From adding in new locations and NPCs to overhauling the whole game experience, mods can add countless hours of play to your favourite titles. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt has a deep library of mods that address many player concerns. Long War, for example, is an expansion that increases difficulty and the depth of progression.

Prop Hunt

A fan-favorite mode in previous Call of Duty games, Prop Hunt pits players on opposite teams. One team, called Props, must disguise themselves as inanimate objects while the other, called Hunters, try to find them. The first team to find all the props wins. Originally created in Garry’s Mod, this popular game mode has been included in multiple versions of the game and has even spawned its own standalone spin-offs.

While it’s easy to get caught by the Hunters when you’re a Prop, there are a few things you can do to increase your chances of survival. For starters, the perks Deadly Silence and Shapeshifting make it easier to blend in with your surroundings. You can also use a Flashbang ability to stun the hunters and potentially give yourself enough time to escape.

It’s also important to keep a catalogue of prime hiding spots on the map. While the Hunters will likely discover these relatively quickly, a well-hidden Prop can take advantage of these areas to slip past them unnoticed. Finally, the whistle noises the Props can emit to tease the hunters are a big help. Listen closely to the volume and direction of these sounds and you’ll have a better chance of finding your enemies.

While some fans were disappointed to see that Black Ops Cold War removed this kooky side mode, it’s worth mentioning that this isn’t permanent. According to a tweet from a verified account of Treyarch Studios, the developer, Prop Hunt will be making its return soon. This will likely be a free update to Black Ops, and you’ll have another chance to enjoy the sly fun of this mode.

Stardew Valley

One of the most beloved indie games of all time, Stardew Valley puts players in charge of turning a dilapidated farm into a thriving agricultural enterprise. With a plethora of crops, livestock and buildings to raise, each season brings new challenges and opportunities for personal growth as you work to build relationships with the locals.

Despite being a life sim at heart, Stardew Valley is filled with action-based activities. Players can explore a dungeon that runs dozens of levels deep, battle enemies and collect important resources in real-time combat. The game also offers a wide variety of events and quests that can be completed to expand the world.

When deciding what changes to pursue in any update, developer ConcernedApe always tries to keep in mind the breadth of ways that people play Stardew Valley. This approach allows him to add more and more features that cater to different playstyles. In the most recent update, for example, he added a new clothes-tailoring system, new hairstyles for your character, a trash bear that demands specific items and only appears after the second in-game year, a new farm map that is designed with co-op in mind, and much more.

The updates that come to Stardew Valley are so extensive that they often feel like major content releases. In a landscape where post-launch support is becoming more common, it’s good to know that the studio behind Stardew Valley is still making the effort to continually improve its game. That includes adding new speech lines, a social tab that displays who you’ve talked to each day, a coffee maker for your farmhouse, and many more features. For fans of the game, each new addition is a welcome reminder that it’s still worth revisiting after every few years.

Half-Life 2

The original Half-Life 2 set the template for single-player narrative-driven AAA games that followed, and it also launched Valve into a brief spell of prestige and commercial success. It’s easy to see why: the game is a masterwork of cinematic pacing, action and suspense. Moreover, ets2 mods 1.49 can be a good gaming experience if you are into trucks, trailers, and more.

Its gameplay is inventive and challenging, with plenty of ways to take down the Combine army and a handful of puzzles that will keep players on their toes. One of the most impressive things about it, though, is its pioneering use of physics. In a time before the likes of Bioshock and Crysis, the rudimentary version of Havok used in Half-Life 2 was groundbreaking for its ability to allow players to pick up, manipulate, throw and destroy objects, creating moments of jaw-dropping unintentional fun and hilarious chaos.

Even the game’s more heavily scripted encounters work well because they’re fast-paced, varied and don’t feel as if they’ve been designed in advance. At the end of the game, for instance, you’re stripped of your huge arsenal and forced to fight through a series of guerrilla battles with limited tools, which is a draining yet thrilling experience.

It’s no surprise, then, that Half-Life 2 has a huge modding community and a wealth of fan-created content that stretches across the range of mods from tweaks and additions (such as HL2 VR Unleashed) to partial conversions like Smod and Garry’s Mod, which let you experiment with the game’s source engine physics system in a sandbox mode. Regardless of how you play it, Half-Life 2 is an essential game that every PC gamer should enjoy.

Rocket League

Rocket League is a fantastic video game that combines soccer and driving into an incredible gameplay experience. The game is popular as an eSports title and has been praised for its excellent balance of accessibility with high-level dexterity. The game also features a variety of mechanics including the ability to collect boost power from charge pads and manage your boost gauge.

However, like many major eSports titles the Rocket League ranking system can be somewhat confusing for those not familiar with it. In general, the player’s MMR (match-making rank) will go up or down based on ranked wins and losses. Players will then gain rewards and unlock new tiers of the game by climbing to Grand Champion and Supersonic Legend.

While it may be difficult for some gamers to find a competitive match, Rocket League’s average wait timer is a helpful feature that can help reduce the time spent waiting around for a game. The average wait timer displays the estimated amount of time that will pass before you can join a match for different games and is an easy way to see how crowded each mode currently is.

While the latest season of Rocket League is only just kicking off, there’s plenty to look forward to in the coming months. Next month, the game’s paid Crates will be replaced by Blueprints and the game’s upgrades and rewards will change significantly. This will be a good opportunity for gamers to familiarise themselves with the new changes. Additionally, Rocket League is set to release a raft of practice modes for gamers to try out the new changes. These practice modes will be a great way for gamers to get to grips with the air control needed for aerial headers and strikes.

Minecraft

One of the most popular games on Steam, Minecraft has a long history of mods to add new features and improve existing ones. Whether you’re looking to upgrade your UI, refine your block palette or just want to fly around the world with a jetpack, there’s a mod for you.

If you’re in the mood for some real challenge in your world, try out the Brutal Bosses mod. This adds a range of more challenging enemies in the form of named bosses that can be found within dungeons and other structures in your world. They look a lot like ordinary mobs, but they have access to unique abilities and attacks such as Arag The Lurker’s spitting cobwewbs or the Avian’s slow fall and inability to sleep at high elevations.

On the other hand, if you’re looking for some more fun gameplay mechanics, check out Skyblock – a more refined iteration of the popular SkyFactory mode. It makes building in the sky much more streamlined, allowing you to plant Sky Orchard Saplings that grow into trees and spawn resources much faster, as well as an open progression system and prestige mode that unlocks more items and new mechanics for your world.

Alternatively, you can try out the more modern Industrialcraft, which lets you use robot companions, fusion reactors and atomic disassemblers to power your constructions. Or how about Mekanism, a suite of tech mods that adds solar generators, power networks and more to level up your engagement with the game? And if you’re still not satisfied, there are plenty of other mods out there to suit your tastes. You just have to take the time to find the right one for you.