Tuesday news, part two:
Valve is adding an 'extra competitive' option to Deadlock that'll make matches harder, but only because everyone in this mode refuses to speak
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/moba/valve-is-adding-an-extra-competitive-option-to-deadlock-thatll-make-matches-harder-but-only-because-everyone-in-this-mode-refuses-to-speak/
Valve added a competitive mode to Deadlock back in October. This drastically improved matchmaking by sorting everyone into 11 ranks, which were more in keeping with players' skill level, but now there's another way to raise your blood pressure.
As the December 6 patch notes reveal, Valve has introduced an "extra competitive option" for players to venture into: "If you prefer to play with higher levels of coordination, communication, and competitiveness, then you can use this option to tell the matchmaker to build your team with like-minded allies. This option will sometimes be inactive in scenarios where the pool is very shallow (large portions of Eternus, off-peak hours like 5 am, extremely long queue, etc.), but otherwise, in most normal scenarios, the matchmaker will attempt to find you similar players."
'I got slapped by CD Projekt': Doug Cockle says he doesn't actually know if Geralt is in The Witcher 4 or not, but the studio wants him to shut up about it
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/i-got-slapped-by-cd-projekt-doug-cockle-says-he-doesnt-actually-know-if-geralt-is-in-the-witcher-4-or-not-but-the-studio-wants-him-to-shut-up-about-it/
It turns out that Geralt of Rivia, everyone's favorite monster-hunter-for-fire, may not be in The Witcher 4 after all. Then again, he may be—the truth is, nobody outside of a presumably select few at CD Projekt really knows, and that includes voice actor Doug Cockle, who says he got "slapped" by the studio after revealing earlier this year that Geralt will be in the game.
The new Borderlands 4 trailer that Randy Pitchford wasn't supposed to tell everyone about is going to debut at The Game Awards this week
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/gearbox-ceo-randy-pitchford-gets-lost-in-the-sauce-again-posts-about-an-imminent-borderlands-4-trailer-he-wasnt-supposed-to-talk-about-however-idgaf/
Consummate poster and CEO of Borderlands developer Gearbox Randy Pitchford has hinted that a Borderlands 4 trailer is in the works. And by hinting, I mean he got excited and yelled it from the virtual rooftops again.
Recent updates
December 9, 2024: Randy Pitchford posted on X (again) on Monday to confirm that the trailer he wasn't supposed to talk about will include gameplay and will debut at The Game Awards on Thursday, December 12.
CDPR is not done with Cyberpunk 2077 after all: 'The team still has some gas in the tank'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/cdpr-is-not-done-with-cyberpunk-2077-after-all-the-team-still-has-some-gas-in-the-tank/
CD Projekt Red has announced it's not done with Cyberpunk 2077, because "the team still has some gas in the tank." Which is exciting! Much less exciting is that this is basically the announcement of an announcement, with the developer holding fire until a livestream on the game's fourth anniversary on December 10.
Dauntless's launch on Steam has gone horribly, horribly wrong with overwhelmingly negative reviews: 'This update is easily, out of every game I've ever played, the worst one I've seen'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/dauntlesss-launch-on-steam-has-gone-horribly-horribly-wrong-with-overwhelmingly-negative-reviews-this-update-is-easily-out-of-every-game-ive-ever-played-the-worst-one-ive-seen/
Dauntless has launched on Steam, and smashed straight into a gigantic brick wall that says "Overwhelmingly negative." The co-op hunting game, which has been available to play since August 2017 but is new to Steam, has over a few days accumulated nearly 1,000 negative reviews and they're all about the major overhaul Dauntless received for this launch. The short version: Everyone, and I mean everyone, hates what it's done.
Path of Exile 2 gets its first hits with the nerf bat to bring mace slams, magnetic arrows, and stinky clouds in line: 'It is better to do this early'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/path-of-exile-2-gets-its-first-hits-with-the-nerf-bat-to-bring-mace-slams-magnetic-arrows-and-stinky-clouds-in-line-it-is-better-to-do-this-early/
Path of Exile 2 is in that early phase of a new ARPG where things are a little bit like the mathematical equivalent of the wild west. All those millions of early access players are running wild, smashing together every possible combination of combat and passive skills in an environment where the laws that undergird civilization—like "ability balance" and "sensible damage scaling"—haven't yet taken hold. Over the weekend, however, Grinding Gear Games made its first attempts at establishing order, deploying a trio of hotfixes to reign in PoE 2 skills that have been overperforming in the game's early days.
First it was Counter-Strike, now it's GTA RP: Fortnite unveils LEGO Fortnite Brick Life, a 'social roleplay experience in the Lego Fortnite world'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/first-it-was-counter-strike-now-its-gta-rp-fortnite-unveils-lego-fortnite-brick-life-a-social-roleplay-experience-in-the-lego-fortnite-world/
Just two days after revealing Ballistic, an upcoming 5v5 round-based tactical FPS "experience" that sure as hell looks a lot like Counter-Strike, Fortnite is continuing its brazen campaign to become every other videogame all at once. Today, Epic announced Lego Fortnite Brick Life, a "social roleplay experience in the Lego Fortnite world." Set in "an ever-evolving city," Epic says Brick Life will let players "build your own stories by interacting with both the environment and your fellow residents."
In other words, it's like a GTA roleplay server, but with Lego. In Fortnite.
Star Wars: The Old Republic's big modernisation plan kicks off today, giving players an excuse to revisit old haunts
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/mmo/star-wars-the-old-republics-big-modernisation-plan-kicks-off-today-giving-players-an-excuse-to-revisit-old-haunts/
Star Wars: The Old Republic is looking a bit long in the tooth these days, despite being one of the most expensive videogames ever made. Age comes for us all. While the MMO has seen some upgrades over the years, it's hard to ignore that the environments—particularly those introduced back in 2011—and character models are looking a little rough 13 years after launch. After today's 7.6 update, though, your old stomping grounds are going to look a little different.
Last month, Broadsword revealed the scope of this update, as well as showcasing some of the changes on their way—which everyone will be able to see for themselves after today's expected five hours of downtime comes to an end. You should be able to hop back in at 6 pm GMT/10 am PST.
Path of Exile 2 devs respond to the cries of the loot-starved masses, buffing drops and promising more fixes in upcoming patches
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/path-of-exile-2-devs-respond-to-the-cries-of-the-loot-starved-masses-buffing-drops-and-promising-more-fixes-in-upcoming-patches/
If there's one point of feedback I've heard most from the roughly 300,000 people who, at any given moment, have been playing Path of Exile 2 since its early access launch, it's that we simply need more drops. That sprawling passive skill tree is only so satisfying to meddle with if you aren't getting the gear to make your build sing, and meager loot has left some PoE 2 players swinging the same sad club for upwards of a dozen levels. Luckily, Grinding Gear Games says it'll be loosening the loot tap, promising increased drops in an upcoming patch alongside tweaks to dodging and map checkpoints.
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