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

One online indie may have broken the street date, but that will do little to dampen Monday’s excitement for the Call of Duty midnight launch. Around 2,000 UK shops are to be open from midnight on Monday to celebrate Black Ops II officially going on sale. It’s the ‘greatest ever …

Will Luton offers eight tips on how to maximise sales and revenue

Fancy a flutter on a Friday afternoon? Bookies Paddy Power and Ladbrokes have revealed to MCV their contenders for the best-selling game this Christmas. Both firms are backing Activision FPS Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, with FIFA 13 the favourite for second place. Other potential winners include Wii U …

(This story has been updated – headline was originally ‘Simply Games tells customers they can have Black Ops II by tomorrow’. Updates at end of article.) Online indie retailer Simply Games is currently telling customers that they will have Call of Duty: Black Ops II in their hands by tomorrow …

Developer 22Cans and Peter Molyneux have apologised for the technical troubles that have so far plagued the launch of debut title Curiosity: What’s Inside The Cube?. In a video that you can see below Molyneux promises that the team believes it has the solution to its server problems, which as …

Creating free-to-play video games is a risky affair. It’s especially hard for those developers looking to crack new IP, without the help of a brand or a major publisher to drive awareness. Free-to-play has changed the power dynamic,” said Marvelous AQL Europe CEO Harry Holmwood. Before, players would have pay …

Bethesda has released the first gameplay video for the divisive The Elder Scrolls Online. The game has split fans of the series down the middle, with some outwardly delighted that the IP is finally getting the MMO treatment and others annoyed at the cartoonish WoW-like art style. The game is …

Tim Schaaff, the president of Sony Network Entertainment International, has announced his retirement. Sony Computer Entertainment president and CEO Andrew House will add Schaaff’s responsibilities to his role when Schaaff steps down at the end of the year. SNEI overseas a number of Sony’s networking businesses, including the PlayStation Network. …

Trion Worlds aims to reinvent the MMO space with each title, and is using free-to-play to attract a wider audience. James Batchelor finds out how this model will benefit titles like the online RPG? Rift and strategy game End of Nations. What are you doing to prepare for the launch …

Slovakia is a small country by European standards. It is half the size of the neighbouring Czech Republic with a population of 5.5m – and only a little more than half of its residents live in urban areas. It also has a slightly lower average living standards compared to the …