We're hearing iPhone 14 leaks almost every day now, and the successor to the iPhone 13 sounds like it'll have an interesting twist: not only have we heard that the Mini is going in favor of a Max version, but the standard and Pro models might have more differences than ever before.
We have a surprisingly clear picture of the form the iPhone 14 range might take – though this far from launch we’d be extra skeptical, as there’s plenty of time for things to change.
But the rumors so far are promising, pointing to a completely new design for the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, a totally new model dubbed the iPhone 14 Max, and some significant camera upgrades.
Below you'll find everything we've heard about the iPhone 14 so far, including details about the potential release date and price.
And as soon as we hear anything else about the iPhone 14 we’ll add it to this article, so make sure to check back here soon, as leaks are rolling in at a surprisingly rapid rate already.
Latest iPhone 14 news
Apr. 26: More iPhone 14 renders show a device with punch-hole cameras - but ones that are bigger than we've seen in previous images.
Apr. 22: We've heard that the iPhone 14 (standard, not Pro) could be made by a different company, which should ensure that iPhones are easier to buy. Why? Check out our coverage for our reasoning .
Ap. 21: We've heard that the iPhone 14 won't get USB-C , and will stick with a Lightning port (again), but with faster data transfer speeds than before.
Apr. 19: Apparently the iPhone 14 could get two front-facing camera upgrades : hardware autofocus, as well as a bigger aperture. These could make selfies that little bit better.
Apr. 18: An interesting rumor has suggested that, when the iPhone 14 debuts, the iPhone 11 will be discontinued (it's currently sold as an affordable alternative to the top-end models). Given that phone's age, it's a rumor that makes sense.
iPhone 14: what you need to know
iPhone 14 release date : There aren't any release date rumors yet, but Apple almost always unveils new iPhone models in September.
iPhone 14 price : Pricing is unknown, but for reference the iPhone 13 started at $799 / £779 / AU$1,349, and prices may be similar for the next models.
Design : The iPhone 14 will probably look a lot like the iPhone 13, but the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max could get a punch-hole camera instead of a notch. There might also be a big-screen iPhone 14 Max in place of an iPhone 14 mini.
Display : The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro could have 6.1-inch (or 6.06-inch) 1170 x 2532 OLED screens, while the iPhone 14 Max and iPhone 14 Pro Max could have 6.7-inch (or 6.68-inch) 1284 x 2778 OLED screens. Expect a 120Hz refresh rate on the Pro models and a 60Hz refresh rate on the others.
Camera : The iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max could have 48MP main cameras (up from 12MP on the current models). Other specs are unclear, but a triple-lens snapper on all but the standard iPhone 14 is likely, with the basic phone instead having two rear lenses.
Specs : Every iPhone 14 model is expected to have a powerful A16 Bionic chipset, but the Pro models could additionally have 8GB of RAM (up from a maximum of 6GB currently) and up to 2TB of storage (up from a current maximum of 1TB).
Battery : Little is known about the battery yet, but there are claims that the capacity could increase, with the phones getting thicker to house their larger batteries.
iPhone 14 release date
There’s no news on when the iPhone 14 will be released yet, but we can take a very good guess at this, as Apple tends to announce new models around the same time each year, usually at a special event.
The iPhone 13 was unveiled on September 14, 2021, and it shipped on September 24. While we probably won’t see the iPhone 14 on those exact dates in 2022, Apple tends to unveil the new models on either the first or second Tuesday in September, which would mean either September 6 or September 13.
Then they usually go up for pre-order the Friday of that week, meaning September 9 or 16, and ship the following Friday, so September 16 or 23.
Occasionally Apple will announce the phones on the first or second Wednesday instead, but around those dates seems very likely anyway. The iPhone 12 range was an exception to this, landing in October 2020, but that was thanks to delays and supply issues caused by Covid-19.
So far it doesn't look like there will be delays this year, with trial production apparently having already started (as of late February) and the engineering validation stage supposedly having been entered (as of late March), which is on schedule.
iPhone 14 price
We've heard one iPhone 14 price leak which detailed four members of the new range - with a Max included, but no Mini.
Apparently the base phone will start at $799 - the iPhone 13 starts at $799 / £779 / AU$1,349, so that fits - with the iPhone 14 Max going for $100 more than that. We've similarly elsewhere heard that the iPhone 14 will have a similar starting price to the iPhone 13.
The iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max are said to go for $1,099 and $1,199 respectively, which would mean each would be $100 more than the starting price of their predecessors.

iPhone 14 design
The biggest news on the iPhone 14’s design comes from one big leak , which includes unofficial renders of the iPhone 14 Pro Max.
You can see one of these below, and it includes a punch-hole camera instead of a notch, with the Face ID components presumably being under the screen. It also doesn’t really have a camera bump, with the lenses sitting almost flat on the back – a thing that is apparently achieved by making the phone thicker.
The back is a semi-glossy glass, the volume buttons are shown to be round, and it apparently has titanium sides, in place of stainless steel on the iPhone 13 Pro Max . You can also see that there’s still a triple-lens camera and a Lightning port.
The colors shown here aren’t official (though the source claims to have seen a rose gold model), and it’s worth also noting that this design is thought to only apply to the Pro models, with the iPhone 14 (and iPhone 14 Max if there is one) likely to still have a notch. It’s not currently clear which if any of the other design details here could make it to the standard models.

We would of course take this with a huge helping of salt, especially as it comes from Jon Prosser, who has a mixed track record, and as another source has said the iPhone 14 Pro range will still have a notch (albeit a smaller one) - possibly as well as a punch-hole.
But Prosser is often right, and both Mark Gurman and Ming-Chi Kuo (two leakers with excellent track records for Apple information) have since said that the notch will be replaced with a punch-hole camera, as more recently has The Elec .
Another leaker has chimed in to say the same too, though they claim that the camera cut-out will be pill-shaped , suggesting that it might be bigger than most punch-hole cameras.
Ross Young - a supply-chain expert in the world of smartphone displays - has said he believes the company will adopt a "hole + pill" design of the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. That will mean a pill-shaped cutout, as well as a smaller hole that will still be visible – a theory backed up with a leaked schematic cut out .
More sources have now agreed with this , and leaked CAD renders visible below show this design too, though they don't show the rear camera changes you can see further up.
In fact, the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max might actually have a slightly bigger camera bump than the iPhone 13 Pro range according to leaked schematics. This is reportedly due to the use of a new 48MP sensor (more on which further down).
All that said, Gurman has said the iPhone 14 range will include “a hole-punch-sized notch”, and it's not clear from that whether he means a small notch or an actual punch-hole, so there's still some uncertainty about the design.
Elsewhere, we’ve heard that the Pro models could use a titanium alloy for their frame. This would likely be stronger than the materials used in current models, and this source also claims there will be an iPhone 14 Max in place of an iPhone 14 mini.
iPhone 14 display
Reputable leaker Ming-Chi Kuo claims that there will be two 6.1-inch iPhone 14 models (a standard one and a Pro), and two 6.7-inch ones (a Pro Max and a Max).
We’ve also heard more detailed screen specs from Ross Young (another leaker with a good track record). Young claims that the iPhone 14 will have a 6.06-inch 1170 x 2532 OLED screen with a 60Hz refresh rate and 460 pixels per inch. The iPhone 14 Pro will apparently have similar screen specs, but with a 120Hz variable refresh rate.
Then the iPhone 14 Pro Max is said to have a 6.68-inch 1284 x 2778 OLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate and 458 pixels per inch. There’s also apparently going to be an iPhone 14 Max (taking the place of the mini) with basically the same screen specs but a 60Hz refresh rate.

Another source has also suggested that the two cheaper models will be stuck with 60Hz screens , just like in the current range. That said, we've more recently heard that Apple is considering a 120Hz screen for the iPhone 14 Max, but that the decision hasn't yet been made.
A leak has also suggested that all four iPhone 14 models could have 120Hz screens . This is quite an old leak and is at odds with one above, but this claim has been made again more recently , so we're not sure what's right here.
And there’s also a patent for a technology that could make the iPhone screen stronger , without making it any thicker. That would be a nice addition, but patents often don’t turn into anything, so don’t count on seeing this.
iPhone 14 camera
On the camera front, the unofficial renders above show the iPhone 14 Pro Max with a triple-lens camera, and indeed another source also points to that phone (and the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Max) having a triple-lens camera. The iPhone 14 meanwhile will apparently stick with two lenses.
So that doesn’t sound like much change from the iPhone 13 range, though the specifications of the lenses and sensors may well differ.
Indeed, Ming-Chi Kuo (an analyst with a great track record for Apple information) has claimed that the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max will each have a 48MP main camera , up from 12MP on the current models. This would apparently be capable of recording 8K video , and it's something he's more recently reiterated , and in December 2021 reiterated again , so he seems very sure of this.
Plus, another analyst has also joined Kuo in that claim saying that they expect both the Pro models in 2022 to feature 48MP cameras. That isn't confirmation, but it certainly helps Kuo's original claim.
There are also rumors of a periscope camera in the works (for long range optical zoom), and we’ve even seen a patent supporting these claims. However, most sources suggest this is further out – probably landing on the iPhone 15 or later.
iPhone 14 specs and features
One thing we’re almost certain of is that the iPhone 14 range will have a new chipset, probably called the A16 or the A16 Bionic. According to Ross Young, this would be made on a 4nm process , which suggests it could be a reasonable boost on the 5nm A15 Bionic in the iPhone 13 range.
In fact, the process could even be moved down to 3nm, according to DigiTimes (via MacRumors ).
That said, we've more recently heard that a 5nm process could be used once again , as TSMC (the company that's producing the chipset) is apparently struggling to switch to a 3nm (or 4nm) process.
We've also heard that potentially only the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max would get this chipset , with the basic models being stuck with the A15 Bionic. The same source says to expect 6GB of RAM in every model. That split in chipsets has now been mentioned by multiple sources .
Another leak also suggests both the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will feature 8GB of RAM. 6GB of RAM is the most we've seen on an iPhone, so far. Though we've elsewhere heard that every model will have 6GB of RAM , which would be an upgrade for the cheaper ones, but not for the Pro handsets.
On the storage front, the Pro models of the iPhone 13 increased the maximum amount of internal storage you could buy from 512MB to 1TB, and we're hearing that the iPhone 14 Pro phones could double that again – all the way to 2TB .
Beyond that, some sources reckon we could see under-display Touch ID on the iPhone 14, though Mark Gurman (a leaker with a great track record for Apple information) has said that while Apple apparently tested this , the company is now all-in on Face ID, so it sounds like this probably won’t happen – and if it does, it’s likely to be as well as Face ID rather than instead.
Another source has also said under-display Face ID won't happen , so this looks very unlikely.
Another rumored but unlikely feature is a switch from a Lightning port to USB-C . Apple is reportedly considering this for the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, but as yet only one source has pointed in this direction, so we're skeptical.
What the iPhone 14 range is sure to include though is 5G support, while a patent suggests it might also have a new form of 3D Touch , which would use haptic feedback to make interactions more intuitive. But as with all patents we wouldn’t count on anything coming of this one.
There's also talk that Apple could switch from a physical SIM card to an eSIM (which you wouldn't be able to remove). The iPhone 13 range already has this but it's in addition to a physical one, not instead. However, if Apple does go eSIM-only with any iPhone 14, it will probably also offer models that have both kinds .
iPhone 14 battery
In terms of the battery, it sounds like there could be improvements there, with one source saying it will be larger in the next models, and another saying the phones will be thicker – which could leave room for a larger one.
When it comes time to charge, you might be making use of a MagSafe charger rather than the Lightning port based on one patent , though notably early unofficial renders show the Lightning port intact.
We'd surprised if Apple did ditch the Lightning port on the iPhone 14, but a new EU plan could mean that its days are numbered.
New movies 2022: what to watch in theaters this year – and which films are streaming
Thanks to a minor nuisance known as the Covid-19 pandemic, theatrical releases were all-but non-existent in 2020, and any new titles that did see the light of day were often confined to streamers like Disney Plus and HBO Max .
2021, though, turned out to be one of the best for film fans in living memory. Not only did we seen four Marvel movies released last year, ( Black Widow , Shang-Chi , Eternals and Spider-Man: No Way Home , which lengthened the task of watching the Marvel movies in order ), but we also enjoyed the big-budget action of theatrically-released flicks like Dune , No Time to Die and The Matrix Resurrections .
Thankfully, 2022 has continued in the same vein. We've already seen the release of Uncharted and The Batman this year, but there's plenty more new movies on the way soon. Below, we've rounded up the biggest – from Lightyear to Avatar 2.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Release date: May 6, 2022 (theatrical)
Arriving hot off the coattails of Spider-Man: No Way Home's mammoth box office success , Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (or Doctor Strange 2, for short) will see Benedict Cumberbatch's titular sorcerer continue his research on the Time Stone. Judging by the film's first trailer, things don't go exactly as planned, and a series of multiverse-opening events force Strange to confront his most dangerous foe yet – an alternate version of himself. We don't know too much more about what to expect from this one, though Doctor Strange 2 will undoubtedly have plenty of surprises up its sleeve.
Men
Release date: May 20, 2022 (theatrical)
Hereditary meets The Green Knight in Alex Garland's latest horror-cum-thriller, Men. Not much is known about the premise of the A24-produced project, though newly anointed Oscar nominee Jessie Buckley (The Lost Daughter) leads its cast as a widow on vacation in the English countryside who encounters an unwanted pursuer (or several) in the form of Rory Kinnear's Geoffrey. Given the director’s previous work (Ex Machina, Annihilation), film fans are in for a head-spinning (albeit beautifully shot) journey into the human psyche.
Top Gun: Maverick
Release date: May 27, 2022 (theatrical)
Tom Cruise climbs back into that famous fighter jet cockpit for the first time since Top Gun made him the biggest star on the planet over three decades ago. Resurrecting the most '80s of movies in the cut and thrust of the 21st century marketplace is a gamble, even for Cruise, but the production team are doing everything they can to recapture the old magic – as well as real action with real planes, they've brought back synth legend Harold 'Axel F' Faltermeyer on music duties. Plot wise, Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell is still an instructor at the Top Gun school, while one of his students (played by Whiplash's Miles Teller) just happens to be the son of Mav's late co-pilot, Goose. We're still feeling the need for speed...
Jurassic World: Dominion
Release date: June 10, 2022 (theatrical)
If there’s one certainty in Hollywood, it’s that – like life – major franchises find a way. So, despite production having been halted by coronavirus restrictions in March 2020, the sixth Jurassic movie got back in front of the cameras in July 2021. The big news this time out is that Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard will be joining forces with Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum, all reprising their roles from the original Jurassic Park. But with dinosaurs now loose on American soil after the events of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, this movie promises to be very different to its prehistoric predecessors.
Lightyear
Release date: June 17, 2022 (theatrical)
Also arriving in June is Disney Pixar's Lightyear, a feature-length Toy Story spin-off set to follow the adventurers of the titular (and fan favorite) space ranger. After its first teaser trailer back in October 2021, we were left a little unsure as to what story Lightyear would tell, though the now-released official trailer revealed that we'll see Buzz working with Star Command to escape a planet on which he and his team of Space Rangers have been marooned. Taking the lead on a dangerous mission, audiences will find the character in a position of seniority, and it looks like several Zurg-like robots will be making an appearance, too.
Of course, given the setting and context of Lightyear, we are expecting cameos and Easter eggs galore, and we'll be on the lookout for nods to other Pixar movies, characters and that iconic catchphrase.
Thor: Love and Thunder
Release date: July 8, 2022 (theatrical)
The second Marvel Phase 4 adventure to land in theatres in 2022, Thor: Love and Thunder will see the titular Avenger reunited with his astrophysicist love interest, Dr Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), who will get to wield Mjolnir for herself this time around (at least, that's what the movie's first teaser trailer suggests).
Thor as a character has also been through something of a reinvention in recent years, so we're excited to see how this movie depicts the god of thunder. Director Taika Waititi used the brilliant sci-fi action-adventure of Thor: Ragnarok to give Chris Hemsworth's Asgardian a comedic makeover, and, while Infinity War and Endgame put him through the wringer, it looks like we'll be getting more of the same in this eagerly anticipated fourth Thor movie.
Nope
Release date: July 22, 2022 (theatrical)
Get Out and Us director Jordan Peele’s next movie stars Daniel Kaluuya, Keke Palmer and Steven Yeun as “residents in a lonely gulch of inland California who bear witness to an uncanny and chilling discovery.” The movie's first trailer – which features horses, aliens and Yeun in a cowboy hat – gave us a better understanding of that premise, though we're still relatively in the dark as to what strange (and inevitably terrifying) story Nope will tell. Expect the unexpected from this one.
Prey

Release date: June-September, 2022 (Hulu and Disney Plus)
Expected to be the fifth instalment of, and prequel to, the Predator franchise, Prey will follow the famous creature's first journey to Earth. 10 Cloverfield Lane director Dan Trachtenberg has signed on to direct, while Amber Midthunder, Dakota Beavers and Dane DiLiegro are all confirmed to star. No Arnie, though, unfortunately. Original titled Skulls, Prey will be coming to Hulu and Disney Plus exclusively, and 20th Century Studios has set a provisional "summer 2022" release date (that's between June and September, for our readers on the southern hemisphere).
Halloween Ends

Release date: October 14, 2022 (theatrical)
A direct sequel to Halloween Kills – which arrived in October 2021 – Halloween Ends will (supposedly) end the long-running franchise almost exactly a year later. We expect Michael Myers and Laurie Strode to both return, though, which begs the question: was Halloween Kills actually necessary? Expect some near-misses and (another) cliff-hanger ending.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

Release date: November 11, 2022 (theatrical)
When Black Panther: Wakanda Forever lands in theaters on November 11, you'll be hard-pressed to find a dry eye in the house. After Chadwick Boseman's tragic passing in August 2020, nobody really knows how director Ryan Coogler plans to address the actor's loss in this long-awaited follow-up to the 2018 mega-hit, but you can bet Marvel fans the world over will be eager to find out. Speaking to Good Morning America in March 2021, Lupita Nyong'o said that while the movie will inevitably be “different” in several ways, all of its cast and crew "are dedicated to re-imagining or carrying on [Boseman's] legacy."
Avatar 2
Release date: December 16, 2022 (theatrical)
James Cameron is anything but prolific these days – Avatar 2 will be only his third movie in 25 years – but when he does step behind the camera, you know you’ll be seeing something groundbreaking. He tends to spend the long gaps between releases waiting for filmmaking technology to catch up with his vision, so his return to the spectacular alien ecosystem of Pandora will feature world-first underwater performance capture sequences.
Kate Winslet (who held her breath for an incredible seven minutes during filming), Jemaine Clement and Cliff Curtis join the cast alongside Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana. Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang also return, despite their characters being presumed dead.
While this sequel was delayed a year as part of Disney's massive Covid-19-induced release date shake up, you won’t have to wait another decade for more Avatar – part 3 is set for December 2024, with a fourth and fifth movie also in the works. We've also heard rumors that a first trailer for Avatar 2 will be arriving in tandem with the release of Doctor Strange 2 on May 6, so watch this space.
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
Release date: March 17, 2023 (theatrical)
Admittedly, we've now moved into 2023 territory, but Aquaman 2 was scheduled to hit theaters on December 16, 2022, so it gets a mention here. Going by the less internet-friendly title of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, Aquaman 2 will splash onto screens to continue the underwater adventures of Jason Momoa's DC superhero. This long-awaited sequel reunites the actor with original co-stars Amber Heard, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Nicole Kidman and Patrick Wilson – as well as director James Wan – and will see the titular character forced to "forge an uneasy alliance with an unlikely ally to protect Atlantis, and the world, from irreversible devastation." Expect even more comic book carnage, then.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Part One)
Release date: June 2, 2023 (theatrical)
The first instalment in a two-part sequel to the 2018 hit, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Part One) will follow Miles and Gwen as they encounter different worlds (and characters) on their travels across the multiverse. The movie's producers have already revealed that each dimension in the second Miles Morales-led Spidey movie will “have its own art style” and “feel like it was drawn by a different artist’s hand,” so there's a good chance that this one will look even better than the excellent original. What's more, the same duo have also revealed that Across the Spider-Verse may be tied to the MCU , after all, meaning we could see Tom Holland's Spidey in animated form for the first time. As with the Aquaman sequel (above), this one was initially slated to release in 2022, but is now scheduled for a 2023 arrival.
Mission: Impossible 7
Release date: July 14, 2023 (theatrical)
Okay, we know this list was supposed to detail 2022 movies exclusively, but Mission: Impossible 7 has endured so many scheduling delays that it's worth including as a footnote here. Tom Cruise will have hit 60 by the time this seventh entry in the iconic franchise hits cinemas, and it'll also mark the penultimate outing for Cruise's famous action hero , Ethan Hunt. Having delivered the long-running franchise’s best instalments with Rogue Nation and Fallout, Christopher McQuarrie is also back behind the camera for number 7 and its follow-up. Plot details are currently wrapped up tighter than a government vault, but Mission: Impossible is a brand that tends to deliver time and again.
Platinum wants to resurrect canceled RPG Scalebound, but don’t get your hopes up
PlatinumGames has shown interest in resurrecting Scalebound, its Xbox-exclusive action RPG that was canceled back in 2017, and has called on Xbox boss Phil Spencer to open discussions.
Speaking to IGN Japan , PlatinumGames president Atsushi Inaba and vice president Hideki Kamiya said they’d like to return to the game with Microsoft’s involvement.
“Often in an interview, you might hear a developer politely saying, ‘Yes, if we had the opportunity we’d love to work on that again’, but we don’t mean it that way,” Inaba said (translated by IGN )
“Both Kamiya and I are serious – we really would love to work on Scalebound again. I’d like to discuss it with Microsoft properly.”
Kamiya, who created Scalebound and served as its director said “development had progressed a fair way, and it seems pointless for Microsoft to just hold on to that and not do anything with it.
“Phil! Phil! Let’s do it together!,” he added, directing his plea towards head of Xbox Phil Spencer.
This isn’t the first time Kamiya has lamented the game’s cancelation. Last year, in an interview with YouTube channel Cutscenes , he apologized to both fans and Microsoft that the game was eventually shelved, citing the scale of the project as its downfall.
"It was a big challenge for PlatinumGames," Kamiya said. "We were working in an environment we weren’t used to. We were developing on the Unreal engine, we also lacked the necessary know-how to build a game based on online features. The hurdles we had to overcome were very big.
"I’m sorry to the players who looked forward to it, and moreover I’m sorry to Microsoft who had placed their trust in us as a business partner," he added.
"I want to apologize both as a creator and as a member of PlatinumGames.”

Analysis: a Scalebound revival isn’t likely
First announced in 2013 as an Xbox One exclusive, Scalebound gathered quite a following for its dragon-oriented take on magical realism. The game would follow Drew, a man from the modern world who is plunged into a fantasy setting, and his dragon companion, Thuban. You’d be able to explore its non-linear world, as well as customize and issue commands to Thuban during combat.
As exciting as that might sound, the likelihood of Microsoft ever reviving the game is close to zero. Back in 2020, when speaking on an IGN podcast , Spencer dismissed the possibility that Microsoft would pick up the game again.
“It’s a tough one because I have a ton of respect for Platinum, Kamiya-san, the team and I feel no ill will. We talk to those guys, there’s no animosity between the teams,” Spencer said.
“We tried to go do something and it didn’t work, and I regret that we were so public about what we tried to go do.
“I did some learning around Fable Legends, I did some learning around Scalebound about being public with things before I know that we’ve got a real, believable plan and something I’ve felt in my hands is going to be there.
“We just didn’t get there with Scalebound and with the team. And I say that across both teams.”

Microsoft is a very different company now from the one it was when it first became involved in Scalebound’s development. Industry trends have moved on, and Microsoft is more interested in cornering the market outside through proposals that don’t involve making platform-exclusive games, such as extending the features and portfolio of Xbox ame Pass . What was an appealing development proposal back in 2013 is unlikely to be so appealing 10 years later.
Add in Microsoft's recent proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard, as well as its takeover of Bethesda last year, and it doesn’t seem likely it would want to produce an ambitious RPG based on an original IP through an external development studio. Given how many resources and how much talent it will soon be packing in-house, it may no longer need to use PlatinumGames, and similar studios, for such projects.
That’s unlikely to be much of a disappointment for PlatinumGames. Inaba has said it wants the studio to move in a different direction than their past titles, with an apparent focus on live service games.