Game industry business news

Following the news earlier of its agreement to extend its deal for the UFC video games licence, THQ has also confirmed as extension to its partnership with Nickelodeon to make games based on the SpongeBob SquarePants licence. THQ has been at the helm of SpongeBob’s gaming career since 2002 and …

Amidst the widespread concerns currently enveloping the ill-health of the music games genre, the president of Def Jam Rapstar publisher 4mm Games has told MCV that his company’s hip-hop title can single-handedly resurrect the sector. Def Jam Rapstar is a complete breath of fresh air, and it’s going to reinvigorate …

Despite the fact that it has successfully hosted more than 120 gaming events in the UK, Multiplay is best described as an underground gem. While many retailers and publishers may not appreciate what the company does, it has certainly established a name among core gamers through online hosting, plus tournaments …

Publisher Square Enix has admitted that it feared this year’s RPG release Final Fantasy XIII would receive a rough ride from Western critics before the game hit the shelves. Even before the current generation of consoles was introduced, it was obvious that the game market in the West was gaining …

After apologising just last week for what he described as the new inexcusable” delay to much hyped PS3 racer Gran Turismo 5, series director Kazunori Yamauchi has begged for forgiveness once again – though this time it’s relating to what he sees as possible technical shortcomings of the upcoming game. …

As Limbo developer joins call for greater state support across Europe

Developer (and in Japan, publisher) Level-5 has announced that it is working on a crossover game featuring both Professor Layton and Phoenix Wright that will be released on Nintendo’s upcoming 3DS handheld. Layton and Wright are two of the most popular handheld IPs and amongst the few IP that can …

With two successful console games under its belt, publisher THQ has announced that its deal with Zuffa for the rights to video games based on the Ultimate Fighting Championship IP has been extended to 2018. The rights allow THQ to make UFC games on all current and next-generation consoles as …

The CEO of Rockstar and 2K Games owner Take-Two has claimed that digital games sales could account for as much as 40 per cent of the publisher’s total business by 2013. However, he foresees this as additional revenue, claiming that the growth will not come at the expense of traditional …

Canadaâ??s 37.5 per cent tax relief â??allows us to put all the money on the screenâ??