| Game World Observer

Industry News July 28, 2022

Diablo Immortal becomes second fastest video game IP to surpass $100 million in mobile revenue

Diablo Immortal has reached another revenue milestone. According to Sensor Tower, the mobile version of Blizzard’s latest game has already generated over $100 million in less than two months since its launch.

Legal July 28, 2022

FTC aims to block Meta from buying VR studio Within and monopolizing VR industry

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed a complaint to block Meta’s proposed acquisition of Within Unlimited, a studio known for its VR app Supernatural. This deal, according to the regulator, will let the company kill competition and become a monopolist in the industry.

Industry News July 28, 2022

New studio Dark Passenger led by former CDPR devs to make online game set in feudal Japan

Another studio led by former CD Projekt RED developers has been announced. Dark Passenger is now working on its debut title, an online action game about shinobi and kunoichi warriors.

Market Analysis July 27, 2022

Newzoo cuts global games industry revenue forecast to $196.8 billion due to supply issues and game delays

More analysts forecast a slight recession in the games market this year. Newzoo lowered its global gaming revenues estimates from the $203.1 billion it had expected before.

Industry News July 27, 2022

Rockstar abandoned its ‘boy’s club’ past and fired toxic managers. But will it help make GTA VI a better game?

Jason Schreier has reported on workplace improvements that have happened at Rockstar over the last three years. One employee described the changes as a “boys’ club transformed into a real company.” But some devs are skeptical about the future of GTA.

Industry News July 27, 2022

Former Dragon Age producer Christian Dailey heads up new Wizards of the Coast’s studio Skeleton Key

Wizards of the Coast has opened its new studio, Skeleton Key. Led by industry veteran Christian Dailey, the team will focus on making AAA games.

Industry News July 27, 2022

PlayStation launches new indie program to provide developers with free PS dev kits

Indie creators will now be able to receive free PlayStation 5 dev kits through a new program. This is part of Sony’s strategy to improve the publishing process on its gaming platform.

Industry News July 27, 2022

Report: Saber may take over Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake amid Aspyr Media shakeup

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake might be in “serious trouble” after three years into development. Aspyr Media has put the game on pause, with some devs thinking it will be taken over by another studio.

Market Analysis July 26, 2022

Steam games revenue grew to $3.1 billion in first half of 2022, but analysts expect slight recession

After growing rapidly over the past two years, the Steam market is now facing a recession. Analysts expect a slight decline in games revenues on the platform in 2022 due to a number of macroeconomic factors.

Industry News July 26, 2022

PUBG maker Krafton already invested $100 million in India, plans to double that amount in 2022

Krafton has been building up its presence in the Indian market after relaunching PUBG Mobile in the country last year. The company has already invested $100 million in local startups, planning to double that amount this year.

Industry News July 26, 2022

Capcom cites lack of new major games as reason for nearly 50% drop in net sales

Capcom has released a new financial report for the three months ended June 30. Despite seeing a decline in both net sales and operating income, the company still expects to achieve its goal for the current fiscal year.

Industry News July 26, 2022

Report: Roblox expected Tencent to clone its gaming platform for Chinese players

Roblox had to take several steps to comply with China’s censorship, a new portion of leaked internal documents has revealed. The company also expected Tencent to clone the game and make its own version for the local audience.

Market Analysis July 25, 2022

AppMagic breaks down key trends in Merge games to see whether devs should jump into this genre in 2022

Merge has been one of the ever-evolving genres on mobile for a while. AppMagic has interviewed several games industry experts to put the entire category under the microscope. This article highlights the key trends while trying to answer the question of whether the Merge genre is worth trying now.

Legal July 25, 2022

Court approves Riot Games’ $100 million gender discrimination settlement

Last year, Riot Games agreed to settle a gender discrimination lawsuit for $100 million. Now it has been approved by the court, meaning that women who sued the company will get their compensation.

Industry News July 25, 2022

Diablo Immortal surpasses 20 million installs, approaching $80 million in mobile revenue

Despite all the controversy and criticism, Diablo Immortal has reached another milestone. According to Blizzard, the game has generated over 20 million installs on both PC and mobile.

Industry News July 21, 2022

Former Last of Us and Uncharted director Bruce Straley forms Wildflower to make “small-ish, creatively-charged” games

Bruce Straley, known for his work on The Last of Us and Uncharted, has announced his return to the games industry. The Naughty Dog veteran has started a new studio called Wildflower to make smaller, “creatively-charged” video games.

Industry News July 20, 2022

Rockstar posted 300 new jobs this month as GTA 6 development picks up pace

The next GTA game is still shrouded in mystery. However, its development might be picking up pace. This month alone, Rockstar posted hundreds of new jobs covering pretty much every gamedev-related discipline.

Industry News July 20, 2022

QA testers at Blizzard Albany, formerly Vicarious Visions, announce new union at Activision Blizzard

Blizzard Albany employees have decided to follow in the footsteps of Raven Software. A group of the studio’s QA testers are now forming a union and seeking Activision Blizzard’s recognition.

Industry News July 19, 2022

League of Legends: Wild Rift tops $500 million in player spending, bringing Riot’s total mobile revenue to over $800 million

Riot Games has reached another milestone on mobile. League of Legends: Wild Rift has surpassed $500 million in player spending, according to Sensor Tower. It is the company’s third and most successful mobile title to date.

Featured July 19, 2022

ZiMAD on how it tripled Domino Online’s player count and increased its ad revenue fivefold

In 2020, ZiMAD was looking to acquire a casual game that would seamlessly fit into its portfolio of board games, when it found Domino Online. At the time, however, its metrics were mediocre at best. In this article, Yana Vesnina, M&A manager at ZiMAD, explains why the publisher decided to buy the game and how it managed to dramatically increase its revenue.

All publications of the author

Diablo Immortal becomes second fastest video game IP to surpass $100 million in mobile revenue

FTC aims to block Meta from buying VR studio Within and monopolizing VR industry

New studio Dark Passenger led by former CDPR devs to make online game set in feudal Japan

Newzoo cuts global games industry revenue forecast to $196.8 billion due to supply issues and game delays

Rockstar abandoned its ‘boy’s club’ past and fired toxic managers. But will it help make GTA VI a better game?

Former Dragon Age producer Christian Dailey heads up new Wizards of the Coast’s studio Skeleton Key

PlayStation launches new indie program to provide developers with free PS dev kits

Report: Saber may take over Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake amid Aspyr Media shakeup

Steam games revenue grew to $3.1 billion in first half of 2022, but analysts expect slight recession

PUBG maker Krafton already invested $100 million in India, plans to double that amount in 2022

Capcom cites lack of new major games as reason for nearly 50% drop in net sales

Report: Roblox expected Tencent to clone its gaming platform for Chinese players

AppMagic breaks down key trends in Merge games to see whether devs should jump into this genre in 2022

Court approves Riot Games’ $100 million gender discrimination settlement

Diablo Immortal surpasses 20 million installs, approaching $80 million in mobile revenue

Former Last of Us and Uncharted director Bruce Straley forms Wildflower to make “small-ish, creatively-charged” games

Rockstar posted 300 new jobs this month as GTA 6 development picks up pace

QA testers at Blizzard Albany, formerly Vicarious Visions, announce new union at Activision Blizzard

League of Legends: Wild Rift tops $500 million in player spending, bringing Riot’s total mobile revenue to over $800 million

ZiMAD on how it tripled Domino Online’s player count and increased its ad revenue fivefold