As the UK continues to struggle in the grip of its longest heatwave since 1976 (which still isn’t over at time of writing!), we’re here to bring you some respite from the weather and run down some of the biggest gaming news of the week.
Depending on your personal perspective, of course, this may either be a welcome break from the relentless heat or it may be an unwanted distraction from sunning yourself on the terrace.
Either way, you’re here now, as evidenced by the fact that you’re reading this, so grab a drink and let’s take a look at some of the biggest gaming stories from the last seven days!
Xbox has been hit by over 3,000 layoffs
We don’t ever want to begin our rundowns with news of staff losing their jobs, but sadly, that’s exactly what we must do today, since Xbox laid off over 3,000 employees this week.
The layoffs have hit various departments across Xbox, and they’ve also seen studios like Compulsion and Double Fine “return[ing] to management” and becoming independent.
Other studios that are affected by this latest wave of layoffs include Dishonored’s Arkane, which will “review potential strategic options”, and Ninja Theory, which, along with State of Decay’s Undead Labs, has “entered terms to join new ownership”.
Bethesda, id Software, and others are also affected
We’re continuing on the theme of Xbox layoffs and studio cuts for the time being; this is a massive story, after all, and it’s affected various facets of the Xbox business, not just the ones outlined above.
Bethesda is reportedly stripping things back to focus on its core franchises, so that means more Elder Scrolls, more Fallout, and more Doom. Don’t expect more fun experiments like Pentiment anytime soon.
Similarly, Obsidian is letting staff members go, likely partly due to the disappointing financial performance of The Outer Worlds 2, and Arkane’s Blade is potentially on its uppers. It’s not been a good week for Xbox, that’s for sure.
A petition to stop Sony killing physical has attracted over 300,000 signatures
Last week, Sony announced that it would end physical game production in 2028. The move has, as you can probably predict, sparked outrage among the gaming community.
That outrage manifested itself this week in the form of a Change.org petition, which, at time of writing, has managed to attract over 300,000 signatures. It’s pretty clear people really don’t want Sony to stop disc production.
Of course, that’s unlikely to stop Sony moving forward with this initiative; after all, that’s millions upon millions of people who haven’t signed the petition, eh?
Subnautica 2’s first big update lands
It’s nice to be reporting on something Subnautica 2-related that doesn’t have anything to do with the game’s ongoing maelstrom of drama, isn’t it? Well, this week, the first big update for the underwater survival sequel was released.
The Adaptive Measures update brings tons of quality-of-life improvements and fixes, as well as “targeted improvements” and lots of other changes. It’s not necessarily a huge game-changer, but it’s got a lot of tweaks.
Here’s hoping it’s all smooth sailing (or perhaps that should be scuba diving) for Subnautica 2 now, and that the developers can focus on making the game rather than worrying about its future.
Hey, Palworld isn’t raising its price for 1.0
Survival game Palworld got its 1.0 release this week, and rather than boosting the price, as many indie developers do for Early Access releases leaving the nest, Pocketpair chose to keep the cost the same.
The developer said that the lack of a price increase was due to how “incredibly proud” of the game and its community the studio is. Not raising the price is a “small way of saying thank you”, according to Pocketpair.
We’re sure that anyone who has yet to pick up the game will be equally grateful for Pocketpair not reaching into their, er, pockets for more cash.
Mortal Shell 2 is putting its dukes up and launching in August
There’s a very big shadow looming over the gaming industry this year, namely that of Grand Theft Auto 6, which, as far as we know, is still planning to release in November.
That hasn’t stopped dark fantasy Soulslike Mortal Shell 2 from stepping up to challenge Rockstar’s titan, however, as it was revealed this week that the game is launching in August.
In the movie industry, “counterprogramming” refers to smaller, more niche-focused releases arriving alongside massive blockbuster titans. We’d bet that’s the plan here as well.
Dragon Age’s creator thinks this is it for the series
If you’re a fan of Dragon Age, we have some bad news for you with regards to its creator’s opinion of the series: he reckons it’s probably dead, at least as long as it remains in EA’s control.
In an interview with PC Gamer this week, former lead writer David Gaider says that he thinks there isn’t a future for Dragon Age under its current owners. He’s said previously that he won’t be playing the latest entry, The Veilguard, either.
However, if Gaider ever did get another chance to work on Dragon Age, he says he’d take it somewhere “dark and dangerous” that might “upset” a lot of people. After the safe, vanilla direction Veilguard took, we’d be happy with that.
Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced debuts to two million sales
Piratical remake Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is off to a very strong start, according to publisher Ubisoft; it’s managed to sell two million copies on its first day of release.
The Assassin’s Creed series is a pretty reliable earner for Ubisoft; even Assassin’s Creed Shadows, which launched to mixed reviews and fan ambivalence, seemingly managed to do pretty well for itself.
Whether Ubisoft can continue the series’ strong performance remains to be seen. Black Flag Resynced is, after all, a remake of a game a lot of folks already know they like, so it’s easier to get them to buy it than a new title.
