Two platform updates are out for Linux gaming: Bazzite 45 and a new SteamOS beta for Steam Frame.

Bazzite 45

Bazzite now uses Fedora 45, with GNOME 51.1 or KDE 6.8.2 and Mesa 26.2.6. The release updates InputPlumber and adds optional networking tuning through bpftune and bpfrag.

Handheld changes include initial Acer Predator Atlas 8 support and stable support for the Ally X20. Additional Logitech TrueForce wheels work out of the box. The release also updates the library used for Steam Input under Wayland to support the 64-bit Steam Client beta.

Steam Frame: SteamOS 0.5.7 beta

Valve's headset update adds WebXR support in Chromium 157 and newer, updates SteamVR to 2.19.1 and improves vibration filtering used in pose prediction. Foveated sharpening can now operate independently of eye tracking.

Audio fixes address USB or Bluetooth speakers stopping when an application accesses the microphone. New controls allow echo cancellation and noise suppression to be disabled separately, with the current Steam Client beta required for those controls.

Steam Frame users can opt into the beta through the system update-channel settings.

Sources: Bazzite release | Valve release notes | Steam Frame details | Bazzite

Microsoft has previewed new DirectX Raytracing features designed to reduce the cost of updating detailed scenes. The announcement covers clustered geometry, partitioned top-level acceleration structures and GPU-driven builds.

Clustered geometry divides objects into small, reusable groups of triangles, reducing how much must be rebuilt when geometry changes. Partitioned scene structures concentrate work on regions that changed while retaining data elsewhere.

In one demanding RX 9070 test, acceleration-structure memory fell from 7,519 MiB to 774 MiB, an 89.7% reduction. The sample also ran much faster, but Microsoft explicitly warns that the test is not representative of the gains games should expect. Temporary build-memory requirements increased too.

These remain developer-preview features requiring the appropriate SDK, runtime and supporting drivers. They do not inherently demand new ray-tracing hardware, though support depends on each GPU vendor's implementation and validation. This is promising engine work rather than an immediate performance upgrade for existing games.

Sources: Microsoft DirectX preview | Microsoft

The UK government plans to extend its online-safety approach to communication with strangers in games, Online Safety Minister Ian Murray told Parliament on 2 November.

During the debate on the proposed under-16s social-media ban, Murray said further regulations would address features and functions such as stranger communication. He described an approach that would retain matchmaking with unfamiliar players while restricting the ability to talk to them in a gaming context.

Murray said the social-media ban was intended to pass before the new year and take effect in spring 2027, with the additional features-and-functions regulations to follow. The statement sets out the government's intended direction; it does not supply the final gaming rules, their exceptions or implementation requirements.

The parliamentary transcript is linked below, along with GamingOnLinux's discussion of the implications for multiplayer games and age checks.

Sources: Hansard | GamingOnLinux | GamingOnLinux

Nexus Mods is tightening its rules around AI-generated and AI-assisted mods. From its 3 November announcement, new uploads must declare whether AI was used, and AI-assisted mods need a public explanation of how it was involved.

The site is keeping AI-made mods available under rules covering permissions, transparency and presentation. It plans clearer tags and better browsing controls so users can choose how much of that material they see. Some of the wider permissions and discovery changes will follow later.

Misleading promotional images remain against the rules, including generated images presented as screenshots of features a mod does not provide. Nexus also says it will neither train AI on uploaded mods nor sell or license them for that purpose.

Donation Points rules are unchanged for now. Nexus says AI-tagged mods received 2.13% of points awarded so far this year and that it will keep monitoring the figure.

Sources: Nexus Mods | GamingOnLinux | Nexus Mods

VOID/BREAKER left Early Access on 4 November. The fast-paced roguelite FPS from Stubby Games is now available on Steam, Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

Developed by Daniel Stubbington, the game puts weapon combinations and destructible environments at the centre of its runs. Players modify their guns, combine effects and fight through an AI-controlled system while trying to escape it.

The full release has a launch trailer on Playstack's announcement page. There is also a Steam demo, with progress transferable to the full game, for anyone who wants to try the movement and gunplay first.

Sources: Playstack | Steam and demo | VOID/BREAKER

Scheduled: 19:00 UTC, 21 November 2026
Begins In:

cpmpickup.net cuPP will take place on Saturday, 21 November, starting at 19:00 UTC. The CPMA duel tournament has a EUR 225 prize pool, with EUR 100 for first place, EUR 75 for second and EUR 50 for third.

The five-map pool is acid3dm10, acid3dm12, cpm22, cpm24a and sodab10. Registration and the tournament page are on Challonge, with snapcase and user829385 listed as the streams.

The previous cpmpickup cup, held on 24 October, was won by kane without losing a series. He beat memphis 2-0 in the final; rokky finished third and Leshaka fourth in the nine-player field.

For anyone after more CPM duel, there are still a couple of weeks to prepare.

Sources: Tournament and registration | Announcement | snapcase | user829385 | CPMA

Scheduled: 06:30 UTC, 6 November 2026 to 14:00 UTC, 8 November 2026
Begins In:

The IEM Beijing playoff bracket is set, with six teams remaining after the group stage. The MongolZ and MOUZ won their groups and go directly to the semifinals; FURIA, PARIVISION, NAVI and BetBoom start in the quarterfinals.

The MongolZ beat FURIA 2-1 in the Group A final. MOUZ won the Group B final 2-0 against PARIVISION. NAVI secured the final Group A playoff spot with a 2-1 win over Falcons, while BetBoom beat Liquid 2-1 for the last place from Group B.

Playoff schedule - all times UTC

• Friday, 6 November, 06:30: PARIVISION vs NAVI
• Friday, 6 November, 09:45: FURIA vs BetBoom
• Saturday, 7 November, 06:30: The MongolZ vs winner of PARIVISION/NAVI
• Saturday, 7 November, 09:45: MOUZ vs winner of FURIA/BetBoom
• Sunday, 8 November, 04:00: third-place match
• Sunday, 8 November, 07:30: grand final

The quarterfinals, semifinals and third-place match are best-of-three. The grand final is best-of-five. Match times are scheduled starts and may move as earlier series finish.

Sources: Group results | Playoff bracket | ESL schedule

Linux accounted for 3.95% of participants in Valve's October 2026 Steam Hardware and Software Survey, up 0.90 percentage points from September.

Windows stood at 93.70%, down 1.33 percentage points, while macOS rose 0.43 percentage points to 2.35%.

Within the Linux sample, CachyOS was the largest individual entry at 16.39%, followed by SteamOS Holo at 13.89% and Arch Linux at 8.92%. Valve lists SteamOS Holo and SteamOS separately; the latter represented another 8.09% of the Linux sample. Those distribution figures are shares of Linux respondents, not shares of all Steam users.

The result puts Linux close to 4% in this month's sample. It does not by itself establish why the share changed, or how much came from new Linux players rather than variation in survey participation.

Valve's survey page has the full breakdown of operating systems and hardware.

Sources: Valve survey | GamingOnLinux | Steam

SK hynix expects memory demand to remain ahead of supply through 2030, while Raspberry Pi has announced another price increase for some of its highest-memory products.

SK hynix's forecast

In its third-quarter results, SK hynix points to growing AI infrastructure demand, the difficulty of advanced manufacturing processes and the time needed to build new production facilities. It expects those constraints to keep the market undersupplied through 2030.

The company is expanding production and shifting more capacity toward high-value memory for servers and AI. The 2030 date is the manufacturer's forecast; it is not a prediction that every consumer RAM kit will rise in price continuously until then.

16 GB Raspberry Pi 5 now $385

From 2 November, the 16 GB Raspberry Pi 5 costs $385, an $80 increase. The 16 GB Compute Module 5 variants rise by $40.

Raspberry Pi attributes the increase to limited alternatives for 16 GB DRAM and other component shortages. It is keeping the price of the 16 GB Pi 500+ unchanged and says the increases do not apply across its entire range.

Sources: SK hynix results | Raspberry Pi

id Software is working more closely with MachineGames on technology, according to studio co-director Marty Stratton, who discussed the studio's position following Xbox's layoffs.

Speaking at a Doom: The Dark Ages press event, Stratton acknowledged that roughly half of id's staff had departed. He said the remaining organisation had been deliberately structured to support both game development and technology work.

Stratton described the partnership with MachineGames as closer than ever, with engineering teams at both studios involved. He said the technology work had begun before the layoffs, earlier in the year.

The comments offer some detail on how the two studios are working together, but do not announce a new game, a studio merger or a replacement for id Tech. Suggestions that the collaboration points to a particular Wolfenstein project remain speculation.

Sources: PC Gamer | IGN

Romero Games has secured a new publisher for a redesigned shooter, John Romero told VGC. The publisher's identity and the game's announcement date remain under wraps.

The studio's previous project was built around a team of 110. After losing funding, staffing fell to five; Romero says roughly ten people have since returned, leaving a team of about 15-16.

The original game will not be completed in its old form. Instead, the studio is making a different, smaller shooter using art, code, characters and other work it already owns. Romero says the new scope is designed for the current team size.

He also says the new publishing agreement gives the studio creative freedom, and that the smaller structure lets him spend more time directly designing and building the game. There is no release date yet.

Sources: VGC interview | PC Gamer

Selaco's second chapter, The Machines of War, releases on 13 November. The update adds 19 campaign maps, with the developers estimating another 6-8 hours of play.

Dawn gets more voiced story content and an ally for part of the campaign, while a pursuing machine gives the new chapter a more relentless pace. Chapter 1 also receives a fresh pass on lighting, setpieces and other details.

Combat additions include new enemy types, heavy weapons, a jetpack, deployable drones and cover, and more weapon kits. Enemy AI has been extensively rewritten, with patrols, revised pathfinding and a rally system.

The technical changes include baked lighting, a revised particle system and asset streaming. The developers report a 19% reduction in general VRAM use. Movement scripting has also been reworked, and missed ordinary weapon kits can be purchased in safe rooms.

The full changelog and a new trailer are due when the update launches.

Sources: Developer announcement | GamingOnLinux | Selaco

Three Quake Champions cups produced a title for maxter and two for k1llsen over the weekend.

Estoty Duel Tournament #224

maxter beat k1llsen 3-1 in the grand final after losing their winners-final meeting 1-2. He earned the rematch with a 2-0 lower-final win over dramiS, who finished third ahead of Keltz.

It is maxter's 12th Estoty title and second consecutive win in the series. He moves ahead of ZenAkU into fifth on the all-time winners list, with three tournament victories in seven days including NAQCL #78.

NAQCL Duel Tournament #79

k1llsen won the next NAQCL with a 3-0 final against Thri11er. His route included 2-1 wins over klyb and dramiS and a 2-0 winners-final win over Keltz.

Thri11er beat Keltz 2-1 in the lower final to reach his third consecutive NAQCL podium. The prizes were $50 for k1llsen, $30 for Thri11er and $20 for Keltz; Yup placed fourth.

EGB QC Cup #13

k1llsen followed with another 3-0 final against Thri11er, this time without dropping a map all tournament. He also beat Thri11er 2-0 in the upper semifinals and S V H 2-0 in the winners final.

S V H finished third after beating maxter and dramiS earlier in the bracket. Thri11er came back through maxter, St0n3 and S V H before the final. This gives k1llsen two titles in the last three EGB QC Cups.

Sources: Estoty results | NAQCL results | EGB results | EGB

evillair has released eBloodworks and eCrucible, two new texture sets for Quake III Arena. Both were made for the evillair Jam at Map-Center, with Blender, Substance Painter and Photoshop used to produce textures in the old Quake 3 style.

eBloodworks draws partly on his earlier Quake 4 work. eCrucible goes for dark gothic architecture and blue metal accents, with some inspiration from Quake Champions.

The jam is organised by Map-Center and lvlworld and follows their Redux format: take an existing map and rebuild its visual presentation while preserving the raw layout. Their July event produced three remakes, by IoriDyson, Obsessed and DetroHogga.

Both texture sets are available through evillair's site. For anyone with an unfinished .map gathering dust, this is a fairly decent excuse to open it again.

Sources: evillair | Texture sets | Plus Forward | The Foundry

Map-Center has released Halloween Horror Jam 2026, a pack of 14 single-player Quake maps connected by a new hub from sock. The maps are built for Arcane Dimensions 1.9 Beta 5.

The themes range from ghosts and spider infestations to backrooms, fever dreams and a tribute to The Shining. New enemies include Blood's Cultist, Pumpklings and the Pumpkin Lord boss. There is also a score-based minigame for smashing breakable objects around the maps.

Zombie and Thundergoose worked on the Cultist, Xage converted Blood textures, and Razzzor contributed the Pumpkin Lord as well as a map. sock handled the Arcane Dimensions update and the hub.

The release page has screenshots and links to the download. Fourteen maps should keep Halloween going for a while yet.

Sources: Map-Center release | Downloads | Map-Center

Hello, introduce you self to community

Well, hello, im Nined shamanic/semi-pro/pro noob/retired/old-school quake live all round player from Quake live community, mostly known for specific local memes "shamanic" or "shamanic tdm" - source of jokes, sarcasm, criticism, memes and quotes of golden Quake Live tdm era back in 2010-2013.

Why named Nined?

It origins from Swedish quake world clan 9 (Nine), that's it.

How and when you started playing quake and other competitive FPS games?
Well, started playing Quake1/Quake2 on home LANs and Gaming clubs back in 1997-2003. Participated in 1-2 local LAN tournaments.

When switched to play quake world team fortress back in 2003 and played its modifications like Custom TF eventually till 2016.Played

RTCW: Enemy Territory when ADSL started from 2005-2009 online.From 2012 to present time i still playing forgotten gem

Quake Wars (idtech4 engine) by Splash Damage - its good mix of all old good team objective based fps shooters.

In 2026 i back in quake live to play duels for the first time and some tdm pickups to test current skills.

Tell us about 2026 quake live experience?

Well its still alive, mostly community niche gaming, high skilled and very hardcore. Skills in tdm are extremely high, accuracy high sometimes 80% rail and 50lg and 50mg for whole match. Well i tryed duels and its also fun and hardcore, played good games with 700-900 elo players, over 1000 elo is really try hard/challenging. FFA is just a trash mode to warm up, Freeze Tag fun team play experience, CTF is alive closed community, most ex pro tdmers play CTF now.

There are also some fun regular duel/tdm tournaments happening, like 250fps league, EGB cups its sometimes fun to watch specially games like Rapha Agent Cypher Killsen, seems like there is no more room to improve for pros in quake live, top skillz.

Fun that in 2026 HOQ community was able to organize Nations Cup event for tdm, ctf and duel. Its not 2012 vibe but still fun to watch. Quake Live is alive)

Quake Champions?

Thanks, no. I mean its good, its competetive proof, its fun but it is just another quake live/arena shooter in modern shell. Abilities are new to quake, but it still quake.

CS2, Dota, Apex, Pubg, Fortine, Overwatch, BF other modern games?

Apex got some new fun mechanics, i think its fun to play, its new Experience. Overwatch is like evolution of team fortress for new gamers. Other game never played.Blame me old-school but modern games are more player oriented even its team play, for example not much team play found in modern BF series. Dota is crazy mind blowing chess game.Overall, new games are for new generation.

Retro boomer shooters - fun trolling nostalgia trend for old-schoolers, some of them fun to play.


Back in shamanic tdm meme late in 2010 and now, what is behind shamanic?

Well, in 2026 figured out that its is kinda "rat" style, plus back style, survival or special (shamanic) style of playing tdm 4v4 with high skilled players, trying to compensate lack of skill/aim using special style that is different from main line - dealing more damage, more frags, cause in tdm damage and net frags are prior to hidden, not valuated/rated actions.

Here are explained shamanic style of playing tdm in 2026 and its highly criticized by tdm community, both sides agreed that skill, aim and overall performance - dealing damage and frags are more prior to freaky shamanic style. Counterarguments of shamanic style is listed below, plus 50% team win rate is same for shamanic style or high skilled, team rate mens more.

Lets explain a few things in tdm. No matter my skill and what doing.
1.Killing enemy quader is potentially avoiding 5 frags plus avoiding enemy control, potentially 10 frags avoiding. 1 frag, 1 mg bullet to quader, 5 dmg.
2.Taking 10 megas and 5 reds before power ups is lowering chance of enemy quader to survive.
3.Good hiding during enemy power ups requires skill.
4.Securing reds for high elo players, drops.
5.Finishing low hp enemies, low dmg given
6.Surviving, not fighting without yellow armour, weapons.
7.Just lucky fragging etc

Some words on 2026 quaking?

Well, seesms like no much progress for me since im still playing on 60hz laptop and laptop keyboard. Maximum i get in skilled tdm is 20-25 frags, zero net and around 4500 dmg.

Easy and fun way to play some community tdm is adding to pickups with at least 1 player same skill. Overall i have lower interest in playing tdm. May be organizing some small shamanic tdm tournament event is possible for example on old school or exotic tdm maps like tornado, grim dungeon, terminatria, retribution, terminus etc.

Last other games you played?

Doom 2016, Dirty Bomb, HL2, Quake 2 remaster, Kvark, Stalker Anomaly

A Quake III Arena: DeFRaG showcase of DFWC themed runs.

St0n3 won Blood Run: Red October on 25 October, recovering from a 0-2 winners-final loss to WiseGenie to beat him 3-2 in the grand final. St0n3 reached the rematch by defeating Keltz 2-0 in the lower final. Keltz placed third and PepCo fourth.

The rivalry has become a fixture: St0n3 and WiseGenie have met in four consecutive Blood Run finals and won two titles each. WiseGenie has reached the final at five straight events.

Arena and gameplay update

The tournament used the Bloodrun update released earlier that day, including revised versions of Tech Zone and Acid Base.

Tech Zone has wider routes around Mega Health and Lightning Gun, a higher ceiling above Mega Health, rebalanced lighting and a flatter teleporter corridor. Its remaining Quake III Arena sounds and jumppad assets have also been replaced.

Acid Base gets redesigned teleporters, more visible column detail, ambient sounds and acid in place of the neutral liquid. Players can no longer place totems above Red Armor. Both arenas also lose wall logos and receive texture adjustments.

Beyond the maps, Plasma Gun knockback drops from 100 to 75 ups. The UI adds support for password-protected servers and a vertical mouse-inversion option; resetting pitch now preserves inversion.

Sources: Results | Update details | Bloodrun PTS | Red October

maxter won NAQCL Duel Tournament #78 in Quake Champions on 25 October, beating Keltz 3-1 in the grand final. Thri11er finished third and Yup fourth.

It was a familiar ending: maxter had beaten Keltz 2-1 in the winners final, then repeated the same two scorelines from their Estoty #223 meetings two days earlier. Keltz had won their earlier NAQCL #76 final 3-0, so this was a useful turnaround for maxter.

Before the finals, maxter beat St0n3 and dramiS 2-0. Thri11er's lower-bracket run included wins over klyb, dramiS and Yup before Keltz stopped him 2-0 in the lower final.

The $100 prize pool was split $50 for maxter, $30 for Keltz and $20 for Thri11er.

Sources: Plus Forward | Bracket | NAQCL

250 FPS Quake Live League Season 6 has confirmed its ten-player Division 2 lineup and increased the prize pool from $300 to $400.

The field is st0n3, rell, swex, dem0n, el1k, sCoopY, mijkeee, Radist, WiseGenie and dazat0r. This is the league's first season with a second division.

The winner receives $200, the runner-up $100, and third and fourth place $50 each. The announcement also provisionally lists invitations to Season 7 Division 1 for the top two finishers; that promotion detail is still preliminary.

Players will arrange their matches individually rather than following Division 1's fixed match-day schedule. Opening pairings include st0n3 vs sCoopY, dem0n vs el1k, swex vs Radist, dem0n vs WiseGenie and el1k vs dazat0r.

Sources: 250 FPS | Plus Forward | Tournament | 250 FPS

k1llsen won EGB Three Map QL Cup #1 on 29 October without dropping a map, beating cherepoff 2-0 in both the winners final and grand final. He takes $40 of the $50 prize pool, with $10 going to cherepoff. dazator finished third and H3LLDOWN fourth.

The bigger surprises came earlier. cherepoff sent AGENT into the lower bracket, where a win over overqill bought him one more round before dazator ended his run in 7th-8th place. cYpheR lost to ARSENY and then H3LLDOWN, finishing 9th-11th.

k1llsen's route included wins over imijkeee and ARSENY before the two meetings with cherepoff. Meanwhile, cherepoff had to survive a 2-1 lower-final win over dazator to earn another shot at the title.

Sources: Plus Forward | Bracket | EGB

Hi everyone, I'm Metin, from Normandy (France). I work in cybersecurity by day and I'm starting to build a tactical FPS inspired by Counter-Strike as a side project. I'm here to learn, follow what you're doing and share progress later. Glad to join!

maxter won Estoty Duel Tournament #223 in Quake Champions on 23 October, beating Keltz 3-1 in the grand final. It is his 11th title in the series, putting him level with ZenAkU on the all-time winners list.

maxter beat Karwik 2-0 and Coffee by Tomo 2-0 before defeating Keltz 2-1 in the winners final. Keltz returned through the lower final with a 2-0 win over St0n3, but lost the rematch for the title.

St0n3 finished third after a lower-bracket run that ended with a win over Thri11er, who placed fourth. The event had a $100 prize pool.

This is maxter's second Estoty victory in four tournaments, following his win at #220.

Sources: Plus Forward report, results.

AGENT won the first Frontier One Map Cup in Quake Live on 24 October, coming through the lower bracket to beat k1llsen 2-0 in the grand final. ash finished third and dazator fourth.

ash sent AGENT down with a 2-1 win in the upper semifinals. AGENT then beat ARSENY and dazator before winning the rematch against ash 2-0 in the lower final. k1llsen had reached the final without losing a series, including 2-0 victories over dazator and ash, but lost both maps against AGENT.

The $500 prize pool paid $200 to AGENT, $100 to k1llsen and $60 to ash. The event began with groups followed by a double-elimination playoff, with every match played on Tortured - Frontier Edition. Players had five days to prepare after the map reveal.

Frontier's website also provides match replays and detailed statistics, including weapon use, item pickups and damage, alongside a 2D replay showing player movement around the arena.

Source: Plus Forward report and bracket.

Valve has rolled out a batch of updates across the Steam store, Remote Play and SteamOS. Personal Calendar has left Steam Labs, HDR streaming is getting more controls in the client beta, and SteamOS 3.9 is now on the stable channel.

Personal Calendar leaves Labs

Steam's Personal Calendar became a full store feature on 23 October, following its introduction as a Labs experiment in October 2025. It is available from the store homepage and the Personal Calendar page.

The calendar recommends recently released and upcoming games across an eight-week horizon. It uses the games you spend the most time playing to find players with similar habits, then looks at what those players have been playing or wishlisting. Briefly trying a game should have little effect; putting substantial time into a new favourite can change the recommendations.

The system is retrained daily. Filters and display options cover wishlisted games, Early Access titles and DLC, while developers can supply planned Early Access-to-1.0 dates. Valve says calendar placements are algorithmic and cannot be purchased.

Remote Play HDR overhaul in beta

The 22 October Steam client beta adds an advanced HDR setting with Automatic, On and Off options. Automatic follows whether HDR content is enabled; On keeps HDR active and allows increased brightness for SDR content. A brightness slider has also been added to the streaming overlay.

HDR capture now supports desktop Linux through PipeWire and streaming from macOS, alongside existing game and Windows desktop support. HDR streaming is enabled again on Steam Deck OLED, and Android phones running Android 15 or newer can use it through the beta Steam Link app.

These are Remote Play streaming changes in the beta client. Android users also need the Steam Link beta for the new HDR support.

SteamOS 3.9 reaches stable

Valve released build 3.9.5 to all users on 23 October. The release updates the Arch Linux base, moves Desktop Mode from KDE Plasma 6.4.3 to 6.7.3 and rebases the kernel on Linux 7.2.

For Steam Deck owners, Valve lists reduced idle power consumption when no audio is playing. Other fixes address hidden Wi-Fi networks failing to connect on the first attempt, the Disable Frame Limiter toggle failing with VRR enabled, and frame limits producing lower-than-intended FPS on some external displays.

The update improves Steam Frame wireless-adapter support and fixes Remote Play on Steam Machine when booting without an external display. It also revokes compromised eMudhra certificate-authority certificates.

Preliminary hibernation support is included, but is not exposed in Game Mode and remains disabled on Steam Deck because of an outstanding driver bug.

Sources: Steam News, Steam client beta, SteamOS release notes, Steam.

Update, 25 October: AGENT, Fog and k1llsen each won both of their matches on the opening day of 250 FPS Quake Live League Season 6 Division 1.

AGENT opened with a 2-0 win over fire_bot, then beat Nitrino 2-1. Fog also defeated fire_bot and Nitrino, both by 2-1 scores. k1llsen closed the day with a 2-0 win over cherepoff and a 2-1 victory over cYpheR.

Opening-day results

• AGENT 2-0 fire_bot
• Nitrino 1-2 AGENT
• Fog 2-1 fire_bot
• Nitrino 1-2 Fog
• k1llsen 2-0 cherepoff
• cYpheR 1-2 k1llsen

Match VODs are available through the tournament page, with English coverage from ShaftasticTV.

The 12-player Division 1 field is cYpheR, AGENT, ash, pavel, k1llsen, cherepoff, Spart1e, H3LLDOWN, ARSENY, Fog, Nitrino and fire_bot. fire_bot replaced baksteen after finishing runner-up in the second and fourth qualifiers.

The organisers have also been assembling Division 2, with a $300 prize pool and additional prizes supplied by Redragon.

Sources: results and VODs, opening schedule, lineup announcement.

Frontier Gaming has interviewed proZaC and baksteen ahead of its first Quake Live One Map Cup, with both discussing the format and the difficulty of bringing new players into arena FPS.

proZaC sees the short preparation window as a test of creativity and adaptation, but doubts that a new format can revive Quake Live given its demanding learning curve. His advice to newcomers is to find someone of similar ability, improve together and watch demos.

baksteen sees the cup as a chance to test maps for use in other leagues. He expects preparation time and the ability to learn quickly to decide the winners. On Quake's future, he argues that classic gameplay can still work with modern presentation, proper tutorials and matchmaking.

Both interviews were published on 21 October. Frontier One Map Cup #1 takes place on 24 October, with all matches played on Tortured - Frontier Edition.

Sources: proZaC, baksteen.

phaze won EGB QC Cup #12 in Quake Champions on 18 October, beating Keltz 3-0 in the grand final. The $75 prize pool paid $60 to phaze and $15 to Keltz.

phaze defeated k1llsen 2-1 and Yup 2-1 on the way to the winners final, where he beat Keltz 2-1. Keltz returned through the lower final with a 2-0 win over k1llsen, but could not take a map in the title rematch.

k1llsen finished third and Yup fourth in the 19-player online tournament.

Sources: results and bracket, Plus Forward report.

k1llsen won EGB Cup #72 in Quake Live on 17 October, returning from the lower bracket to beat ash 3-1 in the grand final.

ash had won their winners-final meeting 2-0. k1llsen then beat AGENT 2-1 in the lower final before taking the rematch against ash. AGENT finished third, with pavel fourth.

It is k1llsen's first victory in the regular EGB Quake Live duel series since Cup #51 on 2 May.

Sources: Plus Forward report and bracket.

Croteam and Devolver Digital have announced Serious Sam: The Third Encounter for PC, continuing directly from the events of The Second Encounter.

The new game sends Sam into Mental's forces across alien worlds, with returning weapons, new additions to the arsenal and large enemy hordes. Players can tackle it alone or in co-op; the Steam listing includes online co-op and shared/split-screen support.

The project is in early development. No release date has been announced, and wishlisting is available on Steam.

Sources: official Steam page, announcement coverage and teaser.

FURIA won the Thunderpick World Championship 2026 in Counter-Strike 2, defeating BetBoom 3-2 in the grand final on 18 October.

The eight-team event ran from 14 to 18 October at the BLAST Studio in Malta, with a $1 million combined player and club prize pool.

FURIA reached the final with a 2-0 semifinal win over Aurora. BetBoom beat Falcons 2-1 in the other semifinal, while Aurora took third place by defeating Falcons 2-1.

Sources: BLAST tournament results, Pichau Arena.

Valve's 16 October Team Fortress 2 update changes Holyhell and six Zombie Infection maps. The patch installs automatically when the game is restarted.

Holyhell's round timer is reduced to five minutes, with shorter respawn waves. The team that loses the middle point gains respawning spells on its side, while gargoyles now spawn near middle. The map also receives visual fixes and optimisation work.

Zombie Pyro's melee damage rises from 45 to 65. Sticky Spew applies a 20% movement slow, with another 20% while standing in its enlarged puddles. Pyro's death explosion now deals 50 damage and causes afterburn.

Zombie Sniper's Spit cooldown falls from nine seconds to six. Other fixes address invisible player models in DirectX 8, Zombie Engineer beacon placement, excessive Zombie Spy damage and slow movement after using abilities.

Source: Valve patch notes.

ESIC announced on 16 October that Palkovics "2xplayN" Tamas is banned for life from covered ESIC and member competitions in any capacity, replacing the three-year suspension imposed in the NOMERCY match-manipulation case.

The revised sanction follows public posts showing apparent cash alongside comments about the findings, betting payouts and a return to competition. ESIC found that his conduct during suspension constituted further integrity breaches. The lifetime ban removes his previously scheduled April 2029 return, with no cooperation-based reduction applied to the new sanction.

ESIC explicitly stated that the photographs alone do not establish that the money shown came from match-fixing. The commission also said it would refer the sanctioned conduct to Valve, government agencies and law enforcement.

Source: ESIC.

Valve has introduced achievement sets in the Steam client beta, allowing developers to group achievements for a game's base campaign, DLC, seasons or other content separately.

Each set tracks its own completion progress. In games that adopt the feature, additional DLC or seasonal achievements can sit outside the base-game set, so players can retain that set's 100% completion without earning every later addition.

The redesigned achievements page brings progress information together and allows direct comparisons with up to three friends at once. Support depends on developers organising their games' achievements into sets; the change does not automatically separate every game's existing list.

The feature is currently available through the Steam client beta.

Sources: Valve announcements, PC Gamer.

Bloodrun's 16 October build adds Slash as a playable gladiator, bringing Crouch Slide and Plasma Trail from her Quake Champions counterpart.

Holding crouch on landing starts a slide that preserves movement speed. Her active ability lays a damaging plasma trail, with three seconds to place it and another three seconds to trigger its explosion. Bots can also use both abilities.

The update refreshes four arenas and adds a HUD arc near the crosshair to show ability information, including Slash's slide charge and Angel's countdown to invisibility. A new Setup > Gladiators section provides ability effect settings.

Existing players can install the build through the Bloodrun launcher.

Sources: Bloodrun changelog, Plus Forward.

Strongsage won Estoty Duel Tournament #222 in Quake Champions on 16 October, beating k1llsen 3-1 in the grand final. It is his 14th title in the series and his first since #219.

Strongsage beat baSe 2-0 in the upper semifinals, then defeated k1llsen 2-0 in the winners final. k1llsen returned to the final with a 2-0 win over baSe, who finished third, but lost the rematch against Strongsage.

Strongsage remains fourth on the series' all-time winners list, behind baSe with 70 titles, RAISY with 47 and Keltz with 33.

Source: Plus Forward.

The US Doom and Quake Community will host a one-day QuakeWorld 2v2 tournament on Saturday, 24 October.

The format is double elimination, with best-of-one matches and a best-of-three grand final to keep the cup within one evening. Maps are assigned by round. The pool is Ultrav, ZTNDM3, Aerowalk, Bravado and DM2.

Signups are through the community's Discord; see the organiser's announcement for the signup link.

Source: US Doom and Quake Community announcement.

Church of Quake will run an online Quake Champions 4v4 Sacrifice Tournament Edition cup on Saturday, 24 October. Players sign up individually, then captains select teams through a snake draft. The advertised prize pool is $150.

The first 32 signups are guaranteed places, making eight teams. Further signups go on reserve unless the field reaches 64, allowing sixteen teams.

The bracket is double elimination. Upper-bracket matches and the lower final are best of three, other lower-bracket matches best of one, and the grand final best of five.

Players must join the Church of Quake Discord. Coverage is planned on the community's Twitch channel, and other casters are welcome to contact the organisers.

Links: Sign up, Twitch.

Source: Church of Quake, including Discord and current signup links.

k1llsen won EGB QC Cup #11 on 11 October, beating dramiS 3-2 in the grand final. Sixteen players took part in the online Quake Champions tournament. The $75 pool paid $60 to k1llsen and $15 to dramiS.

k1llsen did not lose a series. He beat creeep_06487 2-0, NRAV 2-0 and St0n3 2-1 before taking the winners final against dramiS 2-0. dramiS returned through the lower final with a 2-1 win over cYpheR, then lost the rematch. cYpheR finished third and Yup fourth.

It is k1llsen's fifth title in the EGB Quake Champions duel series. Keltz and Strongsage have three each.

Source: Plus Forward results, report.

Update, 22 October: Frontier has revealed Tortured - Frontier Edition as the map for One Map Cup #1 and confirmed a $500 prize pool. The Quake Live duel tournament takes place on Saturday, 24 October, with the event scheduled for 11:00-16:00 UTC.

Every match will be played on the same map. It was revealed on 19 October, giving entrants five days to prepare. Tortured - Frontier Edition adapts thefury's Quake III Arena map Tortured, originally released in 2010.

Download the map from the Steam Workshop.

Registration is open on the Frontier website. The tournament format will depend on the number of registered players. Cyber, Input and Steemorol are organising the event, with coverage planned on cyb3rway's Twitch channel.

Links: Registration, Twitch, Frontier Telegram.

Sources: Plus Forward map reveal, 250FPS.

Valve released a Steam client update on 13 October with improved startup performance and new options for Big Picture mode. The update downloads automatically.

Big Art Mode adds a larger artwork presentation to the home screen and can be enabled under Settings > Home. The Recommended tab also gains the Personal Calendar.

Big Picture now supports screensavers under Settings > Customization. The default slideshow can display artwork from recently played games and recent screenshots. A bouncing Steam logo is the other built-in option, and custom screensavers are supported too.

The update also changes startup behaviour so the Steam main window avoids taking focus if another window was activated during startup or login, and fixes the onscreen keyboard failing to work on its first desktop invocation.

Sources: Valve - Steam Client Update, October 13, PC Gamer.

The Thunderpick World Championship 2026 began in Malta on 14 October, with eight CS2 teams competing for a $1 million combined player and club prize pool. The event runs through 18 October.

All four opening series ended 2-0: 9z beat Aurora, Falcons beat Ninjas in Pyjamas, Legacy beat PARIVISION and FURIA beat BETBOOM.

On 15 October, Falcons beat 9z 2-1 to secure a playoff place. Aurora stayed alive by beating NIP 2-0, eliminating the Swedish organisation's team from the event.

The group stage uses two four-team double-elimination groups, with two teams from each advancing. Group matches and playoff semifinals are best of three; the grand final is best of five. The winners receive $500,000, split equally between player prize money and the club share.

Sources: HLTV event guide, opening-day results, Falcons qualify, NIP eliminated, Liquipedia, PR Newswire.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 launches on 23 October as a separate purchase and will not be included with Game Pass at launch. Activision confirmed on 15 October that Game Pass availability is planned for Holiday 2027.

Digital pre-orders include campaign early access from 16 October and DMZ early access from 20 October. Existing Call of Duty titles, including Black Ops 7, Black Ops 6 and Modern Warfare III, remain available to Game Pass Ultimate subscribers.

Sources: Activision, GamesRadar.

Epic released a preview of its rebuilt Epic Games Launcher on 14 October for Windows, macOS and, for the first time, Linux. It includes a redesigned library, connections to other PC game libraries and more detailed download management.

Epic describes the client as "vibe coded" and claims a cold start to the store is 46% faster than Steam. That is Epic's comparison, not an independent benchmark here. The client is still a preview with a limited feature set.

Fortnite is not available on Linux yet. Epic is rebuilding its anti-cheat implementation as EAC Linux v2 and working with distribution maintainers before bringing the game over. Fortnite will be the first pilot, with support for other developers to follow after validation.

The requirements include TPM 2.0, Secure Boot and signed kernels and modules. EAC Linux v2 uses existing kernel security features, eBPF and a service active during protected games, rather than installing its own kernel module. Steam Deck does not currently meet the requirements; Epic says it is talking with Valve about future support.

Sources: Epic Games Store, Epic Online Services, PC Gamer.

Richard "Levelord" Gray, the level designer known for Duke Nukem 3D, Quake: Scourge of Armagon and SiN, has died. Apogee Entertainment announced his death on 13 October.

Gray joined the Duke Nukem 3D team after making Doom maps. After Duke shipped in 1996, he co-founded Hipnotic Interactive, later renamed Ritual Entertainment. His subsequent credits included Star Trek: Elite Force II and Counter-Strike: Condition Zero.

Apogee founder Scott Miller recalled hiring Gray after seeing his Doom levels, and paid tribute to his talent, dedication and willingness to help other designers. John Romero was among the developers who also paid tribute.

Sources: Apogee Entertainment, PC Gamer.

Rules
- Lightning gun only, infinite ammo, no pickups.
- Hits heat the target instead of damaging it. At full heat the target gibs. Default: 20 consecutive hits (~1 s).
- Heat drains quickly once the beam is off.
- Heat is shown as a shell on the target and a bar under the crosshair.
- Tuning: g_heatPerHit, g_heatCoolDelay, g_heatCoolRate.

Play
ioquake3 +set fs_game lgtrain +map q3dm6 +addbot sarge 2

Requires ioquake3 and retail Quake 3 data.
Download: github.com/amaslakov/lgtrain/releases
Source: github.com/amaslakov/lgtrain

Online play works, but there is no lag compensation.
Based on rx-mikkel's instagib fork. Feedback welcome.

Download Link

This is a modern Quake 3 engine to play and host Quake III Arena mods, delivering fixes and updates over years.

Key features:
* Countless usability, netcode, security, performance, memory usage improvements
* Optimized OpenGL renderer
* Optimized Vulkan renderer
* Unified physics between 32 and 64-bit systems, minimized mispredictions with original VQ3
* SOTA-level fast and secure QVM implementation for x86/x86_64, armv7l/aarch64, powerpc64 platforms
* Best-performer from legacy hardware to modern systems with Vulkan support
* No fake frames, No RT, no DLSS and similar disrupting and performance tanking stuff
* Can still run on Win98, widest possible OS compatibility is an explicit intent

I wouldn't bother to do even brief listing of hundreds of changes being made since last announcement, just visit download link and leave your questions/suggestions/code, as usual.

Support Ukraine

Not sure where else to go with that stupid idea but,

@elonmusk DeepMind beat StarCraft and Quake 3 CTF, but nobody has ever dared to build an AI for the ultimate 1v1 psychological chess match: Quake Duel. Limit Grok's aim and reaction time to human pro levels and let it face @liquidrapha on Blood Run / Campgrounds. As an OG Quake player yourself – can xAI solve 1v1 Arena FPS?“

Like I would definitely watch that match. Also feel free to adjust the message.

AMD says FSR 4 will reach APUs, gaming laptops, and handhelds by the end of 2026. Jack Huynh, who runs the company's computing and graphics group, told Korean press, including The Elec, that the machine-learning upscaler is moving off discrete cards and onto the rest of the lineup.

The plan is two tracks. Existing APUs get a lighter model built for integrated graphics. New APUs, still not named, are meant to run FSR 4 natively. Huynh said the light model is aimed at image quality and low latency on chips that cannot carry the desktop version.

FSR 4 launched on RDNA 4 desktop cards. RDNA 3 desktop cards picked it up later. Official support for RDNA 2 desktop cards, the same generation as the Steam Deck, was already set for 2027, and this briefing did not say that date moved. Valve has talked about FSR 4 on the Steam Machine. It has not committed the Steam Deck.

Source: The Verge

Cloud Imperium Games put Squadron 42 on Steam on 10 October. Wishlists are open. The page lists a planned release of Q2 2027, and no price. Chris Roberts moved the target out of late 2026 so the single-player game would not land in the same window as Grand Theft Auto VI.

It is a standalone story in the Star Citizen setting, year 2945, on StarEngine. You enlist as a rookie in the UEE Navy, live on a capital ship, and the brief is space combat, fighting on foot, stealth, and time with the crew. The cast, on performance capture, includes Mark Hamill, Gary Oldman, Gillian Anderson, Henry Cavill, Ben Mendelsohn, and Andy Serkis. The game has been in development for more than a decade.

The Steam minimum is Windows 11, a quad-core back to an Intel Sandy Bridge i7 or an AMD Bulldozer, 16 GB of RAM, a DirectX 11.1 card with 8 GB of VRAM, and 150 GB of disk. The recommended column only says a 64-bit processor and operating system.

Source: Steam and Eurogamer

Richard Garriott says the Ultima copyrights return to him in 2027. He sold Origin Systems, and the series with it, to Electronic Arts in 1992. The last mainline game was Ultima IX in 1999.

US copyright law lets an author terminate a transfer 35 years later. No money changes hands. The author has to give a year's notice. Garriott says he wrote to EA in April and told them he was taking the copyrights back. They wrote back that they know the law and will act accordingly. He says the two sides are now in active talks about whether there is anything to do together before the date.

What he says he could do, once the copyrights are his, is re-release the earlier Ultimas or make a sequel. Neither is a project yet. He has most of a year to decide what the return actually means.

Source: VGC

Photo: Richard Garriott at the 2018 Game Developers Conference, by Game Developers Conference, CC BY 2.5, resized. Wikimedia Commons.

A full playable build of Grand Theft Auto VI is not public. The person or group posting as Cyberleek says that can change.

On 10 October they posted an offer. If a memecoin tied to the name hits a $30 million market cap, "the build goes out - full story mode, played to the end, credits and all." Take-Two can stop it, the post says, with physical discs and a public apology. No outlet has the file, and Rockstar and Take-Two have not answered this one.

Footage under the same name has been out since 18 August. Rockstar called those clips heartbreaking on 26 August and kept the 19 November release. This week the account was credited with about 25 minutes more, including first-person driving and mission scenes. Rockstar has not said that newer cut is theirs.

The disc demand is aimed at a decision Rockstar already made. Boxed copies ship with a download code, not a disc. Strauss Zelnick has compared discs for a game this size to vinyl. Standard is $80, Ultimate is $100, on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Preload starts 12 November.

Take-Two subpoenaed Microsoft, Discord, Google, and X in August while it looked for who had the footage.

Source: Forbes and GamesIndustry.biz

k1llsen won Estoty Duel Tournament #221 on 9 October, beating baSe 3-2 in the grand final. 18 players, online. The $100 pool paid $40 to k1llsen, $25 to baSe, $15 to Keltz, $10 to maxter, and $5 each to St0n3 and Thri11er.

Double elimination: best of three up top, best of one in the lower bracket, best of five in the final. The map pool was Awoken, Blood Covenant, Blood Run, Corrupted Keep, Ruins of Sarnath, The Molten Falls and Vale of Pnath.

k1llsen beat 1eroy 2-0. His winners-bracket match against baSe is scored -1:0. From the lower bracket he beat PepCo 1-0, Artemka 1-0, St0n3 1-0 and maxter 1-0, then beat Keltz 2-1 in the lower final.

baSe reached the final without a series loss, including a 2-1 over maxter and a 2-0 over Keltz, and started the grand final a map ahead. k1llsen won three of the four maps played and took the series 3-2. It is his fifth Estoty title. baSe still leads that list with 70. Keltz finished third, maxter fourth.

Strongsage came in as the top seed, rated 2441, and finished 13th. His matches against Coffee by Tomo and PepCo are both scored -1.

Source: Toornament

Keltz won NAQCL Duel Tournament #76 on 10 October, beating maxter 3-0 in the grand final. 12 players, online, ping uncapped. The $100 pool paid $50 to Keltz, $30 to maxter and $20 to dramiS.

Double elimination: best of three, best of one in the lower bracket, best of five in the final.

klyb's winners-bracket opener is scored 0:-1. Keltz then beat Yup 2-1 and dramiS 2-0, and closed the final in three maps.

maxter beat Rohm 2-0 and lost the winners semi 0-2 to dramiS. His lower-bracket matches against Thri11er and Yup are both scored -1. He beat dramiS 2-1 in the lower final and lost the rematch 0-3. dramiS finished third. Yup was fourth. St0n3 and Thri11er were joint fifth.

The title is Keltz's 14th, and his fourth win in the last five. He won #72, #73 and #74. Strongsage ended that run at #75 on 3 October, 3-0 in the final. dramiS still leads the series with 32 titles. Strongsage has 11, and was absent from the #76 field.

Source: Church of Quake

AGENT won EGB Cup #71 on 10 October, beating ash 3-1 in the grand final. 12 players, online. The pool paid $55: $44 to AGENT, $11 to ash.

Double elimination. Upper-bracket matches were best of three, lower-bracket matches best of one. The final went to four maps.

AGENT did not drop a series. He beat rell 2-0, k1llsen 2-0 and cYpheR 2-0, then took the final 3-1.

ash beat pavel 2-0 and lost the winners semi 0-2 to cYpheR. From the lower bracket he beat cherepoff 1-0 and k1llsen 1-0, then beat cYpheR 2-0 in the lower final. cYpheR finished third, k1llsen fourth. cherepoff and dazator were joint fifth. pavel and rell were joint seventh.

The map pool was Aerowalk, Battleforged, Bloodrun, Delirium, Furious Heights, House of Decay, Silence, Sinister and Toxicity.

This is AGENT's second cup in a row, and his fifth win in the last six regular Quake Live duel cups. He won #65, #66, #67 and #70. cYpheR won #68. Cup #69 was TDM 2v2, won by pavel and Nitrino.

Source: EGB

Fog won 250 FPS Season 6 Qualifier 3 on 11 October, beating dazator 3-0 in the grand final. The prize is a Division 1 slot, the third of four.

17 players, online. Double elimination: best of one in the lower bracket, best of three in the upper bracket, best of five in the final. The map pool was Aerowalk, Battleforged, Bloodrun, Cure, Delirium, Furious Heights, Hektik, Lost World, Silence, Sinister and Toxicity.

Fog did not drop a map. He beat BLR_BY 2-0, Radist_dk 2-0, fire_bot 2-0 and dazator 2-0, then closed the final 3-0.

dazator beat STING 2-0, St0n3 2-0 and rell 2-1, lost the winners final, and beat fire_bot 2-1 in the lower final. The rematch was over in three maps. fire_bot finished third. rell was fourth: 2-1 down to dazator in the winners semi, then 0-1 to fire_bot on the way back.

Fog missed the Season 5 top eight. He went out 9th-12th in qualifier 1 on 27 September and finished third in qualifier 2 on 4 October, where ARSENY beat him 2-1 in the winners final.

Eleven of the twelve Division 1 places are filled. Fog joins H3LLDOWN, ARSENY and the eight invites: AGENT, cYpheR, k1llsen, cherepoff, pavel, ash, baksteen and Spart1e. Qualifier 4 is on 18 October.

Source: EGB