Remedy partners with Annapurna to finance Control 2 and develop transmedia projects

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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Randy Pitchford: Borderlands 4’s Steam release isn’t the end of the PC store wars

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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EVE Online makers eyeing open source and blockchain tech for longevity

CCP Games CEO Hilmar Veigar Pétursson recently spoke with GamesIndustry at length about the studio's future, which will include making EVE Online's Carbon Development Platform into an open-source property.Elements of the CDP will feature blockchain technology. While just a few years ago it seemed many studios would embrace the technology despite its controversy, many have backed away following waning public interest in favor of focusing on genAI.Though CCP is using blockchain for its survival project, dubbed "Awakening," Pétursson noted that it will be entirely optional when CDP is opened up to everyone.In the same way Linux doesn't have to be used for blockchain, he stressed CDP "can be used for whatever. Our engine is made of several components, and you ca…

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