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Liveblog: PC Gaming Show 2022

Checking in with cheery RPS fanzine PC Gamer for their annual trailer extravaganza

What better way to spend a Sunday evening than by settling down to watch this year's PC Gaming Show, brought to you courtesy of cheery RPS fanzine PC Gamer as part of this year's Not-E3 festivities? It's a guides team takeover tonight as Hayden and Rebecca, RPS's duo of in-house Guides Writers, wrestle control of the liveblog away from our more chat-fatigued colleagues to bring you our highly unique blend of weird perspectives and in-jokes once it all kicks off at 8:30pm BST / 3:30pm EDT / 12:30pm PDT.

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Confirmed attendees include Arma 4, Victoria 3, and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, but we're expecting plenty more trailers, news, and updates on upcoming games over the course of the evening. Given the nature of the beast, though, we can absolutely guarantee our readers that everything we see at the show will be releasing on PC, so no need to worry about those sneaky console exclusives ruining our fun today.

Our live coverage of this event has finished.

A few technical difficulties on our side but I think (fingers crossed) that we're good to go!

Rebecca Jones

I have never done one of these liveblog things before, so prepare for a dumpster fire folks...

Hayden Hefford

2 HOURS! Settle in for the long haul!

Hayden Hefford

Let the games begin!

Hayden Hefford

That "show us what you got" face in the sky definitely had Rick and Morty vibes

Hayden Hefford

The rest of this trailer has decidedly not had Rick & Morty vibes...

Rebecca Jones

Is it just me or did Rotwood look like Turnip Boys Commits Tax Evasion with ultraviolence?

Rebecca Jones

Tactical Breach Wizards looks like Door Kickers, but is turn-based and has lots of magic!

Hayden Hefford

Oooh, reading and video games, my two favourite things!

Rebecca Jones

More eerie sci-fi vibes, the theme of this year's Geoff-Fest.

Hayden Hefford

The Invincible looks right up my street. Abandoned sci-fi outpost story based on the novel by Stanisław Lem? Genuinely might be the most exciting concept I've seen so far this Keigh3.

Rebecca Jones

Lots of words like Astrogator, Antimatter, and others sci-fi things that simultaneously mean nothing and make total sense.

Hayden Hefford

Is the robot nice or evil? I need to know

Hayden Hefford

Oh, nevermind. They've clarified that the robot is just confused. Poor robot : (

Hayden Hefford

To break the loop or not break the loop? Truly the only question in gaming right now.

Rebecca Jones

This other robot is absolutely evil, no questions needed about that violent disintegration ray!

Hayden Hefford

Oh yep, that robot was a baddie alright. The Invincible looks so good though!

Rebecca Jones

With all these close-ups surely this is heading to a reveal of a known IP...?

Rebecca Jones

Endless Dungeon offers more sci-fi, but much less eerie! It's a chaotic roguelite tactical action game from Sega.

Hayden Hefford

F1 Manager 2022 looks like it'll make people with a niche intersection of interests very happy.

Rebecca Jones

Chivalry 2 has hit Steam, and brings crossplay between all platforms!

Hayden Hefford

F1 Manager is out on August 25th, for the enjoyment of all you lovely gearheads who are also spreadsheet nerds! (Best wishes from a fellow spreadsheet nerd.)

Rebecca Jones

I tried Chivalry 2 once last year and got absolutely demolished for about an hour. I haven't gone back since.

Hayden Hefford

I'm not sure if it was me being garbage, or everyone else just being impressively good. Also worth noting that I got shouted at a lot. Like, a lot. Just an endless torrent of swear words, so I have no desire to go back. It's a shame, too, because this trailer for the new update looks like good fun.

Hayden Hefford

This obviously Hitman-inspired stealth game has very Deathloop vibes, too. Very my jam... Deceive Inc., it's called.

Rebecca Jones

Deceive Inc seems to borrow the competitive, zany multiplayer action of Deathloop, but without all of the story beats and with more players. The trailers showed a few secret agents running around and competing to complete the same objectives while tossing endless gadgets around. Shenanigans ensue, of course. Coming early 2023!

Hayden Hefford

Ah, Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn! I just covered this for the Xbox + Bethesda showcase earlier this evening. I'll be honest, my main take-away from this trailer is that the companion critters are adorable.

Rebecca Jones

I absolutely need to know more about those little creatures. THOSE EARS! CUTENESS OVERLOAD!

Hayden Hefford

I get the feeling this one's going to be like Monster Hunter games for me. A huge world to explore and I just want to hang out at camp with the poogies and the Palicos.

Rebecca Jones

The Flintlock creatures are definitely luring us in with the cuteness, I bet they are SAVAGE.

Hayden Hefford

INKY!

Hayden Hefford

Although if there's one thing guaranteed to drag me away from the cuteness for a second, it's the mention of ELDER GODS.

Rebecca Jones

Yay, more sci-fi! And... yet more sci-fi.

Rebecca Jones

They have indeed confirmed a bunch of other games we can look forward to seeing over the next hour+, and there was a lot of sci-fi on offer.

Hayden Hefford

After a short advert, we're onto one of those sci-fi games, The Alter. Apparently, it'll give you a "good" existential crisis??

Hayden Hefford

I mean, I'm usually having an existential crisis anyway, if this game can make it a good one then I'm all in.

Rebecca Jones

The Alter is giving me big Prey vibes, which is incredibly promising. It's also putting me in mind of the movie Moon which, again, is a very good indicator from my point of view.

Rebecca Jones

I've already had plenty of existential crises as well, Rebecca, and I'm only 21... I'm sure there are probably plenty more to come. Not sure if I've ever had a good one either.

Hayden Hefford

Stop rubbing your youth in my face Hayden...

Rebecca Jones

Man, The Alter looks so good, but that threat, er promise of "an existential crisis" is still making me nervous.

Rebecca Jones

It's 'classic' sci-fi, just to differentiate a bit from all the other space goodness at this year's Geoff Fest.

Hayden Hefford

The host is having a clone-themed existential crisis after the trailer!

Hayden Hefford

Outriders: Worldslayer gets a new trailer next, which is sci-fi with more neon and less existential crises.

Hayden Hefford

Potion Craft leaves early access in Autumn, which AliceB is undoubtedly excited over!

Hayden Hefford

I love Animal Royale! Season 4 coming on June 28th! If you haven't played, it's lots of adorable 2D animals in a battle royale, armed with a bunch of shooty guns. It's cute chaos and well worth a try.

Hayden Hefford

Arma 4 is up next! One of the big anticipated highlights of the evening.

Rebecca Jones

Interesting chat with the Arma 4 devs. A question was posed about the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on the game's development, which of course raises some very good points. I always find it interesting when the developers of military shooters describe their games as anti-war, but these guys have definitely put some thought into the subject.

Rebecca Jones

Dune Spice Wars multiplayer update coming out later in June!

Rebecca Jones

And Wartales is getting a co-operative update! This is becoming quite the running theme.

Rebecca Jones

Shiro are also publishing two new indie titles, the first of which is sci-fi but underwater!

Hayden Hefford

Wait, is this a BioShock Rapture city builder?

Rebecca Jones

OK, Abyssals isn't technically a Rapture building spin-off. Still looks like a treat for those of us obsessed with a certain underwater city, though.

Rebecca Jones

Oh, here's another existential crisis to enjoy.

Hayden Hefford

Decarnation felt like an A24 horror movie trailer, but 8-bit.

Hayden Hefford

That is a cute seagull OH WAIT NO IT ATE THE WORM

Hayden Hefford

MORE SCI-FI! SCI-FI WITH A SEAGULL!

Hayden Hefford

As someone who recently moved to the coast I can confirm that seagulls are surprisingly evil.

Rebecca Jones

That worm absolutely decimated that seagull, wowza.

Hayden Hefford

I Am Future is a cute post-apocalypse farming simulator due out sometime later this year. Think Animal Crossing meets Wall-E and try not to sob at how adorable that is, I guess.

Rebecca Jones

And also with aggressive worm/seagull rivalries, maybe.

Hayden Hefford

I can't take another sci-fi existential crisis, I really can't.

Hayden Hefford

That Jurassic Park theme will never not give me chills! Oh, and also Jurassic World Evolution 2 has a new DLC out in just a couple of days.

Rebecca Jones

Nothing like getting told that you're nothing by a rogue AI at 9:30pm on a Sunday evening.

Hayden Hefford

Can confirm SHODAN has already got into Hayden's head over the course of a single trailer. I may not have my colleague's extreme youth but even I'm a bit young to remember the original System Shock, so I'm really looking forward to this remake!

Rebecca Jones

Ew, why'd the host have to say "cram into your eyeballs" like that?

Rebecca Jones

I'm so young and oblivious that I've never even seen a screenshot of System Shock, but I assumed it looked a little more modern than that. It's safe to say that my system has indeed been shocked by the huge leap in this remake. Exciting!

Hayden Hefford

Hey, I've just realised we're halfway through the show already! Hope everyone has enough snacks left.

Rebecca Jones

Battle royale trailers always seem so chaotic, completely neglecting the 30+ minutes you spend quietly running around in every match.

Hayden Hefford

Sweet, an FMV game's up next.

Rebecca Jones

Rebecca says FMV = Full Motion Video, apparently.

Hayden Hefford

OK, so Immortality looks a bit like Twin Peaks and a lot like the FMVs beloved of my '90s childhood. Behind-the-scenes I'm giving young Hayden a potted history of what all of that meant.

Rebecca Jones

I swear there is a fishing mini-game in every game we've seen at Keigh3! Why do people love fishing so much?

Rebecca Jones

I really wish the host would stop talking about my eyeballs.

Rebecca Jones

Nivalis lets you run a cyberpunk bar, but yeah you can also go fishing. I actually love when management games are used to tell a narrative, so many interesting customers sharing their stories. In this case, probably stories about how their consciousness got jacked into the net so that they could mindhack a local corporation to steal secret data packets about the environmental hazards facing the local fish.

Hayden Hefford

Next up we have a top-down turn-based action game with visual novel elements, by the looks of things! For a second there I thought a character was named "Gruff Yakuza" but I've come to the rather disappointing conclusion that it was more of a description than a legal name.

Rebecca Jones

OK, so Demon School is coming 2023. Colour me intrigued... like Monster Prom but less dating? I guess that'd be acceptable. I'd prefer it if we kept the dating as well, though.

Rebecca Jones

I am turning off all of the lights and prepping the salt circle right now. Rebecca, can you bring the lamb's blood?

Hayden Hefford

Hayden, I'm a vegetarian. It's got to be human blood or nothing, I'm afraid.

Rebecca Jones

A comment made a million times by now, but Scorn has so much meat. Just endless chunks of flesh.

Hayden Hefford

Interesting that Scorn has no dialogue and relies entirely on environmental storytelling. And while there is shooting, it's not a shooter. These seem like really creative constraints to work within.

Rebecca Jones

OH NO, I BROKE MY SALT CIRCLE! THE RITUAL IS RUINED!

Hayden Hefford

Scorn is out just in time for Halloween, appropriately enough.

Rebecca Jones

Moving onto Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2, now. The devs are on to talk about the space marines you'll play as in this game, which have bio-implants to improve their combat efficacy. I recently tried to get into painting Warhammer minis, but I'm still pretty shabby.

Hayden Hefford

That chainsaw kill was VERY bloody, and they said you'll get to rip and tear a lot. They specifically said rip and tear, which can only be a positive.

Hayden Hefford

They keep saying that you can fight 1000+ Tyranids at once, and I will absolutely be counting the actual amount of Tyranids in Space Marine 2's hordes when it launches.

Hayden Hefford

Agent 64: Spies Never Die looks like the closest we'll ever get to a PC port of Golden Eye 007. I actually love the cheek of working the reference to Nintendo 64 right into the title like that. Excited for this one!

Rebecca Jones

Half Life Alyx: Levitation, Victoria 3, and Gloomwood are still to come! For now, though - Stormgate! This was previously shown just days ago at Geoff-Fest, so it might sound familiar.

Hayden Hefford

"Not pay-to-win and no NFTs" is now an explicit selling point, apparently.

Rebecca Jones

Like, don't get me wrong, I'm glad that this game isn't P2W and doesn't have NFTs, but jeez...

Rebecca Jones

It doesn't make me more interested in the game inherently, but it definitely puts me at ease, at least.

Hayden Hefford

The Stormgate devs aim to cultivate a thriving e-sports community at every level, from grassroots to pros. Maybe I'll get involved, shall I get involved? I've never done an e-sport before. Actually, I've never done any sport before.

Hayden Hefford

Laysara: Summit Kingdom looks quite lovely. Reminding me of old Caesar games I loved playing as a kid but with 2020s polish. And who doesn't want their own mountain? It's out in Q1 of 2023.

Rebecca Jones

Frozen Flame is an open-world survival adventure that started off looking just like Valheim until it all got a bit more magical. The demo was just released!

Hayden Hefford

That pause was so long. When push...................................... comes to shove.

Hayden Hefford

Victoria 3 was one of the big announcements we've been looking forward to this evening. Paradox's historical strategy franchise(s) are huge and sprawling and all weirdly interconnected, and they kind of fascinate me. The "grand tomorrow" is due out later this year.

Rebecca Jones

Wait, were those clips from Faith?

Rebecca Jones

Yesss! Faith: The Unholy Trinity. I have to assume this is a full trilogy release, which would in turn mean that Faith: Chapter III must be on its way?

Rebecca Jones

This montage of Doom-likes with a metal music soundtrack was far too intense for 10pm on a Sunday. I need to turn the volume down a little, huh?

Hayden Hefford

CUTE PUPPER!!!! The night has improved considerably!

Hayden Hefford

Gloomwood is co-developed by David Szymanski, who our regular readers might recognise as a frequent collaborator with DreadXP and a personal indie favourite of mine. Retro survival horror at its finest. Coming to early access August 16th!

Rebecca Jones

Norland is a medieval story generator with villagers that stab each other, drop dead in the streets from poison, behead their fellow villagers, and more. Very not sci-fi, very medieval.

Hayden Hefford

Norland's trailer also featured the most explicit sex scene I've witnessed so far in 2022, which was beyond unexpected.

Rebecca Jones

Farthest Frontier is... The Oregon Trail from oop north?

Rebecca Jones

Ahhhh, back to the safety of sci-fi adventures.

Hayden Hefford

More sci-fi city building in Synergy, but it's got a nice Heaven's Vault sort of feel to the world, don't you think?

Rebecca Jones

That was Synergy, and it isn't just any old sci-fi adventure. You'll get to build a colony in this survival city-building, in which you'll also have to fend off natural distasters and make the right choices to keep your people alive.

Hayden Hefford

Half-Life Alyx: Levitation is finally up! This upcoming mod promises a 4-5 hour story expansion which should satisfy Half-Life fans before they enter another decade-long drought. Let's not think about that though.

Hayden Hefford

I like that this show has consistently acknowledged the place of modding in the PC gaming community. Several devs have mentioned their mod tools and now we're getting a spotlight on one particularly ambitious and impressive fan mod.

Rebecca Jones

Have you spent much time breaking the barriers of reality in VR, Rebecca?

Hayden Hefford

Not as much as I'd like, I'm afraid, Hayden. My reliance on big chunky glasses makes it hard to pull off any outfit that includes a VR headset. How about you?

Rebecca Jones

My chunky glasses also get in the way, but I've definitely spent my fair share of time in VR. I recently shared a story with the team that I feel deserves to be made public. One time when I was playing Phasmophobia in VR, I tried to throw the basketball in the lobby and smashed my hand through an overhead hanging glass lampshade. The wonky physics confused me and I lost all spacial awareness. It... hurt.

Hayden Hefford

You're not... exactly selling me on VR with that story, Hayden, given that I'm incredibly clumsy. I would literally pay for footage of the Phasmo basketball incident, though.

Rebecca Jones

I did not tell my landlord at the time the truth behind that accident, by the way. It was too embarassing.

Hayden Hefford

Every show should end with a blooper reel. This is the best part.

Hayden Hefford

I wonder if we can convince vid bud Liam to add a blooper reel to every video he makes from now on?

Hayden Hefford

Hey, that's the end of the show! Two hours just flew by, didn't they? Well... jogged at a pleasantly sustainable pace anyway. Hayden and I will be heading off soon, so I'd like to thank the chat for joining us tonight! I hope you all had fun.

Rebecca Jones

Oh, and remember to break up the salt circles and wipe off the lamb blood from that earlier satanic ritual. Probably shouldn't leave that set up much longer than necessary.

Hayden Hefford

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