Strictly exclusive search
With a database of over 4,500 of the best candidates the games industry has to offer, Recruit3D is perfectly positioned to conduct a search and selection campaign aimed at providing your studio with the best staff available.
Taking your job specifications, we will draw up a list of candidates we think are worth approaching on your behalf. At that point, we either discuss our list with you, settling on who you would like us to approach or, if you prefer, we simply "take the ball and run with it', going ahead and networking on your behalf to make the most suitable candidates aware of your requirements and ensure that your studio and the opportunities offered are presented in the best possible light.
Recruit3D operates on a STRICTLY exclusive basis - each consultant works with no more than TEN studios at any one time (and often less, depending on workload), allowing us to focus on delivering the kind of quality you've never before had from a games recruitment agency. If we don't have the capacity to devote to your search, we'll tell you. We won't lead you on. It wastes your time, and gets us a bad reputation.
Just some of the services we offer:
- Active "search and selection" based recruitment - we take your specifications, research the competition from various databases of almost 5,000 candidates currently working in the games industry, and go after those candidates you will want to see.
- Recruitment advertising campaign management, in print and online.
- "Match making" between studios and outsourced service providers. If you're a freelancer, talk to us.
- We can conduct our own first stage interviews according to your specifications - frees up your time and allows us to help you narrow the field.
- VERY competitive fees and rebate periods.
Email office@recruit3d.com for further details.
News: GDC 2010 Coverage
For this year's GDC 2010 event, taking place all this week, we're using a new system for our coverage which is taking the form of an event blog. Every time we hear something interesting - either formally or less so - we'll post it here, with the latest updates at the top. Updates will include interesting snippets from lectures and panel sessions, any announcements we get wind of, plus the general buzz on the show floor - what people are talking about, the issues being discussed, and so on. But we also want to hear from you - if you're at GDC, or you want to react to things we're writing, drop us a line and we may add your thoughts to the blog as well!
Posted on 11 March 2010 | 8:41 pm
News: Pricing could stunt OnLive growth
A number of factors are pouring cold water on the launch plans for cloud gaming service OnLive, including an installed base too small to be meaningful for larger publishers, and a pricing model that could prove too expensive for consumers.
That's according to Signal Hill's Todd Greenwald, who also pointed to problems with lag, and no support for home TVs or 1080p HD output until after the June 17 PC and Mac launch.
"While we find the service compelling and exciting, we are somewhat sceptical that OnLive will really turn the gaming world upside down any time soon," wrote Greenwald in his latest note to investors.
Posted on 11 March 2010 | 5:11 pm
News: UK govt: Case for games tax relief is "coming together"
Stephen Timms MP, Minister for Digital Britain, has offered renewed hope to the UK games sector, revealing the argument for tax breaks is "getting stronger", with an "update" likely in this month's Budget.
The Minister argued, in an exclusive interview with GamesIndustry.biz, that "things have changed over the past couple of years", with the industry now viewed by the government as well placed to help drive economic recovery.
With the UK "emerging" from the economic downturn, Timms insisted fellow ministers were clear on the "need to support those parts of UK commerce with the best prospects for growth in the future".
Posted on 11 March 2010 | 4:20 pm
News: Valve and Epic ink Steamworks deal
Valve Software and Epic Games have inked an agreement to include Valve's Steamworks suite of tools and services to all licensees of Epic's Unreal Engine 3 middleware, free of charge.
"Epics technology is one of the most widely used engines in the industry and has powered many of the best games created in the past 10 years, on multiple platforms," said Gabe Newell, co-founder and president of Valve.
"Its an honour to have Steamworks included in the technology offered to all Unreal Engine 3 licensees. Its hard to think of a larger, better targeted group of developers who could derive more benefit from the Steamworks services."
Posted on 11 March 2010 | 3:58 pm
News: Image Metrics settles $8 million funding deal
Leading facial animation technology firm Image Metrics has announced the closure of an $8 million round of financing, which it intends to use to increase the scope of its sales and marketing efforts for software products such as Faceware.
The company is also intending to expand its business into online markets such as virtual worlds and social networks, although no specific partners have been announced as yet.
At the same time the company has also agreed to become a wholly owned subsidiary of International Cellular Accessories (ICLA), with Image Metrics exchanging all of its outstanding shares and becoming a publicly traded company as a result.
Posted on 11 March 2010 | 2:30 pm
News: Old Republic EA's "largest ever" game
EA chief financial officer Eric Brown has claimed that BioWare's Star Wars: The Old Republic is the publisher's most expensive game in the company's nearly 30 year history.
Speaking to a Wedbush Morgan Securities audience in New York, as reported by sister site Eurogamer, Brown commented that the massively multiplayer online game was the "largest ever development project, period, in the history of the company".
Although he did not put a specific figure on the development costs Brown indicated that a standard packaged title cost around $30 million but "any MMO costs significantly more than that".
Posted on 11 March 2010 | 10:16 am
News: Third Pokemon Ranger title tops Japanese charts
The third entry in the Pokemon Ranger series on Nintendo DS has cruised to an easy victory in the weekly Japanese sales charts, with sales of 161,000 units. Its predecessor sold 193,337 units in its debut.
The second highest new entry of the week, at number two, is Namco Bandai's .hack//Link with 60,000 unit sales. The new title is intended to be the last entry in the cross media franchise but is the first to be released on the PSP.
New at number three is the budget-priced re-release of Square Enix's Dragon Quest IX on DS, which despite record-breaking sales on its original release still managed to sell another 41,000 units. Square Enix also re-released its other Dragon Quest DS titles this week on the same Ultimate Hits budget label, with Dragon Quest V re-entering at number 20 and Dragon Quest IV at number 30.
Posted on 11 March 2010 | 9:26 am
News: No EA Sports Active 2.0 for Natal
EA has announced that EA Sports Active 2.0 will be released this autumn on the Wii, PlayStation 3, iPhone and iPod touch - but not the Xbox 360 or Project Natal.
The original title was released on the Wii last spring and used the standard Wii controllers, bundled accessories and, optionally, the Balance Board. The title proved a substantial hit for EA, after a heavy marketing push and even two dedicated retail stores in the US.
The third game in the series, after expansion EA Sports Active: More Workouts, will feature new leg and arm straps with motion sensors, a heart rate monitor and a new online hub to "track and share workout data".
Posted on 11 March 2010 | 8:47 am
Interview: Nexon USA's Daniel Kim
Free-to-play is a sector of the online business that's grown significantly in the past five years, and with MapleStory present through that whole time, Nexon can certainly be attributed some of the responsibility. But the quality bar for what constitutes a free-to-play game is rising - here Nexon USA CEO Daniel Kim reflects on another year of growth, and explains how the company is helping to change the perception of free online products.
Posted on 11 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: GamesIndustry.biz to launch German edition in April
A German edition of GamesIndustry.biz is to launch in April, with MCV founder Christoph Holowaty acting as managing editor.
The site will offer market-leading daily news, analysis, interviews and features, with exclusive German market editorial alongside the current English-language content.
"Launching a GamesIndustry.biz product in Germany is something we've wanted to do for a long time, but for us the most important element was finding the right person to do it," said Phil Elliott, managing editor of GamesIndustry.biz.
Posted on 11 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: Sony names motion controller PlayStation Move
Sony has finally announced the name of its PlayStation 3 motion controller now officially known as PlayStation Move revealing that it will also operate with a 'sub-controller' alongside the PlayStation 3 Eye
The platform holder said that a bundle of the controllers will sell for below $100 when launched in "fall", adding that 36 third-party developers and publishers are on board to support the new platform.
Sony says the sub-controller is designed to further expand gameplay options it features an analog stick and directional buttons but users can also use the regular DualShock controller for the same effect.
Posted on 11 March 2010 | 1:00 am
News: MySpace hopes games will emulate music success
MySpace has told GamesIndustry.biz that it hopes that its concentrated push into games will emulate the success it's already achieved in the music business.
Speaking in an exclusive interview published today, co-president Mike Jones said that his goal is to have up to 60 per cent of users playing games on the social networking site within a year.
"Just as they use MySpace to discover and listen to music, I want them to use MySpace to discover and play games. It's an absolute big, big part of our mission," he said.
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 8:12 pm
News: OnLive to launch June 17 in US
OnLive, the cloud gaming service announced a year ago at GDC, will launch on June 17 in the US.
The service, which grants access to a range of PC games from EA, Ubisoft, 2K Games, THQ and Warner Bros, will charge a subscription fee of $14.95 per month, with special offers and longer subscription deals also on the cards.
"This marks a huge milestone for both OnLive and the interactive entertainment landscape as a whole, changing the way that video games are developed, marketed, accessed and played," said Steve Perlman, Founder and CEO of OnLive. "We are opening the door to incredible experiences for gamers and enormous opportunities for developers and publishers."
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 7:12 pm
News: Former Facebook director joins Gaikai
Cloud gaming service Gaikai has announced its first senior management appointment will be Michael Bowen, the former director of technical operations for Facebook.
Bowen will join the company as VP of operations, taking responsibility for managing the worldwide, server-based technology as it is readied for a 2010 launch.
He has worked with Facebook since 2008, prior to which he spent five years at Sony Online Entertainment overseeing the launch of over 20 MMO titles.
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 6:48 pm
Interview: MySpace's Mike Jones
It's been impossible to get away from the talk surrounding social network games in the past six months, and well into 2010, it's looking a lot like being the hot topic for this year - alongside motion control, of course... But while Facebook has dominated that space so far, now MySpace is making a bid to capture the imagination of game developers - here co-president Mike Jones explains just how important games are the social network's future.
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 6:00 pm
News: Nintendo "not there yet" on new console, says Fils-Aime
Nintendo of America president and COO Reggie Fils-Aime has claimed that the company is not yet ready to seriously think about releasing a new home console.
Speaking to Forbes, Fils-Aime commented: "When the software developer comes forward with an idea that can't be executed on the current platform, that's when we start thinking seriously about the next system. We're not there yet, from a Wii perspective."
Fils-Aime was also lukewarm about the importance of high definition graphics and 3D technology, saying: "For us, technology is not an endpoint. Technology is an enabler for fantastic consumer experiences. So from a hardware standpoint, we are always looking at technology. But in the end, the technology has to enable a new, unique experience."
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 11:59 am
News: Evolved games market has stumped next-gen console plans
Alex St John has told GamesIndustry.biz that he believes the reason Microsoft and Sony haven't announced a new generation of consoles is because it's no longer clear what they can do to improve on the systems they are already offering.
The former executive at Microsoft and WildTanget, and now president of social games business hi5, said that the Wii proves that high-tech consoles aren't the next step in home entertainment, and cheaper social gaming via the web has left manufacturers in a niche market.
"This is usually when you announce [consoles]. It's 2010. No rumours either. There's two reasons for delaying. The reason for the delay is the reason I'm right," said the out-spoken executive.
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 10:23 am
News: PC games revenues up 3% in 2009
Software revenues for the PC games market rose by 3 per cent last year to a total of $13.1 billion, according to the new 2009 Horizons Report from the PC Gaming Alliance (PCGA).
The non-profit corporation, which includes members such as Microsoft, Intel, AMD, Epic, NVIDIA, GameStop and Dell, sources data from every region in the world and covers retail sales, online gaming, digital distribution and online advertising.
The latest report was prepared by market research firm DFC Intelligence, who found that the Asia Pacific region was fuelling the majority of growth in the global PC games market.
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 10:10 am
News: Final Fantasy XIII ships 5 million units
New release Final Fantasy XIII has shipped 5 million units worldwide on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, according to publisher Square Enix.
The game was released simultaneously in North America, Europe and other PAL markets on Tuesday, 9 March with the game previously having been released, as a PS3 exclusive, in Japan on December 17, 2009. Shipments outside of Japan have already surpassed 3 million units.
Launch events were held in San Francisco and Paris on Monday, March 8 and in London on Tuesday March 9. Around 3500 fans gathered for the French event on the Champs-Elysees, while the US launch party featured "talk show" style discussion with Square Enix staff and displays of scenes from the game in 3D.
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 9:40 am
News: Arc but not Natal support for Tiger Woods 11
Electronic Arts' Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 will include support for the PlayStation motion controller - currently believed to be codenamed "Arc" - but not Microsoft's Project Natal.
The latest iteration of the franchise was unveiled at the ongoing Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, for the PS3, Xbox 360, Wii and iPhone.
The game is due to be released on June 8, with the PlayStation motion controller not expected to be released until the autumn. Nevertheless, in comments made to website VG247 an EA spokesperson indicated that "timing" was the sole reason for the lack of Natal support and that it would be introduced in the next iteration.
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 9:33 am
News: Movie studios sign for PlayStation Network
20th Century Fox, Walt Disney Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Universal Pictures, and Warner Bros. Digital Distribution are all set to offer HD movies for purchase and download via the PlayStation Network.
Initially announced only for the US, the service will be the first on a home console to offer movies to buy as well as just rent. The support of all six major movie studios also gives Sony a considerable advantage when competing against the more established Xbox Live service.
Sony has stated that a similar service will launch soon in the UK, France, Germany and Spain, although traditionally the content available, and sometimes the providers, has varied considerably between different territories.
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 8:38 am
News: EA to distribute Rock Band 3
After initial doubts about its involvement in future releases, Harmonix has confirmed that Electronic Arts is due to distribute MTV and Viacom's Rock Band 3 this Christmas.
Earlier in the year Viacom had said that it was still in negotiations over a future distribution deal for its Rock Band series, after slower than expected sales hit the franchise and its big Beatles tie-in failed to meet expectations.
"Harmonix is developing Rock Band 3 for worldwide release this holiday season," announced Harmonix on the game's official Facebook page. "The game, which will be published by MTV Games and distributed by Electronic Arts, will innovate and revolutionise the music genre once again, just as Harmonix did with the original Rock Band, Rock Band 2 and The Beatles: Rock Band."
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 8:34 am
News: Vigil: THQ has taken "a lot of bullets" while restructuring
The restructuring of THQ, which has resulted in cancelled projects and studio closures, has been necessary to help turn around the company and change perceptions that it's not just a house for kids games and wrestling licenses.
And according to David Adams, general manager at Darksiders outfit Vigil Games, the publisher has put great faith in its new creative talent and intellectual property, supporting its developers rather than pressuring them to churn out games on demand.
"THQ went through a lot of pain and restructuring - they took a lot of bullets so we could continue to make our game, and that's a good indication of their faith in us, and their drive to make great-quality products," said Adams, speaking in an exclusive interview published today.
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 8:00 am
Interview: Maintaining the Vigil
Vigil Games was founded in 2005 by David Adams and Joe Madureira, and acquired by THQ in 2006. Earlier this year the team released the critically-acclaimed Darksiders as their first full internal project - a game in the works on and off for five years. Additionally, the studio is working on an MMO based around the Warhammer 40,000 universe, while also going into production on a Darksiders sequel. At the recent DICE Summit we caught up with David, general manager, and Joe, creative director, to look back on the studio's history, talk about the reinvention of THQ, ponder the Darksiders development process and look ahead to Warhammer 40K.
Posted on 10 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: EA Partners to publish 38 Studios RPG
EA Partners has sign up to publish 38 Studios' single-player role-playing game, codenamed Project Mercury.
The game is in development at the recently acquired Big Huge Games, under the leadership of Elder Scrolls lead designer Ken Rolston, and based on the fantasy world of RA Salvatore and comic book artist Todd McFarlane.
"From day one, 38 Studios has been focused on creating the next generation of entertainment experiences that embrace all mediums, including film, television, comics, novels, toys and, of course, games," commented Curt Schilling, founder of 38 Studios.
Posted on 9 March 2010 | 3:38 pm
News: Ubisoft DRM servers attacked again
Ubisoft has revealed that the problems with the company's newly implemented DRM solution for new PC titles are due to ongoing attacks from hackers and not as a result of high demand, as previously implied.
According to the latest Twitter updates the servers were under attack again yesterday, with some users experiencing trouble signing in. Ubisoft claim that 95 per cent of players remained unaffected and that login servers were fully re-established at 1am CET.
Ubisoft also claims that Assassin's Creed II and Silent Hunter 5 "are withstanding the efforts to crack them" and that "no valid cracked versions exist". Most torrent sites do contain links to both games, but Ubisoft claim these are incomplete versions.
Posted on 9 March 2010 | 11:50 am
News: Full Natal line-up due at E3
Microsoft is due to unveil its "full line-up" of Project Natal games at E3 2010 in June, according to comments made by Mindy Mount, CFO of Microsoft's Entertainment & Devices division.
Speaking at the Jefferies Annual Global Technology Conference in the US, as reported by website IGN, Mount claimed that the company's best designers were working on the platform.
With Microsoft's stable of first party developers having shrunk considerably in recent years it was unclear which developers she was referring to, although Rare are known to be heavily involved with the project and Lionhead Studios are implementing Natal features in Fable III.
Posted on 9 March 2010 | 11:26 am
News: Analyst: PS3 to outsell 360 and Wii by cycle end
The PlayStation 3 will outsell its rivals over its lifetime, becoming the best selling home console of the current generation - according to a new report by the Strategy Analytics Connected Home Devices (SACHD) service.
The prediction is based on the PS3 remaining a commercial platform for five years after the Wii has been replaced. Report author David Mercer predicts a 127 million unit lifetime title for the PS3, compared to 103 million for the Wii.
The global totals for the three consoles currently stand at approximately 68 million for the Wii, 38 million for the 360 and 32.5 million for the PS3.
Posted on 9 March 2010 | 11:03 am
News: Sony: God Of War III budget is $44 million
The budget for Santa Monica Studio's imminent PlayStation 3 exclusive God of War III has been placed at $44 million, according to an interview with director of product development John Hight
Speaking in an interview with website Giant Bomb, Hight commented: "We are stamping discs now, so we're effectively done, just got a couple of countries that we're finishing up on this week, and we've spent $44 million on God of War III."
"Believe it or not, that's right within budget," he added.
Posted on 9 March 2010 | 10:22 am
News: Games success influencing movie industry, says MW2 director
The high-profile success of titles such as Modern Warfare 2 and Grand Theft Auto IV has turned around Hollywood's perception of videogames, as the film industry looks to alternative mediums for new movie content.
That's the view of Keith Arem, director of the Call of Duty and Modern Warfare series', who said that both industries can learn from one another as they continue to grow as the leading entertainment mediums.
"The success of the games industry is going to benefit those other movie industries. It's providing more work, it's providing more content," said Arem, speaking in an exclusive interview published today.
Posted on 9 March 2010 | 9:26 am
News: Modern Warfare 2 hits 25 million unique users
Infinity Ward director of communications Robert Bowling has announced that the total number of unique users for Activision's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has hit 25 million players.
Writing on Twitter, Bowling also stated that Modern Warfare 2 downloadable content details would be released this week.
Modern Warfare 2 was the best-selling title of 2009, with 11.86 million units sold in the U.S., UK and Japan alone, comfortably ahead of second placed title Wii Sports Resort on 7.57 million.
Posted on 9 March 2010 | 9:08 am
News: Indie veterans form Tomorrow Corporation
The creators of indie titles such as World of Goo and Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure have formed a new development studio named Tomorrow Corporation.
Although the team is yet to announce its first title the founders include Kyle Gabler, best known for co-founding existing indie studio 2D BOY and working on the critically acclaimed World of Goo.
Kyle Gray created Nintendo DS title Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure during his five year stint at EA. The third member of the team is Alan Blomquist, also an ex-EA employee and co-developer of World of Goo.
Posted on 9 March 2010 | 8:29 am
News: Globex signs Pandemic vets for US expansion
Some of the leading talent behind Pandemic's most successful hits including Mercenaries, Star Wars Battlefront and Destroy All Humans have been signed by Globex Studios to open a new LA-based development house.
The company already has studios in China and Taiwan, but this move marks a significant expansion into the North American market, with plans to offer direct-to-consumer games for online audiences in the US and China.
"The ability to innovate and be agile has become essential for creating great games," said Benjamin Chow, CEO of Globex Studios. "By putting together this highly creative international team, we are bringing together the highly sophisticated gameplay of a western game with the unique social gameplay of a Chinese MMO - effectively delivering engaging gameplay experiences that reach broad consumer demographics on a global scale.
Posted on 9 March 2010 | 8:22 am
Interview: Hooray for Hollywood
As a creative talent Keith Arem has worked on multiple games, most recently as director on Activision's Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, but also on the performance side of game development for Sony, THQ, EA, Ubisoft and more. He also runs his own PCB Production business, as well as graphic novel projects including Ascend and Dead Speed, and has now taken on in his first movie directing role with upcoming feature film Frost Road. In this exclusive interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Arem talks about the transition from games to film, the differences between working in both mediums, and how the two can influence and inform each other as entertainment sectors continue to evolve and converge.
Posted on 9 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: Valve confirms Steam for Mac
Valve has confirmed that it will be bringing Steam, its market-leading digital download services, to Mac formats this April.
The service supports a library of games including Valve's own Left 4 Dead 2, Team Fortress 2, Counter-Strike, Portal and the Half-Life series, and the recently announced Portal 2 will be the company's first simultaneous Windows and Mac release.
"As we transition from entertainment as a product to entertainment as a service, customers and developers need open, high-quality internet clients," said Gabe Newell, president of Valve. "The Mac is a great platform for entertainment services."
Posted on 8 March 2010 | 6:58 pm
News: Battlefield: Bad Company 2 storms UK chart
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 has become the fastest-selling new title of 2010 so far in the UK, snatching the title away from Sega's Aliens vs Predator.
The multiformat title outsold the well-received original by a factor of 3 to 1, with 53 per cent of sales on the Xbox 360, 31 per cent on the PlayStation 3 and 16 per cent on the PC. The game also topped all of the relevant individual formats charts.
Ubisoft's Wii exclusive Just Dance saw sales fall by 15 per cent but still managed to rise one place to number two, pushing Aliens vs Predator down to number three as sales dropped 61 per cent.
Posted on 8 March 2010 | 10:58 am
News: More trouble for Ubisoft's DRM system
Users of Ubisoft's PC games Assassin's Creed II and Silent Hunter 5 have been unable to play over the weekend as the servers for its digital rights management system have been inaccessible.
The company's DRM came under fire from the moment it was announced, as it requires that users connect to the internet while playing the games even the single-player elements.
"Due to exceptional demand, we are currently experiencing difficulties with the Online Service Platform. This does not affect customers who are currently playing, but customers attempting to start a game may experience difficulty in accessing our servers," said the company yesterday. "We are currently working to resolve this issue and apologise for any inconvenience."
Posted on 8 March 2010 | 10:22 am
News: Gamers overwhelm Australian ratings inquiry
The Australian government has received 55,000 submissions as part of its public consultation concerning the introduction of a restricted 18+ age rating for videogames.
The consultation was announced in late 2009, with Australian citizens being asked to submit their views before a February 28, 2010 deadline. In order to rally support the "Grow Up Australia" campaign was launched, with prominent support from retail chain EB Games.
Although Australia has an 18+ age rating for films and DVDs, the highest rating for video games is 15+. This has led to games which would receive the highest rating in other Western countries being either severely censored before release or refused classification.
Posted on 8 March 2010 | 10:08 am
News: Majesco receives new Nasdaq warning
US publisher Majesco has been given 180 days to raise its share price above USD 1 or face delisting from the Nasdaq stock exchange.
The warning came as Majesco's share price remained below USD 1 for 30 consecutive days. This follows the company's disappointing fourth quarter results that showed a $7.2 million loss, despite improvements in revenues and profitability.
If Majesco does not raise the share price, which currently stands at $0.99, above the minimum amount for 10 consecutive days of trading it will receive written notification that a delisting is pending.
Posted on 8 March 2010 | 9:17 am
News: "Triple-A indie" projects can be financially viable - Hecker
Independent game development for home consoles now has proven financially viable routes to market following the success of hits on Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network.
That's according to Chris Hecker, ex-Maxis developer, who said that although he is funding his own game project through savings and the help of family and friends, he's confident it can be profitable in the long term.
"The good thing about nowadays when it comes to financing is that there are proven good games of this size that have been profitable," said Hecker in an interview published today. "Before I joined Maxis I was working on an indie game for a long time and never finished it, but back then there was shareware on the PC, but no real console model - no way to monetise it.
Posted on 8 March 2010 | 8:59 am
News: Nintendo developer Cing files for bankruptcy - report
Japanese developer Cing has filed for bankruptcy in Japan, with the company reportedly suffering from liabilities of 256 million yen (USD 2.9m/EUR 2.1m).
A brief report on the Japanese language site Net-IB, as translated by Web forum NeoGAF, suggests that the firm was forced to make the filing on 1 March.
A small studio with less than 30 staff, Cing was founded in 1999. Its debut title was the Japan and Europe-only release Glass Rose for Capcom.
Posted on 8 March 2010 | 8:53 am
News: Free Realms hits 9 million subscribers
The total number of subscribers for free-to-play massively multiplayer online game Free Realms has hit 9 million users, according to a statement from Sony Online Entertainment.
The publisher has attributed the game's continuing success to constant development of new features, themed in-game events and "persistent marketing support".
"With Free Realms, we've been able to reflect the needs and wants of our players by keenly listening to their suggestions and feedback," said SOE president John Smedley.
Posted on 8 March 2010 | 8:31 am
Interview: Going Solo
Chris Hecker has been working in the games business for about 15 years, having first made the transition following a trip to what was then known as the Computer Games Developer Conference - CGDC. More recently he worked at Maxis on Spore, before going solo on his own title - SpyParty. Here he talks about the challenges of lone development, why he left Maxis in the first place, and explains in some detail the process of putting the GDC event together from the perspective of an advisory board member.
Posted on 8 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: iPad to launch in April
Apple has announced the iPad will go on sale in the US on April 3 and in the UK in late April.
The US will see the release of the Wi-Fi model at the start of April, but will have to wait until late April for the Wi-Fi and 3G iPad. The end of April is also when consumers in the UK, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain and Switzerland will be able to buy both iPad models.
"iPad is something completely new," said Apple's CEO Steve Jobs. "Were excited for customers to get their hands on this magical and revolutionary product and connect with their apps and content in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before."
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 4:35 pm
News: Molyneux: Natal improvements are "countless"
Peter Molyneux has moved to dampen fears over Project Natal lag, insisting there have been "countless revisions of cameras and countless revisions of software" since the demo units shown to press and celebrities in recent weeks were produced.
Following a recent London showcase, British TV personality Jonathan Ross commented via his Twitter account that Natal was "not quite there yet", which prompted Microsoft PR to confirm the hardware and game demo Ross played dated back to summer 2009.
Molyneux, who hosted an event with non-specialist media early last week at the same venue in London's Fitzroy Square, expressed his frustration at not being able to show the latest iteration of the Xbox motion-control technology.
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 4:09 pm
News: XBL rule change allows users to express race, sexual orientation
Microsoft has amended its Xbox Live terms of use, allowing users to express their race, nationality, religion and sexual orientation, if they choose, in their Gamertags and profiles.
Xbox Live GM Marc Whitten said the move had been made in response to feedback from customers who had felt excluded from the community, adding that the company's original stance had a arisen from a desire to protect its users from abuse.
"The Xbox Live Terms of Use and Code of Conduct are designed to create a place where people can safely enjoy all of the ways to interact on our service, be it online multiplayer gaming, photo sharing, Netflix parties, or social games such as 1 vs 100, without fear of discrimination or harassment," said Whitten, in an open letter published on Xbox.com.
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 3:32 pm
News: GamesIndustry.biz launches free iPhone app
GamesIndustry.biz is pleased to announce the launch of its free iPhone app, designed for industry professionals to access the leading trade site and its growing network of users.
The app will grant users access all of the site's news and feature content, as well as enable them to leave comments on stories. It's also fully compatible with Network features, so users will have access to the full directory of Network members and be able to add contacts and send messages via their iPhone.
"I'm really excited to launch the GamesIndustry.biz iPhone app - having all of our main news and network functionality in a streamlined and dedicated environment makes it easier to keep up with the key games business movements, wherever you are," said GamesIndustry.biz managing editor Phil Elliott.
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 2:48 pm
News: Piracy-targeting law firm investigated by watchdog
A law firm acting on behalf of games publishers that include Codemasters and Atari against alleged file-sharers is being investigated over claims of bullying and harassment.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority, an industry watchdog, has said that it is investigating a complaint brought against London-based solicitors firm Davenport Lyons by consumer group Which?, The Guardian reported today.
Which? lodged its first official complaint against Davenport Lyons back in 2008, after the firm served notices to 25,000 internet users accusing them of illegal file-sharing.
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 1:14 pm
News: EA Partners signs indie titles DeathSpank and Shank
EA Partners has announced a deal with indie studios Hothead Games and Klei Entertainment to distribute their forthcoming titles DeathSpank and Shank.
Both games are digital releases coming to Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network - and also PC in the case of Shank.
The move highlights the importance to the publisher of building relationships with the world's top indie developers, EA said today.
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 10:40 am
News: Modern Warfare lawsuit accuses Activision of "unbridled greed"
More details of the lawsuit bought against Activision by former Infinity Ward employees have emerged, in which the Call of Duty publisher is accused of "astonishing arrogance and unbridled greed".
Filed by Jason West and Vince Zampella who were sacked from the wholly-owned studio Infinity Ward this week the pair detailed alleged working conditions and the process that led to the developers being ejected from the studio they helped found back in 2003.
"West and Zampella were not as eager as Activision to jump into the development of Modern Warfare 2," stated the 16-page document, reprinted on IGN. "Despite assurances by Activision that West and Zampella would have complete freedom to run Infinity Ward as an independent studio, Activision had begun to intrude upon Infinity Ward's ability to create quality games.
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 10:35 am
News: Rock Band Network opens to public
The new Rock Band Network Music Store opened to the public today, giving Rock Band users in the US access to over 100 new songs that have been uploaded to the store directly by musicians, publishers and record labels.
In addition, T-Mobile has been announced as a launch partner of the Network, and will develop an 'Artist of the Month' feature beginning in April to help fans identify and connect with new talent on the store.
"The Rock Band Network Music Store gives artists at any level the opportunity to reach new fans through our deeply engaging interactive platform, said Paul DeGooyer, senior VP of Electronic Games and Music for MTV Networks Music Group.
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 9:36 am
News: Eutechnyx signs former EA Sports director Ed Martin
Racing developer Eutechnyx has appointed Ed Martin as executive vice president of its North American business.
Martin previously held a director role at EA Sports on the NASCAR franchise, and has been exec producer at Hasbro, and Papyrus, where he worked on PC racing simulations.
"When it comes to American racing games, Ed Martin is the man," commented Darren Jobling, COO of Eutechnyx. "His experience and enthusiasm for the sport of competitive racing are absolutely second-to-none, and he's going to be an invaluable asset to Eutechnyx as we enter into our most exciting year yet."
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 9:35 am
News: THQ vet forms Radiangames
Luke Schneider, formerly of THQ team Volition, has launched a new independent studio and announced its first title JoyJoy, for Xbox 360.
Schneider has over 12 year's experience working on titles including Red Faction: Guerilla, The Punisher, Descent 3 and Alter Echo.
"Todays videogame landscape is full of opportunities for independent game developers, and Radiangames is dedicated to making the most of those opportunities," he said.
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 8:53 am
News: Kenka Bancho 4 tops Japanese software chart
PlayStation Portable has come out on top of the Japanese hardware chart for another week with sales that just pipped the second best-selling console the Wii.
PlayStation 3 sales dropped off from last week when they appeared to get a boost from the releases of Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition and Heavy Rain, and the console slipped from second to third in the chart.
Combined sales of the various DS models however - the DSi LL, DSi and DS Lite - put the handheld ahead of all its comeptition overall.
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 8:48 am
News: Nexon offering $1m fund for indie developers
Nexon of America is putting up $1 million to help fund the creation of games from independent developers.
Titles chosen for the Nexon iNitiative will be sponsored, co-developed and published through Nexon's distribution network, which currently spans more than 71 countries.
"Nexon is all about great games and The Nexon iNitiative is about finding the next generation of great game developers," said Won Il Sue, Nexon Americas vice president of business development. "It doesnt matter who you are, if youve got a great idea, we want to hear from you. Were ready to fund, develop and publish the best of the best through our massive worldwide network.
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 8:32 am
Editorial: Beyond Infinity
Despite plenty of sage nose-tapping and wild speculation, few people outside of those directly involved know exactly what happened between Infinity Ward and Activision this week. It's an extraordinary story - the studio which created last year's best-selling game, and one of the best-selling entertainment properties in history, turning up to work to find security conspicuously posted around the building; the studio's bosses and founders called into a meeting and abruptly dismissed, their fate revealed to the world by shocked-sounding status updates on their profile pages.
Activision, which contrary to many online reports owns Infinity Ward outright, rumbles about things like "insubordination". Those at the studio keep their lips sealed, for the most part, although hints of deep disquiet regarding the studio's share of the loot from Modern Warfare 2's enormous windfall are a common theme in the vague mutterings escaping the firm. That's seemingly confirmed when the studio heads involved, Jason West and Vince Zampella, file suit against Activision over unpaid royalties and issues relating to control of the Modern Warfare franchise.
It will almost certainly take months, if not years, for the full picture of what just happened to become clear. Even staff at the studio itself seem somewhat unclear about the details, and of course, the view taken by Activision differs significantly from that of West and Zampella. What seems clear, though, is that Infinity Ward - despite being a wholly owned subsidiary - wanted creative control of its franchise and a share of the cash it generated, while Activision seemingly wanted to treat IW as an internal studio, paying them salaries (and presumably bonuses, where applicable) and dictating what they work on.
Posted on 5 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: Activision dismisses "meritless" $36m Modern Warfare lawsuit
Call of Duty publisher Activision has dismissed as "meritless" the lawsuit bought against it by two founders of Infinity Ward over unpaid royalties and the right to creative control of the Modern Warfare brand.
According to a report by the LA Times, Vince Zampella and Jason West are seeking upwards of $36 million, the right to creative control over all Modern Warfare games and that Activision may not release any Call of Duty titles set after the Vietnam war without their approval.
"Activision is disappointed that Mr Zampella and Mr West have chosen to file a lawsuit, and believes their claims are meritless," said the publisher in a statement to the press.
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 8:34 pm
News: Zampella and West could veto Modern Warfare releases
Sacked Activision duo Jason West and Vince Zampella could veto the planned release of downloadable content or future releases in the Modern Warfare series, if the legal issues with former employer Activision are ruled in their favour.
That's according to Jas Purewal, English lawyer and litigation specialist, who said that the duo's claim of creative control over the Modern Warfare brand could have very serious consequences for the future of Activision's war franchise.
"This is potentially explosive," wrote Purewal on his personal blog Gamerlaw. "West and Zampella are arguing they have contractual creative control over the Modern Warfare brand. The details will have to come out in the litigation, but it could see West and Zampella demanding a veto over Modern Warfare 2 DLC as well as any other Modern Warfare games."
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 4:07 pm
News: Academic scholarship fund established in tribute to Mark Beaumont
The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences is to offer a new academic scholarship in honour of Mark Beaumont, the former COO of Capcom North America and Europe who passed away suddenly on February 23.
The endowment, established by the AIAS Foundation, will award four yearly $2500 scholarships to students attending accredited universities.
Beaumont had worked in the games industry for almost 30 years and been with Capcom since 2005, serving as senior VP and executive VP before being promoted to COO in April 2008. Prior to his time at Capcom, he served in roles with Midway Games, Time Warner Interactive, Activision, Sony's Psygnosis and Atari.
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 3:05 pm
News: Take-Two failing to make profits in non-GTA years
Rockstar's newest game, Red Dead Redemption, is unlikely to be profitable for publisher Take-Two, due to its protracted development and the high marketing budget ear-marked for its release.
The game was delayed yesterday by three weeks, pushing it out of the publisher's second quarter and into the third, and highlights the company's inability to be profitable during years when it does not release a console instalment in its market-leading Grand Theft Auto franchise.
"Red Dead Redemption was delayed into Q3, which ironically we believe actually helps Q2 earnings as it is unlikely to be a profitable title given the over 3-4 years of development costs and very heavy marketing spending," wrote Todd Greenwald, of Signal Hill Capital Group, in a note to investors.
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 3:04 pm
News: Ubisoft denies Silent Hunter 5 DRM cracked on first day
Ubisoft has denied that its new anti-piracy measures have been cracked for Silent Hunter 5 on the day the game was released, saying that versions currently being hosted on torrent sites are incomplete.
According to a report published earlier today by Eurogamer, submarine simulator Silent Hunter 5: Battle of the Atlantic, and the day one patch that fixed many fundamental bugs, were immediately hacked, with the game appearing on torrent sites and Usenet. Sites were also hosting versions of Assassin's Creed II.
In the case of Silent Hunter 5, the anti-piracy system was apparently circumvented by replacing an executable file with a patched replacement similar to most PC hacks. The piracy group responsible said that, in addition, the user turning off their internet connection or not using Ubisoft's game loader was enough to get the game running DRM-free.
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 12:24 pm
News: Suda 51: Indie scene allows devs the freedom of music artists
Goichi Suda aka Suda 51 has told GamesIndustry.biz that he is jealous of the opportunities that have opened up to aspiring games designers with the rise in popularity of mobile gaming and the launch of services such as WiiWare.
"I would have loved to have started making small games," said Suda. "When I was younger I was thinking, how come the team has to be so big to make one game? So it's really good to have a small team and people can put forward their own ideas into the game.
"It's like for a music artist, they can just put out their single right away, not wait to do the full album. It's like that, so it's a really helpful industry. I'm jealous actually."
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 11:35 am
News: MySpace founders buy social games portal MindJolt
The founders of MySpace, Chris DeWolfe, Colin Digiaro and Aber Whitcomb have announced a partnership with Austin Ventures to buy social gaming platform MindJolt.
MindJolt currently has over 20 million monthly active users on Mindjolt.com, Facebook and other social sites, and aggregates 1300 casual games on the web.
"MindJolt has quickly become an 'onramp' to the Internet for the worlds independent game developers," said Chris DeWolfe, CEO of MindJolt and former CEO of MySpace.
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 11:13 am
News: Virtuos kickstarts full cross-platform development project
Virtuos, the China-based work-for-hire company, has announced that it has been commissioned to work on an internally-developed title, to be released simultaneously on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, DS and PlayStation Portable.
The game, which is the latest instalment in a series "from one of the world's leading publishers," is yet to be detailed, but the move will mark the first time an independent company in China has created a game internally for all the current-gen platforms.
Additionally it was revealed that as the company celebrates its fifth anniversary, it also now employs 500 people across its development centres in Shanghai and Chengdu.
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 10:36 am
News: Jackson joins Namco Bandai UK
Mark Jackson has joined Namco Bandai's sales team in the UK as national accounts manager.
Jackson has been in the industry for fifteen years, with stints at Electronic Arts, LEGO UK and most recently Koch Media.
"We have been looking to recruit someone with Mark's industry knowledge and experience to bolster the UK Sales Team and moved quickly to acquire his services," commented Gary Coote, UK sales director for Namco Bandai Partners. "We welcome Mark on board."
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 9:34 am
News: Gamigo to enter North American market
Online games publisher and distributor Gamigo has announced its plan to enter the North American online gaming market later this year.
The Hamburg-based company said that the move would be initiated with the opening of its first foreign office in New York.
From there, it intends to find business and media partners to collaborate with, and hopes to roll out its first games in the territory in the second quarter of 2010.
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 8:58 am
News: Boom Blox development moved from LA to Guildford
EA has confirmed that a number of developers working on a sequel to Steven Speilberg's Wii puzzle game Boom Blox have been laid off.
It has also said that development of the title has been moved from EA LA to EA's Bright Light Studio in Guildford, where the Harry Potter titles and some Hasbro games were made.
It denied that the staff reductions were in any way a part of the company's overall restructuring, saying that instead it was a standard event in the development process made to leverage team strengths.
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 8:29 am
News: Playdom acquires Offbeat Creations
Social games company Playdom has acquired Facebook developer Offbeat Creations.
The creator of Super Farkel which currently boasts over 1 million monthly active users is added to Playdom's portfolio which includes Mobsters, Tiki Resort, Lil Farm Life and Poker Palace.
"With this acquisition we are bringing a talented new game studio into the Playdom family with a very exciting game pipeline," offered John Pleasants, CEO of Playdom. "We have aggressive plans to expand our social gaming footprint in 2010 and the addition of Offbeat Creations will significantly enhance our development throughput and expand Playdoms game pipeline this year."
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 8:23 am
News: Monumental: Facebook will soon be home to veteran gamers
Speaking about his company's strategy for releasing games onto Facebook, Monumental Games' CEO Rik Alexander has said that 18 months from now there will be more veteran gamers on Facebook than ever.
"I think in 18 months time Facebook is going to have more veteran gamers. Although they probably don't realise it, they're becoming better at games - playing Farmville teaches you certain things about gaming," Alexander told GamesIndustry.biz. "Over time they'll be thinking 'I don't want that any more because it's boring, what I want to be able to do is compete with other players and beat them in other ways.'"
As such, Monumental has revealed that its first MMO for the social networking site will be one that can evolve depending on what proves popular with its players.
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 8:00 am
Interview: Monumental Changes
When you consider Monumental Games' founders set up the company following Climax with the plan to build a hunting MMO in just three months, it seems almost surprising the developer is doing as well as it is; five years on spread across three studios with teams working on Facebook games, PlayStation motion control games, Capcom's next Moto GP title, its Hunter's World IP and the beginnings of a possible console MMO, as well as continuing to run its first MMO Football Superstars. But despite appearances and CEO Rik Alexander's apparently relaxed attitude to production schedules and gaining £2 million in funding last year, it's clear Monumental is doing a lot that's right. GamesIndustry.biz spoke to Alexander and COO Paul Mayze about the studio's success to date and where it's going from here.
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: Zampella and West file lawsuit against Activision
Activision has been hit with a lawsuit by ex-Infinity Ward duo Jason West and Vince Zampella over "substantial royalty payments" as part of their contracts for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
The pair were sacked this week from the company they helped found in 2001, as Activision reshuffled staff and studios for its most successful console franchise, with the publisher claiming Zampella and West were guilty of insubordination.
"Activision has refused to honour the terms of its agreements and is intentionally flouting the fundamental public policy of this State (California) that employers must pay their employees what they have rightfully earned," said their attorney Robert Schwartz.
Posted on 4 March 2010 | 7:45 am
News: Take-Two losses down to $34m
Take-Two has revealed a net loss of $33.8 million in the first quarter ended January 31, an improvement over the loss of $53.8 million for the same period last year.
Net revenue was $163.2 million, up from the $149.4 million the prior year, with sales led by Borderlands, NBA 2K10, GTA IV and Episodes from Liberty City and Carnival Games.
The company also announced that Bioshock 2 has now shipped over three million units since release on February 9, NBA 2K10 over two million units, and GTA IV 15 million copies since launch.
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 9:26 pm
News: Argos enters pre-owned games market
Catalogue retailer Argos has entered the pre-owned games market, offering its customers vouchers to spend in-store in exchange for their games.
The move is currently just a trial, with 27 of the chain's 735 stores taking part. Argos said today that there were no firm plans regarding the length of the trial or whether it would be rolled out to further stores.
Only a very select number of titles on Xbox 360, PS3, Wii and DS will be accepted for trade-in - a full list of the games it will take appears on the Argos website, along with the amount customers will be given for them.
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 2:53 pm
News: PlayReplay: Big demand for digital marketing
PlayReplay, the digital marketing agency formed late last year to promote digitally distributed games has revealed that demand is high, with the company experiencing an "unexpected" level of growth.
Among the new clients signed in 2010 are Relentless Software, Beatnik Games, Strawdog Studios, Sabarasa and VEEMEE - a roster that "delights" the company's director, Oliver Birch.
"Increasingly, developers are willing to take market risk and all the associated issues that presents," he said. "The creative talent of this industry wants to connect with consumers in a way that has previously been impossible within the current retail publishing structure.
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 12:30 pm
News: THQ closes Universomo studio
THQ has confirmed the closure of its Universomo studio, a studio that had formed a part of its Wireless division and been responsible for mobile adaptations of Up, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, De Blob and Wall-e.
Despite the closure however, the publisher said in a statement that it remained committed to mobile gaming.
"We are very excited about digital gaming and have increased our investment in this area," a spokesperson told ME.
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 12:13 pm
News: TT Games extends LEGO agreement to 2016
TT Games and Warner Bros. have extended their agreement to create and publish games based on the LEGO brand until 2016.
The Traveller's Tales studio has turned out a number of successful games based on franchises, including LEGO Star Wars, LEGO Indiana Jones and LEGO Batman, which have sold close to 50 million units worldwide.
"The LEGO Group is a brilliant and trusted organisation with an extremely loyal fan base," said Kevin Tsujihara, president of Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group. "We are very fortunate to have the opportunity to continue the successful partnership between this legendary company and the talented TT Games, which will enable us to further expand our slate of widely recognised, family-friendly games."
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 12:09 pm
News: GamesIndustry.biz to power Nordic Game networking
GamesIndustry.biz and Nordic Game will collaborate once again this year on the Nordic Game 2010 conference, taking place on April 27-30, with the GamesIndustry.biz Network providing networking tools for the Malmø event.
Launching early next month, the trade-focused community will invite event attendees to make use of the free tools, enabling schedule construction and meeting requests via the website.
Schedules can then be accessed at any time online, exported to a variety of calendar formats or printed out, to allow delegates to make the most of their time on location.
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 12:07 pm
News: Louis Castle to keynote Develop 2010
This year's Develop Conference has added two new speakers to its roster, one of which is Westwood Studios' founder Louis Castle, who will present the event's opening keynote.
Castle, now CEO of Instant Action, will host a session entitled 'Traditional Games Breaking into Social Networks: A View from the Frontline', in which he will discuss his experience of the sector.
"I have recently been attempting to free the games industry from the shackles of bricks and mortar and democratising music games in the process. It's been an exciting and challenging time and I'm really looking forward to sharing my experiences at Evolve," he commented.
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 12:00 pm
News: Working hours under review at GAME
The GAME Group has told GamesIndustry.biz that it is currently reviewing working hours for all staff across the GAME and Gamestation businesses, with a view to better serving customers and their spending habits.
Staff were informed by letter this morning that shift patterns may change, and outlined all options for employees. The last time the company reviewed shift and sales patterns was over two years ago.
"We continually review the sales patterns across our entire store portfolio to make sure that we have the right number of people in place to serve customers throughout the day," said a statement from the company.
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 10:29 am
News: Terminal Reality confirms new features for Infernal Engine
Terminal Reality has announced an technical overhaul of its Infernal Engine, making it compatible with Intel's new Core i7 980X CPU and improving on animation and lighting systems.
The company has also confirmed the new staff appointment of Marius Ulsamer, formerly of Threewave Software, as network architect. His long-standing technical programming experience will take the Infernal Engine to the next level, it said.
"2009 was an amazing launch year for the Infernal Engine," said Joe Kreiner, VP of sales and marketing at Terminal.
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 9:32 am
News: Devs establish fund for next gen of indie games
A fund designed to support independent developers by offering them an alternative way to bankroll their projects has been set up by a group which includes Braid creator Jonathan Blow, and Flower creator Kellee Santiago.
The new Indie Fund is a new funding source for independent developers created in order to encourage the next generation of game developers, which has already backed several unnamed projects to be announced shortly.
Other backers of the fund include Ron Carmel and Kyle Gabler of 2D Boy, the studio behind World of Goo, Critter Crunch maker Nathan Vella, Flashbang Studio's Matthew Wegner and AppAbove Games' Aaron Isaksen.
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 8:44 am
News: Eurogamer Expo heads to Earls Court in October
Eurogamer has announced that its third annual Eurogamer Expo will take place this year at London's Earls Court, October 1-3.
Taking place in Brompton Hall, the event intends to attract 20,000 consumers and will once again offer hands-on play with forthcoming game releases ahead of the busy Christmas sales period.
"Earls Court is another step up for the Eurogamer Expo," commented Rupert Loman, managing director of Eurogamer Network. "Our 2009 event was a sell-out in advance of the show and while our philosophy continues to revolve around sustainable and organic growth, moving to a bigger venue with all the facilities it has to offer allows us to put on a fantastic event for even more gamers."
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: GDC events family now "complete" - Scavio
The current line-up of GDC events looks set to continue for the foreseeable future as-is, with no plans to add new locations to the business calendar on top of the San Francisco, Europe, Online, Canada and China brands that currently exist.
That's according to GDC 2010 conference director Meggan Scavio, who told GamesIndustry.biz that while she constantly receives requests for events in new cities or countries around the world, she felt that the current line-up represented the industry effectively - and that future changes would need to be led by changing trends.
"I see it as complete," she explained. "I get a message a week from somebody who wants a GDC here, or a GDC there - they want it in Boston, England, Korea, Italy, South America... frankly there are these pocket communities, but I'm not sure it's beneficial to follow them everywhere.
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 8:00 am
Interview: Preview: GDC 2010
GDC in San Francisco has long been one of the most crucial dates on the games industry calendar, and with the action set for next week, here conference director Meggan Scavio explains what's in store, how the team is encouraging a greater sense of community, and why the line-up of international events is now complete.
Posted on 3 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: Activision outlines Call of Duty reshuffle
Activision Blizzard has moved swiftly to counter any investor concern over the recent Infinity Ward executive departures of Jason West and Vince Zampella by announcing a reshuffle of the Call of Duty franchise.
Under plans announced today, while Infinity Ward will continue to work on the downloadable content for Modern Warfare 2, Treyarch will add this year's wholly new title and an additional CoD game has been confirmed for 2011.
However, while it's not clear if that game will be an Infinity Ward title, is has been announced that Sledgehammer Games - a studio formed last November by ex-Visceral studio head Glen Schofield and Dead Space executive producer Michael Condrey - "is in development on a Call of Duty game that will extend the franchise into the action-adventure genre," according to a statement.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 9:58 pm
News: Activision rating unaffected by Infinity Ward issue
Following earlier reports that Infinity Ward management duo Jason West and Vince Zampella were forcibly removed from the studio's premises by order of owner Activision, Cowen and Company analyst Doug Creutz has issued a note to investors playing down the significance to the publisher and knock-on effects for the Call of Duty franchise.
A 10-K filing by the publisher cited breaches of contract and insubordination by the pair - chief technology officer and chief creative officer respectively - with Ward subsequently indicating via social networks that he was no longer employed by the company.
It is not clear what impact the apparent departure of Zampella and West will have on the creative abilities of Infinity Ward or the Call of Duty franchise," wrote Creutz. "We believe that Infinity Ward is Activision's second most important studio, behind only the best-in-class Blizzard."
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 5:36 pm
News: Sony acquires Media Molecule
Sony Computer Entertainment has announced the acquisition of Surrey, UK-based LittleBigPlanet developer, Media Molecule.
The move has been made in order to "secure excellence in game development for current and future PlayStation platforms," according to a statement from the publisher, with the studio's title having successfully created a dedicated community of gamers and creators across the world.
To-date over 2 million user-generated levels have been created by players and made available to the community for free, while the game itself has won over 90 awards, including 2 BAFTAs and 8 AIAS Interactive Achievement Awards.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 4:45 pm
News: Online game purchases 'undisrupted' by economy
The NPD Group has released details of its latest study into online gaming habits, based on the results of questions put to over 18,000 members of the public in the US in January, which indicates a solid base that has been relatively unaffected by the wider economic conditions.
Online Gaming 2010 results suggested that while the total number of people playing games online fell slightly year-on-year (from 56 per cent to 54 per cent), the average number of hours spent playing online was up from 7.3 hours per week to 8.0 hours per week.
Additionally, the number of games purchased online was also up slightly, from 19 per cent last year to 20 per cent this year, while the PC is still the most-used platform when it comes to online gaming - it accounted for 85 per cent of the total audience for all online activities.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 4:39 pm
News: Random House expands into game space
The Random House Publishing Group has announced that it is to move into the videogames space beginning with a link up with PC developer Stardock.
The studio, well known for its Galactic Civilizations and Sins of a Solar Empire titles, has written a novel to sit alongside its forthcoming release, Elemental: War of Magic.
The book, penned by Stardock CEO Brad Wardell is set for publication by Random House in August under the title Elemental: Destiny's Embers.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 4:18 pm
News: Blackley to keynote Game Based Learning event
Seamus Blackley, formerly of Microsoft and credited with co-writing the initial proposal for the Xbox platform, has been announced as the closing keynote for this year's Game Based Learning event, taking place at the end of March at the Brewery in London.
He'll be delivering a talk looking at the progress of the games business, entitled: "Where we've been, where we are, and where we're going," and also discuss videogames in relation to the film and music industries.
He'll be closing an afternoon of talks from TIGA's Richard Wilson, Fun Inc's Tom Chatfield and Bethesda's Sean Brennan in an event that brings together the games industry and education sectors to look at how commercial products are having a positing impact on learning.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 10:29 am
News: Rare opens additional Fazeley facility
Microsoft Game Studios developer Rare has announced that it is to open a new facility in Fazeley, in addition to its traditional Twycross case.
The new studio will be structured in a different way to most, however, and work more along the film production model in which teams scale up and down regularly according to the needs of projects being created.
Among the duties to be undertaken in Fazeley will be testing for Natal products - something which requires more space than traditional Xbox 360 games - while the decision is also part of a bid to stem the relentless increase of development costs over the years.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 10:00 am
Interview: Rare's Mark Betteridge
That the games business is in a process of change is a statement very few seem willing to argue with - but how that change is manifesting itself is slightly different everywhere you look. As a studio owned by Microsoft, Rare has recently been tasked with projects such as the Xbox 360 Avatars, and is currently working on Natal-related ideas - but as working practices change, new methods are needed to maintain efficiency. Here, studio head Mark Betteridge outlines the deeper thinking behind the company's move to open a new, media-savvy studio in Fazeley - and why the wider industry may indeed follow suit.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 10:00 am
News: De Montfort receives Skillset accreditation
De Montfort University in Leicester, UK, has announced that it has been granted accreditation for its BA (Hons) in Game Art Design by Skillset - making it the first games art course to receive the accolade in England, and the ninth in total.
The course was evaluated by staff from Ninja Theory and Monumental and labelled a "gem" by Skillset's computer games manager, Saint John Walker.
Meanwhile, Ian Livingstone, chair of the organisation's Skills Council, added: "This is the first games art course in England to be accredited and I hope it is the first of many. Accreditation is a rigorous process, but De Montfort's course shows what standards can be achieved with a curriculum designed with games industry input from day one."
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 9:41 am
News: Report: Infinity Ward bosses removed from studio
Two senior members of staff have been marched out of the Infinity Ward studio following accusations by Activision of contract breaches and insubordination, according to reports this morning.
Sources at the Modern Warfare studio told G4 that security turned up and removed chief creative officer Vince Zampella and CTO Jason West, to the confusion of staff.
A SEC filing made earlier today by Activision said a human resources investigation had been initiated into "breaches of contract and insubordination by two senior employees at Infinity Ward", although the employees being investigated were not named.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 8:51 am
Editorial: O Publisher, Where Art Thou?
In this exclusive editorial for GamesIndustry.biz, Blue Fang Games' COO Scott Triola asks why traditional game publishers have failed to capitalise on the success of Facebook as a gaming platform, and looks at the working methods that need overhaul and the challenges faced to make the 350 million users of the social network a viable market for the big box publishers.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: Publishers too slow for Facebook Blue Fang
Big box publishers such as Electronic Arts, Activision and Ubisoft have reacted too slowly to Facebook as a gaming platform, allowing smaller companies to establish significant and market leading businesses on the format which will prove difficult to challenge.
That's according to Scott Triola, chief operating officer of Blue Fang Games, who believes that the slow corporate culture and established development methods of big companies has left them playing catch up in a rapidly changing sector.
"Publishers can prognosticate and speculate all they want, but as we sit here today they have allowed Facebook upstarts to kick open the door, take their milk money and eat their lunch," wrote Triola, in an exclusive editorial for GamesIndustry.biz, published today.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: THQ ICE: Players need to be encouraged to switch MMOs
THQ*ICE CEO Eddie Chen has said that players need an incentive to give up their current MMOs for a new one, in much the same way that people needed reasons to switch from standard TVs to high definition ones.
His comments come as the company launches its Side-Scroller Showdown incentive for its recently launched free-to-play MMO Dragonica. The incentive challenges MMO players to try out Dragonica Online and then decide if they prefer it to their existing MMO game. If they choose to switch, they're rewarded with in-game cash, and if they decide to stick with their current game they're also given cash to spend in that game.
Chen told GamesIndustry.biz the incentive hadn't arisen out of doubts the game would do well in the Western market, but rather because the company wanted it to reach its full potential quicker.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 8:00 am
News: Sony gives the all-clear over PS3 clock bug
Sony has apologised for the bug that crippled a significant number of PlayStation 3 units yesterday, including retail SKUs, test and development kits.
According to the company, a bug related to the internal clock has now corrected itself as the date has changed, and users are now able to play on their consoles after previous warnings not to switch machines on.
"We are aware that the internal clock functionality in the PS3 units other than the slim model, recognised the year 2010 as a leap year. Having the internal clock date change from February 29 to March 1 (both GMT), we have verified that the symptoms are now resolved and that users are able to use their PS3 normally," said the company in a statement.
Posted on 2 March 2010 | 6:38 am
News: Sony promises bug fix within 24 hours
Sony has promised to fix a crippling PlayStation 3 bug within the next 24 hours.
Users of the older 60GB PlayStation 3 models, as well as test units and development kits, have been unable to access the PlayStation Network, with offline play for a number of games also affected. Sony is suggesting consumers don't attempt to play any games until the issue is resolved.
"We believe we have identified that this problem is being caused by a bug in the clock functionality incorporated in the system," said the company.
Posted on 1 March 2010 | 6:04 pm
News: Wii passes 10 million sales in Japan
Nintendo's Wii console has now sold over 10 million units in Japan.
That's according to local data specialist and Famitsu publisher Enterbrain, which puts the figure at 10,009,736 units, as of February 28, 2010.
Consumer blog Kotaku notes that Sony's PlayStation 2 reached the 10 million milestone quicker, after 131 weeks on the market. The Wii has hit 10 million after 170 weeks.
Posted on 1 March 2010 | 2:43 pm
