As we enter the eighth month of the year, the gaming world looks just as volatile and unpredictable as it has done for the last couple of years.
It’s almost impossible to predict which studio will be hit by layoffs or outright closures next, and whether certain studios will survive the year, even if they enjoy certified successes.
We don’t mean to start out on a depressing note, though; there’s plenty of positive stuff going on in the gaming industry as well. Let’s take a look at what’s been happening in that very world this week!
Amazon’s God of War series probably isn’t coming in 2026
First off this week, we got some more information about how Ronald D. Moore’s upcoming God of War series will work in relation to the games.
As reported by IGN, Moore’s series will be built around the Norse God of War games, and it will foreground the relationship between protagonist Kratos and his son Atreus, just as the newer games do.
Unfortunately, however, it looks like the series is still a way off. Moore also told Collider that the show probably won’t start filming this year, so it’s probably going to be a year or two before it hits screens.
Sony is suing Tencent over Light of Motiram
This week, it was revealed that Sony is suing Tencent, the publisher of upcoming survival game Light of Motiram, due to that game’s similarities to one of Sony’s own IPs.
The lawsuit has been filed due to Light of Motiram’s resemblance to the Horizon games, and one quick glimpse of the trailer should tell you exactly where Sony’s complaints lie.
Whether this lawsuit will be successful or not remains to be seen, but these things can often run for months and months, so it could be a while before we find out.
It looks like Warner Bros. hasn’t learned its live-service lesson
A new job listing this week appears to reveal that Warner Bros. is working on yet another live-service game, despite two major high-profile failures last year.
The listing is for an executive producer who will spearhead a new project, overseeing “all phases of development, from concept to post-launch live operations”.
That’s despite the fact that Rocksteady’s Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League and Player First’s MultiVersus both flopped last year, costing Warner hundreds of millions of dollars.
EA probably won’t be charging you $80 for Battlefield 6
After Microsoft climbed down from $80 holiday games last week, EA has followed suit (or, rather, the company has reiterated that its position hasn’t changed).
According to a webcast as part of the company’s latest financial results (via IGN), EA doesn’t have any plans to increase the prices of its games right now, so titles like Battlefield 6 probably won’t cost you $80.
That doesn’t mean prices won’t be increasing at some point in the future, of course, but for now, you’ll still be paying the same price for upcoming EA games.
The Pokemon Company acknowledges artwork issues
This week, it emerged that artwork used by The Pokemon Company for one of its new Pokemon TCG Pocket illustrations (not the ones in the image above!) may have been plagiarised from fanart.
In response to those claims, The Pokemon Company pulled the art in question, which depicted legendary Generation 2 Pokemon Ho-Oh, replacing it with a placeholder for the time being.
The company also apologised for the mistake, pledging to undertake an internal investigation to ensure that no other instances of plagiarism exist within the game (although it stopped short of admitting that the art was plagiarised).
Microsoft profits are up despite thousands of layoffs
Microsoft continues to make money hand over fist, at least if its recent financial statement is anything to go by, and that’s not likely to serve as much of a salve for the thousands of employees it recently laid off.
Pretty much all of the company’s numbers are up this quarter, despite the fact that it recently let around 9,000 staff go across its various divisions, including Xbox and the wider gaming segment.
To us, this seems like yet more proof that success does not necessarily translate to security, and that corporations will continue to pursue infinite growth at great cost.
Nintendo holds a Direct Partner Showcase with new announcements galore
This week, Nintendo held a Direct Partner Showcase to show off the third-party offerings coming to the Switch 2 and Switch soon, and there’s plenty on the way.
Perhaps the two most important reveals were Square Enix’s The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales and Octopath Traveler 0, both of which will utilise the company’s HD-2D style.
We also got to see a new Monster Hunter Stories game, as well as a remake of the second Pac-Man World platformer and more.
The Nintendo Switch 2 has sold over 6 million units
Nintendo released its latest financial results this week, and it turns out that the Switch 2 is doing pretty well, as if worldwide shortages and high demand weren’t already indicators of that.
The console has managed to sell over 6 million units in the seven weeks since it launched, and it’s done so with just two major Nintendo releases backing it up (Mario Kart World and Donkey Kong Bananza).
We’d imagine that more sales are on the way as the holiday period nears, so Nintendo could well achieve that 15 million goal it apparently set for itself last year.
BioShock 4 could be in trouble
A new Bloomberg report this week claimed that the long-in-development BioShock 4 has changed leaders following a disappointing internal review at publisher 2K.
Supposedly, the game’s narrative direction in particular proved a problem for 2K execs, and leadership at developer Cloud Chamber has been shaken up as a result.
The report also suggests that a remake of the original BioShock was also in development, but that the project has been cancelled. Honestly, we can’t say we’re particularly sad about that; the original is still just fine!
