Latest news with #BigAntStudios
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
‘Hall of asterisks': Melbourne Storm's act with ‘cheated trophies' angers NRL fans
The Melbourne Storm continue to publicly display the two premiership trophies that were stripped due to salary cap breaches, raising eyebrows in rugby league circles. A photo emerged over the weekend of the Storm's 2007 and 2009 premiership trophies on show inside AAMI Park for Thursday night's clash against the Brisbane Broncos. FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every game of every round in the 2025 NRL Telstra Premiership, LIVE with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1. The image was shared on social media by Ross Symons, CEO of Big Ant Studios, the company that produced the new Rugby League 26 video game. Symonds innocently shared some photos from inside the Storm's home ground ahead of the game, but the 2007 and 2009 trophies immediately caught the eye of his followers. 'Someone sent me a photo from AAMI Park the other night,' veteran rugby league reporter Phil Rothfield told Triple M's Sunday Sin Bin. 'They have all these premiership winning trophies near where the players come onto the field — 99, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2017 and 2020. 'Six grand final wins but only four premierships. 2007 and 2009 were taken off them. 'I don't think those two trophies they were stripped of for salary cap cheating should be displayed.' Co-host Ben Dobbin said: 'They're a reminder of what those previous players have done.' Former Bulldogs hardman James Graham said the constraints of the salary cap are an important part of the competition. 'If they were able to, Penrith could have kept (Jarome) Luai, (Stephen) Crichton, (Viliame) Kikau, (Matt) Burton — they could have sailed on for the next decade and it wouldn't have been close.' It's safe to say the Storm displaying the 2007 and 2009 premiership trophies didn't go down too well with some footy fans. One person commented: 'Love how they display their hall of asterisks like that, what a club - do they have the two sets of books framed too? A second said: 'Why are two cheated trophies there?' 'Nothing pisses me off more than Melbourne's 07/09 stance,' a third said. A fourth said: 'No way there still counting 07 and 09, cheats.' Another said: 'There appears to be two fictional trophies in that image.' It's not the first time Melbourne have come under fire for having their 'salary cap tainted' trophies on display. In 2023, the Storm paraded the 2007 and 2009 trophies along with the four other premiership triumphs as part of the club's 25-year anniversary celebrations. Greg Inglis and Dallas Johnson brought the 2009 trophy out onto AAMI Park as part of a club presentation. Inglis left the Storm for the Rabbitohs as the most high profile player to depart the club in the wake of the salary cap scandal, which saw Melbourne stripped of all premiership points in 2010. Storm legend Cameron Smith said the celebration of the 2007 and 2009 seasons was simply to acknowledge former players who were apart of the team during those seasons. 'I think it was purely an in-house thing that they were doing for the fans and the players and particularly the old boys down there,' Smith said on SEN. 'I don't ask them to understand the way we feel about it either. I completely understand people would say 'That's wrong, they shouldn't do that' and that's fine but at the same time, many people wouldn't understand the way we feel about it either. 'There were guys there that played in those grand finals and then were forced to leave the club in 2010. After that, they never had an opportunity to play in another grand final or an opportunity to win one. 'There was punishment handed down at the time and the club and the players and all the administration and fans had to live through that. At no stage was it an opportunistic time to show it off or parade it around,' Smith continued. 'The thing I want to get across is, I can understand why it's annoyed a lot of people and that's fine – as long as those people can acknowledge too that I don't think those people understand the way that the Storm people in that period feel about it at all.' Melbourne defeated Brisbane 22-2 on Thursday to cement their spot in the top four as hamstring injuries to playmakers Ezra Mam and Adam Reynolds left the Broncos reeling in the run to finals.
The Guardian
3 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Tax relief and Carmen Sandiego: Australia's once-dismissed video game industry is finally getting a leg-up
The idea that video games are not 'serious things', says Ross Symons, overlooks the benefits they offer to gamers feeling isolated. 'One thing that struck me during Covid is that games were the way that people connected and stayed together.' The chief executive of Big Ant Studios, a Melbourne-based game developer, recalls when in 2010 the then opposition leader Tony Abbott dismissed the national broadband network as being for 'internet-based television, video entertainment and gaming'. Symons says that dismissiveness of the video game industry has not stood the test of time. Last year alone, Australians spent $3.8bn on video games, according to the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association (IGEA). The sector is small compared to large game development nations such as Canada – but that is slowly changing. In 2023, the federal government brought in the digital games tax offset (DGTO), which allows developers who make or port (develop games for systems that aren't the ones they were originally on) games in Australia to claim a 30% refundable income tax offset. It applies to companies which incur at least $500,000 in qualifying Australian development expenditure and is capped at $20m per company. Ron Curry, the chief executive of the IGEA, says in 2020-21 there were about 1,300 employees in the gaming industry in Australia – a figure which has now almost doubled. The Australian game development sector now accounts for 2,465 full-time workers and earned $339.1m in revenue in the financial year of 2023-24. 'That shows an almost 100% increase in employment and revenue has grown about 85%,' he says. 'The DGTO pulled a number of levers. Australia was a very expensive place to make games – we were the only developed country without any sort of rebate or offset. So it fixed that, so it brought us back in line with other developed countries.' Sign up: AU Breaking News email Curry says it signalled to the rest of the world there was confidence in the industry from government, and – in conjunction with state and territory grants to the sector – it made Australia a 'healthy environment to operate in' and generated confidence from investors, game publishers and prospective employees. Serge Zebian, partner at Playwright Consulting, a firm that advises gaming companies on accounting matters, says the offset has made an 'enormous difference' for companies hiring people in Australia and that momentum is starting to flow. 'We're making all the international studios aware of it, and some already are just from existing relationships with Australian vendors. But … now a lot of international studios are looking [toward] Australia. My clients' proposals are progressing really fast up the queue.' Zebian says NSW used to be the home for film while Victoria had the reputation as a games development hub, but competition is increasing. Queensland has added a 15% rebate on top of the federal government's 30% with a threshold of $250,000. In Victoria, the rebate is 10% or 15%, depending on shareholding, with a threshold of $500,000. 'What we're finding is a lot of indies [independent game studios] are … moving up to Queensland,' Zebian says. French developer Gameloft opened its Brisbane studio in 2014. The studio was behind the resurrection of iconic gaming character Carmen Sandiego this year on mobile, Netflix, Xbox, PlayStation, PC, and Nintendo Switch. Manea Castet, the studio head in Brisbane, says he grew up playing the Carmen Sandiego games with his father. He found the character scary: Sandiego is a thief, after all, who you have to chase all over the world. For Castet, to come back and be able to make the new game and have players instead assume the role of Sandiego was a 'fun twist'. Castet says Gameloft's Brisbane studio is the only one within the company experiencing large growth, expanding from 55 employees two years ago to 217 today. Castet says it allows the studio to work on two games at once and have more complete development of the game from design, tech, audio, quality assurance and marketing. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion 'Everywhere in the world, it's shifting … there is still a lot of money to be [made in] the video game industry, so having Australia pushing for that now, I think it's super smart.' Big Ant Studios found itself at the centre of controversy with the release of their Rugby League 26 game in July. Users complained about bugs in the game at launch, including jerseys with the wrong numbers on them and server errors making it difficult to play the game. Symons says it was a 'very good day' when numerous patches were rolled out to improve the game. He blamed tight deadlines for the release of the game to coincide with the NRL season and last-minute changes to the game. 'We were forced to make a hell of a lot of change in the game, 1,200 changes in the week before we release[d], and these changes were to do with betting sponsors, alcohol sponsors and all sorts,' he says. 'So we sat there stripping the hell out of the game, still having to meet our day. So that was tough.' Gambling and alcohol company logos that are featured on player jerseys in real life were removed from the game prior to release amid growing concern about marketing of those products to under-18s. Symons also says the company underestimated demand on the day the game went on sale; it sold six times more than their expectations, leading to server issues which he says have since been resolved. Big Ant had around 50 employees until the tax offset came in, which allowed the company to expand to 147 employees, Symons says. 'It allows us to be competitive with every other place on the planet.' The studios say a tight jobs market, where games development skills are often sought out by other industries including artificial intelligence, makes it more difficult to grow. Curry says the industry is proud participants have transferrable skills, but it makes it competitive for talent. Secure jobs, commensurate salaries and an immigration system that attracts senior talent would help recruiting, he adds. 'We know when you bring senior talent into a country, they act as an accelerator for those people that they're training,' he says. 'If you want to get a developer into Canada, you can do it in as little as two weeks through their system. We know people have taken up two years and beyond to get into Australia.' 'That just doesn't work when you're in a field that's quickly moving.'
ABC News
01-08-2025
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Rugby League 26 video game developer hits back at criticism from players who 'should know better'
The boss of video game developer Big Ant Studios has hit back at criticism of the newly launched Rugby League 26 game, following high-profile players slamming the release. Some players, including Sydney Roosters prop Millie Elliott and State of Origin star Kennedy Cherrington, have criticised their likeness in the game, while issues with the gameplay and the inability to use players in their real-world positions have also caused backlash. Issues ranged from retired players being highly rated, to stadiums being in the wrong cities, while gameplay was also highlighted on social media. Ross Symons, chief executive of Big Ant Studios, hit back at the criticism of likenesses in Rugby League 26. "The ones that are talking should know better because, frankly, they've made statements that really are reasonably outrageous, because we have gone around the world, even to the north of England, just to scan women in game," he told the ABC. "Eighty per cent of our sponsorship money goes to women's sport. We take it extraordinarily seriously. "We actually travelled to capture NRLW players specifically in captures up to Townsville and everywhere. "They were told, 'Please, please be at the shoot because if you're not at the shoot, you won't look like you'. We were very clear. Symons said Big Ant Studios would be attending the NRLW Magic Round to conduct more facial scans to add to the game. "We have offered to capture as many players who would like to sit in the chair. And sitting in the chair takes 45 seconds," he said. Rugby League 26 was highly anticipated, as it came eight years after the last iteration, Rugby League Live 4. Cherrington described the game as "half-finished", while social media was flooded with gamers reporting glitches and errors. Symons said some of the issues stemmed from a compressed rollout timeline, which required the developers to submit the game for disc printing two months before the launch date. He also said that despite calls from the public, delaying was "not an option we were given" and that online multiplayer feature issues were temporary. "Then the product we want people to have is ready with a day one patch, because things change," he said "Even in sport itself, just the nature of sport where things change, where rosters change, injuries occur, ratings change." Big Ant was also criticised for its inability to manage demand on its servers, which locked players out for hours. Symons said the demand for the game was six times higher than expected, and said it had outsold video game franchise members Assassin's Creed: Shadows, Death Stranding 2: On The Beach and Donkey Kong Bananza. "It is number one by a margin and our servers also had that problem." Despite the backlash about Rugby League 26 from users, the fact there is a game for a code played predominantly in just three countries is noteworthy. A large part of that, and the reason for an eight-year hiatus, was the commercial viability of making a game for a relatively small market. Big Ant Studios was the recipient of the Digital Games Tax Offset (DGTO), introduced in 2023 to encourage local game development studio investment in Australia, which allows companies to claim back 30 per cent of qualified Australian expenditure. This funding model is similar to other schemes designed to encourage local filmmaking, and Symons says this program "allows us to take risks that we otherwise couldn't take". "The world would call the AFL, the same with NRL and to some extent cricket, a niche sport. It's our lifeblood and we love it, but no one else wants to make these sports games. "That's where the DGTO really, really does help, it enables to tell Australian stories and in particular, Australian sport because I don't think Australian sport gets a title if it's not for things like the DGTO because it just becomes not commercially viable." Big Ant Studios also made the AFL and cricket video games, as well as a tennis game based around the Australian Open. The Sydney Roosters were approached for comment but did not respond before publication.
News.com.au
20-07-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Rugby league game a laughing stock like NRL fans all expected
Another Australian football game, another epic flop. The production organisation behind the new Rugby League 26 game are desperately scrambling for solutions after the highly anticipated game fell apart this week. The release of the iconic rugby league video game descended into farce with users taking to social media to complain about glitches, comical bugs and frozen loading screens. FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every game of every round in the 2025 NRL Telstra Premiership, LIVE with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1. It has seemed ages since rugby league fans have had an opportunity to try a new gaming experience, but this week's embarrassing release will be an all-too-familiar deflating feeling. With limited resources and budgets for such a small market of gaming fans, expectations are always low when it comes to local football games — but even the most pessimistic of fans would have been disappointed when the game dropped. While plenty of fans have publicly praised the in-match experience, countless others have taken to social media to share clips of hilarious glitches. Among the angry reactions across cyberspace, some fans have reached out directly to the Big Ant Studios Studios developer responsible for executing the new game. Users of X have reached out directly to the organisation to ask for refunds. Big Ant Studios released a statement on social media on Thursday night, making an apology to those that have purchased the new game. 'We know today has not gone as smoothly as it should have and we will compensate all #RugbyLeague26 purchasers with some free #ProTeam credit,' the Studio posted. 'Details to follow tomorrow. There has been overwhelming demand that also may have caused service issues, and for that we cannot apologise enough. The studio on Friday morning shared another update. 'At the moment the team have been on a double+ shift of 16+ hours to secure server services to enable #ProTeam to be turned back on,' it stated. 'That is the first priority, then an update to the game.' Users sharing video clips of some of their user experiences have got plenty of rugby league fans guffawing on X. One person posted on X: 'Not even joking how did this game get the green light? Another person posted: '8 years and this dross is the best you can come up with? Embarrassing'. One user wrote: 'Cannot put into words how bad Rugby League 26 is'. One person summed it up by posting: 'I didn't have big expectations around Rugby League 26 but this is a genuine piss take. I understand you are not a big developer but c'mon guys, be better.' The most damning social posts have been videos shared by users. Typical commentary from a #bigant rugby game 🙈 #rugbyleague26 — Darren Glover (@dazglo36) July 17, 2025 interesting kickoff tactic #RugbyLeague26 — steven (@stvnktzms) July 17, 2025 Thought I’d give the online section of Rugby League 26 a go, swiftly left the game after this bullshit. This game is brutal😂 @BigAntStudios @RossSymons — Jamie Tomlin (@JamieTomlin_) July 17, 2025 En route to your headquarters as we speak @RossSymons @BigAntStudios #RugbyLeague26 — zac (@shaisprint) July 17, 2025 That doesn't mean every user has had a bad experience. Fox League larrikins Nathan Hindmarsh and Bryan Fletcher appeared to get plenty of giggles while playing it on a segment of their hit segment. Although even their promotional video showed up some bugs. As reported by Code Sports, the game has had the biggest pre-sale for any game in 2025. Rabbitohs hooker Brandon Smith enjoyed playing the game in a promotional exercise. 'Mate, it's a great game,' he told the publication. 'For me, it's just about playing rugby league on a video game and being in one. I remember when the old games came out …. it was just a cool thing. So it's awesome just to be a part of something like this.' Smith's rating in the game is 82, despite his recent injury woes. Panthers star Nathan Cleary is the highest rated player in the game with a rating of 93. Penrith captain Isaah Yeo is the second best player in the game with 92. Of course, a few things like glitches, bugs and major system breakdowns won't stop diehard rugby league fans from snapping up the game. At least now, we've all been warned.
Daily Mail
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
New list ranking the best players in the AFL leaves some footy stars crying foul - so do YOU agree with the pecking order?
Footy fans and video gamers have been delighted by the announcement that a new AFL video game is set to launch later this week. But the announcement of AFL26 has come with plenty of debate after the stats and attributes of some of the game's best players for the latest addition to the video game franchise had been revealed on social media. In fact, the stats had some players and fans crying a little foul. It's been three years since Big Ant Studios and Nacon teamed up to publish a new AFL game. This year's edition, which works in a similar ranking system to games including EA Sports FC, has ranked Carlton star Patrick Cripps as the highest-rated player in the game. And there's not much separating the top seven in the game, with the Carlton captain, a two-time Brownlow Medallist for 2022 and 2024, sitting just one point ahead of Collingwood rival Nick Daicos, who has risen to stardom over the past two years for his sensational performances for the Magpies. Western Bulldogs star Marcus Bontempelli (left) and Nick Daicos (right) rank as joint-second in the rankings Three-time Leigh Matthews Trophy winner Marcus Bontempelli sits tied in second with Daicos with a rating of 93, while another Brownlow Medallist Lachie Neale leads a quartet of Zak Butters, Jeremy Cameron and Isaac Heeney as the next best-ranked players, all joint on 92. In fact, the current standings are not far off the AFL's April power rankings, with Daicos sitting top ahead of Cripps, Bontempelli, Heeney and Jeremy Cameron, while Chad Warner squeezes into the top seven ahead of Lachie Neale, while Zak Butters falls to ninth behind Christian Petracca. Meanwhile, leading stats for each aspect of the game have also been revealed, and one AFL star, Max Holmes, was absolutely filthy that he'd been left off the list for the league's top speedsters. After revealing AFL26's stats lists on Instagram, Holmes, who was not included in the top-10 fastest players, commented on the post: 'Excuse me?' Instead, the video game has ranked Sam Switkowski as top, Tyson Stengle second and Brent Daniels in third. Bailey Banfield, Ben Ainsworth, Lachie Schultz, Zach Guthrie and Zac Williams all follow, with Callum Ah Chee and Dylan Moore making up the final two. Max Gawn was ranked top for hitouts, interestingly above Port ruckman Jordon Sweet, who currently supersedes Gawn for the most hitouts in 2025, and is interestingly not included in AFL360's top-10. North Melbourne were also aggrieved Nick Larkey was ranked 10th on the list of top set shot takers with his current shot at goal accuracy sitting at 60.6 per cent - one of the best ratios in the league. 'The most accurate set shot of all time in 10th,' North wrote. View this post on Instagram A post shared by AFL (@afl) Max Holmes was left aggrived he wasn't included in the top ten for speed on AFL26, while fans questioned why certain players had been omitted from different categories Larkey was usurped at the top of the list by Josh Treacy, Jesse Hogan, Charlie Curnow, Ben King and Jeremy Cameron. Others were incensed by the omission of Darcy Fogarty from the set shots line-up. Some were baffled at why Geelong star Tom Atkins had been omitted from the tackling ladder, despite leading the competition for an average of 10.5 tackles a game.
