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Industry News July 12, 2021

Rare copy of Super Mario 64 sold for $1.5 million, breaking record set just 2 days ago by The Legend of Zelda

Owning a nice sealed cartridge of one of Nintendo’s iconic games might be a good investment. Rare copies of Super Mario 64 and The Legend of Zelda have been sold for record-breaking sums in the span of just two days.

Legal July 12, 2021

Video games in and out of court (January — June 2021)

This is the latest installment of Semenov&Pevzner’s overview of the gaming industry’s major lawsuits and disputes from all over the world.

Industry News July 12, 2021

PUBG dethrones Sea of Thieves from top of Steam weekly chart

Last week, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds became the best-selling game on Steam. And Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin was the only new title in the chart.

Industry News July 12, 2021

NYPD rolls out ‘game truck’ for local kids to play games, raising concerns about mass surveillance

The New York Police Department has introduced a new “game truck” earlier this month. The idea is to give local kids from low-income neighborhoods a chance to play video games. Although the police say they have good intentions, some people believe it’s just another method of mass surveillance.

Industry News July 12, 2021

Arrowhead invests in development incubator to open ‘Game Villages’ outside big cities

Arrowhead Game Studios, known for games like Magicka and Gauntlet, has made an investment in Mind Detonator. It is a development incubator that helps aspiring devs who live outside big cities.

Industry News July 9, 2021

Ubisoft at risk of losing revenue and talent in wake of abuse and toxic work culture allegations

Ubisoft has addressed last year’s abuse accusations in its latest Universal Registration Document. The company acknowledged high risks of failing to hire and retain talent due to its internal problems.

Industry News July 9, 2021

Half-Life level designer reveals early prototypes of original game, and they look much like Quake

Brett Johnson, who designed levels for the original Half-Life, has shared a few prototypes of the game. It’s not only a good chance to see how the project initially looked but also how “Quake-ish” it was.

Industry News July 9, 2021

Bloober Team denies Silent Hill rumors, confirms development of two ‘bigger’ games

After the information about Bloober Team receiving grants for four games from The European Union’s Media Program has been made public, fans started to speculate that one of them could be a new Silent Hill project. However, the studio has dispelled all the rumors.

Industry News July 8, 2021

Silent Hill and Siren creators describe their new game as “horrific yet aesthetically beautiful”

Bokeh Game Studio is a new team consisted of the Silent Hill and Siren creators. They are now working on their debut project, and here’s what the developers have told about the upcoming horror game.

Industry News July 8, 2021

Chinese regulators limit potential of domestic console market, but indie devs to fill content gap

The console market is still relatively small in China due to its strict regulatory environment. However, domestic indie developers are now trying to fill this content gap by producing more games that appeal to the audience.

Industry News July 8, 2021

CD Projekt officially closes deal to buy Digital Scapes and open its first office in Canada

Vancouver-based Digital Scapes has officially joined CD Projekt, becoming the company’s first office in Canada. The studio previously assisted the Polish developer during the making of Cyberpunk 2077.

Industry News July 8, 2021

New cheat based on machine learning to make consoles “no longer a safe space” to play Call of Duty

Console players might face problems, as there is a new cheat that is becoming a trend. It uses machine learning to aim at targets, also making it hard for developers to track and block it.

Industry News July 8, 2021

Amazon’s ‘draconian rules’ for creating your own games spark heated debate among developers

James Liu, a software engineer at Google, has shared a piece of Amazon’s employment contract. The post went viral due to some rules the company allegedly has regarding creating your personal games as a hobby. Here is what other developers and users think of it.

Industry News July 8, 2021

Google sued by over 30 states over ‘extravagant’ Play Store commission

More than 30 states have filed a lawsuit, accusing Google of being a monopolist and abusing its anti-competitive tactics. The company’s commission on its mobile app store is the main subject of the latest complaint.

Industry News July 7, 2021

Embracer Group bought 27 studios in just 12 months. Analysts ask: “What happens when they run out of targets?”

Swedish holding Embracer Group has been growing rapidly thanks to its strong M&A performance. The question is what will happen when there are no more targets for the company’s future acquisitions?

Industry News July 7, 2021

Ubisoft confirms Assassin’s Creed Infinity — live service game led by one of Splinter Cell creators

It’s been officially revealed that Ubisoft has started to work on Assassin’s Creed Infinity. It’ll probably be a live service platform that will define the franchise’s future. One of the original Splinter Cell creators will creatively lead the project.

Industry News July 7, 2021

Fortnite under scrutiny in Indonesia, while Egypt issues fatwa against Epic’s hit over “Kaaba destruction” content

On July 5, Sandiaga Uno, Indonesian Tourism and Creative Economy Minister, called for a ban on Fortnite. This happened days after Egypt’s Rabat-Al-Azhar Fatwa Global Center issued a fatwa against video games, and Fortnite specifically.

Industry News July 7, 2021

South Korea’s frustrated teens file petition to repeal law prohibiting them from playing Minecraft

Uner the South Korean laws, Minecraft is now basically an adult-only game in the country. That’s why frustrated gamers who can’t play it before they turn 19 years old have decided to file a petition to the presidential office.

Industry News July 7, 2021

Flying Oak Games’ Thomas Altenburger: 5% of games made 90% of all sales on Steam in 2020

Thomas Altenburger, head of Flying Oak Games, the indie studio behind ScourgeBringer and NeuroVoider, has shared some insightful stats re sales on Steam in 2020.

Industry News July 6, 2021

Red Candle Games describes sales of self-published version of Devotion as “insignificant”

Taiwanese developer Red Candle has discussed the fate of its troubled horror game Devotion nearly three months since its re-release on the developer’s website. The sales, according to the studio, have been insignificant compared to Devotion’s performance on Steam where the title debuted two years ago.