SPECIAL REPORT: Rising budgets, new studios and surprise deals have brought 2006 to a tremendous close for Western games production – $600m was invested in European and North American studios over the last 12 months, taking the year’s spending past the $1bn mark.

Burger King's range of value meal video games, developed by a team at UK's Blitz Games, have sold over two million units in the US.

US start-up Riot Games has been boosted with a $1.5m investment that will help production of the team's first game.

Cult TV and movie franchise Firefly is to be turned into an online adventure game by MMO tech firm Multiverse - and the company is now scouting for a studio to handle production.

EA UK may be closing its NW studio, but Vivendi-owned Birmingham-based Swordfish could help those left in the region without a job as it opens a new office in Manchester, Develop can reveal.

Square Enix's European CEO John Yamamoto has praised European developers' multi-format skills and suggested that the company could follow Sega's lead in acquiring local teams.

The US' largest independent games development company just got larger – Foundation 9 Entertainment has acquired Amaze.

The influence of Sega amongst the development business is still rising - and now the company says it wants more acquisitions and games signings.

More changes are afoot for EA UK Studios as it readies for the closure of its Warrington base – with its big Chertsey and Guildford teams set to merge.

The US arm of Japanese publisher D3 Publishing is spearheading its UK wing’s push into Europe by looking for games made by local teams to publish – and could even acquire studios in the area.