Three months after Koei Tecmo filed a lawsuit against mobile studio Youzu, the two developers have reached an out-of-court settlement for an undisclosed fee. At the time of the April suit, the Japanese developer claimed Youzu had repeatedly infringed on its copyright. Music and in-game assets from its games had allegedly been used to promote …
Book Excerpt: Tabletop Game Accessibility: Meeple Centred Design
The following excerpt is from Tabletop Game Accessibility: Meeple Centred Design by Dr. Michael James Heron. The book was published April 12, 2024 by CRC Press, a division of Taylor & Francis, a sister company of Game Developer and Informa Tech. Use our discount code GDTF20 at checkout on Routledge.com to receive a 20% discount …
It sure seems like Xsolla wants to take a bite out of platform cuts from the App Store, other digital marketplaces
On a train ride out of Gamescom, I chanced on a pair of junior developers scrutinizing their own lanyards, which sported Xsolla’s branding. “Who even IS Xsolla?” one of them asked, as they commented on how they’d seen the branding at all kinds of events over the last year. Ever the eavesdropper, I leaned in …
Gameloft Romania cuts 136 jobs and closes Cluj studio
Gameloft Romania is shuttering its Cluj studio and laying off 136 employees. The company confirmed the news in a statement issued to Game Developer and explained the closure follows a review of its production capacities. “As a company, we need to constantly review our production capacities. After careful consideration and in response to the ever-changing …
Don’t Nod facing ‘potential reorganization’ and layoffs amid 2024’s first-half struggles
Update (10/16/2024): French game development union STJV condemned Don’t Nod’s potential layoffs in a translated statement, calling it “the climax of a series of catastrophic decisions, denounced for a long time by workers’ representatives.” The STJV claims Don’t Nod exhibited “red warning lights” for months, from Jusant and Banishers’ underperformance to the alleged dissolution of the former’s …
Deep Dive: How to design for impact and narrative variance with Roadwarden
Game Developer Deep Dives are an ongoing series with the goal of shedding light on specific design, art, or technical features within a video game in order to show how seemingly simple, fundamental design decisions aren’t really that simple at all. Earlier installments cover topics such as designing combat to match the beat of music …
Bandai Namco will publish Rebel Wolves’ debut game, Dawnwalker
Bandai Namco will team with developer Rebel Wolves to publish the studio’s debut project, Dawnwalker. The Tekken 8 publisher will put out the fantasy-RPG in both physical and digital formats worldwide. In a statement, Bandai Namco Europe’s business development VP Alberto Gonzalez called the agreement “another key milestone in our content development strategy for the …
EA beats net bookings expectations in Q1, feels record-breaking Q2 could be on the cards
EA has made a brisk start to the current financial year (FY25) after exceeding its net bookings guidance for the first quarter. The publisher, which is currently laying off 5 percent of its workforce, delivered Q1 net bookings of $1.26 billion, exceeding its high-end guidance range of $1.25 billion. The company said that surge was …
Finding a New Balance Between AI and Beneficial Bugs
Miruna Vozaru June 12, 2024 7 Min Read Pharah, one of the heroes in Overwatch, has an emote where she says, “Rocket jump? That sounds dangerous.” Almost thirty years before Pharah said that, in Quake, some players discovered that shooting a rocket into the ground would damage them but also provided a jump boost, allowing …
Report: Roblox employees are worried it isn’t doing enough to stop child predators
“Parents are letting children play on Roblox thinking it’s a cute little kids’ game, with no idea what is really happening. If I could wipe one app off the face of the Earth right now, it would be that one—it would be Roblox.”—Safe on Social CEO Kirra Pendergast [Content note: This story contains discussions of …