SwitchedOn Gamer writes: THQ Nordic's financial report gives updates to Saints Row, TimeSplitters and Dead Island 2. I couldn't think of a better announcement to wake up to!
EA has announced it will engage in a shareholder-pleasing share buyback program just a couple of months after mass layoffs at the studio.
Well, anything to make those shareholders happy, I guess. They're all that matters in this industry nowadays.
"The sudden closure of several video-game studios at Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox division was the result of a widespread cost-cutting initiative that still isn’t finished.
This week, Xbox began offering voluntary severance agreements to producers, quality assurance testers and other staff at ZeniMax, which it purchased in 2020 for $7.5 billion, according to people familiar with the company’s plans. Others across the Xbox organization have been told that more cuts are on the way.
Speaking about the closures more broadly, Booty said that the company’s studios had been spread too thin — like “peanut butter on bread” — and that leaders across the division had felt understaffed. They decided to close these studios to free up resources elsewhere, he said.
Game Pass has not seen the massive growth that Xbox boss Phil Spencer may have been hoping for."
"Speaking about the closures more broadly, Booty said that the company’s studios had been spread too thin — like “peanut butter on bread” — and that leaders across the division had felt understaffed. They decided to close these studios to free up resources elsewhere, he said"
So what you're saying is...you bought all these studios and you guys can't run them.
Jesus.
Reports are suggesting that Game Pass will be getting a price hike soon and that Call of Duty may not be added to the day one offering. I honestly have a hard time believing this but it does beg the question why exactly did GP fail? I think the answer is that it just didn't get the growth that it anticipated. Jim was right but I wish he wasn't because at the end of the day, its gamers, devs and other front-line workers who have to absorb the blow for Spencer and team's miscalculations.
For all the armchair executives who were calling for Sony to release its big-budget AAA games on PS+, the same exact thing would have happened at PlayStation. Game Pass has killed Xbox. Congrats.
Twisted Voxel writes: "We've almost reached the end of the 1st half of 2024, and Xbox has had more studio closures than first party game releases in the year so far."
Hellblade 2, Indiana Jones, Avowed, Towerborne, and Call of Duty are still to be released this year. Marcus Fenix collection to be added to the list with the Xbox showcase, hopefully.
Sony doesn't have to bother fighting the next Microsoft acquisition. The massive layoff by themselves should be enough to get the next big buy blocked.
So if MS hadn't spent $80 billion consolidating the industry just think of all the games and jobs that would have saved.
MS is a drain on gaming and have been nothing but a negative.
I'm very excited about Timesplitters. But I don't know how they'll make it work for current generation of gamers. The series relied heavily on highly exaggerated arcade-shooter-action. I'm not sure that's going to hold up in today's market.
Still, I cant wait to see what they have to show.
I hope they just reboot saints row.
I love their IPs, but to be honest their games haven't been AAA. They have been more B to AA. They need to get more expertise in maximizing hardware in their games. The gameplay has been relatively fine. But, they need to pick up the graphical quality and quality of the games in general.
Oh how I wish they'd acquire the IP for Dead Space from loathsome EA.
Saints Row 5 should NOT take itself serious and at the same time keep within a few realistic guidelines... Aliens, yes, super powers, alright... going to other worlds... nah... either way, im lookong forward to it.