NZXT’s first gaming keyboards are quality peripherals with hot-swappable mechanical switches PC component makersNZXTcontinue expanding beyond the confines of cases, having just launched two lots of desktop peripherals: the Function mechanical keyboard series, and the Lift gaming mouse. Thanks to a shipping slip-up I’ve only been getting acquainted with the Function family, but so far its three models have proven to be adept at games and typing alike – with a big bonus for customisation in the form of easily hot-swappable switches....

Report says new studio has struggled VGC’s sources say that the departures are due to a lack of creative autonomy, with The Initiative studio head Darrell Gallagher - and now departed game director Dan Neuburger - taking a top-down approach to the Perfect Dark reboot’s direction. Gallagher and Neuburger were previously studio head and design director at Crystal Dynamics. “It’s no small task to build a studio and reinvent a beloved franchise,” Gallagher told VGC....

Mutate some best friends I like devlogs, those scrappy blogs where game creators crack open the egg of videogames to show you the yolk of development. The mistakes, the dead ends, the iterations; they illuminate the hardships of creation, and they’re entertaining to boot. In Wobbledogs, you start with a flock of pups, and then breed them. Traits get mixed and passed down, and your dogs develop physical and psychological quirks....

It’s more approachable than its predecessor too If you’re unfamiliar withRedout, it’s an anti-gravity racer inspired by the likes of F-Zero andWipeout. And if you’ve not played any of those before, then imagine a pod-racer from Star Wars belting it down Mario Kart’s Rainbow Road - except, hang on, there’s a mysterious white powder caked on the bristles of Mario’s mustache. The sheer speed of the first game made it pretty popular among race-heads, but a bit of a daunting prospect for those used to a traditional “wheels on the ground” racing experience....

In the Mystery Science Theater 3000 tradition After makingWhat The Dub?!, a game which is basically about cracking jokes over bad movies like you’re on Mystery Science Theater 3000, Wide Right Interactive are now getting even Mistier. Today they announcedRiffTrax: The Game, teaming up with the post-MST3K jokefest for an official new party game about making your pals laugh by cracking jokes over bad movies. In familiar party game ways, RiffTrax: The Game will pit you and your pals against each other, building off prompts to try to make each other laugh....

Pushing the boat out Having waded through an early preview build of its opening Forgotten Waters stage this week, this is one co-operative cannon fest that seems destined to see friends and family not so much walk the plank after an untimely defeat as get absolutely spanked by it. Imagine the visual chaos of a game likeOvercookedcombined with the frantic, tactile ship management ofLovers In A Dangerous Spacetimeand you’re pretty much there, albeit with several more barnacles, bug-spewing mosquitoes and laser-firing totem poles in the mix....

It’s not all porn, but a lot is porn Steam started a week-long “JRPG sale” last night, offering discounts on hundreds of games, some of which are RPGs, and some of which are even Japanese. The theme is broad but the deals are solid, including 80% off Valkyria Chronicles 4, 50% offChrono Trigger, 45% offYakuza: Like A Dragon, and hundreds more discounts. Heck, evenRPG Makeris on sale, so you can make your own JRPG, and then sell it on Steam, and then join in the next JRPG sale....

Studio say they’ll focus more on “original IP” Tencent have bought a majority stake in Tequila Works, the developers of Rime,Deadlight, The Sexy Brutale, and forthcoming League Of Legends tie-in Song Of Nunu. No fee was disclosed with the announcement, but Tequila Works co-founder Raúl Rubio said the investment would allow the company to focus on “original IPs”. “For 12 years, the teams at Tequila Works have passionately crafted high-quality titles that radiated our personal sensibilities”, said Rubio....

AMD also launching lower-end chips and widening motherboard compatibility The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, what the red team calls the “world’s fastest gaming CPU”, now has a price and release date: it’ll cost $449 and hit shelves on the 20th of April. A quick check of Intel’s current top chip, theCore i9-12900K, has it at$614– so that’s potentially a big saving, if the Ryzen 7 5800X3D really can outpace it. UK pricing is still TBD....

Halo Infinite took home two awards, and Ryan Reynolds showed up This weekend brought the second annual Video Game Accessibility Awards, a celebration of games which make an effort to welcome a wider range of players. Prizes came in ten categories covering everything from control and text options to friendly training spaces. It was a fun awards show too, with good hosts, chat from devs, and even a special appearance from Van Wilder star Ryan Reynolds....

All the cards and combos needed for victory with Virtual World Want to master the Virtual World deck in Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel?The strength of Virtual World comes from the deck’s easy access to powerful XYZ Monsters likeTrue King of All CalamitiesandDivine Arsenal AA-Zeus - Sky Thunder, as well as a number of difficult-to-overcome Synchro monsters. These powerful XYZ Monsters alone make this deck one of thebest meta deckscurrently playable inYu-Gi-Oh Master Duel, and it’s your impressive array of Extra Deck monsters that you will rely on in most duels using this deck....

While Narita Boy leaves Game Pass is most useful to me when it’s offering up games I’m interested in but not so convinced by that I feel ready to spend money on them. Zero Escape: The Nonary Games fits the bill. It’s a visual novel filled with life-and-death puzzles and Katharinecalled itthe “top bestest best visual novel of all time, fact, no recounts.” That’s high praise, but I frequently hate visual novels and so haven’t taken the plunge....

Ridiculous WhileElden Ringis a vast game you can marinate yourself in for weeks, soaking up its vast open world and big vibes until you almost feel new arms budding along your shoulders, it’s also a game you can tear through at breakneck pace. Speedrunners have been grafting to cut times, and now someone has broken the half-hour mark by finishing the game in 28:59. Ridiculous. Watch the run below. I mean, obviously don’t watch it if you don’t want spoilers....