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

[JEMC]

Take a breath to get ready for the third part of the news:

Capcom says Ōkami sold quite well, actually, and it's wanted to do a sequel for ages but was waiting for 'the stars to align'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/capcom-says-okami-sold-quite-well-actually-and-its-wanted-to-do-a-sequel-for-ages-but-was-waiting-for-the-stars-to-align/
Capcom's announcement of a sequel to Ōkami came as a big surprise last year, not least because the original is notorious for being a commercial flop. But in a recent interview, Capcom producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi pointed out that Ōkami's reputation for underselling is no longer deserved, and because of that the publisher has wanted to do an Ōkami sequel for a while.

LAN Party simulates LAN parties without the LAN
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/vr/lan-party-simulates-lan-parties-without-the-lan/
Have you ever wanted to have a LAN party but without the, you know, LAN? Just the watching over other peoples' shoulders and taking a break for a movie? Well, developer LAN Party Technologies is delivering precisely that. It may well be perfect if you've ever thought that your friend group's Discord server should have a fully-featured 3D front end where someone can post infinitely looping meme gifs on the wall.

Viktor Antonov, the visionary artist who defined Half-Life 2 and Dishonored, has died
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/viktor-antonov-the-visionary-artist-who-defined-half-life-2-and-dishonored-has-died/
Viktor Antonov, the Bulgarian artist who served as art director on both Half-Life 2 and Dishonored, has died at the age of 52. The news comes by way of some of Antonov's former colleagues in the industry, who also shared their thoughts on Antonov's legacy as an artist.

Layoffs at Funko Fusion developer 10:10 Games blamed on 'complete commercial and critical failure' of the game
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/layoffs-at-funko-fusion-developer-10-10-games-blamed-on-complete-commercial-and-critical-failure-of-the-game/
10:10 Games, a studio based in Warrington, England, has laid off staff, according to sources quoted Insider Gaming, due to its first release being a "complete commercial and critical failure".

Shovel Knight artist says throwback games need 'retro authenticity' but can't coast on nostalgia alone: 'Part of the appeal of the NES era of game making was that everything was a new idea'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/shovel-knight-artist-says-throwback-games-need-retro-authenticity-but-cant-coast-on-nostalgia-alone-part-of-the-appeal-of-the-nes-era-of-game-making-was-that-everything-was-a-new-idea/
Ahead of the Shovel Knight: Steel They Shovel live concert series coming to New York and LA in the next month, I got the chance to talk to Yacht Club artist Nick Wozniak about the indie game's legacy and the state of games today. Wozniak understandably had a lot of thoughts on nailing an authentic retro arty style, but also pointed out that you can't get by on nostalgic authenticity alone.

Don't get rid of your starting horse in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2—there's a secret perk that makes her the best in the game
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/dont-get-rid-of-your-starting-horse-in-kingdom-come-deliverance-2-theres-a-secret-perk-that-makes-her-the-best-in-the-game/
My many years of experience have taught me: you should only stay with someone because of who they are, not who you think they could be. The last two weeks have taught me: unless they are a horse. Because it turns out that, if you stick with the worst nags in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 long enough, they'll eventually blossom into strong, valiant steeds.

'Not every story is told in that way': Phil Spencer says that live service games aren't the answer to every problem, and that smaller games play an important role
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/not-every-story-is-told-in-that-way-phil-spencer-says-that-live-service-games-arent-the-answer-to-every-problem-and-that-smaller-games-play-an-important-role/
Live service games are treated like some great and powerful cheat code for generating awesome amounts of shareholder value. It's so great that EA's CEO thought that it could've saved Dragon Age: The Veilguard from underperforming, and a recent GDC survey revealed that a third of "triple-A developers" are working on live service games as we speak. But despite what it may seem, not everyone is interested in seeing these kinds of games dominate the big budget side of the industry.
"I didn’t want to see every game turn into some big service based game because they felt like that’s where the business model was," Xbox boss Phil Spencer says in an interview with Xbox Era. "It’s not easy to do that. Not every story is told in that way. Not every game kind of supports that or creative idea supports that business model."

Asked point-blank if they're trolling dataminers with fake characters, Marvel Rivals dev scoffs and says they'd 'rather spend our time developing the game'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/asked-point-blank-if-theyre-trolling-dataminers-with-fake-characters-marvel-rivals-dev-scoffs-and-says-theyd-rather-spend-our-time-developing-the-game/
Marvel Rivals' popularity has led to that most contemporary of cottage industries: A whole bunch of dataminers and supposed leakers that descend upon any new version of the game, and get into the guts to predict what's coming next. Almost immediately after launch a large chunk of the future roster was apparently revealed via "hero tags" in the game's code, a leak that gained credence when the Fantastic Four turned out to be the big season one additions, with the likes of Blade rumoured for season two, and a whole wishlist of X-Men characters coming down the pipes.
Such information should always be taken with an entire shaker full of salt, even when official reveals seem to line-up with elements of it. And it leads to its own kind of expectations and even paranoia, with some of the dataminers involved recently speculating that developer NetEase has been intentionally planting red herrings to throw them off the scent.

Mass Effect 3 didn't have music like Vigil or Suicide Mission because composer Jack Wall had a spat with Casey Hudson: 'Casey was not particularly happy with me at the end'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/mass-effect/mass-effect-3-didnt-have-music-like-vigil-or-suicide-mission-because-composer-jack-wall-had-a-spat-with-casey-hudson-casey-was-not-particularly-happy-with-me-at-the-end/
Mass Effect 1 and 2 are, as far as I'm concerned, two of the best albums ever released, and the games they put out to promote them aren't bad either. That's in no small part down to composer Jack Wall, whose fingerprints are all over the iconic, wobbly synths of tracks like Vigil, Suicide Mission, and that one that plays in the galaxy map.
You know what his fingerprints aren't all over, though? Mass Effect 3, whose music was done by Clint Mansell instead. ME3 had some bangers, sure, but it was a very different vibe, and Wall's absence was a major reason the game felt like such an odd duck in the original ME trilogy. Now, in a chat with The Guardian, Wall's reflected on what caused his absence from the third Mass Effect: he had a John Lennon and Paul McCartney-style split with Mass Effect series lead Casey Hudson.

'I strive to be half the hater he is': Elden Ring Nightreign players have decided that Margit was the most annoying invader during the playtest
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/i-strive-to-be-half-the-hater-he-is-elden-ring-nightreign-players-have-decided-that-margit-was-the-most-annoying-invader-during-the-playtest/
Fortnite-dropping into The Lands Between wasn't exactly how I thought I'd spend my weekend, but I also couldn't pass up on the opportunity to experience Elden Ring Nightreign for myself. Despite being a bit confused and very afraid to start with, I soon got the hang of the fast-paced fights and chaotic boss battles, except for Margit's repetitive surprise attacks.