Image: Firewalk Studios, Sony / Firewalk Studios / Kotaku, Blizzard, Boss Key / PlayStation / Epic / Kotaku, Nintendo / Kotaku, Sony / Kotaku, Capcom / Kotaku, Screenshot: Nintendo / Kotaku, Microsoft, Photo: Michael Tullberg (Getty Images)
FThe biggest story of the week was probably the announcement that Sony was shutting down Concord, its big, expensive, long-in-development hero shooter, just two weeks after its disappointing launch. We’ve got the details on the original announcement, as well as reactions from across the internet.
In other news, rumors about Nintendo’s successor to the Switch are swirling, Sony sorta confirms leaked design images for a PS5 Pro, and disgraced streamer Dr Disrespect touts his return. All these stories and more are yours for the reading.
New data shows that Resident Evil 7, which was recently ported to iOS devices, was purchased and downloaded by less than 2,000 players, yet another example of big games failing to succeed on Apple’s powerful portable devices.
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Capcom’s fantastic survival horror sequel Resident Evil 7—originally released in 2017—launched on iOS earlier this month for $20. It’s the latest big console game to arrive on iOS devices as part of Apple’s ongoing push to get more AAA titles running natively on iPhones and iPads. Last year, Resident Evil Village and the Resident Evil 4 remake arrived on iOS. While they were playable and impressive, they were pretty awful ways to play such great games due to poor performance and crappy touch controls. And it seems players agree that these aren’t great versions of these games, as data shows that these ports are likely flopping hard on iOS.
As reported on July 16 by MobileGamer.biz, data seems to indicate that RE7′s iOS port, which launched on July 2, has only made Capcom around $28,000 via 2,000 people paying for the full game after downloading the free demo.
Other AAA iPhone ports have also failed to find much success on the App Store. As previously reported by the outlet in June, data indicates that after a month only 3,000 people had purchased Assassin’s Creed Mirage, even though its free trial version had been downloaded over 120,000 times.
2023’s Resident Evil 4 remake did a bit better after six months on the market. It was downloaded 357,000 times with data indicating that around 7,000 people paid the $30 to unlock the full game. Resident Evil Village, on the other hand, did horribly on iOS. In about the same amount of time, only around 5,700 people paid $15 to play Village on their iPhone or iPad.
Why AAA games are flopping on iPhone
So what’s happening here? Well, I think the higher price points for these AAA ports are scaring away a lot of mobile players who are used to free games. But I think the bigger issue is that these aren’t the kind of games people want to play on their phones in 2024. I love Assassin’s Creed Mirage. It’s a wonderful return to the stealth-focused gameplay and smaller worlds of older AC games, while still feeling modern and fun to play. Good shit! But I have zero desire to play that game on a tiny iPhone with a cumbersome controller attached or via terrible touchscreen buttons.
Capcom / TapGameplay
These AAA games were designed to be played for hours and hours, often in a comfy chair or couch, with a controller or keyboard and a big screen. And that’s just not the experience you get with a phone. The best mobile games are pick-up-and-play. Things you can open up, have a bit of fun with, and then drop a few seconds later because your bus arrived or your game finished installing on Xbox.
iPhones will for sure get more powerful and be able to run even more AAA games at high framerates and resolutions in the future. That’s a fact. But I’m not sold on any of these games finding success on the App Store because they just aren’t what most people want to play on their mobile devices.
So now the question is, with Capcom and other publishers not making money on these ports, how long before Apple stops (probably, this hasn’t been confirmed) funding them and all these AAA games stop arriving on iOS? How long before Apple tosses in the towel on gaming once more? We shall see…
Image: Capcom / Remedy / Devolver Digital / Kotaku
It’s nearly Halloween, so it’s once again time for Valve to throw a big ol’ spooky-themed Steam sale. And this year there are plenty of great deals on new and old games, most of which are scary and perfect to play on Halloween night. Also…
Horror Game You’ve Never Heard Of Is Scientifically The Scariest Ever
BOO! Did I scare you? Probably not. Let me try again. *Clears throat* We live in a rapidly declining civilization that is being destroyed by powerful corporations and dangerously disruptive technology that will, quicker than most people realize, make it nearly impossible for folks to earn a living and live a comfortable life. Scared? Well, I can’t stop all of that but I can help you save a few bucks for the future with some of the best deals currently available via Steam’s “Scream: The Revenge” Sale.
Check out our list below for some highlights, and don’t wait too long to grab some of these creepy classics, as the Halloween sale ends November 2.
7 Days To Die $6 – ($25)
Alan Wake – $3.75 ($15)
Batman Arkham Knight – $4 ($20)
The Callisto Protocol – $24 ($60)
Cult of the Lamb – $15 ($25)
Darkest Dungeon – $5 ($25)
Days Gone – $17 ($50)
Dead By Daylight – $8 ($20)
Dead Space remake – $36 ($60)
Dredge – $19 ($25)
Project Zomboid – $14 ($20)
Resident Evil 2 – $10 ($40)
Resident Evil 3 – $10 ($40)
Resident Evil 7 $8 ($20)
Resident Evil 4 & Separate Ways DLC – $40 ($60)
Resident Evil Village – $16 ($40)
Strange Brigade – $2.50 ($50)
The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitive Series $12.50 ($50)
Weird West – $10 ($40)
The Quarry – $15 ($60)
And good luck to everybody with the robot AI overlords and the fall of humanity and all that. Perhaps share in the comments below any good deals you find on Steam during this Halloween sale to help distract us from the doom and gloom of the future.
Normally I wouldn’t get too excited about a Resident Evil film, as both the live-action and CG entries haven’t been great. But a new trailer for the upcomingDeath Island looks too damn campy and fun to ignore. I mean, all your favorite Resident Evil heroes—like RE4’s Leon and RE3’s Jill—are back together to take on zombie sharks. How can I not get excited about this?
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The CG-animated film Resident Evil: Death Island, first announced in February, takes place in 2015, putting it after the events of Resident Evil 6 but before those of Resident Evil 7 and Village. It’s a direct sequel to 2017’s CG movie Resident Evil: Vendetta. Check out the new trailer for the film, released on April 11 and featuring Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine, Rebecca Chambers, Claire Redfield, and Leon S. Kennedy:
Kadokawa / Capcom
Yes, this is basically Resident Evil’s spin on The Avengers, taking all the previous characters and events, tossing them into a blender, and then hitting the “Cool Shit” button. I’m not mad at all. The direct references to Resident Evil 5, Revelations 2, and other Resident Evil games had me smiling like a fanboy and the action looks silly and over-the-top. And I’ll admit it: Seeing that Avengers-like shot at the end with all of the heroes fighting one big foe made me pump my fist a bit.
What’s Death Island about, and when does it come out?
D.S.O. agent Leon S. Kennedy is on a mission to rescue Dr. Antonio Taylor from kidnappers, when a mysterious woman thwarts his pursuit. Meanwhile, B.S.A.A. agent Chris Redfield is investigating a zombie outbreak in San Francisco, where the cause of the infection cannot be identified. The only thing the victims have in common is that they all visited Alcatraz Island recently. Following that clue, Chris and his team head to the island, where a new horror awaits them.
As for when to expect the movie, so far Capcom’s only revealed a Japan release date: It will hit theaters over there on July 7, 2023. In the past, some of these CG Resident Evil movies have played in theaters in the UK and U.S. for a limited time before releasing digitally, so I expect something similar here. If Capcom follows a similar pattern as with past films, I’d expect a U.S. theatrical release around late July or early August, and a home release to follow shortly after.
