Getting noticed on Steam can be a tough task for small developers. However, it looks like one publisher and developer, Very Positive, has found a way to pull a fast one on Steam users. For clarity, yes, that’s the studio name, Very Positive. As highlighted by an excellent investigation into a bizarre game by The GameDiscoverCo […]
MapleStory Developer "Achieved Record-High Revenues" In 2020
Nexon set new records for fourth-quarter and full-year revenue in 2020, according to its latest earnings report. Most impressive were the numbers for MapleStory, which saw revenue jump 98% in Korea after more than 17 years on the market. Nexon has continued to diversify its portfolio, with many of its new titles launching on iOS […]
Mobile Developer Homa Games Raises $15 Million For Hypercasual Games
Homa Games, a mobile developer and publisher based in Paris, has raised $15 million in a seed round led by private equity and VC firm Idinvest Partners, and VC fund E.ventures. The funds will be used to expand the company’s portfolio, which includes over 30 hypercasual games, and create “new tech” in UA and monetisation. […]
Borderlands developer Gearbox acquired by Embracer Group in $1.3B deal
Borderlands developer Gearbox Software is now part of the Embracer Group, the parent company that includes publishing and development studios THQ Nordic, Saber Interactive, Koch Media, Deep Silver, and Coffee Stain Studios. Embracer’s acquisition of Gearbox — namely, the Gearbox Entertainment Company, which encompasses Gearbox Software and Gearbox Publishing — is worth $1.378 billion, according […]
RuneScape Developer Acquired By Private Equity Firm, Will Support Growth By "Evolving The Core RuneScape Franchise"
The studio behind RuneScape, Jagex, has been acquired by The Carlyle Group – a US-based global investment firm. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed, although some analysts believe the investor spent over $530 million for the acquisition. Jagex is headquartered in Cambridge, UK and employs over 450 people. Its primary focus, RuneScape, has brought […]
Pokémon Go Developer Niantic To Receive $5 Million Settlement From Hacker Group
In 2019, Pokémon Go developer Niantic, Inc. filed a lawsuit against hacking group Global++ for the selling of hacked and/or modified versions of Pokémon Go, Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, and Ingress. The San Francisco-based developer Niantic alleges that these apps used original code without permission, gave unfair advantages to those who used the modified apps, and that […]
Developer Teases Terrifying New Sounds For Minecraft 1.17
Minecraft’s 1.17 update won’t be released until this summer, but hasn’t stopped the developers from teasing some of the things we can expect to see when it finally releases. One of those developers, known as Kingbdogz, recently teased a terrifying new sound for the update. The 1.17 update is called Caves and Cliffs, and is focused […]
Dying Light 2 developer dying to share updates in 2021
After being MIA since it was delayed in January, Dying Light 2’s developer Techland assures that new info will be shared in the new year. Dying Light 2, the sequel to the original 2015 survival horror game, initially had a vague spring release date but ended up being delayed back in January. Techland didn’t provide […]
Minecraft Developer Read A Wikipedia Article For Inspiration On Crystals
Minecraft’s 1.17 Caves and Cliffs update may be months away, but it seems that we get more information about it every week. This time, we learned that a Minecraft developer read a Wikipedia article for inspiration on the new amethyst crystals being added in 1.17. At the beginning of October, we learned that the next […]
Ni No Kuni Developer Level-5 Allegedly Ends Operations In North America
According to GamesIndustry.biz sources, Ni no Kuni and Yo-Kai Watch developer Level-5 has been phasing out its North American studios since Summer 2019. The Level-5 International America and Level-5 Abby studios were hit with substantial layoffs last year. In July 2019, Level-5 International America closed its design department and, earlier this year, Level-5 Abby COO Yukari Hayakawa was said to have stepped down […]