Friday gaming news, part two:

Sorry, Black Flag fans: the new Assassin's Creed remake isn't adding any more legendary ship battles
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/assassins-creed/sorry-black-flag-fans-the-new-assassins-creed-remake-isnt-adding-any-more-legendary-ship-battles/
On top of a major graphical update, a new sword fighting system, and three new officers to recruit, Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced is touching up countless little things about the 2013 pirate game. Alas, it's not adding the one thing I really hoped to see more of—the coolest, and to my memory most challenging diversions to be found in the Caribbean. Those cursed legendary ships.

Mouseward is an adorably gloomy soulslike where you play an itty bitty undead mouse collecting stars, and it has a demo out now
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/mouseward-is-an-adorably-gloomy-soulslike-where-you-play-an-itty-bitty-undead-mouse-collecting-stars-and-it-has-a-demo-out-now/
Have you ever played a soulslike game and gone—man, I wish I was doing all of this, except as an adorable little mouse guy with a teeny-tiny mouse helmet. Same grim atmosphere, same ruined world hanging on by a thread. Except you're a creature the size of a thimble. Well, if you've had that incredibly specific thought, Mouseward's for you.

Playing a murderous ratman in this newly-announced Warhammer platformer is my penance for bisecting thousands of Skaven over the years
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/playing-a-murderous-ratman-in-this-newly-announced-warhammer-platformer-is-my-penance-for-bisecting-thousands-of-skaven-over-the-years/
While I've carved through the ratman masses by the thousands in Vermintide, Total War, and other Warhammer-licensed games over the years, I've always been charmed by the Skaven. Maybe it's that their villainy—borne out of the cannibalistic pressures of the clanrat's innumerable gnawing peers and his proximity to radioactive hell-rocks—has a more material logic than that of Warhammer's other baddies. Maybe it's just because I like how they sometimes say words twice.
Whatever the reason, I've always welcomed the chance to walk a mile in whatever tattered material passes for footwear in the Under-Empire, and Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Deathmaster—an upcoming action platformer announced during today's Warhammer Skulls showcase—is offering a chance to lead a Skaven lifestyle in unprecedented fidelity, with all the skulking, stabbing, and general malevolence that entails.
>> Brace yourselves, this is the first of several Warhammer related articles.

The Omnissiah heard your prayers: Darktide's finally getting a cog boy on June 23rd
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/the-omnissiah-heard-your-prayers-darktides-finally-getting-a-cog-boy-on-june-23rd/
To say people were a little disappointed when Fatshark revealed the Hive Scum as their previous class for Darktide would be an understatement. Though the gutter rat's flashy knives and slick gunslinging have assuredly grown on most of us, there's still a portion of Darktide players who mourn the fact we didn't get a member of the Adeptus Mechanicus.
Well, it's finally happening. Revealed in the Warhammer Skulls 2026 showcase, we're getting a Skitarii class for Darktide on June 23 and, even putting aside my massive bias towards the mechanical boys in red, this one looks pretty fun. As the official announcement reads.

Dawn of War 4 just got a release date (or 2), a DLC roadmap, and Crusade Mode plans
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/strategy/dawn-of-war-4-just-got-a-release-date-or-2-a-dlc-roadmap-and-crusade-mode-plans/
Bad news, gang: war is dawning. Four. Uh, I mean there were a bunch of Dawn of War 4-related announcements at Warhammer Skulls, including the game's release date. The game will hit on September 17 this year, unless you forked out for the whizzbang Commander Edition, in which case you get it three days earlier on September 14.
Oh, what's the Commander Edition, you ask? Wouldn't you know it—they announced that at Warhammer Skulls too. There's the humdrum standard edition, which gets you the base game and the hoi-polloi release date, and the Commander Edition, which marks you as a member of the videogame preorder aristocracy, gets advanced access, and comes with some extra DLC gubbins when they release post-launch: a story prologue, a campaign expansion, and a new faction (those last two are one package).

40k XCOM-like Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters is getting a sequel and this time we'll get to purge 'seven distinctive enemy factions'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/strategy/40k-xcom-like-chaos-gate-daemonhunters-is-getting-a-sequel-and-this-time-well-get-to-purge-seven-distinctive-enemy-factions/
Way back in 1998, Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate was a turn-based tactics game that pitted Ultramarines against the forces of Chaos. The series was revived in 2022 with Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters, this time setting up the psychic space marines of the Grey Knights against Chaos. Where the original was heavily inspired by the '90s X-COM, the sequel was based more on the hyphenless remakes, specifically XCOM 2. And as someone who played XCOM and thought "this would rule even harder if it was Warhammer" that's all I wanted.
Except what I also wanted was a bit more enemy variety. After the tutorial, Daemonhunters focused entirely on servants of the one Chaos god, the flyblown plague lord Nurgle. So the just-announced sequel that promises we'll be turn-based tacticsing our way "across the war-torn worlds of the Tyrian expanse against seven distinctive enemy factions" is exactly what I was hoping for.

Total War: Warhammer 40k's new trailer all but confirms my second favorite commissar and his long-time ork nemesis as playable characters
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/strategy/total-war-warhammer-40ks-new-trailer-all-but-confirms-my-second-favorite-commissar-and-his-long-time-ork-nemesis-as-playable-characters/
It was a pretty stacked year for Warhammer Skulls. Instead of the usual plethora of mobile game ads, we got tonnes of good stuff: a new Skaven game called Deathmaster, the long-requested Skitarii class for Darktide, a release date and a beta for Rogue Trader's Trazyn DLC and Dark Heresy, plus a new Chaosgate sequel announcement.
That's not even mentioning the games that were also released yesterday, like Mechanicus 2 and the Bhashiva character pack DLC for Total War: Warhammer 3. Most interesting for me, though, was a relatively brief new trailer for Total War: Warhammer 40k, perhaps one of my most anticipated games ever.
>> Ok, this should be the last article coming from the Skulls event.

Destiny 2 is officially over: 'Live service content updates' end in June as Bungie moves on to new projects
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/destiny-2-ending-live-service-content-updates-in-june-as-bungie-moves-on-to-a-new-beginning/
It's the true end of an era, as Bungie has announced that Destiny 2's "live service content update" on June 9 will be its last.
"While our love for Destiny 2 has not changed," the studio wrote in today's shocking announcement, "it has become clear that after The Final Shape, we have reached the time for our shared worlds, and Destiny, to live beyond Destiny 2."
Update: Bungie reportedly plans layoffs, and does not yet have a new project greenlit for the Destiny 2 development team. More details here.
>> Some of the devs of Destiny 2 have already shared some thoughts (link).

A trio of former BioWare devs are making 'a neon-noir supernatural mystery game set in a stylized Canadian cityscape'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/a-trio-of-former-bioware-devs-are-making-a-neon-noir-supernatural-mystery-game-set-in-a-stylized-canadian-cityscape/
Former BioWare developers launching their own studios may not be the biggest news of all time—lots of them have done it, to varying degrees of success—but the premise of the debut project in the works at Studio Reset has me intrigued: It's "a neon-noir supernatural mystery game set in a stylized Canadian cityscape." It's not a sequence of words that goes together in that particular order very often, and it's pushing my buttons.

Dune: Awakening has decided it's 'not an MMO' anymore
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/dune-awakening-has-decided-its-not-an-mmo-anymore/
I've been writing for over half of my entire life, and about videogames in a professional capacity for over three years now—so I mean it when I say that there is nothing I resent more about the English language than the need to define something. It's a bloody headache, especially when it comes to something so ephemeral as genre.
(...)
These kinds of problems turn out to be internal at some games studios, too. Take Dune: Awakening director Joel Bylos, who has finally settled—for now, temporarily—on the fact that Awakening is not, in fact, an MMO, per this interview with FRVR.

And the third part of the Friday gaming news:

An Overwatch player has come up with an ingenious plan to remind others how to actually play the game: 'A little ego check never hurt anyone'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/an-overwatch-player-has-come-up-with-an-ingenious-plan-to-remind-others-how-to-actually-play-the-game-a-little-ego-check-never-hurt-anyone/

'[Marvel Rivals] scared us a bit': Overwatch boss says the explosive success of another hero shooter prompted Blizzard to take risks
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/marvel-rivals-scared-us-a-bit-overwatch-boss-says-the-explosive-success-of-another-hero-shooter-prompted-blizzard-to-take-risks/

Ubisoft has staff for '70 Warhorse-sized studios' after cuts, says Kingdom Come director—'That could be 10 KCD2-sized games… released every year'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/ubisoft-has-staff-for-70-warhorse-sized-studios-after-cuts-says-kingdom-come-director-that-could-be-10-kcd2-sized-games-released-every-year/
>> This comes from the director of the two KC games.

And these are the weekend deals at GOG and Steam:

+GOG

• There is a GIVEAWAY: Warhammer Skulls 2026 Digital Goodie Bag (some coupons and a wallpaper) will be free until May 28: https://www.gog.com/en/game/warhammer_skulls_2026_digital_goodie_bag
• That is part of the Warhammer Skulls Sale, featuring up t o90% discounts during 6 days, until the same 28th of May: https://www.gog.com/en/warhammer-skulls
• Wired Publisher Sale has games up to 90% off during 13 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20260521_wired_publisher_sale
• And the Red Barrels Publisher Sale has the Outlast games on sale with a 75% discount during 17 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20260622_red_barrels_publisher_sale

+Steam

• There is a GIVEAWAY: Car Mechanic Simulator 2018 will be free to get until the 27th of May: https://store.steampowered.com/app/645630/Car_Mechanic_Simulator_2018/
• Diablo II: Resurrected – Infernal Edition is going to be 25% off until Monday: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2536520/Diablo_II_Resurrected__Infernal_Edition/
• Forgive Me Father gets a 75% discount until the 27ht of May: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1590910/Forgive_Me_Father/
• The Outlast Trials will be 70% off until the 28th (please note that the rest of the Outlast games are NOT on sale here on Steam): https://store.steampowered.com/app/1304930/The_Outlast_Trials/
• PEAK will have a 38% discount until May 31st: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3527290/PEAK/
• Saleblazers , still in Early Access, is going to be 55% off until June 4th: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1419850/Saleblazers/
• Sunderfolk will be free to try until Monday and will have a 60% discount until the 4th of June: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2414270/Sunderfolk/
• And these are the sales/events:
  • Enfix Showcase has several upcoming titles, demos and new games up to 20% off. The deals will end between the 25th of May and the 5th of June: https://store.steampowered.com/curator/45584116/sale/EndixMay2026
  • Six One Indie Showcase features lots of upcoming releases, demos and games with up to 50% discounts. The deals will end between the 26th of May and June 4th: https://store.steampowered.com/curator/45119430/sale/SixOneIndieShowcase2026
  • Warhammer Skulls is also present here, with upcoming titles, demos and games up to 95% off. The dels will end between May 28 and June 4: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/skulls2026
  • Risk of Rai nFranchise Sale has games up to 80% off until June 4: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/RoRFranchiseSale2026
  • Frontier Publisher Sale puts its games on sale with up to 90% discounts until the 4th of June: https://store.steampowered.com/curator/26299579/sale/frontiermaysale26

And that will be all. Monday is festive over here and I don't know if I'll make the news or not. In any case, I wish you a happy and gaming weekend.

The reboot games were supposed to show the transformation from a young Lara into the character we found in the original games.

I rewatched the trailer of the new game they're working on (nothing but a CGI scene, to be honest), and she feels more cocky and confident than in the trilogy. Maybe the new game will have a Lara you'll like more, but it's hard to tell from just that video.

That's excessive, and it could get them in legal troubles in some countries.

I'm not joking when I say that this move could be because some investors are still reluctant to invest in Nvidia because of their gaming division. There are people with a lot of money and a disturbing lack of common sense. 

Crysis averted! All's gonna be fine! /s

Workers haven't gotten as much money as those from SKHynix, but it's still a lot of money.

By the way, if any of you got a Steam Controller (2026), be carefull with the charging puck:

You need to know the Steam Controller's charging puck is always live, so if you accidentally touch it with something conductive, you're in for a shock
https://www.pcgamer.com/hardware/controllers/you-need-to-know-the-steam-controllers-charging-puck-is-always-live-so-if-you-accidentally-touch-it-with-something-conductive-youre-in-for-a-shock/

I haven't toyed with mods in a long while, but the majority of mods are safe tu use. Just stick to mods that have been out for a while and that are well liked by the users and you should be fine.

The biggest problems come from game updates that may make the mods not working, which would have an impact on your savegame, and that if you install several mods in one game, they may conflict with each other, causing problems. That's why you need to keep an order when installing mods, but that's something that may be mentioned in the description of the mod or in some comment.

I can't talk about Nexu Mods specifically because I don't have an account and you can't download mods from there without one.

I tested the CRTV. It certainly is better during retro gaming.

It's difficult to showcase this difference, especially when I have to shrink the image to 16% of it's natural size so I can upload it here, but some examples I captured are in the spoiler tag below.

It certainly looks more sharp, especially the text.

Fair points and thank you.  I had not considered the update thing.  I will have to give it more thoughts.  I am not convinced it is worth the effort.  

Yeah, I know what they've tried to do - except, we know how Lara got the way she is from original Core Design games - she was thought and trained that way. But I guess "trauma" approach for "modern sensibilities" is what you get when you hire someone to piss on beloved IP and character and make it like every other IP these days that needs melodramatic background story for main protagonist.

Sorry man if I come of a bit abrasive, but CD's Tomb Raider (including, mostly, CD's Legend Trilogy) is one of my favourite IPs, and seeing it raped akin to George Lucas/Spielberg doing it to Indiana Jones in that old South Park episode was not a pleasant experience.

As I said, Reboot is superb cover shooter, but terrible TR game - they should've made new IP, instead of hijacking the old one. Maybe these brand new ones will be better and more in line with originals, but one look at this new Lara Croft and something felt way off.

^I haven't played any Tomb Raider games yet, so I don't know for sure how well it works what they did with the newer games. However, I too generally dislike when existing franchies are transformed into something else entirely. Spin-offs etc. are fine and are allowed to have a different focus, and obviously times change and games should too, but if you create a new entry in an existing (typically main) series, you've got to stay faithful. I'd rather have a beloved series die altogether than be transformed into something unfaithful - or perhaps create a spin-off (series) or something, I don't care, just leave the existing series be if you can't stay faithful to it.

Unpopular opinion for the most part, but this is why I dislike the more recent Doom games. They tick a lot of boxes for matching the originals, but they also deviate from the originals in significant ways. For my playstyle, they feel entirely different than the originals, and I don't really enjoy it.