Game industry business news

The US games market has had a stellar year, bouncing back from 2016 on a combination of stronger software and a new hardware platform. The NPD combines physical sales with many of the largest digital platforms, giving a far more representative idea of the health of the industry, and based …

The first week of the Overwatch league drew big numbers, with 10m people tuning in during the opening matches to make the opening week a big success. The Overwatch League debut topped Twitch’s viewer counts, with Blizzard announcing that the debut had an average of 408,000 viewers per minute, while …

Twitch has announced a hat-trick of key hires. The streaming platform has today announced Sara Clemens as COO, Mark Weiler as SVP, head of platforms & services and Amir Shevat as VP of developer experience. In a press release announcing the hires, Twitch says that the hires reflect the company’s …

Nintendo announced the release of a new kind of gaming experience for the Switch, which involves turning cardboard into interactive toys, “to inspire creative minds and playful hearts alike.” Nintendo Labo focuses on DIY, with each kit turning the Switch into a new interactive creation (called Toy-Con): robot, piano, fishing …

Xbox’s Phil Spencer last night announced that Matt Booty would be promoted to corporate vice president of Microsoft Studios – putting him in charge of games development and publishing. Booty was previously in charge of Minecraft development. The good news for the platform as a whole, though, is that the …

InXile Entertainment founder Brian Fargo has created a new PC games storefront utilising blockchain technology.  Robot Cache’s aim is to reduce the fees paid by publishers and developers by 80 per cent according to the official announcement. The newly created firm claims to have the “the lowest transaction fees of any …

Take-Two’s new indie label has launched its first title – or rather relaunched it – with Steam smash hit Kerbal Space Program taking flight in an Enhanced Edition as it makes the move to PS4 and Xbox One as a digital release. Unlike other titles on the new label’s slate, …

Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) has announced that Jim Ryan has been named the deputy president of SIE, with immediate effect. Ryan is currently the head of global sales and marketing of SIE, and president of Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe (SIEE), and will be retaining those roles and responsibilities in addition …

Sega is making an announcement today, after several teases on social media, and it could be a spiritual successor to Theme Park, if rumours are to be believed. Here’s what we know. Sega tweeted out a picture of a light bulb with the date January 16 written in text next …

Comic Book reports that two Lego games are currently in the works at Warner Bros-owned developer TT Games, according to “sources linked to WB.” The first one would be Lego Incredibles 2, that is reportedly due to launch alongside the upcoming Pixar film. Highly awaited Incredibles 2 will hit theatres …