MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
The latest data from stats body NPD has shown that the US video games market suffered a 23 per cent year-on-year decline in August. It says the main reason was EA’s decision to release this year’s Madden game two weeks later than is typically normal – and subsequently out of …
Read More »US retailers see PS3 sales spike
Two of North America’s leading retailers have reported significant uplifts in sales of PS3 consoles. This is thanks, of course, to the recent Sony PS3 price cut that came into effect in key territories on Tuesday. "In terms of recent trends, clearly, we’ve had two major events recently with the …
Read More »Disc-based games sales fall in US
A new report from The Entertainment Merchants Association has revealed that sales of physical games on disc declined significantly in 2010. Gamasutra reports that in 2010 71 per cent of all video games sold in the US were on disc. In 2009 that figure stood at between 80 and 90 …
Read More »Analysts predict tight sales race between PS3 and Xbox 360
The PS3 could catch or even overtake the global install base of the Xbox 360 in 2011, analysts have predicted. While Microsoft’s machine remains the firm favourite of the pair in key territories such as the US, it’s a different story in other parts of the world. And it could …
Read More »US date announced for Prototype 2
Activision has announced that its long-awaited sequel Prototype 2 will be released in North America on April 24th 2012. That more likely than not means an April 27th release for the PS3 and Xbox 360 title in the UK, though that has yet to be confirmed. "We know our fans …
Read More »Final Fantasy XIII-2 gets 2012 US release date
Publisher Square Enix has announced that console RPG sequel Final Fantasy XIII-2 will be released in North America in January 2012. It has already been pencilled in for a December 2011 release in Japan on Ps3 and Xbox 360. There’s no concrete European release date as of yet, but that’s …
Read More »Market rebound unlikely unless we get hardware price cuts
Ahead of the publication of the June US video games market numbers, Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter has predicted big drops for every major format. We expect hardware sales of 325,000 Wii units (down 23 per cent year-on-year), 355,000 Xbox 360 units (down 21 per cent year-on-year), 240,000 PS3 units …
Read More »Pre-owned and digital games catching new boxed releases
NPD’s Games Industry: Total Consumer Spend report has revealed that the US games market is quickly approaching the point where new, boxed video games sales are no longer the primary sector. In Q1 2011 US consumers spent $2.03bn on boxed console and PC release. In the same period, however, they …
Read More »Games industry wins US court battle
The American video games industry has today emerged victorious in its six-year battle with Californian authorities. The US Supreme Court today ruled in favour of gaming in the case entitled Brown, Governor of California et al vs Entertainment Merchants Association et al. This means gaming is now safe from the …
Read More »Games credited for crime drop
In a rare bit of positive news coverage for the sector, a piece penned by BBC News Washington DC correspondent Tom Geoghegan has named games as one of the key reasons why crime has declined in the US. Recent FBI figures show a sharp drop in murder and robbery rates …
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