UK studio Splash Damage has confirmed a small number of employees are at risk of being laid off.The Outcasters and Transformers: Reactivate developer confirmed the news in a statement to GamesIndustry.biz and said a "small number of roles" are at risk of redundancy.
Operations roles at risk at Splash Damage
"Following a recent business review, we have reached a point where we must adapt our structure to better suit the needs of our current and future games. Despite every effort to avoid it, this unfortunately means that a small number of roles across the studio are potentially at risk of redundancy," it said."These roles…
Pieces Interactive, the Embracer-owned studio behind the recent Alone in the Dark remake, has seemingly shut down.The studio shared an image on social media and its website that reads "Pieces Interactive: 2007–2024. Thanks for playing with us."One former employees appeared to confirmed the closure on Linkedin. "Hello everyone! Unfortunately Pieces Interactive is closing down, so I'm looking for new opportunities," wrote former character artist, Gustav Pethrus.Pieces released over 10 titles on PC, console and mobile including Puzzlegeddon, Fret Nice, Robo Surf, and Kill to Collect. It also worked on multiple expansions for Titan Quest. The company's latest release was Alone in the Dark.The Swedish studio was formed in 2007 and acquired by Embracer in 2017 for…
Making games is expensive, and that includes airing trailers for particular events. A new Esquire report on Summer Game Fest explores how much studios pay to bring a trailer for the now annual showcase run by Geoff Keighley.On the low end, developers will pay $250,000 for a one-minute trailer. The price goes up depending on length, from $350,000 for 90 seconds to a high of $550,000 for two and a half minutes.Previously, this information wasn't transparent, so this offers some interesting insight on what studios (or their publishers) are willing to pay to get eyes on their projects.Esquire notes the 2023 Game Awards had a similar pricing structure. However, it's unclear how shorter trailers less than a minute are priced, or if there are additional costs if a game's actor or c…
When Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 releases on Xbox Game Pass, it's coming to the subscription service with no strings attached.Before its actual reveal, many wondered if the shooter would be used to launch a new, pricier tier. In a statement to Eurogamer, Microsoft explained that isn't the case, and it'll be fully playable on Xbox and PC for all three of the current tiers.It's been previously reported that Microsoft was looking to increase Game Pass Ultimate's price after previously doing so last July. If there were any game to test that with, it'd arguably be the newest installment in the best-selling, money making shooter franchise.While Black Ops 6 isn't the kickoff point for a new Game Pass tier or price hike, that doesn't mean either are off the ta…