The Thursday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

Steam has two new deals:

• The new daily deal is Ancestors Legacy, 75% off: https://store.steampowered.com/app/620590/Ancestors_Legacy/
• Foxhole, still in Early Access, will be 30% off until the 27th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/505460/Foxhole/

There are two new Humble deals:

• There's a new Humble Bundle: the Tropico 20th Anniversary Bundle, with up to 8 games to get during the next 13 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/tropico-bundle-2021
• At the Humble Store, the Tenacious Tactics Sale brings up to 90% discounts during the next 4 days. The keys are for Steam, GOG and UPlay: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/tenacious-tactics-sale/

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

There's a new AMD driver, the AMD Radeon Adrenalin 2020 21.9.2, with support for World War Z: Aftermath and Diablo II: Resurrected. You can download it from here.

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Free MK Mugen game, Mortal Kombat Ultimate Revitalized 2.3, released
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/free-mk-mugen-game-mortal-kombat-ultimate-revitalized-2-3-released/
Mortal Kombat fans, here is something special for you today. Back in July 2020, we informed you about one of the best MK Mugen games, Mortal Kombat Ultimate Revitalized. And last week, Styx has released a brand new version of it.
Mortal Kombat Ultimate Revitalized 2.3 features some new characters as well as updates to existing ones. For instance, there is Raptor character (which is a mix of a dinosaur and a cyborg). Moreover, all updated and new characters have proper endings.
Now what’s really cool here is that Mortal Kombat Ultimate Revitalized has 203 new stages. As such, this Mugen MK game has now 405 total stages. We should note, though, that some stages share similar settings and assets. So don’t expect 100% different stages. Still, this number is huge so kudos to Styx and those that have created them.
>> Here's the download link (Mega).

Classic Resident Evil Remake in Unity with first-person mode available for download
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/classic-resident-evil-remake-in-unity-with-first-person-mode-available-for-download/
Resident Evil fans, here is something special for you today. PerroAutonomo has released a beta version of his Resident Evil remake in the Unity Engine. This remake gets as close to the 32bit version as possible, and features a first-person camera perspective.
Do note that this isn’t the same remake as the one we shared a while back. The other Resident Evil Remake is developed in Unreal Engine and features better graphics. Now the reason the UE4 remake looks better is because it’s trying to get closer to Resident Evil Remake. This one, on the other hand, looks similar to the original version that came out on PSX, Saturn and PC.
>> There's a video in the article, in case you want to see it, and you can download it from its website.

This Valheim mod reverts all the changes Hearth and Home made to food
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/this-valheim-mod-reverts-all-the-changes-hearth-and-home-made-to-food/
Change is inevitable, but that doesn't mean we don't still resist it. Valheim's Hearth and Home update changed the values of the various Viking meals we eat, but if you prefer food the way it was before the update then pull up your chair to the banquet table and get ready to gorge yourself.
A modder has reverted the changes Hearth and Home made to food. All of 'em.
The Hearth and Home Old Food Stats mod reverts the changes last week's patch made to your favorite foods like serpent stew, blood pudding, fish wraps, and every other meal you can cook. And it's not just meals, it's ingredients like carrots, mushrooms, and berries. Everything you can stuff down your Viking-hole has been revised to pre-H&H values.

Our favourite Tiberian Sun overhaul just received a massive update
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/our-favourite-tiberian-sun-overhaul-just-received-a-massive-update/
Back in 2018, we took a look at Twisted Insurrection's decade-long quest to reinvent Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun—and loved it enough to stick this decade-old mod project into our prestigious Top 100 that year. Suffice to say, the generals behind the ambitious standalone mod have kept busy, launching a massive 0.9 update earlier this month.
Over the years, Twisted Insurrection has bulked out the vanilla Nod and GDI armies with tonnes of new units (as well as adding entirely new factions. To deal with that bloat, 0.9 has decided to split those armies into two sub-factions each—the GDI's Falcon Division and Phoenix Regiment, and the Nod's Genesis Legion and Sons of Kane. GloboTech, an entirely new faction, has also been bulked out enough to be playable in multiplayer skirmishes.

GAMING NEWS

Here are some new 4K screenshots for Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
https://www.dsogaming.com/screenshot-news/here-are-some-new-4k-screenshots-for-marvels-guardians-of-the-galaxy/
Square Enix has released a new set of 4K screenshots for Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. These screenshots are from the game’s latest preview build, and can give you an idea of its current visuals.

APEX Legends September 22nd Update released, full patch notes revealed
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/apex-legends-september-22nd-update-released-full-patch-notes-revealed/
Respawn has just released a new update for APEX Legends that fixes a number of crashes, and improves the game’s stability. In addition, the team revealed its complete changelog which you can find below.

Thursday news, part two:

Giancarlo Esposito gives crappy advice on how to play Far Cry 6
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/giancarlo-esposito-gives-crappy-advice-on-how-to-play-far-cry-6/
Giancarlo Esposito, the man who told us that Yaran dictator Anton Castillo is not actually a bad guy in the upcoming Far Cry 6, has returned to offer up some very helpful tips to help ensure players have the best experience possible as they spearhead the revolution against Castillo's regime.

Starship Troopers: Terran Command gets a playable demo next week
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/starship-troopers-terran-command-is-getting-a-playable-demo-next-week/
After being relatively quiet since its 2019 announcement, the survival RTS adaptation of Starship Troopers is finally getting a playable demo.
Starship Troopers: Terran Command is based on the first movie—not any of its paltry sequels, thankfully—and is being helmed by The Aristocrats, the studio behind the relatively well-received Order of Battle: World War II. We've not seen much of the game up until now, bar its announcement at the end of 2019 and a trailer earlier this year.

Industria dev wants you to know 'we can't deliver [triple-A] and we don't want to'
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/industria-dev-triple-A/
Industria has everything it needs to land a spot in an E3 sizzle reel. It's an FPS with an eerie, abandoned city to explore, lots of Cold War era guns to shoot at homicidal robots, and the graphical polish to stand up to plenty of today's big budget games.
But developer Bleakmill wants you to know that Industria is nowhere near the scale or length of those big budget games, and it's also the team's first project together. Industria started when the core members were just 19 years old.

Century: Age of Ashes is delayed so it doesn't get murdered by Battlefield 2042
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/century-age-of-ashes-is-delayed-so-it-doesnt-get-murdered-by-battlefield-2042/
Typically, videogames are delayed because they've gone over schedule and need additional time. Sometimes there are specific reasons, like the sudden, last-minute appearance of a particularly bad bug, but more often it's simply a matter of the game not being where the developers want it to be in order to hand it over to the public.

Genshin Impact's anniversary event is really stingy, and players are pissed
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/genshin-impacts-anniversary-event-is-really-stingy-and-players-are-pissed/
Genshin Impact players are not happy with MiHoYo's planned anniversary rewards and contests program, complaining that the studio is effectively using fans for free content and publicity while offering minimal rewards in return.

Blood Bowl 3's Early Access launch has been delayed
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/blood-bowl-3s-early-access-launch-has-been-delayed/
While the full version of football megaviolence strategy game Blood Bowl 3 wasn't due to come out until February 2022, an Early Access release had been announced for this month. That's now been pushed back. As the Blood Bowl 3 team at Cyanide Studio explained on Twitter, "The closed beta last June and all your feedback were incredibly helpful for identifying and focusing on key improvements, and it seems we were a bit too optimistic when we announced early access on PC for September 2021."

This Halo Infinite multiplayer map contains a 'loot cave' full of power weapons
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/this-halo-infinite-multiplayer-map-contains-a-loot-cave-full-of-power-weapons/
Halo Infinite is fast approaching, and studio 343 Industries is in the thick of promoting it. Ahead of the game's multiplayer tech preview happening this weekend, a livestream showed off a full Big Team Battle match (it starts at 50 minutes in the above vid). It's definitely worth a look, but there was one feature of the map that especially stood out: it has a legit loot cave.

Minecraft Dungeons is now available on Steam
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/minecraft-dungeons-is-now-available-on-steam/
Minecraft Dungeons, essentially a "baby's first Diablo-like" that shares its setting with Mojang's popular sandbox game, was exclusive to the Microsoft Store when it launched in 2020. It's now arrived on Steam, coinciding with the release of the Ultimate Edition, which combines the base game with its six DLC add-ons—Jungle Awakens, Creeping Winter, Howling Peaks, Flames of the Nether, Hidden Depths, and Echoing Void—as well as the soundtrack and digital artwork. Of course, you could just play it on Game Pass instead.

Check out some of Diablo 2: Resurrected's remastered enemies up close
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/check-out-some-of-diablo-2-resurrecteds-remastered-enemies-up-close/
The release of Diablo 2: Resurrected is almost upon us (here's when it unlocks in your time zone), and enterprising fans have already extracted models of some of its enemies. In the video above you can get up close and personal with a siege beast, frozen horror, the three barbarian ancients from the end of Lord of Destruction, the dark wanderer, Baal, Diablo, and *spoilers* the Cow King, who now wears a fancy hoof-ring and sure does have some detailed udders. It was somebody's job to model those udders.

'Who knows what the future holds' for Titanfall, say people who know what the future holds for Titanfall
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/titanfall-3-still-doesnt-exist/
On a recent stream, Respawn Entertainment community coordinator Jason Garza responded to a community member's request for an update on the Titanfall series. "There's nothing there," he said.

The Long Dark's next chapter is a frozen prison drama
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/the-long-darks-next-chapter-is-a-frozen-prison-drama/
Last I checked in, The Long Dark was a game about trudging through the snow and digging tins of beans out of old shacks. So I'm surprised to discover than the next episodic expansion for the survival sim is a prison thriller that sees you not only frozen and starving, but stuck behind bars.

Call of Duty Vanguard will turn down the sun and remove 'dognados' following last week's beta
https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/call-of-duty-vanguard-will-turn-down-the-sun-and-remove-dognados-following-last-weeks-beta/
The Call of Duty: Vanguard beta has ended, leaving developer Sledgehammer Games with a fresh batch of feedback to work on ahead of the game's launch this November. Notably, that feedback includes nerfing the sun and exorcising some truly horrific canines.

Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio hands-on: one weird, powerful computer

https://www.theverge.com/22686706/microsoft-surface-studio-laptop-design-specs-photos-hands-on

While I would have liked some AMD offerings as far as CPUs go and at least a 3060 instead of a 3050 Ti, for a 14.4 inch hybrid, it is interesting. Of course, it will cost an arm and a leg but least you get 120hz screen, Thunderbolt 4 and Microsoft's interesting engineering.

Vulkan Ray Tracing is now available to AMD Pre-RDNA2 GPUs through Linux Mesa software implementation

https://videocardz.com/newz/vulkan-ray-tracing-is-now-available-to-amd-pre-rdna2-gpus-through-linux-mesa-software-implementation

Now 480 owners too can experience the wonders of ray tracing at 1 frame per hour

Annoys me that EA always seemingly sitting on good IP's and doing nothing with them for 5+ years. It took them years to figure out people wanted sequels to big franchises like ME and Dead Space. But instead they release the same old stuff YoY and/or trying to cash in on FOTM games - with mostly disappointing results.

Truth be told, the Titanfall games sold ok but not great, and EA was always after the next blockbuster like most publishers. Things seem to have relaxed a bit as of late, thankfully.

Its still a good series and did have a solid userbase. The real boneheaded decision was them releasing TF 2 in the same time frame as Battlefield and Call of Duty xP Sad because the second game was one of the best singleplayer FPS experiences I've had in a long long time.

But yeah, just dislike the decision to go for more live multiplayer games when there's an obvious want for singleplayer games that aren't the staple franchises. And idd they're improving and actually listening to what people want.  With ME remaster recently released, DS coming and more in the upcoming years, there's reason to be excited for EA games outside of games like Battlefield.

They're always chasing the new trends. Sometimes it works (Apex), other times they fail miserably (Anthem).

EA wanted that to happen, because it ended up killing two birds with one stone, by using TF2 as a shield against CoD to allow BF1 to look better, and for another to further weaken Respawn's standing, allowing EA to buy them out with ease. It was a terrible idea and I still hate them for pulling such a stunt.

I still believe TF2's SP campaign was one of the best FPS campaigns I've played in well over a decade. I just want more Titanfall SP, heck open world even.

That what you get when you just have bean counters making decisions. Iirc there was a lot of marketing deals for it done already so the date couldn't be adjusted when BF1 was delayed - well that's the official story. In reality it was probably like you said they sent TF 2 to die.. which is a crying shame because it was a solid game and series.

And what they got out of that was them owning Respawn and Apex Legends >_>