This week in the PC Gamer forums, there are celebrations about Horizon Zero Dawn coming to PC, how the coronavirus outbreak has affected members of the community from around the world, the best gaming soundtracks, and AMAs with the Dreadlands devs.
Over on the forums, there are loads of threads that cover all aspects of PC gaming. From genre threads about shooters, puzzle games, and RPGs to hardware, build guides, and industry news. We also run regular giveaways and competitions as well as inviting developers to take part in our Studio Spotlight events. If you want to get involved you can sign up here.
Here's what's going on in the forums this week:
Horizon Zero dawn coming to PC
A big news story from this week is the reveal that Horizon Zero Dawn is coming to PC. Guerrilla Games' action-adventure was previously only out on PS4 but now, two years after it's initial release in 2017, it's PC bound. HZD's jump has been a long-awaited move by fans, and there are also rumours of other ports, like the job listing for The Last of Us 2. What other console games would you like to see on PC?
We have this on PS4. I'm hoping it runs well through SteamPlay on Linux. The story pacing could be a bit quicker but overall it's a pretty decent game. I like how targeting specific spots works and the weapons. Hopefully the controller feels as smooth on PC as PS4. The visuals are excellent.—randyl
I am excited for this as well, hopefully the filters mode that is offered with nvidia devices will make it so I can play it! I have Monochromacy (blue and yellow colorblindness) I really enjoyed the game on PS4, until I was supposed to go into a cave, where I couldn't see anything, lol.—MaddMan
Here's a link to the thread.
Convid-19 and gaming, how are you affected?
In light of the coronavirus outbreak, MaddMan started a thread asking the community how it has affected everyone. Members of the forum are from all around the world and commenting with their perspectives.
For me personally it has made me a bit more aware of avoiding too many public places, as a way to fend of growth and taking care of the people who are more subjected to getting ill. Being calm and collected is extremely important, to prevent hoarding and further unnecessary escalations.—Frindis
The COVID-19 impact on my day-to-day has gone from nil to significant in just a few days with state governors declaring official states of emergency and major organizations following suit. I live in a city with a major university and a large international population. Extra precautions are being taken within the student population since tens of thousands of them travel for spring break, which started just before the virus was elevated to global pandemic status.—Zoid
Here's the thread.
What soundtracks in a game really hit you?
InspirelessLlama has created a thread about soundtracks that fitted so perfectly in a game that it impacted you in a meaningful way. They kick off the thread with two songs, one from Rome: Total War and the second from Rise of the Tomb Raider. Other commentators have mentioned tracks from Silent Hill, Nier: Automata, Hollow Knight, and Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice. There are some pretty powerful soundtracks listed so make sure to check them out.
My favorite soundtrack is probably Hollow Knight. It's so vivid and fits the mood so well, just a very well orchestrated score with a lot of range. Lotta cool leitmotif stuff that make it even deeper. —DirePuppy
One video game soundtrack that stands out to me in particular was that of Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice. There are a few more empowering moments, however, perhaps none more so than when Senua is crossing the bridge to Helheim. The bridge sequence starts and you're fighting off hellish Norsemen as these thundering drums and a powerful Viking chant are washing over you. I got chills down my spine from the very first beat of the drums, never once missing a single sword stroke or parry for the entire section of gameplay. It was such a powerful moment that I wanted to be perfect for Senua, and the accompanying music is so incredibly powerful and stimulating!—Rensje
Here's a link to the thread.
Studio Spotlight: Blackfox Studios
The next developers to participate in our Studio Spotlight are Blackfox Studios, the creators behind the chaotic strategy game Dreadlands. This week they've been in our forums giving insights on game design, discussing how they created the game's gangs, and Dreadlands creator Peter Nilsson did an AMA about the game's writing and design.
The inspiration for the setting came from a variety of places, we knew when we started the project that we didn't want it to take place on your kind of normal Mad Max desert post-apo world but instead a world where nature kind of struck of back at mankind for mistreating the planet for so long. So we have a lot of really weird places, nature and fauna in Dreadlands.—Peter Nilsson
Since we have a little bit of a tabletop origin with Dreadlands I really like how our fighter cards turned out. They kind of look like something from a roleplay game or board game, with a character portrait in the middle and some stats and name and stuff on it, but when you mouse over it the character comes to life and does his/her little animation, letting you know they are ready to fight for you! —Peter Nilson
Here's the full list of Spotlight Studio events that happened over the week.
Weekend Question: What would you want a new Witcher game to be about?
Jody's question this week asks what the community would like to see in the next Witcher game. Want to see more of Ciri's story? Was there a villain with an interesting backstory? Or should CD Projekt Red move into another genre or game altogether? Leave your comments in the thread and we'll pick out the best ones.
The finale of the first season has me liking the idea of an RTS. Seiges, teleportation, fireball bombardments that require sacrificial units and mind control worms? Yes please. A grand strategy could work equally well. Maybe just combine the two and get The Witcher: Total War?—XoRn
Other Witcher schools - we know very little of them, their history. How come they were created, who founded them, why the differences. It could be even a prequel of sorts, showing the origins of witchers and different schools in times when humans had no reliable way of fighting off the monsters. That would also mean elf and non-humans being more prominent as well. There's a lot of potential in the world.—OsaX Nymloth.
Put your answers here.
Top threads this week
Here's a quick list of the forum's top threads:
What was the first video game you remember playing?
Can real-time strategy come back from the brink of death?
Help, I can't finish RPGs anymore
Weekend Question: Which RTS series deserves a comeback?
What was the specs of your very first gaming PC?
What's your favourite cRPG?
