Category: Equipment

Valve debuted some sizable changes to the Steam UI in the beta client last week, including an overhaul of the in-game overlay and a much-needed rework of the screenshot manager. There are also some less dramatic tweaks, like a bolder (and underlined!) font treatment for the big store/library/community menu buttons. But I’ve been using Steam practically every day for so many years, even those small changes feel earth-shaking. This may sound ridiculous, but I just can’t get used to the new drop-downs that pop up when you click those menus.

Am I the only one who feels like something’s off with the menus now? In theory I like that they’re now a little bit bigger, making the text easier to read and click on my 1440p monitor. But the new, lighter gray highlights how flat they look, and how dated that design feels now. 

Minimalist rectangles were the style du jour when Windows 8 debuted a decade ago, but designers have since gravitated back towards rounded edges and translucency. Valve doesn’t have to follow that trend—I don’t think anyone would say Steam has ever really been a stylish piece of software—but the new menus highlight how much of a mis…

So you’re looking for a new PC case but not sure what to get? Well, don’t worry—I’ve found five brilliant models in the Prime Day sales that are spacious and good-looking, with plenty of features, and all for a very reasonable price.

First up are a pair of Corsairs, the 4000D Airflow and 5000D Airflow. They’re pretty much the same, apart from the latter being quite a bit larger than the former. Both models are pretty barebones in terms of what you get with them—just two 120 mm fans apiece—but the simplicity of the design makes them very easy to work with.

The 4000D Airflow is a great choice for PC gamers who don’t want a hulking case taking up most of the desk but my money would go on the 5000D Airflow. There’s a huge amount of room inside for big graphics cards and radiators, and cable management is a piece of cake.

Neither of them is particularly stylish, though, but the Fractal Design and Lian Lia have got you covered.

• We’re curating all the best Prime Day PC gaming deals right here.

My favorite case out of the five I’ve selected is the Fractal Design North. I bought …

Now you’re here you’re nothing more than a lightning-fast scroll away from winning today’s NYT Connections game. Keep going and you’ll come across our hints for today’s game, designed to help without completely giving everything away. And if you’d like everything given away? You’ve got it. A full set of answers for the September 17 (#98) are ready and waiting.

Make sure you keep a cool head when playing today’s Connections, rather than falling into a panicked state when “One away…” turns up again like I did. A good shuffle of my remaining words turned out to be just the thing I needed to win, helping me sift the one answer I needed from the pack.

NYT Connections hint today: Sunday, September 17

Whether you’re stuck finding the yellows, purples, or anything in between, there’s a clue below for you.

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Yellow: Some are sweet, some are sour. Some are small and smooth, some are soft and fuzzy. Whatever their size or shape, they’re all fruit. 

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Green: Thinking of decadent surroundings, ornate furnishings, and all of the most e…

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Cyan Worlds announced today that the remake of Riven, the sequel to the remake of Myst, is set to launch on PC, Mac, and VR platforms on June 25. The updated version of the famed puzzle-adventure promises not just a technological do-over of the original game, but a “from the ground up” remake with new characters, “refreshed” puzzles, and an expanded storyline.

One of the biggest hooks in the Riven remake, like its predecessor, is the promise of complete freedom of movement. Where the original game had players clicking through a series of static images with light animated trappings, in the updated version you’ll be able to look and walk around as you like. “Whether you’re a seasoned adventurer returning to Riven or a newcomer eager to explore Riven’s mysteries for the first time, this immersive and visually stunning world will captivate you,” Cyan said.

The Myst games certainly do bring a lot of lore to the table, and captivation is always possible, but what they’re really known for are the puzzles and Riven is no exception. While I powered through Myst over a single weekend (with the help of a friend) I found some of Riven’s puzzles to be even mo…

With Stardew Valley creator Eric Barone hard at work on spooky chocolates rather than new farm stuff, the job of expanding Stardew Valley now falls to the ineffable mod community. And this time, they have made the wizard hotter.

Slightly.

Slightly Hotter Wizard dropped on Nexus Mods earlier this week, and it does exactly what it says on the box: it makes the wizard slightly hotter. With customizable facial hair and color palettes, if you’ve ever been trudging up to the wizard’s tower with some pizza or a basket of cherries to work on your relationship with him and wondered, “man, why isn’t this guy just like 3% hotter?’ then this mod has you covered. 

Of course, this is a matter of taste. For some, Slightly Hotter Wizard is actually Slightly Less Hot Wizard. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder of this wizard.

As we all wait on further entries into the genre like Witchbrook, it can be fun to dive into the swirling maelstrom of mods to find new ways to spice things up in Stardew Valley. Whether you want to add a whole bunch of new content like an independently created DLC, hire some robot minions to tend to your farm, or go visit an aquarium in additi…

By rock and stone, they did it: Dwarf Fortress publisher Kitfox Games and Deep Rock Galactic developer Ghost Ship Studios have managed to convince Valve to add an official ‘dwarf’ tag to Steam. But not without a little confusion leading up to the big triumph.

Steam uses tags to help users find what they’re looking for amidst the massive pile of games on its storefront: If, for instance, you’re in the mood for a cute FPS, the tag search function will help you zero in on that very specific interest. (And, by the way, there are more of them than you might think.) 

Steam users can apply tags to individual games as they see fit, and popular tags eventually become “featured categories,” which showcase all the games bearing the selected tag on a nicely laid-out category page.

Earlier this month, Kitfox and Ghost Ship—perhaps inspired by the success of boomer shooters—began making noise about getting an official “dwarf” tag on Steam. Valve politely but firmly said “no,” so they took their quest to the people, asking players to tag games manually to show Valve “that we are very serious about the value a dwarf tag would bring to the platform.” And as one…

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