Daily Briefing: Friday 22nd January

Resident Evil Village Is Only $60 & Has A Demo

In Capcom's recent Resident Evil showcase, Village was given a release date of May 7th, a PS5-exclusive demo and pre-orders were opened - and the game is available for $60. Capcom also announced Re:Verse Resident Evil, a multiplayer shooter to celebrate the franchise's 25th Anniversary

• Console-exclusive demos are a bad thing to start, but the real story here is of a publisher opting not to move up to the $70 asking price yet. Perhaps a few publishers can resist the temptation of forcing consumers to spend an extra $10 - a game like Resident Evil will likely benefit from a lower price point anyway.

Devil Engine Ignition Creators Warn Fans Not To Buy It

One of the most complicated indie games on the business-front, Devil Engine's developers were in the news last year for a messy split from publisher Dangen Entertainment citing manipulation, unprofessional behaviour and more.  Now, the lead artist and composer are asking fans not to buy the game, as they aren't receiving any money from sales - they're all going to the lead programmer due to the business' setup, although he apparently doesn't have the legal right to sell a product using the art and music in the game.

• Basically, the actual legal setup of a company can be complex. This is often handled poorly by indies, allowing for mistakes like this, especially if any party is malicious. Devil Engine Ignition is a very troubled game, that's for sure.

Avengers Updates Are Quietly Missing

Marvel's Avengers, the live service that couldn't, is running further and further behind schedule. Only one of three promised characters have been added to the game so far, and other upcoming features have no attached date. On their regular livestreams, Crystal Dynamics staff were unable to share any news or dates on upcoming features.

• Silence doesn't mean there's nothing going on, but it sure implies things aren't quite right. Square Enix lost some serious money and opportunity with Avengers, and the opinion on an eventual live service revival seems to be a resounding 'doubt'. A shame, given the character action chops the game wasted by being a loot-driven grind fest.

Cyberpunk Refunds Not Revoking Game Access Yet

CDPR promised refunds to players unhappy with the game, and it seems like they've largely been playing ball. Usually, a refund comes with having to give the product back, but in this case players have reported receiving full refunds without having their digital codes revoked or physical copies returned - apparently including one customer's $250 Collector's Edition.

• They said they'd want the games back later, but... CDPR have little to gain from that. People asking for a refund now aren't likely to buy the game back at full price in the future, and CDPR are more likely to have too much inventory than not enough. This is basically a gesture of goodwill right now, and that's a good first step for CDPR to claw back their reputation.