League of Legends has made almost $1 billion in microtransactions

Microtransactions. "Micro." As in, very small bits of money—a dollar here, a dollar there—exchanged for comparably small in-game items: A new hat, perhaps, or some healing potions. But boy, it sure adds up. Riot Games earned $624 million fromLeague of Legends last year, and that was only good enough for second place on the top-ten free-to-play earnings list. In 2014, however, it's shot to number one, and is poised to be the first to break $1 billion in microtransaction revenues.

League of Legends pulled in an estimated $964 million between January and September of this year, according to SuperData research (via VentureBeat), making the magical $1 billion mark almost a sure thing. And it's not alone: Last year's first-place finisher, the military FPS CrossFire, is at $897 million, Nexon's Dungeon Fighter Online is sitting at $891 million, and World of Warcraft has brought in $728 million. All them have a good shot at making it over the hump.

Also noteworthy is just how badly League of Legends is trouncing the other big free-to-play games in North American, Dota 2 and Hearthstone. Both made the list, but way, way back in the pack: Dota 2 is at number nine with $136 million in revenues, while Hearthstone brought up the rear with $114 million. I'm not going to shed too many tears for either of them, but it's a remarkable gap between them.

The World of Warcraft situation is interesting as well. Subscription numbers have slid dramatically over the past several years (although they recently enjoyed a bouncethanks to the launch of Warlords of Draenor), but the spending on in-game items, which is all these numbers take into account—no subscription revenues, in other words—is way up: Its nine-month total is more than triple the $213 million it earned in all of 2013.

In a similar light, Hearthstone may be doing better than it appears, because the figures are PC-only and thus don't account for mobile spending. That still wouldn't be enough to get it near LoL, but it might move it up a few places in the list.

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White Xbox One Sunset Overdrive Bundle Promotes New IP Instead of More Halo

"I'd love to add another great AAA franchise to the list of exclusives on Xbox and I think Sunset can be one of those things," Phil Spencer said.

Head of Xbox Phil Spencer said that Microsoft might have been able to sell more units of its white Xbox One if it bundled it with Halo: The Master Chief Collection, but that he wanted to use the white console to promote a new IP, Sunset Overdrive.

"Would we have sold more white consoles if we put it with the Master Chief Collection? I think that would have been the safer route, but I'd love to add another great AAA franchise to the list of exclusives on Xbox and I think Sunset can be one of those things and I want to get behind it in a big way," Spencer said onIGN's Podcast Unlocked.

But why not have a special edition Xbox One for both games? As Spencer explained, one reason is that Microsoft doesn't want too many different versions of the console on the market. He also said that unlike the Xbox One Assassin's Creed Unity and Black Flag bundle, special editions of the consoles in different colors or hard drive size have to be planned out a year in advance.

Spencer said that Microsoft is currently talking about special editions that will release next year. He didn't say if one of them will be bundled with Halo 5: Guardians, but that the game will be a "big event" for Microsoft that year.

"Releasing new IP and making it stand out is always a challenge, especially when you got Call of Dutycoming with a massive game, you've got Assassin's Creed coming with another great game, you've got Halo there, and here we are with Sunset and in the end the number of bundles and custom consoles you do is not a huge percentage of the game sales, but I wanted to put a stake out there, our first time working with Ted [Price] and the team Insomniac, that this is really a first party game for us and we're really behind it."

All that being said, Microsoft did announce a Halo: The Master Chief Collection white Xbox One bundle, butonly for Brazil and "additional select markets," which at the moment does not include the United States.

The Sunset Overdrive Xbox One bundle will sell for £349.99/€399.99. It launches October 28 alongside Sunset Overdrive.

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First Look at Halo 5 Gameplay Coming Next Month During "HaloFest"

Microsoft announced today that it will hold a special "HaloFest" live-stream event the night before Halo: The Master Chief Collection's release on November 11 for Xbox One.

Viewers will get to see developer interviews, the first footage of the Halo 5: Guardians gameplay, and the debut episode of Halo: Nightfall. You can tune in through Twitch, Xbox Live, and Xbox.com.

HaloFest will take place at the Avalon Theatre in Los Angeles on November 10, one day before The Master Chief Collection launches worldwide. The event begins at 8 PM Pacific.

Here's what's on tap for the HaloFest live-stream:

First look at Halo 5: Guardians multiplayer beta -- This will include an exhibition match between professional players, giving fans a first look at how the game plays. The game's beta begins December 29, though you'll need to buy The Master Chief Collection to get in

World premiere of Halo: Nightfall -- Viewers will get to watch the first episode in Alien director Ridley Scott's series, which introduces Agent Locke, a central character in Halo 5. You can watch a new trailer for the series above.

Interviews -- 343 Industries developers such as Bonnie Ross (studio manager), Frank O'Connor (franchise development director), Dan Ayoub (executive producer), and Josh Holmes (executive producer) will be featured during the event. In addition, 343 executive producer Kiki Wolfkill will talk about Nightfall during the stream, which will also feature "celebrity Halo fans."

Outside of the HaloFest stream, Microsoft will hold a Halo tournament on November 8-9. 32 players from around the world will compete for $50,000 in prizes in Halo 2: Anniversary's multiplayer mode. This will take place at the ESL's headquarters in California, and all coverage will be streamed live through the Halo Twitch channel. Highlights will be shown during HaloFest.

For more on The Master Chief Collection.

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NHL 15 Xbox One/PS4 Gets Huge Update

Third content update for professional hockey game introduces online team play, bug fixes, and lots more.

EA Sports has released the third content update for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions of NHL 15, introducing a raft of new features and functionality, as well as bug fixes and more.

The NHL 15 update, which is available today for Xbox One and PS4, includes the following (descriptionscourtesy of EA Sports):

Online Team Play -- Play online with up to ten players, locked to a single position using real-world rosters. These matches will be 5v5 ranked with AI controlled goalies.

Be A GM Rookie Draft -- For the first time in the NHL franchise, you will be put on the clock and feel the pressure like a real NHL GM. As they do at the NHL Entry Draft, you have three minutes to make a draft pick. If the pressure is too much, you can also call timeouts to extend the amount of time you have to make a draft pick or potentially negotiate a trade. You can make trades at any time during the draft. The CPU will also propose trades to each other and the user throughout the course of the draft.

Presentation -- New New uniforms have been added for the following teams:

• Philadelphia Flyers (NHL) 3rd jersey
• Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL) 3rd jersey
• Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL) 3rd jersey
• Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL) 3rd jersey
• Red Deer Rebels (WHL) 3rd jersey
• Sarnia Sting (OHL) 3rd jersey
• Boisbriand-Blainville Armada (QMJHL) 3rd jersey

Gameplay

• Improved penalty logic for goalie interference calls.
• Improved goalie decision making when playing the puck outside of the crease.
• Pass Assist sliders have been tuned so that they now have the desired effect depending on the user setting.
• Fixed issue where strategy overlay would show when User Strategy Adjustment slider is turned up.
• Fixed rare issue where players would enter an unusual animation state after being body checked during a poke check.

Hockey Ultimate Team (HUT)

• Fixed rare crash issues that can occur when sending won auction item to your Collection.
• Fixed hang during matchmaking search in Versus.
• Users will now be able to change auction prices faster.
• Users that lose connection from their opponent are returned to HUT.

Be A Pro:

• Addressed shootout coach feedback overlay issue.

We reported in August that the current-gen versions of NHL 15--the franchise's debut on Microsoft and Sony's newest consoles--would not include certain content seen in the last-gen versions (not to mention previous entries in the series). When fans got their hands on the game early through EA Access, we learned even more was absent than EA Sports had indicated. This led to the company outlining its plans for post-release updates that would add in some of this content.

An NHL 15 patch released last month introduced features such as a Playoff mode, coach feedback in Be A Pro mode, and more.

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EA Scores Partial Victory in Lawsuit Over Battlefield 4 Woes

Judge rules against shareholders who sued the publisher over Battlefield 4's rocky launch.

Electronic Arts has notched a partial victory in the ongoing lawsuit over the calamitous Battlefield 4 launch.

On Monday, a federal judge ruled against the shareholders (Ryan Kelly and Louis Mastro) who last year filed a class-action lawsuit against EA, claiming executives at the company made false claims in earnings calls and media interviews about the game's quality ahead of its disastrous launch.

As reported by Courthouse News, US District Judge Susan Illston ruled that pre-release comments about Battlefield 4 from EA CFO Blake Jorgensen and EA CEO Andrew Wilson amounted to nothing more than "puffery" and "corporate optimism."

Illston also struck down Kelly and Mastro's contention that EA acted intentionally or deliberately reckless regarding the pre-release state of Battlefield 4. She found that that "the complaint fails to adequately allege falsity and scienter for reasons articulated by defendants."

Kelly and Mastro say, however, that they relied on the EA executives' comments when deciding whether or not they should buy stock in the company. EA responded by showing that, in fact, five of the eight statements that Kelly and Mastro said they relied on were actually made after they purchased EA shares.

As a result, Illston ruled that Kelly and Mastro cannot pursue securities fraud claims against EA. The case isn't over just yet, though, as Illston said she will allow new lead plaintiffs to come forward. Kelly and Mastro must amend their case by November 3.

Battlefield's rocky launch did not hurt the game's commercial appeal, according to Jorgensen. However, the troubles at release "absolutely" resulted in a loss of player trust, EA has since admitted.

Nearly a year after launch, EA continues to support Battlefield 4. The game introduced a massive fall update earlier in October, while the game's Final Stand expansion is due out soon. For more on Battlefield 4.

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Former EA CEO John Riccitiello Named Top Exec at Hearthstone Game Engine Company

Riccitiello replaces David Helgason as CEO of Unity Technologies.

Cross-platform game engine company Unity Technologies today announced that its CEO and founder, David Helgason, has stepped down from his role as chief executive. Taking over for him is former Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello, who left the Battlefield publisher in May 2013.

Riccitiello

"This is an amazing win for Unity and the community," Helgason said in a statement. "He's the right person to help guide the company to the mission that we set out for ourselves over a decade ago: democratize game development!"

Riccitiello was previously a member of the board of directors at Unity. Helgason founded Unity in 2003 and had served as its CEO until today.

Now that Riccitiello has taken over the CEO job a Unity, Helgason said he will transition to a role where he works on strategy and establishing relationships with developers. He will remain "heavily involved" with Unity's direction, he said.

Helgason went on to say that Riccitiello's appointment to CEO of Unity won't change the company's trajectory. "If anything it means that we'll be more focused than ever about making sure everyone has access to the best technology and services," he said. "We want all of you to have the best tools and opportunities, and we're going to do everything we can to make that happen across the board."

Unity is an officially supported engine for a range of mobile and console platforms, including iOS and Android, as well as PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Wii U. The company has over 3.3 million registered developers, according to data posted on its website. Games such as Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft,Wasteland 2 and Temple Run 2, among many others, run on the Unity engine.

Riccitiello becomes Unity's CEO as rumors swirl that the company might be looking to sell.

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Titanfall's New Co-Op Mode Finally Lets You Play Against AI

Next update for the game introduces Frontier Defense and other new modes.

Update: Respawn has shared the full list of patch notes, further detailing some of the changes in store for players in this update. CTF mode has introduced sudden death (so games no longer end in a tie); you can earn stars on each map in each primary game mode by posting a certain score; new graphic options are being added on PC; and load times are improved. You can get the full rundown here.

Original Story: Respawn promised it would show off Titanfall's "biggest update" ever today, and it looks like it's delivered. The main component of the upcoming update is a four-player co-op mode that sounds a lot like the Horde mode popularized by Gears of War 2. This marks the first time the game has offered a way to play that doesn't involve playing directly against other players.

In Frontier Defense, you and three other players are tasked with defending a point (on existing game maps) from waves of AI-controlled enemies. These enemies include new types not seen before; in addition to variations on Titans already in the game, AI enemies will be able to wield all weapons and grenade types, and Specters will have the ability to rodeo your Titan, much like other players can in traditional multiplayer. You'll also be seeing far more enemies than you're used to--the Rise map can have more than 200 at once, for example.

Between waves, there's a dash of tower defense games, as you'll be able to place sentry turrets to help you defend. The Guardian Chip perk for your Titan can be especially handy in Frontier Defense, as it allows your Titan to be more effectively used as another stationary defense. That becomes important because among the new types of enemy Titans are ones that bombard the point you're defending from afar, forcing players to spread out to take them down.

Deaths in the middle of a wave don't necessarily equal defeat; Respawn says it didn't want dying to be especially punitive, so you'll be able to come back to life (by flying in on a dropship that you can shoot from). If your entire team is taken out, you'll be able to continue, though doing so will hurt the star rating you're assigned based on your performance.

Two other modes are being introduced in this update, though neither is quite as substantial as Frontier Defense. One, Marked for Death Pro, is a twist on the existing Marked for Death mode, which makes it a single-elimination, round-based mode. The other is called Deadly Ground; it covers the ground of each map with a deadly fog that means players have to stick to the rooftops and walls when moving. You'll be able to play game types like Marked for Death and CTF in Deadly Ground.

Respawn also mentioned a new ranked play option that will let you rank up without resorting to the existing Regen system. More details are still being announced on the Respawn livestream, which you can watch here, and we'll report back when the developer offers full patch notes.

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