Patchnotes
About
FeedOverviewsGames

Crimson Desert Sales, Mario Movie Records, Xbox Showcase Set

Mar 27, 2026 — Apr 3, 2026 · 2mo ago

The week was defined by massive commercial triumphs clashing with harsh development realities. While Nintendo dominates the box office and Pearl Abyss celebrates a breakout RPG hit, the broader industry continues to grapple with studio closures, controversial AI adoption, and the death of aging live-service titles.

Crimson Desert Crosses Four Million Sales Following Major Updates

Crimson Desert Sells 4 Million Copies in 2 Weeks as Pearl Abyss' Open World Action Adventure Continues Its Hot StreakCrimson Desert Hits New Steam Concurrent Player Peak as Latest Game-Changing Update Kicks InIGNIGN Pearl Abyss is celebrating a massive commercial milestone as its open-world action RPG Crimson Desert surpassed four million copies sold within two weeks of launch IGNTechRaptorIGN. The breakout hit reached a new concurrent player peak on Steam following Patch 1.01.00, which introduced new mounts, overhauled stealing mechanics, and officially removed the game's controversial AI-generated placeholder art IGNEurogamerPC GamerPush Square+1. While PC and PlayStation 5 Pro players are enjoying high frame rates and FSR 3 upscaling, the base PlayStation 5 version continues to struggle with optimization issues Push SquarePush SquareDigital Foundry.

Super Mario Galaxy Movie Shatters Box Office Records

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie Opening Day Breaks Multiple Records WorldwideThe Super Mario Galaxy Movie breaks records with $34m opening despite "unfavourable" reviewsNintendo LifeEurogamer Nintendo and Illumination have secured another massive theatrical hit, with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie pulling in a record-breaking $68.4 million globally on its opening day Nintendo Life. The animated sci-fi sequel officially surpassed the first-day milestone set by the original Super Mario Bros. Movie, despite launching to mixed critical reviews that criticized its lack of narrative depth Nintendo LifeEurogamerVGC. Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri attributed the immediate commercial success to the direct creative involvement of Shigeru Miyamoto and Nintendo's original artists PC Gamer.

Studio Layoffs Mount as Developers Pivot Toward Artificial Intelligence

Deus Ex developer Eidos Montréal announces mass job cuts, alongside departure of studio head David Anfossi A programmer with terminal brain cancer was caught in Epic's mass layoff, but CEO Tim Sweeney says the studio 'will solve the insurance for them' EurogamerPC Gamer The human cost of game development remains devastating this week, highlighted by Eidos-Montréal laying off 124 employees and cancelling an unannounced project alongside the departure of veteran studio head David Anfossi EurogamerIGNGamesIndustry.bizPush Square. Epic Games also faced intense public backlash after its recent 1,000-person workforce reduction impacted a terminally ill developer, prompting CEO Tim Sweeney to publicly promise a resolution for their life insurance PC GamerPush Square. Meanwhile, studios are aggressively pursuing artificial intelligence to cut costs, with Warhorse Studios firing a Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 translator to replace them with generative AI, and Nexon pushing AI tools to build future extraction shooters This Week in Video GamesPush SquareEurogamerPC Gamer.

Rec Room and The Elder Scrolls Blades Lead Wave of Server Shutdowns

Here's Another Major PS5, PS4 Game Getting Delisted SoonThe Elder Scrolls: Blades Is Shutting Down This JunePush SquareNintendo Life The live-service bubble continues to burst, claiming both veteran platforms and brand-new releases. The popular virtual reality social club Rec Room will permanently shut down on June 1 after ten years of operation, with developers admitting they could never make the platform sustainably profitable Push SquareIGNThe Verge. Bethesda is also pulling the plug on its mobile and Nintendo Switch RPG The Elder Scrolls: Blades this June, while Krafton killed its early access shooter PUBG: Blindspot after just 53 days Nintendo LifeGame DeveloperGame DeveloperIGN. The trend of rendering purchased games unplayable has sparked legal action, with a major French consumer rights group officially suing Ubisoft over the recent server shutdown for the 2014 racing game The Crew Rock Paper ShotgunGamingOnLinuxPC Gamer.

Xbox June Showcase Announced as Slay the Spire 2 Enters Early Access

Xbox Games Showcase 2026 promises "huge" game news and a dedicated Gears of War: E-Day segmentSlay the Spire 2 early access reviewEurogamerEurogamer Microsoft is officially locking in its summer marketing plans, confirming that the annual Xbox Games Showcase will broadcast on June 7, 2026, followed immediately by a dedicated Direct presentation for Gears of War: E-Day EurogamerGematsuIGN. On the PC storefronts, Mega Crit has launched the highly anticipated deckbuilding roguelike Slay the Spire 2 into early access, bringing new multiplayer features and promising three entirely new game modes currently in prototyping EurogamerRock Paper ShotgunPC Gamer. In legal news, Nintendo suffered a major setback in its lawsuit against Palworld developer Pocketpair, as the United States Patent and Trademark Office revoked its controversial character-summoning patent after ruling the mechanics were too obvious Nintendo LifeRock Paper ShotgunThis Week in Video Games.