The 10 most shocking deals in history

You only have to look at the headlines streaming through MCV in recent months to know why this is being described as the games industry’s age of consolidation.

If it’s not 92 per cent of Activision’s shareholders voting for a merger with Vivendi, it’s the gripping – and titillating – spat between EA’s CEO John Riccitiello and Take Two’s Strauss Zelnick over the Redwood leviathan’s bid for the Rockstar parent.

However, ‘Actiblizz’ – now officially the largest independent publisher in the world – isn’t the first financial controversy to make the rest of the industry shudder in their boots, as MCV’s handy history lesson shows.

Click here to read our top ten ‘Deals That Shook The Industry’.

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Blog header 2026 IG50 [Industry news] Ubisoft backs IG50 Awards as Into Games opens applications for 2026 cohort

[Industry news] Ubisoft backs IG50 Awards as Into Games opens applications for 2026 cohort

UK games charity Into Games has today opened applications for IG50 2026, its annual programme that recognises 50 of the most talented yet-to-be-hired people in UK games from working-class and low-income backgrounds. The announcement comes as Ubisoft joins as the headline sponsor and as Into Games confirms that 11 winners from the previous 2025 cohort have been placed in paid roles in the UK games industry through its Boost placement programme.