Nintendo has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government, NetEase has reconsidered funding the studio of the creator of Yakuza, and there have been layoffs at Battlefield Studios—here are the main events in the gaming industry from the past weekend.
- Nintendo Corporation filed a lawsuit in the U.S. International Trade Court against the American government. The reason was the tariffs imposed last year by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. In its complaint, Nintendo called the tariffs illegal, stating that they incurred significant financial damage due to them. The corporation now demands the return of the money paid, with interest. Notably, at the end of February, the U.S. Supreme Court deemed Trump's tariffs unconstitutional and advised importers to seek compensation. Not only has Nintendo followed this advice, but so have more than a thousand other companies.
- In May, NetEase will cease funding Nagoshi Studio, which was opened in 2021 by the creator of the Yakuza series, Toshihiro Nagoshi. This was reported by representatives of NetEase in a comment to Bloomberg. The company did not elaborate on its decision, but some details surfaced through the publication's sources. It is claimed that NetEase reconsidered supporting Nagoshi Studio after learning that the completion of the studio's debut game, Gang of Dragon, would require spending at least another 7 billion yen or 44.4 million dollars. According to sources, Nagoshi Studio is attempting to find new investors but has so far been unsuccessful.
- Following Asha Sharma's appointment as the head of Xbox at Microsoft, an internal meeting focused on the future of the gaming division was held. During the meeting, CEO Satya Nadella assured employees that gaming remains one of the pillars of Microsoft's business, and the corporation plans to "always" invest in it. Currently, Microsoft aims to determine the future of gaming, but it is not planning to abandon console AAA games.
- Electronic Arts (EA) conducted layoffs in teams within Battlefield Studios. As EA explained to IGN, the layoffs were part of restructuring necessary for the better development of the Battlefield franchise. The number of people who lost their jobs was not specified. According to IGN, the layoffs affected studios Criterion Games, DICE, Ripple Effect, and Motive Studios.
- Slay the Spire 2 continues to grow its audience. According to SteamDB estimates, the game's peak concurrent players reached 574,638 over the weekend—a record-breaking number among roguelikes on Steam. Moreover, Slay the Spire 2 broke into the top 20 most popular games in the history of Steam, surpassing titles like Valheim, Call of Duty, and Terraria.
- The Dutch studio Square Glade Games shared new data on the wishlists for Outbound—a game about a journey in a mobile home. They reported that by March 8, the project had been added to over 1.3 million wishlists on Steam. The release of Outbound is set for April 23.