An "exclusive report" on IGN says two new games based on the Halloween horror film franchise are in the works at Boss Team Games, which has already explored such tie-ins with Evil Dead: The Game. One of these is using the Unreal Engine 5, and for additional authenticity, it will include "input" from John Carpenter, famously the director (and video gamer) who originated the series. His films, including this one, have become video games in the past, and the cult-classic is also one of the obvious inspirations for Dead by Daylight. John has even dabbled in development, having worked directly on F.E.A.R. 3. Here's word on the new adaptations:

While details are limited, both games are apparently being developed in conjunction with the producers of the Halloween franchise. What's more, one of the games is being developed in Unreal Engine 5, and will include input from original director John Carpenter.

"As a huge gamer myself, I’m thrilled to help bring Michael Myers to life again in this game, and my hope is to scare you silly," said Carpenter, who will be "intimately involved" with the development of the new project.

Official Reveal Trailer lives up to its name, officially revealing Chernobylite 2: Exclusion Zone, an upcoming sequel to 2021's Chernobylite, the survival/horror first-person shooter set in the Chernobyl exclusion zone we first explored in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Word is the new game is expected next year, taking gameplay more in the direction of an action/RPG. Here are some details from the Steam Listing:

Chernobylite 2: Exclusion Zone is a post-apo action RPG game, mixing free exploration of huge and extremely realistic open world, challenging combat, unique crafting, team and base management with non-linear storytelling. You’re a planewalker who travels through parallel worlds in search of the precious, high-energy material called Chernobylite. Cut off from the world, trapped in the Zone, attacked by hordes of nightmare creatures, you must fight for survival and unite the handful of remaining survivors.

Continue here to read the full story.

On the topic of S.T.A.L.K.E.R., a new Developer Deep Dive Video for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl gets to the heart of the matter and catches us up on progress on the irradiated shooter sequel. GSC Game World isn't messing around here, the clip runs almost 36 minutes offering looks at environments and gameplay, all accompanied by developer narration. Here's the description:

The opportunity to get an in-depth look at S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is here! Join us to explore the team's insights, the world and locations within the Zone, the cinematic direction process, and a first look at a story quest set in the Great Swamps.

Time to dive in, stalkers!

Continue here to read the full story.

NACON and NACON Studio Milan announce that Early Access to Terminator: Survivors is delayed until 2025 after previously being planned to begin in October. Word is the additional time will help meet player's expectations, which are probably already tempered by years of lackluster movie sequels. Word is:

The teams need more time to build a post-apocalyptic world that lives up to the franchise, and to provide an experience that fully meets the players’ expectations.

Marco Ponte, CEO & Creative Director of NACON Studio Milan, made the following statement: “This deferral of the game’s release was a tough decision to make, however we believe that this additional time will enable us to ensure that our vision of the post-apocalyptic world of Terminator™ meets the expected level of quality.

On behalf of the NACON Studio Milan team, I would like to thank all the players and fans of the franchise for their enthusiastic reception of Terminator: Survivors. We are extremely proud to have this opportunity to work on such an iconic franchise as Terminator, and are eager to reveal more of it to you. Thank you all for support… We'll be back.”

Ancient Worlds is now available on Steam, an expansion that will change the course of history in Millennia, the First Lady-free empire builder from C Prompt Games and Paradox Interactive. An Official Release Trailer takes a look at what this adds to the game's 4X strategy mix. Here's word:

Even the journey through history begins with small steps. Travel back to the moments before civilization and set your small band of humans on the path to greater glory as your society evolves and adapts. The Ancient Worlds expansion for Millennia has new options and gameplay choices for the early parts of the game, with new abilities and experiences, a new National Spirit and a new government type.

Continue here to read the full story.

Early Access to Shoot on Sight is now underway on Steam, kicking off a tactical shooter for Windows played from a top-down perspective from Aroko Game Studio and indie.io. This supports PvP, co-op, and solo play, and it's pretty hardcore, as seen in the Early Access Launch Trailer. Here's word on this chance to stick it to the man:

Decades of rule by the rich have left the world on the brink of collapse. With oppression and corruption running rampant, the people have finally had enough. The Stagers lead the revolution to bring The System down and will stop at nothing to bring justice to this world, facing the most elite agents mustered by the wealthy to defend their ill-gotten gains. Who will you fight for?

Shoot on Sight is a near-future isometric tactical shooter for competitive PVP, cooperative PVE, and solo play, where good tactics matter far more than a big gun. Fight for the future of society on dynamic maps, outsmart your opponents, and remember: Shoot on sight!

Continue here to read the full story.

Don VS Dodo and Toplitz Productions announce playtesting begins on August 23rd for Industry Giant 4.0, the upcoming capitalism sequel. You can request access on Steam, and those selected will be able to give the team feedback (which hopefully includes the suggestion that naming your game after a patch is why this isn't called Marketing Giant). The most recent Gameplay Trailer has a look, and here's word:

Business sim fans and moguls in the making will get a chance to explore their entrepreneurial spirit and business savvy minds as they dip their toes into creating and managing a thriving business.

The playtest will give players the opportunity to test their business strategies to shape an industrial empire from the ground up with all of the currently available tools at their disposal to formulate and run an economically viable business. Industry Giant 4.0 aims to offer a comprehensive experience in transportation infrastructure, industrial building, production planning, and financial management.

• Samples, Loops and Virtual Instruments with Quparts REMIX (pay what you want and help charity) - Humble.*
• Persona Franchise Sale on Steam.
• Two Point Franchise Sale on Steam.
• Save 85% on CODE VEIN on Steam.
• Save 20% on Snufkin- Melody of Moominvalley on Steam.

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

• Fallout: London Becomes GOG's 'Fastest Redeemed' Game of All Time - IGN.
• Valorant Leaps Onto Most Played Charts While The First Descendant Slips - GameSpot.

Official patches.

• Cult of the Lamb - † Major FREE Update UNHOLY ALLIANCE Out Now! † - Steam News.

• Helldivers 2 players are so unhappy with the Escalation of Freedom update, they're doing the unthinkable- letting the Automatons win - VG247.
• "We had ridiculous scenes happening" Fallout: London's devs had to ditch rideable horses and bikes because they wouldn't stop flying up buildings - VG247.

Official trailers.

• Call of Duty: On August 22, nothing will stand in his way 🐦-⬛.
• Expanding DOOM + DOOM II with Legacy of Rust - Deep Dive Interview - Nightdive Studios. Thanks Ant.

• Four years offers "the right balance" to make a new Assassin's Creed game - GamesIndustry.biz.

• Play Monster Hunter Wilds, Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, and more at PAX West and TwitchCon.
• Hearthstone — Announcing Battlegrounds Season 8.
• World of Warcraft Remix: Mists of Pandaria Ends Soon.

• Shadows of Doubt hits PS5 on September 26 – new private detective gameplay revealed – PlayStation.Blog.
• Cooking - Announcement Trailer - Nintendo Switch.

• AMD 12-core Zen 5 CPU powers new handheld — GPD Pocket 4 comes with Ryzen AI 9 HX 370, up to 64GB RAM, 4TB SSD - Tom's Hardware.
• Elon Musk initially said the Cybertruck would cost from $39,900. Now, you can't buy it for much less than $100,000. Thanks Matthew.
• Patreon will have to use Apple's in-app purchase system or be removed from the App Store.
• This Nifty Trick Lets You Fake A Dropped Call On Your iPhone - Wccfteh.

• EU warns Elon Musk ahead of Trump interview to keep hate speech off X - CNBC. Thanks Matthew.
• Meta announces expanded music licensing partnership with Universal Music Group - Neowin.

Thanks RedEye9.

• SpaceX repeatedly polluted waters in Texas, TCEQ, EPA found - CNBC. Thanks Matthew.
• Failure List — Gamers.Nexus - Failure & Root Cause Analysis, Ethics.
• Intel offers Irish employees voluntary severance packages up to €500K — chipmaker provides an alternative to layoffs - Tom's Hardware. The Irish goodbye.
• 4 BIOS settings every PC user should know - XDA. Thanks Neutronbeam.
• Raspberry Pi Pico 2 developer demonstrates running Doom on RP2350-powered Def Con 32 badge - Tom's Hardware.
• If Linux is So Good, Why Don't More People Use It? - Tek Syndicate (video).
• 7-Zip..V.24.08..Aug. 11-24. Thanks DSLReports via Ant.
• DVDFab version 13.0.2.4. Thanks Console General.

• This ancient browser security flaw affecting Safari, Chrome and Firefox is finally being fixed - TechRadar.
• 200k+ with links to Arizona tech school have data stolen • The Register.
• Windows 11/10 system driver has BSOD-triggering CVE-2024-6768 flaw on fully updated PCs.

• RFK Jr’s anti-vaccine group can’t sue Meta for agreeing with CDC, judge rules - Ars Technica.

Obituary: Rachael Lillis, iconic Pokemon voice actor, has died at age 46 - Game Developer.

Rumors of Tango Gameworks' death were apparently exaggerated, as the latest financial report from KRAFTON announces that KRAFTON has acquired the developer along with its Hi-Fi RUSH IP. This is despite the news from May that Microsoft was closing the studio and a post in June detailing its last day. Word is the deal was just this month and fits the publisher's apparent ambition to be the Embracer Group of South Korea: "Since 2021, the company invested in 27 companies, including 14 in North America and 8 in Europe, and also expanded the genres of the acquired games to include shooters, RPG and simulation. Additionally, in August, KRAFTON acquired the development team of a Japanese game developer, Tango Gameworks." The deal includes no other IPs, but the company reassures gamers: "There will be no impact on the existing game catalog of The Evil Within, The Evil Within 2, Ghostwire: Tokyo, and the original Hi-Fi RUSH game." Here's more:

Hi-Fi RUSH, a flagship title for Tango Gameworks, is a rhythm action combat game that has captivated audiences worldwide. The game has achieved widespread acclaim, receiving ‘Overwhelmingly Positive’ reviews on Steam. Additionally, Hi-Fi RUSH has garnered prestigious awards, including 'Best Animation' at the BAFTA Games Awards, 'Best Audio Design' at The Game Awards, and a Game Developers' Choice award for 'Best Audio.'

As part of this strategic agreement, KRAFTON intends to collaborate with Xbox and ZeniMax to ensure a smooth transition and maintain continuity at Tango Gameworks, allowing the talented team to continue developing the Hi-Fi RUSH IP and explore future projects. KRAFTON intends to support the Tango Gameworks team to continue its commitment to innovation and delivering fresh and exciting experiences for fans.

The nostalgic gamers at Ziggurat Interactive announce Rendering Ranger: R² [Rewind] is its next game revival, saying this third-person shooter will come later this year to Windows via GOG.com and Steam as well as to PlayStation 4/5 and Switch. The original launched in 1995 for the Super Famicom, and plans to bring it westward never materialized, making the original cartridge a valuable collector's item. Here's a first trailer that we featured the other day, and here's word on this chance to be a retro Rendering Ranger without a radical remortgage:

Developed by Manfred Trenz (creator of the Turrican series) and published by German software powerhouse Rainbow Arts, this game was originally released in 1995. Originally slated to come to the West as Targa, the game ultimately ended up as a Japan-only title, with only 10,000 copies printed, making it one of the most sought-after collectibles in retro gaming.

You are the Rendering Ranger known as Double R, a special forces soldier who must defend the Earth from a devastating alien invasion. Through nine levels of action platforming as well as blisteringly fast horizontal shooter stages, Rendering Ranger: R² is one of the greatest technological showcases ever seen on the Super Nintendo!

Continue here to read the full story.

The3rd.One announces The Lightless World, a horror-themed action/RPG coming "soon" to Early access on Steam. This includes role-reversal, as you are in control of the demons, giving you the chance to go all Diablo on unsuspecting adventurers. Here's an Official Gameplay Trailer to see if you can tell the difference. Here's word:

The Lightless World is a PC reverse horror action RPG co-op game set in a cosmic horror universe where players control demonic god protagonists.

In the Lightless World it is your choice either to play solo or cooperate with a friend to fight the Order of the Dawn.

Continue here to read the full story.

• Greyskin on Steam (Windows). "Crawl through countless dungeons, fighting hordes of monsters in this unique, fast-paced Action RPG. Class-up, mutate, and survive as you loot, shoot, upgrade, and repeat. Descend into the depths of a strange and dark world filled with mysteries and uncover its secrets."

• Valve hero shooter Deadlock still hasn't been announced, but had 16k Steam concurrent players this weekend - Eurogamer.net.

• KRAFTON Achieves Record-high Sales of 1.3729T KRW (788.9M GBP) in the First Half of 2024 - Business Wire.

• Hunt: Showdown -- Twitch Drops are Back with Hunt- Showdown 1896.

• Doom modders are annoyed at the "chum-bucket" of wrongly credited mods in the latest Doom remaster - Rock Paper Shotgun.

• ‘Borderlands’ Bombs With $8.8 Million Weekend, A Fourth Place Debut - Forbes.

Unofficial games, patches, and mods.

• Battlefront II: Order and Peace Beta Released news - ModDB.
• Fallout: New Vegas just got a new fan expansion, featuring 6+ hours of gameplay with 20+ quests, 35+ fully voiced characters -DSOGaming.
• Half-Life Alyx NoVR Summer Update 2024 Available for Download - DSOGaming.

• Meta Quest 3S leak teases the VR headset's 'final design' ahead of a September reveal - TechRadar.

Content creator videos.

• The Outer Worlds Vertical Slice - Timothy Cain.

• SPINE Q&A- Ep. 1 - Steam News.
• Matt Chat 535: Jordan Mechner, Prince of Persia (video). Thanks Ant.

• The Casting of Frank Stone -Could Change Everything!- (Hands On Impression) - AGC (NSFW video).

• Crossy Road Castle Console - Release Date Trailer.

• Boeing's Quantum-based Navigation System Takes Flight in Historic Test - Quantum Insider. Thanks RedEye9.
• SpaceX aborts launch of 23 Starlink satellites in final minute (video) - Space.

• AMD Drops Entry-Level RDNA 3 GPU Plan In Favor of Next-Gen RDNA 4 Gaming GPUs - Wccftech.
• NVIDIA x MediaTek AI PC Chip Expected To Launch By H1 2025, Targeting Intel, AMD & Qualcomm's SOCs - Wccftech.
• Forget OLED — this stunning new laser TV is 150 inches and super bright - Tom's Guide.

• Push alerts from TikTok include fake news, expired tsunami warning - Ars Technica.
• Microsoft unveils potentially serious Office security flaw — but you probably should be safe - TechRadar.
• Google Authenticator adds new features and a complete redesign - TechRadar.

• The United Nations is drawing up a new treaty to fight cybercrime - TechRadar.
• Is Your Rent an Antitrust Violation? - The Atlantic (may require registration or subscription).

• Case: Cooler Master MasterBox 600 Review - TechPowerUp.
• Monitor/Projector: VIVIDSTORM 120- S PRO P Motorized Tension Floor Rising UST ALR Perforated Projector Screen - Nikk Tech.
• RAM: T-Force XTREEM ARGB 48 GB DDR5-8000 CL38 Memory Review - Super-Fast In Premium Design - Wccftech.
• Router: ASUS RT-BE96U Tri-Band WiFi 7 Router Review - ThinkComputers.org.

Tom Cruise full time frame appearance at the Paris Olympics Closing Ceremony live on Reddit (thanks Ant). I feel like I have taken all the crazy pills when I watch this. I'm beginning to doubt we will ever reach peak surreality, it seems there's always room to raise the batshit bar a little higher.

Speaking of surreal, it appears Tom's transformation into Jerry O'Connell is almost complete, doesn't it?

Surreal Round-up
Thanks Ant, Neutronbeam, and Max.

Stories

• 'Deadpool & Wolverine' Crosses $1 Billion at Global Box Office. Good. The world needs more R-rated movies.
• Beware of giant spiders- Thousands of tarantulas to emerge in 3 states for mating season - Yahoo! News. Thanks RedEye9.

Media
Thanks RedEye9.

• FedEx driver kills rattlesnake, apologizes in note about the blood.
• Tornado upclose - Reddit. Terrifying. Bet those windmills were pumping out some power while they lasted. Thanks The Flying Penguin.
• Found a PIF on your receipt? Here's where that money is going.

Creature Features

• Snek crawls in through a hole in the roof to go for a ride on a ceiling fan - Reddit. Thanks The Flying Penguin.