Pokemon Go developer lays off staff to cut costs: How many studios will have to reduce staff size during this time?

I've mentioned this before... based on the way things are going, but developers are going to feel the heat just like the average joe when it comes to the economy. How they play their cards, determines how good or bad things can go... and support from fans is a huge factor.

Staff weren't the only ones to get cut from Niantic, a Transformers game + another title called... Hamlet, had their plugs pulled as well.

I won't say that working in game development is any more or less stable than any other field, but... it's one of those things you have to keep in mind if you desire to work in the industry (some positions are contract-based). It's not always the economy, it's unit sales, poor decisions in development, and even poor decisions that weren't even related to bugs.

Void Interactive (which isn't connected to Niantic at all)... had their title "Ready or Not" pulled from Steam based on what they said was a suggested trademark infringement, but there was something else that NME reported on first that made me look at the trademark thing with a side-eye.

NME pointed out that a new level featuring a nightclub shooting in the game was likely the reason behind the game being pulled. A nightclub level that involved shooting may have flown under the radar, but NME reported that the developer released the level on the anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub shooting that took place here in Orlando, Florida. Major facepalm and I mention this situation because there are situations that you don't have control of... like unit sales (which are based on support), while others are completely avoidable.

I can't say whether Void Interactive knew about Pulse at all, but if it's the reason Ready or Not was delisted from Steam at the time... that doesn't help revenue or keep them further away from layoffs if they have to face the music sooner than later. Developers looking to whether the storm are laying off employees regardless, but for those trying to maintain their team... play it safe and avoid as many unnecessary L's as possible.

Support us below!

Portable Smartphone Laptop Side Mount Clips (3Pk)

Content on content on content? Yep... just in time for Friday!

Game after game is cool... let's just hope Square-Enix is moving at a... successful pace.

Square-Enix is going hard... and believe me when I say that we like what we're seeing, but as you see in the title image above... they may be pumping out content a little too fast (read on and i'll explain). Mobius Final Fantasy looks awesome and i'm glad that it has a different feel than Final Fantasy Exvius... because (the variety is a great thing but) we need time before a similar type of game gets released. Variety will cater to various gamers based on preference, but if they seek a maximum number of players for a release over a certain period of time... they should give it space on the runway to fly high (before another is approved for take off). I am not mad at this game's August 3rd (2016) release... and as long as they space things out (especially regarding genres), we are able to fully enjoy and appreciate a title versus rushing through it and skim playing instead of taking it all in.

Why would we care if Square-Enix moves at a successful pace? I'll put it like this... (hmmm) If they are stable and doing well then the company is fine and remains afloat. I don't see them going anywhere anytime soon, but with the right pace... droughts are hard to come by in terms of game releases. Some of you may have wondered why we've been delivering dose after dose of Square-Enix news... but that's because they've been sending us a lot of it. Anyway, check out the trailer below, and even if pace on releases is a good thing... I want this game... NOW.

In MOBIUS Final Fantasy... (created by the team known for FFVII & the pending remake) you take on the role of a dude who wakes up in a place called... Palamecia w/ no memory of his past and... in Square-Enix fashion he is tasked with bringing hope to the world by figuring out the mysterious prophecy surrounding the legendary warrior of light. It's a free-to-play game that fellow gamers in Japan have had the honor of enjoying in 2015 and now its our turn to indulge (soon). By the way... if you preregister for it (which costs NOTHING)... you will receive FFX themed items at launch. See the link below!

Like what you see? Register for the game here: http://www.na.square-enix.com/mobiusff

So what's been going on at SDGT Ent? Good question!

Blu is getting back to 100% while playing a good amount of Final Fantasy Brave Exvius in his down time and I've been playing some Rocket League.

Excuse the language, but... Scoring for the other team?!

Rocket League... Rocket League, these are things that sort of annoy me about the game... outside of missing the ball myself at times (ahhhh). I know its usually placement into matches where someone has bailed out, but have you ever tried to join a fresh game and you can't seem to get into one because you keep getting placed into these matches where your team is already being completely owned? There should be a box that we can select to "Join New Matches Only"... just like in Mario Kart, you aren't just dropped in a match (you are on standby until it ends). Granted that game is a bit different and drop ins keep the match flowing, but... at least the option of going in at the start of a new match will give the option of going that route so that you aren't joining a loosing battle (already in progress.

Also, I have no problem with noobs (everyone is a noob when they begin a new game...) but playing on a team with a noob or just a saboteur who is blocking shots of teammates and scoring for the opposite team... all the while replying "Sorry!"... #OMG that is incredibly annoying. 

Rocket League Tip: Playing matches with bots is best until one knows which goal to make it into.

Outside of in-game action, a Steam Link unboxing video and review of the hardware are coming soon... among several game reviews (and with many more to come after those) and of course... the 2nd DLC adventure will be reviewed for Just Cause 3 as well.

Before I go on to discuss Pokemon Go shenanigans... I just want to fill in all of the Agents here. A new elusive target has appeared on the radar, but... you won't have it as easy as before (even if those weren't 100% easy), because this time you will have to determine which target is the actual target. I'm not talking about strangers here, i'm talking about identical twins. What's the big deal? You can only kill one, and it has to be the right one (not to confuse that with one of them standing on the right) which is Dylan. 

Potential Tip: I wonder if there will be a slight difference to determine which is which, but we will have to get close enough to hear the right thing... in my opinion, in order to figure it out. That's the only approach I see that can actually shine light on a solution, perhaps one of them will call the other by name, or someone gives away Dylan's position. 

Pokemon GO: For Broke Edition?

To all the excited Pokemon GO trainers out there... both young and old, do yourself a huge favor and don't get caught up in the game to the point that you're driving with your eyes locked on the phone to see whether you're close enough to the next capture. Furthermore, watch where you're walking and even consider (strongly) where you're going to catch Pokemon because a game isn't as important as your life. The game doesn't know where you shouldn't go and put yourself in harms way and multiple people have been robbed already, like... (i'm not saying it was deserved but) seriously?!

It doesn't matter where you are, if you're so distracted that criminals can get the drop on you... (ummm) that's a bad thing. That's not to say that its a bad game... because they've captured the interest of a lot of people who aren't familiar with Pokemon at all... and these are adults. Based on the info provided to us by Rachel of N6A (thanks Rach'), shows a study down with nearly 2000 adults who give props to the app with 70% of them being happy that its helping them become more active. We usually don't like getting into numbers and stuff like that, so we won't be getting into the rest of the data... but we think its cool because no matter how you slice it, someone is being introduced to a game (which could be one of very few in their life) that is allowing them to enjoy something they probably thought was for kids or simply beyond their age group.

That deserves a ka-Ka-KA BOOM!

Now if you'll excuse me, I have pizza and cupcakes calling my name! Not literally or... i'd jump out an office window, but... you know what I mean. We're going to the store because ice cream just makes total sense (singing: "We're going on a trip... to get something yummy... pizza and cupcakes with some ice cream for our tummies!"). Game on!