MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
Almost a year and a half after its launch in the US, the Amazon Appstore has finally launched in key European territories. It’s now available in the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Spain on Android powered smartphones and tablets. It offers a typical selection of apps but differentiates itself through …
Read More »Square Enix launches HD streaming games portal Core Online
Cloud gaming has taken a significant step into the present thanks to a new initiative from Japanese publisher Square Enix. Its new portal, Core Online, allows gamers to play some its titles for free in proper HD through their web browser. It has launched with playable versions of Hitman: Blood …
Read More »EA’s Moore: ‘Next generation will give packaged goods a rebirth’
Electronic Arts may be spearheading the digital revolution, but discs aren’t dead yet, says COO Peter Moore. In an interview with MCV at Gamescom, the influential figure in fact predicted that packaged goods will be reborn when the much-discussed new generation of consoles arrives, even if the digital tipping point …
Read More »Infinity Blade transforms into a political beat ’em up
Popular iOS action adventure Infinity Blade has undergone an interesting transformation – it has been turned into a political beat ‘em up. Starring none other than American presidential hopefuls Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, the title – called VOTE! – is free to download on iPhone and iPad. It comes …
Read More »EA: High Street games retail to become extinct within a decade
A leading EA executive has predicted the death of High Street games retail within ten years. "We know that packaged goods work today, and the majority of our current revenue comes from that," EA Games’ executive VP Patrick Soderlund told CVG. "That’s still a viable business model. But in the …
Read More »Facebook drawing EA ad money away from TV and print
EA has admitted that it is to distance itself from TV and print advertising in favour of a social networking focused marketing strategy. The decision comes following the results of its Battlefield 3 Facebook campaign – the performance of which significantly exceeded EA’s expectations. ClickZ reports that the company invested …
Read More »Digital accounts for 5% of New Super Mario Bros 2 sales
Nintendo boss Satoru Iwata has revealed that digital sales of new 3DS release New Super Mario Bros 2 accounted for around five per cent of the total. "This initial offering going forward, we’ve gotten a good reaction going," he told The Wall Street Journal. He also revealed that the share …
Read More »Ubisoft using core franchises for free-to-play push
Three big PC brands are spearheading Ubisoft’s push into free-to-play. The firm told MCV at Gamescom in Germany that it can use core games brands with freemium models to attract new audiences. The Ghost Recon, Might & Magic and Anno series are first up. At Gamescom this week, the firm …
Read More »Digital could overtake physical in 2-3 years, EA’s Moore believes
The sale of digital product could account for the majority of EA’s revenue within 24 to 26 months. That’s according to EA COO Peter Moore, who told Reuters that: "There will come a point, whether it is two or three years from now, when we say ‘We are doing more …
Read More »OPINION: New Super Mario Bros 2 is great. And it’s £39.99
This Friday is an historic one for Nintendo. The launch of New Super Mario Bros 2 marks not only the end of the barren summer (along with Square Enix’s Sleeping Dogs) but also the launch of the ‘New Nintendo’. That’s because the game will be the first to be launched …
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