22 May 2026 | Weekly news roundup

The big beasts arise as we talk EVE Frontier, MapleStory Universe and how Wemade's approach bests Ubisoft. [00:34] Jon attended EVE Fanfest 2026 in Iceland. What are his takeaways?[02:40] Why EVE Fanfest works beyond being just an event for players.[05:05] EVE Frontier is EVE Online if made from scratch now.[06:46] In Cycle 6 (out 25th June), EVE Frontier finally becomes more of an actual survival game.[09:28] Modular shipbuilding replaces fixed ships.[10:40] EVE Frontier is a game that rewards players who improve their manual gameplay skills. [11:55] “This is a game that makes EVE Online feel cuddly.”[13:58] Does EVE Frontier need non-EVE players?[15:30] The fundamental approach is blockchain as a unified API.[16:38] Why some CCP/Fenris developers want to work on EVE Frontier, not EVE Online. [17:38] How EVE Frontier is using AI for coding and prototyping.[19:10] Nexon is talking about MapleStory Universe, MSU 2.0 and VIBE IP.[22:11] MapleStory Universe did $31 million in revenue in year 1. [23:22] The real KPI for MSU 2.0 is the revenue third-party devs make. [25:55] Average EVE Fanfest attendee had played 7,900 hours of EVE Online. [30:50] Legend of Ymir has released the ability to mint and trade character NFTs.[32:00] Legend of Ymir NFT character trading was $77,000 on day 1. [34:40] Ubisoft is shutting down Champions Tactics’ web3 features on 27th May. [36:00] Ubisoft’s blockchain problems are a minor part of much wider issues for the company. [39:00] Champions Tactics was beautifully made, but too narrow in its addressable audience. [42:29] Wemade is iteratively learning. Ubisoft is scattergun, lacking learning loops. [44:30] The post-crash shape of blockchain gaming is now becoming apparent.