Xbox forms XP, a division for films, TV, toys and theme parks built on its games, while it keeps cutting game-making jobs

The rest of the day

31 more stories on this beat.

Each with its own sources. None of these is a link to the story above.

1. 02

   Italy investigates Activision Blizzard over children's spending

   Italy's competition authority opened an investigation into Activision Blizzard, one of Microsoft's best-known games publishers, on 8 October. [13] It is looking at loot boxes, which sell random prizes, and pay-to-progress designs in Diablo Immortal and Call of Duty Mobile. [13] The worry is that children cannot keep track of what they spend in game money bought with real money. [13] Norway and Denmark back the probe, and it is the first step of an EU action against nine game companies announced in September. [13] A breach can cost up to 4% of yearly sales in each country affected. [13]

   Why it matters — Activision Blizzard belongs to Microsoft, Xbox's owner, so a fine would land on the same company that is building XP. The EU is also drafting a law that would ban loot boxes for children. [13]

2. 03

   US freezes Microsoft's green card applications

   The Trump administration stopped accepting green card applications for Microsoft's foreign workers on H-1B visas, along with Adobe and several IT outsourcing firms such as Infosys and Wipro. [28] A green card lets a worker stay in the US for good. [27] JD Vance, the US vice president, said Microsoft laid off American workers and replaced them with foreign ones. [27] Microsoft says 80% of its roughly 6,000 H-1B applications last year were for people it already employed. [27][28] The freeze covers every part of Microsoft, Xbox included. [26]

   Why it matters — Xbox staff on H-1B visas can no longer start the path to staying in the US through Microsoft. [27] Microsoft can still hire on temporary visas, so the change hits staying, not starting. [27]

3. 04

   Paramount will make a Cyberpunk 2077 film

   Paramount, the Hollywood studio that now sits inside Skydance, is making a live-action film of Cyberpunk 2077, first reported by Deadline on 8 October. [15][17] Cyberpunk 2077 is a game set in a violent future city, made by CD Projekt Red, a Polish studio. [14] It launched broken in 2020, was fixed over years of free updates, and has sold more than 40 million copies. [16][17] Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who produced the Transformers films, will produce it with CD Projekt Red. [14][18] No director, cast or date has been named. [16]

   Why it matters — Paramount is also making a Call of Duty film for 2028, and its Street Fighter film opens on 16 October. [15][16] Cyberpunk 2, the next game, has no release date, and 184 people are working on it. [14][15]

4. 05

   US console sales hit a 13-year August low

   Circana counted 559,000 consoles sold in the US in August, 15% fewer than a year earlier and the fewest in an August since 2013. [11] Xbox fell 31%, Nintendo 15% and PlayStation 11%. [11] Prices rose instead: the average new console cost a record $541, against $476 a year before. [11] Total spending on games fell 9% to $4.3 billion, mostly because phone game spending dropped 18%. [11][23] NBA 2K27 was the best-selling game of the month, as it was in 2024 and 2025. [22]

   Xbox31%

   Nintendo15%

   PlayStation11%

   Why it matters — Fewer people bought a console, but each one cost more. That is why money spent on PS5 machines rose 17% while the number sold fell. [11][23]

5. 06

   Ubisoft closes Rainbow Six Mobile

   Ubisoft will switch off Rainbow Six Mobile, its free phone version of the shooter Rainbow Six Siege, on 15 January 2027. [19][20] It was tested from 2022 and launched worldwide only in February 2026, so it will have run for less than a year. [19][21] Players criticised it for locking characters behind payments and for slow progress. [20] Ubisoft says its developers will move to other long-term projects and that it will share details of the final days soon. [21] A new spin-off, Rainbow Six Tactics, is due in 2027. [19]

   Why it matters — A free game earns only while enough players keep paying for extras. Kotaku reports that Ubisoft's other phone spin-off, The Division Resurgence, has not done better. [20]

6. 07

   A leaker posts 25 more minutes of GTA 6

   A leaker called Cyberleek posted a 25-minute video of Grand Theft Auto 6 on 8 October, after a long silence. [33][34] GTA 6 is Rockstar's next open-world crime game, due on 19 November. [33] The footage shows a dirt-bike event, a long stretch of nudity, and someone using a developer menu to spawn a tank. [34][35] Rockstar has called the leaks heartbreaking. [33] Take-Two, Rockstar's owner, has sought subpoenas to find the leaker, who now asks viewers for money. [33][34]

   Why it matters — Rockstar says the leaks may spoil the game it meant players to discover on 19 November. [35] Because the player used a developer menu, nobody yet knows which scenes are in the finished game. [34]

7. 08

   Denuvo asks a court to unmask a cracker

   Denuvo sells software meant to stop PC games being copied. [25] It asked a federal court in California to order Discord, Valve and Reddit to hand over what they know about a user called voices38. [25] In September Denuvo sued voices38, accusing them of breaking its protection on 26 games. [25] Its lawyers do not know whether voices38 is one person or a group. [25] A judge has yet to rule on the request. [25]

   Why it matters — Publishers pay Denuvo to protect their games, and Denuvo does not refund them when the protection is broken. If one person can break it on old and new games alike, publishers have less reason to buy it. [25]

8. 09

   GTA 6 gets radio you can hear on foot

   Rockstar named six of GTA 6's radio stations on 8 October, from Latin pop to metal. [29][31] For the first time in the series, players can listen through in-game earbuds while walking, not only in cars. [30] The game also has on-demand podcasts, another first. [29] Rolling Stone reports that real stars host some stations, including Bad Bunny on the Latin station, Cocoteo FM. [30] Rockstar also opened a shop selling GTA 6 shirts, hats and lighters. [32]

   Why it matters — Rockstar calls it the biggest and widest choice of radio in any GTA game. [29] Six songs from the soundtrack are already out, so players hear the game before they can play it. [29]

9. 10

   Discs still sell for Sony's big games

   About 35% of PS5 copies of Marvel's Wolverine were sold on disc, Ampere Analysis estimates. [24] Wolverine is one of Sony's own games, and Sony is preparing to stop making discs for its future games. [24] Silent Hill Townfall sold about 45% on disc, and disc sales were strongest in parts of Europe. [24] In the US, spending on new boxed games rose 5% this year, because 54 more games came out as game-key cards. [23] A game-key card is a box holding a code to download the game, not the game itself.

   Silent Hill Townfall45%

   The Blood of Dawnwalker36%

   Marvel's Wolverine35%

   Why it matters — About a third of Wolverine's copies still sold on disc, which is why Sony's move away from discs is being questioned. [24] The rise in boxed sales in the US comes mostly from boxes that hold no game. [23]

10. 11

    PC sales fall 20% as prices rise

    IDC, a research firm, says 62.7 million PCs were shipped worldwide in July to September. [63] That is 20% fewer than a year earlier and 9% fewer than the three months before. [63] IDC blames supply problems and high prices. [63] Its research director expects shops to cut prices a little to clear stock, but not back to last year's levels. [63]

    Why it matters — Players pay more for a gaming PC before they buy a single game, and IDC expects prices to stay high. [63] In the US, the average new console also hit a record price in August, $541. [11]

11. 12

    Journey veterans raise $35 million

    Gardens Interactive, a studio founded by people who made Journey, What Remains of Edith Finch and Sky: Children of the Light, raised more than $35 million from investors on 8 October. [36] The round was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and brings its total to more than $70 million. [36] Krafton, the South Korean company behind PUBG, keeps a seat on its board. [36] Its first game is a multiplayer fantasy world where players act out roles together. [36]

    Why it matters — The studio has no game out yet, so the investors are paying for a team and an idea. Its chief executive says the money is meant to keep the game running for years after launch. [36]

12. 13

    Fireshine buys the studio behind Necesse

    Fireshine Games, a games publisher, bought Fair Games, the Danish studio that makes the survival game Necesse, on 8 October. [38] Necesse first came out in 2019 and has about 2.5 million players. [38] Fair Games' founder, Mads Skovgaard, stays in charge with the same team. [38] Fireshine will take over publishing and porting, which means making versions for other machines. [38]

    Why it matters — A small studio gets help to reach consoles without hiring for it. Fireshine gets a game that already has millions of players. [38]

13. 14

    Expression opens an office in Manchester

    Expression Games, a fully remote British studio, opened a physical office in Manchester. [37] It makes Hell Let Loose: Vietnam, a war game that has sold a million copies since August, and helped build Star Wars: Galactic Racer. [37] Its chief executive, Errol Ismail, says staff wanted more chances to meet. [37] Nobody will have to come in, and the office will host work for partners that need data kept on site. [37]

    Why it matters — Ismail says the office had been planned for years and was paused by the industry crash at the end of 2023. [37] The studio wants to train new staff with Manchester Metropolitan University. [37]

14. 15

    Callisto's director blames a rushed launch

    Glen Schofield, who led the space horror game The Callisto Protocol, told GamesIndustry.biz that its owner, Krafton, made him release it in December 2022, months before the date he says he was promised. [39] At the time, four to six of his staff were falling ill with COVID every month. [39] He says Krafton called the game a complete failure, while his team put out 86 patches. [39] He has now retired, and says he would rather make a game for $70 million than for $150 million. [39]

    Why it matters — He says a clever idea, such as reusing parts of older games inside the story, could save $25 million on one game. That is more than he expects AI to save today. [39] GamesIndustry.biz asked Krafton for comment. [39]

15. 16

    2XKO's final update arrives on 27 October

    Riot Games showed the final big update for 2XKO, its fighting game set in the world of League of Legends. [50] It goes live on 27 October and adds two characters, Samira and Sett. [50] Riot is ending support because too few players stayed to pay for more work on it. [50] The game will stay playable, and its shop has been replaced by one payment that unlocks every outfit. [50]

    Why it matters — The team that made it was cut soon after launch. Players keep a working game but get nothing new after this month. [50]

16. 17

    Call of Duty sells a head start in DMZ

    Infinity Ward showed how players start a match in DMZ, a mode of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 where squads must reach an exit point to end a match. [51] Starting on foot at a random spot is free. [51] For in-game cash, players can start in an off-road buggy for 5,000, an armoured car for 25,000, a helicopter for 50,000, or an aircraft for 100,000. [51] DMZ launches on 23 October. [51]

    12345

    050,000100,000

    1. 1On foot, at a random spot0
    2. 2Off-road buggy5,000
    3. 3Armoured car25,000
    4. 4Helicopter50,000
    5. 5Aircraft drop100,000

    Why it matters — Eurogamer expects free starts to become the choice of new and poorer players, who begin behind squads that arrive by helicopter. [51] The car and helicopter must first be unlocked through story missions. [51]

17. 18

    System Shock's TV show is cancelled

    A TV show of System Shock, a science-fiction game series, will not be made. [41] Stephen Kick, head of Nightdive Studios, said he does not believe Binge, the company that licensed it, is still around in that form. [41] Some first scripts had been written. [41] Binge had also licensed shows of Driver and Hunt: Showdown, and the Driver show was cancelled in 2024. [41]

    Why it matters — A game company can sign away the screen rights and still see nothing made. Kick says he still hopes to see System Shock on screen one day. [41]

18. 19

    Resident Evil Requiem began as an online game

    Masachika Kawata, producer of Resident Evil Requiem, said its director first built it as an online game. [52] Research partway through development came back badly, so Capcom dropped the online plan and went back to horror. [52] Kawata also said Leon was the first hero chosen, but the team added a new character, Grace, because Leon fights too well to feel scared. [52] He said it in a fan book for the series' 30th birthday. [52]

    Why it matters — Capcom has pushed its teams toward online play before, including on Resident Evil 7. [52] Requiem is the best-selling game in the US this year, as a single-player horror game. [22]

19. 20

    Street Fighter was ten years from dying

    Shuhei Matsumoto, the producer of Street Fighter 6, said the series would probably have died within ten years if nothing changed. [53] Players of Street Fighter V, the 2016 game, were mostly aged 35 to 45, he said. [53] So the team made Street Fighter 6 as if nobody knew its characters, and added simpler controls. [53] It has sold more than seven million copies. [53] A Street Fighter film reaches cinemas on 16 October. [53]

    Why it matters — A famous name can still lose its players as they age. Capcom chose to treat it as new to win young ones. [53]

20. 21

    Arc Raiders climbs back after a big update

    Embark Studios released Frozen Trail, the largest update to its shooter Arc Raiders, on 8 October. [55] It adds an icy new map, new enemies, new weapons and a base players can furnish. [55] The game passed 106,000 players at once on Steam, its first time over 100,000 since May. [54] In May Embark cut big updates to two a year, saying its developers needed a healthier pace. [54] It averaged 40,000 players in September. [54]

    Why it matters — Fewer, larger updates brought players back after months of decline. The game is free to play this weekend, which could push the number higher. [54]

21. 22

    Forza Horizon 6 reaches PS5 on 26 January

    Playground Games confirmed that Forza Horizon 6, an open-world racing game, will arrive on PlayStation 5 on 26 January 2027. [58] It came out on Xbox and PC on 15 May and had been promised for PS5 in 2026. [58] The PS5 version will launch alongside a new expansion, which comes to all machines in January. [58] A Premium Edition gives up to five days of early access. [58]

    Why it matters — Xbox now sells its games on Sony's console too, and its previous Forza sold well there. [58]

22. 23

    AMD brings sharper graphics to handhelds

    AMD, whose chips run handheld gaming PCs such as the Steam Deck, says its FSR 4 tool will reach handhelds by the end of 2026. [59] FSR 4 uses AI to draw a game at a lower resolution and sharpen it, so it runs faster. [59][60] AMD plans new chips built for it and a lighter version for older ones. [59] It is not yet clear whether the Steam Deck will get it this year. [60]

    Why it matters — Owners of handhelds such as the ROG Xbox Ally X and Legion Go 2 could get better-looking games without buying new machines. [60]

23. 24

    A cancelled game is saved at Triple-I

    The Triple-I Initiative, an online showcase of independent games, held its second show of the year on 8 October. [43] One reveal was Gods With Badges, a tactics game about a disgraced police officer. [42] Artificer, a studio owned by Devolver Digital, had started it as Hard Justice and cancelled it. [42] Strange Scaffold took over the work through Project Share, its scheme for studios to share code. [42] The show also revealed The Talos Principle 3 and The Escapists 3. [43]

    Why it matters — Work that would have been thrown away becomes a game in 2027. Most games shown have free demos on Steam now. [42][43]

24. 25

    Dave the Diver meets Subnautica 2

    Mintrocket's Dave the Diver, a game about diving and running a sushi bar, gets its final add-on in early 2027. [47] It is a free crossover with Subnautica 2, an underwater survival game in early access, made with that game's studio, Unknown Worlds. [47][48] Dave travels to Subnautica 2's ocean moon and meets its huge Leviathan. [48] Subnautica 2 sold more than 5 million copies in under a month. [47]

    Why it matters — Each game is shown to the other's players. Mintrocket says smaller updates may still follow, but there is no sequel yet. [49]

25. 26

    Machinarium returns after 17 years

    Amanita Design, a Czech studio, announced Machinarium 2, a sequel to its 2009 puzzle game about a small robot. [45] Josef and his friend Berta crash-land in a valley where two robot tribes are running out of power. [44][45] Players can switch between the two, and the game uses pictures instead of words. [45] Tomas Dvorak, who scored the first game, is back. [44] There is no release date. [45]

    Why it matters — Amanita's games use almost no written words, which makes them easy to play in any language. [45] Its chief executive, Jakub Dvorsky, said the team is not getting any younger. [44]

26. 27

    The Wolf Among Us is remastered

    Telltale Games will release The Wolf Among Us Remastered on 29 October. [46] It is a 2013 detective game, based on the Fables comics, in which fairy-tale characters live in hiding in New York. [46] The new version adds sharper visuals, a black-and-white mode and an hour of bonus material. [46] The long-delayed sequel is set for 2027. [46]

    Why it matters — Telltale closed in 2018 and the sequel has been delayed several times. The remaster puts the first game back on sale before it. [46]

27. 28

    Phantom Blade Zero is out on 29 October

    Phantom Blade Zero, an action game from S-Game, a studio in China, comes out on 29 October for PS5 and PC. [65] It is built on Chinese martial-arts films, and the film star Donnie Yen helped plan its fights and plays a character. [65][66] Polygon played four hours and called the boss fights the highlight. [65] IGN saw frame-rate drops on a powerful PC, and the studio says it is now working on speed. [66]

    Why it matters — Polygon calls it perhaps the biggest game still to come this year apart from GTA 6. [65] Donnie Yen leads a team of 15 to 20 stunt performers who acted out its fights. [65]

28. 29

    The Witcher 3 Remastered gets its first fixes

    CD Projekt Red released patch 5.01 for The Witcher 3 Remastered, the free upgrade to its 2015 fantasy game. [56] Console players can now turn off bloom, a glow effect many found too bright. [57] It also fixes quiet voices on consoles and bugs in dodging and boats. [56] A separate patch for the Switch 2 version, which looks blurry, is coming. [56]

    Why it matters — The upgrade brought millions of players back, and bugs came with it. [56] A new expansion, Songs of the Past, follows next year. [56]

29. 30

    Pimax copies Valve's headset ideas

    Pimax, a maker of virtual-reality headsets, announced the Crystal Pro, a wireless headset priced from $1,399. [61] Like Valve's Steam Frame, it tracks the eyes and sends full detail only where the wearer is looking. [61] Pimax also showed the Spation, a small gaming PC that runs Valve's SteamOS. [62] It has no price or date yet. [62]

    Why it matters — PC Gamer says the $1,399 price makes Valve's own headset, the Steam Frame, look cheap. [61] The Spation is aimed at people who want stronger VR than Valve's Steam Machine gives. [62]

30. 31

    Atari brings back the 800XL

    Atari is making a copy of the 800XL, a home computer it first sold 43 years ago, with the games publisher Plaion. [64] It costs $219.99, ships in April 2027, and has a full keyboard for writing programs in Atari BASIC. [64] It plays old cartridges and comes with 25 games built in, including Asteroids and Centipede. [64]

    Why it matters — Atari has already rebuilt its 2600 console the same way. [64] Most buyers will play old games on it, but it can also be used to write new ones. [64]

31. 32

    A charity asks games to point players to help

    Safe In Our World, a mental health charity for the games industry, launched Four Billion Players on 8 October. [40] It asks studios and platforms to show players where to find free mental health help, for example on a game's start screen or in its menus. [40] The name comes from the number of players expected by 2029. [40] The charity has trained more than 400 games workers in mental health awareness. [40]

    Why it matters — It wants games, which reach billions of people, to tell a lonely player where help is. Studios can sign up on the charity's website. [40]