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Hello, and welcome to another GamesBeat weekly roundup! This time, Atari revealed its new system, the PlayStation 4 won June, and we mourned the slow death of the Vita.
Enjoy, and have a great weekend!
Pieces of flair and opinion
- The DeanBeat: Roblox’s kid developers make enough ‘robucks’ to pay for college
- The story behind the haunting What Remains of Edith Finch
- Overwatch League announcement brings hype and skepticism alike
- Esports entrepreneurs will take the stage at GamesBeat 2017
- Nintendo’s Switch Online app is a complete joke
- I’ll miss the PlayStation Vita — if only for the RPGs
- Splatoon 2 hates friends who don’t use Nintendo’s app
- Why don’t more developers release games like Mario Maker? GamesBeat Decides
- Comparing Battle Royale-likes: PUBG vs. H1Z1 vs. the rest
- Arcades never disappeared — they evolved
News
- League of Legends esports teams turn to Tim ‘Magic’ Sevenhuysen for ‘Moneyball’ counsel
- Nintendo Switch eShop servers are down intermittently for Splatoon 2 launch
- NPD: Nintendo claims 3 of the 5 top-selling games in June
- Grand Theft Auto V has now outsold Horizon Zero Dawn and Mass Effect: Andromeda in 2017
- June 2017 NPD: Tekken and Injustice roundhouse kick the sales chart
- PlayStation 4 outsold Xbox One and Nintendo Switch last month in the U.S.
- Xbox One console revenues have slowed, but software and services are strong
- Call of Duty: WWII has Doctor Who and Pulp Fiction’s crime boss punching Nazi zombies
- Facebook’s PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds deal is about helping devs find their fans
- Presence Capital has made 33 VR and AR investments in less than 2 years
- Atari’s new Speakerhat blends wearables with fashion
- The augmented reality landscape shows 60% growth in startups focused on enterprise
- Esports TV ratings aren’t great … except for Candy Crush
- Telltale announces The Walking Dead’s final season plus new seasons of Batman and The Wolf Among Us
- Kate Edwards joins Take This to continue mental health advocacy in the gaming industry
- Highmark Interactive raises $2 million to treat brain injuries with video games
- Doomfist pummels Overwatch this month
- BioWare shakeup: Aaryn Flynn leaving, Casey Hudson returning
- PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds creator beefs with its most popular livestreamer
- GamesBeat 2017: Fresh faces and veterans join speaker roster
- Ubisoft’s strong year continues despite no new releases last quarter
- Twitch follows up Mister Rogers with a Crunchyroll anime marathon on July 27
- Dragon Ball Fighterz adds Piccolo and Krillin
- Mira unveils lightweight augmented reality glasses for $100
- PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds beats GTA V’s peak Steam players record
- Windjammers launches August 29 on PS4, Vita thanks to retro revival house DotEmu
- Leap Motion raises $50 million for key component of VR’s growth: hand-tracking tech
- Tekken 7 imports one of SNK’s Fatal Fury fighters to its roster
- Dragon Ball Fighterz adds Trunks, plans closed beta
- Ataribox: First look at Atari’s new home video game console
- FunFair is making fair, transparent, and fast online casino games based on Ethereum
Mobile and social
- Tapjoy’s rewarded video ads grew 80% in the past year
- Pocket Gems’ Episode app will get Pitch Perfect interactive story
- Pokémon Go is finally getting Legendary Pokémon
- Newzoo: High fidelity games are taking over the mobile market
- Zynga and MGM are planning a Words With Friends TV show
- Plexchat raises $7 million to provide mobile chat platform for gamers
- Mobile game company N3twork acquires Agamemnon to create marketing platform
- NBA’s Sacramento Kings and Nike launch augmented reality app
- Beasts of Balance lands Sensible Object a spot in Alexa Accelerator
- Classic MMO RuneScape is coming to mobile
Reviews, previews, and interviews
- HyperX’s Cloud Revolver S headset nearly does it all
- Destiny 2’s beta is fine
- Kingsway review — an addictive RPG with deadly pop-up windows
- Echo Arena: Hands-on gameplay of zero-gravity multiplayer in VR
- Hearthstone: Knights of the Frozen Throne — creating Death Knights and Un’Goro’s legacy
- Marvel Powers United VR: Hands-on with the superhero VR app on the Oculus Rift
- Last Day of June: Hands-on with a beautiful, wordless, and sad work of art
- Splatoon 2 review — still fresh on the Switch
- Microsoft’s Xbox Design Lab is now even better
- Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles review — an adorable open-world adventure