Tag: Industry - Page 18
News PlayStation Suspends All Operations in Russia, Including PS Store
Sony pledges $2 million donation to support victims
PlayStation has suspended all ongoing operations in Russia, following the country’s invasion of Ukraine. In a statement posted on social media, the gaming giant stated that it “joins the global community calling for peace in Ukraine”. This follows similar announcements from a number of other...
News Gravity Rush's Kat Cropped Out of International Women's Day Promo on PS5
We'll never forget her
Poor ol’ Kat. The Gravity Rush protagonist and PlayStation faithful’s favourite appears to have been cropped out of a piece of repurposed International Women’s Day artwork in a promo on the PS Store. To mark the occasion, Sony is celebrating games with female protagonists, like Horizon Forbidden West and Uncharted: The...
News NIS America Has a Cool New Logo
Applies to Europe, too
Nippon Ichi Software — or NIS for short — has revealed a new company logo (as seen above). Here in the West, the Japanese publisher is best know through its US-based arm, NIS America — which this new logo applies to, as well as its European counterpart. NIS is most widely known for role-playing games like Disgaea. It...
News EA Sports Hints FIFA Has Been an Impediment As It Looks Set to Break Ties
"It's four letters on the front of the box"
A future where FIFA games have a different name is looking likelier. Reports have been swirling for some time that EA Sports is considering abandoning the brand, and now a frank appraisal from CEO Andrew Wilson, as reported by VGC, makes it seem even more likely. In a speech allegedly giv
News PlayStation Liverpool's New Luxury City Digs Look Lovely
This means more
As we reported earlier in the month, PlayStation is relocating its office in Liverpool. The company’s new 65,000-square-foot digs will bring it into the bosom of the city, after a stint at Wavertree Technology Park dating all the way back to the PS1. Sony’s Dave Parkinson shared some swish new photos of the campus on
News Former Witcher 3 Devs Working on 'AAA RPG Saga' at New Rebel Wolves Studio
For "next-gen consoles"
Veteran developers who worked on The Witcher 3, Cyberpunk 2077, and "many others" have opened a new studio named Rebel Wolves. As you might expect, it'll focus on role-playing games. Its first mission is to develop a new "dark fantasy, AAA RPG saga for PCs and next-gen consoles". We assume that means PlayStation 5 — but we...
News Sony to Open Bumper New Office in Liverpool, UK
You'll never walk alone, etc
Liverpool, UK: the city of The Beatles, Cilla Black, and meaning more. It’s also the home to some of Sony’s central operations, including its XDEV division which works with external developers on PlayStation Studios projects. But now it’s moving to a new office, having been situated at Wavertree Technology Park...
News Gran Turismo Sophy Is an AI Quicker Than Pro Drivers
To be implemented into future games
As teased at the start of this week, Sony AI and Gran Turismo 7 developer Polyphony Digital have announced their joint "breakthrough project" of an AI that beats the lap times of professional drivers. Named Gran Turismo Sophy, the team is working out how to implement it into future entries of the GT series. It...
News Sony More Likely Than Microsoft to Acquire a Japanese Game Company, Analyst Explains
Believes Sony may be planning a move in Japan
If Microsoft's planned $68 billion buyout of Activision Blizzard has you wondering who's next, and whether the tech giant could scoop up your favourite Japanese publisher at any moment, then we've got good news: it probably, maybe, might not happen. Video game consultant and writer Nathan Brown has...
News Sony AI and Gran Turismo 7 Dev Polyphony Digital to Announce Breakthrough Project
Don't get too excited
Sony AI and Gran Turismo 7 developer Polyphony Digital will announce a “breakthrough project in AI” on 9th February. The teaser trailer is far too ambiguous to draw any conclusions from, but we’re going to assume this is all related to a study that was published last year, in which the companies accurately taught an...
News PlatinumGames Boss Might Be Hinting at 'Longer' Live Service Titles
Rules of nature
Interesting quotes from PlatinumGames CEO Atsushi Inaba are currently doing the rounds online. Speaking to Famitsu (as translated by VGC), Inaba comments on the Japanese studio's future output. As you may already know, Platinum has long been an action title powerhouse, primarily creating intense but relatively short single-player...
News Nintendo Switch Has Now Outsold PS1, Targeting PS4 Next
Records exist to be broken
Sony’s iconic PS1 has had its lifetime sales surpassed by the Nintendo Switch, as the House of Mario’s hybrid hardware looks on track to overtake the PlayStation 4 as well. In its latest financial report, the Japanese company revealed that, as of 31st December, 2021, an eye-watering 103.54 million Switch systems had...
News Sony Is Spending Over $1 Billion to Ensure Bungie Employees Don't Leave
Well, okay then
Whatever it is that Bungie is cooking in addition to Destiny 2 must be pretty goddamn special, because Sony is spending $1.2 billion on ensuring the developer’s staff don’t leave. The company explained during its earnings report that roughly a third of its $3.6 billion buyout fee will be used for “deferred payments to employee...
News Sony 'Vastly Overpaid' in 'Desperation' for Bungie, Says Outspoken Analyst Michael Pachter
The Pach-Attack
Ah, Michael Pachter. The Wedbush Securities analyst has been providing commentary on gaming industry news for years — usually provoking irate reactions from fans of particular brands. Anyway, he's back again, and this time, he's got a pretty strong opinion on Sony's recent buyout of Bungie for $3.6 billion. Basically, Pachter...
News Geoff Keighley Hints at More Gaming Acquisitions in 2022
"Big deals in final stages of negotiations"
Master of Hype Geoff Keighley is at it again, but this time he's adding fuel to the now roaring fire that is gaming company acquisitions. The Game Awards organiser and host is obviously extremely well connected, and he straight-up says that more buyouts are incoming. Keighley posted on Twitter: "Have...
Reaction Sony's Bungie Buyout Means Little for PS5, PS4 Fans Right Now
Destiny unknown
Well, here we are again – another domino has dropped in the unstoppable march towards corporate consolidation. This time, though, our team has won: Bungie, the legendary creator of Halo and Destiny, is a PlayStation Studio! Except it’s not, but it also kinda is. The industry is weird these days so you’re going to have to stick...
News PlayStation Boss Jim Ryan Says You Should Expect More Acquisitions
The only place to play
Is this the beginning of a new gaming industry arms race? It certainly seems like a fair assumption, given that Sony has just bought Bungie for $3.6 billion. And of course, this news follows on from Microsoft's eye-watering $68 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Obviously the financial value between these acquired...
News Game Over, Yeahhh! SEGA Dumps Japanese Arcades After 50 Years
Quarterly review
SEGA is pulling out of the Japanese arcade business after an iconic 50 year run. The company’s logo is synonymous with Tokyo’s once-bustling arcade scene, but it will sell all of its existing amusements to Genda Inc, a rival organisation that operates locations under the GiGO branding. It’s the end of an era, but hardly...
News Sony Team London Studio Bolstering Ranks for Online PS5 Game
Still no clue what it could be
Sony first-party London Studio is continuing to staff up for its PlayStation 5 online game. We’ve known about production on this project for quite some time now, as it’s been recruiting since the release of Blood & Truth for PSVR. While many had expected it to continue its work in virtual reality with
We hope you like Star Wars
EA may have lost exclusive dibs on the Star Wars license, but it’s not backing away from the juggernaut film franchise at all. As part of a press release today, it’s confirmed that Respawn Entertainment is working on three different licensed titles inspired by the Lucasfilm franchise. This will include a sequel to Star...
News Nagoshi Studio Set Up by NetEase, Yakuza Creator Leads
Will announce first game as soon as possible
NetEase has now formally announced Nagoshi Studio after Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi left SEGA for the Chinese company last year. He will be joined by eight other developers from RGG Studio as founding members, and the team is hoping to reveal its first game as soon as possible. The other eight...
News Sony Partner Deviation Games Expands with New Canadian Studio
Recruiting at a rapid rate
New studio helmed – ironically – by Call of Duty alumni Deviation Games is expanding at a rapid rate as work begins in earnest on its debut project, which will be published under the PlayStation Studios umbrella. Such is the speed of its growth, in fact, that it’s already opened a second office to complement its Los...
News Analyst Expects PS5 to Seriously Outperform Xbox This Year
Two-to-one
Things may be getting hotter in the boardrooms following Microsoft’s near-$70 billion buyout of Activision Blizzard, but it’s the PlayStation 5 that will keep cash registers alight this year. That’s according to Ampere research director Piers Harding-Rolls, who believes that Sony will sell 18 million new-gen consoles this year to...
News Sony Is Not Making More PS4s to Make Up for PS5 Stock Shortfall
Production was always planned, company says
Sony has responded to reports which suggested it was making more PlayStation 4 consoles to deal with a shortfall of PS5 stock. Speaking with NLab, as reported by Yahoo, a
Little fish
In an interview anecdote published by the Washington Post, chatty Xbox chief Phil Spencer has said that he trusts the likes of Sony, Nintendo, and Valve not to damage the gaming industry – it’s tech giants like Amazon, Apple, and Google that he’s concerned about. The conversation is, of course, shadowed by his company’s...
News EA Is the Next Major Publisher Tipped for a Takeover
A rich man's world
With Microsoft’s near-$70 billion buyout of Activision Blizzard, all bets are basically off the table. While you could explain away Bethesda’s acquisition as an anomaly – it was a struggling publisher that was privately owned – it’s clear that we’re now waist-deep in an industry consolidation era. Other publishers will...
News Sony Responds to Activision Blizzard Buyout, Expects Games to Still Come to PS5, PS4
Wants contracts to be abided by
Sony has this morning issued a statement in response to Microsoft's $69 billion dollar deal to purchase Activision. In a quote shared with The Wall Street Journal via a Sony spokesperson, the firm said: "We expect that Microsoft will abide by contractual agreements and continue to ensure Activision games are...
News All These Activision Blizzard Studios Will Likely Cease PlayStation Development
All the teams on the line
Sony’s slate of PlayStation Studios was once regarded as the strongest in the industry, but even with recent additions like Housemarque and Firesprite, it’s now dwarfed by Microsoft following its publisher shopping spree. So, we’ve already looked at the brands and franchises that will almost certainly cease to exist...
News These Are the Franchises PS5, PS4 May Lose to Activision Blizzard Buyout
There's a lot
Until the ink is dry on Microsoft’s colossal Activision Blizzard buyout, the status of franchises like Call of Duty will likely remain unclear. For the time being, it’s business as usual for all involved, and Bloomberg sources have said that Xbox may continue to support PlayStation platforms in the future – although as evidenced...
News Sony Stock Value Loses $20 Billion, But Will Likely Recover
Biggest drop since 2008
Sony shares have fallen by 13 per cent — which equates to roughly $20 billion — since Microsoft announced its plans to acquire Call of Duty publisher Activision for $68 billion. The sharp drop in market value represents Sony's biggest loss since October 2008, removing $20 billion from the company's value in just one day...
News Activision CEO Bobby Kotick Leaving Role Once Microsoft Buyout Is Done, Says Report
WSJ sources claim
Activision boss Bobby Kotick will leave his role as CEO once Microsoft has completed its $70 billion buyout of the Call of Duty company, the Wall Street Journal claims. Sources close to the acquisition plans indicate he will leave the firm after the deal closes, which is expected to take place at some point next
News Will Call of Duty and Other Activision Blizzard Games Come to PS5, PS4?
Outlook not so good
Update #2: Xbox bigwig Phil Spencer has made the following statement to Bloomberg: “I’ll just say to players out there who are playing Activision Blizzard games on Sony’s platform: it’s not our intent to pull communities away from that platform and we remained committed to that.” Make of that what you will. Update #1:
News PlayStation's Call of Duty Marketing Deal Almost Certainly Ending
Say goodbye to those small bonuses
Sony's marketing deal with Call of Duty, which promotes the latest game alongside PlayStation 5 and PS4 consoles and gives owners digital goodies on the platforms, will almost certainly come to an end as a result of Microsoft's $70 billion purchase of the company. Sony has been a key partner for the series since...
News Xbox Now Owns Legendary PlayStation Series Crash Bandicoot, Spyro the Dragon
Woah
A curious consequence of Microsoft’s earth-shattering $70 billion buyout of Activision is that Xbox now owns legendary PlayStation franchises Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon. Sony made these games in collaboration with Universal Interactive back in the 90s, but that company was acquired by Vivendi which later merged with Activision to...
News Microsoft Buys Call of Duty Publisher Activision Blizzard
Game over
In news that will once again rock the industry, Microsoft has bought Activision Blizzard, the publisher of franchises like Call of Duty and World of Warcraft. The deal is reportedly valued at $70 billion, which is several times the sum that the giant already stumped up for Bethesda. It will presumably mean that franchises like Call of...
News PlayStation Wants Global Game Jam 2022 to Explore VR and Eye-Tracking
As PSVR2 includes feature
Global Game Jam 2022 is right around the corner, encouraging creators from around the world to come together and collaborate on simple software ideas in a short, friendly, competition-based format. Sony, as an industry leader, is backing the event, and has sponsored a “diversifier” – an optional sub-challenge which...
News Sony's Own First-Party Studios Championed PC Ports
"This is a really good idea"
Sony’s transition into the PC market is looking to be a lucrative move for the manufacturer, but it’s the firm’s own first-party studios that championed the move. Following the launch of God of War last week – which registered over 70,000 concurrent players on Steam at one point this past weekend – director...
News Sony Renews Psygnosis Trademark, But Don't Get Too Excited
Just procedure
Sony Interactive Entertainment has just secured a trademark renewal for Psygnosis, the legendary studio that would go on to become Studio Liverpool. However, we wouldn't hold our breath to see the developer reemerge in 2022 — this appears to be a very routine trademark protection move. Analyst Roberto Serrano spotted the renewal,...
News We're Sure Everyone Will Be Calm About SEGA NFT Trademark
Not
Ah, good ol’ non-fungible tokens. They’re the technology no one really understands – not even, we’d argue, the people endorsing them – but you can either hate or you can create. Ain’t that right, Troy Baker? Seriously, though, we’re slowly seeing more games publishers adopt the controversial format, as perhaps best evidenced by...
News Motorstorm Director Joins Firesprite As Twisted Metal PS5 Changes Dev
Tooth ache
Update: As spotted by ResetEra, veteran Motorstorm director Matt Southern has left his job at Lucid Games to join Firesprite. It might be safe to assume that Southern was involved with Sony's new-gen Twisted Metal reboot, which has changed developer from Lucid Games to Firesprite. Of course, it won't change the commute too much for...
News SEGA Adds Sapporo Studio to Japanese Internal Operations
New year, new team
SEGA is beefing up its in-house Japanese operations with the establishment of a new Sapporo studio, to complement its existing slate of Tokyo teams. As the name obviously indicates, this group will work out of the northern Hokkaido prefecture, and will be responsible for “development, design, debugging, sales, and import and...
News Sony Reportedly Planned to Cease PS4 Production at the End of 2021
PS5 shortages mean it'll keep going, though
Picking up a PlayStation 5 is still rather difficult, thanks to part shortages seriously slowing down production. Because of this, Sony Interactive Entertainment made the decision to continue making PS4 consoles throughout 2022. That's according to a new report from Bloomberg, who cite anonymous sources...
News GTA Publisher Acquires Mobile Giant Zynga for $12.7 Billion
To help company's mobile efforts
Take-Two, the publisher of blockbuster titles like Grant Theft Auto, Borderlands, and BioShock, has today announced its acquisition of mobile company Zynga for $12.7 billion. A giant in the business, the California-based developer is known for the likes of FarmVille and
Co-op shooter included with Game Pass on Xbox
Ubisoft+, the French publisher’s answer to subscriptions like EA Play, will launch on Xbox later this year – although despite some misleading wording, it will be a separate subscription to Microsoft’s own Game Pass. We’ve checked with the publisher to clarify this information, and it’s...
News BioShock Creator's Next Game Reportedly 'in Development Hell'
Ken Levine heavily criticised
The BioShock trilogy was perhaps one of the most important series of the PlayStation 3 generation, but fans looking for the next game from creator Ken Levine have been made to wait a lot longer than usual. It's been eight years since the auteur shuttered Irrational Games and set up shop with Ghost Story Games,...
News Sony Partner Deviation Games to Enter Full Production on PS5 Game in 2022
Finding the fun
Sony has acquired a lot of developers in 2021, but it’s also signed partnerships with exciting new teams like Deviation Games and Haven Studios. These aren’t particularly engaging unveilings because the outfits are just finding their feet, but they are led by veteran visionaries, like former Treyarch chief Jason Blundell in the...
News Naughty Dog Shares the Games That Inspired It in 2021
Deathloop! Returnal! It Takes Two!
It can be easy to forget that the people who make games also enjoy playing them – well, when they’re not bunkered down with bugs in their own projects, anyway. As such, this blog post from Naughty Dog makes for a refreshing read, as it shares some of its favourite games from the past year. We should caveat that...
News The Embracer Group Just Bought a Few More Game Studios
And comic book company Dark Horse
The Embracer Group is back yet again doing what it does best: acquiring a load of studios all at once. The new wave of acquisitions sees MMO developer Perfect World Entertainment bought up by the company as well as DIGIC, Spotfilm Networx, and Shiver Entertainment. Embracer Group has also added Dark Horse to its...
News Tencent Buys Back 4 Blood Developer Turtle Rock Studios
Once bitten, twice shy
Chinese juggernaut Tencent has purchased Slamfire, the parent company of Back 4 Blood developer Turtle Rock Studios. This means that the team will become part of the conglomerate, while retaining its “independent operations” in Lake Forest, California. The studio will continue to be fronted by co-founders Phil Robb and...
News Sony Quietly Shaping Up After Indie Backlash Earlier in the Year
You've changed, man
Perhaps one of the biggest takeaways from 2021, at least from a PlayStation persuasion, is that while Sony may not say much publicly, it’s always busy behind-the-scenes. We’ve seen evidence of that all year, whether it’s the announcement of surprise expansions like Ghost of Tsushima’s Iki Island or the sudden acquisition...
