The UK’s CMA details its concerns with Microsoft’s Activision acquisition, including withholding games from rivals; Microsoft argues Sony is the dominant player (Christopher Dring/GamesIndustry.biz)

Brendan Sinclair / GamesIndustry.biz:
An interview with Unity CEO John Riccitiello on its game engine’s future, merging with ironSource, monetization vs. creation, falling stock price, and more  —  With an IronSource deal pending, CEO John Riccitiello talks about the future of Unity, its history of losses, and buying back stock in the wake of layoffs

James Batchelor / GamesIndustry.biz:
Nintendo announces a new joint venture, called Nintendo Systems, with DeNA, which co-developed several Nintendo titles for mobile, including Fire Emblem Heroes  —  New subsidiary will open in April 2023, focusing on research and development to improve Nintendo’s digital business  —  At a glance

Brendan Sinclair / GamesIndustry.biz:
EA reports Q2 revenue up 4% YoY to $1.9B, vs. $1.94B est., net income up 2% YoY to $299M, and net bookings down 5% YoY to $1.75B  —  The “most successful launch” in series history helps publisher finish Q2 with revenues up 4% but bookings slide 5%  —  Electronic Arts reported its earnings …

Andy Robinson / Video Games Chronicle:
Sony reports PlayStation Plus subscribers declined to 45.4M in Q2, down from 47.3M in Q1, and PlayStation Network MAUs dropped to 102M in Q2 from 103M in Q1  —  PlayStation Plus subscribers have dropped by nearly 2 million users since the revamped service launched in June.

Bloomberg:
Sony says longtime PlayStation hardware architect Masayasu Ito plans to retire on October 1; Ito joined Sony in 1986 and began working on consoles in 2000  —  Sony Group Corp. is set to lose its longtime PlayStation hardware architect Masayasu Ito, who will retire at the end of this month.

The Verge:
PlayStation VR2 hands-on: easy to set up, a joy to use, the OLED display looks great, refreshed Sense controllers are an improvement, gameplay is fun, and more  —  And it’s pretty good … Sony’s PlayStation VR2 may not be coming out until next year, but after months of drip-feeding news …