Live Service Games
Ongoing coverage on Live Service Games.
Latest coverage
Marathon’s Quarter-Billion Budget Crash-Lands: 1.2M Sales Can’t Save Bungie’s Sci-Fi Dreams
Bungie's sci-fi extraction shooter Marathon, developed with a budget exceeding $250 million, has struggled to retain players since its launch. Despite initial player numbers, concurrent player counts on Steam and Xbox have significantly declined, raising concerns about the game's financial viability and Bungie's future projects under Sony.
The First Berserker: Khazan studio Neople announces restructure of dev teams
Nexon subsidiary Neople has reorganized its development teams as The First Berserker: Khazan enters its final development stages. The company clarified that this is a strategic reallocation of talent to support current and upcoming projects, including the Dungeon & Fighter franchise, and not a workforce reduction. This restructuring comes amid reports of delayed sales impacting the game's performance.
You Might Not Want to Know How Much It Reportedly Cost Bungie to Make Marathon
A new report suggests that Bungie's upcoming game Marathon has a development budget exceeding $200 million, potentially reaching over $250 million before ongoing costs. This figure is comparable to or even surpasses the reported budget for Marvel's Spider-Man 2. Despite financial concerns and past project cancellations following Sony's acquisition of Bungie, the studio is reportedly focused on creating new content for Marathon, which has received positive initial feedback.
PES successor eFootball has been downloaded an incredible number of times, suggesting Konami isn't perhaps as out of the game as some thought
Konami's football game eFootball, the successor to Pro Evolution Soccer, has surpassed one billion downloads worldwide. The company is celebrating this milestone with an in-game campaign and a special manga. This achievement is significant given the game's initially poor reception and Konami's continued presence in the football gaming market following EA's rebranding of FIFA.
"I have big respect for them" - PUBG's boss looks to old foe Fortnite to secure the future of its battle royale
Taeseok Jang, Krafton's head of the PUBG IP franchise group, expresses respect for Fortnite's success in evolving the battle royale genre into a platform for user-generated content and diverse experiences. Despite challenges faced by Fortnite and the broader live service market, Jang believes PUBG: Battlegrounds is well-positioned for future growth by embracing a similar platform model and unique gameplay.
'You Destroyed the Best Game Mode': Konami Cocks Up Master League's Return to eFootball on PS5, PS4
Players are expressing significant disappointment with Konami's return of Master League to eFootball, which is currently implemented as a limited-time event rather than the full mode fans expected. The publisher's focus on live service and gacha mechanics is seen as a departure from the beloved single-player experience, leading to widespread criticism on social media.
Peak co-dev says games like its iconic friendslop hit "wouldn't exist" if the studio tried to turn everything it makes "into the next Fortnite" with endless content updates
Landfall Games, co-developer of the hit indie game Peak, clarifies that they are not a live service studio and do not intend to provide endless content updates for their games. The developers emphasize that their focus is on creating limited experiences that are updated for a period before moving on to new projects, stating that this approach allows for games like Peak to exist in their current form.
No Man’s Sky Hits 42nd Free Update After 10 Years – The Gift That Keeps on Giving
Hello Games' No Man's Sky has received its 42nd free update, highlighting the developer's decade-long commitment to post-launch support. This approach contrasts with industry trends of paid DLC and season passes, fostering strong community trust and excitement for future content. The game's continuous evolution has transformed it into a beloved 'Pokemon in space' experience for many players.
Games Inbox: What is your favourite retro video game format?
Readers discuss their favorite retro gaming formats, with the Atari ST, ZX Spectrum, and Commodore 64 being popular choices. The discussion also touches on anticipation for upcoming games like The Witcher 4 and Switch 2, as well as the perceived decline of studios like Firaxis.
Extraction shooter The Cube, Save Us has announced it's shutting down just three weeks after it launched
The post-apocalyptic extraction shooter The Cube, Save Us, developed by XLGames, has announced it is shutting down just three weeks after its launch. The game peaked at 5,177 concurrent players on Steam on March 18 but quickly dropped to the hundreds, which is problematic for a free-to-play title.
THE CUBE, SAVE US Ending
The live-service extraction slasher game THE CUBE, SAVE US will shut down on May 8th, according to a Steam announcement. The game's termination marks another live-service title ending its run shortly after launch.
The Cube, Save Us Becomes the Latest Live-Service Cautionary Tale
Developer and publisher XLGAMES has announced that its MMO extraction shooter, The Cube, Save Us, will be shutting down on May 8th due to a significant drop in player count and overwhelmingly negative Steam reviews. Refunds will be issued for legitimate purchases made on Steam. This marks another cautionary tale in the live-service genre, following recent shutdowns like Krafton's PUBG: Blindspot.
Stop the petition: The Rocketeer mimicking the Vaporizer's alert noise was actually a bug, and it's been fixed…
Embark has fixed a bug in Arc Raiders where the Rocketeer enemy's alert noise was incorrectly changed to match the Vaporizer enemy. This change, which was met with significant backlash and a petition to revert, has now been corrected. The update also addressed issues with the Close Scrutiny map, including despawning summoned enemies and adjusting movement speeds for Rocketeers and Vaporizers.
Yet Another Live-Service Game Is Shutting Down Just Weeks After Launch
The live-service extraction shooter The Cube, Save Us will shut down on May 8, just weeks after its March 18 launch. Developer XL Games cited low player numbers and poor reception as likely reasons for the closure, with refunds being issued for all purchased items on Steam. This marks another failure in the increasingly crowded live-service market, with other titles like Concord, Highguard, and Hawked also facing server closures.
Peak Devs Call Out Entitled Gamers Who Want Endless Free Updates
Game developers are calling out players who claim to dislike live-service games but then demand continuous free updates. This highlights a disconnect between player sentiment and their expectations for ongoing content without direct payment.
Games Inbox: What is the best PS5 game?
Readers discuss their favorite PlayStation 5 games, with Elden Ring being a popular choice. The discussion also touches on the potential for Star Fox and Ecco the Dolphin remasters, concerns about developer survival, and the future of live service games.
Marathon players are fiercely debating how to best change one of the game's most "present and dominant" weapon attachments
Marathon players are actively debating how to best adjust the game's thermal gun optics, which are considered overly dominant. Game director Joe Ziegler has acknowledged the issue, and the community has proposed ideas like scaling thermal clarity with player heat. These discussions highlight the ongoing challenges of balancing live service games.
Crimson Desert players average over 20 hours a week in the open-world game, blowing away almost everything else on…
Crimson Desert players are averaging over 20 hours per week, with US players on Xbox averaging 20 hours and PlayStation players averaging 22 hours in the week ending March 28. This playtime places Crimson Desert as the top game on Xbox and second on PlayStation for average weekly hours per active user, according to Circana's Mat Piscatella. The game also saw a significant increase in total weekly active users across both platforms.
Games Inbox: Has the new Mass Effect been cancelled?
Reader mail discusses the lack of news regarding a new Mass Effect game, with one reader suspecting it may be cancelled despite EA's assurances. Other topics include potential remakes of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, the viability of a new Uncharted game, and the pricing of the PlayStation 5 Pro. There's also discussion on the success of Nintendo's Super Mario Galaxy movie and its potential impact on future game and film adaptations.
5 dead games I still can’t stop thinking about
This article discusses five 'dead games' that, despite player abandonment or functional abandonment, remain memorable due to their strong core concepts or communities. Games like Anthem, Deceive Inc., Gigantic, Titanfall 2, and Paladins: Champions of the Realm are examined for their initial appeal and the reasons for their decline, often citing issues with live-service models, market timing, or lack of sustained support.
