๐ฎ EA overhauls Apex Legends, Piranha Bytes shut down, Exoprimal is done after 1 year...
EA overhauls Apex Legends in-game currency, Piranha Bytes has shut down, and Pithead Studio has been born, Exoprimal is done and done after just 1 year, Watch Dogs movie, Horizon Zero Dawn adaptation
Hello friends,
Today is July 9th 2024 and I hope youโve had a great week ๐
In todayโs news:
๐ฎ EA overhauls Apex Legends in-game currency
๐ฎ Piranha Bytes has shut down, and Pithead Studio has been born
๐ฎ Exoprimal is done and done after just 1 year
๐ฌ Watch Dogs movie is finally happening
๐ฎ Companions and relationships in DA: Veilguard
๐ฌ Horizon Zero Dawn TV adaptation is in trouble
๐ Personal Update
All of this is brought to you in a 5 min format โฒ๏ธ
Letโs dig in!
๐ฎ EA overhauls Apex Legends in-game currency
This week EA announced a major overhaul of the Apex Legends Battle Pass which now abandons the in-game currency pricing option. In short, up until the next season you could go into the game, earn some currency and buy the premium version of the Battle Pass. After this one, youโll have only the option to buy it with real money.
As a person who played all sorts of Battle Royale games recently, Iโd say itโs a terrible decision for any player who prefers the free-to-play version of the game. For example, I used to play Fortnite a lot when Epic first released the Battle Royale game. I was there when they introduced the Battle Pass that will โrevolutioniseโ monetization for so many games to come. But guess what? If you play the game enough, you get the same amount of currency you need to buy the next BP and then some. I know that itโs all just a hamsterโs wheel, but still. As a player, I feel that a point in that, I see the goal beside ugly cosmetics that Iโll never use or use 1 out of 100.
And whatโs worse is that EA got it right the first time. But now they are trading long-term engagement for a short-term cash grab. Plain and simple. Or at least it looks like that to me.
With that EA says this change โallows us to align seasonal progression more closely with Ranked while also increasing the value for your time.โ I donโt know, maybe Iโm missing something, but it doesnโt look like a lot of value to me.
๐ฎ Piranha Bytes has shut down, and Pithead Studio has been born
Just recently thereโs been a buzz on Insider Gaming about Piranha Bytes being suddenly shut down. If you donโt know who they are, Piranha Bytes is a German video game developer based in Essen. THQ Nordic, as part of Embracer Group, acquired the company in May 2019. It is best known for its Gothic and Risen series. And according to recent reports, itโs been closed for some time. This was reportedly due to investors drying up, including Embracer Group itself, though the devs expected new funding.
And now we have a new plot twist. 2 Senior Devs decided to form their own indie studio. Boy, these guys donโt waste any time, right? They even went to social media not a day after their previous studio was shut down.
There are no details about what kind of games they are going to work on or anything like that, but the pair said that every Monday they will be releasing a new video answering questions from the community about Pithead Studioโs future.
๐ฎ Exoprimal is done and done after just 1 year
A big live-service project from Capcom seems to have reached its limitations as devs have no further plans to add new seasonal content to the game after its last update.
If you donโt know what it is, hereโs the gist. This is a game that Capcom announced back in 2022 and got everybody excited because you control a mech suit and fight dinosaurs. Whatโs not to love? I got all sorts of vibes from this title, like Turok, ARK, and a little bit of Anthem. But the result of all that hype was underwhelming, to say the least. The game received mixed to average reviews from both the critics and the audience. And according to Steam, only about 50 people are playing it right now.
So it makes sense for Capcop to say โEnough is enoughโ. But it makes me a bit sad because itโs the fate of all live-service titles that arenโt a huge success. And weโve already seen and heard from multiple companies that they are transitioning and looking into these kinds of games. Iโm wondering if in a few years, weโll face a zombie apocalypse in the gaming industry with a huge spike of games like Exoprimal slowly decomposing in our libraries until they are not playable anymore. And Iโm wondering if other live-service games will be matching its fate, like Suicide Squad, for example.
Yeah, a live-service model is the real futureโฆ
If you havenโt subscribed yet, this button is just for you โคต๏ธ
๐ฌ Watch Dogs movie is finally happening
According to Kotaku, the production of a live-action adaptation of the game has finally begun after a decade of back and forth.
The plan to have a movie was introduced even before the first game hit the shelves. Ubisoft really thought that this was going to be big. And it kind of was and wasnโt at the same time. The first two games in the series made some splash, but I remember them not because of interesting setting, design or gameplay elements. I remember bugs. Lots of bugs. And I bet Iโm not the only one, as the last game in the series was heavily criticized for driving mechanics, inconsistent difficulty, repetitive missions, online features and technical problems.
So Iโm a bit surprised that after all this, Ubisoft has decided to move forward with this particular adaptation and not something else. I mean, I still remember the terrible Assassinโs Creed movie, but you can always reboot the movies and I bet the fanbase is larger. I want to say that they know what they are doing, but after my recent experience with Ubisoft games, Iโm not so sure anymoreโฆ
Is it a sign that we will get another game? Surely Ubisoft started working on a movie based on a semi-dead franchise for a reason.
๐ฎ Companions and relationships in DA: Veilguard
According to Game Informer, the game will feature a lot of romance in all its shapes and forms.
As with any popular game in this genre, every companion in the game has a Relationship Level related to Rook (Main Character). There are speculations that companion issues, problems, and personal quests will play into this Relationship Level and how a companion interacts with Rook.ย Game Director Corinne Busche also said that companions can form romances with each other. My assumption is that this would be the case for companions that were outright rejected by Rook or havenโt been pursued by them.
According to Game Informer, the early demos theyโve been playing havenโt showcased any particular romance details, but they did confirm the same dialogue mechanics from Dragon Age 2.
As a huge fan of the franchise, Iโm happy to hear that. I really love what Bioware did with Inquisition and its expansion allowing you to marry Sera, for example. Or how James Vega got a fling with Ashley in Mass Effect 3. I donโt think that they quite pushed the possibilities far enough with their games, but maybe Veilguard is where they will shine.
๐ฌ Horizon Zero Dawn TV adaptation is in trouble
Well, the fact that there was a TV adaptation in the first place is kind of news to me ๐
But I shouldn't hold my breath on this according to multiple sources (like Kotaku). In charge of this adaptation was (and still technically is) Steve Blackman, the showrunner of The Umbrella Academy. And now he is facing allegations of a โlong history of toxic, bullying, manipulative, and retaliatory behaviour.โ The source article also says that the showrunner created โan environment of fear and distrust,โ took credit for othersโ work, and made comments that were โsexist, homophobic and transphobic.โ
Of course, Blackman denies all of this. But it doesn't matter really. According to Rolling Stones, the Horizon project is โno longer moving forward.โ
For now, thereโs no telling what it means, but it looks like the project is either going to change hands or will be put on life support until this whole thing blows over. As a person who likes the game, Iโm a bit disappointed, but I didnโt know about the adaptation, so Iโll probably be alright. I still feel for the fans whoโve been looking forward to it thoughโฆ
๐ Personal Update
Well, itโs been a great vacation and now Iโm going to have the busiest two weeks Iโve ever had in Rovio as our Executive Producer is on vacation, so wish me luck ๐
But apart from that, Iโve got my hands on Darkest Dungeon 2 and itโs amazing so far. The team managed to get the roguelike aspect of the game just right, but I have to be honest it takes some getting used to. The core loop of the game is mostly still the same, but a lot of different mechanics have been added. So fun!
This is all the news I have for you folks today.
Thanks for making it this far! ๐
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Have a great week!
Alex from Gamedev Relay.
Seems like all Embracer does is buy studios to close them!
I'm cautiously interested in the watchdog adaption. I'm more curious to see what they will do with it and how loosely or closely they will stick with the source material.