Posts By Mat Growcott

The unexpected consequences of Microsoft’s near-$70b purchase of Activision is suddenly every developer wants to be bought. Nearly every studio and publisher, when asked, have answered positively about the possibility. So Ubisoft, for instance, today said they would consider offers. Which is a great answer, by the way. Makes it sound like the second the bidder walks out the room the party poppers will come out. Look, video games are hard. They’re expensive and ...

The day has come: Dreamcast games now have achievements. The likes of Sonic Adventure, Power Stone and Soulcalibur now have achievements which can be earned on about any device going. That’s thanks to the power of Retroachievements, which add the winnable digital trophies to older games. The Dreamcast achievements launched on Saturday alongside some of the biggest hitters on the console. Fans have built the achievements, which can be accessed through Dreamcast ...

The GTA Trilogy has sold about 10m copies. That’s about 10m more than you might have expected if you visited the internet around launch time. Rockstar announced the total alongside some other eye-watering statistics. Grant Theft Auto V has sold 160m copies. Red Dead Redemption 2 disappoints at only 43m. I’m kidding, the fact it sold so well is one of the happier stories of the last few days. Here’s a less happy one. The Resident Evil 3 remake shipped…

Sony paid more than $3b for Halo creators Bungie, which on the face of it doesn’t entirely add up. They don’t really have much in the way of IP and, besides, part of the deal will see them keep their independence. That includes the independence to publish games on Xbox. The house of PlayStation paid almost half of what Microsoft paid for Zenimax. And yet, on the face of it, they will not be getting half-a-Zenimax worth of content. It’s…

There are millions of people who love the casino gambling experience. Many of them live within at least holiday distance of a good venue. For the rest of us, the digital version has to do. And while it’s not exactly the same as being in a casino, there are many ways in which it’s actual superior to the real thing. There are some diehard fans – mostly older – who might not agree. Your own experience is always going to…

There are dozens of variations on solitaire, but one of the most popular must be Freecell. Included in every single version of Windows since the mid-90s, it’s fair to say that it’s been seen by a lot of people. That’s especially true when you compare with other, rarer variations. How many people do you know who play Kings in the Corner? But how did Freecell become one of the go-to versions of solitaire? Interestingly, it’s not as obvious as it…

It’s been interesting to hear the discussions about how the Activision purchase will help out Microsoft and Xbox. It’s almost been more interesting to think about how it’ll impact on Sony. Yes, this means more games for Game Pass. It means a higher incentive to buy into the Xbox ecosystem – even if that means just buying their games on PC. All those are obvious. But all of that is something of a given. It’s why Microsoft spent nearly $70b…

“Won’t someone think of Sony?!” That has been the theme of seemingly endless articles released since the announcement that Microsoft is buying Activision.  It can only be that because, let’s face it, with even a second’s thought, this deal is not unfair or illegal. I’m talking from a corporate perspective, of course. And yet armchair lawyers across the world are calling for the deal to be stopped on the basis of, basically, hurt feelings. Anti-trust is not ...

There’s about no bigger screw you in the industry than making Crash Bandicoot your new mascot. But that’s just what Microsoft did when they bought Activision. And that’s the least of it. Spending nearly $70b has put them in about as incredible a position as they ever could be. They’ve taken on a whole host of huge hitters, from Call of Duty and Warcraft to Spyro the Dragon and Tony Hawks. Like with Bethesda, we must now wait several months…

Microsoft have announced nearly $70b plans to buy Activision Blizzard.  Like the Bethesda deal, some months of work will now take place to complete the sale. The company highlighted titles including Call of Duty, Warcraft, Candy Crush, Tony Hawk, Diablo, Overwatch, Spyro, Heathstone, Guitar Hero, rash Bandicoot and StarCraft within its announcement. “Gaming is the most dynamic and exciting category in entertainment across all platforms today and will play a ...