PCGamesN Sunday, October 26, 2025 1:08 PM Combining D&D dungeon crawling, sharp combat, and the unserious vibes of Undertale, I'm completely sold on Fix-a-Bug's new Steam RPG. |
PCGamesN Sunday, October 26, 2025 11:43 AM Path of Exile Keepers of the Flame is the ARPG's first attempt at a sequel league, so I asked Grinding Gear Games how PoE 3.27 came to be. |
PCGamesN Sunday, October 26, 2025 9:49 AM Tormented Souls 2 pays homage to the original Resident Evil, Alone in the Dark, and Silent Hill, and it's out now on Steam with a free demo. |
PCGamesN Sunday, October 26, 2025 11:43 AM Path of Exile Keepers of the Flame is a sequel to 2016's Breach, arrives with PoE 3.27, and lets you graft body parts to your character. |
Siliconera Sunday, October 26, 2025 3:00 PM
Manga about vampires often explore different elements about their lore, with some recent ones like Dracula's on the Night Shift dealing with one handling modern life and Lil' Miss Vampire Can't Suck Rightdealing with feeding habits. Kaho Ozaki's My Beloved Supper deals with a bit of both of those topics. We're presented with a vampire who needs blood to survive and is living in modern times, but also has some more humanistic desires that he's attempting to satiate.
Editor's Note: There will be some mild spoilers for the My Beloved Supper vampire manga below.
My Beloved Supper follows Yoru Hioka, a vampire staying at a boarding house run by Sonoe Hatomura. He's the only "adult" there, as most of the other tenants are college-aged students. As the owner, Sonoe regularly makes up home-cooked meals for everyone. Which… is the one thing Yoru wants more than anything. He wants to eat ordinary food and savor meals with people.
This leads into an interesting conundrum. While many of the elements of vampires aren't valid here, as Yoru's kind overcame some of the things that held them back or exposed them like sunlight, mirrors, and crosses, he still needs to drink humans' blood to survive. As the first chapter even shows, he needed to engage in lots of experimentation and research to even determine how he could even try ordinary food. The main bit of lore here is that he needs to first drink his fill of blood, then he could immediately follow that up with real food like Sonoe's oyakodon or beef stew as a chaser.
This leads to fascinating looks at what Yoru's life is like to pursue that dream. Sonoe is clearly fond of him, and he cares for the elderly lady and adores her food too. While he does go to a regular office job, the way he gets by is by taking on tasks for Chief Detective Kagami Saneatsu. The officer is aware of who and what Yoru is. When he needs to feed as usual or is tempted by one of Sonoe's meals, he'll get in touch. Saneatsu will then send him to "take care of" a criminal that is 100% guilty and a murderer, but the department can't properly get enough evidence to get. Yoru gets his blood, then gets to enjoy a proper meal.
The execution is fascinating, and Kaho Ozaki does a fantastic job of telling the tale. The art is wonderful when it comes to both major character designs and the (not-actually-human-being) meals Yoru gets to eat. The concept also hints at his backstory and relationships with people at the boarding house in fascinating ways.
In fact, the only downside is that My Beloved Supper is such a short vampire manga. I would have loved more chapters exploring Yoru and Sonoe's relationship. As-is, it's only teased. Likewise, I'd have appreciated more insights into his interactions with certain other residents of the boarding house and Saneatsu. It's like the surface is just being scratched, then it's over. It's a very slim meal with no dessert.
Still, what is here in My Beloved Supper is very interesting, and I appreciate the direction this vampire manga takes. I loved watching Yoru savor food, and the hints at why the idea and certain meals meant to much to him. Seeing bits of his personality come through as he does what's necessary to get to have some cake or spend time with people is really tasty. I just wish there was more of it.
The My Beloved Supper manga is available via Yen Press now.
The post My Beloved Supper Manga Stars an Unconventional Vampire appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Sunday, October 26, 2025 3:00 PM
Ever since Unpacking released, we've seen a surge in cozy games about interior decorating and arranging. This also meant branching off into titles that feel more about calmly arranging places so they look nice and like places we'd want to photograph and visit, such as MakeRoom. Might and Delight's Twinkleby fits comfortably in that space too, given we're basically setting up what look like dollhouses for little characters due to the art direction, though it's a little slower and less robust at launch than other titles.
The concept behind Twinkleby is rather simple. We head into a sky that is filled with an archipelago of islands hidden among the clouds. Initially, there's not much there. We get some initial furniture from Molligan's Antiques and are set to a small island with a tiny, one-room house on it. However, after putting that initial furniture into it, a Neighbor character flies in, docks, and makes it their home. After singing a song with no lyrics to us briefly, we end up with enough points to unlock a new area. And so we go from island to island, decorating homes to make them inviting for more neighbors so you can keep doing this.
Twinkleby is a rather simple game without any major demands or challenges. When you come to a new island, you'll be tasked with making homes attractive. If you do, new characters will stop by and move in. If you don't like who showed up, you can kick them out and hope someone different shows up in a little while to take their place. You can alter the weather and seasons and see different times of day. There are no task lists. You place pieces in ways you find pleasing, then wait. Don't like arrangements of anything, including houses? Pick them up and drop them into oblivion to make them go back into your inventory.
It's very freeing. However, it also does require quite a time investment due to how slowly things can move. You need Stellars to purchase furniture, which are acquired by getting characters to move in or by grabbing them like the Starbits that drop in Super Mario Galaxy. Sometimes chests can fall from the sky with items you can use. Items that have fallen, like the aforementioned Stellars, do seem to just hover in the sky if you don't immediately grab them. So it isn't like you need to constantly be on the alert. You can focus on decorating instead, then go look and see what might have fallen while you did.
There are just two downsides to it all. The first is that I would have liked a wider array of options for decorating. There's an adequate lineup, but I did find I was reusing a lot of bed and accessory options. It would have liked more available. Especially since the prices are pretty reasonable in Molligan's Antiques. Might and Delight did add a Halloween 2025 patch that included some event items, "twinkly" versions of neighbors that are like the equivalent of shiny Pokemon, and house options. So this is an issue that could be fixed over time.
But the thing I'm not sure might be fixed is the pacing problem. Twinkleby is incredibly relaxed. But I've found that once I got to the latter parts of the game, I noticed it would take me less time to decorate. Which would mean I'd spend at least 10-15 minutes just waiting with the game open for someone to move in or for enough Stellars to accumulate so I could buy more items or move on to new objectives.
I will say that it It is nice that we can access parallel islands to create new variations. So if someone is really getting into Twinkleby, you don't need to destroy what you've already created to do more decorating. More opportunities come up once you finish with spots.
Twinkleby is a very low-stakes sort of decorating game that moves it its own leisurely pace. You set up houses. You watch the little folks wander around and use the objects inside. They sing for you when you do a good job and they're happy. I do wish there was a little more to it, in terms of challenge and available items. It is charming enough, if you feel you need another decorating sim on your slate.
Twinkleby is available on PCs.
The post Review: Twinkleby Feels Like Decorating Dollhouses appeared first on Siliconera. |
Destructoid Sunday, October 26, 2025 2:57 PM
The post-apocalyptic lands in Misery have plenty of artifacts for you to find and equip, and all of them have mysterious effects.
Artifacts in Misery act as magical items with unique effects. This includes stat boosts and other valuable attributes that can help you survive the hazards and dangers of the wastelands. This guide will help you figure out all the artifacts and their in-game effects, along with how you can find them.
All artifacts in Misery
The table below has information about every artifact and how they work in Misery.
How to find artifacts in Misery
It's pretty hard to find artifacts, but you can make your life easier by having a Busel Detector. The Busel Detector's arrow will oscillate when you're close to an artifact in any location. You can obtain the Busel Detector from high-tiered loot areas.
Alternatively, you craft the item with the correct resources to add to your inventory. You'll need to equip it to turn the detector active and help you find all the artifacts.
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Destructoid Sunday, October 26, 2025 2:36 PM
The Outer Worlds 2 very much sticks to the established Obsidian formula and follows a strong trend in contemporary RPGs that revolves around finding and recruiting a bunch of companions.
There are a handful of them you can encounter and subsequently add to your roster, taking them along on adventures and fulfilling their unique quests that grant one-of-a-kind rewards. So, here are all The Outer Worlds 2 companions and how you can recruit them.
Table of contents
The Outer Worlds 2 companion list, locations, and ways to recruit them
Niles
Niles is one of the first two companions and is available right off the bat. As soon as you start the game up, you'll have a chance to meet, talk, and play alongside him, and there is no special circumstance or quest you have to do to get him into your roster.
Niles, unlike most other companions, has an ability and a bonus perk, but can still be upgraded with six more perks when you reach levels 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30, like all the rest.
V.A.L.E.R.I.E. (VAL)
Like Niles, VAL is available from the very start of the game and does not have to be unlocked.
VAL only has an ability and no additional perks.
Companion traits only affect you if you have the related companion in your party, and you cannot have more than two companions active at a time.
Inez
Inez is the first unlockable companion in the game and is available rather early, during the initial hours of your playthrough. She is an Auntie's Choice corporate soldier who carries a "graft" on her arm, a mark of her time as a member of Auntie's elite squad that attempted to augment humans with various animal parts.
Her strongest point is her ability to improve your overall healing, boosting your Inhaler, adding extra charges to it, and throwing healing mists to recover your HP.
Finding her is super easy, as you'll only have to follow the main quest in Fairfield on the moon Eden. The best way to approach this is to take up Milverstreet's offer in Fairfield and subsequently bring Inez back to him, convincing him to let her fix her graft. You'll get a companion quest afterward that'll improve Inez's overall abilities.
Here's what she can do:
With level-up perks, Inez can become a healing powerhouse, making her a vital member of any party. Just make sure you don't go around murdering Auntie's Choice folk in front of her.
Marisol
Marisol is a lethal, unpredictable, and downright scary and mysterious woman who locks herself inside a room in the Zyranium Manufactory VII, located on Golden Ridge, moon of Dorado. This is the second area of the game, and a big one at that. Playing through it, you'll be granted a quest regarding the Manufactory, which will lead you to Marisol.
Merely complete the quest line, making sure you help Marisol uncover the truth about what had transpired at the Manufactory, then speak to her and allow her to join your party.
Here's what she can do:
Aza
Aza, like Marisol, is located on the Golden Ridge and is much easier to recruit than her counterpart. She is located on the top floor of the Decommissioned Autonomous Extractorium, itself sitting south of the N-Ray Range. The Extractorium is packed with Glorious Dawn cultists, which you will have to fight or sneak by to reach Aza, who is locked in a room above the main chamber.
After coming up to her, simply exhaust her dialogue, making sure you don't insult her, and try to offer her help. Aza will want to return to the N-Ray Range to find those who betrayed her; the outcome of this will be different if you've approached her after beating everyone inside. Accept her offer anyway, and she'll be added to your squad.
Aza is quick, nimble, and lethal, preferring melee encounters, flanking, and sneaking up on enemies.
These are her ability and traits:
Tristan
An Arbiter of the Protectorate and a stern personality through and through, Tristan is found in the most unlikely scenario and location for one of his number: the Free Market Station. This derelict ship hosts a lot of content, among them Tristan Rao himself, who is found bickering in a bar on the station.
Walking up to him and the bartender will put you in a dialogue, where you should offer your assistance and assurance to the bartender. This will start a quest, leading you to Golden Ridge, where you will have to help Tristan investigate the site of a horrible attack. After completing the assignment, head back to Free Market Station, and Tristan will offer himself up to be recruited.
His skills are:
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Destructoid Sunday, October 26, 2025 2:18 PM
The simplicity of men seems to be such a captivating thought that merely giving people the chance to play as a beer-chugging, chain-smoking dad is enough to spawn a phenomenon. And when you make that co-op and add some mundane tasks to the mix, you get RV There Yet.
Which is now, unsurprisingly, one of the most played games on Steam, having crossed over 100,000 concurrent players as of this article (thanks SteamDB). It's a worldwide comedic fest, allowing up to four players to speak to the middle-aged dad within them and go around driving a semi-functional RV, getting bitten by snakes, cracking open a cold one (or few, probably many), and solving issues that unerringly crop up every time you want to have some fun.
But problem-solving is part of the dad routine. A flat tire, a truck stuck in a pit, venom coursing through your veins, the procurement of alcohol, a cabin that needs fixing. All of these, and many other issues, come as part of the dad package, and really shine through RV There Yet and its laidback, colorful, and entirely unserious art style.
The game doesn't even have much of a gameplay loop. There's no ultimate goal, at least not an apparent one, because taking in the moment and pulling a drag from last night's stogie smoldering in the tray is more than enough. You're there with your pals, out in the wilderness, trying to make the most of life, because life, as we all know, is all about the little things.
Sure, I didn't have as much fun in it as when I was building cabins and shelters in Sons of the Forest, but it did let me communicate with that part of any man that just wants to hang with his friends watching a big boulder stumble down a hill, and unanimously exclaiming: "Hell yeah!," when it splashes into the river below.
It's that kind of game, really, and no wonder it's attracted so many people thus far.
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Destructoid Sunday, October 26, 2025 2:15 PM
The Max 88 Base Hero Upgrade SBC is now live in FC 26, and you can secure a brand new Hero item for your Ultimate Team squad.
While similar in nature to past SBCs, the Max 88 Base Hero Upgrade SBC offers better rewards. EA Sports has included the 88-rated Hero items into the reward pool for the first time. Let's look at all the possible cards that you can obtain before investing your hard-earned fodder towards completing the challenge.
Complete list of FC 26 Max 88 Base Hero Upgrade SBC
The Max 88 Base Hero Upgrade SBC includes Base Hero cards rated up to an overall of 88. The list starts from cards rated 85, which are essentially items that you'll want to avoid.
Several cards in the reward pool aren't worth the price of completing the challenge. Only attempt the SBC if you have disposable fodder available in your card, and you're willing to take the risk.
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Destructoid Sunday, October 26, 2025 2:13 PM
The Pending Connection Failure error can be a frustrating experience for RV There Yet players if you're playing with your friends.
Typically, the indie title is best played with friends, with one of you acting as the host. If you or any of your friends see the Pending Connection Failure error, you will be disconnected immediately. Let's look at how you can avoid the problem in the first place.
RV There Yet Pending Connection Failure error fix
The Pending Connection Failure error typically pops up when you're at a party and playing with your buddies. The error will usually occur when you can't connect to the servers, but it can also appear if the host has lost their connection.
Typically, one of your party members will have to host a game that you can join. RV There Yet supports parties of up to four players. If the host loses connection with the server, the session will end for all of you. In return, you'll get the Pending Connection Failure error pop-up on all of your screens.
The best way to avoid the problem is to ensure that neither you nor the game host loses their connection. I haven't found a viable way to rejoin the servers once you get this error. The only alternative is to start a fresh round and invite your friends to play.
If you're repeatedly getting this error while starting a fresh round, chances are that your game is missing certain key files. Open the game's Properties menu in the Steam Library, then run an integrity check. This will automatically download any missing file that's vital for RV There Yet to run properly. Hopefully, you won't see any false cases of Pending Connection Failure once you have fixed the missing files.
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Destructoid Sunday, October 26, 2025 1:21 PM
The Rise from the Grave Evolution has been released ahead of Halloween in FC 26, and it could be your best option for improving one of your defenders.
This specific evolution targets the LB position and costs 30,000 coins to unlock. Since your selected item will get plenty of stat boosts, new roles and playstyles, it's essential to make the best choice possible.
Table of contents
FC 26 Rise from the Grave Evolution requirements
Here are the requirements of Rise from the Grave in FC 26.
FC 26 Rise from the Grave Evolution upgrades
The evolution has four levels of upgrades, and there are certain conditions to fulfil.
Level 1 upgrades
Level 2 upgrades
Level 3 upgrades
Level 4 upgrades
Level 1 upgrade requirements
Level 2 upgrade requirements
Level 3 upgrade requirements
Level 4 upgrade requirements
Best players to use in Rise from the Grave Evolution
Here are some of my best recommendations for inclusion in the evolution.
While the upgrades are minor, you will be able to include these cards in future evolutions to create a chain and upgrade their stats further.
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Destructoid Sunday, October 26, 2025 12:56 PM
I'm ashamed to say I felt safest in the tallest part of the Tormented Souls 2 Convent, where rusty cages and bird feces cover every inch of the once sacred and glorious bell tower.
Unlike other Tormented Souls 2 puzzles that have you searching high and low for key items and backtracking until you know the map like the back of your hand, the bell tower puzzle solution thankfully takes place in the same room—and the reward is an absolute game-changer. Why nuns have a Shotgun lying around is unfathomable. This weapon is a must-have, yet it's encased in glass that cannot be broken by hand, and has received better treatment than the Convent's Bibles. So what are the singers, and how do we make them sing?
Tormented Souls 2 bell tower puzzle solution
We love the occasional puzzle where you don't have to go anywhere. All you need to do is ring the bells outlined by the inscription on the Shotgun case. The order to ring the bells is as follows:
With a new weapon in hand and a bell tower to descend, you best keep your eyes on the stairwell as monsters are heading your way. There's never been a better time to test out that new friend of yours.
How to get the Double-barrel Shotgun
You can pick the Shotgun up relatively early on in your playthrough, but you won't get the Metal Pipe until your first encounter with the Other Side. To get here, you must first find the Cursed Book in the Crypts via the Prison and deliver it to Joseph. This lets you access the Torture Museum, where you must light the candles on the mirror on the basement level, near a torture table that has a corpse and rusty wheel on it (this is relevant for the Double-barrel Shotgun).
Light the candles surrounding the mirror with Caroline's Lighter: top left, bottom left, bottom right, and light the two candles above the bottom right candle. The Other Side is now open. Venture inside and turn the wheel at the torture table that now has a scarecrow atop. The scarecrow snaps, letting you return to the real world, where the corpse is split in half, offering the Metal Pipe for you to combine with the Shotgun.
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Destructoid Sunday, October 26, 2025 12:33 PM
I'm not one to get engrossed in a virtual world unless the narrative and worldbuilding are extremely captivating. While I have my go-tos when it comes to indie horror, there's one dev in particular that always gets me excited.
From the horrifying IT STEALS and the hilarious Lethal Company, Zeekerss has gone and done it again—and this time I'm all in. Released on Oct. 25, Welcome To The Dark Place is a text-based choose-your-own-adventure horror game. After falling from the Cloud following what I can only assume to be a devastating car crash, Welcome To The Dark Place literally throws you into the darkness, where you must get on a distant train that may never reach its destination.
I've welcomed the Dark Place as if it's my own internal struggle. The intro is effortlessly cool, like I'm looking directly into Zeekerss' mind. It wasn't until I landed repeatedly in the Dark Place that I started to believe something could change for me personally, that there is a way out, even though the game makes me repeatedly question whether escape is truly possible. At times, the main menu communicates as if some omniscient force is testing my knowledge or mocking my futile attempts.
Welcome To The Dark Place is proof that Einstein's Theory of Insanity isn't true, that doing the same thing over and over again isn't madness, for trial and error makes this indie horror work so damn well. It's got to the point where I'm recording my gameplay, taking notes, and making a map of the Dark Place just to see which gaps need filling. The world is like a bestiary of creepypastas, where the darkness consumes the sanity of most caught brazenly traversing the forest until eventually losing sight of why they arrived, becoming just another shape against the sea of trees.
I honestly don't know how Zeekerss does it, but there are moments of genuine terror that penetrate my very soul and make me crave more like some twisted mind desperate for feeling. The effective use of spatial audio keeps me on edge, and the occasional but extremely creepy pixelated visuals of a door opening or when I plunge into the stressful Undergoing makes me hold my breath like submerging into water. You'd be surprised how creepy Welcome To The Dark Place actually is, and it's all because it has Zeekerss' signature pixelated aesthetic that worms its way into your mind.
Lovecraftian both its narrative and design, my imagination runs wild to fill the black screen with images and color, just to try and make sense of this surreal and unforgiving world. The Dark Place feels equally full of life, hopelessness, and dread, where wandering around the seemingly infinite forest pulls you in with an investigative and curious eye.
Like listening to a Stephen King audiobook, the sound design makes me panic, squirm, and talk aloud as if I, too, fell into the Dark Place. There are rules to follow, yet curiosity had me often ignoring them—after all, over 100 endings await. Certain moments left me in awe, in disbelief that I could be this captivated by a black screen and directions. It's addicting to go back in and try something new, or revisit a location to pick up whatever dignity I had left behind from failed attempts—yeah, there might be something wrong with me.
It's consuming my every thought like I'm transported back to SOMA, Funeralopolis, Who's Lila?, and SIGNALIS. I'm thankful Zeekerss dropped this passion project after eight years of development, and I would have gladly paid money because I'm having too much fun in this bizarre, terrifying world, and I know Welcome To The Dark Place will be one of those games I mourn when it's all over.
The post Forget Balatro and CloverPit—I've found my new obsession and it's spookily awesome appeared first on Destructoid. |
