Mar 29, 10:00

PCGamesN Sunday, March 29, 2026 8:13 AM Minecraft's switch to smaller game drops doesn't rule out "more transformative updates"       Minecraft product manager Anna Lundgren says its new game drops model is "more sustainable," but Mojang is still open to bigger updates.

PCGamesN Sunday, March 29, 2026 7:07 AM New Crimson Desert update makes everything feel better and adds five magnificent mounts       Crimson Desert patch notes 1.01.00 are here, with improved movement controls, smoother flight, reduced stamina costs, and a better minimap.

PCGamesN Sunday, March 29, 2026 4:00 AM The Medium is just $3 in this new Humble Bundle, so don't miss your chance to grab this bargain       With an engaging story and intriguing mechanics, The Medium is a game that will delight many horror fans, and this Humble Bundle lets you get it

Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Sunday, March 29, 2026 6:00 AM The Sunday Papers       Sundays are for deciding to re-watch The Sopranos. Specifically that episode in which Tony gets a bad tummy and then talks to a fish. You wonder what you might fever dream of, if you too were to go and eat at an Indian restaurant, then have enough room for a snack at Artie Bucco's fine Italian eatery? Would you too dream of surreal wandering down a boardwalk? Would you instead dream something different? Would you dream of a platypus sitting in a high-rise apartment, looking up from the newspaper as he reminds a house guest not to trip over a potted cactus when they exit his bathroom? Would that be the-Oh. Oh no. It's happening again. The person who's emerged from the bathroom, tripping over the plant on the way, is bald and reeks of alternative comedy. Ready the words and prepare to fire. Read more

Siliconera Sunday, March 29, 2026 9:00 AM Review: Etrange Overlord's Story Is Its Strongest Element        I don't know if you've been keeping up with anime, manga, and light novels lately, but villainess and isekai series are big. Huge. Woman dies. Reincarnates as a villainess. Turns out she's actually not bad and happens to be one of the nicest people ever, but ends up billed as a "villainess" for reasons. It's a whole thing. With NIS America, Gemdrops, Superniche, and Broccoli's Etrange Overlord, we're seeing that sentiment carry over to a game. While the Musou-style beat'em up element isn't all that exciting, the ambiance and story is pretty fun. Etrange von Rosenburg is a noblewoman engaged to the prince of Edelstein. (Though royalty, he's apparently not important enough to get a name.) Instead of a happily ever after, her tale begins with her in a guillotine and him at the side ordering her execution because she "allegedly" attempted to have him killed. She awakes in hell, even though she's innocent, with three demons trying to torture her. Except Etrange is smart and uses her wits, money, and apparent skill with dark magic to beat them. Fortunately, this is the sort of scenario where defeat means friendship and not death! Because of her kindness and generally upstanding personality, said demons Cackie, Chuckie, and Chortie become her new minions and, with a retinue of her former followers and newfound admirers, she gradually begins to take over hell as its newest overlord. Meanwhile, we get occasional glimpses into what's actually happening in the kingdom with those left behind and the real villains.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-vzOTp_BsY I adored Etrange Overlord's story and characters. Folks at Gemdrops, Superniche, and Broccoli clearly looked into this genre of shojo stories, as they nailed the concept, characterizations, and vibe. It's over the top, but in an affectionate and silly way that doesn't actually mock the genre or people who enjoy it. Etrange is a fantastic, strong, genuinely kind heroine! Some of her allies, though a bit more subdued in terms of personality and clever lines, are equally entertaining and memorable. The actual villainess is hilarious in a dastardly way. The localization's well done. It doesn't involve any major twists or big drama, but it reminds me of similar villainess series like Tearmoon Empire and My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom.  That isn't the only fun element to Etrange Overlord. Remember Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure? It was the NIS America comedic RPG with songs littered throughout. Well, Etrange Overlord is exactly like that. There are lots of music numbers with really wonderful singers involved. Since this is a comedy, they're just as over-the-top as the adventure and delightfully silly. It's very campy in the best way! Unfortunately, the combat and territory management elements of Etrange Overlord aren't as captivating. You know how Koei Tecmo and Omega Force's Musou action-RPGs involve a lot of depth and strategy when it comes to swapping characters, handling situations, and traversing the massive maps? None of that happens here. Characters' standard attack range and combos tends to fall into the category of fine or finicky, sometimes not having the right range or scope to properly hit enemies. For example, I found Cat-Smith, Cackie, Chuckie, and Erit to be pretty adequate and accurate early allies, but Etrange, Chortie, Scwatrz, and Sweetia's attack range and style sometimes made it difficult to pin down opponents, even if everyone's special attacks seemed pretty helpful. Screenshots by Siliconera Especially since the points of stages can get rather repetitive and usually involve beating up X amount of characters or a boss to progress. (Okay, sometimes you'll also have to do something like get key items, survive, or keep an NPC running around with no regard for their life safe too.) It got to a point at which getting through things as quickly as possible is what mattered at most, so when I could I'd default to someone who would make that possible. Especially since stages are small and aren't all that varied, and using someone with decent range to sweep through foes is a huge positive. Taking advantage of the RPG crafting staple, which is used here to get more powerful equipment or make food to offer your team of four characters in the fight buffs, helped with that too. Mainly for equipment, however. Since I didn't find the enemies all that challenging, the meals didn't matter all that much to me. Especially since there is the lane system. To fit in with the music theme, this looks like the staff used on sheet music. These constantly runs through the area circling about, with power-ups, items that let you perform special attacks, and occasionally platforms or helpful goods on them. Depending on the area and layout, there may be one or multiple ones around. You can also use Land Selection at the start of a stage to set what you'd like to see in each lane, enabling things like attack buffs, healing items, and special support. These need to be invested in with items you've found via exploring when wandering the world, going through stages, using the Dispatch feature to send allies to different areas of hell you've visited to get new items, or dealing with revolts in past places via Recapture. Though honestly, while I appreciated the "management" element that stemmed from dealing with past areas and the extra materials, it felt like a means of padding out a pretty short game with even more of the same, repetitive fights. Etrange Overlord is packed with personality, with a story and songs that show love for the shojo trope where the villainess is actually the good guy. Etrange herself is a standout, and it's silly and over-the-top without being ridiculous. But as delightful and refreshing as the narrative and soundtrack can be, the battles get boring fast. It's incredibly repetitive! But at least those stages tend to be short, so you can race through them and get back to the campy story.  Etrange Overlord is available for the Switch, PS4, PS5, and PC.  The post Review: Etrange Overlord's Story Is Its Strongest Element  appeared first on Siliconera.

Destructoid Sunday, March 29, 2026 4:57 AM How to get the Acria Sword in Crimson Desert       The Acria Sword is one of the hardest weapons to find and add to your arsenal in Crimson Desert, as there are two puzzles to be solved. That's after you manage to discover its hidden location, which is a test in itself. Let's find out how to get the Acria Sword after solving the puzzles. Table of contents Acria Sword location in Crimson Desert How to solve the Strongbox Puzzles in Crimson Desert How to find the Acria Sword in Crimson Desert Acria Sword location in Crimson Desert Image via Pearly Abyss The Acria Sword is located in the Stellen Manor, which is found in the north of Hernand Town. To find the manor, go past the Hook Rapids and the Hills of No Return. You'll find a river; follow it, and the manor will be at the end of the path. Image via Pearl Abyss Go to the northern side of the manor and enter through the window. You'll now be in the dining room, and the Strongbox Puzzle will be to your right. How to solve the Strongbox Puzzles in Crimson Desert The Strongbox features five keys, and you have to press them in the correct sequence to unlock it. The buttons are numbered 1,2,3,4,5 (beginning with the one on the left). Image via Pearl Abyss Key 1: The first one from the left. Key 3:This is the second one to press. Key 4: This is the third button to press. Key 2: This is the fourth button to press. Key 1: Return to the first button and press it once again. Key 3: This is the sixth button to press. Key 4: This is the last button to activate. This will open the Stronbox, and you'll find the Stellen Manor Closet key inside. How to find the Acria Sword in Crimson Desert Image via Pearl Abyss Once you have the closet key, go to the main area and take the stairs to the master bedroom on the second floor. There's a handrobe inside; you'll find a handwheel behind its panels. Grab the handwheel and press the E button to lower the floor, and this will reveal a secret table. Jump on the table, pick up the book, and get down. You'll now need to place the book in the right spot. You'll find a bookshelf on the ground floor. Inspect it, and you'll find an empty slot where the book has to be kept. The bookshelf will now open, and there's a hidden door in the back. Image via Pearl Abyss Go through the door to enter the storage room. Move behind the barrels, and you'll find the cellar. The Acria Sword is in this cellar on the lower shelf that you'll find at the end of the room. The post How to get the Acria Sword in Crimson Desert appeared first on Destructoid.

Destructoid Sunday, March 29, 2026 3:36 AM Crimson Desert 1.01.00 patch notes: All major changes       Patch 1.01.00 is now live in Crimson Desert on PC (more platforms coming soon), and there are plenty of major changes in the current update. We now have five new Legendary animal mounts to collect as permanent additions. But that's not all, so let's look at the major additions. Table of contents Complete Crimson Desert 1.01.00 patch notes Content Controls & Combat Quests UI Fixes & Improvements Graphics & Settings Performance, Stability, Gameplay Localization Others Other Fixes Complete Crimson Desert 1.01.00 patch notes Before we dive into the full patch notes, let's first look at the highlights. Five new Legendary animal mounts have been added permanently to the roster. Major tweaks to the core mechanics and fixes to features that might not have been working as intended. Crimes no longer reduce Faction Contribution level as long as you remain undetected in your activities. New Refinement Coin item that raises your gear to Stage 4 without any additional material. Make Now button to immediately craft already-learnt recipes. https://twitter.com/CrimsonDesert_/status/2038091035147170180 Here's the complete list of changes in the new patch. Content Added 5 new mounts that can be obtained and summoned after completing certain conditions. (To prevent spoilers, mounts are listed in the dropdown menu below.)Mounts: Added chests containing various materials throughout Pywel. Added the "Refinement Token" item. With this item, equipment can be tempered up to Stage 4 without consuming any additional materials. Refinement Tokens can be obtained from certain main and faction quests. Added a "Make Now" function which allows food and items to be cooked/crafted immediately in the Cooking/Crafting menu once a recipe is selected, without having to separately select ingredients. Added a "Store all selected items" function to move all items from the inventory to your private storage. (Keyboard: Shift+RMB/ PS5: □ / Xbox: X) Moved the the private storage chest in Howling Hill Camp, previously located behind Karl, to inside Kliff's tent. Added wholesale grocer shop NPCs to regional farms in Pywel, and accordingly adjusted the quantity of certain Knowledge entries. Improved shop item knowledge acquisition so that knowledge for all items sold in shops can now be learned at once, with the learning time set to 3 seconds. Improved locked doors so that an interaction button is displayed, allowing players to choose whether to use a key to open the door. Improved pets so that they do not stray excessively far away during combat. Fixed an issue where pets in certain situations were unable to loot during combat. Improved wells so that 5 units of water can be obtained at a time. Improved the Mining Knuckledrill so that items obtained from drilling can be collected immediately. Improved the Demenissian Chainsaw item so that lumber from felled trees can be collected immediately. Changed the crafting materials for the Kuku Watcher Pack. Improved Abyss Cells dropped from destroying disappearing rocks so that they can now be placed into the Kuku Pot. Improved the Knowledge Helm so that all obtainable knowledge visible on the screen can be acquired at once. Slightly increased the treasure detection range of the Pirate King Hat. Additional inventory expansion items obtained after reaching the maximum inventory expansion limit (240 slots) will now be granted as boxes containing crafting materials and other items. Made the Abyss more convenient to play. Reduced the chance of pickpockets running into houses while fleeing. Increased the maximum camera distance in Photo Mode, added a field of view adjustment feature, and a camera shutter sound effect. As part of ongoing visual improvements, replaced select 2D visual assets to better align with the game's art direction. Fixed an issue where resting or waiting at beds, campfires, and similar objects were unavailable. Fixed an issue where Damiane and Oongka would become invisible under certain circumstances. Fixed an issue where money deposited in the bank could disappear when interest was refreshed under certain circumstances. Changed sealable items so that when they become lost, sealable items will become sealed and items that cannot be sealed are registered as lost items. Improved the system so that leaving out a sealable item and then saving and reloading the game triggers either a sealed or lost item notification. Changed criminal acts to not decrease Contribution before an NPC witnesses the act. Changed the functionality of an item. (To prevent spoilers, the changes are listed in the dropdown menu below.): Controls & Combat Improved movement controls for both the player character and horse. Movement speed increases by holding down the running key. Movement speed increases by tapping the running key once. Movement speed for the player character and horse will no longer decrease even if the running key is not held continuously. (Please note that maintaining the full sprint state still requires periodic input of the sprint button.) Improved the usability of Flight. Reduced Flight's stamina consumption. Fixed the issue where the character briefly stops for a moment before moving with Flight. Improved Flight so that equipped equipment can be used while flying. Improved an issue where Flight would not activate in certain situations. Changed the mechanics of Aerial Stab. Because there was an unintended issue that allowed the skill to be used repeatedly in midair, Aerial Stab was adjusted so that it can still be used as a fun movement mechanic without disrupting overall game balance. Improved the animation for Aerial Stab. Changed Aerial Stab so that the stamina required for the skill increases with each consecutive use. Fixed an issue where Aerial Stab would not activate when Kliff had a different main weapon other than a one-handed sword equipped. The stamina requirements for Aerial Maneuver and Aerial Swing have been reduced. Improved the interaction range to make interacting with NPCs more convenient. Improved the player character's turning responsiveness during short-distance movements. [Keyboard/Mouse] Fixed an issue where the Blinding Flash and Spinning Slash skills would be interrupted when continuously being inputted under certain conditions. [Keyboard/Mouse] Improved so that items can be sold by double-clicking them in shops. Added weak point indicator effects for each element. Adjusted certain bosses and enemies so they do not attack immediately after the player character dies and revives. Fixed an issue where Meteor Kick could be cast in midair even when there was no reachable ground. Added an aim key guide for tool-type items. Changed weapons so that they can now be drawn using the unsheathe weapon key, and improved the UI so that this key guide is displayed during combat. Fixed an issue where the stun gauge would sometimes reset instantly when a boss using a mount fell off it. Changed Small and Medium Stoneback Crabs to fall backwards when hit by the Force Palm ability. [Keyboard/Mouse] Improved inventory usability as follows: Changed selecting and using items from mouse hover to mouse click. Left-click to select items in the inventory. Right-click or double-click to use items. Reduced Stamina consumption while sprinting and using Crow Wings. Fixed an issue where the knockback range of Focused Repulsion was abnormally large. Made an adjustment so that the wheels of Desert Marauder Rusten can no longer be destroyed from beyond a certain distance. Fixed an issue where Roll and Evade could not be performed while using focus skills. [Keyboard/Mouse] Added a "Precise Control" feature for Axiom Force. Holding Q or the mouse back button while moving the mouse now allows objects to be moved more precisely. Improved objects so that they are easier to interact with. Improved the UI to display a guide message when attempting to draw a weapon in locations or states where weapons cannot be drawn. Quests Improved the transition into the liberation sequence so it feels less abrupt while liberating a location. Fixed an issue in the Prologue quest "New Journey" where progression could be blocked if the player throws an object at Sebastian to attack him. Fixed an issue in the Chapter 2 quest "Missing Companion" where the delivery target sometimes disappeared during the quest. Fixed an issue in the Chapter 3 quest "Dance with the Devil" where destroying the totems would occasionally not reduce the totem count. Added additional guide prompts where guidance was previously lacking. UI Fixes & Improvements Added a feature that allows the minimap to be fixed with North (N) at the top. Added information in the Skills menu showing stat increases for the next skill level. Added icons on the minimap to indicate the locations of keys and anvils. Improved the Notifications menu to allow checking quest/challenges progress (accepted, completed, updated), reward information, and time details. The maximum number of stored notifications has also been increased to 2,000. Added an icon to the Journal menu to indicate new quests. Improved the minimap so that faction facilities are displayed when that particular faction's liberation gauge is shown. Improved the overall main screen notifications, including how long they are displayed and when they disappear. Improved the Cooking/Crafting menu so that recipes of the same type (Filling, Satisfying, Hearty) are displayed as a single group. Improved the Duo game so that a key guide for peeking is displayed during gameplay. Removed the whiteout effect during the retry loading sequence after death. Improved the Knowledge menu UI so that both main categories and subcategories can be viewed at once. Changed the key guide UI image for PlayStation controller's L3/R3 buttons and Xbox controller's LS/RS buttons. Changed the Inventory UI so that when using Pouch-type items, "Use All" is the option selected by default. Improved the text color of UI descriptions to appear brighter. Graphics & Settings Improved rendering stability and visual quality in low-resolution environments or when upscaling is enabled. Improved the rendering of translucent materials such as hair, fur, and clothing when FSR-RR / DLSS-RR is enabled. [PlayStation 5] Added a "Fixed 4K Output" option to provide a sharper gameplay experience. When this option is enabled, the game will output at 4K resolution regardless of whether the display natively supports 4K, allowing for a sharper image. On the base PlayStation 5 in Performance Mode, enabling this option will allow you to upscale with FSR. This option is enabled by default and can be disabled. When disabled, the game will output according to the maximum resolution supported by the monitor. Fixed an issue where screen noise would increase during long gameplay sessions. Fixed an issue where displacement mapping was not applied correctly when DLSS-RR was enabled. In addition, the DLSS-RR preset has been changed from D to E, improving overall visual quality and fixing an issue where texture animations, such as waterfalls, could stop playing. Performance, Stability, Gameplay Loading times have been reduced when traveling via Abyss Traces and when respawning after death. Fixed several stability, performance optimization, and crash issues across PC, console, and Mac. Fixed an issue where frame drops occurred during the battle against Crowcaller. Localization Fixed a UI issue where the current quest objective could incorrectly display certain item descriptions instead. Fixed various localization errors and improved localization quality (game advice, etc.) across all languages. Others Added sound effects when certain animals eat meat. Other Fixes Fixed an issue where certain interactions would not function when enhancing some tools. Fixed an issue in the Twisted Thicketway Abyss where the Skybridge Gate could be opened without restoring the adjacent Abyss. Improved cows not properly following during herding. Fixed an issue where greeting others while having a low bounty could trigger a crime. Fixed an issue where using Nature's Snare affected nearby NPCs. Fixed an issue where housing mode would close when pressing the drag button outdoors. Fixed an issue where falling onto shallow water could occasionally cause the character to dive to an abnormal location. Fixed an issue where the effect of the Energy Drain Abyss gear would not activate. Fixed an issue where unintended functionality was applied to the Constellation Helm. Fixed an issue where movement speed would briefly decrease before initiating gliding. Fixed an issue where items would be put away when changing equipment via quick slot while equipment was already drawn. Fixed an issue where bow aiming was not possible in certain situations. Fixed an issue where using Blinding Flash Finisher at the edge of a cliff would launch the character far away. Fixed an issue where some UI elements would overlap when displayed at the same time under certain circumstances. Fixed an issue where attacking NPCs with trees was not considered a crime. Fixed various other in-game issues. The post Crimson Desert 1.01.00 patch notes: All major changes appeared first on Destructoid.

Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Sunday, March 29, 2026 9:52 AM Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game Release Date Announced       A trailer was also released. The post Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game Release Date Announced appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism.

iDev Games Feed Sunday, March 29, 2026 3:47 AM Scamulator       Scamulator is a satirical comedy simulator game developed by happstoner5420 Games that puts you in the shoes of an incompetent tech support scammer!...