It might have been a quiet week overall but the news that did land was rather LOUD.
We saw Ubisoft make more layoffs in the wake of a staggering $1.25 billion investment from Tencent and then flounder when pressed by Game File as to whether its upcoming expansion for Assassin’s Creed Mirage was financed by the Saudi state.
Eyebrow raising to say the least.
Elsewhere, a pair of former Meta employees claimed the company’s VR products have left children vulnerable to abuse—and, crucially, that the company didn’t seem to care. Aspyr Media was accused of replicating the voice of a longstanding Lara Croft performer using artificial intelligence, and outsourcing firm Testronic confirmed the closure of two studios and a 4.8 percent workforce reduction.
In other news, my thriving RimWorld colony was razed to the ground on Monday after its residents greedily delved into the northward mines and unearthed a dormant legion of Mechanoid warriors. The unfeeling machines quickly dispatched my citizens (although one did—just about—manage to escape in a launch pod) before turning my once prosperous settlement to ash and cinder. Only cows remain.
I’m on the brink of tears so let’s move on swiftly and get back to the main event: HEADLINES.
via Game Developer and Le Parisian // Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered publisher Aspyr Media, which is owned by universally cherished conglomerate Embracer Group, has been accused by the French voice actress who plays Lara Croft (and has done for decades) of using AI tools to replicate her performance without consent. The performer and her legal team have issued a notice requesting sales of Tomb Raider IV-VI be halted immediately while the allegations are addressed. It’ll be fascinating to see how this plays out given the furor surrounding generative AI tools and the ‘ask forgiveness, not permission’ mantra that seems to embody those who use them.
via Game Developer // You might think securing a $1.25 billion investment would stem the tide of layoffs at a company. What a fanciful notion. Ubisoft laid off nine staffers this week (the company said the cuts ‘primarily’ impacted its publishing division) just months after Tencent rolled barrels of cash in through the front door to enable the French publisher to kickstart a new subsidiary. Ubisoft told us the latest job cuts will ensure its new division can launch swiftly and smoothly. What a relief.
via Bloomberg (paywalled) // Okay, this was actually published last Friday but we’re bending a few rules because it’s chock full of Nintendo zingers. Bloomberg spoke with a handful of former Nintendo developers to learn how the Japanese company with a unique sense of magic and wonder that feels nigh on impossible to replicate plies that trade. Whether its putting gameplay first and understanding that IP is merely window dressing, or acknowledging that fun is the one true universal language—there’s plenty of wisdom in those hills.
via NBC News // This week, two former Meta employees told members of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and Law the company’s VR products have exposed children to adult content and abuse. Notably, they claimed that Meta disregarded their findings and censored their attempts to further investigate the matter. Meta, formerly known as Facebook, has reshaped its entire business around the notion of fostering the ‘Metaverse,’ investing in artificial intelligence, and selling VR technology such as the Quest headset.
via Game File // Ubisoft is being rather coy about whether or not an expansion for Assassin’s Creed Mirage is being financed by Saudi Arabia’s state-owned investment fund, PIF. As noted by Game File, which offers a wonderful explainer on the situation, the company has been uncharacteristically quiet when promoting and announcing the expansion, aside from when CEO Yves Guillemot took to the stage in Riyadh at the New Global Sport Conference to unveil the add-on and confirm it will take place in ancient AlUla—a region located in what has become Saudi Arabia. Ubisoft wouldn’t be alone in wanting to accept investment from PIF without addressing concerns about where that cash has originated (Saudi Arabia has a track record of human rights abuses), but it’s fascinating to see a company so brazenly attempt to swerve the gigantic elephant in the room.
via Game Developer // It’s no secret that Team Cherry’s decision to basically shadow drop what might be the most highly-anticipated indie title ever onto the release calendar derailed the plans of more than a few developers. Silksong had been in development for around seven years by the time the studio confirmed a release date in a livestream. The rub? It would be launching in just two weeks. Fantastic for players who’d been waiting for what must have felt like an eternity, but less wonderful for those teams who’d been planning to launch their own title during that window. How do you deal with that situation? Our regular columnist Nicole Carpenter spoke to a number of publishers to find out.
via Game Developer // Outsourcing studio Testronic this week confirmed the closure of its studios in Madrid and Belgrade and a wider restructuring plan that will result in 4.8 percent of its workforce being made redundant. In what I suspect some people might feel is a little tone deaf, the news was nestled inside a ‘major funding’ announcement that also detailed a number of new executive hires. The company then confirmed it has been ramping up operations in Manilla by making over 160 new hires since July.
