It’s that time of week again when we take a fond look back at the top five news stories from the week. Welcome to the Weekly Wrap-Up. Below you’ll find a brief summary of the stories, but for the full articles, click on the hyperlink. Feel free to let us know if you agree or disagree with our choices; if you have suggestions for future entries, feel free to email me at jeremy.tyler@bagogames.com.
Enjoy!
Number 5
Sony To Host Another PS4 Event BEFORE E3?
Sony may be planning another PS4 event before E3 opens its doors in June to ensure that it gets even more attention (and the spotlight) on its next-generation console. The event itself is currently rumored to be taking place either later this month or in May.
All of this news comes from PCMag.com, who said that their source believes a late April/early May event would be the “likeliest timeframe for a full-blown launch of the PS4″.
In addition to this the website claimed that their source should be believed as it is “familiar with the company’s marketing strategy” implying that it has some connection to Sony who are currently guarding facts of their next console viciously.
Number 4
More Evidence Suggests Xbox 720 Will Require A Constant Internet Connection
Even more fuel was added to the speculation yesterday that the next-generation Xbox console from Microsoft will require a constant internet connection which, if dropped, would render games unplayable and put the game/app into a suspended state as the console itself goes into network troubleshooting-mode.
Whilst this sounds like the best horror film imaginable for those with a shaky internet connection at the best of times it could obviously cause a lot more damage than good, essentially disabling your console if your internet provider is experiencing difficulties or you have speed caps in place.
Number 3
High Moon Studios Hit With Layoffs
The development team that was working on the upcoming Deadpool title at High Moon Studios has been hit with layoffs, reports Kotaku. About 40 people, having already finished their work on the game, have been let go.
In a statement to the outlet, Activision detailed the news:
“Activision Publishing consistently works to align its costs with its revenues – this is an ongoing process. With the completion of development on Deadpool, we are taking a reduction in staff at High Moon Studios to better align our development talent against our slate. Approximately, 40 full-time employees will be impacted globally. We are offering those employees who are impacted outplacement counseling services.”
Number 2
LucasArts Has Been Shut Down by Disney
As if to follow up on the High Moon Studios layoffs we reported on yesterday, it has come to light that Disney has closed LucasArts. In a statement released by the company, a shift from internal development to a licensing model was detailed:
“After evaluating our position in the games market, we’ve decided to shift LucasArts from an internal development to a licensing model, minimizing the company’s risk while achieving a broader portfolio of quality Star Wars games. As a result of this change, we’ve had layoffs across the organization. We are incredibly appreciative and proud of the talented teams who have been developing our new titles.”
While talking to Polygon, LucasArts stated that they will handing game development over to 3rd party studios and are looking into other ways of releasing Star Wars 1313 and some of their other titles.
Number 1
Zynga CEO Will Take A Single Dollar Salary In 2013
Although Mark Pincus, CEO and founder of Zynga, will be earning a salary of a single dollar in 2013 and will also not be taking part in the company’s cash bonus or equity program.
Although this may seem strange it should be noted that Mark Pincus is estimated to have a net worth of $1.8 million so it defiantly won’t be anything catastrophic for him to take a dollar salary this year, although it isn’t often heard of for obvious reasons.
Whilst Mark Pincus isn’t elgible for any bonus programs other big players in the company can take part in a new executive compensation program even though annual base salaries are within the range of $425,000-$500,000 for the executives. This extra compensation program has the potential of totaling 100% of their salaries if they meet their performance-based bonuses.
Honorable Mentions
This week had a lot of big news and the news staff and I found it hard to narrow it down to the usual five stories:
· Even More Video Content On PS3 As Epix Signs Up
· New Nintendo AR Cars Coming To Japan
If you missed out on the big news items this week, you can check out our weekly podcast and get an audio update of this week’s madness from our podcasting team. Listen to us as we talk about some things seriously and a few other things not so much. We guarantee this episode will make you shake your fist at times and nod your head at others.