PokeMoney, Overwatch, Tim Sweeney on Microsoft and Other #VideoGame News

This is a breakdown of some of the video game industry's top news stories of the day.

Pokemon GO, Overwatch, Battlefield and Epic Games' Tim Sweeney are all making the headlines and it's only Monday!

Everybody's Playing Pokemon GO. 

For the better part of the last 21 years, the trading card, video game and cartoon franchise has ebbed and flowed in terms of popularity. Last week's release of Pokemon GO on mobile devices signaled an all-time high for the Nintendo-licensed property.

So much so that reports indicate [AppleInsider.com] that the free app has generated over $7 billion in microtransaction sales through the Apple Store. Macquarie Capital Securities analyst David Gibson believes that with a likely 30-30-30-10 split between Apple, Niantic (the developer of GO), Pokemon and Nintendo, respectively, all companies involved are doing just fine.

Stock prices for Nintendo are dramatically up (trading at $27.59 in the NYSE as of this writing) since the release of GO but the sustainability of this trend is still unknown.

GameInformer is also reporting that a major security issue concerning Google account logins and the game has been corrected by Niantic and that that update has been pushed through the Apple Store.

And if you plan on cheating, GamesRadar indicates that an hour-long ban on players trying to trick the game's GPS may be in play. Cheat responsibily.

Overwatch Updates

Polygon is reporting that a few notable changes are being made to Blizzard's immensly popular Overwatch.

First off, a new character was announced this morning as part of a test patch available to members with access to the game's PTR program. The character, named Ana, is a support-class sniper who is reported to be the mother of current Overwatch character Pharah. Ana has ties to several other characters as well. For more on Ana, CLICK HERE.



In addition to Ana, designer Scott Mercer told Gamespot that players can expect other important updates including a one hero limit to the game's Competitive and Quick Play modes. Sudden Death will disappear in the near future as well, allowing matches to end with ties.

The popular characters D.Va and Zenyatta will get updates as well. D.Va's defense shield will be "speedier" and Zenyatta will see increases in speed and defense. 

 Tim Sweeney: Unloaded

In what can only be described as an incredible interview, Jimmy Thang of GameSpot sat down with Epic Games Co-Founder Tim Sweeney to discuss the good, the bad and the ugly of Microsoft, Oculus, Project Scorpio and a whole lot more.

It's a big (and important) read that you just need to see for yourself.

Do that by CLICKING HERE.

Required reading for gamers. Honestly.

Check Your Local Listings

Variety is reporting that Paramount Television and Anonymous Content have acquired the televison rights to EA Dice's Battlefield franchise. The two media companies are partnering to bring the shooter to the small screen.

Over 60 million have played the 11 Battlefield games which debuted in 2002, giving the companies a sizable potential viewership right out of the gate.

From Variety:

EA’s vice president Patrick O’Brien added, “[Executive Producer Michael Sugar of Anonymouse Content]'s track record speaks for itself. Combined with his passion for ‘Battlefield,’ we cannot imagine a better team than Anonymous Content and Paramount for this project.”

 A previous television treatment, the comedic Battlefield: Bad Company was not picked up by Fox in 2012.