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Wemade, the Korean blockchain-focused studio behind the Mir series of MMOs, has announced that its most recent investment round raised $46 million from a number of companies, including Microsoft, VGC reports. Microsoft has invested $14.8 million in Wemade by purchasing convertible bonds.

Korean studio Wemade was founded in 2000 to develop PC and mobile titles, including the MMO Legend of Mir. As of 2018 the company started to develop blockchain technology, resulting in the launch of a blockchain mainnet called Wemix.

Wemade launched its latest title Mir 4 with blockchain support, including in-game NFTs and its own token called DRACO. The company bills its latest title as "the world’s first well-made blockbuster blockchain game since the company entered the blockchain industry in 2018," though its ambitions extend beyond the world of Mir and into the games industry at large. The company says it aims to "transform everyday games with blockchain technology and establish its Wemix coin as a key currency in the blockchain gaming space."

Microsoft hasn't made a statement about investing in Wemade, and the purchase doesn't mean the Xbox parent company has any plans to implement blockchain technology in its own games at this point.

Krafton has announced that PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds will be introducing a collaboration with Brazilian footballer Neymar da Silva Santo Junior, with themed visuals popping up in game, and items available in the in-game store.

The Neymar collaboration is dropping as a part of update 20.2, which is due out on PC on November 9 and for consoles on November 17. The visual update will include billboards, building decorations, soccer balls, and care packages themed after the soccer superstar.

As a keen gamer himself, it's not Neymar's first time collaborating with gaming companies. Other than appearing as the PES 2016 cover star, the footballer was also made available as an unlockable skin in Fortnite last year. According to recent leaks for Modern Warfare 2, the athlete could also be appearing soon as a new operator in the game, alongside other big-name footballers.

PUBG Mobile is also getting in on the world of football ahead of the Qatar World Cup in November, with a Lionel Messi collaboration announced for the mobile spin-off.

343 Industries has revealed more about the Halo Infinite Winter Update that's scheduled to drop on November 8, this time introducing a whole lot of weapon balance fixes that'll be coming to the sandbox mode. A few weapons will be getting buffs to encourage players to use them more, while overperforming weapons will see small nerfs--here's what's changing.

Community manager Unyshek explains in the blog post that 343 has started looking at weapon balance in Halo Infinite's sandbox now that players are a little more familiar with the gameplay. Looking at both player feedback and hard data on how weapons are getting used in game, six of Halo Infinite's weapons are getting tweaked for better or for worse.

The Plasma Pistol and Disruptor are both getting upgrades that 343 hopes will increase their use and effectiveness in game, while the Pulse Carbine and VK78 Commando have both been tweaked to increase effectiveness at shorter ranges. In line for a nerf this update are both the BR75 and Frag Grenade, which will be getting minor downgrades in the interest of competitiveness. The full dev notes on balance changes and the rationale behind them can be read on 343's blog.

Here's the full list of balance changes:

The only thing standing between the world and ultimate destruction in The Entropy Centre is you and a series of puzzles. That’s a lot of pressure. Now that you’re on the second set of puzzles, things are only going to get more difficult. Don’t buckle. If you’re having trouble, we’ve got you covered. Following the 01 puzzles, to actually get into the 02 test rooms, you’ll first need to turn off a leaky gas valve by rewinding a crank, then grab the electronics panel beyond and slot it into the spot next to the door. Finally, rewind the panel to fix it, then the door should open.

Now that you're in, here's how to complete the next set of puzzles.

Puzzle 0201

Introducing the time gate. The time gate will vaporize any time data from the cubes in the puzzle. This means if you try to take the cube that you need to open the door, it’s going to reset back to its original position.

Don’t overthink it. There’s a second cube on the other side of the time gate. Place it on the switch that deactivates the gate, then go and grab the stranded cube. Bring it over and place it on one of the switches by the door. Go back and pick up the cube that was keeping the time gate disabled and place it on the other switch by the door. That’s all there is to it; no rewinding is needed.

If you need access to Microsoft Office but don't want to shell out $70 for a one-year subscription to Microsoft 365, you may be interested in this deal on Microsoft Office Professional 2021. For just $40, you get lifetime access to the 2021 version of Microsoft Office. Both the Windows and Mac versions of Office are available at this price.

Microsoft Office Professional is a well-rounded package that should meet all your computing needs. This includes:

Ubisoft has revealed its roadmap for Mario + Rabbids Sparks Of Hope, which includes three major updates coming in 2023. That'll introduce a new game mode, story, and playable character.

The Tower of Doooom (how Ubisoft spells it) will be the first update to come out in early 2023. In this expansion, Madame Bwahstrella will call upon Mario and his friends to fight enemies in her multi-dimensional tower to save their old friend Spawny. The new update will also feature a new combat mode that'll have players face off against smarter enemies as they get closer to the top of the tower.

Following that, the second DLC is scheduled to be released in mid-2023. Players will travel to a new planet filled with new environments, characters, enemies, and secrets. In addition to all the new content, this expansion will feature a new story for players to unravel.

The last DLC is scheduled for late 2023 and will have Rabbid Peach and Rabbid Mario team up with Rayman in a new adventure.

One Call of Duty player made an ill-advised in-person trip to Activision Blizzard's office--all just to appeal their Modern Warfare 2 ban.

The Reddit post is now deleted, but according to screenshots of the original post taken by PC Gamer, a Reddit user claimed they bought Modern Warfare 2 twice and were wrongfully banned both times.

Out of frustration, they then decided to visit Activision Blizzard's Austin, Texas location. "Today (10/31), I decided to go to the nearby Activision office in Austin, TX to attempt to speak with an employee due to the fact that it is impossible to speak to someone over the phone," they wrote. "I was met by a security guard in the parking lot at Activision who told me that I would not be able to speak with anybody."

The player asked security to relay their concerns to a worker, and security agreed to do so. A worker replied that due to being short-staffed, the company would not be able to immediately fix wrongful bans.

"The guard came back to me in the parking lot and told me the employee said that, 'They are short-staffed and it will take a few weeks for the wrongful bans to be resolved.' I voiced my frustration due to the fact that I spent 140 dollars total (70 + 70) and am left unable to play and the security guard told me to 'not allow myself to get mad about a video game' and told me that 'I can be patient and wait.'"

"The fact that I can't speak with someone at Activision Blizzard is very frustrating when I simply just want to enjoy this game that I spent 140 dollars on."

Marvel Snap has arrived, and the digital card game has players deeply entrenched with its style, aesthetics, deck-building mechanics, match locations, and card collections. The game works very differently in comparison to other collectible card games. You cannot really just spend money at the start for the best-completed decks. Though, you can purchase the game’s season pass or starter bundle, acquiring and upgrading most of the cards is dependent on your own playtime. In this introductory guide to one of the year's surprise hits, we go through the best tips for beginners to snap up for the start of their journey in Marvel Snap.

Collecting cards

It would not be a collectible card game without, well, card collecting, of course. In other digital card games such as Cardfight!! Vanguard Zero, Yu-Gi-Oh! Cross Duels, or Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel, you can purchase card packs to pull specific cards in a set, but sets or packs do not exist not in Marvel Snap.

To unlock more cards, you will need to upgrade the ones you already own. Upgrading cards increases your total Collection Level. For example, upon reaching Collection Level 222, you will earn a mystery card from a card pool. There are some cards such as Blue Marvel that can be earned by completing the season pass, but the majority of cards to unlock will be given to you by making your way through the Collection Level. There are thousands of Collection Levels.

The six rarities for cards are:

With around 200 cards in Marvel Snap, or as many as 1,000 including Variant cards, it can be daunting to create decks that are both efficient and synergize cards. Many cards are received randomly through the Collection Levels. This guide will go through some of the best decks, decklists, and strategies you can create that will have you triumph over your opponents in Marvel Snap. Here are our picks for the best decks in Marvel Snap.

Curving Crew

Curving Crew is all about playing cards on a curve. This means that you should have a card to play each turn ramping up to correspond to the amount of energy you have. Quicksilver will always start in your opening hand, so you can play him at the start of the match even if you do not draw your other 1-cost cards. Domino will always be drawn as your second card, and America Chavez will always be drawn on the sixth turn.

By using these specific draw-turn abilities, you can set up a board without having to fret over not having cards to play each turn. You will almost always have something to play each turn to control the board. You play on a curve. This deck does not have many high-cost cards, so by turn four you can play Jessica Jones, and place Blue Marvel on another location at turn five, for example. Mister Sinister alongside Nightcrawler allows you to have three cards on a location with ease, then you can place an Ant-Man to receive its plus 3 ongoing effect.

Genshin Impact's 3.2 update introduces the divine Dendro character Nahida and the ever-sleepy Cyro character Layla.

In lore terms, Nahida is the vessel of Lesser Lord Kusanali, the god or Archon of the region Sumeru. Long trapped within the Sanctuary of Sursathana, she is now free and enters the game as a playable character. In gameplay, Nahida deals Dendro Damage with normal and special attacks. Her elemental skill is called All Schemes To Know, which spreads an area-of-effect Dendro damage around her. Holding the elemental skill button enters aiming mode, which lets her mark enemies and deal damage from afar. Her elemental burst brings forth The Shrine of Maya, which gains different effects based on the members of the player's party.

Layla is a Rtawahist student who studies Theoretical Astrology. She struggles with somnambulism and often can't sleep, and therefore seeks a way to steadily rest. In play, she wields a sword and can place a shield called the Curtain of Slumber. This dome deals area-of-effect Cryo damage and protects those within it. She can also summon a celestial dreamsphere which fires small Cryo bolts at enemies.

The update also adds a new story quest, a new Archon quest, and a new world quest as well as various changes, fixes, and optimizations.

The full patch notes can be seen below or on the Genshin Impact website.

Apex Legends Season 15: Eclipse launched earlier this week, bringing a new cosmetic item to the game: Stickers. Stickers can be applied to healing items like Shield Cells and Phoenix kits, but they aren't your average loot item, and they function differently from all of Apex's other cosmetic items. Unlike other cosmetic types--from legend skins to holosprays--stickers are not part of the "evergreen" loot pool.

This means that--at least for the moment--you won't be unlocking any stickers via standard Apex Packs, so if you're not a sticker fan, you don't need to worry about their presence diluting the loot pool. Currently, there's no option for purchasing stickers individually, but you can get some free ones. In fact, you already have them. Keep reading for a complete guide to Apex's new sticker feature.

Apex Legends stickers

As mentioned above, you can't get stickers from standard Apex Packs, but you also can't buy them individually. To get your hands on these new cosmetics, you'll need to buy a special type of Apex Pack to unlock a random sticker from the current sticker series. These are called Sticker Thematic Packs, and can be found in the in-game store for 300 Apex Coins ($3).

At last year's The Game Awards, Google announced plans to bring Google Play Games to PCs, which would allow players to enjoy top mobile titles on their home computers. The beta test launched in South Korea and other parts of Asia earlier this year, and today the company has announced the Google Play Games for PC beta test has expanded into the United States, Canada, and more.

The beta is now available to download in the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines. The test gives participants access to 60 different mobile games, including State of Survival, Cookie Run: Kingdom, Asphalt 9: Legends, and Summoners War.

The official Android Developers blog post announcing the beta's expansion says that more features and games will be added leading up to the service's official launch, though no specific games or features were named.

PC requirements for the beta, as written on the service's official website, are as follows:

If you're looking to score a trip to Gotham City that doesn't cost $60 (plus disappointment tax), you can grab a great deal on digital tourism right now with this discount on Batman: Arkham Collection at Fanatical. bundle only costs $7.79 and gathers Rocksteady's Arkham trilogy, including all of the DLC, into one collection of bat-themed vigilante justice.

Electronic Arts and Marvel recently signed a big new deal covering three games, including an Iron Man title and two others. EA COO Laura Miele has discussed the agreement, saying that working on a licensed IP should help expand EA's ambition to reach new players and grow its userbase.

Speaking during EA's latest earnings briefing, Miele pointed out how its previous licensing deal with Disney for Star Wars proved to be very successful in bringing new players into the fold, and the same could be true with the Marvel deal. "Millions" of people came to EA to play its new Star Wars games, and more than 40% of these players went on to play other games inside the EA catalog, Miele said.

"So we consider adding licensed IP as a pretty significant engagement model to our overall community as we grow," Miele said.

The executive went on to say, "We consider this licensed IP an incredibly important component of expanding, diversifying, and casting our net wider to bring new players in."

Blizzard has announced it is temporarily disabling Mei from Overwatch 2 following reports of bugs associated with her Ice Wall ability. According to the statement, these bugs have allowed players to reach unintended locations. The team is currently working to address the issues and aims to have the Arctic explorer back in play on November 15.

In addition to pushing characters to out-of-bounds areas, some players have reported issues with Mei's Ice Wall failing to block attacks or lift team members. In a clip shared by Twitter user stefayylmao1, running into Mei's Ice Wall causes Kiriko to enter an undetected area where she can exploit being unable to be hit while taking out enemies.

Resident Evil producer Hiroyuki Kobayashi has started a new studio that is building a new IP that aims to "impress the whole world." NetEase Games announced that it has opened a new development shop in Japan called GPTRACK50 that hopes to create "entertainment concepts" that appeal globally.

Kobayashi is also known for producing games in Capcom franchises such as Devil May Cry and Dragon's Dogma. The new studio will be staffed by "experienced professionals" from across gaming, film, and TV.

NetEase said its goal is to build "original IPs that would impress the whole world."

"The studio strives to build original game contents and to broaden the spectrum from just games to film and entertainment series," the company said.

GPTRACK50 will be a wholly owned internal studio at NetEase Games. It will focus primarily on PC and console games to begin with the aim of "growing into an establishment with a global media portfolio." The newly established developer doesn't have any announced projects as of yet.

NetEase has been making moves in the world of video games lately. Earlier this year, the company acquired Heavy Rain studio Quantic Dream and started a new studio with the creator of the Yakuza series. NetEase is also funding a new game from Destiny developer Bungie.

Kobayashi spent more than 27 years at Capcom, where he worked on the original Resident Evil and many of its sequels, as well as a number of other Capcom franchises in the world of video games and anime.

Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse will release digitally on PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch on March 9, 2023.

The fourth entry in the beloved survival horror franchise, the game's plot concerns Ruka Minazuki, whose two friends died in an abandoned sanatorium on Rogetsu Isle. She returns to discover the truth of what happened. You will play as several characters to get to the bottom of the mystery.

Fatal Frame's combat is centered around taking pictures of ghosts with a magical camera, known as the Camera Obscura. Enemies can take different kinds of damages based on the film used and the composition of the shot. This version of the game adds a photo mode, alongside the usual graphic enhancements.

Mask of the Lunar Eclipse was originally developed and published for the Wii by Grasshopper Manufacture and Tecmo (before the merger with Koei). Nintendo declined to publish the game in the United States and Europe. This new version, announced at a Nintendo Direct earlier this year, will be the game's first official release in the west.

Purchasing the game at release or two weeks after can get you a Marie Rose (from Dead or Alive) themed costume. If you have save data from Fatal Frame: The Maiden of Black Water on your device, you can pick up a Camera Obscura hat. A digital deluxe edition comes with a dinner party costume set and a digital art book.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 boasts a ton of weapons and attachments to gear up with, and sometimes customizing the most optimal weapon loadout in the Gunsmith can be a bit overwhelming. Here we recommend some of Modern Warfare 2's best multiplayer weapon loadouts to help get you started in multiplayer.

M4

One of Modern Warfare 2's most reliable choices for multiplayer is the M4 assault rifle, which is an easy-to-handle assault rifle with great range. The recommended attachments will help give you the best performance for mid- to long-range combat.

Recommended M4 attachments:

• Muzzle: RF Crown 50
• Barrel: Hightower 20" Barrel
• Optic: Cronen Mini Red Dot
• Rear Grip: Sakin ZX Grip
• Underbarrel: FSS Sharkfin 90

Kastov 762

I cannot believe I'm writing this, but Microsoft has released a ride-on Halo Warthog designed for kids ages three and up. The 24-volt vehicle has two seats and even has the Gauss Cannon on the back, which has been rigged with a laser tag blaster. It comes with a vest so you can chase after the person wearing it. The Warthog is available to purchase exclusively at Walmart for a whopping $498.

Black Adam arrived in Multiversus today alongside a brand new Arcade mode. He is a slow but hard-hitting superhero, with electrical attacks and the power of flight.

Black Adam is a bruiser type character, with lightning abilities that can deal continual damage. He moves slowly, but dishes out big damage with large hit boxes. He can shock opponents with electrical attacks, create forcefields to block enemy projectiles, and fly to evade and recover. Black Adam even has some ranged attacks, such as an electric ball that can chain between enemies. He can also give allies some of his electrical power.

The character's debut in Multiversus was delayed to fix unspecified problems. There was no word on when exactly Black Adam would arrive, but the delay ended up being only a few days. Though obviously a tie-in with the recently released movie, Black Adam's appearance in the game takes more from comics than from Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. Players can also pick up the Comic Classic Black Adam skin in the Multiversus store, which removes the massive cape that defines the game's default design and instead opts for a golden sash.

The Arcade mode has three difficulty levels and can be tackled with a friend. It tasks players with battling AI enemies and achieving objectives to earn in-game rewards.

Black Adam just released and was subject to middling reviews. Its star did express hopes that the film will eventually lead to a Black Adam vs. Superman movie. In other DC news, Henry Cavill will be returning as Superman in future projects.

The Ghostbusters VR game announced in April 2022 now has a full title and release window. This game, revealed earlier this year as Ghostbusters VR, is called Ghostbusters: Rise of the Ghost Lord. It is a VR title for Meta Quest 2 and PlayStation VR2 that's scheduled to launch in 2023.

nDreams is developing the title, which will be published by Sony Pictures Virtual Reality. Players will become a ghostbuster in San Francisco as they traverse the city to bust ghosts. Locations like the Golden Gate Bridge will be featured in the campaign, which supports solo play and co-op. The end goal is to defeat the Ghost Lord and his minions from destroying San Francisco.

Full details on the game haven't been confirmed yet, but players will be able to use and upgrade "iconic Ghostbusters equipment" and customize their characters. More details on Rise of the Ghost Lord were revealed to Kinda Funny as part of a sponsored video broadcast today that you can watch above.

The key art for Rise of the Ghost Lord was also released, showing off what to expect in terms of the style and tone of the upcoming Ghostbusters title. Check it out below.

Resident Evil Village's DLC, The Winter's Expansion is here, including additional Mercenaries content and a new short campaign to playthrough starring Ethan Winter's daughter, Rose Winters. Shortly after the opening sequence of the DLC you will find yourself in Lady Dimitrescu's castle, tasked with finding three masks to obtain a crystal. Here's where you can find all three masks.

The Bronze Mask

You start in the main hall where the statue puzzle is. From here, head to the dining room, which connects to the courtyard and the kitchen. The door to the courtyard is locked with a chain. You can find the bolt cutters in the back right area of the kitchen, which contains one enemy. Grab the bolt cutters and head into the courtyard. The Bronze Mask is actually in the center of the courtyard, but you need to unlock an ability first, so head to the left side of the courtyard and enter.

NFL QB Kyler Murray of the Arizona Cardinals is known for his love of video games. So when he threw an interception during Sunday's game against the Minnesota Vikings, Patrick Peterson of the Vikings trolled the QB with a video game-themed celebration.

Watch in the video below as Peterson pretends to play a video game by motioning like he was putting on a headset on and then moving his thumbs and fingers as if he's playing a video game. Peterson wasn't the player who picked off Murray on that play, but he joined his team in celebrating the interception all the same.

Peterson told reporter Tom Pelissero that he was imitating Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II specifically with his roast of Murray. "I think it's called Call of Duty? I'm not much of a gamer. Heard it just came out," Peterson said.

Murray might have been off-target on a few throws on Sunday, including the interception that inspired this celebration, but he still threw for 326 yards and three touchdowns. He completed 70.5% of his passes and had a passer rating of 95.5%. He did have two costly interceptions, though, and the Vikings beat the Cardinals by a score of 34-26.

Valve announced that a Cave Johnson voice pack is coming to Dota 2 via a new video starring Valve president Gabe Newell. Cave Johnson is a fan-favorite character from Valve's first-person puzzler Portal 2.

The Cave Johnson Mega Kills pack will be included in as part of the upcoming Battle Pass: Part 2, which drops on November 3. Cave Johnson is the former CEO and founder of the fictional Aperture Science in the Portal games. He is voiced by the beloved, Oscar-winning actor J.K. Simmons.

The video begins with Dota 2 personalities and hosts Kaci Aitchison and Jake Kanner (aka Sir ActionSlacks) trapped in a recording studio. A looming and distracted Gabe Newell forces the two hosts to record a Mega Kills pack. After their efforts prove to be subpar, Gabe makes a potato-powered phone call from one Tech CEO to another. It's a funny video, laden with Dota 2 and Valve references. It's worth watching if you are a Dota 2 diehard or you long for the days when Valve made video games and would like to see them poke a little fun at themselves.

Dota 2 is no stranger to goofy voice packs, as it has received Rick and Morty and The Stanley Parable themed packs. Portal's charismatic AI villian GlaDos also has her own voice pack. Gabe Newell even voiced one himself for Dota 2's last battle pass.

FIFA 23 is setting records for EA Sports. Electronic Arts has announced that the game had a "record-breaking" launch, reaching 10.3 million players in the first week, which was good for the "biggest launch period" in the history of the professional football series.

EA went on to say that FIFA 23 has been played in 200+ nations worldwide, with players collectively logging 1.7 billion games thus far. Virtual footballers have spent more than 15.7 billion minutes in the game so far, which works out to more than 30,000 years. Players have collectively scored 4.3 billion goals so far, EA said.

Additionally, Jude Bellingham is the top transfer player in FIFA 23 so far, with more than 630,000 players trying to add the Borussia Dortmund midfielder to their side.

The Ted Lasso crossover in FIFA 23 is proving to be successful, too, it seems, with players collectively winning 1 million matches as AFC Richmond thus far.

In terms of popular teams, Chelsea Women were the most played women's team so far, with Manchester City the most-played men's team. As for goal-scorers, Marcus Rashford and Sam Kerr lead the way for men's and women's teams, respectively. You can see the top 10 scorers for men and women below.

Men's Top 10

1. Marcus Rashford
2. Kylian Mbappé
3. Darwin Núñez
4. Erling Haaland
5. Gabriel Jesus
6. Arnaut Danjuma
7. Timo Werner
8. Cristiano Ronaldo
9. Karim Benzema
10. Vinícius Jr.

Women's Top 10

1. Sam Kerr
2. Fran Kirby
3. Marie-Antoinette Katoto
4. Vivianne Miedema
5. Ada Hegerberg
6. Kadidiatou Diani
7. Beth Mead
8. Caitlin Foord
9. Guro Reiten
10. Alessia Russo

As for celebrations, the "Griddy" is the most popular so far, with the "Knee Slide" ranking second.

Master Nightfall Strikes are one of the most challenging PvE activities in Destiny 2, but if that activity isn't challenging enough, try doing it with your movement keys disabled entirely. That's just what YouTuber Esoterickk did, as they not only completed the challenge with their movement entirely sealed off, but they did so without any teammates to offer battlefield support.

According to the rules that Esoterickk set, the WASD keys were disabled, but jumping, access to a Sparrow transport, and boost control on their Titan was still allowed. For additional movement, sword attacks, the Titan Arc subclass ability Thruster, and Super attacks could propel them forwards.

"Obviously, Arc and Lightning Crystals make this much easier than it otherwise would be, and also being a Master Nightfall instead of a Grandmaster," Esoterickk wrote. "Otherwise I felt it would be way too tedious and long to do, so at least this way it's somewhat entertaining still. Not really all that difficult at the end of the day, just something different to do I guess."

Blizzard will soon be giving away free in-game goodies for World of Warcraft in the form of Twitch Drops, with a mount, pet, and in-game toy all up for grabs.

As detailed in a new blog post, the first phase of the promotion will start on November 15 with the arrival of the second phase of the Dragonflight pre-patch. Between November 15-17, players who have connected their Battle.net account to their Twitch account and watch four hours of WoW content on a channel that has drops enabled will be able to earn the Dragon Kite in-game pet.

To celebrate the release of the new Dragonflight expansion proper, another Twitch Drop will go live on the expansion's actual launch date, November 28. Players will then have until November 30 to watch four hours of WoW: Dragonflight content on Twitch to earn the Feldrake mount, a re-colored version of a drake mount that has been in WoW since the release of Wrath of the Lich King.

From December 13-28, players will be able to unlock the Perpetual Purple Firework toy by watching two hours of WoW: Dragonflight content. The third phase of the Twitch Drop promotion coincides with the launch of Dragonflight Season 1 and the arrival of the Vault of the Incarnates raid.

We're just hours away from the launch of Apex Legends Season 15: Eclipse. Players have already met the Season 15's new legend, Catalyst, along with her homeworld's moon, where the new Broken Moon map is set. But today, Respawn introduced players to the Eclipse battle pass via a new trailer uploaded to the official Apex Legends YouTube and Twitter accounts this morning.

The new trailer gives players a better look at the spellbinding cosmetics they briefly glimpsed in last week's gameplay trailer, and they are truly something to behold. From star-crossed legend skins to witchy weapon charms, the Eclipse battle pass is sure to have even the staunchest of skeptics feeling a little spellbound.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2's Amsterdam level has already triggered a range of reactions, including some Dutch people praising its realistic depiction of the famous city. However, not all the press is positive, as it seems that a hotel that's clearly depicted in the game is considering possible legal action against publisher Activision Blizzard.

As reported by the Dutch outlet de Volksrant, the five-star Conservatorium Hotel appears under the name Breenbergh in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, and the hotel's manager isn't happy about its depiction as a warzone. In real life, the Conservatorium itself is a former bank building designed by the famous Dutch architect Daniel Knuttel, which was converted into a luxury hotel in the 1980s.

"We have taken note of the fact that the Conservatorium Hotel is undesirably the scene of the new Call of Duty," the hotel's manager Roy Tomassen said. "More generally, we don't support games that seem to encourage the use of violence. The game in no way reflects our core values and we regret our apparent and unwanted involvement."

Do you like the way your Steam client looks? It's a question that many of us never even think to ask. But in a tech-obsessed world that lets us customize everything from your phone's background to your colorful internet browser, it seems fair to consider.

Yet the process of customizing your Steam client is far from intuitive--in fact, if it weren't for a few intrepid hackers and niche Discords, it would hardly exist at all in 2022. These tools require time, patience, and a bit of research to use correctly. And given Valve's outsized presence in the PC gaming community--and how basic of a feature this is--it feels like it should be a lot easier.

"There's just no support for it anymore," says Jonius7, the developer of Old Glory, a popular Steam skinning tool. "It makes you wonder what Valve thinks about all of it."

Ostensibly, Steam has supported custom themes (or "skins") for more than a decade now. All you have to do is download the skin and create a new folder titled "skins" in your main Steam directory. Then drop the skin's files into it, select it under Steam's "interface" menu, restart, and presto: You've got a new look.

Although this may seem simple enough, the truth is that many of the popular skins for Steam, such as Metro and Air, have been mostly broken for several years now. Specifically, they only overhaul the outer edge of the Steam client itself--though many of these skins originally replaced the entire Steam client, that functionality was removed by Valve piece-by-piece.

Fortnite is back into costume with Fortnitemares 2022, and that means candy can be found all around the map like it is every year. You'll want to locate Fortnite candy for a number of reasons--most often to simply enjoy their buffs to speed, jumping, and more--but also some Fortnitemares quests will demand you find candy at times, too. This year, one such quest asks you to apply the Zero Point Pretzel effect to yourself three times. Here's how to do that easily, as well as where to find candy generally.

Fortnite Zero Point Pretzel effect

Zero Point Pretzels act just like Zero Point fish by giving you a few seconds of a dash technique, making you harder to hit when under fire, while adding a bit of speed to your looper, too. Simply eating a pretzel will give you this ability for about 30 seconds, but they don't stack, so if you're trying to complete the challenge to apply the effect three times, you should wait for each effect to wear off before applying it again.

The easiest way to find Zero Point Pretzels specifically is to buy them from Chrome Punk, a new pumpkin-headed NPC who showed up alongside the Fortnitemares update. We've got all NPCs mapped and listed in our NPC locations guide for your convenience. You can find Chrome Punk at the Flutter Barn near the center of the map. He sells Zero Point Pretzels, so bring some gold and you'll be all set.

If someone beats you to it and buys out his supply, you'll need to find candy buckets instead. For that, keep on reading.

Way back in Fortnite Chapter 2, Season 6, there was a ghost NPC named Willow you could speak to who roamed the forests of Weeping Woods at night. Now, for Fortnitemares 2022, Willow is back, but she's not in any kind of talking mood. These days, she's more about attacking players on sight, because she's a new boss NPC you can fight.

Like before, Willow lives in the woods--specifically the woods to the west of the Reality Tree, which is the current battle royale map's closest equivalent to the old Weeping Woods location. And instead of roaming around like she used to, these days she's settled down in a house where you'll be able to find her at any time of day.

Where to find the new Willow boss NPC

Nowadays Willow lives in a big log cabin close to the edge of the map.

When you first approach, you'll notice a few things. First, it's one of the Fortnitemares spots where it gets dark and spooky-looking no matter the time of day, alongside Grim Gables, the Reality Tree and the Evil Dead cabin.

The only thing easier in Minecraft than punching a tree is getting lost. You found the coolest river, the richest cave… but you can't remember where your house is. At the beginning, you just have to be careful, but as the game progresses your options for making sure you know where you are in your Minecraft world multiply. Here's what you need to know about navigation and finding your way around in Minecraft.

The Basics: Paths, Directions, and Signs

The kids in fairy tales did it, and you can, too. Instead of leaving a trail of breadcrumbs, though, you can do something better. Put those torches in your inventory to work by using them to mark your path as you explore. However, it can be hard sometimes to see where a group of torches is pointing. To help that, get out your shovel and use its alternate function on the ground. With nothing more than a shovel, you can make a good-looking and highly functional path.

Minecraft doesn't have cardinal directions like North and South in the game canonically, but the sun and moon always rise in one direction and set in the other, so you can decipher where North, South, East and West are. Keep those in mind as you build and explore.

And if all else fails, signs are easy to make in huge numbers. Putting down informative signs that make use of the various "arrow" characters (^, V, <, and >) can be enough to get you anywhere.

Make a Compass

But you shouldn't have to be doing a bunch of work or paying careful attention to find your way home. There are easier options once you start to collect more materials.

Overwatch 2 has finally launched, turning the hero shooter into a free-to-play title. This change also adds new heroes, new maps, and a new mode, Push. This also means that Overwatch has officially switched to a 5v5 instead of a 6v6, dropping one of the tanks on each team. This means that the balance and meta of the game have changed drastically, putting more emphasis on individual performance, meaning high-skill characters like Hanzo are thriving in the right hands. You can see how all heroes, including this one, stack up in our Overwatch 2 tank tier list, DPS tier list, and support tier list. Where did your favorite land?

Hanzo overview

Hanzo is a sniper damage hero, armed with the Storm Bow, which can take down non-tank heroes in a single headshot. Much like Widowmaker, Hanzo is best utilized sitting in the back line or getting to vantage points where he can shoot enemies from a distance. His Storm Arrows ability lets him shoot five arrows rapidly for less damage, great for dealing with an enemy that gets in your face. His Sonic Arrow can reveal enemy locations and his ultimate ability can destroy enemies in its path.

Hanzo abilities

Storm Bow: Hold to charge then release to fire arrows further.

Storm Arrows: The next 5 arrows fire instantly at reduced damage.

Sonic Arrow: Reveals enemies for a short time upon impact.

Lunge: Double jump.

Steam Deck can now show you the make and model of the component parts in your device.

To access this new feature, you'll have to opt in to client beta services via the Steam Update Channel in settings. You can then access the component lookup view by clicking Settings, then System, then the Model/Serial Numbers button under the Hardware header. In this view, you can see the model and manufacture of the components in your Steam Deck without opening it up. The idea is to provide clarity as to what parts are in your specific Steam Deck as well as providing helpful information for Steam Deck owners who are looking to repair or replace components via iFixit.

The component list shows the parts that made up your specific Steam Deck when it was manufactured. That means if you replaced any parts or upgrading anything, the view will not reflect those changes.

Alongside this announcement on the Steam Deck blog, Valve announced that it has introduced an engineered foam solution to reduce fan noise. This solution is being applied to both models of fans currently used in the Steam Deck. In September, Valve opened Steam Deck repair centers and removed reservations, so you no longer have to wait if you want to order a Steam Deck.

Overwatch 2's first match double XP weekend event kicked off on October 21 at 11 AM PT / 2 PM ET. It's the first of three double XP weekends Blizzard is holding in order to make up for Overwatch 2's rocky launch.

Here's the full schedule of double XP events. They all start at 11 AM PT / 2 PM ET and end at the same time.

• October 21-24
• October 28-31
• November 24-28

Note that players will only get double XP from matches during this event, and not from daily and weekly challenges.

With the new battle pass system in Overwatch 2, earning double XP means players can level their battle passes faster. For new Overwatch 2 players who do not have Kiriko yet, she can be obtained for free by reaching Tier 55 in the battle pass or by purchasing the premium battle pass outright.

Overwatch 2 launched with new modes, new heroes, and new maps, but it also brought over the entire Overwatch hero roster. That means heroes like Moira have returned in the sequel to the hero shooter, although most of them have been adjusted to match the new 5v5 modes. Here's how to best utilize one of the best damage dealing supports in Overwatch 2. You can see how all heroes, including this one, stack up in our Overwatch 2 tank tier list, DPS tier list, and support tier list. Where did your favorite land?

Moira overview

Moira is a support hero that has a high capacity for damage, making her a strong dual-threat. Moira heals by spraying out a healing mist with her main fire, which is limited by a meter. That meter can be refilled with the alt-fire, a damaging beam attack that locks onto enemies within range. She has an orb, which she can throw, choosing to either heal teammates or damage the enemy based on the situation. Her ultimate ability is a long-range beam that heals teammates in its path and damages enemies.

Moira abilities

Biotic Grasp: Main fire heals enemies in front of you. Alt-fire is a longer-ranged beam that deals damage. Using the heals depletes a meter while using the damage fills it.

Biotic Orb: Launch a bouncing orb that you can choose to either heal teammates or damage enemies.

Fade: Disappear, move faster and become invulnerable. Cannot shoot during this.

Coalescence: Fire a beam that heals teammates and damages enemies.

Gotham Knights, like many games that offer the choice, is better in co-op. Beating up evil-doers is simply more fun when you have a sidekick. Of course, in this game, you're both technically sidekicks, but since Batman is dead, it'll be up to you to defend the city that meant everything to him. In this guide, we'll walk you through your co-op options within Gotham Knights, including an explainer on cross-play, details on the forthcoming four-player mode, and a guide on how to change the privacy of your game so you can or can't be joined by others.

Gotham Knights cross-play

The big burning question is whether Gotham Knights has cross-play or not. The answer, which will disappoint some players, is it does not. You'll be limited to playing as Batgirl, Robin, Red Hood, or Nightwing with your co-op partner on the same platform, be it Xbox, PC, or PS5. As the last-gen versions were also scrapped, there's no cross-gen play either. It's a simple solution, though likely not the one people were hoping for.

Gotham Knights solo, co-op, and open lobbies

Gotham Knights is better in co-op. We really believe that. However, you might disagree, and that's fine. You can change your session settings to one of three options whenever you feel like it. When you're playing, just press left on the D-pad to open up a menu that includes photo mode, emotes, and a vaguely internet-looking icon. It's in that section that you can change the visibility of your session, either making it invite-only (essentially solo until you say otherwise), open to friends, or open to all players. If you select open to all players, the game seems to prioritize getting you paired up with someone quickly--even signified by the option's menu icon: "SOS."

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2's campaign is currently available in early access, featuring the familiar face of Captain Price and a fully-assembled Task Force 141 on a brand-new blockbuster mission to stop stolen missiles from being used in a revenge plot against the United States. If you're looking to set aside some time to play Modern Warfare 2's campaign, here's everything you need to know.

How long does it take to beat CoD: MW2's campaign?

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2's campaign includes 17 story missions, and you can expect to carve out around five to six hours of game time to complete the campaign on the Regular "normal" difficulty setting. This doesn't steer too far away from Modern Warfare 2019, which featured a campaign length of about 5 hours.

For my first experience, playing Modern Warfare 2 on Regular difficulty did take me a bit beyond the six-hour mark, and that's longer than my usual campaign efforts. This year's story features some missions that are less linear than we've seen in previous campaigns, as you sometimes have more open-world environments to explore and choose how you want to approach your objectives.

The DualShock line of controllers ended with the PlayStation 4 generation, but if you've been looking for a mint-in-box version of the DualSense predecessor, you can grab one right now for a bargain. Over on eBay, the still-excellent controllers are on sale from a licensed Sony reseller for just $40. These are brand-new controllers, and Antonline is a Sony authorized reseller. It's hard to find DualShock 4 controllers at this price in general, so getting a new one at this price makes it even better.

You can get an even bigger discount on them with the promo code COUNTDOWN22, dropping the price to just $32 for either a Glacial White or a Green Camouflage version. As for why one of these controllers is worth having in an age where they've been replaced by the more advanced DualSense, there are a few good reasons to grab a classic peripheral.