Diablo 4 is finally, officially live

After beta tests, server slams, and a pre-order early access period, this is it: the full, official, no-takes-backsies launch of Diablo 4. The game is now live as of 4 pm PST on Monday, June 5.

So far the servers seem to be holding up just fine: Multiple members of the PC Gamer team have been able to log in with no queue times or other issues. Unless something goes horribly wrong in the next few hours, it looks like Blizzard has expertly dodged the dreaded error 37 that plagued Diablo 3’s launch. Diablo 4 had a bit of trouble with logins during its beta, but that rough patch clearly helped Blizzard prepare for today’s full launch.

There may be an issue with in-game purchases, though: a warning message in Battle.net says that “Players may encounter problems while attempting to make purchases in Diablo 4. We are working to resolve the issue as soon as possible and apologize for the inconvenience.”

For our take on whether Diablo 4’s worth your time, check out our Diablo 4 review-in-progress. We haven’t put a final score on it yet, as during the pre-launch period some key live service systems weren’t online.

“So far, nothing has convinced me the endgame is so brilliant that it’s worth stripping everything out of the initial leveling process,” writes Associate Editor Tyler Colp. “An exciting, modern version of Diablo is in here—I can see parts of it poking through the surface—but I’m starting to lose patience waiting for it to show its face.”


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Diablo 4 hotfix deals with ‘Darcelpocalypse’, a bug that endlessly multiplied one elite enemy

Diablo 4 has a fetch quest in the Scosglen region called Stolen Artifice, in which an NPC named Merryn sends you out from Braestaig to retrieve an item from a thief called Darcel. It’s a runic charm that was being used to help an ailing mother and child recover, until Darcel and his thugs stole it. The jerks.

This is supposed to be a typical sidequest, nothing too major, but players were finding it unusually hard. Instead of having to fight one Darcel, they were encountering dozens of Darcel doppelgangers. Though some managed to figure out which one was the original and kill him to complete the quest, others were forced to retreat and return, sometimes finding that hundreds of Darcels had spawned in their absence.

While some players put forward a theory that the issue was a bug with the summon minions ability elites can have, Darcel isn’t one of those. He’s just a large man with a spiked mace and a bunch of hit points. Players with some of the more overpowered Diablo 4 builds like lightning sorcerer had fun testing themselves against the barmy Darcel army, though in terms of loot it wasn’t really worth it.

Blizzard responded by disabling the Stolen Artifice sidequest until it could be fixed. Which it has. Hotfix 3, issued on June 4, dealt with the multiple Darcels bug, as well as one where Astaroth would destroy a house before even arriving at it in the quest As the World Burns, and some stability issues. As a server-side hotfix, your client won’t need to be updated to apply these changes. Goodbye, Darcels. We bear-ly knew you.


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Elden Ring dataminer uncovers alternate early game characters in a renamed Limgrave

It’s only been a little bit over a year since Elden Ring came out, but so much of it is already seared into my brain. Much like leaving the sewers in Oblivion for the first time and greeting Cyrodil, that first glimpse of Limgrave is an iconic gaming moment, but at some point in development it wasn’t Limgrave at all, but apparently “Tenebrae.”

Dataminer Sekiro Dubi‘s latest video focuses on an in-progress vision of Limgrave hinted at by files left over from Elden Ring’s development, one where familiar characters like Nepheli and Blaidd are replaced with newcomers or characters pulled from other parts of the game. The main focus of this video is Guilbert, a hybrid of Bloody Finger Hunter Yurah and Witch Hunter Jerren from the finished game.

Sekiro Dubi’s research into Elden Ring’s files shows the skeletal remains of Guilbert’s questline, which by their reckoning was cut before the Network Test of Elden Ring at the end of 2021. Guilbert shares Witch Hunter Jerren’s weapon and Eccentric armor set, but has voice lines recorded by Yurah’s actor, and his scripting had him hanging out at Yurah’s location from the finished game.

Guilbert was to be a servant of the “God of Vengeance,” and would have teamed up with you to fight Crucible Knight Ordovis, a boss in the final game who, in this build, would have been found where you fight Darriwil with Blaidd in the release version. Guilbert then would have been a summon for the fight against Godrick alongside Vyke, an endgame boss and the guy on Elden Ring’s box art—in the final game, Vyke is a mid-game invader, end-game boss, and otherwise a ghostly presence haunting some item descriptions, but at some point in development he seems to have had a full-on NPC questline. Guilbert also would have attacked you as an invader if you killed members of a trio of Traveling Merchants, pursuing vengeance for their surviving kin.

In following Guilbert, Sekiro Dubi touches on various ways Limgrave changed over development, with its original (and unexplained) moniker of Tenebrae just really sticking out to me—it just doesn’t feel right! In the real world, “Tenebrae” is a Christian religious service leading up to Easter Sunday, one I had literally never heard of before despite thirteen years of Catholic school, go figure. Sekiro Dubi also shows off how Stormhill Shack once functioned as a minor hub for familiar NPCs like Roderika, but also drastically repositioned ones like Hewg, and previous work by dataminer Lance McDonald positioned the dreaming monk Jiko there as well.

Guilbert’s quest looks to have been planned to extend beyond Limgrave—he shared his lookalike Jerren’s affinity for General Radahn, and mentioned hunting down Malenia in cut dialogue. It’s unclear as yet whether any remnant of those later stages remains in the game’s files. It’s interesting to see the way FromSoft reshuffles and recontextualizes its NPCs, even scrapping them altogether, and at a late enough stage to have recorded voice overs in the case of Guilbert. I also love how surreal it is to see these familiar characters behaving in such unfamiliar ways. I’m quite happy with the Elden Ring we got though, barring the exclusion of Kalé’s phenomenal cut questline, which Sekiro Dubi previously covered in another video.


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The AutoFull M6 gaming chair is one to look out for in 2023

AutoFull is a leading brand in professional esports gaming chairs, committed to developing products that meet the standards of professional esports equipment. For years, AutoFull has been delivering gaming chairs to gamers who take their craft seriously, partnering with pro teams such as RNG, Rogue, BLG, and LGD as they compete for top honours in eSports like League of Legends, PUBG, Crossfire, and Hearthstone. 

When you have such big names sitting in their chairs for so many hours a day, you know that AutoFull products are designed to last.

Where your typical gaming chair may suffer from insufficient lumbar support, and basic armrests that only go up and down, AutoFull chairs are engineered to do those extra things that other chairs don’t. The current top tier of AutoFull‘s line-up—the peak seats that will keep you propped up all through those late-night sessions—are the M6 gaming chairs, and they’re out now.

Let’s dive into what makes them so special.

(Image credit: AutoFull)

Spine and posture are critical when gaming. As the designated gaming chair for KPL 2023,  the AutoFull M6 gaming chair features 4-way waist protection and mechanical folding armrests. The 4-way lumbar waist can provide accurate waist support, which adapts to players of different body types and states. The chair is suitable for gamers of all heights, providing strong and precise support to the lumbar spine. The thick and wide cushion, meanwhile, will keep you comfy for untold hours. 

The mechanical ‘6D’ folding armrests give you the option of sitting in the traditional position with your elbows supported, or you can push the armrests aside completely for mobile or console gaming with a controller—perfect for those local multiplayer sessions with your pals. 

There’s more. The traditional 2D armrests are limited to height and angle adjustments, leaving your arms unsupported and causing discomfort when you want to play Nintendo Switch or mobile games. The AutoFull mechanical armrests, on the other hand, offer a revolutionary solution to this issue, perfectly lifting and supporting your arms. Say goodbye to arm fatigue and soreness during prolonged gaming sessions.explanation of 6D foldable armrests in AutoFull M6 gaming chair

(Image credit: AutoFull)

The AutoFull M6 gaming chair’s armrests are also brought into the armrest surface, and when the chair is reclined, they can be linked together backwards. Whether you’re knee-deep in gaming or at work, the unique shape of the armrest adjusts to exactly how you want it, ensuring maximum comfort for your specific style. 

The AutoFull M6 gaming chair is wider and taller than most chairs, making it great for bigger gamers. With a tilt angle of up to 160° and built-in footrests, you can even kick back and take a nap in it, with the rocking function helping you quickly recharge your in-body battery when it runs dry. The PU leather it uses is skin-friendly, environmentally friendly, and extremely durable.

To ramp up the flair, you can light your chair up with an array of AutoFull LOGO LEDs, which entail 14 customisable lighting modes, five brightness settings and five colors.Explanation of lumbar protection in AutoFull M6 Gaming Chair

(Image credit: AutoFull)

By involving professional esports players, famous streamers, and core gamers in product design, AutoFull aims to create industry-leading equipment that combines professional esports performance, technological innovation, and trendy fashion. That’s why it’s sponsored nearly 2,000 top professional eSports events, including top-tier competitions such as LPL and KPL. In 2019 AutoFull signed NBA Star Gorden Hayward as their Global spokesperson.

The virtues of gaming chairs over regular office chairs are well established by now: additional lumbar support, unparalleled adjustability, and, well, they just look cool, don’t they?

So what are you waiting for? To grab your gaming chair and see what else AutoFull have in their armoury, head over to the AutoFull M6 Gaming Chairs on AutoFull Official Store. It’s time to take your seat at the head table. 


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Watch a Thief fan film directed by one of the original game’s creators

The intro cutscene from Thief: The Dark Project was a wonderful mood-setter, cutting between one of Garrett’s heists and creepy supernatural imagery, heavy on eyes to suggest he’s being watched. It’s also a neat “here’s how not to play the game” warning, with Garrett killing a guard, an act that summons three more and results in him having to beat feet. Now, thanks to the original game’s cutscene director Daniel Thron we’ve got another introduction to the world of City: a fan film called Thief – Cutscene Zero.

It’s another of Garrett’s jobs gone messy, with Thron joking on Twitter, “I guarantee you he’s loading his last save right after this”. Cutscene Zero gets the fantasy-noir vibe down pat, from the unsuspecting guard seeing his reflection as he looks out the window into the rain, to the narration provided by Viktoria, Thief’s femme fatale, voiced once again by Terri Brosius. I need this modded into Thief Gold somehow.

Another member of the original Looking Glass development team, artist Jennifer Hrabota-Lesser, provided the painting seen 30 seconds in. It seems like everyone at Looking Glass wore a lot of hats, and Hrabota-Lesser was also credited with A/V support and the website, while Brosius was a designer and the cutscene writer as well as an outstanding voice actor (most famously, she voiced Shodan in the System Shock series). Thron’s own credits on Thief include cutscene direction, art, and animation, the box art and manual illustrations, particle effects, and voice acting for characters as diverse as a comedically wheezy ApeBeast and the terrifying voice of The Eye, as well as Cutty, Ramirez, Brother Renault, and several guards.

While Thief is still entirely playable today, with the Gold edition available on Steam and GOG, and the unofficial patch pack TFix adding things like widescreen support, I’d love to see a remake. Now that the System Shock remake is out, maybe it could be Nightdive’s next project? Though there’s always Gloomwood for more of those modern Thief vibes. 



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