PC gaming news and reviews

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

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Steam's redesigned library will show what's happening with your games
Steam's ages-old game library screen is getting a much-needed overhaul. Valve has previewed a redesign that keeps the familiar column of games on the left, but shakes up seemingly everything else. You'll see rows for your recently played games and, crucially, game updates -- if there's a new character or an important upgrade, you'll know it right away. Your friends list will also appear directly in the library to help you leap into their multiplayer matches.
Four players fight for undersea supremacy in 'Swimsanity'
If you've ever watched The Little Mermaid and thought to yourself, "dang, that'd be some good hunting," have I got the game for you. Swimsanity is a four-player adventure shooter set at the bottom of the sea that offers a surprisingly wide variety of co-op and competitive gameplay styles.
'Detroit', 'Heavy Rain' and 'Beyond' will hit the Epic Games Store
Detroit: Become Human, Beyond: Two Souls and Heavy Rain are all making their way to PC for the first time in 2019 through the Epic Games Store. To date, the games have only been available on PlayStation 3 and/or PS4. The Quantic Dream titles are a bit of a coup for Epic as it takes aim at the likes of Steam, though Epic had plenty of other news about its store at GDC, including a Humble Bundle partnership and deals for upcoming games.
The new Oculus Rift S arrives this spring for $399
Oculus announced at GDC today that an updated version of its Rift virtual reality headset is on the way this spring. Oculus Rift S will cost $399, an increase of $50 from the Rift, while it's set to offer improved resolution and the same integrated audio system as the Quest (which is also debuting in the spring) and Go headsets.
'Angry Birds AR' on iOS lets you fling fowl in the real world
Angry Birds has already made the leap from smartphones to augmented reality and VR. But now, Rovio is bringing some of those lessons back to the iPhone. With Angry Birds AR: Isle of Pigs, the latest game in the blockbuster franchise, you'll be able to take down evil swine in your living room -- or anywhere else you can find a flat surface. It uses Apple's ARKit to construct virtual stages atop the real world, while you use your phone as a slingshot to topple them with irate birds. Isle of Pigs is available for pre-order today on iOS devices, and it'll officially launch as a free app later this spring (you can bet there will be a plethora of micro-transactions).
HP's 'Reverb' is the sharpest Windows VR headset yet
HP is ready to outdo the HTC Vive Pro and Samsung Odyssey with its latest VR headset, the Reverb. Confirming a February leak, it features an astoundingly sharp resolution of 2,160 by 2,160 pixels per eye, while those other headsets have around half as much. It's sometimes tough to see the benefits of more pixels on monitors and TVs, but VR headsets are another story, since your eyes are practically right up against the displays. That's something commercial customers will likely appreciate, since it makes things like workplace simulators even more realistic.
'Beat Saber' will be available for Oculus Quest on day one
Beat Saber is practically a mandatory game for any VR platform worth its salt, and Oculus knows it. The company has announced that Beat Games' rhythm title will be available for the Oculus Quest when the headset launches this spring. There aren't any mentions of new features for the slice-and-poke music title, but the Quest's self-contained design might be enough of a plus by itself. You won't have to worry about tripping over wires just because your performance was enthusiastic.
Steam partners can use Valve's network to speed up game traffic
Don't be surprised if the online performance of some Steam games happens to get a boost. Valve has released a software framework that lets Steam partners make use of its network. The move should improve the connection quality (including lower lag), guarantee better support for home routers and protect players against denial of service attacks with anonymized traffic and more resilient systems.
'Dota 2' app rewards you for predicting pro match winners
Valve doesn't just want you to watch Dota 2 eSports matches -- it wants you to have a small stake in them. It just released a Dota Pro Circuit app for Android and iOS that lets you win Shards (the in-game currency for Dota Plus members) by predicting the winners of Circuit matches. It's sports betting, just without spending real money beyond your existing subscription.
Steam mods will filter 'off-topic review bombs' from ratings
One of the issues with relying on user reviews to rate content is the possibility that some of those reviews may not be written in entirely good faith. Recently Rotten Tomatoes took new steps to manage the impact of fake reviews submitted for Captain Marvel, while Netflix responded to several instances of "review bombing" by removing written reviews from its service entirely. Over the years Steam has taken a few different steps to deal with the issue, but now its latest response is a combination of automated scanning and human moderation teams. In a blog post it explained the plan: "we're going to identify off-topic review bombs, and remove them from the Review Score." In practice, what it has is a tool that monitors reviews in real-time to detect "anomalous" activity that suggests something is happening. It alerts a team of moderators, who can then look through the reviews who will investigate, and if they do find that there's a spate of "off-topic reviews," then they'll alert the developer, and remove those reviews from the way the game's score is calculated, although the reviews themselves will stay up.
Steam Link Anywhere beta takes PC game streaming on the road
Valve giving a major expansion to its game streaming service. Just ahead of the 2019 Game Developers Conference, the company announced the release of Steam Link Anywhere, a new feature that will let gamers remotely access and play their favorite titles on basically any machine with Steam and an internet connection.
HTC's unlimited VR service launches April 2nd for $99 per year
HTC is nearly ready to launch its unlimited Viveport Infinity service after months of teasing. The VR subscription tier is launching on April 2nd for $13 per month or $99 per year, and will offer more than 600 apps and games for both Vive headsets and Oculus Rift. Your access will also carry over to stand-alone headsets based on Vive's Wave platform. You'll also get perks such as a revised Viveport Video app, monthly 10 percent discount coupons and the occasional freebie.
Google shutters its Spotlight Stories VR studio after six years
Google's Spotlight Stories is no more. The VR studio's executive producer, Karen Dufilho, has sent out an email to announce that the division is shutting down. Stories started as a partnership between Google and Motorola as a way to create 360-degree videos for mobile. Eventually, it created interactive content for the tech giant's Daydream VR headset, though you can also watch them on a computer via YouTube.
Legendary ASCII game 'Dwarf Fortress' is coming to Steam
The 17-year-old classic Dwarf Fortress is considered a pioneer in gaming through its massive, highly interactive world, but it's a tough sell to modern gamers with its ASCII graphics and its absence on modern game stores. That won't be an issue for much longer: Bay 12 and publisher Kitfox Games have announced that Dwarf Fortress is not only coming to Steam and Itch.io, but will launch with honest-to-goodness artwork. While it won't ease the learning curve for the game, you at least won't have to squint at your screen quite so intensely as before.
Insta360 Evo captures 180- and 360-degree content for VR headsets
Following the powerful One X 360 camera (and some fun updates), Insta360 is now back with a rather eccentric device that aims to make better use of your VR headsets. The new Insta360 Evo is a dual-mode camera that captures 360 content when folded into a cube, as well as 180 3D content when unfolded (remember Lenovo's VR camera?). What's more, this convertible camera can stream freshly captured content directly to the likes of HTC Vive Focus, Oculus Go and Samsung Gear VR, which will likely motivate users to create more VR content.
'Halo: The Master Chief Collection' heads to PC with 'Reach' included
After years of waiting and more than a few hiccups, Halo: The Master Chief Collection is coming to the PC. Microsoft and 343 Industries have unveiled plans to release the whole anthology one game at a time on both the Microsoft Store and Steam, starting with the prequel that has been conspicuously absent in the MCC since its debut: Halo: Reach. This may prove to be slightly tortuous if you're a fan of the main story, but it will give you a chance to play the title while taking greater advantage of modern hardware.
'The Atomic Tree' explores the bonsai that survived a nuclear blast
Filmmakers don't accidentally make a movie for virtual reality headsets. Creating VR media is a multi-step process involving specialized cameras and equipment, not to mention an entirely new approach to storytelling. Creators tell a story in VR because they crave a deeper human connection than the one offered by a static, 2D screen, even if it means their work will be seen by fewer people.
Jessica Brillhart seeks truth in immersive media
As the former lead VR filmmaker for Google, Jessica Brillhart helped the search giant come to grips with an entirely new medium. Now, she's striking out on her own with Vrai Pictures, her New York-based outfit focused on delivering immersive experiences. While "virtual reality" is in its name, Vrai is also exploring every component that goes into a decent VR (and augmented reality) experience. At SXSW this week, she's headlining as a keynote speaker and unveiling Traverse, a spatial audio platform that lets you walk around a soundscape as if you were listening live. And she's kicking things off with The King himself, Elvis Presley.
Valve laid off 13 employees working on virtual reality
Valve has laid off 13 employees, including people working on virtual reality, according to UploadVR. The company has confirmed the layoffs after the publication discovered that it removed a number of employee names from its website. While letting over a dozen people go might sound like bad news for the SteamVR platform, the company said that it doesn't spell major changes for its plans going forward. Presumably, that means Valve will continue working on virtual reality.
Harman patented flying robotic speakers
Imagine you're using a VR headset and as a car races past, you hear it whip from left to right. Only the sound literally moves from left to right because it's coming from a robotic speaker that zips across the room. From the looks of a new patent, audio company Harman is dreaming up speakers that would do just that.

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