Rock Paper Shotgun Blockbuster Feed

enSun, 12 Jan 2025 11:00:00 +0000The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-748Graham SmithSun, 12 Jan 2025 11:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-748BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Welcome back to The Sunday Papers. It's 2025, which means that this column has been running for eighteen years. What might change here as we move into adulthood? Very little, I suspect. We here are like the chalk cliffs of the South Downs: bright and imposing and subject to inevitable but slow erosion by the sea. Or put another way: I'm thinking about bringing back the bulletpoints to separate different links. How are you?

Felipe Pepe wrote about the gentrification of video game history, arguing that American video game history overwrites more local experiences. "We’re not all suburban kids who got a Nintendo 64 for Christmas."

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Marvel Rivals' latest update disabled mods, meaning you can no longer play as Skibidi Toilet or Vegetahttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-latest-update-disabled-mods-meaning-you-can-no-longer-play-as-skibidi-toilet-or-vegetaGraham SmithSat, 11 Jan 2025 22:06:01 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-latest-update-disabled-mods-meaning-you-can-no-longer-play-as-skibidi-toilet-or-vegetaShooterBlockbusterNetease GamesMultiplayer CompetitiveMarvel RivalsFree-to-playPCMultiplayer CooperativeAction AdventureFightingStrategyThird person

Marvel Rivals received a patch earlier this week which made Hulk less hulky and paved the way for the launch of its first season. It also did something else: disabled the mods players had been using to add custom skins to the game.

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The Last Of Us Part II will require a PSN account to play on PC, making it unplayable in over 100 countrieshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-last-of-us-part-ii-will-require-a-psn-account-to-play-on-pc-making-it-unplayable-in-over-100-countriesBrendan CaldwellFri, 10 Jan 2025 10:29:12 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-last-of-us-part-ii-will-require-a-psn-account-to-play-on-pc-making-it-unplayable-in-over-100-countriesShooterStory RichFull productBlockbusterSingle PlayerHorrorThird personNaughty DogSony Computer EntertainmentPCAction AdventureThe Last of Us Part II RemasteredPost-apocalypticPS5

One or two lumps of annoyance in your morning coffee? Okay, here's one. You'll need to link to a PlayStation Network account to play The Last Of Us Part II on PC, say Sony. The requirement was reported by Video Games Chronicle, and sure enough, the Steam page for the "Remastered" version of the third-person fungus fighter includes a footnote in the game description that confirms it in plain language - "Account for PlayStation Network required". For a lot of people this is a minor nuisance, for others it more likely means that the game won't be on sale in your country at all. Sony's reasons for enforcing the requirement remain obscure.

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Marvel Rivals patch makes Hulk less hulky, Hawkeye less shooty and the Goddess of Death deader, just in time for Season 1https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-patch-makes-hulk-less-hulky-hawkeye-less-shooty-and-the-goddess-of-death-deader-just-in-time-for-season-1Edwin Evans-ThirlwellThu, 09 Jan 2025 12:23:01 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-patch-makes-hulk-less-hulky-hawkeye-less-shooty-and-the-goddess-of-death-deader-just-in-time-for-season-1ShooterBlockbusterNetease GamesMultiplayer CompetitiveMarvel RivalsFree-to-playPCMultiplayer CooperativeAction AdventureFightingStrategyThird person

Marvel Rivals Season 1 is about to begin, adding the Fantastic Four to the free-to-play hero shooter’s roster so that they can beat up Dracula, who has swamped the Earth in eternal night. It launches January 10th at 1 am PT / 4 am ET / 9 am GMT, and developers NetEase are paving the way in the traditional manner by rebalancing the character line-up so as to simultaneously win the adoration of certain player groups, while plunging others into apoplectic fury.

Do you like running rampage as Hela, goddess of death? Was that you who shot me full of crows on Klyntar last night? Well, how does 25 points off your base health suit you? Yeah, that’s what I thought. Screw you too.

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Our 50 most anticipated PC games of 2025https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/our-50-most-anticipated-pc-games-of-2025Graham SmithWed, 08 Jan 2025 14:30:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/our-50-most-anticipated-pc-games-of-2025Dynasty Warriors: OriginsBrute ForceMultiplayer CompetitivePromise Mascot AgencyNivalisThe King Is WatchingPuzzleSlay the Spire IININJA GAIDEN: RageboundObsidian EntertainmentBionic BayHack & SlashSegaElden Ring NightreignRPG: Turn-basedFull productNintendo SwitchPoint and ClickXbox Game StudiosPCRacingCard GamesSingle PlayerHorrorDevolver DigitalFree-to-playUbisoftInteractive DramaMultiplayer CooperativeVampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2Mafia: The Old CountryManagementUbisoft QuebecSimulationXbox Series X/SRPG: ActionDoom: The Dark AgesWolfhoundCapcomFootball Manager 2025505 GamesMarvel's BladeUbisoft EntertainmentHistoricalPathologic 3Bird view / IsometricBungieSid Meier's Civilization VIIPaper SkyStory RichRematchShooter: Third PersonStrategyLife SimulationAvowed2KBlockbusterDeath Stranding 2Hardsuit LabsKojima ProductionsRPGSurvival & CraftingFantasyWanderstopAction AdventureFiraxis GamesArkane StudiosSkate (2025)Control 2DispatchArcadeMarathonStrategy: BuilderJudasRemedy EntertainmentThe Eternal Life Of GoldmanReanimalKraftonStealthJump Over the AgePlayground GamesBig WalkFellow TravellerFirst personGrand Theft Auto 6Omega ForceKonamiModern DayExplorationStrategy: Real-Time StrategySquare EnixMeridian4Hollywood AnimalPS5Monster Hunter WildsUnknown WorldsBaby StepsMetal Gear Solid Delta: Snake EaterSuikoden I & II HD Remaster Gate Rune And Dunan Unification WarsPlatformerMushroom MusumeSplit FictionTripwire InteractiveAtomfallHouse HouseXbox OneFable (2025)Gears of War: E-dayShooterAssassin's Creed ShadowsShooter: First PersonIndieinZOIDinolordsSportsThe Chinese RoomThird personStrategy: Turn-Based StrategyOpen WorldParadox InteractiveLike A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza In HawaiiPaniciOSKilling Floor 3Koei TecmoRockstar GamesThe Stone of MadnessCitizen Sleeper 2: Starward VectorFinal Fantasy VII RebirthSubnautica 2Science FictionMacPS4

Terrible news! Santa ignored all my letters asking for 2025 to be a year when no new videogames came out so I could catch up on everything I missed from the past several years. In fact, it seems like maybe someone else might have sent him a letter asking for there to be more big games coming than ever.

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Marvel Rivals unbans Steam Deck and Mac players wrongly caught up in cheater purgehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-unbans-steam-deck-and-mac-players-wrongly-caught-up-in-cheater-purgeJames ArcherFri, 03 Jan 2025 16:57:43 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-unbans-steam-deck-and-mac-players-wrongly-caught-up-in-cheater-purgeShooterBlockbusterNetease GamesMultiplayer CompetitiveProtonMarvel RivalsSteam DeckSteamOSFree-to-playPCMultiplayer CooperativeAction AdventureFightingStrategyThird person

Steam Deck, Mac, and other Linux-based enjoyers of superhero shooter hit Marvel Rivals can once again play without fear of being pulped under an unlawfully swung banhammer. Developers NetEase had recently doled out bans of up to 100 years to players they suspected of cheating, but in their eagerness, failed to distinguish between legitimate compatibility layers – the software that non-Windows operating systems, like the Steam Deck’s SteamOS, use to run native Windows games – and actual hacks. Per IGN, NetEase have now apologised to the affected players, and lifted the bans.

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At this year's big speedrunning fest, Elden Ring bosses will be defeated with the power of saxophonehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/at-this-years-big-speedrunning-fest-elden-ring-bosses-will-be-defeated-with-the-power-of-saxophoneBrendan CaldwellFri, 03 Jan 2025 11:00:50 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/at-this-years-big-speedrunning-fest-elden-ring-bosses-will-be-defeated-with-the-power-of-saxophoneRacingBlockbusterSpeedrunningPCAction AdventureGames Done Quick

The yearly speedrunning superstream Awesome Games Done Quick is starting this weekend, and it's set to be a musical one. The events will include a player who will beat a set of Elden Ring boss battles using a saxophone as a controller, and 16 minutes of Crazy Taxi with a live backing band rocking out as the driver collects their fares. Other notable events will see two players storming through The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild while sharing a single joypad, and an amorous attempt to clear "all romances" in Fallout: New Vegas within 30 minutes - wait, there are romance options in New Vegas?

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PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds creator wants to build a "metaverse" but says it might take 15 years and can't explain what it will look like yethttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/playerunknowns-battlegrounds-creator-wants-to-build-a-metaverse-but-says-it-might-take-15-years-and-cant-explain-what-it-will-look-like-yetBrendan CaldwellThu, 02 Jan 2025 13:42:31 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/playerunknowns-battlegrounds-creator-wants-to-build-a-metaverse-but-says-it-might-take-15-years-and-cant-explain-what-it-will-look-like-yetShooter: First PersonBlockbusterShooter: Third PersonSurvival & CraftingPlayerUnknown ProductionsXbox OnePUBG: BattlegroundsPrologue: Go Wayback!PCBattle RoyalePS4

Brendan Greene, the modder-turned-millionaire who designed battle royale game PUBG: Battlegrounds, wants to make his studio's next game a "metaverse", although he says he's wary of using the term. The project is called "Artemis" (at least for now) and you won't be seeing it any time soon. That's because the studio is still working on the tech behind it all, and plans to release two other games before it. Meaning it'll be 10-15 years before it actually comes out.

Greene describes Artemis as an internet-like platform where users create and share things, but doesn't say specifically what those things might be. He doesn't know how his user-led "multiverse of worlds" will be moderated, or how it will prevent copyright infringement, or what makes this idea distinct from, say, Roblox. He is nonetheless "full of confidence".

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The final RPS Christmas Cracker 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-final-rps-christmas-cracker-2024RPSWed, 01 Jan 2025 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-final-rps-christmas-cracker-2024BlockbusterIndieChristmas

The fell moons rise, and in their cold glare emerges a parcel from the dirt. Bloat and gangrene, crimped as if by tourniquet. A dark promise wriggles within. Grip the fibrous handles, feel its jagged soul imprint upon your palm. Now pull! Rend the sinew, tear muscle from bone, hatch their fetid gift! The yoke draws near! Take up the slip and read the words upon its face.

Time to enjoy your lovely joke!

Q: What did the Sekiro Fan Club say to the bartender at their Christmas party?

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The ninth RPS Christmas Cracker 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-ninth-rps-christmas-cracker-2024RPSTue, 31 Dec 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-ninth-rps-christmas-cracker-2024BlockbusterIndieChristmas

The fell moons rise, and in their cold glare emerges a parcel from the dirt. Bloat and gangrene, crimped as if by tourniquet. A dark promise wriggles within. Grip the fibrous handles, feel its jagged soul imprint upon your palm. Now pull! Rend the sinew, tear muscle from bone, hatch their fetid gift! The yoke draws near! Take up the slip and read the words upon its face.

Time to enjoy your lovely joke!

Q: What game does Geoff Keighley play now that E3 is gone forever?

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The eighth RPS Christmas Cracker 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-eighth-rps-christmas-cracker-2024RPSMon, 30 Dec 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-eighth-rps-christmas-cracker-2024BlockbusterIndieChristmas

The fell moons rise, and in their cold glare emerges a parcel from the dirt. Bloat and gangrene, crimped as if by tourniquet. A dark promise wriggles within. Grip the fibrous handles, feel its jagged soul imprint upon your palm. Now pull! Rend the sinew, tear muscle from bone, hatch their fetid gift! The yoke draws near! Take up the slip and read the words upon its face.

Time to enjoy your lovely joke!

Q: What game released this year is set entirely within a jar of anti-ageing cream?

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The seventh RPS Christmas Cracker 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-seventh-rps-christmas-cracker-2024RPSSun, 29 Dec 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-seventh-rps-christmas-cracker-2024BlockbusterIndieChristmas

The fell moons rise, and in their cold glare emerges a parcel from the dirt. Bloat and gangrene, crimped as if by tourniquet. A dark promise wriggles within. Grip the fibrous handles, feel its jagged soul imprint upon your palm. Now pull! Rend the sinew, tear muscle from bone, hatch their fetid gift! The yoke draws near! Take up the slip and read the words upon its face.

Time to enjoy your lovely joke!

Q: I want to role play as a singing gastropod! What game should I play?

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The RPS Selection Box: Brendan's bonus games of the year 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-rps-selection-box-brendans-bonus-games-of-the-year-2024Brendan CaldwellSat, 28 Dec 2024 11:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-rps-selection-box-brendans-bonus-games-of-the-year-2024Still Wakes The DeepDreadXPPuzzleStealthBethesda Game StudiosStory RichShooter: First PersonIndiana Jones and the Great CircleDread DelusionBethesda SoftworksIndieNintendo SwitchFirst personDragon's Dogma 2PCThe Chinese RoomThird personStrategy: Turn-Based StrategyBlockbusterChristmasRPGExplorationFantasyHorrorSingle PlayerLovely HellplaceNarrative / Story DrivenAction AdventureMachineGamesSecret ModeRPS Selection BoxPS5ThunderfulXbox Series X/SScience FictionCapcomSteamWorld Heist 2

I'm a sucker for a good first-person runabout. I don't need to shoot, but it's sometimes nice to get a sword, or a big whip. As long as I get to be immersed in an adventure. I think that's the big theme of my selection box: being grounded within my player character. I want to feel what it's like to hike through canyons with too much sellable loot in my backpack. I want to park my soul in the head of a scared Scotsman way out of his depth, hundreds of miles from shore. The closer I can comfortably fit in my character's shoes, the more I seem to buy into the world they inhabit. Even if that world is constantly glowing a magnificent crimson.

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The sixth RPS Christmas Cracker 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sixth-rps-christmas-cracker-2024RPSSat, 28 Dec 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sixth-rps-christmas-cracker-2024BlockbusterIndieChristmas

The fell moons rise, and in their cold glare emerges a parcel from the dirt. Bloat and gangrene, crimped as if by tourniquet. A dark promise wriggles within. Grip the fibrous handles, feel its jagged soul imprint upon your palm. Now pull! Rend the sinew, tear muscle from bone, hatch their fetid gift! The yoke draws near! Take up the slip and read the words upon its face.

Time to enjoy your lovely joke!

Q: What's the best news you can hear after a trip to the vet?

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The fifth RPS Christmas Cracker 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-fifth-rps-christmas-cracker-2024RPSFri, 27 Dec 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-fifth-rps-christmas-cracker-2024BlockbusterIndieChristmas

The fell moons rise, and in their cold glare emerges a parcel from the dirt. Bloat and gangrene, crimped as if by tourniquet. A dark promise wriggles within. Grip the fibrous handles, feel its jagged soul imprint upon your palm. Now pull! Rend the sinew, tear muscle from bone, hatch their fetid gift! The yoke draws near! Take up the slip and read the words upon its face.

Time to enjoy your lovely joke!

Q: What d'you call a pair of komodo dragons making a sand castle?

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The fourth RPS Christmas Cracker 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-fourth-rps-christmas-cracker-2024RPSThu, 26 Dec 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-fourth-rps-christmas-cracker-2024BlockbusterIndieChristmas

The fell moons rise, and in their cold glare emerges a parcel from the dirt. Bloat and gangrene, crimped as if by tourniquet. A dark promise wriggles within. Grip the fibrous handles, feel its jagged soul imprint upon your palm. Now pull! Rend the sinew, tear muscle from bone, hatch their fetid gift! The yoke draws near! Take up the slip and read the words upon its face.

Time to enjoy your lovely joke!

Q: Why was the grave robber disappointed when he broke into Ubisoft's tomb?

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The third RPS Christmas Cracker 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-third-rps-christmas-cracker-2024RPSWed, 25 Dec 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-third-rps-christmas-cracker-2024BlockbusterIndieChristmas

The fell moons rise, and in their cold glare emerges a parcel from the dirt. Bloat and gangrene, crimped as if by tourniquet. A dark promise wriggles within. Grip the fibrous handles, feel its jagged soul imprint upon your palm. Now pull! Rend the sinew, tear muscle from bone, hatch their fetid gift! The yoke draws near! Take up the slip and read the words upon its face.

Time to enjoy your lovely joke!

Q: What's an etiquette teacher's favourite medieval sim?

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The second RPS Christmas Cracker 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-second-rps-christmas-cracker-2024RPSTue, 24 Dec 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-second-rps-christmas-cracker-2024BlockbusterIndieChristmas

The fell moons rise, and in their cold glare emerges a parcel from the dirt. Bloat and gangrene, crimped as if by tourniquet. A dark promise wriggles within. Grip the fibrous handles, feel its jagged soul imprint upon your palm. Now pull! Rend the sinew, tear muscle from bone, hatch their fetid gift! The yoke draws near! Take up the slip and read the words upon its face.

Time to enjoy your lovely joke!

Q: How can you tell a soulslike fan has fallen in love with a giant ape?

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The first RPS Christmas Cracker 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-first-rps-christmas-cracker-2024RPSMon, 23 Dec 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-first-rps-christmas-cracker-2024BlockbusterIndieChristmas

The fell moons rise, and in their cold glare emerges a parcel from the dirt. Bloat and gangrene, crimped as if by tourniquet. A dark promise wriggles within. Grip the fibrous handles, feel its jagged soul imprint upon your palm. Now pull! Rend the sinew, tear muscle from bone, hatch their fetid gift! The yoke draws near! Take up the slip and read the words upon its face.

Time to enjoy your lovely joke!

Q: Why do oil rig workers only drink sparkling water?

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Having Ciri as The Witcher 4 lead will help the game explore the Witcher world's sexism, say CD Projekthttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/having-ciri-as-the-witcher-4-lead-will-help-the-game-explore-the-witcher-worlds-sexism-say-cd-projektEdwin Evans-ThirlwellThu, 19 Dec 2024 15:43:21 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/having-ciri-as-the-witcher-4-lead-will-help-the-game-explore-the-witcher-worlds-sexism-say-cd-projektBlockbusterCD Projekt REDRPGOpen WorldSingle PlayerXbox Series X/SCD ProjektPCAction AdventureThird personThe Witcher 4PS5

The announcement of The Witcher 4 with The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's Ciri as protagonist has attracted a bit of discussion. Some of the reaction is online toddlers waxing wroth about a video game having a (somewhat older!!!) woman as lead character, and especially, shock, a video game in a series that has hitherto starred a man. And some of it is people commenting more thoughtfully on whether Ciri genuinely makes for a suitable Witcher protagonist, given that she isn't the product of the typical Witcher genetic modification regime (which is heavily tailored towards men), and given that, without spoiling too much, she has gifts that make crumbly old Geralt's sword-and-sorcery skillset look rather paltry.

Speaking to Eurogamer this week, game director Sebastian Kalemba and narrative director Philipp Weber responded to a few of these comments, and also shared a little about Ciri's situation at the start of the game.

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Gwent returns in The Witcher 4, according to CD Projekt's heavy hintshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/gwent-returns-in-the-witcher-4-according-to-cd-projekts-heavy-hintsBrendan CaldwellTue, 17 Dec 2024 11:48:24 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/gwent-returns-in-the-witcher-4-according-to-cd-projekts-heavy-hintsMultiplayer CompetitiveCD Projekt REDGwent: The Witcher Card GameXbox OneCD ProjektBird view / IsometricPCStrategyThird personBlockbusterCard GamesRPGOpen WorldFantasySingle PlayerAction AdventurePS5Xbox Series X/SThe Witcher 4PS4

Quick, the world is in peril, your adopted daughter is under threat, and nearby villagers are being terrorised by monsters. What do you do? Oh, you're sitting down at a cosy table in the local tavern. You're playing a card game with a dude called "Aldert". The wind outside is howling, and so are the nightwraiths, but you're just sitting there. Playing another "cow" card. Okay.

Guess you'll be happy to learn that the Witcher 4 developers have more or less confirmed that Gwent will be making a return in the recently trailered Ciri-led sequel.

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All Marvel Rivals charactershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-characters-rosterOllie TomsMon, 16 Dec 2024 15:36:10 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-characters-rosterShooterBlockbusterNetease GamesMultiplayer CompetitiveMarvel RivalsFree-to-playPCMultiplayer CooperativeAction AdventureFightingStrategyThird person

Looking for some help understanding the full roster of all 33 Marvel Rivals characters? Marvel Rivals has hit the ground running since its launch, eating into the hero shooter territory with a very fair free-to-play model which allows new players to instantly choose between all 33 heroes from day one. That's a great thing, but it also means quite a learning curve for newcomers.

Characters in Marvel Rivals are divided into three easy to understand roles: there are the Vanguards, big beefy heroes who soak up lots of damage and protect the team. There are Strategists, who excel at healing and supporting their teammates. And the rest are Duelists, who love to deal damage and pick off enemies. In this guide, we'll walk you through the full roster of Marvel Rivals heroes, exploring the abilities, strengths, and weaknesses of each one. To help those of you who are coming over from the other big hero shooter of the age, we'll explain each of the 33 characters by comparing them to their equivalent Overwatch heroes.

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Naughty Dog are making a sci-fi bounty hunter game called Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophethttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/naughty-dog-are-making-a-sci-fi-bounty-hunter-game-called-intergalactic-the-heretic-prophetGraham SmithFri, 13 Dec 2024 04:11:16 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/naughty-dog-are-making-a-sci-fi-bounty-hunter-game-called-intergalactic-the-heretic-prophetThe Game Awards 2024BlockbusterThe Game AwardsIntergalactic: The Heretic ProphetNaughty DogAction Adventure

Naughty Dog have announced their long-gestating new game, and their first in a long while that's not a sequel. Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet is a science fiction bounty hunter game set on a mysterious isolated planet, and the first cinematic trailer is below.

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The makers of Yakuza are working on "Project Century", a new third-person brawler set in 1915https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-makers-of-yakuza-are-working-on-project-century-a-new-third-person-brawler-set-in-1915Graham SmithFri, 13 Dec 2024 02:28:54 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-makers-of-yakuza-are-working-on-project-century-a-new-third-person-brawler-set-in-1915BlockbusterRPGProject CenturyAction AdventureRyu Ga Gotoku StudioFighting

I've lost track of how many Yakuza games are in development at any given moment, but it seems makers Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio have space for more on their plate. During this evening's Game Awards, they announced "Project Century", a new third-person brawler set in 1915. There's a trailer below.

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The first Witcher 4 trailer is here, and Ciri is the starhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-first-witcher-4-trailer-is-here-and-ciri-is-the-starEdwin Evans-ThirlwellFri, 13 Dec 2024 01:47:58 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-first-witcher-4-trailer-is-here-and-ciri-is-the-starThe Game Awards 2024BlockbusterCD Projekt REDRPGOpen WorldSingle PlayerXbox Series X/SThe Game AwardsCD ProjektPCAction AdventureThird personThe Witcher 4PS5

CD Projekt have screened the first trailer for The Witcher 4, the next instalment in their fantasy monster-slaying series. It’s another single player open world RPG, and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt’s Ciri is the protagonist. In fact, she's the protagonist for a whole new Witcher saga, though there’s a tease at the end of the footage that crusty old Geralt may return as well.

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Marvel Rivals tier list of best charactershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-tier-list-best-charactersOllie TomsThu, 12 Dec 2024 19:42:46 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-tier-list-best-charactersShooterBlockbusterNetease GamesMultiplayer CompetitiveMarvel RivalsFree-to-playPCMultiplayer CooperativeAction AdventureFightingStrategyThird person

What are the best characters in Marvel Rivals right now? It's always a tough question with games like Marvel Rivals, not only because the roster and hero abilities are ever-changing, but because a tier list of heroes naturally changes over time as you climb higher up the player skill ladder. But will that stop us? Clearly not!

Free-to-play team-based hero shooter Marvel Rivals has launched with a grand total of 33 iconic Marvel heroes to choose between, and while the balance on the whole has been fairly decent so far, a meta is still starting to emerge. Fans of Iron Man, Thor, and Hulk may be a little disappointed, but they're not quite the powerhouses they are in the MCU. And meanwhile, unexpected entrances like Jeff The Land Shark and Squirrel Girl are getting all manner of attention right now. And not just because Marvel fans be thirsty.

In the guide below, you can read through our full Marvel Rivals tier list, ranking all 33 characters from best to worst. Further down, we've also included a write-up on each hero, their strengths and weaknesses, and why they are ranked as they are in the current meta.

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Marvel Rivals review: it's like Overwatch, if Overwatch was overcomplex and frequented Comic Conhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-reviewEd ThornThu, 12 Dec 2024 15:53:27 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/marvel-rivals-reviewShooterBlockbusterNetease GamesMultiplayer CompetitiveMarvel RivalsFree-to-playPCMultiplayer CooperativeAction AdventureFightingStrategyWot I ThinkThird person

At first I thought Marvel Rivals was basically rebranded Overwatch, in the way it's a free-to-play PVP hero shooter. And in some ways, it is. Fights are like if you took a MOBA and forced both teams to bash heads constantly. Success lies in picking off Spider-Man or Squirrel Girl or Marcus Fenix so as they wait to respawn, you hop on the big area that needs capturing. Or you push the cart while tanky Hulk absorbs bullets with his biceps and John Marvel snipes from afar.

The more I played Rivals, though, the more it hit me that it's specifically a messier, more complex Overwatch. A hero shooter with a surprising amount of polish and charm, sure, but also one that slides off my brain like water off Birdman's back. I understand why it's supremely popular at the moment and yet, I really don't.

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First big Marvel Rivals patch makes Doctor Strange less of a monsterhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/first-big-marvel-rivals-patch-makes-doctor-strange-less-of-a-monsterEdwin Evans-ThirlwellTue, 10 Dec 2024 18:05:05 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/first-big-marvel-rivals-patch-makes-doctor-strange-less-of-a-monsterShooterBlockbusterNetease GamesMultiplayer CompetitiveMarvel RivalsFree-to-playPCMultiplayer CooperativeAction AdventureFightingStrategyThird person

Marvel Rivals, the free-to-play hero shooter from NetEase, launched late last week and is exceedingly popular. It's currently fourth on the Steam daily most played, right between Path Of Exile 2 and the evergreen Grand Theft Auto 5. I think there are three reasons for this enthusiasm: 1) it's free-to-play with the usual comet's tail of microtransactables 2) it's third-person Overwatch with Marvel characters, a straightforwardly enticing licensing sandwich, and 3) people want to have sex with a larger-than-usual proportion of the cast and especially awful tongue-monster Venom, who has a good butt in this one. No, I'm not going to share pictures. You'll have to google that filth yourself.

But perhaps you are a sophisticated soul who has no time for such salacious nonsense. You're more interested in hearing how they're patching the thing. Enough with the butts already, dang it - this is a new multiplayer game so there must, of course, be patches! Fair enough: here's what NetEase are changing or fixing in the first major update, out now.

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I have rarely hated a bad guy as much as I hate Voss in Indiana Jones And The Great Circlehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/i-have-rarely-hated-a-bad-guy-as-much-as-i-hate-voss-in-indiana-jones-and-the-great-circleBrendan CaldwellMon, 09 Dec 2024 10:06:01 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/i-have-rarely-hated-a-bad-guy-as-much-as-i-hate-voss-in-indiana-jones-and-the-great-circleStory RichShooter: First PersonBlockbusterIndiana Jones and the Great CircleBethesda SoftworksExplorationPuzzleSingle PlayerXbox Series X/SFirst personBethesda Game StudiosStealthHistoricalNarrative / Story DrivenPCAction AdventureMachineGamesThird person

It's not just because he's a Nazi. It's because he's a smartass Nazi. As the main antagonist in Indiana Jones And The Great Circle, Emmerich Voss vacates the archetypal armchair usually reserved for secondary fascist goons, so that he can goosestep straight into the big boy seat himself. He smiles with all the sleaze of right-hand-man Major Toht, the grubby gestapo who gets that right hand burned in Raiders of the Lost Ark. Yet he also engages in the pseudo-intellectual trash talk of the main archaeological rivals to Jones, like Rene Belloq or Walter Donovan. He is a hideous grab bag of all the things that make an instantly detestable villain in the series. But there's something else. Voss is so immediately and gutturally hateable because he resembles a type of racist encountered not in the 1930s, but one you've probably met today: the asshole you meet on the internet.

Warning: Here be spoilers.

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-747Graham SmithSun, 08 Dec 2024 11:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-747BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for, I hope, upgrading my PC swiftly and successfully and then getting down to business. Think of all the games I can now play! But I'll probably just play Dune Imperium.

Gail Mackenzie-Smith in Electric Lit wrote a Dear John letter breaking up with Wordle.

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Indiana Jones And The Great Circle review: a grand adventure that keeps faith with the movieshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/indiana-jones-and-the-great-circle-review-a-grand-adventure-that-keeps-faith-with-the-moviesBrendan CaldwellFri, 06 Dec 2024 12:17:07 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/indiana-jones-and-the-great-circle-review-a-grand-adventure-that-keeps-faith-with-the-moviesStory RichShooter: First PersonBlockbusterIndiana Jones and the Great CircleBethesda SoftworksExplorationPuzzleSingle PlayerXbox Series X/SFirst personBethesda Game StudiosStealthNarrative / Story DrivenPCAction AdventureMachineGamesWot I ThinkThird person

Every fascist in this game has a cold. The Hitlerites and blackshirts of Indiana Jones And The Great Circle sneeze and cough as they patrol the dig sites of Gizeh, or the marble corridors of the Vatican. Although this is the Machine Games' clever way of letting you know where your enemies are at all times, it is also mildly funny, as if all the Nazis have been secretly kissing each other, spreading the same rhinovirus from Italy to Egypt to Nepal and beyond. More than that, it's a stubborn reminder that, despite the many hours of perfectly motion-captured cinematics that accompany all this, you are still playing a video game. A snotty tissue that separates the Indy of taut two-hour cinema and the Indy of a sweeping first-person punch 'em up that will take days to complete. All this is to say, you will notice the difference. But that might not matter; they're both still Indiana Jones.

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The dazzling and desirable RPS Advent Calendar 2024https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-dazzling-desirable-rps-advent-calendar-2024RPSSun, 01 Dec 2024 12:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-dazzling-desirable-rps-advent-calendar-2024The RPS Advent Calendar 2024BlockbusterIndie

December is here! It has snuck up on us once again, hidden as it always is behind November's back. It's arrival heralds the beginning of the RPS Advent Calendar 2024, the yearly list of our favourite games of the year. Step inside, open the doors, and celebrate another year's gaming survived.

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-746Graham SmithSun, 01 Dec 2024 11:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-746BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays! Sundays are for going quickly.

Gabriel Winslow-Yost wrote for Harper's Magazine - not an outlet typically known for their videogame coverage - about Elden Ring and the role of death and failure in games.

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RPS Asks: Are Steam sales still as exciting as they used to be?https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/rps-asks-are-steam-sales-still-as-exciting-as-they-used-to-beGraham SmithThu, 28 Nov 2024 23:08:25 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/rps-asks-are-steam-sales-still-as-exciting-as-they-used-to-beBlockbusterRPS asksValvesaleSteam

It's almost the end of November, which means it is technically but not spiritually still autumn. It is spiritually winter, the season of wearing gloves and using my phone's flashlight to look for my dog's poos in the long grass. Yet it's not the Steam winter sale that started yesterday, but the Steam autumn sale.

Discounts are definitely never a bad thing, but Steam sales used to feel like big events on the PC gaming calendar. They don't anymore, to me. Friends, are Steam sales still exciting to you?

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The Witcher 4 has entered "the most intensive phase of development", say CD Projekthttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-witcher-4-has-entered-the-most-intensive-phase-of-development-say-cd-projektEdwin Evans-ThirlwellTue, 26 Nov 2024 17:33:04 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-witcher-4-has-entered-the-most-intensive-phase-of-development-say-cd-projektBlockbusterCD Projekt REDRPGOpen WorldSingle PlayerXbox Series X/SCD ProjektPCAction AdventureThird personThe Witcher 4PS5

Just when you thought you'd played all the RPGs - maxed every last stat, drained the XP of every last creature, tap-danced your way along every branching questline - CD Projekt have announced that The Witcher 4 is in "full-scale production".

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Former Mass Effect director cancels his next sci-fi game as his studio closes before it is fully revealedhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/former-mass-effect-director-cancels-his-next-sci-fi-game-as-his-studio-closes-before-it-is-fully-revealedBrendan CaldwellTue, 26 Nov 2024 09:23:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/former-mass-effect-director-cancels-his-next-sci-fi-game-as-his-studio-closes-before-it-is-fully-revealedMicrosoftShooterBiowareBlockbusterElectronic ArtsLayoffsMicrosoft StudiosRPGExplorationSingle PlayerPS3Xbox 360Mass EffectPCAction AdventureHumanoid StudiosHumanoid OriginThird person

A studio led by former Mass Effect director Casey Hudson have shut down before being able to show the sci-fi narrative adventure they were working on. Humanoid Origin posted the announcement of the studio's closure on LinkedIn yesterday, saying that a "shortfall of funding" was responsible for the decision. They had been making a "multi-platform AAA game, focusing on character-driven narrative in an all-new science-fiction universe", according to the studio's website.

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-745Graham SmithSun, 24 Nov 2024 11:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-745BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for sitting in a chair, I hope. Beyond that I dare not to dream.

Folks continue to sing the praises of Arco, this year's selected overlooked gem of overlooked gems. The latest is Matt Patches over at Polygon:

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Assassin's Creed Shadows outlines its stealth systems - which luckily includes the ability to hide in shadowshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/assassins-creed-shadows-outlines-its-stealth-systems-which-luckily-includes-the-ability-to-hide-in-shadowsGraham SmithThu, 21 Nov 2024 19:45:43 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/assassins-creed-shadows-outlines-its-stealth-systems-which-luckily-includes-the-ability-to-hide-in-shadowsAssassin's Creed ShadowsBlockbusterMacUbisoft QuebecRPGXbox Series X/SUbisoft EntertainmentUbisoftPCAction AdventurePS5

Assassin's Creed Shadows is making changes to how it handles stealth, versus other games in the long-running series. Gone is the companion eagle who can spot enemies for you, for a start; instead, players can hide in the - hey - shadows, lie on their tummies for the first time, and make use of a "shinobi and assassin arsenal" of smoke bombs and bells.

There are old moves that are coming back after an absence, too: Shadows will allow for 'double assassinations' again.

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Valve might be moving closer to a Steam Controller 2 and new VR controllers, rumours sayhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/valve-might-be-moving-closer-to-a-steam-controller-2-and-new-vr-controllers-rumours-sayGraham SmithWed, 20 Nov 2024 21:22:10 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/valve-might-be-moving-closer-to-a-steam-controller-2-and-new-vr-controllers-rumours-sayValveVRBlockbusterSteam Controller

Valve said that they want to make a new Steam Controller back in 2022, but such a thing might be getting closer to production, according to dataminer Brad Lynch.

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This year's Game Awards will accept DLC, new game seasons, expansions, and presumably Kojima’s MS Paint doodleshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/this-years-game-awards-will-accept-dlc-new-game-seasons-expansions-and-presumably-kojimas-ms-paint-doodlesNic ReubenMon, 18 Nov 2024 09:34:57 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/this-years-game-awards-will-accept-dlc-new-game-seasons-expansions-and-presumably-kojimas-ms-paint-doodlesBlockbuster

As per a recent update to their FAQ page, The Game Awards have confirmed that DLCs, new game seasons for live service games, and other such releases are eligible for their game of the year award.

The FAQ itself - which appears to have been accessible over the weekend but now links to a ‘coming soon’ page - says the following. Thanks Neowin for quoting it in its entirety:

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-744Graham SmithSun, 17 Nov 2024 11:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-744BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

I will spend this Sunday nursing a chest infection, probably by wrapping blankets around myself and watching YouTube videos until sleep comes. Let's first round up some good links with writing and videos about videogames.

This is surely the best link this week: an hour-long video on how to beat "every possible game of Pokemon Platinum at the same time". That is, coming up with a set of game inputs that can win billions of possible permutations of the game, as determined by its RNG, when played simultaneously. It's an impressive feat, but the video itself is great too, patiently breaking down the process with motion graphics and video editing flair. Delightful.

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Halo's most disgusting enemy was partly inspired by a children's bookhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/halos-most-disgusting-enemy-was-partly-inspired-by-a-childrens-bookBrendan CaldwellMon, 11 Nov 2024 13:18:45 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/halos-most-disgusting-enemy-was-partly-inspired-by-a-childrens-bookMultiplayer CompetitiveHalo 2XboxXbox OneHalo InfiniteBungieShooterShooter: First PersonFirst personXbox Game Studios343 IndustriesPCThird personMicrosoftBlockbusterSingle PlayerMultiplayer CooperativeAction AdventureMicrosoft StudiosXbox Series X/SHalo: The Master Chief CollectionScience Fiction

It was the 20-year anniversary of Halo 2 at the weekend, which saw the shooter's modern counterparts celebrating with classic multiplayer maps and long-lost levels. But also emerging from the dust of time are insights to the sequel's development back in 2004. Rolling Stone interviewed two key designers of the game and made a fun discovery. The Flood (the sickly pale alien infestation that briefly turns Halo into sci-fi horror) was partly inspired by a colourful and innocent children's book about a nice elephant.

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The RPS 100: 2024 Edition is here, with our picks for the best PC games ever madehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-rps-100-2024-edition-is-here-with-our-picks-for-the-best-pc-games-ever-madeGraham SmithMon, 11 Nov 2024 12:39:35 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-rps-100-2024-edition-is-here-with-our-picks-for-the-best-pc-games-ever-madeThe RPS 100BlockbusterPSA

Update:

The full list is now live as promised.

The RPS 100 is our list of the best games to play on PC. It encompasses the full breadth and width of PC gaming stretching back to 1873, but focuses solely on those games that remain great to play today. It's updated yearly by our crack team of writers, and the first half of the 2024 edition is live now.

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What's on your bookshelf?: Liminal biscuit filling editionhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-liminal-biscuit-filling-editionNic ReubenSun, 10 Nov 2024 16:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-liminal-biscuit-filling-editionBlockbusterBooked For The Week

My brain is still thawing for the comment freeze, and thus there is sadly no cool industry person to talk to us about books this week. I'm currently reading Tony Tulathimutte’s Rejection. Jia Tolentino wrote about it for the New Yorker. Jia Tolentino also writes very good books. But enough about books, tell me about books! One's you've read, preferably, but I will also accept books you've formed opinions on based on their covers, as is good and proper. Book for now!

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-743Graham SmithSun, 10 Nov 2024 11:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-743BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

November 8th, 2005 was my first day as a full-time games journalist, which means I have now entered my 20th year of doing this. "This" has changed a lot over time: from producing CD and DVD coverdiscs, to writing for a magazine, to editing magazines and a website, to solely editing a website, to managing several websites. Sprinkle podcasts, videos, events and a lot of other things in there and "games journalist" doesn't really cover it.

One of the only constants is that I read a lot of writing about video games.

Dapper gent Oli Welsh wrote for Polygon about the fan reboot of City Of Heroes. We briefly covered fans getting an official license earlier this year, but Oli went and spoke to the folks making it all work.

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Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6 campaign review: a military shooter that comes disguised as other, better gameshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/call-of-duty-black-ops-6-campaign-review-a-military-shooter-that-comes-disguised-as-other-better-gamesBrendan CaldwellTue, 05 Nov 2024 17:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/call-of-duty-black-ops-6-campaign-review-a-military-shooter-that-comes-disguised-as-other-better-gamesMultiplayer CompetitiveRaven SoftwareCall of Duty: Black Ops 6Xbox OneWot I ThinkInfinity WardShooterShooter: First PersonActivisionFirst personPCBlockbusterTreyarchSingle PlayerMultiplayer CooperativeAction AdventurePS5Xbox Series X/SSledgehammer GamesPS4

As a yearly blockbuster, Call of Duty, through sheer expense and effort, would like you to think it is the Die Hard of video games. Or, depending on the setting, the Saving Private Ryan of video games. But it is barely Black Hawk Down. This latest campaign in Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6 reminds me more of the forgettable Netflix shootfests that thumbnail their way across your TV screen as you try to find some gritty nothing to aid you in zoning out of life. Still, there is an anecdotal contingent of casual sofa sitters for whom Call Of Duty is the game. A balls-to-the-wall shooter to return to every winter and rinse through in a weekend. Ed has already gestured at its multiplayer, announcing: "yup, it's COD", like a deeply tired Captain Birdseye inspecting the day's catch, wondering when his life will change. But never mind that. How does the single player story mode hold up? Some are calling it the best campaign in years. And I guess that's true, in the sense that it is the least worst.

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What's on your bookshelf?: Solipsism Xtreme Editionhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-solipsism-xtreme-editionNic ReubenSun, 03 Nov 2024 16:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-solipsism-xtreme-editionBlockbusterBooked For The Week

Sunday is cancelled. Book for now!

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-742Graham SmithSun, 03 Nov 2024 11:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-742BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

It's official: I am once again the Sunday correspondent around here. That means it falls to me to round up (mostly) good (mostly) writing about (mostly) video games. I will otherwise be spending my Sunday continuing the fight against my dog's fleas, which rebound every three weeks no matter how much I spray, scrub or throw things away.

On, the independent video game magazine which I linked to last week, has run a series of brief interviews with each of the contributors to its launch issue. I recommend Christian Donlan's for the puzzle game recommendations and Margaret Robertson's which expands on her fascination with Japanese paper games.

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We've temporarily closed comments for maintenance, but they'll be backhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/weve-temporarily-closed-comments-for-maintenance-but-theyll-be-backGraham SmithWed, 30 Oct 2024 13:50:34 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/weve-temporarily-closed-comments-for-maintenance-but-theyll-be-backRPS businessBlockbusterPSA

Hark! Comments have been temporarily turned off on Rock Paper Shotgun. We and all of our sibling websites are moving to a new commenting platform and the existing comments need to be ported across. This process will take some time - days, perhaps - and we'll update this post once it's complete and commenting functionality has been restored.

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Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicle makes good on Ubisoft’s threat to coil out hot steaming NFT garbage straight into my innocent eyeshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/champions-tactics-grimoria-chronicle-makes-good-on-ubisofts-threat-to-coil-out-hot-steaming-nft-garbage-straight-into-my-innocent-eyesNic ReubenWed, 30 Oct 2024 11:58:28 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/champions-tactics-grimoria-chronicle-makes-good-on-ubisofts-threat-to-coil-out-hot-steaming-nft-garbage-straight-into-my-innocent-eyesBlockbuster

"Worthless,’ they'd declared. Most NFTs were ‘worthless.’ The greatest artistic movement since The Big BSoD, the greatest proof of the power of the blockchain, the very future of the whole funging Infobahn, and the hedgie soybean-counters say it's all ‘worthless’," once wrote the greatest living prophet of our era.

Now, in an entirely predictable case of "I am once again asking our tech overlords to watch the whole movie", those plucky chancers at Ubisoft have lifted AliceO’s ideas wholesale, ignored her timely and cogent commentary, and released a roiling puke reservoir of NFT upchuck masquerading as a game. Thank you Ian Games for the spot. You are the Neal Stephenson to AliceO’s William Gibson, but for worthless crap. (The IGN piece has some very good context and is worth reading).

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The Video Game History Foundation is “not done fighting” after US Copyright Office refuses exemption to aid preservationhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-video-game-history-foundation-is-not-done-fighting-after-us-copyright-office-refuses-exemption-to-aid-preservationNic ReubenMon, 28 Oct 2024 09:34:22 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-video-game-history-foundation-is-not-done-fighting-after-us-copyright-office-refuses-exemption-to-aid-preservationBlockbuster

Back in April, I wrote about a hearing that took place between representatives Video Game History Foundation, the Rhizome project, and the Software Preservation Network, in which they argued the case for a DMCA exemption that would allow researchers to remotely access out-of-print games in libraries and archives. Representatives from the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) and the AACS were in opposition, with ESA legal representative Steve Englund at one point fretting about some sort of hellish "online arcade that (he’d) been warning about for the last several proceedings".

Last Friday, as per a statement released by the VGHF and spotted by PC Gamer, the US Copyright Office officially denied the exemption.

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What's on your bookshelf?: Dragon Age veteran Mark Darrahhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-dragon-age-veteran-mark-darrahNic ReubenSun, 27 Oct 2024 16:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-dragon-age-veteran-mark-darrahBlockbusterBooked For The Week

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! Most of us know about the novel, the novella, and the rare novito, but did you know that Penguin briefly tried to market the ‘big nov’ - single sentences of much larger works, bizarrely serialised into hardbacks weighty enough to club the equally rare giga-seal? Some things are best left forgotten, but not Dragon Age! It’s Dragon Age month, and here’s Dragon Age veteran and good YouTuber, Mark Darrah! Cheers Mark! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf?

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-741Graham SmithSun, 27 Oct 2024 11:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-741BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for doing things you haven't done in a long time, like a long stretch after years trapped in a languorous hunch.

Former Edge designer Andrew Hind has launched On, a premium print magazine in which he and editor-in-chief Nathan Brown invite writers to produce their dream article.

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Blizzard promise "something for everyone" in Warcraft's 30th Anniversary Direct next monthhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/blizzard-promise-something-for-everyone-in-warcrafts-30th-anniversary-direct-next-monthGraham SmithThu, 24 Oct 2024 19:03:53 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/blizzard-promise-something-for-everyone-in-warcrafts-30th-anniversary-direct-next-monthBlockbusterWorld of WarcraftMultiplayer CompetitiveMMOMacRPGBlizzardFantasySingle PlayerPCBlizzard EntertainmentMultiplayer CooperativeAction AdventureMMORPGThird person

Blizzard announced earlier this year that BlizzCon wouldn't happen in 2024, with the live event instead being replaced by a series of franchise-focused streams. Next on the schedule is Warcraft 30th Anniversary Direct, which Blizzard have now announced will stream on Wednesday, November 13th at 6pm GMT/1pm ET/10am PT.

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Warhammer 40000: Space Marine 2 rolls back difficulty changes that made fighting xenos "intense and stressful"https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/warhammer-40000-space-marine-2-rolls-back-difficulty-changes-that-made-fighting-xenos-intense-and-stressfulBrendan CaldwellThu, 24 Oct 2024 10:10:05 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/warhammer-40000-space-marine-2-rolls-back-difficulty-changes-that-made-fighting-xenos-intense-and-stressfulShooterBlockbusterSaber InteractiveFocus EntertainmentFocus Home InteractiveWarhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2Shooter: Third PersonXbox Series X/SFantasySingle PlayerScience FictionPCAction AdventureThird personPS5

The developers of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 have released an update to the third-person shooter that reverts a lot of tough difficulty changes made in a previous patch. Turns out upping the spawn rate of the vicious Tyrannid baddies across all difficulty modes was not welcome among the meathead murder boys of the Imperium. And this change wasn't the only one that caused enough ructions to justify hasty recalibrations from Saber Interactive.

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What's on your bookshelf?: slightly useful useless editionhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-slightly-useful-useless-editionNic ReubenSun, 20 Oct 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-slightly-useful-useless-editionBlockbusterBooked For The Week

No cool industry person this week, I’m afraid, but I do have a consolation prize for you. A comment from valued RPS community member #1694 a few weeks back reminded me that I once spent a long time tracking down good SF/Fantasy/Horror short story magazines. Partly for pitching purposes, and partly because I was just really excited such things still existed.

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-740Nic ReubenSun, 20 Oct 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-740GnocchiBlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for reconnecting with old friends, reminiscing about good times, and eventually going to bed feeling an unbelievable sense of calm, contentment, and a newly invigorated sense of self. Lol nah I’m going to play Mechabellum and eat gnocchi from a packet. Asda’s vegan pumpkin pesto is very good though. Here’s some writing I personally found interesting about games (and game related things!)

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What’s on your bookshelf: Remedy Entertainment, Bioshock 2, and Gone Home’s Johnnemann Nordhagenhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-remedy-entertainment-bioshock-2-and-gone-homes-johnnemann-nordhagenNic ReubenSun, 13 Oct 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-remedy-entertainment-bioshock-2-and-gone-homes-johnnemann-nordhagenBlockbusterBooked For The Week

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! I need to start getting a ‘Gene Wolfe referenced’ reaction image for these things, I swear - although this reference is at least hidden behind a couple of links. Which links? That’d be spoiling the layered environmental storytelling that keeps you coming back. This week, it’s Senior Technical Narrative Designer at Remedy, previously of Fullbright, Bioshock 2, and Where The Water Tastes Like Wine fame, Johnnemann Nordhagen! Cheers Johnnemann! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf?

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There's a future where you and this bucket that fits over your head decide what a game meant to say, not the useless idiots that made ithttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/theres-a-future-where-you-and-this-bucket-that-fits-over-your-head-decide-what-a-game-meant-to-say-not-the-useless-idiots-that-made-itNic ReubenSun, 13 Oct 2024 11:17:59 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/theres-a-future-where-you-and-this-bucket-that-fits-over-your-head-decide-what-a-game-meant-to-say-not-the-useless-idiots-that-made-itBlockbuster

It's not far away, you know. The promised land of never having to experience a game the way it was intended again. That long sought after holy grail of sticking your fingers in your ears and going wahwahwah. But it’s not going to be something created by people with talent, vision, expertise, drive, a dream, or a story in their hearts. No, as with everything in our imminent future, it will be achieved by putting a bucket over your head.

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-739Nic ReubenSun, 13 Oct 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-739BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for making and freezing a bunch of sandwiches so I can later toast them at my leisure. Not sure why, just fancied becoming the sort of person with a bountiful hoard of sandwiches. Before I get seriously locked in to some rhythmic bread slapping, here’s some writing I personally found interesting about games (and game related things!)

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What are we all playing this weekend?https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/what-are-we-all-playing-this-weekend-304Nic ReubenSat, 12 Oct 2024 07:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/what-are-we-all-playing-this-weekend-304BlockbusterPlaying This Weekend

The regular comments to this column inform me that many of you are cat owners, so this week, I would like to someone to explain to me how my cat can bound across a room, jump, and catch a moving dressing gown cord flawlessly, and yet fail to locate the stinky cheese Dreamie I’m holding out to her without several moments of smelling unrelated locations. Either way, this is my new favourite videogame, which gives every other game a lot to live up to.

Nevertheless, they continue to try. Here’s what we’re clicking on this weekend.

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Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered will arrive in February 2025, perhaps make Angel Of Darkness playable at lasthttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tomb-raider-iv-vi-remastered-will-arrive-in-february-2025-perhaps-make-angel-of-darkness-playable-at-lastGraham SmithFri, 11 Oct 2024 21:58:15 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tomb-raider-iv-vi-remastered-will-arrive-in-february-2025-perhaps-make-angel-of-darkness-playable-at-lastBlockbusterAspyrCrystal DynamicsCore DesignTomb Raider IV-VI Remastered

Tomb Raider 1-3 got the remaster treatment earlier this year, and surprise surprise, now Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered is on the way. That'll include Angel Of Darkness, of course, the entry of the sexology that could most obviously benefit from some TLC.

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Steam will now warn customers at checkout that they're only buying a digital license to a gamehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/steam-will-now-warn-customers-at-checkout-that-theyre-only-buying-a-digital-license-to-a-gameGraham SmithFri, 11 Oct 2024 21:30:19 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/steam-will-now-warn-customers-at-checkout-that-theyre-only-buying-a-digital-license-to-a-gameValveSteamBlockbuster

Steam now shows customers a message to let them know that they're buying a license when making a purchase through the storefront, rather than any outright ownership. The change has been implemented internationally in response to new California legislation due to take effect next year.

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Silent Hill 2 review: a handsome horror remake that plays safe with its own historyhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/silent-hill-2-reviewBrendan CaldwellTue, 08 Oct 2024 09:01:45 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/silent-hill-2-reviewStory RichBlockbusterSilent Hill 2Shooter: Third PersonSingle PlayerHorrorPuzzleSilent Hill 2 RemakePS2PCAction AdventureThird personBloober TeamKonamiWot I ThinkPS5

No game protagonist is more willing to stick his hand down a toilet than James Sunderland. Why is he doing this? You would have to ask him or the psychiatrist he badly requires. And it's unlikely he'd explain himself. This isn't the type of story in which the protagonist has difficulty accepting the existence of horrors, nor struggles with the surreality of what he needs to do to get through a locked door. In the opening minutes, James finds a well with a glowing red square floating inside, stares into it (it saves your game), then makes a calm remark about the odd sensation he feels, and moves on. The human corpses that pepper the town of Silent Hill are noticeably that of James himself, his head bludgeoned and bloodied beyond recognition but his jacket and boots unmistakable. He makes no remark on this. It's probably nothing.

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Metaphor: ReFantazio review: like a brilliant fantasy Persona, only with one major catchhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/metaphor-refantazio-reviewEd ThornMon, 07 Oct 2024 14:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/metaphor-refantazio-reviewBlockbusterMetaphor: ReFantazioRPGSingle PlayerAction AdventureAtlusWot I ThinkThird person

Graham asked me if I'd discovered what the metaphor in Metaphor: ReFantazio might be, and I replied, "I don't know haha", or something along those lines. Having given it more thought, I think there are two metaphors: 1) It plays quite like Persona. 2) Its story is like a commentary on our society… or something to that effect.

Metaphors aside, though, the game is a gigantic fantasy RPG that's technically better than Persona 5 in a lot of ways. Structurally, it feels less repetitive. It has more animated cutscenes that elevate those key story moments. You can brush aside weaker enemies in real-time combat, rather than face them in tiresome turn-based tangoes. And overall, I think it's the best game Persona or Persona-like Atlus have put out - it really is brilliant. But there's a part of me that feels like it's missing something that'll leave it less ingrained in the memory than Persona 5 once its final chapter has closed.

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What's on your bookshelf?: former Zachtronics’ Zach Barths and Matthew Burnshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-former-zachtronics-zach-barths-and-matthew-burnsNic ReubenSun, 06 Oct 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-former-zachtronics-zach-barths-and-matthew-burnsBlockbusterBooked For The Week

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! It’s a double feature this week - Zach Barths and Matthew Burns of former Zachtronics fame! (Do read Edwin's interview with Zach on their unrealised 40K factory game). Cheers Zach and Matthew! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelves?

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-738Nic ReubenSun, 06 Oct 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-738BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for more Space Marine 2 operations. Ah, I see you’ve combined incredibly slow progression XP with worthwhile upgrades, forcing me to play for hours. I hate you for this, but I will not stop. Before I pour yet more of my life into making a fake number go up, let’s read some of this week’s writing I personally found interesting about videogames (and game related things!)

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Saber Interactive are making a new action-RPG set in the world of Avatar: The Last Airbenderhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/saber-interactive-are-making-a-new-action-rpg-set-in-the-world-of-avatar-the-last-airbenderGraham SmithFri, 04 Oct 2024 17:07:34 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/saber-interactive-are-making-a-new-action-rpg-set-in-the-world-of-avatar-the-last-airbenderAction AdventureAvatar: The Last AirbenderRPGBlockbuster

Avatar: The Last Airbender hasn't had much luck when it comes to adaptations, whether to film or to video games. Now Paramount Game Studios and Saber Interactive are going to take a new swing at it. The pair have announced an action RPG set in the "Avatar Legends universe", the broader world and timeline that The Last Airbender and Legend Of Korra take place within.

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Tencent and Guillemot family considering buyout of Ubisoft, report sayshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tencent-and-guillemot-family-considering-buyout-of-ubisoft-report-saysGraham SmithFri, 04 Oct 2024 16:50:17 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tencent-and-guillemot-family-considering-buyout-of-ubisoft-report-saysUbisoftBlockbuster

Ubisoft has had a rough year or more, losing almost half its share value in 2024 due to the underwhelming performance of Star Wars Outlaws and the delay of Assassin's Creed Shadows, among other issues. Now Tencent and Ubisoft's founders, the Guillemots, are considering buying out the publisher, reports say.

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Here’s eight minutes of new Death Stranding 2 scenes, posted chopped up and context free on social media as Kojima intendedhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/heres-eight-minutes-of-new-death-stranding-2-scenes-posted-chopped-up-and-context-free-on-social-media-as-kojima-intendedNic ReubenMon, 30 Sep 2024 09:49:59 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/heres-eight-minutes-of-new-death-stranding-2-scenes-posted-chopped-up-and-context-free-on-social-media-as-kojima-intendedShooterBlockbusterKojima ProductionsDeath Stranding 2Single PlayerAction AdventureThird person

Despite his cinephile tendencies, one thing you can’t accuse Kojima of is being precious about how people experience his work. Would Scorsese release eight minutes of a film chopped up into two minute chunks on Xitter, to be experienced fractured and contextless to anyone who didn’t tune into the Tokyo Game Show? Would Scorsese have the chutzpah to call a character Head Viceman or Tempted Christman? I doubt it. Irishman doesn’t count. It’s Dollman’s time now anyway. Let’s have a look at the new Death Stranding 2 scenes then. Watch them on your phone for added kino.

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What's on your bookshelf?: Tomb Raider, Mirror's Edge, and BioShock Infinite writer Rhianna Pratchetthttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-tomb-raider-mirrors-edge-and-bioshock-infinite-writer-rhianna-pratchettNic ReubenSun, 29 Sep 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-tomb-raider-mirrors-edge-and-bioshock-infinite-writer-rhianna-pratchettBlockbusterBooked For The Week

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! I’m currently reading Brendan Keogh’s The Videogame Industry Does Not Exist. It’s interesting enough that I’m only mildly pissed off about the added academic book tax. Paying the academic price is funny if you say it like paying the iron price. Although, again, not quite funny enough to soothe my awful uni flashbacks of books that cost a week’s worth of groceries each. This week, it’s writer on Tomb Raider, Mirror's Edge, BioShock Infinite plus loads more, and host of BBC Radio’s Mythical Creatures - Rhianna Pratchett! Cheers Rhianna! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf?

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-737Nic ReubenSun, 29 Sep 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-737BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for squishing nids. I...was at least 35% wrong about Space Marine II. The new patch and a trick I learned to deal with Zoanthropes means I can play on Veteran now, and a lot of the issues I had with feeling overpowered have been sorted. I still think the guard are more interesting, but it's a very fun bit of smashy. Before I continue to never be wrong about a videogame ever again, let’s read some writing that I personally found interesting about games (and game related things!)

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What's on your bookshelf?: why have you put pumpkin spice in my grandfather's ashes editionhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-why-have-you-put-pumpkin-spice-in-my-grandfathers-ashes-editionNic ReubenSun, 22 Sep 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-why-have-you-put-pumpkin-spice-in-my-grandfathers-ashes-editionBlockbusterBooked For The Week

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! Once again, the dastardly autumn breezes have blown my schedule all out of whack, so no cool industry person this week. Instead, here is a short excerpt from another weird story I starting writing, also containing poultry for some reason.

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-736Nic ReubenSun, 22 Sep 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-736BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for eating Biscoff spread and rewatching Better Call Saul, again. Crunchy, ofc. Before that, let’s read some writing that I, Nic Reuben, personally found interesting about games (and game related things!)

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From Blizzard to Bethesda, game unions are sweeping the industry - here's how the CWA helps make them happenhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/from-blizzard-to-bethesda-game-unions-are-sweeping-the-industry-heres-how-the-cwa-helps-make-them-happenNic ReubenFri, 20 Sep 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/from-blizzard-to-bethesda-game-unions-are-sweeping-the-industry-heres-how-the-cwa-helps-make-them-happenBethesda Game StudiosBlockbusterunionsBlizzard Entertainment

“We have been sold this myth for a very long time that unions have to be for blue collar workers in an industrial setting in the early 1900s,” Autumn Mitchell tells me. “The very simple definition of a union is just you and your co-workers coming together and forming a collective body. You can do that anywhere.”

A QA tester with Zenimax currently on union leave, Mitchell joined the Communications Workers Of America (CWA) as a full-time organiser after she and her colleagues formed what was, at the time, the biggest union in videogames - ZeniMax Workers United. Now she helps the CWA do what they did for her and her colleagues at Zenimax: provide support, training, resources and guidance for workers in the videogame industry who have decided, for whatever reason, that they want to unionise.

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What's on your bookshelf?: Firaxis, Hindsight, and Life Is Strange writer Emma Kidwellhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-firaxis-hindsight-and-life-is-strange-writer-emma-kidwellNic ReubenSun, 15 Sep 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-firaxis-hindsight-and-life-is-strange-writer-emma-kidwellBlockbusterBooked For The Week

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! This week, it’s writer on Marvel’s Midnight Suns, Hindsight, Life is Strange Season 2 and more, Emma Kidwell! Cheers Emma! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf?

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-735Nic ReubenSun, 15 Sep 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-735BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for eating chocolate spread straight from the jar and rewatching Better Call Saul. Before that, let’s read this week’s best writing about games (and game related things!)

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The Steam Families logo is clearly a Rorschach test, so what do you see?https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-steam-families-logo-is-clearly-a-rorschach-test-so-what-do-you-seeGraham SmithThu, 12 Sep 2024 17:58:44 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-steam-families-logo-is-clearly-a-rorschach-test-so-what-do-you-seeValveSteamBlockbuster

Earlier today, Nic covered the full release of Steam Families, a feature which makes it easier for families to share a game library and for parents to manage kids' purchases and playtime on the digital storefront. It's a neat improvement over the old system.

Unfortunately I can't think about anything other than the Steam Families logo, which is pictured above and is clearly a shocked, possibly aghast face. Or so I thought at first. The more I stare at it, the more it seems to reveal.

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Unity is ditching their much-hated runtime fees effective immediately, a year after they infuriated basically every game developerhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/unity-is-ditching-their-much-hated-runtime-fees-effective-immediately-a-year-after-they-infuriated-basically-every-game-developerGraham SmithThu, 12 Sep 2024 17:23:50 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/unity-is-ditching-their-much-hated-runtime-fees-effective-immediately-a-year-after-they-infuriated-basically-every-game-developerBlockbusterIndieUnity

Unity is scrapping their controversial "runtime fees", effective immediately. They're reverting to the "seat-based subscription model" that funded the game creation tool previously.

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Baldur's Gate 3 level editor is cracked open by modders, bringing homebrew campaigns one step closerhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/baldurs-gate-3-level-editor-is-cracked-open-by-modders-bringing-homebrew-campaigns-one-step-closerBrendan CaldwellMon, 09 Sep 2024 10:49:30 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/baldurs-gate-3-level-editor-is-cracked-open-by-modders-bringing-homebrew-campaigns-one-step-closerMultiplayer CompetitiveBird view / IsometricRPG: Turn-basedStory RichFull productPCLarian StudiosStrategyBlockbusterRPGFantasySingle PlayerMultiplayer CooperativeAction AdventureRomanceBaldur's Gate 3PS5Xbox Series X/SWizards of the Coast

Hack the planet, wizard fans. A modder has cracked open some previously disabled abilities in the official modding toolkit for Baldur's Gate 3, making it possible for folks to create their own levels or alter the game's existing environments. The toolkit (which was only made available last week) previously wouldn't let you do any of that, due to "technical constraints and platform-specific guidelines," according to developers Larian. But modders neither care nor sleep. It took them just two days to worm their way into the devkit's innards and make the impossible possible.

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What's on your bookshelf?: pay 3 billion pounds to read five minutes early editionhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-pay-3-billion-pounds-to-read-five-minutes-early-editionNic ReubenSun, 08 Sep 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-pay-3-billion-pounds-to-read-five-minutes-early-editionBlockbusterBooked For The Week

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! I am ill, so no guest this week. To tide you over, here is a short excerpt from a story I started once about the redemptive power of forgiveness:

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-734Nic ReubenSun, 08 Sep 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-734BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for holding talks with the Squirmles to try and talk them down from a diplomatic incident after my cat’s various war crimes. Before that, let’s read this week’s best writing about games (and game related things!)

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Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 review: a devoted sequel of swords and spectaclehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/warhammer-40000-space-marine-2-reviewBrendan CaldwellWed, 04 Sep 2024 16:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/warhammer-40000-space-marine-2-reviewShooterStory RichBlockbusterSaber InteractiveFocus EntertainmentFocus Home InteractiveWarhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2Shooter: Third PersonXbox Series X/SSingle PlayerScience FictionPCAction AdventureThird personWot I ThinkPS5

It's been 13 years since the first Space Marine came out. While it wasn't outstanding in the grander landscape of gaming, enough Warhammer 40K fans seem to have cherished the escapades of bulky blue boltgunner Demetrian Titus for the action game to merit a sequel a decade later. It left its story on something of a cliffhanger, with said hero being dragged away to face untold tortures by the Inquisition, the most zealous sect of this preternaturally paranoid sci-fi universe. Today, Titus is free again. Free to stomp towards hordes of alien foes, blast them with a plasma incinerator, and shred the stragglers with a chainsaw sword. Space Marine 2 is an often-satisfying scrapper that has me convinced of 40K's merit as a crafting ground for excellent-looking environments and creatures, even if I'm not particularly moved by the bland character of Titus and his fellow Ultramarines.

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What's on your bookshelf?: Still Wakes the Deep, Little Orpheus and Robocraft's Robert McLachlanhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-still-wakes-the-deep-little-orpheus-and-robocrafts-robert-mclachlanNic ReubenSun, 01 Sep 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-still-wakes-the-deep-little-orpheus-and-robocrafts-robert-mclachlanBlockbusterBooked For The Week

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! I’ve moved on to Wolfe’s Sword Of The Lictor this week and, readers, I’m starting to think that Severian might not be a very good dude. This week it’s Still Wakes the Deep, Little Orpheus, and Robocraft designer (along with many others) and current lead technical level designer at Half Mermaid, Robert McLachlan! Cheers Robert! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf?

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-733Nic ReubenSun, 01 Sep 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-733BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for more cat. She’s reached the “follow me into the bathroom when I go downstairs at night for a wee” stage, but still won’t come upstairs - which means I have to leave her alone for long periods while I work, which makes me feel bad. Before I unsuccessfully arrange yet more treats on the stairs, let’s read this week’s best writing about games (and game related things!)

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Steam's Space Exploration Fest kicks off deals and demos on September 2ndhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/steams-space-exploration-fest-kicks-off-deals-and-demos-on-september-2ndGraham SmithSat, 31 Aug 2024 22:33:43 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/steams-space-exploration-fest-kicks-off-deals-and-demos-on-september-2ndValvesaleBlockbusterSteam

Another week, another Steam Fest looms. From September 2st until the 9rd you'll be able to find intergalactic discounts and demos in the Steam Space Exploration Fest.

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-732Nic ReubenSun, 25 Aug 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-732Blockbusters-s-s-shark!The Sunday Papers

Sundays are for more cat. She’s flop and headbutt-level comfortable around me now, but she still seems a bit terrified of my house in general. I’m going to hang out with her a bunch and see if I can instill some sort of object permanence re: my presence in the home. Before that, let’s read this week’s best writing about games (and game related things!)

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You can now filter Steam reviews to show those who "played mostly on Steam Deck"https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/you-can-now-filter-steam-reviews-to-show-those-who-played-mostly-on-steam-deckGraham SmithSat, 24 Aug 2024 20:57:19 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/you-can-now-filter-steam-reviews-to-show-those-who-played-mostly-on-steam-deckValveBlockbusterSteam Deck

Valve have their own rating system for measuring how games run on Steam Deck, but even following the guidance of whether something is "Playable" or "Verified", I've still run into games that simply do not work on the handheld device.

Enter Steam reviews. Reviews from players who primarily played on Steam Deck will now have a little Deck icon, which when moused over tells you the exact amount of time spent on the Deck.

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Netease gloatingly note that Overwatch-like Marvel Rivals won't make you unlock heroes, unlike Overwatch 2https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/netease-gloatingly-note-that-overwatch-like-marvel-rivals-wont-make-you-unlock-heroes-unlike-overwatch-2Ed ThornWed, 21 Aug 2024 10:09:36 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/netease-gloatingly-note-that-overwatch-like-marvel-rivals-wont-make-you-unlock-heroes-unlike-overwatch-2ShooterBlockbusterMarvel RivalsFree-to-playPCGamescom 2024

Marvel Rivals, Netease' free-to-play Overwatch wannabe comprised of superheroes from the Marvelverse, is set to launch on December 6th. And in a "hah, take this Overwatch!" way, they've also announced that all of its heroes will be unlocked for everyone straight off the bat (man). Oh no wait, he's DC isn't he. To be fair, I've only watched one Avengers film, two Captain Americas, and Thor: Ragnarok (without seeing the other Thors). All of which I have zero recollection of. Anyway, yes, Marvel Rivals.

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What's on your bookshelf?: Nightingale, Absolver, and Total War: Warhammer writer Dan Griliopouloshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-nightingale-absolver-and-total-war-warhammer-writer-dan-griliopoulosNic ReubenSun, 18 Aug 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-nightingale-absolver-and-total-war-warhammer-writer-dan-griliopoulosBlockbusterBooked For The Week

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! You know books, right? They’re like RPS articles, but slightly better for piling under a flock mat to make little hills for your plastic spacemen. Fitting, then, that this week it’s plastic spaceman enthusiast, writer on Absolver, Nightingale, Gladius, and Total War: Warhammer 3, and Ten Things Video Games Can Teach Us author, Dan Griliopoulos! Cheers Dan! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf?

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-731Nic ReubenSun, 18 Aug 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-731BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for cat. I’m currently in the process of acquiring a gorgeous white and ginger kitten for the local shelter. I have seen four seconds of footage and I’m already smitten, kitten. Before I spend the weekend getting very excited about big stretches, let’s read this week’s best writing about games (and game related things!)

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Oops... the release date for Dragon Age: The Veilguard leaks a few hours earlyhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/oops-the-release-date-for-dragon-age-the-veilguard-gets-leaks-a-few-hours-earlyBrendan CaldwellThu, 15 Aug 2024 09:11:34 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/oops-the-release-date-for-dragon-age-the-veilguard-gets-leaks-a-few-hours-earlyStory RichBiowareBlockbusterElectronic ArtsRPGFantasySingle PlayerPCAction AdventureStrategyDragon Age: The Veilguard

The release date for Dragon Age: The Veilguard has been revealed in a last-minute leak thanks to a naughty video advertisement. Electronic Arts had planned to share the game's debut-day in about... *checks watchless wrist* ... 7 hours, as part of a special release date trailer. But the internet will ever internet, and thanks to some slip-up or other, we have the knowledge just a smidge early. Will I tell you what the actual release date is? Sure. I guess so.

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Steam’s latest update to user reviews doesn’t find your “jokes, memes, ascii art and other content” as funny as you dohttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/steams-latest-update-to-user-reviews-doesnt-find-your-jokes-memes-ascii-art-and-other-content-as-funny-as-you-doNic ReubenThu, 15 Aug 2024 08:10:16 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/steams-latest-update-to-user-reviews-doesnt-find-your-jokes-memes-ascii-art-and-other-content-as-funny-as-you-doValveSteamBlockbuster

Steam’s seeing a good few sweeping changes of late. They’ve recently added a ‘Trending Free’ tab to separate the no money down and no, money down playables. And, as of September, they’re cracking down on links to other websites in store pages. Now, horror of horrors, they’re coming for your ascii gigachads and “nobody is going to read this review so I’ll just say I’m gay” bangers. The changes are part of their ‘New Helpfulness System’, outlined here.

The new system, which will be enabled by default but can be toggled off, aims to “help potential players make informed decisions about the games they are considering purchasing by understanding the attributes of the game that other players like or don't like.” Ah, so a sort of ‘review’, if you will. I like it!

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What's on your bookshelf?: Destiny 2 and Dishonored narrative designer Hazel Monfortonhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-destiny-2-and-dishonored-narrative-designer-hazel-monfortonNic ReubenSun, 11 Aug 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-destiny-2-and-dishonored-narrative-designer-hazel-monfortonMultiplayer CompetitiveXbox OneMMORPGBungieShooterActivisionBooked For The WeekFirst personPCThird personBlockbusterRPGSingle PlayerDestiny 2Multiplayer CooperativeAction AdventurePS5Xbox Series X/SActivision BlizzardPS4

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! This week, I’ve been half reading in the garden and half staring in awe at my Kindle’s paperwhite doohickey and it’s ability to stay readable in searing sunbeams. I’m tempted to look up how it works but I don’t want to find out it’s made from the luminous, genetically-engineered husks of the workers that drop dead from dehydration at the fulfilment centers or something. To help distract me with yet more books, it’s Dishonored: Death Of The Outsider writer and Destiny 2 senior narrative designer, Dr. Hazel Monforton! Cheers Hazel! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf?

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-730Nic ReubenSun, 11 Aug 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-730BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for more Gene Wolfe. I’ve finished Shadow Of The Torturer now, and I think Claw Of The Conciliator might be even better so far? Before I become ever more enamoured with Severian’s self-mythologising antics, let’s read this week’s best writing about games (and game related things!)

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What's on your bookshelf?: Baldur's Gate 3 lead writer Adam Smithhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-baldurs-gate-3-lead-writer-adam-smithNic ReubenSun, 04 Aug 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-baldurs-gate-3-lead-writer-adam-smithBlockbusterBooked For The Week

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! July has shrivelled up like a freshly laundered sock left on the radiator for too long, and yet, it's still hot enough that even typing the word radiator makes me want to inject concentrated Solero straight into my bloodstream. With my last remaining un-fugged brain cells, I have wrenched this column back from its hiatus, and who better than to get us into the swing of things once more than Baldur’s Gate 3 lead writer and bloody RPS legend Adam Smith! Cheers Adam! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf?

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-729Nic ReubenSun, 04 Aug 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-729BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for doing a little dance in the kitchen. Go on. No-one’s watching. Raise that tin opener to the roof. Before you get carried away and fling errant globules of mushy pea all over your freshly sponged worktops, let’s read this week’s best writing about games (and game related things!)

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What's on your bookshelf?: Director's cuttlefish editionhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-directors-cuttlefish-editionNic ReubenSun, 28 Jul 2024 15:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-on-your-bookshelf-directors-cuttlefish-editionBlockbusterIndieBooked For The Week

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! Except, as reader’s of last week’s edition will know, this is a lie. There are no industry folks, cool or otherwise, in this week’s column. It is simply a placeholder - as voted for by you ravenous spine-fiends - while I take a break for the rest of July.

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The Sunday Papershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-728Nic ReubenSun, 28 Jul 2024 10:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sunday-papers-728BlockbusterThe Sunday Papers

Sundays are for…god help me, I’m going to start catching up on all the Destiny 2 I missed since Witch Queen. Pray for mojo. Before I shoot infinite dudes and am rewarded with another infinite dudes to shoot, let’s read this week’s best writing about games (and game related things!)

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Steam has made it easier to find, download and even review game demoshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/steam-has-made-it-easier-to-find-download-and-even-review-game-demosGraham SmithFri, 26 Jul 2024 19:03:02 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/steam-has-made-it-easier-to-find-download-and-even-review-game-demosValveSteamBlockbusterDemos

Demos were once a cornerstone of PC gaming and they arguably will be again thanks to events like Steam Next Fest. The latest update to Steam seeks to make those free slices of potential delight easier to find for players, and easier to promote for developers.

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