On January 3rd, Twitch streamer DNP3 made a confession on Twitter: in 2022, he fell into gambling addiction, putting everything into the online casino Stake, which has now been banned by Twitch. He gambled away his own savings and even the money of crypto investors. It all started with a “Sponsored Stream.”
Who is he?
DNP3 is an English-speaking Twitch streamer with 250,000 followers, known primarily for his giveaways and donations.
He repeatedly raffled off expensive gaming PCs on Twitter or appeared in the streams of others and gifted them money.
He is also a so-called “crypto enthusiast,” someone who deals with NFTs and cryptocurrencies, and runs his own projects. As the site Dexerto knows, he is the founder of “CLU Coin,” “Grindcraft,” and “Gobbers NFT” – all projects that attracted investment money.
“Crypto, Gambling, and Giveaway” is the formula for success for some Twitch streamers, especially for the US streamer Trainwreck.
This is now his confession: The streamer says in a Twitlonger that in 2022 he became “incredibly addicted” to gambling. Every dollar he found, he put into online-stake, hoping to win.
But even when he won a lot of money, it wasn’t enough. Eventually, all the money was gone: not only his own assets but also the money of the investors:
I irresponsibly used investors’ money to try to “get my money back from the casino” – that was wrong in every way.
DNP3 apologizes to everyone: He can’t even describe how ashamed he is and how guilty he feels. The streamer says he is trying to free himself with this post. DNP3 wrote that he is now mentally and financially bankrupt.
Upon inquiry, he explains that the gambling addiction started with a “Sponsored Stream.”
Apparently, the controversial online casino Stake paid him to play in their casino on Twitch. Twitch has now banned Stake.
It can also be done without gambling – this is how you actually earn money with Twitch:
Start video
Prime Gaming, the secret behind Twitch’s success
“You have stolen from your supporters”
How is this being received? Many of the comments on Twitter come from users who invested money in DNP3’s projects, and even the well-meaning ones are quite upset. Others demand that the man should go to prison without passing “Go”:
“Why are you playing with our money? That is terrible behavior. You should withdraw from any project until you have sought help for yourself. I wish you the best on your journey. […] You have stolen from your supporters.”
“When are you going to prison?”
“You are looking for sympathy after burning other people’s money? You won’t get any from me.”
“You should be sued for embezzlement like SBF, you exploited your community for your own benefit due to your gambling addiction. […]”
Others compare this behavior to that of Twitch streamer ItsSlikeR – whose confession in September 2022 sparked the casino debate on Twitch:
With WoW: Dragonflight, the professions have been revamped from the ground up. Craftsmen can once again create powerful gear and customize it in many different ways. Also new are the so-called embellishments. MeinMMO explains what this is all about.
How do the adjustments work? In WoW: Dragonflight, you can use optional reagents to adjust various properties of crafted items.
For example, you can increase the item level of a crafted piece of armor or adjust its secondary stats. Depending on which and how many materials and reagents you use, the item level can be increased from 270 incrementally up to item level 280!
The secondary stats of crafted gear can be adjusted through so-called “Draconic Writings”. These writings guarantee that the item will be crafted with the desired combination of secondary stats. The “Draconic Writings” can in turn be made by scribes and traded among players.
What are embellishments? The so-called embellishments are essentially also optional reagents. However, unlike merely increasing the item level or swapping secondary stats, you can add a handful of unique effects to your crafted items with embellishments.
You can either add embellishments yourself during the crafting process, commission other craftsmen to add them for you, or incorporate them afterwards through a job. It is important to note that you can equip a maximum of 2 embellished items at the same time.
Additionally, there are some items that inherently have an embellishment. These also count towards the maximum of 2, which you can equip at the same time. We will reveal which embellishments are available in the next section.
Did you know that you can also dragon fly in pairs? In the video, we reveal how to activate the feature:
Start video
<strong>WoW Dragonflight: Dragon Riding for Two – How to Activate It</strong>
All embellishments of the various professions at a glance
In this section, you will find all the embellishments that you can use during the crafting process to equip your gear with unique effects. We have listed the respective profession that can create the enchantment, as well as their individual effects.
Alchemy
Potion absorption inhibitor – Increases the effect duration of potions from the Dragon Isles by 50 percent. You can add the embellishment to any slot.
Engineering
Magazine with healing arrows – When using your heals, a healing arrow is occasionally fired. You can add this embellishment to any slot.
Leatherworking
Fang tooth embellishments – Physical attacks occasionally deal bonus physical damage. You can add this embellishment to your weapons.
Toxic armor patch – Infuses the item with the essence of decay. You can add this embellishment to your armor items.
Blacksmithing
Armor spikes – Equip your armor with thick thorns. You can add this embellishment to your armor items.
Tailoring
Bronzed grip wraps – Your spells occasionally cause a ripple in time. You can add this embellishment to your weapons.
Blue silk lining – At more than 90% health, mastery is granted. You can add this embellishment to your armor items.
Choker of shielding – Grants you a shield for 10 seconds that absorbs 3228 damage for each inserted gem.
Elemental ring – Has a chance to empower your inserted elemental gems and grant you an additional 84 of the respective value for 12 seconds.
Weapons
Staff of the weathered researcher – Chance to increase your haste rating by 308 for 10 seconds.
Welkwurz foliant – Your nature spells have the chance to deal additional damage over time and reduce your target’s movement speed by 30% for 10 seconds.
Shield of the hearth fire – When you take damage, you have the chance to increase your versatility by 64 for 15 seconds.
Cloth Armor
Wrathwild leg wraps of chance – After suffering a loss of control, your haste rating increases by 106 for 10 seconds. This effect can only occur once every 30 seconds.
Wrathwild binding of gesture – Reduces the duration of loss of control effects by 5%.
Cap of urgent time – When you deal damage to an opponent, your haste rating increases by 37 for 10 seconds. Stacks up to 5 times.
Chronofabric belt / Chronofabric pants / Chronofabric gloves – 2-piece set bonus, chance to increase your haste rating
Blue dragon soles – Every 2 seconds you are in motion, your intellect increases by 37. Stacks up to 5 times. When you cast a spell, you consume all accumulated stacks.
Azure woven slippers / Azure woven cape / Azure woven robe – When you deal damage, you have a chance to increase your intellect for 8 seconds. Your healing spells have a chance to reduce the cost of your spells for 8 seconds.
Allied wrist guards of time shift – Your spells have a chance to grant you and 4 allies within 30 meters, 43 versatility.
Blue’s amica – Chance to cause an arcane explosion at the position of your target, dealing 2540 damage to enemies.
Leather Armor
Toxic thorn footwraps – Reduces your stamina by 11. Grants the chance to shoot thorns at your target, healing you and your allies and dealing damage to your enemies. The effects are increased by 100% when you equip an item made with a “Toxic Armor Patch”.
String with spiritual trinket / Joint bands of the old spirit / Snowball former – 2-piece set bonus, chance to deal additional damage to your opponents or heal yourself and your allies.
Blazing smock – Deals 208 fire damage to enemies every 3 seconds in combat.
Slime discharge boots – Reduces your haste rating by 18. Chance to deal 700 nature damage to your target. The effects are increased by 100% when you equip an item made with a “Toxic Armor Patch”.
Wrathwild ghost hood – You deal 1% more damage to enemy player characters for 5 seconds after being attacked.
Wrathwild footwraps of restitution – Reduces the duration of loss of control effects by 5%.
Heartwarming allied fur jacket – Your spells have a chance to grant you and 4 allies within 30 meters, 43 versatility.
Heavy Armor
Allied leg guards of Sansok Khan – Your spells have a chance to grant you and 4 allies within 30 meters, 43 versatility.
Step of the sour hail – Your movement speed is reduced by 10%. Grants you the chance to deal an additional 700 frost damage to your opponents. The effects are increased by 100% when you equip an item made with a “Toxic Armor Patch”.
Dripper of the ancestor / Lasso of the wind spirit / Hand protection of the scale straps – Critical damage and critical healing have a chance to increase your haste rating for 10 seconds. This effect is stackable up to 5 times.
Wrathwild boots of mercy – Reduces the duration of loss of control effects by 5%.
Wrathwild chain helmet protection – Whenever a player character is killed within your vicinity, you gain 212 versatility for 10 seconds.
Venom dripping stompers – Chance to reduce your lowest secondary stat by 53 for 10 seconds and increase your highest secondary stat by 105.
Plate Armor
Allied breastplate of greatness – Your spells have a chance to grant you and 4 allies within 30 meters, 43 versatility.
Allied wrist guards of camaraderie – Grants you 8 versatility for each ally within 30 meters. Stackable up to 4 times.
Wrathwild war boots of unatoned – Reduces the duration of loss of control effects by 5%.
Wrathwild helmet of vengeance – Enemies that deal damage to you sometimes suffer 1616 physical damage over 6 seconds.
Unstable frostfire belt – Chance to deal 1164 frostfire damage to your enemies over 10 seconds. If an enemy dies under this effect, it leaves hail that lasts for 8 seconds and slows enemies by 50%.
This list contains all items that already have an embellishment. You cannot add another embellishment to them, and they count towards the limit of a maximum of two items with embellishments that you can equip.
The embellished items provide a great opportunity to further optimize your damage or healing. They are especially worthwhile for equipment slots where no tier set items can be equipped. You should keep this in mind when considering having an embellished item made or making one yourself.
Today, Xur, the tentacle-faced Exo merchant from Destiny 2, returns to the game. He brings you old, possibly still missing Exotics that you could buy with in-game currency. Since he changes his location and offerings every week, we reliably tell you where to find him.
What happened this week in Destiny 2? Recently, a message circulated through the community that outraged many. Bungie is planning a subscription model to charge its players in the future. For many, this is a reason to lose trust in the developer once again. But it turns out: It was all just fake! The whole excitement only caused more annoyance, leading the source of the leak to apologize.
Meanwhile, Lord Saladin also resides for the first time in Season 19 with his Iron Banner in the Tower. You can test the PvP zone control mode “Fortress” with him. However, this hasn’t been well received by every Guardian. You might often get hit on the head by Cabal Capsules, and the zones are frequently sealed off by Void Titans with Bubbles. However, there are also Guardians who see it as a welcome PvP variation. Others just want to get the new, particularly cool shader with rarity value.
In PvE, a new Season 19 machine gun is currently making waves. It fires not only quickly but also unleashes a lot of explosions that hardly any boss can withstand for long. We say: Definitely try it out, and we have recommended a good roll for crafting the weapon.
Currently, Season 19, presented in the trailer, is doing a better job with seasonal content. In addition to various search missions and iconic spacewalks, the story also offers more interesting content and twists that can still captivate players.Like this cute little guy.
Start video
Destiny 2 shows the season of the Seraphim in the trailer – announces the return of the Warmind Rasputin
All info on Xur on January 6, 2023 – PS4, PS5, PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Google Stadia
When does Xur arrive? The exotic merchant visits Destiny 2 every Friday at 6 PM. Anyone who still has gaps in their Exo collection awaits him then, as he is the easiest way to obtain Exotics. It only costs you a one-way trip and some materials as payment.
Where is Xur located? This is his camp for the weekend
Xur’s location: Although Xur only actively uses a few location positions, no Guardian knows where he will land before 6 PM.
Xur’s routes are mysterious. But we have tracked him down. Xur is this weekend on Nessus, in the landing zone “Guardian’s Grave.” The location is marked on the map.
Xur’s inventory from January 6 – 10 – All Exotics at a glance
What does Xur have on offer? At Xur, every class—Warlocks, Hunters, and Titans—can shop. It doesn’t matter whether you’re new to the game or already an experienced Guardian. Xur’s exotic shopping paradise is open to everyone, and a nice chat with him is even free.
This is Xur’s offer this week:
Xur’s offer from January 6 to 10, 2023
Weapon: Double-tailed Fox Void Rocket Launcher for 29 Legendary Shards
Titan: Ursa Furiosa – Void Gauntlets for 23 Legendary Shards
Mobility: +10
Resilience: +13
Recovery: +9
Discipline: +12
Intellect: +10
Strength: +6
Total: 60
Hunter: Shadow of the Dragon – Void Chest Armor for 23 Legendary Shards
Mobility: +15
Resilience: +4
Recovery: +12
Discipline: +13
Intellect: +6
Strength: +12
Total: 62
Warlock: Eye of Another World – Void Helmet for 23 Legendary Shards
Mobility: +6
Resilience: +6
Recovery: +19
Discipline: +2
Intellect: +12
Strength: +13
Total: 58
Legendary Armor Set: This week, Xur is selling the “Gensym Knight” set.
If you can’t decide or know what is worth it, then check out the video by Nexxoss Gaming here:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Destiny 2: Xur’s Location & Inventory January 6, 2023 – January 10, 2023
Xur also sells legendary items and offers unique rolls for Exotics from no longer available exotic missions from past DLCs every week. However, please note: You can only purchase the weapons if you also own the corresponding expansion.
Currently, he has these two weapons on offer:
The exotic hand cannon “Fatebringer” (Beyond Light DLC) with the perk “Overflow”
The exotic scout rifle “Tale of a Dead Man” (Beyond Light DLC) with the perk “Moving Target”
Anyone wanting Xur’s exotics from old DLCs must also own them.
The cost of the weapons: For these two Exotics, the cost is 1 Ascendant Shard, 1 Exotic Code, 125,000 Glimmer, and 200 Legendary Shards each.
Xur always has with him: You can always get an Exotic Engram for 97 Legendary Shards from Xur, as well as the weekly quest to obtain an exotic code.
Iron Wolves now defend zones in the Iron Banner
This weekend, there are no Trials because the Iron Banner event is active. So since Tuesday at 6 PM, the exalted Iron Lord Saladin has entered the Tower. He not only offers the PvP mode “Fortress”. In Season 19, you also have the chance to obtain the Seal of the Iron Lord, to get a new or rather old armor set from 2015, as well as two new weapons and top-tier equipment.
However, some log in just to hunt the “new best shader” in the game. It is called “Iron Contradictory Shader” and is quite special and unique.
This is what the shader “Iron Contradictory Shader” looks like on all 3 characters.
What does the Iron Banner shader look like? The shader “Iron Contradictory Shader” transforms your Guardian’s clothes into a unique, rusty chainmail pattern.
If you want it, you will have to go through almost two complete resets with Saladin. However, it is not too late for that—the first Iron Banner in Season 19 runs until January 10 at 6 PM. And later on, there will be another week to level up to the required reputation rank.
All Iron Banner weapons have an origin perk: “Silent Wolf” grants improved radar when at low health and with this weapon, kills against Guardians make you disappear from the enemy radar.
When does the Iron Banner officially end? Lord Saladin’s PvP activities end with the Weekly Reset on January 10 at 6 PM. That is also the departure date for Xur.
Have you already warmed up with the new Iron Banner mode? Then feel free to let us know in the comments how you find it or whether you would rather have Rift from Season 17 or Eruption from Season 18 back?
For all who want to look into the future: Bungie has confirmed parts of its grand vision with Sony, although one thing about it might not please you:
After Destiny 2 was acquired by PlayStation manufacturerSony in a legendary deal in 2022, many hoped that new projects would emerge as a result. And yes, this has now been confirmed by a developer. MeinMMO will tell you what is currently known and also what you might not like.
What kind of deal is it? In 2022, Bungie, the developer and creator of Destiny 2, was purchased by PlayStation manufacturer Sony for 3.6 billion US dollars. Bungie intentionally preserved its independence and creative freedom in this deal.
As Sony stated at the time, Bungie’s new direction as an independent subsidiary will lead to a “multi-platform studio” with the option to release games on their own.
However, in the minds of gamers, the merger immediately sparked hopes for a vast Destiny universe, where in addition to Destiny 2, there would be more multiplayer games from Bungie for all platforms, as well as finally a Destiny series or movie.
But until now, this has all been mere speculation, as it had never been confirmed that alongside the continuation of Destiny 2 in the DLCs “Lightfall” and “The Final Shape”, additional projects were actually planned. That has now changed.
Speaking of “Lightfall”: At the Game Awards 2022, Bungie presented a new gameplay trailer for the new Darkness ability “Strand”:
Start video
Destiny 2: Trailer for Lightfall shows new race – Guardians get cool lasso, swing like Spider-Man
Developer confirms multiple projects: Up until recently, there were only a few job descriptions from Bungie that suggested plans for new projects were already in the works behind the scenes.
But now, the Creative Lead of Bungie’s Season team, Tom Farnsworth, has officially confirmed this on Twitter, stating that they are “working on a number of unannounced projects with the support of Sony.”
Bungie is bringing multiple unannounced projects to fruition.
Could be comedic, quirky, or visually inspired
What is currently known: It is certain that Bungie wants to expand beyond the Destiny franchise to solidify its position in the global market. There is increasing talk of a “Destiny universe” that they want to establish with the help of PlayStation manufacturer Sony.
The AAA studio aims to expand its portfolio of game titles to offer new stories and experiences to the community in the future (statement via bungie.com). They want to create “a smaller game in a larger studio.” However, they have always emphasized that they do not plan to neglect Destiny in the foreseeable future.
This is what has leaked so far:
Partnership with NetEase
There is a 100 million US dollar partnership with NetEase, the developer of “Revelation Online”. At the time, it was said that they wanted to become an “entertainment company that supports multiple worlds simultaneously.” NetEase is a specialist in MMOs and mobile games.
Matter patent
A patent application for computer game software and online entertainment services was registered by Bungie in 2018 under the name “Matter”.
Comedic game?
Several job postings revealed that the developer is also looking for a game leader, or an “incubation gameplay lead,” for a game with “comedic, lighthearted, and quirky characters” (via pcgamesn.com).
Extraction shooter like Escape from Tarkov
In October 2022, industry insiders Tom Henderson and Jeff Grubb leaked that Bungie would likely reboot its old Marathon IP as an extraction-based FPS with PvPvE experience. However, neither provided concrete evidence for this.
Another free-to-play game with live service
Further job postings indicated that the company is likely working on a game that combines live service and free-to-play once again. This seems to at least align with the Marathon rumors.
Third-person action
Instead of first-person mode, like in Destiny 2, a third-person game in a new genre was recently mentioned. One of the job postings states: “Are you thrilled to help build an all-new third-person action game and expand Bungie’s best-in-class gameplay into a new genre?”.
Lightfall is the beginning of the end for the “Light and Darkness” saga
New game on old engine
This might not please Destiny fans: One thing could dampen the excitement of long-time Destiny fans and players regarding Bungie’s new projects. From the job postings, it also became clear that the proprietary Tiger Engine of Destiny 2 could still be the foundation for future titles.
What is Bungie’s “Tiger Engine”? The Tiger Engine is the name of the game engine for the Destiny series. It was created by Bungie after they became independent from Microsoft and is a revamped version of the “Blam! engine” used for the Halo series.
It allows multithreading and cross-platform development and offers a segregation of the codebase into layers to decouple engine functionality from game logic. According to Bungie, the engine also supports all advanced technologies they want to develop in the future. Thus, it also applies to the upcoming projects of the AAA studio.
This information about the Tiger Engine comes from TheGamePost, where a job posting was recently captured via screenshot, promoting the “creation and maintenance of networked gameplay systems, workflows, and tools in Bungie’s Tiger Engine”.
Furthermore, it states the “ability to direct activities, gameplay, bugs, and workflows within Bungie’s Tiger Engine at a senior engineer level” or “We are seeking someone to help us port our internal AAA engine (Tiger) to mobile devices” (via bungie.net).
Some players blame the supposedly “old” engine of Destiny for quirky bugs
Currently, many players are anything but satisfied with the engine. They blame the system for many legacy issues, bugs, and problems in the game. Bungie has also admitted in the past that the aging Tiger Engine has blocked development at times and led to issues that took longer to resolve.
A new engine, however, makes little sense: However, switching to a completely new engine is not easily feasible. The reason is simple: Over the years, Bungie’s developers have gained enormous expertise on this development platform.
Instead of retraining all the involved developers on how to work in a new engine, they are instead investing in an upgraded version of the known system.
Bungie has already implemented this in recent months. As stated before the release of the Witch Queen DLC, the system under the hood has been continuously updated to keep pace with new features and systems.
They have tried to dispose of much of the old “spaghetti code”.
Update times have been significantly reduced, often to just 15 minutes. Additionally, the servers do not always need to go offline for an update anymore.
The look also improved with Witch Queen: When the “Witch Queen” DLC went live, it was visually apparent that things had changed significantly in Destiny 2. So it was also visible that significant adjustments were made behind the scenes.
For example, the fire effects during mockery changed to more realistic “lava splatters,” environments received sharper, better details, and much more beautiful lighting effects were integrated in many places.
When could one of the projects go live? Bungie CEO Pete Parsons stated in 2019 in an interview with IGN that the company plans to release a new non-Destiny game by 2025. And not only that. They also plan to “become one of the world’s best entertainment companies by 2025,” as Parsons emphasized back then.
Are you curious whether Bungie will be able to put their ambitious plans into action? And what would interest you more? The future of Destiny 2 or a completely new MMO from Bungie? Feel free to let us know in the comments.
Destiny fans can actually watch the first part of the fan-made mini-series “Ace” since yesterday:
For several months now, fraudsters have been exploiting the streams of professionals in the shooter Valorant to manipulate bets with cryptocurrencies. Some professionals have now reached a point where they intentionally lose games to counteract the trend.
Bets are part of the competition for many sports fans. While a few decades ago it was only about who wins, loses, or draws, you can now bet on almost anything – for example, football:
Will the aggressive midfielder receive a yellow card before the 30th minute?
How many shots will hit the crossbar in the match?
Will the next corner kick go to the far or near post?
Will there be a streaker during the game?
There is a quote for almost every conceivable situation; only imagination and wallet set the limits.
This is a huge market, involving a lot of money. Accordingly, major competitions and sports are being closely monitored – cheating like doping, referee bribery, or intentional losing is prohibited and punishable.
But what if it’s not about such big events that attract a lot of attention? What if you’re only betting on ranked matches of Valorant professionals who are training their skills in solo matchmaking and streaming?
Then cheating is wide open, and that is exactly what is currently happening in the shooter Valorant from developer Riot Games.
Valorant has a competitive focus, like the Riot game League of Legends. The shooter is also trying to engage with music videos:
Start video
Valorant celebrates with anthem the most important tournament of the shooter – fans praise the crazy music video
Betting on one’s own matches or inciting others
What’s going on? In recent months, more and more reports have emerged from professionals whose matches are being influenced by betting fraudsters.
There are websites that specialize in taking bets on ranked matches in Valorant. They actually just want to play a few rounds in solo queue, but you can bet on these matches:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Dealing is done with cryptocurrencies. These can help disguise the payment flows.
As long as everything runs smoothly, this should not be a problem in principle. But because many professionals stream their matches, fraud is just a click away on Twitch.
The betting players try to get into the matches of the professionals and influence the outcome in their favor. It’s enough if you can influence one of the players in the match – you don’t even have to be in the match yourself.
These players then intentionally lose the match. At the ranked level where the professionals are playing, often just one player standing in the corner is enough to ensure that the match is lost with a high degree of certainty.
If you have somehow infiltrated someone into the match, you can make a good amount of money.
What do the professionals say about it? For some professionals, the problem has reached a level that affects their training in the ranked mode of Valorant. The more well-known you are, the harsher the betting effect is likely to be.
TenZ, a player from the US team Sentinels, wrote on Twitter:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Tweet translation: “This ‘intentional losing’ situation in ranked mode is becoming ridiculous”.
Some professionals have already gone further. FNS from the team NRG is now calling for players to take matters into their own hands to intentionally lose matches when they suspect there are “crypto bettors” in their team:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Tweet translation: “If there’s a crypto bettor on the other team, can we agree to intentionally lose the match? I want them to lose every penny and beg me for a sandwich on the street. Thanks”.
For fans of Riot games, this is not a new phenomenon. The MOBA League of Legends has also been struggling with similar issues for a while now. Riot Korea took action against such methods over 2 years ago (via dotesports.com), but professionals are wishing for stronger support from the developer.
Currently, there are unfortunately very few options for players to take action against this – except to stop streaming, which brings other disadvantages.
What do you think about this? How would you tackle it? Leave a comment on the topic.
Dwarf Fortress has had a successful first month on Steam and has exceeded the publisher’s expectations with strong sales.
Which game is it? The two brothers Tarn and Zach Adams have been developing the free simulation game Dwarf Fortress since 2002, which was released on December 06, 2022 on Steam for around €30.
The title immerses you in a pixelated fantasy world where you control a group of dwarves. Your goal is to survive. You build your own settlement and interact with your neighbors.
For the release on Steam, the dwarf simulation also received a new graphics overhaul, although the game’s aesthetics remain rather utilitarian. Here’s a trailer:
Start video
Dwarf Fortress on Steam Announcement Teaser
Fear of Insufficient Health Insurance
Why did they need money? In an interview, the brothers shared before the Steam release of Dwarf Fortress that Zach Adams was diagnosed with skin cancer.
The treatment costs, around $10,000, were largely covered by his wife’s insurance, yet the incident made the brothers reflect: “It’s just not sustainable, not at our age,” said Tarn Adams. He elaborated: “You can’t keep having GoFundMes until you can’t anymore and then you die at 50. That’s not cool.”
How successful is the game? The release of Dwarf Fortress on Steam has exceeded the expectations of both the brothers and the publisher.
An analyst for Kitfox Games estimated that the dwarf simulation could sell 160,000 copies on Steam within the first two months (via kitfoxgames.medium.com).
Within just one week, the game was sold 300,000 times and made the brothers millionaires. Bay 12 Games, the studio of Tarn and Zach Adams, later announced on December 22 that the team behind Dwarf Fortress is expanding for the first time. A historic moment for the brothers, as they have now received help from a third developer in programming.
In a forum post dated January 1, 2023, Tarn Adams, under the nickname “Toady One,” also stated that Dwarf Fortress sold half a million copies in December 2022.
However, he could not provide exact numbers until mid-February at the earliest, once all processes with Valve and Kitfox Games are completed.
Additionally, Tarn Adams thanked everyone for their support and added: “That’s it! We’ve won … and it’s your fault!” – a nod to the fact that Dwarf Fortress is actually about enjoying the predetermined defeat.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The best counters against Igastarnish in Pokémon GO in the guide. We show you the best attackers and movesets. With this, you can defeat the boss in 4-player raids.
What kind of Pokémon is Igastarnish? Igastarnish originates from the sixth generation of games and has the Grass type. It is the evolution of Igamaro and can evolve into Brigaron.
When does Igastarnish appear? You can find the boss on January 7th from 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM. It appears following the Community Day with Igamaro. We show you the best counters against Igastarnish and against which types it is weak (Type effectiveness).
Defeating Igastarnish in Raids – With these counters
Mega-Lohgock with Fire Whirl and Flame Cannon
Schabelle with Bug Bite and Bug Buzz
Mega-Glurak Y with Fire Whirl and Flame Cannon
Mega-Gengar with Dark Claw and Mud Bomb
Mega-Glurak X with Fire Whirl and Flame Cannon
Mega-Bibor with Poison Sting and Mud Bomb
Mega-Tauboss with Wind Force and Quick Attack
Mega-Hundemon with Fire Fang and Flamethrower
Reshiram with Fire Fang and Cross Flame
Crypto-Lavados with Fire Whirl and Sky Strike
Crypto-Staraptor with Wind Force and Quick Attack
Crypto-Kramshef with Pecker and Quick Attack
Crypto Ho-Oh with Hidden Power and Purification Fire+
Crypto-Glurak with Fire Whirl and Flame Cannon
Crypto-Tornupto with Ember and Heat Wave
Crypto-Entei with Fire Whirl and Heat Wave
Crypto-Mamutel with Powder Snow and Avalanche
Ho-Oh with Incinerate and Purification Fire++
Skelabra with Burden and Heat Wave
Crypto-Magbrant with Fire Whirl and Fire Punch
Weaknesses of Igastarnish: This Pokémon belongs to the Grass type and is therefore weak against Bug, Fire, Ice, Flying, and Poison. So focus on attacks and Pokémon of these types to defeat Igastarnish in raids.
Is there a Shiny Igastarnish? Yes, but you cannot catch it directly after the raid. Through the Community Day with Igamaro, you have the chance to catch many Shiny Igamaro. If you evolve these, then the evolutions Igastarnish and Brigaron are also Shinys.
The Pokémon family around Igamaro as a Shiny comparison – Below the Shinies
How many trainers are needed? With the best counters at a high level, you can defeat the boss with two or three players. With lower levels but strong counters, you should rely on more trainers. To complete the raids quickly, groups with at least 3-5 participants are recommended.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
According to reports, a software developer from California, USA, allegedly defrauded his employer of nearly 300,000 Euros. The allegations strongly resemble a comedy from the late 90s. The money is said to be gone – it seems everything went into GameStop stocks.
If the cake is big enough, no one notices when a few crumbs are missing – right? This is supposedly what a software developer from the USA thought, and allegedly siphoned off more than 300,000 US dollars from his employer (approximately 285,000 €).
As reported by the US site Kotaku, they had access to some documents from the Kings County Superior Court in California, and should the allegations be true, the developer has nearly played out the plot of the comedy “Office Space.” (via kotaku.com).
When asked after his arrest where the money was, the developer stated that the money was gone; he had invested everything in GameStop stock options.
Gaming tells exciting stories time and again:
Start video
Mother takes 15-year-old son out of school so he has time for Fortnite – This is how it went for him
Developer tricks the software, steals about 300,000 $
How did the developer steal the money? The software developer worked at Zulily, a US online retailer. There, he had access to sensitive systems, such as setting prices and shipping costs. He apparently could also redirect cash flows.
The biggest chunk, 261,885 dollars, he supposedly stole by siphoning off shipping costs. Instead of going to his employer, the fees went directly to his own bank account.
In addition, the developer allegedly had products shipped to his home. However, he manipulated the prices in his orders – he set the prices to cents and supposedly thereby seized goods worth an additional 40,842 dollars.
Over several months, a total of 302,278.52 dollars were supposedly seized this way.
“OfficeSpace Project” – A story like from a movie
How did they catch on to him? Zulily recognized the irregularities in the system and assigned a few employees to investigate, including the accused software developer. To cover up his actions, he booked the missing amounts to customer accounts.
However, at some point, a skeptical colleague went to his house to investigate. In front of the house and in the driveway, many Zulily boxes were reportedly stacked up. After that, he was arrested.
After being fired, the developer returned his work laptop, which was then searched. Here, a file named “OfficeSpace Project” was found, named after the comedy film from the 90s.
The prosecution was able to trace the entire course of his fraud here. It was even documented how the developer wanted to keep his actions secret from management.
Afterward, there was another apartment search, where, among other things, a pull-out sofa from Zulily was found – still in its original packaging.
What does the accused say? There has been no indictment yet, as the investigations are still ongoing. However, the developer has reportedly already made a partial confession. He stated that the money is gone – he invested everything in GameStop stock options.
Why the GameStop stock? The stock is considered a so-called “Meme Stock”. These are stocks that are occasionally pushed by organized internet investors who organize themselves through Reddit or other platforms.
The GameStop stock saw a huge boom in 2021 due to a herd movement. In addition to the “Meme Stock” investors, many inexperienced investors also invested in the stock. The stock exploded to more than 480 dollars – at the time of the article, it was at 15.77 dollars.
The products at the developer’s home he initially described as “test orders.” He just forgot to return them.
Later, he admitted that he also ordered the products for a woman he met through the dating app Tinder. He wanted to show off and impress her.
How did it end in the movie? The movie “Office Space” had a happy ending. The developers grabbed about 300,000 dollars, but realized their mistake, were remorseful, and wanted to clarify everything.
In the end, the office burned down, the involved developers did not have the money anymore and found a new job. But no one was arrested.
Whether the former software developer from Zulily will have a similarly fortunate outcome, we will probably never know. Because although he is confronted with many pieces of evidence and charges, the investigators found a small excerpt in his “OfficeSpace Project” document: “Prepare a backup plan.”
On TikTok, there is a feature that is controversial within the community: “the Live Battles.” During this, streamers interact with each other and at the same time collect a lot of money from viewers. The Twitch streamer MontanaBlack is surprised at how much he earns from it. However, he says he doesn’t know anything about it.
What’s going on with TikTok and streaming?
Most people use TikTok similarly to YouTube: they watch short clips there, so “videos on demand,” that can be viewed on request, comment on them, give likes, or share them. Some indulge in their dose of clips in bed before falling asleep.
However, TikTok also has a “streaming function” like Twitch: you can “go live” and stream.
Many Twitch streamers and YouTubers are now discovering TikTok as an “additional platform” to particularly reach young viewers and excite them for their main channel, which grows and brings in more money this way. TikTok has significantly accelerated the growth of controversial YouTuber IShowspeed. There are also dedicated TikTok streamers.
“Live Battles” designed as a PvP event, used as a “money-making machine”
What kind of difficult trend is this? When streaming on TikTok, there is the possibility of a “Live Battle”; in China, the home country of TikTok, this feature is called “Player Knockout”:
The idea was probably originally that streamers play a game in splitscreen simultaneously, and the fans then decide through donations who is “better” and wins the battle.
However, this feature is now viewed critically because ultimately, TikTokers use it to earn extremely large amounts of money: they turn it into a popularity contest where viewers throw donations in the form of coins or gifts to ensure “their favorite” wins.
TikTok benefits enormously from this feature – a significant portion of the revenue goes to them.
Start video
Career and Life of MontanaBlack in 2 Minutes: What Makes Him Unique?
There, he quickly got involved in a Live Battle with streamer AbuGoku, who apparently knows TikTok significantly better than MontanaBlack.
The extremely popular MontanaBlack in Germany received endless gifts and money from his fans during this live battle. However, MontanaBlack apparently did not understand it at all, as he showed no signs of being pleased about the downpour of money.
At one point, AbuGoku explains that MontanaBlack just received “Universe,” the most impressive reward one can get on TikTok. He has already earned around €4,000 (via tiktok).
However, MontanaBlack can’t believe it. He thinks his colleague is joking with him. He doesn’t understand TikTok at all. When told that he earned about €4,000, MontanaBlack says:
“Oh, you’re talking nonsense, man.”
No, AbuGoku insists,
MontanaBlack immediately changes his tune:
“Welcome to TikTok, man. The new favorite platform. – From now on: Every day on TikTok! No.”
MontanaBlack seems surprised by the amounts: the last time he made only $160 or so. But at that time, he also didn’t understand live battles and was just in the stream eating something.
Performance is viewed critically: MontanaBlack normalizes the €€€ trend
What is the problem? AbuGoku also explains to MontanaBlack that these Live Battles he is currently using are viewed critically on TikTok. He himself “doesn’t really celebrate it either.” Because some people would then misuse this feature, not interact with the other streamer, even mute him, and only speak with their own viewers.
Also in the TikTok community, this feature is highly controversial. Some are already upset that MontanaBlack stumbled into this so easily. It normalizes this purely “money-making” feature on TikTok and those using it now can always say: “Why? MontanaBlack is using it too.”
The “Battle” feature is sometimes referred to by critics as a “begging” feature because the streamers would beg for donations in this mode.
Critics like YouTuber Rutkay also say: one should not take MontanaBlack’s naivety so easily. He has been on TikTok for ages, and also engages with the platform in his Twitch streams. He knows exactly what is going on.
In recent months, MontanaBlack has repeatedly been criticized for taking up every trend that brings him income:
What do you think of the PokeMiners’ findings? Do you hope for Volcanion to be a new raid boss for the Elite Raids? Or do you think Niantic will release the mysterious Pokémon first in a paid special research? And when would a release of Wommel be conceivable for you? Let us know here at MeinMMO in the comments.
What do you think of the PokeMiners’ findings? Do you hope for Volcanion to be a new raid boss for the Elite Raids? Or do you think Niantic will release the mysterious Pokémon first in a paid special research? And when would a release of Wommel be conceivable for you? Let us know here at MeinMMO in the comments.
What do you think of the PokeMiners’ findings? Do you hope for Volcanion to be a new raid boss for the Elite Raids? Or do you think Niantic will release the mysterious Pokémon first in a paid special research? And when would a release of Wommel be conceivable for you? Let us know here at MeinMMO in the comments.
In Pokémon GO there have been special Elite Raids for some time, in which you could secure Hoopa. Now a new mysterious monster has been discovered in the game, which leads trainers to hope for a new raid boss. We at MeinMMO will show you which Pokémon it is.
Which raids are we talking about? Since October 2022, Niantic has been regularly hosting special Elite Raids (translated Top-Raids). These can only be played on-site and are harder than all other raids in the game.
However, you will be rewarded with a mysterious Pokémon. In recent months, you could encounter the Mischief Pokémon Hoopa (Unbound). However, some trainers have been hoping for a change of the raid boss for a while now.
With a bit of luck, it could happen soon, as the PokeMiners have found new monsters in the game code. We have summarized what Pokémon you might look forward to in the game below.
Who are the PokeMiners? The PokeMiners are a group of data miners who regularly search the game code of Pokémon GO to find new information about the game. In the past, they have reliably predicted new Pokémon and features.
However, since the data is not official information, Niantic can change it at any time or decide against its publication.
These 4 new Pokémon have been found
What has been discovered? As the PokeMiners report on their Twitter channel, they came across the graphics of four new monsters and their Shinies in their last search in the game code of Pokémon GO. One of them shows the Mega Evolution of Salamence (bottom left), which will debut in the game as part of the “Shimmering Fantasy” event.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
In the other graphics, you can see the Bug and Fairy Pokémon Wommel and its evolution Bandelby (top), as well as the mysterious Pokémon Volcanion (bottom right), which belongs to the types Fire and Water.
Trainers express suspicions about the release
These are the reactions to Volcanion: The community is excited about the findings. Especially Volcanion gives some players hope that it could come to the Elite Raids soon, providing them with a new challenge. However, a release as part of a research task would also be conceivable for many. You can read the following on reddit:
Belt_Pretend: “Volcanion is my favorite mysterious Pokémon! I’m really eager for its release!”
YutoMaikeru: “Volcanion in Elite Raids?”
sijam24: “That will be locked behind a $19.99 ticket”
KuriboShoeMario: “Elite Raids are how they reintroduce things that they first sell a ticket for (Hoopa is an exception to this theory). I bet the Elite Raid will change to Zarude next season. They could do the same for Keldeo. Volcanion will likely come through a ticket unless it’s the focus of next season, and then we’ll probably see it in Elite Raids over time.”
By the way: The new raids are also frequently criticized by players. What the reasons are, you can read in the following article:
These are the reactions to Wommel: And Wommel also has some fans among trainers, who are already expressing ideas about when a possible release could occur. Some speculate a debut during a Community Day, similar to what happened last year with Velursi (via reddit.com):
feelthefebreze: “Wommel Community Day? That would be similar to what they did last year for Velursi.”
maninthewoodsdude: “I want a Wommel Community Day!!!”
pyrospartan5: “Wommel for the Community Day is possible, but I think it could be for Valentine’s Day.”
But a release on Valentine’s Day is also conceivable for some. This would certainly speak for Wommel’s type, as Niantic likes to resort to spawns of Fairy Pokémon on Valentine’s Day. However, whether and when the discovered monsters will actually come to the game remains to be seen.
What do you think of the PokeMiners’ findings? Do you hope for Volcanion to be a new raid boss for the Elite Raids? Or do you think Niantic will release the mysterious Pokémon first in a paid special research? And when would a release of Wommel be conceivable for you? Let us know here at MeinMMO in the comments.
What do you think of the PokeMiners’ findings? Do you hope for Volcanion to be a new raid boss for the Elite Raids? Or do you think Niantic will release the mysterious Pokémon first in a paid special research? And when would a release of Wommel be conceivable for you? Let us know here at MeinMMO in the comments.
What do you think of the PokeMiners’ findings? Do you hope for Volcanion to be a new raid boss for the Elite Raids? Or do you think Niantic will release the mysterious Pokémon first in a paid special research? And when would a release of Wommel be conceivable for you? Let us know here at MeinMMO in the comments.
The free MMORPG Therian Saga relies on a mix of strategy and tabletop, dividing player opinions on Steam.
What kind of game is this? Therian Saga is an MMORPG from 2012 developed by the indie studio Virtys. It has been available for free on Steam since 2013 and according to the developers, it features elements of MUD games, strategy, and tabletop games (via Steam).
If you want a glimpse into the gameplay of Therian Saga, we have embedded a gameplay trailer from 2016 here.
Start video
Therian Saga Gameplay Trailer
What features does the game offer? The Steam page for Therian Saga lists several aspects you can expect in the MMORPG.
Skill-based: Therian Saga features a system that calculates your abilities or executes an action based on your hero, your tool, your companion, your location, and some magic.
Sandbox: The developers describe the sandbox aspect with the words that it is up to you to understand how you progress in the game.
Storytelling: Therian Saga tells its story in an old-school manner using text as the main medium.
Crafting: The crafting system of the MMORPG is described as complex. It uses a mechanics for distributing the skills and materials you need for the final product.
Long-term motivation: The game promises a wealth of content as it has been available since 2012.
Auto-playing: Therian Saga advertises that you can program your hero as you like. This means your character performs actions that you impose on it – regardless of what you are doing. Your hero will also complete your tasks while you are sleeping or working, whether you are in the game or not.
What are the ratings? The MMORPG has a total of 477 player reviews on Steam. These are mostly positive with 70%.
What do the players say? Players have mixed opinions on what they think of the MMORPG. Some find the game fun, while others are less impressed.
“The game is special in its own way and does not have to be for everyone. But I think it is a hidden gem. […] Give it a try (via Steam).”
“Actually, the game looks nice and it could really be a lot of fun if it weren’t for the timer on every activity. […] That’s something I can’t really get used to. There are people who like that, I don’t (via Steam).”
“So far, I like the game. It’s definitely a game for casual players (via Steam).”
“It’s advertised as an MMORPG, although it’s more of a clicker with time management and light RPG elements in an online world. This means that waiting takes up most of the game, which would be fine in itself if the time constraints weren’t so damn long (via Steam).”
The general opinion about the game is aptly summarized by Steam user DustKitten in a review, describing how frustrating yet rewarding the gameplay is:
This is a really terrible game and I love it. It has the same appeal as tending to a plant. It’s something I return to from time to time to tend to and watch, and I occasionally spend a few minutes on it. In return, I can watch it grow into something interesting and beautiful. Everything in the game is frustratingly slow, and it takes hours to make any progress at all. That’s what makes the game appealing.
In general, it can be said that Therian Saga is certainly not a game for everyone, and you should decide for yourself whether you find the MMORPG interesting or not. Some players like it, some don’t. In the end, it is available for free, and if you are considering testing it, you can do so with no risk.
Similarly, there are these 12 MMORPGs that are all free-to-play and offer various advantages and disadvantages.
Career and life of Asmongold in 3 minutes – What makes him special?
WoW parodies popular shooter
What kind of advertisement is it? In his stream, Asmongold reacts to a reddit video that shows an official advertisement from World of Warcraft on TikTok.
In this advertisement, we see an Orc swinging a knife while jumping around wildly. At the end of the advertisement, we also hear the recorded call “Throwing Flashbang”.
The advertisement is apparently a parody of the popular tactical shooter Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, as demonstrated by the knife swinging and the jumping known as “bunny hopping”.
What does Asmongold say about the advertisement? Asmongold reacts rather skeptically to the CS:GO parody of World of Warcraft.
After watching the short video, he says: “Anyone working in the Blizzard media team can think the following: It can probably never get worse than this .”
We are embedding the clip where Asmongold reacts to the WoW advertisement here. In the 34-second video, you will also see the mentioned advertisement:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Are there other reactions? Under the reddit post where the WoW advertisement was shared, there are also positive comments. Some users find the humorous approach funny or feel addressed by the advertisement because they play both WoW and CS:GO.
“That was also in my suggestions. Worked perfectly because I am a big CS:GO fan and played a decent amount of WoW (via reddit).”
“No joke, the WoW TikTok channel is pretty good. They have a good sense of humor (via reddit).”
“Whoever is responsible for the WoW TikTok channel has done a great job in recent months (via reddit).”
“It’s on TikTok, and if you understand trends and know how TikTok works, it’s really funny. It doesn’t have to be all a drawn-out fancy advertisement (via reddit).”
Also on TikTok itself, the advertisement has received some positive comments. Users write there, among other things, “OMG, how cool” and “Love it”. Overall, the video garnered over 79,000 “likes” (as of January 5, 2023).
In WoW itself, players are currently discussing the next expansion because an area in WoW Dragonflight looks like an “Old God”.
EA Sports has announced a brand new event for FIFA 23 Ultimate Team with FUT Centurions. It starts today, January 6, and we look at the known information and leaks.
When does FUT Centurions start? A new loading screen in FIFA 23 revealed the start date of the new event. It starts on January 6, 2023, at 7:00 PM.
What is the new event about? Officially, apart from the title and the new card design, nothing is known yet about the new FUT Centurions event. However, it looks like the number 100 could play an important role.
You can find it on the new cards, and a “Centurion” was a Roman officer who commanded a unit of 100 soldiers.
It is quite conceivable that the event is about established professionals who have broken records in the hundred range. We remain excited, and will update this post as soon as we know more.
What content does the new event offer? Currently (as of January 5), neither special cards nor the exact concept of FUT Centurions is known. However, a few leaks have surfaced.
This loading screen officially announced the event.
These are the current leaks: The Twitter channel of DonkTrading also talks about a concept where the number 100 is an important factor. The FUT leaker claims that players can receive a Centurions special card if they meet one of the following conditions:
100+ games in the national team
100+ goals scored
100+ assists provided
100+ matches without conceding a goal
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Moreover, the probably best-known FUT leaker FUTSherriff still has a leak up his sleeve. He claims that in the course of the FUT Centurions promo, a SBC (Squad Building Challenge) for the 94-rated version of Zinedine Zidane will be released.
What do you think about the promo? What content do you expect? Feel free to let us know in the comments!
After adjustments for the barely manageable dungeons in WoW Dragonflight, Blizzard comes with yet another major nerf. This time, the Court of Stars from Legion is facing the consequences – although this is the dungeon that is completed second most often.
What kind of dungeon is this? The Court of Stars is one of the 8 dungeons from Season 1 of Dragonflight and actually originates from the Legion expansion. With Dragonflight, however, Blizzard is incorporating older dungeons into the rotation to revive past content.
You fight against demons and their nightborne followers in the Court of Stars. The special feature of the dungeon is that certain professions and classes have specific interactions with items that can significantly simplify the run.
The biggest danger in the dungeon, aside from some nasty mobs at the beginning, is the final boss, Advisor Melandrus. He can quickly take out careless groups. This is exactly where Blizzard targets with a nerf.
the additional damage that players take within 7 meters is reduced by 30%
Mirrors have dealt too much damage with Chilling Maelstrom, which will be fixed
With a hotfix on January 4th, the adjustments should have gone live on US servers. In Germany, they should have been active since January 5th.
Surprisingly, the Court of Stars, as one of the easiest instances, is the least popular in your ranking:
Start video
WoW Dragonflight: All Dungeons of Season 1 in the Ranking
Over 80% of groups are already completing the Court of Stars
Where the other 5 dungeons were partly impossible or only very difficult to complete, the Court of Stars is actually considered one of the two easiest instances in the current rotation. Only the Shadowmoon Burial Grounds is easier.
According to the statistics page bestkeystone.com, over 80% of groups successfully completed the Court of Stars just this week. In recent weeks, the worst value here was 74%, but that was the very first week. Since then, the value has steadily increased.
Since then, the Court of Stars has been the instance that is completed second most often. With the nerf, it is possible that the dungeon could even surpass the Burial Grounds. In any case, the statistics across all instances are likely to steadily improve from now on.
Because with better equipment and simply practice, many players find it increasingly easier to complete the dungeons even at higher levels.
Which instances will be included in the rotation in the upcoming season is still unknown. However, some information about the story is already known:
The Twitch streamer Tyler1 has criticized the developer of League of Legends, Riot Games, for its patch policy. According to Tyler1, the champion Udyr is so strong in the jungle of LoL that even talentless players can rise high in ELO with him. When the champ is finally nerfed, these players will plummet mercilessly downward and ruin all games on their way down.
Which champion annoys Tyler1? The Twitch streamer is annoyed by the jungler “Udyr”:
After the rework, he received further buffs in a patch in August.
As a result, he has become the most dominant jungler and has a win rate of 55.6% in the current patch with 229,809 matches – that’s extremely high (via mobalytics).
Start video
How the Worst Troll from Twitch Became the Face of League of Legends
Why is that, according to Tyler1, bad? Tyler1 is particularly annoyed that Udyr has held such a strong role in LoL for so long and has not yet been nerfed.
Also, in the new patch preview, many heroes will face the axe. A total of 8 champs are to be nerfed, but not Udyr.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Tyler1 says: As Udyr has been so strong for so long, “talentless guys who can’t do anything” have reached high ELO ratings by just playing the “giga-broken champ” Udyr:
What are these disgusting players actually doing with their inflated ELO ranking when Riot nerfs this giga-broken champion?
People who used Udyr to climb high would have “no talent” and be “not good at the game at all”: They would just log in with this character and he would then keep them at a 50% win rate in the ELO ranking.
As an example, Tyler1 mentions someone who had never played Udyr, then started during the pre-season, and achieved a win rate of 70%.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
When Riot Games finally nerfs the hero – months too late – they would mercilessly plummet from their undeserved high ELO ranking and ruin all games on the way down because they play at an ELO value where they don’t belong.
Tyler1 repeatedly uses two terms in his rant: “nasty” and “disgusting” for this situation.
Balancing in LoL is often criticized. But with one champ, everything is okay:
A congressional representative in the USA was noticeably annoyed during a vote on Wednesday. When it was his turn to cast his vote for the election of the “Speaker of the house,” he shouted “Hakeeeeem Jeffries,” in honor of the meme “Leeroy Jenkins” from World of Warcraft.
That was the scene:
It was about the vote for the “Speaker of the house” in the USA: This is the Speaker of the House of Representatives, a high political office. After Vice President Kamala Harris, the elected person would be next in line to govern the country if something were to happen to President Biden.
The Democratic representative from California, Jared Huffmann (58), voted for the Democratic candidate, Hakeem Jeffries, and enthusiastically shouted, “Hakeeeeeem Jeffries.”
After that, there was scattered laughter, whispers, and cheers of approval in the hall.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
He says about it: The 58-year-old Huffmann explained on Twitter: “Yup, I said what I said. If the Republicans are chasing through repeated self-flagellation, we might as well make it memorable.”
Division of a party leads to endless votes
What does he mean by “self-flagellation?” The vote for the “Speaker of the House” is dragging on in the USA. Although the Republicans actually have a numerical majority, the party is so divided that they cannot get their preferred candidate McCarthy through with votes from their own party because not all representatives are voting for him. Some Trump supporters are against him.
Therefore, the Republicans are lacking about a dozen votes for their candidate, but they keep putting him up again, hoping he will eventually succeed by receiving votes from the Democrats. However, they are not planning to vote for him at all.
This procedure seems to annoy Huffmann over time when he talks about “self-flagellation.”
Start video
WoW shows the main features of Dragonflight in the gameplay trailer, fans praise: “Finally hype again”
Leeroy Jenkins is the reason for one of the most famous WoW memes
A group of raiders totally exaggerates planning, wants to talk through all eventualities before a pull and lays down a complicated battle plan in which everyone has a fixed task.
Leeroy Jenkins, on the other hand, apparently overslept the whole meeting, dives into the mass of enemies with the war cry of his own name, and causes a wipe of the group.
The mammoth project Star Citizen has no release date, but has made a lot of money and spent so much time to develop something special. This is evident in Chris Roberts’ letter to players and supporters at the turn of the year into 2023. Only good news, wherever you look. Well, except for the schedule.
What are common accusations against Star Citizen? There are two major accusations against Star Citizen:
Feature Creep – Players were promised an increasingly large game with more and more features to obtain donations. The vision of a “fully playable MMO-SF universe” has become so enormous over the years that it is now technically hardly manageable. Therefore, there are no release plans or firm commitments, it is a “castle in the air”.
Release is not worth it – The game earns so much money from the sale of ships that a release is not urgent, as the company makes enough anyway.
Start video
Space-MMO Star Citizen shows an event that looks more like Halo and Battlefield – This is Siege of Orison
More players, more money, more employees than ever at Star Citizen
This is the current status: In particular, the second accusation “Release is not worth it” seems to be indirectly confirmed by Chris Roberts in a letter to players. Because the message from the letter is: “Everything is running fantastically.”
Roberts elaborates:
that now more people are playing Star Citizen than ever before:
240,000 people log in each month – that’s 33% more than every year.
Daily, the platform has 50% more users than in 2021 and double the number compared to 2019.
Money is also flowing like never before:
Star Citizen surpassed the mark of 100 million $ in revenue in November 2022.
In 2022, they even earned more than in the previous years, where more money came in due to Covid, with 30% more earnings than 2021.
A large part of the money comes from new players, more than 800,000 accounts have been created. 70% of them have become “paying players” who bought the starter pack, Roberts boasts.
And how is the progress of the game? At one point, there is something like a “negative remark” in Roberts’ jubilation.
Looking back at the last year, it is mentioned in passing: The big feature planned for 2022, the persistent universe, did not go live in 2022 after all, but it was tested on the test server. At least something.
Roberts emphasizes how wonderful and elaborate a persistent universe is for an “MMO with millions of players.” He knows of no other “large-scale MMO” that even attempts such a thing.
The visionary Chris Roberts.
The project is something very special – would be impossible with a typical publisher
Doesn’t it take too long for him personally? Roberts makes a virtue out of necessity. He plays once more the narrative that the “Star Citizen” project takes an extremely long time, but is therefore also something very special.
Only with the support of the players is such a thing possible. A normal publisher, especially a publicly traded one, would never give the development team the time to develop something great:
“There is no other way to build Star Citizen without the community-driven model. The investment in time and money is too expensive for a normal gaming publisher.”
This is what’s behind it: In the letter, Roberts proves once again that he is a master at explaining to players that they are part of something unique. You cannot disagree with him there.
This narrative that “normal games” are so severely restricted by the profit craze of the publishers, and that crowdfunding is needed to develop something unique, has long been represented by supporters of Star Citizen:
It also seems to be a self-fulfilling prophecy, because the enormous financial success of the crowdfunding campaign has made Star Citizen a unique case.
The fact that the project has been in production since 2011 and that even the single-player campaign “Squadron 42” does not have a real release date makes it difficult for outsiders to fully share Roberts’ enthusiasm.
In the end, Chris Roberts once again said that the next year will be great for Star Citizen. Probably the biggest year so far.
Vampire Survivors was one of the surprise hits of 2022 on Steam and immediately continued with a mobile port. However, the developers apparently did not want it in that form.
Which game are we talking about? Vampire Survivors describes itself as a gothic horror game with roguelite elements. The game throws you into a survival battle in an open field and comes with pixel graphics – which apparently does not detract from its ratings.
Vampire Survivors was first released in early access and then as a full version on Steam starting October 20, 2022, also brought a DLC and enjoys positive reviews.
Currently, it has 97% positive reviews in the last 30 days, and for all reviews, it is even 98% – and that with over 167,000 ratings. In the last 30 days, about 14,900 players played it on average, with a peak of around 27,900.
Its highest player count was reached in February 2022 while still in early access, with 77,061 concurrent players at its peak. It was already extremely well-rated back then and became a hit on Steam. Also, on the Steam Deck, the game became very popular and was among the most played games overall (via Twitter).
Start video
Vampire Survivors Launch Trailer
Now the developers reported on Steam with an update for the new year – and gave an interesting insight into the topic of “Mobile”.
Developers wanted fair monetization – There was apparently a problem
This is what the developers say about Mobile: In a post on Steam, developer “poncle” explains that soon after the initial success of Vampire Survivors, they looked for business partners who should implement a mobile version.
But there were problems: “Unfortunately, no one I spoke to was agreeable to the monetization I envisioned for the platform: not predatory,” said the developers.
Then imitators came along: “Months went by, and numerous clones appeared everywhere – not ‘games like Vampire Survivors’, but actual 1:1 copies with stolen code, assets, data, and progress.”
They apparently wanted to get ahead of this as well and developed the mobile version themselves: “This forced us to release the mobile game as quickly as possible and put the development team, which was actually not supposed to take care of the mobile game, under great stress. “
Now, some features are still missing, such as cloud saves or save transfers – but currently, there is still a lack of the necessary personnel to implement that. However, the developer continues to work on the game and is now doing what no partners wanted to do.
This is what the developers wanted: Ideally, developer poncle would have offered the game for a “few dollars” so that players could buy it: “But the mobile market doesn’t work that way, and if I had made VS a paid app, I would have prevented many new players from even trying the game.”
That is why they chose a “free-for-real” approach – with optional monetization that should not interrupt the game, and some “watch ads” buttons, but would avoid “the real money suckers,” “around which mobile cash grabs are usually developed,” poncle said.
As of now, the game also has good ratings of 4.8 stars on average in the Android and App stores.
What do you think of the developers’ statements? And what do you think of mobile games in general? Let us know in the comments!
In 2020, two young professionals are said to have orchestrated a match loss in Valorant to claim a betting reward. Now, one of them is pleading guilty. In Singapore, where the trial is taking place, this could result in up to 5 years in prison.
This is the case:
In 2020, the professional Malcolm “Germ” Chung (25) is said to have intentionally lost a match in the “Epulze Royal SEA Cup”. His friend Ryan “dReamy” Tan (20) was the instigator.
Now, Tan has pleaded guilty (via straitstimes.com). The penalty is still pending.
Who are the professionals? Germ and Dreamy are semi-professional e-sports players from Singapore who met through Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Germ later played with Team Resurgence in tournaments for prize money.
dReamy, who allegedly had gambling debts with Germ, offered his friend to intentionally lose a match. He was able to put up money he received from his brother as a wager.
This is said to have worked and yielded winnings. However, the fraud was noticed and Valorant’s creators Riot were alerted, who conducted their own investigations in 2021.
The result was a 3-year ban each for dReamy and Germ, as well as bans between 6 and 12 months for the other team members who allegedly knew about the fraud but said nothing.
Valorant is a popular shooter and has been able to attract even fans of CS:GO since its release. Its anthem for the most important tournament is extremely well-received:
Start video
Valorant celebrates with anthem the most important tournament of the shooter – fans praise the crazy music video
Professional admits to cheating – Up to 5 years in prison for “corruption”
The case eventually went to court in Singapore, where a penalty is expected for the two ex-professionals for gambling and corruption. On January 5, 2022, Tan pleaded guilty to the charges.
In Singapore, according to The Straits Times, penalties for these offenses can be up to 5 years in prison, $100,000 in fines, or both. The presiding judge is reportedly evaluating whether a probationary sentence might be possible, as a corruption case involving such young participants is extremely rare.
The verdict is still pending. The penalties against the remaining team members from Riot have now expired, and some of the players are trying to join other teams as professionals.
Meanwhile, Riot has its own legal dispute with the Chinese company NetEase. The China giant is accused of shamelessly copying Valorant:
The game “Goose Goose Duck” is becoming more of a phenomenon on Steam. After gaining momentum in recent months, it has now reached a new milestone.
What kind of game is this? Goose Goose Duck was released back in 2021 and is clearly reminiscent of the surprise hit Among Us, but it is free. Floating in space, you are on a space station and want to successfully complete your mission – only this time, you are a crew of geese.
However, there are also ducks hiding among you that must be uncovered before your geese are in danger. For this, good communication is necessary.
The game features several maps that provide environments outside of a spaceship – such as the “Ancient Sands” map in the desert. It also includes features like an optional proximity chat, various game modes, and classes of birds.
This is what it looks like:
Start video
Goose Goose Duck: Gameplay Trailer
Goose Goose Duck’s numbers are skyrocketing
Here’s what the numbers say: Although Goose Goose Duck was released back in 2021, it has only started to draw real attention since December 2022. Player numbers suddenly surged at that time, and the reviews are also positive.
Even November saw an average of players and a peak of about 52,000, marking a jump from October (1,613 average / 6,069 peak), and then it continued to rise.
On Thursday, January 5, the game reached its peak: 563,293 concurrent players at peak time tried to figure out who is a goose and who is a duck. Currently (January 5, 2023, 7:00 PM), Steam Charts counts 343,543 active players in Goose Goose Duck.
What’s going on? The game is undergoing a similar development as Among Us, which also premiered long before it became a hit overnight. However, Among Us peaked at 438,524 players – a number that the goose game has already surpassed.
Analyst Daniel Ahmad points to the Asian market:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Korea and China are proving to be key markets for the game, and especially the influx of players from China has apparently been immense. The surge of Chinese players caused server outages, which has also been addressed in developer comments on Steam (via Steam).
They are also addressing players in Chinese there, apologizing and clarifying that while they expected growth, it was not on such a large scale. Now they are also looking for partners in China.
What do you think of the game? Have you checked it out, or is it not for you? Let us know in the comments.
