Skull and Bones)It’s a very big game, and we feel that people will really see how vast and complete that game is. It’s a really full, triple… quadruple-A game, that will deliver in the long run. – Yves Guillemot, CEO, Ubisoft

Hey there!

🎉 But we have so much more:

Spider-Man 2 will finally have New Game+.

This week-end we can play for free a demo for Homeworld 3, a trial for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and the open beta for Skull and Bones.

And Nintendo might actually do something about Palworld.

Now let’s play:

Welcome to The Power-Up #69

Game-Up

🕸️ Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is set to receive a significant update next month, including the much-anticipated New Game+, an array of new suits, and various upgrades starting March 7.

🌍 A demo for Homeworld 3 is now available on Steam, offering players a taste of its new War Games mode ahead of the game's release. But the full game release was delayed (again), to May 13. 

🔫 Activision unveils a free trial for Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3, offering access to new maps and the full Modern Warfare Zombies mode. The free trial runs from February 8 to 12.

🔪 Shift Up estimates that completing the main story of Stellar Blade will take around 25 hours, with a 100% completion requiring between 30 to 50 hours.

🥷 Ubisoft confirms Assassin's Creed Codename Red, set in feudal Japan, is slated for release before the end of March 2025, while Star Wars Outlaws is on track for a 2024 launch, as part of the publisher's robust lineup for the upcoming fiscal years.

☠️ Ubisoft has priced Skull & Bones at $70, labeling it a "quadruple-A game" due to its expansive scale, which justifies the premium model over a free-to-play approach. The game has an open beta available until February 11, allowing a free trial before its official release (February 16).

Round-Up

👾 Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa hints at taking action against IP infringement when questioned about Palworld, a game speculated to borrow from Pokemon. Palworld sold over 12 million copies.

🔫 Helldivers 2 faces mixed Steam reviews due to crashes linked to anti-cheat DRM and criticism over its Battle Passes, suggesting a pay-to-win model, despite a strong initial player count. Developer Arrowhead is working on resolving these issues amid concerns from players who enjoyed the original game.

🔧 Nexus Mods celebrates a landmark achievement of 10 billion downloads today, marking a significant contribution to the gaming community with mods for over 2,683 games from 128,361 mod authors.

Biz-Up

🤯 Disney acquires a $1.5 billion stake in Epic Games, initiating a partnership to develop a Fortnite-connected universe featuring Disney's extensive IP portfolio. This collaboration aims to create a dynamic, Unreal Engine-powered environment where users can interact with characters and settings from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars and Avatar.

⚔️ Tencent secures a controlling interest in Wangyuan Shengtang, the studio behind Swords of Legends, as part of a multi-pronged investment. Tencent now owns approximately 94% of Wangyuan. 

📈 Paradox Interactive's revenue surged by 34% in 2023, reaching SEK 2.6 billion ($248 million), despite a 3% dip in year-on-year profits, as the company attracted six million players and achieved record-breaking financial milestones.

📈 The MENA-3 (Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt) games market expanded to $1.92 billion in 2023, with a forecast to hit $2.65 billion by 2027. Gamer numbers in the region rose to 68.4 million in 2023, projected to grow to 79.6 million by 2027.

🤑 Krafton achieved a record $1.4 billion revenue in 2023, with 66% derived from mobile platforms, despite a slight decrease in mobile earnings. The company saw a significant 34.5% increase in mobile revenue in Q4.

💰 Stoke Games, co-founded by veterans from League of Legends and Multiversus, raises $5.5 million for a strategic, "shooter-adjacent" PvP game focusing on slower gameplay and strategic depth.

📈 U.S. consumer spending on video games reached $57.2 billion in 2023.  This increase is attributed to a surge in digital downloads and a strong year for game releases.

Industry Level-Up

😔 Visual Concepts Austin, the team behind WWE 2K23 and other titles, has experienced layoffs. The exact number of affected employees is unknown.

🤝 Chris Matthews joins 343 Industries as Studio Art Director, bringing a wealth of experience from working on titles like Forza Motorsport and Gears of War. This move comes after reports of a new Halo project in development.

🤝 Kadokawa Corporation acquires Octopath Traveler and Tenchu developer ACQUIRE from GungHo Online Entertainment.

That’s it for today. Thanks for reading. Stay powered-up until next time.

Bobby & Andrei