MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
The UK’s video games industry trade body says that tax breaks for video games developers remain a realistic hope. Rumour had spread prior to today’s budget from Chancellor George Osborne that the long-awaited tax breaks would be included as part of the statement. They did not, although the post-budget statement …
Read More »PS4 outsold Xbox One in US in February as Wii U hardware sales climb
Sony continues to dominate the next-gen hardware market in America, NPD numbers show. PS4 shifted 284,000 units in February – ten per cent ahead of Xbox One’s 258,000 unit sales. Xbox One is tracking 61 per cent ahead of Xbox 360 in comparable launch terms. Speaking of Xbox 360, that …
Read More »HMV slashes pre-owned games by 75%
Pre-owned games are currently available for 75 per cent off at HMV stores. That’s according to pro discount spotting site FrugalGaming, which says that all UK stores have been told to offload all their second hand games ASAP. It adds that as of March 5th pre-owned games have been withdrawn …
Read More »Are video games the next for merged Dixons and Carphone Warehouse?
Electronic giant Dixons hopes to become a major player in smartphones via a proposed merger with Carphone Warehouse. The firm is already a major player in other electrical goods and one insider told MCV that should the deal go through, Dixons would consider turning its guns on gaming. Dixons is …
Read More »Republicans propose increased dev taxes for violent games
A US tax reform bill from the House Ways and Means Committee has suggested increasing the tax burden for games developers making violent games. Washington Examiner reports that while the bill advocates an improved, permanent R&D tax credit, finally giving American manufacturers the certainty they need to compete against their …
Read More »New games media – the changing face of journalism
IGN. Eurogamer. GameSpot. CVG. These are some of the biggest names in games media, all gracing the monitors of gamers the world over on a daily basis. And yet, these giants are facing a new threat, as millions of gamers tune into Twitch and YouTube to get their games information. …
Read More »Resident Evil and Onimusha composer exposed as fraud
Mamoru Samuragochi, the famous Japanese composer behind the Resident Evil and Onimusha soundtracks, is a fraud. Once dubbed as a digital-age Beethoven by Time magazine, Samuragochi – whom has for years claimed to be deaf – has now admitted to hiring someone else to pen his most famous works under …
Read More »Yogscast: We would never compromise our integrity
UK YouTube giant Yogscast says it can help publishers sell games, but it will never compromise its integrity. The company’s comments come as Microsoft and EA suffer criticism for encouraging YouTube bloggers to post positive coverage about its games in exchange for money. Yogscast is a value-led business and the …
Read More »Porn block threatens UK games firms
UK games execs have expressed concerns over reports that game downloads are being inadvertently blocked as part of a UK crackdown on porn. An automated firewall created by leading UK?internet firms – put in place as part of Prime Minster David Cameron’s child internet safety campaign – has reportedly blocked …
Read More »INFOGRAPHIC: Just how big was GTA V?
We all knew GTA V would sell well, but not even the most optimistic analyst could have predicted how big it’d be after just four months. GTA V’s UK launch week was massive, with 2.25m games sold (it’s nearest rival was Black Ops, which sold 2m in a week). It …
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