It Takes Two takes home Game of the Year
The Game Awards were last night and Hazelight Studios' cooperative puzzle adventure deservedly took home the top prize, alongside two other awards in Best Multiplayer and Best Family Game. Studio head Josef Fares, who is known for his foul mouth and impeccable comedic timing, didn't disappoint with an emotional acceptance speech that effectively followed his 2017 "f*ck the Oscars" rant by dropping a few more F-Bombs for good measure. Never chan...
2021-12-10 14:01:03 +0000 UTC
View Post
CD Projekt begin settlement talks with angry investors
CD Projekt confirmed back in may that four class action lawsuits filed against them in the United States had been consolidated into one bumper list of grievances. A lead plaintiff was appointed at that time in preparation for potential common court proceedings. However, in a regulatory update posted earlier this week, the US District Court for the Central District of California have "suspended proceedings concerning the motion to ...
2021-12-09 14:00:06 +0000 UTC
View Post
Ubisoft enter the NFT game for some reason
When it came time to place bets on which of the major games companies would be the first to try their hand at the baffling concept that is NFTs, a lot of people probably had money riding on Ubisoft. It turns out this was completely the right call, as the publisher announced this week that NFTs will be coming to Ghost Recon: Breakpoint as unique in-world cosmetics. Ubisoft detailed in their announcement that this new implementation of NFTs is ...
2021-12-08 14:00:08 +0000 UTC
View Post
Activision Snubbed From Game Awards Amidst More Layoffs
Geoff Keighley announced on Twitter that Activision-Blizzard will not be a part of The Game Awards, outside of the 2 awards Call of Duty was nominated for. He said: "There is no place for abuse, harassment or predatory practices in any company or any community. I also realize we have a big platform which can accelerate and inspire change."
- While Call of Duty will still have a presence, Activision being effectively ban...
2021-12-06 19:54:37 +0000 UTC
View Post
EA set their sights on a connected Battlefield universe
EA announced this week that they will be making widespread changes to the Battlefield franchise's development structure as the company works towards establishing a "connected Battlefield universe" by having future Battlefield titles share characters and storylines. This restructuring also involves a pretty sizeable personnel shakeup, with DICE general manager Oscar Gabrielson set to leave EA. Vince Zampella will take on a new rol...
2021-12-03 14:00:07 +0000 UTC
View Post
Final Fantasy XIV will prioritise paying players during expansion queues
Final Fantasy XIV's new Endwalker expansion launches next week following a short delay, with early access set to begin this coming Friday. It was always going to be a big event as Endwalker seeks to conclude Final Fantasy XIV's ongoing narrative arc, but there really could be a lot of players trying to get in following the game's explosion in popularity this year. In an attempt to reassure fans, Square Enix publi...
2021-12-02 14:01:03 +0000 UTC
View Post
The physical editions of the GTA Trilogy have been delayed
Rockstar announced this week that the upcoming physical versions of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition will be slightly less upcoming than initially expected. The physical edition was supposed to launch on December 7th on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, and Nintendo Switch. Following the delay, however, the Xbox and PS4 versions will now arrive on December 17th, while the Nintendo Switch version has been pu...
2021-12-01 14:00:12 +0000 UTC
View Post
Xbox Cloud Gaming really wants you to use Microsoft Edge
Microsoft have announced a new feature coming to Xbox Cloud Gaming called Clarity Boost, which is intended to vastly improve the sharpness of Cloud Gaming streams provided the player is using the often-ignored Microsoft Edge browser. The functionality allows players to easily activate an additional layer of optimisation to sharpen the edges of the stream.
- Clarity Boost works by relying on "a set of client-side scalin...
2021-11-30 15:00:06 +0000 UTC
View Post
There's a Marvel MMO incoming
The game looks to be in the works at Dimensional Ink Games, the Texas-based developer behind DC Universe Online. The still-untitled project was revealed during a recent earnings presentation for Dimensional Ink parent company Enad Global 7, with a slide in the presentation announcing that the stated unannounced MMORPG is set to be a "Marvel IP based massively multiplayer online game." Jack Emmert is in charge of the project, having former development lead...
2021-11-29 14:01:03 +0000 UTC
View Post
Former BioWare writer isn't too thrilled by the idea of a Mass Effect television show
David Gaider, lead writer across all three games in the Dragon Age series, revealed on Twitter that he thinks the prospect of a Mass Effect television show makes him "cringe." This follows on for a renewed suite of rumours this week that Amazon Studios are nearing a deal with BioWare to finally put Commander Shepard (possibly played by Henry Cavill) on screen. Gaider writes that he's at least "reliev...
2021-11-26 14:01:03 +0000 UTC
View Post
DICE's head of design leaves this week
Fawzi Mesmar recently confirmed that he will be leaving EA's DICE studio at the end of this week. Mesmar has served as DICE's head of design since 2019 when he joined from King, overseeing both the Battlefield and the Star Wars: Battlefront franchises. He announced his departure in an email to staff in which he confirmed that he had been planning to leave for quite some time, but wanted to wait until Battlefield 2042 had released.
- In ...
2021-11-25 14:00:07 +0000 UTC
View Post
DICE outline upcoming Battlefield 2042 patches
Battlefield 2042's recent launch hasn't gone too well, with players across the internet banding together to carefully catalogue the game's many, many, many issues. The newest release for one of EA's flagship franchises quickly became one of the worst-reviewed games ever on Steam, amassing nearly 40,000 negative reviews in the space of just one week. Things haven't been going great, in other words, but there may be hope on the horizon as d...
2021-11-24 14:01:02 +0000 UTC
View Post
Nintendo follow suit in condemning Activision Blizzard
According to a new report from Fanbyte, Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser has followed the earlier leads set by Microsoft's Phil Spencer and Sony's Jim Ryan in actively condemning Activision Blizzard's response to the ongoing sexual harassment allegations. Ryan and Spencer have both sent (presumably very strongly worded) emails to Activision regarding their handling of the situation, and Bowser has now done the same.
2021-11-23 14:00:06 +0000 UTC
View Post
Bobby Kotick would consider resigning if he can't sort out Activision Blizzard problems
That's according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal which, citing various internal sources, claims that embattled Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick has told his senior management team that he would be willing to resign his post if he can't "quickly fix" the pervasive culture problems currently afflicting the studio. Kotick's alleged statement effectively skates over the two-pronged que...
2021-11-22 14:00:08 +0000 UTC
View Post
Here we go: Another deep dive into the *numbers* behind current World of Warcraft engagement and players.
2021-11-20 13:01:02 +0000 UTC
View Post
Cyberpunk 2077 could be headed to Xbox Game Pass?
A new official Xbox Game Pass promotional video seems to suggest that Microsoft are planning to add Cyberpunk 2077 to the popular subscription service. The video released earlier on this week to celebrate the arrival of Xbox Cloud Gaming on consoles, which is included as part of the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription tier. The video includes a short piece of Cyberpunk 2077 footage pulled from an official CD Projekt Red trailer for th...
2021-11-19 14:00:07 +0000 UTC
View Post
Activision say new zero tolerance harassment policy shouldn't apply to Bobby Kotick
Activision Blizzard management has reportedly informed employees that the company's recently-implemented "zero tolerance" policy on harassment, discrimination, and abusive behaviour will not be applied to CEO Bobby Kotick because there is "no evidence" to support the allegations made against him. Activision Blizzard held a series of virtual conference across its various business areas to discuss ...
2021-11-18 16:00:07 +0000 UTC
View Post
When Sargeras finds out what we've learned during Shadowlands, he's going to be mad. After some time with Illidan and learning he was tricked by the Dreadlords... he might even become our ally.
2021-11-17 16:30:01 +0000 UTC
View Post
Activision Blizzard employees call for Bobby Kotick's resignation
Activision Blizzard employees, working both remotely and in-person at the studio offices, have organised a walkout protest calling for CEO Bobby Kotick's resignation following a damning new report from the Wall Street Journal. The report, which is being widely shared online despite the WSJ's paywall, alleges that Bobby Kotick not only knew the full extent of the sexual harassment and discriminatory behaviour going on at...
2021-11-17 14:00:07 +0000 UTC
View Post
Halo Infinite's multiplayer is out now
The surprise confirmation of Halo Infinite's multiplayer component going live was the biggest reveal of yesterday's Xbox 20th anniversary showcase. The announcement really was something special, beginning with a wonderful orchestral rendition of the main Halo theme and finishing with the staff of 343 Industries happily announcing that the game was available for download now. Fans promptly went crazy as they rushed to download the game, effectivel...
2021-11-16 16:01:01 +0000 UTC
View Post
The Grand Theft Auto Trilogy is finally back on PC
Last week's release of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - Definitive Edition was afflicted by quite a few issues across launch platforms. PlayStation players who had preordered the digital version of the game were able to access the game up to 24 hours early in some territories, promoting Rockstar to remove the game from sale until each region's official launch time. Next came an extended period of maintenance for the Rockstar Launcher o...
2021-11-15 14:00:08 +0000 UTC
View Post
Grand Theft Auto Definitive Edition Trilogy pulled from PC following issues
It seems that this week's high-profile release of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition has had a bit more rough than smooth. Aside from the name being an absolute car crash of unnecessary words, the game was initially pulled from the PlayStation Store after preorders unlocked a full 24 hours early in some territories. Next it was apparently the PC playerbase's turn to get bodied by Rockstar, ...
2021-11-12 14:01:03 +0000 UTC
View Post
New World is getting a PTR
Amazon confirmed this week that the MMO will soon be getting a suite of rather substantial updates. The first of these is a new Public Test Realm, which will allow participating players early access to upcoming features. The upcoming Into the Void update will be the first thing thrown into the testing arena, which is set to bring new quests, a new weapon class, and a stack of quality-of-life changes to the game. The New World PTR is available to everyone who...
2021-11-11 14:01:02 +0000 UTC
View Post
Forza Horizon 5 is Xbox's "biggest ever launch day"
That's according from Xbox main man Phil Spencer who, taking to Twitter to have a bit of a celebration, confirmed that the newest entry from Playground Games is the "largest launch day" in the history of Xbox Game Studios. Spencer also highlighted that the game is currently tracking much more strongly than its predecessor, Forza Horizon 4, thanks to Xbox's ongoing strategy to have players across different devices.
- Spencer...
2021-11-10 14:01:03 +0000 UTC
View Post
Illidan's role in Azeroth's story is far from finished. Here are the ways he could return & why! Sargeras surely has a lot to tell us about the First Ones.... right? Also, what's up with his Shadowlands-looking belt?
2021-11-10 11:45:01 +0000 UTC
View Post
Back 4 Blood gets a solo campaign next month
One of the biggest complaints about Back 4 Blood, Turtle Rock's new cooperative zombie shooting successor to Left 4 Dead, was that it had absolutely no solo campaign. Any player opting to play the game offline was met with a warning window describing all the features their game wouldn't have, like progression mechanics or fun. It was a bit of a baffling deficiency for a modern game, but this week Turtle Rock Studios confirmed that their upc...
2021-11-09 17:00:43 +0000 UTC
View Post
Ubisoft employee group ask public support following continuous corporate refusal to meet demands
A Better Ubisoft, a group of current and former ex-Ubisoft employees currently campaigning for improved working conditions at the global publisher, have turned to the public for help in a time of severe frustration. Over the summer, A Better Ubisoft issued an open letter to company management calling for "real, fundamental change" in light of numerous allegations of abuse and sexual harass...
2021-11-08 14:00:09 +0000 UTC
View Post
Nintendo Are Putting Almost $1B Into Development & Over $2B Into Improving Accounts
Thanks to the consistent success of the Switch (over 92m sales!), Nintendo will be able to use $880m to directly expand their game development resources outside of conventional expenditure. They'll also put another $440m into growth in its non-software entertainment - like the Mario movie, for example, which is apparently mostly finished and have left Nintendo happy. The biggest thing is that, a to...
2021-11-05 15:00:09 +0000 UTC
View Post
Apologies for the late briefing! Adam's off for a few days so you're stuck with me for a bit. Please enjoy today's news - it's still fresh!
- Matt
The Geforce Now Leak Gets Interesting - Release Dates
A user on Github compiled a list of all games from the GeForce Now leak in September that had release dates attached and released it online - with some time passing since the leak, it has been correct about some things but wrong about others. Okami Games on Twitter has highlight...
2021-11-04 20:39:44 +0000 UTC
View Post
The Dragon Isles has been teased for years now - we thought we were even going there in Battle for Azeroth... but no dice. Soon, maybe?
2021-11-04 19:57:30 +0000 UTC
View Post
