Developer Julian LeFay, a key cog in the early days of Bethesda and the development of classic Elder Scrolls RPGs Arena and Daggerfall, has died. His passing was announced by OnceLost Games, the studio he co-founded in 2019, and follows a years-long battle with cancer.

LeFay stepped away from his most recent development post as technical director at OnceLost, where he'd been working on Daggerfall-inspired RPG The Wayward Realms alongside fellow Bethesda veteran Ted Peterson, last week. OnceLost revealed at the time that this was due to his cancer worsening, writing that LeFay's doctors had informed them "his time with us is limited".

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PC gaming mouse 'n' keeb manufacturers Endgame Gear have admitted to and apologised for unknowingly spreading malware, after an infected version of the OP1w 4k v2’s Configuration Tool software was left available to download from their website.

After Reddit user Admirable-Raccoon597 raised the alarm, having installed the Configuration Tool and found the malware hiding inside, German tech site Igor’s Lab confirmed that the publically available application had been compromised for at least two weeks. Endgame Gear have since replaced the dirty software with an apparently safe version, and today shared a post admitting the oversight – though claimed no sensitive data was stolen via the server infrastructure that was hosting it.

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Bad news everybody, I think I have discovered the game that is going to stop you doing anything else today. Witness the verminous splendour of turn-based puzzler Rat King, in which you simultaneously control two rodents who are exploring two different dungeons in splitscreen. I know, I know – to lose one rat in a dungeon may be regarded as a misfortune, to lose two looks like carelessness. But there is method to the madness.

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Riot's spin-off fighting game with the terrible name, 2XKO, is getting a closed beta in a few months and, to entice fans to sign up, the developers have released a new video showing off pink-haired League Of Legends bruiser Vi doing some biffing. I know you like biffing, so I'm telling you about this despite being unable to reliably write the title of this free-to-play wrecker without carefully typing it out like my mum composing an email with a single forefinger.

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A new report delves into the behind-the-scenes chaos caused at Elder Scrolls Online studio ZeniMax by Microsoft's mass layoffs earlier this month. Staff say the manner in which the corp let go of around 9k staff was "inhumane" and has left those who remain facing an incredibly tough future.

An unannounced MMO in development at ZeniMax, codenamed Project Blackbird, was one of the games cancelled by Microsoft as part of the corporate bloodletting, with Rare's Everwild and The Initiative's Perfect Dark reboot also being canned. Just last week, the ZeniMax Online Studios United (ZOSU) union said they're still fighting on behalf of workers at the studio left in limbo by Blackbird's cancellation.

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Splitgate 2 is being taken "back to beta" by developers 1047 Games, who say it "launched too early" and are now planning to rerelease it next year. The move has reportedly seen the studio lay off 45 workers, and they've confirmed that the original Splitgate's servers will be shutting down in a month's time.

The news comes following a mixed launch reception for the portal-filled shooter, which likely wasn't helped by studio CEO Ian Proulx controversially announcing that it was going live while wearing a MAGA-style “Make FPS Great Again” hat on stage at Summer Game Fest. The exec subsequently apologised for that boneheaded publicity stunt.

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SSR Wives: The Murder Of My Winter Crush is Silent Hill 3 for people who like the chibi proportions of Final Fantasy 9 and also, people who hoot in adoration when they see a low-poly model of an iMac. I am both of these people. Created by Hen Studios with a demo on Steam, it's a sour and sugary blend of survival horror and romantic visual novel. You play one of several anime characters with names such as Tradgirl and Chudboy, all trapped in The Town That Time Forgot.

Those mouth-wateringly chubby iMacs? They are save points, the local equivalent for Resident Evil's typewriters. Excellent work, game. You have reminded me of my advancing age in a way I actually enjoy.

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Two of the most important parts of a mega PC setup is a high refresh rate monitor that delivers crisp colors and a graphics card that will push that screen to it's limit. But don't worry, I've got you covered with some banging deals from the likes of Samsung, ASUS ROG, LG, Nvidia, AMD and much more. Let's get straight into it:

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