Blizzard Entertainment Unveils New ‘Unannounced Survival Game’ Entering Development
Over the past week, Activision Blizzard remains to stay in the headlines following one of its biggest stories in the industry: Microsoft is to acquire the conglomerate publisher for more than $68 billion. And while the deal is still set to be in motion well into the next fiscal year in 2023, many questions linger for the firm. One that is suggested to be underway is the departure of CEO Bobby Kotich which The Wall Street Journal reports knowledge of his planned leave after the arrangement is settled. Additionally, fans are interested what the Xbox firm will do with the licenses at its disposal once the deal is closed. From an interview with The Washington Post, Xbox lead Phil Spencer expressed excitement for the IPs that he realized comes with the purchase. Kotich in a separate interview shared optimism with Microsoft’s involvement for the firm to utilize retired IPs. In a new announcement from Blizzard Entertainment, the developer shares it is to explore a new genre, online survival. From the blog post, the firm reveals that the new unannounced project has entered development and will share more on the matter when appropriate to do so. Blizzard is embarking on our next quest. We are going on a journey to a whole new universe, home to a brand-new survival game for PC and console. A place full of heroes we have yet to meet, stories yet to be told, and adventures yet to be lived. A vast realm of possibility, waiting to be explored. Every story needs a teller. And every world needs builders. What if that could be you? For thirty years, Blizzard has been creating universes for millions of players around the globe. This requires a diverse team of developers willing to lend their voices, to listen and to be heard. That is our mission. At the moment, it is uncertain if the recent purchase from the Xbox company influenced Blizzard Entertainment to tackle this new venture or if it was internally planned ahead of the deal. But, what has been affected is future games from Activision – namely Call of Duty. For now, Phil Spencer has pledged to honor all marketing deals between Activision Blizzard and Sony Interactive Entertainment. However, it is speculated that Microsoft is planning to wall future entries from reaching PlayStation. Despite that, it is reported that Activision is still adamant to ship on the hardware well into 2023. You can read the full report by heading here. What do you think about the new project from Blizzard Entertainment will be? Source: Blizzard Entertainment
Crytek Reveals Development For Crysis 4
In the past generation, Crytek has not left a large impression on the industry as it did for the two console lifespans before it. Yes, there were games like Ryse: Son of Rome and Warface, the developer did not impress its hardcore fanbase following other releases such as Homefront The Revolution. But, the team closing the door in 2020 delivered Crysis Remastered at the time. That was later followed by Crysis Remastered Trilogy, the original IP that shook the industry is now available across the plethora of hardware – including Nintendo Switch. Looking ahead, there was a report of a closed door meeting at Crytek which elaborated on possible new projects. That included more Crysis remastered, Crysis ‘Next’ and a sequel for Ryse: Son of Rome. On Wednesday, Crytek approached its followers to share Crysis 4 is officially in development. You can watch the teaser trailer for the game in the video below: To everyone in our amazing Crysis community, and to all fans of the franchise all around the world: we have a special announcement to make, just for you. It’s something you have been asking us for a long time, so it’s now finally time to confirm – yes, the next Crysis game is happening! We are so pleased and excited to bring this news to you, and we really can’t wait to reveal more details about what lies ahead.Right now the game is in the early stages of development so it will be a while yet, but we wanted to bring you the news at this time as we are so hyped for the future, and to let you know that we will be listening to our community. Crytek has a proud history of working with our community to develop the games you want to play. Crysis is incredibly important to so many people – it’s beloved by gamers everywhere, and some of those working in the industry today are doing so because of the original game – so we want to make sure the next instalment in the franchise lives up to all of your expectations. Make sure to join our socials and get involved! Avni Yerli, Crytek CEO “As development progresses we will release more details when we can. But in the meantime, know that our dedicated and talented team is working hard to bring you a truly next-gen shooter,” Yerli concluded when speaking on Crysis 4. However, he goes on to reference more is on the way in terms of Hunt: Showdown. In the original report on more game, the document also suggested that a potential mobile game could be in the works. “I also want to let Hunt: Showdown players know that we have some great things planned for you too, this year and beyond, so watch this space,” he explained in the blog post. What are you most excited about Crysis 4 being announced? There is no release date slated for Crysis 4; confirmed for “next-gen” suggesting listing for Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PC. Source: Crytek
Life Is Strange, Phogs, One Hand Clapping Headlines Next Stadia Pro Games For February 2022
In terms of the ongoing Stadia cloud streaming service, Google continues to support its users with more big name releases arriving to the platform and even more being added to the monthly subscription service, Stadia Pro. In January 2022, the firm welcomed aboard games such as Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, Shantae: Risky’s Revenge at the time. Now that February is just close to a week away, the firm is now underway to deliver another healthy helping of games to its service once more. On Tuesday, Google announced the newest roster for Stadia Pro which you can read in the list below: Cosmic Star Heroine Life is Strange Life is Strange: Before The Storm Merek’s Market Nanotale One Hand Clapping Phogs Regarding other Stadia news recently, the firm is planning to ship its service later on this year for Samsung displays. While the service is available to moderately new smart phone, televisions support has yet to be integrated. The next lineup of flagship models for 2022 is to introduce Stadia alongside Nvidia GeForce Now. You can read the full report by heading here. What are you most excited to try first from February 2022’s Stadia Pro lineup? Cosmic Star Heroine, Life is Strange, Life is Strange: Before The Storm, Merek’s Market, Nanotale, One Hand Clapping, and Phogs arrives to Stadia Pro on February 1, 2022. Source: Google
Halo Infinite Witnesses More Than 20 Million Players Since Its Release
Since the original reveal of Halo Infinite predating back to 2018, the newest entry in the series stood out to be what fans of the IP has waited for nearly a decade. And when it finally dropped last month, the game was met with critical acclaim as buzz continued to grow for the title. From our time with the game, we wrote,” The story of Master Chief and Cortana is riveting, the Banished make excellent enemies and the multiplayer is the most fun I’ve had since Halo 3.” Ahead of its release, 343 Industries in a surprise announcement released the multiplayer for Halo Infinite. While in beta form, the team essentially shipped half of the game for the world to experience. While prior than its initially set date, Halo Infinite went as far as to outperform even Battlefield 2042 at the time as well. In a new announcement on Tuesday, 343 Industries on Twitter shared that Halo Infinite is the biggest release in franchise history for the Halo IP. In that, more than 20 million players experienced Halo Infinite since last month. Additionally, there is a follow-up to another milestone for another Xbox franchise. In that, Forza Horizon 5 was also shared to exceed 18 million players since its arrival. In a tweet by @BenjiSales, he transcribed the recent earnings call for Microsoft revealing the racer faced the latest record. Previously, it was reported 15 million players entered the Mexico Festival then. Looking ahead, it appears Microsoft/343 Industries is preparing for a content drop for Halo Infinite. Around launch for the game, Microsoft trademarked a new entity: Halo The Endless. The filing references elements referenced in the story and appears to be the stepping stone for the first expansion for the game. You can read the full report by heading here. Are you one of the 20 million to play Halo Infinite? Halo Infinite is out now for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
