Atari’s Video Game Hotels Just One Part of Larger Movement to Take Gamer Culture Mainstream

One of the themes of 2020, aside from social isolation and COVID-19, is how popular video games are.

And we’re not just talking about the actual gaming aspect of things, either.

From live streams to conventions to adaptations, gaming is growing into its own as a major media and cultural force. For some of us, this is a shift that is long overdue. Yet for the wider public, it’s like they’re discovering games for the first time.

That said, there is one brand name that is a touchstone for pretty much everyone (especially OG gamers) and that is Atari.

Atari has gone in and out of business more times than we care to count and they have had so many gaming iterations it is hard to keep up with at the end of the day. One constant that threads through all of this and that is that Atari, for a largely (marketable) cohort, means video games.

Perhaps that’s why the concept of an Atari-themed hotel chain is not that outlandish, particularly when you look at the growth of eSports, the Games Done Quick series, and Nintendo’s partnership with Universal Studios for Super Nintendo World.

With outlets opening in Phoenix, Chicago, Denver, Seattle, Austin, San Francisco, and San Jose, the Atari Hotels promise to offer guests a fully immersive gaming cultural experience with entertainment venues and game-themed bars and restaurants.

GSD Group’s Napoleon Smith, III, specifically cited nostalgia as one of the many forces that Atari hopes to tap into when guests arrive. The design aesthetic touted by the group so far shows off a retro 1980s look with nods towards gaming and cyberpunk motifs.

“It’s definitely a place for gamers, but it’s also for families. We always believe that a family that plays together stays together…We really want to bring some stuff that you only see in games to life.”

To that end, Atari hotels will come equipped for gaming and even events centered around gaming. That makes perfect sense seeing as how businesses that cater to gaming as a lifestyle are expected to post record growth numbers in the years to come.

“I think we [as a society] went too far digital in our entertainment, and now people are clamoring for something tactile, something that they can touch and be a part of…We want to see how much fun we can make one place for families and people who just want to feel that kid at heart that they’ve forgotten for a while. I think it’s kind of needed, especially after what we’ve gone through this past year.”

What do you think of the rise of eSports, films and shows about games, and destination locations like Super Nintendo World and the proposed Atari hotel? Let us know your thoughts on this in the comments section below if you like.

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With the PS5 Just Around the Corner, the Last-Gen PlayStation 4 Continues to Break Sales Records

We are mere days away from the launch of the PlayStation 5 but it seems like Sony’s old system can’t help but break sales records in the meantime.

That’s because the PlayStation 4 was recently named the most profitable video game console in history according to analysts. For those of us with some knowledge of the landscape of console gaming history, that’s no small feat.

Especially when you consider the Nintendo Wii and the phenomenon that it was, not to mention Sony’s own blockbuster PlayStation 2 (a console that still holds the reigns as the best-selling console of all time on a unit basis).

Resetera’s ArmGunar made the bold claim, Games Radar reports, claiming that the system has pulled in some $11.3 billion in profit since its launch all the way back in 2013.

To put that in perspective with some of Sony’s other consoles, that it three times as much as the PlayStation 1 and four times as much as the PlayStation 2. As for why the PS4 is likely pulling in more profit than the PS2 even though it sold more units, some people point to the emergence of a then-novel technology called DVD players that Sony included with each system. For Nintendo, ArmGunar estimates that the DS handheld brought in some $11.04 billion in profit over its life while the Wii pulled in $10.56 billion. The DS’s performance is particularly impressive given it did cost remarkably less than either of those systems, not to mention the fact that everyone thought the DS a failure shortly after launch. This same analyst does not expect the PS4 to surpass the PS2 in total units sold, however, especially with the next-generation consoles right on their way.

What makes all of this even more interesting is that so many analysts were quick to proclaim the death of console gaming not too long ago yet 2020 has proven to be a banner year for nearly everyone. If anything, the various gaming platforms on offer in the market seem to have embraced the media segmentation strategy that more traditional niches live movies and television are just now discovering. Basically, there’s more than enough of a market for video games for everyone. 

In fact, Sony and the PlayStation 4 have enjoyed a particularly successful 2020 as a slew of exclusive games, most of which have already been named modern classics by many, have helped keep the PS4 machine chugging along. Couple this with the backward compatibility promised by the PS5 and the the fourth installment could enjoy quite an interesting retirement.

Do you own a PlayStation 4? What do you think of it as a system? Are you a longtime Sony fan or did the fourth installment in the house of PlayStation bring you to the fold? How do you think the PS5 stacks up against Microsoft’s new machine? Let us know your thoughts on this story in the comments section.

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Microsoft’s Latest Earnings Boom Driven in Part by Video Games

To call 2020 a strange year might be somewhat of an understatement. With COVID-19 wreaking economic chaos across much of the globe, it is hard to believe that anyone is “doing well” from a revenue standpoint right now.

But there has been one boom during the world’s collective shut-in saga, and that is the video game industry. Not only is it posting record revenues and profits but also the current growth trajectory puts it on pace to displace more traditional titans of entertainment.

The only question is whether any of this will last once people are allowed to socialize again. Analysts with some history of hitting things right on the head when it comes to predicting the often wild ride that is the video games industry say that growth will not only continue but accelerate.

Perhaps that’s why Microsoft was more than happy to take a long-term bet on gaming way back in the Gates era with its Xbox. Now they’re reaping the profits of that foresight as Redmond’s latest earnings reports not only showed a significant contribution from its other “visionary” initiatives like cloud computing but also from its Xbox gaming division.

The company just reported $37.2 billion in revenue, beating Wall Street expectations of $35.8 billion, with video games surging forward to help bring home the bacon.

Microsoft’s director of investor relations Kyle Vikstrom told CNN Business, “Gaming is one of the largest and fastest-growing forms of entertainment in the world. We expect there to be more than $200 billion of revenue in this industry in 2021…We’re seeing a really great early response to the console that’s going to launch next quarter.”

Aside from the Xbox, Microsoft also owns Minecraft and recently acquired Bethesda, maker of The Elder Scrolls and Fallout along with id Software’s DOOM series. Interestingly, Bill Gates wanted to acquire DOOM’s makers back in the early days of PC gaming because it, at one point, was more widespread than the Windows operating system itself. It looks like the company has finally fulfilled that wish.

Moving on to the next generation with Sony, Microsoft is putting forth two visions for the future of gaming, the “budget” Xbox Series S and the high-end Xbox Series X. There are also rumors that the company is putting out feelers to Japanese publishing houses in the hope of acquiring them and adding to the growing stable of developers and IP that Redmond is amassing. Perhaps noting that Sony’s strategy of high-quality, triple-A exclusives helped secure it the lead in the last generation, Microsoft’s strategy makes sense if the company sees gaming as a major contributor to the bottom line going forward.

What do you think of Microsoft’s next-gen plans? Are you planning on picking up one of the company’s systems? How do they stack up against Sony’s PS5? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below if you like.

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PC Cheaters Causing Cross-Play Havoc in COD: Black Ops Cold War Beta

Maybe we just can’t have nice things after all?

That seems to be the hot take from a recent report that says cross-play on COD: Black Ops Cold War is being hampered by rampant cheating on the part of PC players. Of course, that makes sense since modding a console is a little bit more difficult. Nonetheless, the vaunted cross-play feature in Activision’s money-printing machine is apparently not worth it for console gamers right now and many are choosing to eschew play with their PC counterparts altogether in order to avoid this issue.

So much for being able to pit gamers from different platforms against one another, eh?

For those of you that aren’t first-person shooter aficionados, cheating in those games mainly involves things like an aimbot, no clipping, and other overlays that show you player locations. In the case of the first method, a player’s reticule will focus automatically on a kill shot area on opposing players while no clipping and telling you where everyone is located are pretty self-explanatory cheats. That’s definitely not meant to be an exhaustive list of the ways people cheat in these games but they are some of the most common by far.

What makes all of this even more hilarious is that the cheating is occurring during BETA testing for the game’s multiplayer.

Like this YouTube video so poignantly asks, “who cheats in beta?”

As far as some gamers are concerned, though, this is really just indicative of a much wider-spread problem that makes these games miserable to play for both console and PC gamers. Eurogamer reports that a search of the web already reveals numerous hacks for sale for Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War – a game that doesn’t come out until November 13. Eurogamer further reminds us that this problem also hit Warzone back in April and the plague of cheating on COD properties, in general, is a near-constant in the gaming press.

In the meantime, console gamers are simply turning off cross-play functions to avoid this issue. Not only is that a pragmatic solution, but it is also one that is easily implemented. But with the launch of the game right around the corner, some fans are wondering how smooth everything is going to be on day one if cheats are already this prevalent. And let’s not kid ourselves here. As much as gamers claim to enjoy the campaign, COD is one of those franchises that rises and falls on the success of its multiplayer. Hopefully Activision can work everything out between now and then.  

Do you play Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War multiplayer? Have you had issues with cross-play? Or have you encountered any cheaters from the PC side of things in other cross-play games? Let us know your thoughts on this in the comments section below. Also, before you leave, check out our other video game content here.

A Budget PC Build Guide – How to Get the Best Without Spending the Most

Becoming a member of the PC master race isn’t a very cheap proposition, but it’s one that many gamers hold dear in their hearts for one way or another. Whether you are trying to break free from the shackles of console gaming, want to customize your play with mods, or simply need the most bleeding-edge graphical capabilities out there, building your own PC is probably the most economically efficient way to go about this. But where to start, right? We’ve come up with some useful budget-friendly suggestions to help you build your own gaming PC just in time for some of this fall’s biggest titles. If you’ve wondered on what you should add to your PC, or you’re just curious about our suggestions, read on for tips on how to construct a great gaming PC in 2020 and beyond.

CPU

AMD Ryzen 3 3300X

Rocking four cores and eight threads, AMD’s Ryzen 3 3300X has a base clock of 3.8GHz and a turbo clock at 4.3GHz alongside an L3 Cache of 16MB, TDP at 65W, and 24 4.0 PCIe 4.0 lanes for pretty much all of the performance you could ever need for most games.

GPU

Nvidia GTX 1660 Super

Coming with 1,408 GPU Cores and a base clock of 1,530MHz (Boost Clock at 1,785MHz), the Nvidia GTX 1660 Super’s 5,027 GFLOPS, 6GB GDDR6 memory and 14 Gbps memory clock with a bandwidth of 336 GB/s compliment the AMD Ryzen 3 3300X’s performance well for crisp, clear 1080p gaming capabilities.

Motherboard

Asrock B550M-HDV

Motherboards don’t get enough love when it comes to the press around the latest PC gaming technology, but the Asrock B550M-HDV is not only an excellent all-around board but also adaptable for future upgrades and usage scenarios. In terms of performance, we have a B550 chipset  with memory coming in at 2x DIMM, 64GB, DDR4-4733 and one PCIe 4.9 x16 and one PCIe 3.0 x1 expansion slot. For video ports, we’ve got a D-Sub, DVI-D, HDMI and four USB 3.2 Gen 1 and two USB 2.0 outlets. Storage is provided via a M.2, 4x SATA and ethernet network connection.

Memory

Corsair Vegeance LPX 16GB (2x 8GB) DDR4-3200

When it comes to memory, it seems like you can never have enough. On top of that, you can really break the bank – if you don’t know what to look for in hardware. We think the Corsair Vegeance LPX 16GB is probably the best option for most gamers on a budget. As far as the performance goes, we’ve got capacity coming in at 16GB( 2x 8GB) with a speed of 3200MT/s and timings at 16-18-18-36. Power consumption comes in at a decent 1.35V. There is some wiggle room for overclocking and, because of that, we really think this represents one of the best values for the money on the market right now.

SSD

Intel 660p 1TB

A solid-state drive is a must-have for gaming PCs and this option from Intel checks off all of the right boxes with very few issues that could hold it back. That said, the drive does have some issues with slowing down as it nears capacity. Keeping some room available shouldn’t be too hard with 1TB of total storage.

Power

EVGA GD 500W 80+ Gold

Your power supply helps bring everything to life – literally – but it also potentially limits your options for the future if not chosen properly. For a great middle ground, we think the EVGA GD 500W 80+ Gold is great for most everything you’re going to need your gaming PC to do over the next couple of years. That said, it does limit your expansion options moving forward and you might want to look at something a little more powerful if you plan on making adjustments to your build anytime soon.

Casing

Phanteks P300 ATX Mid Tower Case

We love the Phanteks P300 ATX Mid Tower Case for its simple yet classic design and ample room for all of hardware listed above. Measuring 450x200x400mm (HxWxD) and weighing 6kg, the Phanteks P300 ATX is a mid-tower with motherboard capability for ATX, Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX and two 3.5″ internal, and two 2.5″ SSD drive bays. Rounding out the tower, we’ve got two USB 3.0 front ports as well as an audio port. To keep your system cool, we’ve got two 120/140mm on the front, two 120/140mm on the top, one 120mm on the rear with a max GPU length of 380mm.

When it comes to audio, the sky is the limit on how much you could spend on your speakers. That said, you could also spend a ton of money on headphones – especially if you want something high quality. In that regard, we can’t help but recommend the Sony WH-1000XM4. Universally considered the best headphones for gaming, this product from Sony cancels out ambient noise from the outside world and totally immerses you in the action. As you can probably already imagine, as a Sony product, it isn’t cheap. In fact, it’s going to set you back close to $300 depending on the retailer. Whether or not that is worth it to you or not depends on your situation but, for that money, there are some pretty competent sound systems out there, too. For cheaper alternatives, the Bose SoundSport Wireless comes in a thin, lightweight form factor while the Jabra Elite Active 75t is often cited as a great all-around set of headphones for gaming and other PC activities. There are more expensive options out there for headphones but we really think you start to have diminishing returns the more expensive a piece of gear gets. One advantage to headphones over speakers is that you can use them on more than just your PC. We recommend that you sit down and budget everything out and go from there since headphones could possibly put you over your budget if you want to go for the top-end models.

Microsoft Buys Bethesda in Surprise Next-Gen Power Move

The next-gen console wars are already underway and we don’t even have machines in our hands yet. Microsoft’s purchase of Bethesda was definitely a “shots fired” move for the gaming press but does it really matter in the large scheme of things? Well, it depends on how much you love Bethesda’s stable of games – among which include The Elder Scrolls, Fallout, and DOOM – as well as whether or not these will be Microsoft PC/Xbox exclusives moving forward.

In a post on their website title “Why Microsoft is a perfect fit,” Bethesda explains that the new ownership, “…allows us to make even better games going forward. Microsoft is an incredible partner and offers access to resources that will make us a better publisher and developer. We believe that means better games for you to play. Simply put – we believe that change is an important part of getting better. We believe in pushing ourselves to be better. To innovate. To grow.”

Of course, $7.5 billion in cash probably didn’t hurt things either. Nonetheless, Bethesda and Microsoft are casting this move as a natural evolution for both parties.

“[We] have a long history of working with Microsoft. Our companies share many of the same basic principles. We believe in a culture that values passion, quality, collaboration, and innovation. When I think back to the first time we decided to shift from being a PC-only developer and make Morrowind for the original Xbox, it was a move that countless people said would never work…nobody on consoles wanted a game that big and complex. But Microsoft believed in us and so did you. And now RPGs of all shapes and sizes are hugely successful on consoles.”

As many people are pointing out, this purchase doesn’t necessarily mean that Microsoft will limit Bethesda’s games to just its platforms. As with Minecraft, Microsoft could go with a broader route given the huge popularity of titles like The Elder Scrolls.

Looking forward, optimists also highlight that Microsoft’s deep pocketbooks could result in better games moving forward. We’re not going to name any specifics here but we’re sure any true Bethesda fan can name more than a couple of things they’d like to see change in the future.

The press release from Pete Hines did tease Starfield, the company’s big new mysterious IP, but it didn’t really divulge any information on one of the more anticipated titles rumored to be in development. Since we don’t really know much about that game in general, speculation as to whether or not it will be an Xbox exclusive is premature at this point.

Interestingly, Microsoft’s presser also mentioned Starfield:

“With unique investments in content, community, and the cloud, Microsoft’s gaming strategy differs from others by empowering people to play the games they want, with the people they want, anywhere they want. Games are the primary growth engine in gaming, and games are fueling new cloud-gaming services like Xbox Game Pass, which has reached a new milestone of over 15 million subscribers. With the addition of Bethesda, Microsoft will grow from 15 to 23 creative studio teams and will be adding Bethesda’s iconic franchises to Xbox Game Pass. This includes Microsoft’s intent to bring Bethesda’s future games into Xbox Game Pass the same day they launch on Xbox or PC, like Starfield, the highly anticipated, new space epic currently in development by Bethesda Game Studios.”

What do you think of Microsoft’s purchase of Bethesda? Do you play Bethesda’s games? Let us know your thoughts on this in the comments section below if you like.

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IKEA and ASUS Team Up for Custom Gaming Furniture

One of the fastest growing niches in the furniture and office equipment segment are those products that are tailored for and built according to a gamer’s needs.

That’s not really that shocking when you consider how fast eSports is growing as both a profession, hobby, and entertainment outlet. To capitalize on this newfound love for all things gaming, IKEA and ASUS’s gamer-focused subbrand Republic of Gamers are teaming up to develop a line of gaming furniture.

We’d expect it will combine Ikea’s sleek design and affordable price with features that gamers could use. As things stand now, we’ll have to use our imaginations as for what this partnership could potentially produce because both companies were mum on specifics only going so far as to say that this would be a new “ecosystem” of products according to PC Gamer. The furniture will be designed by ASUS Design Centre in Taipei and Shanghai where IKEA also has an outpost that will enable the companies to work together. Aside from making things that look compelling, the companies will also make sure that the furniture is optimized for gaming and performance particularly among the eSports set.

We won’t have to wait very long to see what these two companies design. The first products are slated for a release in February 2021 in the Chinese domestic market with an eventual global rollout occurring after that.

The only hurdle we could potentially see to this is that IKEA isn’t really the first name in gaming furniture but neither is ASUS for that matter. If they can get the word out there about these products, they could be a pretty big success but these just don’t come to mind when you think of durable gaming furniture, chairs, desks, and other accessories.

What do you think of IKEA and ASUS’s partnership? Would gaming furniture be something that you would be interested in buying? Why or why not? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

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What We Know About Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 30 Series

As much of the console world waits with bated breath for Sony and Microsoft’s new systems to drop this fall, Nvidia was kind enough to show us all what the future of PC gaming – and consoles – is going to look like in the future.

The GeForce RTX 30 Series promises to bring more of everything to users and, as Nvidia’s history has proven, it isn’t all marketing hype.

From Nvidia’s own marketing hype: “GeForce RTX 30 Series GPUs also feature several world firsts: they’re the first gaming-class graphics cards with up to 24GB of new, blazing-fast GDDR6X VRAM; they’re the first GPUs with HDMI 2.1, for 4K high refresh rate and 8K gaming; they’re the first discrete GPUs with support for the AV1 codec, enabling you to watch high-resolution streams using significantly less bandwidth; and our Founders Edition cards are the first with innovative dual axial flow through cooling solutions.

And of course, GeForce RTX 30 Series GPUs come packed with new technologies for esports competitors, livestreamers, creators, and gamers alike – NVIDIA Reflex reduces system latency, providing split-second PC gaming responsiveness; NVIDIA Broadcast turns any room into a home broadcast studio with AI-enhanced video and voice comms; updates to NVIDIA DLSS make 8K HDR gaming a reality on the GeForce RTX 3090 graphics card; and new NVIDIA Studio enhancements make creative applications run faster than ever before.”

NVIDIA also showed off their so-called Reflex tech that will help  “improve esports reaction time,” among other things. As anyone who follows eSports knows, that’s no small thing and lag can often mean the difference in many matches. The company also showed off a host of new streaming features to make it easier for gamers using NVIDIA tech to put their gameplay online. The company also demonstrated the NVIDIA Omniverse Machinima with Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord working the crowd.

NVIDIA Omniverse Machinima “gives you the power to remix, recreate, and redefine animated video game storytelling” the company claims. NVIDIA also displayed their next-gen ray tracing, DLSS, and discussed the RTX Ampere GPU. Of course, the marquee event of all of this talk was the demonstration of the next-gen games using this tech including Cyberpunk 2077.

All of this was capped off with a thorough introduction to the GeForce RTX 3080:

“Powered by the NVIDIA Ampere architecture, our second-generation of RTX, GeForce RTX 30 Series graphics cards deliver staggering rasterized, ray-traced, and AI-enhanced horsepower, giving you the performance to make your games more beautiful and realistic with maxed out settings.

GeForce RTX 30 Series GPUs power the next wave of amazing game titles, including Cyberpunk 2077, Fortnite with RTX, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Watch Dogs: Legion, and Minecraft with RTX for Windows 10. And they give competitive gamers the lightning response times needed to win in games like Valorant and Fortnite.”

What do you think about the GeForce RTX 30 Series? Did you watch the presentation? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

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DCFandome’s Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League Surprises Audiences

DCFandome was an event to remember this year even with all of the restrictions COVID-19 has placed on live events.

Of course, front and center for gamers were the new titles based upon DC Comics iconic properties and, in addition to a new Batman game, it looks like the media darlings that are better known as the Suicide Squad will also get a game. And it is coming from the same teams as those that have brought us the legendary Arkham titles. While most of us were surprised by this news, fans that have followed the Suicide Squad game and its development have waited since 2011 for something like this to finally become reality.

Back then there were rumors of an open-world, “violent” game based upon the Suicide Squad property and it looks like Kill the Justice League is set to be just that game.

Interestingly, this title will also be a continuation, lore-wise, of that established in the Arkham games. The trailer for the game introduced Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang, Deadshot, and Kingshark but it is expected that more characters will be introduced over time or after release as DLC.

One character that is unmentioned but that will be omnipresent is the city of Metropolis itself. Rocksteady’s own Sefton Hill called it the “fifth character” in the game.

“One thing we’re really excited about is bringing Metropolis to life. It’s really the fifth character in this game,” Venture Beat quotes Hill.

As for what the game is all about, Hill also outlined how it is about “supervillain empowerment” and providing gamers with a unique gameplay experience.

“Suicide Squad really spoke to us how fascinating these flawed characters are,” he explained.

In terms of the general outline of the story, it looks like DC villain Braniac is back to terrorize yet another set of people (not heroes in this case). As with the other game Rocksteady showed off, Gotham Knights, multiplayer cooperative gameplay will be a huge feature of Kill the Justice League but not a necessary one. In fact, during solo play, you will be given the option to switch between the four characters in real-time. This means that gamers will be tasked with mastering who is best for what situation and how to coordinate the Suicide Squad’s actions in the most optimal way. In other words, it sounds like an Arkham game with RPG elements…not too unlike the Gotham Knights game that was also revealed at DCFandome.

One marked difference between Gotham Knights and this game, however, is that Suicide Squad will be a next-gen only game. That’s probably indicated by its release date more than anything else: Sometime in 2022. By then, the current generation systems will be coasting on fumes and the next era will be well underway. How this will manifest itself in unique gameplay options remains to be seen but, given Rocksteady’s work with the Arkham games, this game could be more than hype.

What do you think? Does Kill the Justice League sound like something you’d like to buy? Let us know your thoughts on this in the comments section below.

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The Epic versus Apple Battle Ratchets Up in Intensity As Cupertino Terminates Fortnite Maker’s Dev Account

The war being waged by Epic on multiple fronts took a new turn on the Apple side of things when the iPhone maker decided to terminate the Fortnite company’s dev account. This comes on the heels of arguments by Epic that devs are “fleeing” Unreal Engine because of the potential impact of Apple’s actions against the company. All of this stems from Epic’s decision to go up against both Apple and Google for not allowing them to make their own in-app payments system for their popular Fortnite game. Naturally, such a system goes against both Apple and Google’s terms of service that stipulate that transactions need to be conducted through the user’s Google Play or Apple App Store account respectively.

A lawyer from firm Gibson Dunn, Richard Doren, representing Apple, noted that the actions taken by the company were in line with its user agreements and that all parties were aware of what would happen should Epic decide to take the actions it did.

“When Apple is dealing with an entity that is breaching its contracts, its practice is to terminate the accounts of all related parties. The reason Apple does this is so that it doesn’t become a shell game… The concern is that the misconduct will simply be transferred to another Epic entity,” he argued according to The Verge.

Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers did acknowledge the legitimacy of Epic’s claims about harming the Unreal Engine, but also noted the company’s own role in bringing about the entire case. After all, none of these actions were initiated by Apple unilaterally or without cause. Nor were they done by Google in such a manner. Both companies responded to Epic’s going it solo with a ban on Fortnite, but a ban on the Unreal Engine probably won’t stand.

The more recent news of Apple’s decision to ban Epic’s developer account does show an even further escalation in tensions between the two companies. That said, CNBC reports that a dev account associated with Unreal Engine remains active.

Of the move to ban Epic’s dev account, Apple released the following statement:

“We are disappointed that we have had to terminate the Epic Games account on the App Store. We have worked with the team at Epic Games for many years on their launches and releases. The court recommended that Epic comply with the App Store guidelines while their case moves forward, guidelines they’ve followed for the past decade until they created this situation. Epic has refused. Instead they repeatedly submit Fortnite updates designed to violate the guidelines of the App Store. This is not fair to all other developers on the App Store and is putting customers in the middle of their fight. We hope that we can work together again in the future, but unfortunately that is not possible today.”

A spokesperson for Epic told CNBC in response to Apple’s statement, “Apple is asking that Epic revert Fortnite to exclusively use Apple payments. Their proposal is an invitation for Epic to collude with Apple to maintain their monopoly over in-app payments on iOS, suppressing free market competition and inflating prices. As a matter of principle, we won’t participate in this scheme.”

Where do you stand on the Epic versus Apple (and Google) battle? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

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