This tweet confirms the rumors that E3 2023 is cancelled. Word is: "ReedPop and the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) have announced that both the digital and physical events for E3 2023 are cancelled." This announcement was expected after more and more companies announced they were pulling out of the show. The E3 Website now reflects the news with this statement:

Show organizer ReedPop announces E3 2023 will not take place as scheduled this June, with both physical and digital events canceled. Alongside the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), both parties will re-evaluate the future of E3.

Grinding Gears Games unveils Crucible as the new expansion for Path of Exile, the free-to-play action/RPG. This will arrive for PC players on April 7th, and will come to the console editions on April 12th. The Official Trailer takes a look, and if you're interested in the full treatment, there's a VOD of the entire reveal stream on Twitch. And this forum post has the complete patch notes. Here are the details:

In Path of Exile: Crucible, you'll learn about the ancient titans who once shaped the primordial surface of Wraeclast. If you're powerful enough, you will earn the ability to forge their power onto your weapons.

Our April expansion introduces the Crucible challenge league, nine new Vaal Skills, Atlas Gateways, over ten new Unique Items and improvements to Breach, Abyss, Passive Tree Masteries, the Saboteur, the Pathfinder, Ruthless and much more!

Continue here to read the full story.

Plasma is now available in Early Access on Steam, offering the chance to experience this Windows engineering sandbox from Dry Licorice. Word is: "In Plasma, players create machines and tools to explore a creative and colourful world. The game features a state-of-the-art robotics physics engine and user-friendly visual programming tools. They can also download other player’s creations, see how they work, change them and make their own versions. Plasma provides a unique playground to bring devices, gizmos and fully-interactive robots to life." The Early Access Trailer takes a look at this in action. Here's more:

The title gives players the ability to create anything imaginable, from simple button and lever mechanisms to complex rockets, robots and RC Cars. Players will encounter challenges and be able to get their creations together to see how they work. Any creation can be explored and modified using a simple but robust visual programming system which step by step will help build knowledge over time.

Continue here to read the full story.

• Save 30% on JoJo's Bizarre Adventure- All-Star Battle R on Steam.
• Save 66% on Midnight Ghost Hunt on Steam.
• Save 33% on The Entropy Centre on Steam.
• Save 40% on Builder Simulator on Steam.
• One More Multiverse Bundle (pay what you want and help charity).*

*Blue's News may receive a commission on sales of this item.

• Hasbro to Webcast First Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call.

• Splinter Cell Dragonfire Novel Out Today.

Official patches.

• Darkest Dungeon II: Redemption Road Live Now.
• Hearthstone 25.6.2 Patch Notes.
• Insurgency: Sandstorm - UPDATE 1.14 OPERATION- ACCOLADE - RELEASE NOTES. Here's a trailer.
• The Last of Us Part I v1.0.1.6 Patch Notes for PC.
• Team Fortress 2 Update Released.

Official trailers.

• For Honor: Content of the Week - 30 March.
• Trackmania: Spring Campaign 2023 Trailer.

• 'I hate advertising in games': Q&A with Epic Games' Tim Sweeney and Saxx Persson on the future of Fortnite, Unreal Engine.

Thanks Console General.

• Xbox Free Games With Gold Games for April 2023 Revealed.
• Xbox Insider Release Notes - Omega (2304.230327-2200).
• Xbox Insider Release Notes - Delta (2304.230327-2200).
• Xbox Insider Release Notes - Beta (2304.230327-2200).

Thanks Console General.

• Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 23424.
• Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25330.
• Visual Studio Code v1.77.0.
• Evernote v10.55.1.
• Paint.net 5.0.3 is now available. Thanks DSLReports via Ant.

• Principal Sends $100,000 of School Funds to Fake Elon Musk, Claims She Was 'Groomed.' Claims to be "very smart."

Obituary: Bubsy creator Mike Berlyn passed away at age 73.

It's time to collect our Thursday freebies, as there are two new giveaways on the Epic Games Store. As promised, the store is now offering Tunche and The Silent Age completely free. The 2D brawler and the 2D point-and-click adventure are for keeps, as long as you make with the snagging by next Thursday. At that point Dying Light Enhanced Edition and Blazing Sails will become the next gifts. Here's a quick pitch for each of today's free games:

Tunche, a being of great power, has gone mad and now evil creatures are taking over the jungle. Help Rumi and her friends uncover the truth behind Tunche's actions and restore peace in the Amazon in this charming roguelike action game!

Experience a post-apocalyptic world like never before in The Silent Age, a thrilling point-and-click adventure game. Use time travel to unravel the mystery behind humanity's disappearance and save the world from extinction. Start your journey now!

Milestone and Dorna Sports announce MotoGP 23, saying the next installment in the motorbike racing series will come to PC and consoles on June 8th. The high-octane Announcement Trailer is here to get everyone's engines going. Here's word on what's new, including a redesigned career mode and dynamic weather:

Among the most important novelties of MotoGP™23 is the design of the career mode, conceived to give players the freedom to build their own journey to becoming a two-wheel legend. Indeed, the introduction of turning points will affect career paths based on the performance achieved and the decisions made by each player. After debuting in the final part of a Moto3™ season, it will be possible to move faster through the different classes depending on the results obtained; however, finding a contract will not be easy, as each team will only have two spots and players will have to compete with the official riders to take their place. Turning points will also influence bike development during the seasonal tests, with dedicated challenges to speed up evolution. Importantly, this year rivalries will not be confined to the track; for the first time ever, MotoGP™23 will also feature a social network to interact with riders, teams, and manufacturers. Just like in real life, this will be the place to make friends but also to bother rivals, as the AI will behave differently during races also based on the way players act on the social network.

Continue here to read the full story.

Ravenbound is now available on Steam, providing Windows gamers with a new way to fulfill their action/roguelite needs. Developer Systemic Reaction offers this Launch Trailer to set expectations, showing a setting inspired by Scandanavian folklore and action gameplay with deckbuilding elements. This post has a schedule of streams this weekend to show off gameplay, and this one has details on today's release stream. Here's more:

Ravenbound is a fast-paced action game that combines the challenge of a roguelite with the choices of open world. Systemic Reaction, a creative division of Avalanche Studios Group, built on their expertise from creating vast open worlds and fast-paced action to merge it into the roguelite experience in a new fantasy world.

Permadeath and Permanent Progression
You are a Vessel to the Raven, an eternal weapon forged by imprisoned Gods. In order to free them and restore order to the island of Ávalt the Raven must rebuild its power - one vessel’s life at the time. Permadeath is a big part of Ravenbound. While each Vessel is lost forever once they fall in battle, the strength they bring to the Raven is not, allowing you to come back stronger each time.

Continue here to read the full story.

Boss Team Games announce new Who's Your Daddy DLC coming to Evil Dead: The Game on April 26th. This will come to the Epic Games Store and consoles, and will also mark the game's debut on Steam. Besides the DLC, this will also be part of a new Evil Dead: The Game – Game of the Year Edition, celebrating the slew of honors the game definitely did not receive (though it certainly met with positive reviews). Word on that is: "Marking the game’s long-awaited debut on Steam, this new edition of the blockbuster co-op PvP|PvE multiplayer action experience bundles the full base game with a hoard of content from six DLC packs and more, including the upcoming “Who’s Your Daddy” DLC." Here's more:

Available on April 26 as part of Evil Dead: The Game – Game of the Year Edition or as a standalone purchase, the “Who’s Your Daddy” DLC features new surprises for the Survivors and Demons inspired by the STARZ series “Ash vs Evil Dead,” including:

• New Survivor – Brock Williams: Ash’s old man himself, Brock is immune to knockbacks and has several auras he can unleash to help his squadmates. These auras change dynamically based on how many Williams family members are on the team.
• New Demon – Schemer: Based on the notorious demon boss Baal, the Schemer is a trap specialist who confuses Survivors with illusions. His Meat Puppets inflict increased damage with a variety of attacks based on the fear levels of the Survivors.
• New outfits for Ash, Amanda and Pablo.

Additional DLCs included in Evil Dead: The Game – Game of the Year Edition feature a range of bonus playable Survivors and Demons with unique powers and abilities, as well as tons of cosmetics to customize your experience.

KOEI TECMO announces NOBUNAGA'S AMBITION: Awakening is coming to PC and consoles on July 20th. This will be the 16th installment in a series of grand strategy games that began in 1983. The official website is online, and the Announcement Trailer shows off this return to feudal Japan. Here are details on the game, including the return of the siege feature:

In NOBUNAGA’S AMBITION: Awakening, players will experience the life of a daimyō, a powerful Japanese leader, in the troubled times of the Warring States Period, 16th century Japan. As the head of their own clan, players will have to make the best decisions in in key areas ranching from the economy, to diplomacy, and military might in hopes of eventually unifying the country. To do so, they will be supported by retainers, AI officers who think and act on their own judgement. Retainers will provide submissions to the players to help them plan their battle strategy.

Continue here to read the full story.

Assemble Entertainment announces Windy Meadow: A Roadwarden Tale, saying this will blow onto Windows, Linux, and macOS later this year. As the title states, this is a spinoff of Roadwarden, the recently released text-based, isometric RPG. The game follows three characters on new adventure in the Roadwarden setting, as shown off in the Announcement Trailer. Here's more:

Featuring a multitude of hand-crafted characters and a richly detailed village in a fantasy setting set in the Roadwarden story world, Windy Meadow - A Roadwarden Tale fully submerges players in the day-to-day goings on of this small community. With animated character sprites taking part in heart-warming and sometimes dramatic scenes, set to a soaring and atmospheric musical score, this is a full and complete visual novel that has been crafted with care by the developer.

Over the course of three interwoven stories, players will be introduced to protagonists Vena, Fabel, and Ludicia, three citizens of the sleepy and serene village Windy Meadow, as they navigate grand life choices regarding their futures.

Continue here to read the full story.

• Humble Heroines: Warriors, Dreamers, and God Slayers (pay what you want and help charity).*

*Blue's News may receive a commission on sales of this item.

• Trackmania update & changelog – March 29th 2023. Thanks Frans.
• World of Warcraft Hotfixes: March 29, 2023.

↑ Official patches. ↓ Unofficial games, patches, and mods.

• MAME version 0.253. Thanks Ant.

Official trailer.

• Sunkenland Gameplay Trailer - Upcoming Survival Game 2023 PC.

• Google Drive Has a 5 Million Item Cap, Even if You Have Storage Space Left.

• Nvidia's RTX 4070 to Launch at $599: Report.
• U.S. Government Will Support Domestic PCB Manufacturing. Thanks Neutronbeam.
• After two years, Autodesk Maya and AutoCAD become Apple Silicon-native. Thanks Slashdot via Ant.
• Intel grounds employee air shuttle to save costs. Thanks Matthew.

• NHS Highland reprimand for HIV patient email data breach.
• Malware disguised as Tor browser steals $400k in cryptocash.

• CYBER: The DEA Is Skipping Warrants and Buying Data from Rogue Employees.
• Porn ID Laws: Your State or Country May Soon Require Age Verification (may require registration or subscription).
• Google: India tribunal upholds $160m fine on company.

• Resident Evil 4 Remake Review: Better Than The Original - Kotaku.
• Resident Evil 4 Benchmark Test & Performance Analysis Review - TechPowerUp.
• Resident Evil 4 Remake PC - It's Got Issues - Optimised Settings - DF Tech Review (video).

• CPU/AIO Cooler: XPG Levante 360 ARGB CPU Liquid Cooler - Nikk Tech.
• Gaming Chair: Cougar Terminator gaming chair review - Guru3D.
• Headset/Earbuds: Corsair HS55 Wireless Gaming Headset - Christ Centered Gamer.
• Laptop: Asus ROG Zephyrus 16M review- Big performance with a brilliant display - Engadget.
• Monitor: MSI G274QPF-QD Gaming Monitor - TweakTown.
• Mouse: G-Wolves Hati-S Plus 4K Review - TechPowerUp.
• SSD: Corsair MP600 Pro LPX SSD Review- Another Day, Another Drive - Tom's Hardware.
• SSD: GIGABYTE AORUS Gen5 10000 SSD 2TB Review - The Silent Assassin - TweakTown.

Play ball! Today is opening day for the baseball season. I have a lifelong affection for the pastoral sport, so recollections of childhood only add to the sense of the renewal of spring this brings for me. There's a pretty full slate of games on the schedule, and most of them will actually be day games. This is another callback to the game's past, which is nice amid the addition of a pitch clock and all sorts of other modernization. Some of those new rules are a little contrived, but I have to say the preseason action I've seen has greatly benefited from the pitch clock. It will be interesting to see how the sport plays on a day-to-day basis once everyone is really accustomed to the changes.

Doubleday Round-up
Thanks Ant and Neutronbeam.

Story

• Narcan, overdose-reversing drug, is approved for OTC sales by the FDA. Thanks Acleacius.

Science
Thanks Max.

• Insects have more complex immune systems than previously thought.
• We're nowhere near reaching the maximum human life span, controversial study suggests.
• The largest black hole ever discovered can fit 30 billion suns. Thanks Acleacius.

Media

• LACKADAISY (Pilot). Thanks M.B.
• Original guy falling out of Camaro. Thanks VideoSift.