MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
Xbox is ‘really optimistic’ about the future of UK games development, despite the recent Brexit result. Microsoft remains one of the biggest investors in UK games development, even after the closure of its Lionhead studio earlier in the year. It owns Rare in Twycross and Lift in London, while it …
Read More »Welsh casual games firm OysterWorld falls into administration
Welsh games outfit OysterWorld has fallen into administration. As reported by the BBC, 50 people have lost their jobs. The firm has received 1.4m in Welsh Government grants over the last two years. The developer owes 2m, say administrators Kreston Reeves. The firm decided to enter administration after major creditors …
Read More »Masterchef maker Endemol launches UK games studio
The company behind Masterchef, Mr Bean and Pointless has opened a standalone games label in London. Endemol Shine has launched Good Catch, a developer and publisher that will focus primarily on mobile development, although it will also create products for PC and console, too. Its first game will be Black …
Read More »‘Publishers are now calling us’ – How Life is Strange has transformed Dontnod
Dontnod says its perception in the industry has been transformed on the back of hit episodic game Life is Strange. The company was in financial trouble after its disappointing first game, 2013’s Remember Me, and was rescued when Square Enix invested in Life is Strange. The title was a huge …
Read More »Constructor HD gets January release date
System 3’s popular RTS building franchise will return 20 years after it first launched. Constructor HD has been given a release date of January 31st, 2017 which makes it one of the first promising titles to launch next year. The game reunites many of the original development team and will …
Read More »Metal Gear and Call of Duty dominate Gamescom
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, and Metal Gear Survive are amongst the biggest games of Gamescom so far. Before the show, Infinite Warfare’s ‘Zombies in Spaceland’ trailer was released, racking up over 1m page views on YouTube – making it by far the biggest trailer. On the first day of …
Read More »Ex-Lionhead developers unveil ‘The Sexy Brutale’
A new indie studio formed by former Lionhead developers have teamed up with Tequila Works to create a unique console game. Tom Lansdale and brothers Charles and James Griffiths have formed Cavalier Games to create The Sexy Brutale, a puzzle adventure game where the hero must join a never-ending masked …
Read More »Yooka-Laylee developers buoyed by Ratchet & Clank success
The commercial success of the new Ratchet & Clank reboot has excited the creators of Yooka-Laylee. Like Ratchet & Clank, Yooka-Laylee is a 3D platformer. It generated 2.1m via Kickstarter, and studio Playtonic admits it’s nervous that many of those interested in the game will already own it as a …
Read More »Creative Assembly hopes to convert new RTS fans with Halo Wars 2
Creative Assembly says it will introduce a new interface and new controls into the PC version of Halo Wars 2, but insists the game will remain one of the studio’s most accessible strategy titles. Xbox marketing chief Aaron Greenberg told MCV @ Gamescom yesterday that he believes Halo Wars 2 …
Read More »PlayStack wants to ‘fix the word publisher’
A new UK games business has emerged at Gamescom that wants to ‘fix’ the word ‘publisher’ in the eyesof developers. PlayStack is a fully-funded UK games publisher. It wants to release six games this year and sign a further 20 in 2017. Its first game, the smartphone title Nemesis: Air …
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