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

Microsoft has confirmed that its XNA development software is to be used for teaching in five European universities, three of which are in the UK.

German studio Phenomic, the creator of series The Settlers and SpellForce, has been snapped up by Electronic Arts.

Epic now includes EA in its growing list of Unreal 3 licensees – and reports today say the engine will be powering at least one of the publisher's much-vaunted new IP projects.

Winners of the 2006 Dare to be Digital awards have been announced, with a batch of games pushing forward new concepts getting the top prizes.

GDC London is spearheading the London Games Festival’s development activity this October, and along with a name designed to set it apart from GDCE, its conference structure has been revamped to reflect the sector’s new way of making games.

The US arm of Japanese publisher D3 Publishing is spearheading its UK wing’s push into Europe by looking for games made by local teams to publish – and could even acquire studios in the area.

Another of Sega’s UK studios is targeting ambitious expansion, with Creative Assembly looking to add  50 new staff to its roster – but producer Jonathan Court thinks the team can brush aside the current clime’s tough recruitment market.

As the race to boost next-gen development teams intensifies some studios are reportedly using corporate headhunters to poach staff, much to the annoyance of many UK developers.

Bizarre Creations and Sony were among the big winners last night at the Develop Industry Excellence Awards.

Sega’s Solihull-based Racing Studio is one of the many development studios currently looking to grow, and with the team now settled in a new office, plans are afoot to grow its staff count from 30 to 70.