The important gaming news you missed over the holidays

13 January 2021 - 09:58 By Tarryn van der Byl
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South Africa is one of the largest video game markets in Africa. The market has overtaken the market in movies and music in the country.
South Africa is one of the largest video game markets in Africa. The market has overtaken the market in movies and music in the country.
Image: Supplied

Aaaaand we’re back! It’s a new year, the same NAG, and COVID-19 is still a thing so, like me, you’re probably stuck at home, choosing between existential dismay and your backlog and it’s not even a real decision because if you actually finished your backlog, you wouldn’t have a backlog anymore – and now what? Exactly. In the meantime, though, KFC is launching a game console and maybe that’s worse.

KFC IS LAUNCHING A GAME CONSOLE

KFC seems to be launching a gaming console. That's concerning.
KFC seems to be launching a gaming console. That's concerning.
Image: Supplied

Designed in collaboration with hardware vendors Cooler Master, Asus, and Seagate, the KFConsole features an Intel i9 Nuc 9 Extreme Compute Element, a hot-swap GPU slot, two 1TB SSDs, and a unique “Chicken Chamber” compartment to keep your nuggies hot because that’s the kind of tech innovation we want in 2021.

EA ACQUIRES CODEMASTERS

In keeping with its 10-year mission to add obnoxious microtransactions to every game licence ever, the publisher has acquired Dirt Rally and F1 series developer Codemasters in a deal estimated at $1.2 billion. In 2019, Codemasters acquired Project Cars developer Slightly Mad Studios, so I guess it’s some sort of karma which also works as a pun if you read it out loud.

CD PROJEKT RED IS IN TROUBLE

Cyberpunk 2077 is a 2020 action role-playing video game developed and published by CD Projekt.
Cyberpunk 2077 is a 2020 action role-playing video game developed and published by CD Projekt.
Image: Supplied

Poland’s Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (Urząd Ochrony Konkurencji i Konsumentów or UOKiK) has opened an enquiry into the, uh, wobbly launch of Cyberpunk 2077 and the studio’s subsequent (mis?)management of the situation, according to local news agency Dziennik Gazeta Prawna, with a prospective fine of up to 10 percent of the studio’s annual income.

“We will check how the manufacturer is working on the introduction of amendments or solution to difficulties preventing the game [to work] on different consoles, but also how it intends to act in relation to the persons who filed complaints and are dissatisfied with [their] purchase due to the inability to play games on owned equipment despite previous assurances [that it would],” the org explains, with the help of Google Translate services.

The studio is also the subject of a class-action lawsuit in the US filed by The Rosen Law Firm, GamesIndustry reports, “alleging executives lied to investors about the state of the game on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 systems”.

A NEW STALKER 2 TRAILER PROVES THAT THE GAME IS STILL IN DEVELOPMENT

PDA 2.0

GSC Game Worlds’ new trailer doesn’t have much to go on, but it’s a new trailer which is different to the previous trailer. So it’s got that.

PSYCHONAUTS 2 IS ALSO STILL DEVELOPMENT

2020 was a dang strange time but Psychonauts 2 is doing well and will release next year. You can play the whole thing from start to finish! It's happening In the video below, Tim looks back at 2020 and outlines the work that’s ahead.

In fact, just over five years since it debuted at The Game Awards 2015, Double Fine’s sequel is almost finished.

OUTRIDERS IS DELAYED TIMES TWO

Outriders Reveal

But you know that already because People Can Fly’s space magic-’em-up co-op RPG was supposed to launch in 2020 and… didn’t. Then it was supposed to launch in February, and… isn’t. The game is now scheduled to launch on 1 April 2021, which isn’t a joke, but making up for it, a free demo will be available from 5 February. Unless that’s also delayed.

RIOT GAMES IS WORKING ON AN MMO

The League of Legends studio has confirmed that it’s now working on a new MMO, based in the same universe. We don’t know much else about it for the moment, but Riot is hiring up for the project so don’t expect it out too soon.


This article was brought to you by NAG


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