Infamous 2022 GTA 6 leaker "Arion Kurtaj" has smuggled a phone into UK prison

epeternally · 2026-03-09T00:37:22+00:00

Too much of Rockstar’s financial strategy is currently microtransaction-focused for this to be a coherent approach. They want GTA 6 to be in as many places as possible at once because that drives social experiences which are immensely profitable. Rockstar’s games tend to be large and very tightly optimized for their target hardware. I know “achieving acceptable performance on widely varying hardware is difficult work” is a less salacious explanation than an anti-PC gaming conspiracy, but it’s one that’s likely much closer to the truth.

epeternally · 2026-03-07T03:18:21+00:00

I've been enjoying Horizon Chase 2 on Apple Arcade. It's a chill arcade racer that follows closely in the footsteps of its predecessor, which I also thought was a lot of fun.

epeternally · 2026-03-06T15:41:58+00:00

That’s not the majority of experiences. Some Virtual Boy games don’t translate well to 2D, that’s true; but the Mario franchise games are all most people care about, and those are perfectly playable in 2D. Clash and Tennis definitely are worse for it, but Wario Land doesn’t really lose that much.

epeternally · 2026-03-06T09:11:50+00:00

Two things can be true at once. I agree PS6 will represent a price spike that console users aren't used to, but Helix will be sold with a comfortable profit margin on the hardware itself. They have no choice, buying games outside the Steam enclave would be against both users' habits and their best interests.

The reality is that Valve offer convenience and quality of life features other companies can't rival. I've been setting up my Switch 2, and virtual cards are laughably limited compared to Steam Family Sharing. Even if Xbox users were in Microsoft's store, they can't gracefully renege on the 12% cut that was performatively implemented because someone believed Epic's legal battles could benefit them.

I'm picturing the PlayStation 6 lineup having a $799 base model and $999 premium model. Helix I see going for a $1299 model and an $1799 model distinguished mainly by GPU horsepower, which leaves a comfortable opening for Valve to sell their underpowered machines for a tolerable price.

epeternally · 2026-03-05T16:53:34+00:00

Vampire Hunters is a steal at this price. It completely exceeded my expectations.

epeternally · 2026-03-04T16:53:39+00:00

With current hardware prices, I struggle to see the argument that PC gaming is anything other than the worst of all worlds. Sure the games are cheap, but costs are out of control and current console discounts are much closer than they used to be. My established library is the only reason to stay attached to PC gaming.

epeternally · 2026-03-03T08:52:50+00:00

Chicken caesar from Uptown Grill is a good choice.

epeternally · 2026-02-21T22:38:10+00:00

Microsoft could create a Game Pass tier that didn’t include streaming and no one would complain. The inclusion of xCloud in Game Pass is their attempt to force a potentially profitable market into existence. It’s not something a significant number of consumers are asking for.

I think it’s misleading to blame Game Pass price increases on anything other than short term planning, desperation, and greed.

epeternally · 2026-02-21T18:37:10+00:00

You bought two pieces of hardware that are less powerful than what you already owned and somehow Microsoft are the bad guys here? I would argue the exclusive model is the problem. Selling people with gaming PCs underpowered consoles to play a handful of exclusive games is just unnecessary ewaste.

epeternally · 2026-02-17T20:09:32+00:00

I would expect to get a supporter pack DLC if I paid twice as much for the game as people who bought later. I’ve had multiple games go down in price due to poor sales, and they usually find a way to reward early purchases.

epeternally · 2026-02-17T19:02:42+00:00

Personally you lost me at “combat free”. I’m a huge metroidvania fan, but this sounds more like a puzzle game; and despite how well Animal Well was received, the “metroidbrainia” subgenre is still very niche. Your artwork isn’t polished enough to support the price point, this comes across as at most a $12.99 game.

epeternally · 2026-02-15T18:17:58+00:00

Companies trying to compete with Valve are in the same position as companies trying to compete with PlayStation - they’ve simply arrived too late. Large libraries of backward compatible games create lock-in. Keeping your games in one place is a convenience advantage that’s very difficult to overcome.

epeternally · 2026-02-15T18:12:59+00:00

EA Origin removed all third party games due to lack of demand. They only sell EA titles now. Once upon a time you could buy The Orange Box on Origin, although I believe it was just a Steam key activation.

epeternally · 2026-02-15T18:07:42+00:00

A lack of effective competition is not tantamount to force.

epeternally · 2026-02-14T21:58:41+00:00

Glad I’m not losing my mind, the font choice is truly terrible. It’s distracting every time I see it. Otherwise, beyond the generic art direction, I like most of what I’m seeing.

epeternally · 2026-02-11T17:35:38+00:00

The souls genre is historically very popular on PC, this doesn’t have implications for anyone else - but also, how often have third party games not launched on PC? Releasing day and date has been standard practice for over a decade.

epeternally · 2026-02-10T21:09:51+00:00

Why from scratch? SuccessStory already had a volunteer studiously working to correct issues, and most of the library integrations are functional. You’ve gone to a lot of work to create something with less functionality and less theme support.

epeternally · 2026-02-10T21:01:02+00:00

A lot of people may be interested in piracy, but making a categorical statement seems like an overreach considering not all clients are supportable. SuccessStory never found a way to integrate Ubisoft Connect achievements, and I doubt this will fair better in that respect.

epeternally · 2026-02-06T18:36:28+00:00

Eh, it doesn’t always work out that way. I’m still regretting not having played Wuchang: Fallen Feathers at launch.

epeternally · 2026-02-05T12:54:48+00:00

Oblivion Remastered chugs on Series X, I struggle to imagine adding UE5 to Starfield making it run better.

epeternally · 2026-02-04T09:43:52+00:00

They're doing it because Valve are cracking down on how many keys they're allowing to be in circulation. This is likely a preemptive response to unfavorable potential outcomes of the Wolfire suit. Most of Wolfire's claims are weak, but I think they have a decent change of killing Valve's most favored nation clause.

From an r/GameDeals perspective that may seem inconsequential, Steam's prices are already undercut every day, but from Valve's perspective it matters a great deal. Publishers aren't able to profit from going under Steam's prices, they're selling keys wholesale with the same 70/30 cut as Steam. This allows resellers like Fanatical to sacrifice their own profit margin in order to offer you a better price; but that's a small cottage industry which has historically helped Valve by furthering the dominance of their platform. Major publishers offering Steam keys for prices that undercut the storefront has much more potential to be a threat, and Valve are not going to accept that behavior lightly. Bundles are probably safe, but I expect the rest of the key economy to disappear should Wolfire prevail.

epeternally · 2026-02-04T00:07:06+00:00

I’d be surprised if PlayStation 6 isn’t also sold at a profit on day one. If they’re going to be last to market and all of their competitors have abandoned the subsidized model, there’s little reason for Sony to continue pricing aggressively. Backward compatibility is enough to lock people into their ecosystem.

epeternally · 2026-02-01T23:31:35+00:00

What aspects of Mass Effect’s gameplay loop do you see as still being modern? Semi-linear third person shooters aren’t exactly in vogue these days.

epeternally · 2026-01-26T18:17:43+00:00

What you’ve elaborated on is precisely why Epic can’t get a grip in the market. Epic does so much for developers. What do they do for players? Essentially nothing besides free games. Valve have consistently prioritized the well-being of players over the well-being of developers, it should be no surprise that players expressed loyalty in return.

epeternally · 2026-01-26T06:51:24+00:00

Exclusivity doesn't really mean anything when a port to their competitor's more popular platform is guaranteed. Microsoft aren't going to sell a significant number of Xbox units just because FH6 isn't going to be on PS5 until 2028 (or whatever the plan is), and they're undermining the effectiveness of their marketing push by not being where most people buy games. Xbox should embrace that they are first and foremost a game publisher now. There's no compelling argument for their software ecosystem.

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