Game industry business news

NPD June: The Last of Us and 3DS on top

The NPD Group has released its June 2013 sales report for US retail, revealing a 15 per cent year-over-year decline during the period. The $593.3m brought in during the month may have not bested June 2012’s total of just over $700m, but it certainly leaves a better taste than the …

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Nintendo to introduce 3DS StreetPass Relay in UK

3DS owners will now be able to StreetPass users using Nintendo Zone hot spots across the UK. The initiative is part of Nintendo’s greater drive to promote the social features of the 3DS console. Players will not only have access to the Nintendo eShop, but will be able to share …

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EarthBound debuts in Europe on Wii U

After a 19 year wait, European fans will finally get their hands on acclaimed RPG EarthBound. Nintendo boss Satoru Shibata made the announcement during the firm’s Nintendo Direct Mini presentation earlier today. Available from today via the Nintendo eShop, the cult SNES RPG makes its debut within Europe on the …

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Splinter Cell: Blacklist sneaks into GAME for lock-in events

Ubisoft’s stealth blockbuster will be in GAME stores after trading hours next weekend – but gamers won’t need their night-vision goggles to get their hands on it. Instead, GAME will be welcoming customers with open doors as 10 stores around the UK host the latest in the retailer’s series of …

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Toy war heats up in the latest issue of MCV

This week’s issue of MCV features the latest from the video game toy war and an interview with PS4’s Mark Cerny. The stage is set for a Skylanders vs Disney Infinity vs Angry Birds clash – and that’s before Nintendo dated its toy-based Pokmon offering. Meanwhile, Cerny reveals why PS4 …

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Will Candy Crush firm King join Britsoft IPO club?

Rumour-mongers say we should expect another shock stock market float from a UK games firm. In the last seven days, developer Frontier and localisation outfit Keywords have floated on the London Stock Exchange’s Alternate Investment Market. Yet nose-tappers reckon these are just a warm up for the biggest games industry …

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OPINION: Future blames games – but did it fail to innovate as the world changed?

Future Publishing says the depreciated games market has hurt its growth. I’m not convinced that’s true. In fact, think hard about the notion that games overall are ‘challenged’ – at a time when the addressable audience for all kinds of games is bigger than ever – and the whole thing …

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Future blames weak sales on games market – and warns more cuts are ahead

Specialist games magazine publisher Future is planning more cuts, it has warned in a new trading updated. Sales in the three months up to June 2013 were below expectations and the firm will miss targets, it said today. So Future plans to keep cutting its print cost base until the …

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