This week in gaming: Epic Games breaches players’ trust, Harry Potter meets Pokémon Go, Google hires a gaming veteran, and more!
In the spirit of keeping our readers up to date with what’s happening in the video game industry, the Doublejump Digest is a brief collection of the major news stories from the past week. Keep an eye out for the Digest every Sunday night, and head on into the archive for news from weeks gone by!
FROM DOUBLEJUMP:
- Matt made his debut for the site with a review of BioWare’s hotly-anticipated multiplayer game, Anthem.
- Luke continued his run of reviews with some thoughts about Microsoft’s bland action title, Crackdown 3.
- Jake traded his editor’s hat for a reviewer’s one by reviewing Bit Dragon’s neon-drenched brawler, Hyper Jam.
MAJOR NEWS:
Epic Games confirms that it’s been accessing Steam user data:
Valve has told BleepingComputer that it is investigating claims that Epic Games has been accessing Steam users’ data without their express permission.
“We are looking into what information the Epic [Games Store] launcher collects from Steam.The Steam Client locally saves data such as the list of games you own, your friends list and saved login tokens (similar to information stored in web browser cookies),” the company wrote in a statement. “This is private user data, stored on the user’s home machine and is not intended to be used by other programs or uploaded to any 3rd party service.”
This statement was issued in response to Epic Games VP of Engineering Daniel Vogel and CEO Tim Sweeney separately confirming that the company did unintentionally collect some Steam user data but that none of it was in a form that was accessible by another organisation.
Pokémon Go studio announces its Harry Potter-themed AR game:
Almost a year since the game was first teased, Niantic and Portkey Games have finally announced their new free-to-play augmented reality game to the public, Harry Potter: Wizards Unite.
In the game, players will star as Statute of Secrecy Task Force recruits who are responsible for hiding evidence of the existence of magic from regular humans.
Jade Raymond has joined Google:
Raymond, who co-founded EA’s Motive Studio and co-created Assassin’s Creed, has announced that she has joined Google as a Vice-President. While she did not disclose her complete title, it is expected that she may be leading the company’s cloud gaming efforts given her extensive experience within the gaming industry.
Gearbox teases Borderlands 3 announcement for PAX East:
Early this week, Gearbox Software teased the possibility of an upcoming Borderlands 3 announcement in a tweet featuring a partially-covered numeral 3 with regard to its upcoming PAX East panel.
— GearboxOfficial (@GearboxOfficial) March 12, 2019
Furthermore, the company has further fuelled speculation by telling fans to expect “never-before-seen reveals, exclusives, and surprises” during the panel.
Halo: Reach finally comes to PC as part of Halo: The Master Chief Collection:
343 Industries’ Brian Jarrad has taken to the Xbox Wire blog to announce that his studio is adding Halo: Reach to Halo: The Master Chief Collection on Xbox One as “a premium add-on” later this year. Additionally, 343 Industries is also porting the Collection to PC, albeit just one game at a time to ensure that each title enjoys a stable launch. Halo: Reach will be first off the block with the rest of the games being released according to their chronological order. The PC version will be released through the Windows Store and Steam, but the company did not comment on the possibility of an Epic Games Store release.
SEGA pulls Judgment in Japan following voice actor’s drug charge:
The Japanese publisher has begun removing the game from sale in its home country and removing related tweets after Japanese police found cocaine in actor Pierre Taki’s bloodstream. While Taki, who plays yakuza member Kyohei Hamura in the game, was not charged with possession, it appears as if SEGA has pulled the game to adhere with societal expectation of not associating with an alleged drug user. As of this writing, Judgment’s Western June release appears to be not be affected.
NOTABLE GAME RELEASES:
- ONE PIECE World Seeker (PC, PS4, and Xbox One)
- Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 (PC, PS4, and Xbox One)
VIDEOS AND TRAILERS:
Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 – What is The Division 2?:
Here’s a quick primer for Massive Entertainment’s multiplayer sequel.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice – Official Launch Trailer:
Just a few days to go!
Alpine Green DUALSHOCK 4:
Eww.
Battlefield V — Official Firestorm Reveal Trailer:
A bit late to the party here, DICE…
Devil May Cry 5 – Design Philosophy:
Check out this behind-the-scenes look at the game’s development.
Fortnite – High Stakes Returns:
Trigger-happy toys and tailored suits, anyone?
Team Sonic Racing – Customization Trailer:
SEGA’s Mario Kart fighter is packing some serious threads.
OTHER NEWS:
- Minecraft is heading to Xbox Game Pass next month: Eurogamer
- Hollow Knight is getting a fancy-pants physical edition: GameSpot
- Rebellion Development is bringing Sniper Elite 3 Ultimate Edition to Switch, remastering Sniper Elite V2, and working on a new Sniper Elite altogether: Polygon
- Jump pads are starting to show up on Apex Legends’ map: DualShockers
- Axiom Verge’s Wii U version is finally coming out but not without controversy: Game Informer
- Report: There’s going to be yet another Goku coming to Dragon Ball FighterZ: Eurogamer
- A Dragon’s Dogma anime is coming to Netflix: GamesRadar
- Take-Two Interactive has settled another copyright case with a GTAV cheater: GamesIndustry.biz
- Anthem players weren’t very happy with BoWare’s recent loot changes: Polygon
This article was originally published on Doublejump. If you enjoyed what you’ve read, you can support the site further by following us on social media, becoming a Patron, and/or purchasing some merchandise!