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

Nintendo Japan has struck a deal with McDonalds for a browser branded with the restaurant’s logo available to DS users. The application connects to a page of McDonald’s news and also has links to current McDonald’s promotions and nutritional information. According to Siliconera, Nintendo will offer DS demos and a …

Funcom-developed MMO Age Of Conan: Hyborian Adventures has attracted over 400,000 gamers online – with almost half coming from the North American market. Funcom also reported substantial traffic to the Age of Conan websites, with more than 2.2 million unique visitors during the last ten days. The initial sales and …

Wii Fit has overtaken the PS3 version of Rockstar’s GTA IV in the Spanish entertainment software chart. The Rockstar title slips to second in its third week on the chart, with the 360 version of the title dropping down to fifth. However, GTA still rules the roost elsewhere across Europe. …

Developer-cum-publisher Data Design Interactive has opened a new US office in Sarasota, Florida. The studio will operate as a separate US registered company. The firm says the HQ can ‘provide the correct creative atmosphere required to work effectively on today’s demanding Next-Gen projects’ – including PS3 and Xbox 360 titles. …

Developer will start axing jobs unless it becomes more mainstream, say rumours

The company formerly known as Zoo Digital Publishing is set to get a new parent, following the buyout of GreenScreen Interactive by Los Angeles-based Mandalay Media. The announcement of the deal comes just one month after New York-based GreenScreen snapped up Zoo and Destination Software – merging the two companies …

Developer follows Activision, Vivendi and LucasArts out of the door

Doom developer id Software has left the Entertainment Software Association, joining the recent departures of Activision, Vivendi, and LucasArts. A representative from the company told Next-Gen.biz that it had opted to not renew its membership with the ESA, which organises the E3 expo. Id declined to comment further. In an …

More leading studios - including Blitz, Codemasters, EA, Exient, NCSoft and Realtime Worlds - support Government lobbying effort

Government must act immediately, say Games Up? organisers as campaign goes public