Crystal Dynamics’ Perfect Dark/Tomb Raider Teams Deemed Safe From New Structuring Plan At New Home Under Embracer Group

Recently, many fans of Crystal Dynamics are eager to see what is on the horizon from the developer. Previously, it was revealed that the team would be acquired alongside Eidos-Montreal by Embracer Group. Since then, little has been revealed on the matter for its projects. One major nod came with the official end of content for Marvel’s Avengers announced earlier this year. Additionally, Crystal Dynamics confirmed a new Tomb Raider game is on the way. Alongside the new Unreal Engine 5 project, the team is also occupied with its effort in support on The Initiative’s Perfect Dark Remake. The team did press in a previous earnings call that the work is progressing smoothly on the Xbox Game Studios title. But in a new announcement this week, Embracer Group has launched a new restructuring initiative which will redirect its focus from a “heavy-investment-mode to a highly cash-flow generative business” resulting in layoffs at the firm. It is speculated the decision was executed following the recent fallout on a $2 billion deal, Axios Gaming reported last month. During the past years, Embracer invested significantly both in acquisitions and into a strategy of accelerated organic growth. We have acquired some of the world’s leading entertainment IP and we have invested into one of the largest pipelines of games across the industry. The program presented today will transform us from our current heavy-investment-mode to a highly cash-flow generative business this year. It will enable us to meet the worsening economy and market reality as a strong company and it will fundamentally change our prioritization of growth with raised capital towards optimization and growth based on our own cashflows. The program will lower our net debt significantly. After completion of this program, we will generate growth in profitability with less business risk and with higher margins in the PC/Console segment over the coming years. This, in turn, will give us the freedom to continue to grow and deliver the high-quality experiences our players really value. The program is divided into different phases until March 2024 with focus on cost savings, capital allocation, efficiency and consolidation. The initial phase, which is initiated immediately, mainly targets cost savings across the group. The next phase, which also starts immediately, will require further analysis to determine specific actions. The last phase will focus on internal consolidation, further resource utilization and more synergies across the Group. The actions for each affected company will be implemented by the new interim COO and CSO in collaboration with each operative group CEO and management teams. Embracer currently engages close to 17,000 people and while that number will be lower by the end of the year, it is too early to give an exact forecast on this. lars Wingefors, Embracer Group CEO “It is painful to see talented team members leave. Our people are what make up the very fabric of Embracer. I understand and respect that many of you will be worried about your own position and I don’t have all the answers to all questions. I want to be clear that the decisions about this program were not taken lightly,” Wingefors adds. However, Crystal Dynamics in a response letterhead via Twitter does verify that the team and its current projects will not be affected by the notion. “We want to reassure fans that there will be no impact to our continuing efforts with our partners at The Initiative on Perfect Dark, or our next Tomb Raider title being developed in collaboration with Amazon Games.” In regards to the current Crystal Dynamics projects, one rumors might shed light on when to expect the new games. That is Perfect Dark Remake is roughly one year ahead in release to the new Tomb Raider title over at Amazon. You can read the full report by heading here. What do you think on the new development for Embracer Group? Source: Embracer Group

Forza Motorsport Developer Reveals Career Progression Requires Online Connection To Access

In a weird turn of events, games that were originally founded as core single-player experiences are now being tied to constant internet connections to function. Previously, Gran Turismo 7 alongside its microtransaction debacle was also criticized heavily for asking players to stay online to play even the single-player portion of the game. Similarly, developer Arkane Studios most notorious for its single-player experiences, requires its users to be online even for solo play story mode. Noted, the developer in a later statement shared it has plans to undo this, but it seems the damage has already been done. And now with Forza Motorsport officially on the way this October, fans are about to find similar news once more. According to developer Turn 10 Studios, creative director Chris Esaki explains that while free play asks for no internet connection, career progression on the other hand will. You can view the segment of the discussion in the video below: “The game has been designed to easily adjust and add new content over time, and to that its really to ensure a really secure experience anywhere in the game,” Esaki says. “So any progression in the game will be stored on our servers to support the integrity of the overall game experience. And there are options for playing offline – so things like free play is always available, but any progression requires an online connection.” As for more news on Forza Motorsport, Turn 10 Studios did share the official cover art for the upcoming title. Both the 2023 No. 01 Cadillac Racing V-Series.R & 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray are featured on the official packaging for the game. You can read the full report by heading here. What is your response to Forza Motorsport on requiring an online connection? Forza Motorsport launches on October 10, 2023 for Xbox Series X|S & PC.

PlayStation Plus June 2023 Game Catalog Includes Far Cry 6, Tocoma, TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, And PS5 Cloud Streaming

The ongoing PlayStation Plus tiered subscription turns one this month and has already been engaging for its users. The previous month’s game catalog featured Dishonored, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and Humanity. Not to mention the more recent June 2023 free titles with NBA 2K23, Jurassic World Evolution 2, and Trek to Yomi for this month. Over at gamesindustry.biz, Sony does address the momentum so far for the service. Titles featured such as Stray brought the most amount of players whilst Ghost of Tsushima was revealed to be the title in which users put in the most time. The firm also confirmed its excitement for cloud streaming PlayStation 5 titles for ‘Premium’ subscribers on PlayStation Plus. In a new PlayStation Blog post, Sony Interactive Entertainment reveals its new list of titles coming to the game catalog on June 20th. You can read the full list below: PlayStation 5 DC League of Super-Pets: The Adventures of Krypto and Ace ELEX II Far Cry 6 Hundred Days: Wine Making Simulator Inscryption MX vs. ATV Legends My Friend Peppa Pig Paw Patrol: Mighty Pups Save Adventure Bay Rogue Legacy 2 Redout II Soulstice Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge PlayStation 4 A Hat in Time Carto DC League of Super-Pets: The Adventures of Krypto and Ace Dodgeball Academia Deus Ex: Mankind Divided ELEX II Far Cry 6 Forager Hundred Days: Wine Making Simulator Inscryption Killing Floor 2 Lonely Mountains: Downhill MX vs. ATV Legends My Friend Peppa Pig Paw Patrol: Mighty Pups Save Adventure Bay Rogue Legacy 2 Redout II Tacome The Talos Principle Deluxe Edition Thief Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge Vampire: The Masquerade – Coteries of New York The Wild at Heart “We’re currently testing cloud streaming for supported PS5 games – this includes PS5 titles from the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog and Game Trials, as well as supported digital PS5 titles that players own. When this feature launches, cloud game streaming for supported PS5 titles will be available for  use directly on your PS5 console,” Nick Maguire, vice president of global service, sales, and business operations writes. “That means as a Premium member, it’ll be easier to jump into your favorite games without downloading them first onto your PS5 console. Our goal is to add this as an additional benefit to PlayStation Plus Premium as part of our ongoing efforts to enhance the value of PlayStation Plus.   “We think it’s important for Premium members to be able to enjoy as many games as possible via cloud streaming. As more games continue to launch on the PS5 console, we look forward to adding cloud streaming capability for PS5 titles in addition to the PS3, PS4 and classic titles that are already available for Premium members to stream. We’re in the early stages right now, and we can’t wait to share more details when we’re ready, including a launch time frame.” What are you most excited for PlayStation Plus from this new update? Source: PlayStation Blog

Sony Lists Milestones For PlayStation Plus With More Than 1 Billion Hours Played On The Service’s Anniversary

Around this time last year Sony Interactive Entertainment properly shipped the new PlayStation Plus, Project Spartacus. The new iteration of the subscription integrated both traditional PlayStation Plus & PlayStation Now into one unit with a trio of tiered payment options: Essential, Extra, and Premium. Since then, it was reported that the overall user count for the service did swell down a bit. However, corporate Sony did clarify that revenue did increase as a result. Last month as part of Sony’s financial report, the PlayStation firm shared more than 14 million users are subscribed to Extra & Premium tiers. As per the last major update in May 2023, the library welcomed in Dishonored, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and Humanity just to name a few. On Wednesday in a report from gamesindustry.biz, Sony shares some of the highlights for PlayStation Plus on the anniversary of the new service. Vice president and global head of subscriptions Nick Maguire goes ahead announcing that the service will properly feature cloud streaming as part of a stress test unique to ‘Premium’ subscribers. “We’re very excited about it. I don’t have any more to share about it today because we’re in the testing phase and will provide more updates once it’s ready.” He goes on to elaborate on the growing engagement for users since the new PlayStation Plus rolled out. “We’re pretty confident that’s down to the quality of diversity that we’re putting into the game portfolio. It makes Plus attractive to many people and we’ve continued to find high quality, high calibre titles. That means that there’s something there for nearly everyone.” Additionally, Maguire shares how certain games affected users upon coming to the service. “Stray has brought in the highest number of players that have accessed that title over the first 12 months. And Ghost of Tsushima has brought in the highest number of hours of gameplay. People have really stuck around and really invested in that game. That goes to the strength of our PS Studios titles, which have seen great engagement and lots of excitement. “Four of the top ten over the year have been PS Studios titles, whether that’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Horizon Forbidden West and even Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart, which only joined recently – that’s climbing very quickly and growing month-on-month. These exclusive titles are really what’s resonating. It’s bringing people in.” During the discussion, Maguire does address more on first-party games for the service. We’re happy with our strategy,” he says. “Putting games in a bit later in the life cycle has meant that we can reach more customers 12, 18, 24 months after they have released. We’re seeing customers still get excited about those games and jumping in. For us, that’s working. Occasionally, there will be an opportunity to invest in a day-and-date like Stray and we will jump on those when they come in. But for us, letting those [first-party] games go out to the platform outside the service first… that’s working and that will continue to be our strategy moving forward. Previously, president & CEO Jim Ryan disclosed no ambition to integrate PlayStation Studios titles to PlayStation Plus aligned to how Xbox Game Pass offers its games. He explains that the reasoning would devalue its first-party library. You can read the full report by heading here. What is your impression of PlayStation Plus one year later? Source: gamesindustry.biz

Nearly A Dozen New ID@Xbox Titles Confirmed For Xbox Game Pass

This week, Microsoft is running on a high from its current Xbox Games Showcase which was held this past Sunday. Among the reveals and gameplay updates that took place then, some announcements solidified the show as one of Microsoft’s more enlightening events. Reveals including Starfield & Clockwork Revolution brings some excitement to the platform many were hoping to see for quite some time. Additionally, Microsoft also held the separate Xbox Games Showcase Extended presentation offering extra reveals that were not at the Sunday show. Already, enticing reveals fanned the flames on a DLC for both Hi-Fi Rush & High on Life. Of course, there is also a new bevy of titles on the way for Xbox Game Pass from ID@Xbox as well. In total, there are ten games revealed with the list still likely to grow later down the road. The games include Techtonica, Little Kitty Big City, Another Crab’s Treasure, Other Games in the Montage, Galacticare, The Wandering Village, The Bookwalker, Harold Halibut, Neon White, Mineko’s Night Market, and Sea of Stars. You can watch the trailer in the video below: “Xbox Games Showcase Extended is over and, as part of the show, we were treated to a montage of 10 new games coming as part of the ID@Xbox indie program – all of which will hit Game Pass upon their launch for Xbox,” Xbox Wire Editor-in-Chief Joe Skrebels pens. Among the announcement, one of the most anticipated amongst the list is Sea of Stars. After releasing Ninja Gaiden successor The Messenger, Sabotage Studio set out to expand the stretching universe with a prequel that shares the form of Chrono Trigger. Last heard, the game was planned to ship later this August. You can read the full report by heading here. What has you most excited from the list revealed? Source: Xbox Wire

New Ruling In FTC Battle For Activision Blizzard Restrains Microsoft’s Acquisition Plans

When viewing over the war room concerning Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition plans, the Xbox firm already has a large adversary on one front with the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). Previously, the firm deemed the deal to not be a harmful endeavor by the regulator back in March. However, nearly a month later the group decided to outright block the deal afters months of investigation on the matter. To make things worse, the CMA even filed a new document which further walls chances for Microsoft to pursue the deal when the wounds are still fresh. Amid the backlash from the regulator, the E.U. Commission did approve of the endeavor where CMA also responded to stand its ground. Back on home territory, the FTC is still adamant on its lawsuit against the acquisition as well. On Tuesday, the FTC was reported to be filing an injunction to further its battle against the Xbox firm, CNBC told. This action is part of the regulators plan to withhold the deal processing before its July 18 deadline. According to a new court document, the FTC was successful in landing a restraining order on the deal delaying further progress for Microsoft. “Accelerating the legal process in the US will ultimately bring more choice and competition to the gaming market. A temporary restraining order makes sense until we can receive a decision from the Court, which is moving swiftly,” Microsoft spokesperson David Chuddy in a statement to The Verge shares. Microsoft now has less room for negotiations as the future is in the palm of the court. “The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) brings this action for provisional relief pursuant to section 13(b) of the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC Act”) U.S.C. 15 53(b). The FTC seeks a temporary restraining order (TRO) and preliminary injunction enjoining Defendants Microsoft and Activison from consummation a proposed transaction while the FTC’s administrative review of the transaction is pending,” the document reads.  What are your thoughts from the Activision Blizzard deal new development?

With Hi-Fi Rush, Forza Motorsport and Starfield, Microsoft could end up having a surprisingly strong 2023

Going into 2023 it seemed Microsoft didn’t have much to offer from their Xbox Game Studios which is now at 23 total development studios creating games for the Xbox platform. It seems that after the recent Xbox Games Showcase we could finally be seeing more quality games coming from Microsoft in 2024 and to finish off 2023. To start off the year they hosted the very first Developer_Direct that featured first-party games where Hi-Fi Rush was shadow dropped. In case you didn’t know what Hi-Fi Rush was, it’s a rhythm-based action game that is single-player only. Hi-Fi Rush was very well received having over 2 million players on the game across PC and Xbox Series XlS. Aaron Greenberg of Xbox also said Hi-Fi Rush was a break out hit for Xbox. This release was also a great benefit from the Bethesda acquisition as it was developed by Tango Gameworks, a Bethesda studio. Forza Motorsport is releasing on October 10, 2023 for Xbox Series XlS, Xbox Game Pass and PC. Forza over the last several years you could always count on being great for Xbox whether it’s the Forza Horizon or Motorsport series. It shown off at the recent Xbox Games Showcase giving us another look of what it’s like in-game. Two days after Turn 10 Studios released a Career Mode Gameplay Demo. Forza Motorsport is the eighth in the series and it’s no surprise it looks as stunning as shown. The other title releasing this year from Xbox Game Studios is Starfield which is arguably one of the most highly anticipated games of the year. Starfield is coming to Xbox Series XlS, Xbox Game Pass and PC on September 6, 2023. After the bumpy release of Redfall many are skeptical if this will be the same for this one. Todd Howard confirmed that Starfield will run at 4K / 30fps on Xbox Series X and 1440p on Series S while PC can run 4K / 60fps. This started a conversation among fans online having them worried that Starfield could flop at launch due to the performance. Bethesda has been working on Starfield for at least five years or more and it was announced at their E3 2018 press conference. Bethesda and Microsoft are looking to cash in on Starfield with all of the limited edition products you buy. 2023 could end up being a huge success for Microsoft if the release of Starfield goes great because we already have Hi-Fi Rush that proved to be a solid IP and Forza Motorsport has the expectation it will have a flawless launch as always for Xbox. Going into 2024 Microsoft already has games like Avowed and Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II lined up and there could be even more coming.

Hi-Fi Rush Arcade Challenge! Update! announced for July 5

Tango Gameworks announced the first DLC for Hi-Fi Rush during the Extended Xbox Games Showcase. The Arcade Challenge! Update! features new game modes, ample challenges and it’ll arrive on July 5 to Hi-Fi Rush players. One of the new modes is BPM Rush. It tasks players to battle waves of enemies to music with a steadily increasing BPM, or beats per minute. As you defeat each wave and tackle toughened-up new foes, the BPM will speed up to the next level, up to a whopping 200 BPM in the final stages. The other new mode is Power Up! Tower Up! In this mode players take on a twist on the Rhythm Tower mode that players unlock after their first playthrough. You’ll be climbing up floors and defeating waves of enemies, but this time you’ll be powering up a downgraded Chai with randomized Upgrades. When the update arrives there will be an arcade machine added to the hideout so you can access these brand new game modes. It was leaked over a week ago that new achievements will come to Hi-Fi Rush that suggested DLC was coming and it turned out to be true. Hi-Fi Rush is an Xbox Series XlS console exclusive and it’s available for PC and Game Pass.