Microsoft’s new gaming chief, Asha Sharma, has told staff in a leaked internal memo that Xbox Game Pass “has become too expensive for players” and that the company needs “a better value equation.” The Verge obtained the memo, which was widely reported across outlets on April 13–14, 2026. Sharma, who succeeded Phil Spencer earlier this year, said the current model “isn’t the final one” and signalled short-term price pressure and a longer-term plan to “evolve Game Pass into a more flexible system.” The memo follows large price increases — including a roughly 50% hike to Game Pass Ultimate in October 2025 (to about $29.99/month) — and internal debate about bundling major releases such as Call of Duty (added in 2024). Reports say Microsoft may test lower-cost or ad-supported tiers and is weighing whether to remove Call of Duty from the service. Sharma plans further internal discussion in the coming weeks, but the company has not announced immediate public changes.

Capcom has ordered a British YouTuber to remove more than 1,000 videos featuring adult-oriented mods for Resident Evil Requiem and other games, after the publisher’s legal team contacted the creator on April 16, 2026. Streamer GrizzoUK said Capcom demanded deletion of 1,005 videos showing characters in skimpy or altered outfits and warned of further action; YouTube briefly terminated the channel for alleged repeated violations of its sex and nudity policy before reinstating it after the videos were deleted. Capcom told the creator the mod content was “inconsistent” with its terms of service and relevant copyright and intellectual property laws, citing reputational risks. The takedown has depressed the channel’s views and prompted the creator to pivot to non-costume content such as weapon mods. The move follows earlier statements from Capcom expressing concern about mods that could affect game performance or company reputation. Resident Evil Requiem, one of 2026’s top-selling titles, recently added a photo mode, and the developer continues to publish new content for the franchise.

Sixty-one unionized workers from Ubisoft’s Halifax studio have voted overwhelmingly to accept a confidential settlement after the Paris-based publisher closed the site in January. The affected employees — part of CWA Canada Local 30111 — were among 71 staff at the mobile-focused studio, which had recently voted to unionize and was working on projects tied to the Assassin’s Creed franchise. Ubisoft said the shutdown was part of wider “cost-optimization” and denied it was a response to unionization. CWA Canada president Carmel Smyth said negotiations were hard-fought but that Ubisoft acted in good faith. Halifax was slated to be Ubisoft’s first unionized studio in North America. The closure followed a company-wide restructuring into five “Creative Houses,” a return-to-office mandate and further cost cuts, even after the firm secured a €1.16 billion investment from Tencent last November and announced plans to reduce fixed costs by a further €200 million.

Dataminers this week uncovered backend Steam code suggesting Valve is preparing to surface a 30‑day price history and “30‑day low” tags on store listings, a feature already present in parts of the European Union since June 2023 to meet the EU’s Omnibus Directive. The entries found on SteamDB and highlighted by users such as SigaTbh and LambdaGeneration describe on‑page indicators showing whether a current price is the lowest in the past 30 days and callouts for recent discounts. Additional lines reference a frame‑rate estimator based on anonymized user performance data and an AI‑powered support system dubbed “SteamGPT.” Reports say Valve has not officially confirmed a rollout or timetable; the finds were reported on April 15–16, 2026. Observers note the 30‑day window could blunt some pricing gamesmanship by publishers but may not fully replace third‑party services that track all‑time lows. The code hints at wider UX upgrades Steam may deploy alongside other hardware and software moves, though implementation details and regional rollouts remain unclear.

Nintendo released Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream for the Switch on April 16, 2026, reviving the cult social-simulator franchise after roughly nine years of development that began in 2017. The sequel places heavy emphasis on user-generated content (UGC): expansive Mii creation tools, island and item design, and free-form text fields that feed character dialogue. Early reviews cluster around 7–8/10 (Metacritic ~77), praising deep customization, surreal humor and the unpredictable vignettes Miis generate, while criticising repetitive mechanics, a largely passive play loop and underwhelming progression. A major point of contention is Nintendo’s decision to restrict online sharing — QR codes and native screenshot/video capture for the game are blocked or limited — which reviewers say undermines a title built to produce shareable moments. A public demo exposed how uncensored text fields can produce explicit, NSFW content, prompting debate over moderation versus creative freedom. Some outlets also noted the game does not fully leverage the Switch 2’s new features, even as it runs on current and last-generation hardware.

Multiple gaming outlets reported on April 13–14, 2026 that Ben Jordan, the facial model for Peter Parker in Insomniac’s recent Spider-Man titles, posted and then deleted an Instagram photo of himself in motion-capture gear. The caption read “IYKYK” with a spider emoji, prompting broad speculation that Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 is entering early development. Insomniac is publicly focused on Marvel’s Wolverine, due Sept. 15, 2026, but leaks from a 2023 hack previously suggested a Spider-Man sequel could follow. Analysts and fans have proposed alternatives: the capture session might be for a cameo in Wolverine, a Miles Morales instalment, or a long-rumoured Venom spin-off. Commentators also flagged questions about platform strategy — whether any future Spider-Man title would remain on PlayStation 5 or become a PlayStation 6 launch exclusive — and noted that Insomniac has not confirmed the project.