2022-09

Cyberpunk 2077 is having a bit of a resurgence at the moment. CD Projekt Red's 2077 anime, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, developed by Studio Trigger and Netflix is out (as of today!) and the Phantom Liberty expansion for the game is due out next year. While Phantom Liberty has been confirmed to be 2077's first and only expansion, it seems CDPR is not yet ready to part with this world.  During the CD Projekt Group H1 2022 earnings call, CDPR's vice president of business development Michał Nowakowski said the studio is committed to doing more with this IP, as reported by IGN.  "We decided to develop one major expansion for Cyberpunk, which is going to take advantage of all the capabilities of the new-gen consoles," Nowakowski said during the call. "Having said that, we're totally, fully committed to developing the Cyberpunk IP further,...

Developer Platinum Games and publisher Square Enix have revealed that Babylon's Fall will shut down next year, less than a full year after its March 3 launch this year.  More specifically, Platinum Games will terminate the game's service on February 27, 2023. As for why, the team didn't really outline the reason but it's likely due to the game's poorly received launch and its lack of players since then. Square Enix tried to remedy the game's issues by sending players a survey asking them how the team can improve the game and shortly after, Platinum Games said it has "no plans to reduce the scale of development on Babylon's Fall." It seems things have changed because Babylon's Fall will fall early next year.  "With the desire of delivering an exhilarating online multiplayer action RPG set in an elaborate high fantasy world,...

Hot on the heels of the announcement of a long-awaited Nintendo Direct, PlayStation announced that tomorrow will also feature a special livestreamed presentation of its own. Now, in addition to that aforementioned Nintendo Direct tomorrow morning, we're now also receiving a PlayStation State of Play stream in the afternoon. The news comes as Tokyo Game Show looms, giving publishers a massive convention to piggyback off of. According to PlayStation, tomorrow's show will feature updates from some of the company's Japanese partners, as well as surprises from developers all around the world. Tomorrow's presentation is set to last approximately 20 minutes and will feature new updates and gameplay footage from 10 games across PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation VR2. This PlayStation State of Play stream is set for tomorrow, September 13 at 3 p.m. Pacific/6 p.m. Eastern. You can watch...

Following the launch of PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S, multiple video game publishers bumped up the price of new-gen versions of some of their games. While Ubisoft resisted that trend to this point, CEO Yves Guillemot tells Axios in an exclusive interview that it is making $70 the standard price for bigger triple-A experiences published by the company.  We already knew that the new-gen versions of Ubisoft's long-in-development pirate game, Skull and Bones, would retail for $70, but now it appears to be the start of the standard pricing for Ubisoft. In that interview with Axios, Guillemot stated that "Some of the games will come at the same price as the competition. The big AAA games will come at $70."  In 2020, Ubisoft CTO Frédérick Duguet said that games released in 2020 would not reach the $70 mark (and they didn't, outside of special editions). Then,...

Bonnie Ross, who co-founded current Halo developer 343 Industries and has served as the studio head since 2007, is leaving 343 and Xbox. The news comes by way of Ross' Twitter account, which mentions that she wished to stay with Halo until the upcoming Winter Update, but she is leaving the studio amid a family medical issue.  Since the studio's founding in 2007 under Ross, 343 Industries has worked on several Halo games, including Halo 4, Halo: The Master Chief Collection, Halo 5: Guardians, and Halo Infinite. The studio fully took over the Halo franchise following Bungie's departure from the brand after 2010's Halo: Reach. Ross oversaw the Halo franchise for Microsoft and Xbox ever since. She first joined Microsoft in 1994 and has worked on several projects in myriad roles, including studio manager, producer, general manager, and, most recently,...

Nintendo has revealed that it will livestream a Nintendo Direct tomorrow. More specifically, the Direct will begin at 7 a.m. PT/10 a.m. ET tomorrow, Sept. 13, and it will run for roughly 40 minutes. That's one of the largest Directs of the year, so it will likely be jam-packed with new looks at previously announced games and new ones, too (perhaps a Zelda port or two, if rumors about this Direct are correct). As for what to expect, Nintendo says the Direct will "mostly" focus on Switch games launching this Winter.  Tune in at 7 a.m. PT tomorrow, 9/13, for a #NintendoDirect livestream featuring roughly 40 minutes of information mostly focused on #NintendoSwitch games launching this winter. Watch it here 🎥:https://t.co/CqYDjy0iHo pic.twitter.com/xIplXiSvkO — Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) September 12, 2022 The key word here is "mostly" because that leaves just enough room...

Splatoon 3 is already shaping up to be another hit for the franchise and Nintendo. Selling 3.45 million copies since Friday in just Japan, Splatoon 3 had the best launch ever for a Switch game in Japan, as reported by Eurogamer.  This includes both digital and physical sales. It's safe to say the squid (and Octoling) community are off to a great start with the threequel that's exclusive to Switch. According to Eurogamer, however, despite the game also being number one on the U.K. boxed charts, as reported by GamesIndustry.biz, overall launch sales are down 9% compared to Splatoon 2 there. The U.K.'s boxed chart only included physical games, though, so it's possible that decline isn't present when digital games are taken into account. There's no word on how Splatoon 3 is fairing in the U.S., but it typically follows...