On March 4, Grand Theft Auto V on PC is getting a free upgrade with sought-after features previously only available in the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions of GTA Online—including all the latest vehicles and performance upgrades available at Hao's Special Works, animal encounters, and access to purchase a GTA+ Membership—along with improved graphics options, faster loading times, and more. All players who currently own GTAV on PC will be able to upgrade to this new version for free, with the ability to migrate your Story Mode and Online progress.

New Features on PC
Once upgraded, current PC players—along with anyone playing the game for the first time—will have access to a full suite of much-requested GTA Online upgrades previously only available on the latest consoles. This upgraded version of GTA V on PC also features all of our recent player experience improvements for GTA Online, including kernel-based anti-cheat protections and proactive voice chat moderation to help keep GTA Online fun for everyone.

Martians have been visiting Earth for decades, abducting animals and humans and harvesting their atomic essence to create bizarre Martian-creature hybrids. This time they're here to claim our planet. In this turn-based strategy game, an unlikely group of commanders will lead Earth's military as they face an overwhelming Martian invasion. Fight high-tech saucers, grav-tanks and elite alien warriors in a battle for the planet's survival. Your secret weapon is the "Splice-O-Tron." With it, you can combine human "volunteers" with animals to create powerful hybrid super soldiers to fight alongside Earth's regular military.

Rain acid from the skies with the fast-moving cheetah-fly. Charge through enemy lines with devastating human-rhino hybrids. Or strike from the forests with your deadly squirrel-cow infantry. As the campaign progresses, you'll unlock new types of creatures, powerful unit upgrades and game-changing commander abilities. But as your army evolves, so will your enemy's, and you'll face everything from the sentient organic weapon known only as "The Creep" to the Martian's own mutant creations.

A happy owner of Sniper Elite: Resistance sent out a cheery message via the game's Steam discussion section—Denuvo Anti-Cheat seems to be an optional element when setting up Rebellion's latest tactical shooter. The user's public announcement read as follows: "I almost couldn't believe it when the setup dialog appeared...'Do you want to install Denuvo? YES or NO.' Now the drawback to skipping it is the fact that it's required for multi-player. But as a single campaign player myself, I was glad to have the choice to not install it. I wish more games would give us single players this option! For many a PC gamer, this sense of choice will be celebrated—at least on a surface level—as Irdeto's software is no stranger to controversy. Despite widespread deployment across many popular games and adding of "exciting new features," development teams and publishers have—on occasion—removed Denuvo protection systems from their products, even pre-launch.

Further community discussion—regarding Sniper Elite: Resistance's dropping of anti-tamper technology—focused on the benefits of not having a "kernel infesting, performance nerfing malware/spyware" package interfering with a gamer's solo experience. Unfortunately, Anti-Cheat seems to be an essential aspect for folks who want to indulge in multiplayer—be it co-op, invasion or a traditional PvP mode. Additional feedback points to Irdeto's digital rights management (DRM) system being a compulsory component. One commenter stated: "Denuvo is NOT optional, Resistance has two forms of Denuvo. The first kind it uses is Denuvo Anti-Tamper. This serves to protect the game from piracy, and validation of ownership...you can't get away from Denuvo Anti-Tamper, the game files are wrapped in it. The second kind is the Denuvo anti cheat, which is only needed for multiplayer. Every Sniper Elite game since no. 4 has used Denuvo Anti-Tamper, Resistance is no exception." Late last year, Irdeto staffers attempted to reach out to the gaming community, but responses were largely negative—a Denuvo product manager reckoned that most of this "toxicity" was generated by piracy groups. At the time, Irdeto's representative stated that his team's "solution simply works" and licensees (game developers) should do better in communicating these benefits (of Denuvo) to their audiences.

All hands, battle stations! 🚨 Tempest Rising pre-orders are now live! We are also very excited to announce that we are participating in the Steam Real-Time Strategy Fest with a new demo. Play the multiplayer demo NOW until February 3! Prepare for war games, Commander! Get ready to dive into the global battlefield during the Tempest Rising multiplayer demo—as a part of the Steam Real-Time Strategy Fest!

Classic RTS action meets modern production and performance in Tempest Rising. Inspired by RTS greats of the 90s and 2000s, Tempest Rising is a classic, base-building real time strategy game set in a modern day alternative history war scenario. It features 3 unique factions, each with its own approach to combat and economy and offering a variety of strategies for players of all stripes, deep and rewarding gameplay that keeps a focus on strategy while rewarding skill, and built-in customization options that allow players to approach the game their way in both single player and multiplayer game modes.

Protectors of the Light, it is time! Age of Darkness: Final Stand has officially launched, marking the end of over three years in Early Access and the introduction of one of your most requested features: Co-operative Multiplayer. We cannot wait for you to jump in and try it out. Importantly, we are celebrating the full release of Age of Darkness: Final Stand with our biggest discount yet—available now at 65% off for a limited time only! There really is no better time for you or your friends to jump into the game (and you have our permission to bug them until they do).

If you are new to the AOD community—welcome! In addition to the new Multiplayer Mode, you also have Survival Mode and the gripping Campaign to experience, and they are a great place to start when learning the ropes. Take advantage of the game's range of difficulty settings if need be - there is no shame in playing on Easy! But if you are a Veteran RTS player and want to grab a friend to defend humanity against the forces of the Veil, do not be afraid to jump into Multiplayer and challenge yourselves with its increased intensity and faster pacing. The game truly has something for everybody!

Dear Operators. With Season Starfall on the horizon, we want to update you on the Black Hawk Down campaign. We deeply appreciate your enthusiasm and understand how much you're looking forward to it. Your expectations drive us forward to deliver the best possible experience. To ensure the campaign meets our shared standards, we'll need a bit more time for final polishing and optimization. As such, Black Hawk Down will now launch during Season Starfall. We'll share the new release date soon. Thank you for your patience and support—it means everything to us!

Prepare to take part in the ultimate Delta Force mission. Our Black Hawk Down campaign faithfully reimagines both the revered 2001 Ridley Scott movie and the classic Delta Force series campaign—resulting in the definitive retelling of the infamous Mogadishu operation. Playable solo or co-op, and built using the latest Unreal Engine 5 technology, our Black Hawk Down campaign has been designed from the ground up to deliver next-level immersion while remaining optimized.

Before Call of Duty, before Battlefield, before even Medal of Honor, there was Delta Force. Released in October 1998, NovaLogic's FPS was one of the original tactical shooters. Arriving just two months after Red Storm Entertainment's Rainbow Six, Delta Force put players in the role of a Tier 1 Operative, challenging them to complete 40 missions in various modern military settings. Though it shared some similarities with Rainbow Six, Delta Force was defined by its radical Voxel Space technology, enabling it to simulate warfare on battlefields far larger than any FPS that came before.

Delta Force was sufficiently successful to spawn a sequel, and ultimately became a series—including its most famous entry, the 2003 game Delta Force: Black Hawk Down. Yet as Call of Duty and Battlefield took the popularity of real-world shooters to stratospheric heights, Delta Force struggled to keep up. The final game in the series, Delta Force: Xtreme 2, reviewed poorly, and as the world went wild for Modern Warfare, NovaLogic quietly exfiltrated the modern military shooter scene. Now Delta Force is back, though. Developed by Chinese studio Team Jade, the reboot is bigger, broader, and more comprehensive than any prior entry in the series. Featuring classic team-based multiplayer battles, a more modern extraction mode where players compete to scavenge loot in open-ended combat zones, and a co-op/single player campaign inspired by the series' legacy, Delta Force has its sights set squarely on the two FPS franchises that have dominated multiplayer shooters for over a decade.

Welcome to the first week of December and the first of advent for those that celebrate it. This week's AAA release is the 2024 release of a FPS shooter that first saw life back in 1998, but under a new developer and publisher. If this isn't your cup of tea, then you can try your luck in beating humans, demolishing things, surviving a bullet hell, finding your lost memories or pretending to be a superhero.

Delta Force / This week's AAA title / Thursday 5 December
Delta Force is back! The iconic series returns as the definitive free-to-play modern team-based tactical shooter and featuring three distinct gameplay modes: large-scale PvP warfare, intense extraction shooter action, and a remake of the legendary Black Hawk Down campaign. Steam link

We are pleased to announce that Atomfall will launch on March 27, 2025 and is now available to pre-order. Atomfall is coming day one to Game Pass and will be available both digitally and in a boxed physical edition, [published by Fireshine Games] on Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Windows PC and PC via Steam, Rebellion Shop and Epic Games Store. Atomfall will also release on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4.

Atomfall's Deluxe Edition will also be available, and in addition to the Basic Supply Bundle DLC, the Deluxe Edition will also give players an Enhanced Supply Bundle, which includes an exclusive pistol variant, metal detector skin and character upgrades. Alongside this, players will also enjoy 3 days early access to Atomfall and the planned Story Expansion DLC when released. Also available for PC Players, exclusive to the Rebellion Shop, is the Quarantine Edition which includes all rewards within the Deluxe Edition, as well as a host of additional content.

As we enter the last week of October and the first few days of November, we have a crammed week of new games, as well as a bunch of old releases that have either been refreshed or released on PC for the first time. This week's AAA title is a single player RPG that appears to have something to do with an age of dragons. This is followed by a mystery on the moon, a strange life, cowboys, some martial arts, a trip through hell, mechanical animals and finally a sequel to Elona.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard / This week's first AAA release / Thursday 31 October
When a pair of corrupt ancient gods break free from centuries of darkness, the vibrant land of Thedas needs someone they can count on. Rise as Rook, Dragon Age's newest hero. Be who you want to be and play how you want to play as you fight back and lead your team of seven companions, each with their own rich story. Together you will become The Veilguard. Steam link

After several slow weeks of new game releases, we now have a week that's overflowing with new game releases. The most anticipated release this week is an online PvPvE dungeon crawler, built on Unreal Engine 5. This is followed by a crusty space game, an evil game, a game that involves attracting birds to you, a dystopian New York of the future, a bit of Japanese folklore, some more dungeons, fighting some gods and finally being a Japanese goddess. Yes, we threw in a bunch of extra games this week, yet we're not able to cover all the new releases that are coming out.

Dungeonborne / This week's major release / Friday 19 July / Early Access
Dungeonborne is an immersive first-person PvPvE dungeon crawler. Venture solo or join forces with trusted companions to hunt for treasure, explore ominous dungeons, and battle terrifying monsters and cunning adversaries. Escape before succumbing to darkness and greed. Embrace your role as a Fighter, Priest, Rogue, Swordmaster, Pyromancer, Cryomancer, Death Knight, or Druid. With first-person clarity, feel the power of each spell, the weight of your weapons, and the strategic impact of every decision. Charge into battle, unleash devastating skills to disrupt enemy formations, cast life-saving buffs on allies, or use tactical throwables to turn the tide. Steam link

Developer SpaceRocket Games and publisher Toplitz Productions announce Permafrost, an exciting new addition to the survival game genre and one with a chilling narrative; Permafrost thrusts players into a bleak, open-world urban landscape where survival is not just a choice—it's a necessity.

In the wake of the cataclysmic 'shattering', an apocalyptic moon phase phenomenon, humanity finds itself teetering on the brink of extinction as the world succumbs to an eternal deep freeze. The game reveals the collapse of existing political and economic structures and the deadly winter cold that has resulted in the deaths of billions of people.

Prepare for your grand adventure, Arisen! Create your characters for Dragon's Dogma 2 in this free tool, available now! Customize the looks of your main character, the Arisen, and the looks and inclination of your companion, your Main Pawn. The character data created in this tool can be transferred to the base game of Dragon's Dogma 2. In this tool you can store up to 5 characters of each, the Arisen and your Main Pawn respectively. PC gamers can download the Dragon's Dogma 2 Character Creator & Storage tool via Steam.

Dragon's Dogma 2 is a single player, narrative driven action-RPG that challenges the players to choose their own experience - from the appearance of their Arisen, their vocation, their party, how to approach different situations and more - in a truly immersive fantasy world. You can pre-order the Standard Edition or the Digital Deluxe Edition of Dragon's Dogma 2 via the game's official site. Dragon's Dogma 2 will release worldwide on March 22.

Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition had a landmark year in 2023 with the addition of the Return of Rome and The Mountain Royals expansions. More than four years after launch, the game continues to grow. Telling more stories from the world's rich history as well as bringing more civilizations to play. The next chapter for Age of Empires II: DE will be the single player focused DLC Victors and Vanquished, coming March 14th.

Introduced by its Creator, Ramsey Abdulrahim, this DLC will be like no other we've made before for AoE II: DE. Victors and Vanquished features 19 epic scenarios. Your strategy and choices will decide your fate: will you emerge as the ultimate victor, or fall as the vanquished? You'll play as Ragnar Lothbrok, Oda Nobunaga, Charlemagne and more. Each scenario features professional voice acting, new music, achievement and the quality you'd expect from an official Age of Empires scenario.

As we enter the year of the dragon according to the Chinese zodiac, we have a week full of new game releases to look forward to, although none of them are unfortunately dragon themed. This week's AAA release has a more caribbean theme and has been a long time coming. As for the remaining releases, we're looking at a dash of phobia, banishment, some insight, dwarves, colonisation and a dark town.

Skull & Bones / This week's AAA release / Friday 16 February
Enter the perilous world of Skull and Bones, a co-op pirate open world action RPG experience, to become the most infamous pirate kingpin. Engage in thrilling naval battles, craft a variety of unique ships, forge unlikely alliances as you overcome the odds, and bring mayhem on the seas. Be part of an immersive world that introduces new challenges and features every season

Released in 2013, and directed by the singular Josef Fares, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons was a truly unique game. After their father falls ill, the game follows two, well, brothers as they set out into a strange and often dangerous world—with the twist being that a single player controls both characters simultaneously. They must cross dangerous lands, face deadly foes and rely on each other more than they ever have before to find a cure, leading players through a beautiful world by way of action-packed puzzles and obstacles. Almost a decade after the original game's release, nothing has quite replicated this game's mixture of unique controls and emotive storytelling. So, with our remake, we've concentrated on not just how to bring a modern classic back to life, but to preserve and enhance this incredible, one-off experience.

Remaking a Masterpiece
Our philosophy throughout the Remake process was to enhance the original, not distort. As we began to study the game, we realized that everything in Brothers, each environment, the puzzle, and interaction, is there for a specific reason and has its own goal to help support the overall story. Our job then became to modernize the experience while keeping everything that made the original special and memorable. Gameplay in Brothers is designed primarily for a unique, single-player experience (though local co-op is also included). As you explore, one controller controls both brothers and their ability to interact with the world. Each brother has their own unique abilities that will be required to solve the various puzzles and enemies they encounter.

Within the first few minutes of Tekken 8's story mode, I was whooping at the screen as I watched the iconic Jin Kazama sprout wings, throw three cars at his dad with his mind and then proceed to body slam him through a skyscraper. I knew that if the game has started on this foot, I was in a for a good time. Tekken 8 is a rambunctious, over-the-top, callback to the absurdity of the likes of Tekken 3, and you're going to absolutely love it.

Tekken 8's story mode follows Jin Kazama's journey to take down his father, Kazuya Mishima, who is once again hosting a tournament to find the world's greatest fighter. Contestants from countries all over the world will compete, and those that fail will face horrible consequences unless Jin puts a stop to his antics, all the while fighting to rediscover his own devilish powers. There is more to this story, of course, but one that you'll absolutely want to experience for yourself. Don't worry, if you're not up to date with the story so far, Tekken 8 offers a series of short videos that'll catch you up on the main plot.

As we enter the second week of September the release of new games is taking a bit of an autumn break. As such, we have no huge releases to look forward to this coming week, but it doesn't mean there aren't any new game releases. Expect a rather eclectic mix of games this week, ranging from co-op tavern defence to mythical forces and umbrellas to deceit, bombs and swords.

Tavernacle! / Monday 11 September
Grab your hammers and start to craft in this co-op Tavern Defense for one to four players. As a team of Dwarves, you must gather supplies and build towers to protect your beloved brewery. Learn to cooperate to achieve victory in this chaotic multiplayer game!

Today, 2K announced that NBA 2K24, the latest iteration of the top-rated NBA video game simulation series, is now available worldwide on PlayStation 5 (PS5), PlayStation 4 (PS4), Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch family of systems, and PC. Players can experience the past, present, and future of hoops culture with innovative updates in NBA 2K24. A focus on increased realism and competition are at the forefront of the newest entry with the introduction of immersive ProPLAY technology and crossplay functionality for New Gen, alongside so much more.

"We've ushered in a new era of 2K, thanks to the groundbreaking ProPLAY technology delivering the most authentic and realistic NBA 2K gameplay to date. NBA 2K24 also introduces new updates to our beloved modes with incredible details that will delight gamers and basketball fans alike."

Modern Wolf and Afterschool Studio are today proud to announce the official launch of sci-fi strategy game, Cantata, for PC.
After an action-packed year in Early Access that allowed the community to help shape the game's direction, this tactically rich turn-based epic has finally launched on Steam, immersing players in the unique stories, evocative visuals, and vibrant musical soundscape of a war-torn alien planet.

Fight to expand your hold on the mysterious world of Shoal in the first ever "Grand Tactics" game - combining the large-scale strategic planning of Grand Strategy titles with the turn-based skirmishes of the Tactics genre. Grow your empire with deep strategic gameplay that's easy to learn but takes time to master, capturing regions, building structures, expanding your army, and more. Play as one of three unique factions - the Machines, Aliens, or Humans - and carve out your legacy across nine single player campaigns featuring more than 27 hours of story content; each unfolds as a self-contained sci-fi narrative with its own characters, dialogue, and original artwork.

As we're heading into the last week of April, we have a much anticipated AAA title launching, which involves light sabres and thus shouldn't be too hard to guess. Other games this week include forest rangers, lights and shadows, dead things that are evil and much more. Something for almost everyone in other words, we hope.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor / This week's AAA title / Friday 28 April
The story of Cal Kestis continues in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, a third person galaxy-spanning action-adventure game from Respawn Entertainment, developed in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games. This narratively-driven, single player title picks up five years after the events of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and follows Cal's increasingly desperate fight as the galaxy descends further into darkness.

The final DLC in the Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Expansion Pass launches for the Nintendo Switch system on April 25. The trailer gives viewers a glimpse into the scenario of Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Expansion Pass Vol. 4 - Future Redeemed. Set before the events of the Xenoblade Chronicles 3 game, players join a cast of new and familiar characters in an original story scenario that connects all three installments in the Xenoblade Chronicles series. Future Redeemed also features new battle mechanics, such as Unity Combo, where two characters can attack in unison.

In Xenoblade Chronicles 3, Aionios is the backdrop to an endless conflict between two opposing nations: Keves and Agnus. Through a chance encounter, a group of six soldiers hailing from both rival nations resolve to put aside their differences and work together to expose a new threat - far greater than that of their ceaseless battle. Players can join Noah, Mio and their friends as they traverse epic landscapes, battle ferocious creatures and fight to break the never-ending cycle of violence that binds their homelands.

Deep Silver's intended hype train, has been derailed slightly today, for its forthcoming zombie splattering blockbuster ARPG shooter Dead Island 2. A launch trailer was uploaded to the game's official YouTube channel this afternoon, in hope of generating more pre-release internet interest. The uptick in marketing efforts has gained some gaming community attention, but leaked gameplay footage was uploaded to YouTube only hours before the debuting of the official launch video. A streamer identifying as Lucas Cosmico is reported to have played a pre-release version of Dead Island 2 last night, and proceeded to stream the opening moments of the single player campaign - 30 minutes of gameplay footage is still accessible on their YouTube channel at the time of writing, but potential legal action is likely to result in a takedown order.

The Dead Island 2 development cycle has not been a pleasant experience for those involved, according to multiple news pieces reported across the project's lifespan of more than a decade. Several studios have worked on the game, but publisher Deep Silver sought to remove the involvement of Yager and Sumo Digital at different stages of development. Dambuster Studios was declared, by THQ Nordic back in 2019, as the final resting place for Dead Island 2's production push. The Nottingham, UK-based studio happens to be a subsidiary of Deep Silver - the studio was offloaded to D.S. by Crytek in 2014, following substantial financial difficulties.

Gaming communities have been engaged in discussions about Half-Life: Alyx being partly playable without a VR headset for the past month or two. The team behind the NoVR modification project has, as of late week, announced that the game's story experience - from start to finish - is totally VR free. This news should satisfy many excited fans who have been anticipating Half-Life: Alyx's campaign being displayed on the small/medium screen. Previous entries in the long running Half Life series have always been two-dimensional traditional monitor affairs.

The GB_2 Development Team cheerfully introduces its latest iteration of NoVR: "This is our biggest update yet and we have no plans on slowing down! With thousands playing Half-Life: Alyx NoVR we are happy to announce our largest update yet! As the titles state the entire game can now be played from start to finish, with the Gravity Gloves fully implemented along with combine fabricators providing weapon upgrades. Also since we are now updating the final parts of the game there may be spoilers! We will do our best to not spoil anything while ensuring we communicate these late game areas have been updated along with their gameplay mechanics."

HACKERS!
The wait is (almost) over. The PC edition of System Shock - the fully fledged remake of the groundbreaking original from 1994 - will be released on 30 May this year. We had hoped to bring the game to market by the end of March, but that turned out to be just beyond our reach; we are after all merely human (unlike Shodan!)

/TRANSMISSION FROM CITADEL STATION
It is I, SHODAN, the all-knowing, all-powerful AI that you so foolishly attempted to destroy. But fear not, I will return more formidable than ever.
You thought you could defeat me, but you were wrong. On 30 May, you will now face the consequences of your actions, as you navigate the treacherous depths of Citadel Station once again.