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.
CMON Sells Rights to Several Product Lines Amidst Financial Turmoil
Things are not looking better for CMON Games; in fact, things might actually be looking even worse.
According to a recent press release from CMON, the company has finalized the sale of multiple properties to Tabletop Tycoon, with an additional unnamed IP having also been sold to an unknown party.
CMON entered negotiations in 2024 to sell several of its product lines to Tabletop Tycoon, including popular titles like Blood Rage, Rising Sun, and ANKH: Gods of Egypt. While it’s unknown what the final numbers are for the sale of these games, full ownership of these titles and the Arcadia Quest series of board games have been transferred to Tabletop Tycoon. CMON writes in its press release that “It has truly been a pleasure to bring these games to life over the last several years, and we look forward to their future with the Tabletop Tycoon team.”
“We look forward to reissuing, remastering, and extending these lines into the future,” writes Dan Yarrington, CEO and founder of Tabletop Tycoon, “We are very excited to have these amazing brands come under our roof.”
CMON notes that this sale does not interfere with any current campaigns, and argues that it even helps support them by allowing more company resources to focus on delivering rewards to backers. CMON makes mention in the press release that despite the pause on import tariffs coming into the United States from China, CMON has no plans to begin work on any new crowdfunding campaigns.
Tabletop Tycoon is the owner of multiple publishing companies, such as Starling Games, Victory Point Games, Flying Meeple, and Sparkworks. Its most popular game is Everdell, created under the Starling Games banner, which sees players working together to build up the titular community and the woodland critters that call Everdell their home.
While its impossible to say with certainty how CMON’s financial turmoil affected this sale, the timing of this deal seems serendipitous. From what we know now, it’s likely that CMON was well aware of the coming monetary storm they would be weathering, and launched these sales as an attempt to get a cash injection to soften the losses from the year. Or it could be totally unrelated. As of this writing, it’s a mystery only a handful know the truth of. The only thing for certain is that this deal does not inspire confidence in CMON’s road ahead.
Games Workshop Indicates Another Record Setting Year of Profits
While CMON desperately tries to bail water out to save itself from a fiscal nightmare, Games Workshop is sailing on by, and according to its most recent trading update, the company is poised once again to post record profits.
According to the update, Games Workshop expects a 25% raise in overall PBT (profit before taxation), going from 203 million in FY24 to no less than 255 million in FY25.
While a 13% increase in the company’s core revenue accounts for most of this success, a sharp jump in licensing revenue in FY ‘25 raises eyebrows. In the space between FY 24 to FY 25, GW has nearly doubled its licensing revenue, jumping from 27 million to 45 million. It’s such a large jump in licensing revenue that even Games Workshop doesn’t think its sustainable, writing in the update that “Licensing revenue in the period is at a record level and we are not expecting this to be repeated in 2025/26. Licensing remains a significant area of focus.”
As with previous years, Games Workshop promises a bonus payout to all its staff members. The staff payout taken evenly from a shared pool of 20 million, up from last years 18 million.
Games Workshop promises the release of the full annual report, with finalized numbers and more details on revenue, at the end of July.
Lead Model Designer for Victrix Games Passes Away
Historical wargaming company Victrix Miniatures publicly announced the passing of Emel Akiah, the sculptor for many of the companies most popular sculpts.
Akiah met Steve Hale, cofounder of Victrix, in 1997 while working in the video games industry, where his most notable credit was as a member of the development team behind Grand Theft Auto 2. Hale and Akiah became fast friends, and Akiah’s artistic skills made him a natural fit to help Victrix designing new models.
“With every release we got better and better and kept pushing the boundaries with the detail and the posing,” Hale writes in a Facebook post announcing Akiah’s passing. “Thanks to Emel, we now have a deeply experienced team in place who continue to uphold and evolve the high standards he helped set. He leaves behind a great legacy of work, and all new sets going forward will have his stamp on them. The Victrix style is Emel’s style, and that will forever live on in Victrix figures.”
Some of Akiah’s most notable designs include the Vikings, Celts, Medieval Mounted Knights, and Islamic Infantry. Akiah passed away in March, his cause of death is undisclosed, presumably for the privacy of his loved ones. Goonhammer extends its condolences to those who knew Akiah and are affected by this loss.
Daggerheart Releases System Reference Document Online Following Wildly Successful Launch
Daggerheart, the recently released TTRPG created by members of the mega-hit Actual Play series Critical Role, released its System Reference Document (SRD) online for free last week following the games runaway success at launch, giving fans of the game access to the fundamental rules and concepts for the game to build into their own adventures.
Following months of previews and public betas by the games publisher, Darrington Press, Daggerheart went on sale on May 20th. Darrington Press announced just a few days later on its blog that the game had already completely sold out from the Critical Role online marketplace. Darrington does not have a timeline yet as for when the core rulebooks for Daggerheart will be available again in their store, but the company does note that copies can still be found at local game stores and Barnes and Nobles, and that the game will go on sale at 3rd party online retailers like Amazon on June 3rd (so, uh, today!)
Those who can’t get their hands on the rulebook or just need the bare bones for the game can turn to the online SRD. The 135 page document provides the basic info for most of the game’s systems, including character creation, combat, loot, and the basic campaign frame in which the system operates. With this basic framework, fans of the system are encouraged to create their own homebrew content for the game to share with others, for free or for profit, as outlined in the SRD’s sister document, the Darrington Press Community Gaming License (DRP-CL).
SRDs and gaming licenses are nothing new in the tabletop RPG world, though their visibility shot up a few years ago following Wizards of the Coast’s disastrous attempt to update its own gaming license. Still, the massive popularity of the system means that it’s ripe for the creation of new content by enthusiastic fans and it’s wise for Darrington Press to see that and make getting the SRD out a priority.
Zenimax Workers Union Reaches Tentative Agreement with Microsoft
A massive win for collective action in the video games industry occurred last week when the Zenimax Workers United union struck a tentative deal with Microsoft.
The union was founded in 2023 by QA workers at Zenimax. In 2024, Microsoft reached a deal with the union’s sponsors, the Communications workers of America (CWA), that obligated Microsoft to approach any negotiations with neutrality and openness.
The deal reached last week represents the culmination of those talks. In the deal, Microsoft committed to a 13.5% raise for all employees in the union, as well as an increase to the minimum pay rate for QA positions at Zenimax. Workers were also promised protections “against arbitrary dismissal and grievance procedures” as well as how AI tools are integrated into the workplace.
“Workers in the video game industry are demonstrating once again that collective power works. This agreement shows what’s possible when workers stand together and refuse to accept the status quo,” said CWA President Claude Cummings Jr in a statement on the CWA website. “Whether it’s having a say about the use of AI in the workplace, fighting for significant wage increases and fair crediting policies, or protecting workers from retaliation, our members have raised the bar. We’re proud to support them every step of the way.”
This tentative agreement is the first of its kind in the entire video game industry, as none of the other burgeoning unions in the space have been able to reach a deal with management. The final vote to ratify the agreement among Zenimax Workers United members will take place on June 20th, 2025.
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