"I was a real anglophile": A Canadian's obsession with Viz magazine is why Grand Theft Auto: London's streets are covered in dogs' eggs

Steam's free demo event is on, and there's a lot to try With a busy November right around the corner, Steam Next Fest arrives this week as a delightful appetizer. From now through Oct. 26, PC players can try free demos for tons of upcoming games coming to Steam. It’s a great way to pass some time before the GTA 6 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time double-header by trying a unique smattering of games that could become your next indie obsession. This week’s celebration is a little harder to navigate than usual, though. According to reports, there are more than twice as many demos featured in this fall’s edition compared to last year, with the rise of generative AI-filled games making it tougher to find true gold in the mountains. If you find it all a little intimidating, here’s a handful of demos we recommend checking out first.

Patricia is the former editor-in-chief of Kotaku, where she spent a decade writing and editing. Prior to that, she served as the Culture Editor at Polygon, and as a reporter at The Verge. Hernandez specializes in Pokémon TCG, Nintendo, and offbeat internet culture stories. After nearly a decade of silence, Rockstar finally acknowledges one of RDR2's most controversial features

To craft goo in Enshrouded, you must summon the right craftsman and slay a bunch of critters. As it increases your attributes and allows you to spend more time in the Shroud, it's very important to strengthen the flame as soon as possible, but to reach flame level 4, you must obtain the mysterious "goo" substance. Here's how to unlock the goo crafting recipe in Enshrouded. How to unlock the goo crafting recipe in Enshrouded

British actor Rahul Kohli (Saros, Midnight Mass) has a pitch for a new L.A. Noire game, and it sounds pretty great. Speaking to BAFTA Games , Kohli said he would like to see the franchise return with a spinoff that takes players through different time periods, as a cop, as they investigate different crimes. One such setting could be Victorian England, with a storyline focused on hunting down Jack the Ripper, Kohli said. Another could take players to the '80s in California as they pursue the Night Stalker, the actor added. "We could jump around and be a cop in different times. I would be down for that," Kohli said. "I loved it. I adored L.A. Noire." Mad Men's Aaron Staton as Cole Phelps in L.A. Noire. In particular, Kohli said he was a big fan of developer Team Bondi's facial-capture system which created lifelike expressions in the game, down to granular details like how a person’s eyebrows might move. In a game where players had to read people's facial expressions, this was a big deal, and one can only imagine how much further the technology could go today. However, Kohli said he wants a new L.A. Noire game with the same tech and the same engine. "I want that. I don't want an impro

Willa Rowe is a contributing writer at Polygon, covering games and entertainment. She is a New York-based journalist and critic whose work has been featured in Kotaku, Digital Trends, the A. V. Club, GamesRadar+, and more. She also co-hosts the Girl Mode podcast. It's hard to believe that it has almost been a decade since Capcom reinvented Resident Evil with the seventh mainline game in the series. In the fallout of Resident Evil 6, it seemed like the once great horror franchise was done for good, but then the developer delivered something of a miracle with the soft reboot that is Resident Evil 7. That isn't to say the game doesn't have its flaws, something one developer has now revealed in detail was rooted in the tumultuous development cycle it went through.