New bundles, falling sales of physical games and the TCG anniversary – it was a day in the news that was varied as usual. Added to this are new episodes of our ‘Games Music Makers’ series and our C-level survey.
The physical distribution of games, dear readers,
is certainly not a growth market. But as the figures from everplay and its subsidiary astragon show, it does, after all, represent a significant share of the market in terms of turnover. After all, the German company’s withdrawal from physical distribution has resulted in a 20 per cent drop in turnover. Of course, one must not overlook the fact that lower margins are achievable in physical distribution, which is why the strategic move towards purely digital distribution can certainly make sense. However, it is by no means a necessity, as demonstrated by the success of distribution specialists such as Bandai Namco, CentreSoft and Plaion Partners.
Here are the news of the day!
Your Stephan Steininger
The everplay group has presented its unaudited results for H1 2026. The British group demonstrated resilience in its revenue performance in H1, ahead of major title launches in H2. At astragon, revenue declined by 20%, primarily due to exiting the physical distribution business.
(Read more...)
by Marcel Kleffmann
Composer Jon Everist from Seattle has scored almost everything that Harebrained Schemes (Shadowrun, Lamplighters League, Graft) ever developed, along with Star Wars Outlaws and many other games. We spoke to him about making music, his favourite tunes and more.
(Read more...)
by Pascal Wagner
How do gaming executives rate Europe's position in the global market? And what key challenges and trends are currently affecting the industry? We spoke to Tobias Springer, CEO and Founder tobspr Games (Germany), to find out.
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by Marcel Kleffmann
Nintendo of Europe has announced three new console bundles set to be released at the end of October. These include both Nintendo Switch 1 and 2 consoles. This brings the total number of new Switch bundles available for the holiday season to five.
(Read more...)
Coffee Stain has announced The Big Break Showcase, a digital event showcasing their own games, as well as those of other teams and publishers. It will premiere on 29 September 2026.
(Read more...)
The roguelite autobattling kingdom builder 9 Kings is leaving Early Access in November. The game from Sad Socked, Hooded Horse and Sidekick Publishing has already sold over a million copies since May 2025.
(Read more...)
The Pokémon TCG has released its 30 year anniversary set aimed at collectors and players at the same time. With a new rarity, all-foil boosters and guest art by Japanese artist Yoshirotten, the set is available from today.
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According to a the parent company Jumpage, the German studio Funatics has secured an extension to a work-for-hire contract until the end of 2026. The project, which has not been named in detail, is likely to be the cheerleading mobile game Boss of the World.
(Read more...)
Bulkhead and Team17 announced that Wardogs has sold more than two million copies in less than five days since its launch in Early Access on 10 September. The everplay group had already increased its stake in the consortium that holds Bulkhead prior to this.
(Read more...)
Stephan Steininger
18.09. - 20.09.2026: Gaming Istanbul (GIST) (Istanbul)
18.09. - 20.09.2026: Nexus Nerd Rock Festival (Leipzig)
21.09. - 23.09.2026: D.I.C.E. Europe (Athens)
22.09. - 25.09.2026: Game Devs of Color Expo (online)
23.09.2026: Open Stage Games BW (Suttgart)
23.09. - 25.09.2026: Northern Games Summit (Kajaani)
26.09. - 27.09.2026: Zurich Pop Con Game & Show (Zurich)
29.09. - 30.09.2026: DevGamm x FTW! (Belgrade)
02.10. - 04.10.2026: Hero Fest (Bern)
03.10.2026: IAM Gaming Expo (Moray)
04.10. - 11.10.2026: New York Games Week (New York)
07.10. - 08.10.2026: Mobidictum (Istanbul)
08.10. - 09.10.2026: Gamespace Conference (Zürich)
09.10. - 11.10.2026: Polaris (Hamburg)
09.10. - 11.10.2026: SAGA Barcelona Game Fest (Barcelona)
09.10. - 11.10.2026: PAX Aus (Melbourne)
Find more events in our GamesMarket calendar.
