In The News
Politics And Gaming:
Former President Barack Obama does not care about Pokémon. He also wants you to vote. Which you should, if you care about voting. Please don’t just fill in bubbles if you prefer the 4th or 18th letter of the alphabet.
Ubisoft Massive COO Alf Condelius thinks being political in video games is “bad for business,” GI.biz’s Haydn Taylor reports. “Ubisoft Massive tries to remove itself from the political interpretations people may have of its games … ‘But people like to put politics into that, and we back away from those interpretations as much as we can.’”
Rockstar Games gave the green light for employees to speak out about work conditions, and more than a few have come out to defend their employer. Tools programmers Vivianne Langdon and Zoë Sams, Rockstar North’s Martin and a “number of anonymous [Rockstar] developers” all spoke favorably.
Xbox and Taco Bell (all hail Taco Time) are partnering “to give fans the chance to win limited-edition Xbox One X consoles each time they buy a $5 Double Chalupa Box starting October 18 through November 21, 2018,” according to a press release.
Don’t expect epic Diablo news at BlizzCon 2018, according to Blizzard’s “Diablo At BlizzCon 2018” post.
Bethesda explained some Brotherhood of Steel lore folks were scratching their heads about. Oh, and it’s “very doubtful” Obsidian will make another Fallout.
Valve News:
Valve’s going to start revealing “the exact odds of receiving” rare loot in Dota 2 “based on how many you’ve already opened.”
Looks like Steam has over 30 million users in China, Niko Partners’ Daniel Ahmad tweeted. “It initially gained popularity due to DOTA 2, but has grown due to more localised games, regional pricing, local payment methods + wide variety of games banned/blocked in China.”
Tencent has fallen out of “the world’s 10 biggest companies” due to “China’s crackdown on video games,” CNN’s Jordan Valinsky reports.
Fighting Esports Group “has closed on a $15 million Series A funding round led by China Sports Capital,” GI.biz’s Rebekah Valentine reports.
Partnerships:
Loot Crate and Chrono.gg are partnering to “launch of a new subscription service called Loot Play that brings subscribers five ‘high quality, highly curated’ indie games each month,” PC Gamer’s Andy Chalk reports.
Ukie and Intel are partnering to “host a UK parliamentary esports event,” TEO’s Trent Murray reports.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 came in 1st for most hours watched on Twitch Oct. 12-16 with an impressive 21.93 million, TEO reports.
Reddit AMA: Skybound Games CEO Ian Howe.
Extra Esports News:
Arena of Valor’s International Championship is getting a “$600,000 prize pool,” Pocket Gamer’s Cameron Bald reports.
Toronto Maple Leafs’ Zach Hyman is launching his own esports team called Eleven Gaming, NHL.com’s Pat Pickens writes.
Thomas Schmidt, formerly of UEFA Champions League, joined ESL “and will assist in securing sponsorships for ESL’s esports leagues and tournaments,” Unikrn’s Dustin Steiner reports.
Partnerships:
ESL and Mercedes-Benz are partnering, Esports Insider’s Adam Fitch reports. “This expanded deal lasts until December 31st 2020, with Mercedes-Benz becoming the global mobility partner of ESL moving forward.”
QYOU Media and FansUnite are partnering “for its esports show Heads Up Daily,” Esports Insider’s Melany Moncav reports.
Interviews: Former NFL player Chris Kluwe (GameCrate).
Happy birthday Jayson “Fireburner” Nunez!