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Articles by Rob Fahey
This should be game streaming’s moment. It's not | Opinion
GamesIndustry.biz Oct 9, 2026, 4:00 p.m. UTC · 1 hour, 46 minutes ago • Rob Fahey Briefing GamesIndustry.biz argues that the brief chatter around an exclusive GTA 6 streaming deal exposed both the promise and the limits of cloud gaming. Xbox’s Matthew Ball quickly shot down the exclusivity rumor, saying the game will not be streaming exclusively or to PC, which also narrows the practical upside for players who don’t already own compatible hardware.
Sony clarifies re-order support for existing PlayStation discs
Sony has clarified to developers and publishers that they will be able to re-order existing PlayStation discs beyond the January 2028 end-of-production date. After last week's announcement, Sony provided more details in a separate post on a digital platform for partners, as reported by Game File. Sony also stated the process for ordering discs will change and publishers will have the opportunity to release new games at retail using digital codes.
The biggest games industry news stories of 2025 | Year in Review
Join us as we journey back through 2025 via the biggest games industry news stories of the year, including massive takeover deals, the closure of historic studios, big hardware launches, big hardware reveals, and a lot of bother about tariffs.
A look back at the games industry's turbulent year in AI | Year in Review
Headlines about the games industry in 2025 have been dominated by AI. Barely a week went by without a story about how the tech was being used for good or ill, and that's certain to continue in 2026. Whereas previous tech trends like NFTs and the metaverse blew up and subsided relatively quickly (with Meta belatedly downscaling its investment in the latter just a few weeks ago), AI has already found its way into every crevice of the tech industry, and shows little sign of retreat.
Why do games end up in development hell? | Opinion
9 hours ago Every so often, a show sneaks onto your favorite streaming platform, totally catching you off guard; the kind of show you previously slept on, or maybe you never even heard it, only to wonder in retrospect why you didn’t tune in, or how it ever flew under your radar. After all, the show’s …
As AI faces court challenges from Disney and Universal, legal battles are shaping the industry's future | Opinion
You may have read yesterday that, years after the alarm was first raised by artists, media giants Disney and Universal are finally suing an AI image …
How deep is Sony's commitment to live-service? | Opinion
Nab Up to 50% Off Top Headphones & Earbuds With These Memorial Day Sales No, your eyes (and ears) don't deceive you. We're tracking down all of the best deals on audio brands like Anker, Beats, Samsung, Sennheiser, and …
The new Apple/Epic ruling will change the app landscape | Opinion
7 hours ago Apple changes US App Store rules to let apps link to external payment systems Apple has changed its App Store rules in the U.S. to let apps link users to their own websites so they can buy subscriptions or other digital goods.
The EU sets its sights on game regulation | Opinion
Russia plans to send its strongest tanks to drive around Ukraine but is too scared to put them in combat, UK intel says Russia is "unlikely to trust" the T-14 Armata tank in actual battles given problems in its development, the British defense ministry said.
Under Kishida, Japan's security reforms gather speed
Many in the Liberal Democratic Party have long disliked the postwar settlement that restricted Japan’s military and made it beholden to the United States for its security – indeed, pushing against that status quo is the founding political identity of one of the party’s two major ideological groups, the “conservative anti-mainstream” (hoshu bōryū), whose leaders have largely dominated the party in this century.
Nintendo fa un passo indietro nel gaming mobile
La chiusura dell'unico gioco esclusivo mobile di Nintendo, Dragalia Lost è indicativa della perdita d'interesse in questo business. Questa estate Nintendo chiuderà un altro dei suoi titoli mobile: Dragalia Lost, un JRPG sviluppato in collaborazione con CyGames, che era stato lanciato a fine 2018. I giochi mobile vanno e vengono, quindi non è strano che anche un titolo di alto profilo relativamente venga rimosso dopo pochi anni se la sua community fatica a crescere.
Nintendo fa un passo indietro nel gaming mobile
Questa estate Nintendo chiuderà un altro dei suoi titoli mobile: Dragalia Lost, un JRPG sviluppato in collaborazione con CyGames, che era stato lanciato a fine 2018. I giochi mobile vanno e vengono, quindi non è strano che anche un titolo di alto profilo relativamente venga rimosso dopo pochi anni se la sua community fatica a crescere.
Xbox Game Pass una piccola 'crisi'? Un obiettivo di crescita mancato evidenzia la debolezza chiave
Tanti bei giochi non sembrano bastare per una crescita esponenziale di Xbox Game Pass. Il Game Pass è l'elemento rivoluzionario della strategia di Microsoft o quanto meno questi sono i piani della compagnia.
Steam vs Vapor: Amazon potrebbe rivelarsi l'unico vero rivale di Valve
Le ultime settimane sono state delle autentiche montagne russe per Amazon Games. Il lancio dell'MMORPG New World è il primo tentativo credibile di creare un titolo di successo che ha portato a server pieni e lunghe code di giocatori. Non una cosa positiva per il miglior provider al mondo di servizi cloud forse, ma un segnale positivo per il futuro del gioco.
The first challenge for Japan's new Prime Minister is party unity
Japan has selected its next Prime Minister, Kishida Fumio – but the veteran politician faces tough tests in his first months on the job. Kishida Fumio will be Japan’s next Prime Minister, replacing Suga Yoshihide, who resigned earlier this month after only a year in office. Kishida’s success in the Liberal Democratic Party’s leadership election marks vindication for a politician often tipped for the top job but more recently written off by many commentators. He faces stark immediate challenges.
PlayStation vs Xbox: il piano di Sony per competere? Mantenere la rotta
All in su studi e IP first-party con grandi investimenti, la risposta a Game Pass e acquisizione di Zenimax. L'inarrestabile fenomeno degli scaffali vuoti e dei bagarini con assurdi sovrapprezzi degli ultimi sei mesi circa credo abbiano detto tutto ciò che avevamo bisogno di sapere ma questa settimana abbiamo avuto un'altra conferma: sia Xbox Series X che PlayStation 5 se la stanno cavando piuttosto bene.
Sony’s plan to compete with Xbox: Stay the course | Opinion
Rob Fahey Contributing Editor Friday 30th April 2021 Share this article The continuing phenomena of empty store shelves and inflated scalper prices over the past half-year or so already told us everything we needed to know, I suppose, but this week we got confirmation: both the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 are doing really rather nicely for themselves.
Olympics Chief Mori's Gaffe Exposes Suga's Weakness
Exactly twenty years ago today, on February 9th 2001, the American submarine USS Greeneville collided with a Japanese high-school training boat, the Ehime Maru, sinking the ship and killing nine of those aboard, including four high school students and two teachers. Japan’s then prime minister Mori Yoshirō was informed of the tragedy midway through a round of golf and, now infamously, chose to remain on the golf course for over an hour and a half to finish his game.
Xbox Series X/S e Xbox Game Pass: cosa deve fare Microsoft per spingere tutti ad abbonarsi al servizio?
Gli ultimi risultati finanziari condivisi da Microsoft ci hanno presentato una situazione generale fantasticamente positiva e le notizie riguardanti Xbox non sono state da meno. La compagnia ha fatto registrare più di $5 miliardi di entrate derivanti dai videogiochi nell'ultimo trimestre per la prima volta nella sua storia e Xbox Series X/S hanno dato vita al miglior lancio nella storia delle console Microsoft nonostante le costanti limitazioni nelle scorte disponibili.
Xbox Series S ridefinisce il concetto di 'next-gen' e lancia il guanto di sfida a Sony - editoriale
Nell'ultima manciata di mesi abbiamo assistito a Microsoft e Sony mentre si fissavano attraverso il Pacifico, chiedendoci quale di questi titani dell'industria avrebbe battuto ciglio per primo. La loro condivisione di informazioni con il contagocce nel corso di tutto l'anno ha rivelato console next-gen fortemente divise da diverse visioni del mercato e del suo futuro. Eppure, entrambe stanno dirigendosi verso il lancio con componenti interne molto simili.
Tokyo’s 2020 Election Devolves into Circus
Japan is one of the most expensive countries in the world for would-be political candidates – a fact which has often been a topic of debate and criticism.
Abe Shinzo Enters the Polling Danger Zone
Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s press conference announcing the end of the country’s COVID-19 state of emergency on May 25 had, at points, the air of a victory speech. Touting the effectiveness of what he termed the “Japan model” – and touching upon the notion of Japanese exceptionalism to which his rhetoric so often returns – Abe announced that the virus is all but under control and suggested that the country’s success meant it should now play a leading role in global infectious disease measures.
Il reveal di PS5 da parte di Sony sarà incentrato su giochi e software - articolo
La scarsezza di dettagli tecnici potrebbe non essere una cosa casuale. In un'industria nella quale gli annunci al pubblico e gli eventi sono solitamente gestiti con prudenza, le conferenze con gli investitori per comunicare i risultati finanziari possono risultare spesso interessanti. Raramente da esse trapelano nuove informazioni ma spesso vengono poste domande su temi su cui la gente riflette, ma che la compagnia ha per qualche ragione evitato di affrontare.
Time to Give Japan Credit for its COVID-19 Response
With the COVID-19 pandemic still ongoing and a strong likelihood of future waves of outbreaks, it’s much too early to start talking about national “winners and losers,” apart from the most extreme cases. This is doubly true since there’s still much that we don’t know about the virus – such as the details of how it is transmitted, and what successful “countermeasures” actually look like. COVID-19 is going to be a fact of life for the near- to medium-term.
Alyx sarà in grado di togliere la VR dal suo status di nicchia? - articolo
Considerando quante persone hanno aspettato così a lungo un nuovo gioco di Half-Life, è davvero sorprendente il fatto che l'imminente Half-Life: Alyx stia avendo un impatto già prima del lancio. Il più notevole è sicuramente quello su Valve Index, l'headset VR di fascia alta della compagnia, che ha faticato non poco nell'affermarsi sul mercato prima dell'annuncio di Alyx.
Tokyo's Rainbow Revolution - Tokyo Review
If there’s a single barometer for the progress made around the position of LGBT people in Japanese society in recent decades, it’s Rainbow Pride. Photos of Tokyo’s Pride parade over the past 25 years (the first was held in 1994) are a visual metaphor in themselves.
The Reiwa Era: Explaining Japan's New Era Name
Japan’s new Era Name has been announced, with the Reiwa Era set to begin on May 1st – but what does the new name mean and how was it chosen? At 11.30am on April 1st, the Japanese government announced the name of Japan’s new era. In one month’s time, the Heisei era will end with the abdication of the current Emperor, Akihito, and the country will enter the 令和 reiwa era.
Abe's "Nightmare" is a Warning over LDP Disunity
Shinzo Abe’s speech to the Liberal Democratic Party’s annual convention on February 10 felt at times like a slightly lackluster Greatest Hits compilation.
Cashless Payments Struggle in Cash-Loving Japan
While other countries are moving to cashless transactions, coins and notes remain king in Japan. Visitors to the country often remark on how much cash is used for everyday transactions – the spread of convenience store ATMs that accept international cards has ended the era when tourists struggled to access their money, but many are still taken aback by the sheer ubiquity of cash as a payment system.
ゲーム史に残る名作「パックマン」の最終仕様書全ページが学会誌で公開、生みの親が開発の舞台裏を語るインタビューも
2019年01月08日 10時55分 ゲーム by Rob Fahey 1980年にナムコから発売された「パックマン」は、黄色いパックマンを操作してモンスターにやられないよう注意しながら迷路内のドットを食べ尽くすというゲームです。パックマンの動きに合わせて動作を変えてくるモンスターの動きは当時のゲーマーたちを驚かせ、大ヒット。2005年には「最も成功した業務用ゲーム機」としてギネス世界記録の認定を受けました。 そんな「パックマン」を開発した岩谷徹氏へのインタビューと「パックマン」の最終仕様書が、人工知能学会の発行する学会誌「人工知能 Vol.34 No.1」で公開されています。本文のPDFファイル(22.07MB)は以下のリンク先にある「34-1_086-099_F00アーティクル1.pdf(22.07MB)」をクリックするとダウンロード可能です。 アーティクル ゲームAI の原点『パックマン』はいかにして生み出されたのか？：岩谷 徹インタビュー｜人工知能学会 AI書庫（アイショコ）...
Bureaucrat Whistleblowers Spell Trouble for the LDP
There are two points of connection between the pair of scandals presently dogging the Abe government. The first is obvious; it is Abe himself. The Prime Minister’s favoritism lies at the heart of the supposed preferential treatment handed to Kake Gakuen, a school operated by one of his close friends.
Shinzō Abe: Schrödinger’s Statesman
There are two stories about Shinzo Abe. The first story, the most commonly heard, is of a temperamental, impatient and vindictive Prime Minister – a man who chafes angrily at rules and protocols, who values nothing but loyalty and as a consequence has surrounded himself with sycophants of low ability.
Local Governments Take the Lead on Social Policy
The Japanese Diet this week finally passed a legislative amendment that will ban smoking in some public places by April 2020 – but only after the Health Ministry’s original proposals had been hacked to bits by LDP lawmakers, who watered down the scope of the law to the point where more than half of Japan’s restaurants will end up being exempt from the new rules .
Japan's Unfolding AirBnB Disaster
Japan’s new law governing short-term private rentals through sites like AirBnB – “minpaku” – came into force on June 15. The sector has been in desperate need of regulation, thanks to unscrupulous operators creating disruption and nuisance in many of Japan’s high-density residential areas – but the way the new law is being enforced is nothing short of a catastrophe.
Japan Isn’t Ready for a #MeToo Moment
While the #MeToo social movement has become a powerful force against sexual harassment and assault overseas, it has struggled to gain traction in Japan – but last month it claimed a high-profile victory when a senior figure in the Ministry of Finance, Junichi Fukuda, was forced to resign after a female journalist covering the ministry recorded him sexually harassing her .
Japan by the Numbers: Permanent Employment
The start of April is the beginning of the new academic year in Japan, and also a key milestone for businesses and their staff. New employees, fresh from their graduation ceremonies, start work in early April, so companies also often line up transfers and promotions for older staff with this point in the calendar. Meanwhile, a new wave of first year students enters Japan’s universities.
Who Will Lead Japan after September?
Japan has no national elections scheduled in 2018, but there is one highly consequential vote on the calendar – the LDP’s internal election for the office of party president, which will be held in September and will in effect choose Japan’s next prime minister.
Abe vs. Aso: The Moritomo Scandal Divides the LDP
After smoldering for over a year, the Moritomo Gakuen scandal this week ignited into a conflagration that may swallow the careers of Japan’s most senior politicians.
Koike's Korean Problem - Tokyo Review
The Tokyo Assembly resumed its duties after recent elections this week, with Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike’s upstart party, Tomin First no Kai (Tokyo Citizens First), holding a solid majority in the chamber and giving the governor one of the most powerful mandates any leader of the city has ever had.
Antwan Phillips wants to make a difference in reducing Little Rock violence | Arkansas Blog
Wednesday, August 30, 2017 Antwan Phillips wants to make a difference in reducing Little Rock violence Posted By Max Brantley on Wed, Aug 30, 2017 at 7:11 AM click to enlarge
KARK/Fox 16's push to do something about Little Rock violence includes a spotlight on people trying to make a difference — in this episode Antwan Phillips, a lawyer at Wright, Lindsey and Jennings. For Phillips, doing something is personal. The McClellan High graduate lost two brothers to violence.
Congressman who assaulted reporter refuses interview with victim | Arkansas Blog
Wednesday, August 30, 2017 Congressman who assaulted reporter refuses interview with victim Posted By Max Brantley on Wed, Aug 30, 2017 at 7:01 AM U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte, the Wyoming Republican who said during
click to enlarge
his sentencing he would sit down for an interview with the Guardian reporter he assaulted, has refused to do an interview with the reporter, Ben Jacobs. A congressman lie before a judge? Surely not.
Obama: A gift that keeps on giving to the haters | Arkansas Blog
After resisting for several days, I had to mention a meme that's turning up repeatedly amongon social media, as illustrated by a Tweet here.Those who live in a fact-based universe know1)was president during thedisaster. And2) The woman in that photo is, not. Bush's secretary of state did indeed catch some attention for going shopping for high-dollar shoes in the aftermath of Katrina.Bikergirl4trump may or may not be real (she claims to be an NRA member and motorcyclist, among others).
The Myth of Japan’s Bored Police
Japan’s crime rate being so low that police are bored has become a popular meme; in reality, the police often ignore sexual crimes and domestic violence. Source: 瀬田僚達 on Wikimedia Commons The idea that Japan’s police are so bereft of crimes to deal with that they’ve begun inventing make-work schemes for themselves to alleviate the boredom has, at least, a somewhat more reputable source than many of the ideas about Japan which “go viral” across social media.
Opposition Chaos gives Abe Room to Breathe
If Japan had a domestic equivalent of Washington political drama House of Cards, the entire writers’ room would have been fired this week for the latest implausible twist in the story. The slump in the polls for Shinzo Abe’s cabinet shows no signs of abating, the Prime Minister’s personal ratings continue to slide, and the Defense Minister has been forced to resign after the latest in a series of hugely damaging scandals.
Corbyn's manifesto is great. Labour is still going to lose. - @robfahey
The UK’s Labour Party yesterday announced its manifesto for the upcoming general election. It’s a dramatically different vision to the path the Conservative party has laid out for the country, and unsurprisingly, it is the most left-wing manifesto the party has had since the rise of “New Labour” under Tony Blair in the late 1990s. Contrary to the scoffing of some on the right, however, it’s far from being a loony-leftie document that appeals only to the fringes.
Why Is Shinzo Abe's Protege Being Used as a Trial Balloon? | JAPAN Forward
When Tomomi Inada was appointed as Minister of Defence in last summer’s Cabinet reshuffle, it raised eyebrows across the political spectrum. A protégé of Shinzo Abe since the earliest days of her political career, Inada had only been in the Diet since 2005 and her previous ministerial experience was limited to minor reform-related roles. Her inexperience was magnified by the fact that would be replacing the very experienced Gen Nakatani, a former officer in the Self-Defence Forces.
Trump is no gift for Abe and the LDP - @robfahey
As Japan’s establishment and observers start to come to grips with the implications of a Trump administration for the country, one comment I’ve heard a lot is that this is a gift for Shinzo Abe and his inner circle. It clears the way for them to enact their long dreamed-of reforms, which would upend the post-war national order and return the country to a normalised military posture.
What President Trump means for Japan - @robfahey
Donald Trump is, failing an electoral college miracle, going to be the next president of the United States of America. Countless words will be written about what that means for America, but as a resident of Japan and a scholar of Japanese politics, I’d like to talk a little about what a Trump presidency means for Japan. This is a question whose implications extend far beyond Japan itself.
Restraint, not Aggression, in Japan's Military Budget Increase - @robfahey
The remilitarisation of Japan is a popular theme for the international media. It gives a clear, dramatic narrative to international news coverage that might otherwise bore readers. In this narrative Japan’s leadership seek to cast off the shackles of the post-1945 world order, to rewrite the pacifist constitution, rebuild their military forces, inculcate hatred of their Asian neighbours, and adopt an aggressive, warlike stance towards Asia.
Koike Grasps Tokyo's Poisoned Chalice
Koike Yuriko last night became the first ever female governor of Tokyo, elected in an emphatic victory with a margin of well over a million votes more than her closest competitor. All other considerations aside, Koike’s election is worthy of celebration simply for smashing through a glass ceiling.
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