What does Xbox’s exclusivity abandonment mean for gaming?
Forza Horizon 5 will be officially coming to PlayStation 5. The announcement marks a major shift in Xbox’s long-term strategy, as the company seemingly moves away from hardware and instead leans further into publishing and software. Microsoft has announced that Forza Horizon 5, a major Xbox exclusive, will be...
Current in Gaming
Is the ‘Souls-like’ explosion linked to real world adversity?
Difficult RPG games of the ‘Souls-like’ variety used to be somewhat niche, due to their unforgiving nature. In the last 18 months, however, the popularity of these types of games has exploded. Why is that? Never had a tension headache from playing a game before? May I offer you some...
A look at the explosion of gaming across Africa
The African gaming market has been experiencing unprecedented growth over the past decade, rapidly approaching $1 billion in annual revenue. This remarkable rise reflects the continent's evolving digital landscape, where young people are tapping into gaming not just as a form of entertainment but also as a source of...
Has the PlayStation 5 Pro made the future of gaming inaccessible?
Retailing for an eye-watering £700 at launch, the PlayStation 5 Pro has fans of console gaming concerned that next gen hardware will completely price us out. Has the market just been ruined? How do you appease lifelong PlayStation fans becoming disillusioned by a lack of exciting new IPs and exclusives?...
The Pokémon Sleep app hits one million users in Japan
The gamified sleeping tracker is helping incentivize people all over the world to get more shut-eye. One million of these users are now based in Japan. Getting enough sleep is important, but few of us actually get the number of hours we need. No worries though, there’s an app for...
Opinion – Petition to ban Assassin’s Creed Shadows is missing the point
From one storm in a teacup to another, Ubisoft will now likely be aware of a petition to cancel Assassin’s Creed’s Shadows before release. 40,000 people have signed so far. Since Ubisoft unveiled the next entry in the Assassin’s Creed franchise last May, select portions of the gaming community have...
Former PS boss calls for shorter games with worse graphics
As the expectation for games to become bigger and more visually striking grows, former PlayStation president Shawn Layden says the industry should pivot to shorter games with less emphasis on realism to cut development costs. I’ll hazard an early guess that this suggestion probably won’t go down too well on Reddit. Recently talking at length with GamesIndustryBiz about the state of gaming and the issues facing AAA development, ex-PlayStation boss...
Xbox’s Game Pass obsession has changed the game
Xbox’s Game Showcase is being lauded as its best in close to a decade. More significant, is the fact that the majority of its offering is coming to Game Pass on day one. Microsoft’s vision of making gaming primarily subscription-based is finally taking hold. Who saw that coming? My TV almost caught fire. There were rumblings that Xbox had big plans for its Xbox Showcase 2024, which took place over the...
I tested the iPhone’s new PS1 emulator Gamma
Nostalgia merchants rejoice. A developer named ZodTTD has created a PlayStation 1 emulator available for free on the iOS App Store. Do you yearn for the polygon-filled primitive days of Diablo, Banjo-Kazooie, and Spyro? If so, we’ve some good news, provided you have an iPhone or iPad. A developer called ZodTTD, who has a penchant for creating emulators of old programs and hardware, has just released ‘Gamma’, a third-party app...
Touchless tech is a huge gaming accessibility upgrade
Accessibility to games for disabled people used to require expensive specialist equipment. Now, sophisticated – and free – applications like MotionInput are helping to make the hobby more equitable. Picking up a controller or a mouse is second nature to the majority of game enthusiasts, but there is a large community that sadly don’t have that option. In the UK, 66% of gamers with a disability or condition say they...
