Steam Deck / Gaming News #16
Steam Deck / Gaming News #16
Well, it’s that time again for this last week’s interesting gaming news I’ve spotted! While this week’s is the typical variety, it is also rather text-heavy, so you’ve been warned! As ever though, there’s Steam Deck, Linux, GOG, emulation, Switch and gaming in general in here :)
My aim is to format these posts in a more person-to-person manner than most gaming sites do now. Cozier? My ever-lasting inspo is the old, old video game sites, blogs and magazines that I never had the privilege of being alive for:
- image/gif/link heavy (sorry in advance, there’s a lot this week!)
- personal voice (I can’t write professionally with hard-news style to save me)
- mostly news or articles or points you won’t find on normal gaming sites. These are the smaller, lesser things that I’m drawn to. I know you’ll have spotted the big news articles, so I’m hoping some of these smaller ones might have been missed by you.
So grab a coffee? Or a tea? Or a fresh juice? And enjoy <3
Gaming News:
GOG-Jobs:
Looking for a job in the gaming industry (and happen to be more qualified to do the work than saying ‘I like playing games!’) and want to work for GOG?
They left a post recently stating that they’re looking for job applicants for a variety of postitions:
Hey everyone!
We’re often on the lookout for new team members to help strengthen our mission of making games live forever. If you’re a gamer at heart and passionate about what we do, you might be exactly who we’re looking for. Take a look at our current job openings and apply if you think you’re a great fit: https://www.gog.com/work
If you get the job, give them all a hug for me because I fucking adore GOG <3
Luna & GOG:
If you’re not aware, Amazon’s Luna is their game streaming service. If you’ve got an Amazon account and own GOG games, then you can stream them without installing them (depending on what country you’re in – the service is not worldwide just yet)
This week, Amazon’s announced 6 more titles they’ve brought to Luna:
Hey Luna fans! Today we have a little bit of everything joining our GOG collection:
- Kingdom Come: Deliverance II - Continue Henry's tale as you navigate political intrigue, master medieval combat, and shape your destiny in a beautifully crafted open world. With enhanced graphics, deeper systems, and an even more immersive experience, it's time to live another chapter of history.
- Call of The Sea - Set out on a supernatural adventure in the 1930s South Pacific. As Norah, search for your missing husband while uncovering the mysteries of an ancient civilization in this gorgeous first-person puzzle adventure.
- Never Give Up - Test your skills and patience in this challenging platformer that's not afraid to mock your failures. Relentlessly. Again and again. 😡 With precise controls and a wicked sense of humor, this game will push you to your limits - and then some.
- Araknoid Eternal Battle - The brick-breaking legend returns with a modern twist! Experience the classic Arkanoid gameplay enhanced with new features, competitive modes, and fresh challenges.
- Monster Prom - Navigate the halls of spooky high school in this multiplayer dating sim. With just three weeks until prom, compete with friends to romance your monster crush in this hilarious and highly re-playable (relatable?) adventure.
- Saints Row The Third: Remastered - For those following the Saints' journey on GOG, the most outrageous chapter of the saga is now available! Take over Steelport with enhanced graphics and all DLC included.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Legends of the Zone:
The trailer for the game is here, if you want to check it out!
I’ve no doubt you’ve read all about this by now. Its a remaster for the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R. trilogy. Since you’ve read all you can, and it’s old news for me to even bring it up, I’ll just remind you of the nice points that are coming with this one:
- Atmospheric visual enhancements including God Rays, Dynamic Screen Space Reflections, and Advanced Global Illumination effects.
- Redesigned water shaders, upgraded skyboxes, and wetness effects.
- Improved visuals with upscaled textures featuring more detailed NPCs and environment.
- Upgraded weapon Field of View and models.
- Multiple bugfixes and quality of life tweaks (I wonder just how many bug fixes, because if there’s one thing S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is known for, its bugs).
- Full gamepad support.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Legends of the Zone Trilogy Enhanced Edition will be available May 20, 2025 on Xbox, PlayStation, and PC on GOG, Epic Games Store, and Steam. All owners of the game will receive a separate edition of S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Legends of the Zone Trilogy Enhanced Edition in their Steam and GOG libraries, which will be available for download immediately. If you do not have the complete collection, you will receive the updated version only for the games you have in your library. If you don't have any classic S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games in your library and if you want to buy the games or the collection, you'll get the classic three games for free when you purchase S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Legends of the Zone Trilogy Enhanced Edition." (this was from the developers’ Q&A on Discord)
The Sinking City Remastered:
If you're into Lovecraftian themes and settings, or perhaps just enjoy a sense of distinct existential dread in video games, then you'll no doubt already know what The Sinking City is.
The Sinking City is an adventure and investigation game set in an open world inspired by the universe of H.P. Lovecraft, the master of Horror. The half-submerged city of Oakmont is gripped by supernatural forces. You're a private investigator, and you have to uncover the truth of what has possessed the city… and the minds of its inhabitants.
Frogwares have released a video of their now released The Sinking City Remastered on YouTube (this is a free upgrade if you already own it), showing a nice comparison to the original, and what they improved.
I’ve played the non-remastered version, and I can say that while they didn’t improve the jank (we all love a little jank though, right?!), it certainly was an atmosphere.
For the remastered version of this iconic story, you can expect it to be fully relit in Unreal Engine 5, containing enhanced locations with additional levels of detail and objects, 4K textures and improved reflections, addition of a Photo Mode, as well as support for DLSS, FSR and TSR upscaling. Buying the remaster, you will also receive the original version of the game as a bonus – and for those who already own the original, you will receive the remaster!
GOG’s Betseller List Right Now:
- DOOM
- Dragon Age Origins – Ultimate Ed.
- Deus Ex GOTY Ed.
- Mad Max
- Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Ed. Digital Deluxe**
- Divinity Original Sin 2 – Definitive Ed
- Heroes of Might and Magic 3: Complete**
- Breath of Fire IV
- Alan Wake
- Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor Game of The Year Ed.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II DLC:
The first DLC for the excellent game is coming soon. Although Warhorse Studios is calling it an ‘expansion’:
Meet an eccentric artist with a disturbing past in Brushes with Death, the new story DLC for Kingdom Come: Deliverance II. Embark on a series of brand-new quests as you help the Painter finish his artistic magnum opus. In return for your deadly endeavours, you'll be able to choose from over 100 unique shield designs and earn a new set of gear for Henry.
Priced at only $6 USD, this is as the studio says the ‘smallest of the coming DLC’.
You can find the trailer here on YouTube
Marathon Steals Artist’s work:
Digital artist Fern Hook (AkA N2) has shown that Bungie has stolen her artwork, without notice or credit, even going so far as to cut/paste art which feature’s N2’s own logo. She shared some posts on social media late in the week which stated -
the Marathon alpha released recently and its environments are covered with assets lifted from poster designs i made in 2017.
It was nice to see she tagged Bungie and the Marathon game account in her post, and obviously plenty of media caught on:
bungie is of course not obligated to hire me when making a game that draws overwhelmingly from the same design language i have refined for the last decade, but clearly my work was good enough to pillage for ideas and plaster all over their game without pay or attribution.
She brought the receipts showing their work and the comparisons to Bungie’s game, and there’s been no way they could get out of this one.
i don't have the resources nor the energy to spare to pursue this legally but i have lost count of the number of times a major company has deemed it easier to pay a designer to imitate or steal my work than to write me an email.
Washington Post had an article which has an interview with Hook, which is great reading, and I’m going to make this week’s News Post end up being 23% larger just by pasting a good portion of it here for you to read. All which I pasted below will be in bold to distinguish that it is from the Post’s article, which you can find here with this link, if you’d like.
Fern Hook, a 30-year-old independent artist in Scotland, noticed something familiar about “Marathon,” the upcoming video game by Bungie, the studio that created the Halo series and is now owned by Sony Interactive Entertainment.
“Marathon,” she said, is “covered with assets lifted from poster designs I made in 2017,” all in the alpha version of the game, which allowed the general public to play an early version of the multiplayer shooter. She became suspicious when the game was announced in a 2023 trailer, but nothing appeared to be derivative at first.
In mid-April, content creators began publishing videos of “Marathon” gameplay through the alpha version, which the public would access later through an invitation process. She said she “very quickly” began to spot her work. Hook’s futuristic iconography and font designs are posted on social media sites like Tumblr and X as far back as 2017, and similar features are seen all over the environment and the objects within “Marathon.” She pointed out the similarities through her social media on Thursday.
“It was kind of vindicating to see direct plagiarism because it meant I wasn’t crazy for feeling so uncomfortable with the overall direction,” Hook told The Washington Post. “I kept quiet about it because I was advised to seek legal action, but … I don’t have enough time or money to fly out to the U.S. to pursue an unwinnable court case against Sony.”
When The Post contacted Sony about the allegations, a spokesperson pointed to Bungie’s statement on social media. The “Marathon” developer team said on X that it was looking into “a concern regarding unauthorized use of artist decals in Marathon and confirmed that a former Bungie artist included these in a texture sheet that was ultimately used in-game.”
“The issue was unknown by our existing art team, and we are still reviewing how this oversight occurred,” the studio posted on X, adding that it had contacted Hook to discuss the issue and was “committed to do right by the artist.”
The studio said it is conducting a review of the game’s artwork, specifically the images made by the former artist, and implementing “stricter checks to document all artist contributions.”
The allegations would be particularly damaging for Bungie and “Marathon,” which has struggled to gain positive press during a particularly financially challenging era for the once-esteemed studio. “Marathon” is a classic 1990s computer shooter that focused on a harrowing science-fiction narrative. The reboot, expected to be released in September, throws that out to instead focus on an always-online, multiplayer-only competitive shooting game. The most widely critically acclaimed aspect of the new game was its art design, which goes for bold colors and a 1990s futurism vibe. The art style is not original, especially in games, with PlayStation’s Wipeout series being an early adopter. But the clean, shiny aesthetic is rare in a modern video games industry typically obsessed with gritty realism.
This is not the first time Bungie has been accused of using the work of an independent artist. In 2024, a fan made art of a toy gun designed in the style of Bungie’s earlier game “Destiny 2,” which was then used as a model for a game-themed Nerf gun. Bungie later said it would credit and compensate the artist. Hook said this is also not the first time she has seen her work lifted, and she has made posts over the years alleging other organizations tracing and lifting her work. She said she relies on donations for her various online projects, and this recent incident has seen hundreds of people donating money in support. Hook also composes drum and bass music and sound design for games under the name N2, and produces freelance art work under the name ANTIREAL. She co-runs a design and software consultancy firm called Superstructure as well.
“I’d kind of had to learn to shut up about these cases because they’ve happened so constantly over the past 10 years,” she said. “It was tiring to be viewed as ‘someone who complains’ more than as an artist. But the response this time has been overwhelmingly understanding and I’m extremely thankful for the support.”
Imagine of that instance below:
Gears of War:
The Gears of War movie we’ve all heard about for one million years is a step closer to happening, with director David Leitch now attached to the project - he is known for directing movies like Atomic Blonde, Bullet Train, co-directing John Wick and more
Will it be Bautista who spent years lobbying for the part of Macrus and the movie being made at all? Probably not, considering his recent bulk/weight loss
Here’s the link to hollywoodreporter where it has been confirmed
DOOM: The Dark Ages:
To be honest, the most fun I’ve had with DOOM is the semi-recent (and olllllllllllllllllllld) DOOM + DOOM II double-pack. That and 2016’s DOOM were the ones I really, really enjoyed, but by the time Eternal came by...it just didn’t really work for me well. The same goes for The Dark Ages – though aside from its ridiculous price right now (I suspect to encourage users to instead use Game Pass) it’s still a success.
I’ve just had fun seeing what people have shared about it, so there’s not much for me to say, just some fun images I’d like to share.
DOOM (TDA) has a little display at the Royal Armories Museum in Leeds, England. Thought it is short-lived, ending this weekend. The shield and a tapestry are on display, but if you’re like me and not in Leeds...we can just see these photos:
A TDA Xbox controller is available, themed in the obvious manner:
And finally, it seems like someone working at ID is a fan of classic art, with these and more featuring in the game:
Snake Eyes:
Not much here, but a few stills from the upcoming AAA G.I. Joe Snake Eyes game being made by Atomic Studios are here:
Starfox:
Ever wondered how the cover art or the classic Starfox was made?
These were actual puppets and model ships, made by a special effects studio: Shirogumi. One interesting fact is that Takashi Yamazaki (writer/director of Godzilla Minus One) was working at the company at the time this was made. The puppets themselves were also on display at the N.Y. Nintendo store when Star Fox Zero was released for the Wii U!
The Pokémon Fossil Museum:
The Pokémon Company and Toyohashi Museum of Natural History have made it possible to see the Pokémon Fossil Museum without being anywhere near Japan. Pokémon fans can now take a virtual tour around the exhibit until November, featuring a mix of real dinosaur fossils and less-than-real Pokémon ones.
Going through some of the in the exhibit for example: Omanyte is based on a prehistoric creature called an ammonite, Aerodactyl is based on pterosaurs, and Bastiodon is based on ceratopsian dinosaurs such as the triceratops.
Free Cosmetic DLC for Bethesda Games (with a caveat):
If you want to, you can opt in to Bethesda marketing emails at bethesda.net during the promotion window. Then, head to the games and follow the directions below:
Fallout 76: Beelzebilly suit & head, Mr. Demonic backpack
- Beelzebilly suit and head – This cosmetic can be found at any Armor Workbench in game (in the world or at a C.A.M.P.). Through the Craft option, you can craft the Outfit and Headwear directly and then put it on through the Apparel tab in the Pip-Boy.
- Mr. Demonic backpack – This cosmetic can be found at any Armor Workbench in game (in the world or at a C.A.M.P.). Through the modify option, the backpack can be added to an already existing Small or Standard Backpack.
DOOM: The Dark Ages: Butcher DOOM Slayer Skin
- This cosmetic can be found in the main menu. Under Extras, select Slayer Skins to change your skin.
DOOM Eternal: Lux Slayer Special Edition Set, Nightmare Marauder Special Edition Set, Majestic Archvile Special Edition Set
- In the main menu, under Customize, select Slayer, Archvile, or Marauder to change your skins and weapons skins. You can also choose Profile to change your nameplate and icon.
Is it worth it? I’m sure many here will be scrambling over to do so, but remember – your email won’t be scared, that shit will be shared. I’d recommend using an email mask.
The link to follow to Bethesda’s site for this is right here
Polygon? Poly*gone:*
"It was a good website. I doubt I'll ever find a place like it for the rest of my career"
While Polygon isn’t dead and gone, per se, it is completely changed – having been bought out, run under a new owner (Valnet), and laying off the majority of its employees
Its fitting that the site is basically a shell of its former self, right as DOOM: The Dark Ages has launched.
Some here might remember that YouTube video: there’s a reason they turned the comments off for this one. The now legendary video of one of their staff failing to play Doom 2016 at a level hitherto undreamed of. Basic movement in a 3-dimensional space was too daunting for this person who worked at a video game website.
Bye, Polygon!
Witcher 3 REDstream:
Since The Witcher 3 has turned 10 years old, its having a 10th anniversary episode of REDstreams, celebrating The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt anniversary.
Senior Community Managers Alicja Kozera and Amelia Korzycka will be joined by Doug Cockle, along with CDPR’s English Adaptation Director, Borys Pugacz-Muraszkiewicz. Catch the stream on Monday, May 19th at 5 PM CEST on:
Revenge of the Savage Planet:
The game has released, and while its change the perspective from first-person to third-person, it’s a definite upgrade in my eyes. It’s a FUN game, if you like platforming (unexpectedly there’s a lot!)
Revenge of the Savage Planet is an upbeat, satirical action adventure Sci-Fi. Jump, shoot and collect your way across vibrant alien worlds, uncovering new gear and upgrades, while discovering various hidden secrets.
I’ve been playing the game via Game Pass, so I am less invested with any shortcomings since I haven’t paid for it.
But here’s a statement by the devs, which I found cute:
- You can find the store page for it here on Steam
- And also on GOG – though it shows as ‘coming soon’ there, at the time I write this anyway
Nintendo Switch Box Art:
Maybe you remember a few of these posts ago I shared some alternatve Switch covers that are made by fans. One section just loves changing the fact that the default covers come with red and white standardized spines – and are dedicated to providing full-color alternatives to that.
These are more a complete package change on the Switch’s box art. As this generation winds down with weeks left on it (offically) being the Nintendo console, I thought I’d share some others I’ve found that are just so very fun:
Warning, far-too-many images will follow, because I’m so taken by the creativity and imagination people have while making these:
(and they even make them in cassette tape box style!!!)
Epic Games Clues:
The clues for next week’s myster games are up – free games 3, 4 and 5. Guessing this kinda thing is way beyond me, but I do see people get it right, off-and-on. This last week’s free games included Dead Island 2, so while they might not be of that level, it’s exciting knowing this is Epic’s event time (its coinciding with Epic’s own Epic Sale – running from May 15th to June 12th).
Here’s the ‘clues’ (I use the term loosely because they are not cluey to me!)
Epic also now increased their ‘Epic Rewards’ program. You will get 20% of you game’s purchase price back to your rewards (until August 31st) – so if you’re looking to buy two games,
- Buy one now, wait 14 days for the rewards to be applied to your account
- Buy the other one, applying that 20% back from the other, off the price of this second game
...or don’t, I get tired of the Epic-is-shit-hate comments and DM’s I get off and on when I cover their news.
Delisted from Steam:
Steam is delisting Warhammer 40,000: Armageddon and Sanctus Reach on May 19th. Delistings are never good news, for anyone. If you want to pick them up on Steam you can get them at the best price I’ve found via Fanatical:
But you can also buy them on GOG:
Stellar Blade:
Stellar Blade’s coming to PC, but with the typical caveats:
- Come with Denuvo DRM
- No support for FSR 4
- Stupid damn PSN region-lock
Now, that region lock is the most obvious offender here, this is a handy graphic which shows you what countries are unable to buy the game:
And another reminder, this region-lock is in place for gamers in these countries for all of Sony’s games. You just cannot (legally) buy these games in these countries.
Quick News:
- Denuvo has been removed from Life is Strange: Double Exposure
- Capcom has reported eight consecutive years of profits as Monster Hunter Wilds has hit over 10.1m copies sold
- Heroic Games Launcher support threads are now publicly indexed. From hereon in, new support threads which are created on Heroic’s Discord server will be indexed and easily findable with search engines – all thanks to Answer Overflow. Right now, existing threads are also being indexed
- Steam’s monthly ‘top releases’ chart has gotten a refresh - expanded to now include top 50 releases, and historical data waaay back to 2004
- Star Wars: Outlaws has released update 1.6 and the patchnotes for what’s included are here in the link to UbiSoft’s site
- Xbox insiders get new ways to personalize their home screen. Not for everyone yet, but this looks promising since the home screen is covered by giant tiles (and ads)(https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2025/05/16/xbox-insiders-get-new-ways-to-personalize-home/)
- Epic Games has updated their search to have a new look, which while not the most news-worthy of things, for Epic this is rather big news indeed (their news is rare)
- Bruno of Winlator is back, after taking a break due to the outcry when a virus was discovered in a Winlator build was discovered. Hopefully he sticks around!
- Rainbow 6 Seige X will be on Game Pass Ultimate, day one on release which is June 10th.
- GTA V is continuing to sell 5 million copies every 3 months, and Red Dead Redemption 2 is now the "best-selling title of the past 7 years in the US"
Games I’m Recommending:
I thought it might be nice to recommend a couple of games I’ve enjoyed playing lately!
The Precinct:
Game’s launch trailer here on YouTube
Averno City, 1983. Gangs rule the streets and your father lies restless in his grave. Clean up the city, uncover the truth, and embark on thrilling vehicle chases through destructible environments in this neon-noir action sandbox police game.
I wasn’t around for the original GTA games – that isometric view gameplay, but I did enjoy one done in the same style: Chinatown Wars. I played that on my (beloved) Nintendo DSi for a work trip some time ago and just LOVED every second of it. So when I heard about this game, being an almost spiritual successor (I know, from the perspective of the police) at least in the view and gameplay...I had to get it.
You are Officer Nick Cordell Jr. As a rookie beat cop fresh out of the Academy, you’re on the front line of defence for Averno’s citizens. Dive into a world of thrilling car chases, sandbox crimes, and a healthy dose of 1980s noir as you protect the populace and solve the mystery of your father’s murder in the line of duty.
The game looks beautiful and if you’re on handheld it even has its own dedicated Steam Deck settings preset, which runs wonderfully. I’ve run into plenty of bugs, but they’re honestly the smallest things – nothing really impedes my fun or gameplay. For an indie game, this one is really fun. The neo-noir 1980s setting and visuals looks utterly beautiful on the Steam Deck’s OLED, and on a desktop PC it really shines. It needs patches, it’s quite basic, and I suppose it’s not a must-play by any means...I think its more the novelty of the hard-boiled detective voice over and the neon soaked streets. Its no masterpiece, but I do know I’m having fun. I’d say worth it after patches and on a good sale.
Now go and leave angry comments down below at how little this is actually like GTA – I know you want to.
RUINER
You’ve probably played this, and I’d even say a good portion of readers here might even have it (knowingly, or not – looking at you Humble Bundle collectors!), but no matter what I can’t recommend Ruiner enough.
If you’re anything like me and love the setting of cyberpunk as a genre, then this one’s for you.
An action-shooter developed by indie devs Reikon Games. Set in the dystopian metropolis of Rengkok, you play as a masked protagonist controlled by a hacker (who calls you ‘puppy’), seeking vengeance against a corrupt corporate overlord.
The game features brutal, fast-paced combat with a variety of weapons and cybernetic abilities, all set to an amazing synthwave soundtrack. Seriously, this album is so good you’ll want to buy the physical vinyl record they released of it:
The typical inky black endless-night with crazy neon visuals, and an great tech-noir narrative, Ruiner is a massive recommendation by me. It’s also dead-cheap almost all of the time, on Steam and on places like Humble and Fanatical.
Now go get ‘em, Puppy.
That's the end!
I think this is all that caught my eye (okay, that's a lie, but this has really grown in word count and I'm sure 50% of you have exited the post in disgust at how rambling its ended up being), and as ever and always - I hope you've enjoyed what I've shared!
I'm always open to hearing what you think of these, any ideas or thoughts - they are just all kinda for you, no matter how you look at things. Some points have been made like:
- These are too long, can you just post each 'point' separately? - No, sorry, I just love writing them in this format. I know what you're saying (they seem to be getting longer and longer), but the format stays!
- You need a dedicated website for these! - In one regard I agree, and I am planning on it, but no matter what on that front, these will be posted first (who knows, maybe forever) on Lemmy - it's my contribution to the FOSS scene
...but if you've an idea or thoughts, do speak up!
Any mistakes, be they a forgotten link or poor formatting (or just plain wrong opinions of mine!) are entirely my own - this fact never changes :)
My Previous News Posts:
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #2
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #3
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #4
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #5
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #6
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #7
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #8
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #9
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #10
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #11
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #12
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #13
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #14
- Steam Deck / Gaming News #15