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

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Let’s go with the second part of the gaming news:

This obsessively detailed rocket flight sim finally lets me cause historic spaceflight disasters from the comfort of my own home
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/sim/this-obsessively-detailed-rocket-flight-sim-finally-lets-me-cause-historic-spaceflight-disasters-from-the-comfort-of-my-own-home/
The thing they don't tell you is: it's easy, this astronaut lark. Oh, sure, they make it look hard—all dials and knobs and switches that have protective covers over them, but it's just theatre. Easiest job in the world, really: you just go up.
Such was my attitude when I fired up Reentry – A Space Flight Simulator—a videogame you know is good because it kicks off with archival audio of John F Kennedy—but it was an attitude I was quickly disabused of.
Reentry is, more or less, a flight sim, insofar as belting yourself into a missile is a kind of flight. It's one of those grognardy flight sims, too. No arcade-y get-up-and-go here; your craft's panels vibrate with twiddly switches and inscrutable gauges. Successful flight, when you come to it, relies on you completing an exhaustive series of checklists: does the radio work? Does the radio work at ultra-high frequency? Does it work at low-power ultra-high frequency? Does it work at high frequency (non-ultra edition)?

InXile's steampunk RPG Clockwork Empires aims to 'bring the level of reactivity from our isometric titles into something first-person,' Brian Fargo says, calling it the studio's 'most ambitious title'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/inxiles-steampug-rpg-clockwork-empires-aims-to-bring-the-level-of-reactivity-from-our-isometric-titles-into-something-first-person-brian-fargo-says-calling-it-the-studios-most-ambitious-title/
In June 2025, after two years of virtual silence, we got our first up-to-date look at InXile Entertainment's upcoming steampunk RPG Clockwork Revolution. And then, well, it was back to silence. That may be because Clockwork Revolution is the studio's "most ambitious title, probably by a factor of 10," InXile head Brian Fargo said in a new interview with GamesRadar, and that sort of ambition takes time.

Highguard devs promise it won't have gaudy crossover skins or bombard players with constant ads: 'We want to leave you the hell alone'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/highguard-devs-promise-it-wont-have-gaudy-crossover-skins-or-bombard-players-with-constant-ads-we-want-to-leave-you-the-hell-alone/
After playing a few hours of Highguard at a hands-on event in Los Angeles last week, I don't think it's my next FPS obsession. I do, however, respect the stance its developers at Wildlight Entertainment are taking with their debut game's business model.
Highguard is free-to-play, it has cosmetic-only battle passes that never expire, new heroes and maps are free for all, and the most expensive items⁠in its store at launch—like a legendary bear mount—are $20.
"We wanted to make a store that we as players want to experience. That means cosmetic only, direct purchase only, no FOMO, no pay for power. No pay to win, pay walling, no RNG, no loot boxes," said VP of product and publishing Jason Torfin in a group interview with press.
>> But wait! There’s more: DSOG has tested the game, that uses UE 5,3,2, and ssays there’s no stutter (link); they claims that they don’t need “super huge” player counts to be successful (link); and they also reflect on the TGA trailer (link)

The next Arc Raiders update adds Solo vs Squad matchmaking for PvP masochists and an exciting new map condition: Birds
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/the-next-arc-raiders-update-adds-solo-vs-squad-matchmaking-for-pvp-masochists-and-an-exciting-new-map-condition-birds/
It's been just under two weeks since the end of Arc Raiders' Cold Snap event, and Embark isn't wasting any time before rolling into the next phase of feature additions. Today, the studio released details about the Headwinds update arriving this week as the Rust Belt emerges from the depths of winter.

Hytale update adds a new weapon for summoning undead hordes, but keep your early access expectations in check
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/hytale-update-adds-a-new-weapon-for-summoning-undead-hordes-but-keep-your-early-access-expectations-in-check/
I may have missed out on the original Minecraft era, but I'm not making that mistake a second time as Hytale accounted for most of my gameplay hours within the last two weeks. It's good stuff, albeit largely unfinished good stuff, but the updates are slowly trickling in, and I'm all about this new necromancy grimoire in the latest patch.

Indie devs should avoid 'most indie publishers' says Manor Lords indie publisher Hooded Horse: 'The vast majority of indie publishers are predatory and opportunistic'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/indie-devs-should-avoid-most-indie-publishers-says-manor-lords-indie-publisher-hooded-horse-the-vast-majority-of-indie-publishers-are-predatory-and-opportunistic/
From Manor Lords to Against the Storm to Terra Invicta, indie publisher Hooded Horse has enjoyed an incredible run since it was founded in 2019. With a bunch of big successes under its belt, you might expect CEO Tim Bender to be looking to expand, swallowing up more and more indie games to increase his chances of finding another hit.
But not only is he completely disinterested in publishing more than around 10 games a year, focusing on stability over growth, his advice to indie developers is to avoid indie publishers entirely.
"People can hate me for this if they want," he says, "but most indie publishers are not people indie developers should work with. The vast majority of indie publishers, in their whole structure, are predatory and opportunistic."
>> I’m posting this article here instead of in the third post because of the linked article, which is kind of an interview from last Thursday. So take this as a two in one article.