Twitch has terminated all current members of its Safety Advisory Council to replace the majority of them with Twitch Ambassadors.CNBC broke the news after viewing an internal email sent to council members by Twitch and speaking to sources familiar with the matter.The email was reportedly sent on May 6 and told the council that all existing contracts would be ending on May 31, 2024. It explained they wouldn't be receiving payments for the second half of the year and stated that "looking ahead, the Safety Advisory Council will primarily be made up of individuals who serve as Twitch Ambassadors."A formal notice included in the email described the correspondence as a "notice of termination," and clarified "this means that the second 2024 payment won't be issu…
Grand Theft Auto maker Take-Two Interactive has narrowed the release window for GTA VI to Fall 2025 and reiterated its belief the title will be an "unparalleled entertainment experience."The company shared the news in its fiscal report for the year ended March 31, 2024, where it revealed that annual net bookings increased by 1 percent to $5.33 billion and GAAP net revenue remained flat at $5.35 billion.Breaking down those figures, Take-Two said net bookings from recurrent consumer spending increased by 2 percent year-on-year and accounted for 78 percent of total net bookings. The largest contributors were NBA 2K24, Grand Theft Auto Online and Grand Theft Auto V, Toon Blast, Empires & Puzzles, Red Dead Redemption 2 and Read Dead Online, Words With Friends, and Merge Dragons!.N…
Video games' transmedia prospects just grew with a new deal between Story Kitchen and Dreamworks Animation.Per Deadline, the Kung Fu Panda studio has a first-look option on any game-based animated movie Story Kitchen works on. It falls to the production company to "secure exciting, iconic video game IP" to be adapted.Already, Story Kitchen is working on a live-action Dredge film and Vampire Survivors animated series. They aren't included in this, but still speak to the studio's ability to find properties ripe for adaptation.No specific projects are being made currently, but Deadline said the announcements are coming. Story Kitchen's noted projects as of late include an adaptation of It Takes Two for Amazon, Lionsgate's Streets of Rage movie, and Netflix&#…
Take-Two is reportedly shutting down OlliOlli World and Rollerdrome developer Roll7.That's according to Bloomberg, which claims to have seen a note sent to the UK studio from Take-Two outlining those closure plans and employee severance agreements.Take-Two acquired Roll7 back in November 2021 for an undisclosed fee but has now seemingly decided to sacrifice the award-winning studio as part of an ongoing cost reduction program.At the time of the acquisition, Take-Two said Roll7 would enrich its Private Division publishing label with its "wealth of development talent, creativity, and style."
Take-Two's cost-cutting plans
Now, with Tak…
The UK video game and interactive entertainment sector was valued at £7.82 billion ($9.76 billion) in 2023.That's according to the annual Consumer Games Market Valuation Report from UK trade body Ukie, which explained that figure is an increase of 4.4 percent on the revised valuation of £7.49 billion it slapped on the UK game industry in 2022.Ukie said the latest valuation shows the UK video game market is on a "strong path of growth" in the face of headwinds that have disrupted the industry around the globe. "This increase underlines the video games market's stability and resilience, as well as consumers unrelenting appetite for games and games culture," it added.Ukie CEO Nick Poole claimed the report highlights the "vitality of interactive entertainme…
Halo Infinite co-developer Certain Affinity said it'll be laying off 25 members of its US-based staff.Most of those reductions will hit the business operations teams, said CEO Max Hoberman. He notably pointed out this as being the first instance of layoffs at the studio in its 17-year existence.Hoberman attributed the cuts to a funding shortage across the industry that's already hurt (or wholly wiped out) several studios. As a developer who often partners with others, it's been "exceptionally difficult" to get new work or find other funding.He added the current focus is to secure severance and benefits for those affected. Certain Affinity will also make awards under its stock equity plan portable, as a way of helping ex-staff "benefit from the company's s…