This Week in the Games Industry: 4/22/2019 – 4/28/2019

Apex Legends is on the decline with streamers after a record-setting month Is this death for the Fortnite killer? Epic Games Store exclusivity helps Phoenix Point achieve 191% return And you wonder why devs might agree to an exclusivity agreement? How Fortnite’s success led to months of intense crunch at Epic Games Grindy games make […]

This Week in the Games Industry: 4/15/2019 – 4/21/2019

Sony teases next-gen PlayStation specs in new interview And so the next-gen peepshow begins. Rocket League nixes loot boxes in Belgium, the Netherlands No loot for you! Fortnite cheat maker exposes professional player cheating in World Cup A reminder that “cheat” and “cheater” are two very different concepts. The Emulator In Capcom’s Home Arcade Is […]

This Week in the Games Industry: 4/8/2019 – 4/14/2019

Report: Activision Blizzard Wants To Know How Its Employees’ Pregnancies Are Going. Fine, thank you. Also, buzz off! That’s none of your business. YouTube creating interactive narratives Choose your own adventure. Spoilers: We all die at the end. Survey: More teenagers are getting into video games because of Fortnite At last, video games have finally […]

This Week in the Games Industry: 4/1/2019 – 4/7/2019

How BioWare’s Anthem Went Wrong The road to crunch is paved with good intentions. BioWare’s awful response to Kotaku’s exposé pours petrol on a raging PR fire Apparently BioWare’s official comments were also a “stress casualty”. Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo under investigation for consumer rights violation I wonder what the triggering event was here. Ubisoft […]

This Week in the Games Industry: 3/25/2019 – 3/31/2019

Nintendo to unveil two Switch models this summer, The Wall Street Journal reports I wonder how Nintendo will handle making it clear which games run on which versions of Switch. Sweeney commits to human moderators & quality filters for Epic’s Games Store Let’s put that Fortnite money to good use! EA Lays Off 350 People […]

This Week in the Games Industry: 3/18/2019 – 3/24/2019

Four Indian cities ban PUBG Mobile At least 10 people arrested for playing PUBG Mobile. And you thought YOUR parents were strict. ‘No console required’: Google unveils streaming game platform, ‘Stadia’ This is either the start of something huge or a whole lot of nothing. Unions Stole The Show At Last Night’s GDC Awards. I […]

This Week in the Games Industry: 3/11/2019 – 3/17/2019

After Cocaine Arrest, Sega Halts Sales of Game Is this the point where we air a commercial with a close-up on a frying egg and an announcer saying: “This is your game on drugs”? App Annie: Tencent retains spot as top revenue-earning publisher for third year Welcome to the surprisingly stable top grosser lists of […]

This Week in the Games Industry: 3/4/2019 – 3/10/2019

The attention economy is dead (But Fortnite might have the answer) The attention economy is dead, long live the attention economy Vivendi has sold off its final Ubisoft shares Vivendi tapping out and crying “oncle” Valve says it won’t publish game about raping women, after ‘significant discussion’ Valve’s policy continues to be case-by-case hot potato […]

This Week in the Games Industry: 2/25/2019 – 3/3/2019

Popular Horror Game Removed From Steam After Chinese Players Say It Insults China A lot of angles to examine here and almost all of them are terrifying. Epic Games accused of exploiting African American talent in latest dance move lawsuit When Fortnite came out did anyone think it would potentially establish precedent for dance copyright […]

This Week in the Games Industry: 2/18/2019 – 2/24/2019

TinyBuild nets $15M in funding to expand team and boost publishing efforts http://gamasutra.com/view/news/336798/TinyBuild_nets_15M_in_funding_to_expand_team_and_boost_publishing_efforts.php Given their support for indies, I’m encouraged to see TinyBuild grow a little bigger. Valve retires non-gaming content from video on-demand service https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2019-02-20-valve-retires-non-gaming-content-from-video-on-demand-service This is what happens when someone asks the important question: “Wait… Why are we doing this again?” Sony is […]