And the third part:

Peak's success helped Aggro Crab commit to co-op, says studio head: 'We thought we were a character action studio'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/adventure/peaks-success-helped-aggro-crab-commit-to-co-op-says-studio-head-we-thought-we-were-a-character-action-studio/

Before Dishonored, Arkane was tapped to make Thief 4, and my heart weeps for what might have been: 'We had an amazing pitch for Thief'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/before-dishonored-arkane-was-tapped-to-make-thief-4-and-my-heart-weeps-for-what-might-have-been-we-had-an-amazing-pitch-for-thief/

League of Legends won't be following the trend of having tons of collaboration skins: 'The second you do [it], the tone of your game completely changes'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/moba/league-of-legends-wont-be-following-the-trend-of-having-tons-of-collaboration-skins-the-second-you-do-it-the-tone-of-your-game-completely-changes/

'People want MMOs', says veteran designer Jack Emmert, it's the publishers chasing WoW-level scope that are the problem
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/mmo/people-want-mmos-says-veteran-designer-jack-emmert-its-the-publishers-chasing-wow-level-scope-that-are-the-problem/
>> That veteran is Jack Emmert, that also said “MMOs don't need 'to be 200 hours of unique content' at launch” (link).

No, says Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick, of course Red Dead Online isn't a missed opportunity, the game sold 85 million copies
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/no-says-take-two-ceo-strauss-zelnick-of-course-red-dead-online-isnt-a-missed-opportunity-the-game-sold-85-million-copies/

Witchaven is getting delisted???

Quickly bought it before it's too late!

It feels like there's been an increasing number of Denuvo cracks/bypasses/whatever. I wonder how much of that can be attributed to AI. It seems like something AI would be pretty good at.

The Witcher 3: Songs of the Past DLC announced, comes 12 years after game launch

https://videocardz.com/newz/the-witcher-3-songs-of-the-past-dlc-announced-comes-12-years-after-game-launch

007 First Light ships without FSR 4 support on PC due to baked-in FSR implementation

https://videocardz.com/newz/007-first-light-ships-without-fsr-4-support-on-pc-due-to-baked-in-fsr-implementation

No external DLL means the driver and Optiscaler method does not work. From what I have read, there is a workaround for Optiscaler but that produces graphical glitches. I really hope the developers and future developers do not go this route and if Nvidia forced this, they should be ashamed.

DLSS 5 Neural Rendering traces appear in new NVIDIA driver

https://videocardz.com/newz/dlss-5-neural-rendering-traces-appear-in-new-nvidia-driver

Intel to officially announce Arc G3 for gaming handhelds on May 28

https://videocardz.com/newz/intel-to-officially-announce-arc-g3-for-gaming-handhelds-on-may-28

Intel Wildcat Lake Laptop Goes For Pre-Order At Just $515, Featuring A 12 GB + 256 GB Configuration

https://wccftech.com/intel-wildcat-lake-laptop-goes-for-pre-order-at-just-515-featuring-a-12-gb-256-gb-configuration/

TSM: TSMC to Raise 3nm Chip Pricing by 15% in H2 2023

https://www.gurufocus.com/news/8883631/tsm-tsmc-to-raise-3nm-chip-pricing-by-15-in-h2-2023

Sited a second source lol:

TSMC Reportedly Eyes Up to 15% 3nm Price Hike in 2H26, Further 5%–10% Seen in 2027 Amid AI, ASIC Demand

https://trendforce.com/news/2026/05/27/news-tsmc-reportedly-eyes-up-to-15-3nm-price-hike-in-2h26-further-5-10-seen-in-2027-amid-ai-asic-demand/

Carbon Nanotube CPU Cooling with Carbice

https://www.lttlabs.com/articles/2026/05/26/carbice-ice-pads

The Wednesday gaming news:

SALES/PLAYER COUNTS & DEALS

GOG brings new Weekly Deals, with games up to 89% off during 7 days: https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20260527_weekly_deals_5_may

Steam has new deals and sales:

• The Nameless: Slay Dragon has a demo and a 30% discount that will last until the 2nd of June: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2410170/The_Nameless_Slay_Dragon/
• Starship Troopers: Terran Command is going to be 40% off until June 2: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1202130/Starship_Troopers_Terran_Command/
• Having launched yesterday, Realm of Ink will have a 10% discount until the 5th of June: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2597080/Realm_of_Ink/
• Station to Station will be 70% off until the 9th of June: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2272400/Station_to_Station/
• Gone Home gets an 85% discount until the same 9th of June: https://store.steampowered.com/app/232430/Gone_Home/
• And these are the sales:
  • Witches, Wizzards & Warlocks Sale also has many upcoming releases, has demos and also games up to 88% off. The length of the deals vary greatly, with some ending tomorrow and others lasting until, at least, the 9th of June: https://store.steampowered.com/curator/45603186/sale/WitchesWizardsWarlocks
  • DRAGON QUEST 40th Anniversary Sale comes with up to 75% discounts and will last until the 2nd of June: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/dragonquest2026
  • Hooded Horse May Sale has a fair amount of upcoming titles to discover as well as games up to 75% off. The deals will end between the 5th and the 9th of June: https://store.steampowered.com/curator/38719421/sale/maysale2026

The Humble Store also has the DRAGON QUEST 40th Anniversary Sale, with the same up to 75% discounts as on Steam. It will last 6 days : https://www.humblebundle.com/store/promo/dragon-quest-40th-anniversary-sale/

And Fanatical has three new 24h Flash Deals:

• Sid Meier's Civilization VII is half its price: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/sid-meiers-civilization-vii
• Stray is 55% off: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/stray
• Zombie Army Trilogy has a 95% discount: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/zombie-army-trilogy

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

INTEL Arc Graphics 32.0.101.8824 driver
https://videocardz.com/driver/intel-arc-graphics-32-0-101-8824

HIGHLIGHTS
Intel Game On Driver support on Intel Arc B-series, A-series Graphics GPUs and Intel Core Ultra with built-in Intel Arc GPUs for:

• 007 First Light

FIXED ISSUES
Intel Core Ultra Series 3 with built-in Intel Arc GPUs:

• Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Call of Duty: Warzone may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• PRAGMATA may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Resident Evil Requiem may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Monster Hunter Wilds may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• HITMAN World of Assassination may experience a crash during gameplay.
• Street Fighter 6 may experience a crash during gameplay.
• The Finals (DX12) may experience an intermittent application crash.

Intel Arc B-Series Graphics Products:

• Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Call of Duty: Warzone may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• PRAGMATA may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Resident Evil Requiem may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Monster Hunter Wilds may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• HITMAN World of Assassination may experience a crash during gameplay.
• Street Fighter 6 may experience a crash during gameplay.

Intel Arc A-Series Graphics Products:

• Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Call of Duty: Warzone may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• PRAGMATA may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Resident Evil Requiem may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Monster Hunter Wilds may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• HITMAN World of Assassination may experience a crash during gameplay.
• Street Fighter 6 may experience a crash during gameplay.

Intel Core Ultra Series 1 with built-in Intel Arc GPUs:

• Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Call of Duty: Warzone may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• PRAGMATA may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Resident Evil Requiem may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Monster Hunter Wilds may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• HITMAN World of Assassination may experience a crash during gameplay.
• Street Fighter 6 may experience a crash during gameplay.

Intel Core Ultra Series 2 with built-in Intel Arc GPUs:

• Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Call of Duty: Warzone may experience an application crash or exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• PRAGMATA may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Resident Evil Requiem may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• Monster Hunter Wilds may exhibit a corruption during gameplay.
• HITMAN World of Assassination may experience a crash during gameplay.
• Street Fighter 6 may experience a crash during gameplay.

>> It’s a Beta driver.

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Take-Two forces shutdown of Grand Theft Auto multiplayer modding platform Rage:MP
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/grand-theft-auto/take-two-forces-shutdown-of-grand-theft-auto-multiplayer-modding-platform-rage-mp/
The Rage:MP multiplayer platform for Grand Theft Auto 5 says it will begin a "structured shutdown" after receiving a cease-and-desist order from GTA publisher Take-Two Interactive.
The news of the looming closure was shared by the admin team in the Rage:MP forums (via Dextero): "Rockstar Games and Take-Two Interactive have made it clear that FiveM is the only authorized platform for GTA 5 multiplayer modding, as defined in their Platform License Agreement (PLA). In accordance with that policy, and at Take-Two's request, Rage:MP will begin a structured shutdown process. We are asking all server owners to wind down their operations and migrate to FiveM."
FiveM was the big daddy of multiplayer customization modding platforms for Grand Theft Auto 5, enabling players to engage with the game in ways that Rockstar probably didn't envision—like trying to start a GTA Online fight club and ending up with a shirtless gang called The Friendly Boys, for instance, or becoming a big game trophy hunter and then getting murdered in the forest by a psycho who takes issue with your hobbies. (I guess that boy wasn't so friendly after all.)

Paper Mario 64 Unofficial PC Port Is Out – Available for Download
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/paper-mario-64-unofficial-pc-port-is-out-available-for-download/
Mario fans, get ready for a treat. An unofficial native PC port for Paper Mario 64 has just been released. Like with pretty much all the unofficial PC ports we’ve been getting lately, this will allow you to experience this Mario game on your PC, without the need of using an emulator.
Paper Mario ReCut is built around the N64 recompilation toolchain, RT64 rendering, local legal ROM setup, live texture replacement, and the bundled Paper Atlas Tool for editing dumped texture pieces.
Going into more details, Paper Mario ReCut has a graphics options menu with live-applying renderer settings. Moreover, it supports Live Texture Replacement toggle via F2. There is also support for one-shot texture dumping with an in-window percentage and dump count. Not only that, but there is a Continuous Dump mode for capturing newly created textures while the game keeps running.
Do note that this is still an early working build. The game boots fine, and you should be able to play it from start to finish. The tooling is also actively being shaped around Paper Mario as development continues.
You can go ahead and download Paper Mario ReCut from this link. According to its description, you will need the US ROM file for Paper Mario. If you don’t have it, you won’t be able to play it.
>> The article has an over 10 minutes video.

GAMING NEWS

CD Project RED has announced the third expansion for The Witcher 3, Songs of the Past
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/cd-project-red-has-announced-the-third-expansion-for-the-witcher-3-songs-of-the-past/
CD Projekt RED has just announced the third expansion for The Witcher 3, called Songs of the Past. Songs of the Past will be released in 2027, and below you can find the first small details about it.
>> The new expansion will have updated system requirements, featured in the article.

Square Enix has removed Denuvo from Octopath Traveler 0
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/square-enix-has-removed-denuvo-from-octopath-traveler-0/
Square Enix has just removed the Denuvo anti-tamper tech from its HD-2D RPG, Octopath Traveler 0. Octopath Traveler 0 was released in December 2025. This means it took SE about 5 months to remove it.

Wednesday gaming news, part two:

Marvel Rivals has banned 485 accounts and dished out just 3 hardware bans after the latest slew of cheaters but players are begging for more
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/marvel-rivals-has-banned-485-accounts-and-dished-out-just-3-hardware-bans-after-the-latest-slew-of-cheaters-but-players-are-begging-for-more/
It's been a bad weekend for Marvel Rivals after a small update opened the floodgates for more cheaters to scurry inside, wreaking havoc in games all the way from Bronze to One Above All. How bad is it you ask? A slew of cheaters actually took to streaming their crimes over the weekend to a sizeable audience, promoting their software, and dunking on high elo players. So yeah, pretty bad.
In response to this NetEase has now issued a warning to cheaters alongside a new ban wave and even took the time to post receipts.

007 First Light release date and launch times
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/007-first-light-release-date-launch-times/
IO Interactive is giving Agent 47 a short rest, and all eyes are now on Mr. Bond as the Hitman studio launches 007 First Light less than 24 hours from now. PC Gamer doesn't have a review ready in time for publication today, so I can't reference my colleague's impressions on a final build just yet, but I know Mr. Wolens is ready for the job when the call arrives.
Until then some of you can start playing now, or have less than a day's wait ahead before the 007 First Light global release date.
>> Here is a review round-up (link).

Paralives charmed me on day one, but the roadmap outlines the real life sim of my dreams
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/life-sim/paralives-early-access-roadmap/
As someone who is slowly burning out on The Sims 4 and bounced off the uncanny sameness of Inzoi's world, Paralives was my last hope for a new direction in life sims. No pressure to the small indie team at Paralives Studio, but I was feeling very "this hits, or I'm over the genre for a while," so thank goodness Paralives feels like it's got the makings of a winner.
It's got the early access jank, sure, but even those day-one bones outline something I'm finally excited for—a life sim that isn't a bland attempt at recreating the success of The Sims. Instead, it's real admiration for the original Maxis formula, which includes a few features outlined in the Paralives roadmap that have me hopeful the team will go back to expand on more features its cousin abandoned years ago.
>> Be careful with Charlie if you play the game (link).

Resident Evil Requiem has a demo now, despite the fact it came out 3 months ago and sold over 7 million copies
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/resident-evil/resident-evil-requiem-has-a-demo-now-despite-the-fact-it-came-out-3-months-ago-and-sold-over-7-million-copies/
We rather like Resident Evil Requiem here at PC Gamer—our own resident horror expert, Elie Gould, gave it a stonking 92% in their Resident Evil Requiem review, claiming it provides "excellent action set pieces accompanied by great weapon handling, some truly horrendous horror, and satiates my love of classic Resident Evil puzzles. All within 10 hours."
That's some hefty praise, but now you don't just have to take their word for it (though you absolutely should, they know their stuff), because despite the fact it came out three whole months ago, Requiem now has a playable demo.

The third and final part of the gaming news:

Former Tekken boss completes his 30-year career with a pilgrimage to the fighting game's holy land: Waffle House
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fighting/former-tekken-boss-completes-his-30-year-career-with-a-pilgrimage-to-the-fighting-games-holy-land-waffle-house/

Deadlock new midlane objective turned games into such a mid-only fiasco that it only lasted one weekend, though Valve's still experimenting
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/moba/deadlock-new-midlane-objective-turned-games-into-such-a-mid-only-fiasco-that-it-only-lasted-one-weekend-though-valves-still-experimenting/

Forza Horizon 6 players are being terrorised by the plague that is Bowie Knife99
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/racing/forza-horizon-6-players-are-being-terrorised-by-the-plague-that-is-bowie-knife99/

Destiny 2 players are processing their grief by posting their most embarrassing self-owns, and I've never felt more seen
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/destiny-2-players-are-processing-their-grief-by-posting-their-most-embarrassing-self-owns-and-ive-never-felt-more-seen/

Remedy's new CEO thinks cross-media deals will help its games sell more, and for once I think I agree
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/remedys-new-ceo-thinks-cross-media-deals-will-help-its-games-sell-more-and-for-once-i-think-i-agree/

Do they have a time machine?

Gaming is actually fucked.

Preview of steam machine: