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Video Games, Gaming Hardware, and Game Development News  . . . 

Activision Blizzard laying off staff at Asia-Pacific offices. Activision Blizzard is preparing to lay off another 100 employees following the closure of its Versailles office in October. As reported by MCV,  one source familiar with the matter said the Call of Duty publisher will close more offices in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.

Nvidia’s GeForce Now cloud gaming service launches on iOS as a web app. Nvidia is joining its fellow cloud gaming providers in choosing to bypass Apple’s App Store and launching a mobile web app version of its GeForce Now service. Nvidia’s version is available today in beta form, meaning any of the service’s more than 5 million registered users can fire up GeForce Now in mobile Safari on an iPhone or iPad.

Nintendo issues new Animal Crossing guidelines to keep politics out of the game. Nintendo wants Animal Crossing: New Horizons users to keep politics out of the cushy capitalism simulator, and has released a new set of guidelines to help businesses and organizations play within the rules.

The Last of Us Part II and Hades lead The Game Awards 2020 nominations. Nearly 100 games have been nominated for honors in this year's The Game Awards showcase, an all-digital awards show scheduled to take place on December 10, 2020. As with past years, The Game Awards sets out to highlight stand out games released over the last year.

Iron Galaxy Studios names new co-CEO, communications head. Chicago-based Iron Galaxy Studios has lightly reshuffled its leadership team, and added a new name to that roster in doing so. The studio announced today that COO Chelsea Blasko has been tapped to step into the co-CEO role alongside existing CEO Adam Boyes.

Survey finds growing harassment among US gamers. Harassment is a growing problem for gamers, according to a recent report published by the Anti-Defamation League in collaboration with market research firm Newzoo. In July, Newzoo polled a nationally representative group of more than 1,000 US gamers between the ages of 18 and 45 …

COVID-19 expected to boost investment in esports. The third annual esports survey from law firm Foley & Lardner and The Esports Observer highlighted how the COVID-19 pandemic represented an opportunity for esports. The survey gathered answers come from 255 esports executives between September and October 2020.

Nintendo suing yet another Switch hack reseller. Nintendo has taken legal action against another reseller of products that enable Switch owners to play pirated games. Its target this time is Amazon seller Le Hoang Minh, which it reports has been selling a circumvention device known as the RCM Loader that enables people to "jailbreak" the Switch.

Hitman developers are working on a James Bond game. IO Interactive, the developer behind the Hitman series, is working on a James Bond video game, it announced today. The news came with a short teaser today for “Project 007,” a new game coming to “a console and computer screen near you.”

Fortnite is getting in-game video chat. Soon, you’ll be able to see your friends while you play Fortnite together online. Epic is adding a new video chat feature to the battle royale game, where players can see livefeeds of their friends inside the game. Initially, the feature will only be available on PC, PS4, and PS5.

Razer’s Wolverine V2 is like a lower-cost Xbox Elite controller. Razer has announced a new version of its Wolverine wired controller that’s made specifically for the Xbox Series X / S, with support for Xbox One and PC. It’s called the Wolverine V2.

Apple will halve App Store platform fees for smaller developers in 2021. Apple is halving its iOS platform fees to 15 percent from 30 percent for smaller developers through a new initiative called the App Store Small Business Program. As of January 1, 2021, developers who earned under $1 million in revenue during the last fiscal year will qualify for the reduced rates.

VR dev Resolution Games kicks off push into publishing with Odd Raven deal. Angry Birds VR: Isle of Pigs dev Resolution Games is moving into the game publishing business, and has signed a deal with fellow VR developer Odd Raven Studios to get that ball rolling. Resolution Games has signed on to publish Odd Raven's first title Carly and the Reaperman for the Oculus Quest.

Fall Guys has sold over 10 million copies on Steam. Fall Guys sold over 10 million copies on Steam alone within two months of launch. Unity quietly broke the news in its fiscal report for the quarter ended September 30.

Microsoft says Xbox Series X might be in short supply until April or beyond. The Xbox Series X and S launched last week, but if you weren’t lucky enough to have a pre-order or snag one of the few launch-day units, you might be waiting until next year — that’s when there might be enough Xbox supply to easily pick up a new console off the shelf, according to a top Xbox exec.

Epic Games acquires real-time animation firm Hyprsense. Real-time animation company Hyprsense announced it's been acquired by Epic Games. Hyprsense will collaborate with Epic's development teams, as well as 3Lateral and Cubic Motion, to build "new and better tools and systems for developers and players alike," the announcement said.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla debuts with record launch week sales for the franchise. Assassin's Creed Valhalla's launch has made the biggest splash sales-wise of any Assassin's Creed game in the series' 13-year history. Ubisoft confirmed today that the latest game, which launched on November 10, has sold through more copies in its first seven days than any previous Assassin's Creed title at launch.

Genshin Impact was the top-grossing mobile game worldwide in October. Genshin Impact was the highest-grossing mobile game across the App Store and Google Play for the month of October, according to Sensor Tower. According to the analytics group, Genshin Impact brought in nearly $239 million in player spending for the month

Nintendo’s new Game & Watch handheld proves the company goes its own way. The new Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros. is an exceptionally cute piece of hardware. It’s modeled after the classic Game & Watch handheld — the precursor to the Game Boy — with a color scheme inspired by the original Japanese Famicom console. In terms of functionality, the device is incredibly straightforward.

Video games 'good for well-being', says University of Oxford study. People who play video games for long periods of time tend to report feeling happier than those who do not, a study has indicated. The Oxford Internet Institute research focused on two games: Nintendo's Animal Crossing and EA's Plants vs Zombies.

Microsoft to begin testing Project xCloud in new regions including Australia and Japan. Microsoft will begin testing xCloud game streaming in major new territories including Australia, Brazil, Japan, and Mexico later this month. As detailed on the Xbox blog, the company will launch the Project xCloud Preview program in all four regions on November 18.

FIFA 21 debuts at No.1 in the US for October in a first for the franchise. In the month before the new console generation, games hardware and accessories spending nonetheless saw new records set in the US. Total games spending for October reached $3.8 billion, up 14% year-over-year, according to The NPD Group.

Switch sets new October sales record in the U.S. as next-gen arrives. As Sony and Microsoft debut their next-gen consoles, the Nintendo Switch just posted its best October sales to date in the United States. According to NPD numbers reported by Nintendo, the Switch and Switch Lite sold a combined 735,926 units in the U.S. during October, which represents year-on-year sales growth of 136 percent.

Ghost of Tsushima has topped 5 million sales in under four months. Ghost of Tsushima has sold over 5 million copies in under four months, according to PlayStation Worldwide Studios boss Hermen Hulst. It's a milestone that means Sucker Punch's samurai adventure is the fastest-selling first party original PS4 game in history.

Zynga opens Austin studio to work on upcoming Star Wars project. Zynga has opened new development studio in Austin, Texas, to work on an upcoming mobile game set in the Star Wars universe.  The fledgling outfit will be led by industry veterans Jeff Hickman and Matthew Hemby.

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Toy Safety and Counterfeit Related Articles . . . 

Dangerous toys: 12 tips to make sure children's Christmas gifts are safe. Over the past year, tests by the British Toy and Hobby Association (BTHA) have found 86 per cent of the toys bought from online marketplaces were illegal to sell in the UK as they failed to comply with UK toy safety requirements, and 60 per cent were unsafe for children to play with.

Hazardous children's toys that you should look out for. Toys are one of the most popular gifts this holiday season, and most children around the world are hoping to make it to the nice list this year to receive a present. However, there are children's toys that did not make it to the nice list this year according to the 35th annual "Trouble in Toyland" report of the US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG).