Evidently not all is well as Sony's first-party strategy for PlayStation comes at a cost, meanwhile the other console makers prepare for E3's digital return this year. Game Rant has compiled some of the biggest gaming news stories from this past week together into a concise post for fans and enthusiasts to stay up to date on the most important events in the industry per week. Highlighting the most relevant stories, this list is not inherently and totally objective, and will not contain every news story this week. Rather, this is intended for gaming fans who want a quick rundown on the largest/most impactful stories that occurred in the last week in games.
In this week's roundup of gaming news, a report by Bloomberg's Jason Schreier emphasizes the side-effects of Sony prioritizing its biggest AAA first-party developers. Additionally, this week the ESA formally announced E3 2021, an all-digital event scheduled for this June. Xbox is rumored to be in talks with Kojima Productions, potentially publishing Kojima's next game exclusively on Xbox. Another game was also misconstrued as a secret Kojima game this week as well. The Epic Games Store reveals a surprisingly dismal financial outlook as part of its ongoing Apple lawsuit. All that and more in this week's games industry news recap.
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On Friday, an in-depth report on Sony's first-party game development studios sheds some light on the company's "conservative" business practices with PlayStation. Centered on the story of Sony's Visual Arts Service Group, Bloomberg's report seems to indicate that Sony's backing of studios like Naughty Dog and Santa Monica Studio has stifled smaller development efforts. Blockbuster PlayStation developers are receiving all of the budgetary attention of Sony, while other teams have faltered.
Alongside this news came a few tidbits tangentially related to Sony's business practices. Visual Arts Service Group had reportedly begun a project to remake The Last of Us, after a failed pitch to remake the first Uncharted game. However, it seems Sony essentially handed off the project to a team at Naughty Dog, and it's unclear if that project is still in development.
Additionally, it seems Sony's Bend Studio has moved on to a completely new IP after Sony itself reportedly denied a Days Gone 2 sequel pitch by Bend. Before that, Bend Studio had reportedly assigned a separate team to work on an Uncharted game under the supervision of Naughty Dog, before moving on to a completely new game instead.
It seems E3 is making a full return this year, albeit in all-digital form. This year's trade show, E3 2021, is scheduled for June 12-15 this summer. A surprising wealth of publishers are participating in the event, despite many of them organizing independent showcases last year. Nintendo and Xbox, alongside notable publishers like Konami, Capcom, Take-Two, Ubisoft, Warner Bros., and Koch Media, are all confirmed to be in attendance.
There are several notable absences from the show floor as well, including the previously absent Sony, alongside publishers like Square Enix, Sega, Bandai Namco, Tencent, 505 Games, and Activision Blizzard. The ESA clarified and stated that the confirmed attendees are part of a list of "early commitments" to the show, though that doesn't necessarily mean any of these absent publishers will be attending.
According to GamesBeat journalist Jeff Grubb, in relation to another story involving Abandoned and how many assumed it was a "secret" Hideo Kojima game, the next Kojima Productions may be published by Xbox. This is unconfirmed, but Grubb did mention that Xbox and Kojima Productions are in talks regarding a similar deal, though it's unclear if that's in reference to publishing rights, console exclusivity, or anything more specific than that.
Then again, Grubb had also confirmed that "teases" by Xbox boss Phil Spencer and his now-infamous shelf have largely been intentional. Considering the Ludens Kojima Productions statue was placed next to an Xbox sign, many fans are taking that as a sign. It wouldn't be the first time Spencer teased something in his livestream background, as he's done so with the tease of the Xbox Series S console previously.
RELATED: An Xbox-Published Kojima Game Would Be a Huge Turning Point
In that same vein, Blue Box Game Studios' Abandoned is confirmed not to be a "secret" Kojima project, despite many fans spreading the rumor. In a statement by the studio, Blue Box Game Studios clarified that it has no association or relationship with Hideo Kojima, rather this game is a passion project for the team. Blue Box Games Studio has been a supplementary developer that assisted "several studios" in the past, but had never branched out into its own project until now.
Embroiled in its ongoing lawsuit with Apple, Epic Games' legal battle has brought to light some interesting financial revelations for the company's storefront. According to a recent court filing in the Epic Games vs. Apple case, it seems the Epic Games Store has been operating at quite a substantial loss. Priding itself in its developer-positive revenue split, monthly free game deals, and exclusivity deals with developers, the Epic Games Store has reportedly lost $450 million in operating costs.
Epic Games makes it clear that the 12% revenue split, among other store efforts, are still sufficient to cover expenses. Epic Games expects the store to be profitable by 2023 by financial estimates.
Arkane Studios' upcoming first-person shooter Deathloop has been delayed to September 14, 2021. Game director Dinga Bakaba mentions that Arkane wishes to ensure the quality of the game without sacrificing the development team's health and safety, an ever-similar story to the many other games delayed by the pandemic's after-effects. Deathloop was originally planned to release on May 21, 2021, on PC and PS5.
MORE: Deathloop Inherently Has One Big Question to Be Answered