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

Rising Star Games is preparing a comprehensive marketing campaign for Happy Party with Hello Kitty & Friends. The game is the latest entry in the best-selling Hello Kitty franchise, which the publisher believes will become a long-tail retail success. Hello Kitty has an evergreen formula and, whatever the season, this …

Spain’s Virgin Play has gone into a form of liquidation in the firm’s home country. The firm’s financial advisers told MCV the company asked a Spanish Court in June for a three month period to seek a solution with its creditors due to a lack of liquidity. However, if more …

Majesco will bring Alvin and The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel to Wii and DS in December. Developed by ImaginEngine, Alvin and The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel will hit shelves ahead of Twentieth Century Fox’s theatrical release of the same name on Christmas Day. The first Alvin and The Chipmunks film was a …

The team behind GameOn has formed a new digital media unit ahead of the event’s November debut. Under the name Creative Games Media (CGM), the new team incorporates online, video and events planning and is a division of Creative Ventures Group. The business manages X-League TV and several web properties, …

Warner and Centresoft have hailed their joint Independent Retail Showcase held in Birmingham on Wednesday August 5th ‘an outright success.’ A wide range of indies attended the demo, which featured full presentations for Warner’s forthcoming titles, including Scribblenauts, Scooby Doo: First Frights, Queen Teen: The Clique, Lord of the Rings: …

Publisher 505 is set to launch IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds Of Prey worldwide – the firm’s first global release. The World War II flight sim is the first title from the publisher to hits shelves either side of the Atlantic almost simultaneously, launching in Europe on September 4th and the US …

One of the most enduring franchises in multiplayer gaming has reached yet another milestone in the last week with news that Hudson’s Xbox Live Arcade version of Bomberman has now been downloaded over 500,000 times. Priced at 800 MS Points (6.80), Bomberman Live reinvigorates the cute classic with online multiplayer …

Konami has announced it will publish Hudson’s upcoming Wii title The Tower Of Shadow in Spring 2010. Players take on the role of the shadow of a young boy attempting to climb a colossal tower. The origins of this shadow and its reasons for its ascent are mysteries that will …

Joystiq is reporting that Modern Warfare 2 on PC is priced the same as its console counterparts in the US. PC games are typically priced cheaper than console titles, yet according to listings on Gamestop, Amazon and Best Buy, the PC game has an RRP of $60, which is the …

Though there’s not been – and perhaps never will be – official confirmation of the claims, reports this morning are suggesting that recently closed Swedish developer GRIN was working on a surprise Final Fantasy title at the time it was closed. Work on the title supposedly started as soon as …