Gaming News

The Witcher 3 Official Mod Support Arrives This Month

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt on PC will receive the official REDkit mod support on May 21, 2024, CD Projekt Red has announced. Revealed in a post on X/Twitter, below, the "extensive mod editor" will make it much easier for players to create custom content for The Witcher 3 by granting access to its official assets. REDkit was already available in early access but the full release will allow everyone to create custom quests, locations, and more and likely breathe even more life into the nine year-old game. It will be available for free on Steam, the Epic Games Store, and GOG to anyone who owns the game, but will stay as a PC exclusive despite the likes of fellow role-playing game maker Bethesda bringing mod support to console through the...

View full article »

Helldivers 2’s Operation Clean Up Is a Community-Driven Major Order to Post Positive Steam User Reviews After PSN Backlash — and It’s Working

After Sony U-turned on its controversial decision to force Helldivers 2 PC gamers to account link to PlayStation Network, the game’s community has launched an initiative to drag Steam user reviews out from under rock bottom. The backlash to Helldivers 2’s PSN account linking mandate saw the game’s Steam user reviews collapse from ‘overwhelmingly positive’ to ‘mostly negative’ after over 200,000 negative reviews flooded the game’s page on Valve’s platform. The sheer volume of negative reviews left in such a short space of time caused Johan Pilestedt, boss of developer Arrowhead, to tweet: “Ouch, right in the review score.” But following Sony’s dramatic reversal, the Helldivers 2 community has formed a Major Order of its own, dubbed...

View full article »

Helldivers 2’s First Patch Since PSN Fiasco Makes Much-Needed DOT and Scope Fixes

Helldivers 2’s first patch since the PSN login debacle is out now, making some much-needed fixes to the game. Highlights here include a fix for Helldivers 2’s troublesome damage over time (DOT) problem, a fix for misaligned scopes, and a fix for the R-9 Eruptor to combat a shrapnel problem that was killing players. Patch 1.000.302, out now across PC and PlayStation 5, is the first to launch following Sony’s dramatic U-turn on the Helldivers 2 PSN login requirement that had sparked a backlash within the game’s PC community. Developer Arrowhead will be keen to put the events of last week behind it now Sony has buckled to PC gamer demand, although CEO Johan Pilestedt has admitted the studio has work to do rebuilding player trust. To...

View full article »

Gold Versions, Game of the Year Editions, Double Packs and Deluxes Get Heavily Reduced, and More!

As the winds of autumn gather to whip us, like some sort of FromSoftware boss inspired by Devo, games shall emerge as your perfect reason to stay indoors. Admittedly, we're in the dead period of the year, so that means looking back to recent releases and classics of yore. If you do want to keep things seasonal, it's the perfect time to play the discounted Resi 4 Remake and Far Cry 5 below—both of which take place in autumn. Otherwise, just binge a ton of Yakuza games (purely because they're cheap and awesome). In retro news, I'm celebrating the 21st birthday of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, a GameCube gem worth every rupee. I have vivid launch memories of being blown away by the (fandangle and fairly groundbreaking) cel-shaded...

View full article »

Manor Lords Mods Aren't Even Supported Yet, But Someone Put Shrek in Anyway

Manor Lords launched for PC players late last month, and it only took about a week for modders to add Shrek as a playable character. The animated ogre icon can now be used to terrorize innocent medieval citizens thanks to developer NorskPL on Nexus Mods. It’s a simple mod that allows players to control Shrek as part of Manor Lords’ third-person Visit mode. Parading around town as the green menace might be a bit immersion-breaking, but there is no denying that the character fits into the setting extremely well. Manor Lords was one of Steam’s most Wishlisted titles for quite some time, so while developer Slavic Magic hasn’t officially added mod support, it isn’t much of a surprise to see players creating new content on their own. Of...

View full article »

Helldivers 2 Fans are Making Cape Designs Out of Steam Reviews, and They Might Appear in the Game

With the PSN account linking fiasco now in the rearview mirror, what was nearly a disaster moment for Helldivers 2 is now becoming a part of community lore. Fans have been busy working on cape designs since Sony reversed course, at least some of which have seemingly caught the eye of the development team. The movement began after Arrowhead CEO Johan Pilestedt noted an "accidental cape design" from a member on Discord — four red lines denoting Helldivers 2's plummeting reviews over the weekend. Another community member soon responded to Pilestedt's post with a more refined design, leading to other fans coming forward with ideas of their own. Since then, designs have rapidly proliferated. Over on Reddit, one Helldivers 2 fan made a...

View full article »

Final Fantasy 14 Servers Worldwide Hit by DDoS Attacks, Square Enix Working on a Solution

Final Fantasy 14’s servers are currently under a worldwide DDoS attack that’s preventing players from logging into Square Enix’s MMORPG. In a blog post, Square Enix informed players that Final Fantasy 14’s technical issues began around 6 a.m. on March 6. As of right now, the DDoS attack may cause players to experience difficulty logging in, accessing/sending data, and disconnecting from Japanese, North American, European, and Oceania data centers. While Square Enix has yet to pinpoint the cause of the technical difficulties, the developer has promised players that an investigation into the attack, as well as countermeasures is underway. Today’s DDoS attack comes weeks after director Naoki Yoshida announced a graphical update was in...

View full article »

Hades 2 Early Access Review

It is shocking to see that Hades 2 is only in early access, and that Supergiant Games plans to let it spend at least the rest of 2024 there before it’s ready to call it version 1.0. Shocking, because it already has just about everything I want from a sequel to one of the best roguelite action games of all time. Hades 2 manages to keep everything that made the original such a masterclass of design, but it does so in a way that changes up how each of the pieces fits together and gives it its own unique identity rather than feeling like a glorified expansion. The result is a familiar, but fresh follow up that challenged, surprised, and delighted me with every triumph and failure in equal measure. There are a few things missing, with an...

View full article »

The Top 5 Games That Benefit from NVIDIA Reflex’s Latency Improvements

A few years ago, NVIDIA introduced NVIDIA Reflex, a revolutionary suite of technologies that gave PC gamers better responsiveness and lower latency. For competitive games, that resulted in faster target acquisition, quicker reaction time, and superior aim precision. It did this by measuring and optimizing system latency. For the uninitiated, latency is essentially the time between an action and its result. There are several different forms, though. For example, network latency happens in online play and is the delay between the game client and multiplayer server. You probably know this as “ping.” PC latency, on the other hand, is the time it takes your input to make its way through your PC. Basically, this is a combo of how long it...

View full article »

Mortal Kombat 1: The Boys' Homelander Gets First Gameplay Trailer

Yesterday, NetherRealm released the first gameplay trailer for The Boys' Homelander in Mortal Kombat 1. The trailer, which you can check out above, is a quick look at gameplay for the upcoming DLC character. Those who have watched The Boys will quickly notice that Homelander's super strength and heat vision are present despite the trailer being less than a minute long. NetherRealm even went the extra mile to open the trailer with a bit of The Boys comedy, showing a scene of Homelander slurping milk from a baby bottle, much like was depicted in The Boys Priem Video series. Although Anthony Starr, the actor who portrays Homelander in the Prime Video series The Boys, confirmed he would not be voicing the character in Mortal Kombat 1...

View full article »

Meta Is Ending Quest 1 Support for Beat Saber This November

Meta is axing Quest 1 support for Beat Saber, a popular rhythm game where players use glowing sabers to slice musical blocks. Announced in an FAQ on the official Beat Saber website, the Beat Saber developers Beat Games revealed that it will axe support for Quest 1 on November 2, 2024. The FAQ page notes that Quest 1 owners can still play Beat Saber, but the Multiplayer and Leaderboard functionality "might be phased out in the future." It will also stop releasing updates and provide customer support for Quest 1 devices. "As we continue developing Beat Saber, our goal is to raise the bar of what's possible," FAQ reads. "To focus our efforts in the right direction, we will no longer support Meta Quest 1 devices as of November 2, 2024."...

View full article »

Helldivers 2 Boss Impressed by Players' 'Willpower' in Reversing PlayStation Network Requirement

The creative director of Helldivers 2 has said he's impressed by the "willpower" of fans after their feedback caused Sony to reverse its decision regarding PlayStation Network accounts being required by all players. In a post on X/Twitter, Helldivers 2 creative director and CEO of developer Arrowhead Game Studios Johan Pilestedt thanked Sony for "quickly and effectively" addressing the community's concern and suggested this sort of feedback loop should be the "new standard" for live service games. "Firstly, I am impressed by the willpower of the Helldivers 2 community and your ability to collaborate," Pilestedt said. "Secondly I want to thank our partners and friends at PlayStation for quickly and effectively making the decision to...

View full article »

PlayStation Reverses Course on Helldivers 2 PSN Account Requirement

PlayStation has reversed course on the Helldivers 2 PSN account requirement, walking back the unpopular policy after a weekend long backlash that included tens of thousands of negative reviews, some of which spread to Sony's other Steam games. "Helldivers fans — we’ve heard your feedback on the Helldivers 2 account linking update. The May 6 update, which would have required Steam and PlayStation Network account linking for new players and for current players beginning May 30, will not be moving forward," PlayStation wrote on its official account. "We’re still learning what is best for PC players and your feedback has been invaluable. Thanks again for your continued support of Helldivers 2 and we’ll keep you updated on future plans."...

View full article »

Helldivers 2 Pulled From 177 Countries Due to PSN Linking Requirement, Arrowhead 'Talking Solutions'

As Helldiver 2's reviews continue to collapse on Steam, Arrowhead's best-selling action game has been pulled from around 177 countries in the wake of the new PSN account linking requirement that has turned its fanbase upside down. Egypt, Georgia, Jamaica, and Morocco are some of the notable countries where Helldivers 2 can no longer be purchased due PSN not being available, sparking confusion among fans. Japan is also among the countries listed, but according to SteamDB it has a separate package and is still available, though users can't buy the "global version." In the meantime, Helldivers 2's recent reviews on Steam are now "Overwhelmingly Negative" amid continued review bombing by fans. On Friday, Arrowhead CEO Johan Pilstedt...

View full article »

Daily Deals: CRKD Nitro Deck, Assassin's Creed: The Ezio Collection, Tekken 8

After a successful Star Wars Day, Sunday is here, and we've got all kinds of deals for you to explore! From games to technology, there are all kinds of gift ideas if you're still in search of a last-minute Mother's Day gift. The best deals for Sunday, May 5, include the CRKD Nitro Deck, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Nintendo Switch OLED, Tekken 8, and more. CRKD Nitro Deck for $44.98 The CRKD Nitro Deck is the ultimate Nintendo Switch accessory. You simply slide the console into the Nitro Deck, which then offers an ergonomic grip and feel around the system. By far, the best feature of this accessory is the Hall Effect Thumbsticks, which guarantee zero stick drift. This is easily one of the best Nintendo Switch accessories you can buy...

View full article »

Lord of the Rings Fans Mourn King Théoden Actor Bernard Hill, Dead at 79

Bernard Hill, who found fame as King Théoden in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy and as Captain Smith in Titanic, has died. He was 79. Hill died early Sunday morning, his agent told the BBC. His representative did not share the cause of death. A long-time Hollywood veteran, Hill's most recent role was in BAFTA-winning drama The Reponder alongside Martin Freeman. Over the years he's appeared in a variety of movies including Gandhi and The Scorpion King, as well as Fable III. But he remains best-known for his memorable turn as King Théoden in Two Towers and Return of the King. The role forever associated him with Lord of the Rings, though he admitted that he was "not interested" in Rings of Power, calling it a "money-making...

View full article »

Daily Deals: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, LEGO Star Wars The Child

May 4th is here, which means it is officially Star Wars Day! To celebrate, all kinds of Star Wars games, toys, and products are available on sale today! The best deals for Saturday, May 4, include Star Wars Outlaws, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Nintendo Switch OLED, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, and more. Get a $15 Gift Card with a Star Wars Outlaws Pre-Order To celebrate Star Wars Day, Best Buy is offering a $15 gift card with the pre-order of Star Wars Outlaws. This applies to all versions of the game across platforms. The game is set to release on August 30, so be sure to get your pre-order in now for a free gift card! Star Wars Jedi: Survivor for $25 What better way to celebrate Star Wars Day than to pick up Star Wars Jedi...

View full article »

Forgotten Gems: The Legendary Ogre Battle

Forgotten Gems is a regular column about notable games that have moved out of the public eye and may not be easily accessible anymore. To see all the other games I've covered so far, be sure to check out the 11 previous issues of Forgotten Gems in our Columns section. I can’t look at the box art for Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen without “hearing” Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen. From its iconic main theme to the cheers and jeers sounds when liberating towns, and the muffled “fight it out” and “thank you!” voice samples – it all comes right back. I haven’t played this – now sadly obscure – SNES strategy RPG in three decades, but booting up the dusty Japanese cartridge on my Super Nt instantly reminds me why I...

View full article »

How to Play Through the Canon Star Wars Games in Order

Although Star Wars has become a fixture of movie culture over the generations, it's also left a signature stamp on the world of video games. From LEGO spin-offs and NES movie adaptations to pod-racing simulators, it's hard to talk to someone about games they loved as a kid without the words Star Wars cropping up in there somewhere. And as the series has grown into a powerhouse in the gaming world, so too have video games become a key part of the Star Wars universe as a whole. In recent years, we've seen more and more video games become official parts of the franchise's canon timeline, whether that's Cal Kestis' adventures through a post-Order-66 world in the Star Wars Jedi series or Iden Versio's transformation from Empire trooper to...

View full article »

Wizards of the Coast Admits 'Mistakes' Around Dungeons & Dragons AI Art While Releasing New FAQ

Wizards of the Coast has released a new FAQ addressing the use of generative AI (GenAI)in Dungeons & Dragons and admitting it "made mistakes" in its lack of transparency regarding this use in its art. The official D&D Beyond X/Twitter account made a post with a link to a new FAQ that aimed to "address how [Wizards of the Coast] assess and respond to generative AI concerns" regarding art commissions for both Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering. "Recently, we've had a few occasions where art used in marketing and game pieces has been publicly scrutinized, including for the possible inclusion of generative AI," the opening paragraph of the FAQ reads. " During this time, we've made mistakes while at the same time have also seen...

View full article »

Viz Media Announces Magic: The Gathering Manga With an Exclusive Card

Yesterday, Viz Media announced the English release of a Magic the Gathering manga series called "Destroy All Humans. They Can't Be Regenerated." The manga’s physical release, due later this fall, will also come with an exclusive Magic card. Destroy All Humans. They Can’t Be Regenerated, written by Katsura Ise and drawn by Takuma Yakota, is an ongoing manga series that was first published in 2018, according to MyAnimeList. The series, which takes place in 1998, follows a junior high school student named Hajime Kanou who goofs off with his friends by playing Magic: The Gathering. This garners negative attention from the school’s top student and Hajime’s academic rival, Emi Sawatari, who scolds him for bringing Magic to school. Their...

View full article »

Arrowhead CEO Apologizes As Helldivers 2 Is Review Bombed on Steam: 'I Just Want to Make Great Games'

Arrowhead CEO Johaan Pilstedt has released a statement apologizing to disgruntled Helldivers 2 fans in the wake of Sony forcing Steam players to link their accounts to a PlayStation Network Account in order to continue playing the wildly popular third-person shooter. Earlier today, Sony released a statement announcing that new Helldivers 2 PC players will be asked to link their Steam accounts to a PlayStation Network account on May 6 in order to continue playing the game. This, in turn, sparked outrage from players on social media, with fans threatening to quit the game cold turkey over the new mandate, demand refunds, and flood Helldivers 2 with negative review scores. According to Helldivers 2’s Steam customer review tab, the game...

View full article »

Everything You Need to Know About the Party Royale World of Seal: What the Fun

Seal: What the Fun is out now in Early Access on PC via Steam, welcoming players from around the world to compete and have fun in its chaotic, unpredictable, and hijinks-packed party royale world. This will be one party for the ages, and we’re here to help break down everything you need to know about the brand-new game you won’t be able to put down. Seal: What the Fun is all about getting straight to the mayhem and not overstaying its welcome. Each match starts with about 20 players and lasts only 10 minutes with three rounds of rotating party games. These games range from shooting sports to racing, climbing, surviving, and puzzle matching and the game supports solo and teamplay so you can get the exact party vibe that you want...

View full article »

Forget The One Ring, a Magic: The Gathering Card Just Sold for $3 Million

The Lord of the Rings' special One Ring Magic: The Gathering card sold for a record-breaking $2 million in 2023, but that record has already been broken with a 1993 Black Lotus selling for $3 million. As reported by Kotaku, the 1993 card was graded a "Pristine" 10/10 and comes from the original Magic: The Gathering set, Limited Edition Alpha (commonly known as Alpha). Black Lotus has historically been the most sought after Magic: The Gathering card, but others have sold for several hundred thousand dollars at most. This Black Lotus is from the original printing of the first Magic: The Gathering set, however, compared to previous versions which have typically been from Beta, the second printing of the first set. Only two Pristine...

View full article »

Riot Claims New League of Legends Anti-Cheat Software Is Not Bricking PCs After Community Outcry

Less than a week after Riot rolled out League of Legends' polarizing new anti-cheat software, the developer has publicly responded to claims of PCs being bricked by the program. Three days ago Riot rolled out a new anti-cheat software called Vanguard as part of League of Legends Patch 14.9. The developer wrote in the patch notes that the software would ensure that League of Legends' "queues are free from scripters, botters, and cheaters!" Unfortunately, some League of Legends players have reported that after the patch was installed, some users have turned to social media, particularly Reddit, claiming that their PC has been bricked as a result of the new anti-cheat software added to League of Legends. In a statement posted on the...

View full article »

Apex Legends Alter Abilities and ALL Season 21 Update Details

Apex Legends latest Season Upheaval will be dropping May 6th and there are some huge map, gameplay and weapon changes, and a new Legend. Alter is the 26th Legend to be added to the roster and she'll be joining the Skirmisher Class. But that's not all! The best news? Solos is back! Here’s all the new content coming to Apex Legends Season 21. Alter's Abilities Void Passage (Tactical): Alter creates a breaching portal that can be placed on ceilings, doorways, and walls. Gift from the Rift (Passive): See death boxes through walls and take one item from it Void Nexus (Ultimate): Alter will deploy a Nexus to use as a translocator. Alter and her teammates can activate the Nexus to phase back to that location at any time, even if you’ve...

View full article »

Fallout 4 Next-Gen Update Performance Review (PS5 vs Xbox Series X|S)

Now that the belated “next-gen” Fallout 4 update has finally arrived (nearly four years into said generation), Bethesda has at last offered up and enhanced way to play on Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5. However, the bar was already set fairly high by the excellent Xbox Backward Compatibility programme, of which Fallout 4 was an early beneficiary: thanks to the Xbox One X 4K patch and then the FPS boost, we already had the choice of whether to run in high frame rate or resolution modes (not both) on Xbox Series X and Series S. At least, that’s the idea. Currently it’s a bit broken on Xbox, but we can expect it to run as well as the PlayStation 5 version soon, and the improvements there are welcome. If you’re playing on Xbox Series...

View full article »

Hellblade 2 PC Requirements Revealed

With 18 days to go until Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 releases on PC and Xbox, developer Ninja Theory has finally revealed the system requirements PC players need to get its next project running on their rigs. In a post on X/Twitter, the official Ninja Theory account revealed the hardware needed for users to get Hellblade 2 running at various graphical presets. Regardless of the GPU and CPU in your rig, all PC players will need 16GB of RAM and to free up 70GB of space on their solid-state drive (SSD). To run the game at the minimum graphical preset (low 1080p resolution), players will need either an Intel i5-8400 or an AMD Ryzen 5 2600 as their CPU with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070, AMD Radeon RX 5700, or an Intel Arc A580 as their...

View full article »

IGN UK Podcast 747: A Great Time for Sweaty Films

Cardy, Emma, and Mat are here to talk about a right ol' mixture of games, movies, and TV shows this week. We tell you why Another Crab's Treasure is seabed-based souls-like you should give a bash. How Challengers and Love Lies Bleeding are two of the sweatiest films you could wish to see. And there's even time to talk about some twenty-year-old TV shows in the shape of Dexter and The Wire. Oh, and some surprise musical treats... What's the best thing to put gravy on? Get in touch at ign_ukfeedback@ign.com. IGN UK Podcast 747: A Great Time for Sweaty Films IGN UK Podcast 746: Is Gravy on Fish Wrong? IGN UK Podcast 745: Our Favourite 5 Hours or Less Games IGN UK Podcast 744: We Don't Want to Set the World on Fire IGN UK Podcast 743...

View full article »

Redfall Anniversary Comes and Goes as Those Who Bought $100 Edition Still Await Promised DLC

Redfall's one year anniversary came and went on May 2, 2024 with no word from publisher Bethesda despite the widely panned game receiving no updates in six months and owners of the $100 edition still awaiting additional content. As reported by Kotaku, fans who bought the $100 Bite Back Edition of Redfall, despite the base game being available day one at no additional cost to Xbox Game Pass subscribers, were hoping for an announcement regarding their missing downloadable content as an anniversary celebration. No mention came from developer Arkane, Bethesda, or larger owner Xbox, however, leaving November 2023's patch notes as the last communication on this missing content. "We’re continuing development of The Hero Pass and we’re...

View full article »