canceled
Latest
IFA 2021 is canceled after all
After organizers announced a "full-scale return" last month, IFA 2021 in Berlin has been canceled as physical live event due to COVID-19 health concerns.
Tokyo Game Show 2020 has been canceled
This year’s Tokyo Game Show has been officially canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
2020 New York Auto Show pushed back to August
The New York Auto Show was scheduled to open next month, but due to the impact of the coronavirus outbreak it has been rescheduled for late August. Mark Schienberg, president of the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association said in an email to attendees that "We are taking this extraordinary step to help protect our attendees, exhibitors and all participants from the coronavirus." The rescheduled event will run from August 28th to September 6th, with press days scheduled for August 26th and 27th. This change also shifts it behind the new date for the Detroit Auto Show, which is currently scheduled to happen in June -- assuming it isn't rescheduled or canceled.
Geneva Motor Show canceled over coronavirus fears
Like Mobile World Conference and Facebook's F8, the 2020 Geneva Motor Show has been definitively canceled and will not take place this year. The Swiss government has imposed a ban on public gatherings of over 1,000 people that will go in effect immediately until at least March 15th, according to Swissinfo.ch and other sources. The Geneva International Motor Show (GIMS) has also started emailing manufacturers to give them the news, according to the BBC's Theo Leggett and other sources.
Facebook suspends tens of thousands of data-scraping apps
In the aftermath of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, Facebook promised to investigate other apps with access to large amounts of user data. The app developer investigation is ongoing, but today, Facebook said it has reviewed millions of apps and suspended tens of thousands associated with about 400 developers.
Netflix pulled 66 episodes of Chelsea Handler's canceled talk show
A few years ago, Netflix and Chelsea Handler set out to "revolutionize the talk show." The plan was to run three 30-minute, near-live episodes each week. But the show, Chelsea, took nearly two years to launch, and after just two seasons, Netflix pulled the plug. It didn't stop there though. Netflix also removed 66 episodes. A company spokesperson told The New York Times that it's the only instance in which Netflix has pulled content it owned and created.
Best Buy cancels all Galaxy Fold pre-orders
In another blow to Samsung's Galaxy Fold, Best Buy announced that it's canceling all current Galaxy Fold pre-orders. That's not entirely surprising given all of the drama around the Fold and the lack of concrete details from Samsung. But Best Buy could be the first of several retailers to make the call. Samsung itself is canceling pre-order for people who don't confirm that they still want one by May 31st.
Cadillac pauses its $1,800-per-month car subscription service
Just one year after launching it, Cadillac is temporarily ending its expensive car subscription service, the Wall Street Journal reported. Book by Cadillac, which charged drivers $1,800 to be behind the wheel of one of the company's cars, will be paused started December 1st. Subscribers will have 30 days to turn in the vehicles they were renting through the service, meaning they'll have to find another ride pretty quickly.
Toys R Us: Lucario amiibo pre-orders not being canceled
Numerous Toys R Us customers received emails from the retailer this morning, seemingly canceling their pre-orders for the Lucario amiibo figure. As a Toys R Us spokesperson told Joystiq in a phone conversation today, the emails were part of a "technical issue," and pre-orders for the figure will not be canceled. Toys R Us added via email, "we apologize for any inconvenience that may have been caused pertaining to customers' amiibo pre-orders. Please know that we are working on an email communication to all customers effected, which will provide instructions on how we plan to fulfill their order." The Lucario amiibo was revealed in November as a Toys R Us-exclusive figure, though the retailer's listing for the figure is currently missing from its storefront. Toys R Us was unable to offer specific inventory data for amiibo, but assured that the issue was unrelated to its supply of the figures.
Dawngate shutting down in 90 days
We hope you haven't pinned your future MOBA hopes on Dawngate, as EA has decided to take this title out of the running completely. Dawngate, which has been in beta most of this year, said today that it will be shutting down service in 90 days and is refunding testers any money they have spent thus far. "Today, I have the unenviable task of announcing that we've decided to stop development of Dawngate," Group General Manager Matt Bromberg posted. "Dawngate has been in beta for almost 18 months, including a full open beta for the past six months. Through that time, we've taken a lot of feedback from players and delivered lots of new features and innovations. And although the game has grown, we're not seeing the progress we'd hoped for." You can read Massively's hands-on experience with Dawngate as well as our interview with Composer Jeff Broadbent.
Uber axes Human Resources Kickstarter campaign
Planetary Annihilation developer Uber Entertainment canceled its Kickstarter campaign for Human Resources, the developer's human-harvesting, apocalyptic real-time strategy game. "Every Kickstarter prediction model is showing that we will come up woefully short of our goal," the developer wrote in an update on its funding page, adding that it can't continue spending time and money on a project that won't get funded. "One thing is for sure, Human Resources, as pitched in this Kickstarter, is over. But we adore the world of Human Resources and will endeavor to do what we can to bring it to life in some form." The developer raised $384,358 of its $1.4 million goal on the funding platform. The lofty goal would have been difficult for any aspiring developer to overcome; just four of the 341 Kickstarter games tracked in our one-year Crowdfund Bookie research series earned that much money in their campaigns. Even the $844,127 hauled in by Harmonix for Amplitude in May was an anomaly in a funding space that scarcely supports big-budget projects like it once did. Human Resources was planned to end in two weeks on Tuesday, November 4. [Image: Uber Entertainment]
Blizzard officially cancels Titan
If you were holding onto hopes that Titan would be the next great thing from Blizzard, it's time to douse yourself with a cold bucket of reality. Polygon is reporting that Blizzard has officially canceled the Titan project, saying that it ultimately wasn't fun. "We had created World of Warcraft, and we felt really confident that we knew how to make MMOs, so we set out to make the most ambitious thing that you could possibly imagine," CEO Mike Morhaime commented. "And it didn't come together. We didn't find the fun. We didn't find the passion. We talked about how we put it through a reevaluation period, and actually, what we reevaluated is whether that's the game we really wanted to be making. The answer is no." Senior Vice President Chris Metzen said that the decision was necessary as the studio goes forward: "We were losing perspective and getting lost in the weeds a little. We had to allow ourselves to take that step back and reassess why the hell we were doing that thing in the first place." The studio didn't put out details on what Titan was going to be, except that it had "some cool hooks." Blizzard also said that it isn't going to be working on another MMO at this time, but won't rule out the possibility of a follow-up to World of Warcraft in the future. If you want to tease yourself with "what if," you can read Massively's summation of the Titan project.
Rumor: Here's what a Kinect-powered Gears of War looked like
A Kinect-controlled RTS spinoff in Microsoft's Gears of War franchise made it to the prototyping stage on the Xbox 360 before it was quietly canceled, a newly released gameplay video at VGLeaks suggests. The video demonstrates motion-controlled gameplay presented from an overhead perspective. Players use gesture controls to target enemies as they guide a four-person team through destroyed urban environments, making use of environmental cover throughout. Given that Kinect 1.0's gesture recognition and response was sporadic even under the best conditions, an action-focused RTS seems like a poor fit for the peripheral. Apparently Microsoft and developer Epic Games agreed, as Gears of War: Tactics was never officially announced. The game's current development status is unknown. [Image: Microsoft / Epic Games / VGLeaks]
See Ninja Theory's canceled game, Razer, in action
Yesterday, we told you about Razer, a game in development at Ninja Theory that had no luck finding a publisher and was canceled in favor of the newly-revealed Hellblade. Today, we bring you internal footage of what could have been. According to a series of Ninja Theory tweets, the trailer found below the break is "genuine pitch materials," meaning it depicts a game that is far from completion. Despite this, we can see a few novel ideas in play. Apparently Razer would have allowed for multiplayer cooperation between players within the game itself and those using tablets to observe the battle, not unlike the Commander mode in Battlefield 4. Where EA's game is a first-person shooter, however, Razer is closer to a third-person action game both gunplay and melee combat in close quarters. Unfortunately, since no publisher agreed to fund Razer, it's unlikely the game will ever see the light of day. That said, if any budding developers want to take up the task of completing what Ninja Theory has begun, the developer has announced plans to release the game's development materials to the public. [Image: Ninja Theory]
Star Wars 1313 production art is a beautiful, painful reminder
Like a certain Mandalorian bounty hunter crawling out from the belly of a sarlacc, images from the canceled Star Wars 1313 game have defied death and are once more flying about, ready to be admired. Brazilian artist Bruno Werneck's work on the game has been spotted over at Filmpaint Studio, and if you were heartbroken about the game's cancellation before, just take a look at what could have been. Gaze ye upon Hoth, Tatooine, Coruscant ... and despair. Or be happy to have something to remember 1313 by. Whichever way you want to spin it. [Image: Bruno Werneck]
EVE Fanfest 2014: CCP responds to DUST 514 fans' rage over Project Legion
When this year's DUST 514 keynote presentation rolled around two days ago at EVE Fanfest 2014, fans of the PlayStation 3 shooter were understandably bewildered. Many tuned into the livestream of the talk or even attended Fanfest in person, expecting to hear an hourlong breakdown of the year's DUST 514 updates and some plans for the game's future. Viewers were instead met with a 30-minute presentation on something called Project Legion, a proposed plan to bring DUST's style of shooter gameplay to the PC in an entirely new MMO. In the absence of any information to the contrary, DUST players have understandably concluded that their game is being quietly closed down in favour of Legion. Earlier today at the CCP Presents keynote presentation, CCP took the opportunity to respond to fears and complaints that have surfaced on the DUST 514 community forum. The official word is that DUST 514 isn't being shuttered and that development will continue, but CCP admitted that it will have less development time going forward. A promise was also made that if Legion goes ahead, the names and assets of every DUST player will be copied over to the new title. That won't be much consolation for the people who bought a PS3 just to play DUST 514 or those who game only on consoles, as Legion is currently being developed only for PC. Another caveat is that Legion has not even been confirmed yet; It was presented in much the same style as EVE: Valkyrie last year, as an experiment that CCP could put significant resources into if players like it. Whether you're a die-hard fan of internet spaceships or just a gawker on the sidelines, EVE Fanfest is the EVE Online event of the year (and the key source of new EVE Valkyrie scoops!). Follow Massively's Brendan Drain as he reports back on this year's Fanfest starpower, scheming, and spoilers from exotic Reykjavik, Iceland.
Human Element set for Nov. 2015, Ouya prequel canceled
Human Element, the first-personal survival game from Robert Bowling's studio, Robotoki, will launch in November 2015 on PC, Bowling confirmed on Twitter. He added that the Ouya-bound prequel to the game was canceled "early on" as the developer shifted its focus to the CryEngine-based PS4 and Xbox One versions of the open-world game, which don't currently have a release date. Bowling left Call of Duty developer Infinity Ward in April 2012 to open Robotoki and announced Human Element in June 2012. The Ouya prequel was revealed soon after in July, at which point Bowling donated $10,000 to the microconsole manufacturer. The Human Element prequel was also slated to be the first console exclusive game for Ouya. [Image: Robotoki]
No Titanfall in South Africa
Once upon a time in South Africa, a young video game journalist named Ludwig Kietzmann collapsed for no apparent reason, falling to the floor in a heap of stylish dark-wash jeans and almonds. Seconds later, he awoke and knew something was desperately wrong. Something horrible was coming, and there was only one thing he could do to avoid catastrophe. He had to get out of South Africa. EA South Africa will not launch Titanfall in the region, attributing the decision to poor internet performance rates. The post on EA South Africa's Facebook reads as follows: "After conducting recent online tests for Titanfall, we found that the performance rates in South Africa were not as high as we need to guarantee a great experience, so we have decided not to release Titanfall in South Africa at this time. "We understand this is a disappointment for local fans and will keep fans posted on any future plans regarding the release of Titanfall in South Africa." In February, EA delayed the Titanfall beta in South Africa, but overall it marketed the game as per standard protocol. Reviews of the South African beta noted a ping in the 200ms range, but added that the game's built-in latency tolerance worked well and made it playable. [Image: Titanfall]
Canceled Diddy Kong Racing sequel details emerge
Diddy Kong Racing, developer Rare's take on the kart, hovercraft and airplane-racing genre, is fondly remembered by many Nintendo 64 fans. Unfortunately the game's canceled successor, Donkey Kong Racing, never had a chance at earning the same sort of reputation. It's always interesting to learn more about projects that never reached the public though, and Nintendo Life's recent interview with Donkey Kong Racing Lead Designer Lee Musgrave shares details on what the game began and ended as. Musgrave explained that Donkey Kong Racing swapped out standard vehicles for animals, which the above trailer suggests included Rambi the Rhino, Engaurde the Swordish and Ellie the Elephant from the Donkey Kong Country series. Players could swap out animals mid-race, which would let the player smash through obstacles or offer better handling depending on the animal's size. When Rare was purchased by Microsoft, Musgrave said the Donkey Kong license was dropped as Rare made the racer an "open-world game with Tamagotchi-style features, in which nurturing your animal became a key mechanic." Musgrave explained that the animal-raising mechanic eventually became the game's main feature, resulting in a "cute version of Grand Theft Auto set in Africa." This open-world adaption of Donkey Kong Racing was called Sabreman Stampede, but its development "went off into the woods a little bit," Musgrave explained. Sabreman Stampede was never released, but Musgrave added that despite the effort put into its development, he feels the final product would not have been worth the resources. [Image: Nintendo]
Sony Santa Monica's unannounced IP canceled, says laid off dev
An unannounced new property at God of War studio Sony Santa Monica is canceled, according to ex-employee Jonathan Hawkins. The former lead level designer, who lost his job in yesterday's round of layoffs, took to Twitter to reveal the IP had been in development "since God of War 3," and indicated it was connected to that game's director, Stig Asmussen. It's speculated the project in question was a AAA sci-fi game, and that certainly matches with what Battlestar Galactica writer Michael Angeli said at last year's E3. Angeli revealed he was working with Sony Santa Monica on a new and unannounced project, telling Polygon he'd been writing for the game across the prior two and a half years, and that the studio's full team transitioned to work on it after God of War: Ascension. Sony has yet to confirm any details on the project, and for his part, Hawkins said he couldn't say too much about the situation. However, he did share his frustration over what had happened in a heartfelt series of tweets: "Yesterday, I was laid off. It was a good 10-year run and I got to make three 90+ games. I lived the dream and got to accomplish all of my goals. Except one... making something out of nothing and creating a new AAA IP. Secondly, the pain that I feel for my friends who have lost their jobs. The saddest and most important part is the game I was creating for the player that will never be played. I'm sorry that I've failed you." [Image: Sony Santa Monica]
