To each their own I suppose. If the gpu vendor is incompetent, that's something that directly affecting the user. Such as Anti Lag 2 getting users accounts banned or Nvidia with their garbage drivers early this year. But marketing lies or missleads is something that every company does at this point hence why reviews exist. But fair enough.

True, true. Shouldn't be an issue for me personally though, because I barely play anything online.

Redditor’s quad RTX 5090 GPU & dual 2400W PSU rig is ready to benchmark breakers, not games

https://videocardz.com/newz/redditors-quad-rtx-5090-gpu-dual-2400w-psu-rig-is-ready-to-benchmark-breakers-not-games

Intel Core Ultra 7 255U and 5 225U “Arrow Lake” CPUs are now available on Pico-ITX boards

https://videocardz.com/newz/intel-core-ultra-7-255u-and-5-225u-arrow-lake-cpus-are-now-available-on-pico-itx-boards

Corsair gaming PC kills third Core i9-14900K in a year, thanks to locked OEM BIOS with old microcode

https://videocardz.com/newz/corsair-gaming-pc-kills-third-core-i9-14900k-in-a-year-thanks-to-locked-oem-bios-with-old-microcode

NVIDIA board partners reportedly still lack GeForce RTX 50 SUPER technical specs

https://videocardz.com/newz/nvidia-board-partners-reportedly-still-lack-geforce-rtx-50-super-technical-specs

After ten years in a smoke-filled room, this GeForce 9800GT goes from health crisis to running Crysis

https://videocardz.com/newz/after-ten-years-in-a-smoke-filled-room-this-geforce-9800gt-goes-from-health-crisis-to-running-crysis

AMD Zen 6 CPU Core ISA Revealed: AVX512 FP16, VNNI INT8 & More

https://wccftech.com/amd-zen-6-cpu-core-isa-revealed-avx512-fp16-vnni-int8-more/

Google debuts AI chips with 4X performance boost, secures Anthropic megadeal worth billions

https://venturebeat.com/ai/google-debuts-ai-chips-with-4x-performance-boost-secures-anthropic-megadeal

Samsung teases radical new modular SSD design with swappable NAND and SSD controller that can be detached independently — tiny 4TB PCIe 5.0 M.2 drive is also ready

https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/ssds/samsung-teases-modular-ssd-with-swappable-nand-and-ssd-controller-compact-4tb-pcie-5-0-m-2-2242-drive-is-also-ready-to-deploy

SanDisk reportedly jacks up flash prices by 50% as memory makers cash in on AI-fueled demand

https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/storage/sandisk-reportedly-jacks-up-flash-prices-by-50-percent-as-memory-makers-cash-in-on-ai-fueled-demand

Welcome, once again, to the Monday gaming news:

SALES/PLAYER COUNTS & DEALS

Arc Raiders is taking over Steam with a new all-time concurrent player high of 462,488, surpassing Helldivers 2
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/arc-raiders-is-taking-over-steam-with-a-new-all-time-concurrent-player-high-of-462-488-surpassing-helldivers-2/
I spent a good chunk of my weekend introducing a couple of friends to the wonders of going topside in search of trinkets, robots, and even perhaps friendship in Arc Raiders, and it looks like 462,485 other people had the same idea.
Arc Raiders has been on a monumental run since it launched a couple of weeks back. Hitting 100,000 concurrent players in just 30 minutes and briefly surpassing Battlefield 6 in concurrent players a few days ago, it seems like the gaming world has been enamoured with Embark's new extraction shooter, and I can't see the enthusiasm waning anytime soon.
Just 14 hours ago, at the time of writing, Arc Raiders managed to hit another milestone: overtaking Helldivers 2 in all-time peak of concurrent players, reaching 462,488 or 462,485, plus my two friends and I. Helldivers 2, in contrast, has an all-time peak of just 458,709, and that's including my squad.
>> Looks like they’ve fixed the problems they had the previous weekend.

'The unimaginable has happened'—Dune: Awakening's player count drops below Funcom's other survival game released eight years ago, as engagement with Arrakis dries up
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/mmo/the-unimaginable-has-happened-dune-awakenings-player-count-drops-below-funcoms-other-survival-game-released-eight-years-ago-as-engagement-with-arrakis-dries-up/
Things aren't looking so hot for Funcom's sci-fi desert survival MMO Dune: Awakening. After the strongest launch in the Norwegian studio's history, Funcom announced layoffs at the start of October, citing a shift from "development to long-term operation" as well as an upcoming console launch as the reasons for restructuring.
But there may be another reason behind those layoffs, namely that the player count for Dune: Awakening is dwindling. In fact, for the first time since Dune: Awakening launched, the number of players recently dropped below that of Funcom's other survival MMO, Conan Exiles, which released way back in 2018.
The shift was spotted by Reddit user m3d1t8 (via GamesRadar), who posted a screenshot showing that, at the time it was taken, 7,458 players were exploring Arrakis, while 7,706 players were enjoying Conan Exiles. "The unbelievable has happened and Dune now has fewer active players than Conan," m3d1t8 marvelled, adding. "I remember two months ago someone foreseeing that Dune would dip below Conan and thinking no wayyyy. I expected player numbers to settle around 20k."
At the time of writing, there was an even bigger gap between the two games, with 4,562 players in Awakening, and 5,685 players in Exiles. Exiles also enjoyed a higher 24-hour peak than Awakening on Sunday, reaching 10,899 players while Awakening topped out at 10,593. This is especially remarkable considering Awakening has an all-time peak that's greater than Exiles by almost fourfold, with 189,333 players arriving on Arrakis at launch while Exiles has only ever seen a max of 53,402.
There is one big caveat, however, which is that Conan Exiles is currently on a humongous discount, available for 80% on Steam off until later today. That's likely given Exiles a bump it otherwise wouldn't have had.

GOG starts the week with two new sales:

• Polish Week will have games from Polish developers up to 95% off during 7 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20251110_polish_week
• Daedalic Publisher Sale puts its games on sale with up to 90% discounts during the next 13 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20251110_daedalic_publisher_sale

Steam has two new deals and a sale:

• Heretic's Fork is going to be 50% off until the 16th of November: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2181610/Heretics_Fork
• My Little Life gets a 35% discount until the 23rd of November: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2834600/My_Little_Life
• The new sale is the Crashlands Franchise Sale, with the two games being 90 and 40% off respectively until November the 18th: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/crashlandsfranchisesale

Humble Bundle has the new Frogwares: Lovecraft and Sherlock Classics Bundle, with up to 12 games to get during 18 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/frogwares-lovecraft-and-sherlock-classics.

Fanatical has new Flash Deals and bundles:

• These are the new 24h Flash Deals:
  • Date Everything! Lavish Edition: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/date-everything-lavish-edition
  • Resident Evil Remake Trilogy: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/resident-evil-remake-trilogy
  • Darksiders Blades & Whip Franchise Pack: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/darksiders-blades-and-whip-franchise-pack
• The Star Wars Collection returns once again, this time 80% off during 4 days : https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/star-wars-collection
• Birthday Favorites - Build your own Bundle (Fall 2025) features 20 games for your 2+, 3+ or 5+ bundles during 34 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/pick-and-mix/birthday-favorites-build-your-own-bundle

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

Steam's wider store pages are now live, and Valve says it tested them on 'a tiny old iPod' to make sure they'd still work on narrower screens
https://www.pcgamer.com/software/platforms/steams-wider-store-pages-are-now-live-and-valve-says-it-tested-them-on-a-tiny-old-ipod-to-make-sure-theyd-still-work-on-narrower-screens/
Steam has increased the width of its product pages from 940 pixels to 1,200 pixels. It's a change that would go unremarked on for most other online stores, but this is Steam, the place we've been buying PC games since the 2000s, and Valve, a company from which we've come to expect things like 750-word blog posts about page width. (Even though it will also kick off public testing of a whole new videogame without acknowledging its existence.)
The great Steam enwidening came to the Steam beta client in August (you can opt into beta updates in the "Interface" tab of the Steam settings), and has now rolled out to everyone. As one effect, the screenshots on Steam store pages can now be displayed at a higher resolution, and there are new theater and full-screen browsing modes for images and trailers.
The wider product pages also come with new formatting options for game publishers, and they aren't the only part of Steam that's had a nice stretch: Search results, bundle pages, the Steam Charts, and a few other Steam pages have also become roomier.

'Once gamers try it, they won’t want to go back': The curse of wonky high-FOV graphics may be a thing of the past with this single plugin
https://www.pcgamer.com/hardware/once-gamers-try-it-they-wont-want-to-go-back-the-curse-of-wonky-high-fov-graphics-may-be-a-thing-of-the-past-with-this-single-plugin/
If you've just bought a new ultrawide monitor or invested in a top-end headset for some serious VR action, one of the graphics settings you've probably tried changing in games is the field of view. What you've also probably noticed is that opening up the view to make things more immersive just ruins the visual experience. The good news is that one UK team reckons it's cracked the problem, and it's already made the tools for game devs.
Human vision has a horizontal field of view of around 200 degrees or so, but the vast majority of 3D games stick with 75 to 90 degrees. Many will let you play around with an FOV (field of view) setting, but once you go over 100, the edges go all kinds of wonky.
It is possible, of course, to code a game so that it doesn't do this, but it's easier said than done. That's because while it's a piece of cake to increase the horizontal size of the frustrum created by the camera in a 3D world, objects at the edge of the FOV will look distorted and stretched unless this is all accounted for and corrected.
And what might work fine at 110 degrees, for a game that's normally 90 degrees, might not work very well at higher FOV values.
Enter stage left, Fovo Technology Ltd, or Fovotec for short. This UK-based company has developed a software package that handles it all for you, and has created plugins for Unity and Unreal Engine that allow game developers to implement a FOV system that can go all the way up to 180 degrees with only a small amount of distortion at those extreme levels.
>> The article has a video and some screenshots.

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Take a look at this Soldier of Fortune RTX Remix Path Tracing Mod
https://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/take-a-look-at-this-soldier-of-fortune-rtx-remix-path-tracing-mod
Modder ‘Pathtraced Paradise’ is currently working on an RTX Remix Path Tracing Mod for Soldier of Fortune. While this mod is in a very early stage, the modder shared two videos that you can find below.
As Pathtraced Paradise noted, almost all textures have been upscaled 12 times using generative AI to add additional detail to the original assets with PBR materials. He also made over 100 hand-edited textures and emissive masks.
Right now, the first three levels, plus the tutorial, are partially completed with upscaled PRB textures.
As I said, this is still a WIP Mod. This means that the videos do not reflect the quality of its final version. Still, they can give you a pretty good idea of what the modder aims to achieve.
>> The article has two videos.

Mass Effect: Legendary Edition Community Patch 2.0 Released
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/mass-effect-legendary-edition-community-patch-2-0-released
The Mass Effect Community Patch Team has just released Community Update 2.0 for Mass Effect Legendary Edition. So, let’s see what this new unofficial patch brings to the table.
For those who don’t know, the LE1 Community Patch is a simple bug-fix mod for Mass Effect 1 Legendary Edition. This is the spiritual successor to ME1Recalibrated. It mainly focuses on fixing bugs without changing the original game’s design or balance. As such, it’s a must-have for everyone who wants to replay it.
Community Patch 2.0 features a long-awaited feature, the LE1 Framework. This framework will greatly decrease mod compatibility issues between NPC appearance mods and other level modifications. The framework works similarly to the LE3 Community Patch’s framework, as well as the LE2 Prologue Framework.
The Update also includes the LE1 Sideloader Framework as a built-in part of the Community Patch. This tool allows other mods to load additional level files in existing parts of the game with minimal compatibility issues, with no patching of master level files.
This means that every level-focused or NPC-focused mod will need to be updated to be compatible with LE1CP v2.0. After these have been updated, there should be a drastic decrease in the number of compatibility patches you will need to install.
While Community Patch 2.0 does not feature a lot of bug fixes, it marks a huge milestone for the team. Thanks to this unofficial patch, players can enjoy Mass Effect: LE with fewer bugs and glitches. It’s one of those mods you have to install if you want to replay it.
>> The article has the release notes and some screenshots.

The Witcher 3 HD Reworked Project NextGen Edition 2026 Announced
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/the-witcher-3-hd-reworked-project-nextgen-edition-2026-announced
Modder ‘Halk Hogan’ has just announced a new version of his HD Reworked Project for The Witcher 3 Next Gen. As the title suggests, The Witcher 3 HD Reworked Project NextGen Edition 2026 will come out next year, and below you can find a video for it.
The Witcher 3 HD Reworked Project improves the game with top-notch textures that look great and run smoothly, without needing more VRAM. If you’re already playing on Max settings, you’ll be able to use this mod. The pack will include high-quality, accurate normal maps, many of which are made from detailed 3D models. The project also brings better LODs for objects, as well as a better view distance.
While we wait for the 2026 version, you can still get its previous version from this link. And I highly recommend giving it a go. This is easily the best HD Texture Pack for The Witcher 3. So, if for whatever reason you can’t wait for the new version, you can go ahead and replay TW3 with it.
>> The video is 5 minutes long.

New Cyberpunk 2077 Mod Aims To Overhaul Its Traffic
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/new-cyberpunk-2077-mod-aims-to-overhaul-its-traffic
Modder ‘cradilyex’ has released a brand new cool mod for Cyberpunk 2077. This mod aims to completely change how traffic works. To be more precise, the mod makes traffic more realistic and unique, depending on which district you’re in. It’s definitely a mod everyone should try out. Let’s take a closer look at it.
Night City Traffic Overhaul adds more variety to the city’s traffic, depending on the district you’re in. You’ll now see gang cars patrolling their turf, NCPD cruisers in rich areas, taxis and buses around the city, and big trucks in industrial zones. Out in the Badlands, you’ll find Militech and Wraith vehicles, while Kabuki will have Moxes driving around. Best of all, you can adjust everything to match your personal preferences.
As said, each district has sliders for customization. So, you can create and implement your own vision of the NC streets. You can also add your modded vehicles for each district to the lists.
All in all, this is a simple mod that can make a big difference in how the game feels. With it, each district now feels more unique and alive.
Best of all is that this mod won’t have any impact on your performance. Well, that is if you use a normal traffic density setting. The vehicle swap is done in every game load, so there is no performance cost from that.
>> The article has no media.

GTA 5 Enhanced Mod Adds 4K Textures To All Story Characters
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/gta-5-enhanced-mod-adds-4k-textures-to-all-story-characters
Modder ‘instanity’ has released a 4K pack for Grand Theft Auto 5 Enhanced Edition that overhauls all of the game’s story characters. In total, this pack improves over 70 characters. As such, it’s a must-have for everyone who is currently playing it.
Going into more details, the mod improves the body, head, and clothes of all the main story characters. By “story” characters, I’m referring to those who appear in the game’s cinematics. These characters will now look better and more detailed.
You can go ahead and download the mod from this link. Those who still play the Legacy Version can also download a previous version of that pack that’s compatible with it.
Another cool mod for GTA 5 Enhanced Edition that has just come out is the Modular Map Builder. This mod lets you create custom maps, placing modular road pieces and adding new objects to make cities and such. This mod is in a very early stage right now. Still, those who want to create new maps for GTA 5 can try it out. You can download it from here.
>> The article has an over 4 minutes video of the Modular Map Builder mod.

23 years later, Morrowind on controller and Steam Deck just got a million times better: The latest version of OpenMW is out now
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/the-elder-scrolls/23-years-later-morrowind-on-controller-and-steam-deck-just-got-a-million-times-better-the-latest-version-of-openmw-is-out-now/
I've said it before and, unless PC Gamer fires me for all that embezzling I've been doing, I'm bound to say it again: OpenMW is one of the coolest mod projects out there. Much like DevilutionX does for Diablo or Daggerfall Unity does for Daggerfall, OpenMW is an open-source engine reimplementation for The Elder Scrolls 3 that lets you play it on damn near any device and with a lot of mod-cons.
If a phrase like "open-source engine reimplementation" fills you with dread, fear not: using OpenMW is as simple as downloading it and double clicking the launcher (though you'll need base Morrowind installed), and I strongly encourage you to do so—the devs just released OpenMW version 0.50, and it's a doozy.
"This round number release overhauls the gamepad experience, makes foundational steps in dehardcoding combat, further expands our Lua scripting API and, among the host of user interface fix-ups, introduces the highly requested quick item transfer," writes OpenMW team member Capo.
"Dehardcoding combat" is the process by which OpenMW is gradually opening up to Morrowind's core combat functionality to tweaks, expanding the Lua scripting API further enhances OpenMW's capacity for all-powerful Lua modding, and UI fix-ups are, well, self-explanatory. But I confess it's the gamepad stuff that has me going out of my gourd for this one.
>> The article has some screenshots.

Fallout: New Vegas Mod brings over 200 new weathers to the game
https://www.dsogaming.com/pc-performance-analyses/fallout-new-vegas-mod-brings-over-200-new-weathers-to-the-game
Modder ‘doodlum’ has just released a new mod for Fallout: New Vegas, adding over 200 new weathers to the game. This is a cool new mod that can make the game’s skies look much better than before. So, let’s take a closer look at it.
Perfect Skies brings procedurally generated 4K clouds, a dual-layer lighting system, dozens of completely unique cloud variations, as well as unique locational skies. In total, we’re looking at over 200 new weathers. This will add more variety to the game. As such, world exploration may feel better than before.
In the vanilla version, all textures were made by cutting real clouds from photos in image editing programs. This mod does not use any real pictures. Instead, all clouds are fully computer-generated. Because of that, the clouds look perfect and don’t have the usual problems like bad lighting, blur, or pixelation.
The mod also uses two special textures: one for sunlight or moonlight and one for how the sky’s light spreads through the clouds. This allows the same cloud texture to look great at any time of day and in any location. Overall, this system is even more advanced than the one used in Fallout 4.
The mod includes 30 unique cloud styles and 60 4K textures. These textures are compressed, but they only store transparency data, which helps prevent visual glitches. Everything is also packed into a BSA file, making the mod take up much less disk space.
>> The article has no media.

GAMING NEWS

Here’s your first look at miHoYo’s new Unreal Engine 5 game
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/heres-your-first-look-at-mihoyos-new-unreal-engine-5-game
It appears that miHoYo, the creator of Genshin Impact, is working on a new game that will be using Unreal Engine 5. This game appears to be in a very early development stage, and below you can find a teaser trailer for it.

This is the second part of the gaming news:

Take-Two's big boss Strauss Zelnick says it got the 'perfect result' from slimmed-down mob tale Mafia: The Old Country, so I'd brace for more games like that if I were you
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/take-twos-big-boss-strauss-zelnick-says-it-got-the-perfect-result-from-slimmed-down-mob-tale-mafia-the-old-country-so-id-brace-for-more-games-like-that-if-i-were-you/
I didn't love Mafia: The Old Country. Where previous games in the series had compensated for their lows with some truly high highs, I felt like Hangar 13's more linear world and more traditional mob story reduced its Sicilian series entry to a uniform level of predictability and blandness, and said as much in our Mafia: The Old Country review.
But I still consider myself a fan of the Mafia series and, indeed, of Hangar 13 as a studio—it proved it can put out a game I love with Mafia 3 (and an idea I love with Rhapsody, its sadly canned post-Mafia-3 project), and I want to see more from both. So, regardless of my cold feelings toward the game, I'm glad to hear The Old Country did well enough to appease Strauss Zelnick, CEO of 2K's parent company, Take-Two.

Palworld community manager points to a new problem with GTA 6's delay: 'Expect to see many games swerve to avoid the 2027 awards season'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/grand-theft-auto/palworld-community-manager-points-to-a-new-problem-with-gta-6s-delay-expect-to-see-many-games-swerve-to-avoid-the-2027-awards-season/
If you feel like we've been here before, then well done for being perceptive because we have. Rockstar announced yesterday that GTA 6 was getting delayed again, and is now scheduled for November 19, which seems like an eternity away.
(...)
"Interestingly, just a little industry knowledge for all you gamers, a Nov 19 launch puts them outside the nomination window for most game awards in 2026," Palworld's communications director, Bucky, says in a social media post. "Intentional or…? Either way, expect to see many games (especially AAA ones) swerve to avoid the 2027 awards season."
I'm not convinced that the delay has anything to do with falling outside the 2026 game awards schedule, although I wouldn't want to go up against Mewgenics in a fight. But the fact that GTA 6 will now likely fall into the 2027 awards window will likely cause more damage than good.

Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra has been delayed again, and it no longer has a clear release window: 'The team is working hard to create something truly special'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/marvel-1943-rise-of-hydra-has-been-delayed-again-and-it-no-longer-has-a-clear-release-window-the-team-is-working-hard-to-create-something-truly-special/
We haven't seen much of Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra just yet, but its story trailer was certainly a looker when it popped up at GDC last year. If that got you hyped, well, this won't: the game's been delayed to "beyond early 2026."

World of Warcraft: Legion Remix players discover infinite power farm that's so broken it's lagging the servers
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/world-of-warcraft/world-of-warcraft-legion-remix-players-discover-infinite-power-farm-thats-so-broken-its-lagging-the-servers/
Give power-hungry World of Warcraft: Legion Remix players a way to infinitely spawn enemies and they'll farm it until the servers die.
Blizzard has yet to step in on a newly discovered method of spawning endless numbers of enemies in the latest phase of Legion Remix. Unlike the Gulp Frogs incident in Mists of Pandaria Remix, this farm seems relatively less broken, but it still can net you millions of infinite power, which is used to level up your weapon and increase your character's overall strength. It's been two days since players began capitalizing on it and Blizzard hasn't made any move to kill it.

Mass Effect boss Mike Gamble slips a hidden message into his N7 Day update, asks fans to stop yelling at him for not sharing more info about the new game
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/mass-effect-boss-mike-gamble-slips-a-hidden-message-into-his-n7-day-update-asks-fans-to-stop-yelling-at-him-for-not-sharing-more-info-about-the-new-game/
Between the post-Veilguard massacre and EA's looming acquisition by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, the storied studio known as BioWare is having a pretty rough time. It's still kicking, though, and still working on a new Mass Effect game—and executive producer Michael Gamble would really like it if you'd all stop yelling at him about it.
"Like you, we’ve heard the rumors lately," Gamble wrote in his traditional N7 Day blog post. "You’ve made it clear you care deeply about what’s next. So let’s start by setting the record straight: the next Mass Effect game is in development, and EA and BioWare remain committed to telling more stories in this universe.
>> The secret message hints at a future Krogan Civil War.

A new Arc Raiders update just fixed a bug where an otherwise underwhelming item could glitch you through walls, so I guess it's back to being underwhelming
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/a-new-arc-raiders-update-just-fixed-a-bug-where-an-otherwise-underwhelming-item-could-glitch-you-through-walls-so-i-guess-its-back-to-being-underwhelming/
Arc Raiders, the hot new extraction shooter from the team behind The Finals, is off to a roaring start—but like any game, players are finding all sorts of ways to break it. A recent and hilarious example is a bug allowing players to use deployable items such as the barricade to squeeze through locked doors.
Streamer canefis demonstrated the technique in a post on X.
Naturally, this was not an intentional use case, so the bug was fixed Thursday in a small patch. But players are pointing out that without their incidental role as a skeleton key, barricades aren't the most desirable item. As one reply on an X thread discussing the bug from pizzaboneman put it: "Darn it! I thought the barricades were useless so I sold them all. Turns out they were the master key!"
>> There is another bug, and a way to fix it, that causes the sound to drop off (link).

Halo Infinite is entering maintenance mode: 'With multiple Halo titles in development, we'll need our whole team's combined focus'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/halo-infinite-is-entering-maintenance-mode-with-multiple-halo-titles-in-development-well-need-our-whole-teams-combined-focus/
Four years after its release, Halo Infinite is, well, not going to be so infinite after all. Developer Halo Studios (formerly 343 Studios) has announced that it's done updating the game with new stuff as it focuses on other projects, like Halo: Campaign Evolved.

OG Fallout artist Leonard Boyarsky says The Outer Worlds 2 almost had its own 'old school Obsidian' evil ending, but it took too much effort for too little payoff: 'I love making these types of games, but it is very stressful'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/og-fallout-artist-leonard-boyarsky-says-the-outer-worlds-2-almost-had-its-own-old-school-obsidian-evil-ending-but-it-took-too-much-effort-for-too-little-payoff-i-love-making-these-types-of-games-but-it-is-very-stressful/
I really love The Outer Worlds 2⁠—so much so that even after reviewing it, I've already started my second character. One thing that stood out to me, though, is that you can't side with the Arcadia system's resident collectivist surveillance state, the Protectorate⁠—you can't even earn or lose reputation points with them like the other factions, and Protectorate NPCs are almost uniformly hostile.
According to creative director Leonard Boyarsky, it was fairly late in development that Obsidian cut off this path.

Underrated avian action adventure The Falconeer just got a free remaster that overhauls 'literally everything' about it: 'I hope and pray this remaster shows the dedication I have for my games'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/underrated-avian-action-adventure-the-falconeer-just-got-a-free-remaster-that-overhauls-literally-everything-about-it-i-hope-and-pray-this-remaster-shows-the-dedication-i-have-for-my-games/
Originally released in 2020, The Falconeer is an aerial combat RPG about piloting enormous predatory birds through the skies of a crumbling oceanic empire. It was warmly received on release, nominated for a BAFTA and earning a respectable score of 78 in our The Falconeer Review.
But developer Tomas Sala wasn't satisfied with the end product, and has spent the last year or so overhauling the game in his spare time from supporting his other game—Bulwark: Falconeer Chronicles. The result released this week, a free update that, according to Sala, reworks "literally everything" about the game.

The roguelike's unstoppable conquest of gaming continues with Age of Empires 4's latest DLC, and players declare the invasion successful: 'It may be my new favourite way to play'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/strategy/the-roguelikes-unstoppable-conquest-of-gaming-continues-with-age-of-empires-4s-latest-dlc-and-players-declare-the-invasion-successful-it-may-be-my-new-favourite-way-to-play/
Every game is a roguelike now. And if it isn't a roguelike, then it's a roguelite. The beat 'em up is a roguelike. The FPS is a roguelike. Poker is a roguelike. Breakout is a roguelike. Even the flippin' city-builder is a roguelike. It's overwhelming. They're all around us, man. They're coming out of the goddamn walls. Then they're coming out of the goddamn walls again, with superior weapons and abilities.
Now, gaming's most virulent progression system has arrived beneath the walls of Age of Empires 4, and the RTS' quivering denizens have thrown open the gates rather than face the unchained wrath of the roguelike's horde. The sequel's latest DLC, Dynasties of the East, introduces The Crucible. This radically reworks the RTS' loop in a fast-paced game of accruing power to fend off increasingly powerful forces.

After Helldivers 2 stole its thunder, Starship Troopers: Extermination is now cribbing from Arrowhead's worksheet by adding airstrikes in its next update
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/after-helldivers-2-stole-its-thunder-starship-troopers-extermination-is-now-cribbing-from-arrowheads-worksheet-by-adding-airstrikes-in-its-next-update/
Imagine how awkward it would be to end up trapped in a lift with Starship Troopers: Extermination and Helldivers 2, what with the latter taking the themes and ideas behind the former's licence and implementing them in a way that massively stole Extermination's thunder. Sure, Helldivers 2 deserves its success, but Extermination's developer, Offworld, must be a little green watching Arrowhead's bug-blasting, fascist lampooning sci-fi action game gallivant off with all of the money.
Hence, it would only be fair for Offworld to copy Arrowhead's homework a little, which appears to be the case for the cooperative spinoff's latest update. Update 1.8 will primarily introduce a Company progression system to Extermination when it arrives later in November. But I'm more intrigued by its tertiary feature—in-game airstrikes.

The weirdest FPS of the decade just got a free, standalone PvP mode that's a blast if you can keep your lunch down
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/the-weirdest-fps-of-the-decade-just-got-a-free-standalone-pvp-mode-thats-a-blast-if-you-can-keep-your-lunch-down/
2022 wasn't exactly a banner year for first-person shooters, but it did bring us Hyper Demon. Like its predecessor Devil Daggers, Hyper Demon boasted a trippy art-style and emphasised fast-paced, high-challenge shooting, but its emphasis was less about survival and more about being an aggressive killing machine a-la Doom Eternal.
The result utterly entranced Sam Greer, who gave it a whopping score of 95 in her Hyper Demon Review. (...)
One other key difference between Devil Daggers and Hyper Demon is that the latter had a multiplayer mode, though you'd be forgiven for not knowing this since it was left as a secret for players to discover. Now though, developer Sorath has made the multiplayer mode not just public knowledge, but public full stop, releasing it as a free, standalone game on Steam.

NetEase racks up its third studio casualty in one week, kneecapping dev working on a Warhammer MMO: 'Devastated doesn't even begin to cover it'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/mmo/netease-racks-up-its-third-studio-casualty-in-one-week-kneecapping-dev-working-on-a-warhammer-mmo-devastated-doesnt-even-begin-to-cover-it/
It's been a bad week for budding MMO studios. Greg "Ghostcrawler" Street's MMO is now officially kaput after NetEase pulled the plug in October, and now Jackalyptic Games—which was working on a yet-to-be-revealed Warhammer MMO—is the third dev NetEase has left to wither on the vine this week (as well as its sixth Western studio closure this year).

FromSoftware's parent company let it slip that we'll get Elden Ring Nightreign DLC by March at the latest
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/fromsoftwares-parent-company-let-it-slip-that-well-get-elden-ring-nightreign-dlc-by-march-at-the-latest/
As reported by GamesRadar, FromSoftware parent company Kadokawa celebrated the continued sales success of Elden Ring, Shadow of the Erdtree, and multiplayer spinoff Nightreign in a second quarter earnings report released on November 6. Buried in the slides is something a little more exciting for Elden Ring fans, though: An indication of when we can expect the release of Nightreign's promised DLC.

Stalker dev GSC Game World DMCA'd a Stalker-inspired indie off Steam⁠, and the devs are crying foul: 'This is an abuse of power against small independent developers by a large corporation'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/stalker-dev-gsc-game-world-dmcad-a-stalker-inspired-indie-off-steam-and-the-devs-are-crying-foul-this-is-an-abuse-of-power-against-small-independent-developers-by-a-large-corporation/
On Friday, the indie dev behind co-op survival horror shooter Misery uploaded a post to its Steam community hub page with an image of a crying cat as its header. Titled "We are under attack!", the post outlines something you may have noticed if you've played the game or tried to buy it today: it's been delisted from Steam following a DMCA strike initiated by Stalker developer GSC Game World.

The expected third part of the gaming news:

Rust doubles down on its 'controversial' meta changes by wiping everyone's crafting blueprints to 'bring back that sense of discovery', and it might become a regular thing
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/rust-doubles-down-on-its-controversial-meta-changes-by-wiping-everyones-crafting-blueprints-to-bring-back-that-sense-of-discovery-and-it-might-become-a-regular-thing/
Last month, Facepunch Studios began overhauling player progression in its nihilistic survival sim Rust to coax players out of their bases and encourage more PvP combat, introducing a "controversial" blueprint fragment system that requires players to locate and piece together blueprints to upgrade their workbenches above level one. Despite the apparently mixed reception of blueprint fragments, Facepunch's latest update doubles down on the meta shift with even more dramatic changes.

No Man's Sky is rerunning all of its expeditions from 2025, while also giving players another chance to add Mass Effect's Normandy to their spaceship collection
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/no-mans-sky-is-rerunning-all-of-its-expeditions-from-2025-while-also-giving-players-another-chance-to-add-mass-effects-normandy-to-their-spaceship-collection/
It's been a big year for No Man's Sky, although you could argue that every year since 2016 has been a big year for Hello Games' spectacularly redeemed space exploration sim. 2025 brought another helping of reworks to its universe simulation in Worlds: Part 2, as well as space palaeontology in its Relics update, stellar towns you could preside over in Beacon, and multi-crew spacecraft and ship design in Voyagers—which apparently brought in the highest number of concurrent players since No Man's Sky released.
As 2025 approaches its end, Hello Games is in a reflective mood, and has decided to rerun all four of the expeditions that accompanied each update. On top of that, it's currently rerunning 2021's Beachhead Expedition, giving players another opportunity to claim Mass Effect's Normandy SR-1.

The best playable game documentary on Steam is getting a Namco-centric DLC this week, including the worst version of Pac-Man
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/the-best-playable-game-documentary-on-steam-is-getting-a-namco-centric-dlc-this-week-including-the-worst-version-of-pac-man/
Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration is one of the coolest games on Steam, and only in part because it’s a robust retro game compilation that introduced me to Yars’ Revenge, the only Atari game I’ve ever loved. It’s also a sort of digital coffee table book replete with interviews, historical blurbs, and quaint reimaginings of the games it archives.
It’s because that core game was so good I’m actually excited to play another compilation of Bandai Namco’s 80s classics—Pac-Man, Dig Dug, Galaga, anything you’d expect to see wallowing in the corner of a local greasy spoon. In a DLC announced earlier this year without a release window, those games and a few others will finally be woven into the collection this Thursday, Nov. 13.

Mick Gordon is asking 'how heavy can we get it?' in his first full game soundtrack since Doom Eternal: 'I'm really exploring the extremes of distortion with this project'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/mick-gordon-is-asking-how-heavy-can-we-get-it-in-his-first-full-game-soundtrack-since-doom-eternal-im-really-exploring-the-extremes-of-distortion-with-this-project/
Australian composer Mick Gordon is one of the most widely-recognized composers in the videogame industry, with his signature propulsive, distorted, future-metal sound helping define id Software's wildly successful Wolfenstein and Doom reboots.
In the five years since a public falling out with longtime collaborator Bethesda, Gordon has contributed to metal projects, a large portion of Atomic Heart's soundtrack, and as a guest composer on Absolum, but he recently revealed he's working on his next full videogame soundtrack for the ambitious upcoming cyberpunk FPS, Defect. I recently sat down with Gordon and Defect director Emanuel Palalic to talk about the game, Gordon's work on it, and game music writ large.

I've already been getting my hopes up for The Expanse game from RPG factory Owlcat, and its main theme just skewered my Mass Effect-loving lizard brain
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/ive-already-been-getting-my-hopes-up-for-the-expanse-game-from-rpg-factory-owlcat-and-its-main-theme-just-skewered-my-mass-effect-loving-lizard-brain/
(...)
On November 7, Owlcat shared the game's main theme from composer Paweł Perepelica, who previously scored Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous and Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader for the studio. It's hard get crazy excited about music from an upcoming game, but Osiris Reborn's main theme kinda goes.

Unsurprisingly, players have already found a way to use parts of Peak's newest biome to fire themselves into the stratosphere
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/sim/unsurprisingly-players-have-already-found-a-way-to-use-parts-of-peaks-newest-biome-to-fire-themselves-into-the-stratosphere/
Peak dropped its Roots update last week, adding a new biome filled with towering redwood trees and filled with spore clouds and undead creatures. Between the trees though, you'll find giant red mushrooms which you can bounce off, and it hasn't taken players long at all to find an exploit which drastically increases the air time you get from doing so.

Larian publishing director says Steam is dominant because 'It isn't providing a s*** service defined by public shareholder KPIs,' but concedes 'A post-Gabe world is a terrifying one'
https://www.pcgamer.com/software/platforms/larian-publishing-director-says-steam-is-dominant-because-it-isnt-providing-a-s-service-defined-by-public-shareholder-kpis-but-concedes-a-post-gabe-world-is-a-terrifying-one/
Recent news that 72% of devs (most of whom occupied the rarefied airs of the C-suite) consider Steam a monopoly set tongues wagging all over the internet. Turns out, people have strong feelings about the videogame launcher in their taskbar, and they weren't shy about expressing them.
One of those people? Larian publishing director Michael Douse, who took to X to take a swipe at Steam's rivals. "It's almost as if it isn't providing a shit service defined by public shareholder KPIs [Key Performance Indicators]," wrote Douse.
>> Besides praising Steam, he also criticized S-E for using AI for Q&A for a simple reason: human testers can give you a “massively advantageous vibe check” (link).

Leaked PlayStation store files suggest that Sony could be exploring cross-buy between PC and PS5
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/leaked-playstation-store-files-suggest-that-sony-could-be-exploring-cross-buy-between-pc-and-ps5/
Sony appears to be exploring potential cross-buy games between PC and PS5, according to recent leaks from the PlayStation store.
The leak first appeared on X, where user Amethxst posted an image purportedly showing new, hidden symbols that have been added to the PlayStation store. One icon reads "Cross-Buy", while the second reads PS5/PC. "New Symbols will be added soon (website & tool), but here [are] some nice new features from PlayStation", Amethxst wrote. "A kind of 'echo mode' 'PS5/PC games' and 'Cross-Buy'."
>> Took them a while to make an article about this.

Planning for REPO's next update is underway, but the developer is taking a break for the time being: 'Frankly, my brain is a bit mushy'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/horror/planning-for-repos-next-update-is-underway-but-the-developer-is-taking-a-break-for-the-time-being-frankly-my-brain-is-a-bit-mushy/
REPO launched its monster update on October 31, adding ten new horrifying beasts to the already tense game. However, even though players are still mastering the art of dodging the Birthday Boy's balloons and outrunning the Loom, semiwork has already uploaded a video to YouTube sharing that preparations for the game's next update are underway.

Only in Arc Raiders could you find players kind enough to reverse extraction camp: 'Any violence brought to my extraction point will be met with severe force'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/only-in-arc-raiders-could-you-find-players-kind-enough-to-reverse-extraction-camp-any-violence-brought-to-my-extraction-point-will-be-met-with-severe-force/
Nothing feels worse than dying right by the extraction in Arc Raiders. A hair's breadth away from getting home to Speranza with all your good loot, just to die in some ditch, taken out by a loser who sat next to the exit all game.
But sadly, extraction camping is part and parcel of extraction shooters. Instead of actually playing the game, some simply choose to lie in wait until victims carrying resources come to them. Usually, I'd say these people would have to pay for extraction camping in another life, but it seems like they're actually paying for it right here and now in Arc Raiders thanks to a few zealous players.

Bonus post:

*** NEW COMPETITION ***

TechPowerUp and iRocks Present Worldwide Giveaway
https://www.techpowerup.com/342758/techpowerup-and-irocks-present-worldwide-giveaway
or https://www.techpowerup.com/contests/irocks-x-techpowerup-nov-25

The prizes are:

• 3x iRocks K85R Wireless Mechanical Keyboard (link)
• 2x iRocks K103R Tri-Mode Mechanical Keyboard (link)
• 5x iRocks M31R Tri-Mode Gaming Mouse (link)

The contest is GLOBAL

Good Luck!

One more article, this one both incredible (several meanings) and terryfing:

Microsoft Flight Simulator isn't just for nerdy dads anymore: Boeing will start using its tech to train actual pilots
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/sim/microsoft-flight-simulator-isnt-just-for-nerdy-dads-anymore-boeing-will-start-using-its-tech-to-train-actual-pilots/
The most recent incarnation of Microsoft's long-running flight simulator series is a genuine marvel, whether you fancy yourself an ace pilot or just want to crash spectacularly into the Eiffel Tower. Speaking more to the former instinct, Microsoft is teaming up with Boeing to put that high-fidelity simulation to work in a virtual training program for novice pilots.

As noted in a press release from Boeing, the Virtual Airplane Procedures Trainer was announced last Thursday at the European Aviation Training Summit in Portugal. The release notes the new program is "powered by Microsoft Azure and Microsoft Flight Simulator," and is "designed to empower pilots and flight training teams with immersive, accessible and customizable tools that elevate pilot learning and readiness."

...

Don't worry, it's not that bad, as per the rest of the article:

"It won't replace the physical flight simulators of yore but instead "reduce simulator familiarization time," as the release notes. It's also, to be clear, not Microsoft Flight Simulator—just a virtual trainer that uses the sim as a foundation in some capacity. There's a video showing off an overview of the trainer and its associated regimen on Boeing's website, and it seems primarily driven by a lesson plan that points prospective pilots in the right direction. It is a little surreal seeing a videogame for ultra-nerds in a sleek, corporate training video, though."

Also:

https://store.steampowered.com/category/animal

From what I've seen and heard from pilots, the graphics in those plane simulators are like PS360 level and not very detailed when it comes to the outside world; older ones actually even make PS2 games look good again.

If they could combine the graphical horsepower of the (current) Microsoft Flight Simulator with those physical simulators, as in, steering the plane through the actual inputs in the simulated cockpit, this would actually be a great combination.

It would just need a very beefy system considering it would also need 4 (at least) 4K monitors to cover all the windows of the cockpit...