of its 'evil playing cards', jokes that he should 'add microtransactions' like EA Sports FC 25 to 'lower that rating to a 3+'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/roguelike/balatro-dev-swings-at-pegi-for-rating-it-18-because-of-its-evil-playing-cards-jokes-that-he-should-add-microtransactions-like-ea-sports-fc-25-to-lower-that-rating-to-a-3/
While I joke plenty about Balatro being a secret psychic prison that's claimed the minds, heart, and souls of about half of PC Gamer's staff, it's only in jest. Balatro is, up and down, exceedingly solid value for money—a modestly-priced indie game without microtransactions or paid DLC and, despite its poker aesthetic, zero interest in promoting gambling behaviour. Unless you ask the Pan-European Gaming Information rating system, which has rated it 18+.
Balatro's developer, LocalThunk, took to X late last week to tear into the decision, writing: "Since PEGI gave us an 18+ rating for having evil playing cards, maybe I should add microtransactions/loot boxes/real gambling to lower that rating to 3+ like EA sports FC."

It was down to the wire, but Helldivers 2 players are celebrating after giving the Illuminate the galactic boot on Calypso—though I've got a feeling they'll be back soon
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/it-was-down-to-the-wire-but-helldivers-2-players-are-celebrating-after-giving-the-illuminate-the-galactic-boot-on-calypso-though-ive-got-a-feeling-theyll-be-back-soon/
Helldivers 2 introduced the Illuminate, recently—aaand they're gone. No, really. While the Illuminate definitely are in Helldivers 2, you actually can't fight them right now, because Super Earth's finest gave them the boot so hard in Calypso that they've been stomped off the galactic map.
The Major Order, which came alongside the surprise update Omens of Tyranny, saw players defending the galaxy from an Illuminate attack on Calypso. Over 100,000 players leapt into action to do so—a 24-hour peak that the game hasn't seen since April—and thoroughly trounced the invading force.