It's official: Arkane Austin is no more, and development on its troubled shooter Redfall is over with its final update.The update went online earlier today and contains numerous changes to the game to account for its developer's closure. Case in point: it now has an offline mode, the ability to pause in single-player, and streamlined systems."We’re thankful for the millions of players who have joined us," wrote Arkane Austin. "From everyone [here], thank you for playing our games and loving our worlds, it’s been an honor to deliver these experiences to you."Founded in 2006, Arkane Austin was initially formed as a spinoff studio to help establish potential work-for-hire relationships in the US. In 2010, Bethesda approached it to make a stealth-based game in…
Nearly two years ago, Bloober Team entered an agreement with Private Division where the Take-Two offshoot would publish its next game. Those plans have seemingly been ended in light of Private Division's recent layoffs.As spotted by GamesIndustry, the Polish developer recently published a notice saying their partnership for a game currently dubbed "Project C" was officially over.Per the notice, Bloober will continue working on the project as it would a self-published game. It also acknowledged production may change "based on cooperation" with a new, currently unannounced publisher.
Where Take-Two and Private Division fit in…
Ubisoft's still-alive remake for Prince of Persia: Sands of Time has gained a co-developer in Ubisoft Toronto. It'll help the Montreal team get the game through the finish line, as Ubisoft studios often do with its big games.Sands' remake hasn't been as troubled as Skull & Bones. But between these two games and Beyond Good & Evil 2, what reported issues there have been may speak to the French publisher's larger, still-ongoing issues."We’re excited to rewind time and bring our studio’s creativity, expertise and updated tech to refresh this beloved classic with our partners at Ubisoft Montreal," the Toronto team wrote.Ubisoft Toronto is also hard at work on a remake of Splinter Cell and when asked, assured that it was still working on that proje…
The Like a Dragon franchise is becoming a TV show, courtesy of Prime Video.As revealed by Variety, the Japanese open-world series has been adapted into a six-episode drama releasing in October. The series will be directed by Take Masaharu and Takimoto Kengo, respectively known for We Make Antiques and Kamen Teacher.Kamen Rider actor Takeuchi Ryoma will play series lead Kazuma Kiryu. The show will be split across 1995 and 2005.
Sega's big transmedia dreams
Sega's previously mentioned its desires to build out franchises like this and Persona into transmedia giants on par with Sonic the Hedgehog. This marks the series' first steps into that …
Microsoft recently unveiled its plans to bring its AI program Copilot to its Xbox and PC games.During its Microsoft Surface and AI event, the tech giant showed off how the AI tool could be applicable to games. Per Windows Central, the presentation featured Minecraft with the tool directly embedded in the game.Players can use Copilot to ask things like "How do I craft a sword?," at which point the tool helps them find the needed components. It basically works like an always-on game guide, or the PlayStation 5's non-AI powered help system.Minecraft is the first game to have Copilot integrated within it, but it sounds like it'll ultimately be put within other games. It's unclear if this is being done with first-party Xbox titles to begin with.While Copilot was formall…
The dramatic fallout of Embracer Group's financial missteps came to a head in April, when the Swedish corporation announced it would be splitting into three different divisions to finally end months of layoffs and studio closures: Asmodee, Coffee Stain & Friends, and Middle-earth Enterprises & Friends.Each company targets a different division of the game business—but industry observers are paying close attention to board game and tabletop firm Asmodee. The company, which owns a wide array of board and tabletop game developers, publishers, and distributors, took on €900 million in debt as part of the separation.Will that debt weigh down a company carrying a major chunk of the sector on its back? According to former Embracer interim chief operations officer Matt Karch, the a…
A new report from Quantic Foundry shows how much the strategy game genre (your Company of Heroes and Civilzations) has persisted, despite a decline in strategic thinking from players over the years.Over 1.57 million players were surveyed between June 2015 and April 2024. As of now, 67 percent of players show less interest in strategic thinking over the last nine years.However, no specific cause was determined beyond a "larger, long-term cultural/psychological shift."Even with that, SteamData shows strategy games have grown since 2015. As of 2022, the genre peaked at over 2,400 titles released.The percentage of strategy titles released has stayed steady over time. Since 2016, the genre has made up six to around seven percent of games released per year.On a game-by-game basis, some…
A new bill has been passed by the UK Parliament which may put third-party stores on equal footing with bigger digital storefronts.As reported by the Press Gazette, the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill (DMCC) was pushed through ahead of Parliament's dissolution in July. Under it, tech platforms are prohibited from treating its own products more favorably or "applying discriminatory terms, conditions, and policies" on specific users.In other words, UK iOS users would be allowed to see a Fortnite or a hypothetical PlayStation mobile store feature prominently on Apple's platform.
Fortnite on iOS was part of the storm
M…
Fragbite CEO Marcus Teilman has resigned to "pursue new challenges" one day after the publisher declared Alara Prime developer Fall Damage bankrupt.The Swedish video game and esports company has named chairman Stefan Tengvall as interim CEO. Tengvall will step down as chairman of the board as a result but will remain a board member. Board member Sten Wranne will replace him as chairman."The board and I thank Marcus for his efforts and his commitment to Fragbite Group during his time as CEO and wish him the best of luck in the future. The company has initiated a cost reduction programme with the aim of securing a healthy cash flow in both the short and long term," said Tengvall in a press release."Further examining the costs of the group and our portfolio companies …
It's official: the next installment in the Call of Duty franchise will be heading to Xbox Game Pass at launch.Microsoft has confirmed that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will be available on Xbox Game Pass on "day one," ending speculation as to whether of not the series will be bundled into the subscription service.The Verge has previously reported that Microsoft was unsure whether to toss the lucrative franchise onto Xbox Game Pass following its colossal $68.7 billion merger with Activision Blizzard.It was claimed there were concerns about whether the revenue Call of Duty brings in would be undermined by its inclusion on Xbox Game Pass. Sources also told The Verge that Microsoft was considering increasing the price of Game Pass Ultimate—but reiterated those plans hadn't b…