Epic AI voices in Fortnite 🎮 GTA 6 pre-orders hit $260m 💰

Top Stories

Epic Games integrates AI voices into 36 Fortnite characters (3 min read)

Epic Games added AI-generated voices to 36 Fortnite characters including Agent Jones and The Imagined, powered by Google's Gemini AI and trained on performances from independent professional actors. The voices are available in Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN) for creators to use on player-made islands. The conversation system exits Experimental status July 30, allowing creators to publish islands with LLM-powered NPCs that can respond to player input and adapt behavior based on game events. (Polygon)

Newzoo: GTA 6 pre-orders generate estimated $260m globally during first week of campaign (3 min read)

Grand Theft Auto 6 generated an estimated $260 million in digital pre-orders globally during the final week of June, with $180 million from the US and five major European markets, according to Newzoo data. Pre-orders began June 24 for the $79.99 digital-only PS5 and Xbox Series X/S release launching in November. Newzoo forecasts GTA 6 will reach $4.5 billion in sales by launch week, selling approximately 51 million units, with pre-orders representing 5.8% of cumulative total sales. (GamesIndustry.biz)

Business & Finance

Domestic gacha-game studios expand teams en masse—good times ahead, or a final feast before the collapse? (11 min read)

国内二游厂商“集体扩张团队”！好日子继续，还是赶赴“最后盛宴”？

Domestic gacha studios expanded headcount significantly in 2025 despite overall market contraction, with 19 of 25 tracked studios adding employees. miHoYo leads with ~7,000 staff (+214 in 2025), while companies developing flagship titles like Wuthering Waves and Echoes of Eternity saw the largest growth to meet production demands. (GameLook)

Gamecity Hamburg announces second round of prototype funding (1 min read)

Gamecity Hamburg opens its second prototype funding round from September 4–24, offering non-repayable grants up to €80,000 with €180,000 total available. New committee members Nora Klutzny (Off the Beaten Track) and Paul Taaks (Overhype Studios) join the selection panel. (GamesIndustry.biz)

"It has to make sense for the game" - EA sees a "huge opportunity" for in-game advertising "but it has to be done properly" (5 min read)

EA launched an advertising platform allowing brands to integrate into its games during gameplay. EA advertising executive Alexander Dao said the approach must 'make sense for the game,' citing sports titles as the clearest opportunity to replicate real-world broadcast ad placements. The Sims 4's Coach collaboration earlier this year demonstrated the model's viability. (Eurogamer)

Studios & People

"If I work on that, my kids will think I'm Gandalf" – Blackbird Interactive on the highs and lows of external development (10 min read)

Blackbird Interactive balances work-for-hire projects (Minecraft Legends, Homeworld 3, Starfield DLC) with original titles like Hardspace: Shipbreaker. President Rory McGuire explains the studio uses profits from contract work to fund internal IP, a model also used by Gearbox and historically by Blizzard. (GamesIndustry.biz)

Should you work on your own games as an external development studio? (9 min read)

External development studios including Redcatpig, Virtuos, and others discuss balancing original internal projects with contract work. Developers argue internal games provide creative fulfillment, skill growth, and marketing value, though they require careful resource management alongside client commitments. (GamesIndustry.biz)

Pokemon Go owner Scopely 'reorganizes' Stumble Guys team (4 min read)

Scopely reorganized its Stumble Guys team, impacting a small number of roles. The company transitioned some affected employees to other parts of the business; those departing include a senior manager of talent programs, a director of product management, and a level designer. (Game Developer)

AI/Tech & Tools

Why releasing games on the web could be right for your studio in 2026 (7 min read)

Browser-based games reach hundreds of millions of players with the web gaming market expected to grow to $2.69 billion by 2027. Titles like RuneScape, Henry Stickmin, and Level Devil demonstrate successful web gaming IPs, though the platform suits short-form, instant-access games better than large-scale narrative titles. (GamesIndustry.biz)

Roblox launches an AI-powered game-creation feature in its mobile app (3 min read)

Roblox launched Build, an AI-powered feature letting users create games from text prompts on mobile without coding experience. The feature enters public alpha July 28 in New Zealand; users 16+ can publish globally. Roblox plans to rank AI-generated games by player retention to surface quality content. (TechCrunch)

gg! see you in game!

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