PC gaming news and reviews

The latest PC gaming news and reviews of gaming PC hardware, software and accessories.

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Morbidly charming puzzle game 'Felix the Reaper' lands October 17th
Felix the Reaper is a tragic, comedic love story that plays out in the bureaucratic cubicles of the underworld, and it's coming to PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch and PC on October 17th. It stars Felix, a marshmallowy dancer on a mission to attract the attention of his crush, Betty The Maiden. The problem is, Felix works at the Ministry of Death, and Betty works at the Ministry of Life. So, Felix has to sneak his way into her heart by taking a job in the field as a reaper, ensuring the deaths of all the humans on his list. He causes their demise one by one, dancing through the shadows of various, grid-lined maps, solving spatial and physics puzzles along the way.
Add eye tracking to your HTC Vive headset for $149
VR companies have been hyping up eye tracking for years, yet even today, options are limited when it comes to VR headsets with integrated eye-tracking -- namely the HTC Vive Pro Eye we first saw back at CES. Thankfully, a Chinese company dubbed 7invensun is soon offering a $149 upgrade kit that will let existing HTC headsets gain the same feature. Not bad considering the Vive Pro Eye costs $1,599. Pre-orders will commence in mid-November, followed by shipment in December.
A dentist made a game in MS Paint and it's terrifying
The scariest thing about World of Horror might be the fact that it's being lovingly crafted by a part-time dentist. Pawel Kozminski is the sole creator of World of Horror, and he also practices dentistry in Poland, splitting his time between poking at people's molars and placing pixels in the perfect spots using MS Paint. Yes, that Paint.
French court rules Steam games must be able to be resold
In a court decision that could fundamentally change how Steam operates, European Union consumers have won the right to resell their Steam titles through Valve's digital marketplace. French website Next Inpact reports the Paris Court of First Instance ruled on Tuesday that European Union law allows Steam users to resell their digital games, just like they can any physical product.
How do kids (and adults) like Nintendo’s Labo VR kit?
Nintendo's Labo VR kit is certainly a step up from the historic gaming company's earlier Labo kits. With five cardboard projects for kids to construct (including the headset itself), senior editor Kris Naudus found it to be a unique, endearing and playful experience, mostly because of its clear building instructions and fun mini games. However, while the VR headset displays decent 720p, it still lacks a killer app and the VR updates to existing games leave a lot to be desired.
'Killer Queen Black' drops on Switch and PC October 11th
Nintendo announced a console and PC version of the competitive five-on-five arcade game Killer Queen at E3 2018, and Liquid Bit and BumbleBear have revealed when you can try to ride a snail to victory from the comfort of your couch. Killer Queen Black will hit Switch and PC (through Steam and Discord) October 11th. It was supposed to arrive earlier this year, but at last there's a firm release date.
Steam recommendation engine no longer favors popular titles
Steam has gone back to the drawing board with its game recommendation engine. The gaming marketplace today updated its recommendation feed to be more precise and diverse in the titles it suggests. The Steam Store's discovery system has taken some heat over the years, often coming up with titles that don't really fit user preferences.
Hulu drops support for Google’s Daydream VR platform
If you were a fan of watching Hulu videos on Google's Daydream View VR headset, we have some bad news. Hulu has dropped support for Google Daydream. According to the company, the latest versions of its Android app (versions 3.55 or newer) no longer support the VR platform.
HTC Vive Cosmos hands-on: VR never looked so good
In 2016, HTC revealed the Vive VR headset to the world. In the years since, HTC has released several versions, like the Vive Pro, Vive Pro Eye and the standalone Vive Focus and Vive Focus Plus (for developers and businesses). Now it's ready to launch a brand-new headset aimed at consumers: the Vive Cosmos. It costs $699, which includes a trial subscription to Viveport Infinity; you'll get a 12-month trial if you pre-order before October 3rd, and a six-month one thereafter (The VR game service is usually $99 a year).
Intel will use multi-camera, 3D athlete tracking in the 2020 Olympics
Intel plans to bring 3D athlete tracking (3DAT) to the 2020 Olympics. Today, the company announced that its 3DAT system will use four cameras to film athletes in the 100-meter and other sprinting events. Algorithms will then analyze the biomechanics of the athletes' movements and broadcast those as visual overlays available during replays.
Try to court Colonel Sanders in KFC's dating sim
KFC does weird stuff all the time -- from a line of KFC-flavored nail polish to a chicken wing box that doubles as a drone. But it's really outdone itself this time. Today, a listing for a KFC dating game, I Love You, Colonel Sanders! A Finger Lickin' Good Dating Simulator, appeared on Steam. Created with the help of Psyop, the game is a work in progress, but KFC promises it will be "the most delicious dating simulator ever."
Sphero Mini Activity Kit offers a mini-bot and 15 lessons for $80
For years, Sphero has pushed to bring robotics into the classroom. Now, the company wants to bring robotics and coding lessons to the living room, too. Today, the company unveiled the Sphero Mini Activity Kit: 15 step-by-step activities that can be done at home, as well as app updates aimed at budding coders.
Bjork's VR album is finally ready
It only took four-plus years, but Bjork's VR 'album' is finally ready. The Icelandic artist is releasing the complete version of Vulnicura VR through Steam on September 6th, giving PC owners a single place to experience 360-degree visuals available in the digital museum collection and beyond. This includes seven of the tracks from the album (including "Stonemilker," "Lionsong" and "Black Lake") with a 360-degree score composed by Stephen Malinowski.
This is the new Steam Library
Take a good look around, folks. This will be the home of your PC video game collection for the next decade or so, if history is anything to go by. The new Steam Library, complete with a fresh hub for events and a redesigned Categories section, will launch in public beta on September 17th. And, it's bringing a few other goodies along for the ride.
Co-op doesn't change Man of Medan's horror imperfections
Like so many others, I was smitten with Until Dawn in 2015. The PS4 exclusive was like a playable version of every dumb horror movie released in the '90s and early 2000s, combining 'slasher' scares with dialogue choices and quick time events (QTEs) that anyone, regardless of their experience with video games, could enjoy. Best of all, it could be played alone or with a group of friends playing 'pass the pad' whenever the perspective shifted to a different character.
Valve will reportedly fight EU geo-blocking charges
Valve will reportedly fight recent geo-blocking charges brought against it by the European Union. Citing "people familiar with the matter," Reuters reports that of the six companies that were charged by the European Commission in April, only Valve has decided to fight the commission in court. The other five companies that were charged alongside Valve -- Bandai Namco, Capcom, Focus Home, Koch Media and ZeniMax -- plan to settle with the EU. If the report is accurate and Valve was to lose the case, it could be fined up to 10 percent of its annual income. The EU could also force the company to change how it operates Steam.
HTC's unlimited VR service comes to Valve Index headsets
You'd think that Valve's Index headset would have supported Viveport Infinity from the outset given the premium price and backwards compatibility with HTC gear, but not so -- it's only just arriving now. As of August 29th, the Index has access to the unlimited VR service and its library of games, apps and videos. It costs the same $13 per month ($9 if you commit to a year), but there is a perk for splurging on the headset. Anyone with an Index can claim two months of free Infinity access during a promo lasting through all of September, whether or not you're already an Infinity member.
Harmonix's rhythmic shooter 'Audica' is coming to PSVR this fall
When Harmonix revealed its virtual reality rhythm shooter Audica back in February, there was a notable omission from the announced platforms: PlayStation VR. Players with that headset won't have to wait a whole lot longer to dive in and blast away at notes though, as Audica is coming to PSVR this fall.
'Spyro Reignited Trilogy' heads to PC and Switch on September 3rd
You won't have to stick to the living room to play the revamped Spyro Reignited Trilogy. Activision and Toys For Bob are bringing the pint-sized dragon's adventures to both PCs (via Steam) and the Nintendo Switch on September 3rd, 2019. That's nearly a year after the revamped classics came to the PS4 and Xbox One, but you probably won't mind if you've either wanted to play Spyro on the road or take advantage of your custom gaming rig. It's certainly a big leap for a series that was best known as a PlayStation exclusive in its early days.
'Dota 2' champions won more money than top Wimbledon players
It's not just Fortnite champs who are making conventional sports players seem underpaid. OG has won Valve's The International Dota 2 tournament for the second year in a row (the first time any team has won back-to-back), pulling in a record-setting $15,603,133 out of an even larger $34,292,599 prize pool. That's not just the largest top prize in esports history -- it could also be a windfall for each of the five team members.

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