Thursday gaming news, part two:

'It should be silly': Overwatch 2's newest Halloween event, Haunted Masquerade, connects characters' lore while also not taking itself too seriously
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/it-should-be-silly-overwatch-2s-newest-halloween-event-haunted-masquerade-connects-characters-lore-while-also-not-taking-itself-too-seriously/
Overwatch 2 Season 19 has brought a whole host of new cosmetics, challenges, and even events. Just in time for Halloween, old events like Junkenstein's Revenge and Wrath of the Bride will be coming back, alongside a new event: Haunted Masquerade.

Cozy witch-life sim Witchbrook is delayed to 2026 'to ensure the world feels rich, immersive, and alive'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/life-sim/cozy-witch-life-sim-witchbrook-is-delayed-to-2026-to-ensure-the-world-feels-rich-immersive-and-alive/
Witchbrook, the upcoming cozy life sim about going to witch college—think Stardew Valley meets Harry Potter except you're a witch instead of a wizard, and no, I'm not clear on the distinction—has been delayed. After setting a release window of winter 2025 earlier this year, developer Chucklefish now says it needs more time to get things done, and that means a launch sometime in 2026.

Bungie executes spectacular U-turn by removing new currency it just added to Destiny 2, desperately bestows 777,777 unstable cores on all players for the apology tour
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/bungie-executes-spectacular-u-turn-by-removing-new-currency-it-just-added-to-destiny-2-desperately-bestows-777-777-unstable-cores-on-all-players-for-the-apology-tour/
Destiny 2: The Edge of Fate was released on July 15, 2025, and ever since then developer Bungie has been fire-fighting one of the expansion's many unpopular additions: unstable cores.
Forgive the Destiny jargon, because this thing loves an in-game currency, but unstable cores are how you infuse gear, increasing its power level beyond the seasonal cap. The problem with the currency was relatively simple though, to the extent you wonder how it ever released in this state: it cost huge amounts of cores to do more or less anything at higher levels, compared to the small amount you'd earn for dismantling loot.
(...)
Bungie is now taking the opportunity, with the release of Destiny 2: Renegades on December 2, to correct its mistake. Having previously said it intended to "rebalance the economy" of unstable cores, it's now just admitting this was a bad idea all along.
"We have landed on a plan to fully deprecate this currency," says Bungie. "Once deprecated, infusion will cost an amount of Enhancement Cores and Glimmer."

Motorslice is a shot of liquid nostalgia for the PS1-era action platformers I was too young to play—with a dash of Shadow of the Colossus in there for good measure
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/motorslice-is-a-shot-of-liquid-nostalgia-for-the-ps1-era-action-platformers-i-was-too-young-to-play-with-a-dash-of-shadow-of-the-colossus-in-there-for-good-measure/
I was born around the time the PlayStation 1 came out, which means that my younger years were mostly spent playing games like Spyro: The Dragon. But occasionally, I'd get my hands on a demo disc for some game that was a little too adult for me. Not in the smutty sense, but in terms of what my developing motor skills could put up with.
I'm talking your Lara Crofts, your Bushido Blades (alright, maybe that gorefest was a little mature): Games that demanded absolute precision from you, otherwise you'd be cut down in an instant or slowly leap to your doom. Let me tell you, Motorslice has me full-on-Ratatouille flashbacking back to those more innocent days. Except now I know how to play videogames. Allegedly.
Motorslice's demo has been out for a while now, but it was recently updated for Steam Next Fest. Its controls seem unwieldy at first, but they're mostly just demanding. Chainsaw-blade-wielding protagonist P controls a lot like Lara Croft in the early Tomb Raider games. That is to say, all of her movements are incredibly high-commitment, and you need to know exactly where you're going.

Assassin's Creed franchise boss leaves Ubisoft just 7 months after heading up one of the best-selling games in the history of the series
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/assassins-creed/assassins-creed-franchise-boss-leaves-ubisoft-just-7-months-after-heading-up-one-of-the-best-selling-games-in-the-history-of-the-series/
Ubisoft has confirmed that Assassin's Creed boss Marc-Alexis Côté has left Ubisoft after more than 20 years at the company, a stretch that saw him climb from a software engineer on PSP games to vice president and executive producer of the Assassin's Creed franchise. Côté's departure, initially reported by IGN, comes just two weeks after Ubisoft unveiled a new subsidiary called Vantage Studios that will be responsible for all future development of Assassin's Creed, as well as Far Cry and Rainbow Six.

The Outlast Trials is adding a PvP mode in its next update, which I'm sure will do wonders for my inability to trust friends in any horror game
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/horror/the-outlast-trials-is-adding-a-pvp-mode-in-its-next-update-which-im-sure-will-do-wonders-for-my-inability-to-trust-friends-in-any-horror-game/
As if you needed any more reason to feel constantly on edge in The Outlast Trials, its upcoming update will turn even your closest friends against you in the game's first PvP mode.

Rockstar pays tribute to D'Angelo, 'a true titan of soul' whose music 'will forever be an enduring part of the legacy of Red Dead Redemption 2'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rockstar-pays-tribute-to-dangelo-a-true-titan-of-soul-whose-music-will-forever-be-an-enduring-part-of-the-legacy-of-red-dead-redemption-2/
Rockstar Games has shared a touching tribute to legendary R&B artist D'Angelo, who died of pancreatic cancer on October 14, calling him "a true titan of soul" in a message posted to Instagram.

'Scottish dark fantasy Dynasty Warriors' sounds like a game pitch from a fever dream, but this roguelike demo proves it's got juice
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/scottish-dark-fantasy-dynasty-warriors-sounds-like-a-game-pitch-from-a-fever-dream-but-this-roguelike-demo-proves-its-got-juice/
The 1995 Mel Gibson film Braveheart, a fictionalized retelling of the battles of Scottish knight William Wallace during the First War of Scottish Independence, was full of blatant historical inaccuracies: Its dates were wrong, its dress was anachronistic, and—worst of all—it didn't even cover the period in Wallace's life when a demonic meteor fell into the heart of Scotland, turning the occupying English forces into an army of corrupted mutants clad in molten, accursed iron.
While I'll admit that last bit isn't often acknowledged by historical consensus, it is the basis for Tears of Metal, an upcoming hack-and-slash roguelike with a playable demo on Steam. It's a dark fantasy Dynasty Warriors following a legion of displaced Scots—a combination I didn't know I was missing, but one I'm happy to report is sick.

Battlefield 6 fiddles with the pace of Conquest mode but somehow avoids giving the people what they want: 'Remove the timer'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/battlefield-6-fiddles-with-the-pace-of-conquest-mode-but-somehow-avoids-giving-the-people-what-they-want-remove-the-timer/
Battlefield 6 is here and it's really rather good. (…)
That's not to say the game's entirely without issues, of course, and one persistent grumble since launch has been about Conquest mode, which is arguably the series' 'main' mode and one you'll likely be spending a lot of time in. The problem is time itself: Conquest is a mode designed around each team having a set number of 'reinforcement tickets', which tick down as the match progresses—the first team to run out of tickets loses.
Battlefield 6 added a timer to Conquest, something that wasn't present in previous Battlefield games, and so players have run into a repeated issue where matches are finishing before either team has run out of tickets. (...)
DICE has now tweaked this but, weirdly enough, hasn't taken aim at the timer. Instead it seems to think the starting ticket count is the issue?

A very silly Battlefield 6 bug is letting players levitate by smacking drones with hammers
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/a-very-silly-battlefield-6-bug-is-letting-players-levitate-by-smacking-drones-with-hammers/
There are few videogame pastimes as treasured as trying to stand on a flying object. Sadly, while it's possible to land on an enemy player's flying fighter jet—you should see that clip if you haven't already—Battlefield 6 won't let you take to the skies on a teammate's recon drone.
Unless you hit it with a sledgehammer.

Yep, today there is also a part three:

Yep, I get why this co-op RPG sandbox that's part Minecraft, part Skyrim, and also has airships, is one of the most played demos on Steam Next Fest
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/yep-i-get-why-this-co-op-rpg-sandbox-thats-part-minecraft-part-skyrim-and-also-has-airships-is-one-of-the-most-played-demos-on-steam-next-fest/
It didn't take me long to get into the Everwind demo at Steam Next Fest. I was skeptical: I feel like I've had my fill of games that kinda sorta look like Minecraft but aren't actually Minecraft, y'know?
But my skepticism evaporated roughly 35 seconds into the demo. I spawned on top of a small castle and picked up some sticks and planks that were lying around, which told me there was crafting. I descended a level and battled some skeletons, so hey, there's monsters.

US senators express 'profound concern' over EA buyout: 'The proposed transaction poses a number of significant foreign influence and national security risks'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/us-senators-express-profound-concern-over-ea-buyout-the-proposed-transaction-poses-a-number-of-significant-foreign-influence-and-national-security-risks/
The $55 billion buyout of Electronic Arts by a consortium that includes Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and Jared Kushner's Affinity Partners investment firm has resulted in no small amount of consternation among observers. Much of that arises from the perceived likelihood of a less-than-ideal long-term outcome for EA, its creative output, and its staff—but some elements of the US government are also uncertain about the whole thing for different reasons: In a letter to US treasury secretary Scott Bessent, senators Richard Blumenthal and Elizabeth Warren expressed "profound concern about the foreign influence and national security risks" that could result from the takeover.
>> If they did nothing with the Msoft/Activision buy, they’ll do less than nothing with this one, more so with who is involved.

Total War: Warhammer 3 has spent this month being review-bombed over AI bugs specifically and bad vibes in general
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/strategy/total-war-warhammer-3-has-spent-this-month-being-review-bombed-over-ai-bugs-specifically-and-bad-vibes-in-general/
How are things going in the Total War community? Not great, yeah. It began when an existing bug that prevented some factions from being aggressive spread to encompass even more of them—namely the Lizardmen and Tomb Kings—getting to the point where it was difficult not to notice how many Legendary Lords were sitting at home twiddling their thumbs while minor factions went on the warpath.
The bug causing this was actually due to how computer-controlled factions deal with recruitment. Each of those lazy stay-at-homes was trying to recruit specific units they had limited access to, finding they couldn't, and then defaulting to inactivity. Apparently the bug had previously affected the Beastmen, but went largely unnoticed because nobody really cares about Beastmen. Which is harsh but true.
After a recent update spread the issue to the Tomb Kings and Lizardmen, it was spotted by YouTubers and Redditors who made it a talking point, deciding that the only way to convince Creative Assembly to do something about it was by review-bombing Total War: Warhammer 3 on Steam.

Disney Dreamlight Valley has shared details on its next update, The Winter Ball, which will bring one of the games most anticipated characters to the valley
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/life-sim/disney-dreamlight-valley-has-shared-details-on-its-next-update-the-winter-ball-which-will-bring-one-of-the-games-most-anticipated-characters-to-the-valley/
Disney Dreamlight Valley hosted its 2025 showcase stream on October 15, and shared what free updates the game can expect for the rest of the year. This includes our first detailed look at the next release, The Winter Ball, which will be launching on December 10. We already had an idea of what, and more specifically who, would be coming as part of this update thanks to a teaser shared earlier in the year, but it's nice to finally see the characters in-game.
The Winter Ball will bring Cinderella to the game, one of the characters players have been desperate to invite to their valley since it launched. Even though the roster gets bigger every single year, there's still a pretty significant lack of original princesses, so having updates like this one is always exciting, even though we've still got a couple of months to wait before we get to meet her.
>> They also shared the roadmap for 2026 (link) and a trailer for the next DLC (link).

The Minecraft devs probably wouldn't add the creeper if they were following their current design rules 'because it would actually be so controversial'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/the-minecraft-devs-probably-wouldnt-add-the-creeper-if-they-were-following-their-own-current-day-design-rules-because-it-would-actually-be-so-controversial/
I think we can all agree that the creeper is one of the most iconic videogame enemies—next to the murloc, the goomba, and whatever the hell's going on with the tonberry. But it turns out that Minecraft's devs probably wouldn't have added it based on their current design goals.
That's per a recent dev blog (thanks, GamesRadar+). See, present-day Minecraft has a few core principles. The relevant ones to everyone's least favourite critter are "be fair to players", "bad things can happen, but they're technically the player's fault", "find the right level of destruction", and "don't add features that wreck player's builds."

I have to admit that I haven't payed a lot of attention to this Next Fest, giving it only a quick look during the first day. That's why the articles about some of the demos that PCgamer has been posting can be useful to some.

So far, the only game that have picked up my interest has been one called Retro Racing 2 (link), but it's mostly because the graphics reminded me of the Micromachine games from the 16-bit consoles and because the cars don't sem to run over ice like some arcade games like to do. I haven't tried it yet, tho, so I don't know if it's any good.

I think this highlights a problem with game design in general, and I find it pretty ironic that Mojang doesn't consider their design principles flawed in this light. I don't think anyone considers creepers a bad thing overall, even though they do cause frustration too.

Ha...apparently, those guys (or guy) was developer of Nitro and ATF - I remember those on Amiga.

Loved Micromachines back in days, tough last time I played anything like it was Toybox Turbos long, long time ago with kids.

Retirement Denied: GTX 1650 Super and RX 570 still handle Battlefield 6 (barely)

https://videocardz.com/newz/retirement-denied-gtx-1650-super-and-rx-570-still-handle-battlefield-6-barely

Dell Pro Max 16 Plus with RTX PRO 5000 Blackwell GPU tested, features 128GB CAMM2 memory

https://videocardz.com/newz/dell-pro-max-16-plus-with-rtx-pro-5000-blackwell-gpu-tested-features-128gb-camm2-memory

FurMark 2.10 adds new ultra-wide preset and support for Radeon RX 9060 GPU

https://videocardz.com/newz/furmark-2-10-adds-new-ultra-wide-preset-and-support-for-radeon-rx-9060-gpu

Intel Arc B580 drops below £200 in UK for the first time

https://videocardz.com/newz/intel-arc-b580-drops-below-200-in-uk-for-the-first-time

It’s time for the Friday gaming news:

SALES/PLAYER COUNTS & DEALS

Battlefield 6 blows past 7 million copies in 3 days, 'the biggest launch in franchise history'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/battlefield-6-blows-past-7-million-copies-in-3-days-the-biggest-launch-in-franchise-history/
Electronic Arts needed Battlefield 6 to be a hit, and it sure looks like it is. More than seven million copies of the game were sold over the first three days of release, making it "the biggest opening ever" for a Battlefield game.
Along with the impressive sales milestone, the opening weekend also saw more than 172 million matches played online, and more than 15 million hours watched on streaming services—both very big numbers. All told, it's "the biggest launch in franchise history," EA said, and enough of a win that even Battlefield boss Vince Zampella, whose frustrations with technical troubles boiled over publicly during Battlefield 6's launch, is all smiles now.

There are quite a few new deals at Humble:

• Humble Bundle presents:
  • Cosmic Mysteries & Noir Realities Bundle comes with up to 8 games to get during 14 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/cosmic-mysteries-noir-realities
  • Empires and Engines: Return to Tropico & More Bundle has up to 24 items to get (games, DLCs and a 40% off coupon) to get during 19 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/empires-and-engines-return-to-tropico-more-from-kalypso
• Humble Store presents:
  • Megaman Franchise Sale brings games up to 67% off during 6 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/megaman-franchise-sale
  • Sonic Franchise Sale features up to 75% discounts during 6 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/sonic-the-hedgehog-franchise-sale
  • Run Jump & Shoot Sale will have games with up to 90% discounts during 6 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/run-jump-shoot-sale
  • Nacom presents its Autumn Sale with games up to 90% off during 13 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/nacon-fall-publisher-sale

Fanatical has three new deals:

• The new Star Deal is Legacy of Kain™ Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered, 60% off during 48 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/legacy-of-kain-soul-reaver-1-and-2-remastered
• SEGA puts its games on sale with up to 91% discounts during 12 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/publishers/sega
• Fallout Day arrives with, in theory, up to 82% discounts. I say in theory because the biggest deal is for the VR Collection that will end in two days and is 87% off, while the games that are on sale are, at best 16% off. No mention of when the deals will end: https://www.fanatical.com/en/franchises/fallout

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

-Empty-

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

-Also empty-

GAMING NEWS

Hela is a new open-world adventure game from the devs of Unravel
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/hela-is-a-new-open-world-adventure-game-from-the-devs-of-unravel
Knights Peak and Windup have released a new gameplay trailer for their upcoming cozy open-world adventure game, Hela. In this game, you’ll see the world through the eyes of a brave mouse in an enchanting 3D adventure.

Assetto Corsa Rally hits Steam Early Access on November 13th
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/assetto-corsa-rally-hits-steam-early-access-on-november-13th
505 Games has announced Assetto Corsa Rally, the new additional arm within the Assetto Corsa series, dedicated to the world of rally racing. Assetto Corsa Rally is coming to Steam Early Access on November 13th, and you can find below its debut trailer.
>> With Codemasters “gone”, this may be the only rally simulator we’ll get in a while.

Friday gaming news, part two:

Tomonobu Itagaki, the Tecmo genius behind Team Ninja, has died at the age of 58
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/tomonobu-itagaki-the-tecmo-genius-behind-team-ninja-has-died-at-the-age-of-58/
Tomonobu Itagaki has died at the age of 58 following a serious illness. Itagaki was an absolutely transformative figure in contemporary action games thanks to his work at Tecmo, the company he joined in 1992: he led Team Ninja and spearheaded the revival of Ninja Gaiden, as well as creating the Dead or Alive series. He would leave Tecmo under a cloud in 2008, before founding Valhalla Game Studios and releasing Devil's Third on Wii U.
>> Leynos made a thread about his passing yesterday.

Diablo 4 as you know it is about to change again as Blizzard drops an expansion's worth of changes to its loot and combat
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/diablo-4-season-11-update-changes-explained/
Once again, Diablo 4 is about to change in a big way. The list of permanent updates Blizzard plans to implement in its next season bring foundational reworks to loot and combat that will trickle down into the rest of the game.
All of it will be on the PTR next week to test out, but so far it seems like Diablo 4 is about to become a tougher but more satisfying action RPG. Monsters will be meaner and your gear will be more customizable to help you face them. Old systems are returning in new ways and leaderboards are finally back.

Saudi Arabia's acquisition of Electronic Arts faces pushback from game developers, petition calls on FTC to 'scrutinize this deal closely'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/saudi-arabias-acquisition-of-electronic-arts-faces-pushback-from-game-developers-petition-calls-on-ftc-to-scrutinize-this-deal-closely/
The $55 billion acquisition of Electronic Arts by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and private equity firms is facing more pushback, as the United Videogame Workers-CWA union has put out a statement calling on regulators and lawmakers to "ensure that any path forward protects jobs, preserves creative freedom, and keeps decision-making accountable to the workers who make EA successful."

Dwarf Fortress is getting a siege update in November with goblin battering rams and defense-destroying troll engineers that'll dismantle over a decade of dwarven siege strategy
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/sim/dwarf-fortress-is-getting-a-siege-update-in-november-with-goblin-battering-rams-and-defense-destroying-troll-engineers-thatll-dismantle-over-a-decade-of-dwarven-siege-strategy/
While they've been a terror for countless fledgling fortbuilders, goblin sieges in Dwarf Fortress become predictably trivial once you've got a good amount of mountainhome management under your belt. That's about to change: On November 3, Dwarf Fortress gets its awaited Siege update, and a lot of dwarves are going to be a lot less safe.

Gamers hand Ubisoft a rare 'W' as The Crew 2's offline mode finally goes live
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/racing/gamers-hand-ubisoft-a-rare-w-as-the-crew-2s-offline-mode-finally-goes-live/
It took more than a year to make it happen, but the promised offline mode for The Crew 2 is finally here. "Hybrid Mode," as it's officially known, lets players switch between online and offline play at will, ensuring the game will remain accessible even when the remote servers are gone.

The Borderlands 4 update that's going to take away your infinite-bleed god-knife is delayed until next week
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/the-borderlands-4-update-thats-going-to-take-away-your-infinite-bleed-god-knife-is-delayed-until-next-week/
The Borderlands 4 update that will usher in a range of balance fixes and performance improvements is taking a little longer than expected, and so will not roll out this week as planned but will instead arrive "early next week."

The top 50 demos of Steam Next Fest feature competitive typing, first-person cigarette smoking, a giant menacing cube, and 2 convenience stores where nobody should shop
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/the-top-50-demos-of-steam-next-fest-feature-competitive-typing-first-person-cigarette-smoking-a-giant-menacing-cube-and-2-convenience-stores-where-nobody-should-shop/
Steam Next Fests are as delightful as they are overstimulating: There are so many interesting new games to sample, but there are so many new games to sample. That's why we like to take stock after a couple days of demos to see which attracted the most attention—and what that leaves our wishlists looking like.
The top 50 most played demos from this season's tastings show that no matter what your preferences are, you'll probably find something promising to try. We've got extraction shooters, racing managers, turn-based and realtime strategy, and a skateboarding demon made out of glass. PC gaming is anything but a monoculture.

Former Assassin's Creed boss says he did not leave voluntarily: 'I stayed at my post until Ubisoft asked me to step aside'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/former-assassins-creed-boss-says-he-did-not-leave-voluntarily-i-stayed-at-my-post-until-ubisoft-asked-me-to-step-aside/
A day after Ubisoft confirmed his departure, former Assassin's Creed franchise boss Marc-Alexis Côté says he did not choose to leave the company, but was asked to step aside by leadership after being offered a reduced role at Ubisoft's new Vantage Studios subsidiary.

Total War: Warhammer 3's Tides of Torment DLC will be out on the same day as 'a special showcase event where the future of the franchise will be revealed'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/strategy/total-war-warhammer-3s-tides-of-torment-dlc-will-be-out-on-the-same-day-as-a-special-showcase-event-where-the-future-of-the-franchise-will-be-revealed/
When Creative Assembly announced it was ending support for Total War: Three Kingdoms it did so by saying "we are now looking at the future of Three Kingdoms", so when it announced that Warhammer 3's next DLC will be released on the same day as a 25th anniversary celebration where "the future of the franchise will be revealed", you can be forgiven for flinching.
But it doesn't seem like this is the death knell for Total War: Warhammer 3. If anything, it's a reason to hope it can be dragged out of the Slough of Despond that led to its recent review-bombing. At least we got a cinematic trailer for Tides of Torment that looks sick as hell.

Battlefield 6's lethargic progression is getting a much-needed overhaul, but Portal is unsurprisingly paying the price after we all abused it
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/battlefield-6s-lethargic-progression-is-getting-a-much-needed-overhaul-but-portal-is-unsurprisingly-paying-the-price-after-we-all-abused-it/
One of the biggest complaints lobbed at Battlefield 6 so far is that its progression systems are painfully slow. In fact, I complained about it just yesterday, and how it could impact Season 1. Career ranks aren't too bad, but they currently gate progression for important assignments for new guns and gadgets. Weapon XP, on the other hand, is frustratingly slow, which has only exacerbated tensions around the random bullet deviation epidemic that even the best guns suffer from.
Thankfully, Battlefield Studios has answered our calls and is implementing a number of substantial changes "to go live within the next week" to quicken the pace of progression: "Our goals here are to make the progression experience feel smoother and more rewarding while still keeping that sense of achievement when you complete a milestone like fully mastering a weapon."
>> They’re also trying to find a balance between new and old players when it comes to movement mechanics (link). Oh! And they’re rolling back the changes made to Conquest (link).

Nightdive puts out surprise 'definitive' update for 30-year-old I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/puzzle/nightdive-puts-out-surprise-definitive-update-for-30-year-old-i-have-no-mouth-and-i-must-scream/
As a man who lives with one foot firmly in the past, little excites me more than an old game suddenly getting some out-of-the-blue new update. Obsidian suddenly returning to Pillars of Eternity 1 earlier this year? Pretty much the best thing that's ever happened to me. And now Nightdive has sprung up to slap a "definitive" update on ancient adventure game I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream. This is a year of three Christmases for ol' Josh.

PC Gamer is joining Dames 4 Games for its spooky Halloween monster mash, Ghouls 4 Games, which includes a showcase, Steam event, and fundraising streams
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/pc-gamer-is-joining-dames-4-games-for-its-spooky-halloween-monster-mash-ghouls-4-games-which-includes-a-showcase-steam-event-and-fundraising-streams/
PC Gamer's proud to announce that we'll be joining up with Dames 4 Games (alongside Twitch and Steam) to celebrate women and femme-led studios this Halloween.
Dames 4 Games (D4G), a non-profit organisation that promotes the work of women and femme-led studios in the gaming industry. We're talking digital showcases, charity streams and fundraisers, and mentorship programs—in other words, all good work. Ghouls 4 Games will take that good work in a pair of stick-on vampire teeth for the spookiest season with three major events between October 24 and November 7.

And these are the weekend deals at GOG and Steam:

+GOG

• Fallout Day Sale is here with up to 75% discounts to the games during 7 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20251017_fallout_day
• Klabater Publisher Sale comes with games up to 95% off during 7 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20251017_klabater_publisher_sale

+Steam

• F1 25 is going to be free to try during the weekend and will be 30% off until Tuesday, the 21st: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3059520/F1_25
• Pacific Drive will have a 50% discount until the 23rd of October: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1458140/Pacific_Drive
• Return of the Obra Dinn will also be 50% off until the 23rd: https://store.steampowered.com/app/653530/Return_of_the_Obra_Dinn
• Star Wars Outlaws, that has a demo, will have a 50% discount until October 23 as well: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2842040/Star_Wars_Outlaws
• DORAEMON STORY OF SEASONS is going to be 60% off until Thursday: https://store.steampowered.com/app/965230/DORAEMON__STORY_OF_SEASONS
• N++ (NPLUSPLUS) gets a 75% discount until Thursday, the 23rd: https://store.steampowered.com/app/230270/N_NPLUSPLUS
• City of Gangsters will be 82% off until October, the 23rd: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1386780/City_of_Gangsters
• MORDHAU is the last of the deals that will end on the 23rd, but it will do so afret being free to try during the weekend and with an 85% discount: https://store.steampowered.com/app/629760/MORDHAU
•  Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, that has a demo, is going to be 55% off until the 25th of October: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2183900/Warhammer_40000_Space_Marine_2
• Necesse celebrates reaching version 1.0 with a 50% discount until the 30th of October, : https://store.steampowered.com/app/1169040/Necesse
• These are the new Sales/events:
  • Yakuza/Like a Dragon Franchise Sale will have games up to 80% off until the 23rd of October: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/LikeaDragonFranchiseSale2025
  • WB Games Sale features up to 90% discounts until the 23rd: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/wbpubsale2025
  • Developer weltenbauer celebrates a sale putting its four games (plus DLCs) up to 70% off. The deals of three games will end on the 20th, but the deals of the other one will last until the 26th: https://store.steampowered.com/curator/32942452/sale/weltenbauer

And that’s it for this week. Until the next time, I wish you a happy and gaming weekend.

The press is currently going wild that a new Apple M5 chip can keep up with the M1 Ultra in multi core despite having only half as many cores.

Meanwhile, a Ryzen 9 9950X3D can keep up with a Threadripper 3990X despite having just a quarter of the cores. And the age difference is the same as between the Apple Silicon cores, as in 5 years (M1 launched in November 2020)

No one can say AMD isn't delivering the goods, though I'd say questions about the viability of x86, long-term, remain.