The year may be winding down, but the news just doesn’t stop. This week, we have insights into the inner workings of a massive game studio, a glimpse into who tops people’s lists of sexytime video game fantasies, and one legendary auteur admitting he’s plum tuckered. Read on for the week’s biggest gaming news.
The Xbox One stumbled out of the gate when it launched back in 2013. But in the decade since, it’s become a bit easier to appreciate Microsoft’s ambitions and foresight with its third console. It combined a console, streaming device, and Blu-Ray player into the original all-in-one media player. But like Marty McFly rocking out to “Johnny B Goode” in Back to the Future, people weren’t quite ready for that. Yet. - Steven Asarch Read More
Well, they’ve done it. The hacker group that breached Sony subsidiary Insomniac Games on December 12, demanding $2 million for the terabytes of data it stole, has published almost all of it online now that Sony has refused to open its wallet. This unprecedented hack contains all kinds of internal documents about the Spider-Man 2 developer’s upcoming projects, including details on the Wolverine PS5 game. - Levi Winslow Read More
Mark Zuckerberg is worth over $100 billion. What does the world’s sixth-richest person do with all that money, besides lighting lots of it on fire to try to bring a Ready Player One-style metaverse to life? Apparently, he builds a sprawling mansion complex with a massive underground bunker that sounds like a cross between BioShock and Fallout. - Ethan Gach Read More
You thought we were done with The Day Before shenanigans? Think again. Currently, Steam keys for the troubled zombie game are being listed on unauthorized third-party key reseller sites for more than $300. Suffice it to say, you should not spend this much money on this game (or maybe any game?). - Claire Jackson Read More
Insomniac Games quickly established itself as one of the most prolific studios within PlayStation after Sony acquired it for what seems like a bargain at $229 million four years ago. 2020's Spider-Man: Miles Morales, 2021's Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and this year’s Spider-Man 2 showed that the studio could keep putting out technically impressive blockbusters without sacrificing quality. - Ethan Gach Read More
It shouldn’t be surprising in 2023 that a lot of people watch porn involving video game characters, but exactly who tops the list and why might indeed be unexpected. - Zack Zwiezen Read More
Today we mourn the loss of another iconic and irreplaceable talent. James McCaffrey, actor and the voice of the titular character Max Payne in the beloved neo-noir shooter games, has passed away. He was 65. - Claire Jackson Read More
The 1.3 million files leaked as part of the recent ransomware attack on Insomniac Games contain tons of confidential information, including Sony’s projected plans for all of the studio’s upcoming games on PlayStation 5 and beyond. Those alleged roadmaps include a standalone Venom game, a Ratchet and Clank sequel, multiplayer spin-offs, and multiple X-Men games by the year 2030 and beyond. - Ethan Gach Read More
The last few years have been pretty tough both within the game industry and beyond it. Between the pandemic, ongoing wars, greedy corporations squeezing money out of us all, politicians becoming even more vile, and a general sense that things aren’t getting better, it’s hard to stay positive. All of this has led to a lot of people feeling exhausted 24/7—even famed game designer and Geoff Keighley’s best friend, Hideo Kojima. - Zack Zwiezen Read More