Field of Glory II is now available for Windows on Steam with a 100% discount. This means the turn-based strategy sequel is yours to keep as long as you make with the snagging by noon Eastern Time on Thursday. If you cross the Rubicon you can take part in the rise of the Roman Empire. Here are some details:

Field of Glory II is a turn-based tactical game set during the Rise of Rome from 280 BC to 25 BC

The game that brought the fun and excitement of the tabletop experience to digital form is back. Developed by legendary designer Richard Bodley Scott in a completely new 3D engine, Field of Glory is ready to set new standards in computer wargaming.

Field of Glory II allows you to fight large or small battles for or against Rome, or between the other nations who are as yet unaware of the Roman threat, or what-if battles between nations that never actual came into conflict historically, but might have done if the course of history had been different.

Apogee Entertainment announces a release date for Rise of the Triad: Ludicrous Edition, saying we can party like it's 1994 in the "definitive" first-person shooter remaster beginning July 31st. It will launch for Windows, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, and in the meantime, there's now a playable PC demo on Steam. Also, a new Release Date Announcement Trailer showcases ROTT's signature madcap action. Here's a refresher:

Rise of the Triad: Ludicrous Edition is more than a faithful recreation of the highly influential, genre-defining shooter. Thanks to Nightdive Studios’ proprietary KEX engine, it is the original shooter in its true form, built with the original source code. Experience a perfect mix of past and present with 60+ frames-per-second gameplay, classic pixelated artwork upscaled to 4K resolution, increased field-of-view, cloud saves, achievements, and more.

Continue here to read the full story.

VentureBeat has details on gaming plans Apple unveiled today at its WWDC event. Word is Mac hardware is getting a new gaming mode. Also, Macs are getting new games, as Hideo Kojima announced all DEATH STRANDING and future Kojima Productions games are coming to macOS:

The biggest new feature the company announced for Macs is Game Mode. The mode supposedly makes gaming smoother by giving the game the highest priority for the CPU and GPU, delivering smoother and higher framerates. Game Mode also reduces audio lag for Airpods and input latency for Bluetooth controllers such as the DualSense. According to Apple, it works with all games.

Developer Hideo Kojima also announced that Death Stranding Director’s Cut is coming to Mac later this year. His studio, Kojima Productions, also plans to bring its future games to Mac (presumably this includes Death Stranding 2). As a corollary, Apple revealed that it’s working on a game porting kit for developers. This will allow developers to see how well their games run on Mac in days (rather than weeks) and reduces the time spent converting the game’s shaders and graphics codes for Apple’s OS.

• Save 80% on Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor - Martyr on Steam.
• Save 75% on Killing Floor 2 on Steam.
• Save 67% on The Complex on Steam.
• Save 41% on Monument Valley- Panoramic Collection on Steam.
• Royalty Free: Game, Film and Content Music Mania (pay what you want and help charity).*

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

• Together in Pride 2023: How Ubisoft is Acting on its Commitment to LGBTQIA+ Communities.

• Diablo IV version 1.0.2e Build 42167 Patch Notes.
• Hearthstone 26.4 Patch Notes.
• Swordship - Update 1.1 shipped.

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

• The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion gets a new 8K Texture Pack.

• The race to level 100 is why Blizzard just nerfed Barbarians in Diablo 4.

Content creator videos.

• Did you know this about Stray? 🙀. Thanks RedEye9.
• RoboCop Rogue City - Hands-On Preview - IGN.
• So I Tried Street Fighter 6 - Carbot. Thanks Ant.

• From Dead Cells to reinventing retro IP: The untold story of Evil Empire - GamesIndustry.biz.
• Why Square Enix Collective keeps quiet about publishing PowerWash Simulator - GamesIndustry.biz.

• Stranger Things actor joins FaZe Clan in effort to 'bring women to the forefront,' former FaZe leaders bully her until she cries and seemingly quits.

• How to Watch the Xbox Games Showcase and Starfield Direct Double Feature on Sunday.
• Win Rewards by Participating in the Ubisoft Forward Challenge.

• Apple WWDC 2023- iOS 17 drops support for iPhone 8 and X.
• Your Apple AirPods just got a lot more adaptive and aware.
• Rocksmith+ Launching Mobile App on June 9, Exclusive Song by Mothica Coming June 12.

• AMD Confirms AM5 Support For Ryzen 8000 Processors, Zen 5 with Navi 3.5.
• AMD RX 7600 Has Better Cache Latency Compared to RX 7900 XTX.
• Nvidia Driver Boosts GPU Decompression By 17 Percent On PCIe 5.0 SSDs.
• An Almost Invisible Desktop. Thanks Max.

• US hospital forced to divert ambulances after cyberattack. Thanks RedEye9.
• Upgrade Your Account Security with the Battle.net Authenticator.
• About the security content of iTunes 12.12.9 for Windows. Thanks Ant.

• SEC sues Binance and CEO Changpeng Zhao for U.S. securities violations.

• This Week in WoW- May 30, 2023 — World of Warcraft…

Last Link of the Day: Caught on Camera: Man ROBS Phone Repair Store in Miami Gardens With a BOX ON HIS HEAD. Solid Snake hits hard times. Thanks Boing Boing.

Obituary: Robert Hanssen, most damaging spy in FBI history, found dead in prison cell. Thanks RedEye9.
Obituary: Anna Shay Dead: 'Bling Empire' Star on Netflix Was 62.

Apple announces the Apple Vision Pro, saying its expected new mixed reality headset will arrive early next year in the US for $3499. This should deliver unprecedented visual quality, promising more pixels per eye than a 4K TV. Apple says this introduces the era of spatial computing: "Vision Pro is Apple’s first 3D camera. You can capture magical spatial photos and spatial videos in 3D, then relive those cherished moments like never before with immersive Spatial Audio. Your existing library of photos and videos looks incredible at remarkable scale. And panoramas wrap around you — making you feel like you’re standing right where you took them." There's also word on protecting user privacy, a clear shot at headset competitor Meta. Here's a video and more on visionOS, which will allow you to interact with all your applications using just gestures and voice:

Built on the foundation of macOS, iOS, and iPadOS, visionOS enables powerful spatial experiences. Control Vision Pro with your eyes, hands, and voice — interactions feel intuitive and magical. Simply look at an element, tap your fingers together to select, and use the virtual keyboard or dictation to type.

In visionOS, apps can fill the space around you, beyond the boundaries of a display. They can be moved anywhere, scaled to the perfect size, react to the lighting in your room, and even cast shadows.

Continue here to read the full story.

Evil Empire and Motion Twin announce that Dead Cells has tallied more than 10 million sales since launching into Early Access in 2017. Word is exploration is underway to find a proper way to follow that enormous success:

Following the success of Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania, Evil Empire has been exploring the path forward for the title as a whole. With years of successful updates and expansions behind it after taking over live ops of Dead Cells in 2019, the studio is tinkering with its time-tested methodology, experimenting with ideas for future updates and new ways for fans to enjoy one of their favorite roguelikes.

With numerous award wins after launching in 2018, including Best Indie Game at 2018’s Golden Joystick Awards, Best Action Game at 2018’s The Game Awards and Best Indie Game at 2018’s New York Game Awards, Dead Cells has continued to grow with new meaningful content, attracting more and more players to its challenging and gripping dungeon crawling fun along the way.

Continue here to read the full story.

Amnesia: The Bunker is set to hunker down on PC tomorrow. As a result, today we have a flood of evaluations of the fourth title in the survival/horror series. Here's a roundup:

• Amnesia: The Bunker review – Dug into a trench of disappointment - Dexerto.
• 'Amnesia: The Bunker' is a new survival horror sandbox from Frictional Games - Engadget.
• Amnesia: The Bunker review - survival horror that's dark in all the right ways - Eurogamer.net.
• Amnesia: The Bunker GameRant.
• Amnesia: The Bunker Review - Shellshocked - GameSpot.
• Amnesia: The Bunker Review - GamesRadar+.
• Amnesia: The Bunker Review - GameWatcher.
• Amnesia: The Bunker Review - IGN.
• Amnesia: The Bunker review - PC Gamer.
• Amnesia The Bunker is a Resident Evil immersive sim, and I adore it - PCGamesN.
• Amnesia: The Bunker review- Old flashlight simulator - Shacknews.
• Amnesia: The Bunker Review - Walking Forward Into the Abyss - Wccftech.

Hammer time! Tiny Thor is now available, offering a platformer for Windows that will also come to Switch this (northern) summer. This can be picked up on the Epic Games Store, GOG.com,* and Steam. Marvel might bristle at this, but we're pretty sure Norse mythology lapsed into the public domain a few thousand years ago. The Release Trailer shows off the game's 16-bit pixel art graphics and fast-paced gameplay. Here's more:

Armed with his trusty mini-Mjölnir, the young god will travel across 36 gorgeously illustrated levels, battling baddies and cleverly aiming and launching his mighty mini-hammer. In the game’s full campaign, which takes between 10 and 20 hours to complete, Thor will ready, aim, and ricochet Mjölnir off enemies and the environment, solving puzzles and pushing ever forward on his journey across the magical world of Asgard. Additionally, players can learn special abilities to bestow Thor with mighty powers befitting a (very small) god and unlock challenge levels to test their godliness even further.

*Blue's News may receive a commission on sales of this item. Continue here to read the full story.

Game On AMD is now underway, a month-long sales event for AMD Ryzen processors and Radeon graphics cards. Word is: "The event, beginning today through July 1, 2003, features deals and special promotions on select AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series and Radeon RX 7000 Series graphics cards and Ryzen 7000 Series processors from participating etailers/retailers – including a $50 discount on the gaming powerhouse Ryzen 9 7900X3D." There's also a new game bundle in addition to the Ryzen 7000 Series/ STAR WARS: Jedi Survivor Game Bundle. For a limited time, select Radeon RX graphics cards will come with a bonus copy of Resident Evil 4 for free. As part of this, the deadline for the Jedi Survivor promotion has moved:

On top of the great GAME ON AMD deals, gamers will also receive a complimentary copy of the critically acclaimed survival horror classic, Resident Evil 4, with the purchase of eligible AMD Radeon RX 6000 and Radeon RX 7000 Series graphics cards (June 5 – July 1, 2023).

In addition, AMD has extended the Star Wars Jedi Survivor game bundle until June 30, 2023, providing gamers with a complimentary copy of the game with the purchase of select Ryzen 7000 Series processors.

9to5Google has a statement from Amazon explaining that the Windows and macOS client apps for Amazon Luna are being dropped. Going forward Luna's cloud games will be accessed through browsers. Here's word:

Customers on PCs and Macs can continue to access and play Luna from supported browsers. We saw customers were spending significantly more time playing games on Luna using their web browsers than on native PC and Mac apps. When we see customers love something, we double down. We optimized the web browser experience with the full features and capabilities offered in Luna’s native desktop apps so customers now have the same exact Luna experience when using Luna on their web browsers. We believe firmly in the future of cloud gaming and will be sunsetting the Luna PC and Mac native desktop apps so we can invest more time and resources innovating on behalf of our Luna customers.

Steam now offers a playable demo for My Little Universe, a sandbox adventure that's coming soon to PC and Switch after a successful mobile launch. In this your little universe is actually a little planet, which you can explore and exploit. You can see this in action in the Announcement Trailer. Here's more:

Crash-land on an island in the middle of an ocean on a far-away planet with nothing but a mighty pickaxe in hand. Transform a small piece of land into an entire flourishing world. Chop down trees for wood, mine for precious metals and minerals, and search for other useful supplies with new additions to the ever-expanding map. Manage resources to widen the terrain, upgrade tools and equipment to traverse the cosmos and explore other other planets.

Continue here to read the full story.

• Weekly Sale: Enjoy deals up to 80% off! - GOG.com.*

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

• Halsey, SUGA - Lilith (Diablo IV Anthem) - Music video.
• This novel about video games felt personal to me - Bill Gates. Gets a hearty endorsement from MrsBlue, too.

Official patch

• Hogwarts Legacy - Patch Notes - June 2nd 2023.

• Sony chief warns technical problems persist for cloud gaming.

• Operation Wolf Returns: First Mission VR - Trailer.

• Blizzard still hasn’t fixed that devilish Diablo 4 memory leak.
• Diablo 4 hotfix deals with 'Darcelpocalypse', a bug that endlessly multiplied one elite enemy.

Content creator videos.

• Diablo III: A Cautionary Tale - 12 Years of Development Hell. Thanks Ant.
• Summer Game Fest: Streaming Live this Thursday! Hype trailer.

• Diablo 4 has two expansions cooking already - PC Gamer.

• Xbox says none of its first-party Showcase trailers will be ‘full CG.’
• Star Wars: The Old Republic - Galactic Season Objectives: June 6th - July 4th.

• RoboCop: Rogue City Hands-On Preview - IGN.

• Nothing’s leaked Phone 2 design looks like a curvier follow-up to its first phone.
• Google’s Pixel 7 Pro may not be smarter after eight months, but it’s $200 off.
• Hawaii tourist misreads GPS, drives van into harbor. Thanks Slashdot via Ant.
• I love electric vehicles – and was an early adopter. But increasingly I feel duped - Rowan Atkinson.
• Elden Ring is lord of all Steam Deck games once again.

• Major Reddit communities will go dark to protest threat to third-party apps.
• Microsoft confirms Bing Chat experimental third-party browser support is rolling out.
• Spotify lays off 200 team members from podcast group, combines Parcast and Gimlet studios.
• Senegal's government suspends mobile internet access amid days of deadly clashes.

• Nvidia RTX 4000 Super specs leak is VRAM heaven.
• AMD Confirms Zen 5 will Get Ryzen 8000 Series Branding, "Navi 3.5" Graphics in 2024.
• Debian 12 is due next weekend but still contains 100 known bugs.
• Hubcaps for PCs are a thing now.

• Atomic Wallet hacks lead to over $35 million in crypto stolen. Thanks DSLReports via Ant.
• Inside 4chan’s Top-Secret Moderation Machine (may require registration or subscription).
• Russia Says 'Fake' Putin Address Declaring Martial Law Was a 'Hack.'

• Blatant tech frauds run amok on the biggest online marketplaces.

• Flash Drive: Kingston IronKey Keypad 200 64GB Review - APH Networks.
• Mouse: AQIRYS POLARIS White Gaming Mouse - Mad Shrimps.

I mentioned being on the fence about Diablo IV, but the fates sought me out. Verno ended up with an extra copy, which he generously gifted to me. I adventured a bit yesterday and had fun, though I haven't yet progressed past where I got in the beta. But the die has been cast. I think I was probably kidding myself about holding out all along. I've saved Tristram too many times before to let it fall into the clutches of evil now.

Round-up Redux
Thanks Ant and Neutronbeam.

Breakfast Links

• If the Government Has UFO Crash Materials, It’s Time to Reveal Them. Thanks A.C.M.
• Medieval minstrels joked about killer bunnies, incontinence, study says.

Science
Thanks Max.

• Cancer vaccines poised to unlock 'new treatment paradigm' with Merck-Moderna data.
• Scientists Beam Space-Based Solar Power to Earth for First Time.
• A shocking number of birds are in trouble.
• How Our Cells Kill Themselves – Scientists Decode the Exact Mechanism at the Atomic Level.
• Why does my dog eat grass? And when is it not safe for them? You're making me beat up grass!

Media

• Michael Shannon Breaks Down His Career, from 'Boardwalk Empire' to 'Man of Steel.'
• When You’re Too Drunk to Realize You’re Driving Without a Front Tire.

Creature Features
Thanks Kxmode.

• When you’re hungry and it’s not yet dinner time.
• Tortoise enjoying a shower. ♫♪I'm siiiingin' in the rain…♫♪
• Man and his dog watching the sunset together.

Follow-ups

• Update On Bob (Current) + Who Is Mike? - YouTube Physical therapists. Thanks RedEye9.

The Funnies

• Savage Chickens - Robots.