This year’s schedule for Steam sales and showcases is packed to the brim with plenty of opportunities to save on games. With the Spring Sale wrapped up, Steam has moved along to one of its more niche-themed sales. From now until March 31st, the Steam City Builder & Colony Sim Fest sale features discounts on a ton of sim games with a city-building focus. While plenty of beloved sim games are included, one deal in particular is a can’t-miss for city builder fans. The original Cities: Skylines is an impressive 90% off during the Steam sale, giving gamers a great opportunity to grab the game for just $2.99.

Cities: Skylines is currently celebrating its 10-year anniversary, which means the game just got a few impressive updates. Despite being a decade old, the original Cities: Skylines remains incredibly popular with building sim fans, and for good reason. It offers a sleek, modernized take on the city sim genre, giving players more options to customize and optimize their creations. Plus, with 10 years of expansions, there are endless options to add on content to expand even more, with farm-themed packs like Countryside and Harvest Harmony and beyond.

Cities: Skylines boasts a Very Positive rating on Steam, and the recent 10th Anniversary Free Patch added a ton of new content that you’ll get along with your discounted purchase of the game. Normally, Cities: Skylines costs $29.99 on Steam, but it’s marked down to just $2.99 during the Steam City Builder & Colony Sim Fest sale. The discount lasts until the sale ends on March 31st at 10 AM PDT / 1 PM EDT.

Other Great Building Sims Discounted During the Steam Sale

City: Skylines is by far the most impressive discount for this current Steam Sale. That said, it’s hardly the only game on sale. The more recent Cities: Skylines 2 is also included in the current Steam sale. This newer entry in the series was released in October 2023 to mixed reviews compared to its predecessor. As a newer game, the discount isn’t quite as steep, but you can snag this sequel for 20% off, bringing it from $49.99 down to $39.99 through the end of the sale on March 31st.

RELATED: Civ 7 Update 1.1.1 Patch Notes Reveal Latest Improvements & New Content

Dozens of other popular building sims and colony management games are also featured during the sale. This includes a 10% release discount on alternate history sim Kaiserpunk, as well as 30% off the popular city builder Manor Lords. Early Access survival/crafting game Aska also enters the mix with a 35% discount, with its most recent update arriving just in time for the sale. For cozy gamers, the beloved pixel art town management game Littlewood has an impressive 50% off discount, making it under $10.

If you enjoy city builders and civilization management games, this Steam sale list is well worth a look. And if you haven’t checked out Cities: Skylines yet, the recent anniversary update and impressive 90% off discount make now a great time to dive into what this iconic city-building sim has to offer.

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A new update for Helldivers 2 has been released today across PS5 and PC to close out March 2025. On a weekly basis, Helldivers 2 has continued to receive new patches that look to add content, balance gameplay, or provide fixes to existing problems. As for today’s new update to Helldivers 2, it happens to be a bit smaller than past patches, but it’s still an important one all the same.

Downloadable now, update version 1.002.201 for Helldivers 2 mainly looks to resolve various bugs that have been giving players trouble. Some of these bugs have been tied to specific weapons or stratagems, while others were simply causing Helldivers 2 to crash during strange instances. Other than this, developer Arrowhead Studios hasn’t done anything else with this patch, but it should still make the game much better than before.

To get a look at the full patch notes for this new Helldivers 2 update today, you can view them below.

Helldivers 2 Update 1.002.201 Patch Notes

Overview

• Crash fixes
• Weapon fixes
• Miscellaneous Fixes

Fixes

Crash Fixes, Hangs and Soft-locks:

• Fixed a crash that could occur when a large number of particles were displayed
• Fixed a rare crash when aiming scoped weapons
• Fixed some crashes when playing bot convoy missions
• Fixed a crash that could occur when receiving Microsoft Teams messages while playing the game

Weapons and Stratagems

• Fixed an issue where the weapon flashlights were flickering while using ADS
• Fixed an issue for energy based weapons not charging or overheating properly
• Fixed an issue with wrong drag setting on the GL-21 Grenade Launcher projectiles that made them lose velocity faster than they should have
• Fixed an issue where shrapnel from surface-hits was forced in a roughly south-west direction. Shrapnel should now properly fly out in a 180-ish arc in the direction of the surface hit

LAS-58 Talon

• Fixed an visual issue when reloading in ADS
• Fixed an issue for not being able to reload without overheating
• HUD fixes to properly show correct Ammo state
• Now properly resets the temperature to 0 when reloading
• Fixed a visual effect issue when holding down the fire button
• Removed a minor charging delay to firing projectiles

Some unintentional changes made their way onto the Liberator Concussive and the Breaker during the last patch. This is a revert of those changes.
AR-23C Liberator Concussive

• Starting magazine amount increased from 2 to 4
• Max spare amount of magazines increased from 5 to 6
• Ergonomic effect increased from 0 to -10

SG-225 Breaker

• Starting magazine amount decreased from 6 to 5
• Max spare amount of magazines decreased from 10 to 7

Social & Multiplayer Fixes

• Resolved an issue where the Account ID was not visible in the Options tab

Miscellaneous Fixes

• Fixed an issue for the gas weapons, throwables and stratagems inverting the movement input for the Helldiver
• The Jarndiver override for the hoverpacks has been turned off effective today. This is reserved for General Brasch and other Super 10 Star Generals(Fixed a bug with the draw and kick emotes that allowed players to stay floating in the air)

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Since Steam dropped the Steam Deck OLED in 2023, this platform has truly leveled up to provide an exceptional gaming experience with an extended battery life, larger display, and faster WiFi. The Steam Deck brings all the advantages of tapping into the great reservoir of games on Steam, with the ability to play anywhere conveniently. While not every game is optimized for the Steam Deck, there are already a lot of native recommendations that are Steam Deck verified, or perfectly playable even if not fully optimized.

When considering playing with friends, the recommendations from the carousel of games on Steam Deck’s store will usually show the usual suspects, leaving the question of: What are some additional co-op games that are worth the download? To that end, check out this list of Steam Deck games that are perfect for co-op.

10. Elden Ring

Steam Deck: Verified

If you and up to two other friends are looking to sink 200+ hours into a beautiful, challenging, and narratively rich game, look no further than Elden Ring. Within the Soulslike genre of games, Elden Ring puts you directly into an epic mythological drama written by George R.R. Martin and developed into an extensive open-world RPG by FromSoftware.

As with many Soulslike games, the combat elements are intuitive for understanding but require dedication to truly become a master when facing challenging enemies and bosses. While Elden Ring runs wonderfully on Steam Deck, and is accessible for co-op, there are limitations. Some limitations include multiplayer only triggering through summoning friends into your world, non-hosts being unable to obtain rewards, non-hosts being unable to utilize checkpoints for character rests, and resources being more limited to non-hosts.

If the limitations sound daunting, keep your eyes peeled for Elden Ring: Nightreign, which is already gearing up to be more optimized for co-op and is releasing in May 2025.

Ale & Tale Tavern

Steam Deck: Playable

Ale & Tale Tavern is the perfect game to cozy up with on the couch to relax. In this first-person, tavern simulator, you can play with up to four friends in online co-op. The developer, Scienart Games, found the perfect balance of crafting and unlocking new recipes for running a tavern and brewing beverages. Mixed into the adventure is also the need to grow, hunt, fish, raise livestock, and trade for the ingredients that you’ll use to feed and quench the thirst of your many patrons.

Ale & Tale Tavern has open-world elements for exploration and offers many unique quests, with a unique sense of humor that sets it apart from other cozy games offering similar experiences. While the game isn’t Steam Deck verified, it certainly feels like it should, as it runs almost perfectly on the platform. Scienart is still actively supporting the game in post-release with new content and an update as of March 10th.

Northgard

Steam Deck: Playable

Within the realm of real-time strategy games, you won’t find a lot of options that are optimized, nor playable on the Steam Deck. A surprising gem that is separate from the rule is Northgard. In Northgard, you play as a Viking tribe that has settled on a new continent. In PvP multiplayer, you’ll compete to settle different regions, harvest and collect resources, and build armies to defend or conquer.

Events and harsh weather conditions occur periodically to scale the challenge for players, and several different victory conditions offer the chance for a unique play through with every new round. Given the game’s mechanics for expanding your tribe, the pacing is slower than other real-time strategy games like Age of Empires, which serves Steam Deck audiences well who are getting acquainted with the controls.

The Forest

Steam Deck: Verified

If you’ve never played an open-world, survival crafting game before, an introduction with The Forest is long overdue. After you arrive on an island after surviving a terrible plane crash, your son has been kidnapped, and you’ll need to prepare fast to survive against a society of mutant cannibals that inhabit the island. Collecting resources, building a camp, and crafting survival gear will keep you enthralled, but it’s the underlying and horrific mystery that will leave you hooked.

The Forest can be played with up to four players in a session via online co-op. The difficulty of the game scales depending on how much you craft and build up at your bases and how long you have survived on the island. Be wary of the night and dark caverns, as the game definitely has a strong survival-horror component that will leave your heart pounding.

Endnight Games released a sequel to The Forest, Son of the Forest, in 2024, which is a strong follow-up. However, the debut title offers a lot more craftable gear that feels more immersive to the trials of surviving on a mutant, cannibal island.

Grounded

Steam Deck: Verified

If Goonies and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids joined together and had a child that became a video game, you’d be looking at Grounded. This open-world, survival co-op was developed by Obsidian Entertainment – the minds behind games like The Outer Worlds, Fallout: New Vegas, and the recently released Avowed.

After shrinking to the size of an ant, you’ll be questing to restore yourself to your true size while uncovering how you ended up shrunk in the first place. The journey is arduous with face-offs against some of the backyard’s harshest villains – spiders, stinkbugs, ants, ladybugs, and more. Game sessions in Grounded are accessible for up to four players in this survival adventure.

Ark: Survival Evolved

Steam Deck: Verified

Dinosaurs, crafting, and guns – what else do you need? In Ark: Survival Evolved, you awaken, with only a loin cloth to your name, onto an island where dinosaurs are alive and thrive. Begin a journey that starts with prehistoric tools and work your way through to post-modern gear as you collect resources, tame and breed dinosaurs, and level up to learn engrams (crafting recipes).

Ark is an MMORPG where you can join public servers and form a tribe with the different players already within, or you can start your own tribe on your own server with your closest friends. If you start your own server in Ark, you’ll likely need to host a non-dedicated server, which will limit how far you and your friends can travel away from each other. However, the pacing is more manageable for new players when getting acquainted with the game’s mechanics.

Stardew Valley

Steam Deck: Verified

Stardew Valley set the standard for farming and life simulation games and is one of the most, if not the most, expansive games within the genre. In Stardew, you’ll inherit an old farm from your grandfather that is substantially in a state of disrepair. Upon arriving at your farm, you’ll join a community of charming townsfolk that you can build relationships with as you bring your farm, and vis-à-vis the town, into a better standing.

Stardew Valley is not limited to only farming and relationships. You’ll have a plethora of opportunities that keep you engaged between side quests, cave exploration, combat elements, seasonal festivals, and unlocking new recipes. Stardew is accessible for up to eight players per farm, and operates smoothly on the Steam Deck.

Don’t Starve Together

Steam Deck: Verified

If you are a fan of survival games, crafting, and open-world exploration, Don’t Starve Together is the perfect game that offers a robust level of challenge. Don’t Starve Together is aptly named as you’ll enter a vast world, need to set up a base, collect resources, farm, and prepare for the various seasonal threats and bosses that might leave you starving if you are ill-prepared.

Don’t Starve Together supports up to six players in either public or privately held games. You’ll work in a true PvE fashion to coordinate all the necessities to avoid starving, becoming insane, defeating enemies and bosses, and exploring biomes above and below ground. The replay factor is quite high, as each game offers a newly procedurally generated map that will require you to consider your planning every time you start over.

Baldur’s Gate 3

Steam Deck: Verified

Baldur’s Gate 3 took the gaming world by storm in 2023 and remains one of the highest-rated games of all-time. Larian Studios crafted a beautiful game within the Dungeons & Dragons universe that is overwhelmingly striking in its character narration, story elements, and turn-based combat mechanics. Whether you’re new to the series or are considering revisiting Baldur’s Gate 3, you’ll always be offered a rich experience as your choices will truly impact how the game unfolds.

Baldur’s Gate 3 is available for up to four players in a party for online co-op. If you are new to the party-based RPG games developed by Larian Studios, it is also worth the time to check out Divinity: Original Sin and Divinity: Original Sin 2.

Hazelight Studios

Steam Deck: Verified or Playable

Your first impression is right, Hazelight Studios is not a game, but realistically, this studio has turned out some of the best couch co-op/online co-op adventures since its debut in 2018 with A Way Out. Playing through the portfolio of games from Hazelight will surely leave you with hours of joy with friends, partners, and family.

More recently, Hazelight Studios has launched Split Fiction. As a follow-up title to It Takes Two, Split Fiction sold over 1 million copies in 48-hours and sits on Steam with a 98% overwhelmingly positive review rating. Meanwhile, It Takes Two has passed 20 million copies sold, while A Way Out has topped 10 million sold.

The success of each title lends to the same formula for most valuable impact: a great narrative and story element is built into each of these games, and the experience can only bloom into a core memory when you play each with someone else. It’s the shared experience that makes the moments in each of these games so memorable. The skill ceiling for each game is reasonable for new gamers and veterans alike. With most of these games being optimized for Steam Deck, Hazelight Studios’ games are well worth the time spent.

The post 10 Co-Op Games You Should Be Playing on Steam Deck appeared first on ComicBook.com.

Epic Games has announced a major change to the Epic Games Store that will result in more free games than EGS users ever got before. Since the inception of the Epic Games Store, Epic Games has been giving users of the PC digital storefront a free game every week. Sometimes there’s even more than one free game. And then during the Christmas season, it disrupts this schedule to give out a free game every day.

Then, recently, it bolstered this offering by offering free games every month via the Epic Games Store mobile app. And now it’s expanding its mobile strategy by matching its PC free games strategy. In other words, going forward, the Epic Games Store mobile app will have free games every week just like the PC version.

To kick things off, the Epic Games Store mobile app has 2020’s Super Meat Boy Forever and 2021’s Eastern Exorcist. These games are free until March 27, when they will be replaced with a new free offer. This puts it on the same schedule as the PC version. What this next offer will be remains to be seen though.

In addition to these new weekly free offers, the following games remain free on the Epic Games Store on mobile right now: Bridge Constructor: The Walking Dead, Mr Racer: Premium, The Forest Quartet, The WereCleaner, Bowling Clash (Android only), Endling – Extinction is Forever (Android Only), Chicken Police – Paint it Red (Android Only), One Hand Clapping (Android Only), Neighbours back From Hell (Android Only), This is The Police (Android Only), This is The Police 2 (Android Only), This Is The President (Android Only), and Through the Darkest of Times (Android Only).

Just like with the free games on PC, there are no strings attached here. In other words, no subscriptions needed, and once claimed each game is free to keep perpetually, at least as long as each game is on the Epic Games Store.

For more Epic Games Store coverage — including all of the latest Epic Games Store news, all of the latest Epic Games Store rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Epic Games Store deals — click here.

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In a special preview livestream this morning, the team behind Wuthering Waves revealed new details about the upcoming version 2.2 update. The update will be called “Tangled Truth in Inverted Tower” and is set to arrive on March 27th. Along with this info, Kuro Games also revealed that Wuthering Waves will join other gacha games like Infinity Nikki on the popular PC gaming platform Steam. But for many players, the key highlights of a new Wuthering Waves update are the new banner pulls and content, which was discussed in depth during the broadcast.

The 2.2 update for Wuthering Waves will bring a ton of new content to the game when it launches on March 27th. This includes a new main quest, a new companion story, new regions, special events, and more. Fans can get a look at the new story details in the brand-new Wuthering Waves 2.2 trailer.

As you can see, the main story centers on traveling to the new region of Avinoleum to continue unlocking the secrets behind Cartethyia and the missing Imperator. Along the way, players will gain access to new Resonators and Attributes as well. While the new quests will kick off right with the start of the update, the new banners will arrive in phases.

Wuthering Waves Banner Schedule for Version 2.2

There will be two main phases for the 2.2 update in Wuthering Waves, with each bringing new banners for players to chase. While we don’t yet know the exact date for Phase 2, we do know which characters will be available when it arrives. Here is the banner schedule for the 2.2 update:

Phase 1 – March 27th

• 5-Star: Cantarella (Havoc)
• 5-Star: Camellya (Havoc)
• 4-Star: Danjin (Havoc)
• 4-Star: Chixia (Fusion)
• 4-Star: Yuanwu (Electro)

Along with these characters, players will be able to find new weapons including the 5-star Whisper fo Sirens and a 5-star quest weapon, Bloodpact’s Pledge.

Phase 2 – Exact Date TBD

• 5-Star: Shorekeeper (Spectro)
• 4-Star: Aalt (Aero)
• 4-Star: Sanhua (Glacio)
• 4-Star: Baizhi (Glacio)

This phase will also include Shorekeeper’s Stellar Symphony weapon. In addition to these new banner pulls, players can look forward to a number of events with this coming update.

Wuthering Waves 2.2 Update Special Events

RELATED: Infinity Nikki Eerie Season Trailer Shows Off Haunting New Quests & Free Outfits

Along with the new banner pulls and story content, the 2.2 update for Wuthering Waves will usher in a brand-new set of special events. Here are the events that players can look forward to as this next chapter unfolds:

• Exploration Event: Winds of the Past
• Exploration Event: Avinleum Travel Atlas
• Photo Collection Event: Acropolis Documentation
• Login Event: Gifts of the Still Tides
• Crisis Trial Challenge: Virtual Crisis: Prototype Trials
• Co-Op Combat Event: If You Gaze Into the Abyss of Dreams
• Commission Event: Lollo Campaign: Set Sail
• Platforming Event: Ragunna Weather Forecast
• Wuthering Exploration Whisperwind Haven Exploration Event

The details for each event were outlined in today’s livestream, with each bringing new goals for players to pursue to earn various rewards, including in-game currency.

Along with the new content, Wuthering Waves 2.2 will feature a few gameplay optimizations to help things run more smoothly. This includes adjustments to the color settings, a new Review button to help refresh your memory on the story, and an increased availability for Waypoints and Casket Sonar. In all, this update is shaping up to make Wuthering Waves even better when it arrives on March 27th.

Wuthering Waves is available on PS5, iOS, Android, and PC via Epic Games. Starting on April 29th, it will also be available for PC via Steam.

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The Epic Games Store has a new free game that normally would cost PC users $60 to buy. The new free Epic Games Store game comes from the year 2021, and from developer Frontier Developments, a UK studio that was founded in 1994, and who also independently published the free game in question. In 2021, the game was far from the standout release, however, for fans of the simulation genre, specifically, it was arguably the big release that year, or at least one of them.

As always, once claimed the free game is free to keep. There are no subscriptions required, just an Epic Games Store account. This means there is also nothing required to retain access to the free download. The only requirement is the window of opportunity. The free download is only available between March 20 to March 27. After this window, the free offer will be replaced with a new free offer.

That said, until March 27 all Epic Games Store users can download Jurassic World Evolution 2 for free. As the title suggests, it is the sequel to 2018’s Jurassic World Evolution, from the same developer. Meanwhile, its own sequel is currently in the works and slated to release sometime between June 2025 and May 2026.

For those interested in checking out Jurassic World Evolution 2 now that it is free, it’s apparently decent, but not great. This is at least what its Metacritic scores — which range from 74 to 81, varying platform to platform — suggest. However, the 4.8 out of 5 stars on the Epic Games Store from users who have played the game perhaps suggests these Metacritic scores are underselling the title.

Content wise, meanwhile, the game offers up to 100 hours of content for those looking to 100 percent the title. And for this upward of 100 hours of content, be prepared to clear 14 GB of space to download the game.

“Jurassic World Evolution 2 is the much-anticipated sequel to Frontier’s ground-breaking 2018 management simulation, Jurassic World Evolution, offering an all new narrative campaign voiced by cast members from across the Jurassic World film franchise, exciting new features, four engaging game modes, and an expanded roster of awe-inspiring dinosaurs,” reads an official overview of the game, for those unfamiliar with it, from Frontier Developments.

For more Epic Games Store coverage — including all of the latest Epic Games Store news, all of the latest Epic Games Store rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Epic Games Store deals — click here.

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The latest seasonal Steam Sale is back, and it’s the perfect time to grab the titles on your indie games wishlist. From innovative platformers to best-selling roguelikes, everything is now discounted, making the deals irresistible. That said, you’ll want to quickly filter out the best from the rest, to make the most of your time.

So, here’s a list of the 10 best indie games that are a must-buy from Steam’s Spring sale. These are the cream of the crop and should be a no-brainer for every indie fan. 

Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist

• Discounted Price: $18.74 | $25

When it comes to indie games, most of us don’t have high expectations going in. However, in the case of Ender Magnolia, its quality exceeds anything you could imagine. In this game, you follow the adventure of Lilac, a child who can control machines. As the player, the main goal is to investigate the cause of her amnesia. At the same time, the world around you is being corrupted, so that calls for an investigation.

Each level of Ender Magnolia has a distinct art style, and the themes are coherent with the narrative. NPCs behave naturally to the world around them. But the best thing about Ender Magnolia is its combat, which is fast, intuitive, and highly customizable thanks to the arsenal of machines at your disposal. The fights have depth and feature one of the best indie game combat systems. Overall, the best way to describe Ender Magnolia is like lightning in a bottle. And luckily, this bottle comes cheap in the Steam Spring Sale. 

Hades 2

• Discounted Price: $27 | $30

Hades 2 is a roguelike action RPG, where you slay monsters while making your way across biomes inspired by Greek mythology. Along the way, the Greek pantheon bestows you with their Boons. Collecting these upgrades alters your playstyle, letting you create anything from slash-and-run to damage-deflecting builds.

Hades 2 is still in early access at the time of writing, so it’s incomplete. However, the devs are adding major updates regularly, and there’s a chance they might increase the price tag come full release. That said, Hades 2 will most likely be one of the biggest indie games of the year with its 1.0 release so buying it now at a discounted price is definitely a wise choice. 

V Rising

• Discounted Price: $21 | $35

V Rising should inarguably be on the top of your wishlist for the Steam Spring sale. It’s a base-building action RPG, and as the name suggests, the V in the title stands for a vampire. Since the theme revolves around vampires, you can expect a creepy aesthetic, as well as characters from vampire folklore, including Simon Belmont and Dracula, to appear in the game. Spoiler alert: they are featured as unforgiving bosses.

There are three reasons why V Rising is a must-buy. Firstly, the combat is addictive. There are several weapons to choose from, with each being upgradable and having its special moves. Second, you can build your very own vampire castle. The amount of freedom in that regard is insane. Third, this game is a blast to play in multiplayer mode. You can join clans, invade other players’ castles, or let them help you with bosses. Overall, V Rising is a spectacular indie game and you can experience it for dirt cheap in this sale. 

Windblown

• Discounted Price: $20 | $25

Similar to Hades 2, Windblown is another game still in early access. It’s a fast-paced action roguelike that can be played solo or online with friends. The map has procedurally generated levels where you hack and slash enemies, earning upgrades that last you throughout the run.

Battles are quick and the tempo is fast, yet enough intensity is maintained to keep your eyes glued to the screen. Additionally, the visuals are bright and vibrant, with quirky environments and enemy designs. Windblown is still a way out from release, but even in its current state, it’s one of the best roguelike indie games on Steam.

Ravenswatch

• Discounted Price: $12.49 | $25

If you’ve got plenty of friends to play with, Ravenswatch is a must-buy indie. Playing Ravenswatch alone gets mundane, but the four-player co-op mode makes this an unforgettable experience. Having said that, Ravenswatch is a little rough around the edges, but it’s getting better with updates.

As for gameplay, Ravenswatch lets you pick a hero of folklore from its roster. From Aladdin to The Pied Piper, the choices are versatile. You’re then dropped into chapter zones, with each zone having different enemies, side quests, and bosses. There’s also a set time limit present, and you have to level up as much as you can within that period. Once the set time expires, you’re automatically dropped into the final boss arena. Good luck!

Animal Well

• Discounted Price: $20 | $25

Animal Well is a puzzle platformer with an intricate world to lose yourself in. The lore lies entirely in the environment and almost every room is hiding a secret for you. The game rewards you for not minding your business and no moment feels wasted. While the puzzles are the best part of Animal Well, they are unfortunately also its only offerings. There isn’t any combat at all. If that doesn’t make it any less appealing to you, Animal Well is one of the best platformers you can pick up from the Steam Spring Sale.

The eerie pixel art, dynamic lighting, and nonlinear progression make it a must-play for every indie fan. With no check marks showing you where to go or what to do, Animal Well lets you figure out everything for yourself. But don’t worry, the fun lies in this curiosity.

Sons of the Forest

• Discounted Price: $15 | $30

At its heart, Sons of the Forest is a survival crafting game. There’s been a plane crash and now you and an AI helper of yours must survive in an unknown land. The only catch is that a cannibalistic clan overruns this island, and you need to save yourself. 

Sons of the Forest features a sandbox open world where you can craft practically anything. A treehouse, a cabin, weapons, armor, you name it. The day-night cycle, the horror tone, and the threat of enemies lurking nearby constantly keep you on your toes. So, resource management is your bread and butter. While staying alive is a frightening experience, if you play your cards right, you can become a one-man army. Additionally, the inclusion of online co-op makes the game infinitely more satisfying. This is simply a must-buy from the sale if survival games are your jam.

Neva

• Discounted Price: $16 | $20

Chances are you’ve heard of the platform-adventure game Gris from 2018. Neva is made by the same studio and serves as a spiritual successor. Like Gris, Neva focuses on environmental storytelling, with the changing scenery entailing an emotional story of life.

While there is combat, it serves a narrative purpose, so don’t expect intense action sequences. What you can expect, though, is one of the most beautiful indies featuring an unforgettable story of a woman and wolf navigating life in a corrupted land. If narrative adventures are your thing, you can’t go wrong buying Neva.

1000xRESIST

• Discounted Price: $15 | $20

In an era where action games are mainstream, hidden gems like 1000xRESIST exist for those looking for something new. 1000xRESIST is a narrative-adventure game where you explore a post-apocalyptic future where aliens have wiped out most of the human race. 

As far as gameplay goes, you find out more about the world through conversational choices and investigations. Unlike 2D visual novels, 1000xRESIST offers more because of its 3D nature. This belongs to a genre of games you could call a 3D visual novel. You can interact with environments and there are giant areas where major story arcs play out. It’s an innovative game, particularly for those people who have a thing for games like Disco Elysium.

Vampire Survivors

• Discounted Price: $3.74 | $5

If you’re looking for a dirt-cheap indie title with insane replayability, Vampire Survivors is your best bet. In this game, all you have to do is move your character while they automatically shoot at nearby enemies. Sounds a bit simple, right? Well, it isn’t. Vampire Survivors features over 50 crazy weapons. And by crazy, we mean whips, fireballs, and summoning an army of cats. But that’s not all. Each weapon can be upgraded, as well as evolved into a new overpowered version, making the game extremely fun. 

Despite looking very basic at first glance, Vampire Survivors has many levels to it. If you survive long enough, you’ll be facing about 3000 different enemies at once. While all of this sounds bonkers, it’s true. The game also features second-to-second evolution in combat, meaning that new weapons and enemy types keep spawning, trapping you in an endless cycle of dopamine hits.

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One of the best games ever made is on sale for less than $1 on Steam in a promotion that is set to expire quite soon. Over the past week, Steam has been home to a number of fantastic discounts thanks to its annual Spring Sale. As a result, Steam users around the globe have likely been shelling out all sorts of money to add games to their ever-growing PC library. For those looking to take advantage of arguably the best deal in this Spring Sale, though, it will require you to spend virtually nothing.

The game in question that shouldn’t be missed out is that of Undertale. Released originally in 2015 by developer Toby Fox, Undertale has been met with a ton of acclaim over the past decade and is widely considered one of the greatest RPGs of all-time, especially from those that stem from indie developers. In fact, Undertale has been such a hit that it spawned its own sequel/spin-off dubbed Deltarune, which Fox continues to work on to this day.

When it comes to this sale on Steam, Undertale is now being sold for merely $0.99, which is a 90% discount when compared to its normal value. This represents the lowest amount that Undertale has ever been sold for on Steam, which means that a sale of this nature is not normal.

As mentioned, what makes this offer for Undertale notable at the time of this writing is that it won’t be available at this price for much longer. As of 12:00pm ET on Thursday, March 20th, which is only a little more than 24 hours away, this deal for Undertale will be expiring along with the Spring Sale as a whole. And while its typical cost of $9.99 still isn’t pricey, it’s hard to pass up a cut in cost like this if you don’t already have Undertale in your Steam library.

If you’re somehow completely unfamiliar with Undertale and would like to learn more, you can get a look at a trailer for the game and its official synopsis below.

Undertale

About: “Explore a rich RPG world full of strange and delightful characters where violence isn’t the only answer. Dance with a slime, pet a dog, whisper your favorite secret to a knight, or ignore all of that and rain destruction upon your foes. The choices are yours—but are you determined enough to prevail?

Features

• Killing is unnecessary: negotiate out of danger using the unique battle system.
• Time your attacks for extra damage, then dodge enemy attacks in a style reminiscent of top-down shooters.
• Original art and soundtrack brimming with personality.
• Soulful, character-rich story with an emphasis on humor.”

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A new update is out for Helldivers 2, and Sony and Arrowhead Game Studios announced the new Borderline Justice Warbond alongside it. Players have been reporting for duty to serve Super Earth against all threats and with each new update that service gets better and better. One of the most important parts of Helldivers 2 updates are bug fixes, and the latest Helldivers 2 patch addresses a large number of issues. A majority of the issues being addressed and changes to the game are detailed in the patch notes, and we’ve listed everything included with the 01.002.200 update for Helldivers 2.

The new Borderline Justice Premium Warbond will be available on March 20th and brings with it new weapons, armor, and more. Once purchased, players can use the R-6 Deadeye rifle and LAS-58 Talon pistol. Two new armor sets are added, sporting a Wild West space cowboy look. Its Stratagem, the LIFT-860 Hover Pack makes traversal and escaping deadly bugs easier.

Lastly, players also get the Sample Extricator for their utility and TED-63 Dynamite as the throwable, and, of course, a bunch of cosmetics to show off the Borderline Justice Warbond. This Warbond will be available to purchase for 1,000 Super Credits on March 20th.

Here is everything else in the Version 01.002.200 update for Helldivers 2:

Helldivers 2 Update Patch Notes 01.002.200

Overview

• Balancing
• Crash fixes

Balancing

Primary weapons
SMG-32 Reprimand

• Spread decreased from 50 to 40

SG-8S Slugger

• Spread decreased from 20 to 6
• Damage increased from 250 to 280

AR-23C Liberator Concussive

• Fire rate increased from 320 to 400

R-63 Diligence

• Magazine capacity increased from 20 to 25

MP-98 Knight

• Damage increased from 65 to 70

STA-11 SMG

• Damage increased from 65 to 70

SMG-37 Defender

• Damage increased from 75 to 80

SMG-72 Pummeler

• Damage increased from 65 to 70
• Now requires less shots to apply stun on applicable targets, stun value increased from 1.0 to 1.25 per bullet

AR-23 Liberator

• Damage increased from 70 to 80

STA-52 Assault Rifle

• Damage increased from 70 to 80

BR-14 Adjudicator

• Damage increased from 90 to 95

AR-61 Tenderizer

• Damage increased from 95 to 105

R-36 Eruptor

• Projectile armor penetration increased from Medium (3) to Heavy (4)
• Projectile lifetime increased from 0.7 to 1 sec

Stratagems
Eagle 110MM Rocket Pods

• Uses increased from 2 to 3

EXO-45 Patriot Exosuit

• Uses increased from 2 to 3

EXO-49 Emancipator Exosuit

• Uses increased from 2 to 3

TX-41 Sterilizer

• Ergonomics increased from 5 to 20

M-105 Stalwart

• Damage increased from 70 to 80

MG-206 Heavy Machine Gun

• Improved armor penetration across a wider range of angles before transitioning to glancing shots

Enemies:

• A recent software autopsy has revealed an update to the Automatons’ situational awareness protocol. They are now less distracted by each other, increasing their reaction speed in large groups.
• We’ve increased the number of AI calculations the game can perform. This primarily impacts scenarios with a high number of spawned enemies, improving their response times in those situations. However, this comes with a slight trade-off in game performance.
• According to recent intel, the enemies of Freedom are attempting to counter the Helldivers’ anti-air capabilities. Newly-produced Automaton dropships show clear signs of hull reinforcement, allowing the main body to absorb significantly more damage.
• Illuminate Warp Ships have been observed deploying their shields mid-flight.
• Automaton Dropships: Main body health increased from 2500 to 3500
• Illuminate Dropships: Utilizes the same shield as the ones that have landed

Barrager Tank Turret

• Resolved an issue introduced recently where the armor value was incorrectly set to 0. Now has the correct armor value of 5
• Additionally, the turret now features weak spots at the front and back, each with 750 HP and an armor value of 3

Gameplay

Settings:

• Added new separate settings for inverting the gyro input instead of using the Invert Look settings
• The Stratagem loadout menu has undergone an updated categorization of the different stratagem groupings

Fixes

Resolved Top Priority issues:

• Fixed an issue with the extraction beacon sometimes being unreachable when landing on top of enemies
• General optimization improvements in the colonies environments

Crash Fixes, Hangs and Soft-locks:

• Fixed a crash when playing against Terminids in poor network scenarios
• Fixed a rare crash that happened during game shut down on PC
• Fixed a crash that could occur when there was a high amount of particles on the screen at once
• Fixed an issue where players could be blocked from completing objectives requiring called-down equipment due to the required stratagem being unavailable

Weapons and Stratagems

• Fixed the G-123 Thermite Grenade sometimes not arming
• Fixed a rare crash when using the LAS-17 Double-Edge Sickle
• Fixed a bug where switching weapons while reloading the CB-9 Exploding Crossbow would sometimes discard an entire magazine without actually reloading

Social & Multiplayer Fixes

• Fixed an issue causing players in low-activity regions to see fewer lobbies on the planet hologram than expected
• Fixed an issue in low-activity regions where lobbies were not seeing players join as frequently or quickly as before
• Fixed an issue on low-activity planets where Quickplay would always join your friends game, even if they were not playing on the same difficulty
• Fixed a disconnection issue that could happen when playing Gloom missions with poor connection to the host
• Fixed some interactions not working properly after canceling the Raise Weapon emote
• Fixed an issue where adding, removing, blocking, or unblocking friends caused player cards in the friend list to display with white text and missing information until you close and open the panel again
• Fixed an issue that made it impossible to mute or kick players who were in the loadout when joining a squad
• Fixed an issue that caused some new Steam players’ latest profile names to not display correctly in-game

Miscellaneous Fixes

• Fixed some memory leaks to improve performance
• Fixed old text chat messages from re-appearing
• Fixed an issue with the Democracy Space Station progress bars being unintentionally curved in appearance
• Fixed a bug that prevented progression through the menus when the initial language selection was set to English (US)
• Fixed the raise weapon emote to properly fire projectiles in the direction of the weapon
• Fixed Helldivers sliding around on the ground after exiting the ragdoll state (despite it being the year of the snake and despite us trying to fix this previously)

Known Issues

Top Priority:

• Black box mission terminal may be unusable if it spawns clipped into the ground
• Stratagem balls bounce unpredictably off cliffs and some spots
• Balancing and functionality adjustments for DSS
• Pathfinding issues in Evacuate Colonists Illuminate missions
• Dolby Atmos does not work on PS5

Medium Priority:

• Players can get stuck on Pelican-1’s ramp during extraction
• Currently equipped capes don’t display properly and show a blank grey cape in Armory tab
• Players who use the “This is Democracy” emote on their ship might unintentionally send their fellow Helldivers on unauthorized unscheduled spacewalks
• AX/TX-13 “Guard Dog” Dog Breath does not show when it is out of ammo
• Higher zoom functions do not zoom the camera in through the scope on the LAS-5 Scythe
• Weapons with a Charge-up mechanic can exhibit unintended behavior when firing faster than the RPM (Rounds Per Minute) limit

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A new PC game just released on Steam today is free to download for the first 24 hours. Those that claim the offer in time will be able to add the PC game to their library for free, and keep it. Those that miss this window of opportunity though will have to pay the game’s normal asking price of $15.99, which will specifically kick in on March 18 at 11:00 a.m. ET. Those on Steam Deck interested in the free Steam game can download it but may or may not run into issues trying to play the game on the handheld Valve machine. We currently don’t know how the game runs on Steam Deck not just because it is brand new, but because its Steam listing mentions Steam Deck compatibility as “unknown.”

As for the free Steam game in question, it comes the way of developer Lucid11 Interactive and publisher GameDev.ist. The former debuts with this new release while the latter is likely best known for 2024 game Anomaly Agent.

For those that have not connected the dots, the Steam game available for free for a limited time is Party Club, which is pitched as an action game meets simulation game that can be played solo or with up to four other people via both online play or via local couch co-op.

Due to the fact that Party Club was just released today there is no indication of what its quality is because all of the Steam reviews are from users who just got the game and got it for free. That said, from these somewhat biased 52 reviews, it currently has a 92% approval rating, which gives it a “Very Positive” rating. This is the second highest rating a game can earn on Steam.

“Seat and serve,” reads an official description of the game on Steam. “Greet customers at the door, choose their seats, and manage their satisfaction. If someone’s too much to handle, you can always give them the boot — literally!”

It is unclear how long the game is, aka how much content it offers. That said, those that want to download it immediately after adding it to their Steam library for free will need to clear 6 GB of space.

For more Steam coverage — including all of the latest Steam news, all of the latest Steam Deals, and all of the latest free Steam game drops — click here.

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Steam users have roughly 48 hours to get a free game before the offer vanishes and the Steam game returns to its normal price point. Those on Steam Deck interested in the offer though should be aware that the game’s Steam listing notes that Steam Deck compatibility is “unknown.” To this end, the free Steam game could run perfectly on Steam Deck or not run at all on Steam Deck, and of course it could fall somewhere and anywhere between these two extremes.

The Steam game in question hails from 2018, a year headlined by the likes of Red Dead Redemption 2, God of War Ragnarok, Monster Hunter World, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and Call of Duty: Black Ops 4. These were the biggest releases of the year. Unfortunately, the free Steam game in question is not one of 2018’s headliners or anything close to this.

The free Steam game in question comes from developer Entertainment Forge and publisher Grab The Games. The former is best known for its latest game 2024 release Gladiator Guild Manager. Before this game, in 2018, it released Scheming Through The Zombie Apocalypse: The Beginning, an adventure game that is pretty decent according to Steam User Reviews and that is the free game that’s been alluded to.

On Steam, the now free game has an 85 percent approval rating across 521 user reviews, which in turn gives the title a “Very Positive” rating on Steam.

“Join retired salesman rabbit, Hank, and his canine pal, Larry, in part one of this story-driven game series as they use their knowledge of influence and persuasion to make their way through the apocalypse—without having to risk their own skin,” reads an official description of the game on Steam for those interested. “With a mixture of dark comedy and the use of real-life influence tactics, this story-driven game puts you behind the wheel of the characters’ choices. Can you convince a timid animal to enter dangerous looting locations? Will you risk your scavenger’s life for more resources?”

Scheming Through The Zombie Apocalypse: The Beginning is specifically free until March 18 at 1:00 PM ET. After this, it will revert back to its normal price point. If claimed before then then though it will be a free and permanent addition to your Steam library.

For more Steam coverage — including all of the latest Steam news, all of the latest Steam rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Steam deals — click here.

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Epic Games Store users on PC can currently score 9 extra free games right now, in addition to the latest weekly free game. This is at least the case for some Epic Games Store users. Of course, the main appeal of EGS compared to its major competitor, Steam, are all the free games that are given out via the digital PC storefront. This includes at least one free game every week, and sometimes more than one free game every week. Steam doesn’t have this. Nor are free Steam games given out via Prime Gaming like they are with Epic Games Store.

Courtesy of Prime Gaming, there are nine free games available via Epic Games Store. The only requirement is an Amazon Prime subscription. That said, those on PC, with an Epic Games Store account, and an Amazon Prime subscription, can currently grab the following games for free: Crime Boss: Rockay City, Redemption Reapers, El Hijo – A Wild West Tale, Hardspace: Shipbreaker, Republic of Jungle, Lysfanga: The Time Shift Warrior, Sands of Aura, To The Rescue, and Skydrift Infinity.

The first of these nine free games on Epic Games Store is available until April 9, the second is available until April 2, the third free until March 26, the fourth free until April 13, the fifth until March 26, the sixth until May 14, the seventh until April 9, the eighth until March 26, and the ninth until April 9.

As always, once claimed these games are free to keep in your Epic Games Store library. In other words, unlike PlayStation Plus or Xbox Game Pass or Nintendo Switch, maintaining an active Prime Gaming subscription is not required to retaining access. An active subscription is required to grab the free games though.

As for an Epic Games Store account, they are free. The only thing PC users need is an email to sign up for an account, and that’s it. Not only does Epic Games Store have a regular flow of free games, but there is also occasionally the Epic Games Store exclusive, though these are not as common as they used to be.

For more Epic Games Store coverage — including all of the latest Epic Games Store news, all of the latest Epic Games Store rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Epic Games Store deals and free games — click here.

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After an impressive run in Early Access, first-person factory building game Satisfactory officially released its 1.0 version in September 2024. Since the full release, the game has seen a few minor patches with bug fixes and improvements. However, the upcoming 1.1 update will be the first influx of new features and content since the game’s release, and Satisfactory fans have already spotted some exciting things to look forward to. Today, developer Coffee Stain Studios released a teaser trailer for the Satisfactory 1.1 update, showcasing what’s to come with the next major update to the game.

Satisfactory maintains an impressive Overwhelmingly Positive rating on Steam, as gamers continue to enjoy the game’s unique combination of base-building, resource management, automation, exploration, and combat. The 1.1 update will bring even more new features for gamers to look forward to, and while there aren’t yet any official patch notes, the teaser trailer gives fans plenty of hints about what’s to come.

So far, Coffee Stain hasn’t given an exact date for when we’ll see the 1.1 update for Satisfactory. While the game’s Experimental branch has seen a few minor updates as recently as March 11th, the last overall update for Satisfactory arrived late last year. That leaves many gamers excited to see what’s arriving on the game’s alien planet next, and after the first look with the teaser trailer, the vibes are good. As one player puts it, the video hints at “So many new things in only one update!”

Every New Feature Players Have Spotted in the Satisfactory 1.1 Teaser Video

The new video is just over a minute long, but it packs in plenty of exciting hints at new features arriving in Satisfactory. In fact, the teaser is exactly 1 minute and 10 seconds long, a perfectly timed 1.1 update reference that shows impressive attention to detail. Speaking of details, gamers have been watching the video on repeat trying to break down every new feature that will be coming with this next big update. Here’s a list of new additions that fans have spotted so far.

• Possible improvements to drone pathing
• Addition of hypertube junctions
• Train signals
• 3 new types of beams (rivets, ridges, and circular)
• New shelving/pallets
• New vent decorations
• New pioneer poses
• A counter for belt throughputs
• Vertical splitters
• Elevators
• Curved belts and pipes with a larger radius
• Conveyor wall holes

Keep in mind, these are theories based on what’s shown in the video. The only fully confirmed new feature at this point is Photo Mode, which is referenced at the end of the video to confirm that the shots, movements, and filters captured all come from this new Satisfactory Photo Mode.

RELATED: Satisfactory Announces ‘The Spill’ Coming October 8

Even so, fans are pretty excited about what they’ve seen so far for Satisfactory 1.1. Those apparent vertical splitters and curved pipes are going to solve a lot of logistical problems for builds. And the belt item counters? Game changer. Indeed, most initial reactions to the new footage are positive, with players very excited to see what’s next for Satisfactory in its first big update since the full launch.

Currently, Satisfactory is only available on PC via Steam or Epic Games. However, the game is planning a console release sometime in 2025. It’s likely that the Satisfactory 1.1 update will arrive after the console release, but neither big event for the game has a confirmed date just yet.

Are you looking forward to the first big post-launch content update for Satisfactory? Let us know in the comments below!

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The Steam Spring Sale has officially arrived, right alongside other big spring sales like PlayStation’s Mega March. It’s a good time for gamers on a budget to stock up their library with exciting new games for less. Steam’s 2025 Spring Sale starts on March 13th and runs through March 20th at 10 AM PDT / 1 PM EDT. That gives PC gamers just about a week to browse through hundreds of sales to decide which games to add to the Steam library this time around.

That’s where we come in with a roundup of the best deals in the 2025 Steam Spring Sale so you don’t miss out on a great discount on your next favorite game.

Hogwarts Legacy

Price: $14.99 / $59.99

If you haven’t yet experienced Hogwarts Legacy or want to switch to running it on PC with full mod support, now’s a great time to return to the Wizarding World. This 75% discount will let you enjoy the game for less. If you want to snag some digital extras, the Digital Deluxe Edition, which includes the Dark Arts pack, is also included in the Steam Spring Sale.

Spiritfarer: Farewell Edition

Price: $2.99 / $29.99

Ask a cozy gamer for a recommendation, and chances are, you’re going to hear about Spiritfarer. This is an iconic, story-driven game that tackles the tough subject of grief by putting the player in the role of shepherding lost souls to the afterlife. If you’ve been curious about this one, why not get it for less than $5 while it’s on sale?

Disco Elysium – The Final Cut

Price: $9.99 / $39.99

Disco Elysium is an icon in the RPG space for a reason. The Final Cut brings together new content and features for a truly definitive edition of the 2019 title, which boasts a Very Positive Steam Rating and 97% Metacritic rating for PC. At 75% off during the Steam Spring Sale, now’s a great time to revisit this title if you missed it the first time around.

Diablo 4

Price: $27.49 / $49.99

BlizzCon might be skipping 2025, but that doesn’t mean Diablo IV isn’t still keeping the content rolling. This game remains an RPG favorite, with plans for more DLC on the way. Now is an excellent time to snag it on sale to catch up before more new content comes out. If you’re looking to grab the Vessel of Hatred expansion, it’s on sale as well, both as a single purchase or as part of a Diablo IV bundle.

Grand Theft Auto 5 Enhanced

Price: $14.99 / $29.99

While fans wait for GTA 6 to reveal a release date already, the recent Enhanced update brings new features to GTA 5. Despite a slightly rough launch as fans adjusted their expectations, the new version of GTA 5 has solidified a place in the Steam charts alongside the Legacy Edition. Best of all, you’ll get both versions with your purchase, so you can choose whether to keep it classic or go in for the optimized version. The collection is 50% off during the Steam Spring Sale.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition

Price: $9.99 / $39.99

Does Skyrim even need an introduction at this point? Many gamers are forever at risk of their next playthrough, and just in case you don’t have the Special Edition on PC yet, guess what? It’s on sale right now. The Special Edition includes three DLCs (Dawnguard, Hearthfire, and Dragonborn) while also offering updated, polished graphics. Basically, it’ll make the game feel fresh again, giving you a great excuse to adventure as the Dragonborn once more.

Cyberpunk 2077

Price: $23.99 / $59.99

This open-world, action-adventure RPG boasts an Overwhelmingly Positive rating on Steam and an 86% Metacritic rating. For those looking for a gritty futuristic take on the RPG genre, Cyberpunk 2077 is a must-play experience. The standard edition is 60% off during the Steam Spring Sale, or you can snag the Ultimate Edition which includes the Phantom Liberty DLC for 48% off.

Hades

Price: $9.99 / $24.99

If you’ve yet to play Supergiant Games’ brilliant roguelike Hades, what are you waiting for? This game is an indie icon for a reason, offering a compelling story and addictive gameplay. It’s currently 60% off for the Spring Sale, whereas the Early Access version of Hades 2 has a more modest 10% discount.

Elden Ring

Price: $35.99 / $59.99

Much like Skyrim, the Soulslike Elden Ring barely requires an introduction these days. Since its 2022 release, the game has captivated players looking to take on challenging bosses in an epic fantasy setting. If you’ve yet to snag this one on Steam, you can currently get it for 40% off. Not a bad deal while you wait for Elden Ring: Nightreign to arrive.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance

Price: $7.49 / $29.99

If everyone talking about how great Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 is has you wanting to try out the first game, you’re in luck. The original Kingdom Come Deliverance is included in Steam’s Spring Sale with a 75% discount, bringing its price under $10. Experience the beginning of the story so you can catch up and know what everyone’s talking about.

The Steam Spring Sale features discounts on hundreds of PC games. The 2025 event runs from March 13th to March 20th.

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The latest free game on the Epic Games Store is one that fans of the Soulslike genre will want to check out. Since its introduction a little more than a decade ago, Soulslike games have become plentiful. FromSoftware has led the charge on this front with games like Dark Souls, Bloodborne, Demon’s Souls, and Elden Ring, but other studios have also made their own titles within the genre like Lies of P, The Surge, and Nioh. Now, one lesser-known Soulslike game is being handed out on the Epic Store for nothing and it’s definitely worth giving a look.

Starting today, March 13th, and lasting until the morning of March 20th, Mortal Shell is now free on the Epic Games Store. Developed by Cold Symmetry, Mortal Shell was released in 2020 and brought about some new ideas and mechanics to the Soulslike genre. While the game wasn’t as well-received as some others within the Soulslike space, it has still found an audience over the years and has gone on to receive multiple rounds of DLC. Typically, Mortal Shell retails for $30, so it going free on EGS saves users a nice chunk of change.

To make this week even better, Mortal Shell isn’t the only freebie that the Epic Store is handing out. In addition, a free content pack for World of Warships, formally dubbed the “Anniversary Party Favor“, will also be free to download. This add-on will bring free credits, XP, a new cruiser, and more to those who play World of Warships. While it’s not a second free game, it’s yet another great way for Epic to sweeten the deal with this week’s EGS giveaways.

To learn more about Mortal Shell, in particular, you can get a look at the game’s trailer and official synopsis below.

Mortal Shell

“Mortal Shell is a deep action-RPG that tests your sanity and resilience in a shattered world. As the remains of humanity wither and rot, zealous foes fester in the ruins. They spare no mercy, with survival demanding superior awareness, precision and instincts. Track down hidden sanctums of devout followers and discover your true purpose.

The dead litter this tattered landscape, but not all are without hope. The lost remains of defeated warriors are yours to discover. Awaken these Mortal Shells, occupy their bodies and significantly open your understanding to diverse masteries of combat.

Combat is strategic and deliberate. You must commit your sword only when an opportunity opens. Calculate your parries to unleash devastating counterblows. Temporarily entomb your Mortal Shell in stone to block attacks, or play aggressive and use your stone-form to add brutal weight to your own sword swings.”

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For many gamers, countless hours of the day are consumed by work, study, and other tasks that get in the way of gaming time. While they won’t help players grind levels in their favorite RPG, idle games do provide a nice balm for those non-gaming hours spent with pesky tasks like emails and taxes. Idle games are designed to be simple, requiring little attention to keep chugging along. They’re a light-touch way to get a little gaming in between doing other things, and the genre just keeps getting better.

With plenty of idle games to choose from, which ones are worth your time? This list of the best idle games to play while doing other things can help.

Spirit City: Lofi Sessions

Price: $11.99

This idle game is designed to be a productivity booster more than anything, making it the perfect companion for work or study. In Spirit City, you can put some time into designing an avatar and decorating your space. Then, you set up your coworking companion in the space and activity of your choosing and enjoy the sounds of excellent lofi playlists and a wide variety of ambient sounds.

The gaming element here is a light touch, perfect for giving you a little something without taking away focus from other things. There are several spirits that you can collect by figuring out the right combination of activities, location, and ambient sounds to attract each one. Finding them requires some idle time engaging in said activities, so it’s easy to let Spirit City fade into the background while keeping on task until the next cute critter appears.

Tiny Pasture

Price: $5.99

Tiny Pasture is an idle game where you care for tiny critters at the bottom of your screen. Start with a pixel bunny and work your way up to more complex pets like corgis, foxes, and even slimes. The game blends seamlessly into the bottom of the screen and comes with a soothing little soundtrack to keep you company while you work.

Here, you’ll need to give the occasional click to gather coins, feed your critters, and pick up their messes. Otherwise, it’s just a little companion with cute animals and soothing clouds to bring a little joy to the workday.

Rusty’s Retirement

Price: $6.99 on Steam

Rusty’s Retirement is an idle farming sim featuring a cute little robot. It’s kind of like if Stardew Valley and Wall-E had an idle gaming baby. This idler really sparked the “bottom of your screen” game craze and maintains an Overwhelmingly Positive rating on Steam to this day.

In Rusty’s Retirement, you deploy Rusty and a growing team of robots to help care for a growing farm. The player will need to check in to plant crops and keep the farm growing, but the day-to-day tasks are automated by pixel robot pals. Thus, a great way to get your farming sim fix while tending to real-life tasks.

Ropuka’s Idle Island

Price: $3.99

If Disney Dreamlight Valley‘s floating islands are your dream environment, you might enjoy what Ropuka’s Idle Island does with your desktop. This game gives you a little floating island with a cute little frog to care for it. You can stick the island anywhere you like on the screen, then watch while Ropuka tends to the grass.

This game is simple and mostly involves watching the frog cut the neverending grass. You can use that grass as currency to upgrade various elements of the island, building it up to make it your own. Other than that, your frog co-worker doesn’t require much of your attention, making it a great idle game. Plus, the soundtrack offers lofi and ambient nature sounds to keep you focused.

My Little Life

Price: $5.99

This is the idler for the The Sims fan who needs to focus on other things but still wants to exercise a little control over tiny humans while doing it. My Little Life sits at the bottom of the screen, offering you an array of people who you’ll support as they gain work promotions, build up their homes, and acquire plenty of roommates to pay the bills.

The interaction sounds in My Little Life can be a bit distracting at times, and it does require a smidge more attention than some of the other titles on this list. You’ll need to add new items to help keep your humans happy, and there are plenty of wishes and goals to fulfill that bring the gaming elements of this idler up a notch. But at the end of the day, it still makes a nice bottom-of-the-screen companion that settles into the background once you’ve set everyone up for the day.

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Epic Games Store’s first free game of March 2025 is now available for all EGS users on PC. The free PC game in question normally costs $19.99, so this represents a decent amount of savings though perhaps not as much as some other weeks. As always though, this offer is only available for a limited time. More specifically, it is only available until March 13, which is exactly one week from now. After this period, it will be replaced with a new free offer. If claimed in time though, PC users on EGS can keep the game perpetually.

The free Epic Games Store game in question hails from 2020 when it was released by Maximum Entertainment and Mane6. Upon release, the game garnered Metacritic scores that range from 80 to 83, a decent return. Meanwhile, user reviews for the game are in similar ranges. For example, 83 percent of over 3,000 user reviews on Steam rate the game positively. For those that have not connected the dots yet, the new Epic Games Store free game is Them’s Fightin’ Herds.

“Them’s Fightin’ Herds is a 2D fighting game featuring a cast of adorable animals designed by acclaimed cartoon producer Lauren Faust. Beneath the cute and cuddly surface, a serious fighter awaits,” reads an official description of the game on the Epic Games Store. “Battle it out in local versus or online with rollback netcode. Streamlined combat mechanics blend accessibility and depth to create a robust combat system designed for both newcomers and veterans alike!”

RELATED: Borderlands Deal Lets Fans Save $40 and Only Pay $3 for Games

Those that decide to check out Them’s Fightin’ Herds now that it is free on PC via the Epic Games Store should expect a game that is about four to five hours long to beat the main campaign. This is just the story mode and doesn’t factor in the main offering of the game, which is its local and online multiplayer.

For more Epic Games Store — including all of the latest Epic Games Store news, all of the latest Epic Games Store rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Epic Games Store deals — click here.

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The beloved PS5 release, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 swung onto PC in January of this year. Since then, the game has received a number of patches to improve the game’s PC performance. Now, the first March update for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 has arrived on PC, bringing more bug fixes and stability improvements. This is the fourth patch for Spider-Man 2 on Steam since its rough launch in January, which received negative reviews thanks to poor PC optimization. Since then, the game has crawled its way back up to a Mostly Positive rating, suggesting that these PC patches have indeed made a big difference to performance.

This latest update for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 focuses mainly on ensuring the game runs more smoothly on PC and Steam Deck. While it doesn’t bring in any new content, it should help streamline the gameplay experience so players can enjoy their webslinging adventures with fewer crashes. Update 1.305.0.0 offers a number of bug fixes and crash fixes, including making sure mission trails appear and resolving raytracing-related bugs and optimization issues.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Patch Notes for Version 1.305.0.0

To see every bug squashed and crash averted with the March 2025 update to Spider-Man 2, see the original patch notes as shared via Steam. The latest PC patch is also available for gamers playing via the Epic Games launcher.

Release Notes (1.305.0.0)

• Resolved a bug that caused mission trails to not appear on first playthrough for some players.
• CPU and GPU performance optimizations related to raytracing.
• Performance improvements in areas with sand.
• Improved map navigation performance.
• Settings for Brightness, Contrast and visual effects no longer reset when the game is restarted, or the time of day is changed.
• Fixed a crash that could occur when quitting the game quickly after starting it.
• Resolved a crash that could occur on quadcore processors when enabling raytracing.
• Addressed a bug that caused ray-traced shadows of Symbiote Nests to persist after they were cleared.
• Fixed a bug where ray-traced shadows caused excessive lighting in some cases.
• Resolved a bug with ray-raced reflections that caused characters to appear darker when Ambient Occlusion was set to XeGTAO.
• Fixed a bug where the mouse could get stuck in a dragging state when dragging a scroll bar.
• The [Space] input in ‘Press [Space] to continue’ will no longer be replaced by the key mapped to ‘Jump’.
• Various crash fixes and stability improvements.
• Various visual bug fixes related to ray-traced reflections.
• Various fixes to ray-traced ambient occlusion and ray-traced shadows
• Various user interface bug fixes and improvements.

As you can see, this patch isn’t a big one, but it should hopefully improve the experience for Steam users trying to enjoy Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. Nixxes Software invites players to continue submitting feedback about lingering issues after the update, which they can do via the Nixxes Support page.

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A new free game is being given out on Steam for one week only. Perhaps more than any other digital marketplace, Steam is known for having some of the best discounts for its thousands upon thousands of titles. This is most prominently seen in the Steam Summer Sale and Steam Winter Sale, which sees enormous price cuts to some of the most popular games on all of Steam. For those looking to save as much money as possible, though, one Steam game has now gone entirely free, but it’s already proving to be divisive.

Starting today and lasting until March 9th, Isle of Jura has seen its price cut completely and can now be obtained for the grand total of $0. Released in 2022 and developed by EM Games, Isle of Jura is a cozy fishing game that centers around a young girl trying to finish a biology assignment. As such, she visits the titular island of Jura and proceeds to fish and uncover other secrets that the local has in store.

While it’s great to see Isle of Jura go free in this manner, not everyone seems to be a fan of the Steam freebie. Since going available at no cost, Isle of Jura has received “Mostly Negative” reviews from Steam users, which has brought its overall review rating to “Mixed”. While new players don’t seem to be loving the game so far, it did have many more positive reviews prior to being given out for free. As such, if you’re at all interested in what Isle of Jura has to offer, there’s no harm in giving it a shot to see how it might land with you.

Isle of Jura

About: “Alex needs to finish her biology report! Looking for species to study, she’s taking a fishing trip to Jura, a remote and beautiful island.

Features

• Catch over 50 species of fish
• Master 3 different fishing techniques
• Find artifacts and complete the island collection
• Chat with the island residents
• Explore at your own pace”

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With the first Steam Next Fest event of the year upon us and a lull in big releases until March, I, like many others, found myself looking through Steam’s most-played demos to see if anything caught my eye. Among the most popular Steam demos were mech-based games, RPGs, simulators, big names like Game of Thrones, and more, but there was one game on that list that stood out from the rest: Bongo Cat. After spending over 80 hours with Bongo Cat, it’s going to be a day one purchase on March 5th when the full game releases on Steam no matter what the price is.

Bongo Cat is an idle game, a genre which I admittedly paid little mind to prior to downloading the demo. “Contempt” might be a strong word, but I’d even go so far as to say I had quite the lack of appreciation for idle games prior to hanging out with Bongo Cat. But now, it’s all starting to make sense.

The game itself takes after the famous Bongo Cat meme and consists solely of a cat companion who hangs out on your screen while you work, play, or do whatever else you need to do. When you click your mouse or type on the keyboard, his hands smack the taskbar with every press (assuming you snap him to the taskbar like I did). There’s no real program window to speak of, so if it weren’t for him flailing his hands in the corner of my eye while I work, I’d forget he was there.

As you type and click, Bongo Cat keeps up with the sum of both of those inputs, but you can hide that number until you hover over him if you want to keep him even more discrete. The constant presence of Bongo Cat is nice, but where the idle game shines is through its drops.

After 30 minutes, you get a drop if you’ve clicked or pressed at least 1,000 times. I’ll be at about 170,000 inputs by the time I’m done advocating for Bongo Cat which equates to many drops of all kinds of different items he can wear on his head and, if you’re lucky, skins to change the cat’s base appearance. Mohawks, wizard and witch hats, party hats, bows, lanterns, stacks of books, gummy bears, Viking helmets, and countless other rewards I haven’t even gotten to yet await the more you click. There’s even a very lite version of an economy here: after getting 10 items of the same rarity, you can trade up to the next rarity and so on until you obtain a coveted Legendary item.

That’s all there is to Bongo Cat, but it’s enough to have me telling anyone who works at a computer and has Steam downloaded to get the game. He bangs away while I work, and when the day’s done and I settle in with League of Legends or something else that requires a lot of input, he’s still with me. Never have I ever pinned a game to my taskbar nor have I ever set one to boot up on startup, but that’s where we’re at with Bongo Cat (alongside a new appreciation for idle games).

The Bongo Cat Discord is a pretty wholesome place as one might expect with people pitching their suggestions for what the future of the game should look like, but I’m hoping everything’s kept as simple as it is now. The developer, Marcel Zurawka of Irox Games, has confirmed that the full release will include trading and selling features, and those who play the demo now will get a “Gamer” hat whenever the full release happens on March 5th. I’ve already got a suite of favorite drops that I cycle through depending on how the day’s going, but the Gamer hat and other go-tos will at least get honorary “do not trade” status as I rack up other rewards.

Bongo Cat will be released on March 5th via Steam, but you can get the demo right now to see if the full version can fit into your work day next week. If you’re in the market for another idle game after that, there’s another one that’s been climbing the Steam charts as of late.

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Believe it or not, March 2025 has already arrived, and it’s bringing with it a new list of exciting video games to look forward to. While Monster Hunter Wilds sent February out with a bang, this month has plenty of new releases ready to keep your gaming streak rolling. Despite a few of this month’s most anticipated titles getting delayed, March 2025 is still packed full of games coming to Xbox, PlayStation, PC, and Nintendo Switch. From a new Assassin’s Creed to the newest competitor for The Sims, this month has something for every gamer to look forward to.

Below, you’ll find a roundup of some of the biggest games coming out in March this year. There are a ton of games slated to release this month, so we can’t cover everything, but these are likely to be some of the most exciting, highly-anticipated releases headed our way this month.

Two Point Museum

Two Point Museum is a business simulator where you take on the role of museum curator. Manage exhibits, oversee your staff, and balance keeping the guests happy with keeping them off the artifacts. The latest installment in the tycoon series from Two Point follows up beloved sims Two Point Hospital and Two Point Campus. For gamers looking to put on their tycoon hats and brush off some dinosaur bones, Two Point Museum is a March game you’ll want to look out for.

Release Date: March 4th via PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PS5

Split Fiction

Split Fiction is the latest co-op adventure from Hazelight Studios, who brought us It Takes Two. This highly anticipated game once again offers an experience where co-op isn’t an afterthought, it’s an essential gameplay mechanic. In this split-screen adventure, players step into the shoes of writers Mio and Zoe. They wind up trapped inside their own stories, which juggle the genres of sci-fi and fantasy, and it’s up to gamers to figure out a way to break free. And yes, Friend’s Pass returns with Split Fiction, letting players invite a friend to join them for free via remote splitscreen play.

Release Date: March 6th via PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PS5

WWE 2K25

WWE 2K25 is the latest installment in the popular pro-wrestling game series. The 2025 entry brings fans a brand-new roster featuring big names like The Tribal Chief, Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu, and more. Players will be able to take on the role of their favorite pro wrestler in head-to-head match ups, and there’s already talk of DLC on the way to expand the game even more. Players who buy the advanced Deadman Edition or The Bloodline Edition will be able to get in on the action a week early, but for everyone else, this new game comes out mid-March.

Release Date: March 14th via PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PS5

33 Immortals

33 Immortals is an upcoming co-op action-roguelike game where players portray a damned soul rebelling against the wrath of God. As the name suggests, teams will be comprised of 33 characters in a tactical roguelike experience, leaving only the strongest survivors for the final boss battles. It will be a day-one Xbox Game Pass title when it launches into Early Access this month.

Release Date: Early Access starting March 18th via PC and Xbox Series X|S

Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition

This highly-anticipated remaster brings Xenoblade Chronicles X to the Nintendo Switch. With enhanced graphics, new characters, and a brand-new chapter, this isn’t just a chance to revisit the original game but an expansion that builds upon it. For those coming to it for the first time, Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition is an open-world action RPG where players try to survive on an alien planet.

Release Date: March 20th via Nintendo Switch

Assassin’s Creed Shadows

This latest installment in the Assassin’s Creed series takes players to Feudal Japan for an epic action-adventure story. You will switch between two different playstyles as a lethal Assassin and a legendary Samurai, offering variety as you play through the story’s unpredictable environment. After being delayed a few times, Assassin’s Creed Shadows will finally arrive on March 20th.

Release Date: March 20th via PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S

Bleach: Rebirth of Souls

Bleach: Rebirth of Souls lets fans relive the anime’s main story from the very beginning, playing as Ichigo or any number of Bleach characters. The game features fast-paced combat using unique sword abilities and powerful single-strike spells. Along the way, Secret Story mode will give greater insight into various characters from the series, showing more about what shaped them into who they are.

Release Date: March 20th via PC, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, and PS5

Killing Floor 3

Horror fans, get ready for the third installment in the Killing Floor series. Killing Floor 3 brings gamers back to the co-op horror FPS, taking on the role of a Nightfall specialist working with their teammates to beat back the onslaught of Zeds. Players will unlock new skills and tech as they go, fighting in a team of 6 or in single-player mode. Those bosses will be tougher thanks to retuned AI, ensuring you’ll need strategy to take them down.

Release Date: March 25th via PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PS5

Atomfall

Atomfall is a survival-action game that’s inspired by real events. Set in an alternate history about five years following the Windscale nuclear disaster, the game challenges players to scavenge, craft, trade, fight, and charm their way to survival. You’ll navigate the British countryside quarantine zone, coming across bizarre characters, rogue government agencies, cults, and more. As you go, you’ll also uncover the mystery of the quarantine zone and what really happened at Windscale. Atomfall is a day-one Xbox Game Pass title that will have a multiplatform simultaneous launch.

Release Date: March 27th via PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, and PS5

inZOI

inZOI is an upcoming life sim that’s poised to give The Sims a run for its money. This hyper-realistic sim lets players design their zoi avatar and explore a beautifully rendered world. It brings in what you’d expect in a quality in-depth life sim, with relationship interactions, world exploration, plenty of outfits and character creation options, and more. The game will be launching in Early Access, with a development roadmap on the way.

Release Date: Early Access starting March 28th via Steam

10 Honorable Mentions

Didn’t see your favorite on the list? Here are a few more games to keep an eye out for this March.

• Carmen Sandiego (March 4th) – Trailer
• Suikoden I & II HD Remaster (March 6th) – Trailer
• Sugardew Island (March 7th) – Trailer
• Fields of Mistria (Early Access Major Update) (March 10th) – Trailer
• Wanderstop (March 11th) – Trailer
• Call of Boba (Early Access) (March 11th) – Trailer
• MLB The Show 25 (March 14th) – Trailer
• Reignbreaker (March 18th) – Trailer
• Mudborne (March 20th) – Trailer
• The First Berserker: Khazan (March 27th) – Trailer

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PlayStation is one of the biggest gaming companies on the planet and a big part of that is thanks to its tremendous games. PlayStation has attained a reputation for crafting rich, high-quality exclusive games that are frequently showered in commercial and critical praise. A lot of PlayStation’s successes come from lengthy single-player games with blockbuster action, charming characters, and cinematic stories, things that can be seen in Uncharted, The Last of Us, Spider-Man, and God of War. For years, these exclusive franchises and PlayStation’s access to studios like Naughty Dog and Insomniac Games have driven players to buy PlayStation consoles. However, there’s less of a need for that now that PlayStation supports PC platforms like Steam.

Over the last five years or so, more and more PlayStation exclusives have come to PC. Just recently, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 launched on PC over a year after its initial PS5 release. The superhero game was a title that helped move PS5 units in 2023 given how much love there is for the character on a mainstream level. Another massive PlayStation exclusive, The Last of Us Part 2, is also coming to PC ahead of the premiere of The Last of Us season 2 on HBO. While a lot of the biggest PlayStation games are on PC now, there are still quite a few that haven’t made their way over yet.

Here are the seven biggest PlayStation games that still need to come to PC:

Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection

The fact that the first three Uncharted games aren’t available on PC is pretty egregious. Not only is it easily one of PlayStation’s biggest franchises, but Uncharted 4 – the very last game in the series that won’t be nearly as impactful without having played the other games – is available on PC. It’s strange and a weird omission. It’s possible that PlayStation hasn’t been interested in porting games that aren’t natively available to PS5, but still, it feels like a collection of games that should be on PC given they are pretty old and essential pieces to the Uncharted puzzle. Maybe if we get a remake of Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, we could see that brought over to PC, but it’s really unknown if the entire trilogy will ever make its way over.

Bloodborne

Bloodborne has one of the most feverish and neglected fanbases of all-time. The PS4-exclusive Souls game debuted back in 2015 and is widely regarded as not just one of the best PS4 games, but arguably one of the best Souls games. While the game is playable on PS5 due to backward compatibility, many want to see Bloodborne get a proper remaster which would also bring it to PC. Sadly, it seems like there’s no interest in anything like that from Sony or FromSoftware. Calls for any kind of new Bloodborne content have been met with silence for years, much to the dismay of fans everywhere.

The Original God of War Trilogy

Just like Uncharted, God of War (2018) and God of War Ragnarok are both on PC, but the beloved original trilogy is not. The original God of War games were released across PS2 and PS3 as some of the marquee titles for the platforms. While you don’t necessarily have to play the original games to understand the new God of War games, they do provide some really important context that will deepen your understanding of Kratos’ story. It would be great to get these games on PC and it’s quite possible that will happen as there are rumors of a remastered God of War collection for PS5 coming very soon.

Infamous

The Infamous series was PlayStation’s own attempt at doing a superhero series prior to making the Spider-Man games. The series has two different heroes across its three games with Cole MacGrath in the first two and Delsin Rowe in the PS4 exclusive, Infamous Second Son. They are tremendous games and really allow you to enjoy the superhero fantasy, but they also encourage players to play how they want thanks to a morality system. Will you use your powers for good or will you wield them for evil? It’s up to you and makes the Infamous games a unique series amid a fairly crowded genre. It would be fantastic to get all three games in a collection on PC and PS5 in the future, but PlayStation may not want to steal Spidey’s thunder.

Shadow of the Colossus

Shadow of the Colossus is a seminal PlayStation game and was beautifully remade for PS4 back in 2018. It stunningly recreated the game’s larger-than-life set pieces and brought the PS2 classic up to snuff for modern audiences without even dramatically changing the core game. It’s a game that everyone deserves to experience and it’s a wonder why PlayStation hasn’t managed to bring it over to PC yet.

Demon’s Souls

Yet another beloved PlayStation-exclusive Souls game managed to make the list thanks to Demon’s Souls. Ironically, Demon’s Souls is the first Souls game and was a bit of an enigma when it debuted on PS3. It was painstakingly difficult and drove some players away when it was released. However, it was welcomed with much more open arms when it was remade as a PS5 launch title as gamers were far more acquainted with the genre by that time. Given the vast majority of PS5 exclusives are on PC these days, it feels right that Demon’s Souls should make the move as well and allow even more people to get in on the action.

Astro Bot

Of all the entries on this list, Astro Bot seems like the least likely to come to PC. It is a game where you quite literally rebuild a PS5 for the robots to use as a spaceship of sorts. It’s really one big piece of PlayStation propaganda (that’s not a bad thing) and focuses on the history of the platform. Maybe one day Astro Bot will make its way over to PC, but it does seem like it would feel a bit out of place. Nevertheless, more people should get to experience the 2024 Game of the Year winner.

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For many gamers, Steam Next Fest is an exciting opportunity to fill up wishlists with new and upcoming releases. This February 2025 Steam Next Fest features an impressive (and overwhelming) 2,000+ game demos for players to check out from February 24th to March 3rd. The list is long, and it can be tricky to figure out where to spend your gaming time.

That’s where this roundup of the best cozy game demos you can’t miss during Steam Next Fest comes in. I played a ton of these games to help you decide which ones to focus on this time around.

Book Bound

Full Release Date: March 6th

Book lovers, rejoice! This upcoming cozy pixel art game lets you live the dream of running your own bookstore, minus the real-life financial commitment. The demo takes you through the basic mechanics of the game, including stocking the shelves, decorating your store, and gaining customer attention through an advertisement mini-game.

The gameplay loop here is relatively simple and straightforward, but that’s part of the fun. You’ll keep your shelves stocked, help customers find the right books, and keep the checkout running while making change for every purchase. It’s a must-try cozy demo for anyone who loves books. With the full release of Book Bound just a few days after Steam Next Fest, now’s a great time to decide if it’s going on the wishlist.

Tailside

Full Release Date: 2025 (Exact Date TBA)

I’ve had my eyes on this cozy coffee shop sim for a while and was thrilled to see the developer put out a brand-new demo for Steam Next Fest this February. In Tailside, you play as a cute little critter running a coffee shop for other cute little critters. It’s pixel art, with the usual cozy staples of unlocking new recipes, keeping things tidy, and decorating your cafe.

The demo is relatively short, but it gives a good overview of the game mechanics and playstyle. You’ll learn to make three different coffee drinks and meet some of the characters, while also getting a start at decorating the cafe. For gamers who enjoy a cozy, not-too-stressful restaurant management sim, Tailside is a demo you won’t want to miss.

Out And About

Full Release Date: TBA

This beautiful, 3D cozy game is all about learning to forage various plants in the wild. You’ll customize your avatar, then jump into a world full of wild plants and fungi to gather. Though the game cautions you to double-check its wisdom, you will learn a great deal about various wild plants and their uses as medicine and food.

The graphics are immersive, letting you take a close look at every plant you identify and gather. There’s also a nice sustainability angle, where you must be careful not to gather too much from each plant. After gathering up useful plants, you’ll put them to use in herbal remedies and tasty recipes, for a slightly different angle on the cozy gameplay loop. Out and About is definitely a must-play demo for plant lovers and cozy gamers alike.

Animal Spa

Full Release: 2025 (Exact Date TBA)

Idle games aren’t for everyone, but if you’re looking for a new idle game or want to try out the genre, the Animal Spa demo is worth a go. As the name implies, this cozy idler puts you in the role of running a spa for animals. You’ll place saunas, set the temperature, and keep the amenities up to snuff as adorable pixel critters come to visit for a little rest and relaxation.

There’s not too much to the gameplay yet, but there are different animals and tools to unlock, plus plenty of decorating. Like any good idle game, it’s a light touch to keep up with the game, with plenty of just enjoying the cozy vibes so you can focus on other tasks. The demo is a great preview to help you decide if this is the idle game for you.

Monsterest

Full Release Date: TBA

I’m a sucker for an innkeeping game, especially if it has a unique premise. In Monsterest, you find yourself trapped in the world of monsters. The only way to escape is to help run a cozy inn for local monsters. It’s got pixel graphics, cute monsters, and the staples every cozy game needs – resource gathering, crafting, decorating, fishing, cooking, and making friends with your guests.

The demo takes you through the early part of the game, giving you an overview of the basic gameplay loop. You’ll meet a few monster friends, check in some guests, and upgrade your inn. Though the exact release date for Monsterest hasn’t been confirmed, this is one demo to keep on your radar if you love innkeeping with a twist.

Sugardew Island

Full Release Date: March 7th

Many cozy gamers have had their eyes on Sugardew Island for a while as a potential competitor for Harvest Moon. This Steam Next Fest, players have a chance to check out the game with a pretty lengthy demo. Given how soon the game comes out, this is a great chance to see if it’s going to be for you ahead of the full release. Sugardew Island is a farming sim with a shopkeeping twist, perfect for fans of management games or people looking for a farming sim that’s not pixel art.

The Sugardew Island demo gives you a good feel for the game. You’ll be able to customize your character, start farming, and unlock the first few islands to meet new animal friends. And of course, you’ll get a feel for the shopkeeping element as well, stocking your shelves and trying to convince customers to buy your wares. If this cozy game has been on your watch list, be sure to give the demo a try during Steam Next Fest.

Little Library

Full Release Date: 2025 (Exact Date TBA)

If you thought Book Bound sounded good, you’re going to want to check out Little Library as well. This is a slightly more involved bookish cozy game where you move to a small town to run its library. You’ll be tasked with befriending the locals, turning the library into a community cornerstone, and running day-to-day operations. Oh and because this is a cozy game, the local restaurant decided you might as well help with some farming on the side, while you’re at it.

The demo for Little Library has a few snags, but it’s still worth checking out because this game looks super promising overall. Even though I ran into an infinite returned books glitch while playing, I very much enjoyed my time with Little Library. The demo gives a great idea of the gameplay flow, and I love how the game tests your real bookish knowledge with patron requests and reshelving mechanics. This is a cozy game to keep an eye on, especially for book lovers.

Are you planning to check out any of these cozy game demos during Steam Next Fest? Let us know in the comments below!

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A new Avowed update has been released by Obsidian Entertainment and Xbox via the PC, Xbox Series S, and Xbox Series X. In addition to releasing a new update, the pair have also provided Avowed players with the patch notes of the update, which in turn reveal and detail everything new with the update. Unfortunately, the Avowed update — Update 1.2.4 — does not include any new content or any meaningful new features, but there are many improves and fixes.

While the aforementioned duo have provided the patch notes for Avowed Update 1.2.4, they have not provided any information about the file size of the update on any platform. However, it is safe to assume the file size will be on the smaller size considering the lack of new content and features.

Avowed Update 1.2.4 Patch Notes

Crashes & Major Issues

• Adjusted character settings so that unkillable characters will now respawn if they mysteriously die, preventing blocked quest progression.

Quests & Area Design

• Loot piles will no longer be placed in unexpected locations when created while the player is far away. Previously affected saved games will now have the loot pile back where the owning character died.
• Players who killed Kostya and destroyed Solace Keep will no longer experience a dropped conversation when speaking with the leaders of the Living Lands during The Siege of Paradis. (Players with affected saves can now simply walk in and out of the meeting space to retrigger the conversation.)
• Bounty Masters in Dawnshore, Shatterscarp, and Galawain’s Tusks now correctly allow players to turn in bounties, even if they have acquired more trophy items than expected.
• Vemas now allows players to turn in Debt of Blood, even if they had already spoken to him upon returning.
• The player will no longer become stuck with no objectives active during An Untimely End.
• Fixed an issue where the player could become stuck in the environment near Dehengen’s Cottage.
• Enemy loot will no longer disappear if the player killed Ygwulf and the assassins in the Cistern, saved their game, and then reloaded that save.
• Ambassador Hylgard can no longer die from drowning in The Strangleroot while following the player, which was preventing him from appearing at the embassy in Paradis.
• The player will no longer be blocked from finishing Ancient Soil if Fior mes Iverno becomes inaccessible.

Systems & Gameplay Improvements

• Godless chests and sarcophagi now have currency in their loot lists.
• Upgrade materials (metal, wood, leather) are now more consistently available across stores in each region.
• Upgrade materials now properly refresh when store stock updates.
• Autosave frequency has been changed from 5 minutes to 10 minutes by default. (This can still be adjusted in player settings.)
• Autosave slots increased from 3 to 5.
• The ability Bleeding Cuts now applies Bleed Accumulation more reliably.
• Logging into Xbox Network on Steam no longer resets the player’s selected language setting.
• Kai is now less likely to teleport inside a wall while using Leap of Daring.
• Companions now assist in combat more reliably.

Visual & Art Fixes

• Militia Guard patrolling Claviger’s Landing now has the correct neck texture.
• Adjusted health bar position for the enemy Putrid Skeleton Wizard.
• Fixed jittering of player hair and armor when afflicted by Poison Accumulation.
• Reduced opacity of a water fountain inside Ondra’s Temple.

User Interface (UI) & Controls

• Expanded controller rebind options:
  • Most controller inputs can now be rebound, except for UI Navigation, Pause Menu, and Ledger navigation.
• Companion abilities bound to the Quick Slot menu no longer become undone after reloading a save.
• Added new settings for controller users to adjust gamepad look acceleration strength and ramp-up time.
• Corrected typos in the Encumbrance tutorial and on the Compiling Shaders screen (now correctly states “a few minutes” instead of “a few moments”).

Miscellaneous

• Launching Avowed with DirectX 11 is now disabled, as the game does not support it.
  • Some players have been using a DirectX 11 launch parameter as a workaround for various crashes, performance problems, or compatibility concerns. However, this can introduce additional problems that we cannot troubleshoot or resolve, including unexpected visual or performance issues.

Avowed is available via the PC, Xbox Series S, and Xbox Series X. For more Avowed news, as well as Avowed rumors and leaks, click here.

The post Avowed Update 1.2.4 Live, Here’s What It Does appeared first on ComicBook.com.

A new update is now live for Hogwarts Legacy. That’s usually cause for excitement, but console fans should temper their expectations, as this update is solely focused on the PC version of the game. Fortunately, it’s not like there’s any new content or anything; the developers were instead focused on resolving some pesky issues that appeared after PC modding was added. That means most of the focus this time is on issues that relate to mods, but there are also improvements to the game’s overall stability and performance, as well. These kinds of updates tend to be on the boring side for most players, but if you’ve been experiencing issues in Hogwarts Legacy, you might be happy to see what the developers have been up to.

Since the new patch was just released, players will have to see for themselves just how much the experience has been improved. From the full list of patch notes, it looks like there are a lot of things that have been resolved in Hogwarts Legacy this time around. Of course, it’s not unusual for new bugs to crop up when updates like these are released, so we’ll have to wait and see what the game’s community thinks. Full patch notes from the official Hogwarts Legacy website can be found below.

PATCH OVERVIEW

• Localization
  • Resolved download progress counter on mod cars misaligned in Japanese
  • General localization support
• UI
  • Resolved KBM prompt missing from “Favorite” and “Install” options
  • Resolved not being able to open privacy policy and terms of service 
  • Resolved placeholder text for Switch Pro controller inputs – HL-21944
  • Resolved mod description flickering when changing resolutions in window mode
  • Resolved customizable wands not triggering correctly
  • Resolved “Enable Mods” not working correctly when navigating away 
  • Resolved new gear default being costume only
  • Resolved the update required icon not appearing correctly
  • Resolved icon missing to indicate a reload and/or update to a mod
  • Resolved wand replacement mods listing in opposite order
  • Resolved prompt to restart game for updating mods not popping up
  • Resolved debug code being displayed in save name when playing mod mission
  • Resolved text being cut off or unaligned using more than 109 characters
  • Resolved mod save file having wrong exclamation mark
  • Resolved category icons in detail page might appear duplicated
  • Resolved mods not remaining updated after exiting details page
  • Resolved save confirmation text being inconsistent
  • Resolved “No Connection” text overlapping menus when offline
  • Resolved user not being able to unselect report option
  • Resolved “Update” prompt remaining displayed while updating mod
  • Resolved Q and E keys in the mod menu not cycling to the other side 
  • Resolved blue and red indicators appearing correctly without to hover over list
  • Resolved category icon spinning after updating is completed for a mod
  • Resolved not being able to adjust ratings on a mod
  • Resolved clicking on “Recent Project” restating the engine and disconnecting from CurseForge
  • Resolved mod and CurseForge image logo requirements being different
  • Resolved error messages when uploading mods without required fields not being clear
  • Resolved maximum number of characters being different in various areas
  • Resolve maximum number of characters in mod’s description exceeding the creator kit causing text to not display properly on CurseForge
  • Resolved transparency of featured mods and arrow at the bottom of the screen not updating when scrolling page with a controller
  • Resolved the number of ratings being cut off when reaching a 1000 or more
  • Resolved some mods displaying small, light blue font in the mods details
  • Resolved long mod names not being displayed over two lines on their cards
  • Implemented a pop-up dialog to show if the game crashes do to detection of Nexus or similar mod previously in use
• Gameplay
  • Resolved custom fast travels not working 
  • Resolved ‘Third Time’s a Charm’ not being able to be unlocked
  • Resolved silent restart failing with mods
  • Resolved moth picture frame image in mod being replaced with a placeholder 
  • Resolved basic attack leaving blank impacts on hit surfaces
• Stability/Performance
  • Resolved General Creator Kit support
  • Implementation of extended Nvidia frame generation features
  • Implementation of intel’s frame generation features (XeFG)
  • Resolved crash when talking to Olivander with the any wand mod installed
  • Resolved crash occurring when walking through Ancient Magic gate 
• Miscellaneous
  • General text adjustments
  • Resolved long names causing underscores to vanish
  • Resolved grammar issues in mods
  • Resolved file path being displayed incorrectly
  • Resolved scrolling down with mouse vs controller have different results
  • Updated the feature image on the Discovery page

Hogwarts Legacy Creator Kit Build Version – 1344202

Developer notes – This patch provides bug fixes for the Creator Kit.

Patch Overview: 

• Editor
  • Resolved Dungeon entrance blueprint disappearing when changing mod and entering a different level
  • Resolved mods replacing blueprints

RELATED: Hogwarts Legacy DLC Reportedly in the Works

Are you excited about this new update for Hogwarts Legacy? Had you encountered any of these issues since mod support was added? Share your thoughts with me directly on Bluesky at @Marcdachamp, or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!

The post Hogwarts Legacy Gets New PC Update, Patch Notes Released appeared first on ComicBook.com.

Epic Games Store has a new free game and the deal is better than people are giving it credit for. The game itself isn’t the most noteworthy giveaway Epic Games has ever provided PC gamers via the Epic Games Store, but the context makes it more noteworthy. The free game was made available earlier this morning, and is free until next Thursday, which is March 6. The free game has to be redeemed by EGS users within this window, but once done the game is free to keep forever.

The free Epic Games Store game in question is Mages of Mystralia, a 2017 action-adventure game from Borealys Games. On Metacritic, the free game has scores predominately in the 70s. Meanwhile, its user reviews are a bit higher, as evident by its 88 percent approval rating on Steam. What makes this giveaway more noteworthy though is it comes ahead of its sequel, Echoes of Mystralia, which doens’t have a release date but was announced last year. In other words, while the game may be eight years old, it is a relevant again thanks to its pending sequel.

“The kingdom of Mystralia, it takes more brains than brawn to succeed,” reads an official description of the game. “You will face down giant, powerful creatures and navigate treacherous terrain. You will encounter puzzles that confound even the wisest of the old sages. And you must overcome obstacles put in place by people who do not want you to succeed.”

Those that decide to check out Mages of Mystralia now that it is free via Epic Games Store should be prepare to spend about 8 to 15 hours with the game on average. The difference in this range comes down to variables such as skill, playstyle, and completion rate. Normally, for this content, PC users would have to fork over $20. And the same is true on Steam right now because while it is free on Epic Games Store it is fully priced on its competitor.

For more Epic Games Store coverage — including all of the latest Epic Games Store news, all of the latest Epic Games Store rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Epic Games Store deals — click here.

The post Epic Games Store’s New Free Game Is Better Than You Think appeared first on ComicBook.com.

Steam is the most popular game store and launcher on PC, boasting a wide variety of games and an easy-to-use UI. Valve has made numerous updates to Steam, improving it and making it more accessible for developers and players. One of the main aspects the gaming community loves about Steam is the revolving events and sales the platform hosts, giving access to game demos and discounted titles. While these have been frequent, a new announcement by Valve has fans excited for what is to come. The Daily Deal program has been a massive success for Steam and fans, earning the company more money and giving players more titles to enjoy on sale. But it appears this program is about to get even better.

In January 2024, Steam launched the Daily Deal promotions by introducing four daily deals on different games. This increased the number of daily game sales from two, and it appears Steam will be further increasing the number of games available through Daily Deals.

RELATED: Valve Lays Out Steam Sale Schedule for the Rest of the Year

On February 26th, Steam announced it would further increase the number of Daily Deals from four to six. With more titles on sale daily, players will be able to access new games at a discounted rate. Furthermore, it will help Steam create a more personalized and diverse shopping experience for players. The announcement was made with this statement:

“Beginning in January 2024, we started running four simultaneous Daily Deal promotions, with Steam prioritizing which two will be shown first to any given user based on that user’s gameplay and their Steam preferences (for more on how this works, see below). 

In the past year, we found running four spots instead of two is largely additive, and it lets Steam better match the right game with the right player. Because of this, we’re expanding the Daily Deals program to support six titles per day, allowing us to shine a spotlight on more games while giving us a deeper pool of offers to select from and connect with the right users as they view the homepage and any other locations where the Daily Deal appears.”

Steam further detailed how the algorithms would prioritize and display the Daily Deals based on each user’s gameplay history, library, and Steam profile data. The goal is to ensure players see the games they enjoy and encourage them to expand their library. Moving to a more personalized approach instead of a set of generic deals makes the displayed titles more relevant.

Steam is continuing to make innovations and improvements across the board. The Steam Deck has been a massive success, and rumors have swirled over a new Steam console. By increasing the Daily Deals to six spots, Steam provides an even greater selection of offers, ultimately improving the platform’s ability to connect users with the games they love. Additionally, this keeps the experience fresh and relevant by rotating what games are on sale and giving more opportunities to see games that may have gone unnoticed.

The post Steam Users Are Getting Even More Daily Deals Now appeared first on ComicBook.com.

An ongoing promotion is allowing users to pick up the original Deus Ex for no cost, but you’ll have to act fast. Originally released in 2000, Deus Ex is widely considered one of the most influential games ever. Not only was it highly acclaimed upon its arrival, but it went on to spawn a larger series with future sequels like Deus Ex: Invisible War, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided all releasing in the years that would follow. And while the franchise has remained on ice for the better part of the past decade, the game that started it all can now be obtained for absolutely nothing.

This deal in question for Deus Ex comes by way of Prime Gaming, which is doling out copies of the game on PC. As with any giveaway on Prime Gaming, to take advantage of this freebie you’ll have to have an active Amazon Prime membership. Given how common it is to have a Prime subscription, though, there’s a high probability that you can pick up Deus Ex for yourself without having to become a member. Once you do claim Deus Ex, Prime Gaming will give users a code that can then be redeemed on GOG.com. From here, you’ll be able to download Deus Ex and retain access to it forever. And if this wasn’t good enough on its own, the version of the game that’s being given out is the Game of the Year edition, which comes with some additional extras.

Deus Ex has already been free on Prime Gaming for a little over a month, but the reason that it’s notable right now is because this offer is about to conclude. At the end of today, February 26th, Deus Ex will be taken off of Prime Gaming, at which point subscribers won’t be able to snag it for $0. As such, if you somehow haven’t taken advantage of this deal to this point, you should do so before it’s gone.

Deus Ex

“The year is 2052 and the world is a dangerous and chaotic place. Terrorists operate openly, killing thousands; drugs, disease and pollution kill even more. The world’s economies are close to collapse and the gap between the insanely wealthy and the desperately poor grows ever wider. Worst of all, an ages-old conspiracy bent on world domination has decided that the time is right to emerge from the shadows and take control.

Features

• Real role-playing from an immersive 3D, first-person perspective. The game includes action, character interaction and problem solving.
• Realistic, recognizable locations. Many of the locations are built from actual blueprints of real places set in a near future scenario.
• A game filled with people rather than monsters. This creates empathy with the game characters and enhances the realism of the game world.
• Rich character development systems: Skills, augmentations, weapon and item selections and multiple solutions to problems ensure that no two players will end the game with similar characters.
• Multiple solutions to problems and character development choices ensure a varied game experience. Talk, fight or use skills to get past obstacles as the game adapts itself to your style of play.
• Strong storyline: Built on ‘real’ conspiracy theories, current events and expected advancements in technology. If it’s in the game, someone, somewhere believes.”

The post Deus Ex Is Free in Deal That Concludes in Under 24 Hours appeared first on ComicBook.com.

With the ongoing Steam Next Fest, players have been able to get a glimpse into the next chapter of the gaming industry, with over 4,000 demos of the most anticipated upcoming games on the PC platform. A vast majority of these demos come from rising development studios, which is a testament to Valve’s overall goal to shine a light on independent teams and projects. With this being said, there are a few of these demos that are leaving quite the impression on Steam users during this week-long celebration, with some even crossing over 200,000 players. From games like Mecha Break to Bongo Cat, here are some of the key standouts during the February Steam Next Fest event.

While many might gravitate toward the most popular demos, now is a great time to check out anything on Steam that you see is interesting. Steam Next Fest is made to bring a spotlight on what is to come from the industry, so make sure to play as much as you can.

Without further ado, here are Steam Next Fest’s most popular demos so far:

• Mecha BREAK Demo – 317,522 players
• Fellowship Demo – 16,721 players
• RoadCraft Demo – 12,599 players
• Gothic 1 Remake – Demo (Nyras Prologue) – 10,222 players
• The First Berserker: Khazan Demo – 4,439 players
• Bongo Cat Demo – 3,886 players
• Solarpunk Demo – 3,728 players

To start, fans have been mechanically inclined to play the Mecha BREAK demo after seeing its Game Mode trailer at The Game Awards in December. Hitting a peak of over 315,000 players, no other title has yet to hit this level of activity, making this multiplayer mech shooter game the one to watch for. Amazing Seasun Games have crafted an experience where you can customize your mech and battle against colossal war machines in high-octane ground and aerial combat.

With over 10,000 players, Fellowship, RoadCraft, and Gothic 1 Remake are coming in quite strong with Steam users. If you go to try these titles out, you’ll know exactly why. Chief Rebel’s Fellowship is a multiplayer online dungeon adventure (MODA) that thrives within its fantasy world of endless bosses and its emphasis on team strategy and cooperation. Saber Interactive’s RoadCraft is a physics-based automobile simulation game that takes place on a construction site, which is your toolbox to rebuild roads and bridges damaged by weather. Alkimia Interactive’s Gothic 1 Remake marks the return of the cult classic action RPG from 2001 that brings players to the Valley of the Mines, an open world filled with creatures, fellow travelers, and much more.

RELATED: 5 Action-Heavy Steam Next Fest Demos You Should Check Out This Week

Rounding out the group are The First Berserker: Khazan, Bongo Cat, and Solarpunk, which are reeling in thousands of players this week. Many might have already heard of Neople’s hardcore action RPG Khazan, as the game recently released a demo on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, which was a hit among Soulslike fans who crave the adrenaline rush derived from fast-paced gameplay. On the opposite side of the spectrum comes Macel Zurawka’s Bongo Cat, which is based on the popular internet meme. In this casual simulation title, you must help Bongo Cat get more hats. To round this out, Solarpunk is a survival farming simulation game set across a world of floating islands that you (and your friends) can explore to gather items to construct buildings, grow food, and craft gadgets.

All in all, these titles have left an impression on Steam users and are the best look at what’s to come from the gaming industry. If there are any that you would like to shout out, let us know in the comments section below!

[H/T Steamdb]

The post Steam Next Fest’s Most Popular Demos Ranked by Player Numbers appeared first on ComicBook.com.

A Steam game is now available to download for free until February 24. The free Steam game — which is playable on Steam Deck — is a full free download. This means once it is claimed, it is free to keep perpetually. However, the offer has to be redeemed by 1:00 PM ET February 24 because after this the offer will expire and the free Steam game in question will revert back to its normal price point of $19.99.

Meanwhile, while the free PC game is playable on Steam Deck, it has not been Verified by Valve for the Steam Deck. This, according to Valve, means the game may require extra effort to interact with or configure when running it on Steam Deck. In other words, Steam Deck users may run into various issues, though none that will prevent the game from being played start to finish on the handheld machine.

As for the free Steam game in question, it is a 2022 release described by developer Mr. Pink and publisher HypeTrain Digital as a “survival-horror FPS prop Hunt roguelike.” More specifically, the game is Golden Light, which according to Steam user reviews, is pretty good.

To date, 2,518 user reviews have been left for the game on Steam, and 88 percent of these reviews are positive, giving the game a “Very Positive” ranking. This is the second highest rating a game can earn on Steam.

“Welcome to the Meat Zone. Prop Hunt where props hunts you.. Also it’s a horror roguelike,” reads an official description of the game on Steam. “Golden Light is a procedural dark comedy horror game with roguelike elements and an eerie atmosphere. Descend into the depths of the Gut to save your loved one.”

RELATED: New Verified Steam Deck Games Include One of the Best PS5 Exclusives

“Procedural horror meets absolute nonsense in this meat-filled masterpiece,” reads one of the user reviews in question. “If you’re a fan of being startled, then this is your jam. If you’re interested in more psychological horror, then not a good choice. But generally, this game is a solid one that I dive in to occasionally, regret diving into, and forget about for several days only to return and repeat the process.”

Those that decide to check this free video game should expect to dump anywhere between seven to ten hours into the game, with the variance coming down to factors like playstyle and completion rate. Meanwhile, to download the free Steam game, Steam users should be prepared to fork over 2 GB of space.

The post New Horror Game Golden Light Now Free to Download and Keep on Steam appeared first on ComicBook.com.

Now’s the best time to return on Indy’s adventure. Today, Bethesda and MachineGames released the long-awaited Update 3 patch notes for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, which was teased earlier this week. The new update brings a lot of bug fixes and issues with the audio and graphics. Plus, it adds a new quality-of-life feature, as repair kits can now be used in the inventory screen rather than just in-game. However, one of the key assets of Update 3 is the support of NVIDIA DLSS 4, which also brings ray-tracing and upscaling.

Released in December, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle made quite a splash with critics and fans. It already became Xbox Series X|S’ best-rated exclusive of 2024, which is a feat as Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 came out and received rave reviews. While the game is currently available on Xbox Series X|S and PC, it will launch on PlayStation 5 in Spring, though no specifics were given. Still, these changes do hold well for that release, at least with the bugs (and thankfully no snakes).

RELATED: Disney Reportedly Wants More Indiana Jones Games

As mentioned before, Update 3 of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle brings support for NVIDIA DLSS 4, as well as Intel XESS 1.4 upscaling and AMD FSR 3.1 upscaling and frame generation technology. This is no doubt good news to those who use them, as they can play Indy’s best-reviewed journey the best way possible. Plus, the team promises to add more support, as well as community-requested features like the repair kit fix previously mentioned. With bugs, many of them deal with minor spoilers of the narrative, so if you have yet to dive into the adventure, be warned!

The patch notes for Update 3 of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle can be found below:

New Features

NVIDIA DLSS 4

• Update 3 brings support for NVIDIA DLSS 4: a suite of rendering technologies that boosts framerates, increases performance, and improves image quality! – Players using supported NVIDIA hardware can enable Multi Frame Generation (3x, 4x) using the new transformer-based model – Ray Reconstruction increases the clarity and stability of ray-traced images – DLAA and DLSS Super Resolution have also been updated to the transformer-based model. These options when enabled enhance native and upscaled image quality, respectively

Ray-Traced Local Lights

• For players who have Path Tracing enabled, this update includes a new option for ray-traced shadows to include all light sources, which significantly increases the quality of shadows in interior locations. (Players can also choose to keep the previous setting, which provides ray-traced shadows from the sun only.)

Path Tracing (Full Ray Tracing) Support for AMD and Intel Graphics Cards

• This update brings Path Tracing to supported Intel and AMD GPUs. To use Path Tracing, your Intel or AMD graphics card must support Hardware Ray Tracing and have at least 16GB of VRAM. Please make sure to download the latest drivers from your GPU manufacturer! Note that in foliage-dense locations, such as Sukhothai, reducing Vegetation Animation Quality below the “Ultra” settings can reduce the occasional shadow “popping” that may be seen on all graphics cards using Path Tracing.

FSR 3.1, including Frame Generation

• Update 3 adds support for AMD FSR 3.1 upscaling and frame generation technology.

Intel XESS 1.4

• Update 3 also adds support for Intel XESS 1.4 upscaling.

Quality of Life Updates

• Repair kits can now also be used by selecting them directly from the inventory (Rather than only by selecting your broken weapon or tool!)

Bug Fixes — Minor Spoilers Ahead!

General

• Fixed an issue where players would be unable to use ladders, squeeze through walls, or climb vines in Sukhothai; particularly during the Blessed Pearl mission
• Fixed an issue that could prevent players from picking up certain medicine bottles in the Vatican
• Fixed an issue that could temporarily stop you from being able to punch or block if you had picked up an item while the game was saving
• Fixed an issue where the camera could be stuck in third person when backing out of certain third-person interactions
• Fixed an issue where the player and enemies might take damage while walking through an open doorway after restarting a checkpoint
• Fixed issue where notes might clip through the front of the screen when inspecting them
• Fixed an issue where players could accidentally drop their Camera or Lighter while inspecting items for purchase
• Fixed an issue that could make items disappear if players tried to pick up objects while vaulting over objects
• Fixed an issue where inspectable items could be lost if picked up at the same moment an enemy punched you
• Fixed an issue that could make the “Restricted Area” HUD marker to be offset after restarting a checkpoint
• Fixed an issue where camera shake would permanently occur when revisiting Gizeh
• Fixed an issue where a bullet could be seen in the Luger chamber even when the gun is empty
• Fixed an issue where players could pour wine from their Camera in the Five Sacred Wounds puzzle
• Fixed an issue where the player’s view could be tilted after being released from a whip pull by Voss
• Fixed an issue that caused enemy soldiers leaning on objects to spin unnaturally when alerted by the player

Graphics

• Fixed remaining issues where animation update rate was inconsistent in some cutscenes, causing visible shaking or stuttering
• Fixed issue where the pouring water streams were not visible during the initial collapse of the Ziggurat in Sukhothai
• Fixed an issue that let players see out of world in the Vatican Dig Site

Missions and Quests

• Fixed an issue where players could not take a photo of Uncle Sunan when revisiting Sukhothai, or after skipping a cutscene between Sunan and Pailin
• Fixed an issue that could prevent collecting the ‘Fried Egg’ Field Note in Sukhothai, and the Ostracan Shard in Gizeh after restarting checkpoints
• Fixed an issue that could prevent players from being able to turn in Radio Frequencies at the radio stations when revisiting Sukhothai (since Gina would not be present)
• Fixed an issue where players could not unlock the “Shadows out of Time” achievement if they had any Ancient Relics placed in the Puzzle Boards in Iraq. (I.e. if you did not have all 50 Relics in your inventory.) For players who have already completed the puzzle, simply revisiting Iraq will now unlock the achievement
• Fixed an issue where collecting the last ancient relic for “Riddles of the Ancients” did not update the counter in the UI, giving the impression there was still another to collect. Also fixed issues where this mission had no description on your map information, and certain Ancient Relic markers did not appear on the Sukhothai and Vatican maps
• Fixed an issue that could prevent the players from re-collecting Khmer Cogs if they changed the puzzle difficulty after solving the Khmer Gate puzzle
• Fixed an issue where the player could obtain the rebreather in Sukhothai before ever getting the objective to talk to Tongdang, preventing the player from getting the next mission objective
• Fixed an issue where Field Notes could still be tracked even when all notes had been collected
• Fixed several issues where an unneeded note marker would appear under the world
• Fixed an issue where Adventure Books were not shown on the map after acquiring the Ziggurat Guide in Iraq
• Fixed an issue where Ability Book and guide markers appeared on the Sukhothai map before players acquired the guides from Tongdang
• Fixed an issue where certain map markers near the end of the Vatican level did not appear on the main map, but only on your local map
• Fixed an issue where taking photos of the monkey posters in Sukhothai did not remove their in-world markers
• Fixed an issue where the cogwheel markers might not appear if players purchased the map information pamphlet after a certain point in Sukhothai
• Fixed an issue where the main Sukhothai main map could be lost if you put it down after inspecting it (instead of collecting it)
• Fixed an issue where Gina would not leave Wat Si Sawai if you left the temple while she was talking with Aran
• Fixed an issue that could prevent the desk drawer being opened in the poker tent in Gizeh
• Fixed an issue where Gina could open the cavern door in Iraq by herself, leading to the cavern being empty of all enemies
• Added additional voice lines to help the player understand that they should run away from the Nephilim in the dream sequence in Sukhothai, rather than fight
• Fixed an issue where players could not pick up the Priest outfit from Antonio if they tried to do it too quickly
• Fixed an issue that prevented players from getting into the boat in the escape from the Hotel sequence in Sukhothai if they pushed the interact button too many times
• Fixed an issue where players could spawn inside the ground when revisiting Sukhothai
• Fixed an issue where the last objective of a mission was still displayed on the HUD after all Adventures and Field Work were completed in a level
• Fixed an issue where the World of Knowledge quest could complete when arriving outside the Vatican for the first time
• In Marshall College, we increased the visibility the outlines of the cat mummy photo and gramophone record (in Indy’s office) from further away

Audio

• Fixed an issue where Indy would repeat his line about, “The Yeak in the water,” whenever surfacing from a dive in Sukhothai
• Fixed an issue where Indy would repeat dialogue about Voss’s gold stash in Sukhothai (“Well you’re not bribing anyone with this, Voss”), long after having completed that mission
• Fixed an issue where Gina would repeat her lines from the ambush (“That was too close”) while you are in the boat. Please note this will, unfortunately, not correct the issue for players who are currently experiencing the bug, but it will prevent it from happening again
• Improvements to combat and stealth music transitions, to make them more seamless
• Added sound for heavyweight enemies breaking out of a clinch
• Raised the volume of the enemy mounted machineguns in Sukhothai hotel shootout
• Corrected the sound type when walking on the boat near Forrestal’s camp in Peru
• Fixed Annika Lund’s effort voices in Sukhothai when she is traversing objects
• Updated Indy’s effort voices when sliding
• Added sounds for when Indy pushes the dragon statue at the Fountain of Sacrament
• Fixed Indy repeating the same VO line when picking up recipe note in Borgia Tower
• Fixed issues where environmental sounds disappeared or were incorrect in several locations in the Vatican and Sukhothai
• Fixed an issue where voice reactions to getting hit from a dart in Peru would get cut off prematurely
• Added voice lines when photographing the sewer bridge and Great Tower Hall in the Vatican
• Stopped Indy from repeating his voice lines when returning to speak to Aran, or when cancelling your interaction with the Prayer Wheel in Sukhothai
• The music during the game loading sequence is now affected by the overall volume setting

Stability

• Fixed a freeze that could occur when skipping the credits at the end of the game shortly after loading a save
• Fixed several crashes that could occur in very specific circumstances in the following states:
  • While writing out a save game
  • When picking up and interacting with objects
  • When updating hints while using Indy’s camera
  • After updating gamepad bindings and then moving to a new location
  • When inspecting Laura’s journal in Voss’ office in Gizeh
  • In certain UI states

PC Specific Fixes

• Fixed an issue that could cause the game to crash at startup with some graphics cards
• Many fixes and improvements have been made to environment lights, to present a more natural appearance when Path Tracing is enabled
• Fixed an issue where Nvidia Low Latency mode would cause inconsistent frame rates
• Fixed issue where Nvidia Frame Generation became disabled when HDR was toggled on
• Fixed an issue that could prevent Xbox Cloud saves from being loaded on the Steam release of the game
• Fixed an issue where game did not render correctly if using DLSS at 3440×1440 resolution in Widescreen picture framing
• Fixed an issue where players could be partially control locked when opening and closing the Game Bar overlay
• Fixed an issue where Indy’s hair was missing in reflections when using Path Tracing
• Fixed some issues with light leaks in underground locations in Gizeh when Path Tracing is enabled

Xbox Specific fixes

• Fixed an issue where some lamps / light sources would flicker or turn off, depending on viewing angle.

Localization

• Many text corrections and updates to menu text and subtitles across all languages
• Various fixes to voiceover localization in many languages
• Fixed some errors on stone tablet inscriptions in Gizeh and in Marshall College
• Fixed some errors in the street and shop signage in Shanghai

The post Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Releases Update 3 Patch Notes appeared first on ComicBook.com.

Epic Games Store has not one, but two new free games worth $60 when their value is combined. As always, these free Epic Games Store games are available for one week exactly. The free PC games became available on February 20 11 a.m. ET and will be free to download until February 27 11 a.m. ET. Once claimed, each of the free Epic Games Store games are free to keep perpetually. However, they have to be claimed in this period because after this window they will revert back to their normal price.

To claim each free video game, EGS users need nothing more than a PC and an Epic Games Store account, which costs nothing. In other words, there is no subscription these free games are locked behind. They are free for all EGS users.

The first, and perhaps more notable, free Epic Games Store game is World War Z: Aftermath, which includes not just the base World War Z game, but all of the DLC released for it after launch.

For those unfamiliar with the game — which normally costs $39.99 — it is a co-op first-person shooter released back in 2019 via Saber Interactive. Based on the World War Z novel of 2006, and based in the same universe as the 2013 movie adaptation, it didn’t overly impress critics when it released, but it did attract millions of players who it seemingly resonated with more.

“World War Z: Aftermath is the ultimate co-op zombie shooter inspired by Paramount Pictures’ blockbuster film, and the next evolution of the original hit World War Z that has now captivated over 15 million players,” reads an official description of the game on the Epic Games Store. “Turn the tide of the zombie apocalypse on consoles and PC with full cross-play. Join up to three friends or play on your own with AI teammates against hordes of ravenous zombies in intense story episodes across new zombie-ravaged locations around the world. Take back Vatican City in an epic confrontation in Rome, and join forces with survivors in Russia’s snowbound Kamchatka peninsula.”

Meanwhile, the other free game with EGS is action RPG Garden Story from developer Picogram and publisher Rose City Games. Upon release, the 2021 game earned Metacritic scores in the low 70s.

“Unify a broken community as the newly-appointed Guardian of The Grove,” reads an official description of the RPG on the Epic Games Store. “Traverse a vibrant island to combat invasive Rot, inspire its inhabitants, and rebuild your home. You won’t have to do this alone: fruity friends await, ready to lend a hand!”

Those that decide to check out World War Z: Aftermath now that it is free with Epic Games Store should expect a game that is about 10-20 hours long, though completionists will need closer to 40 hours. Meanwhile, Garden Story is about 10-15 hours long on average, with completionists needing closer to 20 hours with the RPG.

For more Epic Games Store coverage — including all of the latest Epic Games Store news, all of the latest Epic Games Store rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Epic Games Store deals — click here.

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Looking for a new gaming controller? SCUF Gaming has got you covered. Today, the company revealed its next controller, the SCUF Valor Pro Wired Performance Controller. Made for Xbox and PC, the controller takes a lot from its collaborations with esports talent and more, though welcoming to all gamers. At $99.99, it makes for a less expensive option for those who want to get the most out of their experiences playing their favorite titles. Even more so, the controller is available now to purchase, so those interested can purchase it right away.

In terms of specs, the SCUF Valor Pro Wired Performance Controller delivers a cutting-edge experience for gamers of all types, especially competitive ones for games like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Marvel Rivals. A variety of features are included with the controller, from remappable paddles and anti-drift Hall Effect thumbsticks to ultra-fast polling rate response time and audio controls. It’s available in four different colors: steel gray, black, white, and smoke. With SCUF Gaming’s decades of experience in the gaming business, you can rest assured that it is held to high standards and meets the requirements of the fanbase. In fact, the design of the controller was made with that in mind, being more compact and comfortable while keeping the signature Xbox style. 

RELATED: Scuf Gaming Launches New Scuf Instinct Controllers for the Xbox Series X|S

Speaking on behalf of SCUF Gaming, General Manager Aron Drayer said,

“Experienced Xbox and PC gamers are looking for a controller that can deliver the highest possible performance for their favorite games. The SCUF Valor Pro Wired takes more than thirteen years of SCUF knowledge and expertise in design to deliver the ultimate in control, speed and customization.”

As mentioned before, there are some interesting features available with the SCUF Valor Pro Wired Performance Controller. One is back paddles, which map to buttons so you can easily access and use them without much movement. This controller allows you to map them however you want, so if you want to map the jump function in a game to one, you may. Meanwhile, one of SCUF’s signature features is the Anti-Drift Hall Effect Thumbsticks. Using magnets, the thumbsticks will feel more responsive while reducing drift that may happen, enabling precise aim for those who want it. 

While the SCUF Valor Pro Wired Performance Controller does help gamers who play competitively, it does seem like those who don’t will still find it useful for games. For example, with the many first-person titles on the market like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Avowed, being able to play however you want and feel comfortable doing so is a pretty nice deal. Plus, with the upcoming releases of DOOM: The Dark Ages and Atomfall, it seems it may be a good controller to try out for those.

The SCUF Valor Pro Wired Performance Controller is available now at select retailers like Amazon and at SCUF’s website and costs $99.99.

The post SCUF Gaming Reveals New Valor Pro Wired Performance Controller appeared first on ComicBook.com.

The launch of Black Myth: Wukong has exploded Chinese gaming, both in setting and developers. The aforementioned action RPG with Soulslike inspirations was nominated for Game of the Year at The Game Awards in 2024, and while it didn’t win, it showed the rising popularity of games from China. With many titles in the works by Chinese developers, fans are watching to see what the next great game will be. Fortunately, one upcoming Chinese action game dubbed Wuchang: Fallen Feathers quickly captured the attention of many when it was first revealed, both in its graphics and gameplay. Since its reveal, fans have been eagerly awaiting any news or gameplay, and it looks like the internet has finally come through with new footage of this upcoming Soulslike action game.

There are numerous titles on the way from Chinese developers, and each is looking to capture the audience and success of Black Myth: Wukong. With Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, players will dive into the Land of Shu during the time of the late Ming Dynasty. Deadly monsters and warring factions make the world a dangerous place: perfect for a Soulslike action game.

RELATED: New PS5 Exclusive Looks “Better Than Black Myth: Wukong” Says Insider

While fans have gotten a look at the upcoming game, most of this has come from trailers for Wuchang: Fallen Feathers. An 8-minute clip of gameplay has been revealed, showcasing the world, exploration, combat, and boss battles. Even in such a short video, fans were able to get a good look at the game.

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers comes from developer Leenzee and is the studio’s debut title. Players take on the role of Wuchang, a pirate warrior suffering from amnesia, and must uncover her past. Doing so isn’t easy, as Wuchang is suffering from the mysterious Ornithropy disease.

Combat in Wuchang: Fallen Feathers offers multiple weapons and the gameplay video showcased a handful of these. Depending on the weapons players use, they will need to adjust their plan of attack and how they approach enemies. From the video, players can use a spear, a long katana, and two short blades, each of which can be augmented and upgraded on the player’s journey.

The enemy variety looks nice, especially with bosses. Players will encounter humanoid and monstrous foes in Wuchang: Fallen Feathers. Bosses also include this variety, with the video showcasing different ones. Learning enemy attacks and patterns is crucial to survival, but players will be able to heal with flasks iconic to the genre.

Leenzee states Wuchang: Fallen Feathers will feature a strong narrative along with challenging dynamic combat. While players will find familiarity with the Soulslike mechanics, the story-driven experience will be a departure from the obscure stories and lore in FromSoftware games.

No release date has been given for Wuchang: Fallen Feathers outside of a 2025 release window, but it has quickly gathered a following. Other titles from Chinese developers like Where Winds Meet and Phantom Blade Zero are others to keep an eye on. There is also another umored upcoming PS5 game that plans to dethrone Black Myth: Wukong.

The post Chinese Action Game Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Looks Incredible in New Gameplay Footage appeared first on ComicBook.com.

Arrowhead Studios has released another new Helldivers 2 update today across PS5 and PC platforms. In recent weeks, new updates for Helldivers 2 have been coming about at a steady cadence as Arrowhead has been adding new Warbonds in addition to balancing the overall game. Now, this trend has continued with yet another patch that features some important fixes.

Downloadable right now, update version 1.002.105 for Helldivers 2 isn’t a lengthy one by any means. That being said, the resolutions that have come about with this patch are pretty vital. Arrowhead has fixed multiple instances of crashing that would occur for players at various instances while playing Helldivers 2. Other than this, the only other thing that this update has done is fix a bug that wouldn’t let players purchase ship modules.

Moving forward, some more sizable updates for Helldivers 2 should be in the cards soon enough. Still, even if this patch is a bit on the smaller side, it’s good to see that Arrowhead has been quick to resolve problems that were plaguing the game’s fans.

To get a look at the official patch notes for this new Helldivers 2 update, you can find them attached below in their entirety.

Helldivers 2 Update 1.002.105 Patch Notes

Fixes

Crash Fixes, Hangs and Soft-locks:

• Fixed a rare crash that could occur when travelling between planets
• Fixed a crash that would occur during the initial language selection
• Fixed a crash caused by cancelling specific emotes with another emote

Miscellaneous Fixes

• Fixed a bug where ship modules would sometimes not be purchasable even if you had the correct amount of samples

The post New Helldivers 2 Update Released With Important Fixes appeared first on ComicBook.com.

The #1 best-selling game on Steam right now is proving to be a controversial release, or at least that is what Steam user reviews suggests. Right now, above Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Monster Hunter Wilds pre-orders, and other Steam staples like Baldur’s Gate 3 and Helldivers 2, is a new strategy game. That said, while the game is selling heartily on Steam, Steam users are not enjoying their time with the new release. This is evident by its “Mixed” user review score, which is a bad sign for any release, let alone one of significance.

The Steam game sitting at the top of the Steam best-selling charts right now, for those who have not connected the dots, is Sid Meier’s Civilization VII. The Civilization series is a storied series and been a staple of Steam for many years. And typically it has glowing reviews on Steam, but not the latest release.

Civilization 7 released on Steam on February 10, and while it appears to be selling appreciably, it’s not impressing. To this end, it already has almost 19,000 user reviews, and only 51 percent of these reviews are positive. And the top rated reviews from this selection of nearly 19,000 user reviews are negative ones.

“After spending 40 hours on Civilization VII, playing several games, and winning four of them, I can confidently say one thing: I am disappointed,” reads one of these user reviews.

“It has a few good ideas and looks nice, but the game in short just doesn’t feel good to play,” reads another one of these reviews. “It’s a bit bloated, and could have used a lot more rigorous QA testing to actually find the fun in these systems. I’m sad that even with a couple expansions, it may not live up to its potential, which I do think it has.”

Of course, Firaxis Games could turn things around over time and iron out the game’s various issues, but this will take time. And right now, it appears at least half of those who have bought the game are not enjoying it. To this end, we don’t expect it to hang around the top of the best-selling charts for very long.

Those that are interested in checkout Civilization 7 on Steam, despite these reviews, should expect to fork over $69.99 to play it. Meanwhile, those on Steam Deck can also check out the game as it has been “Verified” for the handheld Valve machine.

All of that said, and as always, feel free to leave a comment letting us know what you think. Do you agree with these negative reviews of the new Steam hit? Meanwhile, for more Steam coverage — including all of the latest Steam news, all of the latest Steam rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Steam deals — click here.

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Sony has no shortage of titles on the PlayStation 5, many of which are exclusives and critically acclaimed. Even with an already impressive roster of games available, Sony is looking toward the future and has multiple projects under different studios. With the recent State of Play, fans were able to see many of these, gaining more information, getting a look at in-depth gameplay, and receiving a release date in some cases. However, one title was notably absent, leaving many fans wondering what was going on with it. This title was Haven Studios’ Fairgame$, a competitive multiplayer heist game that would be a new IP and the studio’s first project.

Fairgame$ was first announced in 2023, but not much has been said or shown about the game since then. Many expected to see it at the recent PlayStation State of Play, which turned out not to be the case. This has led many to believe it was delayed or canceled.

RELATED: PlayStation State of Play: Every Trailer and Game Announced

No official word has been given, but industry veteran Jeff GrubB and co-host Mike spoke about Sony’s State of Play on episode 385 of the Game Mess podcast. Fairgame$ was brought up, specifically about its absence during PlayStation’s State of Play. Jeff Grubb had this to say about the upcoming title.

“No Fairgame$ this year. Fairgame$ as far as I’m aware has been pushed to 2026,” Grubb said.

If this is the case, it points to either some internal issues regarding development, or maybe Fairgame$ has expanded beyond the initial scope and simply needs more time. Sony may have also held onto the game for other reasons, such as slated it for a less busy release. Many studios are actively avoiding launching games around the release of Grand Theft Auto 6, and Fairgame$ may be one of these affected.

When Fairgame$ was announced, Haven Studios shared a CGI reveal trailer, which presumably gave a look at what players could expect from the gameplay. Various teams, consisting of three players, would compete to rob high-value targets. Getting past security, infiltrating vaults, and battling other players all seem to be core pillars of Fairgame$.

From the trailer, it looked like there would be specific characters, each with different abilities and playstyles. One character was seen creating shields that could reflect security lasers and even stop bullets. It remains to be seen if this was part of the character’s kit or a weapon any character can equip. The first option would make it more team based, while the second would allow for more freedom in teambuilding.

Aside from this trailer, Fairgame$ has gone dark. While no release date was given, it is odd that the title has been silent since 2023, which wouldn’t make a 2026 release out of the question. Regardless, Fairgame$ is slated for PlayStation 5 and PC release, sharing a similar launch as Sony’s other multiplayer-focused games such as Helldivers 2 and Concord. Let’s jump hope it fairs better than the latter, which was ultimately canceled shortly after release.

The post PlayStation’s Fairgame$ Is Potentially Delayed appeared first on ComicBook.com.

Epic Games via the Epic Games Store has announced a ton more free games are coming to PC gamers in 2025. The new announcement about more Epic Games Store free games comes as part of a larger announcement from Epic Games about the digital PC storefront titled, “Epic Games Store 2024 Year in Review”. As part of this review, Epic Games talked about the Epic Games Store free games promotion it has been running for half a decade.

According to Epic Games, across 89 free giveaways in 2024, Epic Games Store users netted over $2,000 worth of PC games. The free games promotion has now been going on for five years, and while it seems it doesn’t quite generate the same buzz as it used to, Epic Games is pleased with the performance because it has confirmed the free games will continue for both PC and mobile in 2025. It makes no commitment to 2026 or beyond though.

“Lastly, our Free Games Program has continued to deliver PC favorites to new audiences for the 5th year running,” reads the announcement from Epic Games. “Epic players stocked their libraries with over $2,000 USD worth of great PC titles across 89 giveaways. The program is not slowing down and will continue in 2025, on both PC and mobile. We extend our sincere gratitude to the developers, publishers, players, and creators who continue to work with us to make this all possible.”

It’s not entirely surprising that Epic Games has committed to giving free games out via the Epic Games Store for the rest of the year, but there was no previous commitment so this is good news for PC gamers that use the Epic Games Store.

For those interested, Epic Games Store has two freebies available right now. One is a $35 game that released back in 2024. Meanwhile, in addition to this free game download, there is an Apex Legends cosmetic bundle available to all Apex Legends players that use the Epic Games Store launcher to play the game. Meanwhile, next week, starting on February 20, both Garden Story and World War Z: Aftermath will be free.

For more Epic Games Store coverage — including all of the latest Epic Games Store news, all of the latest Epic Games Store rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Epic Games Store deals — click here.

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Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl has today received one of its biggest updates ever across Xbox and PC platform. In recent months, developer GSC Game World has continued to push out new updates for Stalker 2, but they’ve been a bit on the smaller side. Now, after a prolonged period of time without a major update, that has finally changed as the game’s latest patch brings over 1,700 fixes in total.

Downloadable now, update 1.2 for Stalker 2 is absolutely massive in scale. GSC Game World has pushed out fixes in this patch that are meant to improve Stalker 2’s AI, gameplay, and specific regions of its world. It has also resolved a number of lingering problems that players have been running into in its story and side missions. By all accounts, Stalker 2 should be drastically improved after today, which means if you’ve been on the fence with playing it, now might be a good time to jump in.

Related: Stalker 2 Teases What’s Coming in 2025

“We are so grateful for your support, friends,” GSC Game World said while releasing this update. “Your passion, dedication, and feedback mean the world to us. Our team is working hard to bring more fixes to the game and make your journey during the Zone more interesting and atmospheric.”

To see everything that has been done with this new Stalker 2 update, you can find the full patch notes attached below.

Stalker 2 Update 1.2 Patch Notes

Tech Part

AI

• Fixed a bug with A-Life NPCs unable to properly approach corpses. Now they can pick up the best loot and weapons from them, and switch to more powerful weapons.
  • Improved corpse looting behavior for NPCs.
  • Fixed an issue where NPCs could loot body armor and helmets from corpses.
  • Fixed an issue where NPCs could not loot the corpses of NPCs from another faction.
• Fixed NPC shooting accuracy
  • Reconfigured bullet dispersion accuracy for all distances for all weapons.
  • Added randomization of accurate shots in bullet sprays.
  • Reduced wall penetration from certain NPC’s weapon bullets.
• Improved Stealth
  • Fixed an issue where after a melee attack, the NPC could end up behind the player.
  • Adjusted the time of identification of the player character by NPCs.
  • Fixed an issue where NPCs at Malachite location could notice players at a long distance and through the objects.
• Improved mutant behavior in combat
  • Fixed an issue where AI wouldn’t avoid obstacles and get stuck during scripted combat.
  • Fixed an issue where jumping mutants could stuck in the air in certain conditions.
  • Fixed that Controller ability does not work through grate doors.
  • Fixed that mutants were not able to attack in certain positions.
  • Fixed an issue where Chimera could jump through objects.
  • Fixed issue where Chimera did not use jump attack.
  • Fixed an issue where Deer summons could spawn in the player’s field of view.
  • Fixed an issue where Poltergeist could activate an anomaly and receive damage from it.
  • Fixed an issue where mutants with ability to jump were running around the Player on elevated, unreachable surface.
  • Fixed an issue where Pseudodog couldn’t create summons when retreating.
    
• Added roar ability for Controller.
• Fixed an issue where A-life NPCs did not heal friendly wounded NPCs.
• Fixed an issue where A-life could spawn corpses near the player.
• Fixed an issue that could cause A-Life NPCs to have access to quest locations.
• Fixed the absence of some characters that could lead to a blocker during walkthrough of the main line.
• Fixed an issue where A-Life militaries could spawn endlessly near Rookie Village.
• Fixed the issue with a stuck guard NPC in the doorway at the Skadovsk location.
• Fixed issue where more rats spawned in the lair than there should have been.
• Fixed an issue where NPC may stuck after loading saves made right after Emission ends.
• Fixed an issue where weapons grabbed by the Burer ability would disappear.
• Fixed an issue with NPC animations when walking upstairs with a gun in hand.
• Improved animations for some mutants.
• Fixed that player takes damage near the NPC that is going through zombification.
• Fixed an issue where NPC may be stuck in the doorway after emission and block player.
• Fixed an issue where shooting at mutant limbs could stretch them.
• Fixed use of NPC rifle stand position when standing with a pistol.
• Fixed an issue where NPCs could spawn in front of the player at the Sphere location.
• Fixed NPC’s repeatable cover animations.
• Fixed an issue where NPCs would stop in doorways on Rostok.
• Fixed NPC’s walking animation during stand in combat.
• Fixed an issue where enemy NPCs did not react to flying bullets.
• Improved open world combat with Pseudogiant near Abandoned Science Campus at Prypiat.
• Fixed an issue where an NPC with a closed helmet could eat, smoke and drink through the helmet.
• Fixed an issue where animations of death from an anomaly could be missing for some mutants.
• Fixed an issue where Lex Legend and his group could not return to the quest location after the end of Emission.
• Fixed a problem that made it difficult for rats to move in narrow places.
• Fixed an issue where Burer could snatch a quest weapon from the player’s hands.
• Fixed an issue where NPC could start searching for an enemy after warning players to hide weapons.
• Reduced spawn rate for Bloodsuckers before the completion of the Behind Seven Seals mission.
• Fixed the issue when NPC can block a doorway in the Quiets camp after the combat.

With additional 70+ issues fixed.

Balance

• Weird Water arch-artifact anti-radiation effect was reduced.
• Fixed issue when a grenade could deal damage to Burer when the shield was active.
• Now NPCs need fewer shots to kill Pseudodog summons.
• Increased frequency of Jump Attack for Blind Dog mutant.
• Rebalanced pistols and silencer attachments.
• Decreased spawn rate for NPCs in exoskeletons.
• Reconfigured armor distribution for NPCs:
  
  • Increased chance of spawning low and mid-tier armor.
  • Reduced chance of spawning top-tier armor.
• Increased radiation damage based on accumulated rad-points.
• Reduced chance of NPCs spawning with high-tier weapons in early game.
• Added ability to trade with additional NPCs at Hubs.
• Economy tweaks for “A Job for the Barkeep” repeatable missions on Veteran difficulty.

And a few more minor balance tweaks were made.

Optimization and Crashes

• Fixed FPS drops during boss fight with Faust.
• Fixed performance drop when closing PDA or Pause Menu.
• Slightly improved performance by disabling navigation mesh rebuild properties for multiple objects.
• Fixed memory leak related to item manipulation.
• Fixed over 100 EXCEPTION_ACCESS_VIOLATION crashes and other errors (including some other minor memory leaks).
• Fixed input lag when enabling VSync with FidelityFX Frame Interpolation enabled.
• Added framerate lock during Pause Menu, Main Menu, and loading screens.

And some other optimization tweaks.

Under the Hood

• Player’s flashlight now casts shadows on objects.
• Fixed issue where relationships with NPCs didn’t change properly.
• Renamed some ammo types.
• Fixed issue where the game could freeze unexpectedly during dialogues.
• Fixed quest logic failures due to NPC deaths.
• Improved transitions from cutscenes to gameplay.
• Fixed generic issue where mission logic could break if Player gave an item to an NPC via dialogue option.
• Fixed issue where dialogues with NPCs would close after exiting Trade/Upgrade menus.
• Fixed issue where Player could be teleported outside the playable area.
• Added custom Aim Assist logic for invisible targets on all supported controllers.
• Fixed an issue where save backups could be missing after losing game saves.
• Fixed NPC animation glitches while smoking.
• Fixed issue where NPCs could teleport outside the playable map area.
• Fixed achievement for sneakily clearing the lair.
• Fixed issue where in-game saves became corrupted after deleting local saves and failed cloud syncs.
• Polished PDA model appearance in low-light areas.

With over 100 other improvements implemented in both sections: Optimization & Crashes, and Under the Hood.

Story

Main Story Line

• Fixed an issue where Col. Korshunov and/or Cpt. Zotov could not spawn during the Wishful Thinking mission.
• Fixed a bug that caused the reputation with Sultan bandits or Shevchenko stalkers not to increase after completing the Three Captains mission.
• Fixed an issue that caused Scar NPC to be hostile to the player during the Visions of Truth mission.
• Fixed an issue that prevented players from a stealth walkthrough during the Shock Therapy mission due to being identified by NPCs instantly.
• Fixed an issue where the final dialogue with Gaffer could not start during the On the Edge mission.
• Fixed an issue where objective Kill Dalin remains active after Korshunov kills Dalin during the Down Below mission.
• Fixed an issue where Inductor could despawn if Skif goes too far from it during the Hot on the Trail mission.
• Fixed a bug that made the stage of killing monoliths not-optional during the The Eternal Shining mission.
• Fixed an issue where the player Character was able to jump down the pod chamber after taking the elevator during stage Find Cartridge with no possibility to take the elevator back up during the Legends of the Zone mission.
• Fixed an issue where the dialogue with Dr. Dalin and Col. Korshunov was looped during the Wishful Thinking mission.
• Fixed an issue where the player could not trade with Wreck during the The Boundary mission.
• Fixed an issue where the doors to STC Malachite could not open during the A Minor Incident mission.
• Fixed multiple issues that could cause NPCs to move during the dialogue with the player.
• Fixed an issue where Spark squad did not attack Wardens during the Visions of Truth mission.
• Fixed an issue where objective Bring the Shah’s PDA to Varan could be marked as completed after trading with Huron during the King of the Hill mission.
• Changed Chimera’s behavior during the Ad astra per aspera mission, now it should retreat after losing a certain amount of HP.
• Fixed an issue where Ocheret ignored the battle between the player and Ocheret’s squad.
• Fixed an issue where A-life NPCs could spawn in Claw during the Dead Frequency mission.
• Changed positions of Ward guards near the entrance to X18 lab during the Answers Come at a Price mission.
• Fixed an issue where the monolithians were not present outside the Enerhetyk Palace of Culture during the The Road to the Foundation mission.
• Fixed an issue where the stage “Discover the whereabouts of the escaped Wardens” of the Shock Therapy mission remained active after killing Beard.
• Fixed an issue where Player could lure Chimera into a peaceful zone and make it non-hostile during The Road to the Foundation mission.
• Fixed an issue where scientists constantly attack player during Visions of Truth mission.
• Fixed an issue where Noontiders would not become hostile if a friendly NPC was killed in front of them near the entrance of Noontide base during the Hot on the Trail mission.
• Fixed an issue where phantoms were spawned in the front of the player during the Eye of the Storm mission.
• Fixed an issue with auto completing Three Captains mission right after taking it from Sonya Kalyna.
• Fixed an issue where Players couldn’t finish Shift Change mission, if they didn’t talk to Jumper at WPS after killing Hog’s squad.
• Fixed an issue where Zakhar Babay and Akopyan could end up dead or missing with no ability to finish Deceive the Deceiver mission.
• Fixed an issue where Player was still able to ask Beard about missing wardens after killing them in Shock Therapy mission.
• Fixed an issue where Just Like the Good Old Days mission would not progress if the Player exited Shelter base via roof route.
• Fixed an issue where Strider disappeared instantly after completing Dark Times mission near Doctor’s hut.
• Fixed an issue where Find a way into Prypiat objective would not finish if the Player reached Prypiat via shortcut during The Boundary mission.
• Fixed an issue with a missing encounter mission at a checkpoint near Icarus Camp.
• Fixed an issue where Hosha Mohyla could one-shot Player during Answers Come at a Price mission.
• Reduced amount of rats at Offloading Terminal during The Road to the Foundation mission.
• Fixed an issue where Rainy weather persisted through the rest of the game after completing The Boundary mission.
• Fixed an issue where several stashes, markers, and journal objectives were not completed/removed after completing Budmo! mission.
• Fixed an issue where Pomor could die during The Poppy Field mission.
• Fixed an issue where aggressive Strider was present near Doctor’s house after a cutscene during An Act of Mercy mission.
• Fixed an issue where Warden guards near the fence had no reaction to Player sneaking right in front of them during Answers Come at a Price mission.
• Prevented issues where corpses with important quest items could get despawned during Bullseye and Shift Change missions.
• Fixed an issue where Strider was dead/missing at Ranger Station during the Extreme Simplicity mission.
• Fixed an issue where psi-effect applied on Player would not disappear after completing A Light in the End of the Tunnel mission.
• Fixed an issue where Talk to Chornozem objective failed from the start and picking up PDA from Chornozem’s corpse wouldn’t progress Answers Come at a Price mission.
• Fixed an issue where Dark would not help Player to fight the Pseudogiant which blocked progression in Legends of the Zone mission.
• Fixed an issue where Player was not able to interact with Shcherba during In the Name of Science mission.
• Fixed an issue where a cutscene with Scar at the Sawmill during Back to the Slag Heap mission would not start properly.
• Fixed an issue where Skif could die from bleeding effect after bossfight cutscene with Korshunov in Down Below mission.
• Fixed an issue where during the Strelok branch of Down Below mission journal entry in PDA would have Ward branch description instead.
• Fixed an issue where Player was unable to give Sultan his briefcase after killing ambushing stalkers too fast in The Mysterious Case mission.
• Fixed an issue where mercenary squads would not spawn on the way back from Faust’s cell during Just Like the Good Old Days mission.
• Fixed an issue where optional journal objectives to fight off Ward/Spark remain active if one side dies due to emission during Extreme Simplicity mission.
• Fixed the issue of stuck Dr. Kryvenko during the A Long Overdue Visit mission.
• Removed the ability to use guide during the The Boundary mission while assault is going.
• Fixed the issue where Richter is absent or dead during the To the Last Drop of Blood, A Minor Incident, The Boundary missions.
• Fixed the issue where some phrases were missing during the On the Edge mission in the final dialogue.
• Fixed the issue where Dalin could be stuck at one place during the Visions of Truth mission.
• Fixed the issue where Objective “Return to Gaffer” is impossible to complete during the On the Edge mission.
• Fixed the issue with infinite reward from Gaffer during the On the Edge mission.
• Fixed the issue where NPCs were blocking the doorway during the On the Edge mission.
• Fixed the issue when Gaffer could exit the building and start fighting during the On the Edge mission.
• Fixed the issue where several Warlock NPCs could be present in the clubhouse during the On the Edge mission.
• Fixed the issue where some Monolithian NPCs weren’t attacking the player during the An Act of Mercy mission.
• Fixed the issue where Dalin didn’t inspect Ozerskiy`s body during the Visions of Truth mission.
• Fixed the logic of radio messages from Scar after the Bossfight with Faust.
• Fixed an issue where infinite psi-effect was applied to Player after completing A Light in the End of the Tunnel mission.
• Fixed an issue where monolith troops didn’t spawn after activating substation during the Happiness for Everyone mission.
• Fixed an issue where Sgt. Metlov was missing in a place of Diode during the Back to the Slag Heap mission.
• FIxed an issue where Skipper’s mercenaries squad didn’t attack Player on returning Emitter to Lodochka during Just Like the Good Old Days mission.
• Fixed an issue where Scherba was missing at Dvupalov’s office during emission in In Search of Past Glory mission.
• Fixed an issue where Player was unable to progress during Dangerous Liaisons mission if decoder was sold.
• Fixed an issue where Player was unable to interact with Dvupalov to give suppressor’s blueprint during In Search of Past Glory mission.
• Fixed an issue where Player could get softlocked during the Dangerous Liaisons mission.
• Fixed an issue where mercenaries squad near Brain Scorcher spawned right in front of Player after accepting a collar collecting mission from Shcherba.
• Fixed an issue where Player was able to get stuck behind two NPCs in Zalissya’s shelter during A Race against Death mission.
• Fixed an issue where Player was unable to start dialogue with Dvupalov or Scherba to return suppressor during In Search of Past Glory mission.
• Fixed an issue where Dr. Kaymanov and Strider could disappear during An Act of Mercy mission.
• Fixed an issue where the objective “Fight off the Monolith assault” was getting stuck during The Boundary mission.
• Fixed an issue where A Big Score and Deceive the Deceiver missions were able to start twice and have contradicting objectives.
• Fixed an issue where Prof. Lodochka was not interactable at toxic waste storage during the Hot on the Trail mission.
• Fixed an issue where Bandits were starting to fight at Slag Heap if Player escorted Zakhar Babay after emission in Deceive the Deceiver mission.
• Fixed an issue where Take the instruments to Mykolayich objective failed after talking to Gaffer in On the Edge mission.
• Fixed an issue where Ricochet died in Zalissya’s house after the second monolith wave during On the Edge mission.
• Fixed an issue where the objective to complete the request without killing the Monolithians failed after hitting monolithians during An Act of Mercy mission.
• Fixed an issue where Monolith soldiers were able to spawn in front of Player during Visions of Truth mission.
• Fixed the issue where friendly NPCs could be stuck at one place during the The Assault on the Duga mission.
• Fixed that mercenary NPC were spawned in inaccessible areas during the Legends of the Zone mission.
• Fixed an issue where some zombies were able to get stuck in an idle state during bossfight with Scar.
• Improved AI behaviour of Korshunov during bossfight with him.
• Improved Korshunov’s shield during the bossfight with him.
• Increased Korshunov’s armor during bossfight.
• Tweaked Col. Korshunov health points during bossfight in Down Below mission.
• Improved Scar’s aiming behaviour during bossfight with him.
• Fixed an issue where Strelok was able to dash outside the playable area of the arena, blocking bossfight with him during The Eternal Shining mission.
• Fixed an issue where Faust’s clones could be transparent during a bossfight if the Object Details graphic option is set to low.
• Fixed an issue where the stage “Talk to Korshunov” could stuck when player returns to Korshunov via elevator during the Visions of Truth mission.
• Fixed an issue where hunting could not progress after interacting with Borodulin while he is moving to the hunting spot.
• Fixed an issue where Strider could block the entrance to the warehouse during the Hot on the Trail mission.
• Fixed an issue where Scar could be missing at Rostok Depot during the Take the Emitter to Scar stage of Just Like the Good Old Days mission.
• Fixed an issue where the monolithians could not spawn when the player escaped X-5 lab during the In Search of Past Glory mission.
• Fixed an issue where Korshunov could stuck during the bossfight.

Overall, over 300+ quest issues were addressed within the Main Story.

Side Missions and Encounters

• Fixed an issue where the player could use the guide’s services for free.
• Fixed an issue where NPCs from car scam encounters turned hostile after the Player ran away and came back to them.
• Fixed an issue when a player was unable to take Just Business mission from Carl Clinch if he was previously healed during the Emission.
• Fixed an issue where NPCs could teleport during dialogue after combat in encounter at Wild Territory.
• Improved Rodents’ spawn in open-world encounters near Rostok.
• Fixed an issue where relationships with the Scientists’ faction were spoiled after completing Black Sheep side mission.
• Added new notes in the open world and hubs.
• Fixed inconsistencies in rewards for repeatable missions.
• Fixed an issue where no travel options were available in dialogue with the guide at Noon base.
• Fixed narrative inconsistencies for loudspeaker announcements at Skadovsk.
• Fixed narrative inconsistencies with available encounter missions after the Monolith comeback.
• Fixed an issue where Spark branch specific encounter mission was able to start after completing In Search of Past Glory mission on Ward branch.
• Increased loot value for stash near Bloodsucker village in the Industrial Zone region.
• Fixed an issue where repeatable missions could get stuck in the Journal tab, preventing other repeatable quests from appearing in dialogues with vendors.
• Fixed an issue where Malachite Hub could get locked for Players on Spark Branch after completing Visions of Truth mission.
• Level Design improvements in encounters near Rookie Village.
• Fixed an issue where Player was unable to start a dialog with Zhenya Hulk during The Key to Freedom mission near Fish Farm, if the door to captives room was opened during combat.
• Fixed an issue with missing Kostya Dry’s dead body after the player runs away and comes back to his observation point during an encounter near Duga.
• Fixed an issue where Pseudodog couldn’t spawn its Phantoms during Arena: Round Two mission.
• Fixed an issue when Player could loot armor and helmets from dead NPCs during The Key to Freedom mission.
• Fixed the issue where players could be stuck inside the building after the fast travel to Malachite with a guide.
• Fixed the issue where guide at Yaniv station were missing after the player already got to Pripyat.
• Fixed receiving several shotgun rounds during the The Freedom Colosseum mission.
• Fixed the issue when the NPC was not going to search for the player character during the fight at Arena.
• Fixed an issue where doors to STC Malachite were closed on reaching it during A Minor Incident mission.
• Fixed an issue where peaceful NPCs remained in STC Malachite during the fight in Visions of the Truth mission (Spark branch).
• Fixed an issue where the voiceover line for Skif’s phrase didn’t play in dialogues with guide NPCs.
• Fixed an issue where two groups of bandits did not start combat in the encounter between Poisonous Hole and Commissary Store locations.

With additional 130+ “anomalies” being discovered and neutralized.

The Zone

Interactable Objects and Zone Experience

• Level design improvements for interactive doors at Wild Territory, Rostok.
• Level art polish for destructible medical boxes.
• Added missing icon of damaged state for weapon looted from NPCs.
• Fixed an issue where arch-artifacts were able to spawn again, after Player’s rank is updated.
• Rebalanced loot for stash near Hydrodynamics Lab.
• Fixed an issue with some artifacts models being overexposed.
• Fixed an issue where Burner anomalies were able to damage a Player in discharged state.
• Fixed an issue where Weird Kettle archartifact applied a permanent PSI effect on the Player instead of temporary.
• Fixed that dead bodies could stay in A-pose for several seconds during Wishful Thinking mission.
• Fixed that the first destructible wood plank always destroys without effects.
• Fixed the issue where the door to the tunnel of the Red Fortress was closing after using a key during Just Business mission.
• Fixed an issue where fake psi artifacts didn’t disappear after save/load.
• Improved strafing jump mechanics for artifacts.
• Fixed an issue where the Vortex anomaly could damage the player at the Yaniv Station territory.

Plus an additional 30+ issues were spotted and dealt with.

Player Gear and Player State

• Fixed an issue where character’s hands are misplaced after moving the character by expulsion anomaly during examining artifacts.
• Fixed availability to unlock locked doors with grenades.
• Fixed the consumption of grenades when switching to the weapon immediately after throw.
• Fixed grenade disappearing when throwing it at one’s feet.
• Added parkour animation from crouch state.
• Fixed receiving of the damage from razor anomaly when already out of it.
• Added NPC’s death animations from anomalies.
• Fixed an issue when auto lean and weapon up moves were triggered by small trees and bushes.
• Fixed an issue when the character was not always performing auto lean moves over obstacles.
• Improved NPC footsteps sync.
• Fixed an issue with changed movement keybindings that blocked player from climbing the ladder.
• Fixed an issue when psy effect was not removed after leaving the psy damage area.
• Fixed an issue where the Player was able to become unkillable during gameplay.
• Fixed an issue where dropped NPC corpses could clip with surrounding objects.
• Fixed availability to skip reload animation.
• Added cancel for reload animation of the weapons with under-barrel launcher attachments.
• Adjusted acceleration of the player after sprinting from a standstill.
• Fixed an issue where phantoms could kill regular NPCs with a grenade.
• Decreased amount of artifact slots available by default for X7 suit.
• Fixed an issue with position of upgrade slots on Bulwark Exosuit being mixed up.
• Fixed inconsistencies in PA-7 Gas Mask upgrade tree.
• Rebalanced available upgrades for PSZ-5D Universal Protection armor suit.

With additional 50+ bugs gotten rid of.

Player Guidance and Game Settings

• Fixed map tooltips not containing region descriptions.
• Fixed map zoom from gamepad.
• Fixed the presence of a dimming effect in the inventory and item selector.
• Fixed an issue where in some cases technicians did not show already installed upgrades.
• Fixed issues with ammo counter visibility on HUD.
• Fixed that the firing mode of the under barrel grenade launcher is not displayed in the inventory.
• Fixed there was no notification on HUD about finding new stashes locations.
• Fixed an issue where, in certain conditions, players could not drag and drop items into loot or stash windows with a gamepad.
• Fixed that caliber on the HUD does not change after upgrading weapon caliber with a technician.
• Fixed a problem where the player could not skip a cutscene with gamepad with proper key if subtitles were off.
• Fixed that “Track” status is present for completed missions in the Completed tab of Journal.
• Fixed incorrect display of the time and equalizer in audiolog.
• Fixed the missing mouse cursor in the attachment selector when shotgun equipped.
• Fixed an issue with not working controls for MSI Claw A1M.
• Integrated Razer Chroma Illumination effects for supported devices.
• Integrated haptic Razer Sensa effects for supported devices.
• Added key binding options for Journal and Notes. Changed default key bindings for leaning left and right.
• Fixed an issue where the new grenade/bolt throw keybinds were not working.
• Fixed missing flashlight button in key bindings.
• Fixed an issue where the Speaker Name UI size didn’t change when changing the size of subtitles.
• Fixed that the mission stage about founding shelter does not finish when the player enters shelter during emission.
• Added fire mode change animation when item selector is open.
• Fixed losing input when enemy shoots player while he is in the inventory.
• Increased the duration of the “Point of no return” message.
• Improved UX in the upgrade menu.
• Fixed an issue where the ammo counter for grenades was not displayed.

And other 120+ fixes were made.

Regions and Locations

• Fixed multiple issues where the player could get stuck in X-17 Lab.
• Fixed the issue where players could be Soft locked at the Cooling Tower’s location.
• Fixed that it was possible for NPCs to reach a burning tank at Sphere location and die in it.
• Teleport anomalies were added in Old Barge and Fishing Hamlet areas.
• Fixed an issue when a shelter mark appeared on an inaccessible building if emission was started in the Red Forest area.
• Removed several invalid artifact spawners and anomalies
• Fixed issues with the weather system after leaving Pripyat region.
• Beautification/visual improvements to multiple locations and regions.
• Level design, and terrain improvements for multiple locations and regions.
• Adjusted the foliage placement in multiple locations
• Lighting improvements for multiple locations.
• Tweaked collision for multiple objects in multiple locations.
• Fixed that foliage appearing was noticeable after loading save.
• Fixed an issue where the player could leave the playable area between Cordon and Zaton region.
• Fixed an issue when Monolithians were spawned in the safe zone in Zalissya.
• Adjusted positions of anomalies at the Waste Processing Station location.
• Fixed the load on distance of some objectives around the map.
• Updated the stashes inventory around the Cordon region.
• Added artifact spawn in electrofield at Datacenter of SIIRCA.
• Fixed an issue where ducks sound effects were missing.
• Polished glass and stucco materials in the open-world.

Overall, over 450+ improvements were made in this section.

The post New Stalker 2 Update Released With Over 1,700 Fixes appeared first on ComicBook.com.

Insomniac Games has released a big new update for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 today on PC. When Spider-Man 2 launched for PC just a few weeks back, players were largely disappointed in its quality. While many were happy to see PlayStation’s newest Spider-Man game on Steam and the Epic Games Store, others found it to be filled with bugs, crashes, and other performance issues. Now, Insomniac is looking to resolve some of those errors with its newest update.

Downloadable right now, update version 1.212.1.0 for Spider-Man 2 brings more fixes than ever before to the game on PC. Insomniac says that it has specifically looked to cut down on crashes and stability problems with this patch, which means that these troubles should be fewer than before. Outside of this, Insomniac has also identified some additional problems with AMD GPUs which it says will require a new driver update from the manufacturer. Moving forward, more updates of this type are also said to be on the way, but today’s patch should improve a lot in the interim.

You can get a look at everything that this new Spider-Man 2 update does by checking out the full patch notes below.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Update 1.212.1.0 Patch Notes

• Various crash fixes and stability improvements.
• Temporarily removed Anti-Lag 2 to improve stability on AMD graphics cards.
• Fixed a crash that could occur in the final Mysterio mission while wearing the Bodega Cat Suit.
• Fixed a crash that could occur when closing the menu while an audio fragment is playing.
• Improved adjustability of Mouse Sensitivity.
• Improved screen space reflections.
• Fixed a bug that could cause character eyes to appear darkened or flickering.
• Nintendo Switch Pro controllers can now be used with Steam Input.
• Resolved a New Game+ bug that stopped the prompt to pick up the Sleeping Dart in ‘The Flames Have Been Lit’ from working when using mouse and keyboard.
• NVIDIA DLSS Ray Reconstruction can now be used at Native resolution and with Ultra Performance upscaling.
• Fixed a bug that caused issues with XeGTAO when disabling Anti-Aliasing or enabling Ray Reconstruction.
• Resolved a timing related bug that could cause the player to be positioned lower to the ground than intended during the Wind Tunnel tutorial.
• Various user interface related bug fixes.
• Various visual bug fixes.

The post New Spider-Man 2 Update Released on PC With Big Fixes appeared first on ComicBook.com.

Epic Games Store has a new free game and this free download saves all EGS users on PC $35 on a 2024 release that isn’t even a year old yet. More than this, to go along with the new Epic Games Store free game, EGS users on PC have an additional freebie available. Both the free game download and the additional freebie are available on Epic Game Store until next Thursday, February 20. Like always, once claimed they are both free to keep perpetually, but the offers must be redeemed before this deadline when they will be replaced with a new free offer.

Unlike free offers on PlayStation or Nintendo or Xbox, which are often locked behind subscriptions like PS Plus, Switch Online, and Xbox Game Pass, all that is needed to claim these free downloads is an Epic Games Store account, which costs absolutely nothing.

As for what is on the menu for EGS users this week, it is F1 Manager 2024 and the Apex Legends: Loba Free Unlock Bundle. Of course, the latter is only going to be of interest to some Apex Legends players and requires owning the free-to-play game. The former is available to everyone though, however, it may not tickle the fancy of anyone other than racing and simulation/strategy fans.

“Lead your team to glory in F1 Manager 2024,” reads an official description of the new free EGS game for those unfamiliar with it. “A new Formula 1 season has arrived, and with it, the most comprehensive F1 management experience to date. Build a legacy with one of 10 official F1 constructors or create your own team for the very first time. Take your place on the F1 pitwall and manage every element of one of 10 official teams or create your very own team for the first time in the series and lead them to glory.”

Those that decide to check out F1 Manager 2024 now that it is free to download with Epic Game Store should expect a game that is about 25-45 hours depending on much you get stuck into the extra and side content. Completionists, on the other hand, will need closer to 100 hours.

For more Epic Games Store coverage — including all of the latest Epic Games Store news, all of the latest Epic Games Store rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Epic Games Store deals — click here.

The post Epic Games Store Free Game Saves You $35 on 2024 Release appeared first on ComicBook.com.

One of PlayStation’s hit titles of 2024 is slashing its way to PC this Summer. Today, during the State of Play, Shift Up revealed that the futuristic action-centric Stellar Blade will be releasing on Steam this June. This news does confirm Shift Up’s plans to bring the title to PC, as they revealed last year in financial reports. The title will join other PlayStation-ported titles like God of War: Ragnarok, Horizon: Forbidden West, and Days Gone, which is getting the remastered treatment in April.

While no specific date was given for when to expect it in the month, it does finally give fans a timeframe as to when they can play the critically-acclaimed title on PC. The PC version announcement also comes with the addition of a collaboration between Stellar Blade and the iOS title Goddess of Victory: Nikke, which is coming soon. This marks the second collaboration with another title, as, last year, the game united with one of its inspirations, Nier: Automata, as DLC.

The news about Stellar Blade on PC dates back to last Summer, as job descriptions for the company talked about PC development. It was later confirmed in November through the company’s financial reports. Shift Up, after seeing the success of the Chinese mega-hit Black Myth: Wukong, wanted to get in on the PC audiences. 

“The [Stellar Blade PC] is being considered within 2025,” Shift Up wrote in their financial reports. “Considering the recent trends such as Steam’s growing share of the AAA game market and the global box office success of Black Myth: Wukong, we expect to see more success on PC than consoles.”

RELATED: Stellar Blade Breaks the Fourth Wall If You Stare at Eve Too Much

In Stellar Blade, you play as Eve, a futuristic soldier, as she charts her way through a post-apocalyptic world to save humanity from deadly monsters. Upon its release in April 2024, despite some controversy regarding clothing, the game was well-received by critics, with many enjoying the Nier: Automata-style gameplay and themes, as well as its beautiful graphics. Our review of the game for ComicBook, where we gave it a ⅘, said that “Stellar Blade boasts some surprisingly involved combat systems and fantastic creature designs all in a relatively compact experience.”

Stellar Blade is not the first PlayStation 5 title to make its way to PC. In fact, just this month, Square Enix’s RPG epic Final Fantasy VII Rebirth came to Steam, as did Insomniac’s superhero adventure Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. Those ports have been a bit rough around the edges, but, hopefully, the team at Shift Up will take their time to make Stellar Blade the best it can be for PC players.

Will you be playing Stellar Blade when it launches on PC in June? Have you played Stellar Blade? Let us know in the comments. Again, Stellar Blade’s PC version will launch sometime in June, with the Goddess of Victory: Nikke collaboration coming soon after. The PlayStation 5 version is available now for purchase at $69.99. For all things Stellar Blade and PlayStation, keep it here at ComicBook.

The post Stellar Blade Will Launch on PC in Summer 2025 appeared first on ComicBook.com.

It’s always a good time to play a game with your favorite person, and couch co-op is an especially beloved genre for gaming duos. With Valentine’s Day coming up, Steam is celebrating two-player games with their Couch Co-Op sale. This massive sale features discounts on hundreds of games that support cooperative play for two gamers.

While a long list of discounts is exciting, it can also be a little overwhelming to decide which games to add to your library this time around. So, we’ve done the work for you to curate a list of the most exciting discounts on offer this time around. The list features a mix of the deepest discounts and most beloved titles to help you and your favorite gaming partner find something new to play during the Steam Couch Co-Op Fest sale.

Sackboy: A Big Adventure

Price: $23.99 $59.99

Whenever I see people asking for couch co-op recommendations, Sackboy: A Big Adventure is one of the games that never fails to be mentioned. This PC version of the beloved PlayStation platformer arrived in 2022, bringing the multiplayer action to a new audience. It offers both split-screen local co-op and online co-op, perfect for long-distance gaming partners as well as those who share a home. And during Couch Co-Op Fest, it’s a whopping 60% off.

Baldur’s Gate 3

Price: $47.99 $59.99

Listen, Baldur’s Gate 3 is a big-name game for a reason. It’s a robust RPG with romanceable NPCs and the ability to join up with your friends for a video game version of a classic Dungeons & Dragons adventure. The game isn’t super discounted compared with some of the other titles on our list, but anyone still hoping to party up with a friend on PC should take advantage of the 20% off sale while they can. We’re still waiting on cross-platform play, but the Steam version does support online co-op with other PC gamers as well as LAN co-op.

Crypt of the Necrodancer

Price: $2.99 $14.99

If the response to the new sequel Rift of the Necrodancer is any indication, the fan love for this crypt-crawling rhythm game remains strong. Crypt of the Necrodancer is the first installment, bringing together rhythm game and roguelike mechanics for an exciting, challenging 2D experience. And of course, it supports shared screen co-op so you can break it down to those sick beats with your favorite gaming buddy. For those who’ve yet to check this one out, it’s currently a whopping 80% off during the Couch Co-Op Fest sale.

Overcooked 2

Price: $6.24 $24.99

When it comes to couch co-op games, the Overcooked series is a go-to for many duos – and for good reason. This fast-paced cooking game brings the challenge, as up to four players can gather up in the kitchen to try and survive the chaos of serving up delicious dishes. The PC version of Overcooked 2 supports local split-screen co-op as well as online multiplayer. Not in the mood to play nice? You can also face off in PvP levels instead. This beloved co-op cooking title is 75% off during the Couch Co-Op Fest.

LEGO Marvel Super Heroes

Price: $3.99 $19.99

Sure, Marvel Rivals is the hot thing in Marvel video games right now, but the LEGO games are classics. LEGO Marvel Super Heroes is one of the top co-op titles in the LEGO franchise, letting players live out their superhero dreams in tiny brick-person form. This version even lets players design their own LEGO superhero to really personalize that world-saving feeling. LEGO Marvel Super Heroes is one of many LEGO titles in the Couch Co-Op Fest Steam sale, and boasts Overwhelmingly Positive user feedback to land on this recommendation list. It’s currently 80% off.

Cat Quest II

Price: $3.74 $14.99

Both Cat Quest II and the newer Cat Quest III are included in the sale, but we’re going with this entry due to the steeper discount. In Cat Quest II, players get to explore a fantasy realm as a cute little cat (or dog!). The game’s adorable graphics and sense of humor land it among many gamer’s favorites, and it works beautifully solo or in co-op mode. It supports split-screen co-op, perfect for game nights with your favorite gaming companion. Cat Quest II is 75% off during the Couch Co-Op Steam sale.

LEGO Harry Potter Collections

Price: $3.99 $19.99

For Harry Potter fans who’ve finished their Hogwarts Legacy journey and need something to play, the LEGO Harry Potter games are a lighthearted take on the franchise. Steam offers them in multi-game collections, and both the LEGO Harry Potter Years 1-4 and LEGO Harry Potter Years 5-7 collections are discounted during Couch Co-Op Fest. These games are so much fun, even reluctant gamers like my husband will agree to a little co-op gaming session. Both collections are 80% off during the sale.

PlateUp!

Price: $6.97 $19.99

Fans of Overcooked who are interested in something different should not sleep on PlateUp! This game is a little more streamlined, with less hectic level chaos in the mix. Instead, you’re focused on serving up food within the time limit, all while upgrading your restaurant and menu to your liking. This is good fun solo, but even better with split-screen co-op for 2-4 players. PlateUp! supports online co-op as well for long-distance gaming groups. It is 66% off during the Steam Couch Co-Op Fest sale.

Carcassonne: Tiles & Tactics

Price: $3.99 $9.99

Carcassonne is one of my favorite board games, and its official video game adaptation brings it to the virtual space. Technically, this 3D board game isn’t cooperative – it’s multiplayer PvP. If you’re feeling competitive and want an in-depth version of this world-building board game, Carcassonne: Tiles & Tactics will offer a fun way to play digitally with friends in person or online. It is 60% off during the Couch Co-Op Fest sale, or you can get the full bundle with every expansion for 47% off.

Soul Calibur VI

$5.99 $19.99

Speaking of games that are more PvP than co-op, but still good fun to play together, I present Soul Calibur VI. This 2018 addition to the Soul Calibur franchise brings all that fighting game fun with the special fantasy flair the games are known for. It supports online and in-person split-screen PvP, making it a great way to face off against friends or partners this Valentine’s Day. Soul Calibur VI is an impressive 90% off on Steam for Couch Co-Op Fest.

The post 10 Most Exciting Deals During Steam’s Couch Co-Op Fest appeared first on ComicBook.com.

In-game advertisements have existed for as long as free-to-play mobile games. While this unfortunate practice relies heavily on the mobile gaming industry, it has made its way into PC games, especially ones without a price tag attached. Some games incorporate these ads in the more malleable form of in-game rewards, but it looks like those days will be over. According to the set of guidelines within Steamworks, PC users on Steam will no longer see any paid in-game advertising used for business purposes.

The necessity to ban paid advertising in Steam games is more to provide users with a better gaming experience. Valve’s platform has been pro-consumer with its initiatives, with this specific one being a key aspect of fostering a better environment for players to play their favorite games. Much of this business model rose from mobile apps that force players to watch an ad to continue playing. According to Steamworks, the rule states that the advertising must “not be disruptive and are appropriate within the context of the game.”

There are some exceptions to this set of rules, such as product placements, cross-promotions, and paid advertising outside Steam are supported by Valve. For clarification, games such as Death Stranding, SKATE, and Alan Wake have had product placements within the gameplay, but they didn’t disrupt the gaming process, making them plausible through the current Steam Guidelines. For these to pass, Steamworks notes that “all developers must obtain the relevant permission and/or licenses for any copyrighted content contained in their games.”

RELATED: New Steam Deck Verified Games Includes One of 2025’s Biggest RPGs

Cross-promotional activities are allowed through these guidelines, which makes sense given the number of games that utilize this approach, especially in free-to-play video games. In the essence of Steam, these guidelines are aimed towards allowing bundles, sales events, and other types of in-game advertisements that would be of value to the customer. One big event that comes to mind is the Humble Bundle sales event, which brings some of the best indie games into one bundle. Under these rules, this cross-promotion is encouraged by Steam since it brings attention to what developers expect their players to find value in.

When it comes to what is not supported by this new Steam guideline, Steamworks notes that the usage of paid advertising as a business model is prohibited. However, this doesn’t get rid of the use of microtransactions, which has been a rather controversial topic among the gaming community. It also suggests that developers who do use paid advertising could consider switching to a single purchase rather than making the game free-to-play with ads. It’s a viable option, especially since consumers would rather pay to play a game as opposed to playing a game for free and have tons of ads.

For those who are worried about Infinity Nikki being banned from Steam, the game is only available on Epic Games, so those in-game advertisements aren’t going away. Games on Steam like this, however, will be prohibited. These rules aren’t made to take away money from developers or stop players from gaining in-game currency, it’s to immerse gamers into the world of the game.

What do you think about Steam banning in-game advertisements? Do you think it’s beneficial to PC players? Let us know in the comments section below!

The post Valve Officially Bans Steam Games With Ads appeared first on ComicBook.com.

The latest update for Helldivers 2 has been released and has brought with it some notable balance changes to two key weapons. This past week, Helldivers 2 added its new “Servants of Freedom” Warbond. This Warbond prominently contained the LAS-17 Double-Edge Sickle and GP-31 Ultimatum as new weapons that players could unlock and use for themselves. However, due to an error on Arrowhead’s end with the release of this Warbond, each weapon released with some unintended issues. Now, Arrowhead is resolving those problems with today’s new Helldivers 2 update.

Downloadable now across PS5 and PC, this Helldivers 2 patch looks to bring the LAS-17 Double-Edge Sickle and GP-31 Ultimatum more in line with how they were supposed to be upon their arrival. As a result, the LAS-17 now has more of a build-up effect that allows it to cut through medium armor the more it fires. Meanwhile, the GP-31 has been tweaked to allow for less ammo capacity than before.

Related: New PlayStation State of Play Announced for This Week

Outside of this, the new Helldivers 2 update also brings about some fixes to other lingering bugs in the game. As a result, Helldivers 2 should not be improved in some big ways for both PS5 and PC players.

To get a look at everything that has been done with this new Helldivers 2 update today, you can view the full patch notes below.

Helldivers 2 Update 1.002.103 Patch Notes

Balancing

Primary Weapons
LAS-17 Double-Edge Sickle
We’ve rebalanced the weapon to make the risk/reward dynamic more impactful. The goal is to ensure it feels like a truly powerful weapon while properly balancing the self-damage mechanics to reflect its high-risk nature. In the current live version, we felt it lacked both the punch and the level of risk we wanted and we didn’t feel it really lived up to our intent.

OLD

• 0-25% heat: AP3 55 damage – Deals 0 damage/second to players
• 26-90% heat: AP3 55 damage – Deals 10 damage/second to players
• +91% heat: AP3 55 damage – Deals 50 damage/second to players + fire status effect

NEW

• 0-25% heat: AP2 55 damage – Deals 0 damage/second to players
• 26-50% heat: AP3 55 damage – Deals 10 damage/second to players
• 51-90% heat: AP3 70 damage – Deals 20 damage/second to players
• +91% heat: AP4 70 damage – Deals 50 damage/second to players + fire status effect

Magazines

• Starting magazines increased from 1 to 2
• Spare magazines increased from 2 to 3

Sidearms
GP-31 Ultimatum
We have seen a lot of mixed player feedback for this weapon and how certain players feel it trivializes some of the harder content whilst others feel it plays just fine and is a great addition to the game. We have carefully opted for an approach where we’d like to reduce the ease of access to additional ammunition while maintaining the weapon’s core identity as a powerhouse. This means players will need to put in more effort and strategy to maximize its effectiveness at the cost of some armor and booster synergy for this specific weapon.
We will continue to monitor these changes so please keep providing us more feedback!

• The GP-31 Ultimatum is no longer influenced by the Hellpod Optimization Booster or the Siege Ready armor passive

Fixes

Resolved Top Priority issues:

• Fixed a bug where the scope aim-center was misaligned with the projectile’s fire trajectory, affecting all weapons but most noticeable when aiming down sights (ADS)

Crash Fixes, Hangs and Soft-locks:

• Fixed a rare crash that could occur when joining someone who is swapping weapons
• Fixed a rare crash that could occur when hot joining a mission with the SEAF artillery objective present on the planet
• Fixed a crash when subtitles were shown and the language was changed
• Fixed a crash when shutting down the game while in a cutscene with the Democracy Space Station
• Fixed a crash when changing language during a mission
• Fixed a crash related to switching languages
• Fixed a crash that could occur for other players after a player disconnects from the session
• Fixed a crash caused by emoting right after dropping a support weapon

Weapons and Stratagems

• Fixed an issue where you could accidentally arm the B-100 Portable Hellbomb backpack when entering the FRV

Miscellaneous Fixes

• Fixed an issue with the level generation where some objective terminals could become non-interactable
• Fixed an issue with the Integrated Explosives armor passive sometimes not triggering

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It may be a hefty cost to journey to the Living Lands for some players. The upcoming Avowed, a fantasy RPG from the team at Obsidian Entertainment, is one of Xbox’s most anticipated releases this year and is poised to make quite a splash. In the title, you’ll explore the Living Lands and decide the fate of all those within it. While the title will be available on Xbox Game Pass at release and playable for Early Access owners on February 13th, you may want to prep your console for the large download size.

As shown on Xbox.com and on the Xbox Game Store, the full download size of Avowed, specifically the Standard Version on Xbox Series X|S, is 74.77 GBs. Meanwhile, the PC version will come in at around 72 GB. While it isn’t too out of the ordinary for RPGs to be quite large downloads, it is a heavy toll for many, as many other recent releases, like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, already take up a large chunk of storage space. Fortunately, you can preload some of Avowed, around 324.77 MBs, so if you want to get the jump on things earlier, it is an option.

It does make sense that Avowed would be on the heftier side of downloads, given its size in-game. The title, which returns players to the world of Pillars of Eternity‘s Eora, is a first-person RPG where you can choose many different styles and abilities. You can, for example, be strictly magic-based or stick with a sword or other sharp weapons. Plus, given that the game was built for Xbox Series X|S, the graphics and such take a factor into the sizing. In terms of length, director Carrie Patal said previously that it would be similar to The Outer Worlds, which ranged from 15-40 hours depending on your playstyle.

RELATED: 8 Huge Games Releasing in February (And When You Can Play Them)

Nevertheless, many eyes will be on Avowed to make a big showing upon its release. Xbox, unlike past years, does have some heavy hitters to start the year. During the latest Xbox Developer Direct, Compulsion Games’ South of Midnight and id Software’s DOOM: The Dark Ages were confirmed to launch on April 8th and May 15th, respectively. Further down the line, the reboot of Fable, done by Forza Horizon’s Playground Games, will make its way to Xbox and PC. Therefore, Avowed does have a lot to show in order to stand out, but, knowing Obsidian’s track record, it’s safe to assume they’ll do just that.

Avowed slashes its way onto PC and Xbox Series X|S on February 18th, with Early Access from its Premium Edition starting on February 13th. Are you planning to play Avowed when it releases? Let us know in the comments! To keep up to date on all things Avowed and Xbox, keep it here at ComicBook.

The post Avowed File Size Reveals Big Download for Xbox Fans appeared first on ComicBook.com.

A popular Batman game is on sale for $1.99 right now thanks to a 90% percent from its normal $19.99 asking price. That said, this deal is only available for a limited time. More specifically, while the Batman game is available on Nintendo, PlayStation, and Xbox consoles, the deal comes the way of GOG, which means the deal is limited to just PC. That said, for those on PC it is a great deal because this is the cheapest it has ever been.

The Batman game in question hails from the Batman: Arkham series and specifically from 2013. A follow-up to 2011’s Batman: Arkham City, and the third of four Batman: Arkham games, it is notably the one Batman: Arkham game not developed by Rocksteady Studios, but was rather made by WB Games Montreal. As a result, it is often considered the step child of the series. For those that have not connected the dots yet, the game is Batman: Arkham Origins.

It also didn’t review as well, as evident by its Metacritic scores in the low 70s. However, it is an important part of the series for those that want to experience it from start to finish. Batman: Arkham Origins takes about 12 to 20 hours to beat, depending on how much side content is engaged with. Meanwhile, completionists will need closer to 40 hours.

“Batman: Arkham Origins is the next installment in the blockbuster Batman: Arkham video game franchise,” reads an official description of the game from Warner Bros. “Developed by WB Games Montréal, the game features an expanded Gotham City and introduces an original prequel storyline set several years before the events of Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City, the first two critically acclaimed games of the franchise. Taking place before the rise of Gotham City’s most dangerous criminals, the game showcases a young and unrefined Batman as he faces a defining moment in his early career as a crime fighter that sets his path to becoming the Dark Knight.”

With a new Batman game reportedly in the works at Rocksteady Studios, it is a good time to jump into the series as this new game will presumably connect to its previous Batman: Arkham games.

For more coverage on all things Batman — including all of the latest Batman news, all of the latest Batman rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Batman deals — click here.

The post Batman Game Only $1.99 for 48 Hours appeared first on ComicBook.com.

New Steam Deck verified games have been confirmed by Valve, and the highlight is one of 2025’s biggest RPGs, which is also set to release later this month. In other words, Steam Deck users will be able to enjoy it right out of the gate, day one of release. “Verified,” in this sense, refers to a Steam game that is “fully functional” on Steam Deck, and that “works great with the built-in controls and displays.” In other words, it should run smoothly on Steam Deck from start to finish with minimal issues because Valve has tested and ensured it does as much.

The newly verified Steam Deck game is set to release on February 20 via developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio and publisher Sega. If that doesn’t give it away, the mystery Steam Deck game is Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. A spin-off in the Like a Dragon series, it is notably set after the events of 2024 Like a Dragon game, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.

How good the RPG is we don’t know because it is still 11 days out and zero reviews have been posted. That said, both the Like a Dragon series and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio are pretty consistent in putting out games that are well received and earn positive reviews usually ranging from 80 to 90 on Metacritic.

“A new legend begins as you step into the steel toe boots of Goro Majima, a man who has lost his memory and reinvents himself as a pirate on the open sea,” reads an official description of the game for those who are not familiar with it. “Embark on an over-the-top, modern-day pirate adventure with an ex-yakuza, now pirate captain and his crew as they engage in exhilarating combat on land and sea in the hunt for lost memories and a legendary treasure.”

RELATED: Epic Games Has New Free Games (And Another Secret Free Download)

For more coverage on all things Steam and Steam Deck — including all of the latest Steam Deck news, all of the latest Steam Deck rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Steam Deck deals — click here.

The post New Steam Deck Verified Games Includes One of 2025’s Biggest RPGs appeared first on ComicBook.com.

Prime Gaming has announced its new lineup of free games that will be given out throughout the month of February 2025. For those who have active Amazon Prime memberships, Prime Gaming offers a slew of games on a monthly basis, many of which are of a pretty high quality. While January kicked off 2025 strong by handing out titles like BioShock 2, Deus Ex, and Super Meat Boy Forever, February’s slate is definitely keeping up the momentum in a big way.

Starting today, February 6th, the first wave of free games on Prime Gaming for the month are beginning to go out. Arguably the biggest game of the month, BioShock Infinite, is available up front and can be downloaded now. It will be joined throughout February by other heavy-hitters like Deus Ex: Human Revolution, The Talos Principle, Yes, Your Grace, and Wolfenstein: Youngblood. In total, 20 games are hitting Prime Gaming in February, which is a sizable increase compared to the games that were doled out in January.

Here’s everything coming to Prime Gaming throughout February 2025:

Available Today

• BioShock Infinite: Complete Edition
• Surf World Series
• Ak-xolotl: Together
• Sands of Aura
• The Talos Principle: Gold Edition

Available February 13th

• Stunt Kite Party
• The Smurfs 2 – The Prisoner of the Green Stone
• Hardspace: Shipbreaker
• Lysfanga: The Time Shift Warrior
• Dark Sky

Available February 20th

• Wolfenstein: Youngbloog
• El Hijo – A Wild West Tale
• Colt Canyon
• Republic of Jungle
• Royal Romances: Cursed Hearts Collector’s Edition

Available February 27th

• Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Director’s Cut
• Night Reverie
• Sine Mora EX
• Redemption Reapers
• Yes, Your Grace

Per usual, it’s worth stressing that the expiration dates of all of these free games on Prime Gaming will differ from one another. While some might only be available to claim for a few weeks, others might last multiple months. As such, you could have a fair amount of time to claim all of these free games, but it’s still better to act quickly.

Related: Prime Gaming Has a New Free Game and It’s One of the Best Games of All Time

Additionally, all of the games that are coming to Prime Gaming in February 2025 are largely for PC platforms. Depending on the game, Prime members will be given a code for the Epic Games Store, Microsoft Store, Legacy Games, or GOG that will then have to be redeemed on that specific platform. Other titles here might also only be playable via the Amazon Games App.

How do you feel about February 2025’s lineup of free games on Prime Gaming? And which titles would you like to see appear on the service in March? Be sure to let me know for yourself down in the comments section.

The post Prime Gaming Reveals 20 Free Games for February 2025 appeared first on ComicBook.com.

Epic Games Store has a new free game available for all EGS users on PC to download, plus an additional secret free download. The new free Epic Games Store game is available as of today, and until 11 a.m. ET February 13, which is the following Thursday. During this period, the PC game is completely free to download and then keep forever. However, it must be redeemed during this period.

As for the free video game in question, it is Beyond Blue from E-Line Media, who not only developed the 2020 release, but published it as well. As the name loosely suggests, it is an underwater diving adventure game from the same team that brought Never Alone to market in 2014.

Upon release, the adventure game garnered Metacritic scores ranging from 68 to 75, which are no doubt not the most impressive scores. However, its user reviews are more flattering. On Epic Games Store, the game has a 4.3 out of 5 user review score. Meanwhile, on Steam, the same PC version has an 87% approval rating across nearly 1,000 user reviews.

In addition to Beyond Blue, Epic Games Store users have another free download available to them in the form of the Dying Light – 10th Anniversary Bundle DLC, which was recently made free by developer and publisher Techland. This Epic Games Store freebie has not been advertised in the same way by Epic Games.

[Update: In addition to Beyond Blue, Humankind has also been made free as a surprise free game.]

Beyond Blue:

RELATED: Ubisoft Announces Free Giveaway for New Far Cry Release

“Beyond Blue is a single-player narrative adventure that takes you deep into our planet’s beating blue heart,” reads an official description of this week’s free Epic Games Store game, for those unfamiliar with it. “Set in the near future, Beyond Blue explores the mysteries of our ocean through the eyes of Mirai, a deep-sea explorer and scientist. Become a part of a newly-formed research team using groundbreaking technologies to see, hear, and interact with the ocean in a more meaningful way than has ever been attempted.”

Those that decide to check out Beyond Blue now that it is free on Epic Games Store should expect a game that is typically about three to five hours long. The bottom end of this range represents a quicker playthrough invested only in the main story, while the top end of the range represents a completionist playthrough.

For more Epic Games Store coverage — including all of the latest Epic Games Store news, all of the latest Epic Games Store rumors and leaks, and all of the latest Epic Games Store deals — click here.

The post Epic Games Has New Free Games (And Another Secret Free Download) appeared first on ComicBook.com.