Tag: aussie games

Aussie News, Layoffs, and Resignations

In Aussie Gaming Headlines, Billy Mitchell has finally arrived on Australian soil in his bid to sue youtuber Karl Jobst for defamation. The disputed Donkey Kong record holder  is defending the claim that his actions against the late youtuber Ben Smith aka Apollo Legend were a “significant factor in Mr Smith taking his own life” and that he “hounded Mr Smith to death.” The case is ongoing.
Dungeons and Dragons has again been caught in the crossfire as an Albany council held a meeting regarding the removal of sex education books to be removed from the library. While the motion was defeated the group Keeping Children Safe Albany lead by former One Nation candidate Michelle Kinsella called the books “borderline pornographic”, and has previously claimed that transgender people hijacked Pride for an ”agenda” and that D&D could be used to “groom children.”
In better news, Australian Games Classifications will be updated from September 22 to push the classification of games that allow the purchase of chance, mystery items, or loot boxes with real money to the M rating (not recommended for children under 15 years of age) and any game containing simulated gambling to R18+.

On the Business side of gaming (also known as – hiring, firing, and foreclosures), all 25 staff from Annapurna Interactive have resigned after the gaming division failed to convince founder Megan Ellison to allow them to spin the gaming segment as its own company. After Ellison pulled out of negotiations earlier this month president Nathan Gary, and co-heads Deborah Mars and Nathan Vella resigned. Ellison has stated the company is still committed to the upcoming games releases such as Blade Runner 2033: Labyrinth, Ghost Bike and Wanderstop. Annapurna Interactive is known for the games Stray, Outer Wilds, and more
Microsoft went through a round of restructuring September 12, laying off another 650 “mostly corporate and supporting” staff in from Activision Blizzard and Xbox to add to the 1,900 staff cut in January. Xbox chief Phiil Spencer announced the layoffs in an internal memo claiming the cuts were needed for to organise the “business for long term success.”

And now for the bytes.

Now for the Game Releases!

Crabavan

This week Hazel and Zahra take the reins, talking what they’ve been playing before Maylee brings us a doozy in Gaming News and the team discusses the disappointing PS5 Pro announcement. Paul then enjoys jumping off cliffs in safety while reviewing Caravan Sand Witch from Plane Toast. Then Hazel and Zahra get crazy/crabby while reviewing the crab based cartoony soulslike Another Crab’s Treasure from Agro Crab.

Screaming Goo + the goo goo dolts


This week on Zed Games agents of Chaos Paul and Caroline talk the week in  Gaming News from Zahra, the death of Concord, Secret Level, and game conservation. Paul proves words hurt more than sticks and stones while reviewing Leximan. Caroline rolls up their chilly balls in a review of the puzzler A Good Snowman Is Hard To Build. And then Paul returns to get gooey to review the game Dros.

Goodbye Concord, Hello Teamwork, See You Soon Itsuno

Well… Concord Didn’t Last Long

Ryan Ellis, Game Director at Firewalk Studios, has released a blog post stating that feedback has been received loud and clear and that “your support and the passionate community that has grown around the game has meant the world to us”.

Concord, a first person shooter that launched on 23rd of August, didn’t have the most robust launch, pulling in only 697 concurrent players on Steam at its peak. Reviews towards the game were generally average, with nothing particularly glaring. It just didn’t catch on. And now it won’t have the chance, with sales ceasing as of the 6th of September, and full refunds will be offered to players over the coming weeks.

It’s implied that they’re going to make some changes, and “explore options, including those that will better reach our players”, but otherwise that makes it 2 weeks since it launched, to it shutting down.

But Maybe More Games Could Last Longer

The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, has joined forces with the BFI National Archive in the UK, and The Strong National Museum of Play in the US, to put out the call for improved game preservation across the globe.

A worldwide survey was held, to formally discover and acknowledge that current measures are just not good enough, due to a lack of established resources, difficulty accessing game material, and not enough collaboration between communities. Many gamers are familiar with the feeling of not being able to play an old favourite again due to it being impossible to obtain through ordinary means, and with an estimated 87% of classic video games deemed ‘missing’ in a 2023 study, even piracy or emulators might not be an option.

With the organisations teaming up, the NFSA wants to establish more structured collaboration between organisations, develop a framework so that games can be preserved legally and safely, as well as pushing for an understanding of how important this can be.

“For the last half-century, video games have become not only a massive industry, but an art form connecting people around the world through play. It is vital that institutions work together globally to preserve the history of this revolutionary medium before it is lost,” says Jon-Paul C. Dyson, Director of The International Center for the History of Electronic Games.

Good Bye Itsuno…For Now

Hideaki Itsuno, a senior developer at Capcom, has bid the company farewell at the end of August, 2024. Dragon’s Dogma being his dream game, it seems fitting for him to move on after releasing the sequel (although there might be an expansion on the way).

He’s not done with games though!

“From September, I will start developing a new game in a new environment. I hope to create fun, beautiful games that are as memorable as, or even more memorable than, the ones I have created so far”, he says.

News Nibbles!

I didn’t know where else to put this, but Bethesda removed a Doom mod due to complaints about its…political tone? It’s about the former UK Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, being resurrected in “The Tenth Circle of Hell: The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland”.

Attendees for PAX Aus, 2024, will be able to witness TWO unholy matrimony ceremonies. “We are literally building a real Cult of the Lamb Temple for this!” the studio, Massive Monster, said on socials.

Console players of Stardew Valley… we’ll need to wait a little longer for update 1.6. ConcernedApe has acknowledged that it’s taking a long time, there are reasons for this, but the bottom line is that it’s just not out yet. People waiting for his next project, Haunted Chocolatier, will have to wait, as development won’t continue until Stardew 1.6 is finalised.

 

And now for some upcoming games!

September 6

  • Ace Attorney Investigations Collection – PC, Switch, PS4, Xbox One
  • Astro Bot – PS5
  • NBA 2K25 – PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X
  • Perennial Order – PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X, iOS
  • Fitness Boxing Featuring Hatsune Miku – Switch
  • El Paso, Elsewhere – PS5
  • Age of Mythology: Retold – PC, Xbox Series S/X

September 9

  • Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 – PC, PS5, Xbox

September 10

  • Yars Rising – PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox, Switch
  • Towerborne – PC, Xbox Series S/X

Gamescom, Wukong, The Bytes, and Some Game Releases.

Gamescom 2024

On the morning of August 21 here in Australia, Gamescom 2024 went live. And dropped a Santa sack of goodies onto the web. Here’s a highlight reel of what happened…
In the 30-minute preshow we got; Dave the Diver crossovers with Balatro and Potion Craft coming October, life sim Inzoi, and game announcements for Sniper Elite Resistance.
Then in the actual main show a teaser for Borderlands 4, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 coming October, Goat Simulator Remastered coming later this year, Persona 3: Reload DLC – Episode Aigis pitting you against Joker from Persona 5 coming September, Kyle Crane returns in Dying Light: The Beast, Arc Raiders got a price tag and release for 2025, Path of Exiles 2 is coming to early access in November, Xbox mecha fans are getting a closed beta in August for Mecha Break, Little Nightmares creators are returning in Reanimal, while Supermassive Games is continuing the series in Little Nightmares 3 coming 2025, more info into the upcoming survival MMO Dune Awakening, Marvel Rivals will release December, Civilization 7 is coming February 2025, be the Batman in VR with Batman: Arkham Shadow, Indiana Jones and The Great Circle is coming to Xbox and PC December, and Peter Molyneux took to the stage to announce Masters of Albion

“So I’ve looked at Dungeon Keeper – I’ve taken some things that I’ve wanted to explore further with Dungeon Keeper. I did the same with Black & White – I’ve taken some things from Black & White. I’ve done the same with Fable.”

The Monkey King Rises

The highly anticipated action RPG, Black Myth: Wukong, has officially launched. Based on the classic Chinese novel “Journey to the West,” the story follows the transforming Monkey King as he is faced with regrets, sacrifice, and fate all while seeking redemption. Developed by Chinese studio Game Science, the game is filled with Chinese folklore and mythology and has garnered a massive hype.
Since its release, Black Myth: Wukong has quickly climbed the charts, and at the time of writing Steam’s second biggest game ever with 2.2 million concurrent players.
However, the release has not been without controversy/ragebait. A leaked streaming agreement explicitly prohibits content creators from discussing politics, China, or feminist topics. While this was not extended to journalists who did not receive the same brief, it has raised concerns about censorship and the influence of the developers’ guidelines on free speech.

Now for some Gaming Bytes

Nerfs ahoy with Sorcerers in Diablo 4’s Season of the Infernal Hordes getting buffed… a little too much. The Fractured Winterglass item was causing so many Splintering Energy procs in one build it was causing server lag. A nerf was quickly released halving the procced spell numbers but doubling the damage. This still halved the damage output of the sorcerers and you’re only hearing about it because it is the build I play and I’m salty.
Helldivers 2 released a new update full of “balancing” nerfing flamers and more. The backlash has led to players purposely failing Major Orders, traitorous player killing, and more generally – uninstalling the game.
A PSA to Counter Strike players: Don’t go out and get the Razer Huntsman V3 Pro or Wooting’s Snappy Tappy keyboards for that sweet SOCD strafing because Valve has just banned them and if you use them, you too can get hit with the ban hammer.
And at Devcom 2024 those attending were surveyed and 90% of the devs say that games don’t need microtransactions and games can be “…financially successful just by being Buy-to-Play.”

And finally some game releases

Hey look, it’s another power up team-based shooter called Concord coming to PC and PS5 Friday August 23. Then on Monday August 26 World of Warcraft’s newest expansion The War Within releases. Tuesday August 27 why not chase taxes and collect debt in Debtors Club on PC. And Wednesday August 28 clean up the cutest afterlife as a cat in Crypt Custodian coming to PC and all major consoles. And in more cat themed adventures, why not become a giant monster cat and destroy cities in Monster Run: Downfall of the Empire on PC. Or you can shout PARKOUR in Supermoves coming to PC.

Goodbye Misty, Goodbye Roblox, Hello Borderlands 3, Goodbye Chess Opponent

Misty’s Voice Actor Passing Away

Voice actress Rachael Lillis, has passed away at the age of 46 due to breast cancer. She was most well-known for her roles as Misty and Jessie in the English dub of Pokemon, before the cast was changed in 2006. She also voiced  Utena in the English dub of Revolutionary Girl Utena, some Pokemon, including Jigglypuff in Pokemon Detective Pikachu, and Princess Charlotte in the English dub of Beserk.

In May 2024, her sister had created a GoFundMe to help raise money for her care, a campaign that many of her fellow voice actors contributed to.

Turkey Bans Roblox

Roblox, the very popular free-to-play online game, has recently been banned in Turkey over concerns of child exploitation.

Roblox has faced some criticism since launching in 2006, with reports suggesting that the game isn’t safe for minors. Bloomberg reported that in July, Roblox submitted over 13,000 reports to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in 2023, and an executive suggested that perhaps the game could “provide jobs to kids living in slums”. The company had released a statement claiming that the majority of creators are over 18, and the company has never hired teenagers.

Turkey’s ban was largely driven by reports of alleged child exploitation, as well as reports of in-game sexual content.

A Roblox spokesperson has stated “We respect the laws and regulations in countries where we operate, and share local lawmakers’ commitment to children. We look forward to working together to ensure Roblox is back online in Turkey as soon as possible.”

Well, Borderlands 3 Is Doing Well

Borderlands: The Movie, hasn’t had the easiest time at the box office, with a 9% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and only pulling in $8.9 million USD in its first weekend. However, Borderlands 3 has had an increase in players with the movie’s release, peaking at 12,379 players, a significant increase for a 5 year old game.

Borderlands 2, Borderlands, and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel has also had an uptick in players, at least according to Steam.

Gearbox did launch a feature for Borderlands 3 that allows the player to skip the main campaign with a new character, as long as you’ve previously beaten the campaign once and have a max-level character, so returning players will have an easier time getting to the endgame, so that works out well.

Toxic Chess

Amina Abakarova, a Russian chess player, has allegedly attempted to poison an opponent using mercury, a famously toxic element. Chess, like any game, can get pretty heated, and extremely competitive, but normally these heated interactions fall within the realm of fair play.

In this case, a chess tournament in Dagestan was cancelled when one of the players, a European champion named Umayganat Osmanova, became very unwell quite suddenly. After an investigation which revealed the presence of mercury on her table. Footage supposedly shows Amina spreading the metal across the table.

Umayganat is in stable condition, and Amina has been temporarily suspended from participating in all competitions until the conclusion of the investigation. She is likely to face legal consequences.

News Nibbles!

We still don’t know when the Switch 2 will launch, but it is not coming before April 2025. We don’t even really know if it’ll be called the Switch 2, nor do we know much about its specs, but we should receive an official announcement during the company’s current financial year, which wraps up in March 2025.

Cult of the Lamb now has local co-op in its most recent update, Unholy Alliance. The update has also added new items, quests, buildings, chores, and more. For local co-op, you just need to plug in a second controller and set up co-op through the pause menu.

Tango Gameworks, the publisher for Hi-Fi Rush, has been adopted by Krafton, welcome news after the studio was set to be shut-down by Microsoft.

 

And now for some upcoming games!

August 15th

  • Dredge: The Iron Rig (DLC) – PC, Xbox, PS5, Nintendo Switch
  • Kena: Bridge of Spirits – Xbox

August 16th

  • Madden NFL 25 – PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC
  • Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland – PC, Xbox, PS5

August 20th

  • Black Myth: Wukong – PC, Xbox, PS5
  • Dustborn – PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC

August 21st

  • Enotria: The Last Song – PC, PS5

 

That’s it this week in gaming news!

GLOCK: if it FLOCKs like a GLUCK it’s a F#k


This week on ZED GAMES

Maylee brings us this week’s #GamingNews while Paul, Rani, and Zahra banter wildly and mourn the loss of the glossy mag Game Informer. Paul distracts Zahra and confuses Rani while they yearn for the mines in a review Gluck. Then Paul takes over in the autocorrect special talking relaxation and discovery of garbles, giggles, and squibs in a review of Flock from @AnnapurnaInteractive. And Zahra spruiks the packed and annual INDIE DEV NIGHT at @netherworldarcade with us from Zed Games, coming next week on Thursday August 15!  

Glitch P


This week on Zed Games, Maylee, Caroline, and Peter talk news, reviews, popular culture, life, love, and nerdy glasses and things. BUT FIRST! The week in Gaming News from Paul, and the team talks the sadness of the delay to Frostpunk 2, Terraria and holes, and the Future of World of Warcraft. Paul gets rocking and swinging in the roguelite twin stick shooter Galactic Glitch from Crunchy Leaf Games, Peter gets social in a review of bulletheaven online co-op with friendly fire The Spell Brigade from Bolt Blaster Games. And then a return of Paul in another review taking it easy vibing out in space as a pig in Astro Pig from Garoa Studios. Then for no reason (other than Chaos) the crew gets sidetracked by bodily functions in games.