Bluesky says it would block access to its service in the state of Mississippi, rather than comply with the new age verification law.

In a blog post published on Friday, the company explains that, as a small team, it doesn't have the resources to make the substantial technical changes this type of law would require, and it raised concerns about the law's broad scope and privacy imp

Users with Mississippi IP addresses can no longer access the Bluesky app. The decentralized social media network has explained in a post that Mississippi's new age verification law for social networks "would fundamentally change" how it

Hello and welcome to a new edition of Patch Notes, our friendly (and weekly) news roundup. This is editor-in-chief Danielle Riendeau subbing in for senior news editor Chris Kerr, who has been boots on the ground at Gamescom this week, reporting from the show floor and generally getting down to business. It's been a busy week at Gamescom and far beyond, so without further ado, here are a few of the stories that have made the biggest splash in the last few days.2K is 'reducing the size' of BioShock 4 developer Cloud ChamberVia Jason Schreier on Bluesky/Game Developer // Bloomberg's Jason Schreier dropped the news on Bluesky this week, reporting on layoffs at Cloud Chamber, 2K's studio tasked with the next BioShock game. The news came a couple of weeks after Schreier's own report that a build of the game failed a publisher review, and employees were reportedly fearing for their jobs in the aftermath. A memo listing the layoffs also announced that Rod Fergusson would take over as Cloud Chamber's studio head, a strange mirror to the time he came in towards the end of the last BioShock's development to get it over the line.Update: Microsoft shuts down questions about layoffs and Israel ties at Gamescom 2025Via Game Developer // In the original story, your usual Patch Notes author attempted to ask a developer what it was like to work with Microsoft during a turbulent time (given the company's recent mass layoffs, and controversy around its ties to the IDF's military surveillance agency), but the company's spokespeople quashed the question. Eventually, Microsoft offered more of a comment, which you can read in the updated story.Related:Unknown Worlds files lawsuit against ousted founders for allegedly downloading over 170,000 confidential filesVia Game Developer // The Unknown Worlds/Krafton saga has heated up once again, now with the conglomerate filing suit against the former team leaders, saying Cleveland, McGuire, and Gill downloaded "substantial volumes" of undisclosed confidential company information as they left. It's an increasingly complicated tale, broken down step-by-step here in the story.Frost Giant CEO Tim Morten says layoffs are possible after Stormgate underperformsVia Game Developer // Reporting from Gamescom, Chris Kerr highlights a very candid conversation with Frost Giant's Tim Morten, acknowledging that its RTS Stormgate "underperformed" and the team might need to contract as a result. Has Tides of Tomorrow cracked the narrative multiplayer formula?Via Game Developer // In this feature from Tuesday, our senior editor Bryant Francis interviewed the team at Digixart (creators of Road 96) on the creation of their upcoming Tides of Tomorrow and its promising take on narrative multiplayer.Related:

In a blog post published on Friday, the company explains that, as a small team, it doesn't have the resources to make the substantial technical changes this type of law would require, and it raised concerns about the law's broad scope and privacy imp

System Era Softworks design director Liz England never set out to become an industry-wide name—but she did in 2014 when she published a blog called “The Door Problem.” She penned it to help people outside the game industry understand exactly what a game designer does…and it turns out, to motivate herself to get her personal website online.Years later "The Door Problem" is now required reading for young designers everywhere, largely for reasons beyond what England dreamed of when she jotted down that post. In the 11 years since she wrote that post, Liz has evolved from being a game designer to design director, and her perspective on “The Door Problem” has shifted. Today she’s not thinking as much about doors—more about how to help other designers pitch and build doors that fit the scope and vision for their game.What does good leadership look like in game design?England said she didn’t think there was any more to be added to “The Door Problem” even after 11 years. She’s been thinking more about how game design leadership can help developers solve their own “door problems” to make games in a more effective manner. That's not only meant improving her language for designing game design challenges—but looking back at leaders she looked up to earlier in her career.Related:About The Game Developer PodcastThe Game Developer podcast is a bi-weekly podcast chronicling the triumphs, catastrophes, and everything in-between of game development, sharing lessons and strategies fellow developers can use to hone their craft. The Game Developer Podcast is hosted by Bryant Francis, edited by Pierre Landriau, and features music by Mike Meehan.Follow Game Developer on Bluesky or on LinkedIn.Follow Liz England on Bluesky.

Bluesky will block access from Mississippi IP addresses in response to a new state law requiring age verification and parental consent for underage users. The decision, outlined in a blog post, will stand until courts decide the fate of the law. “Mis

We’ve compiled the answers to some of the most common questions users have about Bluesky.

Some of the changes represent an effort by Bluesky to purposefully shape its community and the behavior of its users, nudging them to be nicer and more respectful of others.