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…
In a post today on the Paradox forum, the publisher noted developer Double Eleven is leaving the Prison Architect series after nine years. The first numbered sequel, Prison Architect 2, will be finished and launched with the help of co-development studio Kokku, which Paradox notes has been working on since last year, and "supported" by Double Eleven.In the juiciest bit of an otherwise matter-of-fact post, Paradox notes that Prison Architect 2 passed certification and the contract was fulfilled, but "…We could not find a commercial agreement that worked for both parties moving forward and mutually agreed to part ways."Reading a bit into the game's delay, a number of technical issues popped up in final testing (and we can surmise that the publisher is weary after p…
Sony believes PlayStation 5 hardware sales have peaked and will now begin to "gradually decline."The company shared that appraisal in its fiscal report for the year ended March 31, 2024, and explained PlayStation 5 sales over the past 12 months totaled 20.8 million units. That brings lifetime PlayStation 5 hardware sales to 59.2 million units. Sony expects to shift another 18 million consoles during the current fiscal year.Digging into the wider performance of the company's Game & Network Services business, full-year sales increased by 17 percent year-on-year to 4.26 trillion yen ($27.2 billion). Operating income increased by 40.2 billion yen to 290.2 billion yen ($1.85 billion) over that same period.Sony attributed that sales upswing to rising third-party software sales…
Ubisoft's full-year financial results for the fiscal year 2023-2024 have landed (alongside a trailer unveiling Assassin's Creed Shadows, set in Feudal Japan, due out this fall), and they're filled with good news for the company.Thanks to the Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six and Assassin's Creed series, the company saw a 33.5 percent increase in net bookings, pulling down €2.3 billion (about $2.5 billion) for the full year.Its full-year IFRS operating income was €313 million.That titanic number is a new record for Ubisoft. The company also reported a slight increase in "unique active users" from last year across console and PC. That number rose four percent to a total of 138 million unique active users.That success is rather impressive given that Ubisoft'…
Remedy chief financial officer Terhi Kauppi is departing the Alan Wake and Control developer.Kauppi will step down on June 30, 2024, and Remedy has already started searching for her successor. Her responsibilities will be shared by the company's finance team until a replacement has been found.In a note to investors, Remedy explained Kauppi is leaving to "pursue new career opportunities outside of the company." She joined Remedy in 2018 and according to CEO Tero Virtala has enabled the studio to scale up."[Kauppi] has had an important role in developing our finance and administrative function to a state where we can manage well the needs of a larger organization. She also successfully led the project to transition Remedy from the First North Growth Market Finland marketp…
Game Developer can confirm that Studio Wildcard has laid off six employees in the last week, in a move that the company said "will not impact" development on Ark: Survival Ascended or Ark 2.Workers impacted by the cuts shared news of their dismissal earlier this week on LinkedIn, prompting us to reach out to the company.In its response, Studio Wildcard emphasized that approximately 120 employees and contractors were still with the company, making these cuts one of the smaller ones we've seen in 2024. It added that it does not anticipate the need for additional cuts for the rest of the year.That said, a layoff is a layoff, and it's curious as to what financial conditions would have led the company to eliminate jobs. Ark: Survival Ascended (a remaster of Ark: Survival Evo…
Swedish investment company EQT Group has tabled a cash offer of £25.5 ($32.4) per share to acquire Keywords Studios. The Financial Times reports the overall deal would value Keywords at £2.2 billion ($2.8 billion).Keywords is a global service provider for the video game industry. It offers services covering audio development, production, QA testing, marketing, player engagement, localization, and more.The company boasts over 70 studios in 25 countries and employs over 12,000 people worldwide. It has worked with clients including Nintendo, NetEase, Take-Two Interactive, Square Enix, Ubisoft, Supercell, EA, Riot Games, and Tencent.Keywords confirmed it's currently in "advanced discussions" with EQT Group in an update to investors. The company explained EQT previously made fo…
Sony has elected to reverse its proposed policy requiring a PlayStation Network account for Helldivers 2 players on Steam.Last week, Sony said PC players would have to link their pre-existing PSN account (or make a new one) with Steam to continue playing the game. The requirement was turned off at launch due to the overwhelming influx of players.Originally, account linking would've begun today, May 6. In canceling it, Sony said it's "still learning what is best for PC players. […] Thanks again for your continued support of Helldivers 2 and we’ll keep you updated on future plans."Reactions to this requirement were very negative, particularly from players in countries where PSN isn't available. Over the weekend, Helldivers 2 was flooded with negative reviews and …
Microsoft is making many high-profile cuts at the ZeniMax branch of Xbox Game Studios. Today the company emailed employees to let them know that it is closing Redfall developer Arkane Austin, Hi-Fi Rush developer Tango Gameworks, and Mighty Doom developer Alpha Dog Games.Wisconson-area developer Roundhouse Studios (which has served as a support studio to other arms of ZeniMax) will also be absorbed into The Elder Scrolls Online developer ZeniMax Online Studios.Word of these closures comes from IGN, which reviewed an email sent by Xbox Game Studios boss Matt Booty to staff early this morning. Tango Gameworks has confirmed on Twitter that it is ceasing operations."These changes are grounded in prioritizing high-impact titles and further investing in Bethesda’s portfolio of blockbuster…
PTW, a support developer that's previously worked on Starfield and Exoprimal, has opened a new studio exclusively for motion capture.Located in the same building as audio developer SIDE London, it's meant as an expansion of PTW's partnership with Imaginarium. The two began working together in 2022 to help larger studios with audio and motion capture services.
One stop shop for full-body mocap and voice
The aim is to make it so full-body capture and voice recording can be done simultaneously in the same place. That's not always the case with other studios, something PTW's CEO Deborah Kirkham points out in the press rele…