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

Despite lifetime sales of nearly 8.5 million copies worldwide, the recently announced August NPD figures have raised fears that sales of Take 2’s Grand Theft Auto IV have slowed unexpectedly – raising concerns that it might affect EA’s ongoing bid to acquire the publisher. CNN reports that Take 2 has …

Amid a global climate of credit meltdowns and consumer struggles, the US games market continued to grow in August, but its rate of growth has dropped to its lowest in over two years. August sales were nine per cent up on the same month in 2007 – reason to cheer, …

Microsoft is understandably delighted by its August sales victory over Sony’s PS3 , and has highlighted the massive surge in Xbox 360 hardware sales in early September in its response to NPD’s August US sales figures. Having been crowned the victor in its battle of Sony in August, Microsoft immediately …

Despite losing out to Xbox 360 in the August US hardware battle , Sony has concentrated on the many positives the firm can enjoy in its response to the latest NPD stats. PS3 shifted 185,353 units in the US throughout August, with sales so far in 2008 hitting two million …

Nintendo has released an understated, though understandably chuffed, response the news that Nintendo’s DS and Wii claimed first and second spots respectively in the US August hardware charts , according to data from NPD. The positive public response to Nintendo DS and Wii has stayed strong throughout 2008,” Nintendo of …

Microsoft’s Xbox 360 has edged out Sony’s PS3 in the US during August, shifting 195,400 units compared to its rival 185,200 PS3s. However, both platforms were eclipsed by the DS (518,300 units), Wii (453,000) and Sony’s PSP (253,000). "The PSP and PS3 systems achieved the greatest percentage gain of all …

Leamington Spa-based independent joins Bizarre Creations as internal team

No release date yet, but development kit for high-end sculpting tool is in alpha

The Royal Bank of Scotland has relit the touchpaper on the long-running rumour of US retail giant GameStop’s interest in acquiring The GAME Group. The rumination came in an RBS note to analysts today, in which it also allayed fears that Morrisons’ ‘crazy’ prices drops on games this week will …

Japanese publisher/developer Capcom has revealed it wants to sign up sports games developed by independent studios in the West as part its bid to target the casual games space. In its 2008 investors report, published today, the Japanese publisher/developer’s COO said the firm is still keen to grow its slate …