Didn't they drop the requirement after the backlash on HD2?. I haven't booted up the game since that debacle went down, but I can still visit the HD2 page on Steam, since I own the game. Me not owning a game that requires PSN just won't show up. 

If I manage to click on "Sony publishing LLC" tag on Steam, I am taken to their page that will show Until Dawn, Ghosts, and Ragnarock as I am showing you from a screenshot I just took:

As soon as I click any of them though:

Now I just figured out that for Helldivers 2 and HZD (OG one), there are "store pages" left up for me to see from my end, but clicking on them via Sony's publishing tag shows them as the screen above (the end result). 

I am still barred from the new games either way though. 

Yeah Sony will pull a Ubisoft, since they'll just play a very casual game of "wait to see how pissed off ppl get and just come to my store instead", and they are honestly in a better position than Ubisoft is right now to play that long game. I doubt they would go solo though, but I'm also not sure if they stick with Steam for decades to come. 

Had a compulsion to return to the Mirror's Edge universe. Man, the first game still holds up so well. They say that stylized art ages much better than photoreal but games like it go to show you that great art direction transcends such boundaries. Negative reception kept me from playing Catalyst back in the day so this was my first time playing it. Some criticisms are valid but over all I have to say it's pretty underrated. The combat and story are lacking and it still crashed on me a few times, but the platforming has never been better and the city is a joy to explore. Based on its lack of success I doubt we'll get a third entry but I'd still love one. Some games just have style, man...

Ubisoft has apparently decided that the solution to its current woes is to release more Assassin's Creed games.

Ubisoft Is Reportedly Planning To Release 10 Assassin's Creed Games In Five Years
https://www.thegamer.com/ubisoft-is-reportedly-planning-to-release-10-assassins-creed-games-in-five-years/
Insider Gaming understands that this is part of Ubisoft’s ramp-up strategy for the Assassin’s Creed series, which will see around 10 Assassin’s Creed titles of various lengths and experiences released in the next five years. This includes Assassin’s Creed codename Jade, a fully-fledged mobile offering with a tentative date in Q2 2025 (FYQ1 26).

And Ubisoft's director of monetization has some thoughts on the current situation.

Ubisoft director blames gamers, says they've been exposed as 'non-decent humans'
https://www.tweaktown.com/news/100855/ubisoft-director-blames-gamers-says-theyve-been-exposed-as-non-decent-humans/index.html

"The gaming industry is rough at the moment, we all know it. But seeing how "gamers" react on social medias, wishing ill-fate to companies and people alike is sad. (And not only towards Ubisoft. Even though it is always the vocal minority that express themselves on social media, I was hurt, hurt and ashamed to be part of this community."

"What is even more revolting, is coming on LinkedIn and seeing the same comments from people within the industry. On top of exposing yourself as a clearly non-decent human being, you are affecting thousands of employees that are already impacted by all the hate despite doing their best to deliver incredible experiences."

"How can you wish a company to fail simply because they do not cater to you or that the produce does not please you is beyond me."

"We are all on the same boat, please please please, stop spreading hate, we should all uplift each other instead of bringing each other down."

I wish I could have enjoyed Mirror's Edge. But fast paced + FPS is a combination that kills me (motion sickness). Same goes for the new Doom games.
**goes to cry in the corner**

It doesn't surprise me that Ubi thinks launching more AC games is the answer to their problems, and they're not entirely wrong. In any case, I'm guessing that most of them will be either remakes, like the rumored Black Flag remake using assets from Skull and Bones, or small scale ones like the ones under the Chronicles umbrella.

But it's sad how Ubisoft has stagnated so much. They used to be one of the few big publishers that tried new IPs almost every generation. Now they're all Assassin's Creed and Far Cry, with some other titles every now and then, like Anno.

It would also make them good if they just accepted their defeat and cancelled Beyon Good and Evil 2. It's the new Skull and Bones. There's no way they'll be able to please the fans nor make money from it, and the more time they spend on it, the bigger the losses will be.

As for toxic behaviour, well, they're right. Social media has allowed a not too small amount of people to show their real, ugly face, and not only when videogames are involved.

They should look themselves in the mirror first after all the bs they pulled over the years lol

It's kind of disgusting how the director of monetisation dept is so out of touch with reality, that he lacks complete self awareness of what he's saying, let alone his actual position at Ubisoft (a position gamers don't like at all).

Also I remember that time when ubisoft said they were going to let the Creed franchise rest for a bit, but I guess that was just a few years rest and now they're back to spamming the ever loving crap out of it.

Honestly I don't care if Ubi goes under at this point, they refuse to learn and lash out to their customers in such a childish and spiteful manner (Also they called PC gamers pirates and STILL to this day, never apologised for that remark). 

Well, they do - and I'd never consider ME as being photorealistic, it's stylized realism.

Welcome to the Monday news:

SALES /PLAYER COUNT & DEALS

GOG presents the new HypeTrain Digital Publisher Sale, with up to 90% discounts during 14 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20241007_hypetrain_publisher_sale.

Steam has three new deals:

• Bugsnax is going to be 72% off until October, 13th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/674140/Bugsnax/
• Octodad: Dadliest Catch features an 80% discount until the same 13th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/224480/Octodad_Dadliest_Catch/
• And SILENT BREATH, still in Early Access, is going to be 50% off until the 20th of October: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2796180/SILENT_BREATH/

At Humble Bundle we find the new Twin Stick’Em Up Bundle, with up to 7 games to get during 18 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/twin-stick-em-up.

And Fanatical has three new deals:

• The new Star Deal is River City Girls Zero, with a 70% deal during 24 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/river-city-girls-zero
• Publisher HypeTrain Digital also puts its games on sale here during up to 13 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/publishers/hypetrain-digital
• And the BYO Fantasy Bundle (Fall 2024) features 21 games for your 1+, 5+ or 10+ bundle: https://www.fanatical.com/en/pick-and-mix/build-your-own-fantasy-bundle

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

Steam Game Recording gets 4K and ultrawide monitor support in the latest beta update
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/steam-game-recording-gets-4k-and-ultrawide-monitor-support-in-the-latest-beta-update/
Earlier this week, Steam released a new update for its beta branch, which allows opt-in early testing of experimental Steam features. Among the handful of bugfixes, the additions headlining the update include a series of new features for Steam Game Recording, the most notable of which are 4K recording and ultrawide monitor support.
>> Obviously, the article talks in more detail about the changes this update brings.

Epic Boss Tim Sweeney says Unreal Engine 6 will be a 'metaverse' joining Fortnite and other Unreal games, including an upcoming 'persistent universe' in development with Disney
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/epic-boss-tim-sweeney-says-unreal-engine-6-will-be-a-metaverse-joining-fortnite-and-other-unreal-games-including-an-upcoming-persistent-universe-in-development-with-disney/
In an interview with The Verge, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney outlined his big plans for the rest of the decade, and why Epic had to lay off 16% of its workforce last year to make it happen. The top line is that Sweeney still sees promise for a "metaverse" of interoperable assets and marketplaces between Fortnite and other Unreal Engine games/initiatives, like a planned Unreal "persistent universe" owned by Disney.
(...)
But the lofty ambitions remain, with a focus on better linking the Unreal Engine proper with the more approachable Unreal Editor For Fortnite, the evolved form of the Fortnite Creative tools mapmakers have been putting to great effect in all manner of custom modes and maps. "The real power will come when we bring these two worlds together so we have the entire power of our high-end game engine merged with the ease of use that we put together in [Unreal Editor for Fortnite]," said Sweeney. "That's going to take several years. And when that process is complete, that will be Unreal Engine 6."
Sweeney wants developers using Unreal to be able to "build an app once and then deploy it as a standalone game for any platform," and also be able to incorporate their work into Fortnite or any other Unreal game. One of Epic's initiatives along these lines is a planned "persistent universe" owned by Disney but compatible with Fortnite: "We announced that we're working with Disney to build a Disney ecosystem that's theirs, but it fully interoperates with the Fortnite ecosystem.
>> I don’t know about you, but to me that sounds awful.

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Song of Wind is a new fan expansion for The Witcher 3 Next-Gen
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/song-of-wind-is-a-new-fan-expansion-for-the-witcher-3-next-gen/
Modder ‘Roi_Jean’ has released a new fan expansion for The Witcher 3 that seems to work with both the vanilla and the next-gen versions. This fan expansion, called Song of Wind, adds two new quests, new dialogues and new game mechanics.
Going into more details, in this mod, Geralt goes on the hunt for Whispering Island, a place that nobody seems to know about. Designed as a new mini ‘expansion’, only the first two quests are currently available.
The modder made the mod using the RedKit as part of CDPR’s modding contest. This is why the expansion only has two quests. And sadly, there is no word yet on whether the modder plans to finish it. Still, this is a cool fan expansion that offers new free content to the game.
Moreover, Song of Wind features new dubbed dialogues for Geralt and the NPCs. Now what’s cool here is that the modder has not used any AI tools. Instead, he just mixed lines that were in the original game differently to make new sentences.
>> The article has a 36 seconds teaser.

Dino Crisis Unreal Engine 5 Remake Demo Available for Download
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/dino-crisis-unreal-engine-5-remake-demo-available-for-download/
Dino Crisis fans, here is something cool for you today. Stefano Cagnani has been working on a fan remake of Dino Crisis in Unreal Engine 5, and has shared a playable demo for it. Since this fan remake comes from one guy, it does not represent the quality of a full-fledged official remake. Still, it can give you an idea of what you can expect from it.
>> There are two videos in the article.

Fallout: Nuevo Mexico, DLC-sized expansion for Fallout: New Vegas, just got a brand new trailer
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/fallout-nuevo-mexico-dlc-sized-expansion-for-fallout-new-vegas-just-got-a-brand-new-trailer/
The modding team behind Fallout: Nuevo Mexico, a new DLC-sized expansion for Fallout: New Vegas, has released a new trailer for it. This trailer focuses on Mexico City which serves as the biggest hub in the game. So, let’s take a look at it.
Fallout: Nuevo Mexico takes place in the year 2255. From the looks of it, players will assume the role of a new prisoner who arrives at Tibbet’s Prison.
The devs claim that players can join several new factions in the game. The mod will also include three special companions, and there will be a new companion system that changes how you build relationships with them. Plus, there will be lots of new activities to try out, and you’ll get to explore different states and locations.
The last time we heard about Fallout: Nuevo Mexico was back in July 2023. And now, over one year later, we still don’t know when the mod will come out. This is a bit disappointing.
>> The new trailer is over 3 minutes long.

One Tekken 8 modder has crowbarred all of Baldur's Gate 3's origin characters into the fighting game
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fighting/one-tekken-8-modder-has-crowbarred-all-of-baldurs-gate-3s-origin-characters-into-the-fighting-game/
Who would win in a fight: Karlach or Kazuya? What about Gale vs. whatever Jack model number they're on now? Thanks to modder D0ct0rSauce on the Tekken 8 Nexus, we don't have to wonder anymore: They've finagled all six of Baldur's Gate 3's Origin characters into Tekken 8 to duke it out in a decidedly less turn based, gentlemanly fashion than we're used to.
Rather than the sizable task of implementing them as all new characters, D0ct0rSauce swapped out some of the alternate skins of Tekken 8's pre-existing characters for models ripped straight out of Baldur's Gate 3. Karlach is Azucena, Shadowheart is Jun, Astarion is Lee, Lae'zel is Reina, Gale is Claudio, and Wyll is Shaheen. According to D0ct0rSauce's descriptions for the mods, they only replace two presets per character, and should leave your custom costumes alone.
D0ct0rSauce shared a nice sizzle reel of the mod in action to the Baldur's Gate 3 subreddit. It's as slapstick as you might expect such a mashup to be: Highlights include Lae'zel squaring off with Kazuya, Astarion and Shadowheart air juggling poor Gale, and Lae'zel slamming Wyll through multiple plate glass windows. RIP to the Blade of Frontiers.
>> The article only has some screenshots. You’ll have to go to the subreddit to find the video.

A Quake 2 Remaster dev has rebuilt the game's unique PlayStation port from scratch and released it as a free add-on
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/a-quake-2-remaster-dev-has-rebuilt-the-games-unique-playstation-port-from-scratch-and-released-it-as-a-free-add-on/
A Nightdive developer and longtime Quake 2 modder, Paril, has rebuilt Quake 2's unique PlayStation port in the game's 2023 remaster. Rather than directly porting in the maps, Paril painstakingly recreated each one in the Kex Engine. Quake 2 PSX is now available for download on ModDB.
Back in the good old days of consoles having wildly different chipsets and capabilities from both each other and PCs, games would often be "ported" by having a studio remake the game from scratch, imitating the design (or at least the spirit) of the original on new hardware. This often resulted in unique remixes of canonical games that are fondly remembered in their own right, like Doom on N64 and PSX or PowerSlave on the Sega Saturn.
Quake 2 was no different, and Digital Foundry made a deep dive of its ports and their differences back in 2017. The Quake 2 Remaster by Nightdive actually included the modified Nintendo 64 levels at launch, but HammerHead Studios' PlayStation version was MIA.
According to Paril, the technical difficulties introduced by HammerHead's custom engine meant it was more feasible to recreate the game's levels in the Kex Engine rather than trying to directly use the original map data. Paril has also introduced bug fixes, smarter enemy AI, and even some tweaks to the level design and visuals, making this more of a remaster of PSX Quake than a slavish recreation.
>> There’s a video of the mod in the article.

Duake lets you play Quake as the Doomguy
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/duake-lets-you-play-quake-as-the-doomguy/
"Run through the Quake campaign as Doomguy," reads the Duake description. "Simple as that!" Well there's a little more to it, but sometimes a mod just speaks for itself. In fact, given the long history of mods for both games, I'm surprised this wasn't made sooner.
Duake is the work of a modder with an amazing handle: Magic Nipples. It puts Doomguy and his arsenal of weapons in Quake, and adapts everything for the vertical aiming and movement of that game. As well as this, it makes a whole bunch of changes to the vanilla Quake experience, overhauling the first episode to add a bunch of fancy lighting, coloured water, new props, some extra baddies and a re-jigging of enemy placements. 
There are elements of this that go above and beyond, such as adding two new Doom HUD types and a minimalist HUD based on Doom 64, replacing the nailgun with the rifle, and reworking some of the enemies to have different attacks. It also apparently reworks "the Chthon fight to be much more interesting", though I didn't see that for myself, and has added a bunch of new secrets to the levels. 
Magic Nipples says they're not quite done yet, and expect to release some further updates, but as-is this thing works perfectly well: the only slightly odd aspect is controlling Doomguy with Quake's movement style, which is unavoidable but would probably have John Carmack's temple vein throbbing. The project is also open source on Github.
>> The article has a slightly over minute video.

Age of Empires 2 in first-person? Sure why not
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rts/age-of-empires-2-in-first-person-sure-why-not/
First released in 2021, Overreign is a mod that converts Age of Empires 2 Definitive Edition into a first-person experience. Though it's been around for a while it launched in quite a buggy state, but creator Spriteblood kept plugging away and now it's looking much more stable: it came to my attention thanks to a video from YouTuber T90Official, who specialises in AoE2 content, and ably demonstrates just what first-person PvP looks like in a 1999 RTS.
It's one of those mods that somehow works in exactly the way you imagine, with the 2D spritework proving a surprisingly great fit for the new perspective. It works across the game's skirmish mode and lets you assume control of a single unit, from which perspective the AoE2 world is unmistakably familiar but also very very odd: as the buildings go up, it's like watching giant inflatables rise.
"I stopped developing this game in late 2022, everything since then were only some bugfixes and little changes to keep it playable and compatible with the fast-evolving Aoe2 DE," says Spriteblood. "I am amazed that until today there are still people who find and try this. On average, 2-3 games are played per day, which is very nice for a standalone-mod that launched 5 years ago. Thank you all who played it."
There appears to be something funky going on with the mod's pages at moddb, though I was able to download it earlier, and be warned that this thing can be pretty intensive on your hardware. "The mod is great but extremely RAM-heavy," says Yuri Kot. "In late game (with many units) it eats up my 32GB for breakfast and freezes every couple of minutes."
>> You’ll find an over 40 minutes video in the article.

GAMING NEWS

Until Dawn Remake – AMD FSR 3.0 Frame Generation, Ray Tracing & HDR are not working on PC
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/until-dawn-remake-amd-fsr-3-0-frame-generation-ray-tracing-hdr-are-not-working-on-pc/
Sony has just released Until Dawn Remake on PC and it appears that the PC version has numerous issues. While performance can be quite good, especially if you own an RTX GPU, the PC version has numerous features that are not working at all.

The next Halo game will use Unreal Engine 5, and here are its first WIP screenshots
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/the-next-halo-game-will-use-unreal-engine-5-and-here-are-its-first-wip-screenshots/
Microsoft has announced that the next Halo game will use Unreal Engine 5. MS also shared the first WIP screenshots, which you can find below. Keep in mind that these are early screenshots, so they don’t show the final quality of the game. However, they do give a good idea of what the devs are working towards.
(...)
Speaking of 343 Industries, Microsoft has renamed it to Halo Studios. As its new name implies, Halo Studios will be solely focused on creating new Halo games.

Monday news, part two:

Voting is now open for the 42nd Golden Joystick Awards, so you can help crown the PC Game of the Year
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/events-conferences/voting-is-now-open-for-the-42nd-golden-joystick-awards-so-you-can-help-crown-the-pc-game-of-the-year/
You can now vote for your favourite games in the 42nd Golden Joystick Awards in categories like PC Game of the Year and Console Game of the Year. The polls will remain open until Friday, November 1, at 4pm PDT/7pm EDT/11pm GMT, so you have a month to figure out where your loyalties lie. 

Overwatch 2 is introducing new rewards to incentivise Competitive play, but be warned, only 'the most dedicated players will reach the highest prestige'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/overwatch-2-is-introducing-new-rewards-to-incentivise-competitive-play-but-be-warned-only-the-most-dedicated-players-will-reach-the-highest-prestige/
Earlier this week, Blizzard announced that it would be adding new incentives and rewards to Overwatch 2's comeptitive play. Now that the update is finally live, players will be able to spend this weekend earning "drive points" and climbing through the checkpoints. 

As Ubisoft struggles and shareholders sweat, Tencent and the Guillemot family are reportedly looking at a buyout
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/as-ubisoft-struggles-and-shareholders-sweat-tencent-and-the-guillemot-family-are-reportedly-looking-at-a-buyout/
A new Bloomberg report says the Guillemot family and Tencent are exploring options for righting the Ubisoft ship, which could include buying out the company and taking it private.

Fortnite is coming for the FPS
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/battle-royale/fortnite-is-coming-for-the-fps/
Fortnite in 2024 is a battle royale shooter, an arena shooter, a racing game, a rhythm game, a survival game, and later this year, it's gonna be a first-person shooter. Epic has officially opened up testing for a "First Person Camera Mode" in Fortnite, now usable in Fortnite creative mode and UEFN (Unreal Editor for Fortnite).

BioWare announces that Dragon Age: The Veilguard has gone gold and is on track for its Halloween release
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/dragon-age/bioware-announces-that-dragon-age-the-veilguard-has-gone-gold-and-is-on-track-for-its-halloween-release/
BioWare has taken to X, "The Everything App" to announce that Dragon Age: The Veilguard has gone gold and finished development. While a faintly anachronistic concept in an age of digital distribution and day one patches, it's a show of confidence from BioWare that the nine-years-in-development game has indeed reached the finish line.

Games Done Quick is quickly putting together a speedrunning marathon in support of Hurricane Helene relief
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/events-conferences/games-done-quick-is-quickly-putting-together-a-speedrunning-marathon-in-support-of-hurricane-helene-relief/
Games Done Quick is holding a special Disaster Relief Done Quick speedrunning event next week to raise funds for aid to people impacted by Hurricane Helene, a category 4 storm that devastated entire communities and left more than 200 people dead across multiple US states.

My Time at Evershine has passed $1.7M in crowdfunding and its developer wants it to become 'a must play series in the cozy/simulation RPG space'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/life-sim/my-time-at-evershine-has-passed-usd1-7m-in-crowdfunding-as-its-developer-says-it-wants-to-become-a-must-play-series-in-the-cozy-simulation-rpg-space/
The developers of the My Time at Portia and My Time at Sandrock crafting and farming sim games are adding another destination to the series with the upcoming My Time at Evershine. Like the others, it's begun with a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter. Unlike the others, this one has absolutely buried its funding goal: Evershine has received pledges totalling $1,706,201 (and climbing), far surpassing its $200,000 goal, with 19 days left in the campaign.

This pixel art road trip RPG's reveal trailer is the only thing that's ever made me nostalgic for my crappy first car
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/this-pixel-art-road-trip-rpgs-reveal-trailer-is-the-only-thing-thats-ever-made-me-nostalgic-for-my-crappy-first-car/
Earlier this week, Swedish indie developer YCJY Games revealed Keep Driving, its upcoming driving game that imagines a cross-country festival roadtrip in your first car as a side-scrolling management RPG. And it looks gorgeous. 

Larian says 40% of all current Baldur's Gate 3 players are now 'embracing utter chaos with mods'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/larian-says-40-percent-of-all-current-baldurs-gate-3-players-are-now-embracing-utter-chaos-with-mods/
Baldur's Gate 3 launched over a year ago and it's still one of the most-played games on Steam. Part of the reason is that Larian's RPG is, y'know, pretty darn good and there are so many different ways to play it that you can easily rack up hundreds of hours winding through its campaign again and again.
But there's another great way to extend the life of any game: mods. Baldur's Gate 3 is extremely mod-friendly thanks to its recently added in-game mod browser, and that's not just on PC, either. According to Larian, there were 1.7 million mod downloads in the first 24 hours after mods became available on console. That's a ton. Combined with mods on PC, players downloaded a whopping 22 million mods since Patch 7 arrived in early September, which was less than a month ago.
This info comes to us from some exciting mod stats Larian posted on Twitter today, like the fact that 40% of all current Baldur's Gate 3 players are using mods. That's quite a lot of players, but maybe it's not all that surprising: we've seen loads of fun mods for BG3 popping up recently, like one implementing real-time combat and another recreating the opening area of Baldur's Gate 2.

David Hayter is cranking up Metal Gear Solid fans again, teasing 'a role I've not played since...'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/david-hayter-is-cranking-up-metal-gear-solid-fans-again-teasing-a-role-ive-not-played-since/
David Hayter was famed among gamers as the voice of Snake in the Metal Gear Solid games, until notorious star chaser Hideo Kojima unceremoniously replaced him with Kiefer Sutherland in Metal Gear Solid 5. Aside from a few cameo appearances here and there, Hayter's been out of the role since then, but a recent tease on X is giving some fans hope that he might be coming back.

And the third part of the Monday news:

I just squeezed more eggs in one hour than you have in your entire life
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/i-just-squeezed-more-eggs-in-one-hour-than-you-have-in-your-entire-life/
"You have been chosen as a volunteer for the 'Egg Squeeze' exam—a test that evaluates one's psychokinetic intuition of biological makeup. In each test, you will be asked to squeeze an egg for a short period of time. The objective is to estimate the egg's unique breaking point and release your grasp before it cracks. You will be graded relative to your synergy with the eggs."
Thus reads the letter at the beginning of Egg Squeeze, a game where you hold the mouse button to squeeze an egg and release the mouse button to stop squeezing it. That's all you do. Squeeze an egg and stop squeezing that egg.

Diablo 4's once extraordinarily rare 'uber' uniques will be easier to get next season, but with a small catch
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/diablo-4s-once-extraordinarily-rare-uber-uniques-will-be-easier-to-get-next-season-but-with-a-small-catch/
Diablo 4 originally launched with a set of powerful 'uber' unique items that were so rare Blizzard had to come out and confirm that they were real. Only a handful of people in the world ever even saw one, which meant they effectively didn't exist for most players.
Even though Blizzard has been steadily making 'uber' uniques, now known in-game as mythic uniques, more attainable over time, they're still a chore to find. To raise the odds, you have to gather up materials to summon and defeat its endgame bosses repeatedly and pray the RNG is in your favor. That ends with Diablo 4's first expansion, Vessel of Hatred, where mythic uniques will finally be significantly easier to get—with one small catch.

The team that made Minecraft console edition is now making their own blocky builder
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/the-team-that-made-minecraft-console-edition-is-now-making-their-own-blocky-builder/
4J Studios has revealed Reforj, their upcoming open-world multiplayer survival sandbox for PC, Xbox, and PlayStation.  4J Studios previously worked on Minecraft Console Edition, bringing the iconic builder to millions more people.

Welcome to shooter bizarro world: First Fortnite goes FPS, now Halo Infinite's adding a third person mode
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/halo/welcome-to-shooter-bizarro-world-first-fortnite-goes-fps-now-halo-infinites-adding-a-third-person-mode/
Everything's going crazy. People wear hats on their feet and shoes on their heads. Cats and dogs are living together in harmony. Fortnite's testing an FPS mode, and now 343 Industries has announced a third person camera option coming to Halo Infinite in November. One of the first person shooters, now going third person⁠—hold your loved ones close, we are clearly experiencing some manner of metaphysical rupture.

Survival hit The Planet Crafter terraforms a whole new world in its first DLC
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/survival-hit-the-planet-crafter-terraforms-a-whole-new-world-in-its-first-dlc/
Survival-crafting-terraforming hit The Planet Crafter will surprise drop its first DLC next week with Planet Humble, adding a new map to explore on a new world to turn from lifeless rock into verdant, beautiful paradise.

The lead dev on life sim Inzoi was sick of making MMOs where everyone was mean to each other and wanted to create a game like The Sims he could enjoy with his son
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/life-sim/the-lead-dev-on-life-sim-inzoi-was-sick-of-making-mmos-where-everyone-was-mean-to-each-other-wanted-to-create-a-game-like-the-sims-he-could-enjoy-with-his-son/
In a recent interview with Game File (users may encounter a paywall), Hyungjun Kim, lead developer of upcoming life sim Inzoi, explained some of his reasons for working on a challenge to genre juggernaut, The Sims.

Grunn is a very normal gardening game that is not a horror game at all
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/grunn-is-a-very-normal-gardening-game-that-is-not-a-horror-game-at-all/
I do love gardening, so of course I'm thrilled to hear that indie game boy band Sokpop Collective has released full-length game Grunn about doing some maintenance on a garden deep in the Dutch countryside. I like Sokpop for their distinct visual style and odd sense of humor, and Grunn looks like an enjoyable few hours of mildly spooky gardening-themed distraction.

The Case of the Golden Idol has done so well that it's getting a free definitive edition upgrade
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/the-case-of-the-golden-idol-has-done-so-well-that-its-getting-a-free-definitive-edition-upgrade/
In a truly pleasant bit of worthy good news The Case of the Golden Idol will receive an update to a more definitive edition this week—on October 10—as The Case of the Golden Idol Redux. The edition will be free to everyone who owns it on Steam and incorporates several years of updates made since its 2022 release and 2023 DLCs—not to mention its release on consoles and mobile.

Iconic Dungeons & Dragons RPG Planescape: Torment was a 'B-Team' project that started life as 3 different games⁠—including a 3D dungeon crawler
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/iconic-dungeons-and-dragons-rpg-planescape-torment-was-a-b-team-project-that-started-life-as-3-different-games-including-a-3d-dungeon-crawler/
Now I don't have the fancy book learnin' to know what can change the nature of a man, but there sure are a lot of factors that can change the nature of a game. In a retrospective feature for upcoming PC Gamer print issue 390 (402 for our friends across the pond), contributor Robert Zak dug into the strange history of Planescape: Torment by talking to members of the unlikely Interplay team that made it happen.