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

Microsoft has announced that former SCEA social media manager Jeff Rubenstein has been appointed as social media director at Xbox. Rubenstein is credited with shaping much of Sony’s modern social media strategy, helping to create the likes of the PlayStation Blog I’m beyond thrilled to be joining the Xbox team …

Microsoft has said that over 10,000 retailers across the globe will be opening their doors for the launch of Xbox One on November 22nd. UK retail partners include GAME and Tesco. Although there’s of course the small matter of PS4’s North American launch on November 15th (Friday) to get out …

A second of PS4’s launch game has been added to Sony’s free Instant Games Collection. Colourful shooter Resogun (which, judging by the recently lifted PS4 review embargo, is very much the pick of the console’s launch titles) joins Contrast is becoming freely available to PlayStation Plus members from November 29th. …

Venture capitalists view investing in the digital games market as a throw of the dice”, says former Sega boss Mike Hayes. Hayes joined investment firm Mercia Fund Management in September with a remit to identify potential video game companies to invest in. And he admitted to MCV that the lack …

Hopes of Oculus Rift being compatible with PS4 and Xbox One appears to have vanished. "Consoles are too limited for what we want to do," Oculus inventor Palmer Luckey told TechRadar. "The problem with consoles in general is that once they come out they’re locked to a certain spec for …

Activision has shown off its new Call of Duty app. The app, made by Call of Duty Elite developers Beachhead, adds extra features to the multiplayer game. These include turning tablets or mobile devices into a second screen during matches and having access to all of their Call of Duty …

Ubisoft has announced its Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag companion app. This primarily functions as a second screen allowing gamers to set waypoints and see enemies that are out of range of the in-game minimap. Hand drawn treasure maps found around the world are also stored on the player’s tablets. …

Intel Developer Blog: ‘Go Big or Go Home. Wireless Big Screen HD from Mobile Android Devices’ takes place November 19th

A possible sell-off for the Xbox brand by owner Microsoft has been touted for a second time. The Financial Times reports that Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen is intrigued and interested” by forthcoming changes to the company, which will among other things include the hiring of a new CEO. One of …

Debbie Bestwick looks at the changes digital has brought to the company and the game industry