Game studio HiDef has teamed up with San Francisco-based software developer Unity Technologies to work on a games-as-a-service project that focuses on games that “connect and entertain people through creative expression, competition, shared experiences, and cultural discovery.” The San Diego-based HiDef, founded by Anthony Castoro, Jace Hall, Rick Fox and David Washington in 2019, recently raised $9 million. HiDef said the first title is a metaverse mobile game using the Unity game engine, created in concert with Unity’s gaming services team. Continue reading HiDef and Unity Pursue Social Impact and Diversity in Games

The eSports category, competitive gaming, is poised to skyrocket in popularity in the U.S., says a Frank N. Magid Associates report. Long popular in Asia, eSports has grown 100 percent in the last two years in the U.S. Of the 70 percent of Americans, aged 8 to 64 years old who play some kind of game, nine percent watched or attended an eSports event in 2013, a figure now grown to 18 percent. Games that fill arenas with fans include “League of Legends,” “Dota 2,” “Counter-Strike: Global Offensive” and “Hearthstone.” Continue reading Investors Are Drawn to eSports as Popularity Doubles in U.S.