Gaming News - Page 308

All the latest gaming news, with everything related to PlayStation releases (PS4 & PS5), Xbox, PC Games, Nintendo Switch & plenty more - Page 308.

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Crypto games actually aren't very popular, still very speculative

Derek Strickland | Feb 20, 2022 5:24 PM CST

The Big Four of crypto gaming pull in less than 500,000 monthly active users, data from New World Notes suggests.

Crypto games actually aren't very popular, still very speculative

The crypto gaming market may be potentially lucrative, but it seems to be far from the bustling, multi-million user ecosystem that's hinted at in reports. In all actuality the digital NFT-based games landscape is still mostly speculative, with the Big Four--The Sandbox, Decentraland, Cryptovoxels, and Somnium Space--attracting less than 500,000 monthly active users. Strong MAUs and concurrent users are the biggest indicator of a online live game's success. In this case (and all other cases), higher numbers mean more people are active in the space.

According to figures collected by New World Notes' Wagner James Au, the Big Four aren't as popular as you'd expect.

Continue reading: Crypto games actually aren't very popular, still very speculative (full post)

Team Ricochet serves just desserts to Warzone cheaters

Derek Strickland | Feb 20, 2022 4:32 PM CST

Warzone's anti-cheat team has implemented a hilarious just desserts punishment for cheaters.

Team Ricochet serves just desserts to Warzone cheaters

Cheating is a big problem in online games like Warzone (and even Halo). Activision's newly established anti-cheat team, Team Ricochet, wants to make an example of cheaters by demoralizing ne'er-do-wells by essentially turning cheats on for their opponents.

The punishment enables a "Damage Shield" which effectively a player invulnerable to a cheater's attacks (IDDQD anyone?). If the anti-cheat system detects a cheater, it will automatically turn on the shield for other players for the remainder of the match. The cheater can't kill anyone else--they can only be killed in a hunter-and-prey role reversal.

Continue reading: Team Ricochet serves just desserts to Warzone cheaters (full post)

Embracer has made 71 acquisitions, has $851 million for more buyouts

Derek Strickland | Feb 20, 2022 3:32 PM CST

The Embracer Group has made a whopping 71 acquisitions, mergers, and buyouts from 2016 - 2021...and it has plans for more M&A in the future.

Embracer has made 71 acquisitions, has $851 million for more buyouts

Embracer Group isn't just a name, but an ethos that's represented in the company's massive array of buyouts. It seems like every few months Embracer buys someone new, and major recent acquisitions include Dark Horse Comics, Asmodee, Gearbox Software, 4A Games--the list goes on and on.

In a recent earnings report, Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors says these acquisitions will continue. The company has made 71 acquisitions since 2016 and plans to secure up to 8 billion SEK (roughly $851 million) for more M&A. However, Wingefors says the buyouts will be more selective as the availability of content, gaming's most valuable commodity, starts to shrink due to competing buyouts.

Continue reading: Embracer has made 71 acquisitions, has $851 million for more buyouts (full post)

Nintendo top 10 games: Pokemon smashes with nearly 14 million sales

Derek Strickland | Feb 20, 2022 2:47 PM CST

The top 10 Switch games sales list grows exponentially during Nintendo's historical Q3 period.

Nintendo top 10 games: Pokemon smashes with nearly 14 million sales

Nintendo's Q3'22 period (holiday 2021) delivered record software sales, and a good portion of these games were first-party titles. Nintendo sold 85.41 million Switch games during the quarter, a new all-time high, and made $2.72 billion from software in the period. The top 10 most popular Switch games sold 29.77 million units during the quarter, making up 35% of total quarterly software sales.

The largest contributor to this huge first-party sales spike was Pokemon Shining Pearl and Brilliant Diamond. The duo sold 13.97 million copies during a single month across the Q3'22 period (the Pokemon games launched in late November, a month before the December 31 cutoff date).

Continue reading: Nintendo top 10 games: Pokemon smashes with nearly 14 million sales (full post)

Nintendo made $6 billion net sales, $1.7 billion net profits in Q3'22

Derek Strickland | Feb 20, 2022 1:48 PM CST

Nintendo's Q3 FY22 performance nearly matches last year's record-setting holiday period.

Nintendo made $6 billion net sales, $1.7 billion net profits in Q3'22

Nintendo recently announced its Q3 earnings for the Holiday 2021 timeframe, and the results are stellar. Nintendo set new milestones for profit and software sales, and overall net sales nearly matched 2020 pandemic highs. In this article we'll be using USD conversions based on Nintendo's historical forex rates provided in its documents and investor briefs. All values given are rounded.

First let's take a look at net sales, which were roughly $6.047 billion (695.946 billion yen). Overall net sales delivered strong results and represent the second highest point in Nintendo history, driven by the full conjunction of Nintendo's entire operating business: games hardware, software, digital services and subscriptions, mobile games, and playing cards/accessories.

Continue reading: Nintendo made $6 billion net sales, $1.7 billion net profits in Q3'22 (full post)

Borderlands 3 sales hit 15 million, franchise sales at 74 million

Derek Strickland | Feb 19, 2022 3:36 PM CST

Gearbox's mighty Borderlands franchise has sold 74 million units to date, making it one of the best-selling shooters on the market.

Borderlands 3 sales hit 15 million, franchise sales at 74 million

Embracer's latest financials give updates on key game sales, including Borderlands, which is now one of the 271 IPs the company owns.

Borderlands 3 has sold-in an impressive 15 million copies in two years, taking advantage of various sales, discounts, and re-releases to incentivize purchases. The franchise now sits at 74 million sales total, making it Take-Two Interactive's third best-selling franchise--and by extension one of Embracer's top-sellers.

Continue reading: Borderlands 3 sales hit 15 million, franchise sales at 74 million (full post)

Borderlands dev Gearbox plans to release 10 AAA games by 2026

Derek Strickland | Feb 19, 2022 2:36 PM CST

Gearbox plans to release a whopping 10 AAA games by 2026, its parent company Embracer Group has announced.

Borderlands dev Gearbox plans to release 10 AAA games by 2026

Gearbox was once known as the dev behind Borderlands, but now its grown into a multimedia entertainment company with multiple segments. Gearbox now has three divisions: Gearbox Publishing, which has helped publish indie games like Godfall and Risk of Rain 2, Gearbox Software, its internal game studio responsible for Borderlands games, and Gearbox Studios, a branch focused on multimedia like the new Borderlands film.

Gaming is still Gearbox's bread and butter. The company has ambitious plans to release 10 major AAA games by 2026, compromising nearly half of Embracer's total 25 game pipeline for the period.

Continue reading: Borderlands dev Gearbox plans to release 10 AAA games by 2026 (full post)

Hot Wheels Unleashed broke even on second day of sales, Milestone says

Derek Strickland | Feb 19, 2022 1:51 PM CST

Hot Wheels Unleashed was one of Embracer's most important games of 2021 and was profitable the second day of release.

Hot Wheels Unleashed broke even on second day of sales, Milestone says

Following 1 million sales in the quarter, Hot Wheels Unleashed was a powerful driver for Embracer's holiday 2021 earnings. The game did so well that it broke even after its first day on the market and became profitable on day two.

"Hot wheels has been a success for us, considering the very first day of launch, with our revenue we covered development, marketing and production costs. So in the very second day we were in the profit area," Milestone CEO Luisa Bixio said during Embracer's Q3 presentation.

Continue reading: Hot Wheels Unleashed broke even on second day of sales, Milestone says (full post)

Embracer Group now has 271 IPs and franchises across 88 studios

Derek Strickland | Feb 19, 2022 1:13 PM CST

The Embracer Group now has access to a whopping 271 video game IPs and franchises.

Embracer Group now has 271 IPs and franchises across 88 studios

Nordic-based games company the Embracer Group is one the biggest players in the video games industry. The multimedia giant owns and licenses an incredible 271 IPs, franchises, and series that range from heavy-hitting AAA titles like Borderlands to smaller, licensed multiplayer game like Saber's World War Z and the new Evil Dead game.

Now that big-name giants like Microsoft are buying up studios in multi-billion deals, Embracer's pool of intellectual property remains extremely valuable--content IP is the most valuable commodity on the market today. Some of Embracer's most profitable franchises hail from the Deep Silver branch, including Dead Island, Metro, and Saints Row, but Gearbox's Borderlands is very lucrative, too.

Continue reading: Embracer Group now has 271 IPs and franchises across 88 studios (full post)

Diablo 2 player breaks max life threshold with 33,000+ life barbarian

Derek Strickland | Feb 19, 2022 11:57 AM CST

Diablo 2's max life threshold has been broken to an absolutely excessive degree.

Diablo 2 player breaks max life threshold with 33,000+ life barbarian

Diablo 2 streamer MrLlamaSC is mostly known for its impressive speed runs and encyclopedic knowledge of the old-school 2000's era ARPG. Now he's pushing that know-how even farther with one of the craziest min-max builds in the game.

In a recent video, MrLlamaSC showed how to push a barbarian's max health to nearly 34,000. The feat takes a serious amount of specialized gear and sequencing of skills, and it's entirely realistic--it's not necessarily a usable build insofar as damage but more so a spectacle of what's possible.

Continue reading: Diablo 2 player breaks max life threshold with 33,000+ life barbarian (full post)