April 2022

Last week, our mission resumed after a wee hiatus and you decided that parody in-game brands are better than photo modes. Or are less bad? Some of you have a lot of pent-up frustration because you lack the dexterity to keep your fingers from fumbling photo buttons. But it is decided, and we must move on. This week, it's a question of love versus a battlefield. What's better: romance, or iconic Counter-Strike map de_dust2?

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Corsair make a particularly fine selection of AiOs, also known as all-in-one liquid coolers. They use off-the-shelf designs for their pumps and radiators, as do many other companies, but distinguish themselves with good-quality fans, optional lighting and low prices for a major brand. That last point is particularly pertinent today, as their H100X 240mm AiO has dropped to nearly £60 on Amazon UK - a significantly lower price than any alternative that I'd rate as highly and some £25 below this AiO's original launch price.

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A new raft of Ryzen 5000 processors has hit virtual and physical shelves, making it a good time to pick up a new AM4 CPU at a discounted price. The appearance of the lower-end Ryzen 5500, 5600 and mid-range 5700X have pushed prices for their more expensive counterparts way down, while the 5800X3D remains hard to find due to its relatively low supply and impressive gaming performance.

If you were thinking of upgrading, you might be interested to know which retailers in the US and UK are selling each of these processors, and for how much. I was interested myself, so I put together a couple of small spreadsheets to find out - and the results suprised me.

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I was shocked when I opened up my boyfriend’s Elden Ring inventory. Baffled and terrified, even. It was fully stocked in a way that only the cheese section of your fridge should be—there were multiples of the same armor sets, a despicable buildup of consumables and common items like herba and melted mushrooms, and a…

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What happens if the world gets too stupid, too overrun with people who don’t trust science or educators? Well, according to the recently released Research and Destroy, once folks stop trusting science and start believing in every wild theory they find online, the world is actually taken over by supernatural monsters,…

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Fans of the original Avatar now have an actual date they can expect Avatar 2: The Way of Water. The sequel will be hitting theaters on Dec. 16 2022 in the United States with overseas screens getting the film two days earlier on Dec. 14 2022.

While there is a new trailer for Avatar 2: The Way of Water, it will be only available to watch in the near future before showings of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness which comes out May 6 US and May 4 internationally. However, it will only be exclusive for a week before being uploaded online. It is assumed it will follow the international release date, so you can expect to see the trailer up on YouTube May 11.

The brief summary on IMDb gives the story as:

Jake Sully lives with his newfound family formed on the planet of Pandora. Once a familiar threat returns to finish what was previously started, Jake must work with Neytiri and the army of the Na’vi race to protect their planet.

Ahead of the release of Avatar 2: The Way of Water will be a theatrical re-release of the first Avatar film. However, this new version will come with remastered audio and video. Unlike the staggered release(s) mentioned above, the remaster will be hitting theaters worldwide on Sept. 23.

The first Avatar releases in 2009 and it’s been a long 13 year journey to finally get to see the sequel.

These aren’t the only Avatar properties coming out soon. A video game titled Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is still set to be coming out this year from Ubisoft.

Featured Image Source: Disney

Today Microsoft and Asobo Studio hosted a livestream showcasing upcoming plans for Microsoft Flight Simulator.

As usual, we hear from head of Microsoft Flight Simulator Jorg Neumann, Asobo CEO Sebastian Wlock, and executive producer Martial Bossard.

We heard that the launch of Microsoft Flight Simulator on Xbox Cloud Gaming has been a great success and the sim was the most played game on the service.

We heard that Nvidia DLSS and AMD FSR will be supported starting with sim update 10 in July.

Premium Deluxe aircraft will also become moddable, as their manufacturers have agreed with that.

We then get an extensive look at World Update 9 (coming on May 17), Italy and Malta, coming in May. Below you can enjoy all the pretty picture showing the four airports, photogrammetry cities (updated to 2021), points of interest, and more.

The airports are Palermo Falcone Borsellino Airport (LICJ), Marina di Campo Airport (LIRJ), Bolzano Airport (LIPB), and Sondrio Airport (LILO).

Techland has revealed the patch notes for the upcoming New Game Plus mode patch for Dying Light 2 and it brings some expansive changes to the game, even beyond the new mode. 

Revealed earlier this week, the new patch is now live in Dying Light 2 and New Game Plus should be available to any and all players who have completed the base campaign of the zombie parkour title. As for what to expect in this new mode, there will be new inhibitors to find, new Platinum objectives for parkour challenges, and more. 

“After finishing it once, the game can be replayed again, only this time with modified game parameters in place to encourage a second playthrough by the implementation of a unique system and experience,” the patch notes read. “The player can now go through the story with revitalized mechanisms. These include new enemy behaviors, more difficult encounters, new objects within the world – namely the newly-added inhibitors – and many more changes that will significantly alter gameplay style and allow the player to developer their character further.”

The following is only available in New Game Plus: 

If you’re looking to add more of the Street Fighter roster to your Fortnite Outfit collection, tomorrow is your chance. That’s because popular fighters Blanka and Sakura hit the Fortnite Item Shop at 8 p.m. EST on Thursday, April 28. 

Announced by Epic Games in a new blog post, World Warriors Blanka and Sakura hit the battle royale to celebrate 35 years of Street Fighter and as is usual with new additions to Fortnite, both characters will come with an Outfit and matching accessories to round out the skin. Plus, the Blanka & Sakura Cup, which will begin as a mobile-only Zero Build Solo Cup starting today before becoming an all-platforms Battle Royale Solo Cup on Thursday, will give top-performing players in different regions the chance to unlock the Bonus Stage Loading Screen. 

May’s PlayStation Plus games line-up has been revealed (after suffering yet another pre-announcement leak). On May 3, subscribers will have access to the following titles: 

FIFA 22: Last year’s FIFA title boasts new-gen visuals and enhancements, making for a football title that looks better than it ever has. Though it ultimately doesn’t differ too much from FIFA 21, fans of the sport should find it an enjoyable, if not very familiar, simulator. | Our Review

Tribes of Midgard: This colorful Norse-themed survival action game that you can experience alone or with friends in co-op. You’ll build and manage a village that up to 10 players can occupy, and you’ll maintain it by harvesting materials out in the wild. Plenty of dangers, both earthly and mythical, lurk in the wilderness for you and a party to cut down with your sword. 

Developer 11 Bit Studios' acclaimed survival game This War of Mine is heading to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Game Pass on 10th May in its enhanced and expanded Final Cut form.

This War of Mine: Final Cut, if you're unfamiliar, first launch for PC in 2019, building on the critically lauded core game's often harrowing side-scrolling survival action with a range of additions and improvements to mark its fifth anniversary.

These additions - which will all feature in the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Game Pass versions of Final Cut - include 4K visuals and a corresponding UI upgrade, remastered versions of the original game's locations, the addition of new locations from This War of Mine's Stories DLC, a new classic scenario, a new character, plus new quests and events unfolding within the newly added Stories areas.

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Picture your worst nightmare. Really allow yourself to round out each gruesome detail. Feel your heart race, then step back to reflect on what you’ve created. I’m guessing it’s not a Sim with a cell phone, but somehow, developer Maxis has managed to turn that innocuous image into a menace to Sims society.

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Crytek, developers of Hunt: Showdown and the Crysis series, have announced that "the company has adopted a remote work option for employees who prefer it." The decision comes after the studio initially switched to work-from-home during the Covid-19 pandemic and found that development didn't slow down, and follows a similar decision made by Destiny developer Bungie last month.

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The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) have ruled this week that Raven Software's 21 QA staff can vote on whether to form a union. The decision comes after months of arguments by Raven and Activision Blizzard management that the employees' petition be either denied or amended in such a way that, QA staff say, would have drastically reduced the chances of the vote being successful.

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We’ve been enthusiastic about the beauty and unique gameplay found in the Far games from Okomotive. Far: Lone Sails introduced the idea of crafting a ship of questionable quality as it makes its way across a mysterious landscape, and Far: Changing Tides continued those core principles with some fun new twists.

Changing Tides focuses on a seaborne ship that gradually gains new components and features as the player encounters new obstacles. In an especially fitting way to highlight the game’s distinctiveness, the game makers partnered with Aaron Newman, a professional LEGO-building artist, to create a custom LEGO set of the ship seen in the game. Newman was a LEGO Masters USA Season 1 contestant and has since moved on to be a product designer at The LEGO group, though it’s important to note that this particular build was completed before he started that new gig.

Valorant is popular for its fusion of precise gunplay (nudge, wink) and ‘hero abilities,’ a synergy that creates a distinct gameplay experience. Sure, the core loop might be lifted from CS:GO, but nothing really plays quite like Valorant.

As far as multiplayer games with big long-legged ambitions go, Valorant is also somewhat unusual because it was launched during the COVID-19 pandemic. This, in turn, forced Riot Games to undertake its quest to establish Valorant as the next big esport during a time when LAN events simply weren’t safe or appropriate, let alone accompanying crowds of fans in attendance — a key ingredient to creating a sense of spectacle and excitement, and a signature of esports programs throughout history.

Nearly two years on, and to Riot’s credit, Valorant and its esports scene are thriving nonetheless. The game launched to positive critical reception and has only continued to improve through post-launch support; its esports program –one of the most ambitious and fast-moving ever seen– is into a second year of full-scale operation and boasts notable viewership. Most recently, Valorant returned to Iceland for a second year running with Masters Reykevik 2022, the first of three major Valorant esports LANs.

Unfortunately, as was the case last year also, Masters Reykevik did not have a crowd in attendance due to COVID-19 restrictions. Sadly, too, positive cases amongst several players saw some teams having to compete from their hotel accommodations rather than the main stage as a quarantine measure.

Parkasuarus, WashBear Studio's thoroughly enjoyable dinosaur theme park sim, is making its console debut tomorrow, 28th April, as it brings its adorable management action to Switch.

Parkasaurus, for those yet to experience the game's vibrant, dino-infused spin on the classic theme park management formula, challenges players to build and run their very own dinosaur-flavoured tourist attraction - a task requiring them to hurtle back to the past to unearth new dinosaurs then build the perfect habitats to keep them happy, ensuring their specific terrain, water, food, privacy, and scenery needs are met.

And on top of all that, there are the usual park management demands to content with, ranging from landscaping and staff wrangling to ensuring all guests' needs - be they food, entertainment, merchandise, or bowel related - are adequately catered for.

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Thanks to the success of Stardew Valley and its ilk, you can barely move for video games insistently attempting to thrust you into some idyllic digital corner for a bout of wholesome pal-making or enthusiastic vegetable palpating these days, and now it's Disney's turn to get in on the action with its newly announced free-to-play village life sim Dreamlight Valley.

The set-up for Dreamlight Valley goes that, once upon a time, a bunch of Disney and Pixar characters all lived happily together in the idyllic land of the title - until, that is, a cataclysmic event known as the Forgetting stole everyone's memories. It's up to players, then, to explore and restore the kingdom (and its inhabitants' memories too), in an adventure that combines life-sim-style action with more traditional questing.

As Dreamlight Valley unfolds, players will be able to travel to exotic biomes beyond the village and befriend classic Disney and Pixar characters - each with their own story arcs, quests, and rewards - including the likes of Elsa and Anna in a snowy, Frozen-inspired kingdom, Ariel in a tropical corner of the world, and even the Lion King crew across a sunny savanna.

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Pokémon Go Fest, the game's biggest annual summer bonanza, has now been fully detailed by developer Niantic. Fans can look forward to a new Mythical Pokémon, more Shiny species, and an intriguing tease for Alola's alien Ultra Beasts.

Specifically, today's announcement illuminates the event's June 4th and 5th components, which will be available to play wherever you are via a $15 ticket.

As previously announced, a subsequent finale event will then follow on 27th August - a bonus for those with a ticket. Lastly, there will be three in-person Go Fest events during July and August in Berlin, Seattle and Sapporo, ticketed separately.

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A Different Take on Tower Defense – Hostile Mars | PAX East 2022 Read More »

Twitch is reportedly considering major changes to the monetization practices that streamers are upset about because the potentially lopsided percentages work out to pad Twitch’s bottom line.

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The latest Elden Ring patch is all about fixing issues from the previous update, like a bug that turned the FromSoftware game’s most challenging boss into a constantly regenerating monster.

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What's with all the golf, Alice B asked recently, much as I did when I turned 13 and suddenly all my friends took up the pastime. I had no answer then and I have no answer now, but Turbo Golf Racing is the most interesting of the recent crop of wacky walk-spoilers. It's golf with cars, or Rocket League with golf, and it's launching a cross-platform beta tomorrow.

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In his Sifu review for us, Jai found the kung fu brawler difficult enough that at one point he thought he "was going to eat" his controller. He didn't, thankfully, and enjoyed the game a lot overall.

If you have ingested your controller, you might want to sick it up again quick, because a free update coming to Sifu next week will add new difficulty modes and training options.

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Earlier today on Twitter, Disney revealed a brand-new project in the video game space that is titled Disney Dreamlight Valley. The game is a free-to-play life simulator that is set to launch later this year. Along with the tweet, there was a reveal trailer that showed off just some of what their upcoming title has to offer.

To kick off the trailer we get a look at a few iconic Disney locations like Rapunzel’s Tower, Cinderella’s Castle, and more. We also see characters like Buzz Lightyear, Ursula, and Kristoff.

There’s also a brief shot that shows off this otherwise bright and shiny world covered in darkness, clouds, and massive vines.

However, the darkness is fleeting and the bright cheery nature of Disney shines through as your character enters the world. In the trailer we see this character running around different locations and mining with a pickaxe. We also see them walking with Lion King characters and taking selfies with characters from Frozen.

It also looks like gardening, fishing, and cooking will included as a part of Disney Dreamlight Valley. In the trailer we see Wall-E helping out by handing your character plants, Goofy is just hanging out at a fishing pond, and of course, Remy is helping you cook.

To close out the trailer, we also get a look at some of the character and house customization. The house looks like it has a few levels of upgrades with changes to doors, windows, and even additional floors. The clothing and appearance options for your character also appear to be highly customizable. We see characters dressed in overalls, shorts, formal clothes, and a jacket that has a Buzz Lightyear color scheme.

Netmarble released another English trailer of Level-5’s online JRPG Ni No Kuni: Cross Worlds.

The trailer showcases some of the vistas and characters that are available with the game, displaying the familiar Ghibli-esque art style of the series.

It’s worth reminding that the game has already been active in Japan for several months, while pre-registration is already available in the west for iOS and Android. You’ll get an “Explorer Outfit” if you register and that the game will also be playable on PC.

You can check out the trailer below.

If you’re unfamiliar with Ni No Kuni: Cross Worlds, here’s an official description.

A story where reality and fantasy collide.
A grand journey awaits you upon arriving in another world via the virtual reality game [Soul Divers].
Experience the epic that unfolds in 『Ni no Kuni: Cross Worlds』, where endless adventures await.

An open world indistinguishable from an animated film.
Beautiful graphics rendered in the Unreal 4 Engine.
Catch every carefully-crafted expression and action in this breathtaking world!

The Witch Queen is the latest expansion that’s just been released for Destiny 2 this year, and it continues to keep the player base satisfied in terms of new content to check out, events to farm, and plenty of new gear to farm. It also boasts a pretty impressive soundtrack.

For all the music enthusiasts and Destiny 2 fans out there, you’ll be pleased to know that the Witch Queen soundtrack is now available for purchase on Apple Music. It doesn’t seem to be available for streaming on any of the popular music platforms, but if you’re an AM user, you can buy the soundtrack off the platform and automatically add it to your Apple Music library for $9.99.

If you’re not an Apple Music user, the digital soundtrack is also available on the Bungie store if you’d prefer to go that route.

Since Bungie separated from Activision to become an independent studio, Destiny 2 has become a free-to-play game, allowing more people to check out the game itself with a low barrier to entry. The new expansions still need to be purchased and there’s also a paid Season Pass that allows players to earn more rewards by playing, but it’s still a pretty decent free-to-play experience overall.

Destiny 2 is now available on PC and consoles.

Today third-party developers had lots of news and releases in store for Microsoft Flight Simulators add-ons.

We start with Ouroboros, which released a development update about their EMB-500 Phenom 100.

We’ve got some studio renders for you guys today. This model sprung to life faster than we anticipated but we’re happy to share it with you. The future of this model will be improved with a “V2” but the current version is close to what you will fly as we move into the texture phase. We plan to integrate the Working Title NXi system into our Phenom natively, meaning you don’t have to install this seprately to enjoy a detailed aircraft. Over time, we plan to include a custm EICAS and more pages with enough support and availability. Before we roll out our Phenom 300 model we will need to have perfected the Phenom 100 after the release. Needless to say, yes that is also in the long term pipeline.

EXTERIOR

• New shading tricks
• redone booleans
• Topology changes to wingbox
• landing lights
• Door
• Horizontal trim tab & pushrod
• Vertical trim tab & pushrod + GPU cart
• Cones and Chocks
• Pitot covers and long term engine covers
• Full exterior animations complete

INTERIOR

While my household is still in mourning over the untimely demise of Disney Infinity, the former movie studio and now cultural monopoly has today unveiled a new video game that, if Disney is your thing, is very much catering toward your things.

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Final Fantasy XIV recently introduced a new 5v5 player-vs-player mode called Crystalline Conflict. And while for the most part it seems folks are happy with it, the team behind the game aren’t as happy with some people’s behaviour in the mode. So they’ve taken the time to address the issues in a blog post.

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With days to go before the launch of Halo Infinite Season 2, 343 held a lengthy community livestream detailing some of the changes and additions coming to the game in the months ahead. The stream lasted a little over an hour and a half, but if you missed it, don't worry. We've detailed the key takeaways from the stream here. From new story details to when players can expect to play the Forge beta, here's everything revealed during the Halo Infinite community livestream.

Halo Infinite Season 2 community livestream recap

343 has announced that it's focused on its anti-cheat software and dedicated to improving it as the live-service game goes on. In the livestream, the team acknowledged that ranked playlists are lacking. 343 also said it's not done tweaking the challenge and XP system.

The team revealed plans for what it's calling Drop Pods, monthly updates that will both add content and squash bugs. Staten ensured that the campaign co-op looks promising, and 343 aims to have it released in late August alongside mission replays. He also explained what 343 means when it says Forge mode will launch in open beta. When Forge mode comes out in September, it will be a "full feature set," and everything players make in the beta will carry over into the full version.

Like Season 1's focus on Reach, Season 2 will also have a theme. This time, the titular "Lone Wolves" will be behind enemy lines trying to bring something dangerous back to the Academy.

Sixteen years after Wii Sports made its rousing debut, the Switch is getting its own iteration in the form of Nintendo Switch Sports on April 29. Complete with both new and returning games, the sports compilation seems to be promising a similar casual experience to enjoy with friends all these years later. Reviews have begun rolling in and critics seem to mostly agree on the game's promising but slightly uneven quality, and how much fun it is with others rather than oneself.

For GameSpot's Nintendo Switch Sports review-in-progress, reviewer Kurt Indovina scored the game 7/10, sharing that while he doesn't feel it innovates like the original title did, it did recapture the spirit of Wii Sports. The fun of playing these games locally (since online has not been available for reviewers) was enough to remind him of the good old days. "After all these years, it's easy to associate Wii Sports most with its popularization of motion controls in gaming, but its greatest achievement may actually be that even after 16 years, its core gameplay design is a potent reminder how much fun simple games with friends can be. I didn't realize how much I needed a Wii Sports-like experience in my life, until playing Nintendo Switch Sports."

Nintendo Switch Sports is currently sitting at a very respectable 75 on Metacritic, placing it just a hair below Wii Sports' own 76, which could very well be a fortuitous sign. Of course, most reviews are currently in progress pending reviewers ability to test out the online components and are subject to change after the launch of the game in a few days.

Call of Duty Season 3 is officially live in Vanguard, bringing a new battle pass, multiplayer map, operators, and new weapons to unlock. The big update also adds a surprisingly fancy melee weapon as a free weapon unlock. Here's how you can unlock Season 3's Skal Crusher.

How to unlock the Skal Crusher

Season 3's Skal Crusher is a Norse-themed axe with Nordic runes engraved into the wooden handle and a glowing blue pattern on the blade. The weapon works much like Season 2 Reloaded's Ice Axe, as the weapon can be swung like a traditional melee weapon, or it can be thrown and and retrieved.

This weapon can be unlocked for free through in-game challenges. Normally, new weapons arrive as a plain base model, and weapon blueprints can be purchased as an additional way to unlock the weapon. However, the Skal Crusher seems to be uniquely designed like a weapon blueprint, and it's uncertain if other variants of the axe will become available in store bundles.

Call of Duty Season 3 is officially live in Vanguard, bringing a new battle pass, multiplayer map, operators, and new weapons to unlock. Season 3's Sledgehammer melee weapon can pack quite a punch, and here are all the ways you can unlock it.

How to unlock the Sledgehammer

Despite its expected heft, Season 3's Sledgehammer is a fast swinging melee weapon, but you'll need to unlock it before you can equip it. This new weapon can be unlocked either for free with an in-game challenge, or it can be purchased as a weapon blueprint with a cosmetic bundle.

Warzone challenge

To unlock Vanguard's Sledgehammer in Warzone, you must get a multikill with a melee weapon in 15 different matches. This might be best completed in a respawn playlist like Caldera Clash, which is more of a large-scale Team Deathmatch mode in Warzone.

Note: Warzone's weapon unlocks require you to complete the matches to get credit towards your challenge progression.

Call of Duty: Vanguard's Season 3 update is officially live. One of the highlights of the new season was the introduction of the long-awaited Trophy System, which as of April 26 was announced to be locked behind a difficult and time-consuming challenge. Thankfully, Sledgehammer Games has since removed the challenge completely for the start of Season 3.

The Trophy System has been a staple of past Call of Duty games, as the device will intercept most thrown lethal and tactical equipment, but Vanguard launched without the popular equipment. Players have been asking for a Trophy System to help with the grenade spam in multiplayer, but many were disappointed to find the new addition locked behind a difficult challenge of surviving 15 different matches without being killed by a grenade. Many players also all expressed frustration that the challenge was not tracking their progress.

Sledgehammer Games has since tweeted that the Trophy System no longer requires a challenge to unlock, and all players who log in during Season 3 will have the Trophy System made available to them.

Vanguard's version of the Trophy System is a Field Upgrade that can be equipped. In the past, the device has been used to intercept up to two pieces of equipment, but Vanguard's Trophy System can protect players from up to three throwables before it self-destructs. This includes protection from most throwable lethal and tactical equipment, such as frag grenades, sticky bombs, and stun grenades.

Bethesda's digital storefront, the Bethesda.net Launcher, is officially coming to a close. Starting May 11, players will no longer be able to use the client to access titles like Doom Eternal, Fallout 76, Skyrim, and more. However, rest assured knowing that you won't be losing your games or all your hard-earned progress.

As of today, Bethesda.net users can migrate all their games, save data, and any funds in their wallet to Steam. To initiate the transfer, users can head over to Bethesda’s library transfer page, log in using their Bethesda account credentials, and link their Steam account. After the accounts are linked, they'll be given the option to begin transferring their to Steam. While the process is fairly straightforward, be aware it could take awhile to complete. However, you don’t have to have the page open while it does it.