The news:

WORLD OF WARCRAFT: LEGION RELEASES ON AUGUST 30TH

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/world-of-warcraft-legion-releases-on-august-30th/

Blizzard has announced that World of Warcraft Legion will be released on August 30th. World of Warcraft: Legion will raise the level cap to 110, will sport a new continent, will introduce a new class (Demon Hunter), will feature powerful Artifact Weapons, as well as a new PvP Honor system.

RESIDENT EVIL UMBRELLA CORPS GETS NEW SCREENSHOTS

http://www.dsogaming.com/screenshot-news/resident-evil-umbrella-corps-gets-new-screenshots/

Capcom has released some new screenshots for its upcoming Resident Evil third-person multiplayer game, Umbrella Corps. Umbrella Corps is planned for a June 21st release, will be powered by the Unity Engine, and will be focused on online battles.

MERIDIAN: SQUAD 22 IS THE SEQUEL TO MERIDIAN NEW WORLD, COMES TO STEAM EARLY ACCESS ON MAY 30TH

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/meridian-squad-22-sequel-meridian-new-world-comes-steam-early-access-may-30th/

Headup Games and Merge Games today announced that Meridian Squad 22, the sequel to the critically acclaimed Meridian New World, will enter Steam’s early access on May 30th.

THE TECHNOMANCER GETS GAMEPLAY TRAILER

http://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/technomancer-gets-gameplay-trailer/

Focus Home Interactive has released a gameplay trailer for Spiders’ upcoming sci-fi RPG, The Technomancer. The Technomancer is planned for a Summer 2016 release, and takes place after a cataclysmic event that decimated the population and isolated the red planet from Earth.

>>Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaMVPgCryJ8

MAFIA III – RELEASE DATE UNVEILED, NEW STORY TRAILER REVEALED

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/mafia-iii-release-date-unveiled-new-story-trailer-revealed/

2K Games has released a new trailer for Mafia III that focuses on its storyline. In addition, the big publisher has also revealed the game’s release date. Mafia III is set in a re-imagined New Orleans in 1968 and follows the story of Lincoln Clay, a disenfranchised Vietnam veteran, returning from combat and looking for a home and a place to belong. The game is coming out on October 7th.

>>Take a look at it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UdSpFXz8Q4

NEW MAFIA III SCREENSHOTS RELEASED

http://www.dsogaming.com/screenshot-news/new-mafia-iii-screenshots-released/

Alongside its story trailer, 2K Games has released some new Mafia III screenshots that can be viewed below. Mafia III releases on October 7th and these new screenshots showcase the game’s visuals.

DROPZONE ANNOUNCED – NEW FREE REAL-TIME STRATEGY GAME

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/dropzone-announced-new-free-real-time-strategy-game/

Gameforge and Sparkypants Studios have just announced a new real-time strategy game, called Dropzone. Dropzone is described as a highly competitive title that combines the intense 1v1 action, deep strategic multi-units tactics and map control of RTS with extensive customization, pilot leveling, and familiar controls.

>>And it comes with a trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4TZZX-396k

SHOCK TACTICS – NEW SINGLE-PLAYER TURN-BASED SCI-FI STRATEGY GAME FOR THE PC

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/shock-tactics-new-single-player-turn-based-sci-fi-strategy-game-pc/

Our reader ‘OnnA’ has informed us about a new strategy game that is currently under development for the PC, Shock Tactics. Shock Tactics is set to be a single player turn-based sci-fi strategy game with tactical combat, exploration, squad management and base building.

Take a look at the trailer, it looks interesting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4uVWhquCs0

VALLEY – NEW FIRST-PERSON ACTION ADVENTURE FROM THE MAKERS OF SLENDER: THE ARRIVAL

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/valley-new-first-person-action-adventure-makers-slender-arrival/

Blue Isle Studios, makers of Slender: The Arrival, has announced a new first person action adventure game, Valley. Valley is said to be a first-person adventure unlike any other in which players will explore the vast and beautiful world of Valley and uncover secrets long since forgotten.

>>This is the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1O3DDvKHo0

STREET FIGHTER V – GUILE REVEALED AS NEW CHARACTER, APRIL UPDATE DETAILED

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/street-fighter-v-guile-revealed-new-character-april-update-detailed/

Capcom revealed today that Guile will be joining Street Fighter V’s roster this month. In addition, the company revealed the details for its upcoming April update that – among other things – will bring a permanent solution to rage quitters.

THE BANNER SAGA 2 IS NOW AVAILABLE

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/banner-saga-2-now-available/

Stoic and Versus Evil today launched the Banner Saga 2 for PC and Mac to gamers worldwide. The Banner Saga 2 is the sequel to the award winning, BAFTA nominated, indie hit The Banner Saga, an epic Viking role-playing strategy game where a player’s choice directly affects their personal journey.

Part 2:

FALLOUT: NEW VEGAS REMADE AS A YOUTUBE CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE

http://www.pcgamer.com/fallout-new-vegas-remade-as-a-youtube-choose-your-own-adventure/

There's modding and then there's meta-modding: re-imagining a game in an entirely new medium. YouTuber Many A True Nerd has redone the entire story of Fallout: New Vegas in a vast collection of annotated YouTube videos, à la Choose Your Own Adventure books. I've given it a few runs to remind myself of how very bad I am at choosing my own adventure.

JOHN ROMERO IS TEASING A NEW SHOOTER

http://www.pcgamer.com/john-romero-is-teasing-a-new-shooter/

Shacknews posted an interesting story on Friday about Hoxar Inc, which on the surface appears to be a tech start-up promoting a new technology called Blackroom, a holodeck-like “fully immersive experience without physical restriction,” including the need for goggles. “Hoxar has spent years innovating and pushing the boundaries of holographic technology beyond its competitors,” its website says. “Now, with the latest Hoxar DPHM Simulators, users can experience a walkable space that feels, smells, and looks like the real thing—or unreal thing, as is usually preferred.”

THE OVERWATCH CLOSED BETA IS SHUTTING NEXT WEEK

http://www.pcgamer.com/the-overwatch-closed-beta-is-shutting-next-week/

In a bit of inevitable-but-still-sad news for those of you enjoying the Overwatch beta, Blizzard has announced that it will come to an end on April 25, so that “final preparations” can begin for the launch next month.

FREE RAMBO: THE VIDEOGAME DLC WILL BE OUT TOMORROW

http://www.pcgamer.com/free-rambo-the-videogame-dlc-will-be-out-tomorrow/

I can't say for certain why we didn't review Rambo: The Videogame around these parts, although I suspect the fact that it was pretty awful may have been the deciding factor. The PC version rocks a 34 aggregate score on Metacritic, which is actually ahead of the Xbox 360 edition (28) and the PS3 (23, yowch). Despite that, and the fact that it came out more than two years ago, a new DLC expansion called Baker Team will be released for the game tomorrow. At this point I like to imagine at least a couple of you tying bandannas on in expectation.

BATTLEZONE 98 REDUX IS NOW ON STEAM

http://www.pcgamer.com/battlezone-98-redux-is-now-on-steam/

Rebellion announced in February that Battlezone 98 Redux, a remake of the hit FPS/RTS hybrid that was originally released in 1998, was in the works and would be out in the spring. And “the spring,” as it turns out, is today.

>>Watch the launch trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMDmp7LVuKY

DARK SOULS 3 PATCH REBALANCES WEAPONS AND SQUASHES SOME BUGS

http://www.pcgamer.com/dark-souls-3-patch-rebalances-weapons-and-squashes-some-bugs/

If you're as utterly consumed by Dark Souls 3 as I am, then even the most mundane patch notes are likely to have you furrowing your brows. Bandai Namco has announced an imminent 1.04 patch to roll out tomorrow, and while it's not a huge update, you'd best have a look in case one of your favourite weapons is affected.

>>That's the good news, here comes the bad ones.

DARK SOULS 1 MULTIPLAYER DIES MYSTERIOUSLY

http://www.pcgamer.com/dark-souls-1-multiplayer-dies-mysteriously/

While in Dark Souls 3 there are so many summon signs that it's hard to tell one from another, in Dark Souls: Prepare To Die Edition an abyssal silence has fallen. Multiplayer has been offline since April 13—the day after Dark Souls 3 released—with no word from Bandai or From Software as to what's going on.

SONG OF THE DEEP, INSOMNIAC'S AQUATIC METROIDVANIA, RELEASES IN JULY

http://www.pcgamer.com/song-of-the-deep-insomniacs-aquatic-metroidvania-releases-in-july/

Insomniac Games, the studio best known for console-centric titles like Ratchet and Clank, Resistance and Sunset Overdrive, will release its 2D Metroidvania on Steam in July. As James discovered when he played it back in January, Song of the Deep follows the adventures of Merryn who, after losing her father during a routine fishing trip, feels compelled to find him. Inevitably, the ocean holds all manner of strange malevolent foes.

>>Here is a new video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NI0ruZBmKsw

DANGANRONPA 2: GOODBYE DESPAIR IS OUT NOW

http://www.pcgamer.com/danganronpa-2-goodbye-despair-is-out-now/

Goodbye, despair, you have been replaced with fatalism. Danganronpa 2 is out now, and the unlucky teens of Hope's Peak Academy have been shipped off to Jabberwock Island for some bonding. But would you believe it, their robotic tormentor Monokuma reappears to get them killing each other again.

RUNESCAPE GETS NEW ENGINE, CLIENT AND GRAPHICAL OVERHAUL

http://www.pcgamer.com/runescape-gets-new-client-and-graphical-overhaul/

I consider any version of Runescape which isn't shaded strictly in primary colours to be witchcraft. The news that Runescape now has a standalone client, another round of graphical improvements and is moving away from Java is rank heresy.

>>Take a look at it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUVNlfJU8dA

Another day has passed, time for more news. By the way, today I won't be able to copy the links to the videos, so you'll have to click the news' link to see them.

OFFICIAL MIRROR’S EDGE CATALYST REQUIREMENTS REVEALED

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/official-mirrors-edge-catalyst-requirements-revealed/

DICE and Electronic Arts have just revealed the official Mirror’s Edge Catalyst requirements. According to the big publisher, PC gamers will need at least 6GB of RAM, a modern-day dual-core CPU, Windows 7 64-bit and an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 650 Ti 2GB or an AMD Radeon R9 270X. Mirror’s Edge: Catalyst releases on May 24th, and you can read the full PC specs below.

BASTION STUDIO SUPERGIANT GAMES ANNOUNCES PYRE, A PARTY-BASED RPG

http://www.pcgamer.com/bastion-studio-supergiant-games-announces-pyre-a-party-based-rpg/

Supergiant Games, the creator of Bastion and Transistor, has announced that its next game is a party-based RPG called Pyre, in which you'll “lead a band of exiles through an ancient competition spread across a vast, mystical purgatory.”

>>Video inside.

HELLBLADE: SENUA’S SACRIFICE – NEW DEVELOPER DIARY FOCUSES ON COMBAT MECHANICS

http://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/hellblade-senuas-sacrifice-new-developer-diary-focuses-combat-mechanics/

Ninja Theory has released a new developer diary that focuses on Hellblade’s combat mechanics. Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is powered by Unreal Engine 4 and tells the story of Senua, a Celtic warrior who is left traumatised by a Viking invasion. The game will be coming on PC and PS4 simultaneously, although there is no ETA as of yet.

>>Video inside.

BATTLEFLEET GOTHIC: ARMADA RELEASES TOMORROW, GETS LAUNCH TRAILER

http://www.dsogaming.com/videotrailer-news/battlefleet-gothic-armada-releases-tomorrow-gets-launch-trailer/

Focus Home Interactive has just released the launch trailer for Battlefleet Gothic: Armada. During this two-minute-long sequence-shot, you will find yourself witnessing brutal broadsides from macro-cannons of Imperial battleships, who are cornered by the Chaos armada that pound them with raking fire and boarding actions. The game releases tomorrow on the PC.

>>You guessed it, video inside.

ESCAPE FROM TARKOV PC SETTINGS REVEALED – FOV SLIDER & CHROMATIC ABERRATION OPTIONS PRESENT

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/escape-tarkov-pc-settings-revealed/

Battlestate Games has revealed the PC settings for Escape from Tarkov. PC gamers will have access to a nice Inventory system, and will be able to tweak a respectable amount of graphics options, remap all the keys, as well as adjust the FOV and aiming deadzone. In addition, there will be an option to disable Chromatic Aberration. Do note that these settings are for the alpha version of the game, and these menus may be updated later as the project continues to evolve.

HEARTHSTONE'S LATEST EXPANSION WILL RELEASE EARLY NEXT WEEK

http://www.pcgamer.com/hearthstones-latest-expansion-will-release-early-next-week/

The tentacle-y influence of Hearthstone's next card expansion, Whispers of the Old Gods, is nearly upon us. The set will launch next Tuesday, April 26th, and add a total of 134 new cards to the game—about 70 of which have been revealed so far. Similar to Hearthstone's previous expansions, we can probably expect to see all the remaining cards revealed at once sometime later this week.

ROMANCE OF THE THREE KINGDOMS XIII – NEW TRAILERS SHOW OFF BATTLE SYSTEM

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/romance-of-the-three-kingdoms-xiii-new-trailers-show-off-battle-system/

KOEI Tecmo today revealed details and two brand new trailers on the in-depth battle system of Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIII. In Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIII, players can experience all kinds of warfare, ranging from Debates and Duels to the Open Field, Narrow Pass, and Naval battle types, with gameplay differing depending on the situation at hand.

>>Video inside.

Part2:

THE WALKING DEAD: MICHONNE WRAPS UP NEXT WEEK

http://www.pcgamer.com/the-walking-dead-michonne-wraps-up-next-week/

What We Deserve, the third and final part of Telltale's The Walking Dead: Michonne, will be out on April 26. Ahead of that, Telltale has put up another “Your Choices” video that reveals some of the decisions players made as they worked their way through the previous episode. It's about as pleasant as you'd expect, and be warned: There are many spoilers.

>>Video inside.

MOSAIC, THE NEW GAME FROM THE MAKERS OF AMONG THE SLEEP, IS HIDING AN ARG

http://www.pcgamer.com/mosaic-the-new-game-from-the-makers-of-among-the-sleep-may-be-hiding-an-arg/

I quite enjoyed Krillbite's Among the Sleep, a first-person horror-adventure played as a two-year-old boy, although it ultimately fell a bit short of my (admittedly high) hopes. The Plan was fantastic, too, albeit in an entirely different way. So I'm naturally very interested in the studio's next game, Mosaic, which looks like it will be another unique experience.

>>Yes, there's a video inside.

KERBAL SPACE PROGRAM 1.1 UPDATE BRINGS NEW INTERFACE AND PERFORMANCE UPGRADES

http://www.pcgamer.com/kerbal-space-program-11-update-brings-new-interface-and-performance-upgrades/

Kerbal Space Program has just received a 'Turbo Charged' 1.1 update, and as the name implies, it speeds the game up. Thanks to an update to Unity 5, the spaceship building sim will experience "a large boost in performance", and modding will be much more flexible, too.

HUMBLE DEVOLVER BUNDLE DISCOUNTS RONIN, DROPSY, SHADOW WARRIOR, MORE

http://www.pcgamer.com/humble-devolver-bundle-discounts-ronin-dropsy-shadow-warrior-more/

Send in the clowns. Also, send in the ronin, the 'shadow warriors', and a few pigeon-fanciers while you're at it, as all these feature in the latest Humble Bundle. It's dedicated to indie publisher Devolver Digital, and offers A Fistful of Gun, Ronin, and Gods Will Be Watching at the pay-what-you-want tier. But if you beat the average (the average currently stands at just over $4), you'll also get clown-based adventure game Dropsy, gun-based gun-game Not a Hero, and slicing-baddies-up-'em-up Shadow Warrior too. That's quite a good deal, is what it is.

SOMETIMES ALWAYS MONSTERS IS THE SEQUEL TO ALWAYS SOMETIMES MONSTERS

http://www.pcgamer.com/sometimes-always-monsters-is-the-sequel-to-always-sometimes-monsters/

Confused? Me too. Not just in general—this morning, instead of Coffee Mate, I added coffee to my coffee—but about Sometimes Always Monsters, the maddeningly named sequel to Always Sometimes Monsters (click to read our review).

>>Video inside.

HAVE A BITE OF STEPHEN'S SAUSAGE ROLL, A GAME ABOUT GRILLING BANGERS

http://www.pcgamer.com/have-a-bite-of-stephens-sausage-roll-a-game-about-grilling-bangers/

Stephen's Sausage Roll is a puzzle game about grilling sausages. You advance in each area by grilling a number of bangers to perfection, while managing each stage's layout, and other obstacles that make grilling a more complex affair than you may be expecting. If it sounds like a joke game, it's not: in fact, people are relishing it with rapturous praise, including The Witness/Braid developer Jonathan Blow.

>>Video inside.

GUILD WARS 2'S SPRING UPDATE ARRIVES WITH TITANIC PATCH NOTES

http://www.pcgamer.com/guild-wars-2s-spring-update-arrives-with-titanic-patch-notes/

Guild Wars 2's Spring Update is now live. ArenaNet had been unwilling to detail the patch before now, supposedly "to delight you with what we ship, not with talk and promises." I think it was just because it would have taken ages—these are the longest patch notes I have ever seen. To summarise brutally: life has got a whole lot easier.

>>Again, video inside.

HEROES OF THE STORM TRAILER WELCOMES TRACER

http://www.pcgamer.com/heroes-of-the-storm-trailer-welcomes-tracer/

We mentioned that Tracer was on her way to Heroes of the Storm, Blizzard's all-encompassing MOBA that will not stop, ever, until it's gobbled up every hero, villain, and minor character from all of their games. Well, the teleporty, British, bum-having Tracer has now completed her journey—she's been added as part of patch 1.19.

>>Video inside.

There is a new AMD roadmap

AMD’s official GPU Roadmap for 2016-2018

http://videocardz.com/59206/amds-official-gpu-roadmap-for-2016-2018

According to the new roadmap, that is slightly more informative than a graph shown at Capsaicin, Polaris architecture might replace both Radeon Fury and Radeon 300 series. This roadmap clearly suggest that all chips might be replaced with silicons based on Polaris architecture. Does this mean there are are no rebrands in Radeon 400 series? Well it might be hard to answer this question right now, but that would be a very good move from AMD.

New roadmap also sheds some light on what to expect from Radeon 400 series GPU positioning. I think it is highly unlikely Fury series will disappear, instead both Fury and Polaris 10 cards should coexist on the market for some time. AMD otherwise wouldn’t release Radeon Pro Duo, if they were not planning to continue Fiji production.

Also you might have noticed that Fury Series block is much smaller than Polaris 10 block. It could further suggest that Polaris 10 will be used on more cards than just R9 490 series. Polaris 10 could therefore launch as R9 490 and R9 480 series, which I think makes a lot of sense now.

Meanwhile Polaris 11 would fill everything in mid-range and entry-level segments. If I’m right, then AMD made one of the best decisions in years. Rather than keep rebranding existing cards, they are focusing entirely on new architecture. This way if you ever hear about Radeon 400 series, you will immediately know it’s power efficient 14nm FinFET GCN 4.0 architecture.

Furthermore this roadmap also confirms that Polaris 10 and 11 will support HEVC de/encoding and HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort 1.3 specifications.

I think they are taking too many conclusions out of that roadmap, specially the part where they assume that Polaris 10 will be both 490 and 480 because the block is bigger than the Fury one. To me, it simply shows the new GPUs/cards that AMD will launch in those time frames, but what do I know .

It would be great if AMD could get render target reads, update tile mappings from GPU, and conservative rasterization into the GPU ...

^And how likely do you think it is for each of them to be in Polaris/Pascal?

In other news, John Romero and Adrian Carmack, co-creators of Doom and Quake, are working together:

Legendary Doom & Quake Creators Romero And Carmack Teaming Up For New Shooter; Teasing Announcement On April 25

http://wccftech.com/legendary-doom-teasing-announcement-april-25/#ixzz46RltSKdS

Are you excited?

http://www.nightworkgames.com/

2nd gen Maxwell already has conservative rasterization and all of those hardware features I mentioned were on Intel Gen 9 GPUs! 

Polaris and Pascal probably won't get them. Vega could get conservative raster support. I don't expect render target reads or changing tiled resource mappings via GPU commands until Navi/Volta or maybe never ? 

Well, that's a shame. Isn't conservative rasterization part of DX12? I think I read it somewhere, but I'm not sure where or when.

Anyway, I'm not sure how big of an impact they would have performance wise, but I was hoping that, with new architectures, AMD and Nvidia would use the opportunity to include at least some of those techs/features.

You don't need conservative rasterization to be DX12 compatible ... 

Some of them are not trivial to implement in the hardware ...