Category: News

Anybody who picks up a copy of Cyberpunk 2077 on the PlayStation 4 will be granted a PlayStation 5 version when the next-gen console launches. 

CD Projekt Red confirmed the news on social media after announcing the game would be delayed until November 19.

We’ve known for some time that Xbox One owners would eventually receive a souped up version of the title for the Xbox Series X via Microsoft’s cross-generation Smart Delivery initiative, but until now it was unclear how any potential PlayStation 5 upgrade would be handled. 

Going into more detail on Twitter, the studio explained that “Cyberpunk 2077 will be backwards compatible with both next-gen consoles. Your PS4 copy of the game will work on PS5 on launch day. Anyone who buys the game on Xbox One will be able to play their copy on the Xbox Series X when the console launches.”

The Polish developer added that a free next-gen hardware upgrade that allows Cyberpunk to “take full advantage” of both consoles extra firepower will be released at a later date, but confirmed the game will run better on next-gen machines from day one. 

Sony has yet to announce a universal upgrade plan for titles that’ll be available on both the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. Microsoft, by contrast, has shared plenty of details about its Smart Delivery program, which will also enable players to carry game progress from one console to another.

Tonic Games Group has been announced as the new parent company of developers Mediatonic and Fortitude, and publishing label The Irregular Corporation. 

The company takes its name from the Fall Guys and Gears Pop! developer Mediatonic, and according to co-founder Dave Bailey will “support and maximize the potential pop every game and every person in our family of companies.”

As it stands, Tonic Games Group consists of 300 people based in five studios and two publishing offices around the world. It’s also partnered with third-party studios in 13 locations across its brand family. 

“With 2 billion people out there in the world playing games, we’re excited to build a sustainable, long-term foundation for our companies to be creative, try what hasn’t been tried before, and reach new audiences,” said Bailey. 

The news comes a few months after Mediatonic announced it would be opening a new UK studio in Leamington Spa to create over 60 new jobs.

A California court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by Magic Leap against Chinese augmented reality company Nreal, according to a report from TechNode.

Magic Leap had accused Nreal, which was founded by its former employee Chi Xi, of stealing its technology to quickly create a competing product in the form of the Nreal Light augmented reality glasses.

“Whereas Nreal purported to develop its Nreal Light product in under two years, Magic Leap developed its technology after extensive investment of time (multiple years), money (hundreds of millions of dollars spent on research and development) and human resources (hundreds of engineers),” reads the lawsuit filed in June 2019. 

Now, almost a year later, the court has dismissed the lawsuit because Magic Leap failed to explain exactly how the alleged IP theft took place. 

Documents obtained by TechNode reveal the court granted Nreal’s motion to dismiss due to a lack of “factual support” for Magic Leap’s allegations. 

Nreal also claimed that Magic Leap’s accusation was “vague and unsubstantiated,” and that it was “filing lawsuits to slow down new entrants into the AR market.”

“From the beginning we’ve firmly stated that Magic Leap’s claims against Nreal are meritless,” added Nreal founder Xu Chi in a statement. “The fact that the court found that Magic Leap failed to state a single viable claim is telling.”

The Gamasutra Job Board is the most diverse, active and established board of its kind for the video game industry!

Here is just one of the many, many positions being advertised right now.

Location: Helsinki, Finland

Futureplay is a five-year-old independent Finnish mobile game studio located in Helsinki. We’re a small, experienced, and committed group of just over 30 people working together to create several exciting new titles – as well as maintain our existing portfolio, which includes the Idle Empire series and Battlelands Royale. 

We’re now on the lookout for a Senior Game Animator to join our team and help us build on the top quality animations Futureplay is already known for.

We expect a minimum of 5 years of experience in creating animations for casual and/or mobile games. Our ideal candidate is a detail oriented, versatile artist who shows excellent drawing skills and can employ a variety of styles and techniques. You are able to visualize and communicate abstract concepts and have a strong interest in visual and interaction design. Eye for quality animation and special effects are skills you’ll need in your work, as well as creating, evolving and executing on your artistic vision. 

You will be one of the Futureplayers bringing our game characters, environments and interactions to life. This means that you know your way around character animation VFX and UI motion graphics. You are familiar with 2D animation tools, e.g. Spine, and 3D software, such as Blender. 

Previous experience in, or understanding what it takes to, work in a minimum hierarchy environment and the ability to independently manage your tasks and responsibilities are a must. Having an agile mindset and love for experimentation are needed. You should also have great team working skills combined with the ability to provide and receive candid feedback.

We offer:

• True ownership and responsibility for the games you work on

• Competitive salary and benefits, flexible working hours

• Great, caring community working in an agile environment 

• Strong focus on employee wellbeing

• Space to grow and learn

• Low hierarchy and support in learning to navigate within it
• Work in Helsinki, one of the most relevant game development capitals in Europe

Interested? Apply now.

Whether you’re just starting out, looking for something new, or just seeing what’s out there, the Gamasutra Job Board is the place where game developers move ahead in their careers.

Gamasutra’s Job Board is the most diverse, most active, and most established board of its kind in the video game industry, serving companies of all sizes, from indie to triple-A.

Looking for a new job? Get started here. Are you a recruiter looking for talent? Post jobs here.

Four games have been selected to join the likes of Microsoft Solitaire and Halo in the Strong Museum of Play’s World Video Game Hall of Fame, marking the honorary video game exhibit’s fifth set of inductees.

This time around, The Strong’s panel of experts has selected Bejeweled, Centipede, King’s Quest, and Minecraft from the list of 12 games nominated for consideration this year, a class that notably leans closer toward the more recent chapters of video game history thanks to Bejeweled (2001) and Minecraft (2009).

Set up in 2015, the World Video Game Hall of Fame aims to shine the spotlight on video games that have had a significant impact on the video game industry, popular culture, or society as a whole. To date, 28 games have been added to the Hall of Fame ranging from early influential games like The Legend of Zelda or Spacewar! to more modern creations like World of Warcraft. 

More on this year’s additions, and the entire lineup of influential games, can be found on the museum’s website. 
 

Apple is tightening up its App Store policies in China, namely requiring that any paid game or app on the store will require official government approval before it’ll show up on the mobile storefront starting in July.

GameLook (via PanDaily) reports that the shift marks an end to a series of loopholes that otherwise allowed developers to launch on the iOS App Store without seeking government approval.

It’s not a sudden policy change as Apple has been moving toward compliance since earlier in the year but the June 30 deadline for devs to provide Apple with proof of that approval is fast approaching.

Starting in July, any game that requires its players to pay upfront or during gameplay via in-app purchases will be required to go through that approval process and receive the greenlight from government regulators before Apple will approve it for launch on the App Store. Games that monetize through ad revenue look to be excluded from those tightening regulations on the App Store, at least for the time being. 

Mobile is a sizable platform in China, and with Apple now more closely adhering to China’s rules about game approvals developers that haven’t already started the lengthy screening process likely have some work ahead of them, even if their games meet the government’s strict content restrictions.