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

Peripherals specialist Blaze is set to release more devices in its retro range, following the success of its portable Mega Drive. The firm’s latest handheld features 20 built-in Mega Drive games, including classics like Sonic and Knuckles, Echo the Dolphin, Alex Kidd and Golden Axe, and the company hopes that …

Recruitment agencies have told MCV that the games industry is still recruiting heavily, despite growing economic concerns. As large companies in other industries are being forced to tighten their belts to cope with the credit crunch and potential recession, video game publishers and developers are still on the lookout for …

Namco Bandai has posted 1.02 billion Japanese yen ($9.4 million) in net profit for the three months to June 30th, 2008 – 63 per cent down from the previous year. Revenues stood at 90 billion yen ($826m), a dip of 6.4 per cent year-on-year, whilst operating income for the first …

Post-Christmas sales of Mario & Sonic At The Olympic Games have helped push Sega’s Q1 revenues for 2008-2009 up 90 per cent to 30.5 billion Japanese yen ($279.6m). The result, for the three months to March 31st 2008, means that the division reduces its operating loss from 7.2 billion yen …

Microsoft says there is ‘no question’ that the sale of downloaded games will overtake the sales of games at retail in the coming years. According to David Gosen, Xbox Europe’s VP of strategic marketing and Live, There’s no question digital will overtake physical. It happened in music and will happen …

The highly anticipated LEGO Batman is just the beginning of developer Traveller’s Tales brick-based output under parent Warner Bros, the boss of the studio has revealed. Traveller’s Tales president Jon Burton said that the company was already working on LEGO titles based on Warner IP. Warner Bros., which acquired Traveller’s …

From the land of the online game comes a solution for online behaviour and bandwidth testing we discoverâ?¦

Chinese outsourcer will use money to further growth 'through acquisitions'

In this opinion piece Chris Doran, founder of Enlighten game lighting tool creator Geomerics, aruges the case for why developers should be looking to film not just for inspiration in storytelling, but in the use of smart lighting and camera tricks, to inspire their gamesâ?¦

Crackdown developer makes call as it joins developer association