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Cake day: June 9th, 2023

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  • This is perhaps the one game in development right now that could release at any time this year, next year or the year after that and it would still perform incredibly well. It’s pretty dead-set on being the largest entertainment launch in history. In other words: They can give it all the time it needs. The only worry from Rockstar’s and Take 2’s perspective is that they need to coordinate it with the behemoth of a marketing campaign that will be accompanying its release. There won’t be a last-minute delay, but if it needs more time, they need to realize this months ahead. So far, it seems to be on track or else the CEO wouldn’t release statements like these.

    Since there is no PC release at launch and since it’s only targeting four different hardware configurations for the time being (both variants of the current-gen PS and Xbox), they don’t need to worry about making it run reliably on a wide variety of systems. Just like every other AAA developer, they are probably cursing Microsoft for releasing the cut-down Xbox Series S, but given what they have achieved in the past with hardware far less powerful, I doubt that Rockstar’s tech wizards will have too much trouble with getting GTA VI to run on this affordable console.

    You are right about crunch though. Rockstar is notorious for this, always has been. I hope they’ve learned their lesson by now, realized that all crunch does is make people burn themselves out for worse results, but who knows, given how secretive the firm is.



  • Counterpoint: There are early access games that have been under continuous active development for many years, but are also worth playing in their unfinished state. BeamNG.drive - a highly realistic physics-based driving simulation and sandbox - for example has been available for purchase for almost ten years and since then, it has seen quality updates in regular intervals. While this isn’t the developers’ only revenue stream (they are also making simulation software aimed at professionals), word of mouth and the resulting influx of new players is enough to finance the development.













  • Denuvo on decades-old games, for reasons.

    It is worth mentioning that EA themselves gave Sims 2 with all expansions away for free a few years ago. This version is neither difficult to find nor to run. Sims 1 is a bit more temperamental, so there might be some value to this re-release, but I’d wait until they inevitably remove Denuvo in a few months to a year, unless you absolutely have to revisit it right now.

    Edit: Apparently, Denuvo isn’t used on the old games, but instead on Sims 4 expansions included in the bundle.




  • I’ve never played a Commandos game for some reason, so I couldn’t tell, but I would say it’s about on par with Desperados 1 in terms of gameplay, if perhaps a bit less punishing. Cutscenes and voice acting (at least with the German version I played) are considerably worse however and I have no idea why.

    I can confirm that these looked magnificent on a high quality CRT. This was a transitional period, when 3D graphics were not able to deliver the same amount of detail as the best 2D isometric graphics just yet. That said, everyone knew that the clock was ticking, since the advantages of fully 3D graphics were obvious and, unlike today, technological progress happened at breakneck speeds.

    I was particularly fond of isometric RTS games back then. I spent the most amount of time with Age of Empires II (of course), but there were many others, like Cossacks (2001) from GSC Gameworld (who would later develop S.T.A.L.K.E.R.), which didn’t look as good as the inspiration, but boasted far larger maps and enormous numbers of units on screen. With American Conquest (2002), they refined the concept and overtook the original version of AoK in terms of visuals, with huge and detailed sprite work, as well as even more insane unit counts that pushed CPUs of the time to their limits. The gameplay was almost on par as well, with quite a bit more depth. It’s ridiculous just how much more sophisticated it is compared to Cossacks, despite there being only 1.5 years between the two. America (2000) is a more obscure title from this era, essentially a Wild West clone of Age of Empires. It’s quite solid, but unremarkable compared to the other games mentioned here.

    Another Eastern European series I was fond of was Sudden Strike, set in WW2, as well as its sequel and countless spin-offs and expansions. There’s a model train charm to the detailed visuals, despite the not exactly charming setting. Fiendishly hard and realistic, but for all of its realism, it unfortunately decides to ignore the context of many battles, especially the war crimes that happened around them, which is troubling, since you can also play from the German perspective. Blitzkrieg (2005) is quite similar in terms of gameplay, although with a more sophisticated engine that blends 2D and 3D elements. However, when the groundbreaking Codename Panzers with its amazing fully 3D graphics and tight (if unrealistic) gameplay and mission design came out in 2004, all of these more technologically conservative WW2 RTS games instantly felt outdated, even though it came out right in the middle of them. They still had their value though, since Codename Panzers wasn’t trying to replace them in terms of gameplay, focusing on decision making instead of simulation.

    Similarly, Desperados 2 (2006) made the first game feel a century old. From the same camera distance as the first game, it both looked far better than the original and had the advantage of dynamic lighting, more fluidity and a freely rotatable camera. Up close it was a bit blocky, but this was to be expected back then.

    Many of the titles mentioned above can be rather troublesome on modern systems, so I highly recommend checking out their pages on the PCGamingWiki, which is a truly invaluable resource.