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

[JEMC]

The long second part of the Monday gaming news_

CDPR is aiming to 'release 3 Witcher games within a 6 year period' but don't expect any expansions for the upcoming trilogy
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/the-witcher/cdpr-is-aiming-to-release-3-witcher-games-within-a-6-year-period-but-dont-expect-any-expansions-for-the-upcoming-trilogy/
It's been a big couple of days for Witcher fans as an expansion for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was confirmed (after it was accidentally leaked on the RED Launcher, whoopsie). But thanks to a Q&A portion at the end of the financial call we also now know a bit more about CD Projekt Red's aspirational release timeline.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 promises more 'grounded' cosmetics, and I feel like I've heard this before
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/call-of-duty/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-4-promises-more-grounded-cosmetics-and-i-feel-like-ive-heard-this-before/
In recent years, Call of Duty has been suffering from what I lamented last year to be a severe case of Fortnitification—you know, just about every game you know and love amalgamating and morphing into a multimedia glob where some bozo from a TV show can gun down a real-life celebrity and then proceed to be revived by their teammate donning the skin of some anime protagonist.
(...)
Well, it looks like Infinity Ward wants to walk back some of that baffling incoherence with Modern Warfare 4, which was revealed earlier this week. "Every aspect of Modern Warfare 4 is anchored in the game's narrative," a post from the Infinity Ward X account reads. "Every feature, every decision needs to feel authentic to what Modern Warfare is, and that includes cosmetics and collabs. We're committed to keeping it grounded and transparent, and we want to hear from you on what you'd like to see in our game."
>> There is even a second article about this, based on a reply to a tweet (link).

StarCraft 2 development ended 6 years ago, but Blizzard still won't stop messing with it
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rts/starcraft-2-development-ended-6-years-ago-but-blizzard-still-wont-stop-messing-with-it/
Six years ago, in October 2020, Blizzard announced the end of new content updates for StarCraft 2, its storied real-time strategy game, although it promised to continue supporting the game with tweaks and balance patches "as needed." It's followed through on that commitment over the years since, and today (technically yesterday, but I didn't notice it then) brings as a new one, and it's kind of a banger.

Balatro publisher Playstack could soon belong to the same private equity firm that owns Fandom and GameSpot
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/balatro-publisher-playstack-could-soon-belong-to-the-same-private-equity-firm-that-owns-fandom-and-gamespot/
Playstack, publisher of some of the most acclaimed indie games in recent years—games like Balatro, Abiotic Factor, and The Case of the Golden Idol—is likely to find itself under new ownership in a proposed sale that would see it land in the same investment portfolio as Fandom and GameSpot (via Game Developer).
>> Here’s the story of how Playstack discovered Balatro (link).

Bungie devs have resurrected an obscene amount of guns for Destiny 2's final update: 'My body physically hurts from the amount of items we were updating'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/bungie-devs-have-resurrected-an-obscene-amount-of-guns-for-destiny-2s-final-update-my-body-physically-hurts-from-the-amount-of-items-we-were-updating/
Its entry into retirement is approaching, but Destiny 2 is being sent out with a bang. After detailing the ways D2 activities are evolving in its end-of-new-content Monument of Triumph update, Bungie today has provided more specifics about the avalanche of new and returning weaponry it's spilling into its various loot pools.
>> Some folks inside Destiny 2tried to save if with a wild idea: a relaunch of the game (link).

Bungie spills the beans on combat tuning for Marathon Season 2, and it's bad news for shotgun lovers and thermal snipers
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/bungie-spills-the-beans-on-combat-tuning-for-marathon-season-2-and-its-bad-news-for-shotgun-lovers-and-thermal-snipers/
Bungie revealed Season 2 of Marathon earlier this week, and it's already given players the headlines for its upcoming reset. Marathon is getting a new map, a new defence-focussed shell, a new runner upgrade system, and a free week for players who didn't jump aboard for Season 1 to try the game out for themselves.
Now, though Bungie has provided a much more detailed overview of how the new season will affect combat on Tau Ceti IV, diving into the nitty gritty of how gunfights have been reshaped and rebalanced for the coming wipe.

It seems Terraria's developer is as bad at making small updates as it is final ones, as it says its latest balance patch is much more than 'adjusting a few numbers'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/it-seems-terrarias-developer-is-as-bad-at-making-small-updates-as-it-is-final-ones-as-it-says-its-latest-balance-patch-is-much-more-than-adjusting-a-few-numbers/
Back in January, Terraria finally received its gargantuan 1.4.5 patch. Three years in the making, 1.4.5 was supposed to be the final update for the long-running, massively successful survival-crafting game. But it turns out that developer Re-Logic is terrible at making final updates, having committed to at least one further major patch in the future while leaving the door open for more.
On top of this, Re-Logic is already working on what was supposed to be a minor balance patch. But it appears Re-Logic is as bad at making small updates as it is final updates, as patch 1.4.5.7 is shaping up to do far more than tweak some numbers.

Thick as Thieves is making changes, but not the one I think matters most
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/sim/thick-as-thieves-is-making-changes-but-not-the-one-i-think-matters-most/
"While we are quite pleased with your thieving prowess and how much you are enjoying the game," say Thick as Thieves developers OtherSide Entertainment, "we also know that there is continued room for improvement and we intend to keep serving that up."
Following a first patch that added an FOV slider, an option to disable motion blur, and a few other valuable settings tweaks, a second update has been promised "sometime in the middle of next week." And while it does include stuff I'm all in favor of, like the ability to rebind your keys—essential in a stealth game, rebinding the keys is the first thing everyone does in Thief: The Dark Project—there's a gaping hole where some variation on "timers to be made adjustable or optional" should be.
>> That “next week” is, of course, this week.

Factorio's next major update will also be its last, as its developer announces it has 'reached a good place to conclude active gameplay development'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/sim/factorios-next-major-update-will-also-be-its-last-as-its-developer-announces-it-has-reached-a-good-place-to-conclude-active-gameplay-development/
After 13 years of development, over half a decade of post-release support, and one of the most incredible expansions ever made, Wube Software is preparing to call time on the development of Factorio.
In its latest Friday Facts blog, the Czech developer revealed that the coming 2.1 patch will be the game's final significant update, with the studio switching to minor quality of life patches thereafter.

Before Mina the Hollower, Yacht Club paused a 3D Shovel Knight game that's 'not far from being showable' and a possible next project
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/before-mina-the-hollower-yacht-club-paused-a-3d-shovel-knight-game-thats-not-far-from-being-showable-and-a-possible-next-project/
In a new interview with Bloomberg, Yacht Club Games co-founder Sean Velasco talked about Mina the Hollower's $20 price tag and the game's "make or break" status for the indie institution. Along the way, he talked about Mina's development challenges, one of which might just be the studio's next game.

Star Citizen's single-player component is in the 'closing stages' of development according to Chris Roberts, as rumours of another Squadron 42 delay circulate
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/sim/star-citizens-single-player-component-is-in-the-closing-stages-of-development-according-to-chris-roberts-as-rumours-of-another-squadron-42-delay-circulate/
Last week, Star Citizen surpassed $1 billion in player funding, an eye-popping milestone that inevitably raised all the same questions about Cloud Imperium Games' wildly ambitious space MMO. Is it a scam? (no). Is it playable (yes). When will it be finished? (no idea). What's the situation with its single-player component, Squadron 42?
The last we heard, Squadron 42 was on course to release sometime this year, but the breadth of the release window, combined with the fact that Squadron 42 has been delayed numerous times already, made it difficult to take this too seriously. However, it might just be that Squadron 42 is nearly finished after all. In a recent interview Star Citizen's creator Chris Roberts said the single-player game is "in the closing stages" of development.

Minecraft's 3rd game drop of 2026 has been revealed, and its new biome automatically makes it the best one yet
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/minecrafts-3rd-game-drop-of-2026-has-been-revealed-and-its-new-biome-automatically-makes-it-the-best-one-yet/
Minecraft has shared the first features of its third game drop of 2026 at TwitchCon, and while we still have a lot to learn, we do know it'll feature an entirely new forest biome: the dappled forest. After the Chaos Cubed update focused on bringing a new and exciting biome to the underground, I for one am excited to have somewhere new to explore in the overworld, especially given the autumnal aesthetic the biome will take on.

After being shut down by Blizzard, one of WoW's biggest private servers is saying screw it, we'll make our own MMO
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/world-of-warcraft/after-being-shut-down-by-blizzard-one-of-wows-biggest-private-servers-is-saying-screw-it-well-make-our-own-mmo/
The saga of TurtleWoW was perhaps inevitable—operating pretty brazenly under the nose of Blizzard, the World of Warcraft private server featured bespoke content for its own vision of the game, and advertised itself as an actual game might.
It also featured in-game microtransactions, and while some private servers for other MMOs (like City of Heroes) have received official permission from the developers to keep operating, they've usually done so via years of muddling by on strictly-documented donations that only cover server costs.
(...)
Well, as per the TurtleWoW (now Moonwhisper Games) Discord, its developers have said they'll make their own MMO: "This isn't the end of our journey together, but rather the beginning of a new one! We'll be transitioning the team into a game development studio Moonwhisper Games.

Tekken's game director follows in Harada's footsteps by saying sayonara to Bandai Namco, causing fans to worry about the game's future
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fighting/tekkens-game-director-follows-in-haradas-footsteps-by-saying-sayonara-to-bandai-namco-causing-fans-to-worry-about-the-games-future/
After long-time Tekken boss Katsuhiro Harada departed Bandai Namco last year—having now started up his own studio under SNK—the game director behind the last two entries is now following in his footsteps.
Kohei "Nakatsu" Ikeda has been with the developer for 20 years, first joining the team behind Soulcalibur 4 before eventually becoming the game director for both Tekken 7 and Tekken 8. Nakatsu announced his departure with a lengthy message over on his X account. "Sharing excitement, celebrating together, and spending unforgettable moments with you all became one of the greatest treasures of my life," he said.