MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry

Rovio has laid off approximately 110 staff and closed its studio in Tampere. In October the Angry Birds developer announced it was set to make as many as 130 employees redundant, 16 per cent of its total workforce. This figure has now been revised down however. The development outfit noted …

The BBC has finally launched its iPlayer streaming video app on Xbox One. The release offers compatibility with Kinect voice control and boasts a number of technical extras making it easier for the BBC to update the app with new channels and features going forwards. The app is also more …

A look at the best and brightest young talent emerging in games

Smash Bros creeator Masahiro Sakurai says that the recent Wii U game could be the final game to be released in the series. "I can’t positively declare there won’t be [another Smash Bros game]," he told Game Informer, as reported by CVG. "With both Melee and Brawl, I made those …

Print and digital editions out now, also features an interview with Avenged Sevenfold and a look at the future of graphics

It seems that PS4 owners are facing a bigger outlay for Telltale’s new Game of Thrones series than their Xbox One counterparts. Eurogamer spotted that the Season One Season pass costs 24.99 on PS4 and just 15.99 on Xbox One. Curiously the Xbox One Pass doesn’t include the first episode, …

Number of redundancies less than previously anticipated

In what appears to be an annual traditional, Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick has again questioned the viability of the free-to-play business model. "The problem with the free-to-play model is 95-97 per cent of people who engage with your content don’t pay for it. 3-5 per cent do; on a good …

The Advertising Standards Authority has dismissed a compliant made regarding the in-app-purchases in Gameloft’s Littlest Pet Shop. The free-to-play game, available on Google Play, uses two currencies – Kibble and Bling. Players were tasked with housing and taking care of virtual pets and while some activities were perfectly possible without …

'Our history with acquisitions is somewhat marginal in performance,' admits CFO