Unprecedented consolidation of the games market continues. According to the latest report by Drake Star Partners, game companies have already raised $71 billion in 844 deals so far this year, which is double the full dollar amount from 2020.

Arkane Lyon studio director Romuald Capron has announced his departure from the company, saying that it was a hard decision to make and promising to keep on helping other great developers. He worked at the studio for 16 years.

Although it’s been a while since Ubisoft shared any information about Beyond Good & Evil 2, the game is still in development. The French publisher is now hiring more devs to work on it.

Facebook and its owned platforms were down for almost six hours on October 4, which affected not only billions of users around the world but also game companies using its services.

Strategy is now the third biggest genre in the US, according to the latest report by GameRefinery. This category accounts for 17% of the US iOS market’s revenues, with developers implementing more genre-blending mechanics.

Earlier this year, Apple made a few changes to Apple Arcade, bringing more successful iOS titles to its subscription service. Discoverability expert Simon Carless tried to break down the reasons behind the company’s new strategy.

French publisher Voodoo has announced a new competition for game prototypes, open to all studios worldwide. From October 10th to December 10th, studios can enter an unlimited number of prototypes for the chance to win $1 million or more.

CD Projekt has announced a new scholarship “Girls in the game!” (Dziewczyny w grze!), which is aimed at supporting female students and preparing them to work in the games industry.

Indie developer Seyed Nasrollahi has analyzed the results of the Kickstarter campaign for his game Operation Outsmart, which managed to reach only around 10% of its initial goal. Despite the bad results, he decided to share his experience with other devs.

Some dialogues and scenes have been changed or removed from the upcoming VR version of Resident Evil 4. According to the latest report, this act of censorship came at the request of Facebook.

Apple might not be making games, but it knows how to monetize them. A report by The Wall Street Journal suggests the iPhone maker is generating more video games revenue than the key platform holders.

Paradox Interactive has discontinued the development of several unannounced titles. The company has written down their value, which is $15.3 million (135 MSEK), impacting the Q3 2021 profit before tax.

The Chinese government has licensed no new games over the last two months, with the approval rules becoming increasingly strict. The latest report suggests that the list of taboo topics is now much larger.

It looks like Konami might finally be ready to breathe new life into some of its most famous franchises. The Japanese company reportedly plans to revive IPs like Metal Gear and Castlevania.

With the announcement of GXC, indie developers now have a new platform to self-publish their titles. The service, launched by Opera, lets devs release games straight from GameMaker Studio 2 to a browser.

Amplifier Game Invest, a subsidiary of Embracer Group, has launched new development studio Zapper Games in Raleigh, North Carolina.

PlayStation Studios keeps growing, with Bluepoint Games having officially joined the family. Sony acquired the team known for remakes and remasters of classic games.

Digital Matters has been launched by former WB Games marketing director Spencer Crossley. According to the publisher, one of its goals is to solve the “marketing problem” for indie games.

Niko Partners senior analyst Daniel Ahmad has shared his thoughts on the possible impact of the latest regulations on China’s games industry. Local regulators are now trying to close loopholes for developers, forcing them to comply with the law.