Steam News announces that you can get Age of Wonders III for free to keep for a limited time to celebrate the upcoming release of Age of Wonders: Planetfall. Word is: "To celebrate the upcoming release of Planetfall, we're giving Age of Wonders 3 away for free on Steam! As an added bonus, anyone who downloads Age of Wonders 3 for free during this time will get a 10% discount on Age of Wonders: Planetfall Premium Edition. The offer is valid from 11-15th of July, so get it while you can!" Here's a refresher on AoW3:

Age of Wonders III is the long anticipated sequel to the award-winning strategy series. Delivering a unique mix of Empire Building, Role Playing and Warfare, Age of Wonders III offers the ultimate in turn-based fantasy strategy for veterans of the series and new players alike!

Bethesda tweets that Wolfenstein: Youngblood and its VR counterpart Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot are gold. They point the way to this post for PC specifications and preload details:

Free the streets of Paris from Nazi control in both Wolfenstein: Youngblood and Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot.
In Youngblood you’ll be able to buddy up with another person and play as BJ Blazkowicz’s twin daughters, Jess and Soph, as they fight to find their missing father and kick Nazi ass along the way. Cyberpilot is a standalone VR experience that sees you taking on the role of a Resistance hacker turning the Nazis’ own war machines against them. Wolfenstein: Youngblood and Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot both launch on July 26. Youngblood will be available on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC and Nintendo Switch, and Cyberpilot will launch on PC and PlayStation 4. Below you’ll find the full PC specs for both games, as well as preload details.

PRELOAD INFORMATION FOR YOUNGBLOOD & CYBERPILOT

• Xbox One – Preload will begin on July 23 at 8:00am ET
• PlayStation 4 – Preload will begin 48 hours before launch in your territory
• Steam/BNET – Preload will begin on July 23 at 1:00pm ET

Wolfenstein: Youngblood and Cyberpilot will unlock at midnight on July 26 in your region.

WOLFENSTEIN: YOUNGBLOOD PC SPECS

MINIMUM SETTINGS
Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
OS: Win7, 8.1, or 10 (64-Bit versions)
Processor: AMD FX-8350/Ryzen 5 1400 or Intel Core i5-3570/i7-3770
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: Nvidia GTX 770 4GB (Current available GPU GTX1650) or AMD equivalent
Storage: 40 GB available space

RECOMMENDED SETTINGS
Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
OS: Win7, 8.1, or 10 64-Bit
Processor: AMD FX-9370/Ryzen 5 1600X or Intel Core i7-4770
Memory: 16 GB RAM
Graphics: Nvidia GTX 1060 6GB (Current available GPU RTX2060) or AMD equivalent
Storage: 40 GB available space

WOLFENSTEIN: CYBERPILOT PC SPECS

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Valve offers a look at what they're cooking up by opening up the doors to the Steam Labs. This unveils "experiments," works in progress which will not necessarily succeed in the long run. The first three of these are: Micro Trailers, the Interactive Recommender, and Automatic Show. Micro Trailers "are six-second looping videos designed to quickly inform viewers about titles on Steam with a presentation that's easy to skim." The Automatic Show is a bot-generated entertainment program. Finally the Interactive Recommender is a new recommendation engine. This last one seems to hold the most promise, as they offer a separate news post with extensive details on its operation. Here's an explanation on how they hope this might improve upon previous ways of generating game recommendations:

Recommendations on Steam
Rather than introducing a big change to the way customized recommendations are determined on Steam, we’re introducing this new recommender as an experiment customers can seek out and try. This will help us get better usage data while avoiding any sudden shifts that we know can be frustrating for customers and developers who are accustomed to Steam. Should the interactive recommender or related experiments prove useful, we’ll share an update before rolling out any big changes to the way Steam recommends titles to people. The data driving Popular, New, and Trending is different from that of the Discovery Queue, this new recommender, and so on. We view this new interactive recommender as one discovery element among many, and look forward to introducing more ways to connect customers with interesting content and developers.

Recommendations and new games
New games in a system such as this one have a chicken-and-egg effect known as the "cold start" problem. The model can't recommend games that don't have players yet, because it has no data about them. It can react quite quickly, and when re-trained it picks up on new releases with just a few days of data. That said, it can't fill the role played by the Discovery Queue in surfacing brand new content, and so we view this tool to be additive to existing mechanisms rather than a replacement for them.

Why it works for short games
The recommender knows that there are great short-form games you can finish in an hour, and those you'll play for thousands. Your playtime data is normalized to reflect the distribution of playtime in each game, ensuring that all games are on an equal footing.

No need for developer optimization
Sometimes, computer-driven discovery makes creators focus on optimizing for "The Algorithm" rather than customers. You might ask, how is this any different? We designed the recommender to be driven by what players do, not by extrinsic elements like tags or reviews. The best way for a developer to optimize for this model is to make a game that people enjoy playing. While it's important to supply users with useful information about your game on its store page, you shouldn't agonize about whether tags or other metadata will affect how a recommendations model sees your game.

Private Division and V1 Interactive announce Disintegration, a sci-fi first-person shooter. This is a preliminary reveal, with a full announcement to come next month at Gamescom. Target platforms are among the details they are not getting into for now, so we don't know for sure yet whether this is coming to PC or not. An Announce Teaser offers a first look, and the announcement has all we know about this so far:

Private Division and V1 Interactive today announced Disintegration, an upcoming sci-fi, first-person shooter that will be fully unveiled next month at gamescom 2019. Disintegration is the debut title from V1 Interactive, the independent development studio co-founded in 2014 by Marcus Lehto, former creative director at Bungie and co-creator of Halo.

“The opportunity to create not only a new game, but this entire studio has been exhilarating,” said Marcus Lehto, President and Game Director at V1 Interactive. “It is great to be able to share what this amazing team has been working on, and we can’t wait to introduce this new game that our team is building to the world next month.”

“We’re lucky enough to work with someone like Marcus, a gaming icon whose creativity has influenced an entire industry,” said Michael Worosz, Executive Vice President and Head of Private Division. “We’ve been with Marcus and the V1 Interactive team since the studio’s inception and have seen the organization grow its talent base throughout our partnership. As such, we have high confidence in Disintegration, and cannot wait to introduce it as another unique experience that further enhances the Private Division lineup.”

Disintegration will be available in calendar year 2020, during Take-Two’s fiscal year 2021 (April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021). Disintegration is not yet rated by the ESRB. For more information, subscribe on YouTube, follow on Twitter, become a fan on Facebook, and visit www.disintegrationgame.com.

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Activision offers first details on multiplayer support for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare with the announcement of a two-versus-two mode called Gunfight that will be part of the next installment in the shooter series. This is just the start, as they say this "is only a fraction of the full, online multiplayer experience," promising a full multiplayer game reveal for August 1st. On a related note, Activision also informs us of a preorder bonus for Modern Warfare that will unlock Captain Price as a playable character in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's Blackout mode. Naturally this is coming to PS4 first: "Pre-order any version of Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® and immediately unlock the classic version of Captain Price as a playable character in Blackout! The character will be playable on PlayStation 4 today, with other platforms to follow on July 18." The Activision Blog has details on Gunfight mode as well as their plans to show off more next month. We also have the following announcement with more:

A new generation of Call of Duty® multiplayer is coming. Mark your calendars for Thursday, August 1, when Activision and Infinity Ward will reveal the multiplayer universe of Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare®. Recently named “Best Online Multiplayer” by Game Critics Awards Best of E3 2019, Modern Warfare multiplayer delivers a game-changing online experience.

As players enlist in the heart-racing Modern Warfare story, multiplayer continues the experience as players head online into the ultimate playground for the global balance of power. Featuring unified progression across modes, Modern Warfare seeks to unite the community with plans to support cross-play across platforms and the removal of the traditional season pass in order to deliver a greater mix of more free maps, content and community events post-launch.

Moments ago, fans got the first glimpse of the game’s new 2 vs. 2 Gunfight mode, which is only a fraction of the full, online multiplayer experience in Modern Warfare. Shown live on Twitch, Gunfight delivers a new level of quick-action, close-quarters duo-based combat that is a blast to play and to watch.

Tune-in August 1st to Twitch.tv/CallofDuty for the full reveal of the Modern Warfare Multiplayer Universe and deep look at gameplay coming to fans at launch. In the meantime, fans can follow latest information on Call of Duty: Modern Warfare’s multiplayer on @CallofDuty and @InfinityWard on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Professor Lupo and his Horrible Pets is now available on Steam, offering a frenetic puzzle/adventure game for Windows and macOS. This is also available for Switch as can be seen in the launch trailer. Word is there is a launch discount as well as a loyalty discount for BeautiFun customers: "As a special launch promotion, a 15% discount will be available on Steam for the first week after launch and buyers of Professor Lupo will gain a 75% discount on BeautiFun’s previous title, the award-winning Nihilumbra. Anyone curious about Lupo’s den of creatures can check out a free demo on both of the available platforms." Here's word:

In Professor Lupo and his Horrible Pets you play as the professor’s personal Intern in the aftermath of a catastrophic attack on Lupo’s deep space menagerie. The professor’s creatures are bloodthirsty and dangerous, with cuddly exteriors that belie their murderous intent. You will have to outwit these beasts; learning their behavior and using the environment to survive. 100 unique puzzle levels await you as a cast of quirky characters with original art and fully-voiced dialogue offer advice, banter, and threats in equal measure.
Professor Lupo and His Horrible Pets Key Features

• Puzzle-adventure game strongly focused on the narrative!
• Learn the aliens’ behavior: use them in your favor!
• 100 levels, collectible items and replayability: 12+ hours of gameplay!
• Distinctive English voice-overs for each character!
• A new hit from the creators of multi-award winning game Nihilumbra!

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Developer PixelNAUTS Games offers a new Space Pirates Trailer for LOST ORBIT: Terminal Velocity. They say the game will come to Steam next week for Windows, macOS, and Linux, and we have to admit to surprise, as we thought this was to be a console-only release. Now that our misconception is cleared up, we turn to the announcement for more on the new trailer and the game itself:

In honor of next week's release of LOST ORBIT: Terminal Velocity, developer PixelNAUTS Games is giving a first look into the game's space pirate enemies with the following new gameplay trailer.

Watch as pirates chase down our hero Harrison in a massive ship, blast lasers at him, and set mines and other traps to make space travel even more perilous.

LOST ORBIT: Terminal Velocity will be available July 16th for the first time ever on Xbox One and Nintendo Switch, as well as on PlayStation 4 and Steam (PC, Mac, Linux) for $9.99 USD.

In LOST ORBIT: Terminal Velocity, you blast off into the emptiness of space and embark on an epic journey filled with space pirates, orbital boosts, deadly asteroids and more. The definitive version of the fast-paced, dodge ‘em up game, you will boost, swim, bounce, leap, smash and teleport your way through a myriad of obstacles in a desolate yet beautiful galaxy as you struggle to find your way back to civilization. Armed with only an improvised set of equipment and a relentless spirit, you will need to survive 65 intense levels across 5 systems, and confront not only your mortality, but also what lurks in the darkness. To aid in your travels, you must upgrade your abilities and employ fast-thinking skills to complete the interstellar journey alive.

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New Picnic Panic DLC is now available for The Messenger, offering free content for this indie action game. This is available on GOG.com and Steam, so we hope you like ants, because this is how you get ants. Here's a Launch Trailer and here are some details:

The Messenger's epic story continues on in a summer vacation DLC full of tropical action! On Voodkin Island, the demon Barma’thazël captured helpless little creatures to use them in his dark rituals. Only the heroic Messenger can save them now in a vacation-meets-rescue-mission adventure!

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Independent developer Cosmoscope is reworking the Switch version of Morphies Law, announcing this updated version of their third-person shooter will come to Steam on July 30th, and will support cross-platform play with the Switch edition. The Release Date Trailer offers a look at gameplay, and the announcement has more details on this game where size definitely matters:

Morphies Law is centered around a simple rule: hit somebody and you grow, get hit and you shrink. Your mass-stealing morphing robot, your Morphie, has limbs that grow or shrink individually based on taking or giving hits. The size of your body parts don’t only affect how easy it is to hit you, but also your abilities like movement and special skills called Plugins. Every map has its own mechanic that also interacts with the mass of your character, giving even more depth to this integral system. Custom weapons, skins, and loadouts add even more to create an incredibly deep, singular experience centered around stealing mass.

“We’re extremely happy to be bringing our game to Steam and a newly updated version to the Switch. We believe that gamers will love the twist that we’ve added on to shooter combat and the extensive customization options we’ve put in the game.”, says Jonathan, some guy at Cosmoscope.

Morphies Law Key Features

• Morphing robots: the Morphies have 8 body parts that grow and shrink individually, and each body part has a direct effect on your actions.
• Plugins for your body: each body part has a unique Plugin to help you change your strategy. Unlock new Plugins to create new strategies.
• Make your own weapons: you can unlock weapon parts and combine them at will to make the perfect weapon for you!
• Unique game modes: mass-based game modes with different goals but with one thing in common: size always matters more than kills!
• Maps with unique features: every map has an unique mass-related feature that'll make it different from the rest!
• Customize your Morphie: make your Morphie truly unique! You can choose from premade options, make your own custom ones and much more!

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• Steam Weekend Deal - OCTOPATH TRAVELER, 30% Off.
• Steam Daily Deal - Dead In Vinland, 50% Off.
• Steam Daily Deal - Life Goes On- Done to Death, 80% Off.

• Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines Unofficial Patch 10.4 released.

• Overwatch Developer Update - July 2019 Update. "In this quick update, Game Director Jeff Kaplan talks about changes to the release schedule, some incoming quality of life features, and Overwatch’s improved cheat detection system."

• Blazing Chrome Is Now Available For Xbox One And Available In Xbox Game Pass.
• The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man Of Medan Is Now Available For Digital Pre-order And Pre-download On Xbox One.
• Bless Unleashed’s Closed Beta Starts Today July 11th.
• The Bard’s Tale IV: Director’s Cut Arrives Digitally on August 27 and at Retail on September 6.
• Xbox and Rockstar Energy Drink Unveil Second and Third Gears 5 Collector’s Series Cans.
• This Week On Xbox: July 11, 2019.

• Google to roll out redesigned News tab.
• Twitter down: Social media platform goes offline for an hour.

• Radeon Image Sharpening Tested, Navi's Secret Weapon For Combating Nvidia. Thanks Simon.
• This New Poker Bot Can Beat Multiple Pros—at Once.
• Robot umpires: MLB is testing technology in Atlantic League.
• This water cooled gaming desk is cool but costs $14,000.

• Security Flaws Found in Intel Software, Data Center SSDs.

• Facebook denies allegations that you make friends on Facebook.

• Shenmue III backers have to purchase season pass, deluxe edition separately…

Link of the Day: Look at the cute little bear cub.

Psychonauts 2 is being delayed, and the platformer sequel is now expected next year, announces Double Fine. They offer a spoonful of sugar to help this medicine go down with the reassurance that despite a switch of publisher to the studio's new owner Microsoft, the game will still be coming to all announced platforms, including PlayStation 4. They also share the First Gameplay Trailer that they debuted at E3. Here's word:

As you just saw, E3 kicked off with us sneaking into the Microsoft press briefing to adorn Phil Spencer in a Psychonauts shirt. We then snuck past Keanu to announce that we would be joining Xbox Game Studios, and that Psychonauts 2 would be published by Microsoft (instead of Starbreeze) as a first party title. Now, before anyone panics! We have confirmed that we will be able to honor Psychonauts 2 for every platform that we have already promised here, and that includes bringing the game to PlayStation 4!

There really shouldn’t be too many other noticeable changes for you at all, at least not for a while...with one notable exception: We’re now targeting next year for release. We know it’s always disappointing when you have to wait a bit longer, but we also know that you are an amazing, supportive bunch, who - just like us - want the game to be as good as possible. So we’re hopeful you’ll understand! <3

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Save 20% on EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 is now available on Steam, offering a Windows version of the latest installment in this alien-infested third-person shooter series. A new trailer celebrates the release, and the announcement explains what's new this time around. Would you like to know more?

Developed by SANDLOT, EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 continues traditions set by the wildly popular series. Since it first launched in 2003 for the PlayStation®2 console, the EDF series has earned a reputation for its relentless third-person wave shooter gameplay with tons of enemies on-screen, its wide array of unique classes, weapons, loadout combinations, and its charming B-movie dialogue and settings with cities under siege by giant, out of the world creatures.

This focus on delivering an overwhelming scale of enemies and a sense of exhilaration continues with EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5, featuring the most detailed enemy models featured in the series to-date with breakable limbs and body parts and more advanced AI behavior.

Packed with tons of content and high replay value, EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 delivers over 100 missions with five levels of difficulties to choose from for each mission. Including more than 1,000 weapons and armaments to unlock, it also offers players four unique classes to master, allowing players to approach mission goals and objectives in a variety of ways. Classes include the Ranger, a well-rounded infantry soldier, the Wing Diver, a highly mobile air unit, the Fencer, a heavy weapons unit with thick armor, and the Air Raider, a support focused class with the ability to call in various air support types like vehicles, orbital air strikes, and missile barrages. With multiple options for multiplayer, EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 also offers up to four-player online co-op as well as offline couch co-op, supporting up to two players via split-screen.

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Field of Glory: Empires is now available on GOG.com and Steam, offering a 4X strategy game that adds a new twist to the genre with the ability to export your battles into Field of Glory II. A recent video squeezes everything AGEod wants you to know about this into just over two minutes, but if you're too rushed for time for that you can just speed-read the announcement:

From the sunny beaches of Carthage to the frozen limits of the world in Caledonia, from the Iberic Peninsula to the exotic empires of the east: are you ready to conquer all known world?

Field of Glory: Empires, AGEod's new Grand Strategy 4X game, is now available on digital stores. Choose one of the over 70 factions, each with its own set of traits and units, and forge an immortal empire able to survive the test of time.

But beware: every time you conquer a new province, the "decadence" factor rises. No kingdom is safe, even the mightiest empire will face this challenge, like Rome did before collapsing.

Field of Glory: Empires is unique also when it's time to fight. Players can choose between a rapid resolution. watching the entire battle unfold or export it and play it to Field of Glory II. Be like Caesar and lead your legions (or phalanxes, or elephants, or warbands - your choice!) from the first line, and reverse desperate situations with few, valiant troops even if totally outnumbered - something impossible with the typical 4x battle "autoresolve", where only numbers and maths matter.

You can buy on Steam both games in a special bundle with an awesome 25% discount on the total - this also means that if you already have Field of Glory II and you buy Field of Glory: Empires with this bundle, you have immediately a 25% discount on the new game!

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Blazing Chrome is now available for Windows and consoles, with the PC version available on GOG.com and Steam. This allows us to combat a Skynet-style opponent with Contra-style gameplay for a throwback platformer experience. Here's the Release Trailer along with details on the clip and the game:

The Arcade Crew has released a fittingly retro gameplay trailer celebrating humanity’s uprising to properly introduce the resistance’s two leading warriors; Marva, a resilient soldier who’s here to chew bubblegum while kicking ass, and Doyle, a robot who’s had a deadly change of heart.

With a varied arsenal of distinctive weapons, badass pilotable mechs and vehicles, and unlockable characters to help curb the AI army’s ruthless oppression, Blazing Chrome plays the way you remember classic action games feeling. Joymasher’s modern refinements to that satisfying shoot-em-up playstyle will make scrapping hordes of mechanized foes and skyscraper-sized bosses feel as comfortable as getting back on that hoverbike you haven’t rode in years.

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Indie developer Spiders and publisher Focus Home Interactive announce a release date for GreedFall, saying this fantasy role-playing game will land on September 10th for Windows, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4. The news is illustrated by a new Release Date Announcement Trailer offering "a glimpse of GreedFall’s mesmerizing world, characters and secrets." Here's more on what the game will offer:

The old world is dying, and its weary population is plagued by a seemingly unstoppable disease. The only glimmer of hope lies in rumors that a cure may be found on the recently discovered island of Teer Fradee. Join your cousin, governor Constantin D’Orsay, alongside various factions with their own directives and hidden agendas, and journey into a new world seeping with magic. Will you align yourself with one of the new colonies, or join the natives in their struggle for liberty?

Player freedom and choice are at the heart of GreedFall, as your decisions will build friendships, break alliances, diffuse conflicts and shape the future of the island. Exploring a brave new frontier, your search for lost secrets will rely on more than just skill in combat. Everything, whether a dialogue option, a stealthy approach, or even your choice of companion in a given situation may alter the outcome.

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BANDAI NAMCO announces two cooperative multiplayer modes that will be included in The Dark Pictures Anthology - Man of Medan when the horror game is released for Windows and consoles next month. One is a two-player online story mode, and the other a five player offline Netflix and chill mode. They show off these modes in a new Multiplayer Announcement Trailer and provide the following details:

BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America Inc. today announced that players will be able to team up to tackle the horrors of The Dark Pictures Anthology - Man of Medan in both online and offline multiplayer modes:

Shared Story Mode

• Share the story simultaneously with a friend in two-player online co-op
• Both players explore the world, make choices and perform actions that affect the outcome of the story and the fate of their respective characters
• Traverse scenes through a different perspective from the single-player experience—sometimes together, sometimes apart—in totally separate scenes revealing new information, locations and scares

Movie Night Mode

• Play locally in a group of up to five players with one controller, with each player taking charge of the movement, decisions and choices of one of the five main characters
• Players can choose between saving themselves, or trying to keep their friends’ characters alive
• At the end of each playthrough, actions and impacts will be judged – with achievements & rewards for each player

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3D Realms and 1C Entertainment announce that Ion Fury is the new title of the game formerly known as Ion Maiden, and the Early Access version on Steam already reflects the change. This is to avoid a legal battle with heavy metal band Iron Maiden, who objected to the old title. They also reveal August 15th as the official release date for the shooter, which is built upon the old-school Build Engine that powered Duke Nukem 3D and other titles back in the day. PC Release Date Trailer shows how this holds up and the announcement continues this stroll down memory lane:

Ion Maiden, the old-school first-person shooter developed by Voidpoint and published by 3D Realms and 1C Entertainment, will release under a new title to avoid legal issues with a certain popular heavy metal band. Ion Fury fires out of Early Access and 1.0 bursts onto PC August 15, with Nintendo Switch™, PlayStation® 4 and Xbox One coming later. To celebrate, PC Big Box-style physical copies are now available for pre-order.

Shelly “Bombshell” Harrison finally has a deadly date on her calendar with Dr. Jadus Heskel and his army of cyber-cultists. With signature weapons including her Loverboy revolver and Bowling Bombs, every cyborg she sees is about four seconds away from being nothing but gibs n’ gore.

Lovingly crafted in Build engine which powered ‘90s classics such as Duke Nukem 3D, Blood and Shadow Warrior, Ion Fury fuses nostalgic looks with today’s technology to create the ultimate shooter. Modern features like auto-saves, improved physics and map interactivity, headshots, widescreen functionality and controller support, simply weren’t possible back then, but Ion Fury brings the best of both worlds.

To celebrate the sheer madness of a modern shooter made in the Build engine, Shelly’s getting the Big Box she deserves. This edition includes a Bowling lBomb-shaped USB Drive, a poster, a keycard based on the ones Shelly finds in-game, a making-of booklet, a lanyard, and of course Ion Fury, all for $59.99.

Haven’t played yet, and find that trigger finger is getting itchy? The Digital Only edition of Ion Fury is available now on Steam Early Access in English, for $19.99. As the game has doubled in planned scope since its unveiling, the price will rise to $24.99 one week from today on July 18. Now’s the perfect time to pick it up and start blasting.

“After careful consideration, we’ve decided to rename our first-person-shooter “Ion Maiden” to “Ion Fury,” said Mike Nielsen, CEO of 3D Realms. “A lot of thought went into this, but most importantly it would be a disservice to our loyal fanbase and the fantastic developers, to drag out a long lawsuit. The amazing gameplay, interactivity and pure fun, is what makes Ion Fury a great game. Not the title.”

Continue here to read the full story.

• Dead Cells - Update the 13th.
• Dota 2 Update - July 10th, 2019.
• Heroes of the Storm Balance Patch Notes - July 10, 2019. Includes 10% global movement speed buff.
• World of Warcraft Hotfixes: July 10, 2019.

• Esports Awards 2019 Nominees Announced.
• DeepMind Research on StarCraft II Ladder. You can opt-in if you want to be trounced by the AI.

• Final Fantasy VII Remake video game is coming to Xbox One according to a social media goof.
• Nintendo Download- Build the Fantasy World of Your Dreams.

• Fiverr embraces indie games with new store for game devs, artists and animators.
• There’s a big problem with Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency.

Thanks Ant.

• How User Revolts Shaped the Linux Desktop. Thanks Linux Today.
• Foxconn will only create 1,500 jobs, says Wisconsin governor. Thanks Slashdot.
• Patriot Unveils Viper 4 Blackout: Compatible with Ryzen 3000, Up to DDR4-4000.

• After Microsoft moves its servers back to the USA, German state's privacy commissioner advises schools not to use Office 365.
• Apple disables Walkie Talkie app due to vulnerability that could allow iPhone eavesdropping.
• Sea Turtle hackers head to the Mediterranean, snag Greece's TLD registrar as a souvenir.
• Data breach post-mortem - Pale Moon forum. Thanks DSLReports via Ant.
• Gamasutra - Battlegrounds has been banned in Jordan due to negative impact on players.
• ‘World’s first Bluetooth hair straighteners’ can be easily hacked.

• The unpredictable legal implications of Trump’s Twitter-blocking defeat.

• Defector Review - IGN.
• Sniper Elite V2 Remastered Review - Gaming Nexus.
• Stranger Things 3: The Game Review - IGN.

• AMD Ryzen 9 3900x and Ryzen 7 3700x CPUs on Real Hardware Reviews.
• AMD Ryzen 9 3900X CPU on a B350 Motherboard on TechSpot.
• ARTIC Freezer 34 eSports DUO CPU Cooler on TweakTown.
• ASRock X570 Taichi Motherboard on ThinkComputers.org.
• Super Flower Leadex III 850 W PSU on TechPowerUp.
• TP-Link Archer A20 Ac400 Wireless Router on TweakTown.

• ROKiT Launches Game Development Fund…
• A Japanese hotel has built a lifesize flight simulator into one of its rooms…

Oh thank heaven, it's 7/11. That means today is Slurpee Day, a decidedly commercial publicity stunt that we acknowledge every year because it's clever, and because it involves free Slurpees. The 7-Eleven Website has details on how this works. For all the times I threatened to do so, I've almost never actually collected on this deal, even though for years we lived just a few miles from a 7-Eleven. The nearest one to our new home is much farther, but we're actually planning a trip to our old stomping grounds today to pick up some mail and such, so I have a chance of invoking a bit of irony if we end up going to the store near there. Though we do see a recent story saying there are now over 60,000 7-Elevens in 17 countries, apologies to our friends in other locations where this offer will be difficult or impossible to collect upon. But you only have yourself to blame if you live somewhere too dignified for convenience stores, not to mention where they write the date backwards.

R.I.P.: Willy Wonka star Denise Nickerson who played Violet Beauregarde taken off life support a year after suffering stroke. Thanks Ant.
R.I.P.: Jim Bouton, ex-Yankee and 'Ball Four' author, dies.

Big Gulp of Links:	Thanks Ant.
Stories:	Drivers stopped on an Atlanta interstate to grab $175,000 in cash that fell out of an armored truck. At The T-Rex Races- On Your Mark, Get Set, Rawwrr. Thanks RedEye9. Taylor Swift named world's highest paid celebrity. Thanks RedEye9.
Science:	Surgeon Transfers Nerves to Let Paralyzed Patients Use Hands. Thanks Max. Mysterious illness that paralyzes healthy kids prompts plea from CDC. Thanks RedEye9. Study links a small glass of juice or soda a day to increased risk of cancer.
Media:	Damaged Engine on Delta Flight Sparks Emergency Landing in Raleigh. Thanks Boing Boing. Cockatoo vs bird deterrent spikes. Dog Tries to Chase Dust Devil.
Follow-up:	How a vaccinated woman's death exposes the threat of anti-vaxxers. Thanks RedEye9.