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

Microsoft has ruled out the possibility of releasing the Xbox One console without the Kinect sensor bundled in. Yesterday we speculated that since the Xbox One no longer required Kinect to be plugged in at all times, it could well pave the way for a cheaper Kinect-less SKU to rival …

Microsoft will not live stream its Gamescom media briefing next week, Microsoft Studios boss Phil Spencer has revealed. Spencer gave details about Microsoft’s Gamescom briefing on Major Nelson’s podcast. While Xbox will have its biggest booth ever at this year’s event, Spencer said the approach the company was taking didn’t …

Microsoft has something interesting to announce about Europe’s biggest game franchise” at Gamescom later this month. Speaking on Major Nelson’s podcast, Xbox Studios head Phil Spencer divulged details about Microsoft’s presentation at Gamescom. We took the approach with our showcase that we want to showcase the developers and their games. …

King cuts titles as it readies its business for a possible flotation

Activision has just sent out an infographic detailing a history of the Call of Duty series’ multiplayer mode. It says that a total of 100m people have played Call of Duty – which, as it handily points out is more than the populations of EU nations such as the UK, …

Publishers and retailers have been offered a helping hand in entering the increasingly complicated digital distribution space. Sony DADC has (via some of the longest sentences we’ve ever seen in a press release) announced Genba, which it describes as a new digital game supply chain channel and media platform to …

Platfrom holder Nintendo believes The Wonderful 101 can draw in new fans to Wii U. The firm hopes to reignite excitement behind its ailing console with a mixture of new titles supported by Nintendo’s franchises. The Wonderful 101 is developed by Platinum Games and has received positive previews from the …

Tiny Mogul Games has just announced its new game, Shiva, a colourful side-scrolling endless runner that also allows the players to rewind time. Set over multiple time periods, Shiva lets players unlock new weapons and power-ups as well as customise their characters with new gear. The game also throws challenges …

Games industry PR veteran Lidia Rumley has launched her own agency: Light Switch PR. Best known for leading Ubisoft’s comms team for almost 11 years, Rumley has also held senior PR roles at EA, Interplay and Eidos. I’ve been lucky enough to spend almost two decades looking after the PR …

The Splinter Cell: Ultimate Edition, which includes every Splinter Cell PC game released so far, is available now in India for just Rs 499. The package includes the following games: Splinter Cell Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory Splinter Cell: Double Agent Splinter Cell: Conviction The Ultimate Edition …