Weekly Roundup: Epic and Google’s Secret Deal, Ubisoft Explodes, Fable Reboot, and More
We’re trying something new here at Eneba, and it’s a roundup of the main stories and latest news related to the video game industry this week. If you’re out of the loop, this is for you.
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Epic and Google Court Case Continues
Epic and Google have been involved in a lengthy antitrust court case since 2020, with Epic concerned about Google’s monopoly on Android app stores (which seemed to receive a favorable outcome in 2024). However, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney was in court on Jan. 22, alongside Sameer Samat, the President of the Android Ecosystem at Google, at the behest of Judge James Donato.
Judge Donato expressed concerns that, in light of Google having to allow games from third-party devs, the first major change is that Fortnite is now back on the Play Store. “The only changed circumstance that I can see right now is Epic and Google – two mortal enemies who pounded each other relentlessly in this courtroom for many years – are suddenly BFFs,” Donato said.
His comment preceded the reveal yesterday that Epic and Google have a secret deal in the works, which involves Epic spending $800 million to buy undisclosed services from Google. Sweeney denied that this was a so-called “sweetheart deal” which would benefit his company more than game developers.
“I don’t see anything crooked about Epic paying Google off to encourage much more robust competition than they’ve allowed in the past,” he said. “We view this as a significant transfer of value from Epic to Google.” He added that the above deal relates to “Google and Epic each separately building product lines.”
The court will reconvene in a few weeks, when Epic and Google are expected to show Judge Donato that Google is actually complying with the existing order to allow third-party devs (other than Epic). The previous result also included a court-ordered technical committee, which involves organising when and how the two companies can set-up a store-within-a-store and catalog access; Epic will need to prove that this is up and running.
Ubisoft Cancels Games, Restructures Company
Last year was filled with regular news about major game studios laying off staff and cancelling long-in-the-works projects, and this year looks to be starting on a similar trajectory. Ubisoft’s CEO Yves Guillemot announced on Jan. 21 that the company would be shuttering two studios (one in Sweden, the other in Canada) and axing six titles. These include a Prince of Persia: Sands of Time remake, three new IPs, and a mobile title.
“On the one hand, the AAA industry has become persistently more selective and competitive with rising development costs and greater challenges in creating brands,” he said in an official statement. “On the other hand, exceptional AAA games, when successful, have more financial potential than ever.”
“In this context, today we are announcing a major reset built to create the conditions for a return to sustainable growth over time. We are transforming Ubisoft’s operating model to produce exceptional quality games on the two core pillars of our strategy, Open World Adventures and GaaS-native [Games as a Service] experiences.”
He went on to outline the plan to restructure Ubisoft into five “decentralized Creative Houses” with each focused on specific IPs and genres (for example, Vantage Studios will handle Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six). Guillemot also confirmed that four new IPs are still in the works, with the only known project so far being March of Giants.
This title is also linked with Amazon, which cut around 14,000 jobs in October. Today, Reuters revealed that Amazon is set to cut a further 30,000 jobs, although it’s currently unclear how many staff are involved in the video game side of the company.
Fable is Back
It’s not all bad news for long-awaited games, though, as yesterday’s Xbox Developer Direct revealed a bunch of anticipated titles, with the Fable reboot arguably the most anticipated. The last Fable title, Fable II, was released way back in 2008, with a proposed sequel, Fable Legends, shut down in 2016.
Now, gamers can finally travel back to the fantasy land of Albion and do a ton of stuff the series is known for, from buying property, to getting married and having kids, and kicking chickens. Developers Playground Games have taken over from original (and defunct) studio Lionhead, but promise the same British humor and mechanics, albeit wrapped in a more realistic look and true open world.
Fable is set for release in Fall this year across PC, Xbox Series X/S and PS5. The Xbox Developer Direct also came with news that Forza Horizon 6 will release on May 19 this year, followed by Kiln, a brawler from Double Fine in which players are sentient pottery.
Summer sees the release of Beast of Reincarnation, the latest game from Game Freak (various Pokémon titles). It marks a suitable departure from that creature battler series as it follows a woman and her dog as they traverse a post-apocalyptic Japan and fight evil plants.
Other News This Week
Hytale continues to go from strength-to-strength following last week’s release into Early Access. Routinely considered to be legitimate competition for Minecraft, a 15-year-old modder known as iamcxv7 this week put any such talk to bed by revealing crossplay between the two games.
He admitted it’s a work in progress, along with how it actually works, over on Reddit, but the fact it’s functional and achievable has helped throw a spotlight on how versatile Hytale’s mod tools are, compared to Minecraft’s ones.
It’s also been a good week for video game adaptations…sort of. Filming began this week on Amazon’s Tomb Raider TV series, starring Sophie Turner as Lara Croft. A shot of her in costume did a lot to dispel any notions that it wouldn’t at least try to look like the games, with Turner being quick to highlight her version of Croft isn’t just about being a curvy lady who steals artifacts.
“It’s about her and her story and what drives her, rather than what so many people also love about her, which is how hot she is in the games and the movies,” Turner told the LA Times in an interview this week. “But I really want to show the other side. She’s so unashamedly capable. She is not a woman who hides her strengths at all.”
Another video game series that’s been lauded for its looks, even if they’re desolate and horrific, is Silent Hill. The latest movie entry, Return to Silent Hill, is out now in theaters. However, despite being largely based on the extremely popular Silent Hill 2, critics aren’t too hot on the film’s overall quality.
“Somewhere between a reboot and a remake, Return To Silent Hill is the worst film of the franchise so far, and a reminder that you can’t go home again – even if your home is the haunted hamlet of Silent Hill,” said the AV Club.
The New York Times has labeled it a “jumbled assembly of cutscenes,” which the Seattle Times largely agrees with but also said “It doesn’t hold a candle to the game, but there’s enough here to warrant another visit to this tragic little town.”
