It’s been a rough week for the games industry — not to mention the tech industry at large. Not to understate it, but more than a few companies laid off workers this week. Bethesda, Xbox, GameSpot, GiantBomb and Vox are just a few companies who have delivered the bad news. I wish nothing but the best for all those affected by the layoffs and hope that this is the last news of this kind that we hear about for the foreseeable future (realistically, I’m not so sanguine).
It’s not just layoffs that have hit the industry this week. Ubisoft’s workers are still unhappy with the way its executives have handled the recent cutbacks. NetEase and Blizzard’s breakup has reached nuclear levels as the former’s employees tore down a World of Warcraft statue near its headquarters. On top of this, Google Stadia shut its doors. Even as one of the platform’s critics, I still feel a sense of loss. This was something a lot of people worked hard on and believed in and it’s a shame to lose anything in the gaming world.
I also discovered just before writing this episode that Crystal Dynamics is ending support on Marvel’s Avengers. Again, I don’t think it’ll come as a big surprise to anyone; the project was kneecapped right out of the gate. Still, it’s not all bad news. We got a glimpse of the launch lineup of the upcoming PlayStation VR2 which looks promising.
If nothing else, I will be able to play some Fire Emblem Engage this weekend. I’ve heard it’s more heavy on the tactics than on character moments, but honestly, I’m okay with that. It’s been a week and I think we all deserve to lose ourselves in a fantasy world. I will also likely check out the new reimagining of Colossal Cave to see what Roberta Williams has done with the classic dungeon delving adventure. Here’s hoping for better news next week.
What to play this week
What’s new:
- Fire Emblem Engage
- Colossal Cave
- Farlanders
- Tortuga: A Pirate’s Tale
- A Space for the Unbound
- Graze Counter GM
New on subscription services:
- Persona 3 Portable (Xbox Game Pass)
- Persona 4 Golden (Xbox Game Pass)
- Monster Hunter Rise (Xbox Game Pass)
- Autonauts (Xbox Games with Gold)
- Back 4 Blood (PlayStation Plus Extra/Premium)
- Dragon Ball FighterZ (PlayStation Plus Extra/Premium)
- Devil May Cry 5: Special Edition (PlayStation Plus Extra/Premium)
- Life is Strange: Before the Storm (PlayStation Plus Extra/Premium)
- Life is Strange (PlayStation Plus Extra/Premium)
- Jett: The Far Shore (PlayStation Plus Extra/Premium)
- Just Cause 4: Reloaded (PlayStation Plus Extra/Premium)
- Omno (PlayStation Plus Extra/Premium)
- Erica (PlayStation Plus Extra/Premium)
- Syphon Filter 3 (PlayStation Premium)
- Star Wars Demolition (PlayStation Premium)
- Hot Shots Golf 2 (PlayStation Premium)
- Surviving the Abyss (GeForce Now)
- Epistory – Typing Chronicles (GeForce Now)
- Absolute Drift (GeForce Now)
- Blacktail (GeForce Now)
- Dwarf Fortress (GeForce Now)
- Hello Neighbor 2 (GeForce Now)
- Nebulous: Fleet Command (GeForce Now)
- Shadow Tactics – Aiko’s Choice (GeForce Now)
- Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On! (Apple Arcade)