Another week, another round of gaming news for you… whether you like it or not:
SALES/PLAYER COUNTS & DEALS
The videogame market is as big as ever, with PC leading growth—global games revenue surpassed the $200 billion mark in 2025
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/the-videogame-market-is-as-big-as-ever-with-pc-leading-growth-global-games-revenue-surpassed-the-usd200-billion-mark-in-2025/
The gaming industry's in a bit of a state, defined these days by extreme consolidation, massive waves of layoffs as the pandemic boom fades into memory, and skyrocketing hardware prices we're calling the RAMpocalypse. But that doesn't mean less money's going around: quite the opposite, in fact.
A quarterly Global Games Market Report was published last Thursday by gaming market research firm Newzoo, and it states that the "global games market closed 2025 at $201.6 billion (+9.1% year over year), crossing the $200 billion threshold for the first time." This surpassed prior estimates from Newzoo, and is despite "weaker-than-expected" performance from Nintendo and generally "modest" console market growth.
In other words, PC led the charge with Newzoo's strongest recorded growth rate so far: $43.6 billion (+12.0% year over year). The report reckons the sheer variety of popular games across different price points is responsible: full price mega-hits like Battlefield 6 were balanced out by acclaimed, cheaper games like Clair Obscur. Microtransactions are a big slice as well, with games like Roblox raking in cash.
For comparison, console revenues were a bit higher at around $44.7 billion, but came with a much smaller growth rate of +2.8% year over year. As you might expect, mobile revenues were the highest with over double what PC or consoles brought in: a whopping $113.3 billion. Still, its growth rate remains just under that of the PC.
Don't Starve Together hits new concurrent player count peak a decade after release
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/dont-starve-together-hits-new-concurrent-player-count-peak-a-decade-after-release/
I remember when Klei's self-explanatory classic Don't Starve came out, survival-crafting games as we know them now felt new and novel. "Surely this is a passing fad," I must have thought. Well, my adolescent hot takes aged about as well as a Beefalo steak in the hot sun—Don't Starve Together is bigger than ever, having just hit a new all-time concurrent player count peak on Steam, according to SteamDB.
The last time this happened was in 2023, when a steep discount caused the game to go from around 50,000 players to around 100,000. It's a similar story this time, as right now the game is available for less than $2, and peaked earlier today at 122,662 players all not starving simultaneously.
As I write this, it's settled down to around 68,000 players, which is still absurd for a game of its tenure—DST originally released in 2016. Its singleplayer counterpart is still on our list of the best survival games on PC, and its hand-drawn art style has probably helped it along; the game hasn't visibly aged a day in all that time.
Steam has new deals and sales/events:
Humble Bundle presents the June 2unes Bundle with up to 10 items to get (9 games + 1 coupon) during the next 18 days: https://www.humblebundle.com/games/june-2unes
And at Fanatical, the Star Deal is Mortal Kombat™ 1: Definitive Edition , 73% off. It started yesterday and will last another 24 hours or until they run out of keys: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/mortal-kombat-1-definitive-edition
SOFTWARE & DRIVERS
Epic says the 'ground-up rebuild' of its launcher offers 5-6.5x improved performance, and the Epic Games Store is getting a big redesign
https://www.pcgamer.com/software/the-new-epic-games-launcher-might-not-suck-so-much-thanks-to-ground-up-rebuild-with-5-6-5x-improved-performance-still-a-long-way-to-catch-up-with-steam/
If we did one of our weekly polls on which game platform/store is your favourite, I would be very surprised if anything other than a miniscule minority of readers selected the Epic Games Store. I barely ever use the thing and even I know it's not the most enjoyable experience. But that might not be the case for much longer, as there's a big update coming.
We first reported on plans for a technical overhaul of the Epic Games Store in February. Epic Games Store GM Steve Allison told us at the time that the improvement is "pretty profound."
New slides out of Unreal Fest, posted on X by Pirat_Nation, describe a complete redesign of the launcher, and the big claims are that the "ground-up rebuild" will lead to a "5x faster cold start (average)" and "6.5x faster systray restore to library (average)." In other words, much quicker to boot up, either from the system tray or cold.
MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS
Lies of P Co-Op Mod Now Supports the Full Campaign
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/lies-of-p-co-op-mod-now-supports-the-full-campaign/
We first reported on the Seamless Co-Op Mod for Lies of P in December 2025. Since then, Ember Wave has been working hard on it. And today, the team shared a new version with support for the full game and its DLCs, allowing you to experience it with a friend.
For those who did not know, the December 2025 build only allowed you to fight some bosses with a friend. It did not support the campaign mode. And that’s precisely what this new version aims to address.
According to the modding team, the Seamless Co-Op Mod now supports the full base game and its DLCs. Therefore, you can experience the entire story with a friend. This is exactly what a lot of Lies of P fans have been waiting for. And finally, after two years, you can get a proper co-op experience.
Version 1.0 also comes with some other features. For instance, we get Steam Server Support, Menu Save Sync, and Real-Time Difficulty Settings. We also get a Trade Item System, an In-Game Leaderboard, an Operations Menu, and a New Backup System.
You can go ahead and download the mod from this link. At the end of the article, you can also find its latest trailer. So, if you are not in the mood of downloading it, you can watch it to get an idea of what you can expect from it.
Sigil of the Fallen Is a New DLC-Sized Fan Expansion for Skyrim
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/sigil-of-the-fallen-is-a-new-dlc-sized-fan-expansion-for-skyrim/
Skyrim fans, here is something for you today. Kinggath Creations has released a new DLC-sized fan expansion for Skyrim Special Edition, called Sigil of the Fallen. So, let’s see what this new fan expansion is all about.
Sigil of the Fallen features a new questline revealing the fate of three powerful heroes, and a girl with an unfortunate gift. The mod also has multiple huge dungeons with challenging encounters, puzzles, secrets, and boss fights.
Moreover, it adds a unique spirit companion that can be upgraded over time. This ghostly companion can take on the form, abilities, memories, and voice of several powerful heroes. Players can switch between different classes whenever they want, giving the companion a variety of skills and roles. As players progress through the game, they can unlock new powers and abilities, making the companion even more useful in combat and exploration.
Players can also kill and loot the spirits that have been unleashed on Skyrim. These spirits possess items, furniture, doors, and even enemies. You can seek them out to gain the material needed to upgrade your companion.
Finally, the mod adds 3 new powerful relics. These are a shield with a massive slam ability, a mace that can close the distance, and a staff that can summon explosive orbs. Each of these items comes with unique functionality. Players will be able to upgrade them as they go deeper into their former owner’s stories.
All in all, this is a cool DLC-sized mod for those who are still playing Skyrim. If you are one of them, you can go ahead and download it from this link. At the end of the article, you can also find its latest trailer.
The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind – Open Morrowind v0.51.0 Released
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/the-elder-scrolls-iii-morrowind-open-morrowind-v0-51-0-released/
Man, it’s been over a decade since the last time I covered OpenMW. Since then, its modding team has been working hard on it. And, yesterday, a new version came out. So, let’s see what the team has added to it.
For those who may not know, OpenMW is a free and open-source game engine that can run the classic RPG Morrowind.
It works natively on Windows, Linux, and macOS. OpenMW is considered a modern replacement for the original game engine and offers a stable experience with many quality-of-life improvements.
The engine is fully playable and supports most Morrowind mods. The main exception is mods that require the Morrowind Script Extender (MWSE), which are not compatible with OpenMW.
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OpenMW Version 0.51.0 adds several new features and fixes.
For instance, modders can now create custom magic effects using the scripting API. The update also introduces terrain vertex painting in the content editor, giving creators more control over how landscapes look.
In addition, the team has fixed many crashes related to Lua scripting.
The update also resolves a few minor issues with gamepad menu navigation that were introduced in the previous release.
The team has removed the old fixed-function rendering pipeline and the legacy lighting system. This helps modernize the engine and simplify future development.
OpenMW Version 0.51.0 also adds support for BC6H and BC7 compressed DDS textures when using the OpenSceneGraph fork.
In addition, sunlight direction can now be used in post-processing effects, giving developers more control over visual enhancements.
Another new feature allows camera projection offset to be configured through Lua. This makes it possible to implement advanced techniques such as temporal anti-aliasing.
Those interested can download OpenMW V0.51.0 from this link.
>> The article has an over 7 minutes video.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time PC Fan Remake Officially Stopped
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/the-legend-of-zelda-ocarina-of-time-pc-fan-remake-officially-stopped/
Over the past few years, we have covered many versions of CryZENx’s Unreal Engine 5 fan remake of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Alas, it looks like the project has reached the end of its journey. A few days ago, CryZENx officially announced that development on the fan remake has come to an end. As a result, no further updates or new versions of it will be published.
The good news here is that all the previous demos of this project are available for download. And, in case you’re wondering, no. Nintendo did not send him a C&D letter.
The reason CryZENx decided to stop working on it is simple. Right now, an official remake of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is in development. So, according to him, there is no reason to spend any extra time on this fan remake.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Will Soon Get Screen-Space Ray Traced Shadows on PC
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/final-fantasy-7-rebirth-will-soon-get-screen-space-ray-traced-shadows-on-pc/
Modder ‘David Matos’ is currently working on a mod that will add support for screen-space ray-traced shadows in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. To showcase the mod, Matos shared a video that you can find below.
To add support for screen-space ray-traced shadows, Matos uses a PC shader injector mod. This allows you to inject modified shaders directly into the game’s rendering API.
In the video, he is showing off Rebirth’s UE4 Deferred Directional Light Pixel Shader. The shader BRDFs were also upgraded, along with the addition of screen-space ray-traced shadows and micro shadows.
Thanks to this shader, objects that were excluded from the shadow maps can now be filled with screen-space ray-traced shadows. This will greatly enhance the game’s visuals, making a lot of objects feel less floaty and more realistic.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth suffered from major visual issues, even on PC. So, this will be a must-have mod for everyone playing it. This is exactly what you’d expect Square Enix to do when it announced the PC version.
Speaking of FF7 Rebirth, I also suggest FF7RebirthFix. This mod lets you adjust the gameplay FOV, unlocks the framerate, and adds support for ultrawide or narrower displays. Its latest version also improves shadow cascades. Thus, you won’t see shadows constantly changing right in front of you.
>> The article has a slightly over 3 minutes video of the first of the two mods.
New HD Texture Pack for Crimson Desert Overhauls All Trees
https://www.dsogaming.com/mods/new-hd-texture-pack-for-crimson-desert-overhauls-all-trees/
Modder ‘KhainOne’ has released a new HD Texture Pack for Crimson Desert. This new pack improves the bark textures for all trees, making them look sharper, cleaner, and more detailed.
KhainOne has used AI tools to upscale the original textures. As such, the modded textures retain the art style of the original ones. At the same time, they look sharper and more detailed. So, if you own a high-end GPU with lots of VRAM, you should definitely try them.
This is the third HD Texture Pack for Crimson Desert. The first pack covered the outdoor stone ground textures in Hernand. Then, the second pack overhauled all the textures that were in the game’s “Folder 0000.” These packs are compatible with each other. After all, they cover completely different things. So, for the best visual results, you should use all three of them.
You can go ahead and download the Better Trees Mod from this link. To install it, you’ll also need the CD Texture Overlay Builder.
Once you have downloaded CD Texture Overlay Builder, you’ll have to run CD_Texture_Overlay_Builder.exe. Select or auto-detect your Crimson Desert game folder. Then, select the DDS texture folder. Afterward, select the correct source type. You’ll then have to click Build / Apply Overlay. And that’s it.
>> The article has some screenshots showing the end result.
GAMING NEWS
Crimson Desert Update 1.12.01 Released – Full Patch Notes
https://www.dsogaming.com/patches/crimson-desert-update-1-12-01-released-full-patch-notes/
Pearl Abyss has just released Title Update 1.12.01 for its latest game, Crimson Desert, and shared its full patch notes. So, let’s see what this latest patch brings to the table.
Patch 1.12.01 appears to be a small update. From the looks of it, it fixes some issues that were introduced with Update 1.12.00. So, other than the following fixes, there aren’t any other major changes.
