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

Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto IV has made a big impression on Japanese games critics by scoring a near-perfect 39/40 in weekly Japanese games bible Famitsu. GTA has long been the daddy of the Western market, but has only recently begun to gain recognition in the traditionally stubborn and localised Japanese …

Ahead of its anticipated release at the end of November, Microsoft has lifted the lid on its North American pre-order scheme for Xbox 360 karaoke title Lips. A post on the firm’s Gamerscore blog states that those who pre-order the title through either Amazon or GameStop will receive a free …

Gears Of War 2 will not be released in Germany or Japan, Microsoft has confirmed. A company spokesperson has told Edge: We can confirm that Gears of War 2 will not be available in Germany or Japan indefinitely” said the spokesperson. According to the magazine, Gears sold 33,212 copies in …

To celebrate the roll-out of its Q4 releses, Activision Blizzard is offering one lucky reader the chance to win a copy of its full slate. Titles included in the bumper package include Spiderman: Web Of Shadows, Guitar Hero: World Tour, Crash: Mind Over Mutant, 007: Quantum Of Solace, TransFormers: The …

Pinpointing the reason for the insatiable popularity of Nintendo’s Wii is a tough ask. Certainly the unique functionality, inventive marketing and the explosion in casual gaming has boosted the system, but perhaps one of the biggest reasons for the console’s enduring success is the inclusion of Wii Sports. The game …

Publisher Ubisoft has become a major sponsor of this year’s Big Freeze event with its Shaun White Snowboarding video game. The FS04 Big Freeze is set to kick off tomorrow and will run until October 26th, and will feature snowboarders Danny Kass, Scotty Lago and Lucas Magoon, plus skiing stars …

A growing number of users are voicing their complaints regarding the new LCD screen on Sony’s revised PSP-3000 – with concerns focusing on the problem of visable scanlines on the machine’s screen. The new PSP offers a brighter screen with deeper blacks and more vibrant colours, but many are now …

London Games Fringe event to examine suitability for games

Casual developer and portal becomes part of the Bezos empire

New Star Wars title The Old Republic will take the form of a story-driven MMO set in the timeframe of previous hit Knights of the Old Republic, LucasArts and Bioware have revealed. While the official statement from LucasArts does not reveal an expected release date, it does outline the plot, …