Game industry business news

UK publisher PlayStack has hired Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe’s Charlie Hasdell as its new creative director. Hasdell brings more than two decades worth of experience to the role, including his time as one of the key creatives on the multimillion-selling SingStar franchise. Harvey Elliott, CEO of PlayStack, said: Charlieis an …

Microsoft is bringing Halo to its Windows Mixed Reality platform. Developed by 343 Industries, the game will be one of the first pieces of content available for Windows mixed reality, and will be released as a full consumer product. In a blog post, Microsoft’s technical fellow and Kinect creator Alex …

Northern Gaming has been acquired by NRG Esports, Northern Gaming’s CEO Mike Maring has announced. Northern Gaming have had a rollercoaster ride, forming in Toronto last year and signing a roster of notable streamers, in addition to a Rocket League team that won June’s world championships. While Northern Gaming parted …

Microsoft has officially ceased production of the original Xbox One, leaving the Xbox One S and the Xbox One X as the only remaining consoles in its line-up currently being made. Speaking to Glixel,a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed: "We stopped manufacturing the original Xbox One when we introduced the Xbox One …

GAME has announced a new partnership between its games event company Multiplay and Minecraft creator Mojang to bring BlockFest events to the UK. BlockFest events are community-based and aim at bringing the best of official Minecraft experiences to local communities around the world,” the announcement said. The exact format and …

Retailer CeX has suffered an online security breach. In an email to customers this morning, the retailer said it was investigating the breach "as a priority" and promised it was "taking a number of measures to prevent this from happening again." According to the email from managing director David Mullins, …

As Gamescom 2017 posts record visitor numbers, analysts are divided on whether the show was a success. SuperData’s CEO Joost van Dreunen, for instance, said that despite being unable to attend this year’s show, "from afar, it seemed a bit underwhelming." Indeed, this year’s show was light on new announcements. …

Green Man Gaming has appointed Paul Turner as its new performance marketing EVP. In his new role, he will be responsible for ramping up Green Man Gaming’s international digital marketing campaigns as it expands its localised websites into new regions. He will also be in charge of driving international traffic …

Gamescom set a new visitor record this year with more than 350,000 attendees passing through its halls from 106 countries. It also marks the first time Gamescom has beat the ‘100 country mark’ for visitors, cementing its importance on the international stage. Gamescom 2017 also saw 30,700 trade visitors attend …

The University of North Texas has announced the creation of a $200,000 esports facility, “The Nest” which will open on August 30.  The facility, embedded in the university’s Media Library, has fifteen top-spec computers with several esports titles installed. These can be used by the students to play recreationally or …