Pixel P&L: India's RMG Pushback, Chinese MMO Boom, CD Projekt Expands

Welcome to another Pixel P&L edition. This issue takes 4 minutes to read. If you only have one, here are the 5 most important things:

• Indian game developers push back against RMG mislabeling that damages the industry's reputation.

• Where Winds Meet, a free-to-play martial arts MMO, hits nine million players in just two weeks.

• CD Projekt Red builds a Boston leadership team for Cyberpunk 2 development.

• Savvy Games Group partners with King Saud University to develop gaming talent in Saudi Arabia.

• Dispatch developer calls episodic releases "insane" without strong creative content — despite selling 2M copies in a month. 

Let's get into it.

Indian Game Developers Push Back Against Real-Money Gaming Mislabeling

The Indian Game Publishers and Developers Association has called on media outlets to stop conflating real-money gaming platforms with video game development, citing increased confusion following enforcement of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025.

The trade group argues that RMG operators, which offer betting-style services like rummy and poker for cash prizes, operate in a distinct financial framework from India's creative gaming sector. The association warns that lumping enforcement actions against RMG companies under the gaming industry umbrella damages legitimate developers, studios and esports professionals.

IGPDA, formed in August 2025 with nine members including nCore Games and Reliance Games, requested journalists use terms like "RMG operators" rather than "gaming companies."

The issue stems from years of RMG firms using phrases like "skill-based online gaming" to associate their platforms with actual video games, creating regulatory and public perception challenges for India's gaming industry. The government has now formally distinguished between the two sectors.

Chinese MMO 'Where Winds Meet' Hits Nine Million Players in Two Weeks

Where Winds Meet, an open-world martial arts MMO from developer Everstone Studio, has reached nine million players just two weeks after its global launch on Steam and PlayStation 5.

The game, which features Sekiro-inspired combat set in a Wuxia fantasy world, attracted two million players during its opening weekend and quickly earned a "Very Positive" rating from nearly 40,000 Steam reviews. It currently ranks fifth on Steam's most-played games chart, surpassing titles like Battlefield 6.

The rapid adoption follows Everstone Studio's explicit commitment that players wouldn't need to spend money to progress or compete. The studio greeted players with a message stating "your legend is written by skill and choice, never by wallet size."

Players have praised the free-to-play model, with one reviewer calling it "a live service game done right: gameplay and player satisfaction first." Many users report logging over 100 hours since launch. The success marks a notable achievement in the competitive MMO market dominated by established titles like Final Fantasy 14 and World of Warcraft.

⚡️Quick Bytes

CD Projekt Builds Boston Leadership Team for Cyberpunk 2

CD Projekt Red has established its core leadership team at its Boston studio to lead development of Cyberpunk 2, the sequel to the best-selling Cyberpunk 2077. The Boston team currently comprises over 80 developers, with more than 90% holding senior-level positions. Company co-CEO Michal Nowakowski said the studio plans to double its Boston headcount within two years while expanding teams in Vancouver and Warsaw. Overall, 135 people are working on Cyberpunk 2 across all studios, with staffing expected to exceed 300 by late 2027.

Saudi's Savvy Games Group Partners With University on Gaming Talent

Savvy Games Group signed an agreement with King Saud University to develop gaming and esports talent in Saudi Arabia, part of the kingdom's Vision 2030 economic diversification plan. The partnership will provide students access to Savvy's gaming and esports operations through joint programs and initiatives. Savvy Games Group Chief Human Resource Officer Majed Al-Muhanna said the collaboration aims to "shape the future of Saudi Arabia's games and esports sectors."

Episodic Release Model 'Insane' Without Strong Creative Foundation, Says Dispatch Developer

AdHoc Studios CEO Michael Choung warned developers against adopting episodic release models without exceptional creative content, calling the approach "insane" despite its success with detective game Dispatch. "From every metric, from a production perspective, no one should do this," Choung said. He described episodic releases as a "multiplier" that amplifies results, making strong content perform better while potentially dooming weaker projects. Dispatch released two episodes weekly starting October 22, defying conventional wisdom that subsequent releases see declining engagement. Instead, concurrent users doubled each week, driving sales past two million copies within a month and putting the game on track to hit its three-year sales target in three months.

⚔️Side Quest

🤣Laugh:

📺 Watch: Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser tells Virgin Radio UK that AI will "eventually eat itself" by training on its own generated content, comparing it to mad cow disease. He criticizes tech executives pushing AI as "not fully-rounded humans" trying to define creativity, predicting AI will excel at some tasks but not everything.

🎮 Play: Noobs Are Coming delivers fun twists on Brotato's formula with Kickable and Minion weapons at under $5. Charming art and deep options make it excellent value. However, like most survivor-likes, late-game success brings crippling framerate drops, especially on Steam Deck, turning runs into slideshow marathons by wave 40-plus despite solid specs.

📚 Read: Writer Imran Khan shares how Kaizo Mario's ultra-hard romhacks became unexpected physical therapy after a neurological stroke robbed him of motor control. The game's built-in assumption of constant failure created a safe space for recovery, where incremental progress in precise movements paralleled his rehabilitation journey, ultimately helping him regain walking ability and fine motor skills.

💡Did You Know

Hidetaka Miyazaki, creator of notoriously difficult games like Elden Ring, Bloodborne, Dark Souls, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, openly admits he "absolutely sucks at video games." The FromSoftware president rarely plays his own titles post-launch, fearing he'll notice leftover issues that bug him. When preparing for Shadow of the Erdtree, Miyazaki completed Elden Ring using "every scrap of aid the game offers" plus his insider knowledge as architect. He joked he might benefit most from Elden Ring's accessibility features, championing player freedom to use guides and mods. Ironically, the director famous for punishing difficulty needs maximum assistance to beat his own creations.

📜 Quote of the Day

Was this forwarded to you? Sign up for free here. 

We read every email! Share your feedback by hitting reply.