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Steam is green again on its 20th anniversary
In the world of console video games, Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo stand as titans. For PC gamers, however, Steam reigns supreme. Valve's distribution platform may not be the only place to buy and play games on the PC, but it's easily among the largest, oldest and most iconic. Today, Valve is celebrating Steam's 20th anniversary.
Bethesda PC Launcher users can now start migrating to Steam
Players will no longer be able to access games starting on May 11th.
'Crash Bandicoot 4' comes to PC on March 26th
'Crash Bandicoot: On the Run!' is also arriving on iOS and Android in a couple of weeks.
A bunch of EA classics are on sale at Amazon
Amazon's huge EA games sale includes classic PC titles and new games, some for as low as $2.
The latest 'Cyberpunk 2077' video shows off its ray-tracing features
CD Projekt Red and NVIDIA also revealed the PC requirements for ray-tracing.
‘Red Dead Redemption 2’ comes to Xbox Game Pass on May 7th
One of the best games of this console generation -- Red Dead Redemption 2 -- will come to Xbox Game Pass on May 7th.
‘Saints Row: The Third Remastered’ will debut May 22nd
‘Saints Row: The Third Remastered’ will be out on May 22nd with visual updates.
‘Sea of Thieves’ is coming to Steam with crossplay
Microsoft's buccaneering simulator, Sea of Thieves, already has 10 million players on Xbox One and Windows 10. The company announced that the game is coming soon to Steam, adding to an already large stable of Microsoft games on Valve's platform, and allowing existing Steam users to connect more easily with friends. The game, which was developed by Rare, challenges players to complete voyages across the open seas. What makes things more interesting is the fact that crews can run into pirate ships manned by other gamers -- and attempt to plunder their booty.
Capcom delays ‘Resident Evil Resistance’ PS4 and Steam betas
The remake of Resident Evil 3 will be out in just a few weeks, but Capcom wanted to give eager gamers the chance to play Resident Evil Resistance -- a multiplayer game that comes with Resident Evil 3 -- a bit early. The publisher had planned on opening a public beta today on Steam, PS4 and Xbox One, but only the latter has launched on time, as the company announced that technical issues have caused delays for the Steam and PS4 versions. Capcom didn't mention what exactly those problems are, or how long it expects the delay to last. Only 14 days remain until the retail launch of both titles, so hopefully the beta will be available shortly -- otherwise the sneak peek would be rather pointless.
The first ‘Call of Duty: Warzone’ update aims to even the playing field
Call of Duty: Warzone is the long-running franchise's attempt to jump on the free-to-play battle royale bandwagon, and according to critics and players, it's probably worth checking out if you're a fan of the genre -- the game has over 30 million players already. There are some issues, though, and a new patch should take care of a few of them. Namely, custom loadouts will be harder to obtain, meaning players will have a more even selection of weapons -- or will have to play better to gain the advantage of using their favorite guns.
Indie horror classic 'Amnesia' is getting a sequel called 'Rebirth'
Amnesia: The Dark Descent was a breath of fresh air when it hit PCs in 2010. Rather than using Resident Evil, Silent Hill, or any of the other classic survival horror games as a template, it created a unique and exploratory take on the genre. It quickly became a classic -- both as a game and as a livestreaming sensation. Ten years later, fans will finally be able to play a sequel. Frictional Games announced Amensia: Rebirth today and assured players that the game will stay true to the original's roots.
'Black Mesa,' the fan-made 'Half-Life' remake, finally has a release date
Black Mesa has had a lengthy development journey, to say the least. In 2006, fans of Half-Life decided to port the game to the then-new Source engine (upon which Half-Life 2 was based). Valve had actually done so itself, but the results were poor. Crowbar Collective aimed to make a version of Half-Life that offered the same level of polish as its 2004 sequel. But as a small team, updates have been sporadic. Finally, 14 years after the first Black Mesa mod was released, the full version of the game will launch on March 5th via Steam.
EA's game servers went down this morning (updated)
If you've been unable to play Star Wars Battlefront II or log into your Origin account, you're not alone. EA's servers are down, impacting thousands of users. EA and DICE community leader, Ben Wilke, confirmed the issue on Twitter, saying that teams are working on rectifying the problem. EA's help services are slammed due to the outage, and the company's customer support Twitter account warned that representatives may not be reachable at the moment.
'Hades' made me a believer in early access games
Hades is the game that finally got me to try an early-access release. I should explain: I generally feel you should buy a game only once it's been released and reviewed. In an era where physical stock is rarely a concern, pre-ordering games basically means you're giving publishers free money, but early access titles go a step further -- it's like paying to be a beta tester.
Sega Europe is moving to recycled packaging for PC games
Remember when PC games came in a box and you had to buy them at a store? Apparently that's still a thing. To curb pollution and waste, Sega Europe is committing to using 100 percent recycled and 100 percent recyclable packaging for its PC games. The company promises that the boxes and manuals will have a premium look and feel, so collectors can still display their games with pride. The packing materials are printed with water- and vegetable-based inks to further cut down on waste. Even the shrinkwrap is recyclable.
The 1997 ‘Blade Runner’ PC game is now on GOG
Blade Runner, Ridley Scott's 1982 sci-fi noire, has had a complicated history. The production was plagued with setbacks, it bombed in theaters, multiple versions of the movie exist and fans can't agree on whether or not the protagonist is an android. The point-and-click PC game adaptation fared a bit better, until the source code was lost. This meant that the release of a digital download version of the title was extremely unlikely. Fans intervened, though, and together with GOG.com they've reconstructed the game, which is available for less than $10.
Rockstar apologizes for buggy ‘Red Dead Redemption 2’ PC launch
Red Dead Redemption 2 was one of the biggest console hits of 2018. After waiting a full year, PC gamers finally got a chance to play the gritty, Western-themed adventure when it was released last week. However, many experienced game-breaking bugs. Rockstar has apologized for the bumpy start and released fixes for many of the issues. Users who were unable to open Rockstar's launcher or the game application should be able to do so now, and some gamers who experienced glitchy gameplay should notice a big performance improvement.
There's a new 'Super Monkey Ball' game on its way
A new Super Monkey Ball game will be arriving later this year -- at least, it will in Japan. Game magazine Famitsu confirmed this week in a blog post that a new entry in the popular series will be available for PC, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch. The game, apparently titled Tagogo Super Monkey Ball, is scheduled to be available on October 31st in Japan. There's no word yet on if there will be a western release for the title. Update: The game has been officially announced for PS4, Switch, PC and Xbox One, with a US release date of October 29th.
Microsoft's Wireless Display app streams PC games to your Xbox
Microsoft announced today that it has updated its Wireless Display app to add support for the Xbox One. The latest version of the app will allow gamers to stream PC titles from Steam and elsewhere directly to Microsoft's gaming console. The app also offers Xbox controller support so you'll be able to play the game with familiar controls.
Introducing Play It On A Mac
I'm a gamer who doesn't like compromises. I have a gaming PC that runs Windows, but I also have a few Macs around my house as well, and the fact that most PC games found on Steam are Windows-exclusive is a huge bummer. Play it on a Mac is a new weekly series that will offer puzzled Mac gamers the answers they're looking for. There are three main avenues to investigate when trying to get a Windows program running on OS X: Boot Camp, Parallels, and Crossover. Each method has its own nuances that can affect the performance of individual apps, and games are no different. Because of this, knowing whether or not a Windows-compatible game is even worth the trouble to install on your Mac is nearly impossible. So I'll test them all, and here's how. The Machine To offer the most realistic experience for the widest range of Mac users, the test system is modest in terms of power: Processor: 2.3 GHz Intel Core i7 Memory: 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3 Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 4000 (1GB) OS: OS X 10.9.2 & Windows 7 Professional Benchmarking: FRAPS If I can get a game running with playable performance on this machine, there's a good chance it'll run on most Macs built within the last couple of years, and many more capable older machines as well. CrossOver CrossOver is the most lightweight solution for running Windows programs on OS X, allowing you to the applications in a more standalone manner than the alternatives. However, compatibility is a huge issue here, and whether an application (or game, in this case) is supported is a tossup. I'll give you the latest CrossOver details on each game I test. You can download a free trial of CrossOver 13 and purchase the full program from the official website. Parallels Parallels installs a virtual machine on your Mac, effectively conjuring a Windows PC inside your Mac using what I can only assume is a combination of black magic and human sacrifices. Compatibility usually isn't an issue here, but the amount of resources you dedicate to your virtual machine can have a big impact on how a game responds. I'll help you hit the right balance. You can download a free trial of Parallels 9 and purchase the full program from the official website. Boot Camp Boot Camp turns your Mac into a Windows computer using officially supported software. Boot Camp offers the most faithful Windows experience, but you need to boot straight into Windows and leave OS X temporarily behind. This can be a pain for multitaskers, and there's also the possibility that games perform no better here than in CrossOver or Parallels. I'll clear this up for each game I cover. You can find out more about Boot Camp and view tutorials on Apple's Boot Camp page. Verdict Each article will wrap up with a verdict and the overall outcome, so you can decide whether any of the available options is worth your time and money. If you have any suggestions for games to cover, questions about the process, or other input, feel free to nudge me directly on Twitter.
