Blizzard is attempting something extremely complex here, turning a $60 premium game with a large, active player base into a free-to-play game overnight.Įvery time I read about it I’m reminded of the time-lapse video of Shibuya Station that went viral around the world a few years ago, showing how engineers reconfigured two major train lines to connect them up on new platforms in the space of a single night, without any disruption to either the morning or evening train services. I’ve written before about how Overwatch 2 is, from a business perspective, the most interesting game of the year – a complete root and branch overhaul of the business model of a successful live service game masquerading as the launch of a sequel. And then there’s Overwatch 2.īlizzard is attempting something complex, turning a premium game with a large player base into a free-to-play game overnight There’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, which seems like a guaranteed blockbuster there’s Gotham Knights, which could really go either way (after the critical and commercial failure of Square Enix’ Avengers game, I don’t think any superhero title can be considered a slam dunk, with the possible exception of Sony’s Spider-Man series). Nintendo still has a strong holiday quarter on the cards, with Bayonetta 3 and Pokemon Scarlet / Violet giving it solid pitches at two very different parts of the Switch demographic, while Sony has a sure-fire hit in God of War Ragnarok in November.īeyond those platform exclusives, however, there are only a handful of big titles still slated for the upcoming months.

As the release slate of major games for the remainder of the year continues to thin out – the latest casualty being Ubisoft’s pirate-themed naval combat game Skull & Bones, which has slipped back to March – increased attention inevitably focuses on what’s left in the line-up.

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