legal
Fortnite might not be back on Apple’s app store for five years – or longer
You know how kids' soccer teams line up after a match to give each other high-fives and "good games" in a show of sportsmanship?...
Diablo II Resurrected has begun preloading – here’s when it launches in your timezone
We're fast approaching the launch of Diablo II Resurrected, and Blizzard would really like everyone to focus on that instead of on its ballooning...
Activision-Blizzard is now being investigated by four state and federal regulators as its top legal VP departs
Yesterday, we covered the news that the US Securities and Exchange Commission is now investigating Activision-Blizzard in the wake of its ongoing sexual harassment...
The feds are now investigating Activision-Blizzard as the SEC subpoenas execs including Bobby Kotick
Early on in our coverage of the Activision-Blizzard sexual harassment and discrimination lawsuit scandal, we noted that the company's response took some ineffective swipes...
Global Chat: New World beta pleases some, fails to grab others
The buzz around MMO Town these days is on New World, and specifically, the open beta that wrapped up last week. So far, the...
MMO Business Roundup: Discord’s funding, Bungie’s lawsuit, and harassment in online gaming
Welcome back to another roundup of MMO and MMO-adjacent business news.
Discord: Investors love dumping money into Discord, and they're continuing the trend, as the...
Twitch unleashes a lawsuit against two alleged hate raid organizers
In August we reported on efforts by streamers to call attention to hate raiding and other forms of harassment targeting Black, POC, and LGBT+...
The Epic v. Apple ruling permanently stops Apple from blockading third-party purchasing
Happy Friday, and happy one more entry in the longrunning Epic-Apple feud, as today, the judge in the Epic v. Apple lawsuit, Yvonne Gonzalez-Rogers,...
Gamers’ class-action against Chronicles of Elyria studio proceeds, suit against Xsolla deferred
We now return you to the Chronicles of Elyria legal drama in progress. When we last left the story, the lawsuit levied against developer...
China’s new kid gaming time regulations are already causing industry trainwrecks
At the end of August, we noted that China was following through on its plan to set extreme limits on minors' gaming time -...
Star Citizen backer reports CIG to the UK Advertising Standards Agency over ship concept sales
Are you among those fed up that Star Citizen can sell concept ships -- internet spaceships that haven't even materialized in the game yet...
World of Warcraft removes references to former employees and removes the AoE cap in patch 9.1.5
The most immediate fallout of the ongoing Activision-Blizzard lawsuit has been the removal of numerous references to now-former employees directly named or implicated in...
Blizzard’s Mike Ybarra clarifies that Ion Hazzikostas is still running World of Warcraft
Ever since Bobby Kotick removed J. Allen Brack from his post atop Blizzard and replaced him with Mike Ybarra and Jen Oneal in the...
Blizzard offers piles of Hearthstone and World of Warcraft loot to boost subs
If you were among the gamers who thought it was a little thirsty of Blizzard to finally be dishing out long-wanted changes in World...
China now limits minors’ gaming time to three hours a week, indicates anti-monopoly policies are forthcoming
The Chinese government is introducing a significant crackdown on gaming for minors as state media has reported that children will only be allowed to...
The Game Archaeologist: Jeff Butler on EverQuest, EverQuest Next, and Vanguard
As an MMO historian, I have to applaud the work of former SOE developer Shawn Lord in his huge interview series with the people...
Overwatch’s McCree isn’t the only Blizzard character getting a rename
Yesterday, we reported on Blizzard's announcement that it'll be changing the name of Overwatch's character McCree, who was named after Jesse McCree, one of...
Don’t panic, but yes, Phantasy Star Online 2 added sunset provisions to its TOS
You might have noticed that this week's Phantasy Star Online 2 update came with a change to the end user license agreement. SEGA noted...
South Korea plans to abandon its 10-year-old ‘Cinderella law’ gaming curfew for kids
If you can stretch your brain back a decade, you might remember a flurry of articles in the western press about a gaming curfew...
California lawsuit now alleges Activision-Blizzard HR literally ‘shredded’ evidence
So who had "Activision-Blizzard gets caught shredding possible evidence in an ongoing lawsuit" on the ol' Blizzard scandal bingo card?
Yes, we're back to coverage...
