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

The Nokia brand name will be dropped by Microsoft once it officially acquires the mobile manufacturer. According to a letter sent by the new owners to suppliers, the Nokia Corporation/Nokia Oyj (Ltd) name will be replaced with Microsoft Mobile Oy. The acquisition of Nokia’s loss-making business was first announced in …

Exclusivity has long been a battleground in the console sector, but now the smartphone giants are getting in on the act. That’s according to The Wall Street Journal, which reports that both companies have been aggressively courting developers to try and secure exclusive titles for iOS and Android. Apple sees …

Codemasters’ next GRID game will not be released on next-gen, reports claim. Brasil Gamer is reporting, as per Gematsu, that GRID: Autosport will be released for PS3, Xbox 360, and PC on June 27th. The title apparently promises more content than ever seen before in the series, with the action …

EA’s Xbox and PC shooter Titanfall has claimed No.1 in the UKIE GfK Chart-Track All Formats Top 40 for the second successive week. It’s the game’s third UK No.1, relegating EA’s new entry 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil into second place in its debut week, although EA has three titles …

Microsoft has just kicked off a massive Xbox Live promotion in India, where any Xbox Live Gold subscriber can stand to win a Gold Rush suitcase with goodies worth $5,000. What does the suitcase include? A 100 g gold bar, a Titanfall Collector’s Edition for Xbox 360, an Xbox 360 …

Dark Souls 2 for PC will release at a lower-than-expected price of Rs 1,999 in India. Retailers had earlier listed the PC version for preorder at Rs 2,499 or Rs 2,999, but distributor E-xpress Interactive has now confirmed the Rs 1,999 price point. That’s still higher than most PC games …

Indie start-up Moonfrog has just launched its first game, Bingo Club, for Android. Bingo Club is a real-time multiplayer game with its own take on the Housie formula, including power-ups and treasures to be discovered in ‘special rooms’. The game is set against the backdrop of famous cities and iconic …

The PlayStation 4 outsold all other consoles in the US for the third month running, NPD’s March 2013 report shows. While still lagging behind, Microsoft was quick to boast that Xbox One has now shipped 5m consoles – selling 311,000 units during March. "Of course, we’re just getting started with …

Major League Gaming has reunited with eSports vet Ryan ‘Fwiz’ Wyatt, appointing the former Machinima boss as its new VP of Programming. His job will entail working directly with MLG.tv’s stable of eSports leagues and personalities, as well as being involved with MLG.tv’s production studio to develop premium programming for …

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn has registered more than 2m player accounts, Square Enix has announced. Gematsu reports on the milestone, which was reached upon this week’s PlayStation 4 release of the MMO. Square announced in 2013 that PS3 players would gain full access to the PS4 version at …