We have prepared a digest of the main news for September 30, 2026, for Players readers.
The Witcher 3 Sets a New Steam Player Record After Remastered Release
The free Remastered update has brought thousands of players back to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 11 years after its original launch. According to SteamDB, the game reached a new series record of 120,975 concurrent players on Steam following the update.
Unreal Tournament 2003 — How Epic Games Brought Players Back to the Arena
On September 30, 2002, Unreal Tournament 2003 was released for PC — the sequel to the famous competitive shooter Unreal Tournament from Epic Games and Digital Extremes. The game became one of the first major projects built around the new generation of Unreal Engine 2 and attempted to show what a fast-paced multiplayer FPS could look like in the early 2000s.
Danish Charity Organization Opens Digital Thrift Store for Counter-Strike 2 Skins
The prominent Danish charity organization Kirkens Korshær has launched an innovative project called Secondhand Skins. It is a unique digital thrift store that allows gamers to donate their unused Counter-Strike 2 in-game items to charity.
100 Thieves and Team Vitality Advance to VALORANT Champions Playoffs
Team Vitality and 100 Thieves secured victories in their second group stage matches (in Groups A and B, respectively) and successfully qualified for the VALORANT Champions playoffs. Both teams advanced undefeated, joining Paper Rex and NRG, who secured their spots in the top eight yesterday.
Tomorrow, October 1, the offline Counter-Strike 2 tournament Stake Ranked Episode 4, organized by StarLadder, kicks off in Barcelona. The competition will run until October 4 and feature eight teams. The total prize pool is $100,000. The winner will claim the main prize of $25,000, the runner-up will earn $17,500, and $13,500 is reserved for third place.