Games Industry News Roundup- February 3rd, 2026

Here at Goonhammer, we know that it’s hard to keep track of all the news happening all the time in the games industry. So much is always going on with games of all sorts, and their related media, it can be a real blink-and-you’ll miss it situation.

That's why every week, we round up five of the biggest stories in the gaming sphere from the past week in the Games Industry News Roundup. Our trusty news boy, Dan “Swiftblade” Richardson, is at the very real and cool Goonhammer newsdesk with the scoop.

Mistborn and Stormlight Archives Adaptations in Production for AppleTV

It’s been an electrifying week for fans of the Cosmere universe, as Apple announced that it’s acquired the rights to screen adaptations of Brandon Sanderson’s fantasy universe.

According to the announcement, Apple plans on kicking things off with a movie trilogy based on the “Mistborn” series, followed by launching a TV show based on “The Stormlight Archives”. Both the Mistborn and Stormlight Archive adaptations will be available on AppleTV+, Apple’s streaming platform, which has been the home of several ambitious prestige series, such as Pluribus, For All Mankind, and Severance.

While big budget adaptations of popular IP is nothing new in the modern media landscape, the Cosmere adaptations from Apple will be unique in the amount of direct control Sanderson will maintain over them. According to reports, Sanderson will have complete control over the Cosmere on-screen universe, and will write the screenplays, produce, and consult, as well as having the final say on any decision made in the adaptations. It is an unprecedented level of direct control over an adaptation that other authors didn’t have, even with massive pop culture touchstones like Game of Thrones.

As of this writing, there is no announcement on when precisely Mistborn or Stormlight Archives will premiere, though it will likely be some time as they are both in very early stages of production.

Intrepid Studios Shuts Down Suddenly, Despite Multi-Million Dollar Kickstarter Campaign

Credit: Intrepid Studios

The team behind the most well funded Kickstarter MMORPG, Intrepid Studios, announced suddenly last week that it would be laying off all staff and shutting down operations immediately, despite never releasing any games after years of work.

Intrepid Studios is the team behind Ashes of Creation, the MMO that raised over 3 million in crowdfunding on Kickstarter in 2017. Since raising this money, the Intrepid team has produced some closed alpha builds of the game that were made available to backers, but did not release any public product despite being wishlisted on digital storefronts like Steam.

Last week, fans who have been patiently waiting for the game were shocked to hear about mass layoffs at Intrepid, followed by the director and founder of Intrepid, Steven Sharif, resigning “in protest”. "I can make a limited statement in my personal capacity and not on behalf of the company, regarding the situation," Sharif wrote on the community discord. "Control of the company shifted away from me, and the Board began directing actions that I could not ethically agree with or carry out. As a result, I chose to resign in protest rather than lend my name or authority to decisions I could not ethically support. Following my resignation, much of the senior leadership team resigned. Following those departures, the Board made the decision to issue WARN Act notices and proceed with a mass layoff.”

According to rumors and inside sources from MMORPG.com, Intrepid studios was bought out by a private equity firm, who planned on laying off a large number of the 250 intrepid staff, but not the entire team. However, some chain of events occurred that ended up instead leading to the entire studio collapse.

Intrepid Studios, or any new ownership it may have, has not put out any official statement at this time, and though Ashes of Creation has not been officially canned yet, its almost certainly doomed without any team to make it.

Red Hook Games Sends Out Darkest Dungeon Board Game STLs to Kickstarter Backers

Credit: Red Hook Studios

After the liquidation of Mythic Studios in December left the fate of all unfulfilled Darkest Dungeon Board game pledges in limbo at best, Red Hook released the digital STL files to backers of the initial crowdfunding campaign, finally laying to rest the story of the tumultuous tabletop adaptation of their hit board game.

Initially when Mythic shut down, backers who had not received their wave 2 Darkest Dungeon products were told that they would be sent the STL files for the game pieces that they were never sent as recompense for the failure to deliver a physical copy. However, ex-Mythic employees would quickly walk this stance back, saying that it did not actually have the rights to the STL files to release them, and the promise was all smoke and mirrors.

Red Hook Studios, the development team behind the Darkest Dungeon games, took to social media to announce that it would be picking up where Mythic dropped the ball, and releasing the relevant STL files to backers.

“We put our trust in Mythic Games to deliver on their promises and uphold the Darkest Dungeon name.” Red Hook wrote. “We won’t mince words, their collapse and inability to fulfill Wave 2 orders is an enormously disappointing development and we know it deeply affects many Darkest Dungeon fans.”

According to the post, Red Hook has given their blessing on releasing the files, and all affected backers should have already been emailed the STL files at time of writing. With this final loose end tied off, the long and messy saga of the Darkest Dungeon board game is finally laid to rest.

Mantic Opens Up Digital Webstore for STL Sales

Credit: Mantic Games

Mantic Games is taking the big leap into the digital world with the announcement that it is massively expanding its 3D printing STL availability, and allowing for Mantic fans a wide access of sculpts for purchase to print at home.

The Vault, Mantic’s in-house subscription program to get out STL files to fans, is undergoing a huge expansion this spring to facilitate this endeavor. With the new additional subscription tiers, The Vault will give users access to an even wider array of files to download, including access to all previously released STL files on The Vault, with improved organization and collections for easy navigating.

Mantic will also begin selling single STL files for the first time, starting with a selection from the Salamanders faction for Kings of War as well as the four release factions for Epic Warpath. Purchases of these digital files give users access to the STL file for life, and in the future Mantic promises that those who don’t own a printer can instead request the models be printed on demand and then shipped to them directly.

The expansion for The Vault is expected to go live on April 1st, while the digital file items on Mantic’s webstore are already available for purchase.

Magic: The Gathering Pro-Tour Legend Passes Away

Credit: Wizards of the Coast

On a somber note, as one of the most notable figures in the history of Magic: The Gathering passed away last week. Kai Budde, nicknamed “The German Juggernaut”, passed away from cancer at age 46.

Budde is one of the most notable Magic pro-tour players of all time, having won multiple Pro tour tournaments in his career. Budde started playing in 1994, and would become so enamoured by the game that he would begin competing at higher and higher levels, until Budde won his very first Grand Prix for the Limited format in the 1998-99 season. Budde would go on to win five additional times in his Magic career, and would be awarded the “Player of the Year” award four times by Wizards of the Coast.

Budde would also win the 2001 Magic Invitational Tournament, held in Cape Town, which gave Budde the rare opportunity to design his own Magic Card, and created the “Voidmage Prodigy” blue card.

Budde semi-retired from competitive Magic play in 2004, only occasionally appearing on the tournament circuit. In 2024, it was announced that Budde had been diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer. To honor Budde’s legacy in the world of Magic, the Player of the Year award was renamed to the Kai Budde Player of the Year Award.

"The world has lost a juggernaut," said William Jensen, a fellow Magic the Gathering Pro Circuit player. "Kai Budde embodied what it meant to be the greatest of all time. By far the winningest Pro Tour champion in Magic history, Kai was not only a champion on the battlefield but a champion as a teammate, a champion as a person, and a champion as a friend. Magic and the Pro Tour are better for having had Kai be a part of them, and all of us will miss him greatly. Rest in peace, Kai."

Our thoughts here at Goonhammer go out to Budde’s loved ones during this difficult time.

Bonus: A Badcast Special Report on the NOVA Open

The 40k Badcast.

To close this week’s edition of the Roundup out, we’re taking you away from the Goonhammer Newsdesk over to the Badcast Newsdesk, which is also assuredly a very real and cool thing located somewhere in the labyrinth of Campbell’s home.

Over the past few weeks, there have been some developing rumors around the state of the NOVA Open team, and internal strife behind the scenes at the convention over the outcome of a painting competition. The intrepid Badcast duo has taken to the streets to break down what is happening, including speaking with several former members of the NOVA open board of directors. It’s excellent work by the Badcast team, and you owe yourself a listen, especially if you have any warmth in your heart for the NOVA Open.

Links to the episode can be found right here on Goonhammer.

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