Gaming - Page 331

Tekken 7 has reached a new sales milestone on the heels of Tekken 8's new reveal.

One of the best fighting games of all time has now sold tons of copies. Tekken 7's total sales figures have now broken 10 million, Bandai Namco has officially confirmed. "It's official - TEKKEN 7 has reached 10 million copies sold! Thank you for your support, and let's get ready for the next battle... Together," the Japanese publisher said on Twitter.

This bumps total Tekken franchise sales to 54 million, which beats the closest Japanese competitor Street Fighter (49 million) by many millions of units, Tekken might be outselling Street Fighter, but it's still the third best-selling fighting game of all time behind Super Smash Bros. (over 70 million copies sold) and Mortal Kombat, which conquers with 73 million copies sold. Capcom is currently readying Street Fighter 6, whereas Netherrealm is reportedly working on a brand new Mortal Kombat fighter for new-gen systems.

Call of Duty Modern Warfare II is already the best-selling game of the year in the United States after just one month of sales.

Based on industry trends, the Call of Duty franchise is on track to deliver record earnings in 2022. Activision should break $9 billion in total annual revenues and Modern Warfare II is already breaking records, having achieved $1 billion in total game sales revenues in just 10 days time. These staggering revenues are expected to be even higher once monetization and in-game purchases are tallied up.

This tremendous sales momentum is reflected in data from the NPD Group, who tracks video game hardware, software, and accessories sales in the United States. According to the NPD Group's executive director of games Mat Piscatella, Modern Warfare II has become 2022's top-selling game in the region.

Tekken 8's latest trailer shows an insanely buff Marshall Law who's definitely getting at least 400g of protein a day.

Based on the recent Tekken 8 footage shown at The Game Awards, it looks like Arnold Schwarzenegger has been training Tekken's entire roster. Apparently the Iron Fist Tournament is also a Mr. Olympia contest. Kazuya has made some insane gains--he's all comic-book hero muscle. But the biggest transformation is probably Marshall Law and we've never seen him so incredibly built before now.

Katsuhiro Harada recently told IGN that Tekken 8 takes place just six months after Tekken 7. So Law went from a buff Bruce Lee to striated Ronnie Coleman in just...six months? Crazy. But that's Tekken for you.

Yoshi-P announces Final Fantasy XVI's official release date on PlayStation 5 at The Game Awards 2022.

Final Fantasy XVI will release on June 23, 2023 as a PS5 launch exclusive, Square Enix has confirmed. The latest trailer outlined the revenge-fueled quest of the game's main protagonist, Clive Rosfield, as he hunts down the fearsome Ifrit. The footage is an interesting mix of psychological torment and foreshadowing and impressive visual spectacles that make the PlayStation 5's power shine.

There's also some fast-paced hack-and-slash combat thrown in the mix, complete with towering Godzilla-like battles where the eikons (what Square Enix is calling FF16's summons) battle to the death.

Blizzard just released the most epic Diablo cinematic trailer in the history of the franchise to promote Diablo IV's release date.

Last night at The Game Awards showcase, Blizzard really struck a chord with Diablo fans. Scarlet-robed worshippers took the stage, which was imbued with blood-red light, and Halsey did an eerie performance. The real star was the incredible Diablo IV cutscene that was somehow better than haunting 9-minute announcement trailer that Blizzard released 3 years ago.

The footage showcased Archangel Inarius' forces of Light descending into the depths of Hell to slay Lilith, the daughter of Mephisto, Lord of Hate. We've never seen Hell in such clear detail as we have in this trailer; the demons looked like something out of a film, Inarius shined with righteous fury, and the crusaders gleamed in their metallic armor.

Activision's communications executive Lulu Cheng Meservey delivers an official response to the FTC's decision to attempt to block the $68.7 billion merger with Microsoft.

Yesterday, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it will attempt to block the Microsoft-Activision merger on the grounds that it would harm competition, citing examples of Microsoft making newly-acquired IPs like Redfall, Starfield, and The Elder Scrolls VI exclusive to Xbox. The implication is that Microsoft could degrade or withhold access to other franchises like Call of Duty, Overwatch, and Diablo if the deal were to go through.

Now Activision has published an official public response to the FTC's decision. In the response, the $8 billion company downplays Call of Duty's importance as the best-selling game franchise on both PlayStation and Xbox consoles, and how important the series is for the publisher itself. The statement reiterates key points made by Microsoft's executive team, highlighting the 10-year Call of Duty deals that Microsoft has made to Nintendo, Valve, and Sony (who has yet to respond or agree with the terms).

Jedi Survivor will have lots of nifty upgrades and new equipment to use in Cal's journey against the Dark Side of the Force.

Respawn just dropped official gameplay footage for Jedi Survivor, showing slick and fluid combat, some distressing narrative beats, and awesome adventure-based exploration with PS5 and Series X-quality visuals. The best part of the trailer is the new tricks that Cal Kestis learns and picks up along the way.

Survivor will bring some of the best upgrades that any action-adventure game can offer, including a grappling hook that lets Cal fling himself across gaps (it's actually called an "ascension cable"), and some new combat stances. This time around the Jedi can wield two lightsabers for quick and nimble strikes, or go with Kylo Ren's claymore-style lightsaber with a crossguard for more heavy and powerful attacks.

Elden Ring is FromSoftware's most successful game ever, and the studio wants to do a lot more things with the landmark RPG series.

FromSoftware's macabre mastermind Hidetaka Miyazaki confirms that more Elden Ring content is on the way. At The Game Awards 2022, Miyzaki said that he and his team wants to create new content in the bizarre universe...which could range from an expansion to a completely new sequel.

"As for Elden Ring, we have several more things we want to do," Hidetaka Miyazaki said on stage after Elden Ring won the Game of the Year award.

Armored Core VI is officially happening, and FromSoftware is developing the new sci-fi mech battler.

After years of speculation, FromSoftware finally broke the news: It's developing a new Armored Core game, and the project is coming in 2023 to last-gen and current-gen consoles and PC.

This new Armored Core sequel is called Fires of Rubicon and will feature the series' distinct penchant for massive customization with next-gen graphics and a real dystopian look and feel. The reveal trailer looks like an epic anime series that hearkens back to the old-school Gundam days of yore with an incredible cinematic flourish.

Kevin Conroy will return for one last performance as the Caped Crusader in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League in 2023.

Just last month, the world lost one of the most talented performers of all time. Kevin Conroy had passed away at 66, leaving behind an immortal legacy as the most renowned Batman voice actor of all time and an established theater actor. Now Rocksteady Studios pays tribute to Kevin Conroy by confirming he will return as Batman in the new Suicide Squad live game.

At The Game Awards, the developer announced that Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League would release on May 26, 2023 on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. The game pits players as one of four anti-hero members of the Suicide Squad that have to fight corrupted versions of Justice League superheroes, including Superman, and the Dark Knight Batman, who are deranged and hellbent on annihilating the human race in creative ways.

Death Stranding 2 is Hideo Kojima's next game, and it will feature an all-star cast with a completely re-written script.

Tonight at The Game Awards, Hideo Kojima announced Dead Stranding 2 with a truly bizarre new trailer (to be expected...it's Kojima after all). Kojima Productions had been releasing cryptic new teasers for DS2 (a working title) for a while, and now we know that the strange adverts were for DS2.

The sequel will star actors like Norman Reedus (The Walking Dead), Lea Seydoux (No Time to Die), Elle Fanning (Maleficent), Shioli Kutsuna (Deadpool 2) and video game voice actor Troy Baker.

After years of waiting, Ken Levine finally reveals his next game. It's called Judas, and it looks like a spiritual successor to the best-selling FPS franchise.

Years ago, Ken Levine closed down Irrational Games and carried over a lean team of developers to form Ghost Story Games, a new division within Take-Two Interactive. It's been a long, long time since we've heard from Levine and his team, but tonight at The Game Awards the team revealed their next immersive project.

Ghost Story Games isn't make BioShock 4. The team's new game is called Judas, and it looks like an innovative and stylish blend of Borderlands and BioShock, complete with awesome powers and a very retro-style 1950's aesthetic with Levine's signature look and feel.

Sony has officially confirmed that Returnal is coming to PC soon.

Ultra-tough bullet-hell action game Returnal is coming to PC in early 2023, Sony has announced at The Game Awards. The news comes months after the game showed up on SteamDB under the codename Tower of Sispyhus, and it was not exactly a surprise.

Returnal will be the next major PS5 game to cross over to PC following a 2021 release, meaning PlayStation exclusives can now jump onto PC after just one year of exclusivity. This falls in line with Sony's previous cadence, however it's worth noting that Returnal was not exactly a commercial success and was panned by critics for lack of a save feature.

The FTC has officially sued to block Microsoft's $68.7 billion buyout of Activision-Blizzard.

BREAKING: The Federal Trade Commission has formally issued intent to block the Microsoft-Activision merger.

"Agency alleges that maker of Xbox would gain control of top video game franchises, enabling it to harm competition in high-performance gaming consoles and subscription services by denying or degrading rivals' access to its popular content," the FTC stated.

Valve's Gabe Newell has significantly helped improve Microsoft's chances in closing the Activision merger.

Microsoft is pulling out all the stops to get the Activision merger approved. Just two days ago Microsoft announced a significant 10-year deal that guarantees Call of Duty on both Nintendo and Steam, both of which are competing platforms to the Xbox brand. The tech giant is aggressively trying to debunk Sony's claims of industry foreclosure due to Call of Duty exclusivity.

Interestingly enough, Valve disregarded Microsoft's offer. Not because Valve doesn't agree with the deal, but because the PC publisher simply doesn't need the guarantee. Valve Corp. President Gabe Newell trusts Microsoft enough already and doesn't need a binding contract. Newell believes that Microsoft will keep its word, which is something that will significantly help Microsoft's chances in closing the deal.

The failed Marvel's Avengers live game may be shut down in 2023, sources have told Exputer.

Crystal Dynamics could stop supporting Marvel's Avengers as early as next year and possibly shut down the game servers. Announced in 2017 and then released in 2020, the Avengers live game has been problematic for developer Crystal Dynamics and publisher Square Enix, who reportedly lost $200 million on its multi-game partnership with Marvel.

Game site Exputer chronicles the trials that Crystal Dynamics faced while making Avengers, noting the live game was based on the studio's proprietary Foundation engine, which was never really meant for big online games. The studio has since switched to Epic's highly-optimized and flexible Unreal Engine 5 so that developers have a more even-keeled engine environment. Crystal Dynamics' debut UE5 project will be a new Tomb Raider game, the studio has confirmed.

The Uncharted series could make a come back on PlayStation 5 with new titles, sources have told The Leak.

Following the success of a the major motion picture adaptation starring Tom Holland, Sony is reportedly planning to reboot the Uncharted series with new game releases. Two sources tell gaming website The Leak that the Uncharted franchise is getting rebooted but Naughty Dog won't be developing the project.

It's possible Uncharted will be rebooted and/or adapted by way of PlayStation's new live service game focus with a heavier emphasis on multiplayer action, or that the new Uncharted titles could have some form of online co-op play mixed with singleplayer action adventure questing.

If the Activision-Blizzard buyout deal closes, then Microsoft will focus even more on distribution of games, content, and services while simultaneously running its Xbox platform in parallel.

Today Microsoft outlined a big part of its post-merger plans and how it relates to its Xbox games division. Approval of the Activision merger will see Microsoft become more focused on expanding content to as many devices as possible, as evidenced by the significant 10-year Call of Duty deal it has offered to its competitors Nintendo, Valve, and Sony. Microsoft is no longer solely focused on expanding the Xbox storefront per say, but the Xbox ecosystem, further evolving the Xbox platform into a combination of games and services.

Here at TweakTown I've been saying for years that Xbox is no longer a console, but a service that bridges multiple platforms together. The inclusion of Activision Blizzard Kind games will supercharge Xbox's evolution as a broadly accessible platform-market-ecosystem hybrid that delivers a wide variety of content across multiple access points, whether it be platform availability, or distribution model (digital, physical, or subscription).

The merger drama continues as Microsoft fires off a hail Mary pass to the end zone with a deal that can't be beat.

Last night, Microsoft's Phil Spencer delivered a big surprise in the ongoing $68.7 billion Activision merger news cycle. Spencer confirmed that Microsoft has entered in a decade-long commitment to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo and Steam, two of Microsoft's largest direct competitors. Both Nintendo and Valve will be offered 10 years of access to Call of Duty. This deal directly counters one of Sony's core arguments against the merger concerning the $31 billion franchise being locked to Xbox platforms.

Microsoft has also offered the same 10-year deal to Sony, however it appears that Sony has yet to accept the offer or negotiate other terms. Microsoft's previous offer, which would have guaranteed only 3 years of post-contractual access to Call of Duty games up until 2027, was considered grossly inadequate by Sony.

Microsoft throws a curve ball that directly counters many of Sony's anti-merger arguments.

Last night, Phil Spencer announced surprise deals that Microsoft has offered two of its major competitors. If the Activision-Blizzard merger is approved, Spencer said, then Microsoft will bring Call of Duty to both Nintendo and Steam. The tech giant has offered both Nintendo and Valve a significant 10-year licensing deal for the $31 billion shooter franchise. Call of Duty hasn't been on Nintendo since 2013 when Ghosts released on Wii U.

"Microsoft has entered into a 10-year commitment to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo following the merger of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard King," Spencer said in a Tweet.