Game Studies Watchlist 2026 #20

Campus

DGSW Announces First Conference

The German Society for Game Studies DGSW has announced its first conference at and together with Hochschule Darmstadt, only three weeks before the event takes place.

By Pascal Wagner • 1 min read

Campus

Game Studies Watchlist 2026 #19

The Game Studies Watchlist newsletter, curated by Prof Dr Rudolf Inderst, is published weekly on GamesMarket. This week's topics include glitch aesthetics, digital preservation and more.

By Rudolf Inderst • 3 min read

Business

GamesMarket Launches IP Access for Institutions With Offenburg University of Applied Sciences as First Partner

The entire campus at Offenburg University of Applied Sciences now has access to all paid content of GamesMarket. This is made possible by our new IP Access program, which GamesMarket has established for institutional partners and is now rolling out publicly.

By Team GamesMarket • 3 min read

Awards

The Winners of the Finnish Game Awards 2026

The Finnish Game Awards 2026 saw a variety of winners, including a robot adventure game, a distinctly Finnish winter driving game, an adrenaline-fuelled techno shooter game, and a number of outstanding Finnish game developers.

By Marcel Kleffmann • 3 min read

Awards

Finalists for the 2026 Italian Video Game Awards

IIDEA, the Italian video game industry association, has announced the nominees for the 14th Italian Video Game Awards.

By Marcel Kleffmann • 2 min read

Business

The Safe-Bet Crisis: Why Live-Service ”Wrappers“ Are Imploding

In this week’s “Update”, Zoran Roso asks whether the industry is still designing games for pure enjoyment, and he suggests that the industry may have fallen into a dangerous corporate trap of designing for operational efficiency instead of creative taste and is facing a brutal reality check.

By Zoran Roso • 4 min read

Business

Wizards of the Coast Not Voluntarily Recognizing Union

With letters urging workers to "consider" their decision, Wizards of the Coast's President John Hight has made clear that the company will not voluntarily recognise the unionisation efforts of the Magic: The Gathering Arena team.

By Pascal Wagner • 2 min read

Products

Dawn of War IV Is Coming Out In September 2026

During the Warhammer Skulls Showcase, Deep Silver and King Art Games announced that Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War IV is set to launch on 17 September 2026. The Crusade mode returns, and a year of free content updates and paid DLC will expand the battlefield.

By Marcel Kleffmann • 2 min read

gamescom

Gamescom Dev Talk Review: Don’t Ship the Wrong Game From René Habermann

Not sure what sort of talks to expect at gamescom dev? Together with gamescom dev, we’re taking a look back at selected talks from 2025, which you can also rewatch on YouTube. This Time: Don’t Ship the Wrong Game: A Framework for Choosing What to Finish by René Habermann from Bippinbits.

By Stephan Steininger • 1 min read