Gaming in state Washington. Reviews, Walkthroughs, News

Take-Two is closing two game studios under their Private Division label, with Kerbal Space Program 2 developer Intercept Games shutting down (as we already knew) and OlliOlli and Rollerdrome studio Roll7 following them into the twilight.

Grease star Susan Buckner has sadly passed away at the age of 72.

Take-Two will shut down OlliOlli World and Rollerdrome studio Roll7 as well as Kerbal Space Program team Intercept Games as it looks to cut five per cent of its workforce. The news was revealed by Bloomberg after the outlet obtained documentation indicating Roll7 will close and offer severance agreements to staff. Meanwhile, a notice has been filed with the Washington State Employment Security Department to close a Seattle office, where Intercept Games is based.

Bloomberg reports that Grand Theft Auto publisher Take-Two Interactive will close two game studios as part of a recently announced plan to lay off 5% of its workforce.

More details have emerged about the ongoing layoffs at Take-Two Interactive, with reports suggesting the publisher has shut down two indie-size studios.

Yesterday, Meta announced Batman: Arkham Shadow, a VR-only game coming exclusively to the Meta Quest 3. Batman: Arkham Shadow is in development at Camouflaj, a developer with offices in Bellevue, Washington, and Kamakura, Japan. Camouflaj was founded in 2011 by Ryan Payton, who had previously worked at KONAMI as Assistant Producer on Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.

Take-Two Interactive Software will shut down Private Division subsidiary studios Roll7 and Intercept Games, according to a Bloomberg report by Jason Schreier.

Intercept Games is among the many casualties of Take-Two Interactive's layoffs, as its parent company is laying off 70 people from the developer behind the Kerbal Space Program 2.

Last month, GTA 6 publishers Take-Two Interactive announced plans to "rationalize" their "pipeline" by laying off five per cent of their workforce - around 580 people - and cancelling various games. As part of that, they're reportedly now doing away with 70 positions at their Seattle offices - Seattle being the home of the Take-Two-owned Intercept Games, the current developers of space sim Kerbal Space Program 2.

Take-Two Interactive recently announced that it was laying off 5 percent of its staff as part of a wider cost-saving initiative, and it seems like those cuts are also going to entail the shuttering of an entire studio- specifically, Intercept Games, the team behind Kerbal Space Program 2.

Take-Two appears to be preparing to close its Seattle office this summer, likely as part of the recently announced layoffs across the company.

Yu-Gi-Oh! just broke the Guinness World Record for the most entrants in a trading card game tournament, shattering its own record. This year, 7,443 people took part in the 10th Yu-Gi-Oh! Champion Series Japan tournament held at the Tokyo Big Sight.

Fallout has been the watercooler TV show this month, an impressive feat for a video game adaptation. Although Bethesda doesn’t have any new Fallout games to release alongside it, the Amazon Prime series has reinvigorated interest in Fallout, with all its titles seeing notable player count increases. For now, we’ll have to be content with a Fallout 4 current-gen upgrade, but I’ll admit that my mind is drifting to thinking about Fallout 5.

The Fallout TV show is stim-packed full of easter eggs and treats for fans of the games. From obvious crowd-pleasers like the Brotherhood of Steel’s T60 armour and the New Vegas skyline to smaller blink-and-you-’ll-miss-it glimpses of Radaway and Fancy Lads Snack Cakes, there was plenty plucked from the long-running RPG series to get excited about. Bethesda has crafted such dense and plentiful worlds, though, that there's still a plethora of characters, creatures, quests, and locations left to be brought to life in the Prime Video series. So here are 14 things we’d love to see from the games in Fallout season 2.

Mega Crit has announced a sequel to its popular roguelike deck-building game Slay the Spire.

Recent reports have suggested that Nintendo of America underwent significant restructuring, resulting in the layoff of approximately 120 contractors. Apparently, this move is part of an effort to reorganize the testing operations at Nintendo's Washington state headquarters.

Last year’s controversy surrounding the Dungeons & Dragons Open Gaming License not only damaged Wizards of the Coast’s relationship with its biggest fans, but also helped to turbocharge the sales of competing game systems. Chief among them was Paizo’s Pathfinder, which sold through nearly a years’ worth of stock in just a matter of weeks. Now the Washington state-based publisher is throwing some serious funding behind its marquee fantasy role-playing franchise. It’s next effort, Pathfinder Lost Omens: Tian Xia World Guide, boasts a team of more than 40 authors. Polygon sat down with senior designer James Case to learn more.

The Pokémon Company's chatty former legal boss has thanked the media for publicising projects the company may then be compelled to shut down.

Peter Moore, the former vice-president of Microsoft’s interactive entertainment business division who oversaw both the original Xbox and Xbox 360, has offered some fascinating insight into the current gaming landscape and the potential future of the industry.

The last few months have made it quite clear that the console market hasn’t grown the way the likes of Microsoft and Sony would have wanted. Xbox sales have been inconsistent at best for a while now, and PS5 recently also missed its sales targets by a notable margin. Combined with the mass layoffs the games industry has been hit with over the last 14 months (and 2024 in particular) – with the likes of PlayStation, Microsoft, EA, Riot Games, Embracer Group, and many others have cut a significant number of jobs – it’s no surprise that questions are being asked about the future of the business louder than they have been in a while.

Former EA and Microsoft exec, Peter Moore, says there are «serious questions» to be asked about video game hardware and whether or not there's a future for the traditional home console system.

Former Xbox, Sega and Electronic Arts executive Peter Moore believes that “serious questions” are being asked about the future of console generations.

Forty U.S. states and Washington, D.C. called on Meta Platforms to crack down on scammers who hijack Facebook and Instagram accounts, to address a "dramatic" surge in account takeovers.

When I previewed Pacific Drive, the standout moment for me was when, in a novice moment, I found myself driving through the hellstorm of reality’s collapse. As my car fell apart around me and my health was about to hit 0%, I managed to make it to the gateway and got shunted back to the safety of the garage.

The previously announced D&D open world roleplaying game in development at Hidden Path Entertainment has now been officially paused by the studio based in Bellevue, Washington.

UK retailer GAME will reportedly stop taking used games, in a move that might be followed around the world.

American Truck Simulator's list of confirmed future stops is beginning to pile up; not only has developer SCS revealed trips to Nebraska and Arkansas are on the horizon, it's announced it'll be pulling into Missouri when those two expansions are done.

Joyce Loaiza lives alone, but when she returns to her apartment at a Florida senior community, the retired office worker often has a chat with a friendly female voice that asks about her day. A few miles away, the same voice comforted 83-year-old Deanna Dezern when her friend died. In central New York, it plays games and music for 92-year-old Marie Broadbent, who is blind and in hospice, and in Washington state, it helps 83-year-old Jan Worrell make new friends.

Back when I was running the game for my local Dungeons & Dragons group, I would always pride myself on bringing something handmade each time we got together around the table. Maybe it was a leather-bound book filled with vintage David Sutherland illustrations of the Tomb of Horrors, or a 3D map of a few rooms from Castle Ravenloft with just the right assortment of miniatures from my collection. As a lifelong fan of D&D, Rick Perry knows that impulse well. But as production designer and creative producer on Dropout’s Dimension 20, he’s operating at a scale that’s on another level entirely.

Experis Game Solution workers who do quality assurance testing on games like Forza Motorsport and Halo Infinite voted Thursday to unionize.

Unity are chopping 265 jobs - around 3.8% of their global workforce - and ending an agreement with digital effects company Wētā FX as part of a company "reset", following an awful year for the game engine provider. Unity also plan to close offices in 14 locations, including Singapore and Berlin, and cut costs at offices in San Francisco and Bellevue, Washington.

Unity is making further cuts to its workforce as it ends an agreement with Weta FX.

American Truck Simulator rumbles ever-onward, and developer SCS Software has announced it'll be making its next stop, this time in the state of Kansas — the destination of its newest paid expansion — next Thursday, 30th November. Plus, its substantial 1.49 update — which adds a dynamic night sky, the moon, HDR skyboxes, and more — is out now.

The Last of Us Part 2 introduced a new location called the Seraphite Island in Seattle, Washington. As the Cordyceps outbreak first began to spread, the island's inhabitants cut themselves off from the rest of the city and rejected military aid, choosing to instead follow a so-called prophet, becoming the aptly named Seraphites.

Protagonist Alan is maybe not as good a writer as he once thought, and it's fascinating to watch Remedy work through those same feelings.

On November 17, the abrupt announcement of the sacking of OpenAI Sam Altman sent shockwaves around the tech sector. The news came as a surprise as just a few days prior, Altman was on stage at the first-ever OpenAI developer day, announcing new features coming to ChatGPT, its artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot, as well as the company's other AI ventures. Amidst the confusion following Altman's sacking, reports claimed that his sacking followed a series of disagreements between Altman and his board - in particular OpenAI co-founder and the company's chief scientist Ilya Sutskever.

Following a swirl of reports earlier this year suggesting a new version of The Last of Us Part 2 was in the works, Naughty Dog has confirmed a remaster of its survival horror sequel — promising «technological improvements, new modes, and new behind-the-scenes features»- will launch for PlayStation 5 on 19th January 2024.

 Since the Wright brothers invented the airplane in 1903, one aspect of how we fly hasn't changed. Evolving plane design and improved engines aside, almost all modern aircraft have one thing in common: They're powered by combustible fuels. 

wears its influences on its sleeve, and might be the one it's proudest of., which began airing in 1990, is part gentle soap opera satire, and part surreal murder mystery. But where the first was based on the first two seasons of, has more in common with the third season,. As a result, it has a somewhat different tone and narrative focus, but one thing that hasn't changed is just how much it ties back to the seminal series.

Alan Wake 2, the long-awaited sequel to Remedy Entertainment’s 2010 cult action-horror game, was released last week and has already inspired an effusive reception.

In an internal town hall meeting addressing a Monday round of layoffs that impacted multiple departments, Bungie CEO Pete Parsons allegedly told remaining employees that the company had kept “the right people” to continue work on Destiny 2.

The long-awaited sequel to Remedy Entertainment’s action-horror cult classic Alan Wake has finally escaped the Dark Place of development hell, and it is glorious.

Alan Wake is the cornerstone upon which Remedy Entertainment’s magnum opus rests. This magnum opus is, however, not any specific game, but their interrelationship, resulting in the creation of the Remedy Connected Universe. And, though Control established RCU in concrete terms, understanding how it all began is crucial.

is undeniably different from its predecessor. Some of those differences are no doubt borne out of necessity; it's been a full 13 years and two console generations since the first game's release, and a lot has changed in the interim. Player tastes, platform exclusivity, and even console and PC specifications have come a long way since 2010, and needs to adapt in order to keep up with the times.

I’m hard-pressed to remember a game with as shockingly effective an opening as Alan Wake 2. From the outset, Remedy Entertainment makes its intent explicitly clear: to amplify every facet of its 2010 action-horror cult classic, and in doing so, subvert interactive storytelling tropes at every turn. Astoundingly, the studio’s grasp meets its reach, delivering an experience far darker, deeper, and weirder than anything it has crafted before.

Nintendo and the city of Seattle, Washington, have a surprisingly interesting history together. The most notable example of this is when former president Hiroshi Yamauchi purchased a majority stake in the Seattle Mariners when the team struggled in the 1990s. It was an odd moment in sports and gaming history that remains a fun fact.

A subset of taxpayers will be able to kick Intuit and its ilk to the curb and instead file their 2023 federal taxes online at no charge via a new Direct File option the Internal Revenue Service announced Tuesday.

Shane Chen, the inventor of the hoverboard, has unveiled a new two-wheeled electric car as well as an enhanced hoverboard.

Alan Wake fans are finally getting their hands on an official sequel. We waited years for Remedy Entertainment to deliver a new mainline installment. Fortunately, that wait is finally coming to an end later this month. With that said, the hype continues to build as fans are getting marketing materials to further showcase the game. For instance, Remedy Entertainment developers recently revealed that the FBC will be present in Bright Falls.

It has been 13 years since the original Alan Wake was released as an Xbox 360 exclusive. That's a long time, and if you've not played since then (or even played Alan Wake at all!) then you may want a recap of the story to help prepare you for Alan Wake 2. You could read a plot synopsis, or you could join us for the finale of this month's IGN First, in which the game's writer himself - Sam Lake - tells us the entire Alan Wake story so far.

Solar activity has been on the rise, with recent developments stoking concerns about potential repercussions for our planet. On September 17th, as predicted, Earth was hit by a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) that was spewed out by the Sun earlier. While the initial impact did not trigger a geomagnetic storm, there's a possibility of minor G1-class storms being sparked today in the coming hours as Earth continues to traverse through the CME.

There used to be a time when celebrities rarely, if ever, admitted that they played video games or things like Dungeons & Dragons. But now, it can be a badge of honor, and many people flaunt their gaming experiences, whether it be virtual or tabletop, so that their fans know it’s cool to be at a certain level in the gaming world. That brings us to a very special challenge laid out by MMA superstar Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson, who is the current ONE Flyweight Champion, against AEW wrestler Kenny Omega, with the “challenge” being Street Fighter 6. Yes, this is real.

Alan Wake 2 finally arrives next month, and this time around, the tortured author won’t be alone. Alan Wake 2 actually features two playable characters – Alan himself and FBI agent Saga Anderson. This has led to some concern that Alan was perhaps being edged out of his own game, but it seems those fears are largely unfounded.

We may have heard Mario and Luigi’s new voices in Super Mario Bros. Wonder, but Nintendo will not be confirming who is voicing them until the game’s release, according to Nintendo president Doug Bowser.

Acquire has announced Ancient Weapon Holly, a roguelike action and the second game in its self-published games portfolio. It will launch for PlayStation 5 and PC via Steam in 2024.

A new Alan Wake 2 trailer debuted during Gamescom 2023 Opening Night Live, and it's a super spooky smorgasbord of subtle references to the Remedy Connected Universe.

Imagine a game that might be described as the opposite of Half-Life 2, Left 4 Dead or Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. These are first-person shooters set in wartorn, post-apocalyptic cities, so their inverse might be a third-person game with no weapons at all, set in a warm, buzzing metropolis of friendly characters, maybe starring an adorable cat. Weirdly, the result could look a lot like Little Kitty, Big City, the first project from former Valve designer Matt T. Wood.

American Truck Simulator's Oklahoma expansion might only just have arrived, but the sim's ceaseless trundle across the United States continues on, with developer SCS Software confirming Nebraska is currently one of several future state expansions in development.

XSEED Games will publish the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Switch versions of GalaxyTrail-developed high-speed platformer Freedom Planet 2, the company announced. The console versions are due out in 2023.

Alphabet Inc.'s Google will face a scaled-down antitrust suit over its search business after a federal judge threw out some allegations by state attorneys general.

Nintendo has always had a unique way of trying to connect with its fanbase. After all, they were the ones who started the digital trend that was the Nintendo Direct, something that pretty much every publisher and significant developer has copied since its inception. But they’ve also been one to try and connect with gamers and fans on a more personal level, so they’ve held live events for fans to celebrate their Nintendo fandom. We’re now less than a month away from one such event in Nintendo Live 2023. The Big N is preparing for the event by prepping potential arrivals with activity notifications.

American Truck Simulator has almost reached its latest destination, with developer SCS Software confirming the game's Oklahoma expansion will arrive tomorrow, 1st August.

Ifeoma Ozoma was ousted from her role at Pinterest Inc. due to what she said was retaliation for speaking out about pay equity disparities. The experience didn't just cost her a job. She ended up leaving Silicon Valley entirely.

Alan Wake 2 launches on Oct. 17 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and on PC via the Epic Games Store. The sequel to Remedy Entertainment’s eerie 2010 third-person shooter (remastered in 2021) retains its ominous Pacific Northwest setting, but it will be more of a survival horror game this time around. Also, the narrative will periodically switch perspectives between Alan Wake and a new character, FBI agent Saga Anderson, as they attempt to unravel the mysteries occurring in the fictional, Twin Peaks-esque town of Bright Falls, Washington.