Image: Samar Haddad / The Verge Not all video games need video. Over the years, games that exist only in audio have taken players into entirely new worlds in which there’s nothing to see and still everything to do. These games have huge accessibility implications, allowing people who can’t see to play an equally fun, equally immersive game with their other senses. And when all you have is sound, there’s actually even more you can do to make your game great. On this episode of The Vergecast, we explore the history of audio-only games with Paul Bennun, who has been in this space longer than most. Years ago, Bennun and his team at Somethin’ Else made a series of games called Papa Sangre that were among the most innovative and most popular games of their kind. He explains... Continue reading… View the full article
The MMO world of Gray Zone Warfare has tasks for you to complete for different characters, including the "True Grit" mission where you have to find an Antique Revolver. This task is given by the NPC Handshake, a man willing to give you plenty of rewards for finishing this job. However, the arbitrary instructions for this mission can be hard to interpret as you search for this historical *******. View the full article
Cyberpunk 2077 infamously had an awful launch, but some recent positive reviews have put the game in a much better position. At the time of writing, Cyberpunk 2077 is currently sitting at an "overwhelmingly positive" rating for recent reviews. For those that don't know, that means at least 95% of the most recent 7000 reviews from the last 30 days are positive, a difficult to achieve feat for most Steam games given how… well, how gamers can be sometimes, if you know what I mean. Cyberpunk is still just at "very positive" for all reviews, but there are more than 650,000 of those, so that'll probably take a while longer to fix. Unsurprisingly, this has meant a lot to CD Projekt Red's global community director Marcin Momot and associate game director Paweł Sasko. On Twitter, Momot shared a screencap of the fact that the game has hit 95% positive reviews recently, thanking players profusely for the achievement. Sasko quote tweeted Momot's post, saying "You can't imagine how much it means to me. I have never been close to giving up and always believed this could be somehow possible, but never thought I will actually see it. Thank you so much for the second chance chooms." Read more View the full article
The latest Honkai: Star Rail ***** disclosed new information about Feixiao and Yunli, giving fans an idea of their abilities. Following the release of the version 2.3 beta test, leaks about some new characters, such as Jiaoqiu, Feixiao, Yunli, and Screwllum, have emerged online. One piece of information obtained from leakers suggested that these units will be obtainable in Honkai: Star Rail's version 2.4 and beyond. View the full article
With Payday 3 still struggling to recover from a rocky launch, one free Steam game that's worth your time has just added a new casino heist mission. The glitz and glamor of the Vegas lights are enticing enough, but the allure of all successfully lifting that cash has long been the pinnacle of heist games. GTA 5 and San Andreas will always stick in the mind for their respective offerings, and now One-Armed ******* is joining the fray with its new update. Read the rest of the story... RELATED LINKS: 9/10 Payday style free Steam game gets refined with new map This free Steam game is like Payday 3, but with a chaotic twist View the full article
Remember when zombie media was everywhere? You couldn't go outside without being assaulted by zombie movies, undead TV shows, or infected videogames. The likes of Resident Evil, Left 4 *****, The Last of Us, and ***** Rising all come to mind, but there's never been anything like Dying Light. Combining close-quarters zombie slaying with frenetic parkour, the open-world RPG is having quite the resurgence on Steam, and it's all thanks to it being dirt cheap. Read the rest of the story... RELATED LINKS: Top zombie survival RPG returns and you can grab it for less than $3 Dying Light says farewell with Definitive Edition - includes 26 DLCs Dying Light's 'Last Call' event caps off 7 years of regular updates View the full article
A new Escape From Tarkov update has arrived, and developer Battlestate Games is making an experimental reversal of one of its longest-discussed changes. Following its recent controversy around the new Unheard Edition and offline PvE mode with persistent progression, the tactical extraction shooter is trialing a major change to trade ahead of the next EFT wipe. Read the rest of the story... RELATED LINKS: New ***** mod turns the FPS classic into a take on Escape From Tarkov When is the next Escape from Tarkov wipe? Escape From Tarkov dev finally apologizes for pricey PvE controversy View the full article
Marvel Rivals is finally in player's hands, except the contract they have to sign to play the alpha technically doesn't let them say anything bad about it. Obviously developers never want people to say bad things about their game, but in general, it comes with the territory. Not everything is going to be for everyone, and someone's going to have an amount of criticism even if they do like something. So how do you avoid that? Why, by having a section of the terms of service for your alpha where those that sign it "agree not to make any public statements or engage in discussions that are detrimental to the reputation of the game." That's exactly what Marvel Rivals is doing, as shared by former professional eSports player and Twitch streamer Brandon "A_Seagull" Larned, who shared a look at the contract that both players and content creators will have had to have signed to play the game. This particular part of the contract, titled "non-disparagement" explains that "this includes, but is not limited to: making disparaging or satirical comments about any game-related material, such as game features, characters or music" and "engaging in malicious comparisons with competitors or belittling the gameplay or differences of Marvel Rivals or providing subjective negative reviews of the game." That last part is definitely odd wording, as literally all reviews are subjective, so I'm not sure how anyone could argue that their assessment of the game is somehow objective. Read more View the full article
On May 7, Xbox announced that it had shut down several of its game development studios, including Tango Gameworks, known for its beloved game Hi-Fi Rush. Following this announcement, players have decided to show their love for the title through Steam reviews. Following its closure, several players flocked to its Steam page to bombard it with positive reviews, applauding the studio for its accomplishments and expressing their love for the game and its quality. View the full article
A colorful Fallout 4 glitch has inadvertently awarded a player with a bright blue suit of the game's iconic power armor. The unusual visual glitch amused fellow Fallout 4 fans and prompted speculation regarding the bug's likely origins. View the full article
When Baldurs Gate 3 players aren't romancing Astarion and swooning over his snarky lines, theyre often using the rogue to pick locks and disarm traps, though there are some alternatives to the latter that players are just now finding out about. Though his nimble fingers come in handy, sometimes theres just not enough room in the party for him, and traveling back and forth between the camp just for his lockpicking skills is annoying (and not always available). View the full article
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While attempting to ****** down a wolf in the distance, a Skyrim player's arrow finds its mark on an altogether different ******. Over twelve years have passed since Skyrim launched, and players have perfected a plethora of builds that suit a variety of playstyles. However, few have been as iconic as the stealth archer, and it's a classic that both newcomers and The Elder Scrolls veterans can enjoy. View the full article
Manor Lords is already a surprisingly robust game for a title that's just hit early access, but an update that might be coming in the future could up things to a whole new level. As the project of solo developer Slavic Magic, the city builder with a side helping of battle tactics has picked up a lot of positive attention after its mounting pre-launch anticipation. It isn't without its limits, however, and Slavic Magic is currently in the process of deciding just where the game's future will take it. View the full article
Even with the PlayStation Network (PSN) requirement now reversed, Helldivers 2 is in a rough spot. The Sony-published game has been delisted on Steam in almost 200 territories, with developer Arrowhead telling players it's trying to bring it back to Valve's platform. What started as Sony's best PC launch to date has very quickly turned sour, as even with PSN no longer being required, the damage has been done. Read the rest of the story... RELATED LINKS: Helldivers 2 just made one of its biggest challenges yet even tougher Helldivers 2 still endures after this week's disaster - here's why Helldivers 2 Warbond details - Polar Patriots Warbond release info View the full article
History repeated itself when Fallout 4's next-gen update arrived broken, but Bethesda has promised an update is coming next week. It must be written in a contract somewhere that anything Bethesda does with Fallout 4, it has to be buggy as all *****, because that's the only reason I can imagine the game's next-gen update released in the state it did. Maybe it's just tradition too, but it is a bit of a pain nonetheless, so much so that some of Fallout 4's most popular mods recently were just ones that got rid of the update. Thankfully, though, it seems like Bethesda is working on some fixes for the update. As Bethesda shared in a post from its official Twitter account, "On Monday, May 13 we will be updating Fallout 4 on all platforms. This update will include new options for graphics and performance settings as well as further fixes and improvements. Thanks for your continued feedback and support!" Whether that'll outright fix all of the update's problems, we'll obviously have to wait until the patch drops tomorrow to find out, but it's something at the very least. In the meantime, you're probably better off playing the game without the next-gen update, if only so that you can comfortably play the game with your favourite mods. Read more View the full article
The Helldivers 2 PSN fiasco might be over now, but it seems that Ghost of Tsushima won't be releasing in nearly 180 countries on Steam due to its PSN requirement. For a long while now, PlayStation has been finding quite a lot of success by releasing its first-party titles on Steam, even if the ports have needed some fixes along the way. Recently, though, it made a bit of a large blunder by forcing Helldivers 2 PC players to connect a PSN account to their game, something which did not go down well to put it lightly. The game was then removed from ***** in over 170 countries, though the decision was walked back because of how poorly it was received. The backlash was so bad that even ******* Punch had to clarify whether PC players would need to link a PSN account for Ghost of Tsushima's upcoming PC release (the answer is yes, but only for the game's online mode Legends). Well, that does still seem to be the case, except ahead of its release next week, the game has been pulled from ***** in the exact same countries Helldivers 2 was. Players noticed the change on Steam's backend through SteamDB, which appears to list the exact same countries as Helldivers 2 was removed from, all territories where you can't actually make a PSN account (not including Japan, though why it's included I'm not entirely sure). Some players have even reported that they've automatically received a refund from Steam due to its removal, though your mileage may vary there. Read more View the full article
While you wait for Marathon, why don't you play Marathon, the classic Bungie shooter that's currently free on Steam. It's coming up to a year now since Bungie announced it was bringing back Marathon, one of the studio's earliest titles and an important '90s shooter in its own right. There hasn't been a new entry in the series since the third one, Marathon Infinity, and this new entry will be the first non-Destiny title Bungie has worked on since the original Destiny (which is a decade old this year, sorry to say). Now, though, you'll be able to pick up the original 1994 game completely for free on Steam, all thanks to the efforts of the Aleph One community of open-source devs. "This classic 1994 Bungie FPS had a foundational influence on the genre, and is now maintained by the fan community," reads the game's description on Steam. "Experience authentic game play using the original data files, with optional widescreen HUD support, 3D filtering/perspective, positional audio, and 60+ fps interpolation, just in case the original is too authentic." Best of all, both Marathon 2 and Marathon Infinity are coming to Steam too, and you can add them both to your wishlist now so you can be notified when they release. All three games will be available on both Mac and Windows, and will include the features listed above too. Read more View the full article
Hero shooters are everywhere these days. Overwatch 2. Apex Legends. Valorant. Rainbow Six Siege. You can't move without stubbing your toe on one. This is why the upcoming Marvel Rivals, which leverages decades of comic lore and successful films for its characters, has a herculean task ahead of it. Even with that though, the shooter has just detailed a destruction system that could be a piece of the puzzle that helps it find a dedicated audience. Read the rest of the story... RELATED LINKS: Marvel Rivals apologizes for "inappropriate and misleading" contract All Marvel Rivals characters and full roster Marvel Rivals release date estimate, trailers, and latest news View the full article
Overwatch legend Brandon “Seagull” Larned has expressed his disappointment with supposed anti-criticism clauses in Marvel Rivals’ creator contracts that restrict any negative criticism of the game, and has announced he will no longer play Marvel Rivals in protest. Seagull went on a rant in a May 11 livestream while breaking down the non-disparagement section of the Marvel Rivals’ content creator contracts. After playing for several hours, Seagull confirmed with five other content creators they “cannot make any public statements or engage in discussions that are detrimental to the reputation of Marvel Rivals.” The contract also prevents creators from “engaging in malicious comparisons with competitors.” The former Overwatch pro immediately urged creators to do their due diligence before signing contracts, turning off his stream shortly after. View the full article
Vampire Survivors continues to roll out new DLC in ever weirder, more delightful packages this month with Operation Guns, a full-on crossover between the worlds of Vampire Survivors and long-running ******-em-up slash bullet ***** slash action arcade series Contra... Read more.View the full article
I enjoy Any Austin's Skyrim videos, many of which involve calculating the unemployment rate of Skyrim's settlements. He's a chill presence in the Skyrim scene, finding mundane threads and pulling them to see what unravels. His recent video was a perfect example of this, starting on a bridge over the White River in Riverwood and following it to the Sea of Ghosts, taking diversions every time a tributary flowed into it to identify their sources... Read more.View the full article
We discuss indie games like Rabbit and Steel and 1000xResist, go over financial reports for *****, Capcom, and more. Plus, updates to Metaphor: Refantazio and SMTV: Vengeance. Also, release dates for Gundam Breaker 4, Reynatis, and more. View the full article
If you weren’t watching One Piece TCG social media this week, you likely missed the announcement of a new Monkey D. Luffy Leader card with full art of the entire Straw Hat crew heading to Onigashima. If you want it, you’ll have to pay for a pricey subscription service. The Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA) officially announced a partnership with Bandai Namco on May 9 that will bring an exclusive One Piece promo card to the grading company’s Collectors Club service. That means, if you want to get the Luffy Leader “featuring all of the Straw Hat Pirates on one card for the first time,” then you need to spend a minimum of $149.99 for a yearly subscription to PSA’s service. View the full article
Notable Xbox insider Jez Corden recently shared an encouraging update on the status of Undead Labs' upcoming zombie survival game, State of Decay 3. If this latest information ends up being true, it seems like State of Decay 3 could end up being a very big hit for Microsoft when it releases in the near future. View the full article
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The MMO world of Gray Zone Warfare has tasks for you to complete for different characters, including the "True Grit" mission where you have to find an Antique Revolver. This task is given by the NPC Handshake, a man willing to give you plenty of rewards for finishing this job. However, the arbitrary instructions for this mission can be hard to interpret as you search for this historical *******. View the full article