Gaming News - Page 112

All the latest gaming news, with everything related to PlayStation releases (PS4 & PS5), Xbox, PC Games, Nintendo Switch & plenty more - Page 112.

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Nintendo conquers console publishing revenues, beats Sony by $3 billion, Xbox by $3.8 billion

Derek Strickland | Jul 1, 2023 10:32 PM CDT

Data revealed in the FTC v Microsoft federal case gives a closer look at Nintendo's dominant lead in the console publishing segment.

Nintendo conquers console publishing revenues, beats Sony by $3 billion, Xbox by $3.8 billion

Most gamers already know just how big Nintendo is. Microsoft really drove this point home in key witness testimony in the federal case with the intent to undermine the FTC's high-performance relevant market, which omitted Nintendo from the picture. Not only does the Switch have substitution effects with PlayStation and Xbox, but the device is the best-selling console across both Gen 8 and Gen 9 systems.

Testimony from economist Dr. Liz Bailey outlines just how big Nintendo is compared to PlayStation, Xbox, and other third-party publishers in the console gaming market. According to data provided by her in the courtroom, and relayed by mLex reporter Michael Achton, Nintendo has a $3.8 billion lead over Sony's publishing revenues, and a significant $3.8 billion lead over Xbox.

Continue reading: Nintendo conquers console publishing revenues, beats Sony by $3 billion, Xbox by $3.8 billion (full post)

FTC's narrow high-performance console market undermined as economist finds substitution effects

Derek Strickland | Jul 1, 2023 8:17 PM CDT

According to economist Dr. Bailey, Nintendo is indeed a competitor in the console market, and her findings poke holes in the FTC's narrowed high-performance market definition.

FTC's narrow high-performance console market undermined as economist finds substitution effects

Economist Dr. Bailey represented defendants Microsoft and Activision in the ongoing FTC v Microsoft federal case. She was examined as a witness, and her testimony poked holes in the Commission's narrow high-performance console market definition, which excluded Nintendo from the Big 3.

In an effort to simplify the console market, the FTC enlisted economist Professor Lee to help identify potential foreclosure risks in a relevant market. This marked was known as the high-performance relevant console market, which removed Nintendo and PCs as competitors against PlayStation and Xbox consoles. This allowed the FTC to isolate their focus on PlayStation vs Xbox with the rationale that these platforms compete more closely with one another than they do with Nintendo, and while that's true on the surface, Dr. Bailey's testimony quickly undermined this assessment.

Continue reading: FTC's narrow high-performance console market undermined as economist finds substitution effects (full post)

Activision CEO regrets not releasing Call of Duty on Switch, interested in supporting Switch 2

Derek Strickland | Jul 1, 2023 11:07 AM CDT

Activision CEO Bobby Kotick regrets not releasing more games onto the Nintendo Switch, says that his decision not to support the Switch was a mistake.

Activision CEO regrets not releasing Call of Duty on Switch, interested in supporting Switch 2

The Nintendo Switch is currently the best-selling console on the market with over 125 million shipments worldwide. Suffice it to say, the Switch is one of the best places you can release a game apart from the revenue-leading PlayStation. That's a big reason why Activision CEO Bobby Kotick thinks it was a bad judgement call to discount Nintendo's transformative handheld-console hybrid.

In the recent FTC v Microsoft federal case, Kotick gave testimony where he confirmed Activision looked at bringing Call of Duty onto the Switch before Nintendo launched its console in 2017. Kotick says that not releasing Call of Duty on the Switch was "bad judgement." This indicates that Activision did, at first, intend to bring Call of Duty on the Switch at launch, but Kotick decided against it once he saw the prototype. Kotick didn't think the Switch was going to be successful.

Continue reading: Activision CEO regrets not releasing Call of Duty on Switch, interested in supporting Switch 2 (full post)

FTC explains how Microsoft-Activision merger will harm consumers and competition

Derek Strickland | Jul 1, 2023 9:33 AM CDT

In the closing arguments of the FTC v Microsoft federal preliminary injunction case, Federal Trade Commission lawyer James Weingarten summarizes the ways in which the Microsoft-Activision merger could harm consumers.

FTC explains how Microsoft-Activision merger will harm consumers and competition

The FTC believes the $68.7 billion Microsoft-Activision merger would harm competition in the video games market across multiple dimensions, including the high-performance console market and the subscription & cloud gaming market.

Throughout the case, we've heard testimony from key witnesses that reveal the various methods, strategies, and scenarios employed by the Xbox games business to gain a competitive edge across all dimensions of the gaming market, and how Xbox plans to use Activision to further its plans to eventually deliver over $32 billion in revenues and become the market leader by 2030.

Continue reading: FTC explains how Microsoft-Activision merger will harm consumers and competition (full post)

Starfield's new Creation Engine took 'so long to do,' Bethesda's Todd Howard happy with results

Derek Strickland | Jun 30, 2023 7:59 PM CDT

Starfield made quite the splash in the Xbox 2023 showcase with its graphics and overall presentation, and Todd Howard says a lot of that was because of the new-and-improved Creation Engine 2.

Starfield's new Creation Engine took 'so long to do,' Bethesda's Todd Howard happy with results

Bethesda Game Studios has been working on the major Creation Engine 2 overhaul for quite some time. Starfield has been in development for 8 years, and during that time, the studio has been iterating on its existing Creation Engine to upgrade it for the new Xbox Series X/S console generation. While most of Starfield's development has been in-house, Microsoft's ATG (Advanced Technology Group) has been assisting Bethesda Game Studios since early 2022, helping with things like console optimization to ensure Starfield looks and runs great on both the Series S and Series X consoles.

In a recent interview with Kinda Funny Gamescast, Todd Howard shared his thoughts on the enhanced games engine and discussed things like volumetric fog and the new global illumination system.

Continue reading: Starfield's new Creation Engine took 'so long to do,' Bethesda's Todd Howard happy with results (full post)

PS5 quality games will eventually be playable natively on phones, Activision CEO says

Derek Strickland | Jun 30, 2023 5:59 PM CDT

Activision's CEO is a big believer in native mobile gaming, and thinks that phones will eventually be able to play high-end PlayStation 5 quality games.

PS5 quality games will eventually be playable natively on phones, Activision CEO says

Over the past two years, Activision's revenues have become mobile-centric. In 2021 and 2022, Activision Blizzard King made most of its revenues from the mobile segment thanks to big successes like Diablo Immortal, Call of Duty Mobile, and of course King's Candy Crush. This push towards mobile will continue with this year's release of Warzone Mobile in the fall.

It shouldn't be much surprise then that Activision CEO Bobby Kotick is praising mobile tech. In Day 4 of the recent FTC v Microsoft federal court hearing, Kotick was asked specifically about the merits of native mobile gaming versus streaming, especially in the relation of bringing Activision games like Call of Duty to streaming services.

Continue reading: PS5 quality games will eventually be playable natively on phones, Activision CEO says (full post)

Activision CEO Bobby Kotick's stock would be worth $400 million if merger closes, FTC says

Derek Strickland | Jun 30, 2023 4:34 PM CDT

Activision's executive management stands to receive hefty payouts of millions of dollars if the Microsoft-Activision merger goes through, but Activision CEO Bobby Kotick's company stock portfolio could be worth in excess of $400 million.

Activision CEO Bobby Kotick's stock would be worth $400 million if merger closes, FTC says

In order to secure Activision Blizzard King to fund its mobile gaming and Game Pass ambitions, Microsoft has made an offer to buy 100% of Activision stock at a $95 per share premium. This adds up to a $68.7 billion deal, the largest-ever for Microsoft and the biggest acquisition in video games history (over five times the value of Take-Two's $12.7 billion Zynga buyout).

If Microsoft acquires ABK at $95 per share, there are a number of high-profile Activision executives that will receive big payouts. The company's largest executive shareholder is CEO Bobby Kotick, who currently owns 4,296,550 shares as per 2023's notice of annual meeting of shareholders.

Continue reading: Activision CEO Bobby Kotick's stock would be worth $400 million if merger closes, FTC says (full post)

Fallout creator Tim Cain is concerned about Fallout 5

Derek Strickland | Jun 30, 2023 2:14 PM CDT

Fallout creator and lead programmer Tim Cain raises his concerns about what Fallout 5's character creation system could be like.

Fallout creator Tim Cain is concerned about Fallout 5

Modern Fallout and Elder Scrolls games have strayed away from the integral RPG-based DNA that once defined the franchises. We've seen Bethesda remove key features like traits and skills from modern Fallout games, and Skyrim, released in 2012, got rid of attributes altogether. This has raised some questions on what RPG elements will be pared back in Fallout 5.

Tim Cain, who helped create the original Fallout game in the late 1990s at Interplay, had some interesting thoughts about what could happen in Fallout 5.

Continue reading: Fallout creator Tim Cain is concerned about Fallout 5 (full post)

Elder Scrolls VI could launch between 2026-2028, Xbox exclusivity remains unclear

Derek Strickland | Jun 30, 2023 12:46 PM CDT

Thanks to the FTC v Microsoft federal court case, gamers now have a better idea of when The Elder Scrolls VI could release.

Elder Scrolls VI could launch between 2026-2028, Xbox exclusivity remains unclear

Bethesda announced The Elder Scrolls VI in 2018, way before it was purchased by Microsoft for $7.5 billion. Bethesda's Todd Howard has only let little bits and pieces about Elder Scrolls 6 slip between the cracks, confirming the game is in pre-production and that Starfield is the studio's main focus.

Now Microsoft and Bethesda have inadvertently updated gamers through the recent FTC v Microsoft federal evidentiary hearing. According to transcripts from the hearing, it looks like The Elder Scrolls VI could launch sometime between 2026 and 2028.

Continue reading: Elder Scrolls VI could launch between 2026-2028, Xbox exclusivity remains unclear (full post)

There are very good reasons why Final Fantasy 16 didn't sell as much as Final Fantasy 15

Derek Strickland | Jun 30, 2023 11:37 AM CDT

Final Fantasy 16 is a big success for Square Enix, but the game hasn't sold as many copies as Final Fantasy 15. There's some very good reasons why this is the case.

There are very good reasons why Final Fantasy 16 didn't sell as much as Final Fantasy 15

Square Enix has recently announced that Final Fantasy 16 has sold 3 million copies worldwide, a figure that represents combined shipments and digital sales. How do we best gauge this data? We're seeing lots of comparisons of this data to the last mainline game in the series, Final Fantasy 15. This isn't the best comparison, though.

The reality is that the launch conditions between these two games are very different. Final Fantasy 16 released on one platform, the PlayStation 5, whereas Final Fantasy 15 simultaneously launched on both PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Not only that, but the games released at distinctly different timeframes, with Final Fantasy 16 launching the summer, and Final Fantasy 15 launching during the holidays in 2016, which is the biggest time of the year for video game sales.

Continue reading: There are very good reasons why Final Fantasy 16 didn't sell as much as Final Fantasy 15 (full post)