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

Continuing our exclusive extract from the governmentâ??s Playing for Keeps report, Games Investor Consulting looks at the leading business models and distribution channels in use todayâ?¦

Managing director of EA UK Keith Ramsdale has accepted that the current domestic age ratings system – shared between the British Board of Film Classification and PEGI – may change forever as result of the Government Byron Review. The head of the Review, Dr. Tanya Byron, previously told MCV that …

Nintendo’s anticipated Wii platformer aiming to beat away challenges from the likes of Bioshock, Orange Box and Call of Duty 4 This time last month MCV was reporting that EA’s The Orange Box was looking to be the odds-on favourite to become the most critically hailed title of not only …

Organised by Tandem Events, the Games Marketing Forum in London promises to offer both the opportunity to learn from established marketing experts and to network with industry peers. The event, which takes place on Thursday, November 22nd features Elliot Messenger from Hypertag talking about cutting edge promotional tool – proximity …

Sony’s next gen console is to come loaded with DivX video technology. For those that already own a PS3, DivX functionality will be made available via a software update. Developers will be able to utilise DivX’s decoder technology by updating the system software of PS3’s Software Development Kit to version …

Leading Scandinavian distributor and publisher PAN Vision is to expand its operations into Eastern European territories Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania from December 1st. "This is the next logical step as most of our suppliers in Nordic also need a stable partner with a gaming focus in the Baltic region," Pan …

In a tech-heavy top 10, DS is listed as the eighth most in-demand toy for Christmas. "Toys are not stuffed with cotton wool anymore, they are stuffed with technology," said Pat Foley, head of marketing and operations at Dixons.co.uk. "There is a whole generation of tech-savvy kids out there, and …

ALL FORMATS TOP 20 1. FIFA ’08 (PS2, 360, PS3, PSP, WII, PC, DS) Electronic Arts 2. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (PS2, 360, PS3, PC) Konami 3. Halo 3 (360) Microsoft 4. Football Manager 2008 (PC) Sega 5. Norton 360 All-In-One Security (PC) Norton 6. Project Gotham Racing 4 (360) …

In much the same way as gamers playing original Xbox discs on their Xbox 360 had to contend with a number of problems arising from the machine’s use of software, as opposed to hardware, emulation Microsoft has confirmed that the emulation of ‘Xbox Original’ titles on its forthcoming download service …

Remaining internal property Test Drive licensed to parent Infogrames as sole focus on distribution begins