MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
Microsoft has begun asking US Xbox 360 owners to register for the latest System Update Preview which this year promises something of a surprise. "We are conducting an open call for US based participants for a public preview to help us prepare for an updated Xbox 360 disc format," community …
Read More »It’s Angry Birds Rio, not Rio: Angry Birds
Last week saw the release of the third Angry Birds game, Rio. The game is themed around a new Fox family CG film about kidnapped birds made by the Ice Age team. But Rovio has retained creative control. We made it clear from the beginning that we don’t want to …
Read More »iPad 2 is a UK sell-out
Apple has yet to officially confirm it, but newspaper The Daily Mail is reporting that the iPad 2 has officially sold out in the UK. At present it’s impossible to determine whether this is primarily due to (the undoubtedly extremely high) demand or more because of the wider pressure Apple …
Read More »3DS breaks retail records
Two of the UK’s leading retailers have confirmed that Nintendo’s 3DS is their facets selling video games console ever. "The 3DS has been huge for us," an ASDA spokesperson told Eurogamer. "In fact, it was our biggest ever format launch, driven by really strong online sales and our a fantastically-priced …
Read More »A farewell to UK Resistance
Popular games journo Gary Cutlack has officially called time on his popular video games blog UK Resistance. The blog, which was a winner at the first ever Games Media Awards in 2007, has for a long time been a favourite amongst industry insiders for its glorious combination of brilliant writing, …
Read More »Meet Rovio’s Peter Vesterbecka
There have been few transformations as dramatic as that experienced by Angry Birds. But how did Rovio do it? The person to ask is Rovio’s Peter Vesterbacka, the man who has pushed the franchise forward over the last year. His job title is ‘Mighty Eagle’. That humoured name actually means …
Read More »Heavy Fire Afghanistan hitting Kinect
A modern military shooter title has been confirmed for Xbox 360 Kinect. Called Heavy Fire: Afghanistan, Eurogamer reports that the game is in fact an "expanded sequel" to WiiWare pair Heavy Fire: Special Operations and Heavy Fire: Black Arms. The game is currently pencilled in for a boxed release for …
Read More »The success of Angry Birds
Downloaded over 100m times, and beloved as much by gamers as improbable figures like David Cameron and Margaret Atwood, Angry Birds is a true phenomenon of gaming’s new age. It started as a smartphone game, is dirt cheap at 59p, and has shifted over 2m in plush toy merchandise. The …
Read More »OPINION: Can we benefit from piracy?
With mass lay-offs, studios dropping like flies and mega-franchises imploding under our feet, it’s tempting to declare that there’s never been a worse time to get into video game development. The Association for UK Interactive Entertainment (UKIE) fuelled further negativity back in January by estimating that software piracy – that …
Read More »Molyneux hopes for new Syndicate title
Though we’re no closer to knowing whether or not EA’s long-rumoured Syndicate revamp is actually in the works, the series’ original creator has said he’d love to get involved with the mystery project. Speaking to CVG, current Microsoft Game Studios boss and the founder of Syndicate developer Bullfrog Peter Molyneux …
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