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The True Next-Gen Game Is Still Rare AF
26.4.2022
The delineation between console generations is muddier than ever. Microsoft’s two next-gen machines, the Xbox Series X and the slightly lower-powered Xbox Series S, have been out for about a year and a half. In that time, you can count the number of true next-gen Xbox games on one hand. The rare...
Blizzard Boss Tries To Shut Down Player Speculation After NFT Survey
18.4.2022
While some companies are doubling down on the lucrative scam behind NFTs, others are trying to head off any association right from the start. After an Activision Blizzard survey went out polling players on their interest in the blockchain technology, Blizzard boss Mike Ybarra was quick to shoot...
Call Of Duty Cheating Accusations Lead To Controversial 'Hacking Exam'
8.4.2022
Before YouTuber IShowSpeed was put under the spotlight for his toxicity, Jake Lucky, an esports commentator and the person responsible for highlighting Speed’s behavior, was also under public scrutiny. Lucky, who tried to exonerate an alleged Call of Duty: Warzone hacker with a lie detector test...
Allegations Of Sexism, Bullying, And Burnout: Inside The Microsoft Studio Behind State Of Decay 3
31.3.2022
The video game industry faces a long-overdue reckoning. The average game developer is underpaid relative to the generous bonuses and shareholder payouts enjoyed by the CEOs above them, and recent reports and lawsuits have uncovered a wide range of mistreatment across companies big and small. Many...
Parents Sue Call Of Duty Maker, Alleging Sexual Harassment Led To Daughter’s Suicide
7.3.2022
Parents of an Activision Blizzard employee who died by suicide on a 2017 work retreat at Disneyland are now suing the Call of Duty publisher alleging workplace sexual harassment contributed to their daughter’s wrongful death. Activision Blizzard had previously dismissed the tragedy as having...
In Twenty Years, Microsoft Has Only Sold 2.3 Million Xboxes In Japan
7.3.2022
Two decades ago, the first Xbox went on sale in Japan. In the U.S., Microsoft’s gaming machines have always been big hits, but that’s not been the case in Japan. To date, only 2.3 million Xbox consoles across all generations have been sold in the country. Read more
Anime Voice Acting While Black: Overcoming Hate While Living The Dream
28.2.2022
By and large, anime protagonists have inspiring backstories and an iconically infectious resolve. As it turns out, so do many of the actors whose vocal talents help bring these characters to life. While anime originates in Japan, the medium’s relatable and heroic characters, particularly in...
Call Of Duty Execs Accused Of Using Microsoft Deal To Line Their Own Pockets
26.2.2022
Two Activision Blizzard shareholders have filed lawsuits against the Call of Duty publisher for making allegedly inadequate disclosures in its recent filings with the SEC about its deal to sell to Microsoft for $68.7 billion. The investors further alleged that big payouts for CEO Bobby Kotick...
Microsoft Started Activision Acquisition Talks Three Days After Bombshell Harassment Report
19.2.2022
On November 16, 2021, a report was published that claimed Activision CEO Bobby Kotick was well aware of harassment happening within his company. It also alleged that he himself mistreated women, both inside and outside work. Now, new docs reveal that three days later, Xbox head Phil Spencer called...
The Four-Day Workweek Is Getting Popular Among Devs, And It Sure Sounds Nice
11.2.2022
Ah, Friday. The fifth day of the typical workweek. The end of said workweek, for many. But how nice would it be if [sentiment redacted by bosses]? Just ask folks from Blackbird Interactive, the developer behind Homeworld 3 and Hardspace: Shipbreaker and the latest studio to switch to a four-day...
Head Of Xbox Downplays Fears Of Game Pass Price Hike
9.2.2022
Game Pass has never been more popular, and after Microsoft revealed its plan to buy Activision Blizzard and add some of that company’s biggest games to the service, an increase in the Game Pass subscription price has never felt more inevitable. Newly minted Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer...
Report: Google Quietly Ditching Stadia
5.2.2022
Bad news for all the Stadians out there: A new report claims that Google is looking to salvage its Stadia streaming service by moving away from focusing on video games and instead, looking to make deals with companies like Peleton instead of trying to bring in big games from studios like Rockstar...
Sony Cuts PlayStation 5 Sales Expectations Due To Global Chip Shortage
2.2.2022
In what will come as a surprise to absolutely no one, chip shortages impacted the PlayStation 5 late last year. Don’t expect that to change just yet. During Sony’s most recent quarterly financial earnings, the company’s gaming division did see a rise in profit. However, as Reuters notes, Sony...
Call Of Duty QA Testers Form Activision Blizzard’s First Union
21.1.2022
Thirty-four quality assurance testers at Raven Software, the Activision Blizzard studio in charge of its massively popular battle royale, Call of Duty: Warzone, announced today that they are unionizing after weeks of striking over recently announced layoffs in their department. Calling themselves...
Xbox Boss Shrugs Off Union Question As Activision Blizzard Employees Push For Better Working Conditions
20.1.2022
Upheaval at Activision Blizzard last year over workplace misconduct sparked an unprecedented level of labor organizing at the Call of Duty publisher. Those actions recently culminated in an ongoing strike and the distribution of union cards, while the misconduct reckoning that precipitated them...
Sony And Microsoft's Comments On Call Of Duty Exclusivity Are Clear As Mud
20.1.2022
Here we go again. Will Activision Blizzard games be exclusive to Xbox after the recently announced $68.7 billion deal finally goes through? Probably. But in the meantime both sides are saying just enough to keep all possibilities open, with Sony being the latest to add its vague comments to...
Official FAQ For The Microsoft x Activision Blizzard Deal Tries And Fails To Answer Some Questions
20.1.2022
As part of Microsoft’s proposed $70 billion purchase, an official FAQ of sorts has been sent to all Activision Blizzard employees. Sadly not many questions are actually answered, with responses looking more like huge black holes in the shape of things that could be answers. One day. Maybe.Read more
Microsoft's massive Metaverse move: Buying Activision for $69B
19.1.2022
Following the Activision Blizzard acquisition announcement, Microsoft CEO and chairman Satya Nadella stated that gaming “will play a key role in the development of metaverse platforms.”
PlayStation’s Best-Selling Series Of 2021 Could Become Xbox-Exclusive
18.1.2022
The NPD Group released its annual tally of gaming sales for 2021 today, pretty much at the very second Microsoft announced it would buy mega-publisher Activision Blizzard for approximately the GDP of Luxembourg. The top-selling console game for 2021 was the same as it is as it is nearly every year:...
The Xbox One Is Officially Dead
13.1.2022
The Xbox One is officially dead. RIP. It will not be missed.Read more