Oh, c'mon! Who hasn't killed some time with a solitaire or two, or with some minesweeper?

I remember playing it at demos at the computer sections in Best Buy (and back when Circuit City was still a thing in the US).

Dark times.

Looks like no EGS cuck this time around

Hopefully they stay away from the main sequel

Good, rather play it on Steam than my iPhone.

Also I think Rebirth (and XVI) will still get the EGS treatment unfortunately but I hope I am wrong.

Get ready, because here come the Monday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

Half-Life's 25th anniversary celebrations have caused a resonance cascade in its Steam player-count, surging to a new all-time high over the weekend
https://www.pcgamer.com/half-lifes-25th-anniversary-celebrations-have-caused-a-resonance-cascade-in-its-steam-player-count-surging-to-a-new-all-time-high-over-the-weekend/
Half-Life, the little-known game about a monorail enthusiast who undergoes the most brutal job interview in history, reached its 25th birthday on Sunday. And Valve was in a surprisingly celebratory mood for a company that is normally as reticent as it is forward-looking. On its YouTube channel, Valve released a brand-new documentary that brought the original Half-Life team together for a captivating chew over its development.
Even more remarkably, the studio issued a major update for the Steam version of Half-Life, reverting the menu screen to its original form, fixing a few particularly stubborn bugs, and adding some brand new multiplayer maps.
It seems the occasion and the update has given everyone Half-Life fever (and no I don't mean radiation poisoning), as the 1998 shooter tore through reality to reach a new all-time peak concurrent player count on Steam. One necessary caveat is that such numbers have only been tracked since 2012, so it's possible Half-Life had higher numbers than this at some point in the past. But you use what you've got.
As reported by gamedeveloper.com, Half-Life originally broke its existing peak concurrent of 12,280 players on Friday, increasing by 16.4% to 14,300 according to stats tracked by SteamDB. Since then, however, it's beat that number too, rising to a whopping 33,471 players around 6pm GMT on Sunday. At the time of writing, 13,372 people were playing Half-Life, a higher number than the game's all-time peak concurrent before the anniversary celebrations started.

Strangely enough, GOG doesn't seem to have any new sale nor even new Deals of the Day. What are they up to?

Steam puts Tavern Master up to 50% off until the 28th of November: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1525700/Tavern_Master/.

It's time to check Humble:

• At Humble Bundle we'll find the Wargaming By Land, Air and Sea Bundle, with up to 9 DLCs to get during the next 11 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/wargaming-air-land-and-sea
• And the Humble Store has launched its Black Friday Sale, with up to 90% discounts. There's so much going on, that it's better if you go and check it out by yourselves.

Fanatical has also launched its Black Friday Sale, and with it some new deals:

• There are four 24 hour Flash Deals:
  • We Love Katamari REROLL+ Royal Reverie is 58% off: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/we-love-katamari-reroll-royal-reverie
  • The Elder Scrolls Online Collection: Necrom also gets a 58% discount: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/the-elder-scrolls-online-collection-necrom
  • The Batman: Arkham Collection Bundle will be 88% off: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/batman-arkham-collection
  • And Sniper Elite 4 Deluxe Edition has a 94% discount: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/sniper-elite-4-deluxe-edition
• The Jackbox Quintpack Bundle will be 40% off during 10 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/the-jackbox-quintpack
• The S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Complete Bundle gets an 82% discount during 10 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/stalker-complete-bundle
• And there's a new Spin to Win mechanic to get something extra with your purchases. Check it out here: https://www.fanatical.com/en/blog/fanatical-spin-to-win-how-does-it-work

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

Unity 6 seems miles behind Unreal Engine 5 in its first tech demo
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/unity-6-seems-miles-behind-unreal-engine-5-in-its-first-tech-demo/
This week, Unity Technologies introduced Unity 6, the latest version of its Unity Engine. To demonstrate what it can do, the team released a video showing off its key features. But when you compare it to what Unreal Engine 5 has accomplished, Unity 6’s tech demo falls short. So, let’s take a look at it.
>> They're also building an AI suite.

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

This Metal Gear Solid 3 PC Mod implements crouch walking
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/this-metal-gear-solid-3-pc-mod-implements-crouch-walking/
Modders ‘Zoft’ and ‘Triggerhappy’ dropped a cool mod for the PC version of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. The mod adds a crouch walking feature, like the one in the Nintendo 3DS version of the game. It’s a must-have if you’re currently playing MGS3 on PC.
This latest version of the mod no longer requires the D-Pad to crouch-walk. Instead, it now adds a new movement style. Players can now press X to crouch and then simply begin walking. By holding X, they can go prone. Guard visibility has been changed to no longer see the player as standing up when crouch-walking. Not only that but crouch-walking into a wall will now result in the player using the correct animation.
>> There's a video that's slightly over 1 minute long.

Valheim Plus brings numerous gameplay tweaks to the game
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/valheim-plus-brings-numerous-gameplay-tweaks-to-the-game/
The Valheim Plus Team just dropped a new version of the Valheim Plus Mod. This mod brings to the game lots of tweaks and improvements. One awesome addition is the FOV setting. Now, you can adjust your field of view for a better view of the action. So, if you’re into Valheim and want to level up your gameplay, this mod is the way to go.
Valheim Plus changes things up for a completely different gaming experience. With this mod, stamina lasts longer, food stays fresh forever, and you can carry more stuff. Plus, if you’re into hand-to-hand combat, your punches pack more punch. But that’s not all. It can also disable food degradation, and you can tweak or skip the death penalty. Not only that but it removes shake screens, can disable portals, and you can sleep without setting your starting point.
With this mod, in the server, everyone will be forced to show where they are on the map. And get this, you can share all the cool places you’ve explored with your friends as long as your map position is displayed. And guess what? You can spot boats and carts on the map too, thanks to some handy icons.
There are even more changes to all aspects of the game. Valheim Plus brings new camera options and new HUD improvements. It also brings changes to the inventory system, game difficulty, items, crafting and the game’s monsters. Seriously, this is one of the most advanced gameplay mods you can find for it.
>> The article has an over 6 minutes video.

Portal: Revolution is a new DLC-sized mod for Portal 2, to be released in 2024
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/portal-revolution-is-a-free-mod-for-portal-2-coming-out-in-2024/
Second Face Software has just released a trailer for its upcoming Portal 2 Mod, called Portal: Revolution. Portal: Revolution will be released in 2024 and, as you may have guessed, it will be free to all owners of Portal 2.
Portal: Revolution will take place before Portal 2 in the dead and decaying Enrichment Center. It’s packed with more than 40 fresh puzzles and cool new gameplay elements. Plus, there will be tutorials to teach you all the new mechanics and advanced portal tricks.
Portal: Revolution runs on an enhanced version of the Portal 2: Community Edition engine. This is a custom version of the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Source Engine branch. The team used this engine to add lots of cool stuff and make the game even better. They say the new experience they created wouldn’t be possible in the vanilla Portal 2. Oh, and just to be clear, there won’t be any Ray Tracing effects. So, it won’t look like Portal RTX.
As said, Portal: Revolution will release in 2024. To be more precise, it will come out on January 5th, 2024. Below you can also find its official gameplay trailer.

Elden Ring gets an amazing free lock-on camera mod
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/elden-ring-gets-an-amazing-free-lock-on-camera-mod/
Modder ‘SchuhBaum’ has released an amazing new mod for Elden Ring. This mod allows you to freely move the camera while you are locked on to enemies. This will greatly enhance your gaming experience. So, be sure to download it.
Now, for those unaware, Elden Ring does not let you move the camera when you’re locked on an enemy. This can be frustrating, especially if you’re playing with a mouse. But with this mod, you can fix that. Not only that, but the mod comes with some other tweaks and changes, like how lock-on targets are selected.
This is an amazing QoL improvement for the PC version. And, to be honest, I’d really love to see FromSoftware adding it to the game via a future update. Let’s not forget that Elden Ring will receive an official expansion in 2024. So, fingers crossed that the team will take notes from its modding community. Okay okay, it won’t happen but a man can dream, right?
>> There's a 2:11 video of the mod.

Half-Life 2: Infinite Finality is yet another Half-Life 3 Mod
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/half-life-2-infinite-finality-is-yet-another-half-life-3-mod/
Team Hyperborea has released a trailer for its upcoming “Half-Life 3” Mod, called Half-Life 2: Infinite Finality. Half-Life 2: Infinite Finality will attempt to faithfully adapt the story of Marc Laidlaw’s Epistle Three. Not only that but it will also feature some brand new content.
This is the third Half-Life 2: Episode Three (or Half-Life 3) project that is currently in development. The other two are Boreal Alyph or Project Borealis. From what we know, these two projects are still alive. Both of them are in a serious development hell state, but they haven’t been canceled yet. So, at least that’s something.
>> There's a 8:25 video of this mod.

'For fun and challenge:' The team that ported Jak and Daxter to PC has done the same for Jak 2
https://www.pcgamer.com/for-fun-and-challenge-the-team-that-ported-jak-and-daxter-to-pc-has-done-the-same-for-jak-2/
After successfully porting the Naughty Dog PS2 classic, Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy to PC last June, the OpenGOAL team has now done the same for its edgy, GTA-influenced sequel, Jak 2 (Jak 2: Renegade for you PAL region kiddies). Though still in beta, Jak 2 is playable from start to finish through OpenGOAL.
This is distinct from just running the game on an emulator: the OpenGOAL team reverse-engineered the games to run natively on PC, avoiding the need to emulate a PlayStation 2 at all. The OpenGOAL project is completely legal on a similar basis to emulators, however, as it was built from the bottom up without incorporating any proprietary Sony or Naughty Dog tech—you need an ISO image from your own copy of Jak 2 to use with OpenGOAL's launcher.
The Jak and Daxter games were made in a unique programming language, GOAL, that doesn't seem to have been used anywhere else. The OpenGOAL team seems to relish the hurdles inherent to mastering such an obscure cul-de-sac of tech history. In addition to aiding in the preservation and understanding of these games, OpenGOAL's FAQ describes the project as being primarily motivated "for fun and challenge."
While Jak 2 is "100% completable" through its OpenGOAL port, there remain some bugs for the team to work on. After that, they seem dead set on completing the PS2 trilogy with a Jak 3 port, though they don't seem totally sold on one for Jak X: Combat Racing just yet.
>> There are no screenshots nor videos.

GAMING NEWS

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 November 17th Update Released & Detailed
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-3-november-17th-update-released-detailed/
Sledgehammer Games has released the November 17th Update for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. This new patch brings tweaks, fixes and changes to the game’s Multiplayer and Zombies modes. So, let’s dive in and see all these fixes and improvements.

Alan Wake 2 Title Update 12 Released, Full Patch Notes
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/alan-wake-2-title-update-12-released-full-patch-notes/
Remedy has just released Title Update 12 for Alan Wake 2. This patch packs 100 fixes, tweaks, improvements and changes. So, let’s dive in and take a look at all of them.

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League gets official PC requirements
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/suicide-squad-kill-the-justice-league-gets-official-pc-requirements/
Rocksteady has revealed the official PC system requirements for Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice will be powered by Unreal Engine 4 and from the looks of it, it won’t require a high-end PC system.

Starfield Beta Update 1.8.86 Released & Detailed
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/starfield-beta-update-1-8-86-released-detailed/
Bethesda has released the latest Beta Update, Patch 1.8.86, for its new space role-playing game, Starfield. This beta patch is around 600MB in size, and you can find below its key features. And, be sure to take a deep breath because its changelog is huge.

Monday news, the second part:

World of Warcraft's adding dragonriding to old world content ahead of schedule
https://www.pcgamer.com/world-of-warcrafts-adding-dragonriding-to-old-world-content-ahead-of-schedule/
Way back in May, there was some hubbub in the World of Warcraft community when dataminers found a dynamic flight buff in the game files, which suggested that the game's dragonriding system—a feature which replaced flight paths full stop during my bouts of playing Dragonflight—would be coming to the old world.
Unfortunately, save for a few racing events, that didn't materialise. It's likely that dynamic flight, which would ideally let you use dragonriding-style movement with stuff like druid forms, won't be coming to the game before The War Within. The good news? Players'll get the next best thing far sooner than expected.

Rocket Arena sputters out, not with a bang but a whimper
https://www.pcgamer.com/rocket-arena-sputters-out-not-with-a-bang-but-a-whimper/
Developed by Final Strike Games and published by EA, Rocket Arena was a 3vs3 arena shooter launched in 2020 and was really rather good. While the name had gamers of a certain age wistfully thinking of Quake fragfests, the experience was more mellow and akin to something like Super Smash Bros., all about controlling space and forcing your opponent out of bounds rather than just endless gibbing.
Rocket Arena had considerable post-launch support for a year after launch, and clearly had some live service hopes and dreams, but it never attracted enough of an audience to justify continuing with that business model. It hasn't been updated since 2021 and now EA has, without any kind of announcement or fanfare, de-listed the game from both Steam and the EA store (thanks, RPS).

For 'just' $70, you too can blind yourself in MW3's zombies mode with this garish weapon texture straight out of Garry's Mod
https://www.pcgamer.com/for-just-dollar70-dollars-you-too-can-blind-yourself-in-mw3s-zombies-mode-with-this-garish-weapon-texture-straight-out-of-garrys-mod/
Modern Warfare 3 has a promotional 'camo' skin, and it's the furthest thing possible from camouflage. Every time I think I'm over microtransactions—every time a new horse armour contender comes along—something hits my dome out of left-field like a high calibre sniper rifle and I'm left wondering: 'how did we get here?'

Landlords will just steal your stuff if you don't pay rent in The Sims 4: For Rent expansion
https://www.pcgamer.com/landlords-will-just-steal-your-stuff-if-you-dont-pay-rent-in-the-sims-4-for-rent-expansion/
Maxis showed off a new gameplay trailer for the upcoming Sims 4: For Rent expansion and somehow the vision of evil landlordship just keeps getting more dire. We'd already found out that the new expansion would add "eviction anxiety," burglary, and neglectful landlords, but it looks like you can be even more actively evil than that.
>> And some people are already showing their new homes.

Diablo 4's upcoming boosted XP and gold week is overkill in its most generous season yet, but I'll gladly take it
https://www.pcgamer.com/diablo-4s-upcoming-boosted-xp-and-gold-week-is-overkill-in-its-most-generous-season-yet-but-ill-gladly-take-it/
Diablo 4 season 2 is already way more generous than the first season, and now Blizzard is going to boost XP and gold gains from November 20 to 27 by 35%, more than the first Mother's Blessing event in August.

Gabe Newell on why game delays are OK: 'Late is just for a little while. Suck is forever.'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gabe-newell-on-why-game-delays-are-okay-late-is-just-for-a-little-while-suck-is-forever/
Famed Nintendo director Shigeru Miyamoto once said, so the story goes, "A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad." Did he really utter those words? Apparently not. But Valve founder Gabe Newell shares the sentiment: He said so, in very plain terms, in the new Half-Life 25th anniversary documentary that released today on YouTube.
>> Miyamoto didn't said that? What will come next, the cake will also be a lie? Madness! Anyway, Gabe also brought some light about how they made the crowbar fun.

Immortals of Aveum would really like you to give it another shot, so now there's a free demo on Steam
https://www.pcgamer.com/immortals-of-aveum-would-really-like-you-to-give-it-another-shot-so-now-theres-a-free-demo-on-steam/
The magic-powered FPS Immortals of Aveum didn't really blow our doors off when we reviewed it back in August: The shooting was fun, but its characters and story left us cold. But as is the way with modern game development, multiple updates have been released since then, including a big one that dropped yesterday, and now Electronic Arts and developer Ascendant Studios is hoping that the release of a free demo will convince gamers to give it a second look.

A mysterious 'third party' forbidding an embattled studio from bringing an essential Star Wars mod to consoles has left the dev fending off a gamer class action lawsuit
https://www.pcgamer.com/a-mysterious-third-party-forbidding-an-embattled-studio-from-bringing-an-essential-star-wars-mod-to-consoles-has-left-the-dev-fending-off-a-gamer-class-action-lawsuit/
As reported by Axios, developer Aspyr has argued that a class action lawsuit brought against it over the cancellation of a Restored Content DLC for the Nintendo Switch version of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 - The Sith Lords should be dismissed. The DLC was announced in June of 2022 before getting canceled after a year of radio silence, with Aspyr offering customers a free game to make amends.

Warner Bros. says Wonder Woman won't be a live-service game
https://www.pcgamer.com/warner-bros-says-wonder-woman-wont-be-a-live-service-game/
Last week, a job listing for a lead software engineer on Monolith's Wonder Woman game popped up, with requirements like "Knowledge of 3D math commonly used in game development" and "Prior experience working in a 3D game engine (Unreal, Unity, etc.)" Among the non-essential "Nice to Haves" was "Experience helping maintain a live software product or game".
(...)
As depressing visions of daily missions to level-up an invisible jet and unlockable cosmetic tiaras danced in our heads, Warner Bros. responded with a statement to IGN denying it was making Wonder Woman a live-service game. "Wonder Woman is a single-player action-adventure game set in a dynamic open-world. This third person experience will allow players to become Diana of Themyscira and introduce an original story set in the DC Universe, while also featuring the Nemesis System. Wonder Woman is not being designed as a live service," the statement said.

Behold, the world's first combine harvester combat racing game
https://www.pcgamer.com/behold-the-worlds-first-combine-harvester-combat-racing-game/
Finally, we have arrived: There is now an arcade-style combat racing game about combine harvesters mowing down waves of golden grain. This vital work is called Furious Farm: Total Reap-Out, and it's an absolute grainbath, a vegetal slaughter, wherein eight farmers go to town upon not just a field of crops, but each other, to win the Grain Prix grand title.

This is becoming a norm, and I don't like it. Here's the third part of the news:

New League of Legends champion Hwei is suspiciously similar to one of Dota 2's hardest-to-use heroes
https://www.pcgamer.com/new-league-of-legends-champion-hwei-is-suspiciously-similar-to-one-of-dota-2s-hardest-to-use-heroes/
League of Legends' new champion Hwei is a human mage designed to be played in the mid-lane, and he has 10 different spells that take more than one button press to cast. If you happen to be a Dota 2 fan that might sound a little familiar, as Invoker—a wizard dating all the way back to Warcraft 3 mod Defense of the Ancients—basically does the same thing.

Even after 180 hours of Baldur's Gate 3, I never realized there's a game-spanning unmarked quest to find a stray cat a new home
https://www.pcgamer.com/even-after-180-hours-of-baldurs-gate-3-i-never-realized-theres-a-game-spanning-unmarked-quest-to-find-a-stray-cat-a-new-home/
I have sunk so much of my life in Baldur's Gate 3, and it just keeps surprising me. YouTuber DragonsDream demonstrated an absolutely delightful little unmarked quest to find a stray cat a new home in Act 3, and I know exactly why I've never seen it before: you have to effectively fail another quest all the way back at the beginning of the game to make it happen.

NieR producer promises the series will continue as long as creator Yoko Taro is alive to work on it
https://www.pcgamer.com/nier-producer-promises-the-series-will-continue-as-long-as-creator-yoko-taro-is-alive-to-work-on-it/
First reported by Japanese site 4Gamer.net and shared in English by Genki_JPN on Twitter, on November 16, NieR creator Yoko Taro and producer Yosuke Saito gave a presentation about the series as part of the South Korean G-Star conference. At the end, Saito promised that the series would continue as long as Yoko Taro was still alive and kicking, but they had nothing concrete to share at the moment.
>> I'd add the caveat of good sales also being a factor as well.

Starfield's down to mixed reviews on Steam, while the community laments 'the magic is just missing from [the game]'
https://www.pcgamer.com/starfields-down-to-mixed-reviews-on-steam-while-the-community-laments-the-magic-is-just-missing-from-starfield/
Bethesda has a reputation for these big, deep, open-world RPG you can get lost in for years. They have a legacy of large, technically impressive worlds filled with detail and places to explore. To this day, Skyrim endures as a world people want to return to—which 12 years after launch is genuinely impressive.
Starfield, which was meant to be our 'Skyrim in space', was meant to carry on that tradition. All of Bethesda's pedigree, expanded to over 1,000 planets: a near-infinite universe you could explore for years.
And yet, less than half a year since its launch, the exhaustion's set in. Starfield now, at the time of writing, has mixed reviews on Steam, both All Time (69% positive) and Recent (48% positive).
>> Bethesda will have to work a lot to turn Starfield into the game it was meant to be.

After a community uproar over plans to charge players $10 to change their in-game IDs, Riot Games believes it has 'found the right balance with time alone'
https://www.pcgamer.com/after-a-community-uproar-over-plans-to-charge-players-dollar10-to-change-their-in-game-ids-riot-games-believes-it-has-found-the-right-balance-with-time-alone/
League of Legends developer Riot Games has walked back plans to charge players $10 to change their Riot ID, after an attempt to limit players' abilities to alter their in-game IDs provoked a community backlash.

Cities: Skylines 2 DLC has been delayed and weekly patches have come to an end
https://www.pcgamer.com/cities-skylines-2-dlc-has-been-delayed-and-weekly-patches-have-come-to-an-end/
Since Cities: Skylines 2's shaky launch, Colossal Order has been releasing regular patches to improve performance and squash bugs, but the studio's attention is now turning to the issues that "require a bit more work". This means an end to the weekly patches, as well as postponed DLC. The changes have been detailed today in the studio's blog, Word of the Week.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 50 series to feature DisplayPort 2.1, using TSMC 3nm node

https://videocardz.com/newz/nvidia-geforce-rtx-50-series-to-feature-displayport-2-1-using-tsmc-3nm-node

Hopefully it's full bandwidth unlike the one in RDNA 3

Board partners expect to clear remaining inventory of RTX 4080/4070Ti before RTX 40 SUPER launch

https://videocardz.com/newz/board-partners-expect-to-clear-remaining-inventory-of-rtx-4080-4070ti-before-rtx-40-super-launch

AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7000X & PRO 7000WX Review Roundup

https://videocardz.com/167541/amd-ryzen-threadripper-7000x-pro-7000wx-review-roundup

Intel’s Lunar Lake-MX Lineup Surfaces Online, Featuring Xe2 GPU Cores, DisplayPort 2.1 Support & Much More

https://wccftech.com/intels-lunar-lake-mx-lineup-surfaces-online-featuring-xe2-gpu-cores-displayport-2-1-support-much-more/

NVIDIA’s “NeMo” Model Now Tuned For Chip Development, Showing Exceptional Results

https://wccftech.com/nvidias-nemo-model-now-tuned-for-chip-development-showing-exceptional-results/

Swedish gaming giant Embracer confirms laying off of 900 employees, shut down 15 games

https://www.gamereactor.eu/swedish-gaming-giant-embracer-confirms-laying-off-of-900-employees-shut-down-15-games-1329143/

This is the problem with consolidation. When the parent company starts losing money, subsidiaries start getting cucked.

Despite not being cofnirmed, we can assume that one of those games if the KOTOR remake.

It's impressive how efficient those Threadripper CPUs are when the software is able to take advantage of all those cores/threads. Otherwise is almost better to go with something like the 7950X.