Capcom's Street Fighter V won't be the only game on display next week at San Diego Comic-Con.
Microsoft will hold a special Halo 5: Guardians panel during the pop culture show, according to the official event schedule. The panel is called "Hunt for the Truth: Following the Trail of the Halo 5: Guardians Story." It will be held Friday, July 10, at 10:15 AM PDT and will run for a period of one hour.
343 Industries developers and "special guests" will sit on the panel to talk about Halo 5's story.
"The panel will bring new insight into the mysteries surrounding the Master Chief and build connections between the stories that have been told so far, and sneak peeks of the stories yet to be told in game and beyond," reads a line from the panel's description.
Halo 5 launches October 27 exclusively for Xbox One. Microsoft recently announced a brand new, epic-scale multiplayer mode called Warzone. You can read our hands-on impressions here.
Monopoly is one of the most iconic board games ever, but it's still somewhat shocking to learn today that Hunger Games film studio Lionsgate and Hasbro have announced a movie based on it. Then again, a Tetris move is also in development, so basically anything that can happen in Hollywood will happen, it seems.
Andrew Niccol, who earned an Academy Award nomination for The Truman Show, will write the screenplay for the Monopoly movie. According to a press release, the movie will be a "big, crowd-pleasing event film" that should appeal to everyone who has played Monopoly.
Lionsgate goes on to say that the Monopoly movie will be "a film for all ages, visually sumptuous, heartwarming, and full of action and adventure."
The official plot synopsis is just the worst best:
"The story centers on a boy from Baltic Avenue who uses both Chance and Community in a quest to make his fortune, taking him on a fun, adventure-filled journey. It's about making your own luck, what makes you truly rich and, of course, avoiding Jail time!"
Hasbro claims Monopoly has been played by more than 1 billion people in 114 countries around the world.
My most vivid Monopoly memories are marathon games with my brothers, sisters, and cousins growing up. Things often got heated and I'm pretty sure I never won.
[UPDATE] The stream has now ended. Did you like what you saw? Let us know in the comments.
The original story is below.
Uncharted fans are in for a treat today, as Naughty Dog will release a 17-minute gameplay trailer for Uncharted 4: A Thief's End at 11 AM PDT / 2 PM EDT / 5 PM UK.
You'll be able to watch the video right here through the Twitch embed below.
Amazon appears to have a new discount program for Prime members. At least a few games are currently included, such as Batman: Arkham Knight for $50 (Xbox One/PS4), Elder Scrolls Online for $50 (Xbox One/PS4), Splatoon for $53, and The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D for $33. You won't see the lower price until you add the item to your cart and proceed to checkout.
Walmart is selling the Halo Master Chief Collection Xbox One bundle with a free second controller $349. You also get a free copy of Watch Dogs or Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, or you can pay a bit more to replace it with Need for Speed: Rivals - Complete Edition ($5), Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare ($20), or Batman: Arkham Knight ($30).
Microsoft's latest Deals With Gold promotion is on, discounting a handful of Xbox One and Xbox 360 games, such as Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare for $6.60, Tower of Guns for $9, and Peggle 2: Magical Masters Edition for $5. You can check out all the deals here.
The first episode of Telltale's Game of Thrones series is free on Xbox Live.
The new Humble Weekly Bundle is the latest in the Eye Candy series, featuring games like Where Is My Heart, Back to Bed, and The Dream Machine for just a few dollars.
Get 23 percent off your purchase at Green Man Gaming using the promo code GET23P-ERCENT-OFFGMG.
Target is offering a buy one, get one 50 percent off deal on several 3DS games: Mario Kart 7 ($30), New Super Mario Bros. 2 ($29.49), Super Smash Bros. ($40), and Super Mario 3D Land ($30).
There's a sale on Atlus games on the PlayStation Store this week, discounting primarily Vita and PS3 games. These include Persona 4 Golden for $15, Persona 3 Portable for $10, Persona 2: Innocent Sin for $10, and more.
HyperX Cloud II Gaming Headset for PC & PS4 - Gun Metal -- $84.53 (Amazon)
Amazon prices are accurate as of publishing, but can fluctuate occasionally throughout the day.
GameSpot's gaming deals posts always highlight the best deals we can find regardless of retailer. We also occasionally use retailer affiliate links, which means that purchasing goods through those links helps support all the great content (including the deals posts) you find for free here on the site.
Ubisoft announced its San Diego Comic-Con plans today, revealing that it is building another Assassin's Creed-themed obstacle course at the convention to promote the upcoming release of Assassin's Creed: Syndicate.
If you're going to Comic-Con, you have the chance to run through the course, which features several tasks evocative of moves and activities from the Assassin's Creed series. You'll run up a wall and swing and jump from a pendulum, among other tasks. The final activity has you complete one of the series' most iconic moves, the leap of faith. Participants will jump from a tower down to the ground to land on cushions.
This year's course is modeled after Syndicate's Victorian England setting, complete with a replica Big Ben tower. You can go try the course at Comic-Con next week from 10 AM to 6 PM from Thursday through Saturday and from 10 AM to 5 PM on Sunday.
Attendees can also try out Ubisoft's upcoming shooter The Division. Competitive multiplayer is playable at the Xbox Lounge.
The publisher is also holding two panels. The Assassin's Creed: Syndicate panel takes place next Friday from 2 to 3, and it will feature the voice actors of both main characters as well as the creative director of the game. An animated short will premiere during the panel. The Toy Soldiers: War Chest panel is on Thursday from 12 to 1 and will feature discussion about the inclusion of G.I. Joe and He-Man figures in the game.
Ahead of its release in November, Bethesda's post-apocalyptic role-playing game Fallout 4 is now available to preorder for Xbox One through the console itself, Microsoft announced today.
For a limited time, everyone who preorders Fallout 4 through their Xbox One will receive a free copy of Fallout 3 for Xbox 360. A code for the acclaimed 2008 RPG will be delivered to you in 7-10 days.
Fallout 3 will be playable on Xbox One by way of the console's new backward compatibility functionality when the feature launches this fall. If you're an Xbox One Preview Program member, however, you can start playing Fallout 3--and other Xbox 360 titles--on your Xbox One right away.
Batman: Arkham Knight publisher Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment had known about the issues plaguing the PC version for "months," but decided to focus on the console versions, according to purported inside sources.
Speaking to Kotaku under the conditions of anonymity, sources said to be familiar with the game's development said the publisher knew about the various bugs, glitches, framerate, and resolution issues for months in advance of its release.
"I will say that it's pretty rich for WB to act like they had no idea the game was in such a horrible state," said one unnamed quality assurance tester, which Kotaku claimed had worked on the game.
"It's been like this for months and all the problems we see now were the exact same, unchanged, almost a year ago."
The identity of these inside sources, and their claims, could not be verified at the time of going to press. GameSpot has contacted Warner Bros for comment and clarification.
According to the sources, Warner Bros. chose to ship the game because they believed it was good enough. Additionally, the source confirmed that principal developer Rocksteady Studios did not work on the PC version; porting duties was outsourced to Iron Galaxy Studios.
Difficulties developing on new consoles were cited as a major factor in shifting priorities away from the PC version. According to the source, Rocksteady found getting Batman: Arkham Knight to work on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One "impossible for months," which is why "the game got delayed so many times."
"[Rocksteady was] totally unprepared for how hard it was on next-gen consoles," the source stated.
Another source, said to be close to the game's production, said QA teams were told the consoles were "not nearly as easy to work with as [Rocksteady] expected," and were told to focus on finding console bugs. Of the roughly 100 people on the QA team, ten percent were focused on the PC version. This figure, along with all statements from the purported sources, could not be verified at the time of going to press.
Another source told Kotaku that Warner's internal QA team focused on bug-checking at 720p only, which might possibly explain the significant decline in performance at higher resolutions.
Other development issues highlighted by sources were the sprawling nature of the game's world and its many missions, which made testing the game a considerable task.
"We had some testers bugging more than 100 bugs per day [on console]. Devs would fix what they could but they were juggling that with actually finishing the game so they were insanely slow."
Additionally, Rocksteady didn't want the game's story details to leak, which is why PC testing companies were not used, as is the case in many other multi-platform development projects.
A statement laying out plans for ongoing support was also detailed, and the following statement was issued: "The work is significant and while we are making good progress on improving performance, it will take some time to ensure that we get the right fixes in place."
For the ful list of claims from the purported insiders, visit Kotaku.
WWE 2K16 will have the largest cast of playable wrestlers of any game in the series, boasting over 120 different characters.
The news comes by way of an Instagram post from developer Visual Concepts. In the post, the studio responded to doubts about its claim of having the largest roster ever in the upcoming WWE 2K16. The developer also noted that the number counts only unique wrestlers and does not include the variety of different models that some characters have.
In comparison, last year's WWE 2K15 had only 67 playable characters, meaning that the roster has nearly doubled for this year's game.
WWE 2K16 launches on October 27 for the Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 3. Which character do you want to play as in the game? Let us know in the comments.
These games will be available for free on Tuesday, July 7, replacing the existing set of freebies for June. If you haven't already downloaded June's games, you have until then to do so.
NaturalMotion's mobile racing game CSR Racing is getting a sequel, CSR2, the developer's parent company Zynga announced on Wednesday. The 2012 original, a free game that has seen more than 130 million downloads, offered strong visuals for the time. But the sequel goes even further.
The developer has shared the first CSR2 images and a video, captured in-game on an iPhone 6, and they do not disappoint. Take a look at the video and some images in the gallery below for a closer look. One thing to bear in mind, however, is that Zynga has not shared any actual gameplay footage just yet.
CSR2 is in development at NaturalMotion's London East studio. The team is made up of people who worked on esteemed racing franchises such as Forza, Need for Speed, Dirt, and Burnout.
"Their passion for cars is as strong as their desire to create the most beautiful and most authentic racing game possible," NaturalMotion CEO Torsten Reil said in a blog post. "Each car, down the stitching on the seats, is built without compromise to its real-world beauty, integrity, and authenticity."
As part of its drive for authenticity, NaturalMotion worked with vehicle manufacturers such as Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, and Pagani for the cars' exteriors and interiors. In terms of visuals, Reil says his team is using some of the "world's most advanced" shading and lighting techniques.
CSR2 isn't just about new visuals, however. The game also introduces a new drag race mode, though NaturalMotion isn't providing much in the way of specifics just yet.
"We're staying true to this core gameplay, and we are very excited to tell you about how we have innovated on it in the near future," Reil said.
CSR2 will be released in the coming weeks through a "soft launch" in select territories. During this time, NaturalMotion says it will listen to player feedback and tweak the game as needed before its global rollout later this year.
Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg has said the decision to move its timed-exclusivity deal for Call of Duty DLC from Microsoft to Sony was the "right decision."
Speaking to GameInformer, Hirshberg was asked if the potential impact the business decision could have on the eSports landscape was considered, given that Xbox has been the home of competitive Call of Duty thus far.
"Obviously, that matters," he replied. "The muscle memory is a deep, physical connection to the controller that you're used to."
He added, however, that Call of Duty has "been a cross-platform game the entire time."
"We've had great players on both platforms the entire time," he added, continuing on to say Sony's support of Destiny and the success of the PlayStation 4 was key in the decision.
"The partnership with Sony was the right decision at this time," he said. "They've been a great partner on Destiny, and they have a ton of momentum with the PS4 and really got behind this thing. They wanted to see that deal on their platform. We're going to make it work."
During Sony's E3 press conference Andrew House, Sony Computer Entertainment group CEO, said PlayStation 4 was the new home for Call of Duty. Along with the Black Ops 3 add-on content, it will also host a timed exclusive beta for the game.
House also claimed that the deal between Sony and Activision on Call of Duty will continue beyond Black Ops 3.
Adam Boyes, the PlayStation VP of Publisher & Developer Relations, also recently discussed the deal in an interview with GameSpot, saying he "fell in love instantly" with the game.
"As soon as I started playing it, I said, 'This feels incredible! You can wallride!' It's just so smooth; it's almost like poetic. And so obviously, we just continued talking with our partners at Activision and worked something out. And now we've got I think a great benefit to all the gamers."
"We need to do better in Europe," Spencer said in the latest issue of Edge, as reported by Videogamer. "When I look globally, mainland Europe is definitely an area we want to focus on."
According to Sony Europe boss Jim Ryan, the PS4 is currently enjoying a 70-90 percent marketshare in Europe. PlayStation consoles have historically sold better than Xbox in Europe, a trend that Spencer acknowledged in the interview.
"Sony does a really good job in those markets, and they have a long history--long before we were in this business--and they've earned the success that they get in those regions," he explained. "I watch what they do because they do a lot of good things, and I want to make sure that we're being smart about succeeding."
"It's good competition, which I think is good for everybody," Spencer said.
Compelling content sells hardware, and Spencer says he's pleased with the Xbox One's lineup.
"Content-wise, though, I'm excited about this Forza, I'm excited about Tomb Raider, I'm excited about the new Rare game, Sea Of Thieves," he explained. "And I think we can do more artful games that I have found resonate more. That's definitely a focus for us."
The Star Wars universe is massive, replete with all manner of intriguing locations, characters, and storylines that fans adore passionately. So, if you're DICE and you're designing the new Star Wars Battlefront, how do you decide what makes it into a single, standalone game?
We recently got the chance to speak with Battlefront senior producer Sigurlina Ingvarsdottir about that very subject. She explained that what you'll see in Battlefront represents the "absolute core" of the overall Star Wars universe.
"I wouldn't say that we've designed it by committee. We have a very strong, very competent design lead. But, basically, what we've taken is what to us is the core of Star Wars," she said. "Star Wars is so vast, there's so many things in Star Wars that are beloved by so many. And so they are hard choices.
"We selected what we felt was the absolute core of Star Wars. And people can then debate that endlessly whether this is more core than that. Or why do you have this and not this. We can't do everything, unfortunately."
With the exception of a new planet called Sullust, everything we've seen so far from Battlefront is immediately recognizable to Star Wars fans. Whether it's planets like Hoth or Endor, or characters like Darth Vader or Han Solo, it's clear that DICE has chosen some of Star Wars' most iconic elements.
Also in our interview, Ingvarsdottir discussed how Battlefront will be similar--and different--to DICE's most iconic franchise, Battlefield. Though Battlefront may borrow some elements from Battlefield, DICE wants fans to know that Battlefront is very much its own game.
"Battlefield is our heritage at DICE, and I think what's great for us is that we have a team that's a mixture of Battlefield veteran developers and developers like myself who have never worked on a Battlefield game," she explained. "So we have a mix of people.
"I don't think people would argue that DICE is the master of epic-scale and vehicular gameplay. And obviously that fits so well with what we're doing here [with Battlefront]. But at the same time, there are other aspects of Battlefield that...we've kind of taken some of the aspects of what made Battlefield great and added them into our game. And then we've gone in a very different direction on other aspects of it. We want Battlefront to be its own thing, have its own unique ID, and be its own unique experience. But of course there's a lot that people will recognize."
She concluded, "In a way, DICE is a premiere developer of FPS shooters, and obviously we bring such a great amount of experience and knowledge to the game."
Corey Marshall, the voice of Shenmue protagonist Ryo Hazuki, is returning for the recently announced third entry in the series.
"The support for Mr. Marshall to reprise his role as Ryo has been just overwhelming," developer Ys Net said on the Shenmue 3 Kickstarter page.
The developer has also announced backers that pledge $1,000 to the project can request a custom message from Ryo.
"Corey is as excited for Shenmue's return as we all are, and to help out, he has magnanimously offered his voice for a special reward," Ys says. "Do not miss this opportunity to get a very special message from Ryo himself. Maybe one those classic Ryo one-liners?"
Development is being handled by Ys Net, a studio founded by Suzuki in 2008. Assistance is being provided by Shibuya Productions, a Monaco-based company that produces and promotes animation, games and movies.
According to Suzuki, the game will be a "full-on Shenmue experience." He initially asked for $2 million in funding to start work on the project, but the project reached its funding goal within a few hours.
Suzuki has now switched his attention to promoting backer rewards, which allow him and his team to expand the scope of the game. At the time of writing it has raised more than $3,700,000, with 16 days to go.
Take a look at some of the artwork for the game in the gallery below.
Just like last year, Grand Theft Auto V's online mode, Grand Theft Auto Online, will celebrate the 4th of July with various in-game promotions and events, developer Rockstar Games announced on Wednesday.
First, stores across Los Santos and Blaine County will offer all manner of Independence Day-themed items, including a monster truck called The Liberator and a Sovereign motorcycle.
Players can also purchase a Firework Rocketlauncher and ammo, as well as a variety of red-white-and-blue gear such as hats, t-shirts, masks, and more.
To make things even sweeter, all 4th of July items are available at a 25 percent discount.
What's more, players can earn double GTA$ through the special Independence Day Online event playlist. This features "patriotic-themed" GTA Online Jobs. Get a sneak peek at these Jobs by clicking through the links below.
People who buy Street Fighter V may be happy to learn that, unlike past entries in the series, Capcom will not make players buy another disc to get additional characters down the road. In an interview with Eventhubs, Capcom's Matt Dahlgren talked at length about DLC for the game and how it will be delivered.
"We have paid attention to the way that we've managed things with Street Fighter IV, and we will be mixing things up this time around," he explained. "This is the only disc you're ever going to need to own to get all of the content in the game, but we'll be revealing details of how our post-launch content happens at a later date, but it will be good news."
To be clear, it's likely that Capcom will offer extra characters/costumes/etc. down the road as paid DLC. But Dahlgren is saying Capcom will not require players to buy another disc to get this extra content.
Also in the interview, Dahlgren was asked about Street Fighter V's roster size at launch early next year. As you might expect, he didn't give away specifics, but did say that the lineup will grow over time.
"We're not revealing the total roster count just yet," he explained. "What we can say is that we're putting a strong focus on making sure that every character put into the game is very unique and has their own individuality. We want to start off with a core roster which will be inviting to new players. When you start off with a gigantic roster right off the bat, it can be pretty daunting for new players to figure out where to start."
He also said that Capcom has plans to support Street Fighter V with new characters for a long time in the future; some of the game's roster will include characters new to the series, he teased.
"This is a franchise we expect to support for many years to come, but we will start with a very strong core roster," Dahlgren said. "If you looked at how we handled Street Fighter IV, it was the dominant fighting game of that generation of consoles, we're expecting the same from Street Fighter V, so we are thinking long term."
Online multiplayer is currently undergoing beta testing, but "major issues" were discovered during this period, Team Ninja said in a blog post. As a result, an update to the game that will add online play has been delayed indefinitely.
"We apologize for the last minute notification and regret deeply the trouble we have caused our Steam customers who were looking forward to the online functionality," Team Ninja said. "We will update the website with a new release date as soon as it is set."
Team Ninja went on to say that it will continue to offer the the beta version of Dead or Alive 5 Last Round featuring online play. However, for those who tried the beta and discovered game-breaking bugs, Team Ninja has also published step-by-step instructions for how to revert back to the offline-only version.
"We sincerely apologize for this inconvenience and thank you for your understanding," the developer said.
Dead or Alive 5 Last Round originally launched for last- and current-generation consoles in February. Problems for those versions were reported right away, too, as players quickly discovered a game-breaking bug.
Sony has released a new PlayStation 4 system update, but don't expect any new features or services.
PS4 System Update 2.55 is a mandatory update that should improve system software stability, according to its official description (via NeoGAF). Check out the one-line update notes below.
The most recent major PS4 patch, 2.5, was released at the end of March. It delivered a host of new features, including the Suspend/Resume mode, 60FPS remote play, verified accounts, and more.
What new features would you like to see come to PS4? Let us know in the comments below.
One recent trend in gaming has been remasters. Everyone seems to be doing them. But not Activision, at least not yet. In a new interview with Game Informer, Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg outlined his opinion on remasters, and teased that the company has thought about it for Call of Duty.
"If done well, I think [remasters] can be great," Hirshberg said. "You talk about nostalgia, and people have such connection to the games they love from the last cycle. They want to see what it would look like if someone did it right for this cycle."
Hirshberg went on to say that the decision ultimately comes down to assessing the "opportunity cost." That is, Activision wouldn't want to work on such projects if it jeopardized the development of new games.
"We need every body we can get to make the content we're already committed to for our new games," he said. "It's always a matter of finding great people to do that work. I would love to play Modern Warfare 1 or the original Black Ops [or new consoles]. There's certainly a deep well there. No announcements, but it's something we talk about and think about a lot."
What Call of Duty game would you like to see remastered for new consoles? My vote is Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Nintendo of America exec Reggie Fils-Aime, has discussed the backlash against Metroid Prime: Federation Force, saying the company needs to reinvent franchises to propel them forward.
"What the fan at home saw was something in the Metroid Prime universe that they weren't expecting," he said. "The reaction has been negative. There's no sugar coating it."
Fils-Aime added, however, this may have been different if people got to play the game instead of just seeing it in a video.
"This is an example where fans who aren't able to get their hands on the game may be at a bit of a competitive disadvantage," he said.
"Everyone who has played what we are showing regarding [Freedom Force], they've come across really pleased. My ask is that fans trust us."
Continuing, Fils-Aime indicated that reinventing games in the way Nintendo has with Metroid Prime: Freedom Force and The Legend of Zelda: Triforce Heroes--another take on a classic franchise revealed at E3 2015--is necessary in maintaining the health of the franchise.
"We believe that in order to propel the franchises forward, we have to be the ones to constanty challenge the paradigms, challenge the conventional wisdom, challenge what we thought was the essence of the particular franchise, and a particular form of gameplay."
"The reaction has been negative. There's no sugar coating it."
Metroid Prime: Federation Force is being developed by Next Level Games, creator of Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon, with Metroid Prime series producer Kensuke Tanabe overseeing the project. Unlike previous entries in the series, which focus on isolation and exploration, the game is a co-operative shooter with a chibi visual style.
Federation Force will also feature Blast Ball, a 3v3 competitive game where teams compete to shoot a large ball into a goal. Both games are reminiscent of Metroid Prime Hunters, the first-person Nintendo DS game from 2006.
Fils-Aime also previously said Nintendo knows what Metroid fans want, but "will also push the envelope in developing something that we know is high-quality and that we know will deliver in the marketplace."
He went on to draw a comparison to The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, which also received backlash from fans complaining about its cel-shaded visual style.
"Remember when that art style was first shown. The uproar from the Zelda community was intensely negative. If there had been social media then, there probably would have been a petition to make that game go away."
The game is scheduled for release in 2016. Nintendo has not clarified whether there's a single-player component, or if Federation Force and Blast Ball are multiplayer experiences only.
Ahead of Dark Souls III's release in 2016, developer From Software has announced that the entire franchise has now shipped around 8.5 million copies across its previous installments.
The new figure comes by way of a recent presentation attended by Japanese video game publication Famitsu. According to the slide you can see below, the 2011 original Dark Souls (including sales of the Artorias of the Abyss version) have reached more than 5.6 million units sold.
Add it all up and the entire Dark Souls franchise has shifted more than 8.5 million units globally. This figure, of course, does not include sales of From Software's other popular games, Demon's Souls and Bloodborne.
Nintendo has announced it is redesigning the Miiverse to "make communicating about the games you're playing more enjoyable than ever."
The redesign is scheduled for summer 2015, and will include a number of new features including a screenshot album, a play journal, and a general visual refresh.
A breakdown of all the changes and new features can be found below.
Your Screenshot Album
Saving your screenshots in this album will be so easy, you'll build up a collection of memories from the games you love in no time.
You can save up to 100 screenshots in this album.
This album is your own private space. It won't be visible to other users.
Your Play Journal
Keep a record of your own unique gaming experiences by writing journal entries about games as you play them! Creating a Play Journal entry will be as simple as opening Miiverse during gameplay.
Each Play Journal entry will include a screenshot that shows what was happening in the game when it was written. Only software titles that don't support the taking of screenshots will be exempt from this rule.
A New Look for Communities
In the main community for each game, posts will be categorized to make browsing them easier and more fun.
Play Journal Entries: Here you'll find everyone's Play Journal entries for the game. Try to find people who are at the same part of the game as you are or who are playing the game in interesting ways!
Drawings: In this section, you'll be able to see all the artwork other users have created about the game, in order of popularity. This should make it even easier to find great artists to follow. You won't be able to post handwritten posts to the Play Journal Entries or Discussions sections.
Discussions: If you want to ask questions or start conversations about the game, this'll be the perfect place for you to be. Remember, tags on posts make it easy to find other people who want to talk about the same stuff you do.
Other Changes
Other changes noted by Nintendo include the removal of posting to your activity feed, as the Play Journal feature is means to be a replacement for this. Additionally, Nintendo plans to loosen its restrictions on posting in quick succession, allowing users to post a total of 30 posts or comments per day. In-game posts are not included in this total.
Nintendo has made efforts to improve the Miiverse's functionality and accessibility since launch. Unlike when it debuted on the Wii U, the pseudo-social network for Nintendo fans can now be accessed through mobile devices and browsers.
Battlefield 4's Community Test Environment (CTE) will launch on the Xbox One on July 6, developer DICE has announced.
As previously detailed, CTE allows DICE test new improvements and changes to the game with the help of PC players, it announced today.
Plans to bring CTE to consoles were first revealed in May 2014, but from July 6 Battlefield 4 Premium members on Xbox One who are also part of Microsoft's preview program will be able to download a standalone Battlefield 4 client specifically for testing changes and new content.
"With continued Battlefield 4 developmental support, [CTE] will allow us to iterate on more daring and experimental changes directly affecting Xbox One players," DICE explained. "As a player in the CTE, you will be able to provide your feedback and influence the future of Battlefield 4."
"The type of updates on the CTE on Xbox One will be bigger and less frequent than on PC. However, you can still expect regular updates, tests, and prototypes."
According to DICE, it plans to use CTE to test "new maps, weapons, features, and tweaks."
"The type of updates on the CTE on Xbox One will be bigger and less frequent than on PC," it added.
Battlefield 4 was released in October 2013 on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC, and arrived on the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 at their respective launches in November.
As a result of its many serious issues--crashes and lag, in particular, made the game unplayable at times. Updates have been delivered in the following months seeking to deal with lag, crashes, sound issues, matchmaking problems, a one-hit kill bug, and a variety of other issues.
Persona 4: Dancing All Night will be available in Europe in Fall 2015, publisher NIS America has announced.
Traditionally, Persona games launch in Europe a number of months after their Japanese and North American counterparts, but the story-driven music game will be available around the same time.
As previously revealed, NIS America will be releasing a limited "Disco Fever Edition" in Europe, along with the standard physical and digital versions. Details on what's included in the Disco Fever Edition can be found below.
Two Discs Chock Full of Persona 4 Music Remixes: Hear the Persona 4: Dancing All Night soundtrack in all its glory! The two-disc CD set is full of original classics including "Pursuing My True Self," and "Shadow World," new song arrangements including "Heartbeat, Heartbreak" and "Your Affection," remixes by artists including Lotus Juice, TK, and Yuu Miyake, and completely new songs specifically composed for P4D!
Last Night a Vita Pouch Saved My Life: Protect your PS Vita in this custom P4D enameled pouch with a full color P4D design featuring Teddie in all his Elvis-esque jumpsuit glory on one side, and an embossed version of the P4D logo on the reverse. Not for sale in North America, the "Disco Fever" edition is the only way to get the exquisitely detailed pouch.
Cover Band: Preserve the sanctity of the PS Vita's display with a form-fitting skin to show off the very essence of P4D! (The skin is designed to fit the most recent model of PS Vita).
All About that Bear: Never lose your keys or whatever else again with a golden Teddie keychain. Exclusive to North America, the gold (not real gold, of course) keychain comes embossed in the visage of all of Teddie's gloriousness, based on the belt buckle design on his P4D jumpsuit!
The Whole Package: All the items will come in a large collectible box with custom disco ball art (based on the Japanese Crazy Value Pack version of P4D).
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GameSpot reached out to several LCS team owners for their thoughts on the situation and to obtain accounts of any dealings they may have had with the current Renegades co-owner.
Several of those owners have provided GameSpot with statements or interviews regarding their own interactions with Badawi, their thoughts on the ruling, or the conversations around poaching, compensation, and player agency that have sprung up as a result of Badawi and Renegades' responses.
In an interview with GameSpot, Team Solomid owner Andy "Reginald" Dinh alleged that Badawi attempted to hire TSM management and coaching staff before approaching current TSM mid-laner Soren "Bjergsen" Bjerg.
A representative from Team Impulse has provided GameSpot with a written statement regarding the ruling. In it, TiP expressed support for the ruling by Riot Games and claimed that Badawi was provided the same assistance and support given to other team owners, but that Badawi had "constant ulterior motive-driven actions."
When asked for comment on the allegations and statements above, Riot Games provided GameSpot with the following statement:
"During the course of the investigation we heard numerous credible allegations about Chris Badawi from a number of teams and players. We investigated all of them thoroughly, but ultimately couldn't find enough evidence to definitively prove or disprove them. We hold ourselves to a very high burden of proof when investigating allegations, and in these cases felt that there wasn't enough non-anecdotal evidence to justify applying penalties. The punishment we handed down was only for the cases where we felt that we had eliminated reasonable doubt."
GameSpot has reached out to Chris Badawi for comment and will update this article when one has been provided.
(Update- 12:10 AM)
Chris Badawi has provided GameSpot with a statement in response to the accusations levied against him:
"This collection of assertions comes as a complete surprise – I am bewildered and quite puzzled. I'll work with Travis to address these point by point at a later date. Since I was only notified an hour prior to their release (I believe this is the industry standard) I will need to actually read these statements prior to doing so. It's hard for me to make sense out of all of this, except to say this seems like a strange and personal outburst painting me in an extraordinarily bad light without evidence of any kind. I'll just finish by asking everyone to keep in mind that I actually haven't poached anyone, and that whatever it is we are all about to read you take with a grain of salt."
Winterfox owner Brian Cordry has alleged that Renegades co-owner Chris Badawi offered to pull Renegades mid-laner Alex Ich from competing for TDK in the 2015 Spring Promotion Tournament if financial compensation was provided by Winterfox. It is possible that doing so would have prevented TDK from fielding a full roster, thus resulting in their forfeiture from the tournament.
In a statement sent to GameSpot following the banning of Chris Badawi from the LCS last week, Cordry recounts his conversation with the Renegades co-owner and Riot Esports' reaction when Cordry approached them about the offer.
Cordry's statement is as follows:
"I first met Chris Badawi online, via a mutual friend who helped us share contacts in early February, while Badawi was still working with Team Liquid. I was notified that Badawi was looking to form his own team and that he was potentially interested in buying out the contract of one of my players. After some email exchanges, we decided mutually that the trade wasn't in either of our best interest. Badawi was both professional and friendly, very clearly a charismatic guy that I felt had good motives. Besides a follow-up email shortly after, I didn't have any more contact with Badawi until the relegation tournament came around.
Winterfox had just chosen to play against Team Dragon Knights as our relegation opponents, when I saw a report on a rumor that Narakyle would be replaced by Alex Ich for the relegation tournament. I was shocked and somewhat dismayed by this report – we had chosen TDK at least partially based on the fact that Narakyle had an exceptionally bad performance against NME. Alex Ich would be a massive upgrade, but we were already locked into our choice. I looked to reach out to Badawi immediately via email for confirmation on this rumor. Our next conversations were all via Skype, and typically via voice rather than text chat. As such, my experiences with Badawi are all unsubstantiated – I don't have proof of them. It's also worth noting that as this conversation happened months ago and as I have no recording of it, it's possible that some of the details have been lost to time. Here is my best memory of it, though:
Our voice call started out innocently enough – I was simply calling to verify that Alex Ich would be subbing for TDK in the promotional tournament. However, instead of a confirmation, Badawi told me that he (representing Alex, as his team owner and contract holder) and TDK were still in talks. He seemed genuinely concerned that we didn't know that Alex was potentially substituting. He told me that he had instructed Alex to tell Pobelter that he could be possibly subbing, while they were on the analyst desk together the week before. Unfortunately, Pobelter hadn't relayed this information, so the team didn't know before we made the decision. I was frustrated but understanding, and Badawi expressed his sympathy that we had selected without full information, which he ensured had not been his intention. But instead of letting the conversation end, Badawi continued it. He told me that he wasn't letting Alex sub for TDK because he wanted to knock Winterfox out of the LCS, but because they were going to pay Alex. Alex would remain on Misfits regardless of TDK making the LCS, but this wasn't something he could turn down, as he had a family to feed (which I understood completely). Badawi again mentioned that the deal wasn't finalized with TDK, and that it was possible that he could call it off.
At this point, it became clear to me where the conversation was leading, and why we were speaking via voice rather than text, and I was very apprehensive. I asked Badawi what would make him refuse to finalize the agreement with TDK; he told me that as it was strictly a business decision without commitments to benefit Alex, that if Alex were to get offered more money to not play, that would be the wiser decision. Again, I pressed him – was he referring specifically to me offering him money to not play? He confirmed that conclusion could be a possible option. At this point I stopped him; I told him that I didn't think what he was implying (he hadn't actually voiced the idea himself yet) was legal, and I was very uncertain if it would be ethical. He comforted me on the former – as an ex-lawyer who was consulting lawyers of his own, he was confident this would be a legal move. Alex wasn't contracted to TDK, he was contracted to Badawi, who had the option to rent out his services. He once more reminded me that it was strictly a business decision for Alex – he had a family to feed. Badawi was very good at portraying this as a positive, something that would benefit both myself and Alex. Taking him at his word on the legality of this option, I told him that I was still uncertain this would be something that would be moral or in line with Riot's rules. I asked him what would happen to TDK if I took him up on this – would they just forfeit? Yes, they would be unable to field a roster, so they would likely forfeit. It would essentially be a buy-in back into the LCS for my team. I asked him what kind of money he was talking about. He told me that he had been advised not to give a number, but if I made a good offer, something like double what TDK was offering him, he would take it. Badawi headed off what I'm sure he presumed would be a concern of mine, stating that he wouldn't be taking any of the money, it would all be going directly to Alex and his family. I told him that I needed to talk to Riot and see if they would be okay with something like this. We ended the call and I looked to reach out to Riot immediately.
While I tried to get a hold of a member of the Riot esports team to speak with, I mulled over the offer. Badawi was VERY good at making everything seem kosher; although it didn't really sit right with me morally, it was a huge temptation. Knowing the publicity and financial support that is gained from being in the LCS, and knowing what we would "lose" by dropping out, from a business standpoint, it would make sense to take an offer like this. I was worried that something like this would resound poorly with the community, and would also instill a feeling in my players that I didn't believe that they could beat TDK with Alex Ich, which wasn't true. Ultimately, I was against the idea, but I wanted to run it by Riot before I made a final decision. I got ahold of a member of the esports team and explained the situation to him. I went into as much detail as I could about my conversation with Badawi, but just as now, I could not provide proof as it was all via voice chat.
He was in utter disbelief – it felt like he didn't want to believe what I was saying could have actually transpired – which was enough of an affirmation that Riot would not be okay with a situation like this. But he hammered it home clearly enough for me with a statement that if what I was saying was true, and if I accepted an offer like this, and there was proof of it, then myself, Chris Badawi, and Alex Ich would face massive punishments, most likely permanent bans from any activity in the LCS whatsoever. I asked the Rioter if there would be any repercussions for having the conversation with Badawi; he informed me that they would question Badawi about it, but as there was no proof of the conversation, there would likely not be (unless Badawi corroborated my story). As I finished the conversation with the Rioter, I noticed I'd received a written message from Badawi: he told me that upon further reflection, he didn't think "it" would be in line with Riot's rules. I confirmed that I'd just gotten off the call with Riot and that his reflection (and my earlier trepidation) were correct – this was far out of line. I thanked Badawi, wished him and Alex luck, and we went our separate ways.
I do not believe that Riot took any action against Badawi for our conversation, as it was an unsubstantiated claim that I made. I thought about going public with the story immediately, but decided against it. In my conversation with the Rioter, he advised that it would be best to just focus on winning, which I ultimately agreed with. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be – Alex played fantastically and helped TDK defeat our team to knock us out. I spoke privately with some friends and advisers about the incident and they all suggested I go public, and I did consider it. But at this point I decided it was far too late to out a story like this – it would look fabricated, or at the very least, like we were massive sore losers. I rationalized in my head that Badawi was likely just looking out for the well-being of Alex like he told me he was at the time. I even had further, positive interactions with Badawi: we had a very professional, above-the-table talk about an investor that was interested in acquiring WFX's NACS spot. He's nice, he's complimentary, he's persuasive, he seems like a very genuinely good guy. It wasn't until I started hearing that other owners such as Steve from Team Liquid were having run-ins with him that I started lamenting not talking to anyone. When Travis Gafford approached me, it seemed like a good opportunity to share this experience.
I'd like to close with some clarifications and reinforcements of things I've said. First, I have no proof of this, other than Badawi's written admittance that upon his reflection, "it" wouldn't be in line with Riot's rules. I never had any contact whatsoever with Alex Ich in any part of this matter (I considered reaching out to him but decided it would be futile) – it's entirely possible, and was noted by Riot, that Badawi might not have had the jurisdiction to even bring something like this up or represent Alex in this way. I didn't bring this up with anyone outside of the Rioter I spoke with and a few friends, and I have no reason to believe that Misfit's manager Rob nor new co-owner Montecristo (and potentially even Alex Ich) knew about this interaction. Badawi was exceptional at using careful language to make the critical words come out of my mouth rather than his, and to make me believe that such a violation of competitive integrity could be okay. As such, I believe that Riot was justified in their ruling against him."
Speaking to GameSpot, Team Gravity General Manager Jake Fyfe claimed that Renegades co-owner Chris Badawi attempted to influence their roster during conversations around acquiring an ownership stake in the team. Fyfe also believes Badawi implied to him that he was planning on acquiring Diego "Quas" Ruiz from Team Liquid and attempted to approach Johnny "Altec" Ru while the player was under contract.
Fyfe's statement is as follows:
"Back when Chris first entered into our lives, he was trying to buy equity off Gravity. He wanted 50 percent. Every weekend he would come into the LCS lounge and pull me aside and try to convince me about all the big things he had for Gravity. He pretty much tried to get into my head to convince Davis [Editor's Note: Davis Vague, Gravity Owner] to sell equity. He was also trying to convince me to do really weird things. For example, early into the split, he wanted Saint to be coach. Then he wanted to throw Thinkcard in as jungler [Fyfe later clarified with GameSpot that it might have been current Renegades jungler Crumbz, not Thinkcard]. He was thinking about roster changes before he even bought equity. He was trying to switch a lot of our team dynamic up.
Anyway, after Davis formally declined him, he began calling me up and saying he was working with Loco [Yoonsup "Locodoco" Choi, TSM coach]. Then one day he called and he said he got backstabbed by everyone. He didn't understand why. He thinks everyone is out to get him.
He did mention very early on to me that he's making a team with Keith, Crumbz, Alex Ich, and this was really early on. This was before Keith subbed for Piglet in the spring.
Further down the road, I caught up with him when TDK [Team Dragon Knights] got in since he had minor ownership of TDK. He asked me if I wanted to catch up and he called me while I was at the airport. He was talking about Quas.
This is the exact sentence he used: "Yeah, if Quas is still on the team…" I was asking about how individual members of his roster was doing, and he claimed RF Legendary was a weak point. That was when he made his off-handed remarks about Quas for top-lane. He didn't say he was poaching Quas, but he indirectly hinted that he was going to go for him.
Additionally, he contacted Altec while under contract with Winterfox to scrim with an early iteration of Misfits. He never explicitly asked Altec to join, but just to scrim. I believe that this was an attempt to poach him if he agreed to start scrimming with him.
When we talk on voice [chat], you get a very deep understanding of how he works. Everything he says you feel like there's an ulterior motive and nothing is genuine. He's very good at cleaning up his tracks, and is always pushing to meet in person or chat over voice where nothing can be logged."
Earlier today, a representative from Team Impulse provided GameSpot with a written statement regarding the recent ruling around Renegades co-owner Chris Badawi. In it, TiP expresses support for the ruling by Riot Games and claims that Badawi was provided the same assistance and support given to other team owners, but that Badawi had "constant ulterior motive-driven actions."
Team Impulse's statement is as follows:
"Team Impulse stands behind Riot's ruling on Chris Badawi. It's very important in this stage of eSports to set and standardize fair rules & regulations for team owners in their perspective organizations. These competitive rulings made by Riot are not for their own benefit. What would LCS look like for players, fans and teams if regular misconduct was allowed with no consequences?
In January, Team Impulse was going through re-branding and new ownership while transitioning from LMQ. When a new organization wants to enter eSports, the majority of team owners are eager to provide advice, introduction to sponsors and a general friendly helping hand; this is because it will help the industry grow. Riot Games provides constant support to new organizations entering the LCS to make this transition as smooth as possible.
Team Impulse management was going through similar things as RNG. One player was left on the team (XWX/Crumbz) and the rest had to be acquired somehow along with a brand/logo, reputation/image, gaming house, operational structure. During this time, TiP's new management learned many things about how the industry operates by working openly and honestly with Riot Games and other team owners in the space.
In regards to Chris Badawi, TiP has witnessed his entrance to the scene and participated in some of the conversations happening since January with various organizations. There was never an immediate dislike of him among other teams and owners. He was given the same advice, mentorship, introductions, guidance and support by Riot & other organizations. The main difference here is the constant ulterior motive-driven actions he had while using Riot and teams by claiming this was "for the greater good" and "always for the players." Chris has never approached TiP regarding players or trading of any kind so Impulse cannot give judgement or evidence here.
Once again, Team Impulse stands behind Riot Games and their ruling on Chris Badawi. We appreciate Riot's diligence and attention to detail while investigating this individual and are proud to be part of the LCS. We hope that these rulings from Riot will stay consistent in order to preserve the fair trading, ethics and professionalism necessary to run a League like this."
Cloud9 owner Jack Etienne has responded to the Chris Badawi ruling last week. Speaking to GameSpot, Etienne alleges that Badawi approached Cloud9 Tempest player David "Yusui" Bloomquist who was not under contract at the time. However, Etienne does claim that Badawi also approached C9T player Anthony "Hard" Barkhovtsev who was under contract with Cloud9.
Etienne's statement is as follows:
"Initially I wanted to avoid getting involved in this discussion because I thought Riot's stance was fair and the punishment was correct. To me, it was a done deal. However, with the continued debate regarding the matter I felt that sharing my experiences was the right thing to do.
Over the last few months Chris has contacted two of my players that I'm aware of. The first was Yusui who was not under contract at the time so there are no issues with that specifically. However, in that conversation with Yusui, Chris told Yusui that he is working with Locodoco to build a team and at that point in time Locodoco was definitely under contract with TSM. It concerned me that Chris was claiming to be working with Locodoco as the boundaries had definitely crossed if that was the case.
The second C9 player that was contacted by Chris, that I'm aware of, is Hard. This player was under contract with C9 and Chris did not have approval from C9 to speak with Hard. To make matters worse Hard is a minor and during his conversation with Hard Chris asked him for information that is confidential. It's just straight up wrong that he was asking this information from a minor. Additionally, Hard asked Chris if he had permission from C9 to talk to him about his contract and Chris directly said, "No. I do not have permission to talk with you. But I would rather talk with you first to find out where you stand."
That sentence right there—the way he phrased that is specifically why the poaching rules are in place. He's trying to go around a contract he knows is in place, to talk to my players, to get confidential information from them before he ever approaches me.
Esports is maturing every year and the owners being brought into the LCS are higher and higher caliber. And I really applaud Riot working hard to foster this maturation process of LCS owners and I feel that Chris currently doesn't have what it takes to be an LCS owner given the two experiences I've had with him and the other stories that have come to light."
Last week, Riot Games announced that Chris Badawi, Co-owner of LCS team Team Dragon Knights and CS team Renegades, would be banned from holding an LCS organization position until 2017 following his attempted poaching of both Yuri "Keith" Jew and Diego "Quas" Ruiz from Team Liquid.
Shortly thereafter, separate statements were made by newly announced co-owner of Renegades Christopher "MonteCristo" Mykles as well as Chris Badawi. Both posts expressed concerns with the possible lack of information made available to professional League of Legends players when an outside entity is interested in obtaining the player from their current organization. Additional conversations within the community also arose regarding the current state of player compensation based on previous comments made by Badawi.
GameSpot recently sat down with Team Liquid Co-owner Steve "LiQuiD112" Arhancet to discuss his previous interactions with Badawi, the ruling, and the new conversation around player and organization relationships.
GameSpot: It is my understanding that you spoke with Chris Badawi originally about coming in as the potential owner of Curse Academy. Can you please provide a summary of how you two became involved?
Steve Arhancet: So let me start off by explaining the Curse Academy sale process. When Curse Academy was potentially being sold pending their entrance into the LCS, my first goal was to create a marketplace of potential buyers. I got to about 20 potential interested buyers and I set it up so people submitted blind bids and had to go through a quick check to make sure they were accredited buyers.
I narrowed it down between Davis [Editor's Note: Davis Vague, current Team Gravity owner] and Chris Badawi and it got to a point where the bid got to a certain price. And rather than have them bid against each other and go for the max price, I capped it. I said, "This is going to be the sales price." And you're both around this number. Now it's going to be whomever I think is going to be best for the team.
So I spoke with both of them and asked them about their careers, their background, what they planned on doing with the team, their approach, management philosophies, all these sorts of things. And I also asked them about their plans for the roster. Would they change it? What would happen to the players? How would they be taken care of? At the time, it was an assignment of their contracts. That meant that I could build in the responsibilities of the new owner into their current contract so they would have to take over those responsibilities. So that way I made sure the players would be well taken care of.
If I can't sell him Curse Academy, maybe I can help him out.
During that evaluation process, I then had Riot speak with both owners to do the background check. After the process finished, I made the final decision to go with Davis, for various reasons – however the most impactful being that Chris was considering kicking players immediately from the roster once the team contracts were assigned and he was granted the LCS spot. After that happened, Chris was very insistent on still owning a team, being involved in esports, and I saw this as an opportunity. Here's a guy who's very personable, charismatic, extremely nice, well-funded, has the resources to take care of a team. Why not help him out and help him build an esports team? If I can't sell him Curse Academy, maybe I can help him out.
So I brought him under Team Liquid. He moved over to where the house was. He stayed at a hotel and I had him work very closely with Jokasteve [Steve Perino, General Manager for Team Liquid]. He met all of our players. We brought him to LCS under Team Liquid. I introduced him to other team owners. I introduced him to Riot. And I kind of endorsed him, in a way, by saying hey—here's a guy that lost the bid to Curse Academy. But he's very interested in building an esports team and so I helped him establish his footing in the esports space.
About two weeks after that period, we decided to separate ways. I said, "Look. I don't think you have a long-term career under Team Liquid. I think you're going to go own a team. I wish you the best. I really helped you out. Good luck." And that was how I felt good about bringing someone into the industry that I thought was going to be beneficial to the space. And obviously now, I'm sorely mistaken. But that's basically how the relationship started.
When he published his statement about how things went down between you regarding the Keith and Quas situation, he alleged that he approached Keith out of ignorance. He also claimed his conversations with Quas were as a friend, with no plans to encourage him to exercise his buyout or recruit him until his contract was over. Do you feel those statements are true?
Based on all of the conversations that I had with Chris, and the lack of conversation that he had directly with me, and knowing what situation he was in when trying to form a team, I think he straight up used this perception that owners are mistreating their players to advance his own agenda in creating his own esports team. He had contracted Alex Ich and Crumbz, and he needed three more players. I mean, it's as simple as that. In order for him to form a team, he wanted to go out and try and get the best players that he could. To do so, he went to where he probably knew best: all the people I introduced him to. All the networks that I created for him. He obviously knew I contracted these players. He knew the rules of the LCS. The contract dates are on the lolesports website.
He's flat out lying to the community and people are believing him.
He fully knew what he was doing. He's just using this perception that there's a mistreatment of players as a free license to do whatever he wants in the space. And I don't find that acceptable. He's flat out lying to the community and people are believing him. He doesn't have the players' self-interests at heart. He has the interest of building his own esports team and competing at the highest level. Great! Fine! Do that.
But do it how everyone else would build a team. Find players. Contact owners if you're interested in them. Work out deals. If you have all this money to spend to do these sorts of things, do it in the right way. I just don't approve of someone that was endorsed by me, personally, and used those relationships, in full knowledge that I'd made such investments into these athletes and their careers by providing salaries, food, travel, benefits, coaching analysts, staff support, and undermine all of that in his own self interest of making a team. And using this perception as a free license. It's deplorable behavior, in my opinion.
To be clear, you're saying he had full understanding of how the rules and the process worked when he approached Keith and Quas, and then he just deliberately ignored the rules?
I mean he definitely broke the rules. He's playing kind of stupid. He's playing the ignorant card. And then once he was informed by me and Riot that this behavior was not acceptable, he did it again in hopes of not getting caught and trying to cover himself up. His dishonest, full intention of breaking the rules to serve his own personal self-interest of building a team is not healthy. And it's not someone that deserves to be involved in our industry. And I find his behavior just dishonest and really self-serving and selfish.
You've been involved in several high profile buyouts and sells. How does that usually work? What do you think of the conversation that started around players being informed about potential offers?
Just to establish my credibility in regards to player management, trades, contracts, agreements, the challenger and LCS scenes and tampering/poaching stuff, I have managed Team Curse, Team Lol Pro, Curse Academy, Team Curse EU, Team Curse Australia since 2011. I have personally done contracts with over 55 individual players specifically just to League of Legends. I've done trades and acquisitions and contracts with high profile players. I've worked with even current ones that you're probably aware of—Flaresz to NME, Cruiser, Thinkcard to CLG Black, LOD to Team Coast, even Mancloud, who was under contract. I just terminated his contract so he could do whatever he wanted. I have successfully worked with close to 55 individual players and have had no glaring issues with these organizations I've worked with. CLG, Dignitas, TSM, Gravity, NME—even TDK.
Chris Badawi and how he has engaged and been so dishonest with me and manipulative—this is my first time in my whole career of doing this that I have been so shocked by someone's character and malicious intent to undermine those around him to serve his own self-interest of getting into LCS at any cost. And using some moral high ground to be a free license for his behavior. I have more experience in player negotiation and organizational contracts and trades than probably any other LCS owner in North America.
Keith recently practiced with TSM
There's been multiple organizations that are interested in Keith. A few LCS teams. TSM is one of them. And those owners approached me. Keith plays for Team Liquid Academy. He's one of the cornerstone players on that team. However, this is a huge opportunity for him to play in LCS. I'm not going to hold him back from doing that. I would expect that the organization that's acquiring that contract—whether I sign it or terminate my contract with Keith and they sign a new contract with him—that there's some kind of fair compensation being provided to me for maybe his travel, housing and overall investment I've made. Kind of the base cost to the acquiring organization. And it also depends when it happens. Is it a week before he has to play in the Challenger Series qualifiers? Or is it during an off-season chance where we have five months before we play next? The timing is also critical.
So I factor all those things in and I've always come to some agreement with the organization. Sometimes, they'll ask me if they can do try-outs. Sure. Can we talk to the player? Sure. Go ahead. Here are my conditions. Just please let me know if you end up wanting this player. Talk to me and we'll work out all the paperwork. And I can have him moved over. Or you can come pick him up from the gaming house.
So, in every single case where an organization has been interested in one of my players, I've cooperated with that organization and did my best to do what was in that player's best interests. And if it's not to move the player to the other organization and it's maybe to stay under Team Liquid Academy, that's up to the player. I need to create an environment and structure and a level of compensation that competes with whatever is coming in.
And sometimes those events establish a new market rate for what players should be compensated. So it's a healthy approach to making sure that players are being compensated at the right market value and it's being done in a very professional manner. I don't agree with withholding information from players when an opportunity is presented to them. I think that's kind of bullshit.
Some people allege that you've been involved in transactions in the past that have bordered or in some cases crossed the border of poaching. What do you think of these accusations?
Quas was contracted by GGLA previously
The one that I've seen the most on reddit has been references to Quas in an alleged poaching. So just to put out exactly what happened and all of that…
Right around the time after playoffs—it was the time when the internet went down in the middle of LCS finals -- I put out this tryouts video. If you're interested in joining Curse and you're challenger, and you meet these requirements, please reach out to me. Send me an email. And I put together a list of two thousand players that had emailed us. We did visual screening tests and knowledge testing to figure it out.
So Quas initially contacted us through that process and once we found out he was interested and he was contracted to GGLA, I made contact with GGLA under Curse. And we came up with an arrangement to buy out his contract. We wired a substantial amount of money to GGLA and then Quas was released from his contract and we contracted him.
I know that a lot of the players from the GGLA house... I know there was a tweet from Bischu. I have no idea what the conversation was between GGLA management and those players. I feel bad that the players felt that way. And I think GGLA knew that this was a very big opportunity for Quas and they were fairly compensated for the contract that they had with the player.
What do you think of the community reaction to the ruling around Chris Badawi? Many feel as though the one-year ban on him is a little extreme given the precedence that had been set previously with poaching. What do you think about the ruling around him?
Ruling aside, this is Riot's league. I don't own it. They do. They dictate the severity. They dictate the rules, penalties and how they want to form a league. I don't really have an opinion on that ruling.
All I can say is, personally, I do not think Chris Badawi is the kind of person that you want as an owner in LCS. I think he is one of the most charming, charismatic and personable people you will ever meet. And I felt bamboozled by him in a lot of ways. Once I established trust with him, he used that against me to advance his position. Some people may say that's just business. People are going to fuck you over and try to get close to you and take everything you have. I just have personally never worked with someone like that or ran into someone like that. And I don't think that's healthy for our emerging industry.
Montecristo, Renegade's new co-owner, has said that he feels the poaching rules favor organizations over players. Badawi has been quoted by the Daily Dot saying that "players get fucked." What do you think of these opinions?
Are there organizations out there that mistreat their players or don't fairly compensate their players? Sure. I'm absolutely sure there are a few of them.
I have absolutely provided a market value rate for those players.
To Chris's point, I think there are esports organizations that are not fairly treating their players. But to make a wide statement that also insinuates that Team Liquid is part of that group is complete bullshit. Not only have I been a player at one time, I have done everything that I could to provide fair and reasonable salaries to the players. Compensation, meaning base salary, tournament prize money, sponsorship income, benefits, healthcare, vision, 401k. It's the environment that they're in. Housing, living situation, food, cook. It's also the staff you provide for them—analysts, coaches, contracted staff. Travel subsidies. So all of these things make up their total compensation package.
Not only have I been one of the first organizations to make my players employees, I also feel like I have absolutely provided a market value rate for those players.
It's really tough to determine what is the proper compensation for a player. It's probably going to change every six or twelve months. You just don't know. What happens if some collective bargaining agreement happens next week in LCS? Or what happens if most of the top teams get sponsorships with Adidas and Coke? Of course that money trickles down to the players. I have always done as much as I could within my parameters and my budget. So for Chris to insinuate that Team Liquid is not providing fair compensation, as a license to act unethically in his own self-interests—just shame on you, Chris.
Anything that you wanted to add?
We are in a fast growing, emerging industry that I hope continues its trajectory. In order for that to happen, we need owners that are professional, that run good organizations for fostering healthy athletes that are competing at the highest level and being fairly compensated and taken care of. And I hope that, from all of this, if there's something that does emerge—it's a focus for current and prospective owners to play by a certain ethical and professional standard.
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