ZeniMax QA union reaches a tentative contract agreement with Microsoft including ‘substantial across-the-board wage increases,’ worker protections, and more

Just two months after voting to authorize a strike action over stalled negotiations with Microsoft, ZeniMax Workers United-CWA has announced a tentative contract agreement that includes “substantial across-the-board wage increases” along with new minimum salaries for employees, protections against arbitrary dismissal, grievance procedures, and a new policy for game credits “that clearly acknowledges the QA…

Read More

More than 2 million people have played/been brutalized by Elden Ring Nightreign in its first 24 hours

Elden Ring Nightreign is here, and as I write this there are nearly 300,000 players roaming Limveld in pursuit of statistically-unlikely success in FromSoft’s roguelike remix. The launch hasn’t been without criticisms, many of which we shared in our Nightreign review, but that apparently hasn’t slowed the influx of newly-christened Nightfarers. In a tweet from…

Read More

This underwater city builder had me more emotionally invested in my corals than SimCity does in my human citizens, and you can try it at the next Steam Next Fest

I love metropolitan city builders, but once I’m done turning fertile riverside plains into a mess of eight-lane highways and coal plants, I can’t help but wonder if I’ve maybe been a net negative for the world around me. When I saw Life Below on Steam—a city builder all about constructing reefs that opens its…

Read More

SteelSeries Rival 3 Gen 2 Wireless review

I really wanted to love the SteelSeries Rival 3 Gen 2 Wireless, and in some ways, I do. It’s very versatile, sturdy, and has reminded me of the very real benefits of removable batteries in gaming mice. It’s also pretty well priced. Because of all this, I reckon it’s ideal for some select use cases….

Read More