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The latest PC gaming news and reviews of gaming PC hardware, software and accessories.
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Steam In-Home Streaming beta opens this year
Steam will begin the beta for its home streaming system this year – what's left of this year, at least – with candidates chosen at random from members of the Homestream group on Steam. In-Home Streaming will allow users to stream games from one computer to any other in the same house, Steam says. Steam In-Home Streaming is the backbone of Valve's Steam Machines, its customizable gaming hardware, and SteamOS, its Linux-based operating system. With all of these pieces, Valve hopes to create open, in-home gaming networks connecting the desktop to the couch.
Gamers can now apply to beta test Steam's In-Home Streaming service
A big part of Valve's steamy vision of the future will be the ability to play full-fledged PC games on a relatively small living room machine, by streaming them to the Steam client from a main gaming PC in another room. (Much like Remote Play on the PS4 and Vita, or NVIDIA's GameStreaming from a PC to its Shield handheld.) Although the SteamOS and Steam Machine projects are still a long way off, Valve says it'll start beta testing of this particular feature by the end of this year. Testers will be randomly selected from among members of the relevant Steam Community group, so join up at the source link to put your name in the hat.
Valve responds to fan outrage at Dota 2's missing Diretide
Halloween events might just seem like a trivial little thing to you, but they are serious business in Dota 2. Valve didn't turn on the game's Diretide event this year, and the resulting fan outrage could probably be bottled up and used to start fires. So what in the world happened? A week or so out from Halloween proper, the company has finally addressed the controversy in a new blog post explaining why the event failed to materialize. In short: The team was working on a major update that was meant to be ready around Halloween, so the assumption was that it would be easier just to launch that. Then it got delayed, and there was no time to stop working on that and start working on Diretide. Once the time came and the event was still missing, what happened was more or less a matter of figuring out how to fix it rather than simply stating that the company was aware. It looks as if the game's next update will contain a somewhat belated Diretide, which may not fix the problem but will at least help ameliorate lingering hurt feelings.
Valve 'underestimated' desire for Dota 2 event, explains lack of Diretide
Last year, Valve ran a special in-game event for Dota 2, called "Diretide," to coincide with the real-world event of Halloween. This year, Diretide was nowhere to be found, and it's only been just recently that Valve explained why. So why no Diretide this year? According to a post on the Dota 2 blog, a "significant" update was taking up most of the team's focus and energy. The team reasoned that ceasing work on the update to work on Diretide "seemed like something you would actually be unhappy with us for." As for why Valve waited until now to explain themselves: "You were already mad and disappointed in the lack of Diretide. Telling you that you weren't getting it at all wouldn't have really helped much," the post states. To make amends, Diretide will be coming to Dota 2 with the next update. When that update will hit, however, is a question currently lacking an answer. The blog also notes that, "while we always want the community to tell us exactly how we're doing, this is probably a good time to stop cc'ing innocent car manufacturers with your messages." The post doesn't mention it, but one Dota 2 developer community member has also tweeted that he'll involve the police if he gets another call about Diretide on his personal number. So, you know, maybe stop harassing people. Update: We incorrectly referred to the individual who received harassment via phone as a Dota 2 developer, when they are, in fact, not. The text has been updated to reflect the correction.
Shadowy platformer A Walk in the Dark now on Steam
Indie platformer A Walk in the Dark is now available on Steam. Priced at $6.99, the game has players leaping around lethal obstacles in shadowy levels as a cat named Bast, searching for its owner Arielle. The game draws apt comparisons to other challenging platformers like Limbo, VVVVVV and Super Meat Boy, as each game was a key influence for developer Flying Turtle. Similar to Limbo, the platformer includes "gravity inversion" mechanics in some levels, and seen in the screen above, a rather nefarious-looking spider. A Walk in the Dark was among a group of 100 games that were granted distribution on Steam thanks to Valve's Greenlight service in August.
Forkstarter collects all Devolver Digital sales in one snarky place
Forkstarter gets its name and mission from Devolver Digital CEO Fork Parker: "Forkstarter is an extremely for profit organization created to enrich the lives of independent game developers worldwide Devolver Digital CFO Fork Parker." At least he's honest. Forkstarter displays all of the Devolver Digital Steam sales happening right now, covering Hotline Miami, Foul Play, Shadow Warrior, Shadow Warrior Classic Redux, Dungeon Hearts, Defense Technica, Duke Nukem 3D and the Serious Sam games, each up to 85 percent off. We noted a few of these deals in yesterday's Steam Weekend Sale post, though we didn't mention Foul Play, which is a real treat. Just a friendly reminder to get these games for cheap this weekend. Otherwise, you'll have to give Fork Parker even more money – though it seems he wouldn't mind.
Total War: Rome 2 will scratch SteamOS strategy gaming itch
Fans of historical, real-time strategy now have more reasons to be excited for Valve's upcoming SteamOS: Developer Creative Assembly has announced plans to bring Total War: Rome 2 to the platform. "We've always wanted the Total War franchise to be enjoyed by living room gamers, but the limitations of traditional hardware made our style of game play impossible," reads an announcement on the game's Steam community page. "Last month, when Valve invited us to test out the new Steam Controller and unveiled their plans for SteamOS - we were impressed." "We believe it will provide us with the control fidelity and platform we need to make a living room experience for [Total War: Rome 2] that could be a more compelling experience than playing with keyboard and mouse." There is no official launch date for the SteamOS version of Total War: Rome 2, though Creative Assembly claims it will debut "early next year." For now however, Steam is currently hosting a sale that reduces the price of the game by 25 percent. Purchase it now, and once the SteamOS version has launched, it will automatically be added to your list of Steam games.
Steam weekend deals: Devolver, Total War and Blood Dragon
Strategy, action, bloody arcade madness? Steam is having a sale on all of those this weekend! First up, publisher Devolver's dropping discounts on Hotline Miami ($2.49), Shadow Warrior ($26.79) and the Serious Sam series ($14.24 for all of 'em). Also discounted this weekend is Sega's strategic Total War: Rome 2 for $44.96, which is 25 percent off. Wrapping up the weekend deals (as far as we know, at this moment in time) is a bundle of Call of Juarez Gunslinger and '80s neon wash romp Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon at 50 percent off for $12.50 – also available at $7.50 apiece. Steam reserves the right to add even more weekend sales whenever it feels like it.
RIFT sees a player surge thanks to Steam
The near-ubiquity of Steam as a distribution platform can certainly drive players to your game. A little less than a week after RIFT launched on Steam, Trion Worlds is reporting that RIFT and Defiance have seen a combined influx of 250,000 new players, beating out the numbers reported both for the launch of Storm Legion and RIFT's free-to-play conversion. It's the largest influx of players the game has ever seen since its original launch, for that matter: Trion says it made for the "highest single day gain in new users" since the game first opened its doors. What does that mean for the long run? That's the eternal question. RIFT launched its most recent major patch yesterday, but whether or not it will encourage players new to the game to subscribe or buy things in the cash shop is up for debate. Regardless, it's a good sign of health for the game as a whole, so congratulations are in order to the RIFT team on the number bump. [Source: Trion Worlds press release]
You Don't Know Jack Steam bundle celebrates 18 funny years
The You Don't Know Jack Classic Pack is now available on Steam. The $20 bundle offers players the original games in the series stretching back to 1995's Vol. 1 XL. Each of the nine trivia games are available individually for $2.99 save for Vol. 6, which costs $1.99. The Classic Pack is a $5.92 discount on the combined price of the games. Developer Jackbox Games, formerly Jellyvision Games, has since developed You Don't Know Jack for a number of platforms. The developer updated the Facebook and mobile versions of the latest entry in the trivia series to unlock free and unlimited daily access for all users, and the $2.99 "Royale" upgrade offers in-game bonuses and strips away ads from the game.
DotA 2 pink war dog courier sells for $38,000
Pricey items aren't just for MMOs -- MOBAs are getting in on the action as well. DotA 2 secured its place in the ranks of titles where in-game items have sold for exorbitant real-life sums when an ethereal flame pink war dog sold for a whopping $38,000. The war dog is a courier, an item used to transport items from your team to your base as well as from the base to your team. Why did this particular virtual item fetch such a hefty amount? According to the seller, this item is a very rare combination of the most sought-after courier type, effect, and color; only four others are known to exist.
Super Meat Boy now $3 thanks to Steam's Midweek Madness sale
If you haven't yet experienced the soul-crushing difficulty of Super Meat Boy, now's your chance: From now until 7PM on November 7, the indie platformer is available on Steam at an 80 percent discount. Including 300-plus stages, boss fights and sadistic jumping puzzles, Super Meat Boy is not for the faint of heart. It does however, offer immense bragging rights for anyone able to finish the game. Then, once you've trumped every level, you can start building your own diabolical masterpieces in the game's level editor, or pour another dozen hours into Super Meat Boy seeking its hidden warp areas and well-hidden secret characters. The one major caveat here is that while you can play Super Meat Boy on a keyboard, the game's split-second timing almost demands players utilize a gamepad. Fortunately, the game's rudimentary control scheme lends itself well to almost any controller, including Sony's new DualShock 4.
Twin-stick puzzle-em-up Velocity Ultra also heading to Steam
Velocity Ultra is bringing its mix of vertical shooting and teleport puzzling to Steam, as well as PS3. The PC port of FuturLab's Vita game is being handled by Curve Studios, the same team working on the PS3 port. According to Curve, the PC version runs at 60 frames per second, and should make for a nice stocking stufffer when it arrives around Christmas time. FuturLab, meanwhile, is working on PS4 and Vita sequel Velocity 2X, as announced at Sony's Gamescom conference. 2X features top-down shooting and side-scroller platforming, which Futurlab hopes to weave into "one seamless experience."
State of Decay comes to the PC courtesy of Steam
PC gamers feeling left out while watching their Xbox comrades playing State of Decay can wipe those tears away; the zombie survival title has arrived on Steam. State of Decay is available through the digital distribution platform for a straight-up $19.99. If you're curious about Undead Labs' maiden game, then check out our hands-on coverage. The game was a huge hit on the Xbox and hopefully will be followed by an MMO set in the same world. Undead is also preparing the first DLC for State of Decay called Breakdown that will come to both the PC and Xbox. [Thanks to Soren for the tip!]
Valve won't develop exclusive games for SteamOS, Steam Machines
Half-Life 3, if it exists, will not be exclusive to Valve's SteamOS or Steam Machines, nor will Portal 3, Left 4 Dead 3 or Team Fortress 3, if those games are in the works. Valve will not develop a game exclusive to SteamOS or Steam Machines, designer Greg Coomer told IGN. "You won't see an exclusive killer app for SteamOS from us," Coomer said. "We're not going to be doing that kind of thing." Valve spokesperson Anna Sweet added, "That would go against our whole philosophy, to launch something that's exclusive to SteamOS or Steam Machines." Sweet doesn't even want third-party games to be exclusive to Steam products: "Whenever we talk to third-party partners, we encourage them to put their games in as many places as possible, including not on our platforms. Because we think that customers are everywhere, and they want to put their games wherever customers are." Engadget did some open-box surgery on the Steam Machine prototypes Valve is sending out to 300 beta testers, and it went hands-on with the Steam Controller. Coomer told Engadget to expect more information on Steam Machines at CES in January.
Battle the undead Reich in standalone Nazi Zombie Army 2
No longer an amusing diversion attached to the Sniper Elite series, Nazi Zombie Army 2 is now available for purchase on Steam all by its lonesome. Nazi Zombie Army 2 pits teams of up to four players against ambulatory corpses that were once members of the Third Reich. That's at least two solid reasons to blow their heads off, which is fortunate as the game maintains much of the "kill people at range in spectacular fashion"-appeal that made the Sniper Elite series a cult classic. However, don't expect to be able to find a comfy ledge from which to carefully pick off zombies unable to reach you. Close quarters combat is a clear focus of Nazi Zombie Army 2, as a distant zombie is about as dangerous as a somnambulist kitten with a busted paw. Can't wait to re-kill those unfortunates already killed by the horrors of war? Nazi Zombie Army 2 is available right now via Steam for $15. There is currently no word on when or if Nazi Zombie Army 2 might infect home consoles.
Pre-order Injustice Ultimate Edition on Steam, earn 10% discount
The PC version of Injustice: Gods Among Us is a bit late to the party, but to convince would be Batmen - Batmans? - to grab a copy, Steam is now offering a discount to any who pre-order the fighter. Being an Ultimate Edition, the PC game includes all of the heroes, villains, costumes and STAR Labs missions included in the initial release of Injustice: Gods Among Us, as well as the game's copious DLC additions. In sum, that's six additional characters, 30 new costumes and 60 extra missions to test your crime fighting (or causing) abilities. This 10 percent discount is currently available to any Steam user, though keep in mind that it's only valid for a limited time. Once Injustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition launches on November 12, it will return to its standard $50 price point.
Valve showcases a handful of prototype Steam Controllers
Valve recently showed off a few of its Steam Machines and Steam Controller hardware precursors to our friends at Engadget. Among the group of hacked-together gadgets was a motion controller that used pieces from the Razer Hydra controller described by designer Greg Coomer as "a Frankenstein" game pad. That particular prototype controller broke apart with "gyroscopes or magnetic sensors in either path, to sense orientation and position." As seen in Engadget's photos, other prototype controllers featured touch pads similar to the official Steam Controller unveiled in late September, and others still even had large trackballs. We'd like to think that Valve was developing its own Golden Tee machine at one point with those controllers at the forefront. Coomer also discussed a prototype device that acted as a "communication and input core," which hasn't been completely shelved by the company just yet. Resembling a phone, the gadget wound up being "more abstract and farther removed from anything people were familiar with," and ultimately introduced "noise to the experience of playing your games."
A look inside Valve's Steam Machine prototype
Our techie pals at Engadget went hands-on with Valve's Steam Machine prototype, and by hands-on we mean they surgically investigated the thing, as the above image attests. The company's new line-up of gaming machines will support the Linux-based SteamOS, and are coming in multiple forms next year via third-party manufacturers. What Engadget took a look at is Valve's own prototype, which is going into the hands of just 300 beta testers. "Really we just wanna have confidence that all the customers on Steam are having enough options, and that the price/performance spectrum is as fleshed out as Steam customers want it to be," Valve designer Greg Coomeer told Engadget when pushed on the Machines' availability outside of beta. "And right now, the indications that we have from the lineup that we're gonna be talking about at CES, is that they are gonna have enough choice. So we're gonna continue to treat this as a test platform and see how that goes." So, more news on the Steam Machines at January's CES trade show. That's two of Valve's big three September reveals covered, just leaving the Steam Controller. Well, Engadget has you covered there too, so head that way for a hands-on look at the twin-trackpad peripheral.
Rumor: Upcoming Steam sale dates leaked
Starting dates for a pair of upcoming Steam sales have been allegedly leaked, indicating that Valve will launch a round of price drops later this month, followed by another catalog-wide sale in December. Details were divulged in an e-mail to sale-eligible developers, captured in a screenshot here and originally published at Reddit. According to the e-mail, Valve will hold its Steam Autumn Sale from November 27 through December 3, followed by a Steam Holiday Sale between December 19 and January 2. According to an unconfirmed report on Reddit, the e-mail is genuine, and was leaked by a recently Greenlit developer. GameTrailers' @Wario64 corroborates the e-mail, confirming that the noted dates are correct.
