Episode 147: Ubisoft in Crisis (Season 4 Premiere)

We’re back for Season 4! Good thing we’re not on HBO Max, amirite? The ghosts of Ubisoft’s failure to care for its employees are now haunting its financial performance. Also: Let’s talk about D&D and Hasbro’s huge, shortsighted missteps with the OGL, Epic has been slapped with a fine over Fortnite, Zenimax QA workers unionize, while Activision Blizzard moves to make things hard for workers at recently acquired Proletariat. You can support Virtual Economy’s growth via our Ko-Fi and also purchase Virtual Economy merchandise! TIME STAMPS [00:02:34] - Dungeons & Dragons Rolls a Critical Miss [00:23:13] - Ubisoft’s No Good, Very Bad Day [00:34:48] - A Pair of Fortnite Stories [00:48:47] - Investment Interlude [01:05:02] - Quick Hits [01:19:40] - Labor Report SOURCES Dungeons & Dragons’ New License Tightens Its Grip on Competition | Gizmodo Let’s Take A Minute To Talk About D&D’s Open Gaming License (OGL) | Noah Downs on Medium A Legal Perspective on the OGL | Chris Reid (@NYGameLawyer) on Twitter Paizo Announces System-Neutral Open RPG License | Paizo An Update on the Open Game License (OGL) Canceled D&D Beyond Subscriptions Forced Hasbro's Hand | Gizmodo UBISOFT STRENGTHENS STRATEGIC FOCUS… | Ubisoft Ubisoft Delays Skull And Bones, Cancels More Games, And Announces New Cuts | Kotaku Parents say game developer made ‘Fortnite’ as ‘addictive as possible’ | Washington Post Epic Games Fined by FTC in Children’s ‘Fortnite’ Privacy Case | Bloomberg Law Hasbro’s Wizards of the Coast Cancels Video Game Projects | Bloomberg (Paywall)  Playtika to lay off over 600 staff; studios at risk, three games canned | Mobilegamer.biz Microsoft game makers unionize after vote passes by "supermajority" | Axios Proletariat Workers Become Third Group of Activision Blizzard Workers to Form Union with Communications Workers of America | Communications Workers of America EVERYONE DESERVES A VOTE | Proletariat INVESTMENT INTERLUDE MICROSOFT/ACTIVISION BLIZZARD PHASE 2 MERGER INQUIRY | UK Competition Markets Authority UK regulator extends deadline for investigation into Microsoft's Activision Blizzard deal | Game Developer Exclusive: Microsoft, Activision back off aggressive claim in FTC case | Axios Microsoft Sued by Gamers Over $69 Billion Activision Deal (2) | Bloomberg Law Google, Nvidia Express Concerns to FTC About Microsoft’s Activision Deal | Bloomberg (Paywall) Yuga Labs Appoints Activision Blizzard President and COO Daniel Alegre as New CEO | Yuga Labs Jagex Acquires SCUM Developer Gamepires | Jagex NDREAMS ACQUIRES NEAR LIGHT | nDreams SkyBox Labs is joining NetEase Games | NetEase GEARBOX ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY ANNOUNCES ACQUISITION OF CAPTURED DIMENSIONS | Gearbox ATARI: OPENING OF THE FRIENDLY TENDER OFFER FOR ATARI SHARES | Atari MY.GAMES ANNOUNCES BUSINESS RESTRUCTURING AND DECISION TO CEASE OPERATIONS IN THE RUSSIAN MARKET | My.Games