Update (9/16/24): Following the Absurd Ventures announcement, Robbins explained that Ascendant will be "going quiet" as Absurd Marin starts on its new project."I'm thrilled to bring our team's experience and expertise to a new game and exciting new company," he wrote.While his statement is vague on Ascendant's future, Robbins said he felt "incredibly lucky" to lead his first studio and release Immortals of Aveum. "To anyone who supported Ascendant and the game," he continued, "I can't thank you enough.""Now we move forward into our next chapter. […] It's been an amazing ride, and now the ride continues!"Original story: Dan Houser's Absurd Ventures has launched its first spinoff studio.Based in San Rafael, California, the Absurd Marin team is comprised of several former staffers from Ascendant Studios, creators of 2023's Immortals of Aveum. Fittingly, that includes former Ascendant CEO Bret Robbins.Per Houser, the new studio is working on a story-based original title. This project is based on a third, unannounced Absurd property, and marks Absurd's second game alongside one based on…
Author: Ava Mitchell
At yesterday's Gamescom presser, Bethesda revealed Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is coming to PlayStation 5 sometime in spring 2025 after its initial December launch on Xbox and PC. For Xbox head Phil Spencer, taking the title multiplatform is for the good of the brand.On a livestream following the event, Spencer explained the decision was in part spurred by the alleged success of games like Hi-Fi Rush and Sea of Thieves on PS5 and Nintendo Switch ports earlier this year. And if Xbox games are going to be "as strong as possible," more will need to go multiplatform."Our end result has to be better games that more people can play," he continued. "If we’re not focused on that, I think we’re focused on the wrong things."Indiana Jones was one of two Bethesda games that initially had PS5 versions in the works before Microsoft bought the company. Those were then killed, which complicates the situation and highlights the odd place Xbox has been put in with its many acquisitions in recent years.Another wrinkle is Xbox's various attempts to grow its base. In mid-September, it will introduce a new tier (and price hike) to Xbox Game Pass that di…
Korean publisher NCSoft has sunk $3.5 million into Swedish studio Moon Rover Games.Moon Rover will use the cash to finance the development of a cooperative shooter "built on emergent gameplay systems.""This investment represents a milestone in the history of Moon Rover Games. It will enable us to combine the experience and ambitions of our team with the vast knowledge of NCSoft in the development and operations of online games, to bring new gameplay experiences to players around the world," said Moon Rover CEO, Julien Wera.
Far Cry, Battlefield, and Halo vets onboard at Moon Rover
Moon Rover was formed in 2023 by a team of EA and Ubisoft veterans with experience working on franchises like Far Cry, Battlefield, The Division, Halo, and Mirror's Edge. The studio's debut project is codenamed 'Project Aldous' and is billed as an "original IP for PC and consoles."NCSoft, known for developing and publishing titles like Guild Wars 2 and Blade & Soul, said Moon Rover's &qu…
A new app has launched for multiplayer phone games in the form of Dusk, and its creators have already secured more money to build it out.Created by Bjarke Felbo and Sanjay Guruprasad, the app is a platform that lets players meet up and play games in a quick and easy matter.Dusk is currently in beta, and the press release notes there's already 50 games on the platform. Those games are made by indie studios using a platform-specific SDK, it automatically runs cross-platform across browsers, along with iOS and Android apps.According to the press release, those beta games are taking off quite well and players have used Dusk's voice chat for "over 50 million minutes" (or over 95 years after conversion) since launch.
Can Dusk properly court the youths?
Guruprasad and Felbo previously collaborated together on Rune, a companion app for mobile versions of PUBG and Call of Duty. Rune's since shut down, but with five million downloads, the two teamed again on an app for casual games and younger players.The allure of the teen dem…
Arma 3 sold over 500,000 copies during the Steam Summer Sale 2024.The latest summer promotion ran from June 27 to July 11 and evidently generated plenty of interest in Bohemia Interactive's tactical shooter.The studio shared its latest sales milestone in a blog post and noted it managed to shift 100,000 copies in a single day."Welcome to the over over 500,000 new recruits that have joined the Arma 3 community during the Steam Summer Sale 2024," reads the post. "Close to 100,000 of you joined us during the sale's first day—the highest number of copies sold in a single day dating all the way back to the initial Arma 3 Alpha release in March 2013."Bohemia has assembled a comprehensive FAQ for its half-a-million new players to help them find their footing when they eventually touch down.
Arma 3's deep, deep discount
For those wondering how much Arma 3 retailed for during the sale, SteamDB notes Bohemia applied a 90 percent discount to bring the price down to $2.99—a historical low for the title. With the sale now over, Arma 3 is currentl…