Find out whether Future was right to close CVG in this week’s issue of MCV

The first issue of MCV in 2015 is now online, featuring an interview with Future’s Declan Gough about the closure of iconic gaming brand CVG.

This week’s MCV also features an interview with new EA UK country manager Shaun Campbell about the company’s performance in 2014 and the upcoming blockbuster shooter Battlefield Hardline.

And Dorian Bloch of GfK Chart-Track assesses how the games market performed last year and we reveal the 50 best-selling boxed titles of 2014.

We also round up the games, events and trends set to define 2015, and speak to people from around the industry about they are looking forward to this year.

You can check out the digital edition here.

This issue includes:

• COVER: UK games retail sales up 12 per cent to 2.3bn in 2014
• COVER: MCV launches new eSports channel, eSports Pro
• ANNUAL DATA: Dorian Bloch, director of GfK Chart-Track, analyses the market data for software, hardware and accessories in 2014
• NEWS: Xbox and PlayStation digital titles now available at HMV
• NEWS: CVG vet Andy Robinson joins Bandai Namco
• INTERVIEW: Was Future right to close CVG? We speak to Declan Gough, the publisher’s head of content for film, games and music, about the closure of the iconic gaming website
• INTERVIEW: We meet EA’s new UK country manager Shaun Campbell
• 36 THINGS TO LOOK FORWARD TO IN 2015: This year is set to be one of the biggest and most exciting periods in gaming history. We look at the biggest releases, events, hardware and trends that are set to define 2015, and see what the industry is excited for
• FEATURE: The release schedule for 2015 is already brimming with brand new IP. We check out some of the biggest and most interesting inaugral properties coming out this year
• INDIE INTERVIEW: Pixel Rift developer Ana Ribeiro on why she moved to the UK to make games for the Oculus Rift
• UNDERSTANDING ESPORTS: As a part of MCV’s ongoing eSports coverage, we look back at the growth of competitive gaming, and look to where it could be headed in the future
• MONTHLY CHARTS: The usual suspects of FIFA, Call of Duty and GTA dominate the Top 40 for December, and the market is up thanks to heavy price cutting around Black Friday and the weeks leading up to Christmas
• APPOINTMENTS: Imagine’s David Scarborough moves to Koch Media
• SHELF LIFE: Adrian Hill of Pontefract-based retailer Console Yourself on the popularity of retro gaming products
• MARGIN MAKERS: With three Mario games coming out this year, we round up the best products based on Nintendo’s plumber mascot
• INTERNATIONAL: We check out the biggest games market in Latin America – Brazil