Category Archives: Business

Business, Gaming, News

Is Capcom wanting to tell us something with a surprising RE Engine contest?

Capcom has announced its first-ever game development competition for Japanese students, utilizing its proprietary RE Engine. Titled the Capcom Games Competition, this event aims to invigorate the game industry by contributing to the development of research at educational institutions and training outstanding talent.

The RE Engine, also known as Reach for the Moon Engine, was originally developed for Resident Evil 7: Biohazard in 2014. Since then, it has been continuously evolved and used in several Capcom titles, including recent Resident Evil games, Dragon’s Dogma 2, and Monster Hunter Wilds. The engine simplifies complex technologies, making them manageable for developers, and allows for lifelike, photorealistic visuals.

The Competition Details

The competition is open to students aged 18 and older who are enrolled in a university, graduate school, or vocational school in Japan. Teams of up to 20 students will create games using the RE Engine in a cloud environment, with support from professional Capcom developers1. The competition spans a six-month period, during which teams will assign roles based on real-life game creator jobs.

Why I believe this MATTERS

Capcom’s initiative is significant for several reasons:

  1. Industry Growth: By providing students with access to a high-quality game development engine, Capcom is fostering the next generation of game developers. This helps to ensure a steady influx of skilled talent into the industry.
  2. Innovation: The RE Engine is known for its advanced capabilities, and by allowing students to use it, Capcom is encouraging innovation and experimentation in game development.
  3. Commercial Opportunities: Winners of the competition will receive game production support and an opportunity for commercialization. This not only benefits the students but also adds new, creative titles to the gaming market.
  4. Educational Collaboration: The competition strengthens the relationship between the gaming industry and educational institutions, promoting research and development in game design and technology.

Capcom’s commitment to nurturing talent and advancing game development technology through this competition is a positive step for the entire gaming industry. It highlights the importance of collaboration, innovation, and education in driving the industry forward.

Business, Gaming, News

EA Expands Accessibility Patents Pledge with 23 New Patents

Electronic Arts (EA) has expanded its Accessibility Patents Pledge by adding 23 new patents to the initiative. Launched in August 2021, the pledge initially included five patents aimed at improving accessibility for players. Over the years, this number has grown to 15, and now, with the latest addition, the total stands at 38 patents.

These patents cover a range of technologies designed to make gaming more inclusive for players with disabilities or medical issues. Some of the newly added patents include:

  • Intelligent Personalized Speech Recognition: A system that improves the accuracy and efficiency of speech recognition by using personal phoneme mappings for each user.
  • Generating Expressive Speech Audio from Text Data: A system that generates expressive speech audio from text data, providing more control and personalization based on desired speaking style and speaker attributes.
  • Generating Speech in the Voice of a Player: A system that can generate speech in the voice of a player for their avatar, based on minimal sample speech data.
  • Voice Aging Using Machine Learning: A system that can age an original input voice to a desired target age without requiring additional voice samples.
  • Emotion-Based Music Style Change Using Deep Learning: A system that infers a player’s emotion while playing a video game and tunes the background soundtrack to best fit that emotion.

In addition to the patents, EA has also released an Unreal Engine 5 plugin that enables in-engine use of its photosensitivity analysis tech, IRIS, which was open-sourced last year. This plugin allows developers to analyze and identify frames that could potentially impact players who experience photosensitivity and make necessary adjustments.

EA’s commitment to making games more accessible is evident in its ongoing efforts to share its accessibility-centered technology with the wider industry royalty-free. By doing so, EA aims to encourage the industry to work together to remove barriers and make gaming more inclusive for everyone.

Breaking, Business, Games, Gaming, News, PC

But of course, Amazon is promoting Secret Level TV Series with FREE games

Amazon Prime Gaming is celebrating the upcoming release of its animated show, Secret Level, by offering an additional 10 free games to subscribers. This surprise announcement comes as Prime Gaming gears up for the December 10 release of the show, which tells short stories set within the world of popular video games.

Prime Gaming subscribers can now claim these new titles, which include a mix of classic and modern games spread across different PC gaming platforms. Some of the games will be available for free into 2025, giving players plenty of time to enjoy them.

The free games lineup includes:

  • Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition (GOG)
  • Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Edition (GOG)
  • Necromunda: Hired Gun (Epic Games Store)
  • Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition (GOG)
  • The Outer Worlds (GOG)
  • Space Hulk: Deathwing – Enhanced Edition (Amazon Games)
  • Spelunky (GOG)
  • Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War (Amazon Games)
  • Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine (Amazon Games)
  • Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II (Amazon Games, coming December 12)

Prime Gaming has already announced 18 free games for December 2024, and this latest batch of 10 new titles adds to the excitement. Subscribers can claim these games by connecting their Amazon and Twitch accounts, making it easy to access and enjoy the free content.

This offer is a great way for Prime members to build hype for the Secret Level series by exploring the games that inspired it.

Don’t miss out on this opportunity to add some fantastic titles to your gaming library for free!

Business, Gaming, News, Playstation

Shuhei Yoshida – One of the OG from they early days of Playstation development is retiring

In a heartfelt announcement, Shuhei Yoshida, a key figure in PlayStation’s history, has revealed that he will be leaving Sony Interactive Entertainment after 31 years. Yoshida, who joined the company in 1993 during the development of the original PlayStation, has played a pivotal role in shaping the gaming landscape.

I’m leaving Sony Interactive Entertainment on January 15 2025… it’s like announcing the launch date of a new game, [something] I haven’t done for a long time.

I’ve been with PlayStation from the beginning, and this is my 31st year with PlayStation. And when I hit 30 years, I was thinking, hmm, it may be about time for me to move on. You know, the company’s been doing great.

I love PS5, I love the games that are coming out on this platform. And we have new generations of management who I respect and admire. And I’m so excited for the future of PlayStation. So, you know, PlayStation is in really good hands. I thought, okay, this is my time.

Yoshida’s journey with PlayStation began as an account management lead, where he was responsible for securing third-party partnerships for the console. Over the years, he held various influential positions, including Vice President of SCE America and President of SCE Worldwide Studios. His tenure saw the release of numerous iconic games, such as Gran Turismo and Ape Escape.

Reflecting on his career, Yoshida shared some of his favorite moments, including the success of the digital-only game Journey, which won the Game of the Year award in 2012.

He also expressed his love for working with indie developers, describing it as “treasure hunting” for unique and innovative games.

GG and farewell good sir!

You can read more at Playstation Official blog post here.

Business, Games, Gaming, News

CD Projekt Red announces big Cyberpunk 2077 & The Witcher news

In a major announcement, CD Projekt Red has revealed that The Witcher 4, codenamed Project Polaris, has entered full-scale production. This marks a significant milestone for the studio as they gear up to develop the first installment in a new Witcher trilogy.

Alongside this exciting news, CD Projekt Red also announced that Cyberpunk 2077 has surpassed 30 million copies sold worldwide.

The Witcher 4, also part of Project Polaris (the new trilogy including a new story line which will not focus on Geralt Of Rivia), has moved from pre-production to full-scale development. CD Projekt Red’s joint CEO, Michał Nowakowski, expressed pride in the team’s progress and dedication to delivering a remarkable experience.

And two Cyberpunk news

Cyberpunk 2077 continues to perform strongly in the market, with the game recently crossing the 30 million copies sold milestone. The Phantom Liberty expansion, which featured actor Idris Elba in a major role, has sold over eight million copies since its release in September 2023.

These impressive figures highlight the game’s enduring popularity and the dedicated community that continues to support it.

Also, CD Projekt announced last October that it was collaborating with media company Anonymous Content on a live-action project set in the world of Cyberpunk and also, this week it was confirmed that it’s working on a new Cyberpunk animation project which will be released on Netflix, but at this time is unknown if this will serve another storyline or will follow Cyberpunk: Edgerunners.

In addition to The Witcher 4 and Cyberpunk 2077, CD Projekt Red is working on several other projects. These include a new IP codenamed Project Hadar, a sequel to Cyberpunk 2077 codenamed Project Orion, and a new game set in the Witcher universe titled Project Sirius.

Business, Featured, Games, Gaming, News, Nintendo

Nintendo will sell its presence in China Market meaning the end of its run there

In a significant announcement, Nintendo has revealed that the Nintendo Switch eShop and all online services will be discontinued in China by 2026. This decision will impact millions of gamers in the region, marking the end of an era for Nintendo’s presence in the Chinese market.

The Chinese Nintendo eShop will stop selling games and software by March 31, 2026 and after this date, all titles, including paid and free games, will no longer be available for purchase or download followed by the ability to download titles, redeem codes, and access DLC and other network elements by May 15, 2026.

To soften the blow, Nintendo, in collaboration with Tencent, is offering up to four free games to players with active WeChat accounts tied to their Nintendo Switch consoles. This offer is available from November 27, 2024, until March 31, 2026. Eligible games include popular titles like Super Mario Odyssey, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and Pokémon Let’s Go! Pikachu.

For context, the Nintendo Switch was launched in China in 2020 through a partnership with Tencent, a major player in the Chinese tech industry. Since then, several older Nintendo Switch titles have been localized for the Chinese market.

However, unspecified changes in Tencent’s business operations have led to the decision to end online services in the region by Nintendo simply not renewing their partnership.

The news has been met with mixed reactions from the gaming community. While some players are disappointed by the loss of online services, others are appreciative of the compensation offered by Nintendo. Many are hopeful that this move will lead to improvements in the services offered in other regions.

Business, Gaming, Hardware/Console, News, Playstation, Technology

Bloomberg: Sony is already working on a return to portable gaming market

PSP and PS Vita wasn’t much of an example of dethroning Nintendo in the portable section of the gaming market by Sony and while it did gained fans from Playstation pro players, the company decided to focus on home gaming console with the entrance of the Playstation 4.

Nintendo Switch, Steam Deck with the respective responses from MSI, Lenovo and two gaming generations later, Sony might be making a return of the spiritual successor of the Playstation Portable but with the due diligence and homework.

Sony Interactive Entertainment is in the “early stages” of developing the device, which is still years away from a potential release according to sources close to Bloomberg.

Obviously, Nintendo being challenged as never before in the portable gaming front by all ways including portable PC devices and Smartphones, Sony sees the opportunity to try things again and it seems that the Playstation Portal build some confidence on Playstation actually trying again.

This comes as Microsoft Gaming CEO confirmed that Xbox is developing its original portable hardware which admittedly, will not be ready for this year, leaving Sony with the opportunity to capitalize by also, not competing directly with the successor of the Nintendo Switch, due to be announce between this month up to March 2025.

The original PlayStation Portable (PSP), released by Sony in 2004, was a groundbreaking handheld gaming console that brought console-quality gaming to the palm of your hand. Despite its unceremonious run without the expected success, the PSP was a significant competitor to Nintendo’s handheld consoles and was praised for its powerful hardware and multimedia capabilities. It sold over 80 million units worldwide and had a lifespan from 2004 to 2014.

Business, Featured, Games, Gaming, News

A surprising update on the future of Shenmue III

In a significant development for fans of the legendary Shenmue series, YsNet has officially transferred the publishing rights of Shenmue III to ININ Games. This move comes as part of a deepening collaboration between the two companies, following their previous partnership on Air Twister.

ININ Games, known for its commitment to celebrating beloved titles and bringing them to new platforms, is excited to shepherd Shenmue III into its next phase. This transfer coincides with two momentous milestones: the 25th anniversary of the Shenmue series and the 5th anniversary of Shenmue III. Since its debut, Shenmue has captivated fans worldwide with its groundbreaking storytelling, immersive open-world gameplay, and its legacy as a pioneer in video game history.

We at ININ Games are honored to carry the Shenmue torch forward during such a significant moment in the series’ history,” said an ININ Games representative. “As we reflect on two decades of innovation and passion, we remain dedicated to preserving and sharing the journey of Ryo Hazuki with both long-time fans and newcomers1. With this transfer, the story of Shenmue is far from over. We have exciting plans to celebrate these anniversaries, ensuring that this beloved series continues to thrive and inspire.

YsNet, founded by innovative game creator Yu Suzuki in 2008 after his career at SEGA, announced the Shenmue III project on Kickstarter in 2015, which led to two Guinness World Records, including the fastest $1 million pledged for a crowdfunded game. Shenmue III was released in 2019 for fans all over the world.

With this new partnership, fans can look forward to more exciting announcements and updates as ININ Games and YsNet work together to honor the legacy of Shenmue and bring it to even more players around the world.