News Mash-Up - Week # 6

Top News Items

• • Nintendo released a comprehensive Nintendo Switch Direct on Wednesday 9 Feb. Over 25 games were specifically mentioned and showcased. All the games were slated for a 2022 release. Among the 25 games showcased, 6 games were Nintendo first party games including Mario Strikers (football game), Splatoon 3, Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Switch Sports, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 and DLC for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

  • The DLC for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe will include 48 maps from previous Mario Kart games, released in batches of 8 courses that retail for $25 for the Booster Course Pass. All the maps will be included free as part of the Online Expansion Pack. The first pack is expected on 18 March. All batches will release by end of 2023.

  • Microsoft has added some clarity to the future of Call of Duty on other platforms. In a post Microsoft stated the commitment that Call of Duty will go "beyond the existing agreement and into the future… the obvious concern is that Microsoft could make this title available exclusively on the Xbox console, undermining opportunities for Sony PlayStation users… we have committed to Sony that we will also make them available on PlayStation beyond the existing agreement and into the future so that Sony fans can continue to enjoy the games they love."  Microsoft also stated it would be happy to work with Nintendo and to bring Call of Duty to the Switch.

  • Infinity Ward have confirmed they are working on Warzone 2. The game will offer a “new experience” from a “new game engine”. There are no details yet on how or whether this new game will integrate with the first Warzone and if any experience or DLC bought can be carried over.

  • Nvidia have abandoned their $40 billion acquisition of ARM citing issues with numerous regulators. The planned acquisition also came under fire from Microsoft and Google, who were concerned it would give Nvidia too much control over the supply and price of key components such as CPUs and GPUs. It is expected SoftBank may float ARM with an IPO.

  • Unity has released its 2021 financials (ending Dec. 21). Revenue increased by +44% compared to 2020 bringing income to $1.1 billion. Net income reached $532 million, double that to 2020. Unity game engines are used in over 200 console games and almost half of all mobile games. Unity recently bought Weta, the video effects company, for $1.6 billion.
    

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New games

Week commencing Monday 14 Feb. 2022