And here’s the inevitable third part of the Monday gaming news:

Doom director Hugo Martin says id Software is fine, and anyway, 'what matters the most is that the games are good'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/doom-director-hugo-martin-says-id-software-is-fine-and-anyway-what-matters-the-most-is-that-the-games-are-good/

Retiring Valve programmer says 'at least one' of the studio's beloved game modes was made in secret to avoid pushback from peers
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/retiring-valve-programmer-says-at-least-one-of-the-studios-beloved-game-modes-was-made-in-secret-to-avoid-pushback-from-peers/
>> You’ll have to read the article to find out which one (and yes, I’ve read it, know the answer and I’m not telling you. I’m that evil).

2 months after releasing Zero Parades, Studio ZA/UM is laying off employees: 'Its commercial performance has not enabled us to sustain a studio of our current size'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/2-months-after-releasing-zero-parades-studio-za-um-is-laying-off-employees-its-commercial-performance-has-not-enabled-us-to-sustain-a-studio-of-our-current-size/

Gears of War's creator is considering returning to game development, but whatever he makes won't be PvP like his last efforts: 'Good luck to anyone in that space'
https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/gears-of-wars-creator-is-considering-returning-to-game-development-but-whatever-he-makes-wont-be-pvp-like-his-last-efforts-good-look-to-anyone-in-that-space/
>> It’s none other than Cliff Bleszinski, of course, and he also said that his ego played a part in Lawbreakers failure (link).

I now come here to see what kind of sales are happening =p.

The Great Steam Deck Crash of 2026: How The New Pricing Slashed Demand by 80%

https://boilingsteam.com/the-great-steam-deck-volume-crash/

^ How is Steam Machine doing?

There's no need to feel bad about it. They've decided to give it away on their own, likely beause they thing that this will allow more people to try it and, if they like it, buy the new one.

They're not the first nor will be the last that try this tactic.

Interesting.

The first batch at the new price sold quite well, but maybe that was a coincidence.

Thanks for sharing it.

Funny that you ask, because over the weekend we had article about it, coming from the same group that did the article Conina posted, and they claim that it's selliing between 12 and 15 thousand units per week:

https://www.techpowerup.com/350872/valve-reportedly-sells-12-15k-steam-machine-units-per-week

Those are impressive numbers given that it's an overpriced and underpowered PC with less appeal than a console, at least in my opinion. But the way they came up to those numbers is rather sketchy and, again imho, not very reliable.

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

I would really love to see Steam "Beat It In One Sitting" Fest

NVIDIA raises Jetson prices by up to 101%, AGX Thor now costs $5,499

https://videocardz.com/newz/nvidia-raises-jetson-prices-by-up-to-101-agx-thor-now-costs-5499

Intel Arc B390 gains up to 12% with Linux 7.2 kernel

https://videocardz.com/newz/intel-arc-b390-gains-up-to-12-with-linux-7-2-kernel

NVIDIA details DLSS 5: three models, per-object controls and single-GPU support

https://videocardz.com/newz/nvidia-details-dlss-5-three-models-per-object-controls-and-single-gpu-support

Modder builds smaller PS4 V2 handheld with 7-inch OLED and GTX 750 GPU fan

https://videocardz.com/newz/modder-builds-smaller-ps4-v2-handheld-with-7-inch-oled-and-gtx-750-gpu-fan

Gamer straps 2.5 kg aluminum block on RTX 4060 for fanless design

https://videocardz.com/newz/gamer-straps-2-5-kg-aluminum-block-on-rtx-4060-for-fanless-design

Ryzen PC boots with 192 AA batteries, runs Hannah Montana Linux

https://videocardz.com/newz/ryzen-pc-boots-with-192-aa-batteries-runs-hannah-montana-linux

TSMC Plans To Raise Semiconductor Prices By 10% In 2027, Mature Nodes To Also Be Covered, Company Spokesperson Says The Decision Is “Not Opportunistic”

https://wccftech.com/tsmc-to-raise-semiconductor-prices-by-10-percent-in-2027/

Korean, US And Japanese Suppliers Race To Upgrade Fabs, Ending The NAND Flash Shortage In 2027

https://wccftech.com/korean-us-and-japanese-suppliers-race-to-upgrade-fabs-ending-the-nand-flash-shortage-in-2027/

It’s Tuesday and these are the gaming news:

SALES/PLAYER COUNTS & DEALS

Steam’s Top 10

(Click here for the Top 100)

Palworld is only growing more powerful, hitting nearly a million concurrents in its second weekend
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/survival-crafting/palworld-is-only-growing-more-powerful-hitting-nearly-a-million-concurrents-in-its-second-weekend/
Palworld continues to prove that it's more than a flash-in-the-pan novelty. The survival-crafting romp with legally distinct pokémon just had its second weekend since it hit 1.0, following a couple of years in early access, and it's only getting more popular.
The second weekend saw concurrents approaching a million on Steam (961,867, to be exact), growing by more than 100,000 players since the previous weekend, which had already been extremely busy.
It's an impressive showing for the game's second weekend, though not necessarily all that surprising. After two years in early access, there were probably a lot of folk who'd relegated it to the depths of their Steam library and are only now digging it out again.

Steam's Train Fest sale means all 790 pieces of Train Simulator Classic DLC can be yours for a mere $6,993 instead of $15,621
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/sim/steams-train-fest-sale-means-all-790-pieces-of-train-simulator-classic-dlc-can-be-yours-for-a-mere-usd6-993-instead-of-usd15-621/
Steam's Train Fest has begun, meaning there are deals and discounts on lots of locomotive games, even a few brand new ones like Denshattack, which just came out this month.
But when it comes to train sales there's really only one train game to talk about: Train Simulator Classic, a sim notable for having a whole heck of a lot of DLC: a whopping 790 pieces of it. And almost all of them are on sale this week.
The base game itself has a hefty discount of 80% off, making it a steal at only $6 during Train Fest. And just about all of that tasty DLC is also on sale for anywhere between 20-80% off as well.
>> Not going to lie, I’m posting this more for the absurdity of it rather than the relevance.

A new Elder Scrolls is still years away, but this fun Arthurian take on the formula is 50% off right now
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/a-new-elder-scrolls-is-still-years-away-but-this-fun-arthurian-skyrim-clone-is-50-percent-off-right-now/
It's a little surprising there aren't more The Elder Scrolls clones. Aside from Avowed, the only other example I can think of is Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon. It launched in May last year after a stint in early access, and the response was positive, perhaps surprisingly so, considering how tough it must be for a relatively young studio to make a game of this scale. Our reviewer wrote that it "puts an interesting spin on Arthurian legend and presents a competent world that plays like a love letter to the open-world first-person RPG genre."
(...)
With the next Elder Scrolls game so far off I reckon Tainted Grail is well-worth checking out. Especially because it's currently 50% off on Steam, which is cheaper than I've ever seen it. If you're unsure, there's a demo you can try before you buy.
>> The game has a demo.

GOG has two new peomos:

• Platformer Promo has games up to 95% off and will last 10 days: https://www.gog.com/es/promo/20260721_platformer_promo
• Sci-Fi Promo also has games with up to 95% discounts and will also last 10 days: https://www.gog.com/es/promo/20260721_sci_fi_promo

Steam as the following deals and sales/events:

• There’s a new daily deal: Cozy Grove is going to be 75% off during another 26 hours: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1458100/Cozy_Grove/
• Achilles: Legends Untold will have a 70% discount until Friday: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1314000/Achilles_Legends_Untold/
• Animal Shelter 2 has a demo and will be 40% off until August, the 3rd: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2658510/Animal_Shelter_2/
• These are the new sales/events:
  • Games Composed in Germany Sale has German games, ranging from indies to AAA titles. There are upcoming releases, demos and games up to 80% off. From what I’ve seen, the deals will en either July 27 or August 3 : https://store.steampowered.com/sale/Games-Composed-in-German
  • SimFest 2026 - Workers & Resources Edition has upcoming titles and games on sale with up to 90% discounts. The length of the deals vary from July 25 to August 3: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/SimFest2026
  • 2026 Coreblazer Game Festival has lots of upcoming releases and games on sale, up to 85% off. The current deals will end between the 27th and the 30th of July but, the poage has launched today, you can expect more deals that may have other ending dates: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/coreblazergamefest2026
• And we can’t forget about the new weeklong deals, right?

Fanatical has three new deals:

• The new Star Deal is Legacy of Kain™ Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered , 67% off during 48 hours: https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/legacy-of-kain-soul-reaver-1-and-2-remastered
• Publisher Aspyr Games puts its titles on sael with up to 95% discounts during 9 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/publishers/aspyr
• The Mystery Vault Bundle has 25 unknown games to get in groups of 5, plus the chance to win prizes like a 2TB Steam Machine. It will last 42 days: https://www.fanatical.com/en/bundle/mystery-vault-bundle

SOFTWARE & DRIVERS

INTEL Arc Graphics 32.0.101.8864 driver
https://videocardz.com/driver/intel-arc-graphics-32-0-101-8864

FIXED ISSUES

Intel Core Ultra Series 3 with built-in Intel Arc GPUs & Intel Arc B-Series Graphics Products::

• Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced (DX12) may experience a crash when upgrading driver if the shaders have been compiled with the previous driver.
• Assassin’s Creed Shadows (DX12) may experience a crash when upgrading driver if the shaders have been compiled with the previous driver.
• Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege (DX12) may experience a crash when upgrading driver if the shaders have been compiled with the previous driver.

Intel Arc A-Series Graphics Products, Intel Core Ultra Series 1 with built-in Intel Arc GPUs & Intel Core Ultra Series 2 with built-in Intel Arc GPUs:

• Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced (DX12) may experience a crash when upgrading driver if the shaders have been compiled with the previous driver.
• Assassin’s Creed Shadows (DX12) may experience a crash when upgrading driver if the shaders have been compiled with the previous driver.
• Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege (DX12) may experience a crash when upgrading driver if the shaders have been compiled with the previous driver.
• LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight (DX12) may exhibit corruption during cutscenes.

>> It’s a Beta driver.

MODS, EMULATORS & FAN PROJECTS

Unity Underground Is a Full Remake of Ultima Underworld in the Unity Engine – Available for Download
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/unity-underground-is-a-full-remake-of-ultima-underworld-in-the-unity-engine-available-for-download/
Now here is something cool. A couple of months ago, Indie dev ‘Kweepa’ released a full remake of Ultima Underworld in the Unity Engine. So, if you’ve always wanted to play a modern remake of this classic game, you should give Unity Underground a go.
Going into more details, Kweepa has remade and animated all enemies. He has also re-modelled all inventory and environment objects, and added unique audio and particle effects.
What’s also cool here is that Unity Underground supports mouse and keyboard. As such, you can enjoy this fan remake with proper KB&M controls. For our casual gamers, there is also support for the Xbox controller.
Unity Underground requires the full version of Ultima Underworld to work. In other words, it does not contain any game data. From what I understand, the fan remake only supports the GOG version. So when you run it, you can point it to the installation folder of the GOG version.
All in all, this is a really amazing fan remake of a classic PC game. Kweepa has been working on it since 2015. And now, over a decade later, it’s available to the public.
You can go ahead and download it from here.
>> It’s available from itch.io and the article has an almost 10 minutes video.

GAMING NEWS

Wreckreation 2 Could Be the Burnout Game You’ve All Been Waiting For
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/wreckreation-2-could-be-the-burnout-game-youve-all-been-waiting-for/
When Tides Turn has announced Wreckreation 2, the sequel to Wreckreation. Wreckreation 2 is a new open-world arcade racing game. Alongside its announcement, we got its first gameplay trailer. And, as you will see, it has a strong Burnout feel, with fast racing, big crashes, and over-the-top action.

Tuesday gaming news, part two:

Modern Warfare 4 beta dates set for August, and this year Game Pass subscribers get no special treatment
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/call-of-duty/modern-warfare-4-beta-dates-set-for-august-and-this-year-game-pass-subscribers-get-no-special-treatment/
It's that time of year again: The next Call of Duty is on deck, and Activision's got the beta dates to prove it. Modern Warfare 4 won't hit the streets until late October, but the multiplayer beta begins a full two months ahead of time.
As usual, Activision is holding two beta weekends: One for those who pre-order the game and one for everyone else.

Path of Exile devs want it to be easier for new players, but still won't let you skip its 20-hour campaign every league—at least not yet: 'It feels very wrong to me'
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/path-of-exile-devs-want-it-to-be-easier-for-new-players-but-still-wont-let-you-skip-its-20-hour-campaign-every-league-at-least-not-yet-it-feels-very-wrong-to-me/
This week, Path of Exile will ditch a system that defined it for over a decade, making the action RPG considerably easier to approach for new players. The developers at Grinding Gear Games told PC Gamer that they're questioning everything that's sacred going forward, but apparently some things are still off the table—at least for now.
A major roadblock for new and returning players is PoE's lengthy campaign. Every new league, or season, you have to clear 10 acts before you enter the endgame, like a 20-hour tutorial. Veteran players can race through it in five or six hours, but most people need at least double that.

There's a dinosaur soulslike launching on Steam this week where you're a spinosaurus swinging a greatsword with your mouth who just might be able to parry the meteor
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/theres-a-dinosaur-soulslike-launching-on-steam-this-week-where-youre-a-spinosaurus-swinging-a-greatsword-with-your-mouth-who-just-might-be-able-to-parry-the-meteor/
It's taken centuries of human advancement, but soulslikes and demanding third-person action games have finally reached a level of cultural proliferation where we as a society can ask the all important question: What if the dinosaurs could have simply parried the meteor?
That's the tantalizing possibility suggested by Dinoblade, a probably paleontologically accurate soulslike launching on Steam later this week that portrays dinosaurs just as the fossil record tells us they lived: As big lizards getting into sick as hell swordfights by swinging around weapons they're holding in their teeth.
>> The article has a trailer, in case you want to give it a look.

Ubisoft promises Ghost Recon news in August, and if you're hoping that means an update on the Splinter Cell remake then I admire your optimism but sorry, no
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/ubisoft-promises-ghost-recon-news-in-august-and-if-youre-hoping-that-means-an-update-on-the-splinter-cell-remake-then-i-admire-your-optimism-but-sorry-no/
Less than a week after Ubisoft promised that a new Ghost Recon game is coming but probably not anytime soon, the company says it will mark the series' 25th anniversary in August with some proper news on what's coming next.
"It’s been a while Ghosts!" the announcement excitedly states. "We know some of you saw some updates, we’ll have more to say on the 6th of August when we celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Ghost Recon. Intel coming soon."

I'm very into this Papers, Please-esque puzzle game about identifying traitors to the socialist motherland
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/puzzle/im-very-into-this-papers-please-esque-puzzle-game-about-identifying-traitors-to-the-socialist-motherland/
Citizens! We live in times of unprecedented danger! We are beset on all sides by traitors and saboteurs. Reactionaries whisper treason in dimly lit rooms. Their mouths spew poison and lies that eat away at the foundations of the worker-peasant revolution, at the root of the world revolution itself.
And, worst of all, no one gave me a desk big enough to deal with it.
What Awaits, Aleksey? is a clever mystery/puzzle game that caters to all my specific obsessions. It's a Stasi simulator, more or less—you are Aleksey Lutomski, a recent hire at the security service of a fictional 20th-century communist state, tasked with identifying the members of an underground cell of dissidents who are going around saying mean things about the motherland.

The Witcher 3's expansion reveal is scheduled for next month
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/the-witcher/the-witcher-3s-expansion-reveal-is-scheduled-for-next-month/
CD Projekt Red sent us all scurrying for our calendars when it announced, last May, that 2015's The Witcher 3 would be getting a brand-new expansion in the year of our lord 2027. It's called Songs of the Past, it's set to be "a little bit closer to Blood and Wine" in terms of size, and it's being co-developed alongside Fool's Theory, the studio that's also remaking the first Witcher.
And that, for now, is pretty much all we know. But take heart, because 'knowing perhaps a small amount more' is just around the corner. In a post on X, CDPR announced that Songs of the Past would show its face as part of Gamescom's Opening Night Live event—the secret third Geoff Keighley annual thing which I forget about every year—on August 25.