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Industry News April 15, 2022

Bandai Namco launches 021 fund to accelerate its goal of building “metaverse concerning IP”

Bandai Namco has established 021 Fund aimed at creating partnerships with technology startups. This move should accelerate the company’s metaverse ambitions.

Industry News April 15, 2022

GitHub starts blocking accounts of Russian devs and companies, including sanctioned banks

GitHub has started suspending accounts of Russia-registered users in accordance with the latest full blocking sanctions placed by the US. This affected not only large banks, but individual developers as well.

Industry News April 15, 2022

Hideo Kojima dispels PlayStation acquisition rumors, Kojima Productions to stay independent

In the wake of the latest rumors about Kojima Productions being acquired by Sony, Hideo Kojima has insisted on the studio’s independence.

Industry News April 15, 2022

Russia and Belarus accounted for 5.4% of CD Projekt RED revenues before company’s exodus from these markets

CD Projekt has opened up about the potential impact of its exodus from Russia and Belarus. The company noted that it won’t “have a significant negative impact” on its operations.

Industry News April 14, 2022

Tencent to block Chinese players’ access to foreign unlicensed games through its speed booster apps

Tencent has announced a few changes to its apps for boosting internet speed. This move will block Chinese gamers’ access to many foreign titles, which weren’t approved by the government.

Industry News April 14, 2022

Group of Activision Blizzard investors urge other stakeholders to vote against Microsoft deal

SOC Investment Group has raised concerns over Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, saying that it fails to properly value the Call of Duty publisher. The firm urged other stakeholders to vote against the deal.

Industry News April 14, 2022

Halo Infinite’s concurrent player count on Steam falls below The Master Chief Collection

Halo Infinite has lost 97% of its peak audience on Steam since its launch, currently peaking at less than 8k concurrent players on Steam. It is less than the number of The Master Chief Collection players.

Market Analysis April 14, 2022

Mobile games market reached almost 5 billion downloads in March, with Merge Master leading charts

Sensor Tower has shared a report on the most downloaded mobile games for March 2022. Merge Master leads the list with 28.3 million installs.

Industry News April 14, 2022

Pokémon UNITE surpasses 70 million downloads on mobile and Nintendo Switch

Nintendo’s MOBA Pokémon UNITE has reached a new milestone. The Tencent-developed game has now generated over 70 million downloads globally since its launch.

Industry News April 14, 2022

AC and WD dev Patrick Plourde leaves Ubisoft after 19 years, starts his own consultancy

Patrick Plourde, who worked on one of Ubisoft’s main franchises, has left the company after 19 years. He will now be consulting other studios and developers.

Industry News April 14, 2022

CD Projekt to finish The Witcher 3’s next-gen version in-house, postpones it indefinitely

CD Projekt has delayed the next-gen version of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, which has been in development by Saber Interactive. The Polish company will finish the production itself, though it is unclear when the upgrade will come out.

Deals April 13, 2022

Epic Games invests in AQUIRIS, Brazilian studio behind Wonderbox and Horizon Chase

Epic Games has invested in Aquiris, known for games like Wonderbox and Horizon Chase. The Unreal maker will publish upcoming multiplatform titles from the Brazilian studio.

Industry News April 13, 2022

Electronic Arts removes all Russian teams and stadiums from FIFA 22

EA has removed all Russian themes from FIFA 22 following its decision to suspend game sales in the country. The company noted that it “stands in solidarity with the Ukrainian people.”

Deals April 13, 2022

Embracer’s Aspyr Media snaps up Beamdog, studio behind Baldur’s Gate remasters

Aspyr Media, which is a part of Embracer Group, has acquired Beamdog. It will also publish the studio’s upcoming roguelite MythForce.

Industry News April 13, 2022

Sony and Nintendo pledge to update subscription guidelines following UK watchdog’s investigation

Sony and Nintendo have pledged to update subscription renewal rules in the UK. The platform holders made the decision following an investigation conducted by the country’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

Market Analysis April 13, 2022

Sensor Tower: Honor of Kings generated over $270 million in March, leaving PUBG Mobile and Genshin Impact behind

Sensor Tower has shared a report on the highest-grossing mobile games globally for March 2022. Tencent’s hit Honor of Kings topped the charts once again.

Industry News April 13, 2022

Weird West attracts over 400,000 players in less than two weeks since its launch

Devolver Digital has shared the first results for Weird West, a debut game from Raphael Colantonio’s new studio WolfEye. The publisher also revealed the title’s content roadmap.

Events April 13, 2022

WN Conference coming to Istanbul, event to take place on June 7-8

WN Media Group has shared details about the upcoming WN Conference in Turkey. WN Conference Istanbul’22 will take place on June 7-8.

Game Development April 12, 2022

Diablo creator David Brevik asks whether devs can find success making small cheap games in $3-5 range

David Brevik, known as the creator of Diablo and Hellblade: London, has been thinking about making cheap but quality titles with his studio Graybeard Games. So he asked other devs about the viability of this model.

Industry News April 12, 2022

Tencent named top mobile publisher by consumer spend in 2021, outshining NetEase and Activision

data.ai has revealed the winners of its Top Publisher Award 2022, sharing a list of 52 companies ranging by global consumer spend over the last year. The ranking includes publishers like Tencent, Activision Blizzard, miHoYo, and NetEase.