PC News

Oh lord, keep with me on this one, people. Tipping is controversial at the best of times. A suggestion that we bring a tip option to video games is going to be met with all kinds of resistance. But you know, it makes sense. When we look back over the last decade or so, it’s obvious that something was going to give. Games have become more expensive to make at the same time as gamers coming to expect more for…

I’ve been doing this since 2009, so I’ve heard a “consoles are dead” story or two. Each time they’ve been proven wrong. They’re based on faulty assumptions, or a misunderstanding of the gaming audience. This time feels different. I still don’t think consoles are going away. There will always be room for a box next to your TV. But it’s hard to see where the narrative falls apart in 2024. The whole notion of buying into a walled garden, a…

Lara Croft has been named the most iconic video game character of all time by the BAFTA Games Awards and my first thought was “what?” I mean, it makes sense. As someone who remembers the magazine covers, the cardboard cut-outs and the rave reviews from balding middle-aged non-gamer dads, I get it. She was the first character I remember truly transcending the medium. Mario and Sonic (mostly Sonic) might be more obvious. But they didn’t have a quarter of the…

There’s an interesting thread over at Resetera where a poster has dug out the remaining games not yet officially announced from the infamous Geforce Now leak. Nearly three years of confirmations have proven what a treasure trove this leak turned out to be, and that makes the titles still remaining conspicuous in their absence. And even more so for the potential some of them have. The post, which has been put together by Mocha Joe, hints at cancelled or yet-to-be…

Baldur’s Gate 3 has been a runaway hit, and rightly so. When a game comes out that raises the bar as much as that has, it’s nice to see the developer rewarded for it. That’s not always the case. But is it a good thing that the bar has been raised so sharply? Does this not just lead us exactly down a road that’s hurt the rest of the industry? The ever-desperate need to be on the absolute cutting edge…

Sony is pausing production of its PSVR 2 device for the foreseeable future, it has been revealed.  The report, which came from Bloomberg, says that sales of the headset had slowed and that stock had begun to build up. Sales have actually dropped every quarter since its release. Naturally, discussion has gone to two obvious points that have plagued PSVR2 since day one. That’s a lack of compelling content and a ridiculous price for a peripheral. Early adopters defends both…

The Steam Deck is a very cool little handheld, and one that’s becoming increasingly popular. Only one thing is stopping me from buying it: I want to play everything on my TV. I figured that older games and indies would be a shoo-in for the portable. It’s basically what the Switch is, right? But the idea of playing something that’s supposed to be big and beautiful and epic on a tiny screen feels like watching Lord of the Rings on…

As Sony’s concerns over profit margins were discussed and rediscussed the web over, there was one mantra that it was hard to escape from. That mantra was BRING BACK GRAVITY RUSH. I’m with you, Kat fans. That series was the perfect combination of cute and clever. It was like nothing else, and that’s a real shame. There should be more games like it. But there aren’t. Why? Because they’re not as wildly successful as, say, Spider-Man. You can take a…

How much would you spend to be able to smell the things you can see on your screen? If your answer was a sensible “absolutely nothing”, you’re about $150 off. That’s exactly what GameScent is offering. And no, we don’t know why. In the history of gaming, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a single tweet, forum post or opinion piece saying “Ya know what? It would be pretty cool to be able to smell this game”. There are probably…

There is something extremely satisfying to me, when I am playing a Metroidvania. I tried to ask myself today, what makes this particular genre so special to me? I believe it may be because this genre has existed since back when I played on my Nintendo, but we didn’t actually have a name for it yet. I see a Metroidvania as some of the earliest titles of a Zelda game, or even Super Mario Brothers, and the thing is, many…