Your January 2018 gaming news roundup

After multiple reconnaissance missions, back-alley bribes, and a string of other unmentionable activities, we’ve managed to acquire all gaming intelligence that took place within the month of
January 2018. The list that follows contains all information our Lord Editor has deemed fit for public consumption.

If you feel there is something that needs to be addressed or lacking from this list, please let us know in the comments section below and we’ll be sure to deal with you… I mean, your issue.

There is a new Fable title on the horizon

The Fable games, of which there are three major titles, are third-person fantasy role-playing games (RPG) that take place in the fictional world of Albion. According to reports by Eurogamer, we can expect to see a new Fable title sometime in the unforeseeable future.

Since the studio that developed the original games, Lionhead Studios, closed down in April 2016, this new titles is rumoured to be developed by Playground Games, the same studio behind the Forza Horizon series.

These reports are based on “sources close to the project” according to Eurogamer, adding that “some 200 people” are set to work on the new title. Microsoft, the publisher behind the series, on the other hand has stated that it “does not comment on rumour or speculation”.

Fox is working on an Alien shooter

FoxNext Games, the video game-focused division of Fox, recently acquired Cold Iron Studios, which is set to work on a new PC and console shooter game based in the Alien universe.

According to a press-release by Fox, this move signals their “commitment to deliver AAA offerings across numerous fan favourite properties and original games”.

Aaron Loeb, President of Studios at FoxNext Games had this to say in a press-release: “I am a personal fan of Cold Iron’s previous work and all of us at FoxNext Games are thrilled to be working with them as they create an action-packed persistent world, steeped in the mysteries of this beloved Alien universe.”

Up until now, Sega owned the rights to develop Alien video gaming titles as part of a long-term publishing deal with 20th Century Fox, releasing titles such as Aliens vs. Predator, Aliens: Colonial Marines, and Alien: Isolation.

Cryptocurrency mining leads to worldwide graphics card shortages

Due to the rapidly growing international interest in cryptocurrency mining, consumers are seeing a massive spike in graphics cards prices, especially those falling under the AMD and Nvdia brands.

For those who aren’t familiar with this ordeal (because this is certainly an “ordeal” for us gamers), cryptocurrency miners are using the powerful chip processors in mid- to high-level graphics cards to power their thirsty rigs, which require immense computational power to operate efficiently.

While lower end cards have only been slightly affected by this situation, high-end cards have taken quite the hit, such as Nvidia’s GTX 1080’s price jumping from US$380 to over US$700 in less than a year.

Fortunately, Nvidia and AMD are calling out to retail partners to take measures that will help ensure their graphics cards get sold to gamers before the cryptominers get their greedy paws on it.

Theme Park Hospital getting spiritual successor

Two Point Hospital is a hospital sim being developed by Gary Carr and Mark Webley, two members of the original team at Bullfrog Studios that worked on Theme Park Hospital (1997).

With this title they aim to create a modern successor that will bring back the “humor, charm and replayability” of the 1997 classic. Sega is the publisher behind Two Point Hospital, which will be releasing for PC on Steam a little later this year.

“Gary and I have been talking about this project for a number of years and are really excited to be announcing Two Point Studios’ first game,” said Mark Webley in a press release, with co-founder Gary Carr adding: “The amazing team we have managed to bring together, and our partnership with Sega, has really allowed the first part of our vision to finally come to fruition.”

There might be a PUBG movie on the horizon

So nothing is set is stone and, if this even happens, it won’t be anytime soon. But it is true that PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds‘ (PUBG) CEO, Chan Han Kim, stated in an interview with Inven Global that he would love to see a PUBG movie become a reality [insert Battle Royale quip here – ed].

“I’d like PUBG to become a universal media franchise based on the game. We want to take part in diverse industries including esports, movies, drama, cartoons, animation, and more.”

He also added that “we received a couple of love calls from a number of developers in Hollywood and Netflix. Our dream is build a new game culture through various ways like this, and have the lead of that culture”.

PUBG reaches four million players on Xbox alone

We can’t deny, even if we might not like it, that PUBG is currently one of the most, if not the most, popular video games in the universe (although we have to admit that we have yet to receive any data on alien gaming habits).

Just to put this into perspective, earlier this month PUBG reached over a staggering four million players on Xbox alone. To celebrate this, the PUBG Corp. will be giving away 30 000 Battle Points as a reward. If you buy PUBG and create a character before January 31 at 02:00 CT, you will be eligible to potentially receive your share of the Battle Point pool.

We might see a Duke Nuke Movie starring John Cena

According to an article by the Hollywood Reporter, infamous WWE wrestler John Cena might be portraying the role of the iconic badass alien exterminator in a Duke Nukem movie adaptation.

The project will of course be spearheaded by the masters of big explosions and shallow storytelling (perfect for anything Duke Nukem), Michael Bay’s production company, Platinum Dunes, together with movie studio, Paramount Pictures, who now owns the rights to the Duke Nukem franchise.

At this stage, according to The Hollywood Reporter, no director or writer has been assigned to the project.

Another interesting to note is Jon St. John, the actor who voiced Duke in the original games, isn’t too crazy about the idea.

“Don’t let Hollywood and Michael Bay kill my character!” John posted on Facebook. “Video game movies that are not CG are generally not very good. An R rated CG would be the best way to
maintain the king’s character. I’ve been Duke since 1995 and would like it to stay that way. Please share and tweet this with me. We won’t let this happen!”