Gaming - Page 377

Ubisoft officially confirms it's working on Project Q, a wacky battle arena shooter coming to the free-to-play market.

Ubisoft's latest game Project Q was recently leaked by NDA-bound playtesters and inside info from Tom Henderson, and now Ubisoft has made the news official.

"Introducing codename "Project Q", a team battle arena letting players truly own the experience! The game is in early development and we will keep testing," Ubisoft said in a Tweet announcement that prompted players to sign up to playtest.

Sony has established a new game preservation team that will help support and sustain video game projects.

Sony's latest engineering group is future-proofing current PlayStation games to ensure they stand the test of time. The news comes from Garrett Fredley, a software engineer who recently became part of Sony's preservation upstart.

"Today is my first day as a Senior Build Engineer for PlayStation, working as one of their initial hires for the newly created Preservation team! Let's go and ensure our industry's history isn't forgotten!" Fredley wrote on LinkedIn.

The PlayStation 5 will get the long-awaited Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) feature this week, Sony has announced.

It's finally happening: VRR is coming to PS5 and will help tighten up next-gen gameplay even more. The PS5's Variable Refresh Rate can lead to better in-game performance by syncing the PS5's GPU rendering output frame rates with a display's refresh rate. The result is smoother gameplay and a reduction in visual artifacts, input lag, and screen tearing.

Sony notes that PS5's VRR functionality only works with HDMI 2.1-compatible displays, including newer TVs and PC monitors. There's still no mention of native 1440p resolution output.

Activision lost 50 million users in one year and it's possible Call of Duty Vanguard is a main culprit.

Activision-Blizzard's latest earnings report shows a significant decline in earnings and monthly active users. The Activision segment, which serves up Call of Duty games every year, was hit hardest by the player drop.

According to data compiled by us and provided by the publisher's SEC filings, Activision lost 50 million MAUs from Q1 2021 through Q1 2022. This represents a heavy 33% drop in monthly active users. While Activision doesn't mention the reasoning for the player drop, it does say that Vanguard's lower sales and reduced Warzone engagement were key drivers for net bookings drops.

A black PlayStation 5 devkit was spotted at Hideo Kojima's production studio, but that shouldn't be a surprise; it was always obvious he was making a new PS5 game.

Hideo Kojima recently shared a picture that showed a teleconference setup that would make the The Guild of Calamitous Intent jealous. That photo also includes a snapshot of a PS5 devkit in the background, prompting tons of coverage saying "Kojima is making a PS5 game." This is something that has been apparent for years.

Not only is Hideo Kojima using Sony's advanced MADO "telepresence system" to coordinate with KojiPro's new film studio in Los Angeles, and to help guide the motion capture teams that are recording footage at the PlayStation Visual Arts Motion Capture Studio, his team literally just released a PS5 game (Death Stranding Director's Cut). It's likely Kojima is capturing footage for a new film and/or a new game, or perhaps the interactive blend of film/games that he's talked about for years.

A compilation of Ubisoft's confirmed and leaked games suggests the publisher has broken its promise to gamers.

Back in 2019, Ubisoft hit live service breakpoint: Ghost Recon Breakpoint underperformed, signalling a major re-think for the publisher. Ubisoft strategized by delaying Watch Dogs Legion and Rainbow Six Extraction and promised to differentiate its games to ensure players have a wider offering of distinct experiences.

"While many of our titles are strongly differentiated, we need to ensure this is the case for all of them. We are already acting on these learnings and tackling these issues head on," Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said in 2019.

Ubisoft's business is becoming increasingly more vulnerable to a hostile takeover, new reports indicate.

Ubisoft's content IP (Assassin's Creed, Rainbow Six, Far Cry) and internal development teams make it an extremely valuable acquisition target. The company is also facing significant internal challenges that make it an even more enticing buyout proposition. These issues could soften Ubisoft's resolve and make it more amenable to a sizable buyout offer or a hostile takeover.

Sources tell Bloomberg that private equity firms are studying Ubisoft and may prepare a buyout offer. Sources have also told Kotaku's Ethan Gach that some of Ubisoft's biggest new games are farther out than expected.

Halo Infinite will likely have a difficult time with player retention as it faces off against heavy-hitting games.

Halo Infinite isn't in the best spot right now, at least according to fans. Season 2 is another 6-month season with extended content, including a forge beta. Forge and customs will undoubtedly surge Halo Infinite's playerbase, but the question remains: Will players stick around when the competition is fierce?

With promises of forge, campaign co-op, and new maps/modes, Infinite's upcoming Season 3 should be the best yet. There's just one potential problem: Season 3 releases in November, the same month that Starfield and the upcoming Call of Duty Modern Warfare II sequel, a game that's been hyped as a true return to form. PlayStation's God of War Ragnarok may also release in the November month to form a very solid trifecta of games for Halo Infinite to compete with.

Halo Infinite's multiplayer season 2 content will last six months just like season 1.

343 Industries just released a new Halo Infinite roadmap...but fans aren't so happy with the updates. It turns out Infinite's season 2 Lone Wolves multiplayer content will last 6 months, stretching from May to November 2022. That's a long time compared to Warzone's 3-month seasons.

Halo gamers seem to be disappointed by two things: The length of the season, and the content offered. Halo's audience also makes a really good point about Modern Warfare II and Starfield significantly impacting Halo Infinite's playerbase. While it's likely that Infinite players will return to sample Season 2, retention (and subsequent monetization) may prove difficult as players move on other other titles.

Multiple equity firms are watching Ubisoft, who could be the games industry's latest acquisition target.

As gaming moves towards subscriptions and digital offerings, content IP and manpower are the industry's most valuable commodity. Companies with powerful networks, ecosystems, and infrastructures like Microsoft have made huge $68.7 billion buyout offers for Activision-Blizzard. All of gaming's top-earners are getting snapped up, including mobile-maker Zynga who is merging with Take-Two for $12.7 billion.

Ubisoft is one of the few targets left. The publisher is a high-value target with multiple billion-dollar franchises (Assassin's Creed, Rainbow Six). Sources have told Bloomberg that equity firms like Blackstone and KKR, which are critical for any takeover or acquisition, have interest in Ubisoft.

Ubisoft's Project Q is real and it's a new arena shooter with irreverent weapons and a team-based battle royale mode.

Ubisoft's new Project Q game was part of the massive GeForce leak, and it's currently in playtesting stages. Sources tell Exputer's Tom Henderson that Project Q is an "innovative and modern PvP battle arena game" complete with a goofy style and presentation.

Project Q is a free-to-play PVP arena shooter with offbeat heroes that use an arsenal of nontraditional weapons like playing cards, fireworks, sticks, and even paintguns. Each hero has their own distinct loadouts, abilities and skills like Wings of Icarus which lets you soar across maps, and Wonders, which are presumably passive bonuses.

Call of Duty players will soon face off against colossal movie monsters in a battle that could shape the future of Caldera.

If Activision can pull it off, Call of Duty's new Operation Monarch might be the most epic live event in the history of gaming. Starting on May 11, gamers will face off against King Kong and Godzilla as they rampage the Pacific island-map of Caldera.

Activision says players "will need all the power they can get their hands-on to combat Godzilla and Kong, laying siege to Caldera later in the season with the limited-time event, Operation Monarch."

Old-school lyrical assassins Wu-Tang Clan are bringing Shaolin style to Fortnite.

Fortnite's latest crossover is a pretty big surprise. The legendary Wu-Tang Clan is coming to Fortnite with new skins, emotes, weapons, sprays, banners--the works. The new Wu Wear collection drops April 23, 2022 at 8PM EST.

The Wu Wear Bundle (pricing not announced) includes the Throwback BG Outfit (+ WUWEAR Worldwide Back Bling) and B.R.I.T.E. Outfit (+ Wu-Tang Represent Back Bling) alongside the Wu--Tang Hands Emoticon and Wu-Tang Style Loading Screen, which looks absolutely epic.

The Taliban is busy... well, ordering a ban on video-sharing giant TikTok and battle royale smash-hit PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG).

The reason? TikTok and PUBG have "made the young generation go astray". After securing Afghanistan last year, the Taliban have been making swift changes across the country. Deputy spokesman of Afghanistan Inamullah Samangani tweeted that both PUBG and TikTok had been blocked in Afghanistan as the apps "mislead the younger generation" and "publishes immortal material and programs".

US troops pulled out of Afghanistan in 2021, which saw the Taliban seizing every major city across Afghanistan and renaming the country to the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.

Baldur's Gate 3 is coming sometime in 2023, Larian Studios announced during a recent D&D Direct showcase.

Larian's massively anticipated cRPG won't launch in 2022 as planned, and has now been moved to an undetermined launch in 2023. The game will remain in early access until then, where the developers will make use of feedback from fans to shape the game.

"By the nine hells we've added a lot of great stuff already, and there's more where that came from. So join us in early access on our journey to Baldur's Gate 3, or come along in 2023 when the game releases," Larian said in the presentation.

Borderlands creator Gearbox Entertainment is so big now that it's acquiring game studios.

Gearbox Entertainment is a major part of Embracer Group's decentralized empire, and just made its first major acquisition. Gearbox has purchased indie studio Lost Boys Interactive to help work on Borderlands 4, a new IP, and other projects. Back in October 2021, Gearbox's Randy Pitchford saidcould make acquisitions in the future.

Lost Boys Interactive has 220 employees and the deal raises Gearbox Entertainment's total headcount to a staggering 1,300. Embracer acquired Perfect World Entertainment (Star Trek Online, Neverwinter Nights) in 2021 and made it a subsidiary of Gearbox.

Wizards of the Coast plans to raise the prices of select Magic: The Gathering card sets starting in September.

Wizards has announced a price hike for Magic products including Jumpstart and the upcoming Unfinity set.

Starting in September, consumers should expect an 11% price increase across these products. Jumpstart four-packs are currently $17.99 on Amazon, and will be priced at $19.99 after the increase. Unfinity Collector Boosters are currently $21.97 a piece and will rise to roughly $24.50 after the price hike.

Sony is reportedly working on its own advertisement platform that will inject ads into PlayStation games, complete with incentives to view the ads.

In a quest to maximize revenues by any means possible, Sony is currently developing an ad tech platform that will place in-game advertisements into PS4 and PS5 games. Sony plans to organically blend ads into games an non-intrusive way to make advertisements seem as if they're part of the game (for example, on signs and billboards).

Video game developers have traditionally created fake and offbeat commercial brands for their games. In-game areas like shopping malls, food marts, and cities typically feature humorous logos and made-up companies (look at Grand Theft Auto, for example).

Will Nintendo introduce a third Switch Online pricing tier for Game Boy and Game Boy Advance titles?

Nintendo is reportedly working on new Game Boy Advance and Game Boy emulators for its Switch Online service. The company has yet to make anything official, but dataminers have leaked system emulator files onto the internet.

The emulators, referred to as Hioyoko (Game Boy) and Sloop (Game Boy Advance) in the files, are in development at Nintendo Europe Research Division (NERD). Nintendo is actually using homebrew tech like EZ-Flash to load save states onto the consoles to test the emulators. Nintendo has tested 30 Game Boy Advance games so far. Only four playable games were found on the Game Boy emulator.

The new Switch Online NES games have leaked out, and they include some of the best games on the old-school system.

Dataminers have uncovered new games that are coming to Nintendo's premium Switch Online subscription. The list includes heavy-hitting NES games like Castlevania, Castlevania II: Simon's Quest, Mega Man 1-6, and Tetris. Other titles like Pac Man, Galaga, Lode Runner and Kung Fu are also on the list.

According to Twitter user orcastraw, the build date of the collection is from 2019 and there's no guarantee that some games will make the final cut. A portion of the titles are placeholders and don't have finalized information. There's also no indication when (or if) the games will be released onto the service.