Naoya Matsumoto's Kaiju No. 8 has been a smash hit for the past few years, and that trajectory got white hot when the anime adaptation premiered back in April. Now it's getting a shot at video games with the newly-announced and tentatively-titled Kaiju No. 8 THE GAME. 

Akatsuki Games is in charge of development and distribution for the Kaiju No. 8 game. The studio is also behind Extreme Baseball action-RPG Tribe Nine, which was first announced in 2021 and finally has a closed beta test on the way this August. Neither that nor Kaiju No. 8 have release dates in place yet. 

Joining Akatsuki Games are TOHO Games and anime studio Production I.G, which handles animation production for the Kaiju No. 8 anime. Beyond that, all we know is that Kaiju No. 8 THE GAME is in the works for mobile devices and PC, and will be available via the App Store, Google Play, and Steam. You can see a quick cinematic ?teas?e in the debut trailer below.

The original Kaiju No. 8 manga has been running in the pages of Weekly Shonen Jump since July 2020. As of March 20??23 it had 11 million copies in circulation around the world. Those numbers are sure to conti??nue climbing following the anime, which is currently running with Shigeyuki Miya and Tomomi Kamiya directing. 

The story follows Kafka Hibino, who finds that his dreams of enlisting in the Defense Force have fallen to the wayside by the time he's in his thirties. Instead, he spends his days handling stomach-turning cleanup duties after the dust has settled on the latest colossal Kaiju battle. After meeting Reno Ichikawa, however, that ambitious spark is reunited, and he vows to join his childhood friend Mina Ashiro in the Defense Force ranks and protect humanity from the encroaching Kaiju threat. Then, in an unexpected twist of fate, he ends up ??gaining the ability to turn into a Kaiju himself�

Yep, this is the good stuff. Both the Kaiju No. 8 manga and anime are worth your time if you haven't checked them out already. Ho??pefully the game will be able to follow suit with confidence whenever it arrives. 

The post Kaiju No. 8 ??stomps over to mobile and PC for first game adaptation appeared first on Destructoid.

Publisher to capitalize on new Digital Markets Act

Microsoft Gaming CEO?? Phil Spencer has revealed th?e publisher's plans to open its own in-house app store, selling and distributing games and other software directly to mobile devices.

Speaking to The Financial Times, Spencer noted that the EU's incoming Digital Markets Act �new legislation that will force carriers such as Apple and Google to allow third-party app stores to operate on the iOS and Android service �will offer Microsoft the opportunity to dis?tribute its wares directly, rather than through current conglomerate app stores.

"We want to be in a position to offer Xbox and content from both us and our third-party partners across any screen where somebody would want to play," said Spencer in the interview. "Today, we can't do that on mobile devices but we wan?t to build towards a wor?ld that we think will be coming where those devices are opened up."

"The Digital Markets Act that's coming �those are the kinds of things [Microsoft is] planning for... I think it's ??a huge opportunity."

Spencer also referenced the potential for Xbox Game Pass and cloud gaming services to appear in the hypothetical new store. Microsoft is, of course, hoping to get its hands on some of today's most popular mobile titles, including Call of Duty Mobile and Candy Crush Saga, through its intended acquisition of Activision Blizzard �an acquisition that still remains a long, long way from completion. The deadline for the EU Commission to decide whether or not it approves the merger has been delayed to May 22, but this remains one of numerous hurdles ?Microsoft must clear before the proposed purchase can be closed.

Microsoft plans mobi??le games app store to rival Apple and Google [Financial Times]

The post Microsoft planning ??to laun?ch in-house mobile app store appeared first on Destructoid.

Dead app hits 200,000 downloads

Indie developer Steven Cravotta was probably left somewhat confused when his long-abandoned mobile game suddenly started rocketing up the charts. It turns out that Cravotta has also released an app known as "Wordle," which has led to confused users installing his program in droves, mistaking it for the recent viral puzzle title.

"I built an app called Wordle when I was 18 mostly for fun, to sharpen my coding skillz, and maybe make a quick buck," said Cravotta on Twitter. "It didn’t quite tak??e off like my previous app, Grid, did. So after a few months and ~100k total downloads, I stopped updating and promoting the app."

But, in recent weeks, over 200,000 people have installed Cravotta's formative work, assuming it to be the smash hit puzzler by New York-based coder Josh Wardle. The modern Wordle does not have an app nor any monetization?, and is instead played in a web browser, a fact that clearly was not realized by those players paying for and then installing Cravotta's program.

"I figured ?we could turn this very strange, once in a lifetime scenario and make it something amazing!" continues Cravotta, who then reached out to Wardle to explain the confusion. The duo then decided that all of the proceeds earned by Cravotta in the confusion are to be donated to a charity of the pair's choosing. And thus, the strange windfall will be given to Boost! West Oakland �an organizat??ion that offers free after-school tutoring for children living in the West Oakland area.

In a week dominated by headlines of capitalism, here is yet another story that, in its own small way, shows the grace of good, talented people choosing to share the wealth rather than race to own it all.

Wordle, the "real" Wordle, is available to play over at the official website. There is no app.

The post Developer of earlier ‘Wordle’ app sees thousands of mistaken downloads appeared first on Destructoid.

Tim Sweeney says Apple lied about welcoming Epic back to the App Store

It looks like Apple owners won't be able to hop back into Fortnite anytime soon. In emails posted today by Epic CEO Tim Sweeney, Apple has barred Fortnite from the Ap??ple iOS ecosystem until the final verdict in Epic v. Apple has been delivered.

In a series of tweets, Sweeney says Apple lied when it said it would welcome Epic's return to the App Store if it abided by the "same rules as everyone else." Sweeney say??s Epic agreed, and that Apple went back on its assurances.

The message posted by Sweeney says Apple has "exercised its discretion" to not reinstate Epic's developer program account at this time, and will not consider further requests for reinstatement until the judgment is "final and nonappealable." This effectively bars Fortnite from returning to iOS for the time being.

"Late last night, Apple informed Epic that Fortnite will be blacklisted from the Apple eco?system until the exhaustion of all court appeals, which could be as long as a 5-year process," Sweeney w?rote.

//??twitter.com/TimSweeneyEpic/status/1440711772483186690

A ruling was made on Sept. 10, saying Apple must allow other forms of in-app purchases, while also affirming in a separate judgment that Epic was in breach of its contract with Apple. Epic has already filed an appeal on the ruling.

The entire case started when Epic tried to implement a new? V-Buck purchasing o??ption in Fortnite on the App Store and Google Play Store, leading to Fortnite being pulled and a subsequent suit from Epic. The contest, over the cuts taken from purchases made on the store and how open the iOS platform is, carried on for a while. And there were some pretty interesting stories that came out of the trial proceedings, too.

Apple declined to comment on the matter to The Verge, but also didn't dispute the authenticity of the documents Sweeney posted today. Looks like the battle?? of Epic v. Appl??e isn't over just yet.

The post Epic CEO says Fortnite has be??en barred from iOS until f?inal court verdict appeared first on Destructoid.