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

Nintendo has confirmed that the Wii version of it popular life-sim game called Animal Crossing: City Folk is on the way, and will take advantage of the company’s existing internet network. Gamers will be able to visit friends’ towns, as well as exchange gifts and messages. It will also be …

Though nothing has been said as of yet at Nintendo’s press conference (which at the time of writing is only 20 minutes in), Nintendo’s global president Satoru Iwata has confirmed that his Zelda and Mario teams are hard at work on new titles. Addressing the E3 audience, he said: Our …

Xbox’s Major Nelson has outlined the main features coming as part of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 dashboard update this autumn, many of which represent a significant upgrade in functionality. The headline features have already been given plenty of airtime. Firstly, Xbox Live Avatars will replace Gamercard images and offer a fully …

Microsoft’s recent price changes in North America have already positioned the company’s machine as a real contender to both the high-end PS3 and the family-friendly Wii – but MTV claims that $199 is the price the platform holder has in mind. MTV Multiplayer’s Patrick Klepek claims that at a lunch …

UK publisher Eidos has confirmed that the latest outing for global gaming icon Lara Craft, Tomb Raider: Underworld, will be released in Europe on November 21st. It will arrive simultaneously on Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, DS, PC and PS2. Underworld is the first Tomb Raider title to be designed specifically …

The newly formed Activision-Blizzard has announced its financial results for its fiscal Q1 2009, ending June 30th 2008, which show record net revenues of $650 million – far in excess of the firm’s $500 million prediction. The publisher noted the strong performance of film license Kung Fu Panda and the …

With Guitar Hero IV and Rock Band 2 very much leading this year’s Christmas charge, Konami has announced that its own peripheral-based music game, Rock Revolution, will now be released in the first quarter of 2009. Rock Revolution, which is being developed bu UK studio Zoe Mode, is primarily a …

NaturalMotion's animation engine to help development of cross-media MMO

With the shock news that Final Fantasy XIII will be released on Xbox 360 alongside PS3 next year still rippling across the industry, Square Enix executive Shinki Hashimoto has confirmed that Final Fantasy Versus XIII, a second RPG due out next year, will remain a PS3 exclusive. Speaking to PSU, …

Gamers are most likely familiar with them thanks to numerous game videos and forum entries, and the games press have more likely than not met them all at one of Ubisoft’s many press gatherings – but Ubisoft’s infamous Frag Dolls Kitt, Sarin and Jam have announced that they are to …