This week, Riot Games employees walked out in protest of the company’s arbitration policy, Tencent swapped PUBG Mobile for a patriotic alternative, and EA announced plans to bring Apex Legends to mobile and Chinese markets.

Riot Games sees employee walkout in wake of arbitration policy

Upwards of 150 employees walked out of Riot Games this week to protest the company’s current forced arbitration policy. If upheld, the policy would force two of five current and former female employees who filed gender discrimination and sexual harassment lawsuits against the company to go through a private legal system. While sentiment surrounding the company’s actions were negative, press were optimistic about the results of the walkout. The Verge stated, “There is a strong and recent precedent that these demonstrations have worked in tech. Last year, tens of thousands of employees at Google participated in a walkout to protest the company’s culture of sexism and shielding of harassers. In February, Google said it would end its policy of forced arbitration.” Forbes, Kotaku, GameSpot, and more weighed in on the news.

Tencent swaps PUBG Mobile in China for patriotic alternative

Tencent has removed PUBG from China’s mobile market after China’s State Administration of Press and Publication (SAPP) prohibited in-app purchases, eliminating the opportunity for the company to collect revenue from the game. In lieu of the popular title, Tencent released Game for Peace, a similar game that has patriotic themes and does not depict blood, gore, or corpses. Engadget was optimistic, stating, “Whether this will hold the same appeal remains to be seen, but it may come as some relief to hardcore PUBG players that once they update the game they’ll be returned to the same level they left off.” Outlets such as CNET, Variety, and PCGamesN reported on the news.

EA announces plans to bring Apex Legends to Mobile and China

In a recent statement, EA’s CEO Andrew Wilson confirmed that Apex Legends will soon be available on mobile devices and in China. Currently, Apex Legends is EA’s fastest growing game with over 50 million registered players since its launch in February. The company claims that 30% of registered gamers are new to the company altogether, and expanding the game’s reach to mobile and Chinese markets will keep the momentum going. GameSpot was neutral regarding the news, saying, “Apex Legends coming to mobile is no big surprise, as the mobile game market is massive and represents another way for EA to make money from the game.” The news was reported by CNET, The Verge, VentureBeat, and more.