MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
They might not be as big as Call of Duty or FIFA, but cult Japanese franchises boast a highly passionate audience with a fondness for merchandise. MCV heads East to check out the biggest imports Japan is the land where video games matured. Now, three decades after the release of …
Read More »Games Media Awards return with three new categories
The GMAs return on October 14th, with new prizes for video leaders and mainstream writers. 2015 marks the ninth annual outing of the always-talked-about event which champions the best in games editorial. After a successful revamp last year – which saw almost every category improved, a new voting system and …
Read More »PlayStation 4 tops Japanese hardware charts as Batman swoops into stores
Japanese PlayStation 4 sales shot up this week as Batman: Arkham Knight launched in the country. That’s according to Famitsu market data that shows that sales of Sony’s latest hardware rose 73 per cent week-on-week. Batman: Arkham Knight debuted in second place, shifting 48,330 units in its first week on …
Read More »Yo-Kai Watch dominates Japanese charts again as Busters sells almost 700,000
The latest video game craze in Japan is yet to run out of steam. The Yo-Kai Watch franchise has already shifted more than seven million copies, propelled by the success of the first two entries in the series. Last week, the latest title from developer Level 5, Yo-Kai Watch Busters, …
Read More »Dragon Quest ‘does a Minecraft’ with Builders spin-off
It’s pretty easy to surmise what game may have proved the inspiration for the latest Dragon Quest title. More or less nothing is known about the freshly revealed Dragon Quest Builders aside from what can be found on the Japanese website. Kotaku reports that the block building RPG” will allow …
Read More »UK development studio closures fell 30% in 2014
The number of UK game studio closures fell by 30 per cent in 2014 compared to 2013, according to new research from TIGA. Its findings revealed that there were 75 closures last year, compared to 107 during the year prior. The number of start-ups has fallen however. 99 games companies …
Read More »International Factfile 2015: South Africa
South Africa’s games industry is increasingly dominated by digital titles from other countries – but, despite this, the local market is growing. Local games organisation Make Games South Africa (MGSA) estimates that South Africa consumers spend 2.2 billion Rand (0.1bn) on games each year, primarily on mobile. Console is the …
Read More »Rare co-founders to receive top honour at Develop Awards
Tim and Chris Stamper will be jointly named as this year’s Development Legends at the Develop Industry Excellence Awards on the night of July 15th. The video games icons join an elite few who have picked up the prestigious accolade over the years. Previous recipients include the likes of Mark …
Read More »Persona 4 rhythm game spin-off Dancing All Night coming to Europe in 2015
The next instalment in the ever-widening Persona 4 universe is coming to Europe this year, in line with its North American launch. Persona 4: Dancing All Night is the third spin-off from the 2009 RPG, following fighting game Persona 4: Arena in 2012 (a sequel to that game, Arena Ultimax, …
Read More »The perfect Storm: why you shouldn’t pass over this year’s Naruto game
When you peruse the list of games coming out this year, it’s fair to say that a title based on a Japanese comic series probably isn’t the first thing you jump to. Launching in the same Autumn period as FIFA, Pro Evo, Skylanders, LEGO Dimensions, Metal Gear Solid, Forza, Mad …
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