EA Goes Private, Xbox 360 Games Come to PC, FIFA Layoffs
Electronic Arts completes its $55 billion take-private deal as Microsoft’s next Xbox plans reportedly broaden backward compatibility to Xbox 360 games on PC . The day also brings mass layoffs at the studio behind Netflix’s FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition and the first reviews of Game Freak’s Beast of Reincarnation
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Electronic Arts Completes Its $55 Billion Take-Private Deal
Electronic Arts is now a private company after an investor group led by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners completes a $55 billion take-private deal . The transaction includes $20 billion in debt financing and is described as the largest leveraged buyout ever
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The Public Investment Fund reportedly owns 93.4% of the new company . The deal closes against a backdrop of live-service revenue dominating EA’s final fiscal report before the merger
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Microsoft Reportedly Brings Xbox 360 Games to PC and Project Helix
Microsoft reportedly plans to let developers bring Xbox 360 games to PC through its backward-compatibility program, according to a leaked document viewed by The Verge . The reported program also covers Xbox PCs, handhelds, and Project Helix, with developers able to opt individual Xbox 360 titles into support
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The broader Project Helix plan reportedly targets games from the original Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Xbox Series generations, alongside new Helix titles . Microsoft already has a limited sample of original Xbox games running on Windows 11 PCs, according to the same reporting
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Refractor Games Loses 85 Percent of Staff After FIFA World Cup Launch
Refractor Games, the developer behind Netflix’s FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition, reportedly lays off roughly 85% of its staff less than two months after the game’s release . Staff claim the studio’s co-owner, Delphi Interactive, pulled the plug after launch, while other reports describe most of the team as having been let go
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Game Freak’s Beast of Reincarnation Launches to Mixed Reviews
Game Freak’s Beast of Reincarnation is available on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, with the action RPG also joining Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass . Early reviews praise its combat and characters but criticize the journey surrounding them: VGC calls the adventure disappointing despite its endearing cast and action, while TechRaptor says the game loses momentum beyond its opening hours
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IGN finds strong ideas buried among the game’s weaker material, and GameSpot argues that its cinematic presentation does not match its flashy action .
Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave Direct Details Its Switch 2 Combat and Classes
Nintendo’s Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave Direct gives the upcoming Switch 2 strategy RPG a deeper look at its characters, Heroic Games, classes, and combat systems . The presentation runs for more than 20 minutes and expands on the kingdom of Dagdan ahead of the game’s worldwide launch on September 17