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Oct 2Fri
  1. GamesIndustry.biz12

    In pictures: the Best Places To Work Awards 2026

    The GamesIndustry.biz Best Places To Work Awards UK 2026 were revealed last night at the Royal Institution in London, following the GamesIndustry.biz HR Summit. Scores are based 80% on anonymous employee survey feedback and 20% on companies' internal policy submissions, with special awards judged by the GamesIndustry.biz editorial team and the G into Gaming award presented by Liz Prince MBE of Amiqus. The awards were sponsored by Amiqus, Playground Games, IO Interactive, Games London and Special Effect, and will return in 2027.

  2. GamesIndustry.biz42

    Sony's consultation on physical media: better late than never | Opinion

    Sony is surveying its development partners for input on its decision to end support for physical game releases, first reported by Moore's Law is Dead. The consultation comes belatedly, underscoring how unilateral the decision was, and suggests Sony may realize it overstepped. The piece expects little change to the announced policy, though a compromise letting companies optionally do physical releases for the rest of the PS5's lifespan might emerge.

  4. Push Square44

    GTA 6 Rebrands Miami Heat to Vice City for One Night Only

    The NBA's Miami Heat will be rebranded as Vice City for a game against the Milwaukee Bucks on 18th November 2026, the day before GTA 6 launches, in a collaboration with Rockstar. The court will be themed around the game's version of Vice City with GTA 6's pink marketing tones, and players will wear a custom kit yet to be revealed. A Vice City Collection of merchandise will also be sold, with t-shirts starting at $45 and snapback hats at $50.

  6. GamesIndustry.biz40

    Bungie co-founder and Destiny 2 narrative director launch transmedia studio Stone Kite

    Bungie co-founder Jason Jones and Destiny 2 narrative director Margaret Stohl have launched a transmedia studio called Stone Kite, with Stohl serving as CEO. The Los Angeles-based "world-building studio" debuts with its first IP, One Zero One, adapted from an original manuscript by Jones, which will launch as a four-part comic book series with new issues released online for free in early 2027. Stone Kite is collaborating with more than 250 creators from across the entertainment industry.

  8. 机核22

    Second RED LAND Opens Today: 160+ IPs Gather on Fuxing Island with World's First Game/Anime Float Parade

    RED LAND, Xiaohongshu's open-world adventure island event, opened on October 2 on Fuxing Island in Shanghai's Yangpu district and runs through October 6. The site doubled from 80,000 to 150,000 square meters, with over 160 game and anime IPs and the world's first large-scale game and anime float parade featuring about 150 community-registered users. Official figures say all five ticket rounds sold out in an average of 20.6 seconds each, and 80% of ticket buyers came from outside Shanghai.

  11. GameSpot40

    Disney Responds to Rumor It Could Buy Fortnite Studio Epic Games

    Disney executive Dana Walden said the company is not currently in talks to acquire Epic Games, though she called the relationship a "great partnership." Disney previously invested more than $1.5 billion in Epic for an equity stake, and the two are working together on "transformational" new games with multiple launches planned over the next two years. Reports have suggested some Disney executives want to buy Epic, while others reportedly believe it would be a bad idea.

  12. GameSpot62

    Blizzard bans a World of Warcraft: Forever streamer over gold buying

    A World of Warcraft: Forever streamer was banned after encouraging viewers on stream to buy gold on his behalf. The game is currently in beta ahead of a November launch and is caught up in a gold-buying and real-money transaction controversy. Blizzard has said it will punish gold buyers more aggressively and admitted it was too lenient in the past, with accounts accepting large amounts of questionable gold facing gold removal, suspension, or permanent bans.

  14. GamesIndustry.biz12

    Winners of the UK Best Places To Work Awards 2026 revealed

    The UK Best Places to Work Awards 2026 took place at the Royal Institution in London on October 1, recognising 25 UK companies across small, mid-sized and large categories. Special awards went to Dink, Hangar 13, Jagex: The RuneScape Company, NaturalMotion Games, Rare and Snap Finger Click, with Jo Haslam of Snap Finger Click winning the G Into Gaming award. Winners were judged on an employee survey worth 80% of the score and a company survey worth 20%.

  15. VGC62

    Micron warns memory shortages will worsen in 2027 as CEO cites much higher prices

    On its FY 2026 earnings call, Micron said memory demand will exceed supply in 2027 and 2028, with industry tightness greater than in 2026 and no line of sight to when supply and demand will rebalance. The company said it has already sold most of the memory it expects to produce next year at much higher prices than in 2026, and that new factories coming online in 2028 will not immediately improve availability or lower prices. Rising memory and storage costs have pushed Microsoft, Apple, Valve, Sony and Nintendo to raise hardware prices, while Micron and two other major RAM makers face a class action alleging they fixed supply and prices.

  16. GamesIndustry.biz71

    Reigns developer Nerial closes after two years of significant losses, Devolver keeps rights to existing games

    Nerial, the studio behind Reigns and Card Shark, announced it is closing and entering "hibernation mode." Founders Tamara Alliot and François Alliot said they decided with Devolver, which acquired Nerial in 2021, to end development and the studio, while Devolver retains the rights to its existing catalogue. A Companies House report showed Nerial lost over £800,000 in 2025 and nearly £1 million in 2024, and had become dependent on Devolver's financial support. The studio has nine employees including its founders, who said they plan to take a break before returning to making games.

  18. IGN51

    Total War: Warhammer III modder deliberately corrupts own popular mod in protest over AI reuploads

    Venris, creator of the popular Total War: Warhammer III mod SFO: Grimhammer III, deliberately corrupted the mod so it no longer works with unauthorized reuploads, after people used AI to release sub mods without permission. Venris said he will make SFO: Grimhammer III private if the situation escalates, calling the mod the result of nearly 10 years of work. The dispute comes amid a surge of AI-generated mods, and this week the creator of a viral AI-generated Fallout: New York took it offline after a cease and desist from Bethesda.

  19. Rock Paper Shotgun62

    Krafton cancels PUBG spin-off extraction shooter Black Budget less than a year after reveal

    Krafton has ended development of PUBG: Black Budget, less than a year after the extraction shooter spin-off was revealed and following roughly a year of closed alpha testing. In a Steam development update, the publisher said the project's current direction would not deliver an experience players could enjoy over the long term. The game had no full release date, and the top-down spin-off PUBG: Blindspot was taken offline about two months after entering early access in March for similar reasons.

  20. GamesIndustry.biz62

    Riot exec says 2XKO needed hundreds of thousands to millions of MAU to sustain itself

    Riot Games CPO Marc Merrill said 2XKO would have needed a monthly active user base "in the high hundreds of thousands, if not millions" to support its live-service model, and its actual audience was "not nearly enough." 2XKO ended active development in August because it cost substantially more to operate than it brought in and engagement stayed flat despite larger updates; it remains free to play on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S with servers online "beyond 2026." Merrill also cited Street Fighter 6's release as a factor and said leadership changes led to a lack of alignment on strategy and managerial fracturing.

  22. VGC17

    Fuse Games CEO to Discuss Star Wars: Galactic Racer at UK Games Conference

    Fuse Games CEO Matt Webster will be interviewed by VGC's Andy Robinson about the development of Star Wars: Galactic Racer at the UK event Game Republic New Horizons. The game, published by Secret Mode and due out on October 6, is the debut title from Fuse Games, a studio founded in 2023 by former Criterion Games leads. The conference's main day takes place on October 15 at the Riverside Stadium in Middlesbrough.

  24. IGN62

    AI-generated Fallout: New York taken offline after creator says Bethesda issued cease and desist

    The creator behind the AI-generated Fallout: New York has pulled the game offline, saying they received a cease and desist from Bethesda parent ZeniMax Media citing trademark infringement over the fallout.nyc domain and use of copyrighted material. Built with Claude Opus 5.5 and playable in a browser, the game included quests, companions, dialogue trees, V.A.T.S. and a working Pip-Boy, and its demo video drew 3.5 million views on X. IGN has asked Microsoft for comment, as a wave of AI-generated game-merging mods this week fuels debate over the legality of such clones.

  26. GamesIndustry.biz62

    Krafton shuts down PUBG spin-off Black Budget nine months after closed alpha test

    Krafton is ending development on PUBG spin-off Black Budget nine months after its closed alpha test on Steam. The studio said on Steam that after reviewing the project's development status and future direction, it concluded the current direction would not deliver an experience players could enjoy over the long term. Black Budget was an extraction shooter built around a time loop, and it is the second PUBG spin-off cancelled this year after Blindspot was shut down in March following two months in Early Access.

  28. Gematsu34

    Surreal Narrative Adventure Game [AFANTASIA] to Be Published by Studio Sasanqua

    Studio Sasanqua will publish Brazilian solo developer noidnoidnoid's surreal narrative point-and-click adventure game [AFANTASIA] for PC via Steam, with English, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, and Simplified Chinese support. A release date was not announced. The game will be exhibited at Brazil Game Show 2026 from October 9 to 12, the studio's first event appearance as a publisher.

  30. PC Gamer62

    Alinea Analytics estimates Steam took $1.7B in September, on pace to pass $20B for the year

    Alinea Analytics estimates Steam generated $1.7 billion in September 2026, up 13% year over year and its best September to date. The firm's head of market analysis, Rhys Elliott, said Steam's Q3 revenue reached $5.5 billion, up 12%, bringing the 2026 total to $16.5 billion so far versus $14.5 billion in the first nine months of 2025, with full-year revenue on track to pass $20 billion for the first time. Among September releases, Wardogs was estimated at $86.9 million on Steam, alongside Onimusha: Way of the Sword, The Blood of Dawnwalker, Bodycam and EA Sports FC27.

  31. Kotaku60

    Krafton cancels extraction shooter PUBG: Black Budget

    Krafton announced in a Steam update that it is ending development of PUBG: Black Budget, saying that after reviewing the project's development status and future direction it concluded the current direction would not deliver an experience players could enjoy over the long term. The first-person PvPvE extraction shooter was first mentioned in a November 2023 investor presentation and later got a Steam page and teaser trailer but never released. Krafton also canceled PUBG: Blindspot after two months in Early Access and said PUBG Studios will carry what it learned into future projects.

  32. Nintendo Life33

    ININ 'Relaunches' R-Type Dimensions III With a Third Major Patch and a Free Digital Artbook

    ININ has announced it has effectively "relaunched" R-Type Dimensions III with a third major patch, which mainly reworks boss fights in Advanced Mode to more closely match the original game. As an apology, a digital artbook previously only available in the Ultimate Edition on Steam has been added to all platforms. ININ calls this patch the final step in fixing the game and is treating it as a fresh relaunch.

  33. IGN62

    Riot Games Co-Founder Says 2XKO Needed Hundreds of Thousands, if Not Millions, of Monthly Active Players to Survive

    Riot Games co-founder, co-chairman and chief product officer Marc Merrill said on The Lemonade Stand podcast that 2XKO would have needed monthly active player numbers in the high hundreds of thousands, if not millions, to justify its cost structure. He said Street Fighter 6's 2023 release disrupted their plans and that a lack of internal alignment caused managerial fracturing, so Riot issued full refunds and canceled further content updates after player numbers fell short of supporting the live-service design. Riot had already announced it would end active development after December 2026 while keeping online play supported.

  35. GameSpot55

    PS5 Game Kena: Scars of Kosmora Delayed to 2027

    Developer Ember Lab announced that Kena: Scars of Kosmora, the PS5 sequel to Kena: Bridge of Spirits, has been delayed from this year to 2027. The studio said it needs more time to polish the expanded experience and exceed the quality of the 2021 original. The game has so far been confirmed only for PS5 and PC.

  36. Polygon40

    Magic: The Gathering's Disastrous Zeta Set Is Officially Coming Back

    Wizards of the Coast announced Thursday that the sold-out Secret Lair x MSCHF: The Zeta Set will return after a disastrous September drop the company has since apologized for. Unlike the previous pre-order window, fans won't have to sit through queues or waiting rooms, as Wizards appears to be ensuring everyone who wants the collab can get one if they're patient enough.

  37. Game Developer62

    Xbox CEO Asha Sharma says Xbox is not for sale

    Xbox CEO Asha Sharma told The New York Times that Xbox is not for sale, saying the company will seek the right partnerships and operating model to succeed. A June report from The Information said Microsoft had no immediate plans to spin off Xbox but had not ruled out restructuring it as a wholly-owned subsidiary or forming a joint venture. Sharma, who replaced Phil Spencer in February, has overseen 1,600 layoffs at Xbox with 1,600 more expected later this year.

  38. Game Informer71

    Reigns developer Nerial shuts down after 13 years

    Nerial, the developer of the Reigns series, has announced it is shutting down after 13 years. The London studio said in a social media post that it is entering "hibernation mode" after discussing an end to active development with publishing partner Devolver Digital, without giving specific reasons, and that its employees will continue working in game development after a break. Nerial broke out with the 2016 card-based RPG Reigns and went on to release sequels and licensed spin-offs including Reigns: Game of Thrones and Reigns: The Witcher, the latter launching this year as its final release.

  39. Rock Paper Shotgun66

    Reigns and Card Shark developer Nerial is shutting down and laying off staff

    Nerial, the studio behind Reigns and Card Shark, has announced it is shutting down, or entering what it calls hibernation mode, after discussions with parent company Devolver Digital. CEO Tamara Alliot and creative director François Alliot said in a joint letter that they decided with Devolver to end development at the studio after 13 years, and listed affected staff across narrative, art, programming, QA and production. The founders said this is not the end of game development for them, with François Alliot saying he is going back to being pure indie.

  40. Kotaku62

    MinnMax removes YouTuber Jacob Geller after resurfaced sexual assault allegation

    After a sexual assault allegation against Jacob Geller surfaced on September 30, gaming channel MinnMax announced on October 1 that Geller is no longer part of the channel and will not appear in future content, with this week's episode of The MinnMax Show not airing. The allegation first appeared on X claiming Geller was fired from a University of North Carolina college radio station in 2016, and records released by UNC in 2020 and archived on the Internet Archive list his name as violating the school's sexual assault policy with a one-semester suspension. Podcast Cane and Rinse also confirmed it will remove all episodes featuring Geller.