YoYo Games has just launched GameMaker Studio 2 with rich new features that make 2D game development accessible to beginners such as its trademarked Drag and Drop system (DnD™). Advanced users can use a powerful programming language (GML) and export their games to mobile, desktop and console platforms. 

Personally, I can't believe a drag and drop system can be trademarked but I guess, anything's possible. Also, it's difficult to say at a glance why anyone should upgrade from GameMaker to GameMaker Studio 2. 

More info here: http://www.yoyogames.com/blog/413

Developers using Construct 2, Unity, Xenko and MonoGame can now integrate some Xbox Live features into their games without going through a rigorous approval program. 

Microsoft really wants their products everywhere. This includes Xbox Live. We might see Xbox Live exist on Androids and iPhones before long!

Learn more here: https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/games/xbox/xboxlive/Creator

Unity 5.6 will be released on March 31 and will come in with a slew of new and improved features. On the distribution front, Facebook and Xiaomi platforms are now more accessible to Unity developers. And folks who jump on board the Unity Plus bandwagon now will get an Accelerator Pack for free. 

It's interesting to see Unity start down the route Maya did which was integrating popular user made plugins (in this case, assets) into the software directly. While TextMeshPro is a good addition, I would rather see assets centered around accessibility and basic UX built into the engine instead.

More details here: https://blogs.unity3d.com/2017/02/28/updates-from-unitys-gdc-2017-keynote/

Improbable has announced SpatialOS Open Beta and is also launching the SpatialOS Games Innovation Program in partnership with Google Cloud. SpatialOS is a cloud-based computation platform which allows for processing of millions of persistent entities. It is currently integrated with Unity but Unreal support was just announced as well. 

 Improbable is a London-based startup that recently opened an office in San Francisco. With this new strategic location, an open beta and the subsidized development program it announced, it is clear that Improbable wants people using its technology to demonstrate the power of their platform. 

Source: https://improbable.io/2017/02/27/improbable-announces-spatialos-open-beta-unreal-engine-integration-and-launches-spatialos-games-innovation-program
Learn more about SpatialOS here: https://spatialos.improbable.io/

The Unity Asset Store has a sale this week. Apparently, they found out which assets everyone wished for the most and put those on sale. 

While it lasts, access the sale here: https://www.assetstore.unity3d.com/en/#!/sale?utm_campaign=2017-02-Global-AS-Wishlist