Thursday news, part two:

Fortnite player destroys Tilted Towers in one shot
https://www.pcgamer.com/fortnite-player-destroys-tilted-towers-in-one-shot/
Fortnite Battle Royale players were convinced Tilted Towers was going to be destroyed back in April, even going so far as to hold a wake ceremony for the notorious city, but what do you know, the damn thing's still standing. So, Reddit user u/Vercyx decided to destroy it himself—with just one shot.

Fallout 76 trailer shows off C.A.M.P. basebuilding
https://www.pcgamer.com/fallout-76-trailer-shows-off-camp-basebuilding/
The Garden of Eden Creation Kit—the G.E.C.K.—is a device of singular importance in the Fallout universe. It's a portable terraforming technology that can transform blasted chunks of wasteland into viable, life-supporting land in very short spans of time. In Fallout 76, players will establish their post-war settlements with a similar, but still very different, device called the Construction and Assembly Mobile Platform—the C.A.M.P.

Destiny 2 fans uncover new Exotic Catalysts and 'Armsweek' event details
https://www.pcgamer.com/destiny-2-fans-uncover-new-exotic-catalysts-and-armsweek-event-details/
Ahead of its big Forsaken expansion, Destiny 2 is getting a smaller but significant update in July called the Solstice of Heroes. Among other things, we already know the Solstice update will bring prestige raid lairs and 6v6 Crucible quickplay. And after poking around Destiny 2's database and files, players reckon they've worked out another part of the update: a new weekly event called 'Armsweek', not to mention nine new Exotic Catalysts.

BioWare would like to make smaller, more 'experimental' games
https://www.pcgamer.com/bioware-would-like-to-make-smaller-more-experimental-games/
BioWare makes big games. From the days of Baldur's Gate through Neverwinter Nights, KOTOR, Mass Effect, and Dragon Age, it's always been about big, sweeping tales of epic, world-saving heroism. The upcoming Anthem promises more of the same. But in a recent interview with Game Informer, general manager Casey Hudson and Anthem executive producer Mark Darrah said the studio would really like to take on some smaller-scale projects too.

Former Bungie composer Marty O'Donnell could be coming back to Halo
https://www.pcgamer.com/former-bungie-composer-marty-odonnell-could-be-coming-back-to-halo/
Award-winning Halo and Destiny composer Marty O'Donnell's acrimonious split with Bungie in 2014 didn't get much coverage on PC Gamer. After all, Destiny was a console exclusive, and so were the last few Halo games that O'Donnell worked on. Neither did O'Donnell winning a lawsuit against Bungie through arbitration, recovering stock and overtime pay he claimed he was owed. And now that Halo Infinite has been confirmed for the PC, O'Donnell's recent hints that he might be returning to the series are very much of interest.

Overwatch's new LFG system is receiving glowing praise from the community
https://www.pcgamer.com/overwatchs-new-lfg-system-is-receiving-glowing-praise-from-the-community/
Along with a totally revamped Symmetra, yesterday's big Overwatch update introduced two new social features: Endorsements and a Looking for Group (LFG) system. Endorsements let players rate other players for being a good teammate, and the LFG system makes it easier for players to build well-balanced teams while playing their favorite role. Players are still getting used to these new features, but they're also already in love with them.

David Hayter returns as Snake in Super Bomberman R
https://www.pcgamer.com/david-hayter-returns-as-snake-in-super-bomberman-r/
(...) Hayter is back as both Naked Snake and Solid Snake. The catch? It's as playable characters in Konami's Super Bomberman R, which has recently shed its Nintendo exclusivity and made it to Steam. The characters arrive as a free update, and you can watch a trailer celebrating this fact below. Hayter seems happy.

Dark Souls 3 cut content suggests it could have had a PvP 'battle royale' mode
https://www.pcgamer.com/dark-souls-3-cut-content-suggests-it-could-have-had-a-pvp-battle-royale-mode/
Soulsborne sleuth Lance McDonald has returned to Lothric—this time with the suggestion Dark Souls 3 once planned a PvP battle royale multiplayer mode.
In his latest Dark Souls alpha cut content video, McDonald visits the third game's High Wall of Lothric area. He discovers three items absent from the final game—the Ceremony Sword of Darkness, the Ceremony Sword of Flame, and the Ceremony Sword Battle Royale Eclipse. In order to explain the latter, it makes sense to first look at the former.

Australian Senate backs loot box investigation
https://www.pcgamer.com/australian-senate-backs-loot-box-investigation/
Australia's Senate has passed a motion to investigate the use of loot boxes in videogames. The Environment and Communications References Committee will lead the probe, and will report back in September.
As reported by MSN, Senator Jordon Steele-John of the Australia Greens party submitted the notice of motion earlier this week. It was supported by the entire Senate, says MSN, which means the issue will not be debated—nor will it require a Senate-wide vote.

Overwatch teases hamster in rolling mech suit: 'The champion revealed'
https://www.pcgamer.com/overwatch-teases-hamster-in-rolling-mech-suit-the-champion-revealed/
D'awww, isn't that wee hamster in the header image cute? It sure is. And it might also be Overwatch's next hero.
Joking aside, hopefully we'll learn more about this fluffy fellow soon. According to the game's subreddit, it's called Hammond. Follow that link for some, ahem, colourful opinions on the latest tease. And check out Reddit person stmaurer's preemptive synopsis, who apparently saw this coming yesterday.

Fantastic. One thing you can't criticize Halo for is it's music.
So keen for Halo: Infinite. It looks great and hopefully now it will sound great on my sound system.

And so they should.
Hopefully something comes of it... We are already paying some of the highest prices in the world for video games to begin with.

Friday news!

SALES & "SALES"/DEALS

Steam had 13.5 million 'new first-time purchasers' between January and May
https://www.pcgamer.com/steam-had-135-million-new-first-time-purchasers-between-january-and-may/
Valve's business development head Jan-Peter Ewert says Steam had 13.5 million "new first-time purchasers" in the first few months of 2018.
Speaking at the Business Conference for Games Industry event in Russia this week, Ewert tied this figure—around 3.375 million new buyers per month between January 1 and April 30—to Steam's recent increase in supported currencies. Ewert suggested Steam's increase in supported payment methods is designed to benefit developers, and that this figure has risen from 40 in 2014 to over 80 methods this year.

Fanatical has three deals for us:

• The Star Deal is For The King, 45% off for the next 24 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/for-the-king
• Conan Exiles is going to be 40% off (46% with the RED10 code) for the next 6 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/conan-exiles
• The new bundle is the Dollar Command bundle, with 12 strategy games: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/dollar-command-bundle

SOFTWARE

Valve is developing tools designed to be 'more accurate and more useful' than Steam Spy
https://www.pcgamer.com/valve-is-developing-tools-designed-to-be-more-accurate-and-more-useful-than-steam-spy/
Valve says it's "working on new tools" for data collection, following the privacy policy changes that affected Steam Spy earlier this year.
Speaking at the Business Conference for Games Industry event in Russia—part of St Petersburg's White Nights 18 festival—Valve business development head Jan-Peter Ewert addressed Steam Spy's shortcomings. He also vaguely outlined Valve's future plans.

Oculus tells Rift owners they should upgrade to Windows 10 or miss out on features
https://www.pcgamer.com/oculus-tells-rift-owners-they-should-upgrade-to-windows-10-or-miss-out-on-features/
Oculus is now recommending that Rift owners upgrade their PCs to Windows 10, if they haven't already, in order to enjoy the "full Rift experience." Otherwise, they may miss out on certain features when Rift Core 2.0 (and later versions) roll out.
"As of today, we’re updating our minimum and recommended spec OS to Windows 10 to power the full Rift experience. Windows 7 and 8.1 users are still supported for the Rift features they know and love today, but they may not be able to use many new and upcoming features and apps. We encourage everyone who isn’t already running Windows 10 to upgrade now to avoid missing out on what’s next," Oculus states in a blog post.

MODS/EMULATORS

New screenshots released for the Half Life 2 demake in the original Half-Life
https://www.dsogaming.com/screenshot-news/new-screenshots-released-for-the-half-life-2-demake-in-the-original-half-life/
Team Classic has released some new screenshots from its upcoming demake of Half Life 2 in Half-Life 1’s Goldsource Engine. This demake, called Half Life 2: Classic will bring everything you loved from Half-Life 2 to the original Half-Life. Why? Because demakes are a thing and some may be interested in them.

Skyrim 3D Landscapes mod features more than 90 high quality 3D models for trees, flowers and plants
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/skyrim-3d-landscapes-mod-features-more-than-90-high-quality-3d-models-for-trees-flowers-and-plants/
Modder ‘mathy79’ has released a brand new graphics mod for the Special Edition of Skyrim that aims to overhaul its flora. The Skyrim 3D Landscapes mod comes with more than 90 custom made vegetation models of all types planted by hand around the lands. What this ultimately means is that this pack features high quality 3D models for unique trees, unique plants, unique waterplants, unique flowers and Dirtcliff weeds. Unfortunately, though, this mod is incompatible with the Enhanced Landscapes mod we reported yesterday (as well as with the Waterplants mod). On the other hand, the mod is compatible with all tree and flora mods and it’s created to run alongside the Skyrim 3D Trees and Plants.

>>The mod is available from Nexus Mods.

Mario-themed mod Doom: The Golden Souls 2 is basically an entire game
https://www.pcgamer.com/mario-themed-mod-doom-the-golden-souls-2-is-basically-an-entire-game/
This is shaping up to be an unexpectedly cute day for PC games. On the heels of Overwatch's new hamster hero, and from the far, far end of the spectrum, comes Doom: The Golden Souls 2, a total conversion mod for Doom 2 based on SNES classic Super Mario World. I realize that's a bit of an odd pairing, but trust me when I say it's pretty convincing.
The sound and art are fantastic, but it's the sheer scale of Doom: The Golden Souls 2 that really impresses. The mammoth mod sports several dozen levels connected via a world map styled after Super Mario World's overworld. Levels generally follow the locales of Super Mario World, but there's still plenty of Doom flavor to them, to say nothing of a few awesome wildcards. You can select and replay any level from the world map by walking over that level's teleporter.

GAMING NEWS

Bullet-hell FPS hybrid, MOTHERGUNSHIP, releases on July 17th
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/bullet-hell-fps-hybrid-mothergunship-releases-on-july-17th/
Grip Digital and Terrible Posture Games have announced that FPS bullet-hell MOTHERGUNSHIP is releasing digitally on July 17th. MOTHERGUNSHIP is a bullet-hell FPS where you craft your own guns, fight gigantic bosses, play together with your friends and defeat a robotic alien armada that conquered Earth.

Here is your first look at Pro Evolution Soccer 2019; two minutes of gameplay footage
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/here-is-your-first-look-at-pro-evolution-soccer-2019-two-minutes-of-gameplay-footage/
YouTube’s ‘Weedens’ has shared a video, showing two minutes of gameplay footage from Pro Evolution Soccer 2019. PES 2019 aims to fulfil KONAMI’s ongoing commitment to increase the number of licenses confirming; more fully licensed leagues and stadiums, more club licensed partnerships, and a host of new Legends that will be announced in the weeks to come.

New gameplay footage released for Contra & Metal Slug-inspired platformer, Blazing Chrome
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/new-gameplay-footage-released-for-contra-metal-slug-inspired-platformer-blazing-chrome/
Developer Joymasher has released today all-new gameplay footage of the upcoming Blazing Chrome, a classically inspired but supremely modern take on action platformers. This new gameplay footage presents the second level of the game, where heroes Mavra and Doyle take on a variety of unique and oppressive enemies like the hovering and damage-dealing Thunderbird and the dangerous bike-Reapers as the heroic duo whiz to glory in their war against militant AI supercomputers.

New details for OVERKILL’s The Walking Dead; PC requirements, game engine, loot boxes and more
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/new-details-for-overkills-the-walking-dead-pc-requirements-game-engine-loot-boxes-and-more/
In a recent Reddit AMA, OVERKILL revealed some new details about its upcoming The Walking Dead game. According to the developers, their main focus for the game’s E3 2018 build was its gameplay and how to make it fun.

New Squadron 42 video focuses on its core technology (animations, idle poses, destruction and more)
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/new-squadron-42-video-focuses-on-its-core-technology-animations-idle-poses-destruction-and-more/
Cloud Imperium has released a new Squadron 42 video that focuses on its core technology. In this video, we get to see some animation improvements, new idle poses techniques, weapon handling, as well as procedural soft body deformation to create destruction assets.

The last news of the week:

Visceral's Star Wars game is now 'pretty different', Amy Hennig has left EA
https://www.pcgamer.com/viscerals-star-wars-game-is-now-pretty-different-amy-hennig-has-left-ea/
Amy Hennig, who was the creative director of Visceral's Star Wars project before the studio was shuttered last October, left EA in January and is moving into indie development. This comes from a Eurogamer interview with the Uncharted co-creator at Gamelab in Barcelona, where she also discusses how the project, previously codenamed Ragtag, isn't really the same game in the hands of new developer EA Vancouver.

Hearthstone's next ranked season is bringing Legend matchmaking improvements
https://www.pcgamer.com/hearthstones-next-ranked-season-is-bringing-legend-matchmaking-improvements/
In a statement released today, Blizzard affirmed that it has not changed Hearthstone's matchmaking since February's ranked update. Among other changes, the February update made it so that Legend players start new seasons at rank four. Blizzard says the recent matchmaking woes are an unintended byproduct of the update and the influx of Legend players that it brought.

Overwatch's new hamster hero Wrecking Ball is live now on the PTR
https://www.pcgamer.com/overwatch-new-hero-2018-release-date/
Another mech joins the Overwatch fray, but this time, there's a hamster in it. He's no jetpack cat, but Overwatch's second new hero for 2018, Wrecking Ball, is a furry little guy who pilots a spherical mech outfitted with a pair of giant machine guns. Oh, and he's live and playable on the Overwatch PTR right now. We've given the little guy a test drive, so if you're curious to know what he can do, we've compiled Wrecking Ball's abilities for easy viewing.

Dear lord, even MapleStory 2 has a battle royale mode
https://www.pcgamer.com/dear-lord-even-maplestory-2-has-a-battle-royale-mode/
We are rapidly approaching the point where a game not having a battle royale mode comes as a surprise. Or maybe I blinked and we're already there? Because apparently MapleStory 2 has joined the fight: its battle royale mode, Mushking Royale, was announced earlier this year, and will be included in its upcoming beta (which you can apply for here). The beta runs from July 18 through July 31, but Mushking Royale will only be playable from July 20 through July 22.

Chris Avellone's Pathfinder: Kingmaker is coming this year, published by Deep Silver
https://www.pcgamer.com/chris-avellones-pathfinder-kingmaker-is-coming-this-year-published-by-deep-silver/
The isometric RPG Pathfinder: Kingmaker was a big success on Kickstarter last year, drawing in nearly double its $500,000 goal. That reflects the popularity of the Pathfinder RPG, a pencil-and-paper RPG published by Paizo, and also the participation of—who else?—Chris Avellone, who is working with Russian studio Owlcat Games on the project.

Pathologic 2 progress report details lockpicking, autopsies, and lucid dreams
https://www.pcgamer.com/pathologic-2-progress-report-details-lockpicking-autopsies-and-lucid-dreams/
Ice-Pick Lodge has released a fresh Pathologic 2 progress report for June, detailing some of the tweaking and tuning that's been done to the game's systems, including trading and bartering, street-level autopsies, lockpicking, and infection. "Many game systems have already been locked in place, and most of our resources go into content creation these days," the studio said. "Still, we keep fine-tuning interfaces and experimenting with sub-systems!"

Bungie details Destiny 2's new prestige raid lairs and Crucible changes
https://www.pcgamer.com/bungie-details-destiny-2s-new-prestige-raid-lairs-and-crucible-changes/
The latest edition of This Week at Bungie covers a lot of ground, beginning with confirmation that, because of "vendor constraints," the ability to directly purchase Destiny 2 Faction armor was intentionally removed in the 1.2.1 update. The good news is that, if all goes according to plan, it'll be returned in time for the final Faction Rally, and Iron Banner, of season three.

State of Decay 2 DLC brings Revolutionary War-themed zombies
https://www.pcgamer.com/state-of-decay-2-dlc-brings-revolutionary-war-themed-zombies/
Independence Day happens in the United States next week, and to celebrate, State of Decay 2 is getting a surprise DLC drop. It'll set you back $4.99, and the theme is uh, Independence. It's called the Independence Pack.

BioWare dev opens up about Mass Effect: Andromeda reception
https://www.pcgamer.com/bioware-dev-opens-up-about-mass-effect-andromeda-reception/
It's no secret that Mass Effect: Andromeda failed to satisfy the series' fanbase, but was it that bad? Mark Darrah, executive producer of Anthem and Dragon Age at BioWare, shared some thoughts on Twitter yesterday, suggesting that part of Andromeda's reputation can be attributed to the high quality of games released in the same period last year.

Cyberpunk 2077 frame by frame trailer series explores political side of Night City
https://www.pcgamer.com/cyberpunk-2077-frame-by-frame-trailer-series-explores-political-side-of-night-city/
CD Projekt Red has added to its frame by frame breakdown of Cyberpunk 2077's E3 trailer. The ongoing blog series' latest entries explore Night City's sociopolitical divide, and how technology influences its civilians. Compare the trailer above to the details below.

Valve on Steam opportunities: 'We're not the taste police'
https://www.pcgamer.com/valve-on-steam-opportunities-were-not-the-taste-police/
Speaking at the Business Conference for Games Industry event in Russia this week, Valve's Jan-Peter Ewert said the company is "not the taste police" with regards to opportunities on Steam.
One slide headed "the elephant in the room" explored Steam's game releases per week. As shown below, Ewert said Steam launched five games per week pre-Steam Greenlight, 70 games per week during the Greenlight programme (which closed last year), and 180 games per week via Steam Direct thereafter.

Time to check the GOG and Steam deals for this weekend:

+GOG

• The first of the four GOG deals is the daily deal, Pinstripe, 60% off: https://www.gog.com/game/pinstripe
• Let's continue with the weekly sale, Here for your entertainment, with up to 90% discounts: https://www.gog.com/promo/20180625_weekly_sale
• To celebrate the launch of Myst III and Myst IV on the platform, there's a Myst sale with the rest of the series games up to 65% off: https://www.gog.com/promo/20180628_launch_promo_myst_iii_iv
• And the last one is the weekend sale, Men under fire, and yes, it's about war games: https://www.gog.com/promo/20180629_weekend_sale

+Steam

• Steam is still celebrating its Summer Sale. If you still haven't checked what's on sale, go now!

Nothing else to say. Have a happy and gaming weekend.

"Speaking at the Business Conference for Games Industry event in Russia this week, Valve's Jan-Peter Ewert said the company is "not the taste police" with regards to opportunities on Steam.
One slide headed "the elephant in the room" explored Steam's game releases per week. As shown below, Ewert said Steam launched five games per week pre-Steam Greenlight, 70 games per week during the Greenlight programme (which closed last year), and 180 games per week via Steam Direct thereafter."

At this point I'm not sure if they just inherently don't give a fuck or what...that's over 9300, mostly terrible, games a year on their store.

A new week, a new round of news:

SALES & "SALES"/DEALS

Let's start with GOG and it's two deals:

• The daily deal is SUPERHOT, 40% off: https://www.gog.com/game/superhot
• The weekly sale, Snacks to last you seven days, packs a mix of games like Slime Rancher, Spelunky, System Shock and more up to 90% off: https://www.gog.com/promo/20180702_weekly_sale

On the Humble Store, we have another two deals:

• The spotlight Deal is ARK: Survival Evolved, 67% off for the next day: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/ark-survival-evolved
• The game Earthlock will be 34% off for the next six days: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/earthlock

And at Fanatical, we have the Star Deal, Call of Juarez, 90% off for the next 48 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/call-of-juarez

SOFTWARE

-empty-

MODS/EMULATORS

Doom Slayer Chronicles will push the GZDoom Engine to its limits (dynamic lighting, PBR textures, hardware shaders)
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/doom-slayer-chronicles-will-push-the-gzdoom-engine-to-its-limits-dynamic-lighting-pbr-textures-hardware-shaders/
Modder ‘bifurcator_x’ is currently working on the most beautiful and technologically advanced mappack for Doom2 singleplayer, Doom Slayer Chronicles. In order to showcase its amazing visuals, the modder released some screenshots that you can find below.
Doom Slayer Chronicles will take advantage of the newest features of GZDoom, such as hardware shaders, full-screen post-processing, PBR textures (normals and specular maps, also often called “bump mapping”), high-resolution textures, and dynamic lighting.

This mod will give you the full Fallout 76 experience in Fallout New Vegas
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/this-mod-will-give-you-the-full-fallout-76-experience-in-fallout-new-vegas/
Last week, we informed you about a mod that aimed to recreate the full Fallout 76 experience in Fallout 4. But what if you are stuck with Fallout New Vegas and want to get a taste of that new upcoming Fallout game? Well, good news everyone as modder ‘Funky Swadling’ has released a Fallout 76 mod for Fallout: New Vegas.
As its description reads, this mod sets out to bring the full experience of Fallout 76 to new vegas, complete with mic spamming, raging squeakers, zergs, and proper gamertags. As such, it adds about a dozen new NPCs (other players) to the game world most of which have dialogue to make them feel like the average other player in any MMO. It is also said to be pretty fairly balanced with enemies getting stronger at later game areas.

>>Available from Nexus Mods.

Zelda Ocarina Of Time Queen Gohma Boss Fight remake in Unreal Engine 4, available for download
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/zelda-ocarina-of-time-queen-gohma-boss-fight-remake-in-unreal-engine-4-available-for-download/
CryZENx has been working on a new remake of The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time’s Queen Gohma boss fight in Unreal Engine 4, and has released his fan project to the public. CryZENx has recreated numerous scenes from Zelda Ocarina of Time in Unreal Engine 4 and this latest recreation is the most polished one yet.

>>This is the download link.

There is an incredible Power Rangers mod for Final Fantasy XV that you can download right now
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/there-is-a-power-rangers-mod-for-final-fantasy-xv-and-you-can-download-it-right-now/
Now here is a really cool mod collection for Final Fantasy XV. Steam’s member ‘Jazneo’ has released some mods that bring the Red, Green, Blue and Black rangers from Power Rangers to Final Fantasy XV, alongside their signature weapons. Going into slightly more details, the Green Ranger replaces Noctis, the Red Ranger replaces Gladiolus, the Blue Ranger replaces Ignis and the Black Ranger replaces Prompto. Moreover, you can download the Power Lance, Power Sword, Power Axe Cosmic Cannon and Legacy Dragon Dagger.

>>The mod is available from here.

The Battle for Middle-Earth: Reforged is a fan remake of the RTS
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-battle-for-middle-earth-reforged-is-a-fan-remake-of-the-rts/
Once upon a time, it was Lord of the Rings games that EA was disappointing us with, not Star Wars. Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-Earth and its sequel weren’t strategy games that set the world aflame, but they were two of the better titles to come out of the old licensing deal. If any of EA’s LotR games were going to get a fan remake, better that it’s The Battle for Middle-Earth and not Conquest. That’s exactly what’s happening thanks to The Battle for Middle-Earth: Reforged.
Reforged sees Middle-Earth’s battlefields remade in Unreal Engine 4, with all the code being rewritten. On the Mod DB page, the modders emphasise that while Reforged will be different from the original, they’ve attempted to preserve as much of the original’s mechanics as possible. Beyond looking a lot flashier than its progenitor, Reforged also boasts more realistic physics, destructible terrain, 4K support and a free building system à la The Battle for Middle-Earth 2.

GAMING NEWS

Ys: Memories of Celceta PC remaster releases on July 25th
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/ys-memories-of-celceta-releases-on-july-25th/
The official Steam store page for Ys: Memories of Celceta has revealed that the game will release on July 25th. The Steam version of Ys: Memories of Celceta is a re-envision that moves from the small screen of PSP PS Vita to PC monitors, with a bevy of updates and enhancements to fully take advantage of its new platform.

Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Edition patch 2.5 comes with more than 500 fixes and features
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/baldurs-gate-ii-enhanced-edition-patch-2-5-comes-with-more-than-500-fixes-and-features/
Beamdog has released a brand new update for the Enhanced Edition of Baldur’s Gate 2. According to the release notes, patch 2.5 comes with more than 500 fixes and features, meaning that this an important and huge update for this classic RPG.

Here is how you can unlock the framerate in Crash Bandicoot N Sane Trilogy
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/here-is-how-you-can-unlock-the-framerate-in-crash-bandicoot-n-sane-trilogy-pc/
Crash Bandicoot N Sane Trilogy has just been released on the PC and contrary to its console version, it supports 60fps. And while the game currently offers specific framerate options, there is a way via which PC gamers can also unlock the game’s framerate.

Star Citizen Alpha 3.2 is now available, brings performance improvements, Mining Gameplay & Groups System
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/star-citizen-alpha-3-2-is-now-available-brings-performance-improvements-mining-gameplay-groups-system/
Cloud Imperium has released Star Citizen Alpha 3.2 to all backers. This brand new alpha version adds sensitivity settings for xbox controller, implements the new Groups System, enables quantum linking and adds the mining gameplay mechanic to the moons of Crusader.

Warhammer 40K: Inquisitor – Martyr patch 1.0.5 available, brings numerous balance tweaks and fixes
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/warhammer-40k-inquisitor-martyr-patch-1-0-5-available-brings-numerous-balance-tweaks-and-fixes/
Neocore Games has released a brand new patch for Warhammer 40K: Inquisitor – Martyr. According to the release note, this patch comes with numerous balance tweaks and fixes, and features various dedicated server stability improvements.

Monday news, part two:

EA will disclose FIFA 19 Ultimate Team loot pack drop rates
https://www.pcgamer.com/ea-will-disclose-fifa-19-ultimate-team-loot-pack-drop-rates/
Earlier this year, Belgium's Gambling Commission ruled that FIFA 18 was one of three games, along with Overwatch and CS:GO, with loot boxes that contravened the country's gambling regulations. Perhaps because of that ruling, Electronic Arts has told Eurogamer that it will disclose the odds of FIFA Ultimate Team packs in FIFA 19.

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night story trailer teases in-game footage
https://www.pcgamer.com/bloodstained-ritual-of-the-night-story-trailer-teases-in-game-footage/
Despite the fact I cannot believe it's been over three years, the PCGamer.com archive assures me Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night was revealed in May, 2015. It's since enjoyed a pretty successful Kickstarter, a couple of E3 showings, a delay, and a Stretch Goal 8-bit spin-off. Today's backer update brings a new story trailer.
And despite being a story trailer, the following short contains 40-odd seconds of in-game footage. Which is nice.

Sea of Thieves adds exploding skeletons event for a limited time
https://www.pcgamer.com/sea-of-thieves-adds-exploding-skeletons-for-a-limited-time/
Sea of Thieves' latest time-limited event adds skeletons that will rush towards you, light the fuse on the gunpowder keg they're hauling around, and blow you to smithereens if you give them half a chance.

Slay the Spire adds third game mode, reaches one million copies sold
https://www.pcgamer.com/slay-the-spire-adds-new-game-mode-reaches-one-million-copies-sold/
Excellent deck-building roguelike Slay the Spire has now sold one million copies, developer Mega Crit Games said this week as it unveiled a new game mode that allows you to craft custom dungeon runs.

Star Wars: Battlefront 2's Clone Wars update will be spread out over the rest of 2018
https://www.pcgamer.com/star-wars-battlefront-2s-clone-wars-update-will-be-spread-out-over-the-rest-of-2018/
At E3, Electronic Arts announced that the Clone Wars were coming to Star Wars: Battlefront 2, with new game modes, characters and gameplay changes arriving "in the coming months". Yesterday, it released a development roadmap showing that the update would be spread over the rest of the year, with some Clone War content not arriving until the winter.

Left 4 Dead developer hiring for unannounced AAA game in 'globally-known franchise'
https://www.pcgamer.com/left-4-dead-developer-hiring-for-unannounced-aaa-title-in-globally-known-franchise/
Left 4 Dead and Evolve developer Turtle Rock Studios is working on an unannounced AAA game in a "globally-known franchise", job listings on its website have revealed.

Summer Games Done Quick 2018 raises a record $2.1 million for charity
https://www.pcgamer.com/summer-games-done-quick-raises-a-record-dollar21-million-for-charity/
Summer Games Done Quick, the week-long charity speedrunning event, has raised $2.1 million for Doctors Without Borders, beating its previous fundraising record.

Blizzard details PvP changes coming in World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth, including War Mode
https://www.pcgamer.com/blizzard-details-pvp-changes-coming-in-world-of-warcraft-battle-for-azeroth-including-war-mode/
World of Warcraft's next expansion, Battle for Azeroth, launches August 14, and will bring with it new dungeons, raids, progression systems and—perhaps most excitingly—new PvPvE Island Expeditions, which could provide a refreshing alternative to dungeon grinding. It's also making big changes to PvP, including a rework of talents, a new War Mode and a bounty hunter system, all of which Blizzard detailed in a blog post this week.

Lumines Remastered out now, offers improved visuals and extra game mode
https://www.pcgamer.com/lumines-remastered-out-now-with-new-levels-and-extra-game-mode/
Lumines Remastered is the same block-matching musical puzzle game you know and love but with flashier visuals, support for resolutions up to 4K, and a new game mode. It came out this week, and costs $14.99/£9.99 on Steam.

My Brother Rabbit is a surreal point-and-click adventure from Artifex Mundi out later this year
https://www.pcgamer.com/my-brother-rabbit-is-a-surreal-point-and-click-from-artifex-mundi-out-later-this-year/
If you're a fan of hidden object games, then you've probably heard of Artifex Mundi, which has developed or published a catalogue of solid games in the genre. This week it announced its next project, a surreal point-and-click adventure set inside a child's imagination. It's called My Brother Rabbit, and it's out this autumn.

Minotaur is an adventure game starring a magical android and a cyborg penguin
https://www.pcgamer.com/minotaur-is-adventure-game-starring-a-magical-android-and-a-cyborg-penguin/
Inspired by the likes of Danganronpa, Minotaur is an unusual visual novel-style adventure game set in a magical sci-fi world where robot wizards rub shoulders with cyborg penguins. Nine characters, including the aforementioned magical robot and augmented penguin, find themselves trapped in their homes, tasked with revealing the identity of the trap’s maker, and their motives. It’s due out in early access this year, but there’s already a demo you can sink your teeth into.

Epic will not reinstate Fortnite's Playground mode until next week
https://www.pcgamer.com/fortnite-will-not-reinstate-playground-mode-until-next-week/
Fortnite's time-limited Playground mode, which was added this week and then promptly removed because of matchmaking errors, will not return until next week, Epic Games has announced.

>>That's from last week, so it may be brought back this week.

Watch Fortnite's rocket crack open the sky
https://www.pcgamer.com/fortnites-rocket-might-blow-this-weekend-and-its-only-happening-once/
Something big is happening this Saturday in Fortnite, and it's only happening once according to Epic Games. As part of the updates feed in the Fortnite client, the message depicted above was posted early this morning.
Update: We had a nice view of liftoff. Watch it above. Apologies for going full Twitch streamer there.

Fortnite now has at least three cracks in reality, and they're growing
https://www.pcgamer.com/fortnite-now-has-at-least-three-cracks-in-reality-and-theyre-growing/
Over the weekend, disaster struck in Fortnite as a rocket created a crack in reality. (...). Since the initial attack on the sky, and presumably existence itself, the fracture has expanded. Other tears have appeared on the map, too, and yes, they’re also getting bigger. Oh dear.

So, the first day of the year I started to keep track of how much time I spend playing on Steam, and decided to share it with you. Well, it's been now 6 months and here's the updated time table, with twelve new games:

To that, you have to add 4.5 hours from a free Civ VI weekend, making a total of 391 hours in the first 181 days of the year. To put it another way, I've spend 16 days and 7 hours of 2018 playing.
I'm dissapointed with myself.

Steam Stats for June are in.

GTX Pascal is still going strong... the GTX 1050 joined the top 3 of most popular GPUs (this month it is a tie with the falling GTX 960, next month it won't have to share that third place).

The top 3 (GTX 1060 + 1050 TI + 1050) already has a share of 26% and the successor series ain't even announced yet.

For comparison: two years ago (at Pascal launch) the top 3 (GTX 970 + 960 + 750 Ti) only had a share of 12%... of a much smaller hardware base.

Geforce 1060 is killing it.

Edit: Radeon RX 680 rumors are starting to trickle out. Based on polaris, but at the "12nm" advertised node with an expected gain of 15% over the RX 580, which in turn had hardly anything over the RX 480 anyway. Way to stagnate AMD.
https://wccftech.com/amd-gpu-rumors-12nm-polaris-30-7nm-navi-7nm-vega-20-radeon-rx-gaming/