Wednesday news:

SALES/PLAYER COUNTS & DEALS

Planet Coaster 2 isn't the financial success that Frontier needed, according to a report, which means there's more pressure on Jurassic World Evolution 3 to bring in the big bucks
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/planet-coaster-2-isnt-the-financial-success-that-frontier-needed-according-to-a-report-which-means-theres-more-pressure-on-jurassic-world-evolution-3-to-bring-in-the-big-bucks/
According to an investor analysis report from Zeus Capital, Planet Coaster 2 hasn't lived up to expectations when it comes to revenue and reception from the playerbase, and it doesn't look like anyone's too surprised. 
Despite selling over 400,000 units within two months of release and earning over £10 million, "cash flows are still negative," an excerpt from the report says (via Reddit). "This is considerably better" than Warhammer [Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin] "that was impaired," but even still [Planet Coaster 2] "has had relatively poor reviews on platforms such as Steam (60% positive) and PlayStation (3.69/5). Frontier will be working on free updates and fixes to improve player sentiment which likely comes at the expense of developing and releasing PDLC in H2 2025."

Steam has two new deals:

• Publisher GrabTheGames puts its games on sale with up to 90% discounts until the 31st: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/GrabTheGamesPublisherSale
• Frontier Hunter: Erza’s Wheel of Fortune will be 50% off until February 4: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1429500/Frontier_Hunter_Erzas_Wheel_of_Fortune/

Fanatical also has two deals:

• The new Star Deal is Metaphor: ReFantazio, with a 35% deal during “24 hours”: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/metaphor-refantazio
• The new BYO Elite VR (New Year Edition) features 13 titles to choose for your 3+, 5+ or 7+ games bundles during the next 33 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/pick-and-mix/build-your-own-elite-vr-bundle

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

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MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Classic Doom just got a Fallout-inspired mod, Fallout: Vault 666
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/classic-doom-just-got-a-fallout-inspired-mod-fallout-vault-666/
Modder ‘Carl Asami’ has just released a cool new Fallout-inspired mod for classic Doom, called Fallout: Vault 666. This mod brings a new map that is heavily inspired by the first Fallout game, as well as weapons from it.
Going into more details, the mod will allow you to explore Vault 666. Players will be able to team up with Dogmeat, find The Water Chip, kill The Master, and save their pet bunny, Daisy, from dehydration.
The new weapons that you can use are The Powerfist, The Ripper, The Colt 6520, The Winchester, a NEW Sawed Off, The H&K MP9, The H&K L30 Gatling Laser, and The Turbo Plasma Rifle.
What’s also cool here is that Jet, Psycho, and Nuka-Cola are available from the vending machines. Plus, the mod has multiple ending slides, just like Fallout.
>> The article has a shorter than 2 minutes video.

GAMING NEWS

Devil May Cry/Sekiro-inspired Unreal Engine 5-powered action RPG, Phantom Blade, gets new gameplay video
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/devil-may-cry-sekiro-inspired-unreal-engine-5-powered-action-rpg-phantom-blade-gets-new-gameplay-video/
S-Game has released the Year of the Snake Gameplay Trailer 2025 for Phantom Blade Zero. This new trailer shows off a boss fight that will be featured in it. It also gives us a first-ever look at some deadly snake-themed weapons. So, go ahead and take a look at it.

PC demo released for the Shadow of the Colossus/Monster Hunter-inspired action adventure game, Eternal Strands
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/pc-demo-released-for-the-shadow-of-the-colossus-monster-hunter-inspired-action-adventure-game-eternal-strands/
Yellow Brick Games has just released a PC demo for its action adventure game which is inspired by Shadow of the Colossus and Monster Hunter, Eternal Strands.

Wednesday news, part two:

Final Fantasy 14's chaotic alliance raid lives up to the name by swapping around 2 wrongly labeled attacks an entire month after everyone's already learned them
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/final-fantasy/final-fantasy-14s-chaotic-alliance-raid-lives-up-to-the-name-by-swapping-around-2-wrongly-labeled-attacks-an-entire-month-after-everyones-already-learned-them/
Final Fantasy 14's first chaotic alliance raid—a higher difficulty 24-player fight that's adapted from one of the original A Realm Reborn raids—arrived at the end of December, and I actually like it a lot. Even if having to rely on 23 other people to consistently execute each mechanic is the definition of futile.
Well, why not make things even more difficult by deciding to swap around two ability names, nearly a month after the fight was released? I assume that's the question Square Enix asked itself, because that's what it's done. It turns out that two names tied behind one of the boss's attacks—either Core-Lateral Phase or Lateral-Core Phase—were the wrong way around in English translations.

Action adventure game Unknown 9: Awakening was a 'failure,' says developer, which has cancelled a follow-up project and laid off staff
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/action-adventure-game-unknown-9-awakening-was-a-failure-says-developer-which-has-cancelled-a-follow-up-project-and-laid-off-staff/
Reflector Entertainment has announced the cancellation of an in-development project and another round of layoffs following the "failure" of its debut game, Unknown 9: Awakening. Studio CEO Herve Hoerdt said he halted work in the project, which was in the "conceptualization phase," as continuing development "would not have been sustainable for the future of the studio."

Marvel Rivals' upcoming Spring Festival introduces a few pretty cool skins and a new game mode that has a stark resemblance to Lucioball
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/marvel-rivals-upcoming-spring-festival-introduces-a-few-pretty-cool-skins-and-a-new-game-mode-that-has-a-stark-resemblance-to-lucio-ball/
The upcoming Marvel Rivals Spring Festival is set to start on January 23, in just a couple of days, and will introduce a Gallery Card customisation event, a few good-looking skins, and a new game mode called Clash of Dancing Lions that seems awfully familiar.
>> In other news, players have come together to decide their least favorite map.

Capcom's hoping to make the recommended specs for Monster Hunter Wilds less monstrous thanks to post-beta performance improvements
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/capcoms-hoping-to-make-the-recommended-specs-for-monster-hunter-wilds-less-monstrous-thanks-to-post-beta-performance-improvements/
Back in September, Capcom raised eyebrows when it unveiled the PC specs for Monster Hunter Wilds, which say the best you can expect from a recommended GPU is 60 fps at 1080p on medium settings—and that's with frame generation enabled. While the first Wilds beta had its share of optimization issues, Capcom says the game's performance has improved enough during development that it's looking into lowering its hardware recommendations.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 reveals 3 expansions and a 'Hardcore Mode' coming in 2025
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/kingdom-come-deliverance-2-reveals-3-expansions-and-a-hardcore-mode-coming-in-2025/
With Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 now just a couple weeks out, publisher Plaion has lifted the lid on the game's post-launch plans for 2025, including a trio of expansions set to release throughout the year.
First in line are free updates set to arrive in spring that will add new features including a Hardcore Mode, horse racing, and a "Barbers feature" that will enable players to customize the appearance of their own personal Henry. Bigger things will follow in summer, when the first of Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2's three expansions rolls out

GDC's annual State of the Game Industry survey reveals 1/3 of 'triple-A developers' are working on live service games
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/gdcs-annual-state-of-the-game-industry-survey-reveals-1-3-of-triple-a-developers-are-working-on-live-service-games/
We've expressed a certain creeping exhaustion with live service games more than once in these digital pages, and the catastrophic failure of Concord led to some predictions that the tide was finally turning against them. But maybe not, too. GDC's 2025 State of the Game Industry report says 33% of triple-A developers who responded to its annual survey are currently working on a live service game.
Across all respondents, 16% said they're working on a live service game, indicative of the fact that they tend to be bigger-budget affairs, made by larger studios and publishers that can afford to develop and maintain them. Interestingly, only 13% of all respondents said they'd be interested in making a live service game for their next release, while 42% said they would not. 29% said they didn't know, or that it wasn't applicable.
>> It’s surprising that they don’t mention that 80% of those developers are working on PC games, but they’ll likely save that for another article..

As if I needed any more reason to jump back into Minecraft, a Hello Kitty and Friends DLC has been released
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/sim/as-if-i-needed-any-more-reason-to-jump-back-into-minecraft-a-hello-kitty-and-friends-dlc-has-been-released/
As much as I love throwing myself into the depths of ravines on a desperate hunt for diamonds, or trekking to the Nether and immediately plunging into lava, sometimes I think Minecraft needs to chill out a bit. There are only so many times a creeper can blow up your house before you go into your settings, switch from hard to peaceful, and start a new life as a surface-level farmer. Yes, I might be projecting, but there's a limit to how often I can lose my inventory before I lose my mind. 
Fortunately, Minecraft has launched a brand new expansion that focuses on the game's more laid-back side. The Hello Kitty and Friends DLC changes Minecraft's standard survival crafting gameplay into a farming simulator while bundling in some adorable characters to accompany you. Rather than being thrust into a gigantic world as you would with a standard Minecraft game, you're limited to a town in which you need to build and manage a farm instead. 

'Oh, don't worry about this': Tekken boss denies he's leaving Bandai Namco after saying he's open to work on LinkedIn, claims it's just because he wants to 'meet more people'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/oh-dont-worry-about-this-tekken-boss-denies-hes-leaving-bandai-namco-after-saying-hes-open-to-work-on-linkedin-claims-its-just-because-he-wants-to-meet-more-people/
Tekken director Katsuhiro Harada claims he isn't trying to up sticks and leave Bandai Namco after some fans noticed that he'd switched on LinkedIn's "open to work" function.
(...)
But, according to Harada, he's not actually planning to hand out his resumé to other developers anytime soon. Apparently, he only did it because he wants to broaden his professional social circle. "Oh, don't worry about this," he tweeted in response to someone asking if it was true he was looking for other work. "I meet a lot of people on a regular basis (but I don't actually have that many friends in my private world LOL), I just wanted to meet more people and expand my horizons in the future. I just want to meet more people when I turn this option on. Just that."

It's still grim out there, even if you aren't AAA: Industry report claims that 1 in 10 respondents were laid off in 2024—with 'narrative' roles taking the biggest overall hit
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/its-still-grim-out-there-even-if-you-arent-aaa-industry-report-claims-that-1-in-10-respondents-were-laid-off-in-2024-with-narrative-roles-taking-the-biggest-overall-hit/
2023 was one hell of a tough year for game developers, with over 16,000 layoffs happening across the industry—but hey, at least things are improving, right? You are now permitted to imagine me laughing nervously and looking very, very tired. 2024 was no stranger to shutdowns and layoffs like, say, the Microsoft carnage at Activision Blizzard. And, as this grim bloody summary by our own Wes Fenlon tabulates, around 15,000 were laid off in total which, while a smaller number, still smarts like hell.
But it's not just the AAA market that's been feeling it. A recent "State of the Industry" survey by GDC (that's the Game Development Conference) dug up some similar findings among its respondents which, weirdly enough, are mostly indie developers: Namely, that 1 in 10 of them were laid off.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth PC performance analysis

https://www.pcgamer.com/hardware/final-fantasy-7-rebirth-pc-best-settings-performance-analysis/

Not that PC gamer is the best reviewer out there but if you were wondering how this game performs on PC while we wait for DF and such, here's some initial results. They note that it's relatively stutter free which is a thank fuck moment. It is missing FSR/XeSS however as the only upscaling options are DLSS/TAAU. But the performance is good enough with some settings tweaks for lower end hardware to not need upscaling.