80 LEVEL✓

Magic has finally arrived in Tabletop Tavern. The roguelike RTS’ first major update from @TJGameDev, The Rift of Magic, is out now, adding spellcasting, mage units, 16 signature hero spells, Endless Mode, Daily Runs, and more. Play on Steam:

Papers, Please meets Cyberpunk 2077 in this new shopkeeping sim where every customer could be a criminal, security officer, revolutionary, or rogue AI wearing someone’s face. Check it out:

In his first interview since BioWare's closure, original co-founder Greg Zeschuk says executives who killed the studio have “never made a game” and don’t understand game development. “There’s this weird belief that you can just kind of recreate great games with random people and AI. It doesn’t work.” Zeschuk was with BioWare from its inception until after Mass Effect 3. Full interview:

Tell us the strangest item you’d be asked to find at your own magical lost-and-found agency for a chance to win one of 5 Lost and Found Co. Steam keys! Leave your answer right here in the comments by November 3. Text, images, and GIFs are welcome. We'll randomly select five winners from participants across all platforms. Full giveaway details:

Get into the Halloween spirit with Steam Scream Fest and our curated picks of ten games you can grab right now at great discounts. No tricks, just treats:

Daniil "Split" Voskressensky returned to 80 Level to share a breakdown of his first deep dive into Blender's shaders, modifiers, and render setup to create a comic-style 3D model of Marvel's Cyclops. "I'd been wanting to experiment with shaders in Blender for a long time and get more familiar with the software, so this felt like the perfect opportunity to explore something new. My goal was to create a fully hand-painted 3D character that could be animated, with the camera moving around it to create a strong first-impression effect. I wanted the character to look like a 2D drawing at first glance, only to come to life as the camera started moving and reveal that it was actually a 3D model." Read the interview:

Rebecca Ma discussed the workflow behind her stunning Garden of Dragons environment, sharing how she sculpted intricate patterns on dragon statues and approached procedural texturing. "I'd never created an outdoor landscape before, and it seemed like a great opportunity to challenge myself and expand my skill set. Beyond its beautiful colors and composition, the concept allowed me to explore areas of environment art that were new to me, including sculpting dragons and rock formations, creating and scattering foliage, generating terrain, and simulating water and atmospheric fog." Read:

Kenshi developer Lo-Fi Games is looking for a terrain artist with Unreal Engine 5 experience. Apply to help create a prequel to one of the best sandbox RPGs:

Check out Neyyah, a first-person point-and-click adventure set in a strange, secretive world. Explore peculiar landscapes, encounter bizarre cultures, and use logic and observation to uncover the mysteries of Neyyah!

Play now on Steam:

Karim Yasser is working on a plug-in that allows artists to paint lighting and shadows directly in Unreal Engine 5. Real-time and non-destructive:

.@mbirdini has released an incredible Blender-made animated horror short that explores the fears of early parenthood. Watch Monitor:

Learn how to create a vibrant comic-style shader in Blender with XippoArt's step-by-step tutorial. Watch here:

Gilad Baruch's tool uses real physics to make your 3D models fall, collide, and stack naturally, then bakes the results into tileable material maps right inside Substance 3D Designer. Purchase here:

This cozy sandbox where players draw their own pet fish and plants is coming to Steam in November. Read more and wishlist: @DrawquariumGame

The Dark Messiah of Might & Magic: Community Edition mod now has a Steam page and a release window. Learn what it adds to the 2006 classic:

The Pokémon Company has announced that the Pokémon UNITE service will end next March, with the Aeos Crown 2027 Tokyo tournament still planned. Read more:

The long-awaited Ucupaint 3.0 is here, marking the biggest update yet for this free Blender texture painting add-on. Details: @ucupaint

Arkane Lyon, the studio behind Dishonored and Marvel’s Blade, reportedly faces closure unless it finds a buyer by mid-December, though Microsoft says no final decision has been made. Read the full story:

BioWare shuts down, EA outlines its franchise plans, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 premieres, and Cyberpunk 2077 gets an update – read all this and more in this week’s 80 Level newsletter. Subscribe for free and don't miss our upcoming editorial compilation: