Empire builders cheap for the weekend When Risk and Chess are not enough, Paradox Interactive is there to fill the strategy void in your life. This weekend GMG launched awave of salesonStellaris,Europa Univeralis IV,Cities Skylines, andVictoria IIwith discounts up to 79% off. Prices are at or better than we expect during the upcoming PC gaming summer sales. Prices are fairly hot with a few titles hitting new lows.Stellarisdid hit $12 at the Humble Store, but you needed a monthly subscription to get it at that price, so if you ignore the subscription price, the drop to $20....

I think we need E3 Well, it’s here! The initial “big push”Summer Game Fest streamjust ended. Here’s a big old Summer Game Fest 2022 recap: emphasis on old. Vibe check? I was heavily reminded of the low-key artifice of the PC Gaming Show throughout, where it was hard to tell what was actually a reveal and what had been shown weeks or months ago. There were lots of ads and a few “exclusives/world firsts” that were basically modified existing trailers....

Long gone are the days when almost every game development studio came up with its own proprietary game engine. It’s been a long time coming, but we’re finally at the stage where Unreal Engine 5 truly dominates the industry, and I feel this isn’t a good thing at all. One could argue about the ubiquity of Unreal Engine all day long, granted. The engine’s claim to fame began way, way back in the days of Unreal Engine 2, only for it to develop into one ofthego-to third-party development solutions as Epic Games moved to release Unreal Engine 3....

Booyah Bomb debuts Today sees the launch of the recently-teased Version 4.1.0 in Nintendo’s colourful multiplayer shooter,Splatoon 2.This update brings with ita selection of new content, but is also to be considered the last major update the popular Switch title is expected to see. Version 4.1.0 will include the game’s final “new” arena, the Skipper Pavilion, an old mystical temple located somewhere on the outskirts of Inkopolis. Some players are hoping that Nintendo’s specific use of “final new” means that there is still the possibility for further classic maps to show up in the future....

Make your mark Character choice can be a fairly big deal inRedfall. While much of the power you gain in Arkane’s new shooter comes from the loot you pick up, character choice determines what sort of skill set you’ll have throughout the campaign ofRedfall. While you can always hop back out and try rolling a different character, some are going to fit certain players more than others. And depending on whether you’re playing solo or in a group, that might also affect what character you choose to run....

No notthatRobin Look, there’s a lot of Robins out there. Here’s where some of you will cue the “I grew up in the ’60s when there was just one Robin!” voice: but each Robin has had a chance to shine in various stories with strong writing at the helm. There’s more Robins even still that aren’t inGotham Knights! And there will continue to be Robins until the end of time. Batman isn’t going anywhere, and neither are his wards....

For the rest of you, maybe wait for the next drop Zelda: Age of Calamityjust dropped the first “wave” of its expansion pass, with the second set due to arrive in November. Right now, it might be worth waiting to see how it plays out if you’re a casual fan. Hardcore players may benefit from diving in immediately, though. Here’s a recap of what you get: So you may probably see a pattern here....

Oh! big… I’m a BIG It’s a good season for beat ’em up fans. This week saw the release of WayForward’s radical brawler-cum-RPGRiver City Girls.There’s an exciting looking return to theStreets of Rageon the horizon, and evenBattletoadsis getting a look-in before the year is out. But for those who fancy taking a look into the genre’s past, retro publisher Hamster has you covered with this week’s Arcade Archive release:Vigilanteby Irem, available to download now on PS4 and Nintendo Switch....

Honking good fun It seems like forever and a day agowhen I first wrote aboutHouseHouse’s comical stealth titleUntitled Goose Game. Back then, the misadventures of our feathered frenemy immediately won over an audience in seconds. Today, now out in the wild,Untitled Goose Gamehas become an online phenomenon, even receivingmainstream media attentionand pushing 100,000 copies. But for those of you who do not wish to play the game on PC or Nintendo Switch, take heart, asan interview with ABC(Australian Broadcasting Corporation) has revealed that House House plans to port their mischievous hit to PS4 and Xbox One before the studio moves on to new projects....

If you’re completingweekly or daily challenges inModern Warfare 3andWarzone, you might run into a few difficulties. One of which is not knowing what you’re supposed to do to complete the challenge. Some challenges simply state, ‘do this’ without telling you what this is. One of those is getting Alternate Ammo kills, but what does that actually mean? How to equip Alternate Ammo InModern Warfare 3, you’re able to equip Alternate Ammo to certainweapons when creating a loadout....

Microsoft E3 2014 curse claims another victim Crackdown 3, once expected in 2016, and more recently expected on November 7 in lockstep with the new Xbox One X console, is now coming in “spring 2018.” Microsoft originally announced a newCrackdownat E3 2014. Microsoft Studios Publishing general manager Shannon Loftis, speaking to Polygon, says it’s a decisionthe company regrets. “I think we probably announcedCrackdowntoo early.” The game is being developed by three different studios, one for each game mode, and the early announcement made subsequent delays — caused because “we definitely underestimated the challenge of making sure the quality bar of all three of those modes was high and it delivers on what we need to deliver on” — more difficult....

Pokémon Friendsis all about completing puzzles to unlock Pokémon Plush toys that you can use to decorate your room or trade them away in quests. There are plenty of cute Pokémon to collect, although some are more rare than others. Each Pokémon can be crafted using a particular type of Yarn, with some Pokémon having better odds of appearing than others. It can be a bit confusing to keep track of everything on offer, especially when certain Pokémon Plush only appear if you purchase one of the various expansion passes....

Netflix just dropped the latest trailer forArcaneSeason 2, and I’m not sure I’m ready for it. The first season of this fantasy-steampunk was my favorite watch of 2022, and it looks like the second will be just as beautiful, thrilling, and heartbreaking as its predecessor. Arcane Season 2 puts Vi and Jinx on a colorful collision course Clocking in at two minutes and twenty seconds, the trailer doesn’t leave much room for you to breathe....