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

Ubisoft has bought Finland-based developer RedLynx, the studio best known for its Trials Xbox Live game. The publisher has bought the company as part of its active plans to grow its online output. RedLynx has produced some 100 games since 2000. We are delighted to welcome RedLynx to the Ubisoft …

The schemes have their critics, but Codemasters says publishers had no choice but to introduce Online Passes. The tactic has seen software houses include one-time codes in new copies of their titles to unlock content. Pre-owned users must buy the code online to access the same content. Online Passes have …

One of the year’s bestselling games will get a sequel in just a few weeks. 505 Games has confirmed with MCV that it has officially signed up the rights to Zumba Fitness 2 for Wii. The game will debut on November 25th. A Kinect version will arrive in Q1 2012. …

EA has enlisted Bad Boys and Transformers director Michael Bay to direct a new ad for upcoming street racer Need for Speed: The Run. However, if you fancy watching it you’ll need to head over to the game’s Facebook page and ‘like’ or ‘share’ the clip. When enough punters have …

Strong sales of futuristic sci-fi hack ‘n’ slash outing Warhammer 40, 000: Space Marine helped THQ to post a stronger than expected Q2. Revenue reached $146m for the quarter ending September 30th. That’s not only an 89 per cent jump year-on-year – it’s also way ahead of analyst predictions. Losses, …

Publisher swoops for digital dynamos

Thought our 'free NPD data' offer was good? Well, it gets better.

Thought our ‘free NPD data’ offer was good? Well, it gets better. Screen Digest has also signed up to offer two free reports to those who buy a ticket for next week’s digital games summit. Delegates to the November 10th London Games Conference will get Screen Digest reports in their …

It’s hard to believe that we’ve only been waiting a week since Rockstar announced today’s release of the first Grand Theft Auto V trailer, but at last the moment has arrived. The short teaser doesn’t reveal a huge amount of information, though the most critical points are answered – it’s …

Smash-hit game Angry Birds has been downloaded over half a billion times across various platforms, developer Rovio has announced. The entertainment media company said this made the title one of the most downloaded games in history. "This is a fantastic landmark achievement for us, and we’re extremely delighted to see …