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An update on this deal, or perhaps no deal. The UK's business watchdog the Competition and Markets Authority (The CMA) has sensationally blocked the proposed merger between Xbox and Activision-Blizzard. The CMA were concerned over how this move would affect innovation and competition going forward into a future of cloud based gaming. Read the full brief on the the UK Government Website. Basically, the CMA feel Microsoft have such a head start in the field of cloud gaming through Gamepass that having control of Activision-Blizzard on top of what they already have would make it difficult for other companies to compete in that market, leading to Microsoft lagging innovation in this market to better the consumer. Difficult to argue against those points, I suppose. As you might imagine, Microsoft and Activision are not pleased. Responding in a statement, Microsoft president Brad Smith said; “We remain fully committed to this acquisition and will appeal. The CMA’s decision rejects a pragmatic path to address competition concerns and discourages technology innovation and investment in the United Kingdom. We have already signed contracts to make Activision Blizzard’s popular games available on 150 million more devices, and we remain committed to reinforcing these agreements through regulatory remedies. We’re especially disappointed that after lengthy deliberations, this decision appears to reflect a flawed understanding of this market and the way the relevant cloud technology actually works.” An Activision Blizzard spokesperson was even more savage; “The CMA’s report contradicts the ambitions of the U.K. to become an attractive country to build technology businesses,” it said. “We will work aggressively with Microsoft to reverse this on appeal. The report’s conclusions are a disservice to U.K. citizens, who face increasingly dire economic prospects. We will reassess our growth plans for the U.K. Global innovators large and small will take note that - despite all its rhetoric - the U.K. is clearly closed for business.” (Both Quotes found on Polygon) So whilst there will almost certainly be an appeal, the history of the CMA does not bode well for Xbox and Activision-Blizzard for that working in thier favour as appeals to the CMA tend to get rejected. And if what the CMA have said in thier statement is true and they have worked with the parties involved to try and alleviate those concerns and yet they still came to this conclusion, it seems unlikely that there is anything that Microsoft and Activision-Blizzard can say now to change thier mind. I wouldn't say the deal is dead, but there is no point sugar coating this, this is a disaster for Xbox and Activision-Blizzard.

Hatred is a good example of the games they want to ban. The only place it's even available anymore is on Steam, as it's been deemed "too violent" by the masses, and as someone who plays the game, I can definitely see why. All that said, the world has become so pussy whipped, that anything that isn't all sunshine and roses is going to have a huge amount of power hungry assholes with a superiority complex that think their opinion matters and should be taken as gospel. Manhunt may get made, but don't count on any kind of official release. There's a small chance that it could be "accidentally leaked" by someone at Rockstar. But that's nothing more than wishful thinking if you ask me. The following is from Wikipedia: On July 28, 2004, the game was linked to the murder of 14-year-old Stefan Pakeerah by his 17-year-old friend Warren Leblanc in Leicestershire, England. Initial media reports claimed that police had found a copy of the game in Leblanc's bedroom. Giselle and Patrick Pakeerah, the victim's parents, claimed that the game had influenced LeBlanc and played a role in the murder. The Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers' Association (ELSPA) offered sympathy to the Pakeerah family but rejected any connection between the game and the murder. ELSPA also noted that the game was rated 18 by the British Board of Film Classification and was not intended for minors. Due to controversy, the game was removed from shelves by some vendors, including Game and Dixons. In response, Rockstar reiterated that it was intended for adults and denied any link to the murder. Media speculation of a potential ban on the game increased demand for it at physical and online retailers. Giselle Pakeerah stated her disappointment over the increased interest in the game. On July 30, 2004, American attorney Jack Thompson, an advocate against violence in video games, claimed to have warned Rockstar prior to the game's release that it could inspire copycat killings. On August 2, 2004, it was reported that the Pakeerahs had hired Thompson to represent them in a £50 million wrongful death claim against Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) and Rockstar Games. That day, the police officially denied any link between the game and the murder, citing drug-related robbery as the motive and revealing that the game had been found in Pakeerah's bedroom, not Leblanc's as originally reported. The presiding judge placed sole responsibility with Leblanc after sentencing him to life. The Pakeerahs' case against SCE and Rockstar was dropped soon thereafter. There was renewed controversy after the announcement of Manhunt 2 in February 2007, with the Pakeerahs condemning its release. Rockstar's parent company Take-Two Interactive issued a statement that "the Judge, defense, prosecution and Leicester police" in the case had refuted any connection to the game. Jack Thompson unsuccessfully attempted to have Manhunt 2 banned, claiming that Take-Two had lied about the incident and that police were incorrect in asserting the game had belonged to Pakeerah. If you're hoping for another release, expect a shitload of backlash and fight against the game. With the graphical capabilities that we have now, the game would be deemed more violent and brutal than ever. There would be a full on war against it. So fiscally speaking, it wouldn't be a good thing for Rockstar or Take-Two to try releasing another one in the franchise. At least not until people regrow a god damn backbone.

I really can't put it better than James Stephanie Sterling does in this video. What I find particularly bad about this is that they waited until the game had been out, got it's positive praise and review and now with those reviews on the internet forever and never to change, they add this shit in retroactively. As stated in the video, this is practically bad for people who know that are, for one reason or another, weak against these types of practices. What if, for example, games like FIFA and Madden were given adult rating because of thier lootbox mechanics(as they fucking should be), what would stop companies like that from releasing those games to get that E rating then adding thier microtransactions later. So what Capcom have done here is, at least in my opinion, worse that having these microtransaction in from the very beginning and Capcom should be ashamed of themselves. The regulators need to get on this kind if practice because it sets a very bad precedent.

There is no excuse for releasing the game in this state. It is poorly optimised and has either been tested and released regardless of its obvious problems to meet a deadline or budget criteria or not tested at all. Private Division and all parties involved should be utterly ashamed.

I think Remakes should be for games that have stories that actually stand the test of time but you need an emulator to play nowadays and the graphics are really bad now. I enjoyed FF7's story with the abridged series but I could never see myself playing the game. The Remake was a godsend. I enjoyed the new things they added to spice up the story and the writing was clever, thought not all chapters were stellar.