Top Stories

UKIE: UK games market reaches £8.7bn in 2025 (1 min read)

The UK games market hit £8.7bn in 2025, with software up 7% to £6.03bn and mobile growing 7.9% to £2bn. Despite the revenue growth, UK developer employment fell 4.5%, with a net loss of over 1,000 roles. (Gamesindustry)

007 First Light Endgame Footage Leaks Online Thanks To Ratings Board (4 min read)

A security flaw in Indonesia's IGRS ratings board exposed over 1,000 game submissions, leaking developer contact details, unreleased gameplay footage, and story spoilers — including the ending of IO Interactive's 007 First Light, still six weeks from launch. (The Gamer)

Disney Extraction Shooter Reportedly in Development at Epic Games (3 min read)

Epic Games is reportedly developing an unnamed Disney extraction shooter targeting a November 2026 launch, stemming from Disney's $1.5B investment in Epic. Internal reviews have raised concerns about unoriginal mechanics, and Disney has expressed disappointment with overall project progress. (IGN)

Business & Finance

Nintendo Officially Launches New Limited-Time Switch 2 Bundle Deal With Super Mario Galaxy 1+2 (3 min read)

Nintendo launched a limited-time Switch 2 + Super Mario Galaxy 1+2 bundle for $500 ($20 off) through May 9, timed to a Mario Galaxy movie release. The move follows reports of scaled-back Switch 2 manufacturing and comes amid broader industry hardware price hikes. (IGN)

Studio Behind Umamusume: Pretty Derby And Other Beloved Anime Is Reportedly In A $3.5 Million Hole (4 min read)

Studio Kai, the anime studio behind Umamusume: Pretty Derby seasons 2–3 and owned by PUBG publisher Krafton via ADK Holdings, has reported $3.5M in cumulative net losses across seven consecutive years, triggering an insolvency declaration. Fans expect parent company ADK to absorb the debt. (Kotaku)

Studios & People

‘It Was Getting Damaged and Broken Apart’ – Pete Hines Says Bethesda Is Part of Something That Is Not ‘Authentic’ or ‘Genuine’ (4 min read)

Former Bethesda marketing chief Pete Hines says he watched the studio get "damaged and broken apart" after Microsoft's acquisition, citing a loss of authenticity that ultimately drove his 2023 retirement. (IGN)

Games & Releases

Fable Social Media Account Reiterates Fall 2026 Release Window Amid Rumors of an Internal Delay to Avoid GTA 6 (2 min read)

Fable's official account reaffirmed an Autumn 2026 launch after rumors surfaced that Microsoft was internally considering a delay to avoid competing with GTA 6's November 19, 2026 release date. (IGN)

Open-world crime game Samson beats up a bunch of bugs in a new patch, as developer admits it 'released a game with flaws' (6 min read)

Liquid Swords issued a bug-fix patch for open-world crime game Samson, acknowledging it "released a game with flaws." The game currently holds a 53% Mixed rating on Steam, with most complaints targeting bugs and technical issues. (PC Gamer)

EA Follows Anthem Shutdown With Closure of BioWare's Dragon Age: Inquisition PS3 Servers (3 min read)

EA is shutting down Dragon Age: Inquisition's PS3 multiplayer servers on April 28, over 11 years after the game's 2014 launch. Servers on PS4, PC, and Xbox remain online for now. (IGN)

AI/Tech & Tools

Resident Evil Requiem Denuvo DRM Fully Cracked, Making It the First 2026 Game to Have Its Copy Protection Bypassed (2 min read)

Resident Evil Requiem's Denuvo DRM was cracked ~six weeks post-launch, becoming the first 2026 game to have copy protection bypassed via a simple .exe modification. Developers relying on Denuvo should note cracks are still coming, just slower than in prior years. (IGN)

Policy & Labor

Doki Doki Literature Club Suddenly Removed From Google Play Store (3 min read)

Google pulled Doki Doki Literature Club from the Play Store citing "depiction of sensitive themes," just months after its December 2025 mobile launch. Publisher Serenity Forge and creator Dan Salvato say they're working to get it reinstated. (IGN)

GTA 6 Dev Rockstar Confirms 'A Limited Amount of Non-Material Company Information Was Accessed' in Third-Party Data Breach, as Hackers Issue Ultimatum: 'Pay or Leak' (3 min read)

Rockstar confirmed a third-party data breach via SaaS tool Anodot, which gave hacker group ShinyHunters access to its Snowflake data warehouse. Rockstar says the accessed data is "non-material" with no player impact; hackers have set an April 14 pay-or-leak deadline. (IGN)

Intrepid CEO Disputes Fresh Ashes of Creation Allegations, Including Claims That Funds Were Spent on Everything From Magic: The Gathering Cards to a Personal Chef (4 min read)

A YouTuber claims to have leaked Intrepid Studios' full financial ledger, alleging misuse of funds and near-bankruptcy. CEO Steven Sharif disputes the claims, calling them defamatory and tied to the ongoing federal lawsuit against his board. (IGN)

Culture & Community

Devs aren't "lazy" and game updates aren't guaranteed | Opinion (8 min read)

Landfall Games pushed back on "lazy dev cycle" accusations for Peak, prompting a broader discussion about how live service norms have warped player expectations for non-live-service games. The piece argues updates are a bonus, not a right. (Gamesindustry)

Black & White at 25: how Lionhead's hairbrained, stoner-powered game design became the harbinger of modern AI (14 min read)

Eurogamer's 25th anniversary retrospective on Lionhead's Black & White traces how its data-driven creature AI — built by Richard Evans, who later joined Google DeepMind — foreshadowed modern conversational AI systems. (Eurogamer)

Former Xbox Veteran Says Canceling The Last of Us Online Was the Right Call, Criticizes Naughty Dog and Sony for Green-lighting It in the First Place (8 min read)

A former Xbox veteran backed Sony and Naughty Dog's decision to cancel The Last of Us Online, arguing the real mistake was greenlighting a live service title at a single-player-focused studio in the first place. (IGN)

'I Am a Victim of My Own Success' – Invincible VS Fans Call for Rage Quitting to Be Penalized as Beta Comes to an End (3 min read)

Invincible VS players are calling on developer Quarter Up to add rage quit penalties after widespread disconnects plagued the beta. The game launches April 30 on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S. (IGN)

You can finally rescue Half-Life's guards and scientists thanks to this mod inspired by Lemmings (7 min read)

A mod called Half-Life: Lemmings, created by TeamClown, lets players rescue every scientist and guard in Black Mesa, inspired by the classic Lemmings puzzle game. (PC Gamer)

Karl Jobst Files Defamation Lawsuit Against Donkey Kong Record Holder Billy Mitchell (2 min read)

YouTuber Karl Jobst filed a defamation suit against arcade record holder Billy Mitchell, alleging Mitchell made false public statements about Jobst's bankruptcy and crowdfunding campaigns. This follows Mitchell winning a ~$240,000 defamation judgment against Jobst in April 2025. (IGN)

gg! see you in game!

-james