GTA 6 Skips PC, GameStop Bids For eBay, Call of Duty Drops PS4

The gaming industry is undergoing a massive structural shift this week, marked by unprecedented corporate acquisitions and the definitive end of the eighth console generation. As major publishers finally leave older hardware behind to focus on their core audiences, the live-service bubble continues to burst for smaller studios struggling to find a foothold.

Grand Theft Auto VI and Call of Duty Finalize Launch Platforms

IGNVGCEurogamer Rockstar Games is officially skipping a PC release when Grand Theft Auto VI launches on November 19, prioritizing its core console audience on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S . Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick defended the staggered release schedule, while financial analysts publicly urged the publisher to raise the highly anticipated sequel's price above the standard $70 mark . Meanwhile, Activision confirmed that the 2026 Call of Duty entry will be the first in over a decade to completely drop PlayStation 4 and Xbox One support, allowing developer Infinity Ward to focus entirely on current-generation hardware .

GameStop Proposes $55.5 Billion Acquisition of eBay

This Week in Video Games The secondary market for physical games and hardware could soon face a monopoly, as GameStop has officially proposed a staggering $55.5 billion acquisition of e-commerce giant eBay . The unprecedented bid aligns with recent statements from the GameStop CEO regarding ambitious plans to scale the retailer into a $100 billion corporate powerhouse . If the merger is successful, it would fundamentally reshape how players buy and sell used gaming merchandise globally.

Xbox Axes Copilot AI as Forza Horizon 6 Prepares for Game Pass

This Week in Video GamesThis Week in Video GamesGematsu Newly appointed Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has initiated a major leadership reorganization, bringing in executives from Microsoft's CoreAI division to help get the platform back on track . As part of this pivot to reduce friction for developers and players, Microsoft is officially halting all development on its Xbox Copilot AI integration across consoles and mobile apps . On the software side, Playground Games has gone gold with Forza Horizon 6 ahead of its May 15 early access launch, revealing a massive 160GB install size requirement for PC players . The open-world racer will headline the May Xbox Game Pass lineup alongside the day-one arrival of Subnautica 2 and the surprise drop of the indie parkour adventure Motorslice .

Valve Steam Controller Sells Out While Remedy Entertainment Rebounds

Rock Paper ShotgunDigital FoundryGame Developer Valve's highly anticipated new Steam Controller vanished from digital storefronts within 30 minutes of its launch, immediately flooding resale sites like eBay at triple the retail price . While Valve scrambles to restock the £85 PC gamepad, Remedy Entertainment is celebrating a profitable first quarter anchored by the original Control surpassing six million lifetime sales . New Remedy CEO Jean-Charles Gaudechon confirmed the studio is doubling down on its single-player strengths following the disastrous launch of its failed multiplayer shooter FBC: Firebreak, keeping the upcoming sequel Control Resonant on track for later this year .

Hero Shooter Last Flag Dies as Survios Suffers Mass Layoffs

IGNEurogamerPush Square The live-service market claimed another rapid casualty this week as Night Street Games halted post-launch development on its third-person hero shooter Last Flag less than a month after release . The studio, co-founded by Imagine Dragons frontman Dan Reynolds, is shifting focus away from the project entirely, though servers will remain online for the existing community . The virtual reality sector also took a heavy hit, with Alien: Rogue Incursion developer Survios reportedly laying off its entire development team and essentially shuttering the Los Angeles-based studio .

Subnautica 2 Sets Early Access Date and Total War Reveals Destruction

This Week in Video GamesIGNIGN Unknown Worlds has officially locked in a May 14 PC early access release date for Subnautica 2, introducing punishing system requirements and terrifying new underwater threats . The sudden launch announcement sent ripples through the indie landscape, forcing the developers of the campervanning game Outbound to move their release forward just to avoid competing with the survival behemoth . Meanwhile, Creative Assembly detailed a massive shift in scale for Total War: Warhammer 40,000, confirming the strategy game will feature fully destructible battlefields that force players to rethink traditional defensive formations .