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Christopher Dring

@dringo.bsky.social
2.5K followers 59 following 489 posts

Games Business Journalist and Analyst. Editor-in-chief and co-founder of The Game Business. As seen on: GamesIndustry.biz. MCV. BBC. The Guardian. Sky. Doctor Who Magazine.

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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 14h
An extra episode this week! This one is all about Criterion, and whether the Battlefield Studio still the same one that made Need for Speed
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Big chat with Tencent this week, where we tackle the rise of Chinese games in the West, its long-term approach to building hit studios, the ambitions it has for Hollywood and lots more
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 28/09/2026
It’s Monday! So time for 'Here's The Dring' (paid subscribers only). This week, Chris reports back on his experience visiting the Nintendo Museum. And why it embodies Nintendo’s efforts to widen the audience for its games and franchises www.thegamebusiness.com/p/nintendo-i...
thegamebusiness.com
Nintendo is mastering the power of the physical
Here’s The Dring: Nintendo’s Kyoto Museum showcases Nintendo’s past, and future
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Alex Donaldson @apzonerunner.com · 26/09/2026
ahh full blown editorial pitches from an AI is it
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
"Will these moves save Xbox? It’s certainly got a long battle ahead. But ultimately success will be decided, as it always is, on the strength of the games it puts out. And it’s making big moves to deliver on that"
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Xbox is merging studios underneath Activision and Bethesda. Halo is now at Activision, alongside Rare and World’s Edge. 268 job cuts across Halo Studios, other first-party teams and Xbox Game Studios management. Ninja Theory faces closure. More here: www.thegamebusiness.com/p/halo-to-ac...
thegamebusiness.com
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Big chat this week with the boss of Rainbow Six Siege
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
This week, I'm reporting live from Tokyo. Here's my mini-review of Tokyo Game Show. This is for paid supporters to The Game Business. I'll do a smaller recap on Thursday for free subscribers!
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Big edition this week, with two interviews and breaking stories!
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
We’ve just shot past 30,000 subscribers to The Game Business! Plus, @jamesbatchelor.bsky.social is the latest person to start doing some bits for us. Double milestones!
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 16/09/2026
In this bonus edition of The Game Business Show, we chat to Balatro publisher PlayStack on the impact of the hit poker game, the role of indies in the modern video game industry, and what they expect from their new owners www.thegamebusiness.com/p/beyond-bal...
thegamebusiness.com
Beyond Balatro and taking risks: Why PlayStack doesn’t want a 100% hit rate
We speak to CEO Harvey Elliott as the indie publisher enters a new era under new ownership
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 15/09/2026
“For the last six years, we have made redundancies every single year, about 20% of the company. This will be the first year we haven’t done it.” www.thegamebusiness.com/p/the-shoote...
thegamebusiness.com
The shooter that Tencent abandoned: Wardogs hits 2m sales in one weekend
“For six years, we’ve made redundancies every year. This will be the first time we haven’t”
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Today's edition looks at this new shooter that's suddenly blown up. We chat to the CEO of the studio behind it, including his expectations around crunch, rewarding staff, and dealing with the sudden success
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
In today's paid-for subscriber edition, I dive into Kojima's alignment with Xbox. Can he make Xbox 'cool'?
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Zelda Direct's peak viewership was 2.1 million. By comparison: - GTA 6 Extended Look (excluding Netflix) on YouTube hit 4.1m - PlayStation State of Play peaked at 1m - Gamescom Opening Night Live peaked at 2m - The SGF opening hit 2.2 million - Mario Kart World Nintendo Direct was 930k
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 09/09/2026
“We’re not so silly as to claim that we’re going to kill Forza Horizon” www.thegamebusiness.com/p/some-of-th...
thegamebusiness.com
“Some of the offers were actually offensive” – How Clutch found its publisher
Maverick Games on its happy Amazon divorce, taking on Forza, and signing with Focus Entertainment
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Our big interview this week is with @harinder.bsky.social and Mike Brown of Maverick Games talking Amazon, Focus, racing games and Forza. It's one of the Top Five interviews I've done this year (in my opinion)
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
"Trends and numbers can tell you what’s happening right now. It can certainly help back up your decisions. But in my experience, success in video games comes from those who follow their instincts, and not from reading the latest market report, or LinkedIn think piece."
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 03/09/2026
GTA 6 reveal causes Xbox and PlayStation sales to jump by a third www.thegamebusiness.com/p/gta-6-reve...
thegamebusiness.com
GTA 6 reveal causes Xbox and PlayStation sales to jump by a third
Plus, Newzoo warns of increasing focus on established franchises
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Our first big interview from Gamescom. "If you want to have a cost-driven development, and that’s a proper business thinking for a lot of games, you cannot make a game like The Witcher 4. I doubt if the development of GTA VI was a cost-driven development. In fact, I’m 100% sure it wasn’t.”
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Our 25% off Summer Sale ends today! It supports all the things we do (and you get some nice extras)
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 31/08/2026
Reminder, we have a 25% off Summer Sale the ends tomorrow! You can get an annual subscription to TGB, which includes a bonus weekly podcast/newsletter, plus a monthly market report. It also supports all the work we do! Our main Tuesday and Thursday shows remain free.
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 31/08/2026
In today's 'Here's The Dring', Chris shares my thoughts on GTA 6 and Gamescom 2026. Plus, he shares a story about how legendary British comedian Bob Mortimer ended up in an indie game www.thegamebusiness.com/p/how-a-lege...
thegamebusiness.com
How a legendary UK comic ended up in a video game – Here’s The Dring
Plus, some words on GTA 6 and Gamescom, of course
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
So Patrice Desilets says he's talking with publisher Fictions about doing more Ancestors games. CD Projekt promises to do 'something' physical for The Witcher 4. And Raccoon Logic told me that gamers in subscription services don't buy DLC or add-on content
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
If you want to fill optimistic about the future of the video game business, check out this brilliant (he says) interview I did with the CEO of Unity
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Focus Entertainment has signed Clutch, the AAA racing game made by Forza Horizon leaders. Still 25% off TGB paid subscriptions until Monday!
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Some fun facts for you from today's Show and newsletter. 68% of Astro Bot sales in France have been physical. In fact, around half of Astro Bot sales have been boxed in Canada, Japan,Australia and UK, too (data supplied by Ampere)
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Black Pony Immersive is a new studio from Harvey Smith, Ricardo Bare and Ben Horne. Ben and Harvey came on our Show and discussed the apparent 'death' of immersive sims, the remarkable story of Redfall's final update, and building a studio for the modern age. It's a really fun, positive conversation
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 19/08/2026
We have 25% off paid The Game Business subscription until August 31. Paid subscribers get: - An extra weekly newsletter and podcast called 'Here's The Dring' - Our monthly market report - The chance to The Game Business Live in LA at no extra cost www.thegamebusiness.com/p/summer-sal...
thegamebusiness.com
Summer Sale! Get 25% off The Game Business subscription
Get our weekly bonus podcast, monthly market report and event access for $6.25/£4.69 a month
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 18/08/2026
Where is today's episode of The Game Business Show? It's coming tomorrow because it ties with a news story, and features two legendary game makers. It's just a one-off. Back to Tuesdays from next week.
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 17/08/2026
Our newly rebranded paid subscriber podcast/newsletter, Here's The Dring, dives into 2K's decision to open a sports studio on EA's lawn. And Netflix's confusing decision to close Night School Games. We have a 25% off Summer Sale on paid subs right now! www.thegamebusiness.com/p/2k-is-the-...
thegamebusiness.com
2K is the only one that could take on EA Sports FC – Here’s The Dring
Plus, Netflix closes its most interesting studio
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
This week, I chat the end of $50 million AAA games, AI, keeping costs low, and surviving in a challenging video game industry with the Tencent-owned work-for-hire giant Sumo
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 10/08/2026
This week's edition of The Game Business Micro (paid subscribers), looks at the potential of Netflix as a new destination for showcasing upcoming video games following its GTA 6 reveal www.thegamebusiness.com/p/could-no-p...
thegamebusiness.com
Could no physical disc and a trade union row hurt the GTA 6 launch? Take-Two’s CEO doesn’t think so
Strauss Zelnick hopes Rockstar will showcase more marketing innovations following its Netflix partnership
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Take-Two’s Strauss Zelnick says that physical retail remains an important marketing channel, which is why they’re doing code-in-a-box for GTA 6 www.thegamebusiness.com/p/could-no-p...
thegamebusiness.com
Could no physical disc and a trade union row hurt the GTA 6 launch? Take-Two’s CEO doesn’t think so
Strauss Zelnick hopes Rockstar will showcase more marketing innovations following its Netflix partnership
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
The new Spider-Man movie felt so much like the Insomniac games. Also, whoever thought ‘you know what Spider-Man needs? The Punisher’… give them a raise
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 31/07/2026
Our monthly report for paid subscribers is here for June! We reveal the best-selling games on PC, console and mobile. We tell you how well the consoles did in the US, Japan and UK. And we dive into the games that saw the most trailer views and articles. www.thegamebusiness.com/p/the-state-...
thegamebusiness.com
The State of Games: June 2026
The World Cup impacts the game charts, it was a bad month for consoles and a good month for new announcements
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 30/07/2026
This week we have some fun by talking about which video games, outside of GTA, are going to sell best over the next four months... using data, of course. www.thegamebusiness.com/p/the-legend...
thegamebusiness.com
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake is the most anticipated game of 2026 (that isn’t called Grand Theft Auto)
Plus, we chat Call of Duty, Blood of the Dawnwalker, Marvel’s Wolverine, Star Wars, Gears of War and more
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 29/07/2026
"Warframe has always felt like a bit of an underdog story." www.thegamebusiness.com/p/destinys-b...
thegamebusiness.com
Destiny’s biggest rival Warframe has had ‘two years of massive growth’
Digital Extremes believes in console growth, and discusses the ‘careful’ development of its second game
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
In the UK, Xbox console sales are up for the first six months of the year. It’s the only platform holder to sell more consoles in H1 2026 vs 2025 Meaning, Switch 2 has overtaken GameCube sales in the UK.
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Another big live service success story in today's The Game Business Show and Newsletter
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 27/07/2026
In today's edition of The Game Business Micro (that's our mini podcast for paid subscribers), we look at Xbox's (and Amazon's) latest efforts to get game streaming working. With console prices as they are, might it work this time? www.thegamebusiness.com/p/xbox-amazo...
thegamebusiness.com
Xbox, Amazon and Netflix try to make game streaming relevant – The Game Business Micro
This week, we dive into Xbox’s new ad experiment and chat about the role of game streaming in the current climate
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
I had a big chat with Amazon about whether Luna can help with the pain of $1,000 game machines, reaching an audience that might not exist, games it wants to sign, 007: First Light, Netflix’s Unhinged… and actually wanting Maverick’s Clutch after all
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
The sequel to last year's big RuneScape interview. I found out that half of Old School RuneScape players are not 'old school' players. Plus, RuneScape has stopped its decline, but it still isn't growing after last year's monetization changes... Bellamy says big news is coming in October
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
1,000 sales would have got you No.9 in the UK physical charts last week.
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
The new Micro is here!
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Regarding the Bethesda news… With so much noise around the Xbox job cuts, I can see why the company is moving to reassure fans, staff and the industry that there is a plan and things are progressing. But while there’s still 1,600 cuts to come, things will remain unsettled
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
EA joins us as the publisher pushes harder into in-game advertising for PC and console games
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
I loved chatting with Sean about Netflix's Unhinged. I'm quite excited by what Netflix is doing. Rather than competing with PlayStation/Xbox/Nintendo/Steam etc, it's trying to win over people who might not be traditional console/PC gamers. And Unhinged is a glimpse into how they might do that
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Christopher Dring @dringo.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
In this week's The Game Business Micro, a major retail group has criticized PlayStatipn's plan to kill the disc, and we wrap up the news from Xbox's 1,600 cuts. www.thegamebusiness.com/p/retail-tra...
thegamebusiness.com
Retail trade body condemns PlayStation’s plan to kill the disc – The Game Business Micro
Plus, all the latest around Xbox’s brutal cuts
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The Game Business @thegamebusiness.com · 10/07/2026
Every month, we produce a market report for paid subscribers of The Game Business. It covers PC, console and mobile games, press coverage, trailers, and hardware sales. This week, we're covering May, featuring Forza, Bond, Batman, Subnautica and more www.thegamebusiness.com/p/the-state-...
thegamebusiness.com
The State of Games: May 2026
Big month for Forza, Bond, Batman and Subnautica. Tough month for PlayStation
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