PCGamesN

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• SnowRunner arrives on Steam next month
• Iron Harvest is getting an American faction with a giant freedom zeppelin
• Genshin Impact’s Keqing gets “more interesting stories” in the Moonchase Festival
• GTFO’s newest rundown adds horrible monster-spawning ceiling blobs
• Apex Legends Season 9 – everything we know
• Age of Empires 2 cheats – everything you need to know
• Apex Legends Arenas mode guide – what you should know before you play
• Microsoft’s latest Windows 10 update fixes apps shifting to the wrong gaming monitor
• Best Warzone loadout drop: the top class setups for Season Three
• Activision Blizzard CEO agrees to cut his pay by half
• Epic reveals next week’s free game
• Microsoft Flight Simulator’s newest plane takes it low and slow, like good barbecue
• Genshin Impact Diona hangout guide
• How to get Diona for free in Genshin Impact – Energy Amplifier Initiation event
• Get your first glimpse of Warhammer game Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground in action
• Military MMO World of Tanks has come to Steam
• Genshin Impact Eula banner and abilities
• The best PPSh-41 loadout in Warzone
• This spindly tree is the real hero of Total War: Warhammer 2
• Prime Gaming gets new games, LoL shards, and Rainbow Six Siege goodies for May
• Microsoft is increasing PC game devs’ revenue share on the Microsoft Store
• Halo: The Master Chief Collection has had more than ten million players on PC
• Halo Infinite will have cross-play and cross-progression across PC and Xbox
• Genshin Impact new characters in the 1.5 update and beyond
• AMD promises to reduce Radeon RX 6000 shortages by ramping up production

SnowRunner arrives on Steam next month Posted: 29 Apr 2021 01:40 PM PDT Imagine, if you will, the Death Stranding version of Euro Truck Simulator 2. That's SnowRunner, basically - although it doesn't have Conan O'Brien or Mads Mikkelsen in it. What it does have, though, is a bunch of extreme environments, through which you'll need to haul heavy loads using powerful trucks. It's one of our favourite simulation games ever, and it's finally coming to Steam and the Windows store next month. SnowRunner launches on Steam and the Windows Store May 18, along with its three seasons' worth of additional content that expand the truck game with new maps, vehicles, and jobs to do with them. Since it first launched on the Epic Games Store, SnowRunner has seen a lot of free content updates as well, and those will all be included in the Steam/Windows Store version when it arrives. There's plenty more content in the form of mods, too - players have created more than a thousand mods for SnowRunner since it first came out, so you can add new custom trucks, original maps, and all new missions. View the full site RELATED LINKS: SnowRunner review, Best PC simulation games, Best racing games

Iron Harvest is getting an American faction with a giant freedom zeppelin Posted: 29 Apr 2021 12:02 PM PDT Things are about to get good and loud in alt-history RTS game Iron Harvest, because the Americans are coming. Operation Iron Eagle, a standalone DLC for Iron Harvest, arrives May 27, and it's introducing the new faction along with a whole new single-player campaign. The Usonia faction has 20 brand-new units to bring to the field, including a gigantic steampunk zeppelin, which you can get a peek at in the trailer below. There are three new playable heroes, plus the new campaign - which you'll be able to play either solo or co-op. The add-on also includes new air units for all factions, as well as the air defense structures you'll need to shoot them down. There's also a new batch of multiplayer maps included. Since it's a standalone DLC, there are several possible approaches to Operation Iron Eagle. You can of course add it on to Iron Harvest's base game, which grants access to all the existing factions. If you don't already own Iron Harvest, you'll be able to pick up Operation Iron Eagle and play with players who own only the base game - you won't need the expansion in order to play against players who are using the new faction. It's set to list at $19.99 or your regional equivalent. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Iron Harvest review, Best RTS games on PC

Genshin Impact’s Keqing gets “more interesting stories” in the Moonchase Festival Posted: 29 Apr 2021 10:08 AM PDT It looks like Genshin Impact's Keqing is set to play a prominent role in the anime game's Moonchase Festival. Developer Mihoyo took to its blog to tackle a handful of player questions, one of which asking if Keqing would appear in future quests. "In the future Moonchase Festival, there will be more interesting stories for travellers to experience with Keqing," Mihoyo says. "Stay tuned." You meet Keqing in Liyue, where she deals with the nation's day-to-day affairs at the behest of Rex Lapis, who only shows up once a year. She's a sword-wielding Electro character who works wonderfully well as a carry DPS in your team, which is why she scores top marks in our Genshin Impact tier list. We haven't heard too much, however, about Genshin Impact's Moonchase Festival. In a blog post last year, Mihoyo explained that it would "combine the unique cultural and calendarial features of in-game regions with dates in the real world to host unique events in Mondstadt and Liyue". We've already seen the Lantern Rite festival in Liyue, but it looks like the Moonchase festival is the next. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Play Genshin Impact for free, Genshin Impact character tier list, Genshin Impact leveling guide

GTFO’s newest rundown adds horrible monster-spawning ceiling blobs Posted: 29 Apr 2021 10:08 AM PDT Around the PCGamesN offices, we constantly find ourselves saying, at completely random times in the day, "You know what, horror co-op game GTFO still isn't pants-soilingly scary enough." This happens at lunch, during meetings, and even when nobody else is around to hear it. It's a serious issue and we've got someone coming in to talk with us about it. Fortunately, 10 Chambers has just released the latest rundown, and it may solve at least some of our problems. The Swedish developer says Rundown 5.0, or 'Rebirth,' is GTFO's biggest title update yet. The underground complex is growing with a whole new environment called 'the Floodways.' It's deeper down in the complex than we've ever ventured before, and it's a place where 10 Chambers says "nature has sought to reclaim the domain." There's even more of an Aliens vibe in the new environments, as you can see in the trailer below. The Floodways also contain new clues about why the prisoners are at the mercy of the horrible warden who keeps sending you on these ill-advised expeditions in the first place, so there's new GTFO lore to discover as you embark on this latest expansion. View the full site

Apex Legends Season 9 – everything we know Posted: 29 Apr 2021 09:27 AM PDT Wondering what's coming to Apex Legends Season 9 - Mayhem? The ninth season of the battle royale game is right around the corner, and the devs are releasing regular content ahead of the forthcoming update. War Games will be taking over Apex Legends from April 13, giving players a chance to try out some experimental game modes for the next two weeks. Apex Legends has always been set in the Titanfall universe, but it looks like Respawn Entertainment plans to make the connection stronger in Season 9. What this means for Apex Legends remains to be seen - could titans somehow make their way to the battlefield? There's been plenty of rumours suggesting main characters from Titanfall could join the Apex Legends roster, though nothing concrete has happened so far. Season 8 introduced us to Fuse, the explosives expert from Salvo, and brought about huge changes to Kings Canyon, drastically improving multiple areas of the classic map. Both Fuse and the new 30-30 Repeater failed to snatch one of the top spots in our Apex Legends weapons tier list and Apex Legends legends tier list, though this could all change next season. Here's everything you need to know about Apex Legends Season 9. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Apex Legends characters guide, Apex Legends skins, Apex Legends map guide

Age of Empires 2 cheats – everything you need to know Posted: 29 Apr 2021 09:21 AM PDT So you want some Age of Empires 2 cheats? As the most popular out of all the legacy Age of Empires RTS games, AOE2 is still getting dedicated support through new DLC - one of which was released earlier this year, with another on the way. It's so popular, that World's Edge and Relic Entertainment have basically based Age of Empires 4's design off of it. Like all Age of Empires games, it also has some wonderful cheats that can spawn whacky units, like a Shelby Cobra or Alfred the Alpaca. I always found these way more fun than the usual codes that gave you more resources. 'Cheating' in Age of Empires was less about gaming the system than it was about letting loose and having some fun. A couple of important things to note with regards to Age of Empires 2 cheats. For the unit cheats, these always spawn at a player's Town Center building. If you don't have one, you won't get the unit no matter how many times you type it in. Furthermore, entering a code will prevent you from obtaining any achievements in that session. In the Definitive Edition you can also get medals earned for single-player scenarios - these will also be disabled if you use cheats, so be warned! View the full site RELATED LINKS: Age of Empires 2: DE review, Best strategy games on PC, Best RTS games on PC

Apex Legends Arenas mode guide – what you should know before you play Posted: 29 Apr 2021 09:02 AM PDT The biggest addition coming to Apex Legends Season 9 is the brand new Arenas mode, a 3v3 round-based mode complete with an economy system. Notably, players begin each round with fresh equipment - unlike CS:GO and Valorant, players can't hold onto their old weapons from the previous round. This is the first time Respawn Entertainment has introduced a mode to the game that is separate from Apex Legends' main battle royale mode. To accommodate the smaller player count, each of the five maps has been designed to focus on one set area. There are currently two new maps, plus an additional three maps taken from the battle royale levels: Artillery from Kings Canyon, Thermal Station from World's Edge, and Golden Gardens from Olympus. Matches in Arenas have been designed to be short experiences that last around 15 minutes on average. While your battle royale skills should take you far in Arenas, you'll need to pick up a few more tricks if you want to dominate with your squad. Here's everything you need to know before you play Arenas mode in Apex Legends. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Apex Legends characters guide, Apex Legends skins, Apex Legends map guide

Microsoft’s latest Windows 10 update fixes apps shifting to the wrong gaming monitor Posted: 29 Apr 2021 08:58 AM PDT Windows 10 doesn't always play nicely with multiple monitors, often flinging apps from one screen to another when you wake the operating system up from sleep. After nearly six years of dragging apps back into place manually and makeshift solutions to curb the problem, Microsoft is finally doing something about it, announcing that apps will stay put in a future Windows update. Considering app arrangement was a core part of Windows 10 at launch, with the Snap Assistant and an assortment of keyboard shortcuts, it's largely been pushed to the wayside since. Rapid Hot Plug Detect (Rapid HPD) has been around since 2015, and is the reason why DisplayPort multi-monitor setups experience unwanted desktop rearrangements, according Microsoft program manager Michelle Xiong. It's particularly problematic if you're connecting the best gaming laptops to an external monitor, as they rely on power saving modes to preserve battery. The fix is still in early access on build 21287, currently only available to those enrolled in the Windows Insider program. If you don't fancy participating in the beta test, then you'll need to wait until at least October, 2021 to get your hands on the final version of the update, as the impending May update is expected to be the earlier 19043.928 build. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Best SSD for gaming, How to build a gaming PC, Best gaming CPU

Best Warzone loadout drop: the top class setups for Season Three Posted: 29 Apr 2021 09:05 AM PDT Looking for the best Warzone loadout to secure the win in Call of Duty's battle royale? Warzone has been out for a while, and it's clear that the best way to secure a win is to create a custom Warzone loadout drop and grab it in-match via the Warzone Buy Stations and regular drops. In case you're new to Call of Duty: Warzone and are just getting to grips with some of its curious additions – like the Gulag respawn mechanic – then loadout drops are a way of using your create-a-class setups from multiplayer in Warzone. Purchasing one of these will let you drop in your very own custom loadout almost instantaneously, meaning you can go from having a couple of common rarity weapons and some tactical gear to boasting two custom primary weapons of your choice, your favourite equipment, and even perks. However, weapon balancing is very different in Warzone than it is in multiplayer, and your choice of perks, gadgets, and primaries will not translate perfectly to Warzone's demands. We've earned plenty of wins and are pretty confident that we have the best loadout for Warzone to help you secure your first W, no matter how you prefer to play. View the full site

Activision Blizzard CEO agrees to cut his pay by half Posted: 29 Apr 2021 09:17 AM PDT Following various criticisms from company shareholders, Activision Blizzard head honcho Bobby Kotick has agreed to cut his salary by 50% in a new employment agreement that'll see him stick around until March 31, 2023, at the least. That comes from a recent extension agreement (thanks, Wowhead) that further notes that the CEO voluntarily took the pay reduction to align his salary with company targets. The reduction equates to an $875,000 decrease, to put a number on it. Kotick has also agreed to reduce his target annual bonus by the same percentage, which could see a pay reduction of $1,750,000 for each fiscal year 2021 and 2022. It's not all bad news for Kotick, though, as he could still earn an annual bonus to the tune of 200% of his reduced base salary in 2021 and 2022. The filing claims that the new deal better "reflects shareholder feedback, incorporates market best practices, and continues to directly connect pay to performance". Last month, an investment group representing some of Activision Blizzard's shareholders criticised a pay package that would've seen Kotick snag $200 million in bonuses. Just a year prior, the same group argued in a filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission that the company "finds multiple ways to unnecessarily enrich its CEO". The filing was spurred on by the belief that Kotick's proposed compensation at the time wasn't inline with the company's goals and results. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Call of Duty: Black Ops - Cold War review, Upcoming PC games, Best FPS games

Epic reveals next week’s free game Posted: 29 Apr 2021 08:27 AM PDT It's Thursday, and you know what that means - another round of free PC games from the Epic Games Store. This week, you can pick up a host of extra content for the free-to-play Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms, but next week, Epic returns to a more traditional giveaway with the action-adventure game, Pine. You'll be able to pick up Pine from the usual Epic Store promotion page starting on May 6 at 8am PDT / 11am EDT / 4pm BST, and it will be available for one, until May 13 at those same times, when it will be replaced by another freebie. As ever, you'll 'purchase' the game for zero dollars, and it will remain in your library forever. Pine is a gorgeous exploration-focused action game that invites comparisons to both Zelda: Breath of the Wild's open-ended adventuring, and Fable's reactive adventuring. You can partner with a variety of indigineous species in your battles, or you can choose to work against them, stealing their food or attacking outright. View the full site

Microsoft Flight Simulator’s newest plane takes it low and slow, like good barbecue Posted: 29 Apr 2021 08:10 AM PDT The last few new planes we've highlighted for Microsoft Flight Simulator have been big, complex machines: the CRJ 550, the ATR 42-600, and even the Aermacchi MB-339 attack jet trainer. Asobo Studio's latest add-on for the simulator game goes in the opposite direction: it's an ultralight that harkens back to the earliest days of aviation, but its modern materials make it a perfect choice for recreational flying. Meet the Top Rudder Solo 103, a single-seat ultralight aircraft with responsive controls and an open cockpit that lets you feel the virtual breeze through your virtual hair. It "makes free roaming and low-altitude fly-overs a true joy to behold," Microsoft Flight Simulator head Jorg Neumann says in the introductory blog post. To meet the FAA's classification guidelines for ultralight aircraft, a vehicle must weigh less than 254 pounds (115.2 kilograms) and have a top flying speed of less than 63 mph, with a power-off stall under 28 mph. The Solo 103 was built to these specifications, and the result is a plane that provides the free feeling of a hang glider with the power steering and agility of a sport aircraft. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Microsoft Flight Simulator review, The best PC simulation games, The best flight games on PC

Genshin Impact Diona hangout guide Posted: 29 Apr 2021 08:05 AM PDT Want to unlock all endings for the Diona hangout event? The Genshin Impact 1.5 update introduced a wealth of new features, including a brand new Genshin Impact character - the four-star Pyro Catalyst wielder Yanfei - and the Genshin Impact housing system, the Serenitea Pot. As promised, Mihoyo has also added even more content to a new feature from the 1.4 update, Genshin Impact hangout events. These events offer a deeper dive into the lives of the four-star characters that don't get story quests of their own. They require two story keys to unlock, but once you've unlocked a character's hangout event, you can replay it as many times as you want, enabling you to unlock all possible endings. You receive rewards, including primogems and hero's wit, for every ending you complete. Unlocking all endings will grant an achievement - and there are secret achievements hidden in the hangout events themselves, too. However, it's possible to fail the event without unlocking an ending, if you select too many incorrect dialogue options. Here's the Diona hangout event walkthrough with every ending explained. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Play Genshin Impact for free, Genshin Impact character tier list, Genshin Impact leveling guide

How to get Diona for free in Genshin Impact – Energy Amplifier Initiation event Posted: 29 Apr 2021 08:32 AM PDT The first Genshin Impact 1.5 update event is here, and alongside the new character banners, there's another opportunity to add new members to your party. Successfully completing the Energy Amplifier event rewards you with Fractured Fruit Data that you can use to get a free Diona in Genshin Impact - or exchange for primogems, crown of insight, character EXP materials, mora, and more. So, what is the Energy Amplifier event? You need to help researcher Hosseini of Sumeru to collect Irminsul Fruit, a precious research material. To do this, you've been given the Energy Amplifier - a powerful tool that can be used to source the material by challenging Places of Interest to receive fragments that can be equipped to the Energy Amplifier to buff your party. This in turn unlocks Domains and challenges, which you'll need to complete to unlock Twisted Realm stages. By challenging the Twisted Realm you can collect Fractured Fruit Data, which can be spent at the event shop to get a free Diona, or other such goodies. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Play Genshin Impact for free, Genshin Impact character tier list, Genshin Impact leveling guide

Get your first glimpse of Warhammer game Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground in action Posted: 29 Apr 2021 07:49 AM PDT Focus Home Interactive has shared a new video showcasing core gameplay in the publisher's upcoming Warhammer game, Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground. Storm Ground marks the first serious attempt to adapt Games Workshop's Age of Sigmar tabletop line into a videogame format, with previous attempts mainly involving free-to-play or mobile-style games. Storm Ground is a turn-based strategy game where you can take charge of a highly customisable army from one of three factions; the not-Space Marine Stormcast Eternals, the Nighthaunt, and the Nurgle-tastic Maggotkin. Each faction has their own playstyle, for example the Stormcast are incredibly tanky, while the Nighthaunt prefer good old-fashioned swarm tactics. You can choose from several hero units within a faction to lead your force, with a diverse roster of additional unit types inspired by the tabletop game to back up your leader. There will be a campaign mode where you can collect additional heroes, units, wargear, skills, and weapons via a card-based collection mechanic. Campaigns are non-linear and procedurally generated, and you can take your force online in multiplayer skirmishes as well. Emphasis has also been put on the game's environments, with certain tiles being key to victory. View the full site RELATED LINKS: The best turn-based strategy games on PC, The best strategy games on PC

Military MMO World of Tanks has come to Steam Posted: 29 Apr 2021 07:51 AM PDT Wargaming's military MMO World of Tanks has launched on Steam today. Previously available on PC through the developer's own launcher, the war game is now available to grab on Valve's platform, and there's cross-play between the two meaning players across the legacy and Steam versions can now battle on side-by-side. As is the case with the existing version, World of Tanks is free-to-play on Steam and it includes everything the 'main' game has, but the one catch is that you'll need to set up a new account on Valve's platform if you want to play there, as accounts (and progress made on them) won't carry over to the game's new second home. However, to bring new Steam players up to speed more quickly, the game is getting a limited-time event next month that'll offer boosted XP as rewards. "From April 30 through May 3, all Steam players will receive a x4 XP multiplier for the first victory each day in each vehicle," the devs announce in a Steam blog post. "During the initial stage of the game, this bonus will help you quickly research vehicle branches, train crews, increase crew performance, and improve battle results." View the full site RELATED LINKS: Play World of Tanks for free, Play World of Warships for free, Best tank games

Genshin Impact Eula banner and abilities Posted: 29 Apr 2021 08:28 AM PDT Want to know more about the Genshin Impact Eula banner? Eula is a five-star Cyro based Claymore user, one of the most deadly combinations we've seen in the game for some time now. As the captain of the Knights of Favonius Reconnaissance Company, Eula is an important part of the organisation that works to protect the people of Mondstadt. It remains unclear why Eula, a descendant of the ancient nobles, would want to join the Knights of Favonius in the first place. Mihoyo did, however, go over some of Eula's abilities in the 1.5 livestream event. Judging by Eula's abilities, it appears she may be powerful as both a support and DPS character. We have no doubt that she's going to place highly on our Genshin Impact tier list if her abilities remain untouched from the beta. She will arrive in the 1.5 update, but you can already play as the new Pyro Catalyst, with our best Yanfei build. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Play Genshin Impact for free, Genshin Impact character tier list, Genshin Impact leveling guide

The best PPSh-41 loadout in Warzone Posted: 29 Apr 2021 06:29 AM PDT Searching for the best PPSh loadout in Warzone? The PPSh-41 SMG has been a staple of the Black Ops games, so it was only a matter of time before it showed up in Cold War. The last SMG to take the battle royale game by storm was the Mac-10. This weapon received a number of nerfs and yet has still managed to remain viable since it launched back in Warzone Season 1. The beginning of Warzone Season 3 has seen the meta completely reset after the nerfs to the best M16 loadout and best FFAR loadout. Over the next few weeks, the best Warzone guns will be put through their paces to see if they can retain their spots. The other weapon joining the PPSh-41 is the Swiss K31, a bolt-action sniper rifle with similar firepower to the Kar98k. You will have to unlock the PPSh-41 and Swiss K31 at the beginning of the new season. Fortunately, this doesn't take too long and we have a separate battle pass guide to help you make your way through the tiers. Here's what you need to build the best PPSh loadout in Warzone. View the full site

This spindly tree is the real hero of Total War: Warhammer 2 Posted: 29 Apr 2021 06:22 AM PDT Not all heroes wear capes, and in the case of Total War: Warhammer II you can receive salvation from the unlikeliest of places. Picture this - you're leading an army of Vampire Count forces through the countryside. You're in force march mode, because you're going to be late for tea if you don't get there soon. But crisis befalls you and you're ambushed by an army of dwarfs, whose range capabilities are formidable and likely to tear your army of overdressed skeletons to pieces. What are you to do? How are you going to survive and not be late, for a very important date? This was exactly the dilemma facing Reddit user Azenathor. It turns out they just needed to trust in nature. Specifically, a Spruce tree. We think it's a Spruce, anyway. Expert analysis (read: we asked around the office) leads us to believe it's some kind of fantasy Spruce, or maybe a Pine, although it's burnt and lacking any foliage. It turns it's not needed though because not only is this perennial plant an absolute unit, it's capable of taking hits like Luke Skywalker in that scene from The Last Jedi. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Total War: Warhammer 2 review, The best Total War: Warhammer 2 DLC, Play Total War: Warhammer 2

Prime Gaming gets new games, LoL shards, and Rainbow Six Siege goodies for May Posted: 29 Apr 2021 06:05 AM PDT It's approaching the start of a new month, which means it's time to check out what's coming to Prime Gaming for its May haul. The lineup of new games this month includes five indie games, while the subscription also includes up to five mystery skin shard drops for League of Legends, some Rainbow Six Siege renown boosters, and more. First up, the new games hitting Prime Gaming on May 3 include Villa Gorilla's pinball-platformer open-world game Yoku's Island Express. Set on a painterly island, the game sees you fling Yoku - a "pint-sized postman protagonist" - around platforms, meeting new critters, barrling bosses, and uncovering secrets along the way. Also included is a comedy RPG game called Healer's Quest in which you play "the most underappreciated party member in any fantasy realm: the Healer" As usual, its description says, "your teammates are a band of inept jerks" - so it'll up to you to rescue the day. Beholder, a game which sees you play a "state-installed landlord in a totalitarian country" who has to spy on his tenants, cyberpunky point-and-click adventure game The Blind Prophet, and A Blind Legend - the "first ever action-adventure game without video – where ears replace eyes" - make up the remainders. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Rainbow Six Siege Year 5 operators, Best Rainbow Six Siege operators, Play Rainbow Six Siege

Microsoft is increasing PC game devs’ revenue share on the Microsoft Store Posted: 29 Apr 2021 06:17 AM PDT Microsoft has revealed that developers are set to get a bigger slice of the revenue split on PC games sold on the Microsoft Store. The change comes as part of the company's "commitment to PC gaming", and will come into effect this summer. We spoke to Microsoft partner director Jason Beaumont about the company's aims for PC gaming, who told us about the coming update to the Store revenue share. "We're making some changes to the Store as part of our commitment to PC gaming. We're gonna make a change to our revenue split [...] where publishers will receive 88% of the revenue versus 70% previously". These changes will be coming into effect this summer, on August 1. "This is a no-strings-attached revenue share change, just as part of our commitment for PC game developers," Beaumont adds. Head of Xbox Studios Matt Booty has also spoken about this change in a new blog post, in which he says this is "part of our commitment to empower every PC game creator to achieve more". He explains that this increase will apply to the "developer share of Microsoft Store PC games sales net revenue". View the full site RELATED LINKS: Halo Infinite release date, Halo Infinite E3 2019, Halo: The Master Chief Collection PC

Halo: The Master Chief Collection has had more than ten million players on PC Posted: 29 Apr 2021 06:29 AM PDT Originally released on the Xbox One, Halo: The Master Chief Collection hit our home platform back in late 2019 on Steam, the Windows Store, and the Xbox Game Pass for PC. And, since that time, it's turns out it's been really quite popular - Xbox Game Studios has revealed that Halo MCC has seen more than ten million players on PC. We spoke to World's Edge studio head Shannon Loftis about the studio's plans for PC gaming in 2021 and beyond, who confirmed the eye-watering figure. "We have been kind of methodically and systematically expanding our game development capability for PC, both with our existing and established franchises, and also by adding brilliant studios that focus on PC forward gaming" Loftis tells us. Touching on Microsoft's acquisitions of big PC gaming studios like InXile, Obsidian, World's Edge, and Bethesda, Loftis tells us, "then expanding, for instance, we released Halo Master Chief Collection on Steam in 2019 [...] and we have over ten million people who have played the game since we've released it on Steam and Windows". View the full site RELATED LINKS: Halo: The Master Chief Collection Steam, Halo: The Master Chief Collection mods, Best FPS games

Halo Infinite will have cross-play and cross-progression across PC and Xbox Posted: 29 Apr 2021 06:25 AM PDT With the Halo Infinite release date still a while away yet, there are plenty of things we still don't know about the upcoming PC game. But, the team at publisher Xbox Studios has now shared an exciting new nugget of information giving us an idea of how the FPS game's multiplayer will work: Halo Infinite will have cross-play and cross-progression across the Xbox ecosystem of platforms. We spoke to World's Edge studio head Shannon Loftis about Halo Infinite, and Xbox Studios' PC-related goings-on more widely, who confirmed the news. "I get to announce news about Halo infinite, which is that it supports cross-play and cross-progression between PC and Xbox One and Xbox Series X and S," Loftis tells us. "So your multiplayer customisation and progress follow you across all of your platforms." So far, we knew Halo Infinite would be heading to these various platforms, but confirmation that PC players will be able to tackle the game's multiplayer with pals who might be based on console - and vice versa - will surely be exciting and welcome news to many. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Halo Infinite release date, Halo Infinite E3 2019, Halo: The Master Chief Collection PC

Genshin Impact new characters in the 1.5 update and beyond Posted: 29 Apr 2021 08:27 AM PDT Looking for more information about the new characters coming to Genshin Impact? Since its release in 2020, the addictive anime game has seen plenty of regular updates expanding on the game's content - and adding several new characters by way of limited time banners. According to Mihoyo's Genshin Impact roadmap, they aim to release new updates every six weeks - and if past experience is anything to go by, during each new patch, there will be at least one new banner with a new Genshin Impact five-star character, and possible new four-star characters included too. That said, several new Genshin Impact characters have been added outside of this schedule, like Genshin Impact Klee - so we could see new characters arrive unexpectedly, too. The new characters arriving in the Genshin Impact 1.5 update have now been officially revealed: Eula and Yanfei. Beyond this, there are a few leaks and datamined information concerning new characters that may appear in 1.6 and beyond. However, until they're officially announced, these characters are not final and may be subject to changes. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Play Genshin Impact for free, Genshin Impact character tier list, Genshin Impact leveling guide

AMD promises to reduce Radeon RX 6000 shortages by ramping up production Posted: 29 Apr 2021 05:06 AM PDT While there's a possibility you'll struggle to find the best graphics card at MSRP until next year, the drought could end sooner than expected for prospective members of the red team. AMD's CEO Lisa Su told investors to expect sales of its Radeon RX 6000 series of graphics cards to "grow significantly over the upcoming quarters," as production of the GPUs ramps up after "working closely" with its supply chain partners and gaining "additional supply". An earlier rumour suggested AMD may have planned to outsource chip production to Samsung in an attempt to resolve the problem with TSMC's booked-up capacity, although it sounds like it's found some free space without having to bring in a new player. It's not an overnight solution with the time it will take to fabricate chips and get production lines running at full pelt again, but AMD hopes that the stock and prices of Radeon graphics cards will stabilise in the coming months - which will be music to your ears if you're sitting on a seemingly never ending waiting list. View the full site RELATED LINKS: Best SSD for gaming, How to build a gaming PC, Best gaming CPU

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