Pixel P&L: Happy Holidays Everyone!

Before we dive in, a quick note: we're going to be taking a brief pause to celebrate the holiday season. We'll resume regular service on January 2nd when the new year starts.

That said, this issue of Pixel P&L takes 5 minutes to read. If you only have one, here are the 5 most important things:

• A GTA: Tokyo nearly happened through a Japanese studio before the project collapsed, former Rockstar dev reveals.

• India Gaming Institute partners with GDAI to address talent-production mismatch in the Indian gaming sector.

• IO Interactive delays James Bond game '007 First Light' to May, citing quality assurance needs.

• NCSoft acquired a majority stake in Singapore's Indygo Group for $103.8M in Southeast Asian expansion.

• China's largest comic convention bans Japanese anime and manga content, sparking exhibitor exodus.

Let's get into it.

Rockstar Nearly Outsourced Tokyo-Set Grand Theft Auto, Former Developer Says

A Grand Theft Auto title set in Tokyo nearly entered development through an external Japanese studio before the project collapsed, according to former Rockstar North technical director Obbe Vermeij.

The veteran developer, who worked on GTA III through GTA IV, told GamesHub the Japan-based studio would have used Rockstar's code to create GTA: Tokyo. The proposal ultimately fell through for undisclosed reasons.

Vermeij said Rockstar explored international settings including Rio de Janeiro, Moscow, and Istanbul, but extended development cycles and the franchise's satirical focus on American culture make global expansion unlikely.

"You're not going to get that when there's a GTA every 12 years," Vermeij said, citing the series' ballooning production timelines.

He predicted future installments will cycle through roughly five American cities, revisiting New York, Los Angeles, or Las Vegas rather than venturing internationally.

Grand Theft Auto VI, set in a reimagined Vice City, launches in 2026—marking roughly 13 years since GTA V's 2013 release.

India Gaming Institute, Developer Group Partner on Talent Development

India's gaming sector faces a critical talent-production mismatch despite rapid user growth, prompting the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies and Game Developers Association of India to formalize educational collaboration through a new partnership agreement.

The memorandum establishes a framework for curriculum alignment with industry workflows and emerging technologies. GDAI Chairman Shridhar Muppidi cited uneven talent availability across studios as driving the partnership's focus on production-ready skill development.

"For India to build sustainable leadership in the AVGC-XR sector, education must evolve in step with industry workflows and global standards," said Dr. Ashish Kulkarni, IICT's founding director.

Launched in May 2025 by India's Information & Broadcasting Ministry with industry associations FICCI and CII, IICT began operations in August with 18 courses spanning gaming, animation, post-production, and extended reality technologies at its Mumbai campus.

The collaboration targets knowledge exchange and structured industry engagement to align educational pathways with content creation and monetization practices in India's expanding interactive entertainment market.

⚡️Quick Bytes

NCSoft Acquires Majority Stake in Singapore's Indygo Group for $103.8 Million

South Korean publisher NCSoft purchased a 67% stake in Singapore-based mobile games publisher Indygo Group, which owns Vietnam casual developer Lihuhu, as part of expansion into Southeast Asian casual gaming markets. The acquisition supports NCSoft's strategy to develop casual mobile titles as a growth driver. The company established a mobile casual center and plans additional acquisitions, including Korean studio Springcomes. NCSoft co-CEO Park Byung-moo said the company is pursuing mergers with European studios while seeking business collaborations to expand its casual games portfolio globally.

IO Interactive Delays James Bond Game '007 First Light' to May

IO Interactive postponed its James Bond title "007 First Light" from March 27 to May 27, citing quality assurance for its most ambitious project. The independent studio said the game is fully playable but requires additional polish for long-term success. The title reimagines Bond as a young MI6 recruit, blending stealth gameplay with action sequences. Lenny Kravitz portrays the game's first villain in IO's departure from its stealth-focused Hitman franchise.

China's Largest Comic Convention Bans Japanese Anime, Manga Content

COMICUP organizers announced December 19 that the December 27-28 event will operate under "New Chinese Style-only" format, effectively prohibiting Japanese anime, manga, and related cosplay from China's largest doujinshi marketplace. The abrupt policy shift prompted widespread exhibitor cancellations and attendance concerns. Organizers cited "comprehensive consideration of the current social environment and cultural responsibility." The ban follows recent theatrical disruptions for Japanese anime films including "Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle," which ended prematurely despite strong box office performance.

⚔️Side Quest

🤣Laugh:

📺 Watch: This technical investigation solves a decade-old mystery about why Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas' sun looks smaller on PC than PS2. The answer involves a bizarre seabed file fix, broken lens flare scaling, and performance optimizations that accidentally created the iconic warm atmosphere. The video reveals whether Rockstar's artistic vision was enhanced or undermined by hardware limitations.

🎮 Play: Bright Memory: Infinite delivers a polished linear FPS masterpiece with gorgeous visuals and tight combat. This action shooter blends satisfying gunplay, melee systems, and spectacle-driven setpieces into a perfectly paced afternoon experience. Easy to replay, it's essential for FPS fans seeking pure, refined action without commitment.

📚 Read: Jane McGonigal argues that games and gamers hold the power to solve real-world problems in Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World. While her optimism about transformative games and "gamification" feels dated post-Farmville, she demonstrates how recreational games can drive positive change.

💡Did You Know

Experienced StarCraft II players showed significantly younger-looking brains than non-gamers in a 2025 study. Researchers used machine learning to analyze brain activity in expert real-time strategy gamers aged 18-31, measuring "brain age gaps" that quantify accelerated or delayed brain aging. The results showed delayed aging in StarCraft II players, with effects scaling by skill level: higher expertise and better performance correlated with greater delays in brain age, suggesting the game's demands for creative tactics, adaptive problem-solving, and personalized playstyles may offer protective effects on brain health.

📜 Quote of the Day

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