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

[JEMC]

Wednesday gaming news, part two:

Invincible VS might be hyperviolent, but the devs want to salve the sting of getting combo'd to death: 'We want you to be an active participant, even when you're getting hit'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fighting/invincible-vs-might-be-hyperviolent-but-the-devs-want-to-salve-the-sting-of-getting-combod-to-death-we-want-you-to-be-an-active-participant-even-when-youre-getting-hit/
If you've played Marvel vs Capcom, you may be aware of the touch of death: that most dreaded of fighting game combos where a single hit-confirm can take you from full health to the grave. It's an edge case, but an emblem of one of the big frustrations any arcade fighter novice has dealt with—getting hit in any game with a robust combo system means you'll spend a lot of time waiting and watching.
Mike Willette, once lead producer of 2013's stellar Killer Instinct reboot and now executive producer on Invincible VS, said the game is angled to balance out the breakneck pace of your average tag fighter with some tweaks that favor accessibility.

This medieval slasher looks like an '80s comic that inspired 100 death metal bands, and you should try its 10-minute Steam Next Fest demo
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/this-medieval-slasher-looks-like-an-80s-comic-that-inspired-100-death-metal-bands-and-you-should-try-its-10-minute-steam-next-fest-demo/
I'm brave enough to say it: I like it when a videogame looks cool. Cuphead? Banging. Holstin? What a looker. Metaphor: ReFantazio? Wowie zowie.
A sufficiently striking coat of paint can get me interested in a game before I know anything else about it. So it was with the Steam Next Fest demo for Black Raven, a "2.5D action-adventure rooted in Slavic Folklore," whose screenshots are such a vibe that I downloaded it sight-unseen.

I couldn't picture how Death Howl, a soulslike deckbuilder, could possibly marry the two genres—until I played its Steam Next Fest demo
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/i-couldnt-picture-how-death-howl-a-soulslike-deckbuilder-could-possibly-marry-the-two-genres-until-i-played-its-steam-next-fest-demo/
Death Howl's demo is part of Steam Next fest—which meant, after a glowing recommendation from PCG's Robin Valentine earlier this year, I was obligated to give it a try. Partially because I get paid a salary for this sort of thing, but also because I heard the words "soulslike deckbuilder" and thought nah, surely not.
I'm happy to report that, yeah, surely yes. Death Howl doesn't just work, it's extraordinarily clever in the way it captures a familiar soulslike loop within the framework of a deckbuilder.

If you've ever wanted to play an NPC in a Hitman level then do I have the Steam Next Fest demo for you
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/adventure/if-youve-ever-wanted-to-play-an-npc-in-a-hitman-level-then-do-i-have-the-steam-next-fest-demo-for-you/
There's a scene in Andor—the show that asks what if Star Wars read Gramsci—where the main character observes of the imperial ruling class that all you need is "a uniform, some dirty hands, and an imperial toolkit" to slip beneath the notice of the world's most powerful people. (...)
Even a humdrum gig like elevator operator offers the anonymous masses opportunities to subtly interfere with power. Or at least, that's my takeaway from the Steam Next Fest demo for Elevator Music, a game that puts you in the pressed bellboy uniform of, well, an elevator attendant. Your job is to make the room go up and down, picking people up, dropping them off, trying to move in the most efficient manner possible so as not to irritate your well-to-do clientele at the fancy fake-Swiss hotel you work at.

The Outer Worlds 2 game director says its writing has a 'less silly, darker tone' than the first game
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/the-outer-worlds-2-game-director-says-its-writing-has-a-less-silly-darker-tone-than-the-first-game/
In our Outer Worlds review back in 2019, we called Obsidian's sci-fi satire "a quirky romp across a solar system ruled by brutal corporations," but the zany ribbing about the excesses of corporate misconduct didn't land for everyone living in the world where the delivery drivers of major companies are pressured to pee in bottles to be able to make their quotas. In The Outer Worlds 2, Obsidian says that—while there'll still be plenty of humor—the writing will have a darker weight behind it.

'My biggest fear is the direct comparison to Grounded 1': Grounded 2 executive producer opens up about the difficulty of following up an early access game with another early access game
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/my-biggest-fear-is-the-direct-comparison-to-grounded-1-grounded-2-executive-producer-opens-up-about-the-difficulty-of-following-up-an-early-access-game-with-another-early-access-game/
Grounded 2 was announced at the Xbox Games Showcase over the weekend, and it's releasing into early access next month—July 29, to be specific. Early access can be a real boon for games, as it enables developers to iterate with (hopefully) large-scale feedback toward a complete, as-good-as-it-can-be final release, but there are risks involved too, especially when you're following up on a big hit.
"When you're a sequel to a game that has completed early access, that had five years to iterate and grow, and then you're a sequel in early access, that's an incomplete game?" Obsidian's Marcus Morgan said in an interview with PC Gamer. "I'll be honest, my biggest fear is the comparison—the direct comparison—to Grounded 1."

Sizzle and Stack is a cooking strategy game which truly captures the chaos of making meals for angry customers like no other
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/strategy/sizzle-and-stack-is-a-cooking-strategy-game-which-truly-captures-the-chaos-of-making-meals-for-angry-customers-like-no-other/
I've been spending my free time sifting through all the new demos showcased in this month's Steam Next Fest. And while there's a whole host of incredible multiplayer games that are right up my alley I've landed on Sizzle and Stack, an infuriating, stress-inducing cooking card game.

Embracer CEO who oversaw the staggering $2B blunder that led to studio closures and layoffs is now set to become its executive chair, focusing on 'mergers and acquisitions and capital allocation'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/embracer-ceo-who-oversaw-the-staggering-usd2b-blunder-that-led-to-studio-closures-and-layoffs-is-now-set-to-become-its-executive-chair-focusing-on-mergers-and-acquisitions-and-capital-allocation/
There are big changes afoot at Embracer Group, which has announced that company CEO Lars Wingefors is stepping down from the role. But he's not leaving! Instead, Wingefors is set to become the executive chair of the board, where he will focus on—believe it or not—"capital allocation, M&A [mergers and acquisitions], and strategy."
>> The article has a picture of the guy, and I’m not saying that he has a pretty punchable face and smirk, but...

Team Ninja says Ninja Gaiden 4 is all about 'bringing together the stylish qualities of Platinum while retaining that distinct Ninja Gaiden feel'—and the studios 'wouldn't hold back' critiquing each other's work
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/team-ninja-says-ninja-gaiden-4-is-all-about-bringing-together-the-stylish-qualities-of-platinum-while-retaining-that-distinct-ninja-gaiden-feel-and-the-studios-wouldnt-hold-back-critiquing-each-others-work/
Team Ninja is busy. On the heels of remaster Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, the studio is working on Nioh 3 for 2026 while also overseeing development of this October's Ninja Gaiden 4, which is in the works at PlatinumGames. Though they were once rivals for the fiefdom of Japanese character action games—Ninja Gaiden 2 and Platinum's Bayonetta came out about a year apart, and I remember fiercely arguing my allegiance to the former—now they're working together. And according to the developers, at least, it's been a very good match.

Despite its new easy mode, Lies of P will get a 'difficulty reduction' in a future update because too many players are getting wrecked by the DLC
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/despite-its-new-easy-mode-lies-of-p-will-get-a-difficulty-reduction-in-a-future-update-because-too-many-players-are-getting-wrecked-by-the-dlc/
The Pinocchio soulslike Lies of P got an easy mode alongside the release of Overture DLC last week, an entirely uncontroversial move that riled up absolutely no one. But the DLC also apparently introduced a major difficulty spike in the Legendary Stalker mode—previously the game's default—and it's bad enough that game director Ji Won Choi says developer Neowiz is going to make some adjustments.