Following concerns from its shareholders about Apple allegedly aiding China censorship, the company has published a formal document stating its commitment to upholding human rights.

Tim Cook’s quote at the start of Apple’s new policy document

There are some things you can count on each year since the Wii era – when we get a new Just Dance instalment, Let’s Sing is never far behind.

Recently the good old folks at Ravenscourt and Voxler revealed that the long-awaited Let’s Sing 2021 will indeed land on the Switch on 13th November. With classics such as Seal’s Kiss from a Rose and new popular songs from Billie Eilish and Ariana Grande, there is something here for everyone in this 30-song tracklist. Even Panic at the Disco get a look-in here – remember them?

Up to four players can get involved in the singalong, using smartphones or USB microphones. The in-game “Singing Analysis” feature will reward players with medals for their crooning and you can even compete on the online leaderboards or give the Pop Chicken mini-game a try, which will let you win some mystery boxes.

It all sounds rather lovely if you have a penchant for bursting into song spontaneously. Will you pick this up for your festive celebrations later this year?

Electronic Arts’ subscription service EA Play has officially launched on Steam, bringing the program to its first non-EA-owned storefront on PC.

EA Play, previously known as either EA Access or Origin Access depending on the platform, is EA’s own take a the subscription game library that also grants early access or discounts to some EA-published games as well.
 
The recently rebranded service has been on PC for a while through EA’s own Origin platform, but agreements between Valve and EA only recently have helped move both the service and a slew of EA games previously missing from Steam to Valve’s digital game storefront.

Players can subscribe to EA Play from right within Steam, either annually or monthly, through the same process they’d normally go through to buy any game or digital product on the platform. An active subscription grants them on-demand access to whatever EA games are featured in the EA Play library, 10 percent off of EA purchases through Steam, and some in-game content.

This marks EA Play’s fourth home following its earlier Origin, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One launches, but it’s worth calling out that the service itself is platform specific and as such a separate subscription is needed for each of those individual platforms.

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: Agoura Hills, California

At Visual Concepts, we believe great games are made by diverse and empowered teams with a shared passion for play. As one of the world’s top game development studios, we have shipped over 100 multi-sku titles to critical acclaim and commercial success. Our teams are independent and entrepreneurial. Our studios in Agoura Hills, Novato, Orange County, Budapest, Shanghai, and Seoul are committed to artistry and technical innovation, offering top candidates the opportunity to learn and grow with some of the smartest and most creative minds in the industry.

Are you fascinated by the function and literacy of virtual cameras? Do you admire the flawless logic of a 3rd-person camera, or the seamless blending of gameplay and narrative? Do you have a passion for cinematic design, and its impact on the gameplay experience? Can you explain the virtues of a great shot, and write a spec that translates your aesthetic into a set of tools and game logic? If so, we are looking for you.

Our Agoura Hills studio is looking for a Camera Designer to design and implement game cameras that make players feel like they are part of the action.  As a Camera Designer you will interface with the design and programming teams to ensure you have the tools necessary to deliver state-of-the-art cinematic and gameplay experiences where every shot is framed perfectly for maximum dramatic effect.

What You Will Do:

• Own the design of the in-game camera system, features, and creation tools
• Author cameras that support core gameplay and highlight special moments
• Work with a team of designers, producers, and engineers to ensure that camera authoring tools are simple and intuitive, and  can be used to implement changes quickly
• Use systems you design to deliver great camerawork across multiple game modes, from in-ring fighting, to cutscenes, to narrative sequences
• Be an advocate for the end user by pushing for systems which are easy to understand and use
• Be a go-to resource for team members when questions regarding the camera system arise

Requirements:

• One to four years’ experience as a camera or system designer
• Ability to design and utilize systems that replicate real-world broadcast and film cameras, incorporating hand-held vs. mounted, viewing angle, depth of field, aperture, etc.
• Ability to design logic for camera behavior which considers a variety of constraints, including multiple characters, spacing, varied height and occluding objects
• Ability to tell story using camera literacy in broadcast and narrative, including composition and framing, zoom usage, multi-camera live setup, cutaways and group and table dialog
• Ability to design and utilize systems to replicate director and cameraman behavior and choreography, including movement (i.e. cameraman holding a camera), zoom, anticipation, rack focus, tracking, etc.
• Attention to detail and completeness, ability to see around corners, anticipate issues
• Organized, excellent communication skills, passion for games, collaborative demeanor

Preferred Qualifications:

• Scripting experience – C#, LUA, Blueprint, etc.
• General experience with development software – Jira, perforce, bug tracking software, etc.
• Experience with 3D editors – Unity, Unreal, etc.

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.

Garena, the Singapore based publisher of Free Fire, has unveiled its first Indian playable character based on Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan. The new character, Jai, also sees the introduction of an exciting new campaign called ‘be the hero’.

This new addition to Free Fire comes after the Indian ministry of information and technology decided to ban over a hundred mobile games and applications, including PUBG Mobile and PUBG Mobile Lite. It is well known that PUBG Mobile has a huge fan base in India, with over 175 million downloads since the game’s launch. Indian PUBG players have been aware of an incoming ban since as early as last year and began looking for battle royale alternatives. Interestingly, Free Fire’s popularity has grown over 880% in India since September 2019, significantly more than PUBG’s growth of 261% over the same period.

Garena is also not under scrutiny from the Indian Government as the ban has only affected Chinese-based mobile applications so far. This new character could be Garena’s opportunity to draw in more players following the widescale ban.

The character collaboration with Hrithik Roshan isn’t Garena’s first either. Alok was another character introduction based upon the popular Brazilian DJ of the same name. Free Fire also recently ran a collaboration the with Netflix series, Money Heist, adding a game mode and a bunch of new outfits.

If you’re unsure about giving Garena Free Fire a go then check out the new character trailer above. We also have a list of great battle royale games, for anyone affected by the PUBG Mobile India ban.