In The News
Japanese authorities arrested Square Enix sales manager Koji Takada “for allegedly improperly ordering game consoles for resale,” Kotaku’s Brian Ashcraft reports. “The 56-year-old Takada allegedly would deceptively buy Nintendo 3DS handhelds and other game consoles when making contracts with clients, reportedly saying the hardware was necessary.”
Sony Interactive Entertainment’s CEO, Andrew House, is stepping down after 27 years with the company. He’ll be replaced by deputy president John Kodera. The Verge’s Thuy Ong reports that “House, who is 52, will remain as chairman until the end of the year.”
Esports fans are more fluid than traditional sports fans, Nielsen found in its latest report. “Esports fans follow an average of 5.7 different games and 2.6 genres,” VentureBeat’s Dean Takahashi reports. “In the U.S., the most popular PC esports game is Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, followed by League Legends, Dota 2, StarCraft, and Heroes of the Storm.”
American PlayStation fans, Sony released a Visa credit card “from Capital One that gives you discounts and redeemable points if you shop for Sony gear or PlayStation services,” Engadget’s Jon Fingas writes.
The Xbox logo on this PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds screenshot may eventually be a PlayStation one, according to Bloomberg’s Yuji Nakamura and Sam Kim. “Bluehole is in talks with Sony about introducing a version for the PlayStation after” the Xbox version releases.
Battle.net upgrades could be incoming. MMO-Champion explained “group strings” discovered in a recent update. PC Gamer’s Andy Chalk reports that “One of the features referenced in the list is an option to appear offline … Group and channel features also figure prominently, suggesting that Blizzard may be aiming for a Discord-like environment.”
PlayStation 4’s 5.0 update is live. GameSpot’s Oscar Dayus goes over all the major and minor improvements.
IndieBox cancelled its subscription service. “The subscription model, which serviced over 3,000 members each month, will cease with the shipping of Torchlight II: The Collector’s Edition,” GamesIndustry.biz’s Haydn Taylor explains. “IndieBox has stated that the company is not closing down, but simply changing direction, citing difficulties with the subscription model.”
Unity and Nintendo are putting their heads together to solve engine issues plaguing Switch development, IGN’s Joe Skrebels reports.