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During a recent showcase for The Crew Motorfest, Ubisoft Ivory Tower revealed it was working on individual offline modes for the game and its predecessor, The Crew 2.Ivory Tower explained it was "committed" to both racing titles, and that the modes would ensure "long-term access" for players. Senior creative director Stéphane Beley further said additional "different solutions" were being explored.The first The Crew was taken fully offline this past March after Ubisoft's surprise delisting of the game late last year. At the time, this was attributed to "server infrastructure and licensing restraints."Ivory Tower didn't provide a specific timetable for the offline modes, but said to expect more information in the coming months.

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Update (09/18/24): EA has clarified The Sims 4 won't be getting a multiplayer mode as first reported by Variety. Instead, the company said upcoming franchise expansion 'Project Rene' will be a standalone experience focused on "building ways for friends to meet, connect, and share while playing together in an all-new world.""There will be a small invite-only playtest for Project Rene this Fall 2024, giving an early look at a multiplayer experience that explores joining friends and other players at a shared location," added the company.Original story: Variety reports EA will keep The Sims 4 going, while also exploring ways to make sure player progress carries over into its eventual successor.The Sims 4 is the series' longest-running entry, and has ac…

Workers at Greedfall 2 developer Spiders have secured improved salaries and remote work policies a week after threatening to go on strike.In a statement sent to Game Developer by Spiders management, the company stood by its previous claim that statements about poor conditions at the company made by the Video Game Workers Union (STJV) were "false and defamatory"…before announcing that the studio had negotiated new pay raises and other improved quality-of-life policies with employees.The company agreed to workers' demands for increased wages, announcing that it is raising the minimum salary at the company by 11 percent starting in September 2024, retroactive to April 1, 2024. This amount was proposed by studio management and "aligned" with the requests of the union…

Annapurna Interactive is putting its wallet behind Remedy Entertainment's Control 2, and will help the Finnish developer turn its two franchises into transmedia properties.Both studios have entered a "strategic partnership agreement" wherein Annapurna will cover 50 percent of the sequel's development budget. In turn, it now has the rights to "expand" Control and Alan Wake into film, TV, and "selected audiovisuals."This follows on from Remedy CEO Tero Virtala saying both franchises would be expanded upon earlier this year, and Remedy gaining the full franchise rights to Control back in February.

Remedy and Annapurna s…

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Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors has told investors the PC / Console segment is the 'bad guy' within the company.Outlining why Embracer has stopped providing hard guidance each quarter, Wingefors said there's some "lumpiness" within Embracer's PC / Console business that prevents it from looking too far into the future. Case in point: Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, which is being published by Embracer subsidiary Deep Silver, was just delayed until February 2025 (thanks Eurogamer). It was initially slated to launch this year.Wingefors reiterated the overall business is performing in line with expectations, but suggested the PC / Console segment remains a "volatile" proposition–especially when compared to other businesses such as board game maker Asmodee.&q…

Borderlands 4 was revealed this week at Gamescom, and the looter shooter will be launching on Steam as opposed to the Epic Games Store (EGS).Controversially, both Borderlands 3 and Tiny Tina's Wonderlands launched on Epic's storefront before eventually coming to Steam. The platform change was so noticeable that Gearbox head Randy Pitchford spoke on the shift, which is a begrudging one on his end.Speaking to old comments he made in 2019 about the EGS potentially ending Steam's monopoly, Pitchford called those old thoughts "overly optimistic. It’s a cool lesson for me and anyone who wants to learn from my experience."

Part…

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"Monetization is difficult, because you need to sell the game, and you have pressure from executives and stakeholders, for good reason, because it's hard to sell a game. But sometimes there's some pressure to do these things without really taking into account: Could that be harmful?"- Ethical Games organizer Celia Hodent

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Oh, would you look at that. Welcome to the first ever edition of Patch Notes! Newsletters are unequivocally in these days and instead of succumbing to crippling FOMO (that's 'fear of missing out'), we figured we'd join the party.Patch Notes will be a casual hangout for the cool cats. A brooding, low-lit jazz bar filled with people who 'get it.' It's your favorite breakfast served in bed. A hallowed space for deep, pensive contemplation. Your dizziest daydream made corporeal. That one—alright, it's mainly just an excuse for news editor Chris Kerr (hello hello) to cut loose on a Friday and pore over the latest game industry happenings.We'll be publishing a new edition of Patch Notes every two weeks to keep you in the know. Inside, you'll fi…

Warner Bros. Discovery's dire financial straits may lead to it selling off various "smaller assets" as a means to avoid a complete "nuclear option" corporate breakup.Per Financial Times, senior management like CEO David Zaslav are considering selling off its video game division. That side of the business includes original franchises WBD acquired (Mortal Kombat) and long-running transmedia brands (DC, Harry Potter).Since merging with Discovery in 2022, WBD has repeatedly affirmed its desire to stick around in video games, particularly live-service. It saw a big success in 2023 with Hogwarts Legacy, followed by the modest MultiVersus and disappointing Suicide Squad in 2024.According to the outlet, selling its games may be the one sale WBD could make without triggerin…