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[Update #2]: Darktide will be getting RPG-like talent trees and an Xbox version on October 4th.
[Update]: Darktide's August update is looking to fix long-standing issues like crafting locks.
While not quite as exciting as the previous update that brought with it two lengthy new maps to explore and a boss to square off against, Darktide's freshly released Patch 11 is still an important one due to it finally adding crossplay. As such, Steam and Game Pass players are now able to matchmake together, become friends and make parties. Unfortunately, there is a slight catch - there is no cross-progression. In other words, you currently aren't able to move your progress, DLCs or in-game currency from one platform to another.
Besides crossplay, you can also look forward to a new mission modifier called Elite Resistance. As the name might imply, Elite Resistance makes it so fewer enemies spawn throughout the mission, but most of the ones that do spawn are going to be far tougher than usual. Additionally, Specialists are going to be a lot more opportunistic than usual, so expect them to attack you specifically during the most hectic of moments. I haven't had a chance to try the new modifier just yet, but it definitely sounds like a fun little challenge!
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[Update #2]: Diablo 4's pre-season Patch 1.1 has brought with it a massive reduction in player power and survivability.
[Update]: Diablo 4's Season 1 will be launching on June 20th with new quests, items, boss and fresh start.
If you've been messing around with Diablo 4's endgame over the last few weeks, chances are you've noticed that that simply playing the game casually isn't exactly rewarding. This is especially apparent if you're trying to level up, since doing the incredibly challenging, high tier Nightmare Dungeons gives less experience than just roaming around a PvP zone and absentmindedly cleaning up elite pack after elite pack.
Thankfully, with today's Update #42677 this is now a thing of the past. I say this because the experience gain from killing monsters in Nightmare Dungeons has now been drastically increased, as has the experience awarded for actually completing the dungeon. While no exact numbers have been given, in my experience it seems to be a boost of around 80% or more. So if you're looking to push through to level 100, doing a couple of Nightmare Dungeons a day will get you there quite quickly, especially since you can now teleport to them directly!
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[Update #2]: The Wilds of Eldraine set has now arrived with a bunch of new cards, improved duplicate protection, as well as Alchemy rotation.
[Update]: MTG Arena is getting Khans of Tarkir in 2023, while Modern Horizons 3 and Pioneer Masters will be coming in 2024.
After testing the waters with two Dungeons & Dragons themed expansions, Wizards of the Coast has now finally decided to take the plunge by releasing a sizable crossover set based on J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. For MTG Arena this means that there's a bunch of new cards to play around with in the Alchemy and Historic formats, a fresh Mastery pass and the usual assortment of cosmetic goodies, new Jump In decks to smash together, and naturally, the full suite of limited events like Draft and Sealed.
Since Tales of Middle-earth is supposed to be an introductory set and an onboarding tool for new players, there aren't that many new mechanics to talk about. In fact, the only noteworthy addition is "The Ring Tempts You". Whenever this happens you'll have to choose a creature as your Ring-bearer (if possible), as well as gain or upgrade The Ring emblem that will grant your Ring-bearers special powers. These powers are gained in sequential order and they all work together, so a fully upgraded emblem will grant your Ring-bearer all of the following abilities:
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[Update #2]: Many years after being canceled, Vermintide 2's PvP Versus mode is coming back.
[Update]: Vermintide 2 will be adding Sienna's completely unexpected Necromancer career on October 19th.
After Darktide released I figured Vermintide 2's updates would start to peter out, perhaps culminating with Sienna's long-awaited fourth career. However, in a refreshing twist, not only has Fatshark not abandoned Vermintide 2 in favor of its minty fresh ‘sequel’, but they have actually redoubled their efforts!
And so, a mere two months after the last big update, the Vermintide 2 team has now unleashed another batch of maps to explore! This time around you can look forward to three freshly remastered (and heavily edited) levels from the original's Karak Azgaraz DLC, as well as a couple of new challenges and cosmetics to seek out along the way. Best of all, it's all free!
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[Update #2]: Dota 2 devs have started up a new blog detailing development challenges and interesting bug fixes.
[Update]: Dota 2's Patch 7.33e has brought in nerfs to most of the overperforming heroes from the Bali Major.
Out of all the Battle Pass systems I've interacted with over the years, I'd argue that Dota 2's is one of the absolute worst. Progressing through it is slow and extremely grindy, the majority of the actually interesting cosmetics are locked behind high levels that can only be reached by spending copious amounts of money, and a solid 90% of the 'rewards' are either useless filler or quite literally nothing. Even after getting it for free thanks to Valve's giveaway last year, I found the whole thing to just be highly disappointing.
As such, I am delighted to say that Valve has now announced they're giving up on the whole Battle Pass system! Not only that, but they're also aiming to refocus their efforts on adding more elaborate events and gameplay updates, such as the absurdly massive Update 7.33 that expanded the map and reworked many core mechanics.
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[Update #2]: Dota 2's Patch 7.33e has brought in nerfs to most of the overperforming heroes from the Bali Major.
[Update]: Dota 2 is getting rid of its Battle Pass and instead focusing on more frequent updates.
Ever since the absurdly massive Patch 7.33, Dota 2's balance has been all over the place. It feels like every week a new strategy is discovered that completely eclipses all others and skyrockets a new hero or item to the top of the meta. While this sort of stuff is fun for a short time, seeing the same heroes appear over and over again does get a bit tiresome, which is why I'm happy to say that Valve has now unleashed the balanced-focused Patch 7.33d!
First and foremost, Vanguard has been nerfed. Both it and the Ring of Health now provide 4.5 regeneration instead of the old 4.75, while Vanguard's damage block has been decreased from 56/28 to 50/25 (melee/ranged). Additionally, you can no longer disassemble Vanguard to build Octarine Core as its recipe has swapped a Ring of Health with another Void Stone. All of this combined is a relatively small nerf to tanky offlane heroes, but given how these types of tweaks tend to go in Dota 2, I have a feeling it'll end up being quite significant once the meta settles down a bit.
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[Update #2]: Darktide's August update is looking to fix long-standing issues like crafting locks.
[Update]: Darktide's Patch 11 has added Crossplay, a new Mission Modifier and buffed the useless Ogyrn Shield.
Even though Darktide's most recent update was dubbed "Rejects Unite", it unfortunately didn't bring with it cross-play between the Steam and Microsoft Store versions. For most games this would be a mild inconvenience, but for Darktide it's a serious issue since the Game Pass version simply doesn't have the player numbers to consistently fill out matches, which makes playing in any of the higher difficulty levels nigh impossible.
Thankfully, there is a glimmer of hope on the horizon! According to the latest developer update cross-play will finally be getting added alongside Update 1.1.10 in late June or early July, or if things go awry, shortly after the update itself. Once cross-play goes live both Steam and Game Pass players will be able to cleave Chaos cultists together without any sort of restrictions, though unfortunately it doesn't look like there will be any cross-progression between the two platforms.
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[Update #2]: Overwatch 2's July 11th update has added Summer Games 2023, a new Team Queue mode, and a variety of buffs
[Update]: Bad news, I'm afraid. It looks like Overwatch 2's downsized PvE content will be locked behind a $15 purchase.
Even though the Season 5 trailer hasn't launched yet, Blizzard has decided to skip ahead a few months and give us a teaser for the big features coming with Season 6: Invasion on August 10th. The highlights include the first series of co-op focused PvE missions, a brand new PvP game mode called Flashpoint with its own unique maps, a massive overhaul of the practice range, and even a brand new support hero!
There will be three PvE missions in total, and from what I can figure out, it seems that they'll be similar to the Archives missions we've seen through the original Overwatch. Story-wise, we'll once again be facing off against Null Sector as they appear to be trying to brainwash or otherwise mess with innocent Omnics. While I'm not expecting these missions to have a lot of replay value, especially if you're not into chasing high scores, they should still be a nice bit of fun and a welcome diversion from the highly competitive PvP matches.
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If you were hoping Minecraft's latest update Trails & Tales would shake up the gameplay or add something truly revolutionary, I'm afraid you're going to end up being dissapointed. Rather than expand upon the gameplay, the Trails & Tales is mostly here to offer you all sorts of new customization options to spruce up both your character and base.
These cosmetic items include such things as hanging signs, cherry trees and accompanying pink wood blocks, decorative bamboo blocks, as well as the ability to spruce up your armor with a variety of trims. You can also look forward to two new friendly mobs. The first of these is the Camel which has the ability to walk over obstacles 1.5 blocks tall (fences for example), as well as the option to seat two players at the same time.
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If you feel like racing games would be greatly improved by arming everyone with copious amounts of explosives, you'll be happy to hear that a few billion Orks share your opinion. As such, the upcoming Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks is both a racing game where you have to get your ramshackle vehicles to the very end as quickly as possible, and a fast-paced shooter where you and the lads have to wrestle with the opponents for control of various objectives. It's pretty much Ork paradise!
What all of this madness looks like in action, that you can find out through the recently posted announcement trailer. Have a gander, it's pretty much what you would expect from the title alone: