[ad_1]
\n<\/p>\n
Let’s all take a breath. Layoffs are still churning in the video game industry, even as the frigid winter air is beginning to thaw. Amid the turmoil of these past few months, there are still things to be excited about: new games and hardware, the evolution of established franchises, and plenty of small teams building surprises to shake up the status quo. Look at all of the rad things<\/a> happening over at Playdate for just one example of positive momentum in video games (we’ll talk more about this next week).<\/p>\n Breathe in, breathe out.<\/p>\n Now, let’s dive back into the news cycle:<\/p>\n The layoffs crisis in video games isn\u2019t slowing down, and the latest company to announce drastic staffing cuts is P<\/a>layStation<\/a>. Sony on Tuesday fired roughly 900 people from its PlayStation division and fully shut down its London Studio, which had been building a co-op multiplayer game for PS5. Insomniac, Naughty Dog and Guerrilla all lost employees, despite being behind some of the platform\u2019s most successful games in recent memory. First-party studio Firesprite was also hit by the layoffs, and it reportedly had to cancel a live-service Twisted Metal project. It\u2019s barely March, but already more than 7,000 video game workers have been laid off in 2024<\/a>; last year, more than 9,000 people<\/a> in the industry lost their jobs to layoffs.<\/p>\n February 27 was Pok\u00e9mon Day, and in celebration, Nintendo revealed<\/a> two new games: Pok\u00e9mon Legends Z-A<\/em> and Pok\u00e9mon Trading Card Game Pocket<\/em>. Pok\u00e9mon Legends Z-A<\/em> is set in Lumiose City, which you might remember from Pok\u00e9mon X <\/em>and Y<\/em> on the 3DS, and it looks like it features Mega Evolutions. Pok\u00e9mon Legends Z-A <\/em>is due to hit Switch in 2025. The other title, Pok\u00e9mon Trading Card Game Pocket<\/em>, is a mobile game that should land on Android and iOS devices by the end of the year. It\u2019s exactly what it sounds like \u2014 Nintendo is putting the physical card-opening mechanic inside your phone, complete with flashy animations and addictive sound effects when you rip off the digital packaging. You\u2019ll also be able to engage in quick battles. Nintendo has clarified that Pocket<\/em> will not have NFTs, but it is described as \u201cfree to start,\u201d so expect microtransactions.<\/p>\n It\u2019s been a strange and slow week here in Engadget video game land, so I thought we\u2019d have some fun this episode. As tech reporters, we receive ridiculous emails from startups and PR agencies literally every day, and even though we don\u2019t end up covering many of the proposed products, some of the messages themselves deserve a moment in the spotlight. Many of the pitches we get are just silly or tone deaf, but some of them are outright dystopian. And honestly, I thought you all might enjoy seeing some of the weirdness that hits our inboxes.<\/p>\n This is all meant in good fun \u2014 I appreciate the communications teams who are just trying to sell their stuff in creative ways. The real enemy here, as always, is capitalism.<\/p>\n So, here are some emails that recently found their way into my inbox and made me go wut:<\/p>\n GameScent – New Groundbreaking Device Enhances Player Immersion by Releasing Gameplay Corresponding Scents<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n \u201cAs players dive into a game, GameScent\u2019s patent-pending adaptor captures audio in real-time. These real-time audio cues are processed by GameScent’s innovative AI to release scents that correspond with the on-screen action. Inhale the smoky aroma of battle, the exhilarating scent of speeding race cars, the calming fragrance of a forest, or the fresh smell of rain after a storm.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Unsurprisingly, this little doodad comes with replaceable scent cartridges, though it’s unclear how to actually buy those<\/a> at the moment. Scents include gunfire, explosion, racing cars, blood, sports arena and other brotastic flavors.<\/p>\n Is this… cool? There’s definitely a fun idea here about the future of immersion, right? Or I’ve completely lost the plot. Either could be true.<\/p>\n Seeking Products for Pickleball Stories? (Samples Available)<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Ma’am, this is Engadget.<\/p>\n Deconstructeam Delivers a Valentine’s Day Surprise of Cosmic Proportions<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n This was for the game The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood<\/em>, and the surprise was a huge dildo<\/a>. I thought the whole email was cute, actually \u2014 it was tasteful and coyly advertised a giveaway in partnership with a well-known adult toy company. The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood<\/em> is a sexy game<\/a> and it stars a muscular behemoth the size of a planet, so it all made sense. It just didn\u2019t fit in our general news feed, ya know?<\/p>\n (Story Idea:) Here\u2019s Doom Running On A Robotic Lawn Mower: Yes, A Robotic Lawn Mower! (You Have To See It To Believe It!) (Video Included)<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n “I am reaching out with a great story that is sure to go viral\u2026 This spring, Husqvarna will make the iconic 1993 video game DOOM, available to play on the company\u2019s robotic lawn mowers.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n I find this email charming because it\u2019s just a traditional, infomercial-style email with lots of unnecessary exclamation points and parenthesis. I respect it. But seriously, are we still doing this Doom <\/em>thing? Next you\u2019ll be asking me if this lawn mower can run Crysis<\/em> and making jokes about Leeroy Jenkins, and I\u2019m just here in 2024, begging for some new references.<\/p>\n The best part of this one is the fact that, after I added it to my list of silly emails, we actually hit this as news<\/a> on Engadget dot com. Who’s the joke now? (It’s me).<\/p>\n Meet My Regina | PC Preview \u2013 Dickhead-Destroying Extravaganza Cookie Cutter<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI\u2019ve got something to show you, Jessica.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n She\u2019s one of the most incredible things I\u2019ve ever held between my legs.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n She\u2019s small but tough and can take a beating.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n And everyone knows she\u2019s smart because she has a British accent.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n She\u2019ll giggle if you tickle her just right.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n And she even glows in the dark!<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Are you ready to meet her?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Good. Well, here she is!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n I asked to be removed from this list.<\/p>\n In more layoffs news<\/a>, Until Dawn studio Supermassive Games fired about a third of its workforce, or roughly 90 employees, and the team is reorganizing. Also, indie studio Die Gut Fabrik, which created Sportsfriends, Johann Sebastian Joust and Saltsea Chronicles, has halted production amid funding issues and developers there are looking for other jobs.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Nintendo is suing Yuzu<\/a>, a popular and long-running emulator that allows players to put their Switch games on other platforms. Nintendo argues that the app is “facilitating piracy at a colossal scale,\u201d and says it illegally circumvents DMCA protections. Nintendo wants Yuzu shut down and the company is seeking damages.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth<\/em> finally comes out on February 29 and our review<\/a> from Mat Smith is live now. He\u2019s a really big Final Fantasy nerd, and he really liked Rebirth<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nThis week’s stories<\/h2>\n
PlayStation layoffs<\/h3>\n
Happy Pok\u00e9mon Day!<\/h3>\n
Random PR roundup<\/h3>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
Bonus Content<\/h3>\n
\n
Now Playing<\/h3>\n