The Entertainment Software Ratings Board wants to use facial scanning to keep your kids from playing GTA and other adult-focused games. Also, it's earnings season, with Microsoft, Capcom, Sega, and EA kicking us off. We also cover two more instances of the dreaded "payoffs for layoffs," and a heap of listener questions!

You can support Virtual Economy's growth via our Ko-Fi and also purchase Virtual Economy merchandise!

TIME STAMPS

• [00:1:55] - Circana Report on U.S. Video Game Spending for June 2023
• [00:13:20] - Microsoft Q4 FY23 Earnings
• [00:19:43] - Capcom Q1 FY24 Earnings
• [00:23:40] - Sega Q1 FY24 Earnings
• [00:29:51] - EA Q1 FY24 Earnings
• [00:31:28] - Nintendo Q1 FY24 Earnings
• [00:35:55] - Investment Interlude
• [00:45:39] - Quick Hits
• [00:56:30] - Labor Report
• [01:02:41] - The ESRB Wants to Use Facial Scanning for Age Gating
• [01:13:20] - Listener Questions

SOURCES

• Microsoft Earnings Release FY23 Q4 | Microsoft
• Capcom Q1 FY24 Earnings | Capcom
• Capcom Makes Swordcanes Studio Co., Ltd. a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary Through Share Acquisition | Capcom
• Sega Q1 FY24 Earnings | Sega
• Electronic Arts Reports Strong Q1 FY24 Results | EA
• Nintendo Q1 FY24 Earnings | Nintendo
• Financial Results Explanatory Material | Nintendo
• Take Two Interactive execs' pay doubled this year | Axios
• Discord Lays Off 4% of Workforce | The Information
• 15 USC 6501: Definitions (house.gov)
• What Do We Do About the Biases in AI? (hbr.org) | Harvard Business Review
• If consoles can't crack China, their future is limited | GamesIndustry.biz

INVESTMENT INTERLUDE

• TECHLAND'S NEXT CHAPTER AND THE ROAD AHEAD | Techland
• MICROSOFT'S SUBMISSIONS ON MATERIAL CHANGES OF CIRCUMSTANCES | UK CMA

The FTC is down for the count after losing in court and seeing an emergency injunction denied. We discuss where things go from here as the UK CMA stands alone. Also, a bunch of new studios were announced, Bungie wins a big victory against a toxic troll, and Xbox works to make it harder for harassers online.

You can support Virtual Economy's growth via our Ko-Fi and also purchase Virtual Economy merchandise!

TIME STAMPS

• [00:02:52] - Pathfinder Open Gaming License
• [00:09:39] - New Xbox Voice Reporting Feature
• [00:13:14] - Xbox Live is Dead, Here Comes Game Pass Core
• [00:19:14] - Investment Interlude
• [00:32:21] - Activision Blizzard FTC
• [00:45:54] - Quick Hits
• [00:48:19] - Labor Report
• [00:57:12] - FAFO x2
• [01:06:59] - Listener Questions

SOURCES

• The creators of Pathfinder have released their own version of D&D's controversial OGL—and it could have a huge impact on all tabletop RPGs | PC Gamer
• paizo.com - Community | Paizo Blog
• Xbox Launches New Voice Reporting Feature | Xbox Wire
• Introducing Xbox Game Pass Core, Coming This September | Xbox Wire
• Sega of America workers win union vote | Polygon
• Pokémon Go creator Niantic accused of 'systemic sexual bias' in lawsuit | The Verge
• Splash Damage transitions to 4-day work weeks | Game Developer
• Yuji Naka gets a $1.2 million fine and a suspended prison sentence for insider trading | VGC
• Justice served: Destiny 2 harasser forced to pay Bungie nearly $500,000 in damages | Windows Central
• Bungie, Inc v Jesse James Comer - Default Judgment and Order | Superior Court of the State of Washington

INVESTMENT INTERLUDE

• CORSAIR TO ACQUIRE DROP ASSETS; FURTHER EXPAND PERIPHERALS BUSINESS | Corsair
• Cloud Imperium Group Acquires Turbulent | CIG
• Lightspeed Studios acquires Destruction AllStars dev Lucid Games | Game Developer
• Tencent invests in new triple-A studio from Playground Games co-founder | Eurogamer
• Meet Cliffhanger Games | EA
• Canada's Behaviour Interactive opens new UK studio | Behaviour
• People Can Fly Opens a Montreal Location | People Can Fly on LinkedIn
• Q-Games alumni form Denkiworks | GamesIndustry
• Microsoft wins FTC fight to buy Activision Blizzard | The Verge
• Preliminary Injunction Opinion | United States District Court, Northern District of California
• FTC is appealing ruling that cleared Microsoft to buy Activision Blizzard | The Verge
• Court denies FTC's last-ditch attempt to stop Microsoft buying Activision Blizzard | The Verge
• Microsoft to modify Activision Blizzard acquisition to address CMA concerns | GamesIndustry
• The Trade Desk, Inc. to Join the Nasdaq-100 Index Beginning July 17th, 2023 | NASDAQ
• Microsoft's Activision Blizzard merger approved in South Africa | Game Developer

This week saw the long-awaited showdown between the FTC and Microsoft, as the U.S. Government seeks an injunction to prevent the Activision acquisition. Also; new studios opening amidst an otherwise grim labor report, the latest Circana U.S. spending report, and more.

You can support Virtual Economy's growth via our Ko-Fi and also purchase Virtual Economy merchandise!

TIME STAMPS

• [00:01:17] - Circana U.S. Video Game Spending Report for May 2023
• [00:19:41] - Twitch Partner Plus
• [00:27:05] - Investment Interlude (With a Big Conversation about the Microsoft/Activision FTC Hearing)
• [00:57:42] - Quick Hits
• [01:03:12] - Labor Report

SOURCES

• Introducing the Partner Plus Program | Twitch
• How many Twitch partners are actually eligible for Partner Plus? | Streams Charts
• IATSE Launches Gameworkers.org, First-Ever Video Game Industry Study | IATSE
• EMBRACER GROUP ANNOUNCES COMPREHENSIVE RESTRUCTURING PROGRAM | Embracer Group
• Danish studio Kiloo Games lays off staff before July closure | Game Developer
• Season developer Scavengers Studio hit with "massive layoffs" | Game Developer
• Hi-Rez Studios lays off employees in company restructuring | Game Developer
• Niantic Organizational Update | Niantic
• Daedalic Entertainment closes development department | Games Wirtschaft

INVESTMENT INTERLUDE

• Focus Entertainment taps Ubisoft veterans to establish Carpool Studio | Game Developer
• PCF GROUP SA (22/2023) Conclusion of a production and publishing agreement with Microsoft Corporation - report 22/2023 | Interia Biznes
• Krafton opens new studio, ReLu Games, to develop deep learning titles | Game Developer
• Scopely acquires Scottish mobile developer Tag Games | Game Developer
• Order re: Temporary Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction | FTC
• Sony says it wouldn't share PS6 details with Microsoft-owned Activision | Eurogamer
• Microsoft considered acquiring Bungie and Sega to bolster Xbox Game Pass, internal emails show | The Verge
• Sega is not open to acquisitions, following speculation around Microsoft bid | GamesIndustry
• Canada regulator says Microsoft-Activision deal "likely" to harm competition | GamesIndustry
• UK court blocks request to delay CMA and Microsoft trial | GamesIndustry

On the eve of its earnings announcement, Embracer Group saw a nearly-signed $2B deal fall apart. We discuss the potential impact. Also: GameStop back in crisis, a huge number of layoffs, and the strange tale of Disco Elysium continues. Note: We discuss Cyberpunk 2077 and the Phantom Liberty DLC during this episode. While we were confused that Phantom Liberty was a no-show during Geoff Keighley's Summer Game Fest presentation, the game did make an appearance during the Xbox event.

You can support Virtual Economy's growth via our Ko-Fi and also purchase Virtual Economy merchandise!

TIME STAMPS

• [00:02:11] - Embracer Group Earnings for FY23
• [00:10:02] - Sony Business Segment Meeting - New Data
• [00:21:25] - GameStop Earnings for Q1 2023
• [00:29:11] - Investment Interlude
• [00:38:38] - Quick Hits
• [00:57:28] - Labor Report
• [01:19:48] - Microsoft Hit with $20M COPPA Violation Fine
• [01:23:51] - Apple's Vision Pro and the $3,500 Price Tag

SOURCES

• Embracer Group Interim Report - Q4 and FY23 | Embracer Group
• Sony Business Segment Meeting 2023 Game & Network Services Segment | Sony
• CD Projekt Q1 2023 Earnings | CD Projekt
• GameStop Discloses First Quarter 2023 Results | GameStop
• Rising Storm studio Antimatter Games is being closed | PC Gamer
• Stranger Things 3 game developer BonusXP to close down | Game Developer
• Kirby support developer Vanpool has shut down | Game Developer
• Relic Layoffs | Relic Entertainment (@relicgames) on Twitter
• Life is Strange dev Deck Nine Games hit with staff layoffs | Game Developer
• Firaxis is latest video game studio hit by layoffs | Axios
• CD Projekt Red to Lay Off Around 30 Employees as Gwent Development Winds Down | IGN
• Redundancies hit Marvel Contest of Champions publisher Kabam | GamesIndustry
• Meta is laying off employees for the third time in less than three months | Engadget
• EA reportedly lays off two thirds of Firemonkeys Studio | GamesIndustry
• Star Wars: The Old Republic Going Third-Party as BioWare Focuses on Mass Effect and Dragon Age
• Bandcamp has successfully unionized at Epic Games | Game Developer
• Many teams, one Goodbye. Thank you for playing Blaseball. | The Game Band
• Investigation: Who's Telling the Truth about Disco Elysium? | People Make Games
• FTC Will Require Microsoft to Pay $20 million | FTC
• Xbox FTC Settlement and Reimagining the Future of Safety on Xbox | Microsoft

INVESTMENT INTERLUDE

• NetEase Games Introduces Bad Brain Game Studios, a New Studio Based in Canada | PR Newswire
• God of War Art Director Raf Grassetti forms new studio for Netflix | Raf Grassetti (@rafagrassetti) on Twitter
• Shareholders call for a sale of EG7 | GamesIndustry

One day we'll be free of the Microsoft/Activision deal, but that day is NOT today. Also: Nintendo, EA, Starbreeze, Square Enix, Capcom, and Take-Two Earnings, acquisitions, the Circana US Video Game Spending report for April 2023, more layoffs, and a Double FAFO.

Support Miranda Due, former Unity employee, who is looking for work. You can support Virtual Economy's growth via our Ko-Fi and also purchase Virtual Economy merchandise!

TIME STAMPS

• [00:00:48] - Nintendo Earnings FY23
• [00:08:06] - EA Earnings Q4 and FY23
• [00:16:47] - Starbreeze Q1 FY23 Earnings
• [00:21:39] - Square Enix FY23 Earnings
• [00:25:09] - Capcom FY23 Earnings
• [00:29:19] - Take-Two FY23 Earnings
• [00:43:08] - Investment Interlude
• [00:51:17] - Quick Hits
• [00:57:24] - Labor Report
• [01:04:56] - Circana Report on US Video Game Spending for April 2023
• [01:09:03] - Double FAFO

SOURCES

• Nintendo Full Year FY23 Earnings | Nintendo
• EA Q4 and Full Year FY23 Earnings | EA
• Starbreeze Q1 FY23 Earnings | Starbreeze
• Square Enix FY23 Earnings | Square Enix
• Capcom FY23 Earnings | Capcom
• Take-Two FY23 Earnings | Take-Two
• CD Projekt makes layoffs after rescoping its Witcher spin-off game | VGC
• Sony Studio PixelOpus, Best-Known for Concrete Genie, Is Shutting Down | IGN
• PlayStation-backed Deviation Games hit with layoffs | VGC
• Ubisoft Hit by More Layoffs in Customer Service and Elsewhere | IGN
• Report: Brace Yourself Games lays off half its staff | Game Developer
• Riot's $100 million gender discrimination settlement granted final approval | Game Developer
• Unity employee fired for sharing comments from executive suggesting employees rent in downtown SF to make RTO easier | Miranda Due (@MirandaDue) on Twitter
• Destiny 2 cheat maker refuses to show up for court and now owes Bungie $6.7 million | PCGamer

INVESTMENT INTERLUDE

• ANTICIPATED ACQUISITION BY MICROSOFT CORPORATION OF ACTIVISION BLIZZARD, INC. | UK Competition and Markets Authority
• Mergers: Commission clears acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft, subject to conditions | European Commission
• UK CMA Responds to EU Approval of Microsoft's Acquisition of Activision Blizzard | UK Competition and Markets Authority (@CMAgovUK) on Twitter
• Microsoft President Brad Smith on EU Decision | Brad Smith (@bradsmi) on Twitter
• Certain Affinity Announces Grand Opening of New Toronto Facility | Certain Affinity
• KEYWORDS STUDIOS EXTENDS US PRESENCE AND ADDS FURTHER AAA EXPERTISE TO ITS CREATE SERVICE LINE THROUGH THE ACQUISITION OF HARDSUIT | Keywords Studios
• Atari Closes the Acquisition of Nightdive Studios | Atari

After years of stumbling in the mobile space, Sega decided to throw $775M at the problem with the acquisition of Rovio. Also: Lots of layoffs, some acquisitions, a bunch of earnings, and the March Circana report on U.S. video game spending.

You can support Virtual Economy's growth via our Ko-Fi and also purchase Virtual Economy merchandise!

TIME STAMPS

• [00:01:06] - Epic v Apple… The End
• [00:04:03] - Microsoft Earnings for Q3 FY23
• [00:14:21] - Sony Earnings for FY23
• [00:18:13] - Remedy Earnings for Q1 FY23
• [00:21:02] - Paradox Earnings for Q1 FY23
• [00:23:14] - Sega Earnings for FY23
• [00:26:32] - Investment Interlude
• [00:42:23] - Quick Hits
• [00:55:35] - Labor Report
• [01:03:59] - Circana U.S. Video Game Spending report for March 2023
• [01:15:57] - FAFO

SOURCES

• UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT | Court Listener
• Microsoft - Earnings Release FY23 Q3 | Microsoft
• Sony - FY2022 Earnings Announcement | Sony
• REMEDY ENTERTAINMENT PLC'S BUSINESS REVIEW JANUARY-MARCH 2023 | Remedy
• Paradox Interim report January – March 2023 | Paradox
• Sega Consolidated Financial Results for the Year Ending March 31 | Sega
• SEGA to Acquire Rovio Entertainment Oyj | Business Newswire
• Paradox closing Umea and Malmo studios to veer away from decentralized development | Game Developer
• Amazon Lays Off About 100 Employees in Its Gaming Divisions | Bloomberg (Paywall)
• InnoGames lays off 75 staff | GamesIndustry
• Ready at Dawn and Downpour Interactive impacted by Meta layoffs | Game Developer
• Sega of America is the latest video game studio to organize | The Verge
• Sega of America president reacts to unionization | Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) on Twitter
• Phoenix Labs cuts staff | GamesIndustry
• Documents in Activision Blizzard, Case No. 31-CA-316279 | NLRB

INVESTMENT INTERLUDE

• Devolver Purchased Doinksoft | Devolver Digital (@devolverdigital) on Twitter
• Savvy Games Group To Acquire Leading Games Company Scopely | Savvy Games
• Focus Entertainment acquires the acclaimed UK-based Dovetail Games Group | Dovetail Games
• Sony is Fueling the Gamer Lawsuit Against the Microsoft / Activision Acquisition | Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) on Twitter
• Welcoming Firewalk Studios to the PlayStation Studios family | PlayStation Blog
• AQUIRIS is Joining Epic and Becoming Epic Games Brasil | Epic Games
• Atari Announces Acquisition of More than 100 PC and Console Titles from the 80s and 90s | GlobeNewswire

It's a very special, very weird episode from sunny Dubrovnik, Croatia! We're thrilled to have the one, the only ANDY PAN join us for a discussion about the UK Competition and Markets Authority's decision to deny Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard on the basis of the cloud gaming business.

You can read the full decision here: Microsoft / Activision deal prevented to protect innovation and choice in cloud gaming. For the full context, listen to our recent legal issues episode from GDC.

You can support Virtual Economy's growth via our Ko-Fi and also purchase Virtual Economy merchandise!

At GDC 2023, we got the gang back together for another down-and-dirty legal issues conversation. We're grateful to Brandon Huffman, founder of Odin Law & Media, and Ryan Black, partner at DLA Piper, for joining us again this year.

On the docket for this year:

• The Rise and Fall of Web3 at GDC (Good riddance!)
• The state of mergers and acquisitions in the industry and beyond
• The growing need for unionization and the current labor initiatives across the industry
• The future of non-compete clauses in the United States
• The emerging challenges with AI technologies
• Looking toward the future of legal issues, including the fate of Section 230 (Safe Harbor) in the United States

You can support Virtual Economy's growth via our Ko-Fi and also purchase Virtual Economy merchandise!

The new ReedPop-run E3 died before it could live… or was it… MURDERED?! (Spoiler: It was murdered.) Also: GameStop leans on cost cutting to finally turn a modest profit, Microsoft is one step closer to closing its Activision deal, established studios expand, while layoffs also run rampant.

You can support Virtual Economy's growth via our Ko-Fi and also purchase Virtual Economy merchandise!

TIME STAMPS

• [00:01:54] - E3 is DED! (Again!)
• [00:17:46] - Circana US Video Game Spending Report for February
• [00:25:14] - GameStop FY 2023 Earnings
• [00:29:43] - Investment Interlude
• [00:41:51] - Quick Hits
• [00:53:02] - Labor Report

SOURCES

• GameStop Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2022 Results | GameStop
• Epic-Owned Bandcamp is Unionizing | Bandcamp United (@bandcampunited) on Twitter
• Twitch lays off hundreds amid Amazon cuts | Polygon
• 16 Years Of Twitch | Twitch
• Layoffs reported at Worms maker Team17 | Eurogamer
• Logitech Cuts 300 Jobs on Post-Covid Slump in Computer Gadgets | Bloomberg (Paywall)
• An update on our people and business | EA
• Disney Shuts Down Metaverse Unit as Part of First Wave of Layoffs | Variety

INVESTMENT INTERLUDE

• UK regulator sides with Microsoft over Call of Duty on PlayStation concerns | The Verge
• Small band of gamers fail to block Microsoft Activision Blizzard bid | Eurogamer
• Ex-Blizzard leaders Jen Oneal and J. Allen Brack create startup studio Magic Soup Games | GamesBeat
• PCF GROUP (PEOPLE CAN FLY) WILL HAVE A NEW 10% SHAREHOLDER — KRAFTON INC., ONE OF SOUTH KOREA'S LARGEST GAME PUBLISHERS AND DEVELOPERS | People Can Fly
• Maximum Entertainment Completes the Acquisition of FUN Labs | Zordix
• Respawn opens third studio to keep Apex Legends going for '10 to 15 years' | GamesIndustry
• Total War makers open a third development studio | PC Gamer

Square Enix is having a time of it, as its Web3-loving CEO is leaving and Luminous Productions is no more. Also: Ubisoft and Activision messing up labor issues again, and the US is investigating extremism in online games. Also, Manda is going to talk to you about The Lord of the Rings, and Mike will do his best Gollum impression. Maybe.

You can support Virtual Economy's growth via our Ko-Fi and also purchase Virtual Economy merchandise!

TIME STAMPS

• [00:01:04] - Square Enix Needs to Sort Itself Out
• [00:05:41] - The US Government Wants to Know About Extremism in Online Games
• [00:09:21] - Epic Lays Out Its Plans for the Future of Epic Games Store
• [00:13:29] - Investment Interlude
• [00:17:04] - Quick Hits
• [00:33:06] - Labor Report
• [00:42:54] - FAFO!

SOURCES

• An Update from Luminous Productions | Luminous Productions (@LumiPro_EN) on Twitter
• Reorganization within the SQUARE ENIX GROUP | Square Enix
• "FINAL FANTASY XVI" Trial Review & Interview! Overwhelming presence of the summoned beast felt in full-scale action! | PlayStation Blog JP
• Yuji Naka admits to insider trading | Square Enix
• Notification of Changes in the Representative Director of the Company and a Consolidated Subsidiary | Square Enix
• Exclusive: U.S. rep mulls legislative action to press games industry on extremism | Axios
• Epic Games Store Launches Self-Publishing Tools for Game Developers and Publishers | Epic Games
• Beyond Good And Evil 2 Studio Head No Longer At Ubisoft | Kotaku
• EA Lays Off Over 200 Apex Legends Testers Over Zoom Call | Kotaku
• Activision fired two testers for 'profane' language, now a major tech union is filing charges | PC Gamer
• Take-Two confirms layoffs following 'exponential growth in recent years' | PC Gamer
• Gameloft closes Budapest studio as it shifts focus to console and PC | GameDeveloper
• Lince Works is Shutting Down | Lince Works (@LinceWorks) on Twitter
• Destiny 2 cheat maker AimJunkies ordered to pay $4.4 million to Bungie | Game Developer
• Bungie seeks $6.7m default judgment in case against LaviCheats | GamesIndustry

INVESTMENT INTERLUDE

• Canadian Gaming Leader Behaviour™ Interactive Acquires Award-Winning SockMonkey Studios | GamesPress
• EMBRACER GROUPS'S MIDDLE-EARTH ENTERPRISES AND NEW LINE CINEMA JOIN FORCES TO FURTHER EXPLORE THE CINEMATIC UNIVERSE OF "THE LORD OF THE RINGS" AND "THE HOBBIT" | Embracer Group