Greg Street, a former lead systems designer on Blizzard's World of Warcraft and executive producer on Riot Games' League of Legends MMO still in development, and NetEase Games have announced a new studio called Fantastic Pixel Castle. This studio is developing a new AAA MMO codenamed Ghost, set in a new fantasy universe. Street is joined by a founding team with decades of MMO and related genre experience ranging from World of Warcraft, League of Legends, Guild Wars 2, Fortnite, Overwatch, and Valorant, according to a press release.
The studio is hiring and says it embraces a "remote-first structure." It is currently fully remote. Alongside today's news, Fantastic Pixel Castle has released three pieces of Ghost concept art and you can check each out by swiping through the gallery below:
"With Fantastic Pixel Castle and Ghost, we want to demonstrate our commitment to open communication and development in front of players," Street, who is the studio's lead, writes in a press release. "MMOs are arguably one of the most challenging games to make, but we have some big advantages. We are a fully remote studio, allowing us to hire the best game developers, and we plan to stay small so that we can iterate on our design quickly. We also want to show the game early and often to the community and make sure we are on the right track to incorporate constant feedback. This is possible because NetEase Games is a strategic partner that understands our vision, and gives us the creative autonomy, resources, and support to be successful."
Fantastic Pixel Castle studio lead Greg StreetNetEase Games president of global investments and partnerships says Fantastic Pixel Castle is bringing some of the best MMO talent available to NetEase to develop this original fantasy IP, noting that the studio has the company's full support "to make this vision a reality."
Fantastic Pixel Castle's studio leaders will share more about the team and Ghost during a livestreamed AMA set for 2 p.m. ET on November 8, and the team encourages those interested in the idea of this game to check out the studio's website for more information.
What do you hope to see from this MMO? Let us know in the comments below!
Remedy Entertainment released Alan Wake 2 last month, and it's resonated with both fans and critics alike as a longtime sequel and a new game from the creators of Control – you can read Game Informer's Alan Wake 2 review here. The studio has released two updates so far, but today's Alan Wake 2 update is easily the biggest yet and includes bug fixes, visual issue remedies, and more.
Update 1.000.008 on PS5, 1.0.0.8 on Xbox Series X/S, and 1.0.8 on PC brings over 200 individual improvements and fixes to the game, including improved audio for live-action sequences, graphical issue fixes, Performance mode improvements, improved lighting, and various mission-specific fixes, like one that fixes a bug where Saga could get stuck in the environment in one of her first chapters.
Here are the full Alan Wake 2 Update 1.0.8 release notes:
INVITATION:
CASEY:
ZANE’S FILM:
SCRATCH:
WE SING:
ROOM 665:
MASKS:
DEERFEST:
COME HOME:
And that's everything in today's Alan Wake 2 update.
For more, read Game Informer's Alan Wake 2 review and then check out this update where Remedy discusses its development progress on Control 2 and its Max Payne remakes. After that, read this feature about the characters to remember before starting Alan Wake 2, and then check out what the best graphics modes are in the game.
Does this update fix any issues you have with Alan Wake 2? Let us know in the comments below!
Game Informer can exclusively reveal Assassin's Creed Valhalla: The Hidden Codex, a new graphic novel from Dark Horse Books that brings players back into the world of assassin Eivor, a medieval Nordic land, a new hidden order, and more. It will be released as a hardcover graphic novel on April 30, 2024, in retail stores and online, for $19.99 (and it hits comic book stores on May 1, 2024). Mathieu Gabella is the author, with art from Paolo Traisci.
The Hidden Codex follows Edward, a scribe and reluctant monk after he escapes from a kidnapping performed by a clan of Vikings. After securing his freedom, Edward finds his brother missing and strange documents "blackened by a language he innately understands."
"No one knows where these occult-looking symbols came from, but Edward has seen such writings before: in the workshop of an enigmatic wise man among the Vikings who is part of a secret order: Those Unseen," a press release reads. "An order that could offer answers to Edward, and guarantee his aspirations of freedom and knowledge. But with that knowledge, can he find and rescue his own brother before it's too late?"
Ubisoft senior transmedia content manager Etienne Bouvier says the company is lucky to work with Gabella and Traisci as they are two long-standing fans of the Assassin's Creed franchise who infused their love of it, and knowledge of its lore, into this book.
Assassin's Creed Valhalla: The Hidden Codex hits bookshelves and online retailers on April 30, 2024, before it hits comic book stores on May 1. It is available for preorder now and costs $19.99.
For more about the series, read Game Informer's Assassin's Creed Valhalla review and then read our Assassin's Creed Mirage review. After that, read Game Informer's ranking of every Assassin's Creed game.
Are you interested in checking out Assassin's Creed Valhalla: The Hidden Codex? Let us know in the comments below!