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MindsEye Devs Speak Out: Build A Rocket Boy Leadership Slammed In Open Letter
Dozens of employees and former workers at Mindseye developer Build a Rocket Boy have signed an open letter to the studio's leadership, demanding a response to allegations of the staff being mistreated. Together with the Game Workers Branch of the Independent Workers of Great Britain, the 93 BARB employees and ex-employees have singled out studio leaders Mark Gerhard and former GTA lead developer Leslie Benzies, citing various issues.
According to the letter, BARB leadership allegedly failed to effectively communicate with workers, and staff were subjected to "unbearable" levels of overtime in the four months leading to the launch of MindsEye. The workers also claim that redundancies have been "mishandled" and have caused distress for all employees.
"These and many other issues, some of which have been made public already, have caused pain and stress for your employees," the letter reads. "Our experience at the company has been one of burnout, job insecurity, health issues, and the failure of a game that many of us have put years of our lives into."
Continue Reading at GameSpotUbisoft Adds Two Classic RPGs To Game Pass
Thirty years ago, the first game in the Heroes of Might & Magic series was released. This week, Ubisoft celebrated that milestone by announcing that two of the classic Heroes of Might & Magic games are now available to PC Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers.
During Ubisoft's Heroes of Might & Magic 30th Anniversary Showcase, the publisher revealed that Heroes of Might & Magic II: Gold and Heroes of Might & Magic III: Complete have been added to Game Pass. After making the announcement, Ubisoft's (and former GameSpot editor) Chris Watters said, "I can think of no better way to teach a new generation the meaning of key words like throng, necromancy, and logistics."
Ubisoft also revealed that the next game in the series, Heroes of Might & Magic: Olden Era, has been delayed to 2026. However, a demo is available now on Steam. This will be the franchise's first game since 2015, when Might & Magic Heroes 7 was released.
Continue Reading at GameSpotAssassin's Creed Actor Has Blunt Message About That Reportedly Canceled Game
Actor Ralph Ineson, who played the pirate Charles Vane in Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, has reacted to the recent revelation that Ubisoft reportedly canceled an American Civil War Assassin's Creed game.
He said on social media, "Once again, f**k off."
A report from Game File said the idea for a game's setting--the American Civil War and the Reconstruction era of the 1860s and 1870s--was deemed too controversial. The report said the game was canceled early in development and would have put players in control of a Black protagonist who escaped enslavement and started a new life away from the South. He is later recruited by the Assassins, returns to the South, and confronts prominent racist groups like the Ku Klux Klan.
Continue Reading at GameSpotArc Raiders Makes Progression Wipes Optional As Studio Puts Players' Time First
One gameplay staple of extraction shooters is the regular "wipe" that resets everyone's in-game progress back to square one. Arc Raiders developer Embark Studios knows that this system can be controversial, and to keep things fair, the studio aims to make wipes a voluntary feature of the game through its Expedition Projects.
Players will unlock an Expedition Project at level 20. Each Expedition cycle runs for roughly eight weeks and players will contribute toward overall progress. Once the Expedition is complete, they'll have the option to reset their progress and lose all gained levels, skills, and their inventory, while their cosmetics and achievements will remain. Players who do not complete an Expedition can instead carry their progress over to the next cycle.
Ideally, this will keep things balanced for everyone. Players who don't have as much time to commit to playing Arc Raiders won't have to worry about booting up the game and discovering that they've lost all their progress, while dedicated players will be rewarded with unique cosmetic rewards, permanent account unlocks, and buffs that are applied for the duration of the following Expedition cycle.
Continue Reading at GameSpotAfter 11 Years Of Development, This Game Is Finally Ready For Early Access Business
Tavern Keeper developer Greenheart Games has officially announced that its fantasy-themed business simulator will be launching in Steam Early Access on November 3. A follow-up to Game Dev Tycoon, Greenheart Games is celebrating the development milestone with a new trailer for the game and an updated demo that has gone live ahead of the October edition of Steam Next Fest.
Similar to management games like Two-Point Hospital, Tavern Keeper is all about running your very own inn and dealing with the challenges of the service industry within its fantasy setting. The game mixes light humor with an in-depth simulation mode that allows you to tweak your establishment's design to a high degree, as well as detailed decorative elements in its sandbox mode that allow you to create everything from bustling taprooms to relaxing reading corners.
Tavern Keeper also offers a campaign narrated by English actor Steven Pacey, and this part of the game will see players build taverns across several varied challenges. Each region will offer its own challenges, fantasy cultures, and stories.
Continue Reading at GameSpotGenAI Is "Very Seducing," Battlefield 6 Boss Says
Electronic Arts has been implementing AI technologies in its development cycles for years, and while EA says there is no content in Battlefield 6 made using generative AI, the technology is "very seducing," according to DICE GM Rebecka Coutaz.
She told BBC Newsbeat that EA's teams use genAI in the early stages of development "to allow more time and more space to be creative." But Battlefield 6 has no genAI-created content. She is optimistic about the technology overall, though. "If we can break the magic with AI it will help us be more innovative and more creative," she said.
Another Battlefield 6 developer, Fasahat "Fas" Salim, told the site that genAI is "not anything to be scared of" in the video game industry and that teams are now working on figuring out how to best implement the technology into future development pipelines.
Continue Reading at GameSpot