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PlayStation finally held its big 2021 showcase this week after several rumors, while the Epic vs. Apple lawsuit has finally concluded, in this week’s roundup of gaming news. 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 recap ofgaming news, Sony’s 2021 PlayStation showcase brought a ton of news for several AAA announcements, for both new and upcoming PS5 games. The Epic Games vs. Apple lawsuit has concluded, with all but one count in favor of Epic Games, despite it being the most important anti-trust complaint of the lawsuit as a whole. Twitch files suit against two organizers involved in the “hate raid” controversy plaguing creators on the streaming platform. Another Google Stadia executive is moving on to a new position, albeit still related to Google and games. All that and more in this week’s roundup of the biggest news in the gaming industry.
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PlayStation’s Big 2021 Showcase: Announcement Highlights
This past week finally broughtPlayStation’s big showcase for 2021, bringing a ton of exciting announcements for the near and far-future of PS5. Continuing PlayStation’s trend of skipping the E3 proceedings to prepare its own independent showcase, this September showcase brought updates on existing titles like the now-titledGod of War RagnarokandForspoken, alongside brand new announcements likeSpider-Man 2andKnights of the Old Republic Remake. Here are the highlights from PlayStation’s 2021 Showcase:
Additionally, outside of the showcase, Sony also announced the acquisition of Firesprite Games. Developer of games likePlayroom/VRandRun Sackboy! Run!, the studio has worked with PlayStation many times in the past, and was established from several members of Sony Interactive Entertainment Studio Liverpool.
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Epic Games vs. Apple Lawsuit Ends, Ending 30% Revenue Cut Restriction On Apps
This past week, a judge from the U.S. District Court ruled in favor of Epic Games' favor in the ongoing Lawsuit between the gaming company and Apple. Now, Apple is no longer capable offorcing in-game purchases to be tied inherently to the Apple store, previously forcing companies to comply with Apple’s 30% revenue cut on its app store. In spite of this positive decision, that was only one of all other counts of anti-trust that the court ruled in favor of Epic Games.
The controversy and ultimate legal dispute between Epic Games and Apple had been brewing since 2020:Apple removedFortnitefrom the app storeafter Epic Games offered a V-Bucks discount from purchases made outside of the app on iOS. Since that discount circumvented the app store’s 30% cut, Apple issued a warning and subsequently removed the game from the app store for violating Apple’s policy. Epic Games has since spent the last year pursuing legal action against Apple for anti-trust concerns, resulting in the most recent court ruling.
Twitch Sues Two Major Hate Raid Organizers
As the “hate raid” issue continues to fester against creators on Twitch, the streaming platform is now pursuing legal action against offenders. Filed on September 9,Twitch is suing two anonymous individualswho are allegedly responsible for organizing and/or enacting hate raids on individuals.A report from The Washington Postdetailed how these hate raids were organized through various Discord servers, away from Twitch’s potential jurisdiction, all to target PoC and otherwise marginalized creators.
Stadia Director for Games Moves To Google Cloud, ‘Gaming Solutions’ Position
Google Stadia’s Director for Games, Jack Buser is seemingly leaving the company, though not necessarily leaving Google’s gaming efforts entirely. Based on Buser’s new position at Google Cloud, it seems like Buser is taking on an overarching position that covers all aspects of gaming, whether it be Stadia, YouTube, and more. Jack Buser is moving to a position focused on “gaming solutions,” presumably to manage the backend ofstreaming technology like Stadia, among other potential efforts.
GTA Underground Mod Ceases Development After ‘Hostility’ From Take-Two Interactive
An ambitiousGrand Theft Auto: San Andreasmod was recently taken down by the creators due to fear of increased legal action from Take-Two Interactive. Themod project, titled “GTA Underground,“was designed to merge all existingGTAmaps into one single massive world. However, according to modder dkluin, “increasing hostility towards the modding community” and the threat of legal action forced them to cease all development on GTA Underground after six years of working on mod content.
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