MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
Sony Computer Entertainment Australia announced a 400% PS3 sales jump last week, and has today confirmed 300% in New Zealand. The increase follows the price drop of the PS3 worldwide on 22nd August, which saved New Zealand consumers NZD$150 per console (approximately). David Hine, director of sales and marketing for …
Read More »Aussie developers get new tax breaks
The Australian government has announced a re-working of its R&D Tax Concession, now known as the R&D Tax Incentive, to benefit local developers. The incentive applies to any R&D (which, for local studios could mean the creation of new technology and game engines during the early phases of a game’s …
Read More »Square Enix to double Deux Ex studio headcount
Japanese publisher Square Enix wants to position its Canadian studio Eidos Montreal at the very centre of its game development operations, a new report claims. Its subsidiary Eidos Montreal could grow from about 350 staff to nearly 700 if a deal with state officials is agreed, according to local business …
Read More »Life in fast lane beckons for Ubisoft
A new Driver finally makes it to store shelves today – five years after Ubisoft spent $24m buying the brand and its studio.But it’s just the first step in Ubisoft’s plans for both the re-engergised franchise and the driving genre, says CEO Yves Guillemot. Driver: San Francisco takes the series …
Read More »Flat profits reported by Gameloft
Mobile games publisher Gameloft has reported a net profit of €5.3 million (around $7.6m) for the first half of 2011, the same as it reported for the first half of 2010. The company’s revenues rose from €66.6 million to €76.8 million in the same period, so why were net profits …
Read More »Nintendo Connection Tour 2011 announced
Nintendo has confirmed that its popular roadshow from last year called the Nintendo Connection Tour will be returning this year. The tour, which commences at Westfield Southland in Victoria on Saturday 24th September, will have The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword playable on Wii for the first time, as well …
Read More »Wallabies Rugby Challenge releases early
Although it wasn’t due for release until next week, Wallabies Rugby Challenge has just landed in stores Australia-wide. The game was developed by Sidhe in Wellington, New Zealand, and had its NZ release as ‘All Blacks Rugby Challenge’ last Friday to great success. Mario Wynands, managing director of Sidhe, told …
Read More »Australian iOS games dominate app store
The current top 5 paid apps on the iOS App Store contains not one but three Australian-made games from Firemint and Halfbrick. The newly released SPY Mouse from Firemint Studios in Melbourne is currently the #1 selling iPhone game, and is receiving very positive reviews. It expands upon the team’s …
Read More »Nnooo talks about developing for WiiWare
escapeVektor: Chapter 1 has been given pricing and a release date by developer Nnooo today, who has spoken to MCV about releasing games for WiiWare. The downloadable Wii title will be available worldwide on 29th September for 500 Nintendo points, and blends Tron style arcade gameplay with intense puzzle action …
Read More »2K Czech axes 40 staff
2K Czech, one of Europe’s leading triple-A studios, has lost more than 40 staff from a studio-wide redundancy operation. The job terminations have taken place across two studios operating under the 2K Czech brand. One group, based in Brno, has lost up to 40 developers, inside sources have told Develop. …
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