I'll just get it out in the open: Abiotic Factor is one of the greatest survival crafting games ever made, and by far my favorite. It's an easy declaration to make because, unlike most games I've put a score on, I've had a lot of time to think about this one.NEED TO KNOWWhat is it A survival crafting game set during a Black Mesa-like disaster in 1997.Release Date July 22,...

You'll remember the first time you encounter the coworker in Abiotic Factor, as a fully grown man crawls out of the darkness on all fours and starts begging for treats. My colleague was relieving herself when this entity first scurried into the bathroom and you can bet she jumped out of her skin. Despite his appearance, it's safe to assume that he isn't human, though I, too, have been known...

After wrapping things up in the Office Sector, it's time to head out to Manufacturing West and repair parts around the Synchrotron. You'll need to get an Optic Lens to make it beyond Abiotic Factor's second zone—it's one of three pieces required to open the path to Cascade Laboratories.Fortunately, it's not left up to RNG monster drops, but the trader offering a steady supply of crafting goodies drives a hard...

We've got all sorts of Wordle help waiting below, ranging from the sweet and simple to the more thoughtful. Use our tips to make the most out of every letter you uncover, and turn every new puzzle into a winner. There's a clue for the July 22 (1494) game around here as well, something to ponder over if you're not sure how to proceed. And, as always, the answer to...

In the latest episode of Nightdive Studios' podcast series, legendary FPS developer John Romero came on to talk about the industry, past and present. He ended with a surreal anecdote about the inception of the Deer Hunter series, and thus hunting sims as we know them."Back in the '90s, Wal-Mart had a ton of power in the industry, because tons of people went to Wal-Mart to buy their games⁠—physical games,...

Descenders Next is a sequel of sorts to Descenders, but it's pretty different. It's still about going down hills really fast, but it's no longer about doing so on pushbikes: instead we have snowboards and mountainboards. I played a little bit last year and loved it, so I'm pretty happy to see it's just shadowdropped on Steam after a delay from its initial April release date.Like its predecessor, Descenders Next...

EA has done what I was starting to worry was impossible: Make a rational, popular design decision around Battlefield 6 classes.Earlier this year, the studio caught heat for a series of dev blogs detailing how Battlefield 6's class system would carry over an unpopular Battlefield 2042 change that allowed all classes to use all weapons."We envision the future of Battlefield classes to be a series of interconnected systems and fundamentals...

I wouldn't blame you for feeling like the games industry is in a dire state. Microsoft's recent layoffs and studio closures are just the latest in a years-long, industry-wide bloodletting where successful game releases don't provide any protection against corporate downsizing.Things aren't great at the moment, but legendary shooter designer John Romero says that whatever the industry's future is, it'll be one that indie developers are shaping.In an episode of...

As reported by Game Developer, Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 developer The Chinese Room has bought its own independence from former owner Sumo Digital, but laid off an undisclosed number of employees in the process, bringing its total headcount to 55⁠.The management buyout was done with the help of venture capital funding, and comes after Sumo Digital announced a shift away from developing its own games to co-development, or...

The co-founder of Valve Corporation, Gabe Newell, recently gave an interview to YouTuber Zalkar Saliev. The ocean-going billionaire shares his thoughts on everything from his daily routine to startup culture, but one of the largest themes is AI: and the "funny situation" Newell foresees whereby people who can't code become "more effective developers of value" than those who've been coding for a decade.In a new short, Newell returns to AI...