Creative Australia has commissioned a new very interesting study exploring Australian musicians’ vital role in the games industry, their working conditions, and the challenges of diversity in this sector. Lots of interesting stuff in here, and the full report is free.

Screen Australia has announced three funding opportunities for Australian indie game developers. Backed by the National Cultural Policy, Revive, the new initiatives include a Games Production Fund, Emerging Gamemakers Fund and Future Leaders Delegation which provides funding & support for up to five individual applicants to attend Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Fran. Applications now open.

A new video from great video essayist Cinema Cartography focuses on videogames as art. His stuff is always terrific, and hearing him talk at length about games is really interesting. Give it a watch!

Golden Joystick Awards 2023 voting is now live. The top nominees are Baldur’s Gate 3 & Tears of the Kingdom with four each. The awards ceremony itself is scheduled for November 10, marking their return to in-person events for the first time since 2019.

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney announces layoffs affecting around 830 employees, amounting to 16% of their total workforce. The decision reportedly comes in response to “financial challenges” primarily driven by lower-margin creator content. Basically, ‘oops our strategy and ideological crusades were bad ideas - but the people responsible for them are staying and you are getting fired.’

For the third time in under a month, a War Thunder player has leaked highly confidential military documents. This time it’s the AH-64D Apache Longbow. User BarteG98PL posted the full technical manual on the War Thunder forums.

PlayStation boss Jim Ryan is stepping down. His departure is scheduled for March 2024, with Hiroki Totoki - President/COO/CFO of Sony Group Corp - taking over as Chairman immediately and interim CEO starting April 1, with the crucial task of identifying Ryan’s successor for PlayStation.

Valve’s Counter-Strike 2 is live. It replaces CS:GO on Steam, offering the “largest technical leap” in the series. Announced in March, CS2 overhauls almost every aspect of the game, with updated maps, dynamic smoke grenades, and precise “sub-tick updates.” This marks Valve’s fourth major release in the series, and CS:GO remains wildly popular, with a record 1.5 million concurrent Steam players.

SAG-AFTRA members have voted 98.32% in favour to authorise a strike in the videogame industry. Companies targeted include Insomniac, Disney, WB, Epic Games, Activision, EA and more. Key issues on the table are fair pay, AI use, and employee safety. This does not mean an immediate strike - negotiations continue.

Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland has announced that Australia will raise age ratings for games with ‘gambling-like’ features, including loot boxes, in September 2024. Simulated gambling games will be R18+, while games with in-game purchases tied to chance will be rated M (recommended for 15+). These changes will affect releases from September 2024 onwards, not retroactively.