Morrowind helped Bethesda to "stay in business" but Skyrim was the "holy sh*t" moment, says former boss Former Bethesda head of publishing Pete Hines believes that Skyrim was the game that allowed the developer true freedom going forward.

Bethesda's former head of publishing, Pete Hines, has gone on record to confirm what we all already knew: Skyrim was Bethesda's break into the mainstream.

Fable on track for 2026 release despite delay rumors, Playground confirms, and I for one am relieved Fable is still on track to release in fall 2026, according to the game's social media accounts, but fans remain skeptical about delays.

Fable's social media accounts have clapped back at rumors the game has been "internally delayed" and are doubling down on the current release schedule

I tried the new Valorant e-dating website, and I think I'm scarred for life Struggling to find your Valorant e-kitten? You'll be happy to hear that RRedating, the e-dating site inspired by Riot's FPS game, is back.

Looking for love? There's a new Valorant e-dating website filled to bursting with memelords and e-kittens. News Editor Lauren tried it out; we're not sure if she'll ever be the same.

#Valorant #GamingNews #FPSgames

www.pcgamesn.com/valorant/e-d...

AI has the potential to "change the experience" of gaming like the Xbox Kinect, says former Microsoft exec Former Microsoft VP of game publishing Ed Fries says that "virtually every" game team is using generative AI already, but it may not last.

Former Microsoft exec Ed Fries believes that gen AI could be as impactful as… Xbox Kinect?

Apex Legends reaches 20-month Steam high, proving Respawn's communication is paying off Respawn's battle royale soars, with the first time the Apex Legends player count has broken 300,000 concurrents on Steam since August 2024.

Apex Legends is trending upwards dramatically for the first time in almost two years, and I'm pleased to see such a positive sentiment around the community for a change.

#ApexLegends #BattleRoyaleGame #Multiplayer
www.pcgamesn.com/apex-legends...

'Single-player Tarkov' Road to Vostok's solo dev admits its huge popularity is "running away from me," but he has a plan At 140,000 sales, Road to Vostok has already secured its funding for the future, but solo developer Antti Leinonen is struggling to keep up.

Road to Vostok's success has already secured creator Antti Leinonen with the budget for its entire roadmap, but he's been overwhelmed by the response from players.

#RoadToVostok #FPSGame #SurvivalGame
www.pcgamesn.com/road-to-vost...

GTA 6 developer Rockstar Games says new data breach "has no impact" Rockstar Games confirms that "a limited amount" of information was accessed in a data breach, but says it will not affect the GTA 6 maker.

Rockstar Games confirms it was the target of a recent data breach, but that it only affected "a limited amount of non-material company information."

#GTA6 #RockstarGames #Hacking
www.pcgamesn.com/grand-theft-...

Fan World of Warcraft servers face shut down as Blizzard wins Turtle WoW case Activision Blizzard has won its court case against Turtle WoW, delivering a Cease and Desist order to the World of Warcraft server network.

The District Court of California has delivered a complete Cease & Desist against Turtle WoW, and the fan-run World of Warcraft private server network is now in the process of discussing a settlement with Blizzard.

#WorldOfWarcraft #TurtleWoW #MMORPG
www.pcgamesn.com/world-of-war...

If you love Diablo 4's Necromancer, the next Titan Quest 2 update is made for you The next Titan Quest 2 update introduces summons for all masteries, alongside a new talisman item type designed to amplify mage builds.

Diablo Necromancers and other ARPG summoners rejoice - the new Titan Quest 2 update introduces a range of minions for all of its masteries, with support for both passive and active playstyles.

#TitanQuest2 #ARPG #Summoner
www.pcgamesn.com/titan-quest-...

League of Legends lead Phroxzon says "frustrating" counters like Mel are part of the MOBA's "secret sauce" The League of Legends lead gameplay designer tackles questions around Mel balance, new champions, and loser's queue in a roundtable debate.

Riot's Matthew Leung-Harrison isn't afraid of having some particularly brutal matchups like Mel vs Seraphine in League of Legends: "We always try to push the limits of how acceptable the top end of that is"

#LeagueOfLegends #RiotGames #MOBA
www.pcgamesn.com/league-of-le...

Overwatch Season 2 is "modernizing" old heroes, and I'm ready for a Pharmercy revival Overwatch Season 2 will include reworked hero kits to modernize some older characters, and is bringing back the post-match voting cards.

Along with "modernizing" some of its oldest cast members, Overwatch Season 2 is also bringing back the old end-of-round accolades and voting screen, and updating the way map picks work.

#Overwatch #FPS #Multiplayer
www.pcgamesn.com/overwatch-2/...

Roblox Plus is replacing the current Premium subscription, and it sounds like a big upgrade The Roblox Plus subscription will take the place of Premium membership, and you'll lose your bonus Robux even if you stay on the new model.

Roblox Plus is replacing its existing Premium subscription - and it gives you discounts on items, unlimited private servers, and even the ability to transfer Robux with no fees.

#Roblox #RobloxGames #FreeToPlay
www.pcgamesn.com/roblox/plus-...

Crimson Desert turns a beloved bug into a feature and makes its bonus protagonists actually worth using New Crimson Desert patch notes add new Oongka and Damiane skills, update teleports for easier use, and bring back the focus dodge flight.

Crimson Desert continues its hot streak of updates, making Damiane and Oongka much more capable of actually getting things done around the world and bringing back the focus flight glitch as a feature.

#CrimsonDesert #PearlAbyss #ActionGame
www.pcgamesn.com/crimson-dese...

Former Escape From Tarkov dev says "no amount of millions of dollars can save a weak product" Boss of Nomion Games Dmitri Ogorodnikov tells PCGamesN how its upcoming FPS, Rush is Real, seeks to avoid being "just another shooter."

Former Tarkov dev Dmitri Ogorodnikov is now building new shooter Rush is Real, and he acknowledges that creating a new game that breaks through the heavy hitters is "a statistical anomaly."

#RushIsReal #EscapeFromTarkov #NewGame
www.pcgamesn.com/rush-is-real...

iBUYPOWER RDY Y70 R17 review - a fantastic RTX 5080 gaming PC Packing an AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D and Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080, this is an ideally-balanced high-end gaming PC that's competitively priced.

With its AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D and Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080, this iBUYPOWER gaming PC is ideally balanced with fantastic overall performance and a sensible price. I've put it through its paces in our full review.

#PCGaming #Hyte #iBUYPOWER #GamingPCs

Lost Ark's Matt Huston delivers a lonely final video roadmap, and it's breaking my heart Amazon's Matt Huston gives us a last Lost Ark roadmap video, following the departure of his two co-hosts Roxanne Sabo and Henry Stelter.

The new Lost Ark roadmap is looking pretty busy, but its unveiling was overshadowed by the absence of franchise lead Matt Huston's usual two co-hosts, who both departed amid a company restructure last month.

#LostArk #MMORPG #AmazonGames
www.pcgamesn.com/lost-ark/roa...

Mount and Blade 2 tests more dynamic diplomacy and seaborne raids in new beta A new Mount and Blade 2 Bannerlord beta has launched with comprehensive changes spanning both the base game and its War Sails expansion.

A massive new Mount and Blade 2 beta includes sweeping changes across both the base game and its War Sails DLC, and you can jump in now to test it

#MountAndBlade2 #StrategyGame #RPG
www.pcgamesn.com/mount-blade-...

Massive survival game Soulmask hits 1.0, and you can grab its Ancient Egypt expansion for free if you're fast To celebrate the launch of Soulmask 1.0, Campfire Studio is giving away its new DLC set in Ancient Egypt for free this month, yours to keep.

As if Soulmask wasn't already big enough, its Ancient Egyptian themed expansion is "as large as the base game" - and it's free to keep for anyone who buys the survival game in its first month of 1.0
#Soulmask #SurvivalGames #GamingDeals
www.pcgamesn.com/soulmask/1-0...

New Slay the Spire 2 patch notes help you survive the early game, and rein in Acrobatics The Slay the Spire 2 update adds new Neow relics and a healing Ironclad card, while nerfing Acrobatics and its notorious Living Fog enemy.

Slay the Spire 2's latest balance update starts shifting some of the "spikiness" away from Act One, and adds new starting relics to give you more ways to smooth out the early game

#SlayTheSpire2 #Roguelike #Deckbuilder
www.pcgamesn.com/slay-the-spi...

New Arc Raiders update sees yet another duplication glitch bite the dust Arc Raiders duplication glitches have been running riot in recent months, letting players easily max out their vaults with minimal effort.

Arc Raiders item duping has been a recurring issue, and Embark Studios has added another glitch to the pile in its latest hotfix.

#ArcRaiders #PCGaming #ExtractionShooters

Phantom Blade Zero isn't using AI: "Human artistry is the value itself" Phantom Blade Zero is easily my most-anticipated game of 2026, and the fact that it's taken a hard stance on gen AI makes me love it more.

Phantom Blade Zero doesn't include generative AI. "We firmly believe that human artistry is not merely a means for creating value."

#PhantomBladeZero #AInews #GamingNews

www.pcgamesn.com/phantom-blad...

Crimson Desert is fixing its biggest long-term problem, and that's just the start of a packed new roadmap A new preview of Crimson Desert updates includes enemy repopulation, boss rematches, and difficulty settings, plus new storage and mounts.

Crimson Desert continues to grow in response to player feedback, and Pearl Abyss has a huge list of improvements it's working on over the next few months

#CrimsonDesert #OpenWorldGame #ActionGame
www.pcgamesn.com/crimson-dese...

These two huge PC performance app downloads have been infected by a virus If you've downloaded CPU-Z or HWMonitor recently, you might want to double check the files you've used, as they could be infected.

Two of the most popular PC hardware information and monitoring apps, used by millions of PC gamers to check on their systems, have had their download site compromised.

#PCGaming

Stellaris is finally adding a major feature its director has wanted "for a long time" The Stellaris 4.4 update 'Pegasus' will let you join and leave wars in progress in the space 4X game, adding a new dynamic to diplomacy.

Stellaris 4.4 will finally let you jump into (or out of) ongoing wars, transforming its interstellar diplomacy

#Stellaris #Paradox #4XGame
www.pcgamesn.com/stellaris/jo...

I got murdered by a ladybug in Neverway, and that cemented it as the only game I care about this year In a world of Stardew Valley clones, Coldblood Inc's Neverway is one of the few life games that's actually doing things differently.

Neverway isn't just Lovecraftian Stardew Valley. It's a horror RPG that you owe it to yourself to play.

#Neverway #StardewValley #GamingNews

www.pcgamesn.com/neverway/dem...

Viral pirate survival game Windrose has a release date, and it's very, very soon After going viral on Steam, co-op pirate game Windrose finally has a release date, and we'll be hoisting the flag before the end of April.

Viral pirate game Windrose has an early access launch date, and thankfully we won't be waiting for much longer!

#Windrose #GamingNews #PirateGames

www.pcgamesn.com/windrose/ear...

Forget Stardew Valley's cozy vibes. New farming sim Crop keeps you "on edge," and I can't get enough of it The antithesis of Stardew Valley, indie farming game Crop traps you in an insular society amid pummeling rain and Lovecraftian undertones.

Your farmstead in Crop isn't an "opportunity," it's more of a prison - yet I can't wait to start my new life working the fields under an endless torrent of rain and fog

#Crop #IndieGame #FarmingGame
www.pcgamesn.com/crop/grimdar...

1000xResist dev's new game has you convince an AI that they're not human, and my brain is already scrambled in the best way Prove You're Human focuses on an AI product that has dared to call itself human, and a digital clone brought in to put her in her place.

In Prove You're Human, AI entity Mesa has dared to believe she's human, and your job as a digital double is to put her in her place.

#IndieGaming #ProveYoureHuman #AI

The FF14 patch 7.5 special site promises more of its best new double act, and a returning ally The new FF14 patch 7.5 special site is now live, with teasers for the new Trail to the Heavens MSQ and a giant factory in Garlemald.

The FF14 patch 7.5 special site offers new clues to where we're going next, and all the pieces are starting to fall into place

#FFXIV #FF14 #FinalFantasy14
www.pcgamesn.com/final-fantas...

Valorant gets its biggest VCT shake-up ever, and it could be the best thing to happen to it The Valorant Champions Tour format is returning to its roots in 2027, with VCT leagues making way for open qualifiers and more regional events.

Valorant esports is getting a huge makeover next year, removing the tier system, partner leagues, and introducing more regional tournaments that are reached through open qualifiers.

#Valorant #VCT #FPS